Black Iron Magician

「Phew~….」

「Gobu~….」

I took a breath in the hot spring with Gobuo. This is what Japanese people need after all. The stiffness in my shoulders, which is considered to be a national disease, was relieved, and I felt a tremendous wave of liberation that seemed to release me from all my suffering. It would be great if someone could give me a massage after getting out of the bath.

「The first person I should ask is probably Nell, but it’s scary if she makes a mistake. Alezel is out of the question. I guess the appropriate ones are Haru and Chinatsu, huh.」

「Gobu.」

「Hm? Ah, I can also ask Gobuo, huh. You handle everything above average, so I can trust you. I really wish that a certain maid would follow your example.」

Since we came to Damaya, Lilyvia’s life has become based on sleeping at the inn. Her excuse is that it’s tiring to act with Alezel. Still, it’s a hassle if it becomes a habit. Let’s take her next time.

「Lily is no good. I don’t know what kind of mess she will cause if she’s in her usual self. If I can get her to act as a professional masseuse, she’s probably the best, but… she will get another excuse to slack off, so it’s a no. Who’s left is Touko, huh. Hm? Isn’t she suitable for it?」

Touko can control ki

, so she seems to be able to push the acupoints pretty well. Furthermore, from the perfect state of Lilyvia, techniques such as massage and acupressure should have been taught. Isn’t it worth considering?

「Gobbuu, gobugobu?」

…… I don’t understand what Gobuo is talking about, but I feel like he’s trying to point out something. ‘You, why the hell did you naturally think of asking a high school girl to give you a massage?’ something like that. In the first place, Gobuo doesn’t know the word high school girl, so there’s no way he would say something like that. I guess the ones who made me feel that were my reason and conscience.

「On second thought, I’ll ask you, Gobuo. My~, getting used to something sure is scary.」

「Gobu!」

Spending time with those three has become a normal thing, so I wasn’t even aware of that. If I think it calmly, it is strange to ask Touko who’s clearly aiming for me.

「――!?」

When I was lost in thought while relaxing, I suddenly felt a chill. Nothing happened to me, but I just felt a shiver run down my spine.

「…… A bad premonition at a time like this usually always comes true.」

「Gobuu.」

Now, let’s guess why I felt the chill.

For example, when exposing Sango-han, Alezel makes a blunder and causes trouble. Hmm, I don’t think that’s the case. Alezel is someone who’s likely to survive even if I or Nell are seriously going to kill her. Besides, I don’t think something like that will happen in Damaya, her base. Above all, the chill I felt earlier was for me. If it was for Alezel, I wouldn’t have such a premonition.

Then, is a misfortune going to befall me? Is Gobuo going to make a mistake when he’s massaging me? No, it’s even more unlikely that Goubo would make a mistake. Is Chinatsu going to collapse because of her worries? I’m afraid that might happen, but she should have refreshed yesterday. And once again, the chill was for me. Then, Nell was actually awake when the girls were playing tag――

「―― If that’s the case, it’s going to be quite disastrous. There’s a saying that tragedy calls for tragedy. Gobuo, collect my ashes later, okay?

「Gobu?」

Kapoon, a very nice sound echoed as if it was the proof of the correct answer.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

After enjoying the bath, I left the bathroom and prepared myself. Wearing a yukata, that was prepared together with the towel, I and Gobuo jumped out triumphantly. However, there’s no one. As expected, it seems that none of the women have come out yet. Alright, my life is saved.

「It’s better to wait in a place that’s easy to find…. Let’s borrow that sofa. Gobuo, since we have the time, can I ask you to message me?」

「Gobu!」

I asked Gobuo, who’s also wearing a yukata, and lay down on the spacious and fluffy sofa. Ooh, this is quite good…! The performance of Gobuo, who’s being employed using Haru’s dark magic, is very much influenced by Haru’s competency. I’m feeling my disciple’s growth through Gobuo, and it also reduces the burden on my body. Hah, I sure am an exemplar master.

「…… Excuse me. Can I sit next to you?」

When I was impressed by the comfort of Gobuo’s acupressure and the goodness of my usual behavior while closing my eyes, I heard a man’s voice. Well now, this place should have been reserved today.

「Hmm? Well, the sofa is spacious. Isn’t it fine?」

「Then, I’ll take your offer.」

「Gobuu.」

A faint sound of sitting on the sofa was heard, and then there was a little silence. When I was silently hoping that he would leave without doing anything, the man sitting next to me started to open his mouth. What a hassle.

「You’re not surprised that I was here and came into contact with you, huh.」

「Well, I could feel your presence after all. I was a little surprised to see you in a yukata, though.」

It was the eye-patched man whom I met at the casino of Sango-han. Please don’t wear a yukata with that veteran look on your face. Because of the gap, I can only think that he’s joking around.

「My presence, huh? I thought I had erased it to the extent that the people who work here would not notice.」

「Hey, don’t compare me to ordinary people. Don’t you feel sad when you say that yourself?」

「Hmm, you’re right…」

「So, what do you want? If you don’t say it quickly, the scary women will come back, you know?」

Well, I’m sure some of them have already noticed him. Since they don’t come here, it means that they are going to let him swim.

「Then, I’ll be brief. The next time you visit Sango-sama, I would like you to make some preparations. No matter what happens, I would like you to be able to respond on the spot.」

「So, Sango has decided to resist to the bitter end, huh. Is he getting carried away because he’s hiring Japita’s mercenaries?」

「….. Well now, I don’t know what you’re talking about. Sango-sama is just concerned about the state of this city, and we just want to make sure that things are judged fairly and impartially.」

「If you want to be fair and impartial, why did you come in without permission?」

「I apologize for that. It was because I had no time to meet with you personally.」

The eye-patched man stood up quickly and turned his body toward the entrance.

「Where does that confidence come from? The opponent is Alezel, the Great Eight Demons and the one who controls money, you know? Here’s some advice from me, it’s not too late to cancel the request from Sango. If you fail, it’s going to be incredibly hard to live, you know?」

「…… I’m not a mercenary, so I don’t understand what you’re talking about. I don’t understand, but for those who have lived on the battlefield for a long time, the exchange of life that occurs during the moment is irreplaceable, isn’t it? Positions are irrelevant there, and only strength can be the perfect spice. Those Japita’s mercenaries must be longing for that.」

After that, the man disappeared from this place without sound.

「…… Hey, he stole the yukata.」