Side: Comet Tail
"Comet. You confirmed everything, right? Write down the envoys' stats and submit them."
"Understood."
My mouth opens on its own, gives a reply, and my body returns to my private room to carry out the order Hiffy gave me.
Un. Being fully automated and never getting tired is honestly quite a relief for me.
Undead are so convenient~
But still, I'd like to be able to say something once in a while.
Because I could only speak in broken words back then, I ended up giving Hiffy the wrong idea, didn't I?
No, is it not even a misunderstanding? Words are difficult, aren't they.
Well, in a way, the current situation is my own doing anyway~ Seriously, what am I supposed to do about this? Not that I can think of a way to steer things in a better direction.
To begin with, far from being able to speak, I'm completely Hiffy's doll. I can't even move a single finger of my own free will.
...Hmm. Now that I say it like that, it sounds kind of erotic.
I mean, come on, Hiffy is a beauty, and I feel like I've gotten pretty decent-looking myself lately?
Like this... you know?
On my way back to my room, I pass a mirror that was apparently presented to us as a gift from somewhere. Reflected there was me in a mage's style—one that suited my appearance—with long, beautiful golden hair.
...Yes, 'lately' refers to the time after I became an undead and turned into Hiffy's doll.
Back then—well, when I was alive—I was always immersed in research and stuff, so my hair was a tangled mess and my clothes were completely rumpled~
Yep. It was only after becoming undead that I realized my natural features were actually pretty good.
"Oh. If it isn't Comet-dono. Is your arm doing alright now?"
As I think about this while walking on autopilot, Taizou Motome-san—who had been brought to this other world by Hiffy—approaching from the end of the hallway.
"Yes. There are no issues. I have just been instructed to write down the enemy statuses observed during reconnaissance."
"Is that so? Well, things get critical from here on out. Do not push yourself too hard, however. We are both leaders in our respective fields, after all."
"Thank you for your concern. Now, if you will excuse me."
Man~ I'm a fully automated doll, you know? Even if you show concern, I'll just keep working... Though the raw materials are my actual corpse.
Still, the restriction on my words and actions has been really frustrating lately.
Because, you see, this Motome-san's knowledge is absolutely incredible!
It's just one amazing thing after another.
What did he call it... scientific technology? It follows completely different principles and rules from magic. Or maybe... I feel like there are points where they connect.
If I were free to do as I pleased, I bet I could cooperate with Motome-san to make something even more interesting~ Ah, of course, I think it would also be useful for that mana depletion issue requested by that High Goddess named Luna, you know?
Well, there's no point in saying it now. All the dungeon-skill-related stuff is under Hiffy's management anyway.
Besides, as far as Luna is concerned, I'm probably considered dead by now, right? It's only been about 50 years since I was resurrected after all.
Man~ I thought my knowledge might come in handy someday, so I put a preservation effect on the dungeon lab. Luckily, my body didn't rot and remained intact, with my soul still anchored to it. That's why Hiffy was able to turn me into an undead just like that.
I never expected I'd end up being used as-is, though~ Nahahaha!
Depending on how you look at it, getting to live a second life makes me pretty fortunate~
Though things are pretty complicated right now...
* * *
Scratch, scratch...
Yes, complicated indeed.
Before I knew it, I was already back in my room, my body carrying out the task ordered by Hiffy.
Only the sound of the pen gliding across the paper echoed in the room.
Honestly, I didn't think Hiffy would go so far as to start all this.
Even when I heard from Luna that she was a goddess, I was surprised, but back then she was just a normal older girl serving as a priestess in a village church.
I was recognized as an eccentric back then... How rude~ Picking on someone just trying to unravel the mysteries of the world and calling them a weirdo... Well, that doesn't matter now.
Because of that relationship, I spent my time quietly researching on the edge of that village. Then, when I became a Dungeon Master to address the mana depletion, I ended up cooperating with Hiffy, who happened to be in the same village.
Though even before that, she used to devotedly take care of me—coming over to check on me and clean my place.
Back then, the relationship between Hiffy and me was extremely good... Actually, even now, I don't think my relationship with Hiffy is bad. After all, Hiffy herself never fails to take care of my clothes and hair.
Then, to reinforce our base, the convenient and super-strong sword that Hify and I developed together—shortened to the 'Betsusword'—exerted way too much of an effect, resulting in the girls we brought along cutting me down cleanly.
I mean, I wanted to lighten their mental burden with the Betsusword so even young girls could fight hard.
As for the direct cause, I realized back then that the cause of the mana depletion lay in the arrangement of the major nations, and passing on incomplete information was my mistake.
Because of that, they chose to slice me up in order to protect the continent themselves... I wish they'd had a bit more leeway to listen to the full story, though. Well, failing to control the mental effect was my responsibility, after all.
Still, personally, I thought a continent-wide problem like that was best tackled by everyone together, so I didn't hold a grudge over the result of being slashed. If the girls we took in wanted to carve out their own path, I thought that was fine... It was a shame I couldn't say goodbye to the other companions who took care of me, though.
Then, when I woke up, 350 years had passed.
Hiffy's fluffy kindness from back then was gone without a trace, and she had become the head of a nation.
When I first woke up, I could move fairly freely, and that was when I learned about what happened afterward.
To think that Peace and her dungeon monsters tried to conquer the continent, and the ones who stopped them were those girls wielding the Betsuswords.
It seems that with my death, my inner circle split right down the middle. In storybooks, it's told like an epic heroic saga, but from my perspective, it was a brutal family feud.
And although their names remain as founders in most of the subsequent major nations, most of them ended up imprisoned.
Because of the mental control, they seemed to have become recklessly headstrong. They brushed past negotiations with each nation to force unification, resulting in their imprisonment. So, honestly, the key figures of each country back then must have had a really tough time~
That's probably why.
With the wishes of those I left behind being weeded out like that, Hiffy's own wishes were completely crushed as well.
Otherwise, there's no way she would have established a country herself and used me as an undead doll... In other words, she's dead serious.
Well, as far as I'm concerned, war is just one method among many, so I won't deny what Hiffy is thinking.
Or rather, since Hify is the only one left, I have no intention of interfering. When I said before, "I am... no longer... needed," what I meant was, "I have no intention of getting in your way, so you don't need to control me anymore."
Though if she didn't control me, I'm pretty confident I'd just shut myself in the lab. In that sense, Hiffy was right to keep me under control. Even if she's misunderstanding things in a completely different direction.
Organizing my thoughts like this, it all comes down to the fact that once we were gone, Hiffy gave up on the option of a human-led solution.
Well, it's been 400 years since then.
Considering how long she'd been watching this continent even before that, she's been remarkably patient, I suppose. For an ordinary person, it wouldn't be surprising if they had started multiple wars in that time.
I have no intention of complaining about the choice made by someone who desperately endured that dizzying stretch of time and searched for a way forward.
Now then, what is it that's so complicated?
It's the incident where the unit I sent out recently as a declaration of war was scattered by flying dragons.
It's abnormal for there to be over 30 monsters of that level. On top of that, they were coordinating impeccably.
Even back when I was alive, flying dragons were rare monsters hidden deep within the mountains. In terms of strength, they easily surpass the wyverns controlled by the Dragon Knight visiting us now. The gap is so wide that out of 10 battles, 10 losses are practically guaranteed. What's more, the one leading those flying dragons was an Orc, of all things. And it talked, to boot.
I don't understand a thing anymore.
I mean, when I was active as a Dungeon Master, high-tier monsters like Dullahans or Liches talked, sure? Beast-type monsters talked too, of course. But an Orc is just a mass-produced, disposable creature. There's zero benefit to making one talk.
For a moment, I thought a new Dungeon Master other than myself had been chosen, but thanks to that Orc, that possibility was eliminated. Because that Orc's strength was completely insane. Just making it talk would waste DP needlessly or require a massive time investment for education.
Furthermore, my arm—belonging to someone who, despite being a researcher, is a mage whose overall stats were massively boosted as a Dungeon Master—was sliced off without effort. In other words, not just knowledge, but overall capabilities have increased. It's not entirely impossible for this to be the work of a Dungeon Master, but the probability is extremely low.
If you had the resources to prepare an Orc like that, it would be far more efficient to just spawn more flying dragons. After all, the DP replenishment rate on this continent is even worse than it was 400 years ago.
In short, besides human nations like August, there's a possibility that a genuine, far more dangerous Demon Lord than Peace ever was has appeared.
The location is likely the Forest of Monsters near Lancer Magic Academy, which serves as a mana concentration point... I never expected that the facility where Poppuri sheltered orphans would turn into a full-fledged Magic Academy, but Poppuri probably foresaw this and built the academy in that location.
She was always sharp on her feet. Making herself ageless while remaining small in stature felt a bit premature back then, but as a result, she seems to be doing well.
Ah, I got side-tracked.
Those Orcs and flying dragons probably attacked us while we had no preparations, rather than Poppuri's academy, which would be difficult to raid. Right now, Motome-san is handling countermeasures against the flying dragons, but since an Orc like that has appeared, it feels like we'll be in trouble unless we reinforce other areas too.
Not that I can suggest this to Hiffy, though. Since I don't have freedom over my body.
Well, if those Orcs step forward again, we'll probably be pushed back depending on the situation. When that happens, I'll forcibly break the control and tell her about this. It's not like I'm completely incapable of breaking the control by force.
However, if I break the control now without the proper setup to talk things out with Hiffy, she'll just put a tighter, stronger spell on me and that'll be the end of it. It would be fine if I intended to run away from Hiffy's side, but I don't have the slightest intention of abandoning her and fleeing.
Ahh, I really am a great friend, aren't I? Worrying myself to death even as a corpse~
Oh, before I knew it, I finished writing down the envoys' statuses.
Let's see here...
Hmm, the Dragon Knight is a student from Poppuri's place, so her level is low. She seems to have a talent for magic, though.
Her husband also has Mana Control, huh... quite an unusual trick.
And the Magic Sword wielder from August is... hoho, level 82, is it? Mm-hmm, pretty strong. Is this raw material for Hiffy's undead mage corps, I wonder~?
And the rest are the escort mercenaries, huh... Hmm, average level around 70? Well, that's impressive. Impressive, but nothing beyond the Magic Sword wielder, and no standout skills either.
...But something's fishy.
Especially these two. The people named Yuki and Taiki look similar to Motome-san.
Summoned from another world? But there's no such description in their status... Do they have a Concealment skill? But my Appraisal is supposed to see through Concealment too...
Ah~ I want to go investigate directly, but my body won't move freely!?
Well, even if they're concealing something, I doubt they can defeat me or Hiffy anyway...
