Hayato kept staring at the last message floating in front of him while the Demon King's body lay motionless several meters away. Arondight was still in his hand, and blood had dried from his temple down to his jaw, but for several seconds he paid attention to nothing else.
He had waited years for this moment. Japan was still his home. His family was there, along with the people he had left behind and the life he had wanted to recover ever since he was summoned to this world.
Now, at last, he could go back.
The relief was immediate. Hayato closed his eyes for a moment and released a breath he had not realized he was holding. When he opened them again, he dismissed the window and looked toward his companions.
Ringrande's armor was broken along one side, with a line of blood running beneath the plates. Rusus was finishing a bandage around her arm, while Fifi wiped at her face with her forearm without much success. Maryest, Loreiya, and Wiyaryi had not come through unscathed either, but all of them were still standing.
Hayato looked over each of them and remained silent a little longer than usual. His desire to return to Japan had never changed, but until that moment, it had been much easier to think about what he would regain than to look directly at the people he would have to leave behind.
Maryest was the first to notice.
"Hayato."
He looked at her and, after a brief pause, gestured toward where the window had been.
"My title changed."
The reactions were immediate. Ringrande stopped checking her armor, Rusus lowered the arm she had been bandaging, and Fifi's tired smile disappeared. None of them could see the message he had received, but they all knew the condition.
Maryest was the one who finally said it.
"Then you can return to Japan."
Hayato nodded.
"Yeah."
Rusus exhaled through her nose and managed a somewhat strained smile.
"After all these years... about time."
"Congratulations," Fifi added.
Loreiya and Wiyaryi followed soon after. None of them tried to turn it into a grand celebration. They all knew how long he had been waiting for this opportunity.
"Thanks."
Hayato answered with a smile, though it did not last long when Ringrande walked over and stopped in front of him. She studied him for several seconds, as though searching for the right way to begin a conversation neither of them was ready to have yet.
Hayato did not try to force it either.
"We have a lot to talk about," he said at last.
Ringrande nodded slowly.
"Yeah."
There were still wounded people around them, along with the remains of the battle and soldiers moving among the bodies of the monsters.
That conversation could wait until they were out of there.
***
Satoru returned to the labyrinth once the Demon King's presence disappeared completely.
He did not need to venture far inside to confirm that something had changed. The Elder Drake and Chief Gigant Basilisk were still advancing through the corridors and eliminating stray creatures, but the flow that had been driving monsters toward the upper levels had stopped. The pressure he had sensed on the structure was gone as well.
Satoru stared into the darkness of the corridor for a moment.
"So it was you."
He had raised the labyrinth himself after the Eyeball Demon incident. He understood its workings well enough to know that the overflow did not correspond to any condition he had established when creating it.
The timing was too obvious to ignore. The abnormal behavior had begun with the Demon King's appearance and stopped after her death.
That established a connection, but it did not explain the mechanism.
Had the labyrinth reacted to her presence? To the miasma? To some particular characteristic of that Demon King?
Satoru could formulate several possibilities, but he did not have enough information to choose between them.
"I would need another case to confirm it."
He filed the possibility away for later. There was no practical way to repeat the test at the moment, so Satoru ordered the Elder Drake and Chief Gigant Basilisk to finish clearing the access routes before leaving the labyrinth.
The area outside was much emptier than when he had entered. Most of the soldiers who had been there earlier had already dispersed throughout the city, while others removed the last monster corpses near the entrance.
Only one familiar figure remained relatively close by.
Nebinen noticed him at almost the same time.
"Lord Satoru."
The priest approached with a tired smile. Dust covered his robes, and the strain of the battle was still evident on his face, though he did not appear to be injured.
"It has been quite some time since I last had the chance to speak with you. I am glad to see you are well."
Satoru inclined his head slightly in greeting.
"The same appears to be true of you."
"Fortunately." Nebinen let out a quiet breath, then grew more serious. "Lord Satoru, I wanted to thank you for what you did today. Your assistance prevented the situation from becoming far worse."
"I only dealt with what was within my ability to resolve."
Nebinen accepted the answer without arguing.
Satoru looked around before turning his attention back to him.
"Why are you still here?"
"I was here when you went inside earlier," Nebinen explained. "I wanted to approach you, but you left almost immediately. Afterward, the soldiers followed the instructions you gave them and abandoned the area. I assumed you would return to inspect the labyrinth, so I decided to wait."
He paused briefly before adding,
"Besides, I had exhausted almost all of my mana. Until I recovered, I would not have been much help elsewhere."
"I understand."
Nebinen glanced toward the labyrinth entrance before looking back at him.
"If you do not mind me asking, what brought you to Seiryuu? I certainly did not expect to find you here today."
"I came with Hayato. While he dealt with the Demon King, I handled the other problems caused by the attack."
Nebinen's eyes widened slightly.
"Hero Hayato is here as well?"
"Yes."
"Then do you intend to return to him? Even someone like Hero Hayato might appreciate additional help against a Demon King."
"That will not be necessary. Hayato and his companions have already dealt with the threat."
The tension left Nebinen's shoulders.
"That is a relief."
Satoru fell silent.
His original intention had been to return to Hayato after inspecting the labyrinth. However, the disappearance of the Demon King's presence and the structure's return to normal had already confirmed that the battle was over.
If Hayato had fulfilled the condition they had discussed only a few hours earlier, he was most likely saying goodbye to his companions before returning to Japan.
Satoru could go see him now.
In fact, he wanted to.
He had enjoyed talking with Hayato and thought it unfortunate that he might leave before they had another chance to speak. Even so, if Hayato was saying farewell to his companions, Satoru considered it more appropriate not to interrupt them.
"It seems I have some free time."
Nebinen tilted his head slightly, but Satoru did not elaborate.
His gaze returned briefly to the labyrinth entrance.
What had happened remained useful for one of his pending projects. For some time, he had considered creating a smaller dungeon in Muno so Liza, Tama, and Pochi could gain experience, while also giving the soldiers a controlled environment in which to train against real monsters.
The problem was that building one would create another permanent responsibility, and Nina was already occupied with too many things.
Among them were the products Satoru had developed to stimulate Muno's economy.
Sales had begun, but progress was slower than he had expected. Some merchants were willing to try the items and potions, while others preferred to wait until someone else took the risk of dealing with something he had created.
A stretcher passed in front of them while Satoru considered the problem. Two men carried a soldier covered in bandages deeper into the city. Farther behind them, several people carried containers of water and boxes of supplies, while another group helped those who could still walk.
Satoru watched the scene for several seconds.
Then an idea occurred to him.
"Nebinen."
"Yes?"
"Where are they gathering the wounded?"
The priest looked briefly surprised before his expression softened.
"Would you like to help them?"
Satoru did not answer.
Nebinen did not press him.
"I can take you there."
They walked together toward the center of the city. The number of wounded increased as they went, and when they reached the area where treatment had been concentrated, Satoru immediately understood why it had been chosen.
Nearly all of the available space was occupied by people lying on blankets, makeshift stretchers, or directly on the ground. Priests moved among them, but there were too few for the number of people waiting to be treated.
Ohna was near the center, surrounded by a circle of wounded people. She finished casting a spell on the man in front of her and remained there for several seconds with one hand against the ground before forcing herself upright.
Her face was pale, and she was breathing faster than normal.
Nebinen needed only one look at her to make his decision.
"It seems I have recovered enough."
He turned to Satoru and inclined his head.
"With your permission."
"Go ahead."
The priest moved toward another group of wounded, and only a few seconds later he was already assisting one of his companions.
Satoru remained where he was until Ohna looked up.
Her eyes widened when she recognized him.
"Lord Satoru!"
She instinctively tried to stand, but barely managed to lift one knee before losing her balance. One hand returned to the ground, and she closed her eyes for a moment until the dizziness passed.
"Please forgive me. I cannot receive you properly at the moment."
Satoru examined her condition, extended one hand, and produced a small bottle.
"Take this."
Ohna recognized the mana potion as soon as she saw it. Her lips tightened almost imperceptibly as she accepted the bottle.
Mana potions were extremely useful. Unfortunately, they were mostly known for their terrible taste.
Still, she raised no objection.
The current situation did not leave room to be particular.
"Thank you."
She removed the stopper and drank it in one gulp, clearly determined to finish before she had to endure the flavor any longer.
The expression that appeared on her face made it clear the experience was very different from what she had expected.
"Is it... sweet?"
Ohna stared at the empty bottle.
Satoru gestured toward it.
"It is one of my own creations. The immediate recovery is comparable to that of a conventional mana potion. However, it has several additional effects. For approximately one hour, natural mana regeneration increases by around fifty percent, and your available mana capacity also increases for the duration."
Ohna raised a hand to her chest and remained still as she tested the sensation herself. The exhaustion did not disappear completely, but her breathing began to steady and disbelief became obvious on her face.
"It really is increasing..."
"That is the expected effect."
Satoru extended a hand again.
This time, a backpack appeared.
Ohna watched curiously as he held it out in front of her.
"This is a storage backpack. The interior space is approximately the size of a room."
He opened the top and showed her.
"Inside are more mana potions identical to the one you just drank."
Ohna leaned forward enough to look inside. Her expression changed once she understood how much the bag could actually hold.
"Those are all potions?"
"Yes."
Satoru handed her the backpack.
"You may use them. Return the backpack once you are finished."
Ohna accepted it with both hands, looked inside again, and then raised her eyes to him.
"You truly intend to let us use this many? An item like this, not to mention the quantity of potions, must be extremely valuable."
"Naturally, I expect to be compensated for them. Until then, you may use as many as necessary. I believe the present situation warrants it."
Ohna blinked once.
Then a small smile appeared on her face.
"In that case, Count Roswal will take care of the payment."
Her smile became just a little more visible when she mentioned her father.
Satoru saw no reason to object.
"Very well."
Ohna thanked him again, this time with considerably more energy, and left with the backpack to begin distributing the potions among the priests who were still able to continue working.
Satoru watched her leave. Once she was some distance away, he extended his hand again.
A second backpack, identical to the first, appeared in front of him.
This one contained healing potions.
With it in hand, Satoru looked toward the area where Nebinen had begun working and went to find him.
It did not take long.
Satoru left the second backpack with the priest and briefly explained what it contained. Nebinen needed no further instructions before putting the potions to use, and soon several wounded people with minor injuries who had previously been waiting for treatment could be cared for without consuming the priests' mana.
With both backpacks in use, the rest was simple.
Satoru allowed the priests to distribute the potions as needed and limited himself to keeping track of how many were consumed. Once the situation began to stabilize and he could calculate the amount they had used, he went to find Count Roswal.
He found him still occupied with the aftermath of the attack.
"L-Lord Satoru, it is a pleasure to finally meet you. I have heard what you did for the city. You have my deepest gratitude."
The count cleared his throat.
Although he had not personally given Satoru the label of "Demon King," his report had been one of the main reasons the idea had begun to spread. Ever since the situation concerning the mage had been left unresolved, Roswal had found himself wondering whether Satoru held any resentment over it.
Given the difference in power between them, he had no interest in discovering what would happen if the answer was yes.
Satoru simply returned the greeting and handed him a sheet of paper.
Roswal accepted it on reflex, looking confused.
"What is this?"
"The bill for the potions the priests are using."
The count looked down at the amount, then back at him.
"And... why are you giving it to me?"
It was his city, certainly, but the temples were an outside organization. Technically, should they not be the ones paying?
"Priestess Ohna said that you would handle the payment."
Roswal went still for a second.
Then he closed his eyes and exhaled through his nose.
"Of course she did."
He put the bill away, deciding not to argue further.
Then again, could he even argue?
Roswal valued remaining alive far too much to test the patience of someone like Satoru over an invoice.
"I'll take care of it."
"Very well."
Satoru had barely finished answering when a hand landed on his shoulder.
"Satoru!"
The voice made him turn his head.
Hayato stood beside him with a wide smile.
"I heard about what you've been doing. You've helped quite a few people around here, haven't you? Good, good. Knew I could count on you."
Satoru watched him for a second before answering.
"Should you not be in Japan already?"
Hayato blinked, then let out a short laugh.
"What a way to welcome me. Aren't you happy to see me?"
Satoru simply looked at him.
Hayato seemed to understand and raised one hand before continuing.
"I haven't changed my mind, if that's what you're thinking. I'm going back to Japan."
"Then you decided to remain a little longer?"
"Just for now. Goddess Parion told me I could take some time before deciding when to go back. If I need to talk to her, all I have to do is call her name. I'm not planning to drag it out, but... well, there are a few things I want to settle before I leave."
Satoru nodded.
"I understand."
"Besides..."
Hayato paused briefly and looked directly at him.
"There's something I want to talk to you about before I go."
*****
Author's Note
Thank you very much for reading.
This was a shorter chapter, mainly meant to move things forward a little after the battle and continue setting up the closing stretch of this part of the arc.
I do not have much else to add this time. Most of what I could say has already been mentioned in previous notes, and I would rather not repeat myself unnecessarily.
That is all for now.
Thank you again for your support, and I hope you enjoy the chapters to come.