âKagami-san, wake up. Look, you have to go and greet Menou!â
âNn? Aah-âŠLet me sleepâŠfor eight more hoursâŠâ
âHurry and wake up already. Otherwise, Takako-san will to come wake you, you know?â
âIâm up.â
It was morning in Balman. The attack by the Demon King Army had happened the previous day. The houses that had been destroyed were now being repaired and the injured people were being nursed. Despite it being morning, the town was crowded. The scene of Adventurers with the Roles of Monk and Craftsmen busily coming and going could be seen from the Innâs window.
Last night, Kagami had returned to the town after slaying all the Monsters and lied about the Demon running away, settling his state of affairs. He was questioned by Adventurers of various Levels and the Heroâs party because they wanted to know how he had defeated them. Afterwards, he brought Alice and Takako back to the Inn and told them the truth.
âItâs been awhile since Iâve met MenouâŠLook, Kagami-san, change your clothes, change your clothes!â
âKyaaa, Alice is a pervert! Geez, donât be so fussy. Iâm sure that Uncle will be waiting. I already told him that we would go greet him around noon.â
Alice smiled radiantly as she forcibly took the futon away from Kagami.
âIâm sure youâre an S, taking the futon away from me with that smile. Actually, why have you been smiling so radiantly since yesterday?â
âKagami-san didnât waste his breath to defeat Menou and since weâll meet with him, I have a chance to properly talk with him. Iâm really happy.â
Alice was elated and also told him, âKagami-san, thank you.â When he saw that dazzling smile, Kagami thought about the Black Steak he ate while grinning yesterday and took mental damage. Although he thought about the gold he had saved, his heart still hurt, somehow.
âNow that I think about it, Kagami-san, what did you do with that large amount of gold and gems you were holding yesterday?â
âI deposited all of it, since thereâs no way to carry it. It was an unexpected harvest.â
All the gems that had been dropped by the Hell Crows had come out to a total of 51 Gold and 900 Silver. Rather than giving half of it to the townsfolk for the townâs expenses, he had quickly deposited all of it into his safe at the Quest Guild.
He had an account registered in the Quest Guild so any other Quest Guild building became a bank that he could withdraw gold from.
Since the Quest Guild existed all over the world, a lot of Adventurers used it. It was the safest bank so they could deposit without any worries. There was also a charge of one Silver taken as commission for withdrawals so, other than Adventurers, very few people used it.
âIs Takako-chan back yet? After eating yesterday, she said she would go take a look at the horrors of her Bar Club, but it seems like she didnât go there.â
âShe came back once, but she immediately went to help out the townsfolk. She said it was important to socialize with the neighborhood.â
At Aliceâs answer, Kagami muttered, âJust like Takako-chan,â took off his sleepwear, and began to change into the plain clothes that he always wore.
He then saw Takakoâs figure outside, walking rapidly while holding two large logs, from the bay window and immediately erased that memory, deciding that he had not seen anything.
âWaah! Kagami-san, why are you changing in front of me!â
âIsnât it fine? Iâm wearing underwear. Thereâs no problem if you think of it as a swimsuit.â
âThatâs not the problem! Iâm an elegant woman, so think about it a little!â
Kagami responded with âBe careful next timeâ to Alice, who was complaining while puffing her cheeks, and continued to change his clothes without taking her complaints to heart.
When she saw this, Alice, who was being treated like a child, headed to the dining hall on the first floor, thinking it was unpleasant.
Kagami finished changing with a âphewâ and collected the luggage in the room before chasing after her.
He returned the roomâs key at the first floor lobby before walking to the dining hall, putting his luggage down, and sitting in front of Alice, who was sitting with a glum look.
âDonât be so angry. Were my muscles that unsightly?â
âNot really.â
He sighed as he met her eyes, while she dangled her feet. He thought that her mood would be lifted by eating food, so they ordered from the lady who was carrying food around the dining hall.
Sure enough, when Alice carried over her food several minutes later, her mood had brightened up. When Kagami saw the brightened Alice, who was happily eating while asking him what food he had ordered, he was amazed. He then thought âWhatever,â feeling satisfied.
âWell then, we have to plan the schedule of the trip to the Demon Kingâs Castle.â
âCertainly, it will take us ten days to get there. Though, I think that it would take twice as long if we tried to move discretely.â
âGoing there is rather simple, but since we have a few people, as well as that Demon Uncle who canât hide his magic, it will take several trips to get supplies from the town.â
Kagami spread open a map of the Arcasia Kingdom while holding bread in one hand. Alice looked slightly anxious.
It couldnât be helped that she wanted to know the truth behind her fatherâs illness and the Demon Army invasion as quickly as possible. Above all else, she intuitively felt that things would become irreversible if they were slow to act.
âHorsesâŠare no good?â
âHorses would absolutely never let Demons ride themâŠAlice, your magic is suppressed but that Demon UncleâŠMenou is impossible.â
Alice was disappointed and dropped her shoulders.
âWellâŠif we need to go there quickly, there is definitely a way.â
Alice immediately perked up at these words.
âHow?â
âThereâs this certain thing that we could ride that would let us arrive quickly, but I absolutely donât want to ride it.â
âW-Why is that? IâŠI want to know what is happening, even if itâs just a little faster.â
Kagami, who didnât know Aliceâs feelings, thought about it as sweat ran down his forehead. Honestly, Kagami was also worried about what had happened to the Demon King. His intuition felt that they could not be slow about this, no matter what. It was more important than worrying about being attacked by humans.
âYosh, letâs decide it based on what we see. Weâll go with the majority vote.â
âTakako-san says itâs fine if we ride her?â
âTakako isnât someone who would want to let multiple people ride her?â
Kagami put the payment for the meal on the table, stood up, and walked out of the Inn. Alice trotted along, ahead of Kagami.
âThat certain thingâŠis a monster called Kentaă»Uros. Itâs a Monster that exists outside of the Arcasia Kingdom. Although they can talk like a Demon, they are still Monsters so there is no point in worrying about them releasing magic like a Demon. In other words, they are harmless.â
âThere is such a Monster, huh? I didnât know, since it was impossible for me to leave the Arcasia Kingdom. It wasnât listed in the books I read either.â
âThey were put on an island country instead of the Demon Kingâs Castle, since it was too dangerous to have them inside the Arcasia Kingdom.â
Kagami stopped at one of the townâs crossroads and pointed at a wagon that was approaching with a rattling sound.
Aliceâs gaze followed his fingertip and the wagon reflected in her view caused her heart to pound violently. A Kenta-Uros had come forward, pulling the wagon. Its upper body had the appearance of a human that bore horns, as if it were a Demon, while its lower half had the appearance of a horse.
This wagon was pulled by two Kenta-Uros. One was blond and had a beautiful figure, while the other, who was old enough to be an Uncle, had a black mustache and short, black hair that was combed straight back from its forehead. They had a unique aroma and gave off a grand atmosphere as they pulled the wagon.
âA-Amazinâ! They are able to speak because the upper half of their bodies is like a Demon, right? But, I donât feel magic, even though their horns look like a DemonâsâŠAmazing! The path of coexistence that I am aiming for will be gran-mogo!â
âQuiet! Your voice is loud. âCause here, youâre a human. For now, itâs still too early to decideâŠso just look.â
As the Kenta-Uros pulling the wagon passed by Kagami, he sent them a distorted gaze, as if he felt grossed out to see a Kenta-Urosâs face.
Without saying anything, the Kenta-Uros, who had noticed Kagamiâs gaze, stopped in front of him.
âA humanâŠthis face, what is it?â
ăKenta-Uros Feature #1ăToo much pride. No, although it was uncertain if their pride was actually high, if they saw a disagreeable gaze, they would definitely stop and begin to talk about something.
(They would start talking even if it was something dead)
When Kagami continued to look at the Kentaă»Uros without saying anything or changing his expression in response to the Uncle Kentaă»Uros, the blond Kentaă»Uros stepped forward.
âHumanâŠwe are a noble existence. You guys are inferior living beings.â
ăKenta-Uros Feature #2ăThey always believe that they are of a noble existence, even in front of humans of an overwhelmingly higher level.
âThose like you are an existence equal to rubbish. You should be thankful that weâve even let you hear our noble voices. Such trash isâŠâ
âShut up! Walk faster!â
As the Kenta-Uros were speaking, the distressed Merchant man aboard the wagon cried out and, with a bashibashibashibashi!, whipped the two Kenta-Uros that had stopped. At the same time as the violent, painful sound rang out,
ââNNH AAAAAHHHNN FEELS SO GOODDDDDDD!ââ
The two Kenta-Uros began to shout happily, their eyes rolled upwards, and their tongues hung out of their open mouths when they were struck with the whip.
They had power several times higher than that of a horse, were able to vigorously continue past any obstacle, and were faster than horses. Since they looked down on humans, it would be normal for them to never obey. However, they were masochistic so they were just harmless Monsters that obeyed humans and wanted to get whipped. They are: Kenta-Uros.
They were Monsters who wanted to be whipped, rather than wanting to preserve their pride. They are Kenta-Uros. However, the Kenta-Uros recognized this as a give-and-take relationship so, to them, their pride was being preserved.
âAmazinâ, Kagami-san. This is the first time that I thought I was so hated.â