Published: March 21, 2026
"Ah—Zeal, do you have a moment?"
After calming myself thoroughly on the deck, I went to the room Zeal had given me.
If I hadn't met Sato and Kyousuke on the deck, I might still be brooding. Talking with the two of them didn't make the tension vanish entirely, but it did loosen the tightness a little. Being with Amelia and the others was never painful, but everyone I’d met in this world still felt dreamlike and unreal. Talking with the two from my original world reminded me that I actually live somewhere real.
By the way, I’d stopped by Amelia’s room before coming here, but she was having a girls’ gathering with Amaryllis and Lord Lattice Nail over tea, so as a guy I retreated gracefully. Amelia looked at me with excited eyes, though—I hope she didn’t pick up any strange ideas from Lattice Nail.
When I knocked on Zeal’s door, I heard someone moving inside. Only one person’s presence, so no other visitors. Since I’d heard he came with the hero party, I’d expected one of them might be consulting him now, but that worry was unfounded.
"Akira-kun, is that you? It’s a bit messy, but please come in."
I peeked in after he answered, and saw Zeal caring for a sword that had been broken in the recent battle with an Ogre. The seam was visible about halfway down the blade, but the repair work was so excellent you wouldn’t notice it was ever broken at a glance—Crow’s skill was clearly responsible. A once-broken sword can never be relied upon in combat, no matter how perfectly mended, but I’ve known since before I started traveling with them how much Zeal treasured the blade he’d received from commander Saran. Thinking back, the last time I visited Zeal’s office to ask about commander Saran at Reytis Castle, he’d been carefully maintaining that same sword.
"Ah—no, sorry. It’s not urgent, I’ll come back—"
"No, I’m almost finished. Please, come in."
I opened the door widely and stepped into the room at Zeal’s invitation. He kept tending the blade without pause, and I sat on the made bed beside him.
"So, what’s on your mind?"
It’d been a long while since we spoke one-on-one like this. There were usually others around; even when we were in Beastmen territory I mostly kept to myself and didn’t talk with Zeal. Maybe the last time was back at Reytis Castle when commander Saran was still alive.
"Ah, well… I was just wondering what you’ve been doing."
I didn’t fully understand why I’d come. Hearing that commander Saran had been Demon Clan made me want to talk to Zeal again.
Zeal already knew Saran was Demon Clan, and had assumed Saran had told me too. Thinking it over, seeing Saran’s power had made me think more than once, "Isn’t this person enough on their own?" If Saran was Demon Clan, that made sense. After seeing other races across the continents I realized: anyone who can casually use the highest tier of light magic surely isn't human. I should’ve noticed earlier.
"Heh heh… You seem mature and composed, so you can be misleading, but you’re still a child at heart."
Zeal chuckled as he sheathed the sword he’d finished caring for.
Maybe I’d seemed unsettled, but was it laughable enough for that?
"So, you didn’t come to ask about this bag, did you?"
He must’ve seen I had no solid reason to visit and offered a helpful lead. He grinned mischievously and pointed at a large white sack in the corner—like one Santa Claus would carry. Zeal was different from how he’d been at Reytis Castle. This felt closer to his real self—something I couldn’t have imagined from the burdened man who’d served under commander Saran.
More than an acquaintance, he felt like an older brother or a comrade. I realized I hadn’t thanked Zeal for helping me when we left Reytis Castle. I hadn’t apologized or said anything at all.
"Y-yeah. So, what’s this? This bag?"
People like sailors, or heroes and Nanase, would probably handle this smoothly, but I don’t have many friends and no such skill.
At least I wanted to thank him before we reached Demon Clan territory.