In Another World With My Smartphone: Volume 11 Premium Read online

  “Spends enough money... Like one silver coin?”

  “Mm, well I’m not sure honestly. You’re the financial expert here, so I’ll leave determining that to you.” A silver coin was around ten-thousand yen, so I wasn’t entirely sure. But at the end of the day, it was a free gift, so it was his choice.

  Making them wasn’t all that difficult, either. The articulated ones would take a little more effort, but Olba had a dedicated dwarven craftsman working for his company, so I was sure it’d be fine.

  We installed the bronze penny machine inside Olba’s store, if we installed it outside there was always the risk of theft, after all. A group of kids immediately came over to see what it was all about, and they began turning the handle.

  Oh, a Dragoon. That’s pretty rare.

  “This is interesting indeed... If we alternate the contents, I’m sure we’ll save on cost...” Olba muttered to himself as he watched people turn the handle. He was probably making a bunch of business choices internally already.

  I passed on the various molds for the figures to Olba, then left the store. I was confident he could handle the rest.

  I walked down the main street when some commotion up ahead suddenly caught my attention. There was a small crowd gathered, so I peered through the gaps and saw someone making an arrest.

  “Pin him! He’s under arrest!” Four of our knights were restraining two rowdy men. They were quickly bound with rope, and then three of the knights carted them off.

  “Sorry for the trouble, everyone. It’s quite alright now!” The last knight stayed behind to calm down the panicking people. I recognized him.

  “Yo! Good job just now.”

  “Hm? Ah... Y-Your Highness!” The blond-haired knight immediately attempted to genuflect. It was Lanz Tempest. He was one of our newer recruits who came from Lestia.

  “Hey now, don’t worry about that. You can stand. It’s a little troublesome if you decide to do that every time you see me, so please don’t worry.”

  “V-Very well...” He sounded a little confused, but he stood up. His behavior made sense, he was from a kingdom of chivalry, after all.

  “So, what happened?”

  “Ah, well. A waitress in a nearby restaurant was being harassed. Her son ran over to inform us, and we immediately apprehended the perpetrators.”

  I see... So they were getting a little handsy with a waitress, huh. That’s despicable. I’ll make sure they pay for their crimes.

  Once I saw they were restraining criminals with rope, I was a little puzzled. It looked like something out of a historical drama. I was sure there had to be something more convenient than that in this world... Did they have no shackles or iron clasps?

  “Tsk... Guess I’ll have to make some.”

  “Hm?” I reached into [Storage] and produced a steel ingot, which I promptly transformed into a pair of handcuffs.

  Oh right, gotta make the keys too... It took a few minutes, but I created a fine set of cuffs.

  “Your Highness, what is this?”

  “Handcuffs! They’re light and easier to carry around than ropes or shackles. Here, give me your hands.” He stuck out his arms and I clasped the cuffs on to his wrists.

  “I-Incredible... They’re surprisingly tough, too...” Lanz tried to resist the cuffs, but they refused to budge. I used the key on them and they easily snapped open.

  “You can keep them. Use these instead of tying people up, alright? I figure we’ll make this standard for the patrol. You won’t be able to unlock them without the key, though... Hold on, I’ll make a spare.”

  “V-Very well!”

  Man, you’re so wooden... If I recalled correctly, Logan was in charge of the patrol. I made a mental note to go check the details over with him later.

  “So, how’s life in Brunhild?”

  “Quite fine, sir. Everything I see here is so lively and interesting. It’s a truly wonderful, kind country.” I was happy Lanz felt that way. It made me happy to know that people from afar thought so highly of Brunhild.

  “Oh? It’s you, Touya? Hm, Lanz as well?” I suddenly heard the voice of Micah, proprietor of the Brunhild branch of the Silver Moon Inn. She was carrying a lot of stuff with her. She must’ve been out shopping.

  “It’s been a while since you dropped by the inn. How’re you doing? Staying healthy, I hope.”

  “I’m doing well, thanks. I’m keeping healthy, promise.” I smiled towards Micah; she hadn’t changed a bit. It reminded me that I hadn’t had lunch in the Silver Moon in a long time.

  “M-Miss Micah... Wh-Why are you speaking so casually to our leader...?!”

  “Ahaha, don’t worry about her. She’s an old friend of mine. I’ve known her longer than any of my fiancees, even. She’s fine.” Lanz looked like he was about to fly into a panic. She was basically the first friend I made in this world, other than Fashion King Zanac. I only met her a few hours after him.

  “So you know Lanz, do you?”

  “Sure do! He’s been visiting a lot lately, you know? He’s a repeat customer!”

  “A-Ah, uhm... that... That’s only because your cooking is so lovely, Miss Micah! I-It’s just that the flavor is like no other, it reminds me of home, almost!” Lanz suddenly stood rigid and began stammering. His face was beet red, too...

  Hmm... I wonder what that’s all about...

  “She’s got you under her spell, has she, Lanz?”

  “Wh-?! Y-Your Highness, I... Wh-What?!”

  “...The spell of her cooking, of course. Did you think I meant something else?”

  “Ngh... N-No! Not at all, sir!”

  Ahahaha... This guy’s head over heels... Micah simply tilted her head, unable to read the atmosphere.

  “Micah, those bags look heavy... You should help her back to the Silver Moon with them, Lanz.”

  “Oh, yes! That’d be a big help.”

  “V-Very well! I’ll do my best!” Lanz, still red in the face, took Micah’s bags and began walking to the inn. I waved the two of them off.

  Micah was around twenty years old, while Lanz was twenty-two. They certainly seemed to be in a good enough age bracket, but... Micah’s father was a muscular, bearded giant. He’d need a lot of luck to face that mountain of a man.

  “Their relationship’s becoming pretty interesting, y’know?”

  “Whuh?! Where’d you come from?!” Karen was suddenly by my side. I hadn’t sensed her presence at all. Just where the hell did she come from.

  “Ufufufu... In the presence of budding affection, you’ll find me! In the presence of blossoming love, you’ll find me! It is I, god of love, Mochizuki Karen, y’know?!” She struck an elaborate pose and made a peace sign, but I just stared at her flatly.

  “...I was just keeping an eye.”

  “Sure you were...!”

  Man, you’ll get in trouble one of these days. Still, her reputation as the love goddess was spreading, she gave out a lot of advice to people, and those people often ended up getting together.

  Still, there were those who broke up after getting together, and she would often persuade those with hopeless affections to give up on the people they cared about. Karen said that giving up on unhealthy things was also a valid part of love, and she encouraged it.

  “Don’t meddle too much, alright?”

  “You shouldn’t be rude, y’know? I don’t interfere with anyone’s love life unless they ask me directly! Love is a natural feeling in the end, y’know? You can’t hurry love.” She sounded pretty reasonable, but I still had my doubts. After all, she wasn’t the kind of person who held back often.

  “So, what brings you here? Did you get them together?”

  “Mm... Oh, that’s right! There was something bothering me a little, y’know? I can sense some divinity in the south-east!”

  “Wait, what?!”

  Is it the servile god again? I can’t sense any right now, but Karen and Moroha are much, much better at it, I guess...

  “Is it the servile god or someth
ing...?”

  “Nope! Smells different, y’know? Definitely belongs to a lesser god like me and Moroha. I didn’t think that was possible, though...”

  Wait, what? I had a bad feeling in my gut...

  “Yep, looks like a third one’s come down to join us, y’know?”

  Wait, what?! Gimme a break! I sighed quietly and pinched the bridge of my nose. Just what kind of god could’ve landed?

  ◇　◇　◇

  “So, where are we looking?”

  “Around here, you know? I didn’t get a solid read because the divinity vanished in a matter of moments.” Once we got back to the castle I opened up a map and asked Karen to pinpoint where she felt the spike of divinity. She pointed at an area to the southeast, past Ramissh and near the Kingdom of Ryle. It was just a bit into the Sea of Trees.

  The region she guessed at was pretty big... I honestly had my doubts we’d be able to find the god. Moroha was in the Sea of Trees when we met her, too. That led me to believe that there must’ve been some kind of landmark or special aspect of the area that made it more convenient for gods to descend.

  “So, let me get this straight... This person, or, uh, god, I guess... can freely use their powers?”

  “In a sense, yes and no. We’re not allowed to interfere with the lower realms using our godly powers, but we can use those powers to make ourselves appear more human, you know? Interfering down here is fine so long as we don’t use any divinity in the process, too. Loopholes are pretty handy, y’know?” Guess that makes sense... Kinda. Neither of my sisters have been able to use their divinity except for dealing with that servile god, after all... Even if Moroha’s super-powerful, I guess she just counts as apex human instead of god... Though I can’t help but suspect she must be cheating a little.

  “Even in your case, Touya. You probably shouldn’t use your true divinity too much, you know?”

  I was at a loss. I couldn’t tell where the other god was, so there was nothing to be done for it.

  Well whatever, I guess it’s fine. Still, I kind of hope no other gods show up. Karen’s bad enough as it i— My thoughts were cut off by my intense pain.

  “You were thinking of something impolite just now, right?!”

  “Ow, ow! I’m sorry! Let go!” Karen was squeezing my cheeks. That chick had a supernatural talent for knowing what I was thinking! Though, she was supernatural herself...

  “And just what’s all this commotion...?”

  “Ah! Moroha!” The other sister appeared as if from nowhere, to save me from my suffering. It kind of made sense that she’d be here too, she probably sensed the divinity like Karen did.

  “You felt it too, huh?”

  “Sure did, you know? We were thinking about whether or not we should go meet the new visitor.”

  “Hmm... I wouldn’t mind giving them a little visit myself. Mostly I just wanna know who up and rolled down here. It won’t be a big deal unless it’s the god of apocalypses or something.”

  What?! If it’s that guy then send him back right away!

  “People can only come down here if they have the permission from the World God, so I doubt it’s anyone hostile. Could be the god of the forge, the god of agriculture, or the god of commerce.”

  “Aww... Forge and agriculture are fine, but... I’d rather not have it be commerce, you know?”

  “You two really don’t get along, huh?” I listened to the two talk and learned that certain gods just had bad affinities with each other.

  “I’d personally be pretty pleased if it was the god of katanas, god of spears, or god of war. Touya over here hasn’t been giving me much fun lately.”

  Oh, gimme a break. Training with you even wears me out, sheesh... Hell, last time I sparred with you I had to rest up for a full day! Of course I ain’t gonna play around with you if you come at me with killing intent, you lunatic! Not to mention the fact that I haven’t won a single match against you. Fifty-two losses! Can you blame me? I knew nothing of the god of spears or the god of katanas, but I had the sinking feeling they’d be similar to Moroha. Though... If it was one of them that came down and they agreed to be Moroha’s sparring partner, that would actually be a major relief.

  “Well, that aside... Let’s go look around. There’ll probably be a reaction or something if I let loose some of my divinity in the area.”

  “Gotcha. They’ll know about you as well, Touya. So I don’t think there’ll be an issue meeting up, you know?” I opened up a [Gate] to the Kingdom of Ryle’s border. More specifically, it was the large expanse where I had fought the Scorpinas Behemoth. After that, we walked toward the Sea of Trees.

  “Hm... Can’t you two fly?”

  “I mean, we could, but we shouldn’t really be using our divinity.” Moroha had a point. Still, going through the Sea of Trees was a problem, so I decided to finally use something interesting I’d found in the storehouse.

  I opened up [Storage] to reveal the matter of interest. I spread it on to the ground. It was a little bit big, more than wide enough for the three of us to sit on.

  “What’s this?”

  “It’s a magic carpet, apparently. Let’s sit down and see how it goes.” I told my two confused sisters to sit down on it, and they obliged. Then, I sat down in front of them. In almost an instant, the carpet began floating a full meter into the air.

  “Alright, let’s go.” The carpet slowly began to move forward. There was a barrier that automatically deployed around it in order to prevent wind resistance or accidental falling. It was a pretty handy feature. I also applied [Invisible] so nobody saw me gallivanting around like I just leaped out of a Disney movie.

  “Oh gosh... This is really nice, you know?”

  “The only issue is that it takes a ton of magical power to operate, so it’s useless for most people.” The two of them gradually got used to it, so I took the speed up a notch. I didn’t get to do any cool loops or acrobatic tricks, though.

  Eventually, we arrived above the Sea of Trees. I stopped the carpet, and we hovered in the air looking down at it.

  “I’ll release some of my divinity, then.” I triggered my Apotheosis very, very carefully, and almost immediately afterward a flash of divinity came from the forest in response. It seemed like they had sensed mine, then flashed theirs back as a signal.

  “Hngh?!”

  “Hmph?!” Karen and Moroha briefly had goofy expressions on their faces, like they’d been electrocuted for a few seconds.

  “Something wrong?”

  “Ah, well... That divinity we felt just now...”

  “It came from multiple sources, you know?”

  Multiple sources?! What the hell is that supposed to mean...? There are multiple literal gods over there? What are they doing, having a goddamn party?!

  “What does this mean?”

  “I don’t know... But there’s only one way to find out, you know? Let’s go, Touya!” I didn’t know what to say, so I had to go and see in order to believe. I made the magic carpet head toward the source.

  Gradually, I could make out someone in a small forest clearing. Not just someone, but several someones.

  As we got closer, we could hear some lovely music. On top of that, there was the sound of laughter and a delicious smell.

  “...What the...?”

  “Goodness...”

  “That’s amazing, you know...?”

  They were actually doing it. They were actually having a goddamn party.

  A young man was playing the mandolin as a little red-faced girl sat chugging booze. If that wasn’t odd enough, there was a middle-aged man nearby shoveling berries and nuts into his mouth while a young woman merrily grilled meat nearby.

  What the hell is this? I jumped off the carpet as it landed before turning to Karen.

  “It’s the god of music, the god of alcohol, the god of the hunt, and the god of agriculture, you know?”

  What the hell?! There’s four of them?! I stared on in abject confusion as the little girl noticed u
s and waved us over.

  “Heee~! It’s the blade goddess and the love goddess, hic! Come and have a drink, hic!” She was a little girl with long, blue hair, and looked to be about seven years old. She was clearly younger than Sue as far as appearances went, too. Though, oddest of all, she was clumsily waving a bottle of booze around.

  What the hell, this kid is the god of alcohol?! The one playing the mandolin was clearly the god of music. He looked to be in his twenties, he seemed like a pretty-boy as well. He smiled gently in my direction, his blond hair swaying in the breeze, but he didn’t stop playing for a single second.

  It kind of felt like he was expressing his feelings through his notes. The tune he was playing had subtly shifted once he noticed us, in fact.

  The older-looking man stuffing his face with berries looked to be in the prime of his life. He was laughing merrily. His eyes were slightly narrow, and he looked pretty relaxed in general. His hair was a plain brown and he had a fairly simple air about him. I assumed him to be the god of agriculture, which only left the green-haired girl with the ponytail to be the god of the hunt. She had some improvised arrows by her side, along with a bow.

  She was grilling some meat, presumably sourced from some game she’d hunted down herself. I wondered just what the hell she was cooking though, as the meat looked almost identical to those on-the-bone hunks you’d see in manga. It looked really good!

  “Well then... Why are you guys here, you know? There are way too many of you to have been sent against the servile god, you know...?”

  “Nope, ain’t that. Mhhh... We ain’t... Chomp... Here for no servile gods.” The god of the hunt muttered as she tore her way through hunks of meat. She sure was a wild person... er, god. But I wondered what she meant by her statement.

  “We’re here fer you, laddie. Assigned to ya, in fact.”

  “Huh?!”

  The narrow-eyed older man... er, god... pointed toward me. I absentmindedly pointed my own finger toward myself as well.

  “Touya? What do you mean you’re assigned to him?” Moroha spoke up before I even had a chance to voice my confusion.

  “It is how it is, lass. World god gave ‘im divinity, aye? An’ he’s gonna reach godhood with the old feller’s blessin’, too. It’s our duty an’ honor as senior gods to make sure the little whelp kin follow on in our footsteps as a proud an’ powerful god, won’tcha agree...?”