Death March to the Parallel World Rhapsody

Satou here. In ninja stories, clones are a common trope, but when I was a kid, I used to think, "If you can move fast enough to create clones, why not just attack directly?"

Maybe it’s the right strategy when dealing with projectiles.

◇

“I swear, there’s no danger.”

I’m fine on my own. The opponent is just level 30 after all. Besides, this time it’s not just physical attacks—there are magical attacks and magic defenses too.

“No way, I’m coming with you.”

That’s bad. The demon race have gone into the forest for now, but who knows when they’ll return. I want to keep Arisa-chan safe.

“If you say any more, I’ll ‘order’ you.”

“Try it, I won’t lose my maiden heart just because of your ‘orders.’”

I guess there’s no choice.

I really don’t want to give orders if I can avoid it.

“Arisa, this is an order. As I said before, go to the village and ask the village chief for the job. Stay there and wait for me.”

Saying that, I step down from the carriage.

From behind, I hear a heavy thud as something falls to the ground, followed by a short cry from Lulu.

When I turn around, I see Arisa crawling toward me, her face pale.

“I-I’m definitely coming with you. This time... I won’t... let you go alone... wah!”

Because she disobeyed the order, she’s not only suffering from the magical contract’s power but also it seems Arisa’s Collar of Servitude is physically tightening. The collars on the beast girls are merely ornaments, but Arisa’s and Lulu’s are true magical artifacts. Maybe because they were put on in the Kubork Kingdom.

No, this is no time to think about that. At this rate, Arisa might die.

“Arisa, I’m cancelling the order I gave just now.”

She’s gasping painfully. She’s reckless. What drives her to this? The collar has left red marks on her neck.

“Honestly, you’re such a reckless person.”

“Who’s being reckless? You jumped into the shadows trying to save Mia, and just recently, you risked yourself to lure out monsters almost twice your level to secure food for the children... I’m worried, so please don’t be reckless alone.”

Saying that, Arisa sheds tears.

Those tears and the phrase “almost twice the level difference” make me realize something.

Damn it.

This was completely unexpected.

Arisa is clever enough to notice that I’m hiding my skills, so naturally, she must have noticed the level deception too, and I mistakenly thought she was just pretending not to know.

Thinking back, this explains Arisa’s odd behavior all along.

Indeed, if a level 10 person charged at the leader of undead monsters over level 40 with an unknown unique skill, I’d be worried too.

Sorry for thinking you were just being an overprotective mother.

But this is a problem. If I tell her I’ve been hiding my level now, it’ll completely ruin Arisa’s pride.

I can’t make Arisa, who genuinely cares, look like a clown. Looks like I’ll have to take her along.

This is the penalty for causing her unnecessary worry. No matter how tough it gets, I have to protect at least Arisa no matter what.

“All right, Arisa, let’s go together.”

“Y-yeah, you should’ve said that from the start! If I’m with you, I’m worth a hundred men!”

Wiping tears with her sleeve, Arisa regains her usual spirit and boasts. Still, her vocabulary is so old-fashioned.

Arisa changes out of her mud-stained clothes and heads back to the carriage.

Now, who should I entrust to take her place? Internally, Liza is the best choice, but because of her race, she's at a disadvantage as a negotiator dealing with the insular villagers.

That leaves Lulu or Nana. I can’t imagine whimsical Tama doing negotiations, and silent Mia negotiating is as likely as the sky falling.

Ideally, Lulu would handle the negotiation and gain interpersonal skills, but since she’s naturally shy, that might be impossible.

Then it has to be Nana.

Her usual eccentric behavior and flat tone are a bit off, but she’s laid-back no matter who she deals with and she’s pretty to look at.