“Urula, get somewhere safe!”
Lest shouted the command the moment he recognized the new enemy.
Urula looked up at him with concern, but she obeyed without a word, vanishing into the depths of the fortress.
A man in a white lab coat stood silhouetted against the blue sky.
He looked so frail that he might have vanished with a light breeze, yet he possessed an unsettling presence that seemed to sear itself into the mind. On his chest sat the emblem of an inverted pentagram.
Takfir Kahen.
A secret society operating in the shadows of the world.
A group of reincarnated individuals who pulled the strings of various wars from behind the scenes.
One after another… seriously?!
Lest spat the thought in his mind.
He had only just finished off the reincarnated person hidden within the detached unit at the river. Before that, he had fought another one who was operating in the Great Forest.
I never met a single one until I reached this age, so why are they coming at me one after another now? What did I even do to deserve this!
Suppressing the urge to scream, Lest began kneading his mana while glaring at the man in the white coat.
The man looked to be about thirty years old.
He hovered in the air using magic, the hem of his coat fluttering in the wind. His features weren't unattractive, but his cheeks were sunken, giving him a gloomy, world-weary impression.
He’s a reincarnated person, so I shouldn't trust his appearance. He might be older, or even using an illusion…
“Boy… you there. Yes, you.”
“!”
The man in the white coat spoke to Lest.
It wasn't the language of this world, but Japanese.
“You reacted. Are you a reincarnated person?”
“…And if I am?”
“Then I shall offer a greeting.”
“What?”
“It is a pleasure to meet you. Hello.”
The man bowed while suspended in midair.
The sudden, polite greeting caused the tension to drain slightly from Lest’s shoulders.
“I am Japanese.”
“‘Japanese’? Are you trying to say you’re a god?”
“No, it is my surname. Japanese Yoichiro. That is my real name.”
“…………”
“Won’t you tell me your name? I have already given mine,” Japanese asked.
Strangely, there wasn't a trace of hostility in his voice.
An enemy… he’s probably an enemy, right?
Lest wondered if he should attack.
No, the opponent was going out of his way to initiate a dialogue. While maintaining his guard, Lest decided to see if he could draw out any information.
“I’m Lest.”
“Lest… an unusual name. I wonder which kanji you use for it?”
“…It’s written in katakana. It’s a name from this world to begin with.”
“Oh…?”
Japanese tilted his head.
He frowned, twisting his neck several times in bewilderment.
“So you have accepted this world? Even though you are a reincarnated person, do you value your present life more than your previous life?”
“The present matters more than the past. And the future matters most. Is that so strange?”
“…You don't understand. How wretched.”
Japanese cast his eyes down as if in mourning.
“You know nothing of this world. You don't understand that we were toyed with by the world, that we were reincarnated only to have misfortune forced upon us… Ah, how wretched. How pitiful. It’s sad—seeing such ignorance is truly tragic.”
“Regardless of all that, you…”
“Killing you would be the least mercy I can offer.”
“…………!”
Lest tried to steer the conversation back to get more information, but Japanese unilaterally cut him off.
“【The Crawling Devourer】.”
The moment Japanese whispered the name, a hole tore open in the void.
What emerged from that hole was a grotesque monstrosity.
“Ugh…”
Nausea washed over Lest, and he clutched his mouth.
The creature appeared alongside a staggering stench. If it had to be described in a single phrase: it was a hound of flesh.
It was a hideously eerie and repulsive thing that looked like raw meat forcibly molded into the shape of a four-legged beast. It was roughly the size of an elephant. A dark, blood-like liquid dripped from its entire body, and the scent of rot flooded the area.
“This thing…!”
“How sad. I wonder when this sorrow will ever lift?”
Lest kneaded his mana and braced himself.
Even as tears streamed down his face, Japanese issued the command in a detached tone.
“Devour him.”
『GYAOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!』
The monster of rotting meat—the Crawling Devourer—split its maw open and unleashed a scream that thundered to the ends of the earth.
The atmosphere vibrated violently, and the fortress groaned as if an earthquake had struck.