Editing Leviathan:Volume 8 Chapter 2 (section)

===Part 4===

"Sophocles-san... He said that!?"

"Yeah. He's even more crazy than we thought."

At the ruins located in the Sea of Showers in the moon's northern hemisphere.

Dozens of stone towers were built here. Juujouji Orihime was on the top floor of one of them, talking to her friend, the senior witch Asya who had just returned from the moon surface.

Also, Haruga Haruomi was not present.

Claiming he had errands to run, he had split up from them.

"Although I cannot fully agree with his views, I have to admit it makes a bit of sense."

"Really? Isn't the world safer with fewer Tyrannoi and dragon kings?"

"Think of it from a different angle. Those who hold dragonslaying runes are essentially enemies to all of dragonkind."

With a knowing look on her face, Asya was the very image of a knowledgeable witch.

"Imagine this. What would happen if a herd of deer were to reproduce on an island without natural predators? The deer will eventually eat all the vegetation on the island, causing a severe ecological imbalance. If dragonkind did the same on Earth&mdash;"

"...It will lead to the destruction of Earth's civilization."

"Yeah. And currently the only beasts capable of hunting dragons are the dragon kings and Tyrannoi with their ability to use dragonslaying runes."

"......"

"In that case, why not leave dragon kings and imitation dragon kings alone, and give humans the power of dragonbane, thereby managing the risk. This is Sophocles-san's methodology."

"Oh my? Now that I hear you say this, why does..."

Orihime realized something and tilted her head in puzzlement.

"The goal Haruga-kun and Luna-san said they would achieve through GUILD&mdash;"

"Are very similar, right? In this sense, he is quite similar to Haruomi."

"Does that man... want to do something to Haruga-kun?"

"He probably doesn't care what happens to Haruomi, sincerely."

"Eh?"

"It's fine if Haruomi turns into a dragon king. If he ends up dead in a ditch instead of turning into a dragon, then there are no loose ends to tie up, very convenient. I think what he truly doesn't want to see is Haruomi doing nothing, living as a hermit without achieving anything. Because the rare power would become meaningless."

"You are very right."

As expected of the genius witch and combat expert.

Asya's analysis was impressive. Exhibiting excellent powers of observation, the witch and friend tossed a gloomy glance towards Orihime.

"Putting that aside, Orihime-san."

"W-What is the matter? Asya-san?"

Orihime was a little startled.

In fact, she had been feeling "guilty" towards her friend since summer.

Anastasya Rubashvili, the genius witch.

She harbored feelings towards her childhood friend Haruga Haruomi and Juujouji Orihime had noticed faint signs of this. However, so much had happened between him and Orihime this summer, admitting to each other that they were dearest in each other's heart&mdash;

And they had kissed many times.

Then there was (Haruga-kun, good grief, always towards my breasts...) and yesterday, even Luna Francois and her cousin Shirasaka Hazumi had joined in, all of them engaging in something absurd together.

Logically speaking, the European-born Asya should not know anything about what had happened, however.

(Has Asya-san finally found out!?)

Unable to speak about it, Orihime had kept Asya in the dark.

Was she going to expose that secret? With somber eyes, Asya opened her mouth solemnly and shook as she yelled!

"We were invited by a dragon king to the moon, don't you think it's weird that there isn't even a banquet? I-I finally regained my appetite and yet I have to sate my hunger on such crude food...!"

"Oh..."

Hearing Asya's heart-rending yell, Orihime nodded.

At this moment, the two of them were sitting at a humble wooden table with a large porcelain dish before them.

This dish was an amazing magic artifact. All one needed to do was concentrate and food similar to white bread would appear on the dish.

Eating this was enough to get a full meal with sufficient nutrients&mdash;

That was what Haruga Haruomi had said. He had apparently experienced this inside King Solomon's secret base. There was also a magic pot that produced unlimited distilled water.

However, this magic bread had no flavor.

Even if one focused their sense of taste to the maximum, one could at most taste faint sweetness.

The texture was also dry. For a gourmand who sought pleasure from food, this was desecration of food, absolutely impossible to accept.

As one would expect, Asya began to roar.

"Meals are more than about replenishing nutrients! The true pleasure of eating is about nourishing the soul in addition to the body! Carbohydrates should be obtained from wheat, rice, tubers, legumes except for soybeans, corn, while protein comes from meat and fish, of course! Anyway, meat! Juicy steaks! Fatty premium ribs! Kansai-style sukiyaki made with A5 black Wagyu marbled beef! Deep-fried pork chop cutlets, thick on the inside, crispy on the outside, served as a set meal! Fried chicken that leaves your hands and mouth greasy and sticky! Mince meat cutlets the size of a sandal! Pork belly stew! Genghis Khan grill! Hamburger with fries and shake!"

"L-Let us all go out for dinner once we get back safely!"

The witch companion recited a long list of high-calorie foods.

Silently finding Asya quite adorable, Orihime proceeded to soothe her.

"I could ask my grandfather to take us out to a delicious sushi  restaurant."

"Speaking of whitefish, there's sillago, sea bream, halfbeak, and black porgy wrapped in kombu kelp is good too! As for bluebacks, there's horse mackerel, marinated mackerel and spotted shad! Surf clams, egg cockle, orange clam, abalone and conch! Tiger prawns, mantis shrimp, sea urchin, salmon roe, squid, and the chu-toro and o-toro cuts of tuna! Other than nigiri sushi, there's kakiage and bamboo shoots with their own special appeal which are quite nice. To conclude the meal, kanpyo sushi rolls made with egg and eel are a must!"
[[image:Leviathan 08 088.jpg|thumb]]

"Impressive as ever, Asya-san, you are very knowledgeable about sushi too..."

"J-Just a personal hobby... Oh, one more thing, Orihime-san."

Asya seemed to have calmed down.

She lowered her voice and suddenly asked, "How did you help Haruomi recover when he merged with the Crimson Queen? For some reason, Haruomi won't explain it clearly. When I asked him earlier, he seemed a bit nervous."

"Y-You are asking about this!?"

"Why are you panicking too?"

"It is really nothing special. Nothing worth paying so much attention to&mdash;"

"Of course I'm curious as it could very well happen to me tomorrow. Or is there some reason why you can't tell me?"

"Uh, umm, how should I put this&mdash;?"

In fact, Orihime had never been this flustered when chatting with female friends.

(I-I was too careless...!)

The silver-haired genius witch looked suspiciously at the flustered Orihime.

Asya's recently emerged feminine charm had vanished as soon as her appetite recovered. Hence, Orihime totally did not expect her to raise this question.

At this rate, she might not be able to keep the secret any longer&mdash;

(Haruga-kun, hurry and save me!)

Ultimately, Orihime was just as ill-equipped to deal with romantic rivalry.

She really wished the absent one could return soon. With the two of them together, there might still be a way to keep Asya in the dark...

Orihime desperately cried for help in her thoughts.