The Great Collapse

"So, how did things end up like this?"

Pressing her hand against her forehead as if trying to endure a headache, Guinevere groaned.

This was a corner of the Manesh Palace, normally a room where Guinevere would sip tea while reviewing documents.

The source of her distress was the group of men and women lounging in whatever positions they pleased on the cushions spread across the floor.

Ria, Carla, and Guinevere herself were fine. Having Serge and Irina there wasn't unusual either.

"Is there a problem?"

"Problem, you say…"

It wasn't so much a problem as… why was this the meeting place?

"Ogress has the most people involved, after all."

Where Ria's gaze fell were Ars, Shifaka, Thor, Labyrinth, and the four Divine Dragons.

Being in the presence of such awe-inspiring figures was difficult enough, and as a dragonslayer, sitting alongside Divine Dragons felt presumptuous. Even Guinevere couldn't muster the composure to laugh it off.

"Moving somewhere else at this point would be a hassle."

The one lounging around lazily was Fire Dragon Ohma. The other Divine Dragons maintained postures befitting their dignity, but they nodded in agreement with Ohma's words.

"I wouldn't mind some light alcohol right about now."

Surprisingly, it was Valis who said this. It seemed the rumor about dragons being fond of alcohol was true.

Ria instructed a waiting court lady to prepare drinks and food.

The discussion continued in the meantime, though its contents were anything but light.

They were discussing how to handle contact with Earth during the Great Collapse and the acceptance of immigrants—matters that would normally require assembling every king and lord on the continent. However, the attendees had been carefully selected with the understanding that including people with no knowledge of Earth would make the discussion meaningless.

Ria, Serge, and Labyrinth were reincarnators from Earth. Ars and Thor were summoned Heroes, and Shifaka served as a representative of those who had actually immigrated. Guinevere and Carla could be considered representatives of the locals.

"First off, let's prioritize Japanese people for immigration."

Ria put forth an opinion that was purely her own ego, but no one objected. Ars raised his cup, and Thor nodded. Labyrinth sipped her juice without voicing any opposition either.

"Ah, I'm not objecting, but there's something I've been wondering about for a while."

Serge raised his hand and posed his question.

"Why are reincarnators and Heroes always Japanese?"

"There were non-Japanese ones too."

The one who answered was Shifaka, who hadn't spoken a word until now.

"That was especially true on other continents. You could probably find them on this continent if you searched, but for some reason only Japanese people remained."

Ars explained the reasoning, mixing in some speculation.

"This world is polytheistic, and on top of that, the dragons are stronger than the gods. Maybe it can't accept believers of Judaism or other monotheistic religions?"

"Or rather, maybe you have to be an atheist to handle it?"

Thor added. Both Buddhism and Hinduism seemed incompatible with this world. Japanese people, who were latently atheistic or accepting of anything, were probably easier to accommodate.

"Then what about communists? I heard that on Earth, if you call yourself an atheist, you get treated like a communist."

"Communists…"

Shifaka's eyes grew distant. Thor and Ars looked the same way, and Terrew clicked her tongue.

Just from seeing their reactions, Serge got the general idea.

In a world where gods actually existed, communism meant nothing, and with royal authority being strong, such ideologies would be rejected.

"Basically, I think we should accept destitute immigrants like America did. At first, agriculture and livestock farming will be their means of livelihood."

They would also have immigrants from the demon territory support the immigrants from Earth. It seemed Ars had already drawn up plans for this.

The discussion was mostly carried out actively among the humans. The Divine Dragons watched while holding glasses of alcohol, occasionally being asked for their opinions.

Many of the agenda items were extremely delicate issues.

"What should we do about the exalted personages…"

Ria was the one who spoke, and this matter sparked heated debate. Even Carla and Guinevere couldn't comprehend Japan's governing system. However, the notion that the royal family were descendants of gods was reality in this world. Both Casalia and Ogress had the blood of Divine Dragons in their lineage.

Moreover, there was a generation gap between Ria and the other former Japanese. Ria had lived in Japan until age forty-two and had associated with people who revered the Imperial family. In contrast, the other four only had the textbook understanding of it as the symbol of the Japanese nation.

"It would certainly be preferable for governance if the Imperial family were present, though."

Ars said as much, but no conclusion was reached.

"Speaking of which, what about Mecca, Jerusalem, and the Vatican?"

Serge's comment sparked another round of conflicting opinions among the former Japanese. This one was about religion, so Carla and Guinevere could grasp it more easily, but they couldn't comprehend monotheism. They went out of their way to explain the basics of Judaism, Christianity, and Islam, but to the two who held no prejudice against demons, these religions seemed like hotbeds of racial discrimination.

Well, some of that was the fault of how the explainers presented it…

"The idea that God is singular… what an arrogant notion."

Guinevere, who actually knew the power of gods, said this. Carla, meanwhile, held the position of what Earth would call an atheist. Despite possessing the bloodline of a god.

Hers wasn't simply a denial of gods' existence, but rather atheism in the sense of not permitting divine interference.

Even so, the discussion continued to touch on topics that were dangerous in various ways.

"Come to think of it, there aren't any black people in this world, are there?"

Once again, Serge spoke up somewhat casually.

Indeed, European-looking faces were the majority. Apparently there were more East Asian features in the southeast regions, though.

"Ah, that's because of discrimination."

Ars explained while scratching his head.

"You know how there are dark elves among the demon race, right? And black people also have dark skin. So they got lumped together with the demon race, and now they live in demon territory. Most of the humans in demon territory are black."

What a state of affairs. Even this world, which had seemed slightly better than Earth for lacking racial discrimination despite having species discrimination, still had taboos regarding skin color.

"No matter what world you're in, discrimination never goes away, does it…"

The noticeably young Serge murmured this, and everyone nodded.

The meeting continued for days on end.

Meanwhile, the Divine Dragons were drinking alcohol and getting tipsy… Did they not have anything to do?

Ars was using his phone to contact demon territory and proceed with preparations for accepting immigrants.

Tractors powered by magic. Lawn mowers powered by magic.

Steel mills powered by magic. Shipyards powered by magic.

Using magic for everything, Ars was bringing demon territory closer to twenty-first century Japan. Some parts had even surpassed what science could achieve.

"Can you make the internet?"

"Before that, I want to get the literacy rate to one hundred percent. Some mountain-dwelling minority tribes still haven't adopted the common language much."

Ars answered Serge's request earnestly.

"Transportation networks too. I want to expand the railway network, and road maintenance is needed… Magic can handle most of it, though."

The more they talked, the more they understood the disparity in demon territory's development. It really was fortunate they hadn't had to fight.

"Could I use a Machine God too?"

"You probably could, but… those are expensive to make. The anti-nuclear armor uses an orichalcum alloy, and only a handful of people can manufacture magic cores. By the way, we have plenty of jet fighters."

"Oooh! A science victory!"

That was… enough military power to easily take on the entire world. If they had countermeasures against nuclear weapons, Earth's mere weapons of mass destruction posed no threat.

The remaining concerns would be poison gas and biological weapons.

Even when fighting Lemdria, they had probably gone out of their way to avoid causing casualties on the enemy side.

The meeting truly continued for days, with communications being sent to various kings and new members joining in.

Great Sage Alvis. Honestly, he was the most plain-looking man among everyone present.

But he had once been the Great Sage of another continent, managing it. And having failed in that management, he had come to this continent with a handful of survivors.

His opinions were certainly valuable as someone with experience as an immigrant settler. However, complaints occasionally slipped in. No, his complaints steadily increased.

"Truly, humans are creatures that will grow endlessly arrogant if there are no beings greater than themselves."

Having reached for the wine offered by the Divine Dragons, he began recounting the past with glazed eyes.

The continent where he had lived had managed the cycle of souls through means different from The Millennium.

Even so, they couldn't keep up, the system collapsed, and he had brought the few remaining humans to this continent on an ark.

According to him, without beings like the Divine Dragons, humans would forget their reverence for nature.

He continued expounding philosophical theories until he eventually became completely drunk.

… What did he come here for, anyway?

Eventually, the deadline Valis had mentioned arrived.

That day began with an ordinary morning, and people started their daily routines as usual.

However, through representatives of each nation, the populace had been informed as much as possible. Though hardly anyone actually understood.

The Divine Dragons returned to their kin, while the strong among humans, demihumans, and demons gathered where the old Imperial capital had once stood, setting up tents.

And in the center of it all was the Demon King, prostrating himself in a dogeza.

"I'm sorry…"

Not just humans and demihumans—even demons were directing somewhat cold gazes at him. To put it mildly, they were exasperated.

"You… do you understand what you've done!?"

The one who spoke with intense anger was Shana. The former Hero was being berated by a former companion who had once adventured with him and defeated the previous Demon King.

Amid the resigned gazes, Ferna was the only one looking flustered.

"Honestly… do you even understand the situation we're in…?"

Even Ria sighed in exasperation, all because of what had come to light at this critical juncture.

Ferna was pregnant.

The father was none other than the Demon King-sama.

Ferna's combat ability ranked quite high even among those present. After all, she was a prodigy whom Black Cat members had personally trained since childhood.

If she couldn't fight, naturally blame would fall on the cause. And in the case of pregnancy, that blame typically falls on the man.

"I have no excuse…"

Ars continued prostrating himself earnestly, with no room for justification. He probably understood that himself.

"What's done is done, no matter what we say now. Let's have her stay somewhere safe and provide support from the rear."

A constructive suggestion came from Carla, and Ars showed visible relief.

"The baby will be Shinji's younger sibling, so I'll take her in at Manesh."

Yes, Guinevere was there at this gathering too.

As the atmosphere shifted toward a showdown between the current and former wives, Ars pressed his forehead even harder against the ground.

Since teleportation magic had adverse effects on pregnant women, Guinevere and Ferna flew off toward distant Ogress.

Ars finally stood up and looked at the demon officers with upturned eyes.

The veteran officers sighed but arranged themselves before Ars.

Some, like Asuka, were muttering complaints under their breath.

"It's almost time…"

Shifaka murmured, pulling out a pocket watch.

He was the only human here who had actually experienced a Great Collapse. His gaze turned skyward.

And then, the color of the sky changed.

Blue. But not the blue of the sky.

After a faint shimmering, it became clear.

"Ooh…"

Groans escaped, as did gasps of wonder. What filled their vision was land—the opposite ground occupying most of the sky.

It was Earth, something Ria had seen countless times in photographs.

Their atmospheres touched, and the landmasses were clearly visible.

"Where is Japan…"

Ria found herself murmuring. The sphere slowly rotated, revealing itself.

A chain of blue-tinged green islands. Upon finding it, Ria clenched her fist.

Ah, it's still there.

Japan is still there.

Two planets at a distance where gravity should have caused them to collide, yet they maintained their separation while rotating.

The Great Collapse had begun.