The Aerial Fortress, Sub-Level 15.
Just past the bottom of the stairs was a spacious entrance hall.
There it was—the magic circle.
A teleportation magic circle.
But its design bore absolutely no resemblance to what I remembered.
On top of that, it was tremendously large.
Fifty meters in diameter, and maybe a meter tall?
Stone slabs measuring roughly one meter square and ten centimeters thick.
They were stacked ten high and then arranged in a grid fifty slabs across.
What's more, a massive arch spanned the top of the magic circle.
Looking at the dense patterns carved along the inside of the arch, that must have been part of the circle as well.
An extremely three-dimensional magic circle.
Or rather—should I call it a magic device?
"Hoh...
The magic device wasn't just overwhelmingly massive—it was exquisitely and meticulously drawn.
At the very least, neither Zanoba nor I could ever hope to replicate it.
Even
Cliff might manage—but even he had surely never drawn a magic circle of this caliber.
"A magnificent piece, wouldn't you say?"
Pergius declared proudly, as though he deserved the credit himself.
But I understood the feeling.
When your own student had produced a work of this magnitude, it was only natural to feel a swell of pride as the one who had taught her teleportation magic.
And Pergius himself had probably been involved in its construction as well.
"What do you think,
"I didn't expect anything quite like this... I'm impressed."
Orsted, too, was gazing at the magic device with undisguised admiration.
A three-dimensional magic circle made from twenty-five thousand stone slabs.
Even Orsted had surely never seen anything like it.
The automaton left behind by the so-called Mad Dragon King had maybe fifty parts at most, and none of them were particularly large.
"Right? Look at that arch."
"Is that part of it too? It doesn't seem to be connected."
"No, that's different. That's a device for confirming success. You know that teleportation magic circles leave behind traces of residual mana after use, correct?"
"Yes."
"The pattern varies depending on the type of teleportation circle. By measuring it, we can determine whether the transfer to the other world succeeded."
"Is that actually possible?"
"Heh heh heh—who would have thought there'd come a day when I could teach the all-knowing you something new?"
"......No, that's not true. I've learned quite a lot from you over the years... quite a lot, indeed."
"Hmph. Flatterer. You walked around acting like you knew everything from the day we first met."
Pergius and Orsted were chatting amiably.
To hear Pergius talk, you'd think he'd one-upped Orsted at last.
Orsted's tone, meanwhile, carried a wistful quality.
And something almost pained.
"
Nanahoshi turned around and came over to where I was standing.
"For now, I'll start by sending something simple. From there, I'll examine the residual mana unique to teleportation circles and calibrate the success-verification circle for otherworld transfer. If that works, next we send a living creature, and finally, me. Got it?"
"Sure, but please tell me we won't accidentally cause a teleportation incident?"
"Don't worry. That won't happen."
Nanahoshi repeated the words "that won't happen" over and over.
Which only made me more anxious.
She had given me a detailed report earlier, but it was so voluminous I hadn't managed to read through all of it.
Still, up to this point, Nanahoshi had been conducting experiment after experiment to prevent teleportation incidents.
"Do you feel confident?"
"I do."
Then I would trust her.
She did seem confident.
"Alright then. Shall we begin?"
"Yes. Let's start with an apple..."
Nanahoshi must have prepared it in advance.
She pulled an apple from a basket sitting in the corner of the room.
Climbing up onto the magic device, she toddled over to its center and placed the apple there.
"Lord Pergius, whenever you're ready."
"Mm."
Pergius moved to the opposite side of the magic circle.
No—he wasn't the only one.
His servants filed in one after another, lining up at equal intervals around the perimeter of the circle.
Silvaril alone moved to the base of the arch.
"Rudeus, over here."
Following Nanahoshi's directions, I took up a position directly opposite Pergius.
There, two hand-shaped outlines had been drawn, as if to say, "Place both hands here."
"On my signal, pour your mana in through here. All of it."
"Understood."
I did as told and placed my hands down.
My heart was starting to pound.
I glanced back toward Sylphie.
She was murmuring to Zanoba while gazing at the magic circle with a soft "oooh."
Both of them had at least some knowledge of magic circles, so they were probably interested.
She was standing in her usual pose, staring up at the arch with an almost smug expression.
She probably just liked big things, plain and simple.
And behind her, Orsted stood slouching in silence...
"Lord Pergius! Let's begin!"
"Mm."
Right—I needed to focus.
It wasn't like concentrating would help with just pouring mana, but still.
Focus.
"...Beginning."
Pergius and his servants all touched the magic circle at once.
The next instant, the edges of the circle began to glow with a dull light.
But only at the edges.
The intricate patterns around the perimeter grew brighter, while the center remained dark.
Had it failed?
"Rudeus."
"Yes."
At her word, I poured mana from both hands.
In that instant, it felt as though my right hand had become fused to the device.
Mana was being sucked out of me at a tremendous rate.
For some reason, it was mostly my right hand—mana was being drawn from my left as well, but far less intensely.
Should I push more from my left too?
The moment I thought that, the mana being drained from my left hand spiked dramatically.
Conversely, the drain from my right hand decreased.
Right hand, left hand. Right hand, left hand.
The suction force alternated between the two.
If I focused carefully, I could tell the amount of mana drawn from each fingertip and palm was slightly different too.
But it didn't feel mechanical—there was something deliberately human about it.
The one performing those adjustments was... Pergius.
I couldn't see his face, but it was clear his role went beyond merely activating the circle.
And the servants were assisting him.
It wasn't a fully automated system that just needed activation—it was a device that required active operation. A true magic device, then.
The magic circle's radiance continued to intensify.
Shifting from blue to green to white, it flooded the room with an overwhelming light.
It was so bright now that I could barely see anything.
So this was the light output of a magic circle.
I had never seen a magic circle shine this brightly.
No— I had seen it once before.
This was from the teleportation incident...
*Crack—* A sound, and the light vanished.
No—not completely.
The arch was still lit.
Only the arch remained, its light casting a hazy glow over the surroundings.
And directly beneath the arch— At the center of the magic circle— Where the apple had been.
Where there had once been an apple.
Something pale and bluish remained.
It looked like pale, glowing particles.
They drifted softly through the air before slowly fading away.
"The experiment is a success."
"..."
No one answered Silvaril.
Without waiting for a response, she began writing something on a piece of paper nearby.
"I will now analyze the residual mana to increase the reliability of the otherworld transfer. However, since I already have reference data on hand, the analysis itself should not take long."
As Nanahoshi explained this, I removed my hands from the magic circle.
"Rudeus. Are you okay?"
When she asked, I recalled the mana I had just expended.
A single run—just one or two minutes of activation—and that was how much mana it consumed.
A few more times and I'd be completely drained.
"I'm fine, but I definitely couldn't do that multiple times."
"I see... Thank you for your hard work. In principle, we'll proceed at a pace of once every one or two days. Please rest up today."
Nanahoshi bowed and ran off toward Pergius.
She was talking with the research team, taking notes here and there.
She'd compile today's results into a report and use them to improve the next experiment.
The teleportation system to the other world was essentially complete.
All that remained was perfecting the arch, analyzing what appeared to be the residual mana traces from just now, and gradually modifying the objects being transferred to be more compatible with Nanahoshi.
That would take another month or so, give or take.
Having Geese active in the meantime while we burned this much time was a problem... but there was nothing to be done about it.
I'd just have to do my best with the mindset that this was the price of failing to recruit Pergius as an ally.
--- Two weeks passed since the experiments began.
I was commuting between home and the Aerial Fortress, continuing the experiments.
The experiments consumed a considerable amount of mana.
Whether I was fully recovering it all in a single day was a borderline case.
Whether for the sake of the experiments themselves or as a precaution against a sudden attack, I had resolved to avoid using mana as much as possible.
Once I made that decision, I quickly found myself with nothing to do.
Well—that wasn't quite true.
I chatted with Zanoba about the puppet business, discussed potential improvements to the magic armor with Roxy, exchanged information with collaborators across various regions using the communication slate, and had inconclusive conversations with Orsted about the future.
Free days were rare.
But compared to the past year and a half spent constantly on the move, it did feel comparatively relaxed.
I was occasionally asked for decisions on mercenary groups and puppet sales in various regions via the communication slate, but there were plenty of people in Sharia whose judgment I could trust, so I didn't have to think everything through from scratch.
On top of that, there was little time spent traveling, and before bed I could spend time with my children.
I'd tell
It was a life with little to worry about.
Could this be what it felt like for a salaryman who'd worked year-round without a break to finally take a long vacation?
I was beginning to understand, in a vague sort of way, why Orsted had been staying put in Sharia lately.
There were times I wondered if this was really okay, but people needed rest, and maybe I should have taken some time off sooner.
Now, if only I could look forward to late-night pleasures in the bedroom, life would be perfect— but Rudeus the Ascetic was the patient type when it came to holding out until his goal was achieved.
--- And so, a month went by.
The experiments concluded in what felt like no time at all.
They had gone remarkably smoothly.
As the experiments progressed, the objects being sent to the other world evolved from fruit to living creatures.
The creatures kept getting bigger each time, and the magic circle was adjusted again and again accordingly.
In the final trial, a horse—easily three times Nanahoshi's size—was sent to the other world.
According to measurements taken by the arch: the horse had been transferred to "land within the other world at an elevation of ten to thirty meters above sea level."
Land at an elevation of ten to thirty meters.
That was the limit of what we could specify from our end.
The residual mana traces couldn't tell us whether the destination was Japan or America.
From the patterns of teleportation circles used between locations in this world, the most we could determine about an otherworld transfer was whether it landed on land or sea, and roughly how high that land was.
That said, landing on land at an elevation of ten to thirty meters would significantly reduce the chance of instant death upon arrival.
Even though we were calling it an "other world," we had no way of knowing whether it was the world we knew.
Of course, since we had summoned PET bottles and other items from that side, the probability was high.
But still, there was no guarantee.
It could be a completely different world that merely resembled ours.
Even if it was our world, a vague specification of "land between ten and thirty meters elevation" meant the chances of landing in some far-off foreign land were quite high.
And from there, the journey home would be on foot.
With ample food and water, cold-weather gear, and items that could be converted to money on the other side, it was certainly possible to reach Japan—but the road would be harsh.
And yet, Nanahoshi intended to go.
She had already steeled herself.
The next step was to send Nanahoshi herself.
Considering the toll on my mana, the real thing was scheduled for three days later.
--- Two days after the final experiment.
Nanahoshi came to my house.
"I'd like to take a bath in your house one last time,"
was what she said—though that was probably just a pretext.
"If you want, we could throw a going-away party?"
"No, that's alright."
With that, Nanahoshi vanished into our bath.
She was probably alone in there now.
I couldn't tell what she was really feeling.
Did she want to get herself in the right headspace before the real thing?
Or was she simply saying her goodbyes?
Did she want to spend the night with me as a memory of this world, in which case I should barge into the bath right now... No, no. That was nothing but the overactive lust of Rudeus the Ascetic running wild. If I actually did that, Sylphie would be furious.
She'd apparently gone around saying farewell to everyone in Sharia yesterday, so this was probably a goodbye visit.
On her final night in this world, she had chosen to spend it saying goodbye to my family.
The least I could do was quietly ask
Mostly potato dishes, naturally.
"Hey, wait up!"
"No!"
As I was mulling this over while helping Sylphie look after Sieg, Lucy came bounding into the living room.
Completely naked.
She jumped straight onto my lap.
"Papa, help me!"
What kind of event was this?
Being asked for help by a naked girl.
Since when had Lucy become such a bewitching creature?
No real man could turn this down.
Just leave it to me—I'd take on the Dragon God or the Demon King himself!
"Rudeus!"
Standing there was the red-haired demon god.
She was also topless.
No good—Rudeus the Ascetic was weak to exactly this sort of thing. It hit him right where it counted.
"Rudeus. Grab Lucy. She won't take a bath. I just finished teaching her sword practice and she worked up a sweat, but she's insisting she doesn't need one."
I grabbed Lucy.
Sorry, Lucy.
But you have to take a bath after exercising.
"No! Red Mama is mean!"
"Mean? Eris... I know you're tough on me, but you can't hit children, you know."
"How rude! I'm not hitting her! I just... I'm not very good at washing her hair."
When I looked at Lucy for confirmation, she puffed out her cheeks and complained, "Yeah, when Red Mama washes my hair, it gets in my eyes and it stings."
So that was the issue.
Sorry, Eris.
Even you wouldn't hit a kid, right?
"Well then, Lucy, how about you start learning to wash your own hair?"
"......Papa... Okay."
Lucy started to say something else but cut herself off, and was led back to the bath by Eris.
"Wasn't she hoping Rudey would wash it for her?"
"...Yeah, probably."
But Nanahoshi was in the bath right now.
I couldn't very well go in there.
Oh— Wait, I'd never actually told Nanahoshi that someone might barge in halfway through...
Well, she probably knew.
The unspoken rule that our bath was for multiple people at once had been established from the day we first built the house.
She probably wouldn't complain about someone walking in at this point.
A little while later, Roxy and Norn returned and took Lala into the bath with them.
Just as they were passing each other, Nanahoshi, Eris, and Lucy came back steaming hot.
Maybe because they'd had quite a long soak—everyone was bright red.
"Hey, Papa! Big Sister Nanahoshi taught me how to wash my hair!"
"Is that so? Thank you, Nanahoshi."
"You're welcome."
Nanahoshi had apparently looked after Lucy.
She must have talked with Eris in there too, because the tension between them had dissipated.
Baths truly were magnificent things.
Nudity was the path to peace.
--- After that, Sylphie and I took Ars for a bath, and then it was dinnertime.
The menu was meat, vegetables, and rice.
And potatoes.
Potato chips, potato fries.
Junk food, all of it.
Nanahoshi made herself small at the corner of our dining table, but ate the potatoes without any hesitation.
Not that she couldn't eat all she wanted once she was home.
What a gluttonous potato girl, honestly.
"This food is really delicious."
She ate the rice just as heartily as the potatoes.
"You'd get rice at the Aerial Fortress too, wouldn't you?"
"Maybe, but I like this better... I think."
"I see."
Our rice was Sharia-grown, Aisha-brand.
Maybe I should brand it "Maid Beauty."
It was a personal delicacy, made from rice paddies cultivated by hard-working maidens—under twenty and single (though the maidens themselves were really just collecting brawny, muscular laborers).
It was tailored perfectly to a Japanese palate.
"This is my last time eating this cuisine, so I'm going to savor every bite. Chew thoroughly."
"Why are you suddenly talking like a mother?"
After that, Nanahoshi ate in silence for a while.
"..."
Before long, her gaze had drifted away from me and settled on my family.
Lucy was animatedly recounting recent events, and Norn was listening with rapt attention.
Roxy was chatting with Sylphie about various aspects of the magic circle.
Eris was feeding Lala, and Aisha was feeding Ars.
Lillia and Zenith watched over them all.
It was a lively scene, one that would have been unimaginable in the old days.
Nanahoshi watched the whole thing in quiet stillness.
Was she missing her own family, perhaps?
While I was thinking this, the meal came to an end.
After dinner, Nanahoshi spent some time playing with the children.
Maybe because of the bath—they'd all been naked together—Lucy had warmed up to Nanahoshi considerably.
And when Ars was held by Nanahoshi, he pressed his face into her chest with a beaming smile.
Lala was her usual self, as always...
"Nanahoshi. Why don't you stay the night?"
In the end, it was Sylphie's offhand suggestion that led to Nanahoshi staying with us.
It almost felt like the natural course of things.
That said, the guest room had been converted into a children's room ages ago.
With nowhere else for a guest to sleep, the plan became to lend her Sylphie's room.
--- That night, I sat down and talked with Nanahoshi.
The house was quiet, everyone else asleep.
The two of us in the living room, facing each other, sipping drinks in the moonlight streaming through the window and the glow of the fireplace.
We made idle conversation.
About Pergius's hobbies, how devoted Silvaril was to Pergius, that sort of thing.
How Orsted and Pergius were on bad terms but seemed to hold a grudging respect for each other.
Truly trivial gossip, like chatting over a backyard fence.
"You've become quite the respectable adult, Rudeus."
Midway through the conversation, Nanahoshi said this out of the blue.
"You think?"
"When I first saw you, you were a little kid about the age of a primary schooler. The next time, you were maybe the age of a middle schooler. Honestly, there was a time when I genuinely thought you were younger than me... But lately, you really have become an adult. You're married, you have children."
"Getting married and having kids doesn't automatically make you an adult."
Adults, children—I honestly didn't really understand the distinction.
I'd definitely been a giant child in my previous life, that much was certain.
"True. But lately, you look so much more mature than me."
"You think so?"
"Yes. You think about the children, about your family, about all these things... And compared to that, I haven't changed at all."
"That's not true."
Nanahoshi had changed plenty compared to the old days.
She used to keep people even further at arm's length.
She had been the invincible Silent Sevenstar.
"The old Nanahoshi would never have played with my kids like that."
"Maybe... But that's partly because you helped me. Before that, I never would have thought to interact with people in this world."
"Would you have at least taken care of children back in the original world?"
"...Probably... No, actually, I might have brushed them off with excuses like entrance exams or something. I'm pretty sure tests were coming up."
Entrance exams and tests.
What nostalgic words.
"I wonder how many years have passed over there."
"......Don't say such unpleasant things."
"Sorry."
It had been roughly fifteen years since I came to this world.
If fifteen years had passed over there too, it'd be a Urashima Taro situation.
Was it possible that Nanahoshi would age by fifteen years the instant she was teleported?
"But somehow, I have a feeling not that much time has passed over there."
"Why?"
With my head slightly tipsy, I laid out my reasoning.
"Nanahoshi and I were hit by the truck on the same day. But I arrived in this world almost ten years before she did. So the flow of time between the two worlds must be different. That means it'll be fine."
"Yes, that's—"
Nanahoshi's expression suddenly shifted, as though she'd realized something.
"..........Wait a moment. What do you mean we were hit on the same day?"
Oh— "You mean you were there too?"
"Well, you see..."
"Wait, huh, just..."
Nanahoshi pressed a finger to her forehead, closing her eyes as if trying to recall something.
Her eyes snapped open.
"That fatty from back then."
Oh... oh no...
Was it the alcohol? I'd been so careful.
Anyway, that was rude. "Fatty"? Really? Sure, I'd been overweight, but...
"Wow, really? That was you? That person was Rudeus?! Wow, you've gotten so cool...!"
Nanahoshi covered her mouth with one hand, eyes wide.
She was extremely excited.
I'd expected to be met with disgust, but she actually seemed happy about it.
"A-About that, Nanahoshi-san... if you could, you know, keep that from everyone, I'd really appreciate it."
"Why?"
"...I feel like they'd dump me if they found out."
"I don't think any of them chose Rudeus for his face..."
"Even so, there are things you just want to keep a secret."
"...I suppose."
Nanahoshi slumped back into the sofa.
Had she understood, or had she decided that pressing too hard might jeopardize my cooperation?
"Unlike me, you 'reincarnated,' didn't you, Rudeus?"
"Yeah."
That's right—reincarnation.
I could never go back to the way things were.
I hadn't thrown away everything, but I wasn't planning to show it off either.
Besides, I was still a little embarrassed about my past self.
I knew the me of today existed because of that pathetic person I used to be, but that didn't make it any less embarrassing.
"Understood. I'll keep it to myself."
"...Please do."
That reminded me of something from my past life.
"Oh, right—I almost forgot."
"What?"
"Since you've already learned my secret—I mean, not just because of that—I'd like you to deliver this to my family from my previous life."
Saying this, I placed an envelope on the table.
The slightly thick envelope was filled with feelings for my siblings from my past life.
It had been over twenty years since I came to this world.
I'd been through a lot.
After everything I'd been through, I believed I could honestly say I was different from the person I used to be.
Not that I'd go so far as to say "different" meant "improved"... but still.
In any case, I'd packed in apologies for things I'd done back then, memories, updates on my current life—all of it.
If Nanahoshi set foot in Japan and no time had passed since the teleportation, they might think she was crazy... but oh well.
That was fine.
It was within the realm of self-satisfaction.
"Understood."
Nanahoshi carefully tucked the envelope into her breast pocket.
"I'll deliver it. I promise."
"Thank you."
There was no guarantee the destination would be Japan.
And even after teleportation, there was no guarantee she'd find her way to Japan.
But she nodded anyway.
"Also, this one."
I handed her another, separate letter.
This one was thinner than the last.
"If, on the other hand, several years had passed over there and you had no one to turn to, nowhere to go home to, nowhere to go at all... this letter asks my siblings from my past life to look after you, even if only for a short while."
"...!"
The hand holding the letter trembled.
"No way..."
"Well, I was kind of a burden back over there, so they might not listen... but at least it's something."
"You were a burden?"
"Yeah. An unemployed freeloader."
They'd find out eventually anyway, once she met my siblings back there.
"I can't quite believe it..."
Nanahoshi stared at me intently as she said this.
Was the fact that she found it unbelievable proof that I'd come a long way?
If so, that made me happy.
"But if it comes to that, I'll gratefully make use of it."
Nanahoshi hugged the envelope to her chest and bowed her head.
"Truly, from the bottom of my heart—thank you for everything."
Nanahoshi would be leaving tomorrow.
The experiments were perfect.
There wasn't a single flaw in that magic circle.
And yet, a sliver of unease remained in my heart.
A magic circle forged through meticulous preparation and countless experiments.
Nanahoshi appeared confident, and nobody expected failure.
But the risk factors were still there.
One, in particular, remained.
I had no intention of raising it now just to stir up anxiety.
Besides, Nanahoshi had to be aware of it already.
And yet, she didn't mention it.
Perhaps she'd already taken steps to address it.
"...Let's head back tomorrow."
So that was all I said.
"Okay."
Nanahoshi nodded.
I had a feeling that with enough determination, she could push through whatever came her way.