Demons and Magic Beasts

The world of Klyrode is a world of sword and sorcery, of magic beasts

and demihumans. It is a world where humans and demons have waged war

since time immemorial—until, that is, the Magical Kingdom of Klyrode,

greatest of the human kingdoms, signed a treaty with the Dark Army, the

largest and most venerable institution among demonkind. These days,

everyone has been more or less getting along.

The Dark Army continues to stand unbroken with Dawkson the Dark

One at its head, but there are still many demons who are loath to pursue

friendly relations with humans after the long years of conflict between the

two peoples. Dawkson has been tireless in his effort to persuade them, but

the discussion is still ongoing.

The Magical Kingdom of Klyrode, meanwhile, has had few problems in

the realm of politics with the Maiden Queen and her two sisters, the Second

and Third Princess at its helm. Many of the nobility and rulers of smaller

human kingdoms, however, privately oppose cooperation with their

longtime enemy, the Dark Army. The Maiden Queen has been worrying

herself sick every day trying to figure out how best to handle the situation.

The Fli-o'-Rys General Store, managed by Flio, has stepped in between

those two powers to establish a network of transit routes serviced by their

fleet of Enchanted Frigates, ships capable of flying through the skies

themselves, bringing their lands closer together. It was a feat for which the

enigmatic merchant received tremendous acclaim from human and

demonkind alike.

And with that the stage is set. The curtains slowly rise...

◇Houghtow City—Nearby Flio's House◇

It was early in the morning, and Flio and Rys were walking down the

road leading away from their house, along with the Maiden Queen of the

Magical Kingdom of Klyrode.

Flio was a merchant from another world, summoned as one of the

candidates to be this world's hero. The blessing he had received upon his

summoning granted him mastery of every spell and every skill to exist

within the world of Klyrode. Currently he was keeping himself busy

running the Fli-o'-Rys General Store along with his wife Rys, a former

demon soldier of the Dark Army. They were the proud parents of three

daughters—two by birth and one adopted—and one son.

Flio's wife Rys was a lupine demon and a formidable warrior. Her

strength proved useless against the likes of Flio, however, and upon her

defeat she made the decision to walk alongside him as his wife. She adored

her husband to the point of excess, and played something of a mother role

to everyone living in Flio's house.

As for the Maiden Queen, she was the current ruler of the Magical

Kingdom of Klyrode. Her full name was Elizabeth Klyrode, but her friends

called her Ellie. Her father, the former King, ended up being ousted from

the throne for his many misdeeds, leaving her holding the reins of the

country. She was in her thirties, but her lifelong obsession with politics had

left her with little time for romance. She had gone her whole life so far

without ever taking a lover. As this was a secret visit, Ellie was not dressed

in an elegant dress like she would be in Klyrode Castle, but in simple attire

complete with a pair of large round glasses with false lenses.

The three continued down the road, past the pasture for equine magic

beasts. When they came near the vast farmlands outside Flio's estate,

however, Ellie noticed something towering in the distance beyond the

fields. Her eyes opened wide in shock. "E-Excuse me..." she said. "I

remember there being a small hill in that area, but it didn't used to be

so...big, did it?"

"Yes, that's right," Flio said with an awkward chuckle. "That mountain

is the thing I'd been hoping to talk to you about. You see, I recently took in

a group of demons who didn't have anywhere else to go after the war

ended. I thought it might be best to let you know, just in case."

"I... I see..." Ellie said, staring at the mountain in disbelief.

"There's really no need to be so surprised, you know," Rys told her,

smiling brightly. "There was a village of demons who were struggling to

feed themselves, so my lord husband simply brought their mountain over

here."

"'Simply,' you say..." Ellie echoed, blinking her eyes and shaking her

head. W-Wait just a moment... she thought. Did he really bring an entire

mountain of this size here from somewhere else? B-But if he had cast a spell

of such magnitude, surely the castle magicians would have detected the

surge of magical power! But I heard of no such report! So how...?

"Excuse me..." Flio said. "Miss Ellie?"

"Y-Yes?!" Ellie squeaked, so startled she jumped up on the spot.

"Did I do something improper in bringing the demon village here

without notifying you first, by any chance?" Flio asked.

"Oh! No, no, of course not!" Ellie replied. "I was merely at a loss for

words at the power of your magic! Not many could cast a spell powerful

enough to move an entire mountain... B-But that aside, may I inquire as to

the number of demons living on that mountain?"

"There's eighty-three in total, including their chief, Mister Ura," Flio

reported. "There were only around fifty at first, but as rumors of the village

spread, more demons started moving in..." He scratched the back of his

head, smiling apologetically.

"But that's no problem, is it?" Rys opined. "Ura may be their chief in

name, but the truth is they are all my lord husband's vassals. See?" She

pointed towards the vast farm managed by Blossom, one of the residents of

Flio's house. Here and there they could see demons hard at work in the

fields. At first the only ones working on the farm had been Blossom herself

and the goblins she had taken under her wing—Maunty, Hokh'hokton, and

Maunty's wife and children. But now...

"Well now! I was wondering who had come to visit us. If it isn't Lord

Flio!" A brawny man with red skin and tusks poking out from the edges of

his smiling mouth put his tools to the side to greet the three of them. He was

very obviously a demon, and was dressed in an outfit that was clearly

inspired by the clothing worn in the Land of the Rising Sun far to the east.

As soon as he spoke, the other men stood up in the fields all around them,

offering Flio's party cheery greetings of their own. Unlike the first man who

could possibly pass for human, the others working in the field had forms

that were openly demonic.

"Good morning, Lord Flio!"

"Lovely weather we're having, isn't it, Lord Flio!"

"We were just getting another shipment of fresh veggies ready for you!"

As Flio returned each of their greetings with a smile and some kind

words, Rys turned to Ellie. "That first man was Ura, the chief," she said.

"The rest are all residents of the village. As a greater demon, Ura is capable

of assuming a human form if he wishes, but the others belong to lesser

species. They have some strength, but they aren't able to change their

shape."

"Oh? B-But in that case..." Ellie's expression darkened at Rys's words.

Unless I'm very much mistaken, lesser demons are unable to control the

malicium within their bodies... she thought. They should be emitting a

continual stream of malicium particles at all times—that's why areas where

lesser demons gather become saturated with malicium! Eventually the area

becomes too polluted for human habitation, like the Delaveza forest when

the Dark Army had its garrison there, and yet... Ellie looked every which

way for signs of malicium poisoning in the environment and cocked her

head in confusion at finding none.

Flio, who had a keen guess of what was on Ellie's mind, smiled his

usual easygoing smile. "Oh, there's no need to worry about malicium," he

said. He held out his arm and cast a quick spell, causing a miniature magic

circle to appear above his outstretched palm. A magic gem appeared within

the circle shining with a blue light. Then the circle vanished, and the magic

gem drifted gently down into Flio's hand. "This magic gem nullifies the

harmful effects of malicium," he explained, handing it over to her. "As long

as the lesser demons all keep one of these on their persons, there's no risk

of malicium accumulation."

"I-It nullifies the harmful effects of malicium?!" Ellie reeled in shock.

"You mean to say such a thing is possible even without the spell

Purification?"

It was no wonder that the revelation had Ellie so flabbergasted. Her own

magical researchers were certain that there was only one way to nullify

malicium: the spell Purification. Purification, however, required a

tremendous expenditure of magical power and had a commensurately large

area of effect—and more to the point, a casting of Purification would not

only eliminate all malicium within its range, but any demons unfortunate

enough to be in the area as well.

"A way to nullify malicium without the other effects of Purification..."

Ellie muttered in awe, staring at the gem Flio had given her. "Using such a

small magic gem too..."

"We've been experimenting through trial and error to synthesize new

magic gems we can sell at the Fli-o'-Rys General Store," Flio said. "I

suppose we've had a few successes along the way."

"You've been...synthesizing new magic gems?" Ellie repeated. M-

Meaning that this extraordinary gem is man-made...

Malicium pollution had been a significant challenge for the Magical

Kingdom of Klyrode during their war with the Dark Army. Without any

means to eliminate malicium in the environment short of the large-scale

Purification spell, their only realistic option was to drive the demons out of

the affected land and wait for the malicium to disperse naturally.

"And on that note," Flio said, "I have a request for you, Miss Ellie—or

maybe it would be better to call it a request for the Maiden Queen."

"O-Oh? What is it?" Ellie said, somewhat flustered to have Flio

suddenly address her as the reigning monarch. After all, Ellie had been

expecting nothing more than another one of her private visits to Flio's

house between official duties. Officially, Ellie had been traveling the

Magical Kingdom of Klyrode incognito in order to see the state of affairs of

her kingdom with her own eyes. The truth, however, was that these trips

were part of Ellie's ongoing effort to get closer to Flio's son Garyl and the

rest of his household. Her younger sisters, at least, were in on the

conspiracy.

Flio waited for Ellie to clear her throat and put herself in the mindset for

official business. "Well, you see," he said with one of his famous smiles, "if

it's all right with you, I'd like to sell all of these magic gems I made to the

Magical Kingdom of Klyrode..."

"All of them?" Ellie replied, astonished by how nonchalant Flio seemed

about the suggestion. There could be any number of people who might wish

to obtain these gems... she thought. After all, nobody else in the Magical

Kingdom of Klyrode has ever succeeded in synthesizing a magic gem that

can nullify a lesser demon's malicium! And he wants to sell them to us...?

As Ellie's mind struggled to process the situation, two more members of

Flio's household walked up from behind—Ghozal and Uliminas, both

expertly hiding their demonic forms.

"Hrm," Ghozal grunted affably, his arms folded over his enormous

chest. "Selling the magic gems to the Magical Kingdom of Klyrode was my

suggestion, you know."

Ghozal, Dark One Dawkson's older brother, had once ruled over the

Dark Army as the Dark One himself, using the name Gholl. When

Dawkson, who at the time was still using the name Yuigarde, challenged

him for the throne, however, Ghozal abdicated without a fight and chose the

life of a human freeloading at his best friend Flio's house.

Uliminas, meanwhile, was a hellcat demon, and had been Ghozal's

confederate and right-hand woman during their Dark Army days. She had

quit the Dark Army alongside Ghozal and disguised herself as a

demihuman, finding work at the Fli-o'-Rys General Store. She had since

become one of Ghozal's two wives, alongside Balirossa, a former knight of

the Magical Kingdom of Klyrode. The triad had two children as well:

Uliminas's daughter, Folmina, and Balirossa's son, Ghoro.

"It was your suggestion, Lord Ghozal...?" Ellie asked.

"That's right," Ghozal said with a nod. "I'm sure those magic gems

would be flying off the shelves if we sold them in the Fli-o'-Rys General

store, but I'm concerned about all the lesser demons who lost their

livelihoods when the war ended. Normally, their malicium would mean they

couldn't get work in human kingdoms. If that wasn't an obstacle, it could

be a life saver for a lot of folks. But on the other hand..." Ghozal sighed.

"As nice as it would be if all those demons were willing to work on a farm,

it stands to reason that most of the demons who lost their jobs because of

the peace treaty were mercenaries the Dark Army was paying to fight

humans..."

"It's hard to imeowgine a bunch of hot-blooded warriors being satisfied

with a life of farmwork," Uliminas said, continuing Ghozal's train of

thought. "And what if their human employers are the type who wish they

were still at war with the demeowns...?"

Suddenly, Ellie had a flash of understanding. Come to think of it, she

thought, this reminds me of something that came up just the other day...

◇Klyrode Castle—Maiden Queen's Chambers, Several Days Earlier◇

A few days ago after sundown, the Second and Third Princess paid a

late-night visit to the private chambers of the Maiden Queen, their older

sister.

The Second Princess, the next oldest after the Maiden Queen herself,

was named Leusoc Klyrode. She had been responsible for handling

diplomatic relationships with the other human kingdoms since back when

the Magical Kingdom was still at war with the Dark Army. She was a very

forthright and outspoken woman, unafraid to give the Maiden Queen a

frank talking-to when she needed it. The Third Princess, Swann Klyrode,

had recently graduated from a prestigious nobles' academy and had already

become invaluable for her ability to navigate the Magical Kingdom's

internal affairs. She had a somewhat pathological level of adoration for her

big sister the Maiden Queen. Together, the two of them were their older

sister's right and left arms in the world of politics.

Official government business had ended for the day, and the Maiden

Queen had changed her formal gown for a frilly outfit that doubled as

nightclothes. The Second and Third Princess, too, were dressed in casual

attire.

"Second Princess," the Maiden Queen said, swallowing nervously as her

younger sister concluded her report. "You mean to tell me that a foreign

kingdom has been scheming to assemble a force of demonic mercenaries?"

"That's the long and short of it." The Second Princess sighed. "They're

opposed to your peace treaty with the Dark Army, and it looks like they've

secretly been inviting demons into their land as mercenaries. I happened to

run into a couple particularly unconvincing human impressions, see, and I

got to investigating..." She shook her head in exasperation.

"What in heaven's name are those people thinking?!" The Third Princess

huffed in indignation, her mouth turning downward in a pout. "When we

were at war with the Dark Army, they left the bulk of the fighting up to the

Magical Kingdom, and now that our people are at peace, they're raising an

army from the shadows? The nerve of them! I can't believe it!" Her face

was turning bright red in outrage, but with her youthful features the display

of anger came across as adorable more than anything. The Second Princess

covered her mouth with her hand, doing her best to stifle a laugh. "AAhem!" the Third Princess cleared her throat. "W-Well, then, Second

Princess, how far along are they in this scheme of theirs?"

"A-Ah! Yes!" the Second Princess replied. "About that. It sounds like it

hasn't gotten very far at all thanks to issues with malicium pollution. Still, it

seems like someone's up to something here. It's worth keeping an eye on, at

any rate."

◇ ◇ ◇

Back in the present, Ellie's expression darkened as she recalled her

conversation with the Second Princess. If Lord Flio puts these magic gems

on the market without precautions, unscrupulous nobles or even entire

kingdoms will use them to recruit armies of lesser demons... she thought. If

they were to hire adventurers, the Adventurers' Guild would end up

receiving reports of their activities, but if they could hire a force of lesser

demons without the concerns about malicium, they would be able to operate

with no accountability to anyone.

Flio, who once again seemed to know exactly what Ellie was thinking,

just smiled like always. "And that's why we'd like to sell our entire stock of

malicium nullifying gems to the Magic Kingdom of Klyrode itself," he said.

"If the Magical Kingdom has a monopoly on the supply, you'll be able to

keep track of the volume being sold and where they're being sold to."

Ghozal and Uliminas nodded in agreement. Rys, however, looked

somewhat dissatisfied. "Personally," she said, "I don't see why we can't

simply obliterate anyone misusing the gems from the face of the world.

Between my lord husband himself; me, his faithful wife; Ghozal, the

strongest demon in all of Klyrode; Ghozal's onetime confederate Uliminas;

the former Infernal Sleip and his elite guard; the djinn Hiya; Damalynas the

Grand Magus of Midnight; and the invincible dragon Wyne, I would say we

are more than equipped to handle any foe. Still..." she added, looking right

at Ellie. "Even if I don't care one way or another what happens to some

human kingdom, I suppose I'm willing to play along for the sake of Garyl's

prospective bride."

"Eh?" Ellie suddenly found herself at a loss for words, blushing

furiously from her face all the way down to her shoulders. G-G-G-GGaryl's prospective bride?! she thought, covering up her face with both

hands. I-I-I mean...I've certainly thought from time to time that I would very

much like for the two of us to be married...b-b-but how am I meant to

respond when Garyl's mother herself says such a thing out of the blue?!

"Hm?" Rys said, frowning in innocent confusion. "Would you rather I

not call you that?"

"N-N-Not at all!" Ellie said. "In fact, I always find myself wishing to

become his bride as soon as I possibly can!" Suddenly, she realized that she

had accidentally blurted out her true feelings. "O-Oh..." she muttered,

curling up into a ball as her face turned even redder than it already was.

"You're a peculiar human, aren't you?" Rys said, looking very perplexed

by Ellie's behavior. "Visiting our house and helping cook dinner is part of

your bridal training, you know. What do you have to be so embarrassed

about? You've already come this far."

"Now, now, Rys," Flio said, a forbearing smile on his face as he rested a

hand on her shoulder. "Let's leave that aside for the time being. Miss

Ellie?"

"Ah! Y-Yes?" Ellie said, scrambling to her feet, her face still bright red.

"Will you be able to help with the magic gems, like we asked?" Flio

asked, smiling in amusement despite himself.

"Y-Yes, of course!" Ellie said, clasping her hands together and bowing a

full ninety degrees. "I will have to bring it before my ministers once I return

to the castle before I can give my final word on the subject, but I at least

don't see any reason to object! In fact, it seems to me that you are the ones

doing us a favor..."

"I'm the one who came to you with a request," Flio said, shaking his

head. "There's really no need for you to abase yourself like that."

"W-Well," Ellie said. "Just to make certain I understand properly, what

volume of magic gems can you produce at a time? I imagine it's no small

feat to create something so extraordinary..." With Lord Flio's guidance and

instructions, I imagine we could create some dozen gems in a single month.

But with Lord Flio's magical ability, I expect he could work on an entirely

different scale. Perhaps a hundred, or even a hundred fifty...

"Ah, yes," Flio said, smiling his usual easygoing smile. "About the

production..."

◇Meanwhile—Flio's House◇

In her room on the second floor of Flio's house, Elinàsze sat at her desk.

Elinàsze was the daughter of Flio and Rys, a serious girl with a tremendous

talent for magic who adored her father more than anything in the world. She

was Garyl's older twin and a doting big sister to her youngest sibling,

Rylnàsze.

Elinàsze opened a hefty magic grimoire with her left hand and made an

upward gesture with her right index finger, causing the tome to float up into

the air. She read through the page she had opened to, nodding to herself.

"I see," Elinàsze said with a final nod of understanding. "To activate the

spell, I'll need to use this incantation here..." She began chanting under her

breath, and the crystal jewel on her forehead shone with light. A small

magic circle appeared at the tip of her index finger and began producing a

mess of what looked something like red string.

Elinàsze watched the progress out of the corner of her eye as she cast the

spell, until suddenly, with a jarring clink, the magic circle and threadlike

filament alike splintered and dissipated into the air. "Huh?!" Elinàsze

exclaimed, her eyes flinching open. Then a dark cloud came over her

expression. "Hmph..." She folded her arms in disappointment. "Another

failure..."

"So it seems..." said Hiya, coming up from behind. "Your technique was

excellent, Lady Elinàsze, but I am afraid you may lack the experience to

perform such a spell."

"I lack experience, huh?" Elinàsze mused. "I guess I'm still a long way

off from being as good as papa..." She lowered her head in thought. "But I

would be so much more helpful to him at work if I could cast this Create

Djinn spell... I suppose I'll just have to keep trying until I get it right!" She

screwed up her face, nodding with renewed determination before turning

back to the grimoire. "Just you wait—I'll be able to cast this spell before

you know it! With the help of your magic grimoire, of course, Hiya!"

Hiya merely smiled.

Hiya, the djinn who commands the origin of light and darkness, was a

being with enough magic power to destroy the entire world, but after their

defeat to Flio they took to calling him the Exalted One and living with the

others in his house.

The spell Lady Elinàsze is so determined to cast is one that creates a

djinn to serve as the caster's familiar, Hiya thought. It is indeed recorded

within that magic grimoire, but the grimoire itself is a tome of magic from

another world entirely, forbidden by the Magical Kingdom. I suspect that

there is nobody in the world of Klyrdoe capable of casting such a spell save

for the Exalted One himself. And yet... Hiya glanced outside the room they

were in.

All of the bedrooms in Flio's house were divided into two chambers—

one for sleeping, and one to serve as a private space for each individual

resident. Hiya, however, was not looking into Elinàsze's sleeping chamber

but a space Elinàsze had created beside it using her magic, where a host of

miniaturized magic dolls worked feverishly to produce magic gem after

magic gem.

Even without a djinn familiar, to create such a number of magic dolls is

no small feat of magic... Hiya thought as they watched the dolls work.

"Oh!" Elinàsze said, smiling brightly when she noticed where Hiya was

looking. "I thought that would be a good way to practice my Create Magic

Doll spell while also making malicium-nullifying magic gems to sell at

papa's shop!"

Hm... Hiya thought. A magic gem of this type has never been produced

in the Magical Kingdom of Klyrode before. Even with the guidance of the

Exalted One, I was unable to create more than ten in a single month. It

seems that these magic dolls, however, can match that number in a single

hour. I would be hard-pressed indeed to match that pace myself. And not

only that, but she spends her time researching other spells even as she

manipulates her factory of dolls... Hiya glanced from Elinàsze herself, to

the book she was reading floating in midair, and then to the gem on her

forehead shining with brilliant light. I have greatly enjoyed my time training

under the Exalted One, but perhaps it would be no less enjoyable to train

with his revered daughter...

Just as Hiya thought those words, someone else's voice popped into

their head. "What the heck, Your Divinity?!" said Damalynas from inside

Hiya's mind.

"Oh?" Hiya replied. "If it isn't Damalynas. Is there something you

need?"

"What do you mean, is there something I need?!" Damalynas shot back.

"I've been waiting patiently in your mindscape like a good girl, and now I

hear you've been having fun training with Lord Flio and Lady Elinàsze!"

Damalynas, the Grand Magus of Midnight, was a master of dark magic.

She had long since lost her physical body, however, and now only existed as

a psychic construct ever since Hiya defeated and absorbed her into their

own mental world to serve as a training partner.

Hiya smirked in amusement at the voice coming from their own head.

"Don't be absurd," they chided Damalynas. "My training with the Exalted

One and Lady Elinàsze is in the realm of magic. My training with you is of

a different sort entirely, is it not?"

"I-I mean, I know..." Damalynas mumbled. "But it's just...well...you get

it, right?"

"I see no need for you to harbor jealousy over it," said Hiya.

"H-Hey, I'm not jealous or anything..." Damalynas insisted.

"Tonight I will give you the training you desire," Hiya said. "Until then,

have patience."

"W-Well, if you promise..." Damalynas replied. "I'll be patient, Your

Divinity!" she added, somewhat more cheerfully.

Satisfied that the issue with Damalynas had been resolved, Hiya nodded

their head. When I first witnessed the Exalted One and his wife entwining

their bodies in their nightly lovemaking ritual, I did not know what to make

of the behavior, they reflected, pressing a finger to their lips. At first, all I

had was questions. But through my training with Damalynas, I feel I have

come to at least somewhat understand the emotions behind such actions...

Elinàsze glanced at Hiya out of the corner of her eye as she worked.

Hiya likes to make those faces out of the blue every now and then... she

thought. I'm not sure what to make of it. It makes them look kind of...adult...

Elinàsze might have reached physical maturity, but when it came to

some things she was still very much a child.

◇ ◇ ◇

"I see..." Ellie said. "So Miss Elinàsze is the one producing the magic

gems..."

"That's right!" Flio said, smiling happily. It wasn't his usual easygoing

smile, but a look of deep paternal joy at seeing his daughter come into her

own. "Elinàsze studied hard at the Houghtow College of Magic, and with

an incredible spellcaster like Hiya training her personally, I bet it's only a

matter of time until she's even better at magic than me!"

"I'm not sure about that one," Ghozal said with a smirk. "Elinàsze's

grown a lot—no doubt about that—but better than you...?"

"Hiss!" Uliminas cut him off, interrupting him with a full-power elbow

to the side of his gut. "I keep telling you to read the room, you meowron!"

"H-Hrm? Oh, is it one of those things? My bad, my bad!" Ghozal said,

scratching the back of his head and laughing heartily as Uliminas rubbed

her smarting elbow. Uliminas had struck him for everything she was worth,

but Ghozal's body hadn't yielded an inch. If anything, it was Uliminas's

elbow that seemed to have gotten the worst of the exchange. Soon, the

whole group was laughing together at the absurdity of the scene.

"Well then," Ellie said once they had settled down, rolling up her

sleeves. "Shall we return to the house? I believe I should be getting to my

breakfast preparations..."

"Oh, one moment, Miss Ellie," Flio said, once again smiling his usual

easygoing smile. "There's another place I'd like to show you this

morning..."

"Oh? Another place, you say?" Ellie asked, curiously cocking her head.

◇Houghtow City—Near Flio's House◇

Following the road away from the front door of Flio's house past the

pasture and surrounding farmland, one would come to the gates of the wall

protecting Houghtow City. From this point, they would encounter a fork in

the road. To the left was Houghtow City proper, while the road to the right

led to the neighboring city. And a little ways down the right fork and into

the nearby forest was a decently large lake.

"Pfah!" Wyne cried, spitting out water as she came bursting from the

lake.

Wyne the dragonewt was said to be the greatest warrior among all of

dragonkind. Flio and Rys found her collapsed from hunger on the side of

the road and took her in. Since then, she lived as part of their family and

was a doting big sister to Elinàsze and the other children.

"Ah ha ha!" Wyne laughed as she soared into the sky leaving a spray of

water in her wake. "The water feels so good-good!" A wide grin on her

face, she spread her arms and legs as she fell back into the water with a

splash. She was, of course, completely naked.

"Big sis Wyne is amazing!" Rylnàsze gasped as she watched near the

shore of the lake. "She's just like a fish!"

Rylnàsze was Flio and Rys's youngest daughter. Thanks to her talent for

the art of taming, she was beloved by magic beasts everywhere. That talent

had earned her a spot on the staff caring for the magic beasts kept by the

Houghtow College of Magic even though she was too young to be enrolled

in the school herself. At the moment she was wearing a navy blue swimsuit

adhering to the lower grade's uniform requirements alongside her favorite

wide-brimmed hat.

Behind Rylnàsze, Sybe stood on two legs in his psychobear form

watching as Wyne leaped deftly in and out of the water. "Bwor rwof!" he

agreed, clapping his paws above his head.

Sybe had originally been a wild psychobear Flio had met in a random

encounter, but Sybe, who had sensed right away that he had no hope of

defeating the likes of Flio, surrendered immediately and thereafter lived as

the family's pet. He spent most of his time in the somewhat less

conspicuous unicorn rabbit form Flio had magically given him.

All around Sybe and Rylnàsze's feet, the rest of Sybe's family frolicked

happily, hopping about and clapping their forepaws—his wife, the unicorn

rabbit Shebe, and their children Sube, Sebe, and Sobe. Shebe had been a

wild unicorn rabbit who had grown fond of Sybe and came to live in the

house with him as his wife. Their children were a mix of their parents'

traits, with Sube and Sobe resembling unicorn rabbits more strongly and

Sebe taking more after a psychobear.

"Sheesh," said Garyl, who was watching from in front of the nearby

shack. "Big sis Wyne has some crazy moves!" He seemed to be enjoying

the show every bit as much as Rylnàsze and the magic beasts.

Garyl, a friendly boy whose good nature and bright smile had made him

the celebrity of the Houghtow College of Magic, was Elinàsze's younger

twin. He excelled in physical abilities to a truly outrageous degree. Like

Rylnàsze, he was dressed in his school swimsuit, with a white parka over

his bare chest.

The shack behind him, incidentally, was something Flio had built using

his magic after taking a liking to this lake so that his family could come

enjoy the water at any time. From the outside it looked no bigger than an

average storeroom, but the inside had been expanded using Flio's magic,

turning it into a one-story building five times the size of their main house's

living room, complete with a basement for storage. Garyl was standing in

front of the building, cooking something in a rustic stone oven.

A cloud of mist formed behind Garyl and a woman emerged seemingly

from nowhere, dressed in a type of outfit from the Far East known as a

kimono and a hood pulled over her head—both white.

"Well, well!" she said, grinning and resting the naginata she carried on

her shoulder. "It is no small feat to leap with such force from the water,

without even placing one's feet upon solid ground. My master's elder sister

is truly extraordinary!" This was Ben'ne, a swordmaster from the Land of

the Rising Sun who had long since lost her physical form, existing only as a

psychic construct. Garyl had been the first person to defeat her in single

combat and, awed by his strength, she vowed to become his familiar.

"Master, are you preparing a meal?" she asked, looking over at Garyl.

"That's right!" Garyl said. "Dad and the others are gonna be here soon,

so I thought it would be nice for us all to eat breakfast together!"

"Understood." Ben'ne said, grabbing hold of the kimono she was

wearing and tossing it off with a single gesture. Underneath she was

wearing nothing but a fundoshi-style loincloth over her groin and a cloth

wrapping over her chest. "Then I, Ben'ne, shall procure a worthy fish to

accompany our meal!" she declared, taking off for the lake without waiting

for a response.

"H-Hey! Wait! Miss B!" Garyl exclaimed, his face turning bright red as

he called for her to stop. "Y-You can't run around dressed like that!"

Ben'ne dived into the water wearing hardly any more clothing than

Wyne, who was swimming about completely in the nude. Just then,

however, a gust of wind came from nowhere, circling the two women, who

cried out in surprise.

"Fwah?!"

"Oh...?"

Both Wyne and Ben'ne found themselves baffled—suddenly, they were

dressed in school swimsuits like the one Rylnàsze was wearing. Then, in a

flash, Tanya alighted next to Garyl at the shore of the lake.

Tanya had originally been known as Tanyalina, an angel of immense

magic power from the Celestial Plane who had been sent to keep an eye on

Flio. She had lost her memory in a freak midair collision with Wyne,

though, and opted instead to join the household, serving as the estate's

maid.

Tanya stood and turned to face Wyne and Ben'ne. "Young mistress

Wyne, how many times must I tell you not to go outside naked?" she said,

chiding the dragonewt. "And you, Ben'ne! Did it not cross your mind that it

might cast doubt on young master Garyl for his familiar to be seen in public

in such shameful attire?" She spoke as calmly as always, but the aura of

anger welling up behind the angel was unmistakable.

"Nuh-uh, nuh-uh!" said Wyne, grabbing at the fabric of the perfectly

tailored swimsuit to take it off. "It's all clammy!"

Before she could remove the offending garment, however, a spray of

bubbles erupted from the water directly behind her. Wyne turned to look

just in time to see an enormous magic beast rising up from the depths. It

had the body of a blue-scaled serpent with wings all along its back that it

beat as it flew straight up out of the water and into the air.

From the window inside the shack, Ghozal's children Folmina and

Ghoro watched the magic beast emerge from the lake, their eyes opened

wide in disbelief.

Folmina, Ghozal's daughter with Uliminas, was half hellcat while

Ghoro, the son he had with his other wife, Balirossa, was half human, but

both of them treated Uliminas and Balirossa equally as their mothers.

Folmina was infatuated with Garyl, while Ghoro, a lad of few words, was

fond of Folmina.

"Whoa!" Folmina cried, rolling up her sleeves. "That one's huge! Hey,

you think I could fight it?"

"If big sis Folmina's gonna fight it, I will too..." said Ghoro, swinging

his arms in wide circles as he ran up to his sister's side.

The two of them changed from their human forms to their demonic

selves, wings sprouting from their backs as they took to the air.

"Wait!" Rislei cried after them from inside the shack. "Folmina! Ghoro!

Don't put yourselves in danger like that!" Rislei was the daughter of Sleip

the lichsteed and Byleri the human. She was a serious-minded girl and

something of a leader figure for the younger children in Flio's house.

Rislei stretched her arm out the window and waved for Folmina and

Ghoro to come back, but between Folmina's excitement at the prospect of

fighting the magic beast and Ghoro's single-minded focus on protecting

Folmina, neither of them heard her shouting after them.

Another girl, however, came running out of the shack. "Let me help..."

she said in a very small voice as she tossed off her own kimono-style outfit.

She took a quick run-up and jumped high into the air.

"Huh?!" Folmina exclaimed as the girl leaped straight past her in midair,

jumping faster than she could fly. "Wha?! Kora?!"

Kora was the child of Ura, the oni chief of the demon village Flio had

transplanted outside the farm. Her mother had been one of the fairy people,

making her a mixed-species child as well. She was an agonizingly shy girl,

but had been doing her best to open herself up to the other members of

Flio's household.

Folmina watched as Kora flew through the air, dressed like Ben'ne had

been, wearing nothing but a loincloth and chest wrap. Kora squeezed her

right fist tight, and it suddenly grew to nearly ten times the size it had been

before.

"Wawawah?!" Folmina cried in shock. "Kora's arm got huge!"

Kora spun in midair, building momentum with her oversized arm, and

then, with an expressionless kapow! she brought her fist down atop the

magic beast's head. The magic beast fell backward, collapsing into the lake

with a loud splash.

"Oh?" said Ben'ne, spinning her naginata in a skillful flourish as she ran

up as well. "I see you have some skill, young lady. However, I myself am

not about to be outdone!" As a psychic construct, Ben'ne was able to

control the mass of her body in order to run atop the water's surface. She

thrust her naginata into the lake and brought it upward in a rising slash,

launching the magic beast that had only just plummeted back to the water

into the air once more. It flew helplessly from the middle of the lake out

towards the shore. It seemed to already be nearly unconscious between

Kora's attack and Ben'ne's follow-up.

"N-No way, no way!" Wyne complained as she watched the magic beast

that had appeared right before her eyes only seconds earlier shrink farther

and farther away. "This one's mine-mine!" Blue scales grew on her body as

she transformed into her dragonewt form, taking off after the magic beast as

fast as she could.

At that very moment, however, a glowing magic circle appeared beside

the shack. It revolved on the spot and vanished, leaving a simple black door

in its place. The door opened, and Ellie stepped out, dressed in her

commoner's clothes and false glasses—right into the path of the

unconscious magic beast.

"Huh...?" Ellie, who had just arrived from the fields near Ura's mountain

courtesy of Flio's Teleportation spell, blinked, freezing in place at the sight

of the oncoming monstrosity. As she stood unable to move, Garyl rushed

between her and the serpent, holding out his arm. He caught it singlehandedly, halting its movement completely. The magic beast was easily

twenty meters in length and many times Garyl's weight, but the boy seemed

to have no trouble holding it in place with a single hand.

"Hey, Miss B?" he started, gently lowering the beast to the ground with

a dry smirk. "Next time you send a magic beast flying towards the shore,

would you please be careful about where you're aiming it? There are

children in the house, and you knew there were people coming..."

"Ah..." Ben'ne said. "I have committed a grave error. Never in my life

have I felt so ashamed..." She walked up beside her master, a look of deep

remorse on her face. "For my failure to adhere to your instructions, I am

prepared for you to punish my body tonight however you wish..." She bent

forward in a lascivious pose, emphasizing the size of her chest.

"I-I keep telling you, you don't need to do that!" Garyl said, turning his

head to look the other way. "You're my familiar, and I say it's all right as

long as you try to do better..."

"Indeed?" Ben'ne asked. "But I could even bear you an heir, were I to

receive my master's passion..." She idly brought her hand to touch her

belly, a faint smile on her face.

When Ben'ne lived in the Land of the Rising Sun, she spent her time

challenging warriors to single combat in hopes of finding one stronger than

herself. Eventually, Garyl had defeated her and so she resolved to become

his familiar. Since then she had followed him everywhere and occasionally

joined him for sword training, but lately she had found herself longing to

have a child with Garyl as well.

"Aren't you a psychic construct anyway, Miss B?" Garyl asked. "Would

that even work?"

"I wondered the same myself," Ben'ne said. "But Hiya-dono told me

that it should be no obstacle for a psychic construct as long as their

intention is strong. At the least, it seems it is not impossible. If nothing else,

we will not know until we try..." Ben'ne reached for the shoulder strap of

her swimsuit, but before she could begin sliding it off, she was interrupted

by Ellie.

"You mustn't!" Ellie cried, dashing up to Ben'ne. She had been shocked

out of her senses by the magic beast, but seeing Ben'ne putting the moves

on Garyl brought her back to herself and she hurried to interpose herself

between the two of them. "I-It would be...i-inappropriate, I think, for you

and Garyl to do such things!" she managed, red-faced and squeaky-voiced

as she did her very best to affect an air of calm.

"Oh?" Ben'ne said, holding up her hand to hide her smile at Ellie's

behavior. "I suppose you would be my master's first wife."

"F-First wife?!" Ellie repeated, her face going red all the way down to

her neck.

"Do not worry," Ben'ne reassured her. "It is not my intention to contest

you for the seat of first wife. It is indeed my wish to bear the child of my

master, should such be my fortune, but I will happily take the duty of

bringing up the children you and he have as well. I trust it will be no issue?"

"That is quite enough nonsense from you." Suddenly, the blade of

Tanya's scythe appeared at Ben'ne's neck. Tanya, wearing the traditional

tattered cloak of an angel on a mission, stood right behind Ben'ne. Her face

had changed to be half human and half skeleton. The scythe she wielded,

too, was the Scythe of Judgment—a weapon unique to the disciples of the

Celestial Plane. "Any descendant of Master Flio has the potential to one day

inherit leadership of the house," she intoned. "I would never permit the

education of such a personage to fall to a lascivious muscle woman like

you. Their upbringing will be a duty for my own unworthy self, and I will

exert the whole of my body and spirit to carry it out. As for you, lascivious

muscle woman, you had better stay on your best behavior..."

"Oho?" Ben'ne smiled at Tanya's words. "Few can come up behind me

without my detecting their presence. Well done. However, this is a matter

on which I will not yield." Her body turned to mist and vanished,

reappearing behind Tanya with her naginata at the ready. She attacked the

angel with a downward slash only for the strike to be repelled by Tanya's

Scythe of Judgment. Tanya drew away, out of Ben'ne's range. "You blocked

my attack?"

"My, you didn't think an attack like that would be enough to defeat me,

did you?" Tanya shot back, getting on guard herself.

"That's enough, you two!" said Rys, smacking both fighters on the back

of the head with the side of her hand.

"Y-Yes, mistress..." said Tanya.

"Yes, madame..." said Ben'ne.

Rys glared at the two fighters, her arms crossed in indignation. "Tanya,

Ben'ne, both of you need to consider when and where you are when you do

such things! Didn't I tell you we had a guest visiting the house today? And

look at the dreadful display you've put on in front of her!"

Tanya and Ben'ne stared back at her, at a loss for words.

"I-I'm terribly sorry, mistress...I have no excuse..." said Tanya.

"I-I apologize most profusely, madame..." said Ben'ne.

The two fell to their knees and bowed their heads low in the face of

Rys's open displeasure.

I-I must have been too focused on that lascivious muscle woman... Tanya

thought. I didn't notice the mistress coming up behind me in the slightest...

My master's mother is no less incredible... thought Ben'ne. To think that

she could come up behind me and even strike the back of my head...

Flio, who had just stepped out of the Teleportation Portal himself,

grimaced at the scene. "I'm just glad I noticed the magic beast coming in

time to set up a barrier, even if we didn't need it..." he said.

"No kidding," Garyl agreed, an identical grimace on his face as well.

"I'm just glad Ellie's safe."

I-I don't know which is more incredible... Ellie thought, looking between

the two. Garyl for stopping a magic beast of that size with a single hand, or

Lord Flio for setting up a barrier before he could even act!

◇ ◇ ◇

A while later, things at the lakeside shack had finally quieted down.

Rylnàsze, still in her swimsuit, was gently stroking the head of the

serpentine magic beast from earlier. "See?" she gently chided it. "You

shouldn't come leaping out of the water at people like that!"

The serpent, who had just undergone a truly terrible experience, cried

pitiable tears, lowering its head to Rylnàsze. Around them, Sybe in his

psychobear form and the rest of his family eagerly chimed in with input of

their own.

"Sniffle!"

"Snuffle!"

"Bwowr!"

"Sniff sniff..."

Ellie watched the outlandish scene from a seat in the open kitchen

outside the shack. "E-Excuse me," she said. "Lord Flio? What, exactly, is

going on...?"

"Oh, that?" Flio said, smiling his usual easygoing smile as he sat down

across from Ellie. "It seems like Rylnàsze was born with some powerful

taming abilities. I've yet to meet a magic beast too ferocious for her to

befriend just by talking to them like that."

"I-I see..." Ellie said with a slight nod. There are tamers in Klyrode

Castle as well, she thought, but none who could possibly converse with a

magic beast of such tremendous size!

"Now," said Charun, placing a cup of hot black tea on the table in front

of Ellie. "Would you care for a cup of tea before breakfast?"

Charun was a magic doll created by a mage working for the Dark Army

long ago. Calsi'im the skeleton had discovered her in a state of disrepair

and had her restored, and so she had remained by his side ever since. When

Calsi'im had taken up residence in Flio's house, Charun followed him as

well.

"Th-Thank you very much," Ellie said, graciously accepting the tea and

taking a sip. "Ah... Your tea is always a delight, Charun."

"I am overjoyed to hear that my tea is to your liking, Your Majesty," said

Charun, bowing with perfect grace.

"Oh ho ho!" laughed Calsi'im, supporting his bony body with a cane as

he walked up behind Charun. "My darling Charun's tea is a cut above, after

all!"

Calsi'im was an old skeleton who had served for a time in the position

of Dark Regent, commanding the Dark Army while the Dark One had gone

missing. He passed away once, but he had been brought back to life thanks

to Flio's efforts. These days, he lived out his retirement with the others in

Flio's house.

"Oh, Calsi'im!" Charun said, pressing her hands to her cheeks and

squirming with delight. "You won't get extra tea no matter how much you

sweet-talk me, you know!" It was a marked contrast from how she had

reacted to Ellie's words of praise. Clearly the nature of her delight was

different when it came from Calsi'im. After all, the two were a well-known

couple, and a particularly affectionate one at that.

"Papa! Mama!" Calsi'im and Charun's daughter Rabbitz came bounding

up from behind. She was the child of a magic doll and a skeleton, and there

were few others like her in existence. She loved climbing on top of her

father's head, and always had a great big smile on her face.

Rabbitz leaped through the air like the animal that served as her

namesake, her arms spread wide. She caught Calsi'im's head in one arm

and Charun's in another, holding both her parents tight and nuzzling

between them, grinning widely. "Papa! Mama! Love love!" Her parents

could do nothing but flail helplessly as the girl held both of them tight.

"O-Oh, gracious me, Rabbitz!" Calsi'im protested. "I'm very happy you

love us so much, but please...!"

"A-Awawa!" cried Charun. "I-I'm going to spill the tea!"

As Calsi'im's family continued their antics, Flio and Ellie returned to

their conversation. "Anyway," Flio said, "the thing I wanted to tell you

about, Ellie, is our situation with the magic beasts."

"The...magic beasts?" Ellie asked, cocking her head curiously. "Does

this have something to do with the magic beast from earlier?"

"Oh, no, that one's unrelated," Flio said, waving Rylnàsze over.

"Rylnàsze, would you mind telling the magic beasts to come out where we

can see them?"

"Of course! Right away!" Rylnàsze replied with a cheerful smile. Then

she took a deep breath and called out in a loud voice in the direction of the

nearby forest. "Everyone! Come out and say hello!"

Suddenly, before Ellie's eyes, magic beast after magic beast began to

emerge from the cover of the trees and the waters of the lake to gather, all

facing Rylnàsze.

"G-Goodness!" Ellie said, her eyes opening wide in astonishment at the

sight. She swallowed nervously at the number of magic beasts in the area.

Flio, however, wore the same easygoing smile he always did.

"We've been looking after these magic beasts, you see," Flio said.

"You're...looking after them?" Ellie repeated, still somewhat

bewildered.

"That's right," Flio confirmed. "It looks like these magic beasts were all

being used by the Dark Army during the war, but due to the peace treaty,

they were no longer needed for fighting and ended up getting abandoned."

"Eh?" Ellie said, blinking in confusion. "B-But under the terms of the

treaty, the Dark Army and Klyrode Military agreed to take joint

responsibility in handling the magic beasts used for the war..."

"Yes," said Flio, "but from what the messenger from the Dark Army told

me, a group of nobles in the Dark Army has been abandoning their magic

beasts as soon as they're finished with them. And worse, they've been

letting them loose inside the borders of the Magic Kingdom of Klyrode as

some sort of retaliation..."

Ellie found herself speechless at Flio's report.

◇Klyrode Castle—Maiden Queen's Chambers, Several Days Earlier◇

After the sisters had finished discussing their issue with the demon

mercenaries, the Second Princess broached another topic. "There's one

more thing that's been bothering me," she said with a frown. "Our little

issue with the magic beasts..." It seemed to be unpleasant for her to speak

about.

"Our issue with the magic beasts?" the Third Princess asked. "Do you

mean all the incursions of magic beasts on our borders? The ones who seem

clearly to have had combat training from somewhere...?"

"The very same," the Second Princess replied. "This is just speculation

on my part, but it doesn't seem impossible to imagine that now that the

war's over, someone's been releasing magic beasts they don't need anymore

near our borders in an attempt at petty harassment..."

"They've been doing what?!" the Third Princess exclaimed, her face

turning beet red as she swung her arms in indignation. "But that would be a

clear violation of the terms of the treaty! We must send a letter of complaint

to Dark One Dawkson at—"

"Calm yourself, Third Princess!" the Maiden Queen chided her little

sister.

"B-But!" the Third Princess protested. "They're acting like this even

after all the endless trials you went through to see that treaty to

completion!"

"Nonetheless, you must be calm," the Maiden Queen said, her

expression severe. The Third Princess shut her mouth when she saw how

serious her sister looked, but she didn't stop waving her arms in agitation.

"We cannot send a letter of complaint to Dark One Dawkson until we have

obtained solid proof of our suspicions," the Queen continued. "If it happens

that the parties responsible for the magic beast outbreaks are demonic

nobility who refuse to accept the treaty...well..."

The Second Princess folded her arms, nodding in agreement. "Exactly,"

she said. "If we accuse them without proof, they'll raise an uproar about

baseless accusations by the Magical Kingdom of Klyrode to incite more

demons to join their cause..."

"O-Oh..." Suddenly the Third Princess understood just how difficult the

situation the three of them were dealing with was. Her objections died on

her tongue.

"That being said," the Maiden Queen continued, "let us investigate and

see what we can learn pertaining to this case." The Second and Third

Princess nodded in agreement.

◇ ◇ ◇

Ellie's expression darkened as she thought back to the conversation she

had had in her chambers the other day with her two younger sisters. If Lord

Flio's guess is correct, we must move quickly to deal with the situation...

Sensing Ellie's thoughts, Flio smiled his usual easygoing smile. "And

so," he said, "if you discover any magic beasts like this, I'd appreciate it if

you sent them to the Fli-o'-Rys General Store for us to take care of. We can

finish off any magic beasts who are too low-tier to be tamed and harvest

them for materials to sell in the store or pass along to the Adventurers'

Guild or Merchants'Association. The tamable ones we can look after here."

"You'll...look after them?" Ellie asked, surprised. She gave the

assembled magic beasts a second look and was struck by how many of them

had their eyes fixed on Rylnàsze. That's a maned tiger... she thought,

looking over the crowd. And behind it, a boargantuan! Those are dangerous

magic beasts, ranked S by the Adventurers' Guild! And they're not the only

ones...

The whole menagerie of deadly magic beasts, however—the giant

winged serpent Rylnàsze had been tending to moments ago included—

seemed perfectly well-behaved, content to wait patiently by Rylnàsze's side.

The magic beasts closest to her nuzzled in affectionately, wagging their tails

like domesticated puppies.

"I set up a pretty serious magic barrier around the lake, so there's no

need to worry about them escaping," Flio told the Maiden Queen. "And I

can't imagine anyone would be able to break in here to steal a magic beast

for evil ends. Do I have your permission to go forward with the project?"

"O-Of course!" Ellie said, nodding eagerly as a great smile came over

her face. "In fact, it seems rather that you're the one doing me a tremendous

favor!"

"I'm very glad to hear that," said Flio, his smile unfaltering. "In that

case, we'll keep on doing our best with the magic beasts here."

At this point, Garyl figured that his father's conversation with Ellie had

wound down enough for him to interject himself. He walked over to the two

of them, raising his hand in a friendly greeting. "Hi dad! Hi Miss Ellie!" he

said, holding up a roast skewer of mixed vegetables and meat. "If you're

done with the serious business, how about some breakfast? The skewers are

hot and ready to eat!"

"Yaaay!" cried Wyne from over in the water of the lake where she had

been swimming. "Meat! Meat!" she cheered, rushing over to Garyl's side

with a great big smile on her face. After her came Folmina and Ghoro, then

Kora and the others.

"You should go get something to eat too, Miss Ellie," said Flio.

"O-Oh! Thank you most graciously for the meal!" Ellie said, smiling

awkwardly as she walked up to Garyl herself. B-But all this meat is a bit

heavy for breakfast, isn't it...?

Soon, the shore of the lake was full of the sound of laughter and merry

conversation.

◇Later—Houghtow City, Blossom Acres◇

"Haah!" Blossom sighed, wiping the sweat from her brow as she noted

the position of the sun, high in the sky. "Is it that time already?"

Blossom had originally been a heavy knight from Klyrode Castle. As the

company leader Balirossa's best friend, she had accompanied Balirossa

when she made the decision to leave the knighthood and lodge instead at

Flio's house. Blossom's parents had been farmers and she herself excelled

in the fields, and in short order she ended up turning the land outside of

Flio's estate into a vast farmland under her management.

"I gotta say..." Blossom remarked. "It feels like working the farm's

getting easier every day!"

"I quite agree!" the goblin Maunty, who had been working the field as

well behind Blossom, said. He smiled as he filled the basket on his back

with freshly harvested vegetables.

Maunty had originally been a goblin foot soldier in the Dark Army, but

lately he had been spending his days working up a sweat in the fields as one

of the Blossom Acres farmworkers. He had brought his wife and children

with him as well, all of whom helped out with the farm.

"It's 'cause we have everyone from Ura's village working with us, not to

mention your entire family," Blossom said. "When we first started farming

this land it was just me, Sybe, you, and Hokh'hokton..."

"Ha ha!" Maunty laughed heartily. "My wife and I are ready to expand

the family at any time if you just say the word, Lady Blossom!"

Blossom glanced around at the scores of goblin heads poking out

between the rows of vegetables around them. Huh? she thought with a

grimace. Last I checked, there were only around thirty of them, I'm pretty

sure. But there's gotta be at least sixty of 'em running around! I really wish

they'd stop multiplying like that...

It seemed that Maunty and his wife continued to be as fruitful as ever.

"Well, I'm happy just as long as I can be of use to you, Lady Blossom!"

said Ura the oni, a cheerful grin on his face as he walked up beside them.

Ura was the chief of the oni village, and the father of Kora. He had been

raising his daughter alone ever since his fairy wife passed away, as well as

looking after the community of demons he had fallen in with. He was a

passionate man with a strong sense of duty and tremendously proud of his

strength. During the time of Dark One Gholl, he had even been a candidate

for the Infernal Four. Ura was currently in human form, but he was scarcely

any smaller than he was as an oni. The basket on his back looked comically

small by comparison.

"Good job out there, Ura," said Blossom with a smile. "I really

appreciate all the work you and the others in your village do for this farm,

y'know? It's a big help." The other demons working in the fields behind

them grinned a bit more broadly. "Really!" Blossom said, grinning and

waving to everyone working in the fields. "Thank y'all so much!"

Just then, Kora darted up to them, wrapping her arms tight around Ura's

leg. "Oh, Kora!" Ura said, grinning as he tousled his daughter's hair, which

was still wet from swimming in the lake. "How was the lake? Did you have

fun?" Kora beamed up at him, heedless of her increasingly disheveled hair.

"You had breakfast with the others by the lake. Isn't that right, Kora?"

Blossom asked, smiling at the sight of Ura doting on his daughter. "I

suppose you don't need any breakfast here in that—"

That was as far as Blossom got, however, before Kora detached herself

from her father to hug Blossom in turn, looking up at her and desperately

shaking her head. "No!" she said. "I'll eat...breakfast."

"But didn't y'all have grilled skewers?" Blossom asked. "Didja not have

an appetite for 'em?"

"Uh-uh, it's 'cause..." Kora shook her head. "...'s breakfast goes in a

different stomach."

"Ah ha ha!" Blossom laughed, patting Kora brusquely on the head. "I

get it, I get it! In that case, I'll go ahead and make some breakfast for you

and everyone! You better eat up, Kora!"

But it's funny... Blossom thought. Whenever she talks about me, Kora's

voice gets so quiet I can't even hear it. I wonder what it is she's calling me!

Maybe I should ask her about it one of these days...

Kora looked up at Blossom with a happy smile on her face as she patted

her head, her cheeks flushing pink.

Hokh'hokton, meanwhile, watched the scene play out from a short

distance away. Like Maunty, Hokh'hokton had been a goblin soldier in the

Dark Army who now spent his days working hard on the farm. Recently, the

so-called no-gooddess Telbyress, a goddess who had been exiled from the

Celestial Plane, had taken up residence in his house quite against his

wishes.

"How splendid! Splendid indeed!" Hokh'hokton said, nodding happily

as he watched. "Ah, even I can't help getting a bit misty-eyed at a sight like

that!" After a while, however, he sighed, glancing behind him. "And

meanwhile, what do I have to deal with...?"

There, back behind him, was Telbyress wearing a wide-brimmed straw

hat. Telbyress had been stripped of her godhood for her general

unwillingness to do her divine job, and things had been no different since

moving in with Hokh'hokton. Nominally she was assisting with the

farmwork, but between her love of liquor and pure inveterate laziness,

Hokh'hokton had his hands full scolding and haranguing her in hopes that

she might make herself useful.

At that moment, Telbyress was squatted down beside a plot full of leafy

greens. "At least she seems to be applying herself seriously today, for a

change..." Hokh'hokton sighed, returning to his own tasks. A second later,

however, something struck him as off about the woman behind him. "Wait a

moment..." he said, cocking his head quizzically as he walked over in

Telybress's direction. At first glance she seemed to be quietly weeding the

fields, but the more Hokh'hokton watched, the more something seemed

wrong. "Telbyress," he began, lifting up her hat. "Why aren't you

making...progress?"

Underneath the wide-brimmed hat was nothing more than a clay doll

created by magic.

"Damn that no-gooddess!" Hokh'hokton shouted, kicking the head off

the clay doll in his rage. "She's run off somewhere I can't see to get out of

work again!"

◇Meanwhile—Oni Village Mountain Peak◇

"Hwuh?" Telbyress said, craning her neck to look behind her. "Did

someone say my name?" She stood there for a while listening carefully

before concluding that there was no one behind her. "Hmm..." She nodded.

"Must've been my imagination..." Satisfied, she crept into a cave near the

peak of the mountain, carrying a large bag in her arms.

She passed through the mouth of the cave, whistling a tune as she went,

until she entered a large open space where someone had stashed a number

of wooden barrels. There was a magic barrier in place as well, keeping the

environment around the barrels sterile.

"Hee hee hee!" Telbyress cackled, a languid smile crossing her face as

she rubbed her cheek against the bag in her arms. "Look at how well my

distillery's coming along!" she gloated. "After all, I did set up this place

using everything I've learned in this world about making alcohol! Ehe hee

hee hee!"

She continued on, carrying the bag farther into the cave, cackling like an

evil witch all the while. "Buying delicious liquor to drink is all well and

good," she said, "but making the stuff myself isn't half bad either! Usually I

can't stand hard work, but if it's for something like this I don't mind it at

all! In fact, I welcome the challenge!"

Telbyress waved a finger, and page after page of text appeared in the air.

She followed along with her eyes, nodding as she read. "So I place the rice

grain in the sterilized barrels, and then add the starter..." she said, following

the instructions exactly.

Outside the cave, the mountain echoed with Hokh'hokton's voice as he

searched up and down for Telbyress, but the no-gooddess herself was so

engrossed in her work that she completely failed to notice.

◇Dark Citadel—Throne Room◇

Dark One Dawkson sat where he always did, on the floor in front of his

throne.

Dawkson was the current reigning Dark One and younger brother of

Ghozal. Once upon a time he had used the name Yuigarde and ruled as a

tyrant, respecting none but himself, but he had since changed both name

and attitude, becoming a wise and enlightened ruler.

Beside Dawkson stood his minion, the succubus Phufun. Phufun had

served Dawkson since before he took the throne. She came across as wellread and highly intelligent, but she was in fact quite prone to errors and a

masochist to her core.

"Lord Dawkson," Phufun said, pressing her false glasses up the ridge of

her nose. "Isn't it time you sat upon your throne to conduct court? Since

signing the peace treaty with the Magical Kingdom of Klyrode, you've

pursued many successful projects, such as your policy of protection for rare

species and your efforts to advance peace talks between feuding demon

tribes. Thanks to you, the power of demonkind is nearly restored to what it

was in the days of Dark One Gholl..."

Dawkson heaved a heavy sigh. "I still ain't worthy to sit on that throne.

This is the perfect spot for a Dark One like me," he said, patting the spot on

the floor where he was sitting.

"Very well," Phufun said with a quiet sigh of her own. "If such are the

words of Dark One Dawkson, I will withdraw my petition for the time

being."

"Sorry," Dawkson said, wincing apologetically and scratching the back

of his head. "I know you've got my best interests at heart..."

Phufun said nothing, adjusting her glasses once again. Back in the day,

Master would have lost his temper if I ever found fault with one of his

decisions... she thought. He would have shouted something like "Shaddup!

Quit findin' fault with each an' every thing I do!" and uppercutted me into

the ceiling! It just goes to show how much he's changed, I suppose...

Although personally, I wouldn't mind the uppercut... Her breathing became

hot and heavy at the thought, cheeks flushing despite herself. Phufun, after

all, was enough of a masochist that the prospect of being sent flying by one

of Dawkson's fists filled her with giddy excitement.

"Hey," Dawkson said. "Is somethin' wrong?"

"Wha?!" Phufun exclaimed as the Dark One's words snapped her back

to reality. "N-No, nothing at all! I was merely...thinking," she said, hastily

wiping the drool from her mouth and adopting a mask of calm. "I-I

apologize most profusely for that. Now, then...the first item on your daily

report concerns the issue with the lesser demons we discussed previously..."

"You mean the ones who've been bellyaching about how there aren't

any mercenary jobs anymore?" Dawkson asked.

"Precisely," said Phufun. "You have been most gracious in handling

their case, Master, offering rewards for the destruction of dangerous magic

beasts and generous salaries for public works all throughout your domain.

But even so, we've received reports that some of their number have been

hired as mercenaries for human kingdoms..."

"Mercenaries for human kingdoms, huh...?" Dawkson repeated. "What

the heck are those people thinking? Don't they know about the malicium

thing?"

"Regarding that," Phufun answered, "our information suggests some

sort of organization is recruiting them from the shadows. Our investigation,

however, is still ongoing."

Dawkson sighed deeply. "Well, I can't pretend I don't get it. Before I

became Dark One I had all sorts of problems with the way my older brother

did things too. I used to go around breaking his orders to pick fights with

human kingdoms..." I see... he thought. This must be how my brother felt

back then... Dawkson held a hand to his forehead in a salute as the image of

his older brother's face popped unbidden into his mind.

Dawkson's older brother, the former Dark One Gholl, was, of course,

alive and well living at Flio's house under the name Ghozal.

"Anyway, I suppose we can't just leave well enough alone with the

peace treaty and everything," Dawkson said. "How's that investigation of

yours coming along?"

"Lord Zanzibar of the Infernal Four is leading the reconnaissance effort,

Master," Phufun reported. "But we keep encountering interference from

some organization. It seems to be the same group responsible for the

scheme of inviting lesser demons into human kingdoms as mercenaries..."

"Hmm..." Dawkson considered. "Well, I guess we'd better get the

details from Zanzibar once he's back in the Dark Citadel. For now, why

don't we share our information with the Maiden Queen of Klyrode so we

can work together on this one?"

"Even though sharing information like that could put us at a tactical

disadvantage?" Phufun asked.

"Of course!" said Dawkson. "It was one thing back when we were at

war, but these days we're good friends, with a peace treaty and everything!

Why shouldn't we let 'em know what we've found out?"

"Understood, Master," Phufun answered. "In that case, I shall contact

them with all haste. Now, our second item...it seems that a number of

demons have been releasing magic beasts they no longer need into the wild

now that we are no longer at war. Moreover, some nobles, too, seem to be

deliberately releasing their magic beasts on the borders of the Magical

Kingdom..."

"First mercenaries and now magic beasts, huh?" said Dawkson. "It

really is one thing after another, isn't it...?" The Dark One let out a tired

sigh as he thought things over. In the past, when he had been using the

name Yuigarde, he had gotten so fed up with the endless problems he had to

face in his new position as Dark One and had run away, abandoning his

throne. Now, however, as Dark One Dawkson, he was determined to come

up with some way to resolve the issues before him. In spite of his

grumbling, he looked for all the world like a responsible leader deep in

thought.

Phufun tore herself away from admiring the serious expression on her

master's face and stepped forward, pressing her false glasses up the ridge of

her nose. "Master," she said. "Forgive my presumptuousness, but would

you perhaps like to hear my opinion on this matter?"

"Yeah?" Dawkson asked. "You got some kinda plan, Phufun?"

"Again, forgive my presumptuousness," Phufun repeated, producing a

roll of vellum and handing it over to Dawkson. "But perhaps we might try

something like this..."

"I see..." Dawkson said after he had finished reading over Phufun's

scroll. "Sounds interesting. Let's get started right away."

"Yes, Master. As you command." Phufun nodded in compliance and left

the throne room behind her. My Master, Dark One Dawkson... she thought.

He thinks through things much more deeply than he ever did before. He

never tosses petitioners out in the middle of a meeting in a fit of impatience,

but instead considers matters until he understands them properly. He listens

to the opinions of his underlings and adopts the good suggestions among

them. He really has become quite splendid...

A satisfied smile crossed Phufun's face for a moment before she

frowned with discontent. But, she thought, the way he was before—when he

would send me flying with his fists whenever anything failed to go his way—

was quite splendid as well...

Once again, Phufun's breathing became heavy at the memory of all the

times the Dark One had hit her with enough force to send her into the air.

She began to drool at the thought, her face flush with desire.

Phufun never could hide her masochistic nature, no matter how hard she

tried.

◇Somewhere, in a Building◇

In a city somewhere in the world was a dimly lit alleyway leading from

the main road to the backstreets. In a room in the second story of one of the

buildings standing along that alleyway, a heavyset man sat in a luxurious

chair, irritably tapping his foot.

"Well?" the man said, taking a puff from the cigar in his right hand.

"How's our demon mercenary scheme coming along?"

At this, two women appeared from the shadows inside the room. They

were wearing matching cheongsam dresses with long slits in the side for

their legs, one gold and one silver. "Shadow King..." the woman in the gold

cheongsam said with a sigh, folding her arms in front of her chest. "I'm

afraid circumstances are against us..."

"Oh?" the Shadow King asked. "What seems to be the trouble,

Kintsuno?"

The Shadow King was the father of the Maiden Queen of Klyrode, and

had once been the reigning monarch of the Magical Kingdom. With his evil

deeds exposed, however, he had been driven from the land and now took to

calling himself the Shadow King, dedicating himself fully to the Shadow

Conglomerate, a black market organization he had founded while he still sat

on the throne. His minions Kintsuno the Gold and Gintsuno the Silver were

powerful fox demons originally affiliated with the Dark Army. When the

demon fox tribe was destroyed, however, they joined forces with the

Shadow Conglomerate. They had been working for the Shadow King ever

since.

Kintsuno placed a hand to her forehead and sighed deeply at the Shadow

King's question. "We've been recruiting lesser demons who lost their jobs

as mercenaries thanks to the peace treaty between the Dark Army and the

humans to work for humans who harbor dissatisfaction with the treaty," she

said. "But..."

"I gave you that list of humans who used to make a killing in the war

with the Dark Army, didn't I?" the Shadow King asked. "Surely some of

them must be fed up with this peace treaty. How hard could it be to recruit

some demonic mercenaries to their banner? And that way we can cause a

disturbance in the Magical Kingdom of Klyrode without ever getting our

hands dirty..."

"I understand," Kintsuno said, sighing again. "But it looks like there's

nothing we can do about the malicium problem after all..."

"Nothing?" The Shadow King was indignant. "But they have those

malicium nullifying magic gems on the market now, don't they? Just buy up

a whole bunch of those using our underworld connections!"

"Yes, about that..." Kintsuno said. "It seems the maker of those magic

gems has signed an exclusive contract with the Magical Kingdom of

Klyrode itself..."

"S-Say what?!" the Shadow King recoiled in shock at the news. "Then

you mean...anyone who wants to buy the magic gems will have to register

their name with the Magical Kingdom of Klyrode? But they're certain to

forbid anyone with ties to the Shadow Conglomerate or our affiliated

companies..."

"Our affiliated companies don't want to draw the attention of the

Magical Kingdom if they can help it," Kintsuno said. "It's bad for anyone's

business, the way things have been since the peace treaty..."

"Hmm..." the Shadow King considered. "If we can't get our hands on

those magic gems, we can't recruit lesser demons as mercenaries. If we

gather too many of them in one spot, the land will end up blighted with

malicium before you know it! And once that's happened, the Magical

Kingdom of Klyrode is bound to detect it with a simple Search spell..." He

clicked his tongue in irritation, tapping his foot even faster than before.

"And not only that, but Dark One Dawkson has been offering lesser

demons who lost work as mercenaries jobs on public work projects..."

lamented Kintsuno. "Of course, some have no interest in quietly doing as

they're told and won't be satisfied unless they have an opportunity to

rampage, but with the peace treaty showing no signs of being annulled

anytime soon, more and more of them have given up and accepted that sort

of work..."

"Well," Gintsuno the Silver said, stepping up beside her older sister to

join in the conversation, "once we have them under our banner, they'll be

able to rampage whenever they like!"

"Quite right," said the Shadow King. "These are lesser demons we're

talking about. They have no talent for anything but violence. You'll never

see that lot working seriously on public works. It's impossible!" He

punctuated the statement with a large puff on his cigar and continued.

"Besides, what about that business with demon nobles not knowing what to

do with all the magic beasts they no longer need? What if we bought them

up on the cheap and sold them with the lesser demons as a set to human

kingdoms?"

"Perfect!" yipped Kintsuno. "A brilliant plan!"

"But where will we get the money to purchase all those magic beasts?"

Gintsuno asked.

The Shadow King's leg, which had been tapping irritably this whole

time, came to a sudden stop. "Well..." he said. "You know... We'll have to

have a chat with our treasurer, Janderena..."

"Oh no..." said Kintsuno. "That gloomy woman?"

"I can't stand her," Gintsuno agreed. "Every time I ask her for a bit of

funds, she just fusses with that giant abacus of hers, complaining about how

there's no money..."

"And her sister Yanderena is even worse..." said Kintsuno. "Always in

her own little world, singing to herself and dancing all creepily..."

"Are you sure there's no way we might dig into a bit of your pocket

money, Shadow King?" Gintsuno asked, holding her hands out with a

disarming smile on her face.

The Shadow King glanced between the two sisters and clicked his

tongue in irritation. Damn it all... he thought. I get my allowance from

Janderena, same as them! And I'm not any better at talking to that woman

than these two...

◇Houghtow City—Flio's House◇

That night, Flio and the rest of his house were finishing up their dinner

in the living room on the first floor like always.

"Now, children!" said Balirossa once she had finished helping Rys tidy

up, calling to the children who were playing in Sybe's hutch. "Would you

like to take a bath together?"

Balirossa had originally been a knight from Klyrode Castle, but she

abandoned the knighthood to live at Flio's house. Now she worked at the

Fli-o'-Rys General Store. She was one of Ghozal's two wives, and the

mother of his son Ghoro.

"Yeah, okay!" said Folmina, poking her head out of the hutch and

running over with a great big smile. "I'm coming, Mama Balirossa!"

Folmina was Ghozal's daughter with Uliminas, but she saw Balirossa as

her mother as well and was very fond of her.

"If big sis Folmina's getting in the bath, I will too..." said Ghoro,

tottering along behind.

"I guess I'll come along as well," said Rislei, finishing the cup of tea she

was drinking at her seat at the table and standing up.

"Hey, Rislei!" said Sleip, grinning at his daughter from his seat across

the table. "Whaddaya say to taking a bath with your old man, like we used

to?"

Sleip had once been a member of the Dark Army's Infernal Four, but he

had quit the Dark Army during Yuigarde's reign. Now he looked after the

equine magic beasts in the pasture outside Flio's house together with Byleri,

his common-law wife. Rislei was the couple's beloved daughter.

"D-Don't be ridiculous!" Rislei sputtered, her face turning bright red.

"Why would I take a bath with my papa?! I'm going in the women's bath,

you know! Papa, you had better be good and bathe with the other men!"

Shoulders heaving with anger, she stormed off for the baths as quick as her

feet would take her.

"It feels like just yesterday she used to get in the bath with me all the

time..." Sleip sighed as he watched her go, a forlorn look on his face. It was

hard to imagine that the face of someone who had once struck fear into the

hearts of the Klyrode Army as the Infernal Sleip would make such a pitiable

expression.

"Oh, Sleip..." said Byleri, stepping up behind him to rub his back. "Like,

Rislei's a fine young lady now, y'know? You should, like, be a bit careful

about what you say..."

Byleri was an archer in Balirossa's knightly company, who left the

knighthood alongside her to live at Flio's house. She excelled at handling

horses, and so had ended up taking responsibility for a herd of equine magic

beasts. With her common-law husband Sleip and their daughter Rislei by

her side, she was living out every day with a smile on her face.

"Hm..." Sleip said, still looking miserable in spite of Byleri's

consolation. "All right. I get it..."

Belano looked over at the pair from her own seat a short distance away.

Belano had originally been a witch serving with Balirossa's knightly

company. She was a small and skittish woman who was only capable of

casting defensive spells. Like the rest of the former knights, she had come

to reside at Flio's house, but she had also found employment as a teacher at

the Houghtow College of Magic.

Everyone's getting along so well... Belano thought as she drank from her

cup. It was a little large for her, so she used both hands to pick it up. Lord

Flio and Lady Rys, and Lord Sleip and Byleri too...

As Belano was lost in thought, Minilio and Belalio sat down to her right

and left.

Minilio was a magic doll who had originally been created as an

experiment by Flio. He had been given the name Minilio because of his

appearance—he looked for all the world like a younger version of Flio

himself. Minilio had gotten close to Belano through his work as her

assistant in the Houghtow College of Magic, and now the two of them were

married and had a child, Belalio.

Belalio's status as the child of a human and a magic doll made them an

exceptionally unusual being. Like their father Minilio, they outwardly

looked like a younger version of Flio. They preferred to dress

androgynously, however, keeping their gender ambiguous.

"Huh?" Belano started in surprise. "Y-You two? Is something wrong...?"

Minilio and Belalio hugged Belano tight from either side. They seemed

to be saying, "We get along just as well, you know."

H-Hawawawah?! Startled at the sudden development, Belano froze in

place, her face turning bright red. Minilio and Belalio, however, kept on

hugging her tight regardless.

"Hey now," said Blossom with a cheerful grin, looking over her

shoulder at Belano's family as she brought fresh straw over to Sybe's hutch.

Her voice, however, had a note of coldness. "That's quite a sight!"

Belano tried to respond, but with her husband and child hugging her

tight from either side it was all she could do to mutely open and close her

mouth.

"Well then," Blossom continued as she finished replacing the straw, "I

guess I'll be taking a bath all on my lonesome..." Forcing a smile on her

face, she took off for the baths as well. A second later, however, something

stopped her, grabbing hold of her leg. "Huh?"

Blossom looked down and saw it was Kora, hugging her tight. Kora had

been playing with the others in Sybe's hutch, but the second Blossom made

a move for the bath, Kora was right there, wrapping her arms tight around

her.

"Oh, that's right!" Blossom said, patting the girl on the head, her grin

looking somewhat more genuine than before. "Your old man Ura's out with

the other demons again today, right Kora? You want to take a bath with me,

then?"

Kora nodded her eager assent.

Soon, most of the adults left behind in the living room had gone with

their children to the bath. Flio sat down, watching them walk off with his

usual easygoing smile.

"I apologize for the wait, my lord husband," said Rys as she finished her

cleaning, running up to him with a smile on her face. "Did I miss some sort

of good news?" she asked. "You seem to be in rather high spirits today."

"Oh, well..." Flio began, awkwardly scratching the tip of his nose with

his finger as Rys's words made him realize how much he had been smiling.

"I was just thinking, it hasn't been long since I came to this world, but

we've managed to build quite the happy family together, haven't we?

Thinking back to when I was first summoned here, I didn't know what I

was going to do. I never would have come this far if I hadn't met you,

Rys..."

"My lord husband..." Rys wrapped her arms around her husband's,

nuzzling her cheek against his with happy affection. Her lupine demon tail

materialized behind her, wagging furiously with delight. The two kept

talking for some time in that vein, their bodies intertwined all the while.

Inside Sybe's hutch, however, lying down atop the sleeping

psychobear's belly, Rylnàsze was desperately keeping her blushing face

hidden behind both hands. O-Oh no... she thought. Wh-What am I to do in

this situation?! All around her, the rest of Sybe's family were covering their

faces with their paws in imitation of Rylnàsze's nervous gesture.