316 Looking at me as if wanting to become an ally

“Gufu!”

The Vampire Child collapses to the ground, clutching its side after taking my elegant spinning kick.

A masterful spinning kick—precisely delivering damage, yet perfectly controlled to avoid launching the target via inertia.

I must admit, I’m quite impressed with myself.

“L-Logical… unfair…”

The Vampire Child, sprawled on the ground, mutters something, but I can’t hear it.

I drag it along by a thread, dragging it across the surface.

Normally, this would result in numerous scrapes and abrasions, but—well, your defensive stats should handle it without issue.

Enjoy kissing the ground thoroughly.

“Shiro-san! Wait a moment!”

As I drag the Vampire Child along, Oni-kun grabs my shoulder and halts me.

I understand Sophia made a misstatement, but this time Shiro is also responsible. Wasn’t that excessive?

Huh?

Oni-kun says something incoherent, so I stare directly at his face.

The ten eyes usually closed open wide, locking onto Oni-kun’s gaze.

Oni-kun flinches slightly under the pressure of my curse, but holds firm and speaks again.

The explanation is insufficient. We act based on Shiro’s few words, but even that has limits. Communication between us is lacking. Sophia’s misstatement resulted from Shiro’s inadequate explanation.

Spinach?

What’s that? Smells delicious.

No—wait.

So what exactly are you trying to say?

Are you telling me to explain myself?

To me?

Impossible.

“Shiro?”

“Hey—!?”

Ignoring Oni-kun, I resumed walking. Oni-kun hesitated. The vampire child, dragged along, protested with cries.

"Shiro, you heard what I said?"

"That's right! I think this treatment is completely unjust!"

I ignored the two shouting.

The vampire child bounced frantically, trying to escape the restraints—ignored.

Do you think you can break free from my thread at this level?

Didn't you know?

You cannot escape the divine.

Dragging the vampire child forward, I moved toward the destination.

The vampire child still screamed, but Oni-kun had given up midway—silent, yet following.

Not speaking. But still following. Clearly not accepting.

"This is…"

Yet, that silence shattered the moment the destination came into view.

Oni-kun spoke, but the Vampire Child closed his mouth the moment he saw it.

Well, it's overwhelming, isn't it?

A colossal UFO right in front of you.

My destination—this UFO.

The spacecraft Potimas had attempted to launch at the very end, as a final escape from this planet.

Ignoring the two frozen in disbelief, I step directly into the UFO.

The Vampire Child, still dragged along, follows.

Oni-kun hastens to keep up, not wanting to be left behind.

Both the bound Vampire Child and Oni-kun gaze around curiously at the interior.

The space is vast—walking through it requires effort—but even so, it does not grow tiresome.

After all, this UFO was designed for long interstellar travel. All necessary equipment for such a journey is present.

Seeing them is entertaining enough on its own.

Still, from an outside perspective, a Vampire Child bound and crawling like a shrimp, observing, would appear extremely surreal.

I understand one must adopt that posture to see, but a lady should not do such a thing.

Huh?

Whoever is binding them doesn't matter.

That’s one thing. This is another.

The tour ends upon reaching the destination.

At my destination—the deepest part of the UFO—there stood a Demon King facing a monitor, and Mel, the Demon King’s Guard.

Mel, part of the night-shift crew, appeared as if on the verge of fainting while standing upright.

"Oh? You’re here."

The Demon King noticed us and greeted.

Apparently, he had awakened during our meeting with the reincarnated ones and moved to this UFO.

Well, that’s why I’m here too.

"Has Sophia done something again?"

"What do you mean 'again,' Ariel? You're making it sound like I'm always causing trouble."

Huh? What is this girl even saying?

It's scary when they don't realize.

Look, even the Demon King is smiling.

"Shiro-chan, you shouldn't tease Sophia too much, okay?"

It's not teasing.

This is educational guidance.

"So, what did you do this time?"

"Well, that is..."

For some reason, the Demon King is looking at Oni-kun instead of me, and Oni-kun answers the Demon King's question without hesitation.

Yeah.

That response is correct.

Correct, but apparently it's not reliable—frustrating, isn't it?

I can do it too, if I try!

I just don't try!

Really?

"Ahh. So that's how it is."

Having heard the full account from Oni-kun, the Demon King looked at the Vampire Child with a pained expression.

"Ah well. Sophia-chan did slip up, but Shiro-chan bears greater responsibility for not explaining properly."

Objection!

I'm not at fault!

I'm not at fault!

"What's the real situation? Can you really not return to Earth?"

The Demon King asked abruptly, his expression suddenly serious.

"Impossible."

I answered without hesitation.

"Yeah. If Shiro says it's impossible, then it must be impossible. But why exactly is it impossible? You didn't ask for those details, so Sophia slipped up. You know how valuable information is, right? And you know that only Shiro, who knows everything, can judge which information holds worth. You should consider Sophia’s position too—she can’t even verify the authenticity of the information she’s given."

The Demon King spoke gently, as if giving advice. I struggled to keep my mouth from forming a frown.

Are you my mother?

Oh—my grandmother. My apologies.

"Shiro tries to handle everything alone. That’s why cooperation with others is so sloppy. No need for conversation. Why bother? She can do it all by herself if she wants. That’s the kind of person she is—born alone."

An unpleasant truth, but one that cannot be denied.

"Still, I suppose it's understandable. I couldn't speak of others before I met Shiro. Perhaps it's the fate of those with exceptional abilities."

The Demon King was unmatched in strength by mere stat comparison—unequaled in this world.

His subordinate spider legion was no different—originally spawned through the Demon King's egg-laying skill, mere extensions of himself, his own subordinates.

"Still, Sophia-chan and Lars-kun are allies. Just because you struggle with communication doesn't mean you should avoid them. You should face it directly."

Huh?

Allies?

Yeah?

Allies.

Hmm.

Ah, I see.

So the Vampire Child and Oni-kun were allies all along.

Noticing that—well, Demon King, you might just be a genius.

Wait.

Something's unclear, but I'm starting to feel confused.