by Roy
The door beside them opened to another person yelling loudly.
“All I’ve been able to hear for the past few minutes is you people screaming at the top of your lungs! It’s a bloody nuisance!”
An unshaved middle-aged man appeared from next door.
He had dark circles under his sleepy eyes as he glared at the three of them.
“I apologize, Urami.”
“Oh, now you want to apologize after busting in here and making that racket? Tch!”
The man called Urami was still unhappy, but cooled down a little seeing Tabuchi.
“...Just keep it down. And isn’t the next door away from home? The walls here are thin so I can hear if someone moves around on the other side.”
“I’m so sorry for the trouble. Do you know where...?”
“No clue. Are you sure he’s at home at all? The guy who lives there isn’t around very often.”
“Yes, he should be... He finished work early yesterday and said he was going to read a li— a book.”
“Well, dunno then.”
“Everything would be hunky-dory if this geezer just opened the door.”
With a glance at Iguchi, who was displaying an indignant attitude for the world to see, the man leaned in to whisper to the landlord.
“Landlord, mind if I ask you for a little favor too?”
He had determined that Iguchi wasn’t worth talking to.
Thus, to have them return as quickly as possible, the unrelated neighbor also joined in persuading his landlord to open the door.
The four of them argued back and forth over the door for a while.
“Fine...”
Finally, the landlord folded first.
“About time.”
“In return, I expect you to leave immediately if Takebayashi is not present.”
“Well, no shit.”
“I’m sorry, please go ahead.”
“Hmph. You must have it tough too.”
With a look at Tabuchi, who continually bowed his head, the landlord went to get the key to open the door.
“Takebayashi! Are you here?”
“Yelling here isn’t gonna make much difference. Move it.”
“?!”
“Whoa! What?”
Iguchi shoved the landlord yelling from the entrance aside, toppling him off balance.
Tabuchi made it in time to support him, but Iguchi paid them no need as he charged inside.
“Hey, old codger!”
As Iguchi jeered from inside the room, the landlord at the entrance similarly raised his voice.
“Just what is with his attitude?!”
“I’m so sorry about him! Are you injured?”
“I’m fine. But really, Tabuchi, what’s that kid’s problem? You said he was a coworker, but what kind of company would hire a child like him?”
“Umm... I can’t say the details, but he had connections into the company...”
“Even with connections, a newbie should mind his manners more, no? There’s no part of him that acts like an adult!”
“Stop snoozing and get your ass up!”
Iguchi’s voice yelled louder than before.
Tabuchi couldn’t help but hear him and reacted in shock, the landlord also forgetting his anger.
“He’s sleeping...?”
“So the Chief’s here after all.”
“Oi! Get up, you piece of shit! Skipping work unannounced, at your age?! You’re such a pain in my ass!”
The sound of stomps and jeering could be heard.
“...Let’s go inside too, or he might destroy the room.”
“Yes...”
When they went inside, they saw...
The man from next door who had gone past them without their notice, standing by the living room wall with a bitter smile on his face.
His gaze was directed at the bedroom, where a large man lay asleep.
And...
“Get up! Are you fucking with me?! I’m gonna have your ass fired!”
Iguchi ripped away the covers and yelled, but when the sleeping man showed no reaction, he lost his temper and kicked him over and over instead.
“H-Hey! You’re going too far, Iguchi!”
Tabuchi moved to hold him back in a panic.
“Outta my way, fatass!”
“Guh!”
Unfortunately, he didn’t have the strength to stop him by force, and a body blow fueled by irritation was thrust his way.
However...
“Please calm down, there’s no need for violence...”
Tabuchi panted harshly, curled up in pain as he slipped into the space between Iguchi and Takebayashi.
“Move it, fatass. I’m waking this asshole up myself.”
His face was flushed red with anger as he slowly made a show of raising his fist.
“I’ll punch you in your fat mouth this time, you want that?!”
“Be silent, imbecile!”
The one who put a stop to him was — against anyone’s expectations — the landlord’s fist.
“Oww... What’s your problem, you old fuck?!”
“I could ask you the same! Everything that’s come out of your mouth is abuse. You’ve charged right into someone else’s home uninvited. You’ve laid your hands on people as though it’s your prerogative. Who in their right mind brought you up like that, anyway?!”
“Y-You wot...?!”
The landlord scolded him like a child, like a stubborn father from a bygone era.
It made even the arrogant Iguchi shrink in on himself, and had enough intimidation to calm the current scene at hand.
“Tabuchi, is Takebayashi okay?”
“Y-Yes! Actually, he’s still sleeping...? Chief?”
Tabuchi had been too distracted by Iguchi’s fists and the pain lingering in his abdomen to realize something was off until now.
Takebayashi was in a T-shirt and shorts for sleepwear. He was lying face-up in those casual clothes, his left hand placed over his stomach. The way his eyes were closed made him look like he was indeed asleep.
However, could anyone sleep through such noise, on top of being kicked multiple times?
Upon closer inspection, his skin was bruised.
From their long association with each other, Tabuchi knew that Takebayashi’s body was much tougher than average.
But he wasn’t so thick-headed that he would sleep through bruising kicks.
“Chief? ...Chief?”
With that thought in mind, Tabuchi gradually increased the volume of his voice, but Takebayashi didn’t even twitch.
Then, he finally noticed.
As he was watching Takebayashi for a reaction, he saw that his chest wasn’t moving up and down.
“...Please wake up!”
At the same time as his pleading shout. He reached a hand out to shake awake the body before him, and —
“It’s cold...”
The sensation of a body that had lost its heat and stiffened.
Without any room for dispute, it informed Tabuchi that Takebayashi was dead.
■ ■ ■
“Thank you for your assistance.”
“Yes...”
After Takebayashi’s body was discovered, the landlord immediately called the police and everyone who had been in the room was questioned on the situation.
Although they had been released from the police, the commotion out front had brought out spectators.
To avoid the meddlesome looks from busybodies, Tabuchi dragged his feet heavily to the apartment garden.
“You’ve worked hard today, Tabuchi.”
“Ah, Mr. Landlord.”
The landlord stood there, avoiding the crowds like Tabuchi.
“Want a drink?”
“Yes, please.”
The landlord suddenly offered a can of tea.
After passing the can over, he looked towards Takebayashi’s room that was occupied with busy officers.
“Tabuchi, I’d like to apologize
for earlier.”
“Huh?”
“Before we entered the room. I vented my complaints about that kid’s attitude to you.”
“Ah... Don’t worry about it. We really were the ones at fault here.”
“You must have it rough too. And... I’m sorry about Takebayashi.”
“...I expected the Chief to live longer than me.”
“As did I. I never imagined he’d be the first to leave...”
A silence fell over the two of them.
“Tabuchi, what will you do now?”
“For now... I have to contact the company. I’m just waiting for Iguchi first.”
“That boy still isn’t done?”
“Not yet. He said he’d come find me when he was done.”
“Let me go, goddammit!”
““?!””
Speak of the devil.
Just as their conversation turned to the topic of Iguchi. Iguchi was brought out of the empty room the landlord had given the police officers to use for questioning, his arms pinned behind his back.
“Iguchi?!”
“Stop right there! Don’t come any closer!”
A different officer to the one that had opened the door ran up to Tabuchi to stop him.
“Umm, I’m his coworker. What happened?”
“He flew into a rage in the middle of questioning. Though he’s still raging now...”
“Let go of me! I didn’t kill him! That codger snuffed it long before I even touched him!”
“All right, all right. We’ll listen to the details at the station.”
“I said— Hey?! Oi, Tabuchi! Get off your lazy ass and help me!”
“H-Help you how?”
The officer blocking his way shook his head.
“You fucker! Don’t forget this! Once I’m out of the can, you’re fucking dead!”
“...Take him away.”
“Yes, sir!”
After spitting out more self-incriminating remarks, Iguchi was taken to the police car parked out front.
“Umm, what will happen to him?”
“Assault against a police officer. Obstruction of a public servant from their duties. He’ll be restrained for a while, but if he calms down then he’ll be released in a few days. He did many things to extend his sentence, so unless anything else happens he’ll be let off with a fine.”
“I see... May I contact my company?”
Thus, Takebayashi’s death was reported.
Each relevant place received notice and dealt with it accordingly.
But at the same time...
“Ah, Head Editor. Thanks for picking up, it’s Urami. Actually, I found some interesting material just now... Yes, I had my phone hidden while filming. I’ve sent the clip to you, so if you could have a look at it— yes. He was just yelling about how he couldn’t tell from the socks and muscles... I’ll email you the details. I believe there’s dirt to be dug up on the man in the clip and his surroundings. ...Yes, please do. Thank you.”
In the commotion leading up to Takebayashi’s confirmation of death, there was a reporter who held an interest in Iguchi and his place of employment...
Takebayashi was a man who had been given simple hardships through an act of god.
His workplace and living lifestyle was a cage prepared to keep a beast, so to speak.
However, with no beast to keep, there was no need for the cage, and no need for the environment to be prepared in such a way.
Just like how an enormous dam can collapse from the smallest crack.
With the death of the beast Takebayashi as the catalyst, his company and its employees were unknowingly proceeding down a path of destruction.
Afterword
First, my gratitude to the readers.
Thank you for purchasing By the Grace of the Gods 2.
It is thanks to everyone that the previous volume received a second print right away. And now, following the release of volume 2, volume 3 and the comic version has also been decided.
I’ve heard that the publishers in charge of me have found my story promising, and I have received many comments and support on the website ‘Shousetsuka ni Narou.’
It was a greater reception than I expected up until the release of volume 1, so I was bewildered for about a week.
It truly was a result beyond my expectations. From the bottom of my heart, I am so grateful to the readers.
Now, By the Grace of the Gods has already reached the second volume, and I have experienced novelizing twice.
It was a flurry of work during the production period, but looking back on it now... there were many things I didn’t know for the first volume, and I had many questions for the editors and publishers as I worked every day. I must have caused much trouble for the editors and proofreaders.
But this time, possibly thanks to my experience last time, it felt like the processes went by more smoothly, and I could feel my own growth.
I won’t say I’m used to it, but I’d like to accumulate these small growths and use them in my works in the future. I will work hard to return all the support I have received from everyone.
Dear readers, I hope you continue to enjoy By the Grace of the Gods.
Bonus Short Stories
The Seed of Rumors
“Mom! Next door’s being weird!”
At a certain florist’s shop in Gimul Town, a boy came bursting through the door yelling.
“Goodness me, what on earth? Didn’t you go out to play?”
“I did, but next door’s being weird!”
“What do you mean by ‘weird’?”
“Just come and see!”
“If you insist...”
There were no customers in the shop at the moment. Checking the empty lot next door shouldn’t take too long anyway. With that thought in mind, the woman followed her son outside, where a peculiar feeling overcame her.
“...There certainly is something weird.”
“Right?! It’s all clean all of a sudden!”
As far back as she could remember, the space next door had always been an empty lot. An empty lot with the remains of an abandoned building and long, untended weeds.
However, the empty lot she was staring at now vastly differed to the one in her memory. To be specific, other than one section of the building and weeds, it was completely clean.
But there was something else strange about it.
“Did someone clean it up?”
“Maybe, but when could it have happened? It was the same mess as always yesterday.”
When the boy pointed that out, the woman cocked her head and thought about it. She considered the amount of work required to change the building in her memory to the one before her. How many hands would be needed in order to carry that out — and so silently that she didn’t even notice while running a business next door? Weeds aside, the demolition of the building would have required explosives. It was hard to imagine she would miss that from next door.
“...How mysterious.”
It was indeed an unsolved mystery, but it wasn’t as though it caused problems for her store or her family. She should bring it up with her friends in the neighborhood, perhaps someone would know something. She didn’t think about it any further that day as she returned to her own work.
Then, the next day.
She witnessed the work going on with her own eyes, and found out the particulars. It became the topic of conversation between her and her friends visiting the shop.
“Oh, Pauline. About your next door neighbor...”
“It got cleaned up so quickly! What happened?”
“Apparently a new store is setting up there. A young adventurer child was working on it earlier.”
“Oh my, is that so? What kind of store?”
“I wonder who will work there...”
“A laundry service. He gave me this bag and said it would cost just 10 sutes to wash a full bag of clothes.”
“Oh, wow! A bag this size for 10 sutes is quite che
ap.”
“But is it safe to use? If it’s that cheap, perhaps the service won’t be so good, or things might be stolen...”
“That’s true... But the child who gave me this bag didn’t seem like a bad person... Though he was a little strange.”
“What was he like?”
“He didn’t seem to be that far in age from my daughter, but his manner of speech was so polite. He said the words ‘my store’ so he’s either a shop assistant or the son of the manager... But he also called himself an adventurer...”
“If he’s the same age as Renny, isn’t that a bit young?”
“Maybe it’s his dream to be an adventurer.”
“About that — he was actually wearing proper armor. And he was also the one who cleaned up the lot. I watched him for a while and he demolished the building at a tremendous speed for someone working all alone. I was shocked... he didn’t look like he had much strength, so his forte must be in magic.”
When Pauline explained the things she’d seen and heard, one of the women remembered something.
“A talented child magician, polite, and an adventurer...”
“What about him?”
“I think I’ve heard of that boy from someone else. Who was it...? Did he have any other notable characteristics?”
“Characteristics? Let me think... Ah, he used slimes to do the weeding. A staggering number of them, too.”
As soon as she heard that, the other woman exclaimed, “I remember! Wasn’t there a huge incident recently? You know, at the north mines.”
“The place that the public office wasn’t maintaining?”
“Yeah, and then goblins started living there because of that. There was even a king goblin, how terrifying, honestly.”
“That’s right! The goblins were exterminated successfully, but there were tales of a child who used a ton of slimes to help out in a big way.”
“He’s that boy? So he is a proper adventurer after all...”
“If the tales are true, then yes.”
“That’s as far as I can remember, but I must have heard this from the housewife living across from us. Her husband’s the one who works as an adventurer. Perhaps I’ll ask them for more details when I get home.”
That was how the slight disturbance stirred the ladies’ interest...
“Pauline, you remember what we discussed yesterday? About that housewife across from us—”