The place that Nein brought them to was like a catchall space.
Between the buildings, a dead space had formed.
In a space about the size of a small park, there was a house made of gathered junk (like a secret base made by children), and as the three approached, a girl who looked a bit older than them appeared.
โHey, welcome back?โ
โYeah, Iโm back.โ
โWhoa, whoa, whoa! Why are you bringing unrelated men and women back here? I had no idea we had such plans!?โ
โIt was a spontaneous event that I picked up.โ
โHey! Stop acting on such whims! Thatโs how you bring ruin upon yourself!โ
After the commotion, the girl muttered โCanโt be helped,โ and went back towards the house.
Then she returned with a tray carrying teacups and offered them to Kevin and Clay, saying, โItโs just plain tea.โ
โItโs really just plain tea, donโt expect much from the taste.โ
โHey, stop saying that, it makes us look stupid for drinking it all the time!โ
โTastes bad, another cup!โ
โAnd you, the cute one over there, youโre quite forward, huh!? Asking for seconds even though you said it tastes bad!โ
โMy shabby dad always said to take whateverโs free.โ
โI donโt think thereโs a need to drink something bad on purpose, you know.โ
Clay, who was quickly getting used to the place, shuddered, while the somewhat shy Kevin cautiously sipped the thin tea.
โฆIt was damn bad.
Despite being thin, it had a mysterious bitterness and astringency, but it wasnโt undrinkable.
He endured and drank a cupful of tea, then handed it back to the girl, saying, โโฆHere.โ
โGot it!โ
Somehow, she filled his cup to the brim and handed it back.
โโฆโ
โHuh? You didnโt want seconds?โ
โItโs you whoโs weird for asking for more.โ
โEhen!โ
โIโm not praising you.โ
Confused, he ended up drinking the tea with tears in his eyes.
Then, the older girl introduced herself again.
โMy name is Stella.โ
She said.
โIโm a magical girl as a hobby.โ
โAnd we are the champions of justice.โ
The boy, Nein, added.
โWell, weโre the top two of an organization called the Childrenโs Alliance, which sounds pretty weak.โ
โWow! That means you have a lot of members, right?โ
โNo, just the two of us.โ
โEh?โ
โIncluding us, two people.โ
That means there are no membersโฆ
And as if sensing what Kevin was thinking, the girl who called herself Stella said shyly, โWell, weโre recruiting members for now,โ but who would want to join a group of champions of justice that no one knows what they do,
โSo, if I join, Iโll be effectively in the top three!โ
โHey.โ
โAnd Kevin, youโll be one of the four heavenly kings!โ
Clara said excitedly, not knowing what to say, and not knowing where to start with so many questions.
So, he decided to ask, โWhat exactly is evil, the champions of justice?โ but Stella and Neinโs expressions changed dramatically at that question.
Serious mode.
โโฆHave you two noticed the evil thatโs spreading through this city?โ
They started talking like conspiracy theorists.
โIn this city, Neon City, thereโs an evil organization thatโs manipulating the flow of people behind the scenes and trying to rule the world.โ
It was a real conspiracy theory.
Kevin was apprehensive, and Claraโs eyes sparkled.
โWell, itโs hard to describe the organization as simply โevil,โ but that โThirteen Stepโโฆโ
โโฆThe Thirteen Step? The one that often comes up in the TV sponsor slots?โ
โThatโs probably the โThirteenth Paradise.โ Theyโre like a subsidiary of the Thirteen Step.โ
โHmm?โ
โThe so-called โThirteenthโ group is everywhere, and if you live in Neon City, itโs almost impossible not to benefit from them.โ
Stella explained, and Kevin thought, โThen theyโre just a normal big corporation, not bad guys, right?โ But since Claraโs eyes were shining even more next to him, he decided not to say anything.
โThe problem is. The โThirteen Stepโ operates on utilitarianismโcutting off the happiness of some for the happiness of the majority, and as a result of doing that for many years, some of it is now out of controlโฆ You both know that thereโs been an increase in terrorism lately, right?โ
โYeah, I know. My dad also said itโs dangerous lately, so donโt go out late at night.โ
โThey call themselves โThe Resistance.โ But the fact that theyโre causing trouble for ordinary people makes what theyโre doing extremely โevil.โโ
โAnd the troublesome thing is that the โThirteen Stepโ seems to see even that as part of the natural order, and theyโre ignoring the damage and losses caused by it as part of the โhappiness to be cut off.โโ
โHmm?โ
Iโm getting confused.
I donโt understand utilitarianism.
I think itโs good to pursue the happiness of many, but Iโm not sure if itโs right for some people to be unhappy for that, but is there an easy way for everyone in this world to be happy?
And the resentment that arises from that.
I can understand that it would explode, but that doesnโt mean itโs okay to cause trouble for others.
The โThirteen Stepโ seems to treat a series of incidents as โignorableโ problems.
โItโs like, you know.โ
โYeah.โ
โI think thatโs something adults should think about.โ
โโฆWell, thatโs what youโd think.โ
Clara was saying, โWhat are you talking about, weโre the champions of justice!โ but Nein said without concern.
โThe Childrenโs Alliance, or rather, what weโre doing is making sure kids like us donโt have a bad time. Thatโs why we go to places where terrorism is likely to happen and guide children so they donโt get involved.โ
โDonโt you suggest anything to adults?โ
โAs I said earlier, most of the institutions in this city are under the influence of the โThirteen Step,โ so everything is ignored. Besides, the police are only supposed to โeliminate abnormalities,โ and โpreventing abnormalitiesโ is completely outside their job.โ
โYou might think itโs inflexible, but very few people like their jobs. Everyone is doing it reluctantly for their own happiness, and no adult thinks the job itself is happiness.โ
โThat isโ
He thought of his mother.
She works hard and bravely, but he knows she doesnโt enjoy it.
And that itโs necessary for them to live.
โฆAs a child, thereโs little he can do for his mother.
And the thought that his mother might be on the side of โhappiness to be cut offโ for the โhappiness of manyโ โฆ
โCanโt we do somethingโฆ?โ
Nein dismissively cut off Kevinโs murmur, โAdults rarely listen to what children say.โ
โThatโs why we, who have no social status, need to offer something appropriate to get adults to listen to our opinions.โ
โCompensationโฆ?โ
โThatโs what we were about to go get.โ
Nein said with a grin, and Stella hurriedly tried to shut him up.
โDonโt involve us without permission!โ
โBut this guy is โspecial,โ you know that, right, Stella?โ
โThatโs true, butโฆโ
โAnd they followed us of their own will. So, we have to ask them to help us with what we can do.โ
Again.
Nein turned to us and said, โWe want one thing,โ and pulled out a map (old and tattered, stained in places) from his pocket.
โWeใปwantใปtheใปholyใปsword.โ
โโฆThe holy sword?โ
โDonโt you know about it?โ
As if it was something he should have known, Kevin tilted his head, puzzled.
โWhy?โ
โโฆWell, if you donโt know, it means you havenโt been told, so I wonโt sayโฆ But now weโre talking about this.โ
He pointed to a part of the map and said, โThere used to be a โThirteen Stepโ factory here.โ
โI donโt know what was going on or what they were doing. But I know there was a holy sword here, but a long time ago, a natural disaster like a heavy rain closed the factory, and the holy sword seems to have been lost.โ
โOh, there was a time when there was a local downpour.โ
โAnd Iโve found where the lost holy sword is supposed to be.โ
Nein smiled slyly and pointed to a different place.
โThereโs a shop that seems to have opened recently at this location. There was a reaction to the holy sword there. I donโt know what kind of shop it is because itโs quite simple, but well, theyโre not making anything good.โ
โThe holy sword, huh.โ
Clara said, tilting her head as if she didnโt understand, and said what she was thinking.
โWhen you say holy sword, thatโs what comes to mind. The holy cucumber swordโitโs popular on the internet, and I want to try it too. Maybe Iโll ask my dad to buy it online once.โ
โHuh? Is that kind of weird thing popular now?โ
โBy the way.โ
Kevin, who had been looking at the map and checking what kind of store it was on his smartphone, reported the search results with a very calm expression.
โThat store, where the holy sword is supposed to be. It seems to be making that holy cucumber sword.โ
โโฆHuh?โ