Execution

"H… hey, forgive us, won't you? We're… friends, right? T-that was just a joke, you know. C'mon…"

"R-right, right, Naoto-kuuun, aren't we friends? A-and Maika and you, you make a great couple! Naoto-kun, you're so cool…"

"O-oh, y-yeah, that's right, Naoto's amazing, c'mon…!"

Ishiguro and Noda fawned on me desperately.

"For executions, isn't there some kind of court indictment, an arrest warrant, anything like that? Something to send to the system?"

"… Naoto-san. PK action is a clear criminal act.

"True, in cases where it's hard to judge whether something is a crime, the matter is sometimes referred to a B-Class meeting for a vote, but…

"Yuma Ishiguro's charges are unambiguous, and by any rule we apply, it's plainly a death sentence.

"Just because the system doesn't drop a thunderbolt on a player doesn't mean everything is permitted.

"If you appeal any further, the B-Class Masters will scold you for the trouble of dragging them in.

"Masters of C-Class and above have both the right and the duty to pass judgment on other Masters for the sake of public order.

"So you might say, fulfill your duty."

"I see… so the arrest mechanism does exist."

"Yes, that's correct. By application from a C-Class-or-above Master, you can have a Master arrested and punished. The list of penalties is right here."

"Ah, the public-order section, huh… punishments for serious crimes like murder.

"Oh, the death penalty's an option too.

"For Masters who are reluctant to PK, NPCs will carry out the execution on your behalf, for a fee… Yeah. Let's have it done…"

"Y-you, why you…!"

"Yuma Ishiguro. Tell me the names of the Masters you killed."

"… H-haaah? It was obviously a joke, you know? You took it seriously? It's all a joke, just a joke, a joke. C'mon!"

"R-right, right. We didn't kill anyone, nobody…!"

"… Not a shred of remorse, all the way to the end, huh."

"Wh… what's your problem?! This whole world's inside a game, isn't it?! You're getting all serious about killing people, are you stupid?!"

"By that logic, since me carrying out your death sentence is also inside a game, it just means I should take it easy and do it. Thanks for letting me take it easy."

For executions, the options ranged from euthanasia-style execution to the top-grade version: 1 to 99 years of hellish torture before the actual death.

"For a death penalty after killing eight people, eight years of top-grade suffering before death sounds about right."

"Yes, that seems appropriate."

Beep.

I submitted the application to the system. It cost 400,000G. 50,000G per year… wait, 500 million yen a year for torture? Pretty pricey, but with my current finances, it was nothing. Beep. Approve and pay.

"… Uah, ah, ahhhhh…! You bastard, die, be cursed… gguh."

The area around Ishiguro's mouth froze over.

"Pardon me, but I don't want to listen to any more of your voice."

Maika had taken care of it for me.

"As for Noda, he killed one person… that said, he had no choice but to obey when Ishiguro ordered him to kill the captured Murata-kun, so I think there's still room for extenuating circumstances.

"I'm sorry to Murata-kun, who was killed, but…

"If it had been a counterattack against a delinquent like Machiya, who normally pushed you around, I might give you a little more leniency… but Murata-kun was a kind, good person… he even stuck up for you, didn't he."

"… Hah? That bastard was laughing behind my back, calling me smelly! He had it coming! Ah, no, just as Naoto-sama says…"

"… No, you actually do smell…

"Take Higuchi-kun, he's fatter than you, but he was a beloved character… he's funny and gives off a clean feeling, so people don't dislike him. Take a bath."

"Wh-whaaat?! N-no, I-I'll take a bath…"

Noda was desperately hiding his rebellion while sucking up.

"In Japan, around 15 years of imprisonment would've been about right. If they showed signs of repentance and were a model prisoner, they could get out a little earlier…"

"Even within the same 15 years, there's a lot of variety here."

"Released after 15 years of hellish torture… by the way, what is hellish torture, exactly…?"

"This world has recovery magic, so no matter how many of his limbs you sever, he can be healed back. Standard tortures like crushing his testicles, ripping out his tongue, and gouging his eyes, plus special punishments unique to this world, are repeated about a thousand sets a day, on and on. Even if he goes mad, he's healed and tortured all over again.

"The punishment where the whole body is steeped in a special chemical solution and, with all senses heightened, slowly dissolves while still alive, has a reputation for being hundreds of times worse than anything you can imagine."

"… Heh, that's something else. So that's why it's 50,000G a year. The full course."

"… ! … !"

Ishiguro twitched and convulsed, and pissed himself. Disgusting…

"Ah, but isn't that fine? This is the last time he'll be able to urinate properly from his penis, after all…"

… Lyuka said some pretty rough stuff with a straight face. The fact that I thought even that side of her was cute meant I really had it bad for her…

"… H-hii, hiiiii…"

Noda-kun was crying and bowing his head too.

"There's torture, and light torture."

"Torture is a punishment where, after limbs are severed, recovery magic isn't used and they stay missing.

"The tongue is pulled out, the eyes are gouged, but the suffering ends there, so it's considerably tamer than hellish torture, I'd say."

"… And the lighter version?"

"That one is a general sort of torture: full-body whipping followed by salt rubbed into the wounds, and so on. Light torture, without destroying body parts like severing limbs. Care is taken so that no aftereffects remain."

… So that's "light," huh.

"Hmm, what about hard labor?"

"Things like endlessly turning a heavy stone mill. Meaningless heavy labor piled on endlessly."

"And light work?"

"Meaningless light work like pulling out a stick and sticking it back in, piled on endlessly."

"… Have them do something a little more useful…"

"Both precision work and physical labor are far more efficient when done by Garumon…

"Aside from doing Garumon Battles, Masters are…

"But cum slaves are useful."

"Eh, what's that?"

"Until a Garumon gets pregnant, you need dozens, hundreds of intravaginal ejaculations, so a Master's semen has its own utility. That's why a punishment of just endlessly ejaculating exists too."

"… But wouldn't that just be a reward for the criminal…?"

"No, jobs that involve sex with beautiful Garumon are flooded with Masters who'd pay out of pocket to do them.

"For it to count as a punishment, the partner has to fit the bill. In a world where you can have all the sex you want freely, being forced to have sex with a partner you don't want is a punishment in its own right. Of course, it's only used for minor crimes…"

"I see… but there are no penalties suited for petty crimes here… and it's a serious offense anyway."

"How about something like limb-severing punishment, or castration?"

"Hmm… that's a bit too cruel…"

It was hard. Carrying out a sentence wouldn't bring the victims back.

But letting them live carefree without any punishment wouldn't lay the victims to rest either.

Was the sentence really appropriate? Wasn't getting them to truly repent more important?

All sorts of thoughts like that ran through my head.

Did a punishment everyone could accept actually exist?

Judges back on Earth must have had it rough too… no wonder Lord Enma got so famous.

"I thought it over, but let's go with hard labor.

"It's plenty hard, and after 15 years of turning a stone mill, he might come to feel something and reflect at least a little.

"Also, lose some weight."

So with that, Noda's sentence was decided: 15 years of hard labor. It cost 3,000G. 200G per year, huh. Suddenly so cheap! Just food expenses, basically.

I added the option of daily mental checks: if repentance was observed, the sentence would be shortened; if not, it would be lengthened. For an extra 6,000G, it tripled to 9,000G.

"Even if it's lengthened, there'll be no additional charge, but if it's shortened, no money will be returned. Is that all right?"

"Yeah, if he's going to properly reflect, that's the better outcome."

Beep, approved.

Right at that moment, a Gate appeared and opened.

Some kind of… masked enforcer Garumon came through.

"… Yuma Ishiguro. By application of B-Class rank 501 Master Naoto Akai, the death penalty after 8 years of hellish torture is to be carried out."

"… ! … !"

Ishiguro-kun shook his head while crying, but he was hauled up and carried away.

As for Noda-kun… while I was thinking, another Gate appeared.

A group of fairly pretty Garumon in uniforms came through.

"Masaomi Noda. By application of B-Class rank 501 Master Naoto Akai, a sentence of 15 years' hard labor is to be carried out."

"… Yes…"

Noda was taken quietly. Hopefully hard labor would make him a slightly more decent human being…

Although being whipped by these pretty correctional officer Garumon while doing hard labor might honestly feel more like a reward to him…

And so, Ishiguro and Noda's attack was settled, for the time being.

Whether this was for the best, I didn't know. Maybe it would put the dead to rest.

… But this was as much as I could do.

What was left was…

The Garumon they'd been keeping.

"A Master who has received a punishment is treated as good as dead, so all Garumon they were holding are released.

"Which means that right now, all of them are Free Garumon."

"Hmm…"

That was its own kind of dilemma.

Each of them was beautiful and her ability was by no means low.

It wasn't that I didn't want them, but…

They were all SR to SSR class, so it wasn't quite "I absolutely have to have them."

Even I was being pretty extravagant…

"… Well, going with the assumption that I won't add them to my party… how do I make them into NPCs again?"

"It's simple if you give them money. Their current value squared, divided by 200, is the cost to make them an NPC. Squared and divided by 100 is the cost to revert from NPC to PC."

"… I see. What kind of life do you have once you're an NPC?"

"NPCs are public servants who get jobs from the system and live off them.

"If an NPC doesn't follow the system's orders, they're punished.

"But if they don't like their current job, they can apply to the system for a job change, and most NPCs live decently happily, I'd say."

"Can NPCs marry each other or have lovers?"

"Forbidden. If you want to marry, please revert to PC and then marry.

"You can have sex with a PC, but NPCs can't have sex with other NPCs.

"If a PC couple registers as a married couple and then becomes NPCs, they can have sex freely and have children."

"You're saying romance is forbidden?"

"Romance is fine, isn't it. If you fall in love, save up money, become a PC, and get married, just work hard for that.

"Though it's not as easy for NPCs to save up money as it is for PCs…"

"Are there other downsides…?"

"Depending on what your original rank was, you'll be classified as G-Class NPC through S-Class NPC.

"Everyone here ended up at B-Class as their final rank, so… they'll be C-Class NPCs. From B-Class up, you drop one rank.

"Your rank determines the rank of jobs you can take. The higher the better, please assume.

"You basically can't go out into monster territory. Journalists like Patty-san are exceptions.

"You're given HP in the same format as Masters.

"If it hits zero, you lose divine protection, so dying is a real possibility.

"In the case of NPC Masters, only S- and A-Class NPCs are agelessly preserved; B/C-Class NPCs age at half speed.

"That's only for NPC Masters; NPC Garumon are all ageless."

… I see.

"Did everyone hear that? Then I'll interview each of you one at a time. I want to hear how you'd like to handle this."

～The Garumon of this world～

"Eh, from here on… I'll just keep doing my best as a Garumon."

"It's a shame about my Master, but if we lost, it can't be helped.

"I hope to meet a wonderful Master next time."

"… Can you sell off Free Garumon?"

"You can. A Free Garumon you have on hand counts as if you've already acquired her."

"Um… if you're going to keep being a Garumon, I think a shop sale is the best route.

"Since the buyer's putting up a high price, the chances they'll treat you well go up too."

"… Naoto-sama, would you not become our Master?"

"… Yeah, sorry."

When I said that:

"Guess it's no good after all…"

"Aah… it would have been an honor to be employed by a B-Class Master…"

"I hope I'll be employed by another B-Class Master next…"

That was the kind of thing they were saying.

It seemed there was a hierarchy among Garumon based on how high-ranked the Master they were employed by was.

For them, was Ishiguro just a normal Master, then?

"… No, I did think the murders were horrible, but…"

"But we Garumon are tools of our Master. Tools have no need to think."

"Master Yuma's sex was rough and tough to handle.

"Slamming it in hard is fine, but the punching and choking was rough…

"Outside of that, he sometimes used violence for no reason at all. He was a fairly horrible Master.

"But we Garumon get passed around and around, meeting all kinds of Masters.

"We often laugh about it together: this Master is the worst, that Master is a hit.

"I believe one day I'll meet a good Master."

"Master Noda's sex is persistent, which I can't really say is good or bad.

"But he always smelled sour…

"If you say 'let's take a bath,' he gets angry…"

… I felt a bit sorry, somehow.

"But, with this we've earned the right to become C-Class NPCs…"

"That was lucky, wasn't it. The jobs you can get as a D-Class NPC are completely different…"

"Well, meeting a good master is still the better outcome though…"

… It felt fresh, since chances to talk with Free Garumon were rare.

Were they really not so different from OLs back on Earth, or was that just me? I had no work experience, so I didn't really know.

Garumon, even though they were slaves by status, took that as a given and seemed to live their lives sturdily as a matter of course.

So with that, I sold them all off.

Next, individual interviews.

"… Tch, can't believe I lost. You're strong, huh."

It was Rinko Kijima-san.

"… So… is the next master gonna be you? I'm worried about whether you'll satisfy me…

"Yuma's sex was something else, you know.

"For someone who's gotten used to that nearly-20cm monster of his, I'm not sure you'll be enough."

"No, no need to worry. I have no intention of taking you in. If you want to keep being a Garumon, you'll be sold off.

"Hopefully you'll meet a good master next time.

"… That said, if you say you want to become an NPC, I'll cover the cost."

"… Heh, a virgin boy can't handle a woman who's been with men, huh."

"No, you're simply not my type. Whether you've had relations or not has nothing to do with it. My first was a widow."

"H-heh…"

"By the way, that's me. Nice to meet you."

When Leone smiled gently…

"Wh-whoa… wh-what a great woman…"

Kijima-san was overwhelmed.

"Um, I'm Patty, would an interview be all right?"

"… Whoa, an incredible pair of tits showed up?!"

Kijima-san got even more flustered.

"… Aah, I came over to this side with Yousuke Machiya. About a year ago, I think… Yousuke took advantage of the fact that I'd do whatever he said, and just had sex with me constantly… Then somehow Yuma got wind of it, came over, beat down Machiya, and stole me away. After that I called Yuma master and… yeah, kept having sex constantly. Yousuke? For a while he was kept alive as Yuma's underling. The deal was, become my flunky and I'll let you have her, so I was made to do it with Yousuke a few more times after that. But they had a fight or something, and he got beaten to death.

"I don't really remember anything else.

"… Huh? It wasn't really a bad time, no. When you obey orders as a Garumon, it gradually starts to feel good, you know…

"When I move the way my master orders me to, somehow it feels happy… I never fit in at school, and there was no place for me at home either.

"Sex over here is happier…"

"… What if you could go back to your original world?"

"Aah… not that interested. This side's more fun, isn't it? I'll stick with being a Garumon.

"Maybe I'll meet a better master."

"Got it. Then I'll sell you off."

"… Hey, those great women are following you around… could it be your sex is pretty incredible too? … Just once would be enough. Won't you let me have a taste?"

She came on to me like that, but:

"No, I'm good."

I declined.

"Kuuh, what the hell?! Let me have a taste! Let me have sex with you, c'monnn!"

To think Kijima-san, a beautiful girl despite the delinquent vibe, would say something like that to me.

In my original world, would I have happily agreed…?

No, since I had Maika in mind, I'd have refused all the same.

"That technique you used to break the Guard was incredible. If Patty could pull that off, would I be useful to Naoto-san?"

"… Yeah. I think it'd be handy.

"But unless first strike is set, it's a bit half-baked… everyone has to delay their attacks too."

"I'll aim for that next…! I'll be useful to Naoto-sannnn!"

Patty burned with motivation.

Ogrekin and Gyuuki… they were close, so maybe there was a chance she could learn the same technique. If so, that'd be reassuring.

Up next was Lenny Brown.

"… So, Naoto, are you my next master…?"

She asked, looking afraid.

"No, I don't intend to be.

"… Huh, Lenny-san, was your Japanese always this fluent?"

"In this world, all languages get translated perfectly. From my end, you, Naoto, sound like fluent English."

"Aah, right. Heh… I can't even imagine myself being fluent in English."

We continued the conversation, with Patty mixing in interviews too.

"So Lenny-san, will you keep being a Garumon? Or become an NPC?"

"… It's hard to decide… There are a lot of bad memories from being a Garumon… Yuma especially was just awful… it was rough. But when I was Michael-sensei's Garumon, it was fun…

"Becoming an NPC now and dragging unpleasant memories with me for life… maybe continuing as a Garumon would erase those bad memories instead."

"… I see. What if you could go back to your original world?"

"… I don't want to go back anymore. The events in this world are too much of a shock… I've forgotten everything about my original world…"

"Eh, ehh…? Th-there is, just so you know, a chance to go back in a few years…"

"…"

There was no light left in Lenny's eyes.

"… If you won't be my master, please just leave me alone…"

… Was it really all right to sell her off and leave her like this, hurt as she was…?

I felt sorry for her, but there was nothing I could do.

I didn't have some grandiose wish to make every girl in the world happy.

I wanted to make my own companions happy, at least, and to do that, I had to be allowed to be selective about who I added to the party.

Chris Brooks was…

"… To be brought down so easily… how frustrating."

She seemed to want to keep being a Garumon.

"I came over with Seijin Suwa-kun."

"Suwa…"

"He was the student council secretary."

Maika filled me in.

"… Aah, that guy with glasses who'd say hi sometimes?"

"That's the vice president. He doesn't show up much in front of people, so even hearing his title, you might not know who. Sorry.

"I saw him a lot in committee, though…"

"Seijin-kun protected me kindly. I wanted to protect him too.

"As we lived together in this world, we came to love each other.

"But… once we caught Yuma's eye, our luck ran out. We lost, and Yuma took me. Seijin… was killed by Yuma. The stealing part is a common story. Killing apparently is rare even here, but… still, it can't be helped."

"If you could go back to your original world, would you be interested?"

"… A little bit. Whether I'd actually go back, I don't know."

"Honestly, on our side, we don't really know if going back is even possible. When we attempt it, I'll let you know. I'll talk to your master at the time."

Morino-san was…

"I… think clones and ninjas and such are interesting, so I want to keep being a Garumon.

"… I came over here with my boyfriend Ota-kun, and we were having a pretty fun time. Until we ran into Yuma-kun…

"Ota-kun was killed… and I was taken. That period was rough… but if I'm going to keep living as a Garumon from now on, things like that are bound to happen, and someday I think I'll be able to laugh about it.

"My original world… if I could go back, I think I'd want to…"

Ihara-san was…

"I'm… not very strong, and that's enough. I want to become an NPC."

Finally, huh.

"I came here with my classmate Motoki-kun…

"I hadn't really talked to Motoki-kun much before, but he was kind and dependable…

"We came to love each other before we knew it… but Ishiguro-kun killed him."

"For the rest, Koyuki-san, please operate the system yourself. Select that from the menu… and tap 'Become NPC.'"

Koyuki Ihara became an NPC.

"My original world? If I can, I want to go back."

We agreed I'd contact her.

Akashima-san.

"I want to keep being a Garumon. I want to master the Akashima-style ultimate techniques."

She burned with motivation.

"I really regret what happened to Murata-kun. It's a shame. So unfortunate.

"But that too is because I was unskilled…

"I'll get stronger, and this time I'll become a Garumon who can protect the people who matter to me.

"… Thank you for avenging Murata-kun… Though losing was frustrating.

"Interest in my original world, you ask…? No. With the muscles you can build in my original world, the Akashima style can't be mastered.

"It can only truly be mastered in this world.

"I appreciate the thought, but I'll live in this world."

She was firm and decisive.

The last one. Mita-sensei…

"… I'm… the one who came over with Ishiguro-kun.

"He immediately realized I'd obey any order he gave, and made me do every kind of thing.

"Of course, sex too, over and over… countless times. At the end he said he was tired of me, and… handed me over to Noda-kun…

"Making me kill people, I think there was a 'how far will she go' element of testing.

"Of course, he was the kind of person who loved to hurt people and tear them down, so that's part of it too…

"Under his orders, I hurt and stole from a great many people.

"If you're going to punish him… shouldn't I also be punished?"

"… No, in this world, Garumon don't bear responsibility.

"Everything's done according to the Master's instructions."

"Even so… I…"

"… As a Garumon in this world…? You could become an NPC instead."

"… I'll continue. Because going through hard times like that would be a kind of farewell offering for the people who lost their lives because of me…

"To my original world… I can't go back anymore. I'll live in this world…"

Hmm, gloomy. There was no question she was carrying wounds in her heart.

… That said, the role of unwinding her heart wasn't mine to play.

I hoped the next Master she met would be that for her.

"For now, I'll contact you when going back becomes possible…"

"… Yes."

When all was said and done, a lot of them chose to keep being Garumon, to remain in this world.

… Which meant, at the end of the day, they were satisfied with this world, with their lives as Garumon…?

I had earned over 60,000,000G. A richly profitable result.

… That was the kind of post-incident processing I went through.