Chapter 91
You shouldn't expose children to their parents' messy domestic drama.
Mokutan was lonely and tried to follow me, so I used my Ironsteel Sheep Fireproof Gloves to stroke and comb their burning hair, calming them down before telling them to stay home. Then I joined Hiyori, who was erupting at the entrance.
I'll be right back after I beat up your mother. I won't stay away for 80 years this time. Don't worry.
"You came. Let's hurry to Shinagawa... Should I carry you there? Or shall we run together?"
"A piggyback ride is the only option. You're faster than a cheetah."
There was no way I could keep up on my own two legs with a woman who could naturally run at 100 or even 120 kilometers per hour. When I shook my head, Hiyori irritably explained, trying to suppress her anger.
"The bypass incantation for vampiric self-enhancement magic was completed 70 years ago. Even Dairi can reach the speed of a horse if he casts self-enhancement."
"Seriously? Teach me the incantation."
Vampiric Self-Enhancement Magic was one of those absurdly overpowered spells whose performance didn't remotely match its mere 1K mana cost.
The catch was that it contained unpronounceable sounds and consumed blood, creating a risk of anemia that made it impossible to overuse. Even so, it was a powerful basic spell favored by Transcenders.
Despite people saying for years how convenient it was, the bypass incantation had never been completed during my lifetime.
The fact that it took another ten years after my death suggested that developing the bypass incantation had been exceptionally difficult.
I felt as though I'd warped into the near future. If this was any indication, technology must have advanced considerably.
I already knew the original incantation for vampiric self-enhancement magic and had heard it countless times, so I learned the bypass incantation after only a little instruction.
I immediately cast self-enhancement magic. Hiyori did not, and we set off running.
"Whoa! It's fast! So fast!"
"Don't try to sprint at full speed right away. Gradually increase your speed and get used to it. Also, slow down on curves."
My feet got tangled almost immediately and I nearly fell, but Hiyori ran alongside me, supporting me and offering advice.
I felt as though I'd become a superhuman. Just lightly tensing my legs sent me surging forward. If I gave it my all, I could probably reach around 60 kilometers per hour. But it was obvious I'd take a tumble if I ran that fast right away, so I kept myself around 40 kilometers per hour and gradually got used to it, just as she'd advised.
"Amazing. The wind! I'm becoming the wind!"
When I stretched one hand to the side and spread my palm to feel the wind, Hiyori smiled fondly.
Running beside her like this made it obvious that Hiyori was holding back tremendously to match my speed. It must have felt like an Olympic track athlete running alongside an elementary schooler. It was a little frustrating.
"We'll run to Shinagawa along the main road. Tell me if your self-enhancement wears off along the way. If I restore the blood you've lost with healing magic, you can recast the spell as many times as necessary."
"Oh, that combo works? What's a main road?"
"It's generally a major road running along the old railway. It would be dangerous for people running at this speed to use narrow streets, wouldn't it?"
"True."
We gradually increased our speed as we talked. When we left Okutama and entered Ome City, the scenery had completely changed. The buildings that had been gradually deteriorating year by year were gone, replaced by a forest shrouded in thick fog. The deep scent of the woods told me that this was a world apart from the Ome I knew.
Even so, scattered remnants of civilization remained: the ruins of collapsed, moss-covered walls and crumbling utility poles wrapped in ivy.
I stole a glance at Hiyori's expression, but she didn't seem particularly moved. Maybe she was simply too furious to indulge in nostalgia. After 80 years, perhaps everything had become a memory of the distant past.
After leaving Ome, which had become a foggy forest, we entered the main road at Hiyori's direction. A solidly built stone-paved road stretched straight ahead.
Three- and four-story apartments and shops made of brick and stone lined both sides of the road, with smoke rising from their chimneys.
The delicious smell of freshly baked bread and the spicy scent of what seemed to be curry drifted all the way to the street, reminding me that it was lunchtime.
Huh. So this is what urban areas look like now. It doesn't feel post-apocalyptic at all anymore. The age of steam engines. It feels like we're in the steampunk era.
...Or so I thought, until I looked up and saw a small dragon flying overhead in formation with several swallows in tow.
When I lowered my eyes to the ground, a huge armed humanoid golem standing at a police box tracked us intently with its Gremlin-made mono-eye as we ran along together.
This isn't steampunk, is it?
It feels more like magicpunk.
Hiyori and I weren't the only ones tearing down the main road in broad daylight. There were a few other people running here and there, and plenty of Rider-san riding enormous tigers with Gremlins on their foreheads. Magical beasts, perhaps.
But the Blue Witch carrying Kyanos stood out a little. Some citizens looked over and whispered among themselves, making me feel uncomfortable.
Stop looking at me. Please don't mind me. Can't you just think of me as a rock or a weed by the side of the road? Being watched is stressful.
This was why I hated going out in the city during the day.
However, I couldn't claim to be uninvolved in the arson Tsugibi had committed.
To guarantee custody of all the fire lizards, I needed to be present for the showdown.
"Hey, why don't we take a shortcut? If we hopped across the tops of the buildings, couldn't we go straight to Shinagawa?"
"We could, but it's prohibited. There were drone flight regulations in the previous era, weren't there? It's the same thing."
"Ah, right."
One or two people would be one thing, but if thousands or tens of thousands of people started running along rooftop routes, it really would cause problems.
There was no doubt it would lead to spectacular collisions and falls. And having people stomp across the roof of your house would be a nuisance too. If passersby broke your roof tiles, wouldn't getting them to pay for the damage be a nightmare?
As time advanced, technology advanced, and laws and regulations advanced with it. It seemed like adjusting to the world 80 years later would be difficult... Then again, I hadn't exactly fit into the world 80 years earlier either, so why worry about it now?
Eventually, the enhancement magic wore off and I slowed down, so Hiyori replenished the blood I'd lost with healing magic.
While I was being soothed by the warm light, I found something else that looked interesting.
A swallow that seemed to be a close relative of the pouch sparrow was pulling letters out of its belly pouch in a steady stream, picking them up with its beak, and stuffing them into the mailboxes of an apartment building. The gleam of the golden anklet on its leg was remarkably similar to the metal Hiyori had used when transforming herself into a chair.
"Hey, that gold anklet on the swallow's leg. What's that?"
"It's an identification anklet. And that isn't gold. It's Abyss Gold."
"Oh...!"
My whole body tingled at the alluring, cool-sounding word.
Hmm. I probably shouldn't let myself get distracted or ask any more questions. I might lose myself in the new technologies of the world 80 years later and completely forget about Tsugibi's problem.
After recasting the enhancement magic several times and taking breaks, we arrived at the Hitsugi estate in Shinagawa Ward in just under an hour.
The Hitsugi estate was a magnificent mansion standing grandly in the middle of downtown. Its spacious grounds were surrounded by a tall iron fence, and tall hedges blocked anyone from peeking inside.
Shinagawa Ward had become an industrial zone lined with numerous exhaust towers belching smoke and factories roaring away, but the Hitsugi estate occupied an absurdly vast plot in what seemed to be a convenient location. They're rich. The Hitsugi clan sure knows how to make money!
While I studied the stylish design of the gate and considered how I would design it myself, Hiyori spoke with the gate guard.
She pulled some sort of silver card from inside her clothes and showed it to the guard, then said something after the guard checked it. The guard hurriedly opened the gate and rushed inside the mansion to deliver the message.
Hey, hey, what was that just now? Wasn't that interesting? It wasn't a driver's license, was it? It was a silver card, but I'd never seen material like that before.
"What was that? Hey, what was that? I get that it looked like identification, but that definitely wasn't made of ordinary material, was it?"
"It's Hollow Silver. I'll explain everything later. I understand why you're intrigued, but could you let me focus on Tsugibi for now?"
As she spoke, Hiyori crossed the immaculate, spacious courtyard and came face-to-face with a young woman who had hurried out of the entrance.
The woman looked to be in her twenties. She was Japanese through and through, with black hair and black eyes, but she bore a faint resemblance to the Witch of Tsugibi. Judging by the Himorino Staff sealing Tsugibi in her hands, she had to be the current Witch of Hitsugi.
I quietly hid behind Hiyori and erased my presence.
Hiyori, I'll leave all the negotiating to you! Give her hell.
As long as the custody of all the fire lizards was guaranteed, I was fine with watching Tsugibi get beaten up.
"Welcome to our household, Blue Witch-sama. I understand you have urgent business...?"
"It's a family matter. We discovered a secret child born to the Witch of Tsugibi and me. I came to demand an explanation. Release the seal on the Himorino Staff and let Tsugibi out."
"...Yes?"
The Witch of Hitsugi listened gravely to Hiyori's words, tried to digest their meaning, failed, and asked her to clarify.
Naturally.
"Um, excuse me, but it has been passed down that our ancestor was a witch—a woman. You are a woman too, Blue Witch-sama, correct? What do you mean by a secret child between the two of you...?"
"That's why I came here to have her explain what happened. I want to know too. But there is no question that Tsugibi somehow... had sex with me. You probably don't want to hear about a sexual scandal from eighty years ago involving your ancestor, but Tsugibi has an obligation to explain herself. Release her seal."
"Er, um...? And who is the man?"
"He's the adoptive father of Tsugibi's daughter. He'll be present for this matter."
After being introduced, I shrank back behind Hiyori.
Hi. I'm the adoptive father.
I know most of the circumstances, but I think the proper thing is to make Tsugibi confess everything herself.
"I don't fully understand the circumstances, but it's a rule of our clan. The seal on this staff may only be released once a means of solving our ancestor's physical problem has been found.
Do you possess such a means? If not, then as the fourth-generation Witch of Hitsugi, I cannot comply, even at the request of Blue Witch-sama."
"There's no problem. I've prepared a way to heal Tsugibi. What happens after the seal is released will be up to Tsugibi."
Hiyori cracked her knuckles, blue veins popping on her forehead as she spoke. She looked anything but problem-free.
Even so, the current Witch of Hitsugi eventually gave in to the Blue Witch's forceful insistence that this was a family matter involving the biological child of the Witch of Tsugibi, and agreed to release the seal.
And so, the seal on the Himorino Staff, which had remained firmly closed for more than 80 years, was released.
The Witch of Tsugibi was expelled from the extreme time-stagnation space created by the double Monster Shears. She hadn't changed at all since the moment she'd been sealed.
She looked like an adorable, palm-sized fire fairy. Suddenly thrust outside, she landed on the stone steps before the entrance and blinked repeatedly.
"Huh? Wait? Ao-chan-san?"
"Tsugibi. Do you have anything to say for yourself?"
"Eek."
Tsugibi was surprised, but delighted, to see her absolute favorite person before her. Then she froze in front of an incarnation of rage that embodied the contradiction between absolute-zero cold and blazing heat.
The Witch of Hitsugi saw Tsugibi's fairy-tale-like appearance and murmured, "So cute..." It was somehow pitiful in its own way. That thing might look like a mascot, but it had some seriously depraved tastes.
"A-anything to say? ...! I-I have no idea what you're talking about. More importantly, how long has it been since I was sealed? Have you found a way to do something about my lifespan?"
Tsugibi's expression clearly showed that she'd thought of something, but she shook her head and tried to play dumb with all her might. When she tried to change the subject, Hiyori threatened her by prodding her with the butt of Kyanos.
"Are you planning to keep pretending? The evidence is already in. The fire-lizard monster discovered right after you were sealed underwent metamorphosis today, 80 years later, and became humanoid. It became a human made of flame, as tall as you were in your prime. On top of that, its face looks exactly like mine."
"Wueh!? S-so that means you and Ao-chan-san are...!? Yay! Even two girls can make a baby if they set fires together, aaaaaah! I'm sorry, I'm sorry! That 'Yay!' was a lie! I'm sorry! I'm not happy about it! I'm sorry!"
Tsugibi let the truth slip, and Hiyori pinned her down with Kyanos until she seemed about to be crushed, making her scream.
That's right, Hiyori! Give her more! She made a move on my girlfriend! My girlfriend won't forgive her!
Well, back then I'd casually brushed it off, thinking, "Two women can't have a child anyway." But that aside, this was all Tsugibi's fault.
"If you don't want to be crushed, explain yourself. What did you do to me? Huh?"
"U-um, well... It was just a moment of weakness. I-I didn't mean any harm. I never intended to hurt you, Ao-chan-san. Truly. All I had was lust..."
Tsugibi began spilling the whole story with the worst possible opening, nervously confessing everything she'd done.
The Witch of Hitsugi had looked as though she was debating whether to save her suffering ancestor, but she was so shocked that she recoiled in disgust.
No wonder. After hearing such an outrageous story, even Hiyori backed away as though she were looking at an incomprehensible pervert.
"Y-you! You took advantage of my ignorance and made me, woman to woman, do something that could create a child...? You pretended to be serious, played on my sympathy by claiming you were dying, and deceived me!"
"I-I'm so sorry! I've always loved you, Ao-chan-san! I've adored you ever since before I became a witch! I've loved you ever since I saw the magazine featuring your modeling debut! So, before I died, I wanted to make a memory, and I gave in to temptation! I never thought we could really have a child! I'm sorry!"
As Tsugibi apologized in dogeza, bowing her head as low as possible, Hiyori's whole body broke out in goosebumps and she shouted in a voice close to a scream.
"You'd been fantasizing about doing that to me all this time!? Pervert! Pervert, pervert, pervert!!!"
The gardeners and stable hands working in the yard gathered at the commotion before the entrance, asking what was going on. The Witch of Hitsugi waved away the onlookers, who looked beyond embarrassed, as though they wanted to leap into a hole and disappear, and they returned to work with puzzled expressions.
It was a good thing the estate grounds were so spacious. If this showdown had happened in a cramped apartment, Tsugibi's indecency would have echoed through every room.
Apparently, the Witch of Tsugibi had no masochistic tendencies. Hiyori's insults left her utterly crushed. Her flames died down as she slumped dejectedly, and the fire forming her body's outline flickered weakly.
"Aww... I'm really sorry. I have no excuse whatsoever..."
"You irredeemable, utter pervert...! How are you going to take responsibility? Huh? I, you, me... Aah, you perverted witch! This is all your fault!"
"I'm sorry! I'll take responsibility!"
"How!? The fire lizards are all adults now! You got to have your fun, didn't you!? Do you have any idea what they've been through? I'll kill you, you pervert!"
"I'll take responsibility by marrying you! Ao-chan-san! We'll get married and become a couple, and I'll spend the rest of my life making amends!"
The kicks came at the same time.
The Witch of Tsugibi was kneeling in dogeza on the stone steps before the entrance when Hiyori's kick and mine sandwiched her between them, squashing her flat and making her eyes spin.
I stood beside Hiyori and reprimanded the shameless arsonist who had completely misunderstood how to repent.
"What do you mean, make amends? You just want to marry Hiyori!"
"Dairi's right. Enough joking around, Tsugibi. I already have a boyfriend."
Hiyori reached out and took my hand, and I squeezed it back.
Tsugibi had been staggering from the kicks on both sides, but she came to an abrupt stop when she heard us.
She stared at our joined hands as though she could bore a hole through them, then looked at Hiyori's face, and then mine.
"Huh? Ao-chan-san? Artisan-san...?"
Understanding slowly dawned on Tsugibi's face, and the color drained from it.
The Witch of Tsugibi turned deathly pale, then burst into tears in despair.
"It's a lie! A lie, a lie, a lie! Ao-chan-san would never marry a man!"
The tiny fire fairy suddenly took off running through her tears, slipped between our feet, and vanished outside the gate in an instant.
Hiyori stood there stunned for a moment, then came to her senses and shouted.
"That little... She ran away!"
"W-we'll send people after her at once! We can't let the clan's shame spread...!"
The Witch of Hitsugi hurriedly summoned people, and the commotion at the entrance spread throughout the entire estate.
The pervert escaped! This is an emergency! Chase her!