Mushoku Tensei — Chapter 112 - Aftermath, Returning Home

Everything ended over ten days ago.

Almost all the stones on Ariel's path to the throne had been swept clean. A few Apostles of the Man-God may have been killed along the way.

Next was simply waiting for the old king to die.

Luke, however, the one confirmed to be an Apostle of the Man-God, was spared.

According to Orsted, killing him would cause Ariel to collapse and never recover.

I didn't care either way. But the way this guy and his brother looked at Eris really pissed me off, so I had Aisha teach them a lesson.

Hmm...? Why does this whole family have a thing for Eris?

The moment that thought surfaced, any pity I might have felt for them evaporated completely.

If I could manage it, I'd make sure they left no descendants. Their entire family had filthy thoughts about Eris, which meant their descendants might carry the same thoughts toward the children Eris and I would have.

As for the lesson they received...

It was the classics. Break a finger, pull a nail, heal it with magic, then do it again.

[Which finger were you planning to use on Sister Eris?] [What exactly have you been imagining about Sister Eris in that head of yours?]

Not a shred of evidence for any of it. Aisha tormented the two brothers anyway.

By the end, their minds were nearly broken. I was the one who stepped in to treat them.

I'm something of a master in the mental domain now, after all.

Aisha's face was pure bliss the entire time.

As for why I didn't get involved personally...

My public standing is fairly distinguished at this point. Word getting out that I beat people with my own hands wouldn't exactly look good.

Pilemon... being Luke's father kept him alive. That said, I had my subordinates cut off his genitals and remove one of his eyeballs.

Because this man had coveted Eris. No, not just coveted. He'd actually acted on it.

He tried to exploit the crisis in Eris's territory to force her into becoming his concubine. I still remember that.

So I did what I did.

I have no taste for torture. I handed all of it to others and didn't even go to watch.

The report said they worked on him through the night. They took the eye last, then removed his genitals. Even through all of it, he kept begging for his life.

Nobles really are something.

That covers the handling of Luke's family. On to other matters.

Ruijerd was placed at Ariel's side as her personal guard.

He had no objections. It's a prestigious post, and at the very least, the reputation of the Sperd Tribe within the Asura Kingdom should improve because of it.

Ideally, some war would break out down the line, letting Ruijerd go in as a general and come out victorious. People are always drawn to heroes who are powerful and protect their country.

Eris went home right after everything wrapped up. No trouble at all, just one teleportation circle. Something we do all the time.

The riots in several cities across the Asura Kingdom also died down for a while after I publicly declared my support for Ariel. Before she became queen, Ariel was practically an idol to the common people.

......

After I finished reporting to Orsted, he nodded with satisfaction.

"Hmm. You didn't even need me to step in."

"Except for Reida at the very end, you gave me rough information on every enemy, their locations, their techniques, their timing. If I still needed you to step in after all that, I'd be pretty useless."

"You don't need to be so formal with me. We're friends, aren't we?"

"Even between friends, you're powerful enough that I'll still keep some reverence. I don't think there's anything wrong with that."

"Is that so? Is this how friendships work among humans?"

"Hmm... I think so. The way two people relate to each other doesn't have to be just one thing. You're my boss and my friend. As a friend, I can joke around with you. As a boss, I should be a bit more serious when I'm making a report. Don't you think?"

Orsted nodded. A smile broke across his face.

"You're right. I've been too rigid."

Then, as if something had just crossed his mind, he added one more line.

"What follows is concern from a friend. How is your mental magic research coming along? In the previous timeline, I never studied this magic myself, so I have no effective way to help you, Rudeus."

"It's going fairly smoothly. I still can't figure out how to untangle the mana threads inside the brain, but entering someone else's mind with mana isn't a problem anymore."

"Significant progress. If you need guidance, ask Nanahoshi. In a past life, the two of you developed this magic together."

"I've been doing that. Thanks for the concern."

The conversation ended. Orsted didn't teleport away like I expected.

Instead, he pulled a chair over and sat down, reached his hand into empty air, and drew out a bottle of wine and two cups. A flick of magic and both cups were full.

"Well? Care to have a drink with me?"

"What's gotten into you, boss?"

"I've seen that you and Nanahoshi strengthen your friendship this way. I thought I'd try it."

Orsted was becoming more and more like a person.

Maybe he genuinely was happy.

I smiled and nodded, taking the cup.

"What kind of wine is this?"

"I'm not entirely sure. But it's very old."

Old. His word for wine was old.

Hmm.

I didn't think about it. Just tipped the cup back and swallowed it all at once.

Sharp, but smooth underneath. And a sweetness that lingered on the way back up.

"Well?"

"Good wine. Better than what Nanahoshi and I drink by a margin I can't even measure."

"I'm glad you like it."

Orsted took a quiet sip, then refilled my cup.

We talked for a long time. Not about plans going forward, but about the previous timeline.

From the way Orsted described it, the me of that timeline had a pretty miserable run.

Never married anyone. Spent every day holed up with Nanahoshi researching magic. After healing Zenith, went to take revenge on Orsted and was killed by him in an instant.

A meaningless life.

Though, maybe not entirely without meaning.

At least it made a powerhouse like him remember me.

He said my magic research had opened his eyes.

If it were the me from that timeline hearing those words, I would have been certain he was mocking me.

......

Night.

The drinking session with the boss ended. I used teleportation magic to go home.

The moment I stepped through the door, Sylphie and Roxy came to meet me.

Sylphie's voice was gentle.

"Rudy? You've been drinking? With Miss Nanahoshi again?"

"No... it was with Orsted."

Roxy raised an eyebrow at that.

"Oh? Rudy actually got this drunk?"

"Yeah... his wine was... a little... I don't know how to describe it..."

"Do you need hangover soup?"

"Not really... it's just that right now I'm..."

Before I could finish, Roxy stepped closer.

She wrapped her arms around me. Whatever she sensed made her face flush red as a stove.

"Rudy... you're terrible."

"I think it's the wine's fault. If you two aren't in the mood right now, I'll go lie down in the room for a while. You can come in whenever."

A strange feeling.

I've always thought of myself as someone who could keep his desires in check. I've gotten drunk with Nanahoshi plenty of times before.

But this... this didn't feel like being drunk.

Foggy, hazy, and yet I really, really wanted to...

"Rudy~ I'll go get Eris. Tonight, the four of us together... think you can handle it?"

Sylphie said it like a tease, her hands moving slowly across my body.

"Hmm...? What kind of man says he can't?"

"Honestly, Rudy! Two years married and you're still like this..."

Roxy said it with a pout, then went to find Eris.

The three of them told me to go to the room first while they got ready.

I lay on the bed alone. A few minutes passed.

Then all three of my wives walked in, dressed with a certain kind of confidence, or more accurately, dressed in almost nothing at all.

➤ Next: Eris and the Girls' Night