Translated: Sei, MTL-sensei-tachi
Edited: Sei, Grammarly no Danna
Source: Syosetu

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Chapter 320


　There was just too much going on, but I managed to clear everything I needed to do today, so I decided to head to the lodging they'd prepared for me.
　While doing so, I also moved Blurin, who I'd left near the city entrance, to a stable near the lodgings. But now, he was drawing far more attention from the demon folk than he had the first time.
　Somehow, there are all these wild rumors flying around, about a flying devil, or humans being creatures meant to fly... Mm, time should sort that out. Probably.

"I'm so glad you're here, Ark-san..."
"Hahaha, you're exaggerating."

　The lodgings were divided between the Kingdom of Lingle and the Kingdom of Nirvarna.
　We were basically making our own dinner, so just like on our previous journey, we left the cooking to Ark-san and sat down at the table to wait for dinner to arrive.

"Well, day one in the Demon King's territory. That was quite something, wasn't it, Usato-dono."

　Kurumia-san, seated across from me, said this with a wry smile.
　No, I truly am sorry for causing everyone so much trouble.

"It was just as I had heard. “『Events』 or things called 『Flags』 always occur around Usato-dono”... It was exactly as Suzune-san said."
"That's so true, I can't deny it..."

　Or rather, what are you telling Kurumia-san, senpai?

"Honestly, the trouble from within our own group was worse than the Demon King’s territory."
"Hahaha, even for us, what Nirvarna did was completely unexpected."

　For now, the problem with Senri-sama... should be more or less resolved.
　I really didn’t want to deceive her, but I’ll leave her to Koga, who ran off.

"I'm sorry too, Nea."
"No... I'm not particularly angry, but... when it actually happens to myself, well... It's just too shocking."
"Hahaha, so we're even then."
"...No, we're not even. I'll be taking your blood later."
"I don't really mind if it's that much."
"Then I'll take about two liters."

　I put my hand to my chin as Nea smiled brightly.

"If you drink that much, you'll get an upset stomach."
"Just kidding, but aren't you implying you'd be fine even if two liters of blood were drained from you...?"

　Since she's always in owl form, I sometimes forget Nea is a vampire.
　And that she's also a necromancer.

"What about you, Ururu-san? Come to the city where the demon people live."

　I called out to her as she sat next to me, and she came back to her senses.

"Ah, sorry. I was spacing out for a bit."
"Are you okay? If you're tired, you should rest."
"No, it's nothing. I was just wondering if onii-chan was okay."

　Are you talking about Olga-san?
　Well, they're family, so of course you'd worry...

"Olga-san has Nack with him, so he'll be fine."
"...Mm. You're right, I need to focus on my own things too."

　I nodded to Ururu-san, whose expression had brightened slightly.

"How was it when we came here?"
"Yes"
"Hmm, seems okay, I guess. For now, it feels like things are going normally. Maybe because everyone was just watching Usato-kun?"
"Ah~..."

　I flew into the sky.
　No one's really at fault here, but I can't help feeling like it made a tremendous impact right from the start.

"Usato-kun, what are your plans for tomorrow?"
"I'll basically be on standby unless the Demon King requests something, but tomorrow I plan to see off the knights dispatched from the Kingdom of Lingle before us."

　Formally, it's like we're taking over for them.
　Other than that, nothing has been decided yet...

"Demon King told me to interact with the demon folk, so I think I'll try exploring outside. Also, I might go meet Keira's guardian."
"Keira-chan's?"
"She asked me to meet him, but I also wanted to show my face myself."

　I need to apologize for hiding my identity when we met.
　I want to check on his leg that was actually injured.
　Another option is to go and see the members of the expedition team.
　The Demon King did say he was recruiting members, but the original members are probably Koga's subordinates.
　Being his subordinates means they must be elite, so I'm curious just how “capable” they are.

"Hey, what did you do to Keira-chan, Usato-kun?"
"That sounds like a really rude way to put it."
"Haha, not in that sense. I just thought, wow, she really looks up to you."

　Ah, so that's what she meant...

"Everyone, sorry to keep you waiting."
"Thank you, Ark-san."

　It seems Ark-san's dish is ready just in time.
　The ingredients used for the food we eat here are the same as what the demon folk consume in the Demon King's territory.
　Though Ark-san's cooking makes it look delicious, the amount of ingredients used isn't particularly large.

"...Since Ark-san is here, shall we talk while we eat?"

　An encounter between a dark magician named Keira and Gref and his friends.
　The battle that transcended dimensions and time, fought at the site of the decisive clash between the Demon King and the previous Hero, and their first encounter with the Demon King.
　As we talk about what happened, the night slowly passes by.

●
——— read on seireitranslations.blogspot.com ———

　After finishing dinner, I wiped myself down with warm water and a towel, changed clothes, and then sat in my room reviewing my belongings while jotting down the tasks ahead in the notebook I'd brought along.
　There's just so much I have to get done.
　Seems the Demon King has quite a few requests for me too, so I'd better buckle down and get serious.

"...Yoshi."

　After folding my notebook and putting it back in my bag, I sat cross-legged on the bed and began my magic circulation training.
　Quickly, smoothly, intricately, I circulated the magic from the center of my chest———my heart, throughout my entire body.

"Next..."

　I crushed the magic sphere I'd formed in my palm and performed magic perception.
　A technique to sense the presence of living creatures and moving objects within range.
　It would be a countermeasure against invisible devils, so I definitely needed to practice it.

"Hmm? Is there really any need to crush the magic bullets in the first place?"

　I keep doing it every time, but it leaves me pretty exposed... Maybe I should try a different approach...?

"Magic doesn't just come from your hands. Then..."

　All I need to do is release it from my entire body...!
　I've already experienced the method through my fusion with Ferum and Senpai's Thunder Beast Mode.
　There's no reason I can't do it...!!

"Nnngh... N-guh...!!"

　I tried imagining radiating magic from my upper body, but I could feel it being drained at an incredible rate.
　I stopped the radiating immediately; this isn't very practical.

"Hmm, I thought it was a good idea though."

　Using my magic as-is consumes far more energy than I can sustain.
　Or should I emit it like sonar or ripples? That might be slightly better, but it still uses more magic than normal.

"Now that I think about it, system strengthening is a technique that increases the concentration of magic power..."

　By pouring magic power into it, you increase its concentration and boost its effect.
　That is system strengthening.
　Then, couldn't the opposite be possible?
　I wrapped healing magic around my palm and concentrated my awareness.

"..."

　If system strengthening gives the impression of making light denser and more intense, this feels like making it thinner and weaker.
　The magic remains the same.
　Thinner.
　More transparent.
　With each thought, the emerald-like green gradually fades.
　Color-wise, it feels a shade lighter than Nack's healing magic?

"...It's easier than I thought."

　Right away, let's try doing the same thing as before with this.

"Hmph."

　I radiate diluted magic power around me.
　A faint light of healing magic fills the space.
　Although magic power is being consumed, it is far less than before.

"If I had to name it, I'd call it system degradation."

　By deliberately lowering the quality of the healing magic, I can suppress mana consumption and maintain a more flawless state.
　As I took a brief breath, someone suddenly knocked on my door.

"Yes? Hmm? Nea, what's wrong?"

　Opening the door, there stood Nea with her arms crossed, glaring up at me with piercing eyes.
　Wh-what?

"Hey Usato, I feel like some kind of calming magic is coming all the way to the next room."
"Ah, sorry. I just developed a new technique following the magic circulation."
"It's not that I don't like it...Hmm?"

　Did the magic go through the gap in the wall?
　Even though it was healing magic, I did something bad.

"I'll keep it contained next time. See ya."
"No, wait a minute!!"

　As I tried to close the door, a foot was shoved into the gap with a thud.

"You're not doing something weird again, are you!?"
"Not this time. I was just wondering if I could reverse the system strengthening."
"Haa~? There's no way that's possible——"
"Well, I did."

　Then Nea holds her head in her hands.

"I'm not surprised because I'm used to it. I'm not surprised because I'm used to it. I'm not surprised because I'm used to it...!"
"What are you mumbling about?"
"Show me that technique...!"

　I don't mind though.
　As I opened the door and tried to let her into the room, Ark-san came from the end of the hallway.

"Usato-dono. This is perfect timing."
"Yes? Ark-san, what's wrong?"
"Hannah-dono has come to see you."

　Hannah-san?
　Probably about tomorrow's plans or something?

"Nea, can I show you the technique later?"
"Well, I guess that can't be helped... I'll wait in your room then."

　Nea walked into my room without any hesitation, looking a little dissatisfied.

"Did something happen?"
"No, I just thought of a new technique, and she got bad mood."
"Haha, Usato-dono is still the same as always... Ah, Hannah-dono is waiting downstairs."
"Understood"

　After parting ways with Ark-san, I went downstairs alone.
　At the entrance, a slightly weary-looking Hannah-san stood waiting. Spotting me, she let out a sigh.

"Hannah-san? What's wrong?"
"No, there was something I forgot to tell you, so I thought I'd tell you today."
"Yes? Ah, it's not good to talk while standing, so please sit down."

　After showing her to the table, I listened to her story.

"First of all, the place where I live is right next to this dormitory."
"Eh, really?"
"Yes, what a coincidence, right? It's almost as if it was decided from the start that I would be your assistant."

　Somehow, she ended up having this incredibly dark smile on her face.
　...I wonder if the Demon King was behind this?

"When you go out to do something, either report it to me or I'll accompany you, so please come tell me properly."
"Understood"

　Is she more of a watcher than an assistant?
　Nah, with the Demon King, it's probably because it seemed like fun to pair us up.

"So what should I do during morning training?"
"Haa? Training?"
"I thought I'd do some running. I'd also get a sense of the city's layout, so that would be perfect."

　Since I've only seen the cityscape from the sky, I guess I'll have to run through it on my own two feet first.

"What time do you plan to run?"

　...Hmm.

"Around sunrise, I guess."
"No, I'll be sleeping at that hour, so please don't come... Okay, running's fine. ...Ah, and don't do anything weird, okay?"

　I know full well what happens if I run while carrying Blurin on my back.
　I know this isn't the Kingdom of Lingle, after all.

"Don't worry. I'll just run...!"
"What should I do? I don't feel at ease at all..."

　How untrustworthy am I?
　But if my trust level is low at first, all I have to do is raise it later.
　I'm sure interacting with Hannah-san is part of the goal of deepening friendship that the Demon King mentioned, so I'll have to work hard to gain her trust.

——— read on seireitranslations.blogspot.com ———

Author's Notes:
Usato went to the trouble of developing a technique to weaken his own magic.