Konosuba: A Tale of this Beautiful World

~Volume Three~

Prologue

"Ah, and there he is, my main man, Kazuma. Oi, won't you join us, man? Got someone new I think you'd like."

I looked over and saw Dust, Keith, and Taylor. Another person I wasn't familiar with was sitting next to him. Dust waved me over.

"Oh, what's up?" I said, taking a seat next to Taylor; he glanced over and gave me a quick nod, taking a sip from his mug as he did.

"We were just talking about you."

"I hope nothing bad."

Dust laughed. "Of course not, buddy; I could never badmouth my good friend. Say, what about ordering a couple drinks for old times' sake?"

I sighed and signaled the nearby barmaid. "Couple of the regular drinks if you don't mind."

She nodded in confirmation, and then went off to get the drinks.

As she walked off, the man sitting next to Dust spoke. "Heh, so you're Kazuma-san? Nice to meet you. The name's Plum Kirby." He stretched his arm out for a handshake which I promptly returned.

"Plum Kirby? I don't mean to be rude, but that's an unusual name around these parts, no?"

He chuckled heartily. The man appeared to be around our age, maybe closer to Taylor's; early 20's? He had a set of very narrow brown eyes. His hair, also brown, was slightly long and tied in the back.

After settling down a bit, he took a drink from his cup, and then then set it down loudly. With a grin, he replied, "Umu, I'm not from around here. I was born in a small village in the south but raised in the far north."

"Oh?"

He sneered. "You say my name is unusual, but I'm fairly sure Kazuma isn't a popular name around here either."

Dust interjected. "Give it a few years and I'm sure it will be."

Kirby raised a brow. "Hmm, why's that?"

"Oh, that's right; you just came here, huh? Kazuma's the one who defeated the Demon King."

Kirby's eyes widened in a way which seemed alien to him. "He"—He stared at me with the same level of surprise before looking back at Dust—"ahem, sorry, I'm…I'm just so surprised." He took a large swig from his cup. "You know…never seen a Demon King slayer."

I grinned. Leaning back some, I proudly replied, "Well, you know, it was pretty easy and all; just walked in and before the Demon King could even fight, he was finished. Dead before he even hit the ground."

"R, Really?" Kirby took another large swig of his drink.

Just then, the others I ordered arrived. Everyone at the table grabbed one.

Kirby continued. "You must be really powerful then, Kazuma-san."

I smirked and drank from my cup. "I do what I can," I answered, presenting a modest attitude. "And Kazuma's just fine; no need for formalities."

Dust sneered. "See, what'd I tell ya, Plum; Kazuma's the best. This man was even made a noble by the royal family and he still acts like one of us. I tell ya…the nobles of Axel are of a different breed. I could even say I'm ok with 'em."

Keith spoke. "Well Kazuma was a commoner just like us, so maybe that's why."

I waved them off. "Noble or not, I'm not changing the way I am. If anything, this just helps me get closer to life I always wanted."

"Oh yeah," Kirby said, "and what's that?"

As I was about to answer wholeheartedly, I paused. This was a fellow who's never seen such a famous and amazing person in the flesh; I couldn't just tell him I wanted to live a languid and decadence-filled life; I'd lose all respect. And so…

"I'm an adventurer, Kirby-san; my greatest hope is to see all the Demon Kings eradicated and peace return to the world."

He stared at me in shock; almost as if overcome by the surprise of me saying such things. "Ahem, I-I see. Someone like you…wouldn't rest on his laurels I suppose." He quickly took another sip of alcohol.

Taylor also looked at me in surprise. "To think that you'd be ready to take on other Demon Kings—no, I should've expected as much from you." He turned to me and bowed his head in reverence. "Forgive me for doubting you, Kazuma."

"Ehhh…please don't praise me so earnestly; if you do, I can't help but feel bad."

"Kazuma," Kirby began, "I hope you don't mind me asking, why's someone like you still in the town of beginners? Surely, to have defeated the Demon King your level must be well beyond the levels of rookies, right?"

And I couldn't really tell him the real reason why I (and most other male adventurers) stuck around here, right? So, of course…

I said, "This town is really important to me; there've been many times I've contemplated going somewhere else, but I always think about the many fond memories and friends I've made here; I can't just leave them behind."

"…hmm, I see. You're every bit the person I thought a Slayer of the Demon King would be." He stared longingly at his drink before taking a deep guzzle from it. Then he grinned. "As strong as you may be, Kazuma, you couldn't have defeated the Demon King all on your own, right; you had help."

I crossed my arms and sighed heavily. "Umu, I did have help."

"A party."

I nodded.

With his head leaning on an arm, Dust said, "Knowing those girls though, I wouldn't be surprised if you took on the Demon King entirely by yourself."

"Are they really that bad?" Taylor queried. "I can't help but feel like their deficiencies are being exaggerated."

"Come on," Keith replied. "Taylor, how long have we've been here; surely you must've heard the countless stories of those girls' screw ups."

Dust nodded. "And how many times have I recounted to you that time me and Kazuma switched parties?"

Taylor sighed. "Countless—but I've also heard many unsavory rumors about Kazuma as well and…well…well some…most of them…actually a lot of them are—"

"T-That's not really important!" I interrupted. "What is important is of course the fact that I defeated the Demon King. No amount of slander can change that."

"I, I suppose that's true."

I cleared my throat, and then took a sip of my drink. After placing my mug down, I stared at Kirby. "So, Kirby-san, you said you were from the north; how's everything over there, you know, given the circumstances and all?"

He stared silently at his drink once more. "It's…" He drank in between the pause. "…pretty bad. Lots of people fleeing the area; it's why I'm here now. Left one place with a Demon King just to end up at another. Luckily, it seems I've come to the right place." He showed a genuine smile.

Suddenly, Kirby looked past us. After a moment, he guzzled down the rest of his drink and stood up. "Sorry guys, I've gotta go now." He turned to Dust. "Thanks for the drinks and stories, Dust-san."

"Sure, no problem, bud," He replied as he drank from his own mug.

Kirby nodded at Keith and Taylor, and then extended a hand to me once more. "Nice to have met you, Kazuma; hope we see each other again soon."

"Uhhh oh—right," I replied, my hand floundering into the handshake.

As he walked away, I turned to see where he was headed; the others did too. A woman with vibrant pink hair and sharp aquamarine eyes seems to have been meeting up with him. She was quite beautiful and seemingly around the same age as Kirby; was she his girlfriend?

Dust seemed to be thinking something similar; a smirk was plastered upon his face as he put his mug down. "Hmm, seems the man had baggage; she's quite the looker though."

Taylor was the first to turn back around and mind his business; the rest of us slowly followed, but Dust made no attempt to hide the glances he threw at Kirby's girl.

He pressed his hands together in prayer. "Forgive me, Plum, but tonight I'm sure to have sweet dreams."

Keith sniggered as he quietly drank, and Taylor shook his head in disbelief. I sighed; even for as long as I knew this man, I couldn't help but be somewhat surprised as such a decision. Still, it was only a dream…a harmless dream…and then I wondered, what would a voluptuous woman like her be like?