The next day, both of them left the inn and the royal capital. The destination, of course, was Grua, the royal capital of the Balmore Kingdom. Kaoru had a lot to check there. Yes, what happened to the people she wanted to cherish and protect? What happened to those people after Kaoru suddenly disappeared? She couldn't help but find out.
She was curious as to what happened after that incident. But that was nearly 70 years ago, and the incident was long over. Most of the people involved were no longer alive, either by execution or by old age. So, she could check that sort of thing later.
In this world, life expectancy was very short. High infant and maternal mortality rates, as well as high adult male mortality rates, were common, even in the absence of mass war deaths. So, the chances that Kaoru's acquaintances were still alive today were probably not that high. Perhaps it would be great if even 10% of them were still alive... But she couldn't help but check. The lives they lived after Kaoru disappeared. Their tracks... The children that she intended to protect, but failed to do so. The people that she intended to repay the kindness she received but were unable to do so. The lives of those people...
"Should we set off for the night?" (Reiko)
"Yeah. Well then, let's get off the road and go somewhere that can't be seen from the main road." (Kaoru)
Kaoru answered Reiko and moved to a place that was out of sight from the road, where they wouldn't be targeted by suspicious people...
Pong!
Kaoru took out a tent from her item box.
"Ah, I haven't put anything in yet. I need to get some water, food, and other necessities in soon..." (Reiko)
"Eh?" (Kaoru)
When Reiko saw Kaoru took a tent out of the item box, she said something that made Kaoru look surprised.
"...Do you have an item box...?" (Kaoru)
"Yeah. Ah, I can get water, but it's a pain to have to use magic every time. It's more convenient to just put it in a suitable container and take it out of the item box..." (Reiko)
"Yeah, I understand that... wait, the ability to make potions too? That's plagiarism!" (Kaoru)
Kaoru sulked, thinking that she had racked her brains to come up with such a solution. Besides, that would mean the characters would be completely identical. No, it's not like it's a problem. It's not like it's a problem, but...
"No, what I was given was a different ability. One that allows me to use any kind of magic without any restrictions..." (Reiko)
"That's cheating!!!" (Kaoru)
"I don't want Kaoru to say that to me!!" (Reiko)
Then Kaoru heard from Reiko about what happened on Earth after that.
...However, she made sure to warn Reiko not to talk about her family.
She would never see them again. Even if she knew they were in a difficult situation, there was nothing she could do. Even if they had suffered a misfortune, there was nothing she could do now. If it were her now, she could easily heal the injuries and illnesses, but she couldn't do anything...
In that case, it would be better to just not know anything and assume that everyone lived happily ever after. Also, it's possible that the Earth God helped the family out of their real predicament a little as an apology. So it's best to remain ignorant.
To the people of that world, she was a dead person for a long time. She said goodbye back then. So, the image of her family that she pictured in her mind was fine the way it was back then...
It wasn't strange for Kaoru to think that.
"But why are you chasing me anyway?" (Kaoru)
"What's that?" (Reiko)
Reiko snapped at Kaoru's spontaneous monologue.
"Even if you ask me why, it's obvious. That's..." (Reiko)
"Why?" (Kaoru)
"I'm Reiko Kuon. I'm Kaoru Nagase's best friend, you know!" (Reiko)
"……fool……" (Kaoru)
And they exchanged information with each other.
"Yeeeeeah! Kyo-chan is coming toooo!!"
"Yeah. That's because we're all three together, right!"
Kyoko was a typical modern girl. Kaoru was actually smart and considerate, but was treated as a tough person because of the way she looked. And then there's Reiko, who was harsh and bitter, wearing the mask of a quiet and timid literary girl. When the three of them get together, they were invincible against all the men who picked on them, the scammers, the teachers who sexually harassed them, and the seniors who bullied their juniors! With the support of their classmates and younger girls, they defeated all the evils!
"We are the guardians of the school, KKR!!" (Both of them)
By the way, "KKR" was an abbreviation of the initials of Kaoru, Kyoko, and Reiko. It was not the "National Civil Service Mutual Aid Association[1]" or anything like that.
"Gyaaaaaaaaahhh!!" (Both)
And so, for Kaoru it was the first time in several years, and for Reiko it was the first time in decades, that they had accidentally made the "KKR name," a symbol of their dark history, and Kaoru and Reiko rolled around on the floor, clutching their heads in their hands...
"...Haa haa haa, that was quite a lot of damage, right...?"
"I thought I was going to die..."
And finally, Kaoru and Reiko managed to recover from the intense damage.
"...But Reiko, you're an old lady now, right? So why are you still the same as you were before?" (Kaoru)
Reiko answered Kaoru's natural question briefly.
"Ah, that? I was curious about that too, so I asked the God of the Earth. He said that 'the exhaustion of a consciousness is brought about by the wear and tear caused by the individual's mental health, and the aging of the physical body.' In other words, it seems that either the mind wears out, or it is dragged down by the deterioration of the body and brain. And when we die, we are freed from the yoke of the body, our soul regains vitality, and our consciousness dissipates..." (Reiko)
"Were we salvaged before that?" (Kaoru)
"Yes, that's right. It also replenished my consciousness with something like energy, so I'm in great health! In other words, it's like removing the CPU from an old, rickety PC, cleaning it up, and putting it in a new PC. ...Ah, it seems that Kaoru didn't need that, so you were reincarnated just as you were, right? Well, that's why I feel like I have the same enthusiasm as when I was young, but with decades of knowledge and memories. I knew I would come to this world, so I studied a lot of different subjects for that. Chemistry, physics, mechanical engineering, politics, economics, and so on. So now I am..." (Reiko)
"...Lolibaba?" (Kaoru)
"You too..." (Reiko)
"Grrrrrrrrr..." (Both)
"Aha."
"Huha."
"Ahahahahaha!!" (Both)
No matter how many years passed, Reiko was still Reiko. One of Kaoru's only two best friends...
"Oh, are your glasses still on?" (Kaoru)
"Yeah. Of course, my eyesight has been corrected. So, they're just fashion glasses though. They don't have any prescription." (Reiko)
"Eh? Then why are you wearing it?" (Kaoru)
"That one is..." (Reiko)
"That one?" (Kaoru)
"Because it's cool, you know!!" (Reiko)
"…………" (Kaoru)
However, Kaoru had a hunch. Maybe this was for her own good, she thought. This had been the situation for their 10-year relationship since junior high school. Reiko wore glasses and Kaoru had a mean look in her eyes. So, when they met again, she still had her glasses on. ...sure Kaoru would still have that mean look in her eyes...
"Shut up!!" (Kaoru)
Reiko smiled brightly at Kaoru, who suddenly shouted out without permission. Of course she could guess what Kaoru was thinking. After all, they'd been best friends for a long time...
Author's Note
I will be taking a summer break from updating Narou for two weeks, next week and the week after.
...Well, when I say "vacation," I actually mean working on the publication of volume 12 of "Noukin," working on the publication of "Roukin" and "Potion," writing an original novel for the comics, a bonus novel for the Blu-ray disc, a Narou manuscript to be completed after the vacation, and various other things...
But how is that a "vacation"?! (^^)/
Well, that's how it is...
I really want to take a break for at least 2-3 days... 〇|￣|＿
Translation Note
[1] 国家公務員共済組合連合会 (Kokka-kōmuin kyōsai-kumiai rengō-kai)