"This is the demon's village..."
Having finally arrived at the long-awaited Demon's Village, Mile stopped just before entering the village, with her eyes sparkling.
Well, the village itself was just an ordinary village you could find anywhere. It's not like there's no interaction with humans at all, so technology had flowed in, and it's not built with an emphasis on harmony with nature like elven's villages.
And because demons' physiques weren't much different from humans', the size and structure of their houses were similar.
However, since some of the creatures had rather large horns, the entrance was a little higher...
The village was fairly large, and although it's not quite a town, it did seem to have a decent population.
Well, since the village was that small, it's not possible to send a large number of people to work in a human residential area, so if the ancient dragon was requesting work from a demon that didn't seem to have any large towns, it's only natural that they would choose a large village.
While Reina and the other two had been quite interested in the elf village, wondering what kind of houses the mysterious elves lived in and how they lived their lives, they had little interest in the demons and simply accompanied Mile as her escorts.
And Mile clearly looked like she was "Forcing herself to be excited." Perhaps she was thinking that since she had asked everyone to accompany her because of her selfishness, she should put on a pose of being "Really happy."
In truth, Mile's main purpose in this "Demon's settlement visit" was to investigate "The Ancient Dragon's Purpose," which was their life's work... although by now she could pretty much guess what it was.
However, Mile didn't want people to be too conscious of this, so she maintained the pose that it was purely a sightseeing trip, motivated by her own curiosity.
"This way."
Without paying any attention to Mile's little act, the demon, Lalark, guided them into the village. The place they were taken to was the village meeting hall, or community center, or some other building for that purpose.
"What purpose does it have for you people, especially children and young adults, to go to the trouble of crossing such dangerous and steep mountains?"
Although the messenger should have informed them that they had come because they had received an invitation, this place was a little too far from human habitation, and too dangerous, for them to come simply because they had received an invitation. Moreover, even though they had been invited, the person they were coming from was not a very familiar person.
...Actually, they only met once. And that was as enemies.
There was no way that anyone would come to a place like this in response to a mere invitation, neither formal nor from someone of high social standing.
"…………" (Demons, x5)
And, standing a little distance away from the village chief, elders, and influential people, looking uneasy, were the leader from back then, Zawin, the swordsman Reltvard, and the siblings—Meril-chan and 'Kairel-onii-sama'.
The man who was defeated first and did not take part in the test of strength, and the victim of Pauline's hot magic, were nowhere to be seen. ...Mile and her party could somehow understand the reason behind it. And for some reason, Pauline was not in a good mood.
(Well, I guess you don't want to remember that...)
The three people other than Pauline were of one mind.
"You took the trouble to accept my invitation..."
"No, Mile wanted to come..." (Mavis)
Reltvard seemed impressed, but Mavis bluntly dismissed his words.
"Well, Meril invited me to come and meet her..." (Mile)
"Because Mile wanted to come, so she used it as an excuse... no, it was just one of the reasons to get here." (Reina)
Reina must have thought that it would be bad to lie to be allowed into the village, so she changed her explanation a bit. ...It didn't change much though...
"Th-That's not possible..." (x2)
Reltvard and Kairel slumped their shoulders in disappointment, as if they were saying that this wasn't what they had agreed to.
"It's true that we received an invitation, and it's a pleasure trip that also serves as a sightseeing trip..." (Mile)
"By crossing a dangerous mountain range?" (Chief)
"Ehehe..." (Mile)
Mile laughs off the village chief's remark.
"So, where did you come from?" (Elder)
And then the elder interrupted.
"Oh, yes, it's from Kingdom of Tils..." (Mile)
"Eh?"
"Where is that?"
"I've never heard of such a country..."
This was the world they lived in. For ordinary villagers, it's normal to not even know the names of distant countries other than the few in the vicinity. So, the village chief and other villagers kept on asking questions...
"No way... it's at the end of the southwest continent..." (Mile)
In response to the elder's incredulous words, Mile replied nonchalantly.
"Yes, we came from the royal capital of the country at the tip of that area."
"Wh, what did you say?!" (x6)
Yes, it was a little, no, too far away to be described as a sightseeing trip.
"What? How ridiculous! No one would come all the way out there for just a sightseeing trip! There are no famous sights or landmarks, and it's hard to say that the demons have a good relationship with humans, so it's a great risk to go here... Tell me! What is your true purpose? …Ha! No way, you're aiming for the Sacred Maiden!!"
"Sacred Maiden?" (All CV)
"Ahhh..." (All demons, x6)
It was clear to Mile and her party that this was the first time they had heard of it, but when the villagers realized that the elder had gone out of his way to tell them something they shouldn't have, their shoulders slumped in disappointment.
Although their relationship was not that good, it was said that "Demons and humans are equal," and they had a treaty banning mutual aggression and criminal activity. Therefore, while the probability of someone taking a violent action like "Killing all the girls to protect a secret" was low, it was still only low and by no means zero.
So, although they didn't show any emotion or take any action, the members of the Crimson Vow were in a state of being ready to "Take combat action at any moment."
"...We too have things like face and pride. We will not do anything that would cause us to be unable to face our ancestors, or to proudly demand an entry permit to the land of the gods after death!"
Perhaps noticing how Mile and her party had slightly shifted their postures and increased the strength with which they gripped their staffs, Zawin, who had been the leader during the sparring session, called out from the side.
Among the village leaders were the original members, plus the boy's younger sister, Meril, who, naturally, was an acquaintance of the Crimson Vow and the reason why they had visited the village... as what they claimed, joined. So, of course, even though she was of a lower status among the villagers here, she would not be criticized for speaking as a mediator between the two sides.
Then, Mile ignored Zawin and was deep in thought.
(Is a Sacred Maiden different from a shrine maiden?)
In modern Japan, the two terms are often confused and used in the same way, but strictly speaking, there is a difference in their definitions. However, of course, Mile did not have such specialized knowledge in her previous life, and she did not learn such knowledge in her studies as "Adelle" and "Mile" in this life.
"Anyway, I need to meet this Sacred Maiden and hear what she has to say!" (Mile)
"As expected!!!"
"As expected, huh..." (Other 3 of CV)
Although the words returned by the elder and Reina in response to Mile's words were similar, of course, there was a huge difference in nuance and tone between what the elder shouted and what Reina muttered...