Chapter 49

“You’re strong.”

“That’s my only redeeming quality.”

The Four Heavenly Kings might specialize in different areas, but their overall stats are pretty similar. Are all of them this strong?
Even with me as a weak link, I can’t believe Ido intended to fight three of them. I need to reevaluate just how dangerous he was.

“But this is troubling.”

“Did fighting right after returning throw you off?”

“No, that wasn’t the issue. It’s just… all I can do is defeat enemies like I did just now. If there are no more battles ahead, I have no way to serve the Demon Lord.”

“Well, isn’t that a good thing? If you don’t have anything to do, it means there aren’t any enemies to fight.”

“True, but… it doesn’t feel right to just sit idle. Maybe I should at least help out behind the scenes.”

If she’s willing to contribute, that might be a good idea.
Tasks like cleaning or making beds at Rigma’s inn wouldn’t cause any issues if a demon were to do them.

“…We’ve got enough staff, so there’s no need to push yourself.”

“But she seems eager to work.”

“True… But all my employees are human. Even behind the scenes, having a demon around could stir up trouble, don’t you think?”

“Oh, I see your point.”

“Right? Ripianem’s power is invaluable during emergencies. There’s no need to have her waste it on odd jobs.”

With that, Rigma headed back to the inn.
As usual, he doesn’t take things seriously, yet his work ethic is solid.

Still, that leaves Ripianem without anything to do.
Maybe she could help out at the store instead… No, back when it was just Tokito and Okui, that might’ve been fine. But now even the store has more beastfolk employees.
They’re surprisingly efficient and talented finds, but unlike the reincarnated duo, they aren’t working for the Demon Lord’s army by choice.

“Oh? Is something the matter, Lord Ray?”

“Ah, Primilla . Would it be alright if I asked you something?”

“? I’m not sure what you mean, but if it’s an order from you, Lord Ray, I will accomplish it.”

That’s reassuring to hear, but I’d rather she devote her loyalty to Lady Fiona.
She likely already does, though lately, Lady Fiona seems to be getting scolded by Primilla  most of the time…

Anyway, since she’s willing, let’s talk.

“Ripianem doesn’t have anything to do. Do you think she could help out with your fields?”

“…Unfortunately, that’s outside the range of ‘most things I can do.’”

“Huh? Are you saying there’s nothing left to do?”

“Yes… Well, that’s correct. So, I think it’s best for Ripianem to be given a different task.”

If the work’s all done, there’s no helping it.
Doing unnecessary things would only hinder the crops’ growth.

“This is tricky…”

“What’s wrong?”

“Oh, Pilkaya. Perfect timing.”

If Pilkaya’s here and relaxed, it must mean there’s no trouble with her surveillance.

In that case, Ripianem doesn’t seem needed there either.

“Can you stop giving up before saying anything? I can totally tell what you’re thinking.”

“Well, if we’re relaxed enough to chat like this, there’s no point in asking for help, right?”

“Isn’t the whole point of being free that you’d be available to help with something?”

“If anything, I’m the one looking for something to help with. It’s Ripianem who’s asking for a job.”

“Ah, I see.”

As soon as I explained, Pilkaya nodded in understanding.

“Well, I don’t think I have anything for her to help with. As you can see, I’m pretty free myself.”

“Exactly why I figured you wouldn’t need her help.”

“Fair enough.”

“Rigma and Primilla  don’t have much going on either. I’m at a loss here.”

“Hm, I see.”

The fact that none of the three Four Heavenly Kings have pressing tasks is proof of how smoothly things are going. That’s a good thing.

Still, there’s no way around it. I guess I’ll go with my original plan and have her help at Tokito’s store.

“Alright, I’ll ask her to help out at Tokito’s store.”

“Not sure how you arrived at that, but yeah, it’s worth giving a shot.”

Not entirely sure what she means, but since Pilkaya also agrees, I’ll take Ripianem to the store right away.

◇

“Dr-Dragon!!”

The moment Ripianem appeared, Okui shouted.

He recognized her quickly. Well, it’s not surprising—she does have dragon-like traits, like scales and a tail. But could it be more than that? …Wait, no, it makes sense. Ripianem is one of the Four Heavenly Kings. Could Okui possibly know about the game that serves as the basis for this world?

“Okui.”

“Y-Yes!!”

“Have you played the game?”

“Uh… y-yes. I gave up after Ripianem killed me multiple times, though…”

“What!? I have no memory of doing such a thing!”

Yeah, sorry, this is a bit confusing to explain. The mix of game-related talk and reality seems to have left Ripianem understandably bewildered.

“I was just saying that Ripianem is really strong.”

“Is that so? Hmm… well, in that case, I suppose there’s no need to dwell on it. After all, fighting is my only real strength.”

So Okui was a player of the game, huh…

“Okui, tell me everything you know about the game.”

“S-Sure! But, um, I never cleared it or anything, and I didn’t really dive that deep into it…”

“That’s fine. Just tell me what you can.”

“Well, for starters, it was an action RPG. The protagonist could be chosen from a variety of races, and the player would typically control a hero of the selected race. There was a level system where you could allocate points to stats like strength or magic after leveling up. But later in the game, the enemies got so strong that just leveling up wouldn’t cut it anymore…”

So, it required player skill in addition to grinding. That makes sense. That would also explain why even leveling up wouldn’t make someone like Lady Fiona as strong as the protagonist. No wonder the final boss was considered ridiculously hard.

“What about the protagonist’s goal or the ending?”

“I didn’t play all the way through, but I think the goal was always to defeat the Demon Lord, regardless of the protagonist chosen.”

“And what’s the reasoning or backstory behind trying to defeat the Demon Lord?”

“I’m sorry, I don’t know much… I think there was some explanation at the beginning about the Demon Lord being a threat to the world, but I’d never even seen her until now…”

Looks like I won’t be getting much useful information.

“But I did manage to reach Ripianem! Although I couldn’t complete any side events, I at least got as far as fighting the Demon Lord’s forces.”

“So you beat everyone else except Ripianem?”

“Y-Yeah… Primilla , Pilkaya, and Rigma all killed me more times than I can count.”

It seems that not only Lady Fiona but also the Four Heavenly Kings were formidable foes in the game. Still, if the other three could be beaten with effort, then Ripianem really must have been designed as the strongest of the Four Heavenly Kings.

“How were the Four Heavenly Kings defeated in the game?”

“Um, each of them attacked towns or villages along the way. For Primilla , it was tough because of her super armor, so I had to grind levels and overpower her. Pilkaya could be weakened by extinguishing nearby flames. As for Rigma, it was just a matter of grinding levels and overpowering him…”

“Grinding levels and overpowering, huh…”

“Everyone but Pilkaya was just ridiculously unforgiving…”

While I didn’t gain much new information, it’s clear Okui has some experience with the game. He may not have made it to Lady Fiona, but I’ll keep an eye on him just in case. I should probably warn Pilkaya as well.

“Umm… so why is she here at the store? D-Did something happen?”

Tokito, looking visibly nervous, asked.

Well, I can’t blame him. It’s not every day that a warrior known only for her combat prowess, and one of the Four Heavenly Kings at that, suddenly shows up. It’s natural to worry that you might have done something wrong.

“She’s Ripianem. I’ve asked her to help out at the store.”

“Wait… the strongest of the Four Heavenly Kings is working at a store?”

“No, she’s not handling the counter. Just use her for odd jobs.”

“Uh… okay…”

Okui looked utterly confused, and the beastman employee seemed completely lost. Surprisingly, only Tokito was calmly thinking about what tasks to assign her. He’s starting to show some resilience.

“Well then, Ripianem, could you start by arranging the items on that shelf?”

“Understood. Leave it to me.”

“Ah! Um, those bottles are fragile, so please be careful—”

“Understood.”

“…”

“…Sorry.”

“Why does the bottle break every time you touch it!?”

When Ripianem touched the potion bottles, they shattered. Even when she tried handling them gently after Tokito’s warning, they still broke. Just as Tokito exclaimed, every bottle Ripianem touched shattered.

“I’m not very good at controlling my strength. Even my sword is a special custom-made one that can withstand my power.”

Well, she is a dragon… Good thing I never tried shaking hands with her—she might’ve crushed me.

“But I’ll carry out the task I was given… Hmm.”

“It’s okay! I’m sorry for assigning you a task that didn’t suit you!”

Though she said not to worry, Ripianem continued picking up bottles. But this wasn’t a matter of worrying or not; it was a fundamental issue.

“See? Ripianem’s too clumsy to really be suited for most jobs.”

Pilkaya’s projection whispered to me as she watched.

“No wonder Rigma and Primilla  didn’t want to assign her any tasks…”

That said, what was that 99 listed under her technique stat? At this rate, she’s just a tragic monster unable to control her own power.

“Her swordsmanship is truly amazing, though.”

Could it be that her 99 technique stat was solely based on her sword skills? It’s hard to tell whether Ripianem is simply overpowered or if this is a flaw of the game world itself. Either way, I can’t quite wrap my head around it.