It was noon.
I was riding the Flying Carpet, making my rounds of the fields that were nearing harvest season. This would be our second harvest of the year—the summer harvest.
In the beginning, it had felt strange to see ears of rice ripening in the heat of midsummer, but I was fine now. I had grown used to it.
Kuro and Yuki walked alongside the carpet, while a High Ogre Maid followed behind us. Because they were on foot, our flight speed was quite leisurely.
If I kept up this lifestyle of floating around on a carpet instead of walking, I was probably going to get fat. However, the Flying Carpet was very insistent about me riding it. Since I was the one who had brought it into the world for that very purpose, I felt I should indulge it.
I supposed things could stay like this until the harvest actually began. The real problem would be what to do once the work was finished. I wondered if I could persuade it to let me walk then.
Also, I had been a bit concerned lately by the way the horses and the centaurs were looking at me. They had these rather intimidating glares. I wanted to tell them it wasn’t as if I was neglecting them on purpose.
The horses were getting on in years, in their own way. Not that I felt they had declined at all; just a while ago, I saw one leading the others in a sprint across the ranch area. Perhaps it was because they were eating such high-quality food, or maybe horses in this world simply had longer active lifespans than I realized. I had heard that in horse racing, eight-year-old horses were considered past their peak and usually retired, but maybe that was only because they were Thoroughbreds. Perhaps riding horses stayed active much longer, or maybe the breeds in this world were just exceptionally hardy.
I didn't really know.
After finishing my inspection of the fields, I was considering heading over to the pool to see the children when Beezel arrived in a great hurry. I wondered if something had happened.
A short while later, I found myself on the eastern side of the Demon Kingdom’s Royal Capital.
A massive mountain range stood before me like a great wall. I usually saw these peaks from the opposite side, so I had rarely been this close to them. It felt a bit refreshing.
With me were Beezel, who had provided the teleportation magic, and Galf and Daga, who were serving as my escorts. Draim was also there; he had come along to check if it was time for the daikon harvest.
"Village Head, over there," Galf said, pointing.
In the direction he indicated, I saw a small group gathered around the Demon King. It was the King himself, six escort soldiers, and Alfred and Urza.
"Father!"
I hugged the two of them as they ran over. I thought to myself that the Demon King didn't really need to be here, but I kept that to myself.
After a short pause, I listened to the Demon King’s detailed explanation, though I had already heard the gist of it from Beezel.
"I spotted an Inferno Wolf and thought it might be one of yours, Village Head, so I approached it. Then it punched me."
He had been punched, but he didn't appear to be injured.
"It takes more than that to hurt me," the Demon King said, puffing out his chest.
While he claimed he was fine, I decided not to mention that the right side of his face was looking a bit red.
He had been attacked, but since it would have been a problem if the wolf actually belonged to me, the Demon King had called for Alfred and Urza to verify its identity.
"We were certain it wasn't anyone we recognized from the village," Alfred explained. "But since we couldn't rule out the possibility that it was a wild one born outside the Village of the Great Tree, I thought about calling Kuroichi."
"But if we called Kuroichi and they got into a fight, this whole area would have been devastated, wouldn't it?" Urza added.
That was true. The forest was important. Urza had stopped Alfred and suggested that calling me would be the safest option, and the Demon King had agreed. I felt a bit bad for making everyone worry so much.
Now that I understood the situation, I turned my attention to the Inferno Wolf in question. Where was it? Over there?
It was lying down in a rocky area near the foot of the mountain range. Even from a distance, it was easy to spot because it was maintaining its massive size. But what was it doing? It looked almost as if it were moping.
"Is that one of yours, Village Head?" the Demon King asked.
It wasn't. If it were one of mine, it would have come to show its face to me at least once, no matter where it had been born. From the look of him, he was a male about six years old. Even allowing for a year of margin, he was an individual I didn't recognize.
However, I couldn't just leave him there. If he stayed, there was a chance he would be targeted for subjugation by adventurers. I supposed this was some kind of fate. I decided I would take him back to the Village of the Great Tree.
"Take him back? How?"
The Demon King sounded skeptical, but I wasn't sure what he was worried about. We had Beezel's teleportation magic. Had he forgotten how Beezel had returned Kuroichi to the village after he was summoned near the Royal Capital before?
"No, that's not what I mean... Will that Inferno Wolf actually obey you?"
He'd be fine if I just talked to him, wouldn't he?
"Uh..."
There was no harm in trying. We would find out once I approached. I asked Galf and Daga to stay back a bit so they wouldn't agitate him, then I walked toward the Inferno Wolf alone.
Even as I drew near, the wolf didn't move. As I expected, I didn't recognize him. His defiant attitude—acting as if he couldn't care less about someone like me—felt quite fresh.
However, once I reached a certain distance, the reclining wolf stood up. He was enormous. Kuro and the others could grow this large too, but they usually stayed smaller when they were near me.
For now, I would have to do something about that size. At this rate, I doubted even Beezel's teleportation magic could transport him.
When I continued forward without being intimidated, he glared at me, clearly offended. I told him not to get so worked up, but as I stepped even closer, the Inferno Wolf pounced.
It went exactly as I expected. I shifted the Universal Farming Tool into its spear form and swept both of his back legs out from under him in a single motion. The wolf tumbled over, landing flat on his back.
In that instant, I reached out and started rubbing his belly. I rubbed and rubbed for all I was worth.
"There, there. What's the matter? Were you scared because you were in an unfamiliar place? It's okay. I'll take you to where your kin are right away."
Using Beezel's teleportation magic, I returned to the Village of the Great Tree along with Galf, Daga, and the newcomer wolf. I would have liked to bring Alfred and Urza along too, but they had their Academy lives to get back to. Still, I was glad to see them looking so healthy. I wondered if the next time we'd meet would be in the winter, or if they would return early for the village's martial arts tournament. I looked forward to seeing them again.
Draim decided to stay behind to investigate the route the Inferno Wolf had used to reach the mountains. As the Gate Guardian Dragon, he took his duty of ensuring that nothing leaked out of the Forest of Death very seriously. I told him I wouldn't start the daikon harvest until he got back, so I wanted him to do a thorough job.
Once back at the village, I first introduced the newcomer to Kuro and Yuki. Since they were the leaders of the pack, I couldn't skip that formality. They decided to accept him, officially certifying him as a newcomer.
That was one relief. Next came the bath. He was quite dirty, and I couldn't let him into the mansion like that.
I considered washing him myself, but if I did that for the newcomer, I would have to do it for every other wolf to avoid playing favorites. That was a bit much for my stamina to handle.
While I was weighing my options, four of Kuro's children approached. It seemed they were volunteering to take the newcomer to the bath. That was a big help, but... well, I knew what was going on.
The four wolves who had stepped forward were all females, and all four of them were currently without partners.
The newcomer Inferno Wolf looked at me with an expression that clearly said, "You betrayed me."
I didn't have the slightest intention of setting him up like that. I wanted to tell him not to lament the fact that he was born into this world just yet.
"Alright, alright. I'll wash you myself. I won't let those four lay a finger on you."
It was fine. It would just be a bit of extra work for me. In exchange, I told him he had to do his best to fit in. If he ever had any trouble, I made sure he knew he could come to me without hesitation.