/
After that, we left John, who told us that he still had work to do, and left the building to head home. On the floor of the office, there were several intimidating men knocked out by Tia… They must have been searching for materials to extort money from Canal… It wasn’t a big deal.
“Haa, haa… Finally, it’s over…”
“Good job.”
After finishing the heavy labor of throwing the five men out of the building, I offered Canal a smile and a cup of coffee. Canal took it, grimaced for a moment at the heat, then cooled it with a puff and drank.
“Haa, that’s better… Why do I have to do this…”
“Can’t be helped. Tia and I would stand out too much.”
No matter how late at night, carrying unconscious people on your back would seem suspicious. If Tia or I had done it, we wouldn’t have been able to fool the guards… or in this world, the police? So, we had no choice but to ask Canal to do it.
“Besides, they were left alive, so this level of treatment was enough. Good job, Tia.”
“Hehe! See? I can read the atmosphere too!”
“Your world…”
In our world… or in most worlds, there would be no problem with beheading someone for a break-in robbery. However, we’ve learned that murder seems to be a very high risk here. That’s why we didn’t kill anyone in that office, and Tia stuck to non-lethal force against the robbers, which resulted in this situation.
“Ah, I hate it, I hate it. In a culture where people carry swords, human life is cheap.”
“Hah! In any world, the lives of low-ranking people are cheap. As civilization advances, people just get better at hiding it.”
“Hmph, you say unpleasant things.”
Canal puckered her lips but said nothing more. I’ve been able to glance a little at the dark side of this world by helping with her work for a while.
Yes, in the end, everyone just looks away and pretends not to see it. Even if they know it, they don’t think about sacrificing themselves to make someone else’s life better. Only saints from somewhere can blame such “normalcy.”
“…… Hey, Ed. Do you think souls really exist?”
“Hm? Is this about the drug from earlier?”
During the sudden silence, I asked Canal, who nodded.
“Yes. They say it’s the era of all-powerful magic knowledge, but even so, the existence of souls has not been confirmed. We can turn knowledge and memories into a database, and by transplanting that data-loaded core, we can achieve a kind of resurrection or reincarnation, but no one has ever succeeded in truly reviving the dead. The reason is that we can’t prove the existence of souls… in other words, we can’t treat souls as a solid existence. But S.E.E.D. claims to expand the soul. If what John said is true, it would certainly be something irreversible, but I still think that it could be a groundbreaking technology that proves the existence of souls and ultimately leads to true immortality. That’s why, I think S.E.E.D. has spread not only as a simple magical drug, but also because people have a desire to feel the potential that lies ahead directly.”
“I see…”
As I sipped my coffee, I noded at Canal’s theory. Indeed, immortality and resurrection of the dead are things that have been sought after many times in every world. However, in most cases, they lead to inhumane experiments… which cannot be proven without killing someone… so they are often taboo.
“If you’re asking whether I think souls exist, I’d say they do. But when it comes to whether humans can do anything about them… I can’t really say. Atleast, I can’t touch it because I can’t use magic or anything.”
“Magic that interferes with the soul… is it different from affecting the mind?”
“Isn’t it? I think stuff like that just amplifies the emotions that people normally have, you know? If thoughts are the soul, then a golem with an artificial personality would be considered alive, but then you have to wonder when and where that golem’s soul was born.”
“I see, so just because something has intelligence doesn’t mean it has a soul, huh?”
Thinking about it again, for example, the Demon King’s power that I’ve been collecting can somewhat communicate with me, but if you ask whether it has a soul… what is it? The main soul is me, so it’s hard to think that each of them has a separate soul, but they do act as independent beings as well… Hmm?
“…Man, the more I think about it, the less I understand. So that’s why people turn to those suspicious drugs, huh?”
“Maybe. There are still so many secrets in this world, and people want to know them… That’s why I became a detective.”
“…Huh? Wouldn’t it have been better to become a scholar or a magician in that case?”
Faced with Tia’s innocent question, Canal’s expression turns bitter.
“Well, you know… that kind of stuff requires a lot of specialized knowledge, and I wasn’t very good at magic…It’s fine! I’ll uncover the secrets with my own two feet! Like a golden lion head that talks while parasitizing people’s crotches, or a giant dragon that flies beyond worlds, or a king of disasters that comes from beyond the seven nights!”
(T/N: I kinda like Canal pretty fun to read)
“Heh.”
“…What, Now even you, people from otherworld, are going to laugh at my dreams too?”
“I didn’t mean it like that, but…”
“But?”
“With just background checks and finding lost cats, you won’t find any of that stuff, will you?”
“Shut up! I know that! But I have to make a living too, you know! Ugh, coffee isn’t enough! I need alcohol! Let’s drink!”
“Hey, are you really going to drink right now?”
“It’s fine! You guys should join me too!”
Ignoring my dumbfounded expression, Canal opened a chilled box in the kitchen and brought out five cans of alcohol.
“You know, if you only drink alcohol, you’ll hurt your stomach, right?” Tia said,
“Fine, I’ll make some snacks too. Tia, you keep Canal company.”
“Roger that. Canal, let’s drink and relax.”
“Uuu, Tia-chan! Ed is so mean! He’s making fun of me!”
“There, there. Ed is mean, I know. Just slap him when the snacks are ready.”
“Yeah, I’ll slap him! With a big smack!”
“…………………”
While listening to their unreasonable words, I head to the kitchen and start rummaging for ingredients. I shouldn’t pay attention to her drunken behavior right now. Pointing it out would only increase the number of times I get smacked.
“Hey Ed! Come over here and drink too! Oh, I want some tofu and edamame!”
“I’d like some fried potato sticks! Salt is fine, but can you also bring that white stuff called mayo?”
“Yeah, yeah. Just wait a bit.”
For the two young ladies, I began to cook the chosen ingredients. The advanced magic civilization was truly amazing, with the push of a button, not only did the fire start but the water boiled instantly, and even fried foods could be done in a matter of minutes. If this order had been placed at a normal inn I knew, they would likely have protested, “Are you kidding me?”
“Thank you for waiting, young ladies. Here are your ordered dishes.”
“Yay! Thanks, Ed! Mmm, it’s crispy.”
“Can you also make some omelets and fried chicken?”
“Hey, Canal, I can cook it, but are you really going to eat all of it?”
“I will! It’s fine once in a while. If I got fat, I would just go to a spa and get my figure fixed. I was a millionaire then, so it was no big deal!”
“Jeez…”
Responding to the whims of our demanding landlady, I returned to the kitchen to prepare the additional dishes. Our conversation about the soul had turned into trivial chit-chat, and in the end, we drank until sunrise.