Side: Yuki
"Phew. Now that Steve's tied up in a straw mat and we've taken a short break, shall we get down to the main topic?"
"The main topic?"
Tori tilted her head in confusion.
"Yeah. The real reason for this meeting. As most of you probably know, we've obtained information regarding the previous Dungeon Master on the new continent. While a few of you have already met her individually, I'd like to introduce her formally to everyone."
The moment I spoke, the doors to the banquet hall opened, and a monster stepped inside.
A headless monster clad in magnificent knight's armor.
On Earth, Dullahans generally fall into two broad categories. The first is the headless fairy that drives a headless coach. The second is the headless knight commonly seen in games.
While the latter is far more famous, both are intimately associated with death.
"This is the Dullahan Valkyrie, Peace."
"Allow me to introduce myself. My name is Peace Guardworld."
With those words, she removed the full-face helmet she carried under her arm.
Revealing a crisp, picture-perfect face—golden hair and clear blue eyes—of a beautiful woman who looked slightly older than Seraria.
It was a severed head, of course.
"A-A woman!?"
Mobu, who had never spoken with her before, stood up in shock.
"Well, there's no rule that knights have to be men. We have Seraria here, and Qual among her subordinates."
"No, no, I mean... a monster being female... Wait, they do exist."
"Yeah, of course there are."
Mobu started to deny it, only to immediately correct himself.
Yes, female monsters exist normally. To be precise, it's a structural classification of 'female' rather than a biological sex.
Some monsters evolved humanoid appearances specifically to deceive humans.
"Come to think of it, why haven't you summoned any female-type monsters? Beautiful women would have many uses, wouldn't they?"
Seraria asked.
"I don't like using them that way. Besides, I've already summoned quite a few."
"Eh? I never noticed."
"Half of the Dullahan Assassins, just like Peace, are female. Isn't that right, Kirika?"
"—Yes, as my master says. Selaria-sama."
The moment I called her name, Kirika, a Dullahan Assassin, materialized silently behind me.
Sensing the context of our conversation, she shed her helmet and armor, revealing the form of a woman dressed in a kimono, with short black hair and dark eyes.
Kirika serves as my personal ninja. Honestly, once you saw her face, it just felt natural to dress her in traditional Japanese clothing.
If Seraria and the others hadn't already become my wives, I probably would have asked her to keep me company at night.
I've assigned Dullahan Assassins as subordinates to everyone else as well, though the one assigned to Seraria was likely male.
"Well, I only started summoning female types right before and after the Demon King's Castle conquest. So Kirika was my first female monster companion."
"I see... I guess the reason why you didn't sooner is what we talked about before, right? Low-cost options like Goblins or Orcs were more than enough for basic tasks."
"Exactly. Besides, back then I wasn't in a position to throw DP around recklessly. And since you had already come over as my wife, Seraria, I intentionally avoided summoning them. Then, during our discussions with the Adventurers' Guild, we talked about summoning various monsters to run tests, right?"
"Yes, was it around that time?"
"Yeah. I summoned a whole bunch hoping to find a wife for Steve, but..."
Tied up in his straw mat, Steve let out a series of muffled, pathetic groans.
"He got rejected by every single one of them... You're way too aggressive, man."
Steve shed silent tears and went quiet.
"So... it's not because Steve's a monster that he can't find a partner?"
"Probably. Kirika, what was the feedback from the ones who went on matchmaking dates with Steve?"
"Yes. Comments included: 'He stares at breasts too much,' 'His eyes are completely bloodshot,' and 'He looks like he just wants to lay a hand on us.' I share the exact same opinion."
"I see... Wait, if you have Kirika with you, doesn't that mean she can act as a guard...?"
"Yes, but I am strictly a subordinate. No matter how much affection I receive from Master, or even if I were to become his wife, I cannot disobey his direct orders. Therefore, no matter what, Seraria-sama and the others must expand Master's escort detail. Furthermore, monsters like myself who maintain a fully solid human form are mostly Undead, Ghosts, or creatures with non-human lower bodies. Regrettably, I cannot serve as a guard for Master's doppelganger on the new continent."
"I see... Undead and Ghosts consume far too much mana out there and risk fading away, while non-human lower bodies would stick out like a sore thumb..."
"I am glad you understand."
Kirika bowed and prepared to step back into the shadows, but Aslin called out to stop her.
"Kirika-chan, wait! Come listen to the conversation with us!"
"Aslin-sama, it is quite alright. I am listening through Master's call. I also need to keep watch on our surroundings."
"No way~!"
Saying so, Aslin scampered over to Kirika... and casually plucked off her head.
At that scene, Seraria's eyes widened in sheer shock.
From an outside perspective, it looked as though Aslin had just brutally twisted her head off. Since Kirika usually kept her head attached, it was easy to forget she was actually an undead monster.
"Geez, it makes your Onee-chan sad. I've already told you to stop addressing me with '-sama.'"
"A-Aslin-anesama is our benefactor who named us, so... um, please give my head back."
As you can see, even the female-type monsters properly recognize Aslin as their leader.
"Kirika, just give up. It's your fault for not seeing Aslin recently. We've still got plenty to discuss, so just stay there."
"As expected of Onii-chan!"
"Uuh... Understood."
Aslin looked utterly delighted as she hugged Kirika's head.
Kirika placed her body behind Aslin, her head resting in Aslin's arms, making a slightly happy but troubled expression.
"Now then, to get back on track. As most of you know, it turns out Peace was a close aide to the previous Dungeon Master on the new continent. Since you probably don't know the full details, I'll have Peace explain it herself."
I led Peace over to the whiteboard.
She follows my lead quietly now, but back when we first met, she was constantly swinging her sword at me. I had to knock her out, and when she interrupted my wives' labor, I had to knock her out again—she was quite a handful.
Hearing her story, though, her loss of composure was understandable; she had been betrayed by her own allies and lost her master.
"Allow me to reintroduce myself. I am Peace, former close aide to the Dungeon Master of that continent."
Peace had continuously advised me against keeping humans near me.
It was pure trauma speaking. Just like me, her master had welcomed humans inside to investigate the cause of the mana depletion, only to be stabbed in the back.
For now, I've explained to her that when I came to this world, I put protective measures in place to prevent that, so she's calmed down somewhat.
Lately my wives had been spending time with her, showing her how Weed functioned and proving that our nation would never repeat the tragedy she experienced. All that's left is to heal Peace's heart over time.
While thinking about that and looking at Peace, she scanned everyone gathered and began speaking.
"First, I shall convey the most essential fact. My late master was unable to solve the cause behind the mana depletion. Like Yuki-dono, my master was chosen by the gods and operated on that continent to prevent the collapse of the world's balance due to the fading mana. However, midway through this noble endeavor, master was betrayed by the humans taken into the inner fold and departed this world. Afterward, those of us who remained left the dungeon to pursue the women who fled with master's keepsake—what is now known as the Holy Sword. We were defeated, and I have only recently awakened."
Yes. It seems the Holy Sword had actually been something the previous Dungeon Master created while researching mana depletion.
"I was confused for a time, but after speaking with Yuki-dono and Steve-dono and examining the map, none of the nations I once knew existed anymore. Thus, Zargis-dono helped me cross-reference the historical records of the Jilva Empire to see if any familiar nations remained. The results suggest that my era was roughly 400 years ago."
It must feel like a complete time-slip for Peace.
"For my part, I have no objections to serving Yuki-dono, the new Dungeon Master. Although having humans by your side initially caused me great concern, your wives have proven to be very trustworthy. And judging by how Weed operates, I see it as an organization that embraces people, so I've become convinced. That said, I can't say I feel that way from the bottom of my heart just yet, but I do wish to cooperate as much as possible."
My wives have said scary things like they would destroy the world if I were killed, so this much is understandable.
Rather, the fact that she's holding back is already quite good.
"As for how specifically I can assist: I believe the best course of action is to trace my memories, travel to the ruins of our former dungeons, and retrieve the research results left behind. Regrettably, because I served primarily as combat force, I am ignorant of the specifics of the research itself. Therefore, I advise that we first investigate the site directly beneath the capital of the Enaria Holy Kingdom, where my master's initial base of operations was located."
"There was a dungeon under the Enaria Holy Kingdom? Wait, has the Enaria Holy Kingdom really been around for that long?"
Seraria asked in wonder.
In the past, ruins functioned as dungeons, so building a royal capital directly over it would be absurd.
But there's a reason for that.
"One of the individuals who murdered my master seized the dungeon and founded the Enaria Holy Kingdom there. They likely wished to claim our initial stronghold to secure powerful equipment and resources. At the time, with our master slain, our chain of command fell into complete disarray, and we completely abandoned that original base."
"I see. Setting aside why those people betrayed your master for now, if someone knew the functionality of a dungeon, they certainly wouldn't leave it abandoned. Controlling it directly would allow them to generate wealth and build an army at will."
"Yes, it is exactly as Seraria-dono says. Furthermore, based on what I have gathered from Yuki-dono and the others, Enaria currently possesses the Holy Sword. If that is true..."
"Investigating Enaria is the most logical move for two distinct reasons, right?"
"Precisely. I have general locations for other former strongholds as well, but the surrounding regions are currently embroiled in conflict, and it remains uncertain how various factions will move following the ceasefire. Therefore, starting with what is within our immediate reach is ideal."
Nobody raised any objections; everyone seemed to be in agreement.
"Alright then. Our immediate goal will be conducting an investigation in Enaria. I'll arrange some internal connections within Enaria somehow. Zargis, once you've finished researching Jilva, you'll head over to Enaria."
"Wait!? You're working me too hard!!"
"Don't worry. We don't know if the dungeon is still in use, but we'll probably end up seizing it. If we end up capturing it, your job should actually be easier than it was in Jilva, right?"
"...If that's the case, then fine."
"Also, Peace, you're coming along for the Enaria exploration."
"Eh? But once I step outside the boundary of a dungeon, my mana will drain, and I will fade away..."
"Zargis has already worked out a solution for that. Right, Zargis?"
"You really push people hard, you know that? Peace-san's body, much like my own, is largely composed of mana, making the environment on that continent suffocating for us. Therefore, I had Narjia-san place an enchantment on this pendant to form a protective barrier of mana around her."
"A barrier?"
"Yes, not for defense, but rather a filter to prevent her internal mana from dispersing. This should suppress the mana decay. Any deficit can simply be replenished by those around her."
"...I see. In that case, there should be no issue."
"Do not overvalue it, however. It merely extends your time limit. If you push yourself too hard, you will enter a state of mana depletion very quickly. Let's see... considering your total mana capacity, Peace-san, it should last roughly three days."
"Three days is more than enough."
"Only if you don't use mana in combat. If you do, it won't last half a day. Please, don't forget that."
"...Understood. You have my gratitude, Zargis-dono."
Peace immediately put on the pendant.
That solved the problem of bringing her along.
"Now then, the final issue is negotiating the ceasefire with Enaria and deciding who'll accompany us on this expedition...."
"""ME! ME! ME!!!"""
Every single one of my wives raised their hands at once.
Naturally, that included Seraria and Rurua, who had just returned to active duty.
...Yeah.
This discussion was definitely going to take the longest.
