Death Mage 199 – Hard mode in both worlds

The house of the leader of the Bravers, the house of the Amemiya couple, was in a high-end residential area. Naturally, it was a safe area, with surveillance cameras and top-of-the-line guard Golems (similar to Earth’s drones).

It wasn’t rare for houses here to have their own hired security personnel… those with military experience. It was said that the only ones who would try to try to rob a house in this area were those who wanted to end up in a prison or in a coffin.

Banda was traveling the streets of this residential area, in the middle of the day, facing backwards. He did not possess a physical form, so it appeared as if he were sliding silently across the ground, as if someone were pulling him along.

This is the Nation of Japan, the equivalent to Earth’s Japan… Even though this is supposed to be a fantasy-like world where magic exists, it looks just like a world featured in a near-future science-fiction film, he thought to himself as he looked at the security Golems with cameras attached to their heads and Golem trucks that drove themselves automatically to deliver their goods.

If the Golems were replaced by robots, it would truly be a science-fiction world. Since machines were also being used, it could have been described as a hybrid between magic and science.

Considering that, Banda thought that it might have made more sense to simply use actual robots… but unfortunately, the word ‘robot’ was not a commonly-known term in Origin. It was a technical jargon term used to refer to rare Golems that did not require magic to operate.

Perhaps technology has developed further because of magic’s existence, Banda thought. Leaving these differences between the worlds aside… It seems my main body really is Meh-kun.

Banda appeared as if he was sliding backwards without moving his legs (or at least he would, if he was visible to anyone other than Mei), but he was actually not moving of his own will at all.

He was being dragged along as Amemiya Narumi pushed the stroller that Mei was riding in, approximately fifty meters behind him.

It didn’t seem that Narumi felt any resistance, so Banda had tried planting his feet in the ground, but even when he did so with all his strength, it had been impossible to stay in place. It was likely that even using Materialization and digging his claws into the ground would have no effect.

“Now then, I’ve tested the maximum distance between me and Meh-kun, and whether the Golems’ Mana sensors can detect me, so now all that’s left is…”

Banda opened his mouth, whose corners were at his ears. He extended his tongue and his two antennae, which were ordinarily covered by his hair.

He saw that he could extend both of these over ten meters ahead of him.

Next, he slightly opened the membrane that looked like a coat and fired a horn of the Demon King, using the Demon King’s lungs and proboscis like an air gun.

The horn flew into the distance. Of course, it was a spiritual projectile with no physical form, so it didn’t collide with anything.

“I can’t be more than fifty meters away from Meh-kun by myself, but my tongue and antennae can extend beyond that, and I can fire parts of myself that are separated from my body. That probably applies for my spells, too,” Banda murmured to himself. “Now then… I suppose it’s time to go back.”

Banda turned around and returned to Meh-kun and the other Banda that was there with her. He moved incredibly quickly, even catching up to the car that was moving in front of him.

“How am I so fast? Do the original’s Attribute Values apply in this world?” he wondered. “I’m back, Meh-kun, me.”

“Banda,” Mei said happily inside the stroller.

“Welcome back, me,” said the Banda that had stayed with her. “Now then, let’s return back to normal.”

Banda was a being that existed only in spirit; he had made use of that to make a clone of himself. Now, the two Bandas merged back into one.

Mei made a sad noise. “Banda…”

“Meh-kun, it’s not that we got rid of one of me, we just returned back to normal,” Banda told her.

Mei was currently being taken to the park by Amemiya Narumi and the woman who worked for her as a babysitter and helper. Incidentally, her older brother Hiroshi was currently playing at his friend’s house.

“Mistress, do you know what this ‘Banda’ that Mei-chan has been saying since this morning could be?” asked the helper.

“I don’t really know,” Narumi replied. “I think she means ‘panda,’ but…”

Mei made a noise of discontent.

“Meh-kun, I can’t hug you when outsiders… when Mom and others are around,” said Banda. “It’d frighten them.”

He felt uncomfortable calling Amemiya Narumi ‘Mom,’ but he did his best to not show any reservation when it came to her parents.

He needed to get used to it, but less than a day had passed since he had begun haunting Mei.

“Then perhaps Mei-chan can see a panda. It seemed that she saw a puppy the other day, after all,” said the helper.

“Yes, people say that children see things differently from adults, and things like this have happened with Mei before,” said Narumi.

It seemed that their suspicions were resolved. Banda was thankful that they were not more concerned.

After a little while, they arrived at the park. It seemed that playground equipment like slides and jungle gyms weren’t very different between Earth and Origin.

But Mei was still just a year old; she could not play on this equipment. She would spend most of the time having a nap while Narumi and her babysitter discussed child-raising strategies with Narumi’s friends and their babysitters.

“My son’s such a rascal, his body can’t keep up with his antics.”

“Boys are a lot of work, aren’t they. But our Hiroshi is so focused on games…”

“Speaking of games, I’ve heard that there are games that need you to go outside to play them –”

“How peaceful. Maybe Dark Demon Creation Path Enticement isn’t in effect because I’m not the main Vandalieu; spirits don’t really come near me,” Banda murmured to himself.

“Puppy~” said Mei.

“Meh-kun, that’s the spirit of a puppy. It doesn’t have a good aura around it, so it might be dangerous if you call out to it,” Banda warned her as he looked at Narumi’s face and casually thrust his arm into one of the housewives that she was talking to.

The housewife gave a small groan. “… That’s strange, am I getting tired?”

Banda moved his arm to feel around her insides.

“I’m already entirely made of spirit form, so… nothing out of the ordinary. Next… Nerve inflammation, I’ll give you some medicine for that. Next… severe stiffness in the shoulders. I’ll fix that, so take care,” Banda said to her.

One after another, he thrust his arm into the housewives and conducted a medical examination on them. He then put his tongue into them and used Materialization on a small part of it so that he could release the appropriate medicines on their unhealthy areas.

The housewives let out small groans, suddenly experienced less back pain and one even squirmed and moaned, “My shouldeeeers!”

Meanwhile, Banda carefully observed Narumi’s reaction.

“Everyone, are you alright?!” Narumi asked the housewives.

It seemed that she really had not taken any notice of Banda’s actions.

“Even at this distance, I won’t be noticed as long as I don’t use magic. Well then, I suppose it’s fine for me to use my Skills and the power of the fragments,” Banda concluded.

The parasite-type Demon King Familiar, which used the Demon King’s sub-brain and nerves to take over the bodies of others, had large limits on what Skills it was capable of using. However, Banda was a being that had been created from a piece of Vandalieu’s own soul.

Thus, it was likely that he would be able to use just about any Skill if he used Materialize on himself.

“I’m not sure if I can use my Unique Skills, though. But it would be going too far to brainwash people or devour their souls to test that,” Banda said to himself.

“Banda, Mama, okay?” Mei mumbled.

“What about me, Mei?” said Narumi.

“I’m not going to thrust my arm or tongue in Mom unless she really needs emergency medical treatment,” said Banda. “She might take notice of me, too.”

That was when it happened. The ominous dog spirit snarled, suddenly leaping up and biting one of the children on the jungle gym.

This was a peaceful, high-class residential area, but spirits could not be managed. However, this dog was far short of being an actual evil spirit, the kind that would appear before the living as ghosts and curse them or materialize to bite them.

The bitten child was unharmed; his foot had just slipped a little.

However, the bite had come at an unlucky moment. The boy had been climbing the jungle gym, and his foot slipping made him almost fall off. At the same time, he desperately tried to twist around to grab onto the jungle gym, but he lost his balance.

And with a startled shout, he fell, with the back of his head pointed towards the ground.

All of this took place within a handful of seconds; naturally, there was no way that the child’s mother or Narumi would save him in time. However, the jungle gym was not that high off the ground. Being a child who didn’t weigh much, even if the back of his head struck the ground, perhaps he would get away with just a bump on his head.

But during those few seconds, Banda chased the dog spirit away, produced fat and soft fur on his hand, and placed his hand between the child’s head and the ground. The moment the child’s head landed, he used Materialize on the surface of his hand.

“In the worst-case scenario, he could die,” he murmured to himself.

Noticing that something was wrong, the boy’s mother came running to the scene. The boy was confused at soft sensation on his head and the lack of pain. The mother scooped him into her arms and checked whether he was injured.

“Banda~” said Mei, happily greeting Banda as he returned.

“It looks like he didn’t hit his head too badly. I’m glad he’s not hurt,” said Narumi.

“Yes, I’m so glad,” said the boy’s mother.

“It really seems that Amemiya Narumi won’t notice me if I’m just using the fragments,” Banda murmured.

Mei was Banda’s top priority. On top of that, he had to conceal his existence from everyone other than Mei. He wasn’t here to save lives or carry out justice.

But that couldn’t mean that he could just do nothing and let everyone other than Mei die.

“With great power comes great responsibility… I hate that way of thinking, and I don’t intend to teach it to Meh-kun. But it would also be problematic to let her see me do nothing even though I have the ability to save people. That might greatly inhibit the development of her social morals, emotions and the ability to feel empathy for others,” Banda told himself.

He didn’t want Mei to become a gentle philanthropist, but if possible, he wanted her to grow up to be a bright, considerate girl.

… Though this was also because Banda had the same personality as Vandalieu, who would have hesitated to simply let the boy fall.

“And it’s quite likely that my existence will be found out within a few years anyway,” Banda sighed, looking at Mei’s mother, Amemiya Narumi… the reincarnated individual with the ‘Angel’ ability that allowed her to mentally connect to others and share their memories and experiences.

Vandalieu had heard of her ability from Kanako and the others; if she were to use it on Mei, Banda’s existence would be revealed in an instant.

Narumi wasn’t likely to use it on her own daughter for no reason, but… she would likely use it once she became curious enough about the mysterious friend that only her daughter could see.

It was possible that it wouldn’t come to that, but… the people around Mei were sure to notice her peculiarity.

“Puppy?” Mei asked.

“It’s alright. I scared the bad puppy away, so it ran off somewhere,” said Banda.

Mei possessed an affinity for the death attribute, and could even see spiritual beings.

Perhaps because she had absorbed Pluto’s power as a fetus, Mei had an affinity for the death attribute, something that no other person in Origin possessed. Even Banda did not know why that was, but that was the reality.

He didn’t even know how much of an affinity for the death attribute Mei possessed. Would she only be able to use a single specific ability like Pluto and the others, or would she acquire Death-Attribute Charm and learn multiple spells like Vandalieu?

But if this was to become known, the whole world would turn its attention to her. She was the daughter of the ‘Braver’ Amemiya Hiroto and the ‘Angel’ Narumi, so it was likely that she would be taken into captivity right away, but… the ‘Avalon’ Rikudou Hijiri was trying to get his hands on the death attribute, and he would not stay quiet.

Depending on the trouble that arose from those circumstances, Banda’s existence would be found out after all.

“Hey, me… It’s not like I’m resenting you, but the situation is pretty hard over here,” Banda murmured, wishing his words would reach Vandalieu.

“Banda~” said Mei.

“By the way, Meh-kun, wouldn’t it be better for me to call you Mei-chan instead of Meh-kun?” Banda asked her.

Mei made an unhappy noise, tears welling up in her eyes.

“What’s the matter, Mei? You look like you’re about to cry… Are you hungry? Sleepy?” asked Narumi.

“Alright, I’ll keep calling you Meh-kun. Look, it’s my antennae,” said Banda, waving his antennae at her to cheer her up again.

Several years had passed since Machida Aran, Shimada Izumi and Endou Kouya became Rodcorte’s familiar spirits – in other words, angels. They had become able to perform some of the maintenance work on the circle of reincarnation system.

They couldn’t make any real adjustments to it, but they could resolve its errors. That was all.

“It seems that it’s finally settled down,” said Izumi.

“To think that errors would occur in Origin… Was there some kind of mass spawning of Undead or something?” Aran sighed.

Thanks to the familiar spirits, the sudden errors occurring in the circle of transmigration system had been resolved.

“A mass spawning of Undead would be a large incident, but that doesn’t seem to have happened. I checked Rikudou’s memories, but it doesn’t seem that he’s run any large death attribute experiment,” said Kouya.

“Then what in the world happened? Vandalieu isn’t in Origin, you know,” said Izumi.

The cause of critical errors and bugs in the circle of transmigration system was Vandalieu. The familiar spirits were as aware of this as Rodcorte was.

Rodcorte’s