Aozaki Aoko Case File

"You, as excellent sorcerers, must know," Rezo said with a serious expression, "the story of how the Demon King Shabranigdo was shattered into seven pieces by the Red Dragon God during the War of Gods and Demons, and how each piece was sealed, right?"

No, I don't know this, Aoko thought to herself, silently complaining. How would I, an outsider, have any idea about this? But, of course, she couldn't say that out loud. This purple-haired guy in front of her was most likely up to no good, and the fact that she came from another world was something she'd rather keep hidden for as long as possible.

"That Zelgadiss found one of the fragments of Shabranigdo," Rezo continued to explain, "but all of these fragments are sealed with the power of the Red Dragon God. Ordinary people have no way to break those seals. However, during my pursuit of Zelgadiss, I learned that you happened to acquire an item—an item that is the key to unsealing a fragment of the Demon King Shabranigdo."

He's telling the truth, Aoko thought. With her increasingly refined expertise in enchantment, she could tell that Rezo wasn't lying about this. But just because he wasn't lying didn't mean he was telling the whole truth. There was more to this.

"Huh? Who's Shabranigdo?" Gourry asked, looking completely clueless. "The name... sounds kind of familiar?"

"You idiot! Shabranigdo is the King of all demons in this world!" Lina said, exasperated by his jellyfish-like brain. How could this guy not even know the name of the big bad villain from nursery rhymes? Was his brain reduced to muscle from all that sword training?

"His goal is to destroy the entire world!"

"So, are you suggesting we join forces to deal with Zelgadiss and Shabranigdo?" Aoko asked calmly. "Is that what you mean?"

"Ah... no, no, that's not it," Rezo quickly denied, his demeanor changing suddenly. "Even though I may look like this, I'm quite old..."

"...Meaning that, I have no reason to place such a heavy burden on young, energetic people like yourselves," Rezo said with a smile. "So, I suggest you just hand the key over to me. That way, you three won't have to get involved in unnecessary conflict."

"I have a question," Aoko interjected. "The key you're talking about—what exactly is it? It couldn't possibly be just an ordinary Orichalcum statue, could it?"

"...Sigh," Rezo let out a helpless sigh, looking slightly exhausted.

"Why don't we just destroy the key?" Lina suggested. "That way, no one would be able to go after it..."

"You absolutely can't do that!" Rezo immediately reached out and stopped them in a panic. "If you do that, Shabranigdo will resurrect immediately!"

Aoko thought to herself that Rezo seemed genuinely panicked this time. Whatever was inside that goddess statue, it was very important to Rezo—important not just for unsealing the Demon King's fragment, but for something else entirely.

"You could let me keep the statue safe," Rezo said patiently. "The secret it holds is simply too dangerous. To be honest, the statue contains something inside: a Philosopher's Stone."

"A Philosopher's Stone?!" Lina exclaimed in shock. "You mean... the ultimate Fifth Element, the stone that can turn anything into gold?!"

"Yes and no," Rezo explained, holding up a finger. "The Philosopher's Stone is indeed incredibly valuable and powerful, but its true purpose isn't to turn things into gold. Its real function is to house the divine power of the Red Dragon God, which was used to seal the Demon King Shabranigdo's fragments."

"If the Philosopher's Stone falls into the hands of demons or evildoers, they could easily use it to break the seals on Shabranigdo's fragments," Rezo said gravely. "You are all too young and are bound to overlook some subtle, critical details. This could lead to you being tricked or ambushed by these villains, and that would be incredibly dangerous."

"Then let us fight alongside you!" Lina said, with an air of heroic determination. "We can't just sit back and say, 'Oh, alright then, we'll leave it to you,' after hearing something like this!"

"...?" Rezo looked utterly baffled by the way this girl's mind worked.

"It's not that we don't trust your strength," Lina continued, "but this matter involves the potential resurrection of the Demon King. Even if the chances are slim, we can't just stand by and do nothing!"

"Although I know I'm not particularly skilled, I still want to do my part to help you, Red Priest!"

Hearing Lina's words, Rezo looked like he was having an internal struggle. He seemed to be weighing whether or not to drag these youngsters into this mess—or maybe, Aoko thought, he was deciding whether or not to fight them here and now.

"But this is far too dangerous..." Rezo said hesitantly.

"You don't have to worry about that," Lina said confidently. "I know a bit about magic, Aoko's magic is even better than mine, and Gourry is an exceptionally skilled swordsman. We won't be a burden to you at all."

"Sigh," Rezo sighed again. "Since you insist, I suppose there's no helping it. Let's fight together, then!"

"For now, you'll keep the statue," Rezo said. "That way, Zelgadiss is sure to come after you. When that happens, contact me immediately, and I'll rush to the scene to help you deal with him."

With that, Rezo handed Lina a small orb, saying it was for communication. When the time came, they could smash it on the ground, and he'd know what was happening.

"I'll take care of these bodies for you," Rezo offered. "Otherwise, it'll be hard for you to explain things to the town guards."

Rezo tapped his staff lightly on the ground, and an invisible wave of magic enveloped the corpses of the trolls and the bald swordsman that Aoko had taken down. The corpses seemed to come alive, standing up and lining up neatly before following Rezo out of the inn.

"That guy is really strong," Gourry said in admiration. "I couldn't sense any weaknesses in him. Did he even need to cooperate with us?"

"Forget it. Let's just get some sleep," Lina said, exhausted. "Being woken up in the middle of the night by those weirdos has left me feeling awful..."

"You're right," Aoko agreed. "Lina, you're not in the best condition right now. If you don't rest properly, you won't be in good shape tomorrow morning. Rest is extremely important for a spellcaster. Let's deal with the rest tomorrow."

Lina and Aoko returned to their room, while Gourry yawned, leaned back on the sofa in his armor, hugged his sword, and quickly fell asleep, snoring before long.