4-3 The Legendary Guardian

She was—unbelievably—inside a house.

When I’d hunted the dragon before, I hadn’t noticed anything like this existed.

It must have been protected by some high-level concealment.

If I hadn’t been searching for the ring, I might never have found it in my entire life.

…Yeah, no way I would’ve guessed the ring’s guardian was living in a house.

Which meant the enemy wasn’t what I’d been imagining.

Maybe this was someone I could actually talk to.

The sturdy-looking door my MAP search had picked up—like a radar target—had a stylish lion-shaped knocker.

In Japan, I’d seen that kind of design on ordinary house doors.

If I had to guess, the creator was Japanese.

I mean, the founder called himself a Rare Visitor and all that—pretty hard to be wrong.

I hesitated a lot, but in the end, I just knocked like a normal person.

“Come in~”

Along with her cool, clear voice—like a high-quality intercom—there came a series of electronic unlocking sounds as a high-tech lock disengaged.

S-she answered.

Antonio and I exchanged a look.

After a brief moment of indecision, we took the plunge and opened the door.

“Excuse us~”

Inside was a floor step at the perfect height for sitting to put on shoes—an entryway like a typical Japanese home from a slightly older era.

And there, smiling gently as she welcomed us, stood a slender, breathtaking beauty—no, a beautiful girl.

Black hair, black eyes, unmistakably Japanese features.

“How many years has it been since I had guests? I’m so happy. You figured out how to find this place. I was watching on the monitor, and I could tell right away you didn’t have hostile intent toward me. And also…”

She hesitated, as if expecting something.

Yeah.

Black hair, black eyes, flat-faced tribe and all.

I mean, my eyes were brown and my nose was a bit higher—slightly more foreign-looking—but abroad, people still recognized me as Japanese.

In Canada, everywhere I went, they asked, “Japanese?”

The slight upward “?” at the end was just them being cute.

And compared to when I was a kid, I’d become a lot more Japanese-looking over time.

“Hi. Hello. Uh… if I’m wrong, sorry, but—are you a golem made by Albatross’s first king…? No—an android? Was he Japanese?”

I tried asking in Japanese.

“Oh my… you are… So you really are Japanese?”

She answered in Japanese too.

And for the first time in this world, I spoke my real name.

“My name is Inoue Takahiro.”

“The master who made me was Funabashi Takeshi.”

Yup. A Japanese name.

“Please, come in.”

She produced two pairs of slippers.

“Ah, thanks.”

I naturally took off my adventurer boots and stepped in, and Antonio followed my lead.

She guided us into a Japanese-style sitting room.

Even her movements were those of a standard Japanese woman.

In this world, even those small gestures were so nostalgic it almost made me cry.

“I’m sorry. I don’t have any Japanese-style food or drinks left anymore.”

“Uh, if you want, I can share. I’ve got as much of that stuff as you need.”

“No. I don’t actually need those things by nature.”

“You’ve been here… guarding the ring all this time?”

I asked while looking around.

The room was modest.

But it was well-organized, meticulously clean, and spotless—no dust anywhere.

“Yes. I don’t have anything else to do. That was my master’s final command.”

“I see. In my country—and probably in Funabashi’s too—there are lots of stories like that. But seeing someone who’s actually lived it right in front of me… I don’t even know what to say.”

I closed my eyes, imagining the unbearably long stretch of time.

“Is that so?”

“Yeah. Hey… want to come with me—on an adventure?”

“Eh?”

“Where I’m from, we deeply respect loyalty like yours. If I have the chance, I’d like to travel this other world with someone like you.”

Someday, I’d wanted to find companions in this world.

People I could truly trust.

I was an outlier here too.

But with her…

A being created by a Japanese man, inheriting his heart—

“Is that so… Your master’s homeland too?”

“Where was it?”

“I’m not sure.”

So he hadn’t told even those close to him much about the home he couldn’t return to.

Makes sense—if you can’t go back, homesickness only hurts.

Come to think of it, I’d never once told anyone here about my own hometown either.

I just kept it in my heart that I’d return someday.

“Then let’s say he was from Satsuma. That’s one of Japan’s top warrior cultures. It fits a guy who fought and built a kingdom.”

“Hey!”

Antonio jabbed me in the side—apparently fed up with how off-track we’d gotten.

“Right—important business. Funabashi Takeshi’s descendant, twenty-five generations later, is in a bit of trouble.”

“Eh? What do you mean?”

I gave her a condensed explanation of Prince Emilio’s situation.

“I understand. I will bring you the ring.”

“You will?”

“Yes. There was one more thing my master asked of me. ‘Someday—if my descendants ever find themselves in a crisis, help them.’ If the ring is truly necessary, he told me to give it to them.”

She closed her eyes softly, as if recalling her former master.

“I see. Then you’ll have nothing left to do.”

“You’ll take me with you on an adventure, won’t you?”

“…Ah, right!”

All right—party member acquired!

So the “adventurers’ tavern” in this world was at the bottom of a dungeon, huh.

“Will your mana be okay if you leave here? You’re powered by this place’s mana, right?”

“You noticed.”

“Yeah. My knowledge is like your master’s. Our way of thinking is probably pretty similar too.”

Yeah.

I could practically picture his favorite books, the shows he watched, the movies he loved.

“Can you use my mana? I also have mana stones that store mana. If I die, you can come back here and you won’t have to worry about mana again. And… if you’d like… let’s visit Funabashi Takeshi’s grave together.”

“Yes… I think so.”

The ring’s guardian smiled shyly.

“The mechanism to gather mana was built into me by my master, so I’ll be fine outside. This place simply has abundant mana, and it was a good place to hide with the ring. Also… this is my home—my precious home that my master made for me.”

“Yeah. For now, come with us to the royal palace.”

We used teleportation magic and returned instantly to the palace front.

And I left a message with the castle guards.

“Call Chamberlain Ruba. Tell him we brought the ring he requested. And also that we have one very important guest with us.”

Not long after, the old man himself came rushing over.

“You brought the ring—are you telling the truth, Alphonse?!”

“Yeah. Show him.”

She loosened the front of her clothing—then click—opened the chest area like a panel.

There was the ring.

It looked simple and plain, but the mana it carried hinted at immense power.

She removed it and offered it to Ruba.

“Please accept this.”

“W-what are you…?”

The old man’s face twisted in shock.

“She was made by the first king, Funabashi Takeshi— the one who was entrusted with the ring and this kingdom’s future. His ‘daughter.’ Show some respect, old man.”

I introduced her with a mischievous grin.

“A witness who knew the first king directly… A Funabashi, sealed away in history?!”

The old man went speechless, like he’d stumbled into a living legend.

And then—

“You have endured so long… So very, very long. This ring—I accept it with utmost reverence.”

Taking the ring from her, Ruba bowed deeply, deeply to her.

“Come to think of it, I never asked your name.”

“Marie. It was my master’s younger sister’s name. My appearance was modeled after her. She was ten years younger than my master. Their parents passed away early, and my master worked hard to raise her like a parent… But then… that happened. That was the one regret he carried from Japan.”

“W-whoaaa…”

So he came to this world under those circumstances.

A prayer, then.

So she wasn’t an artificial daughter—she was a stand-in for his sister.

…Well, with that context, she was basically his daughter anyway.

I was a drifter; getting dragged here out of nowhere didn’t really ruin my life.

Still…

That hits different.

…It’s a little sad.

“When were they born?”

“My master’s sister was born in 1997. My master came to this world in 2015.”

…Whoa.

That was almost exactly the same era I came from.

His sister might still be at home, even now—just waiting, endlessly, for her brother who never returned.

Ah…!