Hello.
Oh, Mr. Shroud. Hello.

　As I stepped into the guild, Natalie gave me a smile.
　It's a bright smile, like a flash of light.

'How can I help you?　Do you have a new commission today?
'Nope. I'm going to take a week off, so I didn't come here to take on any requests. I just came here to see what happened to the guys I handed over the other day...
'You're talking about the request from Mr Gantz?　If they would, they were stripped of their adventurer status. They also stripped me of my citizenship and dropped me to slave status. I'm sure they would have been transported to King's Landing by now.
Slaves you've been punished very badly, haven't you?
'Not only did they undermine the status of adventurers, but they were also stealing. And the use of force against Shroud-san. Illegal breeding of demons, illegal occupation of mines, and many other extra crimes. It's just lucky they didn't charge him with a death sentence.

　That's relentless.
　Well, if you're saying that there are other extra crimes besides the ones I know about, then maybe that's just as well.

　Either way, it's good to know what happened to them.
　I was worried that they'd turn on each other and attack Ganz, or something like that....
　That seems to be an unfounded fear.

'By the way.........'
Yeah?
How about you two?

　Natalie's gaze turns behind me.
　There she is.....

Hello. Her name is Sola.
I am Luna!　I'll take care of you, hahaha!

　They are the twins of Sola and Luna.
　When I told them I was going to the guild, they followed me as they were interested.
　By the way, Kanade and Tania are still sleeping at the inn.

''Huh ... my name is Natalie and I'm the receptionist at this adventurer's guild.

　Natalie looked bemused, as if the momentum of the two of them was pushing her.
　However, such a face is only for a short while.
　It soon becomes a questioning, probing look.

''........Could it be that you two are Shroud-san's party?''
Yes, I do.
'Mmm!　Luna and Rayne, you're soul-bound friends!
Such a pretty girl again...

　I don't know why he's looking at me like that.

Hey, what the f*ck is going on?
Yeah, it's nothing. There's nothing to it.
Yeah?　...hmm?

　
　But I didn't do anything about it.
　I don't understand..................Maidenhood is complicated.



----------



Mmm ... the warm sunshine is so nice.
Hmm. Perfect day for a walk, I suppose.

　I'm going to leave the guild and...
　It wasn't tasteless to go back to the inn right away, so I decided to take a walk with Sora and Luna.
　The three of us walked through the city side by side.

''So this is a human city........hmm. It's really interesting.''
Really?　I don't think it's all that interesting...
Did you forget?　Sola and her people haven't interacted with humans for over 200 years. Our knowledge of humans is two hundred years old, so it's very interesting to be exposed to the culture of today because it's all new to us.
I see. I see.

　Sola and Luna are scurrying around.
　It's like they just came out of the country.
　Otherwise, I'm their guardian.

''The standard of living hasn't improved that much... of course, there has been progress compared to 200 years ago... but... hmm?''
We've been in a few wars.
Are we at war?
It's a war between humans and demons. The demon king followed the demons, and the demons followed the demons, and they have repeatedly invaded each other. At times, they even developed into a major war that would involve the world. Maybe that's why that kind of thing has happened so many times and that's why civilization hasn't developed very well.

　Some have the radical idea that war will advance civilization....
　History has proven that to be a mistake.

　One aspect of war is that when war is waged, many technologies improve.

　For example, military power.
　Military power, which is essential for war, expands the more wars are fought.

　For example, mobility.
　The transportation of soldiers is an important aspect of war.
　Robust, faster carriages and other vehicles are being developed.

　For example, the expansion of supply lines.
　In military operations, supporting supply lines is the number one consideration.
　Various efforts and innovations are being made to achieve this.

　........and so on.
　During wartime, many different developments and thoughts are produced.
　And the results of those developments can change our daily lives.
　There are even stories of how weapons developed for warfare were applied to develop tools to dig waterways more conveniently and comfortably.

　In that regard, war may develop civilization.
　But in the big picture, it doesn't work that way.
　War is all-consuming.
　People die, supplies run out, and the earth rots.
　Everything is lost.

　It is difficult to recover from such a situation.
　It is not possible to stand up on your own; you must have many people huddled together.
　Those who cannot do so must fall down.

　Sometimes we are given new knowledge and skills.
　But more than that, they keep losing so much more.
　...that's war.

'I see...'
Well that's an interesting story.

　They nodded coyly several times as I told them my theory.
　It was like being a school teacher.

'This is a bit of a digression, but humans and the Demon King have been at war with each other for some time now. Of course, it hasn't been going on all year round. Once a war starts, it lasts for a few years but after that, the Demon King is quiet every few decades.
'Five times ... hmmm. Should I see it as more or should I be happy with less?
Maybe that's why civilization doesn't thrive because that kind of thing is repeated.
Why is the Demon King so hostile to humans?
Well. You won't be in any trouble if you know that.

　In past wars, the brave men have defeated the Demon King.
　However, the Demon King will not be destroyed.
　I don't know how it's done, but a new Demon King is born.
　And then the Demon King would start a war as if he hated humans and there would be conflict again.

　After that, it's all the same.
　The Demon King revives and the brave man also awakens.
　The heroes defeat the demon king, but the demon king resurrects after a while....
　I've been playing such weasel words for decades, hundreds of years now.

'Sola has lived in the backcountry all her life, so she didn't know about those circumstances.
Well I didn't know that either. I never tried to learn about human nature. I dismissed it as unneeded knowledge and ignored it.
You know what you don't know, you'll learn. We're going to learn.
Yes.
'Rain, you're a good thing you're human!

　They laugh.
　The spirit race, which was said to never understand each other, is smiling like this.
　Perhaps.........
　Will you and the Demon King be able to understand each other one day?

　It suddenly occurred to me.

'Whoa?'

　Luna spun around on the spot and stared at a point.
　There was a hot dog stall.

'Hey, hey, Rain. What's that?
A hot dog. It's a rather popular food a sausage on a bun.
Are you sure?

　That's where I need to start explaining.

'Uh ... it's like minced meat boiled on a stick,'
''Ho, ho ... doesn't it look delicious? I'm sure you'll love it.

　For a moment, Luna and Kanade seemed to overlap.
　They're both foodies, you know.

Shall we eat?
Are you sure?
I'm starting to get hungry. I don't mind. You'll eat Sola, right?
'Are you sure?　If it's not too much of a burden, please.
It's nothing compared to a hot dog.

　We approached the owner of the stall and bought three servings.
　It's not polite to stand and eat, so we moved over to where the benches were and sat down.

''Itadakimasu,''

　At the same time, I took a bite of the hot dog.

　The sausage ripped off with a plop, and the juices poured out of the inside.
　The meat was juicy and nice and hot.
　The hot and sweet sauce is just right, and everything is wrapped up in the soft, fragrant bread.

'Yeah, this one's a winner,'

　It's a stall, so it's a good or bad thing...
　That restaurant seems to be a hit.
　I feel like I haven't had a good hot dog in a long time.

How's that?　Here's a hot dog...
'Hummmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm!
'Ammo!　Haggling!　Crackle, giggle, giggle, giggle!　Gokun!

　Both of them were eating at a tremendous rate.
　Staining their mouths with the sauce, they ate in unison.
　I didn't need to ask them what they thought.

'I'm glad you liked it,'
''Huh.......how delicious it is. It was so delicious that I ate it all at once. What a waste........oh, the afterglow when I open my mouth.......
O Rain. Can I offer you another one?
It's almost noon, isn't it?　No more, because I won't be able to eat lunch any more.
Seriously....

　I'm terribly disappointed.
　It makes me feel like I'm doing something wrong.

I'll see you next time.
You said "again"!　You said it again!　I promise!
'I'd expect Sora to do the same.
Next time, take Canade and Tania with you, and we'll all eat together.

　I imagine us all eating hot dogs together under a blue sky.
　It seemed like a very happy scene.