When I Went to Another World, All the Women I Met Fell in Love With Me and Things Got Out of Hand – A Carefree and Heartwarming Harem of a Man Who Fell in Love With a Death God, as He Pours His Thoughts Into a Sketchbook and Dominates All. C174

Chapter 174: Memories Mikoto Shiranui

“Is this the Crystal Palace?”

That day, Kakeru descended on Crystal Palace, the capital of Crystalia, in order to end the Empire's invasion strategy. 

Accompanied by Emperor Galactica's letter and Crown Prince Julius. 

The advance team led by Purpy Queen Tsubasa had already arrived at the Crystal Palace, so Kakeru and his friends were able to teleport there. 

“Oh, this is a beautiful city. I'm lucky it wasn't destroyed.''

As Julius said, Crystal Palace is a fantastic and beautiful city where the entire city is made of crystal, as the name suggests. 

Because Crystalia is surrounded by many cities and nations, its land does not touch monster territory, and since it is a neutral commercial nation, it does not originally have a standing army. 

　

As a result, the damage was kept to a minimum because the people of Crystal Palace evacuated immediately without resisting, and because there were only a small number of advance troops, there was no large-scale battle. 

Additionally, it was a stroke of luck that the leader of the demon squad dispatched to the Crystal Palace was Cortis. 

His superior, Eleven, had ordered the complete destruction and slaughter of the city, but as he loved art, he was unable to destroy the beautiful Crystal Palace. 

It can be said that the Crystal Palace was protected because Cortis intentionally delayed the advance to give people time to evacuate and forbade destruction after the occupation. 

“T-this is His Highness Julius!? This is the unit leader Cortis. Welcome.''

Cortis is surprised by the Crown Prince's sudden visit, but responds unfazed. 

``Well done Cortis. Thanks to your judgment, we were able to protect this beautiful city.''

"Those words are too wasteful..."

Cortis, who was prepared for severe punishment for disobeying orders, quietly wet his cheeks. 

“The invasion operation has been cancelled. I intend to establish diplomatic relations and promote trade with the countries of the Demon Continent. The battle is over. Everyone had a hard time.''

Julius shows His Majesty the Emperor's edict in front of all the advance troops. 

After doing a lot of research, I found out that those affected by the evil god factor also affect the spirits of the people around them. 

Rather than simply becoming evil, it seems to have a lot to do with their original human nature, as their own desires expand and they become loyal to their instincts. 

Almost all of the advance troops were affected by the evil god's factor, but the good news was that with the main factor extinguished, the influence had dropped to a negligible level. 

After that, the advance team was teleported back to the empire and visited another base city. 

If it hadn't been for metastasis, it would have taken several months, but I'm thankful that I was able to finish it in just a few hours. 

There are some things that can't be helped when there are casualties in a war, but now that the battle is over, neither side wants to make any unnecessary sacrifices. 

　

After sending all the demons to the empire, I returned to the Crystal Palace. 

I have to take the members to Buddle today in preparation for tomorrow's stampede, so I have no choice but to postpone this further. 

At least the threat of demons on the continent is gone, so that's enough for now. 

　

Crystal Palace, the royal capital of Crystallia, is deserted due to the demons disappearing. 

There were no disturbing sounds, no heart-wrenching grudges swirling around. 

The crystal-clear, colorless scenery and mental images are irresistibly comfortable and calming. 

(Momentary memory is also difficult...)

　

I don't dislike crowds, but even now that I'm used to them, I still get tired because of the constant flow of information into my memory, and I'm not particularly good at it. 

It is said that crystals do not change semi-permanently. 

In an uninhabited city that never changes, Kakeru is enjoying a sense of freedom for the first time in a while. 

Find a large park and lie down on a grass-like green carpet. 

(Now that I think about it... I was lying on the grass like this back then too...)

A memory from when I was 5 years old that I will never forget. 

Dive into the sea of ​​memories for a while. 

＊＊＊

“Itte!?”

As I was lying sprawled out on the grass, a flying ball hit me on the head. 

"I'm sorry, did it hurt?"

When I looked up, I saw a girl around the same age standing there with an apologetic look on her face. 

"No, it doesn't hurt, just a little surprise."

“I see, that was good.”

The girl's relieved smile made my cheeks relax. 

"Hey, what were you doing there?"

I had never seen her before, and even though it was my first time meeting her, I ended up talking to her for some reason. Maybe she wanted someone to listen. 

"My Cerberus died. Ah, that's the dog's name."

"That's a pretty strong name."

"Yeah, he's really strong and cool. He's been protecting me ever since I was born. But... he died protecting me from a car."

"...That's right. You were very brave."

"Yeah, well, your mom taught me that when living things die, they go to the sky, so she's always watching over me from the sky."

“Is that why you were looking at the sky?”

"Yeah, this is what I do when I'm feeling down or when I want to talk to Cerberus."

"……I see" 

The girl seemed to understand and lay down next to me in the same way. 

From there, we just looked at the sky without saying a word to each other. 

"Then I have to go. Thank you!"

The girl who had been lying with me for a while suddenly stood up and ran away. 

(I haven't done anything that would warrant a thank you, though?)

I didn't know it at the time, but it seems that the child had just lost his parents in an accident. 

I heard from my mother that she had been taken in by a relative. 

"It seems that the Shiranui family was having trouble over inheritance, so the police are investigating both the accident and the incident, right? Is that the little girl, Mikoto-chan? I feel sorry for her being left alone..."

I remember my parents talking about that.