Chapter 76.2

I was bored since I couldn’t help out so I cast down a fishing line to try and increase our food supplies. While I was doing that, the hero, who had a rod with him, called out to me.

「Can I fish beside you?」

「Looks like we’re going to have a fish party then」

「I’m not confident I’ll be able to catch any though. I’ve gone fishing with my father a few times when I was younger but I don’t have any other experience aside from that」

「I don’t have any either. I’ve only done it a few times ever since I came to this world. My home town is located inland and there was a Sahagin-looking onee-san who was in charge of the caught fish. Well, based on our world’s standards, just this rod and string are no good. We don’t having a fishing reel as well so there might be no fish party today」

As I said that, I raised my rod then put the small fish that was hanging at the end into a bucket.

「It would be nice if we can help out, but since we’re pretty much amateurs, all we can do is just sweep the deck or stay out of the way. We might prove to be useful in tasks that require strength like raising the sails, but to be honest, I don’t really understand which rope to loosen or tighten just from the captain’s words」

「Yeah, I don’t even know where I should tie it」

「That’s right. Anyway, what’s up?」

「I was told that I’d feel depressed staying in my room the whole time. You were fishing here so they told me to join you」

「You have great comrades, don’t you?」

As I said that, I fished another small fish.

「So? What are you going to do?」

「I’ll say that it was just rumors. There were demonkin cultivating the land but no Demon Lord. I think that should be enough. I think the kingdom has an intelligence unit but nobody knows that a Demon Lord was in Corundum right?」

「……probably」

「Then it should be fine, right?」

「Maybe I should ask them to stop calling me Maou-san when we get back to the island」

「That might be for the best」

「Ah, a merchant called Nils, his subordinates, the sailors, and the mercenaries he hired know so I might not actually be in the clear」

「I don’t know who that Nils-san is but isn’t that bad for you?」

「How about you say that even though I’m a Demon Lord, I’m not hostile. Just tell them I’m pioneering the island and even get along well with the humans. Wouldn’t that be good enough?」

「……I don’t know. I guess I can try telling them that but they’ll probably just order us to subjugate you anyway. Even if we refuse, they’ll just send another hero and there’s nothing we can do about it you know?」

「If they are Japanese, we might be able to reason with them but it might not work for the others…… I’ll just have to be prepared for anything but I’ll leave the final decision to you」

「What do you mean?」

「I’ll prepare myself to kill an Earthling I guess」

「……it doesn’t matter if you’re summoned or reincarnated into a demonkin, there are a lot of difficult things you have to deal with, don’t you?」

「It’s not as hard when you learn how to take things in stride. Also, you should prioritize yourself. When it comes to killing, even if I don’t like it, I’d be better off doing it if it means I’ll survive. That kind of mentality is necessary in my opinion. I used to only do day labor jobs for the guild since I didn’t even want to even kill animals or monsters if I can avoid it but due to various circumstances, I became too famous. I was dispatched by the guild to escort the supply transport to the frontlines where the war between the demonkin and humans is happening. Once that was done, I was assigned to defend the fort and was forced to fight a battle I didn’t want to until winter. I did all sorts of things since I didn’t want to die but that meant I had to kill. I killed 30 people during my first time. They were enemy scouts so I had to make sure they couldn’t return to give their report. Doing that almost broke me. After that, I used magic to launch boiling water towards the enemy and crush them with a stone wall made. Most of them probably died because of that. Even if they did survive, they got shot with arrows just like the ones who jumped into the moat after getting splashed with boiling water.

No matter how you put it, just like how only the skin color was different among the people on Earth, the only difference between a demonkin and a human is their appearance. At least that’s what I think. Some humans are saying that the demonkins are inferior to the humans right? They’re only using that for their convenience since they want to take over the demonkin’s territory. If it weren’t for them, I would have been content with living in the vicinity of where I was born and raised you know?」

I got another small fish after I said that.

「Well, you’re still young so just ignore this old man’s complaints and do as you please. I don’t mind whichever way you wish to report it. I can only listen and give you advice when you want to consult anything with me」

「Thank you」

「Don’t worry about it. Although I say you do what you please, it may be better to listen to what the senior heroes have to say」

「That’s true」

After we had that conversation, I made tempura that was popular with the sailors. While I was making them, the cook was standing beside me observing the procedures. You already took notes the other day, didn’t you? Why do you still have to watch?

□

Nagi-san was attending to my needs. He brought me my food and told me to eat it with my party if I was feeling better.

「Ooh! It’s tempura!」

「Is this white lumpy thing called “tempura”?」

「That’s right. It’s been a long time since I had those」

「Oh? What’s this? It’s pretty crunchy」

「It would be nice to have rice or udon right now. Soba would also be great」

「Is this food from your world? You should thank the Demon Lord then for looking out for you」

「Tasty~. It’s just fish covered in flour and fried in oil so why does it taste so good!? The breadcrumbs are also great you know!?」

「It’s a bit different from the one from my world but it’s still delicious. It’s already good enough to sell at a restaurant or food stalls」

「Wasn’t his occupation a confectionery craftsman? I wonder if he can make sweets?」[TL: Changing ‘sweets-making craftsman’ to ‘confectionery craftsman’ since I think it rolls out of the tongue better]

「I don’t think there are any problems judging from his skills」

「This would be great with some liquor」

The dish from my world was well received.

「Hey guys, I have something I want to say」

After hearing that, they all looked at me and waited for me to talk.

「Once we’re done reporting to the country, I’m thinking of visiting the other heroes. I might be inconveniencing you but I wish for you to lend me a hand on my journey」

「Alright, that’s fine with me. You’ll have to treat us to a lot of drinks though」

「I also don’t mind. I don’t feel like fighting Demon Lords after being on the receiving end of that magic」

「Sure~」

I resolved myself for their refusal but they all just casually agreed. Now I feel like an idiot for worrying.

Idle Talk

Ahー, I’ve seen that before.

I was talking to Nagi-san who was lying down while holding a fishing rod on his belly.

「Takeru-kun, Takeru-kun, look. Supine fishing!」1

I was wondering just what in the world was he doing but I remembered something popular on Earth and immediately burst out laughing.

「Hahaha. What the heck!」

「Ah, I guess you know about it. I’m over ten years older than you but it’s great that you know it」

「It was pretty famous back then after all」

「It was a show that seemed to be on air all the time, wasn’t it? Those people are already old now though. Well, it’s great if that cheered you up even for a moment」

Saying that made me realize that I was also feeling quite down myself.