--The crisis that struck Lucy's hometown of Canaan has passed.

　Shuri, the Demon King's confidant, and his 5,000-strong undead army.
　Lucy's mother, Rosalie J. Walker, single-handedly defeated them.　
　The highest strength of the Woodland 'Red Lotus Witch'.

(Not too strong?)

　A hero who once defeated the Demon King with just two people.
　

That's my girl!
　Rosalie, the "Red Lotus Witch", came over here while admiring herself.
　Her tone of voice is the same as Lucy's.
　As expected of a mother and daughter.


"You idiot!
　Stick!　With a loud bang, the foster chief smacked Rosalie on the head.

'Ouch!　What are you doing, Dad!
　Mr. Rosalie holds his head and accuses him.

'I thought you were dead!　You had me worried!
That's right, Mother!
　Yeah, I was definitely surprised when I got stabbed.
　As a family, you can't compare that to me.

"There was no way I was gonna die like that.
　Rosalie smiles with a kleptomaniacal smile.
　The foster chief and Lucy's sisters have their heads in their hands.

　However, Rosalie-san looks too young, even though the foster chief is quite an old man?
　Is it true that this is a father and son?
　To be honest, Rosalie-san looks like Lucy's big sister.

'Hey, Lucy,'
　You whisper.
'What?'
How old is Lucy's mother?
I might be curious too!
　Sa-san joins the conversation.

'Uh ... yeah. Let's see, my mom is using a rejuvenation treasure she found during her adventures, so she doesn't look her age. She's actually over two hundred years old. Don't be fooled by your mommy's youthfulness, Makoto.
Wow, 200. I don't see anything.
　Well, you've never met a 200-year-old.
　What's it usually like?
　As a human being, I'd say 40-50 years old.

　Over 200 years old, huh?
　I can't beat the Great Sage (1,000 years old), but he's quite old.
　I was just thinking, at that moment.

"?

!" An alert for my "danger detection" skill goes off.
　I looked next to him, and he and I got spooked.　

'Ouch, ouch!　Mom, stop!　I didn't say anything!
Lucy?　You always said your mom's age was a secret to everyone but your family!
　Lucy was being gouged on the head by Miss Rosalie's fist.
　Have you teleported into space?
　And Lucy, that looks painful.

'Mako, you're like family to me!
'What?　Really?
　Rosalie lets go of my hand.
　After placing her hand on her chin and staring at Lucy and me.
　I put my hand on Lucy's stomach.

'How many months?'
Why?
　Why does Lucy's family get that idea so quickly?

Well, because we're family, right?　Didn't you come home because you had a baby?
I can't do it!
'Yes, Lucy is so serious that she came back to report her marriage.
　The sisters also follow Lucy's lead.

'We're going to have a baby now, aren't we?'
Yeah, yeah, I can do that in a minute.
　I didn't follow you.　
　He said he couldn't do it right away.

It's not like Makoto and I were ever in a relationship!
　Lucy exclaims.

""What?"

　The foster chief, Rosalie, and Lucy's sister all looked at me(...) with a look of incredulity.　　

''Hey, honey. You haven't done anything to Lucy?
'Yeah, what's wrong with my daughter!　Isn't she pretty, just like me!
You're a hard man.
　Lucy's female family is too active in making babies.
　And I got a lot of positive feedback from my foster chief.
　What's that?

Hey, Takatsuki-kun. I'm tired. Maybe I should take a break.
　A thump on my shoulder from behind, and Sa-san whispered in my ear.

Oh, I'm sorry, Sa-san. We've been exploring all night, haven't we? You can rest in your room. I have a few things to do.
　Honestly, I'm sleepy too, but I have to report to the foster chiefs about the story of my encounter with the Beast King's men.
　Just as I was thinking that, Sa-san said something strange.

''Yeah, Takatsuki-kun, let's go to sleep together too!
S-San!
'Aya!'
　Me and Lucy shouted in surprise, and Rosalie and her sister's eyes glittered.

'Hey, hey, what's your relationship with Lucy's boyfriend?　A love triangle?
Sleeping together means you've got to be in a relationship, right?
　Oh, come on, sister and mother.
　I don't think that we're in a relationship...

It's a physical relationship.
Hey!　Sa-san!
　Oh, no," he said, with a grin on his face.
"Soft boys! The favoritism from the chief of the village fell away.

''Ah, ah, ah, ah!　Wait!　When did it happen?　You promised me that we'd be the first three people to do it together!

　For some reason, Lucy, who has taken it to heart, is now crowded by Sa-san.
　The three of us together, it's not a marathon........
　I don't know about that promise, though?
　Huh?　Are you planning on doing that?
　No veto?

"Hmmm, so, Takatsuki-kun!　I'll see you in bed.
　Stirring up the scene, Sa-san disappeared into the back guest room.
'Wait, Aya!'
　Lucy went after it.

(Huh?　(Am I the only one left?)

　Everyone's gazes gathered in this direction.
　In the end, I alone reported the results of my search for the Demon Forest.
　It was a lot of hard work, getting all sorts of compliments!

　Then he went back to the guest room and slept like mud.　


　◇


　It was around noon when I woke up.

　Naturally, neither Sa-san nor Lucy was asleep next to me.
　The room was different.

　When I went outside, there was a buzzing noise.

'What's going on?'
Brother Makoto, you're awake.
Takatsuki Makoto, our guest.
　When I looked in the direction that Janet-san was pointing, I saw that everyone in the village was surrounding the huge sub-human warrior.


　--It's a brave man from the land of the trees.
　--Oh, a brave figure.
　--I'm sure you're not afraid of the demon king's army.


　I could hear such a voice.

''Maximilian Lagavulin, the hero of the Wind Tree Kingdom, we have arrived.
'Oh!　I'm glad you've come to such a small village.
　The chief of the village welcomed the brave man.

　Wind Tree's hero, Maximilian-san, was a sub-human.
　His race was said to be the 'Dragon Man'.

　I wondered if he was more than two meters tall.
　His strong body was like a ruggerman, and he carried a large sword as tall as his own height on his back.
　And the skin was covered with something that looked like scales.
　So this is a dragon man........

(Looks really, really strong....)

　By the way, the heroic pecking order in the western continent is the fourth place.
　I heard that he was narrowly defeated by Gerald in the last Gozen match.
　I heard that the dragon man is not good at the lightning attribute.
　However, I'm a little concerned about something.

It's a good idea. Canaan's village is a small village in the land of the trees, right?
Yes, I do. What's wrong?
　I speak to Lucy in a whisper.

　Lucy had told me the size of the village before.
　Canaan's villages are less than a thousand people.
　The big villages are said to have several thousand people.

I'm not sure why all the brave men and maidens gather in Luu-chan's village.
　Sa-san took over the question.

'Oh, it's...'
'Oh!　Are you the brave Lord of the Water Kingdom (Roses)?
　Maxi-san, the Hero of the Wind Tree, came towards me and Prince Leonard with a smile.

''It's been a while, 'Hero of the Wind Tree' Maximilian-dono.
It's been a while, Prince Leonard, the 'Ice and Snow Hero'. And it's nice to meet you, the new hero of the Water Country (Roses), Lord Makoto. I'm Maximilian, the Hero of the Wind Tree.
Well, it's nice to meet you, Makoto Takatsuki.

　The brave man of the wind tree seems to have come to meet the brave man of the water country.
　He asked me to shake his hand.
　He's seriously big when he gets close!
　Oh, the intimidation....
　A little bit of trepidation showed in my attitude.

'Mako, you should be more imposing.
Takatsuki-kun, we're the same brave men.
He's shy...
　I'm not very good at first sight.

'Lucy, it's been a long time. I'll have to go say hello to Miss Rosalie later.
It's been a while, senior!
Do you know each other, Lu-chan?
He's a senior at school.
　Seriously.

　He looked scary, but when I talked to him, Kazeki's hero was a nice guy in general.
　He has a serious personality, and it seems that he's always training in the forest sanctuary in order to fulfill his duties as a brave person.
　Also, he's said to be patrolling each village.

　She's a senior and junior in school with Lucy.
　Incidentally, he used to be the student council president.
　.........So there's a student council in another world too?
　We talked about such small talk.


　That night was a banquet to welcome Kazuki's heroes.


　However, a battle to challenge the Demon King's tomb to prevent his resurrection is coming up.
　The topic of conversation naturally turned to the decisive battle of the day after tomorrow, without making much noise.

　If the warriors of the Woodland gather in one place, the Demon King will detect it, so they will unify only the date and time of the decisive battle and head for the Demon King's tomb all at once.
　I'm anxious to see if I can lead the unification with such a method.
　However, that's how the Wooden Nation has been doing it until now.
　There is no strong leader, but a small group of people.

　The tree goddess priestesses, the wind tree heroes, the village chief, Prince Leonard, Janet-san and the others are talking.
　At first, I listened to them, but it sounded like they were talking about politics, so I began to feel sleepy and excused myself.

　They were talking about strengthening the alliance between the Tree Kingdom and the Water Kingdom if we could successfully prevent the Demon King's resurrection in this battle.
　Janet said that the Sun Nation would be in between in that case.
　She's a member of the Five Holy Nobles of the Highlands, and there might be some circumstances.
　As a commoner brave man, I can't help but find it difficult to say.

　I went outside to catch the night breeze.
　The air was clear and there was an almost circular moon floating in the sky.

(I think it's called ... the thirteenth night moon?)　
　Maybe I'll ask Sa-san about it next time.

Genie, genie, genie.
　He called out to the spirits of the great forest for the decisive battle the day after tomorrow.
　The number of water spirits is .............................somewhat low.　

(Is it okay.........This opponent seems strong.

　The Beast King's direct attendant, "Zimbal".
　Setecar," the confidant of the Demon King.
　And the resurrected Demon King 'Biflonsu', the Immortal King.

　Honestly, I think it's more reliable to leave it to Lucy's mother.
　You can't do that as a diplomat and a brave man of the Water Country, though.
　While I was practicing my training, unable to concentrate, I was suddenly approached by a voice.


You're Lucy's boyfriend. Are you practicing spirit magic?
"!　Good evening.
　Rosalie appeared out of nowhere.
　It's a godsend.
　Her lustrous blonde hair was illuminated by the light of the moon.
　She smiled bewitchingly as if it was a night sometime ago, and quickly approached next to me.

''Heh, the water spirit likes you.''
Come to think of it, Rosalie, you can see spirits too, can't you?
　Lucy's mom's hand touches my cheek.
　It's a normal, clean hand, not as warm as Lucy's.
　I'm a little nervous.

''It's so boring these days with so few elves using spirit magic.
No one in the tribe uses it anymore.
''Huh, come to think of it. The Church of the Goddess doesn't recognize spirit magic, right?
　Then he snapped his fingers and fireworks shot out of it.

'What was that?'
Didn't you see that fire spirit?
I'm a water spirit specialist...
''That's odd. Not the weakest spirit.

　That's all I can see.
　In case you're wondering, I can see the fire spirit when I kiss your daughter.
　I can't tell you that.

'The night after tomorrow is a full moon.
Yes, that's the date the Demon King is scheduled to return.
　Honestly, I wasn't expecting it.
　I thought the Demon King event would come much later.

　Rosalie-san doesn't seem to be feeling overwhelmed at all.
　Doesn't she seem nervous or anything?

That Senior Demon Shuri guy was a disappointment. I hope that the Beast King's man you said you met and the other believer, Seteker, have a bone in their body.
....

　The battle-crazed type.
　That's not very tense.

"But speaking of the Immortal King's one-armed Setaker, you have the legendary Petrifying Magic Eye, how did you survive?
What?
'What?　You didn't know that?

　I didn't know........
Speaking of the 'Petrifying Magic Eye', isn't it one of the strongest among the many magic eyes?
　I didn't know you had such a mysterious eye, Seteker-san.
　But.........

The Setaker didn't have eyes.
　Originally, there was just a hollow space where the eye was located.

''Hmm, I see that the 'petrified demon eye' hasn't been revived... it's so boring.
He said he was just getting his strength back.
　The forest wolves were sacrificed.　

So this should be fun.
　The "Red Lotus Witch" with a grin on her face.
　You are very reliable.

(If Seteker has eyes, I'll run for it at once.)
　I swore to myself.

"Hey, you're from another world, aren't you?
　The subject changed.
'Yes, sir.'
　Her mother, who looks a lot like Lucy, speaks to us with interest.

'Was there a moon in the world you were in?'
Of course I did.
　What are you asking me?　Suddenly.

'I knew it - by the way, do you know this story?'
　With a meaningful look in her eyes, Rosalie continued her story.

'There are so many different worlds in this world, but there's only one 'moon'.
Well.....
　So the moon in my world and the moon in the other world I'm in are the same?
　It's kind of, well, romantic.

(Well it's not.)
　In my world, there's a man on the moon.

You don't believe it. Really?　I always go through the moon when I go to another world.
What?
　Do you want to go to another world?

Have you ever been to another world?
Of course. Lucy's father is a nobleman of the magical world.
　Oh my God.
　Lucy, you're half otherworldly.
　Too many attributes, don't you think?

So, can I go back to the world I was in?
Only if you want to go. But your world doesn't have any magic (mana), right?
It's a world without magic, isn't it?
'Well, I wonder if I can't come back after I've gone. I don't want that, so I won't go, but if you hang in there, you can come back, maybe.

Well, really?
　It was a shock.

'Mako!　Are you going to go back to your world, Mako?
"Takatsuki-kun!　Really?!
　Lucy and Sasan came over.
　Did they hear us?
　I'm not going back to my old world, I am.

Oh, well, your girls are here. Well, see you youngsters, enjoy the rest of the day.
'Oh!　Ano!

　He teleported away in space and disappeared.
　Ah, he's gone.
　If possible, I would have liked to learn about the "Spiritual Clothing" and "Spiritual Summoning".
　I'll find them later and ask them to teach me.　

You can't get rid of them. What were you talking to your mom about?
You shouldn't hit on Lu-chan's mother, okay?
I'm not hitting on you!
　What kind of a pickup artist are you?

　For a while, I chatted with Lucy and Sa-san.
　They went back to their rooms because they were sleepy.

　I stayed where I was as I practiced my spirit magic for a bit longer.

　Dazedly, I look at the moon.

(Through the moon to another world, huh...)
　It sounds interesting.

　Apparently, the moon is special in this world.
　I'm not sure if it's because people hate moon magic, but I didn't get to learn about it in the temple.
　I'm not sure if I'll be able to find out if there's a moon maiden in the party next time, or if I'll be able to ask her.

　I continued my training alone for a while.
　Then a small shadow jumped in front of my feet.

'Now, now.'
Hmm?　Lucky?
　My demon (?). The black cat, which was a black cat, slipped up to my feet.
　I'm sure he was at a banquet and got a big fish to gobble up.
　If this guy is here.....

My knight, what are you doing?
　An immensely beautiful woman who looks good in the light of the moon.
　Friae was standing there.

"I'm training in spirit magic, princess.
　I answer with my back turned.
'You're my guardian knight. So why don't you protect me a little?
What?　

　From what I've heard, Lucy's brothers have had a hard time hitting on her.
　Freyae, you're a beautiful woman!
　Well, I'll be d*mned!

You are a...
Oh, yes. I'll protect you next time.
　I was pissed.

　When we were making such small talk.



　--Zillion, and a chill ran down my spine.



　A strong headache and a 'danger alert' went off.
　The black shadows were attacking us.