The Neighborhood High School Girl, Miss Isezaki, Is the Great Saintess Returned from Another World~ And I, Suddenly Awakened as Her Exclusive Mana Supply Uncle, Travel Between Earth and Another World with Time-Space Magic~ - 148. Exiling the Saintess

148. 148. 148. 148. Exiling the Saintess

“Isezaki-san. I’m going to expel you from the party,” I said to Isezaki-san as soon as we returned to the rocky shelter in the wilderness.

I’ve dabbled a bit in light novels myself. Since I had come to another world, I wanted to try saying this line at least once. 

I didn’t want to create too heavy an atmosphere, so I thought I’d start with a light joke. But—

“Ooooh, Sir!?! What do you mean by that… Ha!? Could it be—”

My joke threw Isezaki-san into intense agitation, and she started muttering something incomprehensible.

“P-Perhaps on that night… Did they… No, that can’t be… I should have been perfect… But if Sir sensed even a slight discrepancy… T-That means I’m finished, doesn’t it!? Aaah, no, no no no no no no no no no no…”

Isezaki-san trembled violently with vacant eyes. Even for me, this reaction was unexpected.

I hurried over to Isezaki-san, who seemed about to collapse from shock.

“S-Sorry, did I surprise you?! It was just a little joke. Can you calm down and listen to me?”

“…A j-joke?”

Light returned to Isezaki-san’s eyes. I nodded reassuringly and proceeded to explain the discussion we had at the castle.

How Lady Levia had ordered our retreat for our safety.

Even so, I had decided to head to the magic stone mine.

And because of my selfish decision, I couldn’t involve Isezaki-san, so I wanted her to return to Japan first—

By the time I finished explaining everything, Isezaki-san, who had been on the verge of panic, had regained her composure.

Ultimately, the fact remained that she would return to Japan, but now that the misunderstanding was cleared up, Isezaki-san had a relieved expression as if she had narrowly escaped death. Earlier, she had looked like a middle-aged man I once saw being arrested for groping on the train.

Perhaps being expelled from a party in her past as the Great Saintess had been a trauma for her. If that’s the case, then I’ve done something terrible…

Wiping her face drenched in cold sweat with a handkerchief, Isezaki-san protested.

“Phew… I understand your explanation. Sir, you’re such a joker.”

“I’m sorry, I didn’t expect you to be so shocked… But, because of that, I want you to go back to Japan first.”

“No, I won’t go back.”

“It might be dangerous. That’s why—”

Before I could finish, Isezaki-san interrupted.

“If it’s dangerous, then my healing magic would be even more helpful to you, Sir. Besides, this involves my friend Levia. I’m already troubled that you’re helping me out, Sir, but to leave me out of this entirely… I can’t bear that. Sir, I won’t budge on this.”

“…Won’t budge?”

“Absolutely not!”

With determination, Isezaki-san puffed out her chest and firmly answered. This is troublesome; Isezaki-san does have a stubborn side.

Come to think of it, she was like that back then too. It happened one day after I and Isezaki-san had become acquainted.

Back when Isezaki-san was still in elementary school, she suddenly started calling me “Sir.” I was in my mid-twenties at the time, and I suggested, “I’m not quite old enough to be called ‘Sir’; how about calling me Matsunaga-san, or at least ‘big brother’?” 

But no matter how many times I asked, Isezaki-san wouldn’t nod. And so, calling me “Sir” became the norm.

Well, now that I’m in my late twenties, I think I’ve already become one of the “uncles” in a way, so maybe “Sir” is still better than being called “uncle.”

Anyway, although Isezaki-san doesn’t usually assert herself, once she’s decided on something, she can be quite stubborn.

I can’t force her to return to Japan, and if I do, I’ll surely be resented…

Well, there’s no helping it. I’ll just have to prepare myself. As long as I can protect Isezaki-san properly.

“I understand. But let’s try to avoid dangerous situations as much as possible, okay?”

“Yes, understood! Thank you so much, Sir!”

Isezaki-san’s serious expression softened into a smile. Watching her, I let out a sigh of relief.

“Alright, then let’s head back to where the ‘Stinger’ folks are.”

As I turned on my heel to head back, I caught a faint murmur from Isezaki-san, hidden in the wind.

“But if I were to die—… At that time, even if it’s just you—…”

“Huh? What was that?”

I turned back to ask Isezaki-san, but she just smiled and shook her head.

“Oh, it’s nothing. Shall we hurry back? It’s been too long for just a bathroom break.”

“Oh… right, that’s true… I completely forgot.”

Turning back around, I pondered how to explain my long bathroom break excuse as we headed back to the ‘Stinger’ group.

—

Upon our return, the members of ‘Stinger’ greeted us normally.

Apparently, they had figured out that the bathroom excuse was just a cover for a discussion between me and Isezaki-san, so they were a bit exasperated that we didn’t just say so. It was a near miss, so I apologized sincerely.

Then I declared that “I want to continue on like this.”

While I had been teleporting back and forth at the rocky shelter, the ‘Stinger’ members had been discussing their plans, and it seemed that the idea of continuing to the magic stone mine was gaining traction among them.

It seemed that the opinion that investigating the cause was necessary to affect the reward amount was the decisive factor.

With my decision welcomed so enthusiastically, I wondered what I had been so worried about, and our journey resumed.

—

The next day. We couldn’t afford to take it easy anymore, so we continued our march as quickly as possible after receiving reports.

We ate lunch while the carriage was moving, and any monsters that appeared were repelled without stopping the carriage.

As the sun began to set, we saw what looked like a fenced settlement with several stone buildings and what appeared to be a lookout tower in the distance.

Apparently, that was the surveillance tower of the Carius territory. And so, we finally arrived at the foot of our destination, the magic stone mine.