CH 108

Chapter 108 – Can’t Escape

“This is Sylphy speaking from Erichburg. Kosuke, if you can hear me, please respond.”

After two days of waiting while building a spare casing and an additional external antenna. Finally, the portable golem communication device received communication from Erichburg. The external antenna had been installed yesterday, so the strength of the magic wave on the other side must have increased.

Incidentally, unlike radio waves, these magic waves hardly attenuate even through the ground or stone walls. It is weak against magic barriers, so magic barriers that block magic power, some magic metals, and walls made of lead seem to be no good. I wonder if it has some kind of radiation-like effect.

“This is Kosuke speaking from Merinesburg. Sylphy, we can finally talk.”

“Oh… Fuh… I can finally talk to you… Kosuke…”

I can hear her crying over the speakers. Aah, my heart is tightening up terribly. I want to hug her right now, but the wall of physical distance between her and me is unmanageable.

“I think I’ve told you before that I’ve safely joined up with Melty. We’re hiding out in the sewers of Merinesburg. With the help of Lime, Beth, and Poizo.”

I then told her the same story that I had told Melty, telling her in detail what had happened after Qubi kidnaped me. In the middle of it, Sylphy, Isla, Danan, and Sir Leonard asked me questions, and I answered them as well.

“As I thought, it’s Qubi… He’s affiliated with the Holy Kingdom.”

“Next time I see him, I’ll kill him.”

“Isla?”

“I’ll kill him for sure.”

“It’s not enough to just kill him. I will shave his entire body and make him a public spectacle.”

“Kosuke… The two of them are scary, so you must come home early. They only say scary things like shaving off his entire fur, cutting off his ears and tail. And also, I want to eat Kosuke’s food.”

“You really are an old man who is obedient to his desires, aren’t you?”

By the way, ever since I was kidnapped, Ms. Zamir has been destroying the remaining remnants of the Holy Kingdom’s army in the south as if she were possessed by something. I’ve heard that she took responsibility for not being able to fulfill her duties as my guard and tried to commit suicide. Is she the kind of samurai who takes responsibility and commits seppuku?

I’ve heard that Sylphy stopped her from doing so, but she’s been spending all her time fighting without taking a proper break since then. If I don’t get back soon, Ms. Zamir is going to be in trouble.

“So, what’s my course of action from now on?”

“Come back.”

“Come back.”

“Come back. As soon as possible.”

“Come back. As quickly as possible.”

“Ahay.”

I was unanimously told to come back. That’s right. There’s nothing for me to do even if I stay here.

“Kosuke, are you going back?”

“You’re going to leave…”

“It can’t be helped-nodesu.”

The slime girls looked disappointed. Yeah, they’ve been very helpful, and they’ve been really nice to me. The underground life has been very comfortable, except for the lack of sun, and to be honest, I miss it a lot.

“But then again, where I belong is with Sylphy.”

“Kosuke…”

From the speaker, I could hear her voice, which sounded like she was overcome with emotion.

“Kosuke, I’ll be waiting.”

“Yeah, wait for me. We’ll leave tomorrow when we’re ready. Then I’ll end the communication.”

I replied to Isla and ended the communication.

Now, as for the preparations… my leather armor was destroyed by Melty.

Other than that, we need to be well prepared for the journey before we leave. We’ve got plenty of food. The water is fine. I’ve made brick blocks out of clay, so I can set up a shelter.

Huh? If I just make leather armor, we can leave, right?

“I’ll just make the armor. Is there anything else needed?”

“Oh, there’s something I need you to make for me then.”

“Okay, what is it?”

Melty smiled at my reply. Oh, this is bad.

“Please make me a collar.”

“What?”

“Make a collar with the same design as the slave’s collar.”

“Why…?”

“If we’re going to be walking together in the Holy Kingdom’s territory, it’s safest to pretend that I’m Kosuke-san’s slave. If it’s a combination of a subhuman female slave with her horns cut off and a human male mercenary, the chances of people thinking you’re suspicious are close to zero. It’s not unnatural for a mercenary to have a subhuman female slave as a trophy.”

“Nunu…”

I can’t find any room for rebuttal. Indeed, it would be unnatural for a mercenary to have a slave who has been captured on the battlefield. If it’s a warrior, then arming them won’t be a problem.

“Then let’s pretend you are a warrior and make weapons and armor. That way, we can easily arm ourselves.”

“No, that’s fine. Let’s say I’m Kosuke-san’s sex slave.”

“Sex…?

“If I am armed, I will be investigated even more. It’s better that way.”

“I-I… see?”

It’s a kind of a roundabout… No, Melty has a point. It’s true that rather than sneaking around with a hooded person hiding their face and head, a slave collar (just a collar that looks like a slave collar) fitted around their neck might attract less attention.

“Yeah, I get it.”

I’m going to use the leather materials in my inventory, the remnants of the leather armor that Melty tore off, and some iron to make leather armor for me and a slave collar (just for looks) for Melty.

I feel like Beth and Poizo are giving me a warm look, but I’m sure it’s just my imagination. I’d like to think so.

The amount of work involved was not much, and the leather armor and collar were quickly completed. I put the leather armor and collar I had made on the improved workbench into my inventory, then took out the collar.

“It’s done.”

“That was fast. Please put it on me.”

“Eh? You want me to put it on you?”

“Of course. It gives off a certain atmosphere, don’t you think?”

“What kind of atmosphere…?”

When Melty refuses to accept the collar and raises her chin to expose her neck, I have no choice but to use my hands to put the fake slave collar around Melty’s neck.

Melty shuddered and let out a strangely sexy sigh as I put the sturdy leather collar around her neck so that it would not be too tight but not too loose either.

“Ufufu… I’ve been made a sex slave by Kosuke-san.”

“No, it’s just a formality.”

I was a little distracted inwardly by Melty’s red cheeks and feverish expression, but I shook my head firmly and denied it.

“We need to act like it to make people believe that we are, even if it’s just a formality.”

“Is that…so?”

I nodded my head at Melty’s words. That may be the case if you say so. If we don’t act like it, the Holy Kingdom’s soldiers will get suspicious and question us about our job? No, at that time, we can run away as fast as we can and… make a big mess.

“Let’s practice, shall we?”

“Yes?”

I couldn’t help but ask back at Melty’s unexpected suggestion.

“Lime-san and the others, will you help us? We’ll be leaving tomorrow, so let’s have the last party”.

“Do it.”

“Yes, let’s do it.”

“Be careful not to overdo it. It would be a disaster if you couldn’t move properly.”

“No, no, no, wait. We have a long trip tomorrow, right? If you don’t regain your strength, you will die. It is not advisable to deplete your strength ― p-please don’t eat!”

I shouted and tried to run away. I was about to run away when Melty’s voice was thrown at my back.

“Do you know it? Kosuke-san.”

I should have turned my back on Melty and the others and started running, but for some reason, I saw Melty’s figure in front of me. I know you don’t know what I’m talking about, but I don’t know what happened either. There was no gust of wind or any other physical phenomenon, and I’m pretty sure it wasn’t anything crazy like moving at super speed.

“You cannot escape from the demon species.”

“Aiee! Demon! What’s a demon? You are not a sheep?”

“Ufufu… Now, let’s be quiet. I’m not scary, you know.”

“Nooooo! Stop it! You’re going to do terrible things to me!”

“It will end while you count the stains on the ceiling.”

“Don’t worry. It won’t hurt.”

“If something happens, I can heal you again and again. You should relax-nodesu.”

“I don’t see anything reassuring about that. Whoa!”

I think moderation is the key to everything. From the bottom of my heart. Too much is not good. In everything.

☆★☆

“Hmm… Hah?”

What the heck is wrong with me…? I can’t remember anything since I finished communicating with Sylphy yesterday… Ugh, I’m trying to remember; my head is all over the place.

“Kosuke, are you awake?”

I hear a cute little voice coming from an object that wraps around my body with just the right amount of elasticity. It was Lime’s voice. Apparently, I’m sleeping in Lime’s special slime bed. I felt the warmth of someone else’s body next to mine, so I turned my attention to Melty, who for some reason had a slave collar around her neck and was sleeping peacefully with a satisfied look on her face.

Lime doesn’t like to keep clothes on when she makes me sleep in her bed. So both Melty and I were completely naked. That’s fine. Well, yeah, it’s acceptable; I mean, it’s a new thing.

The problem is that I don’t remember anything after yesterday afternoon. I can’t figure out why Melty is wearing a slave collar around her neck. My head hurts when I try to remember.

“Hey Poizo, are you sure everything is okay?”

“The treatment is perfect. If you try to remember, your head may hurt-nodesu.”

“Hey, what’s with all the noise?”

“It’s nothing, okay?”

“Pyu, pyupyu～.”

Poizo tried to cover it up by whistling louder than usual.

“Kosuke.”

“What is it?”

“Some things are better left undiscovered, you know?”

“O-oh…”

Lime, who always speaks vaguely, said the words without hesitation. I was already surprised by that, but there was a certain seriousness to her tone. Yeah, I’ll take her advice. It’s kind of scary, though.

At any rate, I slipped out of Lime’s bed and checked my physical condition. I felt heavy fatigue in the back of my body, but it was probably just my imagination. I also feel strangely light around the waist. In addition to that, my cheeks seem to be slightly puffy… It’s probably just my imagination.

I’m sure it’s just my imagination, but I’m going to make sure I eat breakfast.

A few minutes later, Melty also woke up. In contrast to me, Melty’s skin looks strangely glowing… I’m sure it’s just my imagination. I’ll leave it at that.

If I look closely, I can see that the volume of Lime and the others are a little larger than usual, and the luster is different, but I’m sure it’s just my imagination. I’m sure it’s just the light or something that makes them look that way. Hahaha.

Maybe it’s different, but I can’t remember. My head hurts when I try to remember, so I’ll just try not to worry about it. This is not an escape from reality. Never. Yes, I’m just looking to the future.

I told myself that, and prepared breakfast.