ch21-ch40 · 046-ch40

Chapter 40

The High Elf woman who claimed to have come from another world. Hexaria.

A meeting was convened to confirm what kind of being she was, and what the other world was like.

There, Sai made a sudden confession.

"I also lived in the world she's from for about thirty years."

"What!?"

Everyone was shocked by the sudden revelation.

Hiyori and Mio, in particular, had been told by Sai to keep his time in the other world a secret, and they hadn't breathed a word to anyone.

Their surprise was all the greater.

"I'm sorry, Ichijō-san. For keeping silent..."

"No, that's not important now. More importantly, you said you were in another world..."

"Yes. I was transported at the beginning of my first year of high school and spent about thirty years over there. Then, last year, I happened to return to Japan."

"I see..."

From Hayato's perspective, Sai's background was full of mysteries.

He'd investigated Sai's history ever since his daughter Hiyori and her friend Mio had said, "He's trustworthy. We look up to him as our teacher."

From the time he went missing until last year, there was no information at all.

His resume had many gaps, but more than that — where had he learned everything from magic usage to the ropes of adventuring?

His personality was gentle, and if it would help them grow stronger, he'd allowed them to look up to him as a teacher. Still, the question of who he really was had always bothered him.

Now, with Sai's statement, it finally clicked.

"I myself was an adventurer in the other world. Based on what I saw over there, as for the question of what the other world is like... to put it simply, think of it as similar to a common fantasy RPG."

"An RPG? Like a video game?"

"Yes. Of course, there are many differences, but the foundation is similar."

Ever since Shinjuku Tower appeared, people around the world had been saying, "The world of video games has arrived." Government officials, military personnel, and ordinary citizens alike had eagerly researched video games and light novels to study monster ecology.

The fact that fantasy enthusiasts and experts had been invited to the government to debate was an indispensable anecdote when discussing those times.

"The major difference is in magic-related areas... especially a technology called 'Magical Engineering.'"

Kaga from the Magic Countermeasures Division reacted to the term "Magical Engineering" and asked a question.

"What kind of technology is that?"

"In that world, they use internal magical power, mana, or magic stones as energy to create various things. Think of it like how we use electricity and gas to live — over there, they use magical power to live."

"Do you have anything that can prove that?"

"Let's see. In that case..."

Saying that, Sai reached into a hole that opened in the air.

In front of government officials and others, he used Item Box magic.

Everyone except Sai's inner circle was stunned.

"Ah, this is a spell called Item Box. The amount you can store varies depending on internal magical power and such, but this is a spell I learned in the other world."

As he spoke, Sai took out a magical light.

He handed the light to Kaga.

"What I've just given you is a common Mana Battery-powered light used in every household over there."

On Earth, lights used bulbs or LEDs, but in the other world, they used mana batteries with crystals and light magic enchantments carved into magic stones.

Kaga touched it here and there while asking questions.

"This... appears to have no switch or anything of the sort."

"Ah, right. That's always the first thing that surprises people. Hmm, Mio-san. Could you put a little magical power into it?"

Asked this, Mio received the magical light from Kaga.

Mio casually infused it with magical power.

Then it shone as brightly as an Earth light. No, it shone too brightly.

"Whoa, that's bright!? Mio-san, put in a little less power!"

"Waah, sorry!"

As she reduced the power, the brightness decreased.

"As you can see, the amount of light changes based on how much magic you put in."

"Ohhh, such technology exists...!"

On Earth, the technological application of magic was progressing slowly.

It was possible to convert magical power into magic to do things, but there was no technology to pass magical power through machines.

The current reality was that they couldn't even create lighting using magic like this, so it was technology they desperately wanted.

"For it to shine that much seems odd. Hey, Mio. Give it here."

She took the light from Mio and, with practiced ease, opened the light's casing.

"The Mana Battery is old. Let me replace it."

With practiced movements, Hexaria took several types of mana batteries from her Item Box and swapped in new ones.

Seeing multiple mana batteries laid out, Kaga was astonished.

He didn't understand the principles, but they clearly had types and standards, just like batteries.

In other words, it showed just how advanced the other world's technology was.

Seeing Kaga's astonished reaction, Hexaria grinned.

This was a test of sorts from Hexaria. She deliberately brought out several mana batteries of different standards to see what kind of reaction she'd get.

She was implicitly communicating, "You understand what this means, right?"

The reaction was excellent, and Hexaria was satisfied.

"So that's what you mentioned earlier — a Mana Battery..."

"Simply put, it is a tool for storing ma... magical power. It borrows a bit of the mana present in the atmosphere, stores it, and releases it at a set output to drive things."

Kaga's eyes went wide.

"Could we possibly have you teach that technology to Japan?"

"Kaga-san, you're getting ahead of things!"

Yoshimura from the Tower Division pointed out.

"Ah, sorry. It was just so amazing I got carried away..."

Hayato cleared his throat to reset the conversation.

"Now, there are many things we'd like to ask, but time is limited. The fact that another world exists has been sufficiently proven by her presence and what we've just been shown. Allow me to ask a question as well. Hexaria-san, why did you come to Earth?"

Hayato swallowed hard.

Depending on her answer, their treatment of Hexaria would change.

Surely it wasn't something like an invasion of Earth.

"I came to confirm the safety of my property."

"Your... property?"

At the unexpected answer, they couldn't help but look puzzled.

"Hey, Saria. Saying it that way will make people misunderstand. When Saria says 'property,' she means me."

"Sai-kun."

"Actually, she and I are married, and the whole reason I came back from the other world was kind of an accident..."

"Yes. This idiot didn't contact me for over half a year, so I came to check on him myself."

"So you came to check on Sai-kun's safety. I see. So that's how it was. No wonder..."

Hayato nodded with a complicated expression.

Incidentally, what Hayato didn't say aloud was: Now I understand why he didn't get flustered around our daughter.

He was apparently keeping his doting-father comments to himself in this setting. He was a capable man, after all.

"W-Wait a moment."

Yoshimura hurriedly spoke up.

"So then, Hexaria-san, does that mean you can travel between that world and this one?"

"I don't know. I was able to come from there to this world. In the past, the Sai next to me came to my world, so travel itself seems possible, but I cannot say whether it can be done at will at this point."

Hexaria herself speculated that going to the top floor of Shinjuku Tower would enable teleportation, but she couldn't say for certain yet. Other conditions might be necessary.

"So it's not possible at will."

"If you're a government official, this is probably something you'd be concerned about, so let me explain. At the very least, aside from me, there are only a few from over there who can come here.

But those few don't know the coordinates of this world. In that sense, it's impossible for anyone other than me. There's no scenario where an army from the other world would come pouring into this one. The reverse is also true."

An invasion from another world was impossible.

Hearing that, Yoshimura relaxed.

It sounded like something out of a manga or movie, but there was literally a person from another world standing right there, as if she'd stepped out of one. It was only natural to be concerned.

"Well. Your questions about me are probably endless, so let me state my demand first. My demand is simple. Allow me to enter Shinjuku Tower."

"Is there a particular reason for that?"

"Do I need a reason?"

"No, it's just..."

"I see. If you arrange for me to enter Shinjuku Tower, as a reward, I will share the basics of magical engineering... yes. I could give a lecture."

"By all means!"

"Kaga-san! We're still negotiating here!?"

Kaga leaned forward in acceptance. Yoshimura scolded him.

The Magic Countermeasures Division was under the jurisdiction of the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology, and magic-related research institutes were also under its authority.

With the current lack of know-how regarding magic, the technological system called magical engineering from the other world was something they desperately wanted.

In contrast, the Shinjuku Tower Division was under the jurisdiction of the Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications.

Recently, there had been many problems related to magic and adventurers, and they were struggling to keep up.

The different personalities of the two divisions were clearly on display.

The negotiations continued after that, and it seemed Hexaria would be permitted to enter Shinjuku Tower.

The issue was the adventurer license, but in that regard, the government officials proved their competence.

They carefully arranged things to avoid any appearance of overstepping their authority.

First, she could be considered a refugee. Since she was Sai's wife, from a humanitarian standpoint, Sai would become her guardian, and the visa issues could be handled.

The biggest problem was her elf-like long ears. An adventurer license required a photo ID.

In other words, once someone saw the license, it would be confirmed that she was the rumored existence.

Not just in Japan. She would draw attention from overseas as well.

"If someone is attending my lectures, I will grant an audience, but I have no intention of being put on display."

With those words from Hexaria, it was decided she would be photographed wearing a hat.

For identification photos, hats or scarves were permitted for medical or religious reasons, as long as the outline of the face was identifiable. They would apply that precedent here.

Either way, once the lectures began, she would inevitably become a global focus of attention.

They couldn't imagine how much of an impact that would have, but they decided to start preparing now to handle it as best they could.

After various other discussions, the meeting concluded largely as expected.

Incidentally, Sakuraba from the Exorcist Alliance — who had been forcibly put to sleep at the start of the meeting — was woken up at the end and apparently got thoroughly chewed out by the Ichijō family afterward.

In particular, Hiyori's comment, "I don't even want to see Uncle Sakuraba's face anymore!" seemed to leave a deep wound in his heart. Being disliked by someone who fought on the front lines was one thing, but having a high school girl say that to you would damage anyone. He was an old man, after all.

About a week later, Hexaria's adventurer license was issued.

The existence of a High Elf became major news on a global scale.

After that, contact attempts flew at Hexaria from all directions, but not a single person managed to reach her.

She used the latest concealment magic from the other world to hide not only her presence but even her form.

Alternatively, there was also illusion magic that altered perceptions even if she showed herself.

Neither Japan nor the rest of the world had any means to see through it.

When Hexaria was serious about hiding, no one but Sai could detect her.

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Thank you for reading.