“We will now begin the sealing ceremony for the Heart of the Demon Lord.”
In a mysterious room at the back of the temple. With the words of the high priest, the six priests stationed in a circle began chanting incantations, and the magic circle engraved on the floor began to emit a strong light.
Then the box on the pedestal in the center of the room cracked open, and a small red jewel floated up into the air. It was the first time I had ever seen such a stone, and I guessed it was the heart of the Demon Lord.
“This… it might be inappropriate, but it’s really beautiful.”
“Yes. It’s certainly something that Palm would want.
A jewel the size of an adult’s index finger shone in the light rising from the floor. The crimson light that lured and bewitched the viewer was indescribably fascinating, and even if it were just a jewel, it was sure to be coveted at a high price by the connoisseurs.
“That being said, the power of the Demon Lord resides in it, right… what is the power of the Demon Lord, after all? Amazing magical power? Or is it life force or existence, or something like that?”
“… …I do not know”
In a dazzling pillar of light, the red jewel was spinning slowly, shining and twinkling. The way it blinked irregularly seemed to be beckoning to me, and my gaze was naturally drawn to it. Sucked in.
Yes, this was not a jewel. It was a sign, a door. Beyond the white, there was red, and beyond the red, black. Infinitely wide, infinitely deep, to connect there and here–
“Ed? What’s wrong?”
“!? What is it?”
“Why, you were just dazed. Do you really like these gems?”
“No, that’s not true, but…”
The sudden appearance of Tia’s face between me and the “Heart of the Demon Lord” awakened my consciousness, which had been in a daze for some reason. What was it …. what? Hmm?
“Ah, I’m sorry. It’s finally all over, so maybe I was a little distracted.”
“Really? That’s unusual for you, no?”
“Haha, even I have times like that.”
“…Well, that’s true.”
I said with a wry smile, and Tia, satisfied, returned to her original position. The red gem that had been floating slowly returned to the box, and a shining chain of light extended from the magic circle on the floor, which tied the box down and the sealing ritual ended without incident.
The rest was uneventful. Toby told me that the escort request was completed, and We returned to the “white world” together from an out-of-the-way place around the Great Temple. I looked at the table and saw a short sword on it, and I couldn’t help but chuckle.
“Fufufu, uh huh……is this what happened?”
“What’s wrong with you, Ed? Even though you’ve just come back and you’ve got a really evil look on your face?”
“It’s not that, okay!? I’m just saying that this trip has been very rewarding.”
""
Two facts we found out this time. The last time we jumped was to the 28th world, whereas this time we jumped to the 16th world… In other words, the order was reversed. This did not mean that the intervening world had been displaced and could no longer be reached, but simply that the next world was now extremely likely to be random.
Conversely, it was more likely that we would have to visit all 100 different worlds this time after all, but this was not a big problem since we had originally planned to do so.
Another thing was that the dagger that was left on the table before I left for Toby’s world was still there, which meant that I could set things up in this world. If I was going to smith here for a long time, it was essential to arrange the environment for it but the difference in time and metal burden between having to carefully disassemble the parts and storing them in [Stranger Box] each time fearing that would disappear and being able to leave the pieces in place and leave them alone was quite large.
Fufu, this would be a good time to consider making material procurement a priority when we can, when we jump to a different world――
“Ara? Your equipment is going back to the way it was.”
“Huh? Ah… it seems so.”
Tia pointed out to me that I was back to wearing the “equipment I had when I first came to this world.” Apparently, they didn’t update equipment.
“Tch, it’s not going to be that convenient. But hey, it’s enough. Now then—“
“Let’s read {Records Of the Hero’s Story}!”
“……, Ah, yeah.”
My thoughts were completely focused on going to the next world, but sure enough, there it was. I joined Tia at the table and looked over the new {Records Of the Hero’s Story}that had appeared there. It contained facts that I never knew I wanted to know, such as how Toby gained the trust of the King of Osperanto, and we were chatting and enjoying the contents. …
–The final chapter “The Sealing is Complete.” in the 005th World
{Records Of the Hero’s Story}
Thus, by the hands of the hero and his bodyguards, the stone containing the power of the Demon Lord was safely sealed.
“…… What, that’s it!?”
“Sounds like. it”
The “Afterwards” section, which had been well-written in the past, somehow contained only this one sentence. After that, no matter how many pages I turned, it was just a blank sheet of paper, and when I unintentionally raised my head, I met Tia, who had a bewildered expression on her face.
“What does this mean?”
“If I were to interpret it in a positive way, then nothing really happened while Toby was alive, right? If that’s the end of the story and there were no more problems, then there’s certainly nothing to write about.”
“That’s… yeah, that might be true.But hey, wouldn’t it be nice to have something a little more? “
“What, you’re saying you’d rather have more hardships, Tia? Peace is important, okay?”
“I know! Mou~, Ed’s mean!”
She puffed up her cheeks in discontent, and Tia put her hand on the shiny crystal ball and absorbed the new power into her body. Then she took my hand and made me stand up.
“Fine, then let’s go to the next world! Ah, or do you have something to do this time?”
""
“No, not this time. Next time I come back, I might stay here for a while, though.”
“Then does that mean I should get a bed or something in the next world? Sleeping on a chair or on the floor might hurt me.”
“Right. I don’t know if I’ll be sleepy here, but I think it’s good enough to prepare.”
The capacity of the banishing skill [Stranger Box] was surprisingly enough for one world. Since there was no way to fill the box with anything, it was not a bad idea to collect household goods with enough vigor to move into a new house.
“Hey hey Ed, hurry up! My brand new bed is calling me!”
“You know, .. the next world isn’t always the easiest place to buy furniture, you know.? Besides, if we’re going to buy something, I want it to be top of the line. I’m pretty sure there’s a ridiculously civilized part of the world I’m going to in the second half of the book, so I’m sure we can find it there ….”
“Eh, I’m really interested! But the second half is a long way ahead, right?”
“No, I saw that the order of those things is changing randomly, so there’s a possibility that we might go next to that world, you know? On the other hand, there is a possibility that we won’t go until the very end.”
“Uuuu… my luck with the lottery! Open the door to my fluffy bed!”
“What the hell is that?”
Tia opened the door marked 006 with a strange enthusiasm, and I couldn’t help but giggle. And so, once again, we entered the known unknown.
–The end chapter “Sealing ‘Un’ Complete.” in the 005th World
{Records Of the Hero’s Story}
Thus, the stone that contained the power of the Demon Lord was safely sealed by the hands of the hero and his bodyguards. However, 10 years later, the Lebrennian Empire, seeking the power of the stone, sabotaged it, and the power of the “Demon Lord’s Heart,” which had gone out of control as a result, destroyed the Holy Suroun State―――― In just six years, 30% of the world’s population was devastated by the black demons that sprang from here.
Toby the Hero went out with―――― all his might to reseal the Awakened―――― and with his extraordinary power―――― he avoided it and reached the center of the “Hole of Emptiness,”―――― but all he found there was a tarnished gem. An empty shell――――left to be re-sealed――――
(T/N: New Arc will begin from Friday or Saturday)