Volume 3 Chapter 231: On One Particular Evening (3/4)

At this point, Mafral, who hadn’t spoken at all until now, finally spoke.

“I don’t think he’s bad with people either. We just arrived here, and yet he went out of his way to make sure that we felt welcomed. He didn’t hesitate to divide the work among us either, and he also worked hard in his spare time to lay the groundwork for us.” [Mafral]

After being told that, the people participating all became thoughtful and thought back to Ryouma’s actions.

“…It was really busy, so I never paid much attention to it, but now that you mention it, you’re right… Moreover, it’s not like anyone told him to do that either. He just did it naturally on his own.” [Riviola]

“Yes… Ryouma definitely isn’t bad with people.” [Hyuzu]

“Perhaps it’s simply because that’s what Ryouma-sama thinks?　And perhaps it might also be because he has a low opinion of himself, while also having a tendency to ignore the burden he places on himself.” [Serge]

“Ahh… I see. You might be right, Serge-san. Ryouma certainly has the tendency to do everything on his own, but it’s not as though he would never rely on others.” [Hyuzu]

It was curious whether Hyuzu felt relieved or his worries have simply been cleared, but his voice sounded refreshed as he drank a mouthful of liquor.

Meanwhile, in the divine realm…

“Hmm, it doesn’t seem like there are any problems.” [Gayn]

“Yes. Those people working in the shadows of Gimuru still haven’t given up, but the city has calmed down a lot compared to before. Ryouma has his friends with him too.” [Kufo]

“By the way, what is Ryouma-kun doing right now?” [Rurutia]

“He just finished feeding his goblin and slime familiars, and is preparing his own supper. He appears to be running some experiments on preserved food too.” [Willieris]

“Looks like he took my advice and is properly studying farming. He’s still just at the starting point, but it seems like he’ll be able to raise some decent crops this time.” [Grimp]

“He’s started to brew liquor too – the local liquor of Fatma Territory. He grew the ingredients himself, and is testing out various things to make it delicious. He tamed himself some goblins and has more hands now, so maybe it’s a good thing after all that he started living at the mines. He needs to fix the place up a bit, but it’s not bad for fermenting wine. Moreover, given Ryouma’s disposition, I think we can expect him to come up with something good.” [Tekun]

Six gods were gathered together, watching Ryouma, his friends, and the town.

They drank their favorite drinks, while casually sharing the information they had.

Suddenly, two gods appeared within that space in the divine realm.

“Good job out there.” [Kufo]

“Kirillel. Is it over?” [Gayn]

“Not yet, but we’ve decided to pause the punishment temporarily since he’s like this.” [Kirillel]

“Guhe!?”

As she said that, she threw the god in her arms. It was none other than Sereriputa.

Sereriputa cried out in pain when he fell, but he didn’t twitch even a little afterwards.

“C-Couldn’t you have let me down gentler?” [Sereriputa]

“What stupid thing are you saying? Your punishment hasn’t ended yet.　Although there’s no point punishing you when you’re like this, you should still be grateful that you’re even being allowed to rest at all.” [Kirillel]

Sereriputa complained in a faint voice, but it was immediately shot down.

Kirillel, who had brought him here, looked around her and spoke a few words.

“Fernoberia isn’t here?　He was supposed to take over keeping watch, but he didn’t come.” [Kirillel]

“So that guy went off on his own without contacting you.” [Gayn]

“He’s gone home already. In a real hurry too.” [Tekun]

“Hah?　Why all of the sudden?” [Kirillel]

“Ryouma started using his magic with the slimes. I don’t know if the slimes are just really compatible with magic or if there’s a loophole somewhere, but the resulting synergy was really impressive.” [Kufo]

“Because of that Fernoberia just up and left, saying, ‘I need to investigate this matter.’” [Rurutia]

“Well, magic is his domain, after all, and he’s a really diligent kid.” [Willieris]

“Hmm… Fine, whatever. How’s the situation here?” [Kirillel]

“It’s fine. It doesn’t seem like Sereriputa’s interfered with the lower world.” [Gayn]

When he said that, the person-in-question spoke up.

“Huh? Were you guys suspecting even that?” [Sereriputa]

“Well, you did leave Ryouma with some prophetic words. To be safe, we had to make sure that you haven’t tried anything with the lower world.” [Gayn]

“There’s no way I would do something like that. I just took a look at the situation of the town he came from and figured things would probably develop this way.” [Sereriputa]

“You only have yourself to blame. People can’t help but be suspicious with you since you’re always acting so mischievous.” [Willieris]

“Yeah, yeah, I get it.. By the way, how is Ryouma-kun right now?” [Sereriputa]

“Hmm… I suppose it doesn’t really matter – here.” [Gayn]

Gayn raised his hand toward Sereriputa’s head, who was still lying on the ground.

“Ah… As I thought, he ended up like this.” [Sereriputa]

One flick of his hand was all he needed to share the information he had with Sereriputa.

“You predicted this? So everything’s going as you’ve planned?” [Willieris]

“Even if I hadn’t told him anything, there’s a high chance things would have still ended up like this… At that time, the city was already starting to get rowdy, so he was bound to find out anyway once he got back, and he’s still sure to see Serge’s store after the fire. Besides, the one who told him that the nobles are responsible for this mess is Serge, not me.” [Sereriputa]

“…That’s true.” [Rurutia]

“It’s only natural to prepare for it if you know what’s happening. After all, using some shady people to cause trouble in another noble’s territory to try to lower his reputation is no different from a ‘declaration of war’.

The lord of the territory, Reinhart, seems to have chosen to avoid a direct confrontation, but even for gods like us, we would have to use our power to find out the future that his choice would lead to, and naturally, Ryouma has no way of knowing the future either.

As such, the only option he has is to prepare. The only difference would be if he prepares quickly or slowly. Well, in times of emergencies, how fast you prepare can make a big difference, though.” [Sereriputa]