Urza's airship made a brief stop at a certain town.
I stayed on board.
Since we were scheduled to depart shortly, there was no point in getting off.
Urza had received a massive stack of documents in that town and spent her time on the airship reviewing them. I didn't really understand the contents, but I noticed they were using quite high-quality paper. It felt strange, though, seeing wooden tablets mixed in with the paper. Perhaps their record-keeping wasn't standardized yet?
Eventually, the airship arrived at a massive city.
It was apparently called Village Five.
I wondered if people still considered a place this size a "village" these days. The town where we had stopped earlier was much smaller than this, yet this place was the "village"? Regardless, if she was the daughter of the Village Head of such a massive settlement, it stood to reason that Urza was wealthy.
……
Wait.
That wasn't it?
This wasn't Urza's actual home?
Her father was the Village Head here too, though...
I was confused.
I understood that Village Five wasn't our final destination, but I wasn't sure why we had come here. Apparently, taking the airship all the way to the end was a bit of a hassle.
That made sense. We were switching our mode of transportation here. They had also sent a letter ahead to announce that they were bringing me along. We were to wait in Village Five until a reply arrived.
Understood. I planned to stay quiet at the provided inn and not wander around. Going out at times like this was a surefire way to get caught up in trouble. I was a smart one, so I knew better.
"Oh, it's fine, really. You don't need to worry about me."
Wait, that wasn't the issue?
Urza wouldn't be able to move freely for a while once she returned to her home village, so she had to finish all her work while we were still in Village Five. She hadn't been able to finish processing all those documents yet. The four Angels and the Ice Monster were going to help her with the backlog.
Was I in the way?
Fine by me. I would go kill some time outside.
They gave me a wooden tag that served as a form of identification. Apparently, showing it would grant me access to most places. They also told me not to worry about money; the bills would be sent directly to Urza's father. I had to make sure I didn't lose it.
I also made sure to memorize the location of the inn. Village Five was vast, but since the inn was near the airship port, it was easy enough to find.
Hm?
Who was that... running toward me at full speed?
They were definitely heading straight for me. One of the secretaries for the Acting Village Head of Village Five? My personal guide? Ah, Urza must have requested them.
"Nice to meet you."
"Why am I holding my shield?" they asked.
Because holding it made me feel safe.
First, the secretary guide took me to get some food. Since the weather was pleasant, I decided to buy something I could eat outdoors. I went with the guide's recommendation.
It was incredibly delicious.
What in the world was this? It came in a paper box, so I assumed it was just a simple snack, but it was actually quite filling. It was produced at a factory nearby.
I see. They were making good use of golems. Back before I went to sleep, people didn't use golems like that. I suppose this was what they called the passage of time.
They changed the menu every single day? That was impressive.
Once I finished my meal, the guide suggested the art museum as a good place to kill time.
……
There was something incredible at the entrance. It was a figure that looked like a literal embodiment of us demons. Was this place a temple or a mausoleum? Was I in the right place? Was it really okay for this to be an art museum?
……Wait.
Something caught my attention while I was listening to the guide's explanation.
"Hold on. Tell me the name of this museum one more time."
"This is the pride of Village Five. The Prada Art Museum."
Prada? That was a name I knew very well.
Prada the "Gold Coin." Or perhaps Prada the "Devil Who Collects Artworks." She was one of the few demon acquaintances I had.
As if on cue, Prada appeared.
"……Lady Yame?"
"Ah, long time no see," I said, though I wasn't sure if that was appropriate. To me, it felt like maybe ten or twenty years since we had met before my nap, but for Prada, it must have been over two millennia. Our sense of time was off by a factor of a hundred.
I understood it was a shock, but I really wished she would stop patting me all over. And I definitely wanted her to stop testing the durability of my shield. It was fragile.
"Lady Yame, haven't you weakened tremendously?"
"Yeah, I have. Don't know why."
"No way! Then I can't even punch you!"
"Please don't."
I told Prada everything that had happened to me.
"It sounds like you've had a difficult time," she said.
"You could say that."
"Well, things have been hectic on our end as well."
Come to think of it, I'd heard that the demons now served the dragons... had Prada been overlooked?
"I wasn't overlooked. My current master is a great person who can speak their mind to the dragons, and I've been entrusted with this museum by them."
"Heh. Providing the 'Devil Who Collects Artworks' with the perfect environment... that's quite impressive."
"Isn't it? I'm surprised myself."
"I'm sure you know this, but no gambling, okay?" Prada used to get so obsessed whenever she was invited to gamble that she would even wager her precious artworks.
"I'm doing my best to hold back, believe it or not."
"That's a relief."
"Betraying my master would be terrifying in more ways than one."
"Is that so?"
"If I ever betrayed them... before my master even got angry, a swarm of dragons would show up and incinerate me with their Flame Breath."
"You mean the dragons would act on their own?"
Did such a person really exist? I knew she said they could talk to dragons, but I hoped Prada was just exaggerating for the sake of a joke.
I soon discovered that Kati of the "Box," Rudio of the "Sound," and Sharane of the "Character" were also at the Prada Art Museum. They were all demons with very strong personalities, and they were among the few people I actually knew. I wondered why they were all here, but I supposed Prada must have gathered them.
Regardless, I really wished the three of them would stop trying to take a swing at me the moment they saw me. I had weakened to a degree that surprised even me. Seeing them made me realize the truth: I was incredibly weak.
And my shield was even weaker. It was shattered into pieces.
I cried.
Perhaps because I was crying, they gave me a lot of sweets. They were delicious. I especially liked these things called dango; they had a fascinatingly strange texture.
When I talked about my plans for the future, they invited me to stay at the museum. I was grateful for the offer. If things didn't work out with Urza's father, I would rely on them.
"About that... Urza-sama's father... the Village Head is my current master."
"Heh, it's a small world."
Wait. The person who could talk to dragons, and if you betrayed him, a swarm of dragons would show up before he even got angry?
"That's him. By the way, the Village Head has two dragons as his wives, and Urza-sama's mother is one of them."
……!
But Urza was a human, wasn't she?
"She's an adopted daughter."
"Ah."
"And as a piece of advice... Urza-sama has another 'mother,' though I'm not sure if that's the right word for her."
The family situation was getting complicated. Did she mean I shouldn't meddle in their family affairs? Was there some sort of inheritance dispute?
"No, it's just that this other mother is stronger than a dragon, so you must absolutely avoid getting on her bad side."
……
Where in the world was there a being stronger than a dragon?!
"I heard Urza-sama's father defeated those dragons and then made them his wives."
………………
I was starting to get terrified of meeting Urza's father.
"It'll be fine. In that village, the Village Head is the most gentle soul. If you're going to rely on someone, it should be him."
In other words, I must absolutely never make the Village Head angry. I would definitely remember that.
After finishing my talk with Prada and the others, I apologized to the guide I had left waiting.
"I'm so sorry."
The sun was already close to setting.
"Not at all. Catching up with old friends is a wonderful thing. Besides, I finally got to tour the museum slowly for the first time in ages."
Ahaha. I hadn't managed to see anything at all.
"By the way, it seems you've lost your shield... Should I arrange for a new one?"
I was grateful for the offer, but I felt bad, so I declined. I mean, I did want a shield, but still.
After enjoying some meat and sake at a shop the guide recommended, I returned to the inn.
"Thank you for everything, guide-san. I'll be sure to tell Urza how hard you worked. And her father, too."
His name was Messer, right? I would remember it.
After parting ways with the guide, I went to my room... only to find the four Angels and the Ice Monster collapsed on the floor from sheer exhaustion. Urza, however, was still energetic.
Oh, wait, there were five Angels. The one who had returned with the message from the Village Head had been roped into helping with the work.
We were heading to the village where Urza's father lived tomorrow.
I was... a little scared, but I acknowledged the plan.
By the way, was the work finished?
When I asked, the five collapsed Angels and the Ice Monster sat up with a start and resumed their paperwork. Since we were leaving tomorrow, they had to finish everything tonight.
"Um... let me know if there's anything I can do to help."