My Instant Death Ability Is So Overpowered, No One in This Other World Stands a Chance Against Me! After Story E-Book

Tsuyoshi Fujitaka

• Herausgeber: J-Novel Club
• Kategorie: Gesellschafts- und Liebesromane
• Serie: My Instant Death Ability is So Overpowered, No One in This Other World Stands a Chance Against Me!
• Sprache: Englisch

Seitenzahl: 286

Veröffentlichungsjahr: 2024

Beschreibung

Now that they’ve successfully made it back home safe and sound, Yogiri, Tomochika, and the surviving members of their class begin the long work of readjusting to life in their own world. But even with their story finished, countless mysteries remain to be explored! This collection of short stories answers all sorts of questions left unanswered by the main series. What was Hanakawa’s previous adventure like? Who is Haruto Ootori, and why does he have wings? Just what has (the real) Enju been up to since we last saw her in the underground facility? There are plenty of answers to be found in over ten stories...and maybe another mystery or two to ponder!

Leseprobe

Table of Contents

Cover

Characters

The First Trip Between Worlds

Beastkin

Names

Superpowers

Robots

Evil Spirit

Railblade

Otherworld Harem Project

Clans

Beta Test

Something Unnecessary

Afterword

Color Illustrations

About J-Novel Club

Copyright

Landmarks

Table of Contents

Color Images

The First Trip Between Worlds

Despite going to bed the night before as normal, Daimon Hanakawa awoke in an unfamiliar place.

Any ordinary person in this situation would be at a total loss. It would be so strange, they’d probably first think they were dreaming. But Hanakawa’s senses all told him this was very real. The cool stone floor, the dim candlelight, the soft moans, the rank smell of blood, mold, and excrement—it was all so shockingly different from his bedroom that he immediately began to panic.

“What is this?!”

Jumping upright, he looked around. He was surrounded by candle stands. His worn-out bed was nowhere to be seen, replaced by stone tile covered in strange patterns. The candlelight wasn’t enough to fully illuminate the room, but it was enough for him to notice the figures lying all around him. There was a man in a hooded robe and others in full armor, and they were all sprawled across the ground. Some of them were still groaning, blood pooling on the ground beneath them, but judging by the dismembered arms, legs, and heads around them, the majority seemed to be dead.

“Oh no no no no no...” Finding himself seated in the center of this massacre, the ordinary high school student was incapable of keeping calm, starting to babble senselessly.

“Dammit! What happened?!” Someone threw open the door to the room, which told Hanakawa that they were indeed indoors. The irritated newcomer was a woman, but one who was entirely unbothered by the scene she had walked in on. Whoever it was stormed straight in towards Hanakawa. She might have been quite beautiful in her red dress, but to him she was nothing but terrifying. She made no effort to hide her feelings, her anger clearly displayed in her expression and mannerisms.

With a pathetic squeal, Hanakawa shrank back, sure he was about to get punched or something similar. But instead she grabbed the collar of one of the collapsed men beside him and dragged him to his feet. The man was alive, but something dark and red was spilling out of his stomach. Though Hanakawa knew what it was, he pretended not to realize it.

“Report.”

“The summoning...was a success...”

“A success? You call this a success?”

“The first...did this. Though he had just awakened his Gift...without any weapon...he started cutting us apart. Then...he left through the window...”

“Oh? The first?” The woman’s anger began to relent in favor of curiosity.

“We summoned...two...”

“And the second also ran, I presume?”

“No... He’s there...” The man pointed a trembling finger at Hanakawa.

“What?!” The woman’s face suddenly filled with fear. It seemed she hadn’t seen Hanakawa among the disaster surrounding him. “Guards! Restrain him!”

At her command, soldiers poured into the room and pushed Hanakawa to the floor. Naturally, he could do little more than blubber as they did. He didn’t even have the composure to make excuses or beg for his life. He had no idea what was happening or what he was supposed to do in a situation like this.

“Damn. It looks like we were too naive.”

“Your Highness, I recommend we enslave him as soon as possible,” one of the guards suggested.

“If we hadn’t been stuck on enslaving them specifically to the royal family, perhaps we could have avoided this whole mess,” she retorted.

“It’s an ancient summoning spell. We don’t know the details of how it works, so we can’t afford to get creative with it.”

“Fair enough. Lift his head.”

“Guh!”

One of the guards yanked Hanakawa up to lift his head off the ground. With the rest of his body still being pressed down, pulling his head back like that made it all but impossible to breathe.

The woman the guards referred to as “Your Highness” let go of the fatally wounded man she was holding, who dropped to the floor with a thud. It seemed he had already expired. One of the guards handed the woman a metal ring. With a bit of effort, she split the ring into two halves.

“Can he understand us?”

“The Gift should give him the bare minimum of language abilities.”

“Good. Look at me. Any attempt at defiance will only make things worse for you.”

Hanakawa looked at the woman as instructed. Judging by her golden hair and bright-blue eyes, she couldn’t have been Japanese. She reached out to Hanakawa, recombining the split halves of the metal ring around his neck.

“You can let him go now.”

As the guards released their grip on him, he flopped to the stone floor, powerless.

“Get up, spin three times, and bark for me.”

Though he didn’t even have the energy to sit up, Hanakawa immediately found his body answering those commands on its own.

◇ ◇ ◇

“I still do not understand!”

After being bathed, given new clothes, and taken to a reception room, Hanakawa was finally starting to calm down. Though he still didn’t know what was happening, he was finally beginning to work up the courage to ask.

“Hmm...where should I start?”

The woman in red, sitting across the low table from him, sank into thought. They were in a resplendently decorated building, surrounded by servants. The fact that she took all of that in stride must have meant she was one of society’s elites. They called her “Your Highness,” meaning she was likely royalty, but there was no concern about her being left alone with a commoner like Hanakawa.

“I guess I’ll just get right to the point. We summoned you to be a hero. So destroy the demonic kingdom for us.”

“Ah, that’s how it is.”

“You’re not surprised?”

“Well...I have had ample time to think on the matter.”

A mysterious magic circle, a medieval castle, heavily armed guards, people who looked nothing like Japanese. There were even a few with animal ears around. All of these factors together led him naturally to think he had been brought to another world. Maybe an ordinary person wouldn’t be able to make that leap in logic, but as a card-carrying otaku, it was an easy guess for him.

“However, it is a bit sudden to ask me to take on such a task. I would very much like to ask for some time to prepare myself and gather equipment. Even the king of Dragon Quest gives you 120 gold, you know.”

“You don’t have the right to refuse. Destroy the demonic kingdom and bring back peace to our lands. These are your orders. As my slave, you have no way to defy them.”

Hanakawa put a hand to the collar around his neck. He hadn’t felt anything but bad premonitions when it had been placed there, but it seemed its function was pretty close to what he had anticipated.

“Huh? But then what about my otherworld harem?”

“You don’t have that freedom.”

“Whaaaaat?! How on earth do you expect me to stay motivated?!”

“It doesn’t matter whether you’re motivated or not. That collar will force you to carry out our orders, even against your will. But doing so will likely impact the efficiency of your work, so I’ll throw you a bone. If you bring peace back to our kingdom, I’ll set you free. So do your best.”

“Am I supposed to believe that?” Hanakawa said. “I have no means of defying you to begin with. Even should you change your mind later, I will have no recourse.”

“As Atrina, the first princess of the kingdom of Iman, I hereby swear that upon your destroying the demonic kingdom, I will free you from slavery, and grant you money, status, and whatever women you desire. That is a worthy reward for saving us from this threat.”

It didn’t seem like she was lying. And since Hanakawa couldn’t disobey her anyway, she had no need to.

“By the way, other kingdoms have also summoned heroes. If the others finish the job before you, your reward is nullified, so make sure you work quickly.”

“What?! A multisummon?!” Hanakawa was thoroughly shocked. He had assumed he would be the only one. “But if there are other heroes, why must I try so hard?”

“Being responsible for destroying the demonic kingdom comes with its own merits. Things will ultimately work out as long as the job is done, but that doesn’t mean we can just sit idly by and wait for someone else to do it. I suppose there is also the option of cooperating with the other heroes, though if you do that, your reward will only match the contribution you make.”

“Whaaat?! That is entirely different from what I expected! But more importantly, I am naught but a common man! I hardly have the strength to accomplish such a feat!”

“Don’t worry about that. You’ve got the Gift now.”

“The Gift?”

“A supernatural power, like this.” Atrina held her palm up towards Hanakawa. Though it was empty, he immediately felt something graze his face, and blood started to drip from his cheek. It was a blade—it had grown from her hand and sliced his cheek. “This is my Gift, the ability to grow swords from my body.”

“So I have the same skill?”

“No, it’s different for each person. But you should have a special version of it for being a hero. Focus and look inward. You should be able to see it for yourself.”

“Aha... In that case, status window, open!” Though he had been half-joking, the Gift responded to his words and a status window appeared in front of his eyes as if he were in a video game. “Huh? That’s really how it works?”

“By the way, don’t ask me anything about it. Using the Gift is different for every person.”

“I see. So it functions as if I am within a game. It appears I am a Healer. That is a rather appealing ability, no? If I am able to cure injuries and illness, I should easily be able to inspire goodwill!”

Information on the general nature of his powers flowed into Hanakawa’s mind. He was a user of healing magic. He could heal any wound no matter how grave in an instant, could cleanse any status ailment like poison with ease, and had the ability to purify undead. It was one of the most sought-after abilities in any adventuring party. If this world’s medical technology was still relatively undeveloped, such powers could lead to him being all but worshipped.

“That’s kind of unfortunate. Healing magic is quite rare, but for making a splash in this battle, a combat-oriented Gift would have been better...”

“Ugh. I can already feel your lack of expectations for me...”

In the blink of an eye, Atrina’s interest in him had taken a sharp nosedive.

◇ ◇ ◇

Heroes were summoned from other worlds because they were more likely to possess rare Gifts. Gifts weren’t something that just anyone could obtain, so the fact that summoned heroes virtually always had one was a good enough reason in and of itself.

Hanakawa’s Gift of Healer wasn’t a bad outcome. As long as he was still alive, he could recover from any injury. There were few skills as useful as that. But it did force him into something of a supporting role. Fighting alone was virtually impossible. He’d inevitably need allies. Even leveling up on his own would be beyond his abilities.

“Oh, mister hero! Could you heal our wounds for us?”

A group of huge, rough, filthy men crowded around him. They were all covered from head to toe in armor sporting numerous holes that were all leaking blood. Their wounds came from the fangs and claws of monsters, their gruesome nature showing just how powerful those monsters were.

They were on the border of Iman and the demonic kingdom, in a city that had been destroyed by the demonic kingdom’s invasion. Regardless of his will, Hanakawa had been thrown straight to the front lines.

“Oh come on! At least set me up with some female warriors! Like the kind that wear bikini armor!”

Forced out into battle, the fighting had started while he was still trying to get his bearings, and now there were mountains of monster corpses all around him. Though it seemed well beyond their capacity, these three warriors had somehow managed to take them all down with nothing but swords, spears, and axes.

“Female warriors? Why would we bring women to the front lines? Sure I’d love to have them around, but life isn’t that easy around here.”

“Guh...” Shot down by such a logical argument, Hanakawa found himself at a loss for words. It seemed that in this world men typically displayed more physical strength. With no modern weapons to level the playing field, there wasn’t much room for women on the front lines.

“But wait! There is still the Gift! Should girls not be capable of fighting?!”

“There aren’t that many women with the Gift, and the few we have are better suited to protecting the princess, right?”

“Ugh! Now that you mention it, I suppose there is no reason to assign them to my care! But still! Even if I give up everything else, surely there is room for women in support roles such as priests?!”

“Priests? Having people praying on the front lines is just gonna be a bad omen, isn’t it?”

“Perhaps, but...wait, do priests not wield healing magic?”

“The Church does nothing but moan and mutter. Bringing them here would just get them killed.”

“Then sorcerers! Surely women can use magic!”

“Witches? The kind that hole themselves up in a shack in the woods, stirring a big pot full of herbs?”

“Guh... Why does everything have to be so realistic?! Why then are parties made up of four people?! It is far too much like Dragon Quest! If we are to be fighting monsters, should we not be using an entire army?!”

“Why would we want to waste the lives of so many line infantry? You need at least a Warrior’s Gift to fight up here.”

By the way, all three of the men had the Gift of Warrior. It was a pretty standard combat profession, each specializing in swords, spears, or axes.

“Anyway, stop with all the complaining and heal us already.”

The men had no particular ill will towards Hanakawa, but neither did they respect him as a hero. Though he had no interest in healing men himself, he had no choice but to obey the orders of the slave collar. The first person he had seen upon donning the collar had become his master. She had ordered him to support the people of her kingdom, which meant he had to follow their orders as well.

Hanakawa put his hands on the group of men. A gentle light enveloped them, stopping the flow of blood and sealing their wounds.

“Ugh...that does it for my MP...” he moaned.

“No idea what that means, but sorry to hear it.”

Apparently the recognition of the Gift as something clearly defined by numbers on a stat sheet was unique to visitors from other worlds. Those native to this world only had a vague understanding of how strong their Gifts were. That gave summoned heroes a remarkable advantage.

“All right, let’s head home.”

“Good idea. With such easy access to healing, I think we overdid it a bit.”

“Indeed,” Hanakawa agreed with them. “Very well...”

“Oh, you’re not done yet.” One of the men stopped him, pointing back to the battlefield where the bodies of numerous monsters still lay.

Stifling the urge to vomit, Hanakawa approached the corpses. He needed to collect items. That was also part of his job. His Healer profession came with the Item Box skill, which allowed him to store items in a small pocket dimension, letting him carry huge amounts of things around easily. After collecting the raw materials and equipment dropped by the monsters, he returned to the warriors.

“That really is convenient, isn’t it? We’re relying on you here.”

Like hell you are. You think of me as little more than traveling storage. Despite his feelings, Hanakawa could never complain to their faces.

One of the soldiers blew a whistle, and suddenly a horse-drawn carriage appeared beside them. It was the carriage that had brought them there, which must have been hiding somewhere nearby. Climbing aboard, they began the journey back to the closest city.

“Ah! It’s the heroes!”

As they emerged from the carriage, they received an incredible reception from the city folk. Of course, the “heroes” being referred to were the warriors rather than Hanakawa. Women immediately crowded around them, shrieking like school girls. The men picked a few of the women to take with them and disappeared.

“Uh...I also happen to be one of the heroes...” Hanakawa tried calling out to some of the women left behind, stepping closer with a foolish smile on his face.

“Stay away, fatty!”

He froze in place. He couldn’t defy the orders of anyone in Iman. Bring back peace to Iman. Do not harm the people. Support them. Those were the orders he was given, in order of priority. He didn’t have to listen to every absurd thing they told him, but something like “stay away” would freeze him in place instantly.

“Be a good piggy. Go back to your pigsty and eat your pig slop!”

“What an eyesore! Could you stop clogging up the streets with your blubber?”

Restoring peace to Iman required him to maintain a measure of health for himself, which meant he would have to make use of the city’s facilities. In that sense, he could ignore those kinds of orders. That didn’t do much to reduce the mental damage he suffered as a result, though.

◇ ◇ ◇

Half a year after Hanakawa was summoned to this world, he was walking down a stone corridor in a place known as the Labyrinth of the Dead, shut off from all natural light, challenging the dungeon alone.

Though that was dangerous, of course, he was thankful for the freedom to act alone. He was thoroughly fed up with how the people of Iman treated him. At least here, he could go adventuring on his own. There were no monsters around except the undead, which gave him an exceptional advantage. His healing magic was a powerful weapon when turned against them. Magic to heal everyone in his surroundings created a holy ground that was impossible for undead to enter, which allowed him to keep fighting on his own. It was really the perfect dungeon for someone like him.

One might find it hard to believe that he was allowed to operate alone, but under the pretense of working to defeat the Demon Lord, he had managed to win this small freedom. Since the slave collar made it impossible for him to plot against Iman, they were willing to ignore his little escapades.

“First and foremost, I must increase my level! I must abandon the naive notion that I can achieve happiness in this state!”

That was something he had felt keenly after six months of being run ragged by Iman’s people. If he wanted a chance at his fantasy harem life, he needed to be freed from this collar, and to do that he needed strength. So he continued alone into the dungeon. Though one might think it impossible, it was something he could do because of his Item Box skill. By storing huge amounts of food and survival gear there, he could operate alone for as long as his willpower held out.

“Heal! Heal! Heal! Aha ha ha ha ha! I am truly peerless! If I choose my battles wisely, I am more than capable of fighting alone!”

Unleashing wave after wave of healing magic, he annihilated the zombies and skeletons coming for him in droves. A ghost attempted to sneak up on him from behind, but only screamed in agony the moment it touched him. The heal-over-time spell he had prepared earlier acted as a barrier against them. Calmly turning at the sound, he exorcised the ghost with an enchanted fist.

“Still, no matter my success here, my treatment above will not improve much! Ah, a treasure chest?”

Why was a treasure chest sitting in the middle of the corridor? One of the ancient great sorcerers had set up the dungeon that way. Though Hanakawa didn’t know the details, the general understanding was that it was meant to lure adventurers into the dungeon.

“What should I do with this? Those near the entrance contained nothing of value, so I simply ignored them, but...”

The entire dungeon had ten floors, and he had already made his way down to the ninth. The deeper one progressed, the more precious the items to be discovered inside, but at the same time the traps guarding them became that much more dangerous.

“Well, no matter. We will see what happens.” With no skills useful for detecting traps, he simply opened the treasure box.

With a loud bang, his right arm was sent flying. Though not immediately fatal, the loss of a limb was nevertheless a tremendous injury. But Hanakawa merely activated another healing spell. He had expected something like that would happen and knew it wouldn’t be a problem for him. The lost arm was replaced almost instantly. As much as he had grown quite used to this kind of incident, he couldn’t help but feel a bit smug about the strength of his power. If he used it well, it really did seem like it could lead to a glorious life in this world.

“But all of that is meaningless while I am still enslaved. Oh, what is this?”

With the trap cleared, Hanakawa looked into the treasure box to find a collar. It was exactly the same as the slave collar he was wearing.

“Oho! Look at that! Though without my own freedom, it is not of much use to me.”

He placed the collar in his item box. Someone would surely take it from him if they knew he had it, but there was no way for them to learn the contents of his personal storage. All he had to do was keep his mouth shut.

“I suppose now is a good time for a rest.”

Though he was virtually invincible against the undead, if he ran out of MP he’d die just like anyone else. So whenever he had consumed half of his MP, he stopped to rest. The margin might have been a bit wider than it needed to be, but a single mistake meant dying, so it was best to leave more leeway for error.

Hanakawa created a healing zone around himself. Though it had little effect but to soothe his fatigue, it was reasonably powerful as a barrier against the monsters. He then pulled a small table, a folding chair, some snacks, and tea out of his Item Box. This was his break time combo.

“I was concerned when this all started, but things seem to be going well now. Other heroes have been summoned, so this seems more like the genre where things go splendidly as I stray from the main quest!”

Sitting in the chair, he leaned back and enjoyed his tea. As he sat there, his MP gradually began to recover.

“In that case, this seems a likely time for a heroine to appear, does it not? With the people of the kingdom off-limits, I feel I will have to give up on the thought of an ordinary human companion, so perhaps a young demoness who has been sealed within the dungeon? An android built with ancient technology? Hmm...I think I would prefer she were not a zombie...though, wait, maybe I could make that work. I am the ultimate enemy of any undead, so with a bit of coercion...”

A group of zombies had gathered around him, wandering around outside his barrier without touching it. Among them were a number of young women, and if one could overlook the rot, one of them was even fairly cute.

“However, all they do is groan and moan. There does not seem to be much room for negotiation. Have their brains rotted as well? In that case, does that mean their minds from their previous lives will remain shortly after their time of death? Hmm...the thought of an undead harem doesn’t seem so unappealing...”

Being alone for so long, he had started talking to himself quite a bit. Of course, he was the kind of guy to spill whatever was on his mind anyway, so that wasn’t all that much of a change.

“But at this rate, I feel I will clear this dungeon with no difficulty at all. One of the Demon Lord’s Four Heavenly Kings was supposedly here. Maybe I will be capable of defeating them? A boss of undead spirits must be something like a vampire, no? Vampires do not typically show any deterioration in their flesh. Does that not make them ideal candidates for a harem?”

Though the Labyrinth of the Dead had been built by an ancient sorcerer, it was now under the control of the Demon Lord’s army and allegedly the headquarters of the necromancers, which made clearing the place out a huge victory for Hanakawa. The kingdoms under assault by the Demon Lord had always been stuck on the defensive, so this could signal their first chance to launch a counterattack.

“Suddenly I find myself quite motivated!”

Finishing his break, he returned to clearing the dungeon. He had progressed to the ninth floor, mapping his way by ordinary means. He now had a good grasp on the layout of the labyrinth and could even guess how to proceed based on the quirks in the designer’s work.

With little effort, he made his way to the tenth floor. According to the information he had received beforehand, this was the final level. It was special in some way, as the atmosphere felt quite different. Rather than the stone walls that had marked the dungeon up to that point, these seemed to be fashioned from something like bone. It reminded him of the Paris Catacombs. As if to show off, the corridor was brightly lit, proceeding in a straight line.

Walking for a while, he found no branches in the path. Apparently, the designer just wanted people to move forward. As he progressed, he made his way to a large, open room. Though the far end was cloaked in darkness, there was a line of candles fixed in skulls illuminating a pathway through it. He was supposed to continue moving forward. As he walked, the skulls near him ignited.

“Quite an ostentatious display for what is still just one of the Demon Lord’s underlings, I would think.”

That said, the place had been built by an ancient sorcerer. There was a chance this had all been set up by the original creator. As the candles ignited, they illuminated plenty of undead standing behind them, but since they didn’t attack, Hanakawa ignored them and continued forward. He eventually found himself standing before a large throne. This also appeared to be fashioned from human bone. On top of the grisly sculpture sat a person, most likely the leader of the Demon Lord’s necromancers whom Hanakawa had heard about.

“Hmm. You appear to be rather human.”

He was not a skeleton, or a headless dullahan, or an ephemeral ghost. Hanakawa had to presume he was either a zombie that had yet to rot or some kind of vampire.

“But now that I see you are a man, I cannot say I care to learn much more.”

As he approached, he realized the figure was a young man, not much different in age from Hanakawa himself. The undead stationed around the throne waited quietly. They seemed to understand someone had appeared before them and were awaiting orders. He would have no problem killing them all, but if they weren’t actually part of the Demon Lord’s army, that would be a bit of a problem. So he started by calling out to the boy on the throne.

“Are you perhaps the one known as one of the Demon Lord’s Four Heavenly Kings?”

“Yeah, but...‘perhaps the one known as’?” The boy seemed to be focused on Hanakawa’s wording.

“Then I suppose there is no need for us to speak further!” If this was an enemy, there was nothing for them to do but fight. Hanakawa immediately resolved himself to that course.

“Wait, hold on a second—”

“Heal!”

A brilliant light flashed across the throne. Hanakawa’s magic consisted of little more than the Heal spell. Range, area of effect, duration, and number of targets could all be modified by spending more MP, but the effect was always the same: instantly heal all wounds, or if used on undead enemies, instantly kill them. On top of that, it was entirely impossible to avoid.

The gathered monsters cried in agony as they disappeared. No matter how powerful they were, even one of the Four Heavenly Kings would be instantly annihilated. Hanakawa’s victory was all but guaranteed. When the light died down, there was nothing left.

Or that was how it should have gone...but the boy was still sitting on the throne.

“What?! I did not even set the ‘did I get him?’ flag!”

“Could you actually listen for a second? You’re Hanakawa, right?” The boy sighed, apparently not interested in delivering a swift counterattack.

“Oh? So my name precedes me even among the Demon Lord’s army, does it?”

“No, not at all. Don’t you recognize me?”

“I am afraid I care little to remember the faces of men that I meet...”

“Sure, me too, but unfortunately your...unique appearance and way of talking are kind of hard to forget. I’m Yoshiaki Fukuhara. We’re in the same class, aren’t we?”

“Huh?” Looking again, he did find some traces of familiarity in the boy’s face. “Wait, was our entire class brought to this world?!”

“I can’t say they weren’t, but the only other one I’ve seen is Higashida.”

“So that means...you are not actually undead?”

“Nope. I’m a human necromancer.”

“Then I have no chance of beating you!”

“Why are you still trying to fight me even though you know we’re classmates? Wouldn’t we normally work together in a situation like this?”

Wait, I did defeat his undead subordinates. Maybe there is still a way...

Aside from Heal, Hanakawa did have magic bullets. Only about as strong as a pistol, they weren’t well suited to closing out a fight, but against an ordinary human they should be sufficient. Yet, as he focused to begin firing his bullets, something appeared in front of him. It was a pillar of bone.

Then multiple pillars appeared simultaneously around him.

“That’s a Bone Prison. They’re just bones, by the way, not actually undead, so Heal won’t do you any good. I’ve also got some attacks like Bone Lance, and I’m not bad at close-quarters combat either.”

At some point a huge scythe had appeared in Fukuhara’s hands, giving him all the appearance of the grim reaper ready to harvest souls.

“What?! Then why does it work on skeletons?!”

“No clue. I guess that’s just the way it functions. Even without my zombies, I can kill you easily. But I feel no need to kill someone I know. So let me ask again: do you want to work together?”

In the end, Hanakawa was only a Healer. He had no real way of fighting against someone with a combat-focused profession, so had no room to refuse.

“As reluctant as I am to accept, what form of cooperation did you have in mind?”

“We were summoned here, so it should be obvious what our goal is—to defeat the Demon Lord,” he said without a hint of hesitation in his voice.

◇ ◇ ◇

A year had passed since the ritual to summon the heroes had taken place. Hanakawa’s group was currently in the forest surrounding the Demon Lord’s castle. Specifically, they were in a small village hidden in the forest, spending the night at an inn.

They were reaching the end of their adventure. The Four Heavenly Kings aside from Fukuhara had all been defeated. All that remained was the Demon Lord himself. In truth, they could have used Fukuhara’s key to get through the barrier and challenged the Demon Lord immediately, but that wouldn’t have satisfied the conditions of the orders Hanakawa had received from the princess. He had to destroy the demonic kingdom and restore peace to Iman. That wouldn’t happen unless he destroyed the Demon Kingdom’s entire power base.

“Why are you part of the Demon Lord’s army, Sir Fukuhara? You were summoned as a hero, were you not?”

Fukuhara was explaining the details of the summoning in the room of the inn they had borrowed, when Hanakawa had come up with a question. The hero-summoning ritual was a secret art passed down through the royal family of Iman. A Demon Lord would appear, gather their evil forces, and threaten the land. These events repeated every few hundred years, so heroes were called on to save the world from disaster. Of course, there was no one left who had experienced such an event before, so it was basically a fairy tale in the eyes of Iman’s populace.

But suddenly, a Demon Lord had appeared. The scattered monsters of the world had begun gathering under this new leader and then attacking the kingdoms around them. Iman was blessed in being a relatively peaceful country, untouched for the most part by the machinations of the Sages and the Dark Gods, but that left them exceptionally vulnerable. In the blink of an eye, entire villages and cities had been destroyed, and their territory had rapidly been stripped away. With nowhere else to turn, the royal family had looked to the ancient rite in desperation.