Mushoku Tensei — Chapter 158 - Wrap-up, If

With that battle behind us, let me catch you up on where things stand.

Ruijerd returned to the Asura Kingdom to continue serving as Ariel's bodyguard. The entire Superd Race would eventually relocate there, though they'd be settling in the surrounding forests rather than the city itself.

Ariel guaranteed they'd receive the treatment and respect of ordinary citizens. The only condition was that their warriors fight for her when called upon.

At Norn's request, I ended up speaking on their behalf. I'm not particularly fond of the Demon Race, but... what can I do? Norn's in love with Ruijerd.

The final terms we reached were these: the Superd Race would serve as sentinels in the forests surrounding the Asura Kingdom. If monsters appeared, they'd clear them out. And if war broke out, and the Asura Kingdom was the side being invaded, the Superd Race must provide assistance.

Those terms were thoroughly favorable to the Superd Race.

Think about it. If the Asura Kingdom were invaded, they'd be living right there in those forests anyway. They'd have to fight regardless. That condition was practically redundant.

The Superd Race chieftain agreed, naturally. He'd agreed to the original terms too, actually. Norn was the one who hadn't.

She's the reason I ended up at the negotiating table in the first place.

------

After the battle, North God III issued another challenge to Orsted. I genuinely have to respect the man.

Aisha calls herself Orsted's disciple. North God III couldn't even match Aisha in technique, and he still dared to challenge Orsted.

The result goes without saying. Orsted put him down in an instant, and then he pledged himself to Orsted's service.

A joyous occasion, truly. Orsted finally has a subordinate he can actually use.

I've always thought of myself as his subordinate, but Orsted doesn't like it when I make myself small. So these days we just call each other friends.

------

Paul and Keith.

Paul said that Keith wasn't exactly his closest brother. But those adventuring days, they were joyful. Full of life.

Those memories were irreplaceable. Without that time, Paul couldn't have become the man he is today.

So Paul and Ghislaine buried Keith's body together, properly and with care. Keith's sword was nothing special. Just an ordinary sword, the kind you could pick up at any blacksmith's shop.

Plain and ordinary.

But then, Keith was never really a swordsman anyway.

Paul buried the sword alongside him.

"May you, in your next life, truly do what you wish to do. Become the person you wish to be."

He spoke those words, and then he let Keith go.

--------

Finally, Aisha.

Once I'd wrapped up most of the loose ends, Aisha insisted — strongly — that I come with her on a proper adventure. Taking quests. Just for fun.

She wouldn't even see my daughters. Said it wouldn't be too late to meet them after we got back.

She said it would be adventuring and taking quests for fun, and that's exactly what it was.

Some of the quests we took were literally just helping people find their cats and dogs.

When those came up, Aisha and I would wander through the marketplace eating street food while keeping a half-hearted eye out. That was the whole job.

At night, she wouldn't let me leave.

It was like this every day. No teleportation circle home, no exceptions.

We stayed at inns. Slept in the same room.

In two separate beds, I should add. I was genuinely relieved about that.

Aisha really has grown up. Back in the day, she would've thrown a fit until she got to share a bed with me.

At this particular moment, we were near a marketplace in the northwestern part of the Ranoa Kingdom.

No active quests. Just wandering.

"Brother~ say ahh~"

Aisha held out a skewer toward my mouth.

I opened up and ate it without thinking.

It's been several years since we were last together like this, but the two of us slipped back into our old rhythm without missing a beat. Every little interaction felt exactly like it used to.

And this skewer, too.

How does the flavor not change even after all these years?

"Well?"

"What do you mean, well. It tastes the same as always."

"Doesn't it make you nostalgic?"

"Not particularly. I've had some when I took my daughters to the market."

"Ehh~ you're no fun at all."

Aisha made an adorably disgruntled sound and finished off the rest of the skewer in one go.

Then she looped her arm through mine.

"Brother~"

"What?"

"Nothing~"

I patted her on the head.

What was I feeling, exactly?

My little sister was 22 years old now. Her hair had grown long, reaching her waist, loose and falling freely around her. Her face had nothing childlike left in it.

But she still looked plenty cute to me.

Because she's my little sister.

Though I did have to wonder — did she actually realize she was 22?

People on the road kept glancing our way. I'm fairly recognizable at this point.

Under normal circumstances, I don't attract that much attention. But right now, Aisha was walking arm-in-arm with me. People were going to look.

My three publicly known wives, the common folk all know them by their hair colors. Aisha, though...

Aisha was famous alongside me for a stretch, years ago. But she was 16, maybe 17 back then.

Now she was 22 and looked the part. No surprise that people didn't recognize her anymore.

"Brother! There's a wedding up ahead!"

Aisha yanked my arm and pulled me straight toward the church.

A Milis church. A Milis faith wedding, huh.

Worth observing, actually.

Norn follows the Milis faith. If she ever holds a wedding, this is probably what it would look like.

With that thought in mind, I wanted to go inside.

There were guards at the entrance.

"Name? Which side are you a guest of?"

"Rudeus Greyrat. As for which side... I'm not a guest. I'd simply like to observe. Could you ask the bride and groom if that's alright?"

"L-Lord Rudeus! Of course! I'll go ask right away!"

The guard snapped a salute and sprinted into the church.

Aisha nudged me in the side with her elbow.

"Brother~ that's an abuse of power, you know~"

"I asked whether we could come in and observe. They can absolutely say no."

"Hehe~ anyone who can book a Milis church for their wedding is either nobility or at the very least a wealthy merchant. A merchant might be fine, but nobility? After hearing your name? They couldn't turn you away if they tried. They'd be frightened half to death."

"Oh... when you put it that way..."

Right. I may have done something stupid.

Their wedding day. Their most important day. If they were nobility, they'd spend the whole ceremony terrified of me.

Aisha noticed me going quiet and stepped in.

"Look, once we're inside, we'll just slip into the back row and watch. They won't even have to think about us."

"Fair enough."

Predictably, we were invited inside.

The couple, as it turned out, were not nobility.

When they saw us, they were nothing but warm.

They were merchants. In their early years, their business was transporting monster materials. To avoid monster attacks, they stuck to the established trade roads that merchants had always used.

But those same roads were prime territory for bandits. Which meant hiring adventurers. Which was not cheap, a long haul, and they had to cover food on top of it.

That all changed after I dismantled the slave trade. Bandits thinned out. Then disappeared entirely.

It made sense. A lot of the slave traders had tried to flee into the bandit networks to survive. I'd swept through those too while I was at it.

After the purge, Ariel and the King of the Ranoa Kingdom noticed how well commerce was performing. They partnered up and began stationing troops along the trade routes to keep them running smoothly.

The merchants captured most of the benefit. No more adventurers needed.

"My wife and I are truly grateful to you, Lord Rudeus! There are even figurines of you for sale in the markets now! The likeness isn't quite right, but we bought one anyway. It has a place of honor at home."

The groom said this with feeling. The bride nodded quietly beside him.

"A place of honor... really isn't necessary."

Unlike the common folk who tended to go wide-eyed and reverent around me, this man carried himself easily. Confident without being showy.

Merchant through and through. He'd traveled too many countries and met too many people to be rattled by a name.