"Reina-san, can I ask you a question?" (Mile)
"What?" (Reina)
"Could you please wear this armband on your right arm?" (Mile)
"Eh? ...Well, I don't really mind though... …I put it on, okay? So, what are you going to do with it now?" (Reina)
"Then, as you pull on the armband with your left hand, say: 'Judgment!'" (Mile)
"What on earth are you trying to do? I don't understaannd!!" (Reina)
Two weeks had passed since they returned from the northernmost part of the continent, where the demons lived. Mile and her party had returned to their normal lives... for them....
No, that expedition was probably just a part of Mile and her party's normal life...
Of course, Mile had not forgotten the events that had taken place in the Aubram Kingdom, a long, narrow country stretching from east to west, slightly bordering the northeastern part of Kingdom of Tils, where they had gone at a special request.
If that incident hadn't happened, Mile might have been able to relax and think that the ancient dragons' actions were an investigation into the possibility of a recurrence of an event from long ago, triggered by the Sacred Maiden's suggestion.
This was not a lie or delusion on the Sacred Maiden's part, but the result of the Sacred Maiden's many years of interviews with Nanomachines.
However, that was thousands, tens of thousands, or even more years ago, and even if it were to happen again someday, the probability of it happening during Mile's lifetime, which only lasted a few decades, would have been considered incredibly low. So, it's not something she needed to worry about.
…Yes, if only that incident hadn't happened…
A hole that connected to another dimension.
The "Created One" was clearly using this intentionally in an attempt to draw original (strong) monsters into this world.
It meant that that time was near...very near.
No, it's not close, it's that it had already begun...
And Mile was not the kind of person who wouldn't notice it.
(But there's nothing I can do about it...) (Mile's mind)
Mile was alone in bed, lost in thought.
(No matter how much you think "this might be bad," there's nothing I can do, right? Our enemies exist in another dimension, and we don't know when or where they'll appear, and their identity, strength, numbers, and purpose are all unknown, so there's nothing we can do. My reliable Nano-chan doesn't seem to have much information either, and it seems they can only use offensive magic to get at things outside of this world...)
(If there were no restrictions on Nano-chan, I think the moment a dimensional hole opened up somewhere, we could just throw an antiproton bomb or something into it and something would work... Of course, it will only detonate once the hole is sealed, but if you set it to "Detonate 30 seconds after the received radio signal is cut off," it will only detonate once the hole is completely sealed, so it's safe. ...Of course, the reason why it doesn't detonate it immediately after losing signal is to allow for an emergency shutdown if something unexpected happens. That amount of time doesn't leave enough time for the bomb to be disassembled, or for a new hole to be created and dropped into it... Well, not only would it be dangerous to drop a bomb into another dimension, but even the creation of an antiproton bomb would be completely forbidden, so no matter how much I think about this method, it's pointless...) (Mile's mind)
And for a while, Mile stood there in a daze, not thinking about anything.
(...Nano-chan hasn't spoken to me yet. I guess there's nothing I can do...) (Mile)
Normally, Nanomachines would have said something by now.
However, the fact that they seemed to be expressing their intention of not speaking unless Mile speaks to them first suggested that this was probably the case.
(Well, it's natural that we have to protect our own world, right? The one who reincarnated me... God... the higher lifeform said that they weren't supposed to directly intervene. Of course, it's possible technically and with the ability, but I think it's more like a rule, or a sense of ethics, or a "norm" of what not to do, for that species...)
(Anyway, what I can do is explain the crisis this world is facing in terms that everyone can understand, and with everyone's help we can work to quickly remove those guys coming from the dimensional hole, stop them from establishing a beachhead in this world or multiplying or spreading, and prevent the extinction of this world's intelligent lifeforms, starting with the human species, and a drastic change in the biota, I guess... At the very least, there's nothing I can do on my own, and I'm not obligated to do so.)
(Of course, I will fulfill my duties as a human being and a resident of this world, but there's no need for me to shoulder everything on my own and feel like I have to do it all by myself. This world can be protected by everyone who lives in it. I can do my best as one of the cogs in that effort. To the best of my ability... If I were the only one making a fuss and saying something stupid like "Invaders from another dimension!" no one would believe me. I have to explain it well and change it into a story that everyone can believe.)
(...But I wonder what that means... When we think of invasions from other dimensions, normally it would involve scientific means to cross dimensions, dimensional gates, dimensional ships, demons, spiritual lifeforms, or something like that... But then, why are there mutant monsters and the like? And just when you think someone who seems to be the mastermind has finally appeared, it turns out to be a low-level robot that doesn't speak and isn't equipped with beam weapons...)
(Well, it's great that we now know that what happened was "intended" and that there is a clear antagonist, but we don't know anything else... What is the meaning and purpose of this act, which has been repeated many times since ancient times? Migration from a dying world? In search of slaves? In search of food and resources? And then there are things like, "The other side of the dimensional hole was actually this world in the future!" or, "That was a world colonized by our ancestors who left this world a long time ago!"...) (Mile's mind)
[... No, that's definitely not the case...] (Nano)
Nanomachines vibrated Mile's eardrums with an image of complete astonishment.
(Now, you're making a remark like that...) (Mile)
It seemed that the contents of Mile's internal discussion had gone beyond the realm of what Nanomachines couldn't interfere with, and his personal Nanomachines began speaking to her in their usual manner.
[But what a horrible scenario to imagine... Both of those are slaughter between the same kind. The former is a slaughter between ancestors and descendants, and no matter who wins, there will be no choice but extinction... That's so absurd and hopeless... huh? Though the probability is quite low, such a situation could occur? Seriously?!] (Nano)
Apparently, their conversation with Mile had been monitored, and the analysis results had arrived from somewhere called Nanomachines's central command center.
(There's a possibility...) (Mile)
[Apparently, the probability is less than one in ten thousand, right? But how could you come up with such an impossible scenario of hell? Are you a demon?!] (Nano)
It seemed like a harsh thing to say.
(No, in my previous world, it was a common occurrence...) (Mile)
[What kind of world is that?! It's worse than hell. That kind of world is the worst!] (Nano)
(...Well, it's not actually something that happened, it's just a story...) (Mile)
It seemed that Nanomachines was not just pretending to be surprised to cover up something, but was genuinely surprised.
It felt as if the world was approaching another deadline. Mile wanted a peaceful, ordinary, everyday life. Without people realizing it, the world was moving step by step towards that moment.