第１４５掘：細かい説明 (Part1)
**Dungeon 145: Detailed Explanations**
**Side: Elju**
I am Elju, currently serving as the General of the Allied Forces.
Between the spectacular declaration of resurrection in Weed, the rescue of the demon race, and the Demon King’s army invasion of Rumel, everyone around me has been incredibly busy. There have been many things I’ve wanted to ask but haven't had the chance to bring up.
Nominally, I hold the position of General for the Allied Forces, but I have never actually handled military command or strategy. Because of that, I brought in my older sister, Alstaire, to assist me, and she has been the one moving the army. All I’ve really done is sign documents, give a few speeches to boost the morale of the soldiers, and declare the start of the attacks on our targets.
Honestly, I haven't been doing much.
Currently, the chaos has begun to settle down, and since we are dealing with the Demon King’s army that invaded Rumel, there haven't been any major movements. I’ve left my duties to a doppelganger and returned home. Right now, for some reason, my sister has mass-produced cookies, so we are all busy disposing of them over after-dinner tea.
"Oh, that's right. Yuki-san, I have something I’d like to ask, if you don't mind?"
I spoke up, thinking that since we are eating snacks and away from prying eyes, this is the perfect time.
"Something you want to ask?"
"Yes, there are quite a few things, actually..."
And there really are. I decided to process them chronologically.
"Well, first of all, my death was confirmed in the royal capital of Roschur, wasn't it? I mean, it was a doppelganger, but why didn't anyone around me say anything about that?"
"Ah, that," Yuki-san began to explain, munching on a cookie. "Simply put, it’s the result of a public swept up in the situation and a nation that wanted to keep the information hidden."
"What do you mean by that?"
"In other words, while the public recognized that Elju had died, it was grandly announced during the big declaration that Elju was actually alive. Do you know what was said during that announcement?"
"That was as I said—that I had been saved by Liliana-san after being nearly sacrificed to the Demon King, wasn't it?"
"Exactly. So, the result is that Elju was alive. That leads to the question: what was the corpse of Elju that was seen earlier?"
"Yes, that is exactly what I find strange."
"Well, let me give you the answer. The public just convinced themselves that the Demon King did something to deceive them."
"No, that alone shouldn't be enough to make them believe..."
"But the country didn't deny it, did they? Besides, there are monsters called doppelgangers. It was already common knowledge that the Demon King could use monsters, so they concluded that one was used as a body double."
"I see. But even if most people think that, aren't there those who would have doubts?"
"Sure, there will always be people who doubt things. But if anyone tries to investigate the Elju matter, every country will interfere. If they don't, it could lead to a war between the three nations."
"Ah."
"Get it now? The Elju matter is now a tacit understanding—it’s forbidden to touch it. Especially for the other countries. Right now, Elju is the bridge to the demon race. If they do anything to break that, it’ll be total chaos. Well, to make sure there were no mistakes, you placed a monster that grows stronger by consuming sacrifices to act as the 'Demon King,' right?"
I remembered. That nameless monster was there for my sake, too.
"So, by letting the Allied Forces know about the monster that required sacrifices, we were able to defeat it early. At that point, it became a fact that Elju was nearly sacrificed. It might be a bit annoying for the people of Litea, but well, it’s peaceful, so they can’t really complain openly. Besides, Alstaire has been purging everything, and politics are improving with strong support. There’s no need to dispose of Elju to ensure stability. If anything, if something were to happen to Elju now, it would definitely lead to chaos. Gartz also values Elju as a bridge to the demons, so there’s no problem there either."
So, each country can no longer touch me for their own respective reasons.
"I understand the reason for the reaction to my faked death. I have other questions, if that's alright?"
"Hmm, as long as it doesn't interfere with the strategy, I’ll tell you. Go ahead."
"Yes. Then, why don't you go to Rumel yourself as reinforcements, Yuki-san? I heard you are from the same world; wouldn't you want as many powerful allies as possible?"
"Ah, that. Everyone, listen up. Look, the situation with Taiki-kun was a result of luck—he came to us, showed no resistance, and agreed to talk. But the heroes of Rumel might not be the same."
"Eh?"
For a moment, I didn't understand what he was saying.
"It’s also the reason why I hide my name. The fact that Elju had doubts is the problem. Not everyone from another world is a good person, and even if they are, there’s a high possibility they are being used, just like Taiki-kun."
Yuki-san spoke with a serious expression. At those words, everyone in the room stopped breathing for a moment and fell silent.
"I see. I was so busy that I didn't understand why you were using a fake name, but that’s what it is."
My sister seemed to have realized it and showed her understanding.
"Yeah. My name is a unique Japanese name from the other world. If someone else is from Japan, they’d immediately realize I’m Japanese. And that’s not even considering if they’re good people..."
"If they were malicious, they’d try to approach and co-opt you just by knowing your name, or dispose of you if you were too much to handle. I would do the same," my sister added.
"That’s the problem. It’s too dangerous for my information to reach the other side before I can judge whether they are good or evil. Also, the Japan I came from had a family registry system that’s taken for granted, so if I’m not careful, my information could leak everywhere. Anyone who comes to another world and uses their real name is either a complete idiot or using it as bait."
"Does that mean they would contact you knowing you’re Japanese?"