Those Useless Fools ◆—???

—How utterly infuriating.

Dragging my body along with a wet, slithering sound, I crawled through the darkness deep beneath the earth.

…Ah, my body felt heavy again today. I was thirsty. I was hungry.

Truthfully, I didn’t want to move another inch. But I had to deal with those failures. …Honestly, I’d gone out of my way to open a gate for them to dispose of the Saintess, and yet they’d allowed themselves to be driven back so easily.

Slither, splat, slither.

…So this was where you were hiding, you useless fools.

Beneath a sky filled with miasma and illuminated by a crimson moon, I found the humans I was looking for.

Both the man and the woman, humans from another world, gave off a stench so revolting that even I felt like vomiting. —Just what I’d expect from the Saintess’s parents.

Slither. As I moved closer, the woman noticed me. She let out a strangled shriek and frantically tugged at the man’s clothes.

“H-Hey! There’s something in the darkness…!”

“Huh? What the hell are you…”

At that moment, the moon suddenly emerged from behind the clouds. The instant the two saw my figure illuminated by the moonlight, they screamed.

“E-Eeeeeeeeeek!”

“Uwaaaaaah! A MONSTER!!!”

They trembled violently before collapsing onto the ground. It seemed their legs had given out.

Hmph. Was my appearance really that frightening? Very well, then. I would make sure they could no longer see it.

I flicked my hand through the air. Purple liquid splattered across their faces, and the two writhed in agony.

“Uwaaaaah! My eyes! My eyeeeeees!”

“It huuuuuurts!”

…Even their voices were grating on my ears. They called this painful? Compared to the injuries their own child had suffered, this was nothing.

“Hey, is anyone there?”

As I spoke irritably, I sensed a presence accompanied by a faint whoosh.

“—I am here.”

“Dispose of those two at once. Their noise is unbearable.”

“As you command.”

With that, I turned away, dragging my body along the ground once more. Behind me, I heard some truly chilling noises, though I had no interest in what was happening.

Ah, how utterly infuriating.

I cursed silently.

—I had infiltrated the goddess’s summoning circle and brought over a weak Saintess who had been on the verge of fading away. So why was the holy light growing stronger?

Slither. An enormous mirror rose from within my slimy body. Reflected in its surface was the face of the Saintess, smiling without a care in the world. A faint white glow began spreading around the mirror.

…This was bad. Far from being weak, her light would only continue to grow brighter if left unchecked. I had to stop it at all costs before that happened.

Slither, splat, slither.

…Ah, but I was so hungry.

I could survive without eating anything at all. And yet, this hunger that never disappeared had tormented me endlessly.

Suddenly, my gaze fell upon the mirror.

Inside it, the tiny Saintess, so small that I could crush her with a single twist of my hand, was biting into something fluffy, white, and round.

Her cheeks puffed out adorably, and her eyes narrowed blissfully.

…What was that? …It looked delicious…

Grrrr.

My stomach, which should have died long ago, let out a growl.

“—It seems that this Telepathy skill allows me to see various things about Ai.”

I was explaining to Yuri-sama what I had discovered through our experiments over the past few days.

Beside me, Ai was happily munching away at some fluffy white bread. Apparently, eating this for breakfast had become one of her favorite things. When our eyes met, Ai gave me a cheerful smile.

“Various things? Such as?”

Yuri-sama stopped moving his fork and waited attentively for my explanation.

The three of us were having breakfast together.

Ai was enjoying her favorite white bread and some fresh fruit, while Yuri-sama and I were having scrambled eggs and bacon.

“First, I take Ai’s hand like this.”

When I held out my hand, Ai immediately understood what I wanted. With her cheeks still stuffed full of bread, she promptly placed her hand on mine. It was just like watching a clever little puppy offering its paw, and I couldn’t help smiling.

What made it even more adorable was the way her expression practically sparkled, as though she were saying, “I did it right, didn’t I!?” Perhaps it was just my imagination, but I could almost see a pair of big ears and a fluffy tail on Ai…!

As I smiled at her overwhelming cuteness, several lines of text smoothly appeared in my mind.

‘I wonder if she’ll praise me?’

…Hehe, it seemed to have worked. I could see exactly what she was feeling.

“Perfect! You did a wonderful job! Thank you, Ai.”

When I thanked her while vigorously ruffling her hair, Ai giggled bashfully.

“And that’s how it works. Apparently, I can only see Ai’s condition and feelings when the skill activates. However, Ai herself doesn’t seem to understand it very well.”

As I straightened Ai’s disheveled hair, I explained this to Yuri-sama. His Majesty fell into thought.

“…Hmm. Does this ‘Telepathy’ only work on you?”

“It would seem so. Perhaps it’s because my name is the only one listed in the target field.”

“Which means that you’re the only one who can understand Ai—or rather, the Saintess.”

I nodded at His Majesty’s words.

Ever since that incident, Ai had begun occasionally speaking to us in her own words. However, whether she was naturally shy or still had some lingering wariness, there were far more things she kept to herself than things she actually said aloud.

Furthermore, Ai apparently couldn’t read the text displaying her Saintess skills.

The strangely shaped letters weren’t part of the language used in this kingdom. In fact, they were unlike any writing I had ever encountered anywhere on the continent.

…So why was I the only one who could read them? Was this another effect of Telepathy?

While I was puzzling over this, His Majesty spoke.

“In that case, you will need an official position as well. Someone to help and support her, and to serve as a bridge between her and this kingdom. …Ederine, would you be willing to take on that responsibility?”

I smiled warmly.

“Of course. That was my intention from the very beginning. After all, Ai is my precious little daughter.”

When I pulled Ai, who was sitting beside me, into a great big hug, she smiled happily, her mouth still surrounded by bread crumbs.