Chapter 175: Troubling matters

Translated by Yoshi


Note from the translator:

Hey guys, Yoshi here with a quick update on what’s happening to the series! Reigokai has informed me that he will be back next month. This is my final sponsored chapter for this series (thanks so much to you lovely donators!), and I will be releasing one final regular chapter on Monday/Tuesday (depending on how fast/slow/lazy I am). After this, the series should be going back to Reigokai.

Thank all of you for reading my translations, I hope you enjoyed them. An extra special thanks to all of you who donated for sponsored chapters!

A note about the previous chapter (174) – Given new information from this chapter (175), two dialogue lines have been changed in the previous chapter and now read:

「Hero-dono, if I recall, you were planning to leave the academy city?」(Tomoe)

「Huh, ah, yes. That’s right. Coming here was a decision that I made independently.」(Hibiki)

Apologies for any confusion caused.

Enjoy the chapter!

Yoshi


「Hey, Onee-chan? What’s wrong? Weren’t you supposed to come back tomorrow?」(Chiya)

Hibiki replies with an embarrassed look on her face.

「… That was the plan. But it looks like I’ve caught up with you.」(Hibiki)

「Did your business in Rotsgard go well?」(Chiya)

「Yes. We were supposed to gather just before we enter Lorel, but now it looks like I can enjoy the view of the Gold Highway.」(Hibiki)

「Being together with Onee-chan makes me happy!」(Chiya)

「Me too. Ah, sorry, Chiya-chan. I was busy today, so I’ll go to bed first.」(Hibiki)

「Mhmm, see you tomorrow. Good night.」(Chiya)

Hibiki’s face does indeed look a little pale. As Chiya sees her off, she assumes it is just fatigue.

Hibiki hired an extra room in the inn, some distance away from the rest of her party. She enters the room and throws herself onto the bed.

She lets out a large sigh.

(The inside of my head feels like mush. I did everything I needed to do in Rotsgard, but the final matter with the Kuzunoha company really wore me out. I’m thankful for the restoration of the kingdom and the fact that we managed to negotiate for command over the academy’s mage corps, but to think that there was another Japanese person here other than that from the empire. Someone I know, even. At this rate, I can use our senpai-kouhai relationship from when were in Japan to hear reliable information from him. But his identity as Raidou is problematic. He’s the representative of a company with unknown influence. Even his majesty and Joshua-sama acknowledge their power. It seems they want to have the company as their ally, but…)

Hibiki considers the information she gained in her conversation with Raidou, AKA Makoto, in relation to what she already knew about the Kuzunoha company.

(He was hiding it, but the reason he’s using a fake name is because he doesn’t want his whereabouts to be known by the goddess, right? I didn’t feel a shred of respect for her in his words. I was summoned in a castle, but he told me that he was summoned at some corner of the world. It’s probably true, but if that’s the case then it’s basically indirect murder. Which means that it’s quite likely that Misumi-kun and the goddess don’t have a good relationship. Is it alright to accept someone like that as an ally? That company’s equipment and Mio-san are absolutely excellent. I wonder what I should do. I’m not worried about him as much as Tomoki, but imagining what could happen after the war, Misumi-kun’s existence is…)

When the war between humans and demons eventually reaches a conclusion, anyone who endangers the kingdom of Limia’s existence would be undesirable.

For Hibiki, who thinks that the goddess’s system should continue in this world even after the war, Makoto seems like he could become an attractive source of military power. But at the same time, she thinks he has shown some signs that he could become a source of evil.

(There’s no doubt that Tomoki will set out to unite the world after the demons are defeated. It would be impressive if those ambitions that he put no effort into hiding were only a bluff, but I’m sure that’s not the case. If I were to ask Misumi-kun for assistance and he turned out to be the goddess’s enemy, it is quite possible that it would become a great reason for the empire to start a war between hyumans. That would be bad. We don’t even know if we’ll win the war against the demons, but that doesn’t mean that we can just focus on what’s in front of us and hope for the best. So the safest option is to associate with them purely just as a company at first, then slowly request military power. Even then, a request from just Limia and myself is a hand we can only play in a situation where we have no other choice.)

She knows that the Kuzunoha company is powerful.

Hibiki has seen that first hand.

Hibiki considers a truly ideal scenario where, just as the demons are brought to the brink of annihilation, the Kuzunoha company would use the Devil to face the empire, have the two destroy each other and then be defeated.

She might appear heartless in comparison to Makoto, even though they are both Japanese. But during their conversation, Makoto did not give any impression of being on either the hyumans’ side or the demons’ side. Hibiki has an ominous feeling about him that will not disappear. So she has decided that as a hero, she should make her decisions without taking into account her personal feelings.

Her decisions have too much impact for her to think things like “I will believe him because I know him” or “I can relax because we went to the same high school”.

(We don’t even know the background behind Larva and that white guy. This is just a hunch, but the one who blew away Stella is that white Devil. I thought I could get some kind of lead on him if I came to the academy city, but I suppose it’s impossible to get that sort of information in only one day. I have a feeling I can figure something out in Lorel as well, so there’s still some hope. With regards to Misumi-kun, Joshua-sama is summoning him and I have to return to the kingdom as well, so I’ll meet him in the kingdom in the near future and ascertain his standpoint there. It’s not a good idea to investigate too much right now, since that person called Tomoe-san gave me a warning.)

Hibiki remembers the blue-haired woman who is the very reason she was able to meet up with her party so quickly in the first place.

She is confused as to what to think about Tomoe.

(She should probably be about as strong as Mio-san. She was someone I can’t understand no matter how hard I try. She seemed to know the basic way of handling a katana, but she’s either never been through a competition between katana-users or she’s just inexperienced at fighting. Even so, her stance was quite solid. Ah, that’s what it reminds me of. It felt like a staged sword fight. What exactly has she been doing to learn how to use a sword like that? I don’t understand her. I don’t think Misumi-kun has any understanding of kendo or swordsmanship, but I wonder if you would be able to have such a solid foundation just by hearing a report on how it’s done. That company has far too many secrets.)

After Tomoe had insisted on it, they spent almost an hour at the academy having a contest with katanas.

The only magic they used were strengthening magic and healing magic, so it was a true contest of sword techniques. Hibiki won nine out of ten matches.

Tomoe’s powerful technique that made use of her physical ability had taken Hibiki by surprise initially, but Hibiki won the rest of the matches afterwards.

To Hibiki, who has studied kendo for a long time and even learned proper swordsmanship, Tomoe was but an inexperienced swordswoman.

However.

(She recovered straight away even after I cut her, didn’t she? Though she did say that she had prepared healing magic in advance.)

It was a truly spectacular magic.

To the point that Hibiki unconsciously watched her in fascination.

After a deep blow that Hibiki had thought might even endanger Tomoe’s life, Tomoe had stood up as if nothing had happened. Hibiki was completely shocked.

Hibiki had immediately decided to make it one of her objectives to find out whether Tomoe would be able to demonstrate such an ability a second time.

Tomoe did give her an explanation.

She willingly explained to Hibiki how the magic works.

It was not exactly a deal they agreed upon, but in exchange, Hibiki taught Tomoe a way to train the Japanese sword’s iai*.

TLN*: This is the art of drawing your sword, cutting down your opponent with the same movement and then sheathing the sword afterwards.

(As a swordswoman, her physical strength is terrifying, but not particularly special otherwise. She probably normally uses magic to fight. I defeated her that many times and yet she wasn’t even upset about it. But more importantly…)

Tomoe, Mio, Makoto.

And Larva, whom she might be able to find clues about in Lorel.

In addition to that, the restoration of the kingdom, the empire’s movements and the war with the demons.

Even though she is exhausted, Hibiki does not stop thinking about the various subjects that float into her mind as she goes through a sleepless night.

◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆

I’m naïve to think that winter would stop the development of the land.

Are you serious?

Ema is in a bad mood, which is unusual for her. After hearing the situation, it seems she is unhappy that Kaleneon’s farmable land is expanding slower than expected.

Apparently I’m naïve for believing that snow falling on the land is a valid reason for that.

Kaleneon’s a northern, inland area with lots of mountains, so my only thought was that it would be unreasonable to try to develop the land during the winter.

According to the Super Secretary Ema, it wouldn’t be a problem if magic was used.

I had this thought during the restoration of Rotsgard as well, but we’re in a situation where we have to use magic for all kinds of work.

… There’s no shortage of workers capable of that among the demi-humans that are temporarily working in Kaleneon, but still…

I asked Root to secretly move hyuman and demi-human adventurers that pass certain requirements to Kaleneon as immigrants. It’s normal for those kinds of people to have a lifestyle where they’re doing some work on the side, anyway.

I need more information than just what Ema has told me, so I’ll make a decision on how to deal with the situation after I hear from the Ansland sisters in Kaleneon.

More importantly, I need to focus on the present.

「Tomoe, explain. What’s with those torn-up clothes?」(Makoto)

This is the problem at hand right now.

「How good of you to ask! I asked the hero Hibiki to demonstrate her knowledge of true swordsmanship. Well, we had a small contest. These are wounds of honor, so to speak!」(Tomoe)

「Where is the honor in having a contest for your hobby?」(Makoto)

「Let us not worry about the small details! She was amazing, Waka. Her sword moved like this so quickly, and in the next instant, it was slashing back at me! I think that the trick to this would be to use the wrist and the back. It really surprised me!」(Tomoe)

「… It’s amazing that only your clothes got torn.」(Makoto)

「No? My blood scattered through the air multiple times. I was healing at the same time, so it was not a problem. Though I cannot repair my clothing, so that is why I am in this state.」(Tomoe)

Tomoe touches her torn clothes. She seems like she’s enjoying herself.

They fought each other with real swords…

「Weren’t you supposed to stop Senpai from being exposed to danger?!」(Makoto)

「Of course. I did not use most of my magic and we fought only using swords; in my current state, there is no way I can land an attack on her.」(Tomoe)

「So you thought it would be fine because you can’t hit her, seriously, you. It’s not just a matter of healing yourself when you get cut, is it?! Do you think I’d find it interesting to imagine you being cut?」(Makoto)

There’s no way I’d find that interesting.

I’d be worried instead!

「Muh, that’s… It was a little rash of me.」(Tomoe)

「Katana this, katana that. I know I can’t give you a match using a katana. But take care of yourself a little more! You understand me?!」(Makoto)

「I will be certain to take care from now on.」(Tomoe)

「Good.」(Makoto)

Now that I see Tomoe seriously reflecting on her actions, I’ll forgive her.

「So? What happened to Senpai?」(Makoto)

「It seems that her main objectives were to secure the academy’s cooperation to assist with the restoration of the kingdom, as well as the assistance of our company, which she also has business with.」(Tomoe)

「Tomoe-san! What’s with your appearance! You told me to calm down, and then you went and punished Hibiki, didn’t you?! Isn’t that unfair?!」(Mio)

Mio has barged in, right in the middle of Tomoe’s explanation.

In her hand is… an octopus?

She’s holding a bright-red octopus.

Boiled whole?

Even for a new dish, that’s quite amazing.

But octopus, huh.

「I just fell over! It has nothing to do with Hibiki!」(Tomoe)

「Where would you have to fall for your clothes to be cut to ribbons like that?! If you are going to play dumb, please think of a better excuse! I had things I wanted to say to Hibiki as well, but I held myself back! If you are going to do such things, Tomoe-san, then I will do as I please as well!」(Mio)

Oi!

「Unfortunately, Hibiki is no longer in Rotsgard. I politely escorted her back to her party.」(Tomoe)

「… Waka-sama! Tomoe-san is horrible!」(Mio)

「Ah, jeez. I already scolded Tomoe a little while ago. Oh, that octopus looks delicious. Did you boil it?」(Makoto)

「Octopus? A-ah. I am just checking the salt seasoning, but it has been boiled quite well. I would certainly like Waka-sama to try it.」(Mio)

Mio is even explaining how she cooked it.

「Waka, you have grown used to dealing with Mio. That is very reassuring.」(Tomoe)

「As for you, go and get changed first. You know that Mio and Shiki have been obsessed with seafood cuisine these days, don’t you? Let’s eat together. I’ll hear your detailed explanation then.」(Makoto)

Mio and Shiki have been going to port cities recently to stock up on seafood.

I sometimes participate in the cooking if they’re using ingredients that I’m familiar with.

Mio wants to increase her number of seafood recipes and Shiki apparently wants to collaborate with Gotetsu and do research into making nabe with seafood. Their interests coincide, so they often go out together.

Shiki was in high spirits today, saying that he’d be putting crab in a nabe.

He’s holed himself up in Asora’s kitchen, going through a trial-and-error process to test out different combinations of various soups and vegetables.

He was enthusiastically combining the different soups that he received from Gotetsu.

I say he’s combining them, but it feels more like a drug manufacturing process. I’m looking forward to the final product.

「Shiki is making a nabe today, correct? It seems much more promising than Mio, who merely boiled her ingredient. I am looking forward to it.」(Tomoe)

「… Merely boiled?」(Mio)

Mio’s eyebrows are raised.

Oh man, should I follow up on this?

I cut one of the legs of the octopus that Mio has brought and hold it in my hand.

「… Tomoe.」(Makoto)

「Huh? … Muguh!」(Tomoe)

「Is this the taste of something that has been merely boiled?」(Makoto)

「… This is delicious. Hmm.」(Tomoe)

「Is there something you’d like to say to Mio?」(Makoto)

「… Mio, I apologize. This is very delicious. I am sorry for saying that it has been merely boiled.」(Tomoe)

Tomoe earnestly bows her head in apology.

「… It is fine as long as you understand. I have other dishes prepared, so you can look forward to them as well.」(Mio)

Octopus, huh.

Excellent!

「By the way, Mio. What dishes are you planning to use an octopus for?」(Makoto)

「Let’s see…」(Mio)

Mio lists out her planned menu for me.

She’s not listing anything that I can make.

Let’s add two items to the dining table.

There’s still time for that.

「Well then, I’ll make something too.」(Makoto)

「Oh! It has been a while!」(Tomoe)

「What kind of dish will it be?」(Mio)

「One will be the nabe and the other will be a dish using flour. Tako-shabu and takoyaki!」(Makoto)

TLN: タコ/Tako = octopus. しゃぶ/Shabu is a shortened form しゃぶしゃぶ/shabu-shabu, which is a type of nabe/hot pot dish that typically has thin slices of meat. Takoyaki is balls of flour batter filled with octopus. And now I’m hungry.

Shiki will probably enjoy it, since it’s a nabe.

I’ve never showed them a shabu-shabu before, so it should be fresh for them.

Mio is always interested in new dishes no matter what they are.

Tomoe is looking forward to my cooking as well.

This is also my chance to redeem myself.

I remember the time I asked the Dwarves to make me an iron plate to make takoyaki with.

It’s a bitter memory.

I’d prepared the ingredients before realizing.

I had no octopus.

Nobody was selling them at all. I wanted to cry.

In the end, I used shreds of chicken meat to make toriyaki*, but I felt a true sense of defeat that time.

TLN*: トリ/Tori = bird, so toriyaki is what he has named this failed dish which is basically takoyaki with chicken in place of the octopus. Don’t see what wrong with it, sounds delicious to me.

I couldn’t show anyone my failure, so I ended up eating it all by myself.

I can finally sweep away my trauma.

Now then, let’s go to the kitchen.

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100 thoughts on “Chapter 175: Troubling matters

  1. I don’t understand. What are Hibiki intentions? She seems very indecisive and naive. She knows she’s going to kill innocent lives after the War. Didn’t she say she’d change their treatment?

    It’s like she sees things Black and White. But at the same time she does not.

    1. Remember her meeting Io back in Limia? She got repulsed by soldiers killing civilians, only for Io to remind her of the demihuman settlements she raided to kill indiscriminately, leaving her without words to counter.

      This, fellow reader, is what I call hipocrisy.

      1. “For Hibiki, who thinks that the goddess’s system should continue in this world even after the war, ”
        What to expect from someone who agrees with the Bug?

  2. this Hibiki is fucking stupid ” Is it alright to accept someone like that as an ally?” the goddess tried to murder him and she immediatly thought he was the bad guy….

    1. “So she has decided that as a hero, she should make her decisions without taking into account her personal feelings.”
      In the end she isn’t that different from Tomoki. She became drunk in the feeling that a god has chosen her as a ‘savior of the world’ and believes it’s just obvious for her to decide what’s good or evil.

  3. That infodump on Hibiki… I know the author is trying hard to make her a villain, but isn’t that too much of a thought process even for a genius high school student? That’s already on the level of a bullshit deducting.

    1. you are saying she is way too smart even for a genius (and i think i agree) but reading the comments it seems people want makoto to as smart as this if not smarter

    2. It could be possible. Not sure how long she’s been there but I’d say she wasn’t far behind in being summoned to that world after Makoto (who’s been there at least a year?)

      There’s a reason that prior to our current standards that it wasn’t strange for teens to being foisted on responsibilities. Your experience grows you faster the more you are challenged (such as them being in a war). You can’t stay innocent forever if you plan to survive long with those sort of conditions.

      Kinda like the MC in Death March not understanding that because of the demon lord festival that kids working is the norm because you never know when you’ll die.

      1. In her introduction she lost interest i everything in earth since she excelled in everything she do. The moment she was sent to the othereworld, she was able to grow more because the environment allows her to keep using her brain. Thats the only explanation here.

      2. You guys may have forgotten, since it was just a little dialogue between Larva and Hibiki, he asked if she got her weapon from Kuzunoha branch in Tsige, adding he know them slightly.
        Knowing that Larva is the Devil subordinate, and knowing the connection between Larva and Kuzunoha company, it may not be that weird to imagine they all know each other

    3. They talked for 3 hours, and the only thing they didn’t talk about is the devil, shiki, goddess, how he was transported, and probably how he met tomoe, mio and other demi-humans, and also about asora. Also root of course
      But everything else like Rembrandt, raza, students, teacher, academy, tsige, all of those are talked about

    4. they were small mentions of hibiki pretty much being a prodigy. she was the school president and she was very well known in their town for being very smart and she has a very good understanding of fighting styles. it makes sense that she can think like that but yes it maybe a bit too much

      1. I would say its more than just a bit too much.
        Being the school president just means she was chosen by the majority of the school students, and while they tend to select intelligent people,and hibiki is really a smart woman.

        All that deduction went pass the limits of intelligence to reach the level of precognition or clarivodence.

        1. That could be intuition gained from her kendo training or being summoned as a hero. Hard to really tell with only this level of info provided.

          1. Well i dont see what her kendo classes has anything to do with this. Kendo is the practice of the sword nothing more. And about she being a hero… Its not impossible but it has never been mentioned or even hinted anywhere.

            So until new info is provided by the author, the current conclusion is that the author screwed it up with the development of these events. Nothing strange in her writing by the way.

          2. I mentioned kendo just because things like that or anything with focus can bring out innate abilities is how it goes I think? Things you wouldn’t even know you had hidden inside you if you didn’t do something like that.

            Example would be like Makoto’s ability to imagine his target from far away and able to always hit it without any magic power or magic enhanced equipment. I’d feel kendo would be able to release an intuition of sorts because you’d be in close-combat and have to be able to react.

            Now, intuition in this sense is different from battle intuition but based on Makoto saying Hibiki being perfect (in his eyes) in everything could just be enhanced by her everyday life.

          3. Its not that dont comply with your idea, but i do not think kendo would work anything like that in this case. Kendo might polish the combat intuition and the reading of the opponents intentions, but those would be limited to “in moment” intuition, like what is the opponent feeling or thinking in the moment, that kind of thing not a so deep in thought intentions.

            Her kendo applies more like in your example of makotos shooting, in her way of handling her evasion combat where she predicts her enemies attacks allowing her evade most if not all of them.

            If she had worked as an investigator, a detective o something like that i would concur it would have developed the abilities necessary for her to come to such impressive deductions, but thats not the case.

          4. Yeah. That’s why I mentioned in regards to her conversation, normally that intuition shouldn’t play a part but if becoming a hero gives her bonus points to her intuition out of combat, don’t know since its not said. All we really get is that Makoto considers her very hard-working so could be something she had outside of her kendo (like Roots intuition but theirs was something gained over years) but Hibiki has barely lived her life and we don’t hear of her having any harsh environment growing up. She was just a school student and not some sort of student spy or anything.

          5. Yeah i understand but since it has never been said, mentioned or at the very least hinted, i would say thats not the case.

            And even if she somehow gained plus points in those abilities just because she is a hero. Its still insuficient to be a good explanation of how she came to some of her deductions like the one she says about kuzunoha company having any kind of relationship with the “Devil” just because of her conversation with Makoto (basing it on what she herself mentioned abou that conversation).

            Its simply a too great deduction coming from a character developed like her.

  4. Damn, I low key want toriyaki. Not sure if takoyaki would be to my taste since I’ve never had octopus but if it’s chicken I’d eat that shit up for sure.

  5. Well how did damn hibiki came to the conclusion that “The devil” had any relationship with the kuzunoha company? Im so freaking sure makoto wouldn’t mention anything of the sorts and no one has proofs about the devil (apart from the demon side) existences.

    1. Maybe something was lost in translation. Maybe she meant a three way between Kuzunoha, Tomoki and the Devil. From what I’ve read, she still havent connected the Devil’s identity with Makoto.

      1. No, i re read the fight in limia and all is lancers fault. In his fight againts shiki he kept shouting devil this devil that.

        Hibiki heard it and questioned shiki what did he mean with “servant of the devil”.

        1. But you are right. In that fight hibiki can deduce the devil and thr white being are the same. Not that either of them has anything to do with kuzunoha company. So yeah you surely are right.

          Something must have been lost in the translation. I can’t find any other explanation for that comment.

          1. “The last words of the man that was turned into a sword. And the previous words of him when he said ‘that person resembles those people’. It feels like it associates with Tsige.” ~chapter 162 last paragraph~

            she could cpnclude that by Tsige and ‘those people’ he meant Kuzunoha so if he is related so is his master (guy in white aka “The devil”) although this was more like a guess so I think author wanted to show how “smart and perceptive” she is

          2. Yeah you are right, that paragraph explains everything but really this author just wants to make hibiki like a pseudo inferior version of sherlock holmes, she always comes with these conclusions with no evidence nor real proofs like she has clairvoyance.

          3. I think hibiki should know Makoto is the “White guy” since the unknown entity that gave her her power told her the white guy is from her world as well so that should at least come to her mind

          4. Well im sure that makes no sense. A person from her world. Its not like her world only had a person or two. It could have been anyone from her world. Billions of options available. Impossible she would think on a minor guy she knew from school.

            And im pretty sure that didn’t happen anyway. The entity never told her the white guy was someone from her world. Only that he unilaterally knew him.

          5. maybe gaining intelligence when you level up actually helps out with more than just magic in this world?
            I mean, she did break the level limit, and iirc, she was considered pretty smart back in Japan. Plus she’s a Hero… idk, for me it seems as if Hibiki slowly gets smarter as the story goes on, soo maybe the gaining levels helps with more than just fighting prowess?

          6. I doubt it since it has never been specified, and Hibiki becoming smarter… I would say she becomes shrewer not smarter and that’s not strange, she was only 17 or 18 when she came to that world, its common for teenagers to grow

          7. I just thought that it is most likely a weapon from Kuzunoha Company

            Shiki says this directly to Hibiki. It’s really not all that strange to imagine a connection between the Kuzunoha company and the Devil, especially after witnessing the power of Mio and Tomoe. Like “if they have those two, it wouldn’t be strange for Larva and the Devil to be directly associated with them either”.

          8. Its not only strange, its astronomically impossible to simply come to that conclusion.

            Just because a comment referring a company is not enough to reach those conclusions. That comment could mean many things, all of them more viable than the possibility of larva being a kuzunoha employee.

            Like him being a customer, that he lived in tsige or was recently there. Or that he comes from the wasteland or even that he spied of the company, something not that strange cause Lily already did.

            All in all it’s not believable that she discovered he was part of kuzunoha only because of that comment.

            And about the power of mio, thats also not a validad reason. True Mio is really powerful but Hibiki didn’t understand how great her powers were at this point and there were still many powerful individuals out there, like Sofia.

            Just because Mio was powerful is not a good reason to think another powerful being is in cahoots with her.

          9. I didn’t want to copy the whole excerpt, but it definitely gave the impression of being well acquainted with that company. Whether he works for them or with them is an insignificant semantic difference.

            And ordinary customers or remote acquaintances in Tsige would not be able to immediately recognise who made a weapon, especially if it changed its shape. There is further evidence for that when not even the elder dwarf in Rotsgard recognises the sword’s origin without being told by Makoto, and he not only does work for the company but is an expert in smithing.

            The moment I read that I thought “isn’t he telling her way too much when they’re trying to hide their identity?” The conclusion that would be astronomically improbable is assuming that Larva is just on the level of an ordinary active adventurer in Tsige and has no further connection to the company.

            Being powerful isn’t enough evidence on its own, but it makes sense in light of the other clues.

          10. I know it was only a part, but my statement remains: It’s unbelievable and almost impossible.

            While the Kuzunoha company was not that well known around the world at that moment, it was already a famous place in Tsige, and it was pretty easy to recognize its products because all of them are a top notch better than anything else in the market. I can assure you all the Tsgie adventurers that went with Hibiki to Limia knew well enough about the company and its products.

            The same happens with all the people interested in them in Tsige. Proof of that is that the list for “specially ordered weapons” is always full.

            And many of the things you mention come from your understanding of the whole story. For example, the dwarve you said, the one who couldn’t recognize the blade of Hibiki. Only he and Makoto knew that he couldn’t recognize it; Hibiki didn’t know that.

            For her, that dwarve knew that the sword was made by Beren after checking on it for a bit. And that dwarve “recognized” who made the sword, not only that it was their company’s product. There is a big difference there compared to the statement Larva did.

            And Larva’s comment was mainly referring to the fact that he knew what monster materials it was made of. Implying that he was involved with that monster.

            And again, Hibiki doesn’t really understand the real power of any of them. For her, Mio Larva and Tomoe may look the same, but that’s only because the difference with her is too high. So using power levels to assume people are connected is not feasible.

            For example, she learned how powerful Larva was by defeating Lancer. However, she couldn’t have guessed that Mio was as powerful as them because she couldn’t measure their powers correctly. And she wouldn’t assume that Mio, a “simple Hyuman,” was as strong as a superior dragon, much less as strong as the Lych that could beat a superior dragon.

            The acceptable conclusion here is that the author fuck it up with that. She wanted to make Hibiki reach those conclusions, but she omitted enough development for it to be reasonable. At least for now, it looks like Hibiki solved an equation like:
            2 + 2 + x = y
            and somehow, she discovered that ‘y’ was 9 without even knowing what ‘x’ was.

            And I’m not saying you don’t have a point, maybe you are right that those things were “Clues” left for Hibiki to reach that conclusion. What I mean is that all those clues added together were not enough for her to come to that conclusion. At least not in a reasonable way.

          11. I think you could put it as her jumping to conclusions with somewhat unnatural intuition, but it is one of the possible conclusions that could be drawn. It’s just that through pure deduction and rational analysis, there isn’t enough evidence for this to be the necessary conclusion rather than one of many.

            It’s true that Hibiki doesn’t know that the dwarf didn’t recognise it, but in reality he didn’t. So Hibiki can’t take that case as additional evidence, but it doesn’t change the strangeness of recognising the make in the first place.

            If adventurers in Tsige see outstanding weapons and identify them as the Kuzunoha company’s products, it’s one thing because they actually sell weapons right there, but identifying outstanding products as something from a single company halfway on the other side of the world (or at least what’s explored of it) is a different matter. While Kuzunoha company is now accumulating widespread acclaim through their actions and involvement during the upheaval in Rotsgard, it’s not as if they had had a global presence before. So the base assumption of seeing something excellent wouldn’t necessarily be that it must come from that one company. At best you can argue that Larva left the monster from his experiments in the wasteland, so it would make sense for a company based near the wasteland to process its materials, but that’s not how he worded it.

            I’m not going to say that it’s a strong hint, but it’s a stronger hint than what would have been necessary if he had truly planned to hide his identity under all circumstances.

          12. There are some characters in fiction whose abilities or superpowers are that unnatural intuition to reach conclusions with seemingly not logical clues and connexions, like DC’s character “The Question.” Still, Hibiki’s not that kind of character.

            A clear proof of that is that later in the story. When she deduces that Makoto and his company are the ones behind the Mist town in the wasteland. At that time, her ability to make deductions was clearly shown, and it was not at the level to make the conclusions she did this time.

            And Hibiki can’t take that event with the dwarve as evidence as you suggest cause she never learns or doubts it. So it’s not only that she wasn’t talked about the truth but that she never even noticed the truth; in her eyes, the dwarve knew the sword was made by his companions. So there is no room for her to suspect it cause the “truth” she believed was that he knew about the sword.

            What you are insinuating is that Hibiki could doubt the dwarve because she suspected Kuzunoha was involved with Larva, but for her to suspect on the dwarve and Kuzunoha, she first must know that he works with them. And that can’t happen without her suspecting the dwarve. That’s cyclical logic.

            And like I said, it’s not that strange for someone with previous interaction to recognize her sword. Maybe an unknowable person wouldn’t be able to recognize it. Still, the obvious conclusion here is that the individual is knowable. So the obvious conclusion is that Larva knows of swords, smithing, or Kuzunohas products. Like MANY ADVENTURERS IN TSIGE.

            And you find it strange that he recognized Kuzunoha equipment just because they were in Limia. The answer is simple there, He had gone to Tsige and knew about the store’s products. It’s not something so uncommon for others to suspect it.

            Hibiki herself traveled that “half-world” you mentioned to reach the city and got that equipment. All her adventurer’s companions traveled the same distance to accompany her to Limia, and all of them knew good enough info about Kuzunohas products to become proficient in recognizing them.

            None of that is strange, and one reason it’s easy to recognize Kuzunoha’s items is because they simply over excel compared to others. They are merely too outstanding.

            You call it strange that someone can identify the equipment, but the truth is that its not that strange. The limitations that make Kuzunoha’s products not widely spread make their customers really well-informed people.

            None of that can be considered a hint for Hibiki to reach those conclusions she makes. Even if you think of them as a hint, they would never be regarded as an important one. You might see it as a hint because you already know the answer, but that’s because you know the answer, and you can’t see it as a hint without knowing the answer. Cyclical logic.

            The most probable conclusion is the same: The author omitted more development in that regard.

            Maybe you are right that those things you mention might have been hints if the author had given more details on the topic, but as of how the story ended up being, they are not.

          13. I am waiting for the manga to make this pest(Hibiki) seem like she actually did some detective work and not this…..method that she used.

    2. My interpretation is that she deduced that the Kuzunoha company have an unknown but large influence, large enough to attract the king of Limia. With that influence, he probably can reach out to the devil, and the devil and kingdom taking each other out is a possible outcome that she’s hypothesising.

  6. I dont know what is with the author’s preference for idiots. I mean, everyone that met Makoto and his group will always think on how to control, how to ally with them, how to remove them, etc. Not even one have the thought of maybe cooperating between people on even grounds.

    And then there is Hibiki. Like, wtf. Where did you link with him having bad relations with the Goddess and him being on no races side, equals to him being a potential threat in the future? Like, you dont get hit if you dont hit first never come to mind? Sorry, couldnt remember the right proverb. This is such a disappointment for a character trait. I mean, I understand looking at the future, but Makoto has never shown any tendency of relying on violence for anything. B1tch, earth has a multiracial society. Goddamn I’m so frustrated.

    The only decent character so far seems to be the Demon Lord. Seems, as we dont get a lot of story on him yet. As for Rona, she is out. I dont like her at all.

    1. she read the report of kuzunoha company that prince Joshua give to her. makoto clearly said to the prince that he is not siding anyone. also she deduced that he’s not in good realation to goddess because makoto tell her that the goddess dropped him in the end of the world where the dens of srtrong monsters and demi humans lives. that’s enough reason to realize that goddess wants him to be killed there and makoto might be want a revenge for that

    2. I already disliked Hibiki because of her stupid thought process: First let us enslave all demons and then they can work themselves up within hundreds of years and under the goddess rules.
      The Goddess rules and faith are the reason demons and demi-humans are on the brink and rebelled like this in the first place.

      I get the feeling that she is either corrupted by her own standing or by the power of the goddess. At first she distrusted the goddess and now she is like a godess fanatic, where everyone who is against her needs to die.

      1. Glad I’m not the only one who thinks “LeT’s EnSlAvE tHe DeMoNs So ThEy HaVe RiGhTs In WhO kNoWs HoW mAnY gEnErAtIoNs” is a stupid ideology

      2. huuuh? Since when has she ever thought about enslaving the demons? She never mentions or even hints at that. The most she hints about what her plans against/for the demons are is “I need to end this war so I can help the Demi-humans gain rights by getting rid of monarchy and bringing about democracy” She also has no intentions of enslaving the Demi humans either. Yall are stupid

        1. I haven’t read past this, but he probably came from future chapter and comment in the past chapter based on his knowledge of it, which is pretty unfair. Nobody should have done that. This is the chapter when what he talked about hasn’t happened. If he wanted to talk about something that happened in the future, then do it there, not here.

        2. What do you think beeing put under the humans and working for them means. Its nothing else besides slavery, from where they should work on it to rise from it. (Which is like I stated impossible.) People should sometimes really reread some chapters. She said such things in former chapters.

        3. She did mention it many time that if the Hyuman win and demons pretty much Gaana be slave and thought that it ganna be ok and stuff I don’t remember much but it kinda like Ideal of her when she in war with TrashMoki

        4. But she is willing to let them stay enslaved, during this.

          I mean think about the American CivilWar, the north started freeing slaves as a way to draw thr slaves from the south other army.

          As much as a “genius” she is, she is very naive about how to win hearts and minds. And overestimates the power she has over the other leaders. To them just a means to an end they arent going to give up there power just because a child says so.

          Also the fact she isn’t investigating WHY the war started is also a minus to her. She thinks hymans are in the “right” because they dont want to be killed off, yet never considers if maybe the goddess is in the wrong. I mean Hibiki should have thought something was wrong with the goddess considering she has ALLOWED SLAVERY of the demi-humans. Nor is hibiki looking into the reasons why.

          Hell she is completely fine with how the goddess treated Mokato and hasn’t questioned as to reason WHY it happened, only that “He may become an “Evil” to her or the hymans.

          Also you are assuming her way of thinking will stay the same. When she finds out there are demi-humans are supporting the demons.

          Racism is a very easy trap to fall into, and can be rationalized easily.

    3. My interpretation is this is Hibiki’s deduction:

      Makoto shoes no respect to the goddess = rough relationship with hyumans = potential threat.

      Since she decided to be on the hyuman’s side who’s on the goddess’ side, she’s with the goddess by association. Meaning anyone that doesn’t show respect to the goddess is their potential enemy. And since Makoto has a very powerful company, any potential for him needs to be watched like a hawk.

      Also, honestly the demon lord is the closest person to Makoto. He wants the best for his followers and also doesn’t discriminate race. Can’t wait for them to meet I bet they’ll be best buds.

    4. She doesn’t know Makato has never relied on violence at all; meaning that she can’t dismiss the possibility. She has never known him well enough to know his full personality. (being in the same high school doesn’t mean shit, even more so if she’s a year or more ahead.) If he isn’t clearly for one side or another, it’s very possible for him to suddenly choose/reveal that he is working with the demons at any point in time. As for literal countries trying to control, ally or remove them, that’s normal. Not a single country would ever try and talk on even grounds with a company, no matter how large, no matter how well known, no matter how reputable it is. It would never happen. It’s so unrealistic that imo, it should never be done in any story. And so far, they are literally the only ones to try and do so. So idk wym by everyone they have met.

    5. If you’re in the position of leading a nation (and while she is currently not officially in that position, she has ambitions to that extent to put her goals into practice) and someone has nuclear weapons, it doesn’t matter that they’re friendly. They’re a threat, and if that threat was removed, you’d be able to sleep more easily, regardless of how well you get along with them on a personal level.

      There’s a limit to how much power you can entrust to others, and even more so if they do not hold the same ideologies as you do.

      Expecting her to treat him differently than that just because he has some semblance of modern values (note that he does not actually have a complete set of modern values and sensibilities, including his view of death, even if she’s not aware of it yet) is unreasonable.

      He could literally cause millions of deaths, and that’s not just if it happens on a whim or an emotional outburst, but also inadvertently. Ignoring that potential would be stupid at best.

      1. Late reply. But I did mention about potential threat if you read my comment from before. But what I meant was she is so arrogant that mutual cooperation never came to her mind. Get it? She thinks containment is best. Best if Makoto was under her. Cause she soooooo good that she will never misuse his strength. And if he refuses to be under her, his is a threat to be eliminated. Fak off. She never tried to understand who Makoto is, his principles, his drives. She views the world only from her side. Basically seeing the world in black and white.

  7. And once again i read the chapter and find something new to which bad mouth Hibiki. That Bitch.

    How stupid is she? She is right she just can’t think in the present and she must consider the future. But considering she has no guarantee she will win the war, or worst she has no guarantee she won’t die in the next fight againts demons cause she is so fucking weak and useless.

    She shouldnt be going around thinking on things at the level of “after we win the war”. She has nothing to back up if she is going to win. Or if she is going to survive, or even if anyone will be able to beat the demons and how long it would take for that. At this point she is day dreaming with those trains of thoughts

      1. That one demon general said in kambat he is the strongest of the 4 general but yeah author really make my look at her a minus huh thought she be an interesting character when interact with Makoto but disappointed that she is no difference from Lona who only try to use Makoto but we’ll what did I expected?

      2. That is literally the strongest combatant of the entire opposing faction, and the states of the military, supply lines, and population haven’t been lined out in this novel yet, but she has more reason to believe that the hyumans would win the war than you might think.

        Just because Makoto isn’t informed about the exact state of both factions doesn’t mean nobody else knows either, so she doesn’t get that notion out of thin air. If Io could win the war alone by just walking over all the hyuman armies, the demons wouldn’t have halted their progress and continued the genocide before heroes were summoned in the first place.

        Now, in all fairness I am basing this comment on some information from future chapters, but that doesn’t mean that anyone should have assumed that Hibiki is wrong based on insufficient information either. Plus Hibiki and Tomoki are growing at an insane rate that will put them well beyond Io sooner or later, even if they can’t catch up to Makoto.

  8. With the 10 matches of kendo, Tomoe probably learned 10 or more kendo strikes. She was holding back and Hibiki couldn’t even hold a candle in regards to strenght.

  9. Hmmmm, Makoto’s intuition has gotten better so let’s hope he finds out that Hibiki is using him for infos. But Why the fuck is everyone trying to control this guy. And where the fuck is the God’s gift?

  10. Wow Hibiki… you’re unsure of Makoto so you plan to murder him through schemes. These two Japanese that are supposed to be heroes truly are trash. I mean, it’s not like you don’t know him at all but just to make sure he isn’t a hindrance to your power grab from the Kingdom, you want to murder him.

    Then we have this trash of a hero that wants to basically own all the women and control the world, all because he was bullied.

    Here we have Makoto who is being used/manipulated by everyone, when all he wants is everyone to be happy and equal, no prejudices. I get it’s naive and impossible in such a imbalanced world because of a thras goddess. I Still can’t wait to find out what goddess she really is, since the other Earth gods indicate she’s one of them. I REALLY can’t wait til Makoto starts to mature more and then puts his foot up all their arses.

    1. Considering is a goddess who is so damn concern in external beauty and that Athena was the goddess who actually punished her, i would say the bug goddess is a greek god, and that she is Aphrodite.

    2. She doesn’t know that Makoto is the Devil. She mainly wants the Kuzunoha company to lose their war potential, and if Makoto dies in the progress that’s a sacrifice she’s willing to make, not something she’s specifically aiming for.

    1. I was just talking to a buddy about how bad Hibiki was and all a sudden I get a like on a 2 year old comment, what a funny coincidence lol. Thanks since I can find this chapter easier.

  11. Ok, I’m seeing a lot of comments about how much of a bitch Hibiki is and how she used mc for info and all that, and I get that some people feel frustrated as she uses our beloved (?) mc but in my opinion, it really does not matter.

    This is my thinking: So we know that mc is at God’s level strength, although it was stated that he did not beat Athena in her full form and she did not use her gear, mc still basically won over her in the fighting competition. So every time I see these characters where they find mc a threat and want to use him bla bla, but the only outcome from that will be that, for example, Hibiki manages to trick mc into a dangerous situation but mc finds out he is being used, this fuels his hatred or anger to that person (does not have to be Hibiki) then simply overpower their expectations and that person gets mc as an enemy.

    Besides Hibiki is probs a soft spot for Makato since they are both from Japan so it’s expected that he would fall for her tick but I do agree that it’s stupid that she becomes such a hypocrite, like before these latest chapters I felt that Tomoki was a trash Hero that has been corrupted due to power while Hibiki is a pure and good-hearted person that just wants to help, sure she might be a bit naïve but she just stood out as a person with good morals, so the whole “Shitty Goddess should rule” thing felt weird cuz that’s implying that she is fine with the demi-humans and demons being treated like they are, besides isn’t the Bug goddess fault for the whole war? So I am disappointed she has twisted morals. If this character trait was developed during the story i would be able to accept it but it felt very forceful.

    1. Well first will be that makoto didn’t win that fight with athen, in fact he lost, but he gave a really good fight so yeah it occurs what you say.

      Even if he gets in a bad situation cause of Hibiki’s trap, he will overpower it, you are right there. But even it really doesn’t matter whatever hibiki plans and tries, its annoying seeing her with that big bright smile she shows makoto while in the back choosing the knife she will use to stab him.

      And that’s mostly it, that’s why most of us hate that bitch.

      But you are indeed wrong she is a good girl and only naive, while she might be more good of a person than bad, she is indeed a bitch who goes around only thinking what best for her objetives (whether these are good or bad is another topic in itself) and she is willing to use whatever best method to fulfill them.

      So, yeah she is not really a good girl at all, just a better person than Tomoki.

      1. haha don’t worry my guy, a few chapter later I change my mind drastically, you can probably find some of my comments later on talking about how much I hate her haha

        1. Haha no worries! Only giving my opinion, its a relaxing way of passing time while waiting for new chapters.

          1. Man, I love this interaction. Two men (presumably and sorry if wrong) just laying down their opinions and sharing ideas and thought why one of them might be wrong. If only the rest of humanity was like this… makes me sad to think about the current state of the world

      2. I think she just isn’t fully treating the world as real, like it hasn’t sunken in that this is not playing a game or reading a story, and that she can’t just log out or pick a new save file (esp. since she said no to that power) or just go back to Japan with everything be the same and anyone she murders brought back. She loves her comrades because she’s atrached to their character development, not fully seeing them as people, and she has become more brutal and detached because the game’s gotten harder. Thus far I think she is being sociopathic in the manner of a gamer.

        1. Nah, definitely thats not the case.

          The one who fell on that category was Tomoki, even more so when he acted like everything was a game in front of Hibiki, she was really strange of his way of thinking.

          Hibiki from the get go understood she was in another world that was not a game, thats why she actually had a serious discussion with the goddess and was even tempted to reject her offer.

          And any doubt was lost when she had to kill for the first time. thats why she was shocked to the point of crying.

          The real problem is that she is too stupidly naive in regards of thinking that if she does things the best possible way, she would get the best possible results.

          And that if she tries her hardest she will be able to solve things. And her ridiculous selfish values always makes her take shitty decisions.

          Thats how she got herself in a loosing fight with Io that ended in the death of Naval, and how she got in another fight with Io that almost got herself killed again.

          She is stupidly incapable of understating that sometimes you will fail no matter what you do. That sometimes people are incapable of accomplishing anything no matter how hard they try.

          She was a girl who had an easy life by all standards in japan, thats why she can accept/understand that reality.

  12. Why such anger at Hibiku?
    Makota saved her twice.
    Made a top sword.
    Helped with putoshi training.
    Lime also helped her twice.
    After all this, she will do something mean towards Makoto. She owes him everything.

    1. the hate comes from knowledge of chapters that are to come. And most of the commentators are people that are at least on their second read-through. So they have their ideas seat about her and want to vent out the pent up anger they gathered till now. Also they come here hating her so that also makes them more biased and critical towards hibiki.

  13. Ok I get why people don’t like her all that much now, though I can see her reasoning.
    If someone with the power to single-handedly destroy a country showed a dislike for the person I’m fighting for and could potentially swap sides if given a good enough offer I’d be worried shitless too.
    Though that she didn’t consider a more “friendly” solution than ‘beat the enemy and anyone who might cause issues afterwards’ is kinda bugging me. He clearly showed he values her as a potential friend, so even if he stays neutral: how about becoming good enough friends that he won’t consider taking the demons side?

    1. Fair point. But it would only apply to people that are open minded like Makoto is. He is willing to try and go the diplomatic path even though he knows that if he shows overwhelming force they’ll agree to follow. This can’t apply to hibiki cuz she’s different.
      First of all she let war get too much in her thought process. Cuz during war you barely have time to think of peaceful resolutions. And if you have the time and energy to go thinking of over complicated stuff means you are not fighting hard enough (kinda what she’s doing here).
      Second her standing is much different to Makoto. She is in favour of hyumanity and the goddess which means she is wary of anyone that is neutral or hates the goddess. Also let’s not forget that she is in a high standing position and the power she chose from the colour is to use the impressions of the people around her as a weapon. And as much as we want to deny it we(human beings) tend to let ourselves get influenced by our surroundings which means that she’s becoming more supremacist aggressive and unreasonable towards those that are inferior to her as the rest of her surroundings do.

      hope I am comprehensive enough. Had a period my writing was in decline and am rehabilitating from that loss of ability.

  14. School president and genius and etc etc etc. Guys, you have forgotten that she is in the middle of political game between nobles. Isn’t it natural to become involved in shady games behind scenes? She should have spent about 2 years in that political warfare as well as battling demons. It is foolish to consider that she is ‘thinking’ like a high-school president or any normal girl from our sociaty anymore.

  15. I’m really surprised at all these emotional reactions towards Hibiki. Considering her political goals, her conclusions are very reasonable.

    Of course it won’t work out in her favour because Makoto’s power is beyond the point of being dealt with “reasonably”. But that doesn’t make her decisions unreasonable.

    Of all the plans that characters make for the world in the novel, hers would seem to result in the lowest number of deaths. That doesn’t mean it’s the best plan conceivable and in the first place it’s conceived based on incomplete information (such as not knowing about Makoto’s power and Asora). But nobody who’s in any position of power has a better plan in that regard. Makoto might not disregard the plight of demi-humans, but he disregards the death toll of an era of upheaval or civil wars.

    Makoto’s ability to bring about “salvation” is stronger than anyone else’s, but unlike Hibiki, he doesn’t take up that responsibility. Hibiki does as much as she thinks she can.

  16. So Hibiki said when meeting the goddess initially that she didn’t trust the goddess. Now after learning that the goddess essentially tried killing the MC, but she still believes the goddesses system good? I mean ffs girl, you’ve got no trust in the goddess, you’ve seen how it made the precious hyumans treat non-hyumans with blatant racism… just absurd.

    1. Ok so I have to dig a bit more because it’s annoying me still. Again she doesn’t trust the goddess, who’s been completely useless in helping her and her party, but has some thoughts of how to deal with the one person/company who has actually saved her life several times, helped equip and train her… what an ungrateful woman. At least with Rona, her cold and calculating behavior is far more understandable.

      1. Well that’s one of the reasons she is hated, i by no means say that she shouldn’t be, i will say that some are exaggerated but again she isn’t even making it easier for us to like her, also all the Hibiki supporters forget that Makoto is just a person that is different and shouldn’t just do like the textbook example of noblebright person.(rant about her supporters)

  17. See this is why i and others dislike the female hero. Because she automatically goes to that he could be evil. Not thinking that the goddess herself could be evil. The other gods and goddesses don’t even like her. x. x She even got punished by them. lol And they made sure to tell her to stay away from the mc. lol I wonder how she felt if she knew about the others. I bet her mind wouldn’t even be able to handle that. XD I kinda hope that root meets her. Just for root to blow her mind away. x. x Just reading this mess made me angry. I hope too that Tomoe with training can get way better then the female hero with a sword. Plus Tomoe will most likely have more time to train with a sword as well. Because the female hero is worried about politics more at this point. And will neglect what she should be doing. Which was shown by Mio earlier in the story. And she still neglects to do and that is train a lot better. It’s funny that Mio gave her the right answer to achieve things faster. But the female hero can’t even see that. XD

    1. Correction.

      Hibiki is simply not the kind to master anything, yes she will learn anything she can but she sill never put her sweat, blood and passion into mastering it.

    2. Hibiki only has the view of someone that has been born at the top already. She doesn’t have the feel of truly struggling for something or being truly against everything like the demons have. She is self-righteous and delusional. And thinks too high of the Bug. She doesn’t even entertain the thought that better gods than her might exist.

  18. She is just an hypocrite and a double-faced delusional girl. If the hyumans defeat the demons, Makoto would accept their survivors into Asora, and attack the Bug.

  19. Everyone’s badmouthing Hibiki so much, but I think she’s still ‘reasonable’, like she doesn’t want to “murder” Makoto as people are saying. All she said was that, objectively speaking, the Kuzunoha company has way too much power for an independent neutral party which could be side with enemies at any moment (not that she knows, but heis planning to meet with the Demon King himself)

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