The Strongest Onmyoji and the Shikigami With AI are Unparalleled in Another World ~ A Second Life Properly Enjoyed Using Artificial Intelligence ~ - Chapter 170

Merell looks at us with a tearful face as we returned to the tent.

“You could have taken this centipede along too…”

“Sorry, sorry. Merell, while we’re at it, I wanted to ask—what kind of place is the Magic Continent?”

I asked as I returned to my seat.

“What kind, you ask… Well, it’s a continent to the east of this one. A small continent, probably not even a tenth the size of this one.”

“Are there towns like here, with all kinds of people living there?”

“Yes, that’s right. To be honest, if you go to the countryside, you’ll even find some humans living there—drifters, you could say.”

There are humans too, huh…

“Doesn’t that cause conflicts?”

“If you go to the cities, it might, but in the countryside, everyone’s too focused on farming to have the luxury of fighting. They’re severely short on manpower.”

“I see… AI-chan.”

“Yes?”

At my command, AI-chan placed a blank sheet of paper on the table.

“Huh? What’s this?”

“Draw a simple map of the Magic Continent here. Include the major port towns. I want to understand where an attack might come from.”

“Uh…”

Merell looked reluctant.

“Oh, and don’t draw random nonsense. If you lie, I’ll hunt you down and have you eaten you alive.”

“Eh?”

“Big Centipede-chan has an excellent sense of smell. It’ll track you down no matter where you are. Also, my mother has memorized your scent, so running is pointless.”

“Eek! I’ll draw it! I’ll draw it!”

Merell grabbed a pen and desperately started drawing the map.

“By the way, what’s the name of your organization?”

“It’s called ‘Eats.'”

Eats, huh…

After that, Merell continued drawing the map with all her might. While it wasn’t what you’d call skillful, the map turned out to be surprisingly clear.

“Th-this should do it… I’m sorry, but more than lying, there’s just the matter of my drawing ability.”

“I get it. This is good enough. Looking at it this way, there aren’t that many port towns, huh…”

There were only three.

“Those are just the main ones. There are villages and towns that do fishing too, but they’re small and don’t have warships.”

“In other words, if they’re coming, it’ll be through one of these three places.”

“Got it. That’s all for now. Sorry for bothering you so late.”

“Not at all. I’m a messenger meant to relay information, so I’m always ready to talk… Though, I am pretty sleepy.”

“Go to sleep. We’re heading back too.”

With that, I dismissed Big Centipede-chan.

“Phew… Please, no more centipedes or spiders. I really can’t handle them. Honestly, I’m not fond of foxes either.”

Merell seemed deeply scarred by the experience.

Poor thing.

“Alright, alright. See you later. Leanne, let’s go.”

“Yes.”

We left the tent, leaving the soldiers in charge of keeping watch, and headed to Leanne’s personal tent.

Once inside, we used teleportation to return to my room.

When we arrived back via Leanne’s teleportation, Natalia and Pamela were awake and looked over at us.

Meanwhile, Alice and Annie, who were curled up under the kotatsu with only their heads visible, and Lily, who was lying down hugging a blanket, were completely asleep.

“Welcome back.”

“Welcome home.”

Natalia and Pamela also looked sleepy.

“Sorry about that. We went to talk with the so-called demon.”

As I spoke, I sat under the kotatsu and reached in to grab two feet.

Alice and Annie stirred awake and sat up.

“Oh, welcome back…”

“…Welcome baaaack…”

Rubbing their eyes, the two slowly woke up, while Leanne went over to Lily.

“Lily, wake up. Just a little more, okay?”

“Mmm… Okay…”

Woken up by Leanne, Lily clutched her pillow for some reason, took her usual spot, and slid into the kotatsu.

“Yuuma, how did it go?”

As everyone settled under the kotatsu, Annie asked.

“First off, the messenger was that woman. The one who supposedly got scared of Mother and ran away at the eastern ruins.”

“Her, huh…”

“…Ah, the one who couldn’t even manage to throw out a parting shot.”

“There was someone like that, huh…”

“Isn’t she the type who’d normally go berserk in a situation like that?”

As everyone reminisced in their own way, Natalia asked a question.

“She quit the army, apparently.”

“Looks like she was so scared of Mother and Big Centipede-chan that she left.”

“Well, I can’t blame her for that…”

Natalia let out a wry smile.

“So, did she seem trustworthy? You’re good at picking up on that sort of thing with women, aren’t you?”

Annie asked, though there seemed to be a subtle undertone in her words.

“Her name’s Merell. Based on our conversation, I don’t think she’s trying to deceive us. Actually, it feels more like she’s trying to use us for her own purposes.”

“I think so too. My sensors picked up no malice from her—she was just overwhelmingly scared. Mainly of Big Centipede-chan standing behind her.”

She kept glancing over but absolutely avoided making eye contact.

“Hmm… So what’s the plan?”

“For now, Leanne will relay this matter to the king. What happens next will depend on his decision.”

“Alright, that works. So what about us?”

This wasn’t really a matter directly involving us.

“Leanne, we’re adventurers—what’s our role in all this?”

“First, if you accept any emergency requests, you’ll be summoned to the royal capital. From there, Kenneth and I will coordinate with the military to determine who goes where. If you prefer, Yuuma-sama, you can take a support role in the rear, or join the front lines.”

Since Leanne is at the top of the guild, she can arrange things as needed.

“Can we choose not to accept the request?”

“…You’re not thinking of going to the Magic Continent, are you?”

Leanne seemed to have anticipated the question and sought confirmation.