Side: Amahashi Kakeru

The upperclassmen got off with a stern warning. The Chairman had apparently negotiated well with the government.

Honestly, the only thing that really counted as a problem was the property damage; entering an off-limits area warranted a scolding at most. On top of that, coming down too hard on them might have drawn attention to the whole affair.

In the end, it felt like things had settled with a light punishment.

That said, as for the Lesser Goblin video the upperclassmen had filmed and that had gone around among the students, they were leaving it murky—chalking it up to a guess that it was the work of a monkey, or of someone who'd broken in for kicks.

The explanation for the underground space was that there was danger depending on the location, which made surveying the interior difficult, and that there might be some other entrance somewhere.

That explanation was a clever one, I thought.

Of course, the Lesser Goblin's images and video were already all over the internet, and the students were split between the "new species of monkey" theory and the "prankster" theory.

"Amahashi, word is you're awfully chummy with those foreign beauties. Heard you were out shopping together nearby just yesterday too?"

"Told you, didn't I. He's a sunny extrovert, this Amahashi."

"A guy living alone with multiple beauties doing a homestay—too enviable for words. You're flirting your way through every single day, aren't you."

Before I knew it, I'd been surrounded by the boys in class.

I'd appreciate it if people didn't go spreading baseless rumors while a guy was lost in thought. Also, I don't think I'm a sunny extrovert.

Does just doing some ordinary shopping really come off that way?

"When I think about how he saved Horii-san, no wonder he's a hit with the girls. He went to help the person in the most danger and called out to everyone around him at the same time. I could never pull off something that cool."

"Yeah, I'll give him that. I couldn't move at all."

That had been a mistake. I'd stood out too much. Still, I didn't regret it. Abandoning someone you could save right in front of you only leads to regret later.

"Compared to Amahashi-kun, you lot are pretty childish, aren't you."

"Yeah, I think so too."

"Amahashi-kun, it's like you got a makeover around the time the homestay people showed up. Like you've become a grown-up almost."

This time the girls joined the conversation. A makeover—or rather, I'd spent a little over three years off in another world. So yeah, the ones who'd notice would notice.

But at that offhand remark from the girls, the boys' expressions shifted.

"Hold on a sec! Become a grown-up, you said…"

"Wha—!? Surely he's not that fast a worker…"

Hey now, don't go imagining weird things. Think about it normally. You don't just suddenly get involved with the people who've come to do a homestay.

"You're dreaming too much. Face reality."

"Yeah, exactly."

"I—I knew that. Right?"

"Oh, of course, obviously."

The girls were laughing at the boys' blatant fluster. They'd only been teasing. The boys caught on too and started laughing it off to cover.

Everyone looked like they were having fun. Goofing around like that. I was a little envious.

Side: Horii Asuka

There was no mistaking that he'd changed.

Before the homestay people arrived, he'd had a tendency to shut himself away inside his own shell.

He'd become a grown-up. That phrasing seemed apt. He'd come to terms with his grandmother's death. To me, it felt as though he'd grown up in that sense.

It was his bearing—he alone looked like an adult. His manner when he came to my home had been the same. Almost like one of my father's subordinates.

My father isn't the sort to pass judgment on my friends, but he made an exception for him. He'd been impressed that he could act on the spur of the moment like that—said it was something even an adult couldn't do.

In that sense, was he different even among adults, I wondered.

As for me… before I realized it, there were times I'd be watching him, thinking about him. It wasn't that I liked him in that way or anything.

But he was on my mind, and I did find him intriguing.

"Horii-san?"

"Oh—this, right. I've received it, definitely."

The conversation drifting over had sounded so cheerful that I'd ended up watching without meaning to. So much so that I hadn't noticed until the classmate who'd brought me the handout to turn in to the school called out to me.

"Amahashi-kun's different from the first impression, isn't he."

"Yes, that's true. I was surprised too."

He didn't seem to be aware of it himself, but Amahashi-kun had become a bit of a topic among the girls. That grown-up air about him.

Then again, he was apparently not all that good at studies or sports, and during breaks between classes you'd see him looking over his textbook in evident difficulty.

His strengths and his weaknesses were both visible. That was exactly why you found yourself wanting to lend him a hand. Something like that, I suppose.

But none of the others in class knew the Amahashi-kun from that time. The Amahashi-kun who protected us against that unknown creature.

He'd worn a face he never showed at school, and he'd stood in front of the creature to shield us.

If they could see how he was then, Amahashi-kun would be a hit with the girls—no lie about it.

Part of me wants to tell them, and part of me doesn't.

For now… I'll keep it secret a while longer. The underground business isn't something I can go spreading around.

Side: Noctia

I was looking into the matters of this world when Pricia came to me with a request.

"I have some. Will this do?"

"To think you actually have it…"

She'd asked whether I had tools for maintaining weapons and armor, so I took them out of the subspace storehouse I'd made with spatial magic and handed them over, which surprised her.

Kakeru's holy armor and holy sword, along with Pricia's armor and sword and the rest, sat unused in the room. Weapons and armor were no good unless you maintained and stored them properly. Since Kakeru hadn't even been taught that sort of knowledge, she was the one managing them.

But Kakeru's house didn't have the tools for a thorough job, so we'd been making do with simple upkeep—though if they were to be stored long-term, they needed proper maintenance.

"Preparation matters in all things. Once I was free of being Demon Lord, I'd been considering living in the human race's lands too."

"…Would it be possible for you to take custody of our weapons and armor?"

When I handed over the tools, Pricia thought for a moment and made that proposal.

"My own weapons and armor are one thing, but it isn't desirable to keep the holy sword and holy armor in this house. Holy objects can invite conflict. All the more so now that we know there's magic in this world."

True enough. The holy power those things gave off was sealed for now by the simple barrier Sanctina had cast, but if possible they ought to be properly hidden.

Especially given that, after the recent uproar at the school, the possibility of this house being watched hadn't yet gone away.

"You're right. That might be the better way. The holy sword and holy armor are things that ought to be enshrined in their proper place to begin with. Once the maintenance is done, I'll take custody of them. Kept inside subspace, they shouldn't be detectable by anyone else."

The Hero's equipment, passed down since ancient times in that world. The gods' legacy. Whether there were gods in this world, and whether they were the same gods as in that world—there was much I didn't understand, but hiding them was clearly the better course.

"Good. The handling of those was what worried me most."

"What exceeds its measure invites calamity. Just so. Though in truth they'd be best returned to that world, I suppose."

So we really ought to establish a means of travel to the other side. Pricia and the others won't be going back, but the holy sword and holy armor had better be returned.

Still, as things stood, that was a difficult prospect. Now what to do.