A life with nothing but happiness
The place Rirya brought me to was a dense forest.
Deeper in, there was a small cottage.
Brand new. Just built, made of wood.
Outside, Mira and Yuria and Arisa stood together.
"Aaaah!"
A cry of agony—familiar, unmistakable. Risha’s voice.
"Risha!"
"You mustn’t go in."
Rirya held me back.
"Can’t? Why not?"
"Yes. Eternal Slaves are different from humans. It’s better if they aren’t in the same room when they’re born. That’s why we’re here."
"I see. So it’s isolation. Out of the way."
"Yes."
"So why bring me here?"
I’m human, after all.
"Risha-sama’s child becomes her older brother’s slave. Being with their master from the very moment they’re born ensures a lifetime of happiness."
"A lifetime of happiness."
"If the master’s your older brother, then happiness is all there ever is."
"...!"
I was startled.
No—actually, I thought that word was good.
Only happiness. Only smiles.
I looked at Sveta, walking beside me.
She’d had her share of regrets. Her time as an Eternal Slave had been a long stretch of bad luck.
Of course, being with me means her smile ratio is definitely increasing—but it’ll never hit a perfect hundred percent.
But the child about to be born?
“Only happiness…”
That… is incredible.
“Thank you, Rirya.”
“You’re welcome. Of course.”
Rirya blinks, utterly confused.
“I’ll go help. The baby’s blessing needs your presence, so you’ll stay here.”
“Ah.”
“I—I’ll help too.”
“Of course.”
Sveta said that, following Rirya.
Outside the hut, five Eternal Slaves.
The five nodded at each other, clasped hands, and began to pray.
Light burst from their bodies—instantly.
Mira, blue. Yuria, white. Rirya, black— each glowing with the same hue as their gemstone, the same color as their soul.
Meaningless, maybe. But that’s how it is.
I waited there.
Rirya said she’d bless the child at birth.
So I waited.
“…Blessing?”
That word stuck.
I looked at the five slaves.
Something was off. What it was, I couldn’t say.
…If I were a father, just being here would be enough.
A child born of an Eternal Slave is an Eternal Slave.
Raised as a slave from the moment they’re born—made to know nothing but happiness.
I looked at the slaves again. Just waiting wasn’t enough.
I pulled out DORECA.
The black card version of DORECA.
Clutched it tight.
“…Ooooh…”
Something stirred—inside me. Inside the card.
I prayed. Hard.
Willed it.
Put everything into it.
DORECA flared to life.
The same light I’d seen a thousand times before.
The light of rank-up, the glow that came when something new appeared.
Close by—like the time the statue had been created.
“Menu open.”
I checked the list. There it was. The thing I wanted.
I moved toward the slaves.
“Onii-chan?”
Rirya looked up, startled, her eyes finding me.
“How long until the child’s born?”
“Eh… about an hour, I think.”
“Got it. I’ll be back by then.”
“Huh? Onii-chan!?”
Her voice, shocked, cut off as I dashed away.
☆
In the wasteland, drawn by the glow of the magic circle, I found an unfamiliar monster.
A monster with big eyes and human-like arms and legs. About the size of a medium-sized dog, it had a massive shield—same size as its body—slung across its back, like a warrior with a giant eye for a head.
A monster shaped like a diagonal between gross and cute—some freakish form that looked like it belonged on a line drawn between the two.
A magic circle’s arrow pointed at it, trembling slightly.
This was the material I’d been after.
It swung its shield and lunged.
“Sorry, but I’ll be taking this as raw material.”
True Eternal Slave cleaved it in two, shield and all.
The severed eyeball collapsed to the ground, twitching spasmodically for a few seconds, then went still.
“…Not it.”
No drop. The arrow now pointed elsewhere.
I followed it, found another eyeball.
No questions asked. Cut it down in three seconds.
Fell the same way. No material.
Search. Find. Cut down.
After taking down about ten, still nothing.
I narrowed my eyes.
“Could it be… a rare drop?”
Had happened before—some materials only dropped after you’d chopped down a few, over and over.
That was all there was.
Fine. No problem with that.
Normally—no problem at all.
"About... ten minutes left."
The time it took to get here. The time needed to return.
Thinking back to Rirya’s one-hour estimate, only about ten minutes remained.
Only happiness.
It felt like the time limit to make that happiness real had just started ticking.
"Have no choice but to go for it!"
I gripped my sword again, tensing every muscle.
Kill-All Eye Search—Death Drop.
I poured everything into it.
"——"
Just as I was about to dash off in search of the next eye, I stopped.
Something tugged at my mind.
I pulled out a card.
A new one.
"Menu Open."
A common magic card that manipulates phenomena.
"Encounter Up!"
I spent one unit of magic power. No time to search—I’d make them come to me instead.
The effect kicked in instantly.
Three eyeballs appeared at once.
"...Not yet. Luck Up!"
I spent one unit of magic power. This time, a spell to improve luck.
A spell that makes dice roll sixes—seven or eight out of ten times.
That’s the kind of thing rare drops should respond to.
"...Luck Up, Luck Up, Luck Up, Luck Up!"
I cast the spell in rapid succession.
Angular magic circles appeared, wrapping around my body.
I poured every last bit of magic power into Luck Up!
Whether it worked or not—no idea.
"...It has to work!"
I believed it fiercely, gripped my sword tight, and lunged at the eyeballs.
☆
"Onii-chan!"
"Made it in time?"
"Yes! It’s almost here!"
"Is that so?"
I returned to the forest hut, breathing easy.
Now just need to make it.
"Menu Open"
I selected it from DORECA's black card list.
Place the gathered materials into the magic circle.
A new item. Her exclusive item.
"Come into being."
Whispering it.
"I am here. Your master."
Pouring every thought into it.
"I'll give you a life with nothing but smiles and happiness."
Insert all the materials.
—— Slave's collar (Shasri)
A baby's cry echoed from the hut at the exact same moment the named, exclusive item was complete.