Chapter 2
Challenger/Challenger
Part 1
Kingdom of Elchea, Capital of Elchea— Western Region, District 3.
After threatening the boss to stay in the Inn, the siblings didn"t even last one night before
wordlessly checking out. However, the second morning had already arrived for the siblings who
were currently lodging in Stephanie Dora"s home.
No, to be exact— on the second morning, the siblings had arrived in the bathroom of her house.
".......Nii.......I hope.....you can explain."
The naked s.h.i.+ro asked while being shampooed.
"Explain? If it is about the cleaning scene, then there won"t be any sort of development if it isn"t a
bathing scene, should I explain more?"
"........Nii...........bathing scene.......otherwise..........grade schoolers.............are, perfect
NG"s[16]......" "Don"t worry little sister, the infamous [Mist block] will play a role, and make the
scene [Pure]." Sora gazed at the unnaturally thick mist in the bathroom and said this.
"Could it be, because of this reason, you actually "boiled up the entire bath"?" Steph responded
with a dumbfounded expression while was.h.i.+ng s.h.i.+ro"s hair. "Exactly this reason. This is an
important place after all."
"Did you know, because of this, the servants had to needlessly burn that much firewood?" And
after boiling the bath, it was common sense to not soak into it.
Senselessly wasting all that water to create a mist effect.........
"If you want to say it like that, then what about a particular person who gets to enjoy such a large
bath and still has the audacity to accuse someone of being wasteful."
"—Guuu...."
(As expected of the lineage of royalty.)
Steph was actually much wealthier than what Sora had imagined.
The house was built with Roman-styled infrastructures, so it would not be inappropriate to call it
a [Castle], much to the chagrin of the siblings who only knew j.a.pan. Furthermore, the personal
bath that Steph had was s.p.a.cious enough to fit ten people inside.
The baths, which were also Roman-styled, were currently boiled up to make the scene [For all
ages].
With this level of luxury displayed, people really couldn"t help but wonder if this was really a
house from a race that was on the verge of destruction.
"And also, I"m sorry. Because my sister hates to take baths— She also stubbornly believes that
[This includes even if an eleven-year old girl is in an eighteen-year old"s ero book] so she
wouldn"t let me help her wash, which explains why she rarely takes a bath. But yesterday she
said that if it was in a clean scene then it was okay, so I thought there was no reason not to take
advantage of that."
"........Guuuu......Nii, hate."
But the bottom line, this rule should be the most applicable to Steph. s.h.i.+ro lamented, implying
that she was protesting.
"Little sister, if you take care of yourself then you will become super beautiful, so be a good girl
and take a bath." "......It"s fine.....if I"m not a beauty."
"Your brother loves a beautiful s.h.i.+ro." "........Guuuuuuuuuuu........"
Muttered s.h.i.+ro in a low voice. She found it hard to complain more after hearing Sora say that.
But it will be fine either way.
No, they had attracted unpleasant emotions due to their intimate relations.h.i.+p as siblings, but this
fact was ignored. Compared to that, there was something even more concerning that was at hand.
(This situation. Why did it happen in the first place?)
(Why am I was.h.i.+ng a fully naked s.h.i.+ro"s hair, while Sora is wearing clothes and standing on the
opposite side?) "—Sora.......why, do I have to wash s.h.i.+ro"s hair?"
—No, it shouldn"t be this thorough.
These queries were raised after suffering from a deep remorse on why she did not reject him
before. "Did you listen to what I said? It"s because if you don"t do it, s.h.i.+ro will refuse to take a
bath."
"Do- does it even matter to me?!?" "Un, you want to let me see?"
"He—h.e.l.l no! I am just asking if you are intentionally creating more trouble for me!"
"Rest a.s.sured, Steph. I will use my [Additional measures] to appreciate and feel your naked body
later." "—Wuh!"
Being told off like this, Steph blushed and covered her body.
But on the other hand, hearing the indication that Sora might have interest in her allowed her a
sense of "peace of mind".
Thinking that Sora was looking for a hole in the wall in which he could peek through, Steph
surveyed the room. "But now, even if included — You can"t blindly trust this [Mist block]."
"...........Huh?"
"Just like after my bath, my "little brother" would rise up, or the mist block is too insufficient to
block off my little sister, then that wouldn"t be M18[17], but issued ban." [18]
"—Th-this, ah.."
Steph didn"t understand what Sora had just said.
But most importantly, Sora had no reason to peek over.
However, this was the limit of understanding that Steph has, which couldn"t be helped.
What was set in the bathroom were two mobile phones and laptops.
And Steph didn"t know that the two tiny holes were cameras.
— After the bath, s.h.i.+ro would confirm the screen, if there weren"t any problems, they would
start watching. So in Sora"s heart, he swore to repress the impulse of wanting to go back to that
world.
Part 2
"Fuu......how comfortable......" ".....Muwuuu........hair slippery........very ticklish...."
While waiting for s.h.i.+ro to finish, Sora hurriedly took a shower himself.
The seemingly refreshed Sora was in total contrast with s.h.i.+ro"s unhappy look.
—It appeared that, it was exactly what Sora had mentioned earlier, after s.h.i.+ro"s white hair was
being combed.
Her gently wavy hair, which was as white as snow, was drawn down. Accompanied by that
porcelain-like white skin and coupled with her red eyes...she was just like a doll produced by a
professional craftsmen.
"It would be fine if you"d remain in this state forever. Really, it"s such a waste." "....Anyways,
apart from Nii.......won"t show it."
Speaking of which, Sora did also have a hearty appearance after he shaved his stubble. How to
say it.
(Wh-what a failure.....)
Staring intently at Sora, Steph desperately tried to suppress her nosebleed, that.....
Currently, Sora did not have the vile feeling that he emitted out during their first meeting, but
instead had the hearty image of a [Good Youth].
However— The problems didn"t stem from here.
Trying desperately to endure the forthcoming gus.h.i.+ng nose bleed, Steph blurted out. "Y-you,
both of you— get dressed!"
—Steph got so shocked that she stood up, while the siblings, with only towels wrapped around
themselves, replied. "......Didn"t you say you wanted to wash our clothes? We only have those
clothes to wear...unless they"ve already been dried?"
Said Sora, who didn"t expect that dryers would exist in this world.
"Th-that, that.........then I will prepare you some clothes— male, do we have male clothes to
wear.......gu, guuuuu...................why did it end up like this.........."
Grumbling, Steph turned around and left to search for clothes.
—10 minutes later.
The exact same location as before, Steph was currently kneeling on the ground with her head
down, deeply regretting what she had done.
(Wh-what a failure.....)
"Ho ho, this is a butler"s uniform— the so-called [Tuxedo], right..........although moving around
in it is quite inconvenient, it"s quite interesting, like cosplay! And it matches with the white
lining."
Standing in front of the drooping Steph, was a butler-dressed Sora. "............Fluttering, too much.
Inconvenient for movement......."
And s.h.i.+ro who was wearing Steph"s dress from when she was a child.
This was her satisfactory choice after searching for suitable clothes that would fit both of them.
There was only the servant"s clothes for the men— which was the butler"s uniform.
Similarly, for clothes suitable for an eleven year old girl, only the clothes that she wore in the
past could be acceptable.
The gesture of both siblings, were like of a highborn Ojou-sama with her personal butler beside
her.
Steph stole another glance again.
Probably because of his slender body and broad shoulders, the subtle butler kind of style
perfectly matched Sora, which made Steph"s heartbeat pound furiously.
Looking at the little sister who looked like his master, Steph"s heart clenched for the third time.
"Really, a failure...." "Hmm? What"s wrong?" "Nothing at all!"
Carelessly misspeaking out her inner anxiety, Steph hurriedly shook her head. Patting on her
knees that were still planted on the ground, Steph stood up.
But if this slender girl"s mind could be easily perceived, then Sora did not resent the eighteen
years of being a virgin. Whispering to himself.
"Slept, refreshed after a bath— Steph." "Hm, ah, eh? Wh-what is it?"
"What are you panicking for. Erm....this house............this building........castle?"
For the Tokyo-born Sora, he was unable to cla.s.sify what Steph"s "residence" type was within his
cognitive range, but he concluded that this was [Just fine].
"Does it have a library or a stack room where books can be accessed and reviewed?" "Ah,
yes...............there is one..........what are you going to do?"
"Steph, are your ears bad? Didn"t I say I want to review the books?"
"Th-that of course I heard it! I am just asking what do you need to check!" "Check
what...........hmmm, naturally about all the things in this world." "—[This World]?"
Steph was somewhat confused about these words that would normally come out of inhabitants
from a different world.
"......Nii, that.....we haven"t told her yet."
Said s.h.i.+ro with a dejected expression, seeming unwilling to accept her dried hair. "—Hmmm?
That? Is that so?"
"Erm...I don"t understand what you are saying?"
"Ah, how to explain this. This will feel awkward explaining things now."
This kind of topic, whether if it was believed or not, could be said to be the biggest obstacle.
Sora thought carefully on what he should say in order to gain trust.
—Scratching his head, he sighed.
It was obvious that Sora was showing a troubled expression. Then, without affectation, he
casually said,
"To put it simply, we are [From a different world]. So we want to acquire knowledge of this
world."
—Just like that.
Part 3
They were guided to the library— or what looked like one.
Almost the same proportions as a high school library, it was actually Steph"s [Private stack
room]. Huge amounts of books filled the bookshelves that were neatly arranged against the wall.
Although they wanted to investigate something— "......Eh, Steph."
"Hmm? What is it?"
Sora unexpectedly ran into a huge obstacle.
"—The common language of this country, it isn"t j.a.panese?"
Holding the book that was in a foreign language, Sora hugged his head and groaned.
"j.a.panese? I don"t quite understand, but the natural lingua franca for the human species is
[Human language]." "Whoa............a really super, straightforward world."
Obviously there wasn"t a problem with communicating. Yet the text written in the book could not
be identified. ".........Then, are you guys really from a different world?" "Yeah, I know you"ll find
it hard to believe—"
People wouldn"t believe Sora"s words, but rather think that it was a plot in a story. Even Sora
didn"t expect to be trusted easily.
"Ah, no. On that point, I have never doubted it."
Hearing Steph"s soft reply, Sora could not help but be stunned. "Huh? Why?"
In return, the conversely shocked Steph also replied.
"You ask me why.......the Elves who possess high level magic were originally summoned from
another world, so this is not an eye-catching thing. Moreover, looking at your appearance, it was
certain that you were not people of this country, but you could only be human........"
—After all, there was only one country left for mankind. "Ahhh.......that"s right~. This is a
fantasy world after all~.......Fuu." Seeming to be too paranoid, Sora sighed deeply.
Once again, he flipped through the foreign book and scratched his head.
"Hmmm........it is indeed troublesome to not be able to rely on our general knowledge. Can you
remember it...........s.h.i.+ro?"
"........Un."
"How?" ".....Un."
Sora and s.h.i.+ro.
They seemed to be exchanging information with a communication method known only to the
siblings. Casting their line of sight on the books, both of them fell silent.
Unable to stand this awkwardness, Steph sighed. "......So, what should I do?"
This time, she would probably have to [Contribute] and be a tutor for both of them, which could
not help but add a little self-deprecating flavor.
But, Sora who had moved his sight away from the book, proposed something different. "No.
What I want is something different."
Hearing that, Steph suddenly remembered what had happened last night and this morning, before
a.s.suming a defensive posture.
Even though Steph would not be surprised if she heard dozens of Perverted-H things coming
from his mouth— "Could you answer a few questions for me."
"— Okay.......ah, huh? That, no problem."
Hearing something unexpected yet serious, Steph stroked her chest in relief. Putting on a serious
face, Sora continued.
"Yesterday, when I groped your chest, you had no resistance, so why did you hit me when I tried
to flip your skirt, just why— okay, okay, I"ll be serious, that was just a joke........."
Feeling the penetrating gaze of Steph, Sora"s gaze once again fell back onto the book. "Hmm, I
often hear the words "Human race", so what are the other "Races", then." Looking like she had
heard an incredible question, Steph rejoined.
"...........Is there only the human race in Sora"s world?"
"Well, at least the only form of interaction we have should only be with that of a [Human]—
so?" "Ah, guu.......this, eh...."
As they had claimed, they were not from this world, so what should be clarified first. After
considering this point, Steph began talking.
"Firstly— do you know about [G.o.d"s words]?"
"How the [Ten Oaths] came into being? We heard it from some choir group by the fountain not
too long ago." "I understand...— then— "
—Cough cough.
"The so-called [Races], for which the [Ten Oaths] were laid down for, are the intellectual 【
Sixteen Races】 ." "Sixteen races......"
"With the [Ten Oaths] as the basis, the rights to encroach, violate, destroy, and mutually kill for
the 【 Sixteen Races】 — were all taken away, and the result was, war disappeared from this
world."
"......I see. And I was originally wondering where would the food come from — but it turned out
that the [Oaths] were only limited to intellectual life."
While flipping through the book, Sora felt quite satisfied with what he had said. Seeing this,
Steph sighed and muttered "How smart" in her heart, before continuing.
"However, let"s see, using games to determine ongoing wars. Which are also territorial battles—
"Gambling for the country". Even as we speak, someone would most likely be playing this sort of
game."
[Gambling for the country]— Sora had some reaction to this previously heard phrase.
"—The human race"s country is only left with Elchea, right?"
".........Currently, it is indeed true...........even though it was not said that other races would have
only one country— but for the human race, we are only left with Elchea."
— Even till here.
Sora kept asking questions which he had already known the answers to.
And comparing with this world, their own world seemed to have more common sense. Which
means,
"So if there is no war, why fight for territory? Can"t interlocution solve anything?" ".....Guu,
that....."
But, s.h.i.+ro replied instead of the halted Steph.
"...........Resources are limited...........as long as continuous propagation is infinite........sharing will
also be limited...............leading to common demise."
"Y-yeah. Just like that!"
Hearing the opinions of s.h.i.+ro who had s.n.a.t.c.hed her chance to speak, Steph hurriedly nodded.
"........You...didn"t even consider that before, right......."
Because s.h.i.+ro answered first, Sora, who did not receive the perception a resident of this world
might have, helplessly watched Steph.
"Wh-wh-what are you saying, this type of thing!"
—Indeed, she did perceive all of this as "common sense", since she was born here after all.
So as for why the games were used to compete for this problem, it was going to be difficult to
answer when questioned.
".......In any case, this problem is quite similar to our world"s too." Sora sighed.
Even without [War], [Compet.i.tion] still exists.
—Which also means, [Total equality] is unachievable.
If equality was equal to handing out limited chairs, then competing with each other would be a
game of [Musical Chairs].
And the results, the wealthy would be the [Minority] while the poor would be the [Majority]—
What a pain, there was clearly nothing different between this world and their world....... "Then,
what kind of specific races are there in the 【 Sixteen Races】 ?"
Pausing all his thoughts, Sora got the topic back on track.
Steph hummed........like she was desperately trying to recall things, while counting numbers
using her fingers. "Below only G.o.d, the first is the Divine Spirit race, then the second is the
Phantasma race, number three is the Elementals race— there is also the Dragon and Giant
race...........Elf and Werebeast race, erm— and so on."
"........Hmmmm, as expected of a benevolent fantasy world."
Steph seemed to have given up on reciting the sixteen races after reaching the middle. Facing
against the weak-minded Steph, Sora suddenly remembered another question. "Hey, what are the
[Number placings].........for?"
"Uh, that. I am not so sure myself, but it seemed to be some sort of ranking sequence." "—
Ranking sequence?"
"Un, un, to say it simply, the level of their adaptive magic, which was what I heard."
"What do you mean, what I heard...you are really ambiguous. Steph, did you receive education?"
Disregarding his NEET ident.i.ty, Sora asked to a seemingly unhappy Steph.
All the things he said, lead to a new topic, before coughing afterwards.
"First things first, I did~ I did graduate from college, okay?! And about this ranking sequence,
there was nothing to research about humans— because we are number 16— which means that
our magic adaptive level is 0. It couldn"t be observed no matter how hard you research about it."
".......0?"
Sora s.h.i.+fted his line of sight away from the book and asked. "Hmm—? Wait, humans can"t use
magic?"
"Yeah. Apart from that, we can"t even perceive magic."
".............I feel like.............as long as you use props, wouldn"t that do?"
"Games infused with magic could be played..........because the game itself require magic to be
driven— but magic for mankind is just impossible."
"—Absolutely?"
Although Sora kept firing annoying questions, Steph didn"t show any sighs of boredom.
Actually, it would be better to say—
"Absolutely. Humans can"t connect to the [Spirit Corridor]— which is the source of magic."
Steph slightly lowered her head.
"That"s why we are on a losing streak for [Gambling for the Country]......"
—Aaa.
With a slightly bitter smile, Sora went on.
".......Then, the most adept at using magic are? It really is the number one right?"
"Ah, no. Being closer to number one, means being closer to becoming G.o.ds— their existence
could be regarded as a form of magic. But generally, for the most adept in using magic, it would
be the [Elf race] from number seven."
Elf. A typical impression crossed Sora"s mind after hearing the word. "—Elf........isn"t an
Elf...pointy eared, pale skin?"
Steph gave out an expression that clearly wondered how did residents from another world know
so much.
"Errr, yes. Now, the largest country in this world would be [Avant Heim], a place that is driven
by magic. But upon mentioning magic, the word could be synonymous with the Elf race."
—Sora sighed with a "Fuu".
Placing his hand on his chin, Sora used a very serious expression and started thinking. "—"
Because Sora was decked out in a tuxedo uniform, in addition to his serious face, Steph"s heart
started beating wildly.
(Illusion, illusion, illusion— these are only instilled feelings.)
Just when Steph"s heart went into meditation, Sora seemed to have finished his thoughts. As if
wondering about something, Sora carefully worded his reply.
"...........A race that can"t use magic..........can"t have a [Big country]?"
"Eh, ah, no, the Werebeast race from number 14 can"t use magic either....." Steph reluctantly and
incoherently answered.
"But, what"s different is, they can rely on their powerful senses to read the magic atmosphere and
people"s feelings. The islands in the South-Eastern seas are joined together as the Werebeasts"
country, the [Eastern Union], which is the world"s third largest country—"
Steph painfully, and unconsciously increased the strength of her hand that was clutching her arm,
before continuing. ".......Even if they can"t use magic, they can still compete with others— with
the exception of [Aylwin Gerudo], they can rival many races and nations. But it doesn"t really
matter, because in a human"s eyes, it would seem as if they
were using something similar to [Super powers] or [Super sensing]."
"—Aaaa. So that"s how it is."
If humans can"t even detect the usage of magic, wielding it would be impossible.
A unilateral disadvantage where the opponent uses cheats that can"t be detected, of course
humans can"t win.
—If this was confirmed, then losing was natural. "Hmmmmmm, there is such a thing, eh."
As if Sora had figured it out, he nodded strongly. But at the same time. "......Nii—I memorized
it."
s.h.i.+ro"s voice sounded.
"Oh, as expected of my little sister." "..........Continue, praising me."
"Ohh, of course. As expected of my prided sister, so talented! Very awesome."
Sora stood up and casually stroked s.h.i.+ro"s head, for which s.h.i.+ro responded by narrowing her
eyes like a cat. Steph did not understand what was going on and just stared at them, before
muttering.
".....Eh? Memorized what?"
"What are you asking about, of course the human language." s.h.i.+fting his sight to the amazed
Steph, Sora casually said. "But she really is incredible, eh. I still need a bit more time." "......Nii,
how slow.........."
"..........Huhuhu, for a man, compared to fast, slower is better right?" "............Nii, how small."
"It, it"s, it"s, its not small!! On, on what basis—— Steph, are you okay?" Steph was stunned just
by listening to their conversation.
With her tone changed, she said.
"That......I didn"t hear wrongly right? Did you all just— memorized a language?" "Well, yeah?
So what?"
".......(Nods)."
"—In such a short time? Are you kidding me?"
Her face slightly twitched again to confirm it. But Sora breezily replied.
"This is nothing surprising. Since grammar and words are similar to dialogues, won"t memorizing
the text settle everything."
"........Nii........that, you haven"t memorized it yet."
"Finis.h.i.+ng it in 10 minutes is too fast for your brother. Your brother isn"t as smart as you, I will
probably still need one more hour. Oh yeah, how to read this by the way. I can"t seem to grasp
the marking law—"
".......That, isn"t........j.a.panese............use Latin grammar, to read it.........."
"No, I"ve thought about that already, but the syntax for the position of the predicate is quite
strange." "...........Ancient Chinese............."
"Eh? So only the depiction part is in front! How annoying— ah, but now the sentence is
smooth." "...........Nii, needs to master, more languages......"
"For you to learn eighteen different languages, it is already a special case. And as for me, I am
just a people person, six languages is already enough for me to play games without encountering
any difficulties."
—Steph implausibly listened to the siblings conversation. But the siblings only had a casual
look.
Both of them seemed to be taking her for granted, casually talking to each other. Language, also
could communicate. As long as the text is memorized.
Arranging that sentence, it actually did indeed sound quite simple.
However, they didn"t enumerate another important fact into their conscious yet. Which was—
[No one to teach], which also meant that what they did was not『 Study』 , but『 Interpret』 .
Completing such a thing in a short time, yet they did not seem boastful.
(In, In their world— is this counted as normal?)
Both of them had already exceeded her comprehension of creatures.
Looking at the siblings that were not from this world, Steph felt a chill down her spine. However,
at the same time, faint warmth started pouring out of her chest.
......Unless this is. Unless she herself.
Are meeting people that have transcended humans.
And they are the ones— who will eventually change the people of this country. "— Hm? What"s
wrong?"
Aware of being stared at, Sora turned his head to face Steph, which heated up her inner agitation
even more. "Eh, ah, no, that— I will, go make tea."
Steph hurriedly left the library in a panic, with her ears dyed red. Puzzledly watching Steph
leaving, Sora said.
".......What"s wrong with her?"
But s.h.i.+ro did not even give a glance to him and just continued reading the book. "......Nii,
absolutely......doesn"t know........a maiden"s heart."
"— If I understood that, I would not have kept my virginity for 18 years already. And what does
a maiden"s heart have to do with that?"
A scene where an eleven year old girl is preaching to an eighteen year old boy about a maiden"s
heart. Although men mature later than women..........
At least for this occasion, this saying was applicable.
".......Obviously, compared to s.h.i.+ro..........better, at reading others feelings........" s.h.i.+ro
whispered, and that boast made Sora look triumphant.
"In games, this would reflect my ability, but in reality, reading a person"s mood is a completely
different thing."
That a.n.a.logy to compare games and the so-called female— No, "so-called human".....
Just like a galge, where tens of thousands of time-limited options would jump out every second.
Facing that kind of impossible game that generate their own ideas was of course not natural.
—But, that matter does not matter right now. "Okay......"
With s.h.i.+ro"s help, Sora was finally able to understand the human language. He read an entire
book to confirm his results.
After closing the hardcover book with a "Pata!" A serious face began showing.
"Okay— s.h.i.+ro." ".......Un."
"You are aware of it already right." "......Un."
The siblings were communicating in a language that only the both of them understood. Sora,
hesitating and with little insight, asked.
"— What do you think?"
But s.h.i.+ro closed her eyes and replied. "........s.h.i.+ro—Will follow.....Nii."
Slightly opening her eyes, and showing the usual deadpan look, s.h.i.+ro dismissively said.
".......Just like that promise—no matter, where."
—Promise, yes.
Father brought a [Little sister] from the previous marriage—s.h.i.+ro. The amazing little sister who
was a born talent.
And a brother whose innate mind was horrible.
Because of the erraticness, both of them complemented each other better than real siblings.
Eventually, even both parents abandoned them.
Without any friends nor companions, a promise was forged between them.
—Because of being too capable, the little sister was misunderstood by others.
—Because of being too incapable, the brother was good at reading others.
To make up for the shortcomings, the ten year old [Brother] from then made an proposal.
And the three year old [Little sister] that was capable of multiple languages, nodded and pinky
swore. Stroking the head of his [Little sister].
Since then, for eight years—
The little sister who would follow her shameless brother— s.h.i.+ro. However, a brother who did
not even take her out of the room— Sora. If it wasn"t a regret, then it was.....
"In short— compared to [That world], this side is much more interesting, right?" He stared at the
distant horizon where a chessboard was faintly visible.
Taking out his phone, Sora started the schedule planner.
Part 4
Steph watched as the boiling water sounded with a "Gulou Gulou".
Needless to say, when boiling tea leaves, the temperature for the water is extremely important.
Accompanying the tea were pancakes made yesterday.
It had been too long since the human territory last had sugar, so snacks were thoroughly lacking.
She could only use cinnamon as a replacement for sugar for the pancakes, which she made, full
of confidence.
—The tea, with the sliced pancakes, were placed on the tray. "......Okay, there should be no more
problems."
Feeling a sense of accomplishment, Steph gently wiped the sweat off of her forehead for a job
well done. "Erm, Ojou-sama."
As if waiting for the chance to approach her, the maids asked Steph. "Ah, what is it?"
"No.....sorry for our rudeness, but Ojou-sama, what are you doing?" ".........Indeed, you are very
rude. Why the sudden question?"
"No, that........if you had just commanded us, we, the maids, would have prepared the tea and
snacks, but you wordlessly did it on your own.................and you seem to be desperately trying to
do it well......."
——………………. A-re?
Hearing that, she wondered: why did she make the tea with her own hands? Raising such a
question for herself, a scenario started appearing in her head. [Whoa. How delicious. Steph,
you"re really good at housework, aren"t you.] Just like that, Sora would hold the teacup in one
hand and smile.
——…………Puu, dee.
Blood started filling Steph"s face. "——AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH, what the
h.e.l.llllllllllllll!!" Shouting this, Steph headb.u.t.ted the wall.
"Why do I have to personally make snacks to prove my own housework prowess! That man, it
would"ve been enough to just give him that water over there— and that rock, plus the weeds!"
"Oj-Ojou-sama! Please calm down!"
"Ch-chief maid! Oj-Ojou-sama"s mentality is unstable—!"
The maid hurriedly stopped Steph from producing more of the "bang bang bang" sounds, falling
into a state of chaos.
Part 5
"........Ah~......"
Sighing sadly, Steph walked in the hallway while carrying a silver tray.
On the tray, there were 2 portions— which was the tea and refreshments that were prepared for
the siblings earlier. Once again failing to overcome her feelings, Steph personally prepared the
items meant for them while sighing again.
Self-loathing, but at the same time, the thought of seeing Sora enjoying the food and praising
her— ".............Can"t deny that I am a little bit expectant.........heh."
However.
Steph suddenly stopped moving.
"Wait a moment, Steph. This food, will it suit the taste of someone from a different world?"
Steph was confident with her tea and cooking techniques.
But, the receivers were not from this world. "Ah—darn it—"
Another scenario swept past her mind.
『 Whoa, sorry, but I"ll pa.s.s on this one』 Sora blubbled with a wrinkly face.
"Ahhhhhhhhh.......is, isn"t that bad, the retreat route of saying『 this was made by the maids』
had disappeared already— erm, what kind of retreat route is that! No matter what they think, I
don"t really care— no! Ahhhhhhh Really..............this, is definitely a curse......"
Getting completely caught in a state of confusion and helplessness.
Taking a deep breath, she started organizing her thoughts to search out an excuse.
"Ye-yes. Not only being taken as a fool, if I can"t even make one cup, or one piece of snack, this
would tarnish the Dora"s family reputation. But this is unquestionably tasty, it must be the
cultural difference if it was disliked— yeah, this excuse— this"
Chattering everything out.
While reciting out the excuse, with both hands that were in an empty state, she struggled to open
the stack room"s door.
"—A-re?"
—Surveying everywhere, the figure of the siblings weren"t there.
Wind that came from an unlocked balcony door near the front stairs blew against the curtain
slightly. Arriving to the balcony.......Steph found the siblings there.
The butler-dressed brother was currently leaning on the balcony, taking a picture of the street
with his phone.
The little sister that was a reminiscent of a white-haired Ojou-sama— leaned against her brother
while reading a book.
—The duo that was always together, wouldn"t surprise anyone if they died due to separation.
Seeing the pair in a picturesque scene— and their relations.h.i.+p.
Her heart started to clench, but Steph reminded herself that it was just a misconception.
".......What a bustling street."
Watching the commotion outside, Sora said.
"—Yeah. The selection for the king"s position is still ongoing."
Replying, Steph placed the tray on the table that was on the balcony, and started pouring the tea.
".......That.......please enjoy." "Ah, thanks."
"Little sister should drink one too." ".......Un."
The initial impression—was a city of a『 Typical fantasy world』 — but now it was slightly
different.
— Due to the prohibition of war, the city was not damaged in any way.
The various buildings that resembled Romanesque architecture, cla.s.sical architecture and
Baroque architecture were intertwined.
The road was paved with bricks, a wagon was walking up link, and a barque was docked on the
harbor not far away. It looked like even steam engines had not been invented.
Even more distant away, was a range of terraced hills, with the agricultural practices using a
style that was more ancient than this city.
—If war did not happen, this scene would be the perfect reflection of it.
Ironically, 『 Chemistry』 was accelerated during the war, so that fertilizer and fuel was
dependent of technology to significantly leap forward.
Then again, the books seen in Steph"s library were almost entirely written by hand—
ma.n.u.scripts. Probably typography wasn"t invented yet or it was still not popularized.
"Renaissance of the Medieval Europe. Or probably before being contaminated by the
industrial revolution.............what a beautiful city."
".............Copied references...........from strategy game..............you worked hard."
—But, Sora thought.
According to G.o.d"s words, the great war where the celestial body turned this into a scorched
earth, was probably thousands of years ago.
That is to say, since the conclusion of the『 Oaths』 , it had been a few thousand years already.
And [Human kind] who was incapable of using any magic.
The same const.i.tution as the [Human] in their original world.
After thousands of years, their world level was still stuck in the early fifteenth century.
—How about those racial civilization that could use magic to cheat, what was their situation.
Sora suddenly asked.
"Ne, Steph—you, why do you want to be the King?" "—Ah?"
"I heard that its because you will no longer be royalty, and that you were desperately trying to
disprove this rumor." Sora recalled back what he heard in the Inn Tavern. But.
"—That, it doesn"t matter anymore."
—In the final a.n.a.lysis, rumors are rumors. One laugh and it would be over. She stood next to
Sora and overlooked the street view.
"—This country— Elchea, is considered pretty big right?"
Looking into the distance— past the normal line of sight, she continued.
"In the past, the world had several human countries. And Elchea was considered its largest."
Prideful, yet self-depreciative, she continued.
"But since the introduction of the『 Ten Oaths』 , this had become the sole『 Last country』 for
mankind already." "......."
"It looks very lively right? But............Elchea is moving towards the path of destruction."
Once again looking at the hustle and bustle of the street, but this time her expression was
depressing. Following the line of sight, Sora easily imagined it out.
Losing territory, a small country with a huge population.
Lack of resources and food would eventually lead to economic stagnation.
Wanting to produce food, yet no land to do so, and with no outputs, there would be no labor
positions. Although the order made by the『 Ten Oaths』 was stable,
—He thought of the time when he arrived in this world, ganged up by a group of thieves.
Sora gazed towards the direction of the cliff.
s.h.i.+ro who was leaning on her brother"s leg and reading a book, browsed towards Steph.
"The previous king— my Ojii-san, lost the gambling for country, forcing him into an impa.s.se,
which was the capital. With the humans on a losing streak, the situation would keep
deteriorating....."
Clenching her fist, Steph bit down on her lip.
"Accused of being stupid, yet still thinking of saving the country, wasn"t wrong in anyway—"
—If land was not taken back, humans won"t be able to multiply indefinitely.
Rather than waiting for its demise, it was better to find a way out from this poor environment—
was it. "I—want to save Elchea...."
Steph was trying to fight back her tears.
"Prove to everyone that Ojii-san wasn"t wrong—the continuation of the human
kind..........actively take the offensive to recapture territories, otherwise in the near future,
humans will really be extinct."
—This sentence came out painfully from Steph. With her usual expression, s.h.i.+ro indifferently
asked. "……Steph.....like.........this country, this world?" "Un un—of course!"
—Smiling with tears. Steph promptly answered.
However, in contrast with her actions, both siblings lowered their heads. ".........How great,
ah......."
"..........Yeah, it really is enviable that one could a.s.sert it out." But—Sora used a calm, yet
indefensible tone of voice.
And shattered the glimmer of hope that Stephanie Dora had. "But that sort of wish cannot be
accomplished."
"—Wuh...."
"And, to say something worse—"
He got close to the speechless Steph and attacked(Verbally).
"Your grandfather—right here right now, I will say he is the worst foolish king."
—…………
Looking like she was trying hard to squeeze out words, Steph opened her mouth after the long
silence.
"—Wh-Why.......would you think so?"
Biting her lips, the feeling of nails digging into the flesh of her palm could be felt.
.......If violence wasn"t prohibited in this world, those words would have rewarded a slap across
Sora"s face. Even so, Steph was still fuming mad and angrily remarked.
Obsessed with him—no.
No matter how strong the mandate of falling in love is, she could not forgive such verbal abuse.
But for this question, Sora sighed and took a photograph using his phone.
Reminiscent of the European city from the fifteenth century.
No reasons to go to war, the old and new buildings mixed together, showing a beautiful city.
However, precisely because of this—remorse could be felt.
"If this goes on—this country will perish. At the same time the selection of the new King is
going on." The unexpected phrase came out.
Using a hysterical tone, the confused Steph retorted.
"Wh-Why would you say that! Precisely because this wasn"t supposed to happen that the
selection of King was created."
The somewhat helpless Sora and s.h.i.+ro lifted their heads to look at the sky.
A different shade of grey from what they were familiar with, like the color of a spilled blue ink, a
generally blue sky.
—Then, both of them thought of the events when they had just arrived. The words that "G.o.d"
said to them.
All decisions decided with a simple game, the world similar to a chessboard, [Dischord]. My—
s.h.i.+ro"s—
—A dream world
—New lease of life—world.
".......Steph, when will this gambling a.s.sembly end?"
Although Steph did not accept the words said previously and looked unhappy, she still replied.
"—Today is the last day."
Setting her line of sight on the eastern side, what looked to be a King"s city.
"In the evening, the last game will be played in the hall, if there are no people who would raise
objections to the final victory, then the victor will be the new king.........is there any problem?"
Closing the book with a "Pata", s.h.i.+ro stood up. Stretching his waist, Sora patted his cheeks. "—
Yos.h.!.+ Eh, little sister."
"......Un."
"No matter what your brother does, will you follow?" "Un."
"Instantaneous reply eh. And I was prepared for some struggling to—" ".......Liar."
"Hm?"
"......Nii, looks........very happy."
As expressionless as usual.
A smile could be seen through the sights of Sora. "—Haha, busted by you right?"
Ending it, both of them turned and went. "Hey, wait, where are you going!?" "King City."
"—Aa?"
Seemingly not being able grasp what Sora had said, Steph sent out a silly voice. However, not
minding that, Sora continued walking.
"I am going to prove that your grandpa was right." "——Aa?"
Sensing that Steph was hastening from behind.
Sora confirmed the matters in his phone"s schedule planner.
—『 Target』 —In any case, become the King first. Showing a wry smile, Sora pocketed his
phone.
"Rarely obtaining a new world, it would be troublesome to come to a place where it keeps
losing." "............(Nods)(Nods)."
"Then let"s go be king, and s.n.a.t.c.h back the territories."
—Was that misheard?
Stephanie Dora tried to carefully confirm what was said earlier.
Then, when it was confirmed that she had not misheard, she looked at the man"s back. A relaxed
tone as if going out to buy something.
But wanting to confirm a piece of the matter, the rebellious self-confidence and a sense of
trust— The man"s back that declared that he was going to recapture the territory of humanity.
"Ah, right."
Grabbing the snack from the balcony table, Sora stuffed it into his mouth. "—Ah"
Facing towards Steph who had forgotten that the snack was even there, "Un, delicious. The
refreshments were all delicious. Thank you!" Turning his head around, he smiled towards
himself.
Her heartbeat increasing violently, was it because of the [Oath]? Even Steph was not sure of that
now.