One Sunny Afternoon

The wagon shook.

Pulled by the Hellhound, their wagon shook as it went down the road.

"Gata gata~"

"Goto goto~"

Maal and Irina were singing as they leaned out from the wagon.

This was the first time Irina had seen the outside world, so everything she saw was new for her.

Maal was describing everything to her.

If Ria was her big Onee-chan, Maal was her small Onee-chan.

For a Dragon like Irina, there wasn't much of a difference between a human and a beastkin. Maal, who affectionately played with her, was simply her Onee-chan.

Inside the wagon, Serge looked through his grimoire, trying to master his Skills.

Gig was training his grip strength with a hand gripper that Ria made.

Ria, Carlos, and Lulu were all swaying on the backs of their horses and donkey.

Skipping some important times, there a redheaded girl sat alone in a gloomy mood in the corner of the wagon.

"How did it turn out like this…"

It was Shizuna.

She'd whined to herself many times now. As a reflex to her dark mood, Serge sang out, 'Dona dona'.

Yeah, she was sold by her own father.

 

 

Returning from the Dark Labyrinth, Vargas had become a hero.

He was a warrior from a famous party to begin with, and after clearing the Dark Labyrinth he brought back an orichalcum greatsword that could be called a sacred treasure.

Unlike the other members, Vargas' wish was easy to be granted.

After that, Ria was caught up in a vortex of people similar to like what happened in Labyrinth City.

From the mayor who they had already been acquainted to, to local nobles and celebrities, everyone wanted to become acquainted to them.

So Ria, who had returned late, talked about the villages working together for the Millennium.

One way or another, it turned into a serious discussion. No matter what though, whether they liked it or not, Jaeburg would become the front line of humanity when the Millennium took place.

During that difficult discussion, Ria had an even more difficult problem.

The first thing that had to be taken care of before all else… Matsukaze's well-being.

Matsukaze had been left alone for more than half of a month. Though there were of course other people taking him for walks, that was a separate issue.

That horse had a high pride.

She ran together with him in a nearby meadow, washed his body, and brushed him, taking up the whole day.

Then she exchanged information with Serge.

The Demon King-sama may be a good natured person, but for now their countermeasures for Cordova hadn't changed.

They would meet that sexy dark elf sooner or later.

Their plans hadn't changed.

For now, they decided to return to Labyrinth City and collect some more information, as well as deciding on which day to leave Jaeburg.

Vargas came over to where Ria's group was staying at the inn.

In his hands was the figure of Shizuna, caught in his hands by the nape of her neck like a cat.

"Please this one too."

Vargas said that.

Vargas had already said himself that he wanted to take his family somewhere safe beforehand.

So, he ordered Shizuna to find a good place to live in Casalia.

"Why me…"

"Because it'd be bad for me to go."

Thinking about her safety on the way, there were no problems with Shizuna's skill.

Above all, Shizuna was liked by Ria.

Hoping for his family to have success in life as an aristocrat, he presented the beautiful damsel to an influential person.

Vargas would actually hold out his beautiful daughter to an influential person himself.

"I didn't think my father was a person like that!"

"Don't say that. Even if you say that, Ria is a woman. It's not like I'm selling you to a lecherous noble."

Though Shizuna wore a look of despair, her mother and younger brothers' futures were serious, so she would go with Ria.

Additionally, she was shouldering the safety of the other members of Thunder Fangs' families. She couldn't run away.

"Foremost, aren't you happy that such a beautiful girl is wooing you?"

"I'm not happy! Aren't I a woman!?

"From my point of view, you look like you are on close terms."

Seeing Vargas incline his head with a sigh, something came to Serge's mind.

This Oyaji… has some accomplishments in yuri.

 

 

At any rate, Shizuna joined as a travelling companion.

The group was aiming for Labyrinth City for now. To trade for important goods and gather information.

From there, they would head to Ogre Village and go around planning with its surrounding villages.

… And then, part with Maal.

That was the promise.

When she bought Maal, it was to explore labyrinths. In that sense, with Shar scouting the Dark Labyrinth, Maal's role had ended.

Still, when they explored the labyrinth together, more than her fighting strength, Ria genuinely needed her.

Under a travelling sky, swaying back and forth on Matsukaze's back, Ria was a little melancholic.

She sometimes looked at Matsukaze, wondering if he sympathized with her feelings.

"It's alright. There's no way I'd choose my own selfishness over Maal's happiness."

She stroked Matsukaze's nape. Right, good-byes were simply a part of life.

"You'll stay with me for a while. In the future, I'll look for a lot of cute brides for you."

Matsukaze's kids. They would definitely be wise and strong. Then she would get on his back and go travelling again.

Ria was being uncharacteristically solemn.

 

 

The sun would go down before long.

East from the Dark Labyrinth, there was a single group in the mountains on the boundary of the permafrost.

There were mainly a lot of cat beastkin, but there were various races. Looking around, there were all kinds of nimble races.

Standing in the vanguard was a single beautiful girl with her arms crossed.

"I've arrived."

"Ah, you saved me."

Confronting the young girl was a silver haired dark elf.

No, this one's skin color had changed to white.

Though it was a precaution against being found when in human areas, the beastkin here couldn't recognize this dark elf as Rei.

"So, can you do it?"

"Yeah, I can. Thank you."

"What are you saying? Don't be like that."

The girl's said it in a natural manner.

She was her childhood friend. They had the same godparent, growing up as sisters. But their positions now were different.

"His Majesy told me to assist."

In truth, she had come here to plead.

"Besides, wouldn't it be hard to command these children by yourself?"

"Certainly, you've saved me."

In front of Rei was a little girl. Of course, her age didn't match her looks.

Possibly a race that was a closer existence to immortality than dark elfs.

A Vampire.

Flaxen hair, blue eyes. You could see sharp fangs poking out from her pink lips. Her skin was pale, oozing a bewitching feeling.

"So, who should I kill?"

"No, wait."

This vampire Ohime-sama, unlike her appearance, was a battle maniac.

"We guide humans from the other side. Our race lives in darkness, you know."

Though she was good at stealthy work, destructive actions were basically her strong point.

"It's fine if I just charm them. Well, affected by my charm? Almost all men fall madly in love you know?"

"His Majesty isn't affected by it."

"You're noisy!"

Played around on Rei's palm, there seemed to be a gap in mental age.

Her followers behind her were also nodding in agreement.

"Besides, the most important thing to be careful of… it's a woman."

"Ah, that so? That's a relief. I didn't want to suck some dirty man's blood."

The vampire moved behind Rei and looked at her back.

She tried to put her fangs on the nape of her neck.

"Oi, Asuka."

Easily, she pushed her away with her hand.

"Sorry, sorry. I was just kidding."

The vampire was waving her hands and smiling, but Rei understood she was half serious.

"Really, cut that out. I want to be good friends with you."

"Excuse me. I only like His Majesty."

Rei smiled at her remark. It certainly wasn't a lie. Excepting the Demon King that was her lord and godparent, she hadn't shown interest in other men. She always drank the blood of women.

Right, this was the Demon General who held the nickname [Shiver], Asuka Augustoria.

Rather than homosexual, she was bisexual.