ISEKAI SMARTPHONE DAYS: The Wives' Meeting Is Peaceful (?) Again Today
One bored sovereign lord. One mischievous goddess. One runaway puppy that shatters windows with a single bark.
It's an ordinary weekday afternoon in the Duchy of Brunhild, and Mochizuki Touya—its sovereign lord, wielder of the smartphone, fiancé to nine women who run the country better than he does—has nothing to do but stare at the ceiling and complain about being bored. The Wives' Council is handling governance. The Selene River is babbling peacefully. All is well.
Then his older sister text
ISEKAI SMARTPHONE DAYS: The Wives' Meeting Is Peaceful (?) Again Today - Market uproar! Elze appears, an opponent her fists can't reach
The two of them ran along the flagstones in the fading light.
The murmur of the Serene River drifted from somewhere far off. Thin threads of smoke rose from the chimneys of Midval's houses as the townsfolk prepared their suppers. The sky was shifting from madder red to violet.
"There it is—Frontier Plaza."
Yumina's blonde hair caught the sunset with every stride. Her mismatched eyes—green on the left, blue on the right—locked sharply on the plaza entrance.
"That mutt might already be tearing the place apart."
Touya pressed a hand to the silver brooch at his chest, breathing hard. His formal attire as the Archduke of Brunhild was hardly suited to a chase. The collar of his white shirt was soaked through with sweat.
"Touya-sama, is your leg all right now?"
"Yeah, the numbness is gone. Thanks."
"Not at all. More importantly—that little dog, loose in the market... I shudder to think what it's gotten up to."
They rounded the last corner before Frontier Plaza.
—The Central Market, Frontier Plaza.
The largest market in Midval. Forty-eight permanent shops, and on market days as many as a hundred and twenty stalls. At this hour it should have been packed with people shopping for dinner.
But right now, the plaza was filled with screams.
"Aaaah! My vegetables!"
"The fish! The fish are flying!"
"Somebody catch it! That dog!"
A sight beyond belief leapt into Touya's eyes.
A puppy with fluffy white fur bristling raced across the stalls in every direction. In its mouth it carried a large fish—a river fish fresh from the Serene, gleaming silver.
The puppy leapt. From stall to stall. Each time, stacked vegetables toppled, fruit rolled across the ground, baskets of eggs overturned.
"That thing's doing whatever it pleases!"
"We must hurry. Touya-sama, I'll circle around from the left. Please take the right."
"Got it!"
The two of them split left and right.
Touya vaulted over a collapsed mountain of vegetables, weaving through the shouting crowd.
(Damn, this crowd's in the way. And that puppy's too fast.)
As Touya drew near, the puppy twisted lightly aside—as if it were enjoying itself.
"Stop!"
Touya reinforced his body with and closed the distance in one burst. The non-attribute spell multiplied his physical abilities several times over.
But—
"Grrrrrr... Woof!!"
The puppy barked.
In that instant, the air trembled. A wave of invisible force struck Touya's whole body.
"Guh—!?"
His legs wouldn't move. As if sunk in mud, his feet were leaden.
(Again! This divine power thing is way too much trouble!)
Touya gritted his teeth. One more step. Just one more step and he'd have it—but he couldn't take that step.
"Touya-sama, don't push yourself! That puppy is using the crowd to escape. Even with my Mystic Eyes, I can't read its movements in this chaos."
Yumina came running from the opposite side. In her hands, somehow, she now gripped a capture net.
"But we can't just leave it. At this rate the whole market's wrecked."
Before Touya finished speaking, the puppy leapt again.
This time it landed atop a stall of dried fish and sprinted straight across. Dried fish flew through the air, raining down on the heads of passersby.
"Kyaa! What is this!?"
"My dried fish! A whole day's earnings!"
The plaza was already beyond saving.
That was when it happened.
"Hey, what the hell are you all doing!?"
A familiar voice. Touya turned—and there she was.
A fourteen-year-old girl with long silver hair tied back in a single tail. Her blue eyes blazed like they were burning in the sunset. On both hands, combat gauntlets. And in one hand, a basket of apples.
Elze Silhoueska. An adventurer—and one of Touya's fiancées.
"Elze! What are you doing here?"
"I came to do some shopping. Then the whole market went crazy—wait, what is that puppy!?"
Elze pointed at the puppy. It was just then on top of a fruit stall, rolling an apple around with its front paws for fun.
"Explanation later! Elze, help me catch that puppy!"
"Yeah, leave it to me! A tiny thing like that—one punch from me'll do it!"
Elze set the apple basket on the ground and clanged her gauntlets together.
"Wait, Elze-san. That puppy isn't an ordinary dog. It's a subordinate god that uses divine power. If it bites you, your divine power will be drained."
Yumina warned her. But Elze was already running.
"Divine power, schmivine power—doesn't matter in front of my fists!"
Elze wove between the stalls, charging straight at the puppy. Her speed was a match for Touya's .
"Grrr...?"
The puppy noticed Elze closing in.
Elze drew back her gauntlet.
"Gotcha!"
But—
Just before her fist could connect, the puppy floated up into the air. Light as a feather, it vaulted clean over Elze's head.
"What—!?"
Then, in midair, the puppy spun around.
Its little mouth clamped onto Elze's right arm—chomp.
"Ow—!?"
It bit her.
"Elze!"
Touya shouted.
The puppy released her arm at once and landed atop a stall, licking its chops.
"W-what... is this... my strength... it's draining..."
The color drained from Elze's face. She crumpled to her knees right there, her gauntleted hand touching the ground.
"My body... so heavy... why..."
"Divine power absorption. Being bitten drained your divine power, Elze-san."
Yumina rushed to Elze's side.
"Damn it... and it's so tiny..."
Elze bit her lip in frustration. Her blue eyes glistened faintly with tears.
"Elze, are you okay!?"
Touya ran over to support her.
In that instant—
"Woof!!!"
The puppy barked again.
This time it was clearly a targeted bark. The air burst. An invisible shockwave shot straight at Touya.
"Oh no—!"
Touya threw himself over Elze to shield her.
The impact struck his back.
"Guaah!"
The feeling in his legs vanished.
No—not just his legs. The strength drained from his entire body in an instant.
"Touya!"
Elze's voice sounded far away.
Still shielding Elze, Touya collapsed to the ground.
In that gap, the puppy moved.
"Woof! Woof! Woof!"
Barking, the puppy kicked stall after stall apart.
The sound of ceramic plates shattering. Fruit being crushed underfoot. Cloth being torn.
"Aah! My plates!"
"The apples! All the apples are ruined!"
"Give us a break already!"
Screams and roars churned through the plaza.
The puppy left its storm of destruction behind and vanished into the depths of the market.
"Damn it... wait...!"
Touya tried to stand. But his legs wouldn't move. The effects of the divine power absorption still lingered.
"Touya-sama, don't push yourself. Right now, please focus on recovering."
Yumina supported Touya's shoulder.
"But... it got away again..."
Touya struck the ground with his fist.
"It's my fault... I was reckless..."
Elze murmured quietly, eyes downcast.
"It's not your fault, Elze. We just learned that puppy's divine power is far more trouble than we thought."
Touya managed a smile and spoke to Elze.
But then—
"Hey, you lot!"
A furious voice rained down on Touya and the others.
They turned to find a crowd of merchants, faces bright red.
"You're the ones who chased that dog here, aren't you!"
"Every last plate of mine is smashed! How are you going to make up for this!"
"My vegetables are a total mess! I can't sell any of this!"
"The fish too! That dog ran off with them in its mouth!"
The merchants shouted all at once.
"Everyone, please calm down. We'll hear you out."
Yumina stepped forward.
"We will take responsibility for catching that puppy. So please, for now—"
"Catch it, you say? Before that, compensate us for the ruined goods!"
The pottery shop owner cut Yumina off.
"That's right, that's right! Compensate us!"
"You're the Archduke and his lady, aren't you? You'll take responsibility, won't you!"
Touya's eyes widened.
(Right—I'm the Archduke. I can't run from this.)
Touya staggered to his feet. His legs still wouldn't hold strength.
"Understood. I'll pay for everything."
Touya said it and reached into his coat.
Then he noticed.
(Huh...?)
His wallet wasn't there.
No—the wallet was there. But its contents—
"I don't have... enough gold..."
In Touya's palm lay a few silver coins and a little copper. Not a single gold coin.
"What?"
"Oh no... I left it at the castle... no, I never carried it on me in the first place..."
Touya felt cold sweat run down his back.
(The Archduke says he'll pay, and he has no money. This is... very bad.)
"What's the matter? Hurry up and pay!"
The merchants' stares pierced Touya.
"...I'll pay."
Elze rose unsteadily to her feet.
"It's my fault for being reckless. The compensation, I'll—"
"Hey, you there, girl! You're the one who jumped at that dog and made it go even wilder!"
"Yeah, I saw it! You charged in, and that dog went berserk!"
"...Ugh..."
Elze was at a loss for words.
"Forget treating your wounds—let's talk compensation first!"
"...I'm sorry..."
Elze bowed her head slightly.
Watching her, something twisted painfully in Touya's chest.
(Elze isn't to blame. She got bitten by that puppy, had her divine power drained, and now the merchants are blaming her on top of it.)
"Stop it. Elze was trying to help me. If you're going to blame anyone, blame me."
Touya stepped in front of Elze.
"I'll pay for everything, without fail. I'll have the full amount ready by tomorrow. So for today—"
"Everyone, I give you my word. These people are the Archduke of Brunhild and his fiancées. We will neither flee nor hide. We will pay you in full, without fail, at a later date."
Yumina spoke in a clear, resolute voice.
"I am the First Princess of the Kingdom of Belfast, Yumina Ernea Belfast. I stake my name on this promise."
At Yumina's words, a stir ran through the merchants.
"The Princess of the Kingdom of Belfast...?"
"Is she for real...?"
"Yes, quite real. So please, for now, withdraw. Tomorrow we will come again to assess the damages."
Faced with Yumina's dignified bearing, the merchants grudgingly backed down.
"...Tomorrow, you pay for sure!"
"If you run, we won't let it slide!"
The merchants scattered.
Across the plaza lay the wreckage of shattered plates and crushed fruit—a sorry sight.
"...Sorry, Touya."
Elze bowed her head again.
"You don't have to apologize. You were trying to help me, weren't you?"
"But... because I charged in, that dog went even wilder..."
"Same goes for me. I chased it over and over, and it got away over and over. That puppy's a tougher opponent than we ever imagined."
Touya gently stroked Elze's silver hair.
"...!"
Elze's shoulders gave a small jolt.
"Come on, can you stand? Let's head back to the castle."
"...Yeah."
With Touya's help, Elze slowly got to her feet.
"Touya-sama, I'll support Elze-san. Your legs are still hurting too, aren't they?"
"Yeah, please."
Yumina took Elze's shoulder.
The three of them left the market behind as the dusk began to swallow it.
—On the road back to White Rock Castle.
"...Tomorrow, I'll go borrow money from the adventurers' guild."
Elze said it quietly.
"Huh? Why?"
"The compensation. My share, I'll pay myself."
"I keep telling you, it's not your fault."
"Shut up! If I say I'm paying, I'm paying!"
Elze suddenly raised her voice.
"...I'm always like this. Charging in without thinking, causing trouble for everyone around me..."
Her voice was trembling.
"Always getting saved by you... and this time, I ended up being shielded by you too..."
Listening to her, Touya looked at Elze's profile.
Her silver hair swayed in the night wind. Her blue eyes stared straight ahead.
(Elze has this habit of carrying everything alone.)
Touya understood her clumsiness all too well—it ached.
"Elze."
"...What."
"I'm the one being saved by you. Always."
"...Huh?"
Elze looked at Touya, startled.
"Because you're straightforward, because you charge in without overthinking—that's what keeps me going. Today too, it was because you showed up that we got a clear picture of just how dangerous that pu
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