Jitsu wa Ore, Saikyou deshita? ~ Tensei Chokugo wa Donzoko Sutāto, Demo Ban'nō Mahō de Gyakuten Jinsei o Jōshō-chū!

Chapter 69: Ruins Exploration Party, decided.

Editor: Kora

It had been a long time since I last returned to my paradise, and I took the opportunity to explain the situation to everyone.

“Who could head out with Haruto-sama if I’m not?” asked Frey, ready to go.

“I want to go with you. The other day I didn’t get to let out enough of my rage,” said Lisa, who was surprisingly aggressive in her lines.

“Me too!　I want to go!” And Char held up her hands and pivoted. How cute.

“Then I’ll run for the position myself. Hmmm, my arms are ringing. Like this, snapping. I’m a skeleton!”

“I’m coming with you.”

“No, not Johnny and Gigan. You can’t.”

“Why?!”

“Shun….”

They looked too much like members of the demon race to go. Johnny could wear full body armor, but Gigan’s size exceeded the standard for a human, so…

“Not even Char?　I don’t think dad and the others would allow you to leave the house for days at a time.”

A sulking Char was also cute.

“Also, it’s an underground dungeon, so it might be hard for Frey and Lisa to fight in their original forms.”

Frey was still Frey, but a giant dragon would be buried underground.

“Humanoid or not, I won’t fall behind those demons.”

“I’m fine, too.”

Fumu. Well, Frey’s fighting prowess was commendable, and with Lisa’s magic power, I think I could handle most of the rest.

You can’t be missing these two, after all.

“Am I going too?”

My lookalike, who was dazedly standing next to me, asked. My copy, Haruto C.

“Of course. You’re going to have to perform well as Haruto Zenphis.”

“Well then, it’s a lot easier when you’re the one protecting me. Come on, man!”

He’d been depending on me for everything. You see my point?　I was worried.

“I think four is about right for a group. We just need to get some help from Professor Tia with the communication magic and then we’ll be good to go.”

After selecting people, I was secretly told to introduce the people from the outside to the head of the academy beforehand if I wanted to make them a party member. Thus, I took Frey and Lisa and went to the head of the academy’s office as Shiva.

“I’m sorry, but demonkind are not allowed.”

A-re?

Both Frey and Lisa had covered their ears, horns and tails, though?

“I have been informed that both are working as servants of Lord Zenphis. Technically, they’re half-demons, or so I’m told.”

Ah, yeah. It was easy to find out if you looked into it. Or rather, it was investigated.

“I don’t know how they hide their traits, but I understand it’s out of consideration for not causing unnecessary disturbances in human society. But—” The dean told him with a half-eyed look on her beautiful face, “You weren’t thinking of hiding it from me on this occasion, were you?”

I knew.

This was a woman who would never tolerate injustice or lies.

What’s wrong with you?! I (my copy) looked at me like that.

I responded calmly in Shiva mode, “As you have guessed, I’m hiding it to avoid causing unnecessary commotion. That’s the thing today. I just happened to forget about it.”

“I see. Then I have nothing more to say. Let’s get back to it.”

Without pause, Haruto C shouted, “Demon discrimination!　The war between people and demons is long over, and this is why the world won’t be at peace!”

Good. This was where you make the subject matter bigger and smokier, like you’re correcting the prejudices that have infiltrated the world.

“That must be very painful for you to hear,”

Ooh…the headmaster nodded.

“But a person’s consciousness does not change overnight. I hope that your younger generation will take the time to unravel it.”

She smiled and immediately returned to a straight face.

“As it stands, you may receive criticism of ‘If you had the help of the Demon Race, then it is invalid.’ Even if the teachers and I are convinced, this is the Royal Academy, so there is also the influence of the House of Lords.”

Oh, yeah. So, that’s it, right?

Everyone’s attention was on Shiva, me.

“What about this unidentified person in black?” asked Haruto C.

“As long as you reveal yourself and everyone can agree on who you are, there’s no problem…”

Even if you stared at me, I couldn’t reveal my identity.

“On the contrary, I ask you, even if I were to include Gordo Zenphis or Princess Senko in my party, wouldn’t the criticism be equally difficult to deal with?”

“Why?　They’ve failed once, remember?”

This woman was rather scary, as she said it so clearly.

“Based on the above, please re-select your party.”

No longer able to say anything back, I sent Frey and the others home once and I–

“Help me, Tia e mo~n!”

I disengaged Shiva mode and cried out to Professor Tia.

“I see. I didn’t hear anything from you after you were summoned by the dean, and you went on your own initiative, and that’s why it’s like that,” said Professor Tia as she pointed at me.

“Fuck!”

Gunununu. I’m so annoyed.

“Well, I can tease you later. It’s painful that Shiva-kun cannot be used, but it is also within expectations. This is finally a sign that you have caught that woman’s attention.”

“That woman?”

“The dean. She’s a genuine educator. She’s pathological without exaggeration… She’s obsessed with ‘educating people’. She’s especially fond of ‘competent but mischievous children’.”

She seemed to be an annoying person who took supreme pleasure in rehabilitating such things with her own hands and bringing them into the world.

“The trouble is that she herself is unaware of it. That’s why she won’t doubt that you will definitely pull it off, even if she imposes an unreasonable demand on you. And if you can’t do it, she’s vindictive and says, ‘I have to raise you properly. It sucks, right?’”

Somehow, I felt like someone who had been there before was speaking.

“That, you could have said that first.”

“I told you, ‘Play the serious, hard-working student.’ And the problem was supposed to be avoided.”

“I don’t think I did anything wrong.”

“Well, I guess you couldn’t get rid of the ‘bad kid’ aura that oozes from you, could you?”

Was the difficulty level too high for me, whose interpersonal communication skills were remarkably low…. It was a losing battle from the start.

“That said, you’re still highly regarded for your abilities. I can assure you, you’re capable of this task. You’ll be able to do it. You have very low self-esteem, but don’t think about your magic level anymore.”

“Well, I’m sure you’re looking for something.”

“It’s a horrible thing for me to just say it outright, but………. Your concern is that people will think ‘Haruto Zenphis is as powerful as Shiva,’ and that you’ll be suspected of being the same person, right?”

“You’re very quick on the uptake.”

“Then, you should have come to me first…”

A loli-glasses professor puffed out her cheeks.

I’m a man who isn’t stuck in the past. I want you to think of it that way.

“I do have a solution. Or rather, there’s only one.”

Mmmm, I stared at him with expectant eyes, and Professor Tia’s cheeks flushed a bit.

“In short, ‘someone more powerful than Princess Senko’ will be your partner.”

“Is there anyone like that?”

“Not really.”

‘What the hell do you mean by that?’　Was what I was about to say. Hmm?　Could that be….

“You seem to have noticed. Yes, someone with tremendous potential, someone who makes you think, ‘Oh, it’s not surprising that she can do this. In other words—”

I announced the name that was going to follow.

“Charlotte….”

Professor Tia knew Char’s maximum magic level. When Char was talking to Professor Tia as Vice Owl, she was caught in the middle of a guiding interrogation and had blurted it out.

“But that person’s maximum magic level is still a secret.”

“It’s something that should be made public at some point. Why don’t you just make an announcement now and send her to the Academy? Wouldn’t that put you and your parents at ease?”

Well, I was certain. I thought she’d be really happy to hear that.

But, but…I definitely didn’t want my younger sister to be in any danger.

“I’ve made the necessary arrangements for you to do just that. The rest is up to you to convince him, Charlotte-kun….”

“Wha?”

Professor Tia grinned, and a plate-like ward appeared over on the side.

“Yes, thank you, Professor Tiarietta!

It was my sister.

“What do you mean by that?!”

“While you were on your way here, Lisa informed her of the situation. ‘I want to help my brother and I want you to help me,’ she said. I was impressed by her feelings and I told her that I knew who Shiva was.”

I heard that the Char-Professor Tia Alliance was immediately formed.

“No, no. It’s going to cause all sorts of trouble.”

“No, No. I’m willing to suffer any hardship so that you can devote yourself to the study of ancient magic.”

I was only trying to stay indoors.

“No, I’d better get straight to the point, okay?”

Following Professor Tia’s enigmatic statement, Char squirmed on the screen.

“Of course, I meant what I just said, but I would like to attend the same school as my brother. Heehee….”

What a lovely creature.

“If there’s even a chance of that happening!　I’ll do anything. More specifically, I’ve already obtained our mother’s permission!”

She moved fast!

“I had a hard time keeping this, that, and other things a secret, but our mother said with a straight face, ‘You don’t want to miss this opportunity.”

I didn’t know what she was saying either.

But if Mom had fallen, I didn’t see how Dad could object.

Mom was stronger than Princess Senko—not in the sense of combativeness, but in the sense of mental strength.

It might have felt like a total failure, but if we were going to do this, we’re going to protect Char with all our might, and let the world know what this person was capable of.

To be honest, she was unaware of it, but Char was very good at what she did.

This reminded me of what my father had once told me.

He said that Char was worthy of being the vessel to run the country – a ruler, or something like that (hazy memory).

In other words, Char was the girl who would become the queen of the land, overcoming the scum king and the current black-hearted queen.

It was the perfect way to make her official debut.

“Well then, I’ll do it.”

“Hai!”

In addition to making my reclusive life a reality, I would be able to maintain Char’s path forward.

This was a way to kill two birds with one stone.