I Was a Small Fish When I Reincarnated, but It Seems That I Can Become a Dragon, so I Will Do My Best - Chapter 501
11-16. … Decision
A week has passed since the festival.
Until then, we had been spending our days as usual in the Oni Village, but today, we were summoned.
So now, we are sitting in a room in the main building of the Oni Castle.
The ones here are me, Reizen, Houen, and Lize.
We received tea from Hime-sama for the time being and are waiting while sipping it.
However, Houen seemed to know why he was called here.
“So, why are we here?”
“From now on, Uchikage will explain an important matter. It’s better to hear it from Uchikage rather than from me.”
“…Is it decided?”
“…That’s right.”
Houen seemed to hesitate for a moment about whether to confirm or not, but soon nodded.
There’s no need to hide it.
I had prepared for this.
But… it’s a bit sooner than I expected.
After a while, the sliding door opened.
Uchikage came in, leaning on a staff.
He seemed to be holding a piece of paper.
Without saying a word, he sat in front of us and placed his staff down.
“Ouren-sama, Reizen-dono, Houen-dono, Lize-dono. The locations for your… seals have been determined.”
“That was fast… Ouren-aniki and Houen mentioned this, right?”
“That’s right. One week… yes, it’s fast…”
“I will explain.”
Uchikage opened the paper he was holding.
“Currently, we are in the midst of a war, and the key figures from various nations have come to the front lines. This has allowed us to smoothly proceed with the discussion. Asure-sama and Bart-sama, and Kreiss-sama, have all been very helpful.”
“I see, so that’s how it is.”
Bringing this news back to their respective countries would have been unnecessary; it seems like it has been resolved on the battlefield. They must have had a hard time setting up a place for negotiations, but it’s already over.
I wish they could have taken a little more time, though.
Well, once it’s decided, there’s nothing we can do.
“The locations?”
“Yes. Ouren-sama will be at the Drog Mountains in the Devil Territory. Reizen-dono will be at the Lake of Treasures. Houen-dono will be at the Terraome Strait. Lize-dono will be… in the Potodera Dungeon.”
“They really chose some outrageous places for the seal locations.”
“Is that so?”
“Yes… indeed. Instead of us proposing the seal locations, it’s better if they decide everything. Three days from now, with the help of Dacia-dono’s power, we will proceed.”
Ah, I see, that makes sense. There’s no point in us deciding the seal locations. We need to ensure that they have the advantage.
So, what kind of places do they want to seal us, anyway? Judging from Houen’s reaction, they must be quite dangerous.
“Drog Mountains… it’s a mountain range in the Devil Territory, and even devils won’t approach it. It’s said that you can’t reach it without teleportation or flying.”
“They really set it in an outrageous place. And for the trip, it’s Dacia, right?”
“Yes, we will use Dacia-dono’s gate. That way, we can seal everyone in one day.”
Seal us in one day, huh? Well, that’s probably easier.
It seems they want to eliminate the threat as soon as possible.
“So… I apologize, but your only companion will be Dacia-dono.”
“Is that so?”
“Eh-. Why?!”
“It’s their request. There are few with the seal ability, and if, by any chance, they are attacked by someone else, they won’t be able to defend themselves. It’s a reasonable proposal for ensuring the safety of the sealing process.”
Uchikage answered Lize’s question in a straightforward manner. It’s a bit conservative, I guess. It’s okay for us to be there on the way, but what about the way back? Just because Dacia is there doesn’t guarantee safety. I wonder if they understand that…
…In three days, we’ll have to say goodbye to everyone again. Those two will probably cry again. I’m not looking forward to it.
“So, what about the other locations?”
“Yes. The planned seal location for Reizen-dono, the Lake of Treasures, is near the Oni Village. It was chosen because it is almost entirely safe.”
“So I’m in a relatively safe place.”
The Lake of Treasures. It got its name from being the place where the first treasures were caught in a river there. It’s a large plain near the Oni Village, and there’s nothing there now.
It was decided to place the seal in a location that is not dangerous and would not pose any problems if the seal were to be released. However, it is the most conspicuous location, and attempting to break the seal would draw attention.
“As for Houen’s seal location, the Terraome Strait is a sea surrounded by the continent. Since Houen has many fire skills, it was decided to seal him underwater.”
“How are we supposed to seal it? You’re not suggesting we should dive, are you?”
“Yes. The idea is to seal it in the air and then submerge it in the sea. There’s no risk of drowning, so there’s no need to worry about that.”
“Even if that’s the case, not dying is all that matters.”
Come to think of it, I’ve never been to the sea before. I had no idea where it was.
From what I heard, it’s located about ten days north of here. But Dacia will use her gate to get us there, so it shouldn’t be a problem.
By the way, Houen… the idea that “not dying is all that matters” is a bit questionable. He’s too used to death. Drowning is considered the most painful way to die, you know?
“Finally, Lize’s seal location, the Potodera Dungeon. It’s a dungeon infested with many poisonous monsters. The recommended rank is A.”
“I hope we won’t die from poison.”
“The barrier won’t allow anything to pass through. There should be no issues. Besides, it’s located on the lowest level… no monsters seem to come there for some reason.”
“I wish I had known that in advance.”
They really placed her in an uneventful location, unlike Reizen.
Potodera Dungeon, Lize’s seal location, is apparently located about eight days to the east. They say the materials from the monsters there are valuable. It doesn’t really matter to us, though.
…Hmm, if only Dacia can accompany us, then… I won’t be able to see these guys off in the end.
Well… it can’t be helped.
“So, in three days… I thought it would take a little longer.”
“I’m also a bit surprised. …So, everyone. Can you agree to this?”
Uchikage folded the paper he had in his hand.
“Well, it’s fine.”
“I’m good with it.”
“Me too.”
“I’m a little dissatisfied, but well, it’s fine.”
Our thoughts haven’t changed since that time. It was decided that we would sleep. Otherwise, the war wouldn’t end soon.
Uchikage seemed relieved by this and tucked the paper into his pocket. He took a deep breath.
“Ouren-sama, it was enjoyable working under your guidance.”
“You’ve taken care of me so far.”
“…Reizen-dono, Houen-dono. Thank you for forming a party with me for a long time.”
“Yes.”
“Yo! I’ll leave the things about Karna and Yuuzen to you!”
“We’ve been entrusted with it. As for Lize-dono… well, there aren’t too many memorable moments.”
“Hey now. That may be true, but still…”
They shared a laugh in their conversation. We only fought together in that battle, and we didn’t spend much time together.
Then, suddenly, Reizen stood up energetically.
“Well then, I’ll spend the last day with Karna!”
“Yeah. Be careful.”
Before I could say that, Reizen had already left. Three more days. He probably wants to spend as much time together until then.
As for me… I guess I should go and inform Alena and Hime-sama about this.
“Sigh… In the end, we couldn’t meet Yurie, Roze, or Jigal.”
“It can’t be helped. Uchikage, the next time you see them, please convey our regards to them.”
“I intend to do so. Ouren-sama, I’ll also ask you to say goodbye to the others. Everyone knows that Ouren-sama is going to sleep… but they probably didn’t expect it to be this soon.”
“That’s true. Do you two want to come with us?”
When I asked Houen and Lize, they both shook their heads.
“I’m good. I’m not proficient at these kinds of things. I prefer to sleep quietly.”
“Well, I’m fine too. Yurie and Roze aren’t here, and I don’t have much connection with the people from the Oni Village…”
“What were you two doing for six years?”
“Waiting.”
“Ah, right…”
I thought that after six years, she might have become friendly with the oni, but maybe she didn’t go outside much.
At the very least, she could have tried to establish some connections.
Well, I want to finish what I can do quickly, so… I’m going to inform everyone.
“Let’s go, Uchikage.”
“Understood.”
Uchikage and I left the room. We first went to inform the oni working in the Oni Castle.
After we left the room, Houen and Lize, who remained behind, let out a deep sigh.
***
“Why didn’t you go, Lize? You could have made friends with the oni at the clothing shop, right?”
“I don’t need to hear that from you. I know you got along with the landlady at the restaurant.”
“Hehehe, I guess we’re both thinking the same thing.”
“Indeed. I have a feeling that Daybreak erased the oni’s memories.”
“Indeed.”
They don’t want to make them any sadder. Seeing them like that would make it harder for them too. They must be suffering, but those who made the decision are suffering just the same.
These two still have attachments to this world. Reizen does too. Well, anyone would.
But their thoughts were the same after all.
“If we’re gone and the war ends… that’s fine.”
“Yeah.”
“By the way, do you need to tell them about your evolution?”
“It’s too late now. I didn’t know that using a unique skill was a condition for evolution, and I thought that was the end, so I clearly stated that, and in the end, no one asked, so it doesn’t matter.”
“I see.”
A brief silence hung in the air. It became somewhat awkward, and to mask it, they both took a sip of the tea that had now gone cold.