Half an hour later, everyone had finally finished dinner, feeling completely satisfied.
During this time, the Yotsuya couple expressed their deepest gratitude to Eriri, with Mrs. Yotsuya even beginning to treat her like a daughter.
She also stopped asking about Eriri's supernatural abilities. To her, those things no longer mattered—nothing was more important than having her husband back.
On the other hand, Kyousuke wouldn't stop asking questions. However, Eriri had no interest in entertaining him—after all, he wasn't a cute little girl.
Perhaps due to witnessing his father's resurrection, Kyousuke had developed an extreme admiration for Eriri.
And just like that, another day passed. By the following morning, Eriri finally left the world of Mieruko-chan.
Since she had already informed Kureha that she would visit her today, Eriri did not return to the Saekano world immediately after leaving Miko's. Instead, she headed straight for the world of Redo of Healer.
The moment Eriri emerged from the dimensional portal, she was met with the sight of Kureha—a silver-haired beauty clad in a purple-trimmed light armor, her face devoid of emotion.
However, the moment Kureha saw Eriri, a flicker of expression broke through her stoic demeanor.
Although she had seen Eriri's appearance in memory projections, witnessing her beauty up close still left her deeply shaken.
She quickly composed herself and respectfully greeted, "Welcome, Lady Eriri."
"Kureha, relax a little. I told you, once you joined the group, we became sisters. You don't need to be so formal." Eriri smiled at the ever-dutiful silver-haired knight.
"Understood." Kureha nodded, and her stiff expression softened noticeably.
They were currently inside a guest room of an inn, located in a small town not far from the village where the Hero of Healing, Keyaru, lived.
Initially, after confirming Keyaru's situation, Kureha had planned to inform Eriri via the chat group.
However, since Eriri was busy enjoying time with another new group member in another world, Kureha had refrained from interrupting her.
It wasn't until yesterday, when Eriri brought up the topic, that Kureha reported the Hero of Healing's status.
Over the past few days, she hadn't returned to the royal capital but had instead remained in this town, awaiting Eriri's arrival.
Another reason for staying was to prevent Flare from coming to recruit the Hero.
She had noticed the Hero's Crest had already appeared on Keyaru's hand, signifying that he had been chosen as the Hero of Healing.
This also meant that Flare could show up at any moment.
Although Kureha harbored ill feelings toward Keyaru due to what she had seen in the memory projections, she couldn't bring herself to harm this innocent and naive version of him.
At her core, she was a person with a strong sense of justice, and she certainly wouldn't stand by and watch as Flare dragged Keyaru into hell.
Truthfully, despite knowing the darkness of the royal capital, she still found herself reluctant to see Flare meet a cruel fate.
For one, they had shared a close friendship in private—they could even be considered sisters.
And secondly, despite Flare's deeply flawed personality, her amnesiac self had revealed that her true nature wasn't inherently evil.
Much of her wrongdoing stemmed from the influence of the corrupt Jioral Royal Family, which had molded her into what she became.
If possible, Kureha also wished she could erase Flare's sinful memories and allow her to start anew as a different person.
...
"Lady Eriri, should we head to the village where the Hero of Healing lives and take care of the matter now?" Kureha asked.
Although her attitude toward Eriri had become more relaxed, she still hadn't dropped the honorific 'Lady.'
Eriri didn't mind. As long as their interactions weren't too rigid, it didn't matter.
Even Jibril, who was technically her pet, would act playfully and affectionately around her.
"There's no need for all that trouble." Eriri shook her head, having no interest in meeting this world's protagonist.
Under Kureha's slightly puzzled gaze, Eriri simply raised her right hand and snapped her fingers.
Then, she casually said, "Alright, it's done. Keyaru is no longer the Hero of Healing. He's now just an ordinary villager with some healing abilities."
Hearing this, Kureha was momentarily stunned.
"That's it? It's already resolved?"
"Of course. Did you think it would take more effort?" Eriri chuckled.
Removing a Hero's divine crest was nothing for her. The snap of her fingers was just for style—she could have done it with a mere thought.
"I see…" Kureha muttered, her expression slightly odd.
She was finally beginning to grasp the true magnitude of a Level 8, Stage 9 existence.
Before, concepts like galaxies and universes had been too abstract for her, leaving Eriri's power at the level of exaggerated descriptions in her mind.
Sure, she knew Eriri was undoubtedly unfathomably strong.
But lacking the perspective to comprehend such strength, she had never truly understood how powerful Eriri was.
Yet now, the moment Eriri arrived in this world, she had instantly located the Hero of Healing—whom Kureha had spent days tracking—and stripped away his divine crest from afar, as if it were nothing.
That was when she realized something crucial.
This world had gods, and the Heroes were chosen by them—only ten existed in the entire world.
For Eriri to so effortlessly sever a Hero's divine connection meant that even gods were insignificant before her.
The sheer realization shook Kureha to her core. After all, in the beliefs she had grown up with, gods were supposed to be omnipotent.
A thought crossed her mind—if Eriri were to deal with the corruption in Jioral Kingdom, it would likely be resolved in an instant.
But she had no intention of relying on Eriri for that.
This was her world. Her country.
Whatever problems existed, it was her responsibility to fix them.
"Then, what are your plans now, Lady Eriri?"
"Hmm… Since I'm already here, why don't you show me around this world?"
"It would be my pleasure." Kureha's normally expressionless face lit up with a rare smile.
With the Hero of Healing's matter settled, there was no reason for Kureha to remain in this small town.
After checking out of the inn, she set off with Eriri toward the royal capital.
For the first time in a while, Eriri retrieved her pink sports car from storage. With the top down, she drove along the smooth roads, carrying a visibly amazed Kureha in the passenger seat.
"Lady Eriri, is this the transportation device from the memory projections?"
Seated comfortably in the front passenger seat, Kureha cautiously ran her fingers over the dashboard, as if afraid she might accidentally damage the exquisitely crafted machinery.
"That's right. This is the primary mode of transportation in modern worlds—it's called a car. You can think of it as the equivalent of your world's carriage," Eriri said leisurely, resting one hand on the steering wheel.
"This is far more comfortable than a carriage! Not only is there no bumpiness at all, but the speed is also incomparable." Kureha marveled. "What an incredibly convenient means of travel."
"If you like it, I can give you one later," Eriri said nonchalantly.
"That… wouldn't that be too valuable?" Kureha was undeniably tempted but hesitated. Even though it was just a vehicle, she could easily guess that a car wasn't cheap.
"There's nothing valuable about it. To me, this is just a toy—I have as many as I want. Besides, plenty of senior group members have already received cars from me as gifts, so you don't need to feel burdened."
"Alright then, thank you very much, Lady Eriri." Kureha exhaled slowly, a hint of excitement creeping into her voice.
She was already looking forward to owning a car of her own. As she continued to carefully examine the car's interior, Eriri spoke up again.
"By the way, you don't have to be so cautious. This car has been specially modified by me—it has incredibly strong defensive capabilities. Even if you swung your sword at full force, you wouldn't be able to leave a scratch on it."
Then, she added with a smirk, "Of course, the car I give you will be the same. It also has flight and submarine modes, meaning that with a single vehicle, you'll be able to go anywhere in this world."
Kureha fell silent upon hearing that. She quickly reevaluated her previous thoughts about the car.
This wasn't just a means of transportation—this was an artifact more powerful than any of the legendary weapons wielded by Heroes.
...
The roar of the sports car's engine echoed far and wide. In the wilderness, it wasn't an issue, but whenever they neared a village or town, the sound naturally drew everyone's attention.
Had it not been for Eriri and Kureha being visible inside, some might have mistaken the car for a monster and attempted to attack it.
Of course, there were also those with ill intentions toward Eriri. Given her stunning appearance, it was inevitable that bandits and human traffickers would be tempted.
However, the car's speed was simply too fast. While it might not have looked particularly fast from afar, by the time these individuals tried to set up an ambush, the vehicle had already vanished in a blur, leaving them with no chance to intercept it.
And in the wake of the car's passage, these would-be attackers found their bodies reduced to nothing but dust, leaving only their severed heads with fully conscious minds—just long enough to witness their own gruesome demise before succumbing to fear and death.
Before long, Eriri's pink convertible arrived at the gates of the royal capital.
Though the car had stopped, Eriri made no move to step out, and Kureha remained seated beside her, following suit.
The gate guards had spotted the strange vehicle from a distance and, unsure of what it was, had called for reinforcements to stand by at the entrance.
The moment the car pulled up at the gate, their eyes immediately locked onto Eriri in the driver's seat—so much so that they instinctively ignored Kureha, who was seated beside her.
After all, Eriri's beauty was like a radiant flame in the darkness—impossible to overlook.
Jioral Kingdom was a deeply corrupt nation. From the king at the top to the common soldiers at the bottom, nearly everyone was rotten to the core.
And these gate guards were no exception.
Their gazes toward Eriri were filled with greed. Blinded by lust and desire, they failed to consider whether Eriri had an influential background beyond their reach or whether her strength was something they could even contend with.
The guards exchanged brief glances and quickly understood each other's intentions. They nodded in silent agreement, deciding to cooperate—for now—to subdue their target before discussing further matters.
The leading guard then stepped forward and barked out an order. "How dare you bring a magical creature to forcefully enter the royal capital! You must be a spy for the demon race! Seize her at once!"
With that command, the guards brandished their weapons and rushed toward the sports car, prepared to strike.
However, just as they were about to act, one of them suddenly noticed the person sitting beside Eriri—the one whose expression had darkened considerably.
His eyes widened in shock, and he involuntarily blurted out, "S-Sword Saint?!"
The other guards froze upon hearing his outburst. Following his gaze, they quickly realized that they had completely overlooked Kureha.
A chilling realization hit them—just moments ago, they had actually been planning to attack the companion of the Sword Saint.
The name of the Sword Saint was known throughout the entirety of Jioral Kingdom, though most citizens had never actually seen her face.
However, the royal guards stationed at the capital's gates were a different matter. Just a few days ago, they had personally witnessed the Sword Saint riding out of the city on horseback.
Never in their wildest dreams did they expect her to return—not on horseback, but in this strange, pink contraption.
Had they known she was inside, they would never have dared to act so recklessly. Even if they had harbored such thoughts, they would have merely schemed in secret, passing the information along to those with greater influence in exchange for a reward.
Still, in their minds, the situation wasn't completely beyond salvaging. The worst had yet to happen—perhaps they could still smooth things over.
"Our deepest apologies, Lady Sword Saint… and to you as well, esteemed lady," the leading guard quickly said, putting on a sincere expression as he bowed slightly to both Eriri and Kureha.
He then pointed toward the sports car and continued, "We have never seen such a strange device before, so we mistakenly assumed it was something sent by the demon race."
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