Chapter 176: A Stolen Bike* (1)

「Her Majesty, Lady Carmilla, hopes to see you. She believes that the hero and the goddess’ arrival will change this turbulent world. 」

「Queen Carmilla…」

I muttered after hearing John Dae’s words. Queen Carmilla had no way of knowing that I was the reincarnation of Princess Tiana. Still, my mother from my previous life was trying to help me even in this twisted world.

…Mother…

I was so touched that I felt like crying. But…the hero beside me was full of doubts.

「Aren’t you just trying to take advantage of us by saying nice things? 」

John Dae glared at Seiya when he said those words.

「I acknowledge your skill in killing Bunos. However, I don’t like your nasty attitude. I don’t think you are the hope that Lady Carmilla seeks. 」

Suddenly, John Dae shifted his gaze from Seiya to me.

「She’s not very divine even though she’s a goddess. Our Highness, Princess Tiana, has a much more elegant and lovely aura. 」

「What!? 」

I was furious at this odd turn. Such rude words! Moreover, I wasn’t Princess Tiana in the first place!

「John Dae! No matter how much you like me, I will never like you back! 」

「…!? Wait, I never said that I liked you, did I!? 」

I felt relieved when I heard his response. I spilled those words knowing that John Dae had feelings for Princess Tiana. Oh no! I had to be more careful!

「What kind of head do you have! You’re far from being divine, you’re arrogant! 」

John Dae looked at me with disdain. However, Seiya was still our Seiya, and he looked at John Dae as if he were staring at an idiot.

「Why aren’t you worried about yourself? You revealed your identity out in the open and even talked about something as important as that. What are you going to do if Leon is eavesdropping our conversation? 」

「Ah…Now that you mention it. Seiya, are you using Automatic Phoenix? 」

「I’m making sure there are no drones in the sky. 」

「Thank goodness…but that means it’s okay to talk! 」

「I’m just baffled at this guy’s recklessness. 」

When Seiya told him that, John Dae snorted, 「Hmph」.

「You fool. Of course I take preparations before doing something. And I know for a fact that the Principality of Galvano doesn’t have any other sky scouting technology. 」

「How can you affirm that? 」

「It was Tarmine who lent Bunos that scouting weapon. 」

「What…! 」

I was at a loss for words. Eich also furrowed her eyebrows and turned to John Dae.

「What a strange thing to say! Whose side are you on? 」

「I’m an ally of the world if I have to put it into words. Tarmine is advancing its own plan for world peace. 」

「What do you mean by an ally of the world? 」

「I can tell you this much. Queen Carmilla is trying to sign a treaty with the Principality of Galvano in order to form an alliance. 」

「A…Alliance!? 」

「The Kingdom of Tarmine and the Principality of Galvano…! 」

Eich’s eyes widened in shock, and Colt, who was usually calm, looked astounded. Seiya spoke.

「So you provided the scouting weapon to Bunos as a preliminary step? 」

「That’s right. First of all, I was planning to form a friendly relationship with that fat guy who seemed easy to control. But you did something embarrassing like murdering Bunos when you first appeared. Killing Bunos will hinder our plans. Why are you trying to solve everything by force, you barbarians? 」

「Who are the barbarians here! Look at yourself! We almost got into trouble because of that drone or scouting plane of yours! 」

John Dae shrugged his shoulders at Eich’s words. No matter how angry young Eich got, John Dae just pretended like she didn’t exist. He talked to Seiya instead.

「Hey. These terrorists are your comrades, right? 」

「Well, that’s right. They’re comrades whose corpses are disposable. 」

「I’ve never heard of you, but you’re such a disgusting person. But if you’re a comrade of theirs, I can’t just ignore you. You guys should all pack up and leave for Tarmine. 」

「We’re also going to Tarmine…? 」

Caron muttered and looked at Father Luke. Colt walked up to John Dae with a serious face.

「Will our town be saved if a treaty is signed? 」

「The tyranny of Galvano is largely due to the military expenditures required to fight against the great powers of each country. If an alliance with Tarmine is established, military expenditures will be reduced through cooperation between the two countries. I’m sure the lives of those who live in the lower strata of Galvano will get better. 」

「What an outrageous thing to say! There are children in this town who are starving! It seems you don’t care about them…」

Colt put his hand on Eich’s shoulder as she screamed.

「Eich. Let’s go to Tarmine. 」

「Huh!? Brother, are you buying this guy’s story!? 」

「It will be great if the situation can be improved without bloodshed. Also, if nothing changes after the treaty agreement, then we can resume our actions. 」

「Ah, yes…If brother says so…」

Eich lowered her head. Father Luke and Caron looked confused by Colt’s conclusion. They were probably wary of John Dae’s sudden proposal. On the other hand, Seiya seemed to be contemplating about something with his eyes firmly closed.

「Seiya? 」

When I spoke to him, Seiya opened his eyes after a while.

「Tarmine…I guess we can’t avoid it after all. 」

『I would like to avoid it if possible. 』 I could understand what he meant and also his thoughts. There was Princess Tiana in Tarmine of this twisted Exfolia…me from my previous life. I had a premonition that something was likely to happen even if Seiya was extremely cautious.

…Still, I…

I wanted to meet Princess Tiana. More than half of it was curiosity. I had no memory of when I was Princess Tiana since I was reincarnated as a goddess. There was no way that I wouldn’t care about who I was when I was human. However, Princess Tiana’s personality could be different from the real one since this was a twisted world after all.

…Tarmine! I was worried, but I wanted to go! And… I wanted to meet her! Princess Tiana!

John Dae looked around at us and disappeared behind a tree without saying a word. Eventually, there was a rough sound. John Dae appeared with a shiny black motorcycle.

「Let’s go to Tarmine now, so get ready. 」

「Hey, wait. All of a sudden? 」

「Hurry up, girl. You have a car, right? Follow me on my motorcycle. 」

Colt nodded and went to get the car. However, Seiya raised one hand and signaled to Colt.

「…Mister Seiya? 」

Seiya approached John Dae. Then, he carefully observed the motorcycle that John Dae was riding on.

「Is it a naked type**? It’s a good motorcycle. 」

「Yeah. It’s good, isn’t it? 」

John Dae showed a gentle smile to Seiya for the first time after being complimented for his beloved motorcycle.

「Is the seat made from leather? I want to have a proper look. 」

「I can allow you that much. 」

John Dae got off his motorcycle. On that moment, Seiya placed his hand on John Dae’s shoulder.

「I’ll borrow it. 」

The moment John Dae murmured, 「Huh? 」a roaring sound echoed again, and John Dae was buried in the ground!

「Wha…wha…wha…what did you do!? You bastardddddddddddddd!! 」

John Dae, with only his head visible, screamed out loud. I was also surprised and looked back at Seiya.

「Seiya!? What are you doing now?! 」

「I need to prepare if I’m meant to go to Tarmine. I’m going back now. 」

「Are you going back to the Underworld? 」

「Yeah. I said that I didn’t want to go to the Underworld at the moment. Still, considering the current situation where I’m meant to go to Tarmine, then I should go back and prepare. 」

Seiya told me those words while riding on someone else’s motorcycle.

「Lista. Open the gate to the Underworld. We’ll stay there for about three days. 」

The flow of time in the Underworld was the same as in the God’s realm. I spoke to Colt and the others who were speechless.

「Sorry, everyone! Just wait for a bit! It won’t take longer than an hour! 」

「Wait in Colt’s car. If the enemy approaches, my Automatic Phoenix will alert you immediately from the sky. 」

Seiya didn’t forget to give instructions to Colt and the others. They nodded at Seiya. However, the buried and abandoned man was still screaming.

「You’re kidding me!! Get me out of here!! And give me back my beloved motorcyleeeee!! 」

「Lista. Let’s go. Push Celseus’ wheelchair. 」

「Ah…ye…yes. 」

「Wait!! You thief!! You motorcycle thief!! 」

「Hurry up. Lista. 」

While pushing Celseus’ wheelchair, I waved to Eich and the others with a friendly smile.

「We…well then, everyone, see you soon! 」

When I opened the gate that led to the Underworld, Seiya sneaked through the gate while pushing the stolen motorcycle.

「Waitttttttttttttt!! You motorcycle thieffffffffffffffffff!! 」

While John Dae was screaming, Celseus and I followed after Seiya and went to the Underworld.

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*バイク (Bike) actually refers to Motorcycle in Japanese. So we’ll use the term Motorcycle instead of Bike throughout the chapter.

**Naked motorbikes are usually recognized by their upright riding position. The term “naked” refers to road bikes without a fairing to obscure the engine and frame, and normally no screen over the handlebars. Removing the fairings makes the motorbike lighter, faster, and more maneuverable.

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