West of the Lucia continent ── Formerly the kingdom of Elkia.
Imanity had once been cornered to their last country, to their very last city, but now that was a thing of the past. Suddenly, they somehow managed to take back a lot of territory, and then they united with the Eastern Federation, Oceando, and Avant Heim. Three countries and six races came together to form a multi-race Federation, and together they became a leading power in the world. But the other day a shocking piece of news spread around the world.
The ‘king’ spearheading those advancements ── had suddenly vanished. The fate of a country that lost a great and wise king, a true leader… is something that comes up very frequently in history. National politics would stagnate, power struggles would intensify, and the situation would become so chaotic that there would be a civil war ── The country would be split. Then, sooner or later, it would go into decline… and in the end, fall on the path to destruction…
… However. That’s only if we’re talking about a great and wise king.
If it wasn’t a particularly great or wise king, it wouldn’t play out like that. For example ── A king who leaves the national politics to others while he is absent. Or a king who is a hikikomori, even if sometimes the place he shuts himself in is in another country.
Worst of all, he bet the race piece with no care at all and picked a fight with high-ranking races. His policies were just one step short of tyranny ── And, well, if the one who disappears is a tyrant, then this would happen instead… something that has happened many times in history too. The ‘Kingdom of Elkia’…
── Became the ‘Republic of Elkia.’
It was the very picture of peace… Or rather it was even more stable than before…
──With some exceptions of course. For example:
“… Listen. You have three choices.”
That’s right. For example, the main street of a certain inn town northwest of the capital.
“You give me my breasts back, you tell me who sold you that ‘medicine,’ or I’ll destroy you!! Understood!?”
A small-breasted, black-haired girl was threatening a stallholder like that, but apart from her, the street was filled with the smiles and liveliness of the various merchants. A sudden increase in foreign trade was making the streets very busy…
“Kurami? I already told you that ‘medicine’ is just baron herb fluid, right?”
Said a gentle, calming voice. It came from someone next to the small-breasted girl ── someone next to Kurami Zell. That someone was a certain big-breasted Elf girl ── Fiel Nirvalen. She calmly continued:
“The baron herb is just a spiritual medicinal herb that temporarily inflates your breasts with air, you know～?”
“And that’s why we’re investigating this fraudulent medicine that gives you fake breasts, right!? Fii, can’t you understand my (the victim’s) feelings!?”
Kurami was furious.
She swore to hit the villain who had used this knowledge for such an evil purpose.
Kurami has small breasts. She has lived her whole life looking down on a padded chest. However, she also admires big breasts, so when her breasts became larger than a normal person’s, she became more conceited than anyone.
Three weeks ago ── She began looking for the whereabouts of the two kings who had suddenly disappeared. She crossed many fields and mountains to try and find them.
She even took Fiel with her ── and wasted an Elf’s magic on this, but Kurami still couldn’t pick up her targets’ trail.
However, last night when they stopped by this inn town to rest, Kurami saw that, and she immediately took out her wallet to buy it.
──── She casually grabbed a bottle labeled ‘breast enlargement medicine.’
She raised her little finger and heartily drank it up without the slightest bit of hesitation.
────…………
She soon found the ‘supplier’ the stallholder told her about. It was a small store doing business at a corner on the main street ── I see, it looks like their business is thriving.
There was a large crowd of people in a line that wasn’t moving an inch. The store also had a sign displaying its name, and when Kurami saw what it was, she made a bitter smile. She snuck into the back alleys of the self-proclaimed ‘Pharmacy of dreams,’ and thought about the irony of its name.
“Heh… yes, that’s right. That night was indeed just like a dream…”
… It wasn’t as if Kurami actually believed that the medicine was real.
She was only half convinced ── No, she was 90% sure she was being deceived, but even so, she went for her dreams: a ‘breast enlargement medicine’ ──
“Even though I looked down, I couldn’t see my navel… It was truly a dreamlike cleavage.”
And it really made her breasts larger! Aah, they were breasts filled with dreams!
Even Fiel was captivated by them! They even blasted into an inn, and filled their bellies with food and drink!!
‘Eh～? Where do they sell underwear this size, I wonder?～♥’ Kurami even got to say that!
“I slept with such a happy worry in my hands ── That’s right… I slept hugging my chest. It was a very good night…”
…… She muttered with distant eyes.
Kurami arrived at the back of the store ── it had a garden that seemed to be for cultivating medicinal herbs. She jumped over the fence around it with zero hesitation.
Then, she turned towards a door that said ‘Associates only,’ and that was when Fiel’s self-control failed.
“K-Kurami? Isn’t illegally trespassing a bit too much～…?”
“What are you saying, Fii? An entrance for associates only is an entrance for me, don’t you think?”
Kurami thought: ‘Pharmacy of dreams’ is truly a clever name. A dream huh. Something that disappears completely once you wake up ── it was only a dream.
Thus, after looking at the reality (chest) she had awakened to after a single night, Kurami extended her hand. Large tears flowed down from her lightless eyes ──
“Once I woke up, my chest (nothingness) had returned to normal!! My chest is but a precipice of despair, and you’re telling me that I’m not associated with this──!?” Kurami asked.
──An evil medicine (fake breasts) sold by a pharmacy (fraud) and its righteous victim (Kurami’s breasts).
Good and evil. If those two things aren’t associated, then what is──?!
Kurami wailed as she prepared to kick that door down, but Fiel couldn’t take it anymore and hugged her.
“C-calm down Kurami! You expected this to be a fraud, right!?”
“A monetary fraud! I thought that if it was a fraud, my breasts wouldn’t get bigger in the first place ── dammit!!”
Aah… but it was a psychological fraud… it made her go from big breasts to no breasts.
They showed her a dream that would never be granted, a bait and switch that made her feel an unprecedented level of disappointment. Such evil deserves the death penalty──!!
Kurami shook Fiel off and prepared to kick the door down with righteous indignation, however.
… They suddenly heard someone’s voice behind them, and Kurami froze before kicking the door.
“… Oh my. I certainly planted many seeds to be used as ingredients for the ‘medicines’ but…”
Then Kurami and Fiel turned around and opened their eyes wide.
“A ‘chopping board seed,’ and a ‘weed seed’ hmm ── did we really have such rare products available?♥”
She spewed such poison as easily as breathing, and when they heard her, the rare products’ faces became stiff.
── It was an angel (devil) with prism-colored hair and a halo on top of her head.
That had appeared without making a sound, and now, she carelessly opened the door marked with ‘associates only.’
“Master～♪ Your unworthy servant Jibril has returned from making deliveries～♪”
“Oh, good job ── wait, isn’t that Kurami? Welcome to our shop.”
“… Welcome… what are… the two of you… doing here…?”
Aah ── the ones who carefreely answered from behind the door, almost as if they were hiding something, were those two.
The ones Kurami and Fiel had been trying to locate 3 weeks, the two kings who had disappeared:
A black-haired, black-eyed young man (older brother) in an apron holding a suspicious looking product. And a girl (little sister) with pure white hair and red eyes who was standing on a stool mixing something on a suspicious-looking stove.
Those extremely suspicious siblings were none other than Sora and Shiro. And sure enough, Kurami smiled sweetly at them──
“That’s my line… what are you doing, selling snake oil all the way here──!?” she said in an angry voice. The kings who abandoned the national government and disappeared somewhere to avoid responsibility were none other than these two. However, they just looked at each other and became very apologetic…
“Sorry… We don’t sell snake oil… But if it’s ‘medicine’, we have lots. How about it?”
Sora said as he took out a piece of paper ── It was a list of products that included the ‘breast enlargement medicine.’
It was the thing that she had classified as evil knowledge. And the list he gave her was as good as a confession.
Kurami resisted her urge to punch him, received the list, and threw it at the stove with an overhand throw.
■■■
── What are Sora and Shiro doing? If one were to ask that, this is what Sora would answer: Frankly, we’re just passing time──!
“We’re kings who were chased out of their throne… our position is so bad that even the fact that we’re still inside the country could be dangerous if it got found out.”
Sora paid no mind to Kurami and Fiel’s murderous gazes.
He just put Shiro on his lap, took a seat, and talked about his situation. However, there was no misery in his face. Instead, Sora and Shiro put on brave and dignified smiles, and continued──!
“The kings are unemployed! They have no job and what’s more, they are broke!! And by the way, they have absolutely no intention of working!!”
“… They are just… hikikomori… neet gamers… that’s… us…!”
“However, we don’t even have a place to lock ourselves in! Asking these kind of persons what they are doing ── is foolish, right!?”
“… What you should… be asking is… what can you do?!”
“I-it will be really bad once the government reorganizes, huh? Aren’t you standing on the edge of a precipice?”
Kurami was taken aback, so she unintentionally stuttered. However, Sora and Shiro simply smiled.
── It’s too late to be saying that……!
Since the beginning, Sora and Shiro have always been at the very bottom of the social ladder…They tried to cross that precipice a long time ago, and fell in it! They hit rock bottom, but they kept digging further below ── and in the end, they got lost and fell into Disboard────
“But you see, we simply returned to the beginning ── to the time when we had just fallen into Disboard.”
“… In other words… this is just… a new game+…”
“────”
Yes, they lost their throne, their house, their authority, and even their social position. They lost all of that ── but in the end that’s it. That’s what their countenances said. Kurami had no choice but to remember who they are. It was enough to make her gulp.
When they fell into this world, they lost everything except for a few personal possessions: smartphones, tablets, portable games, etc. Only the things they were playing with that day.
── And only with those in hand.
With the same smiles and fingers they had used to play with those, they turned the world into their plaything……
They are the best strategist in the world ── the 2 in 1 gamer and humanity’s strongest: “Blank.”
As long as Blank still has those smiles and fingers ── what use is there in getting worried about the things that came after?
Those two showed her what it was like to play with the world, so this time ──
“And on the second playthrough, you tend to focus on things other than the main quest, right!?”
“… Like… ‘Crafting’… things like blacksmithing, agriculture… or managing a store….!”
“You still haven’t finished the main quest, you know!? Please clear the story before you do that, okay!?”
They are leaving conquering the Exceed and challenging Tet for later.
Kurami retorted when they declared that they’d play in the world of economics, but she was splendidly ignored.
Instead, the products from Sora and Shiro’s ‘pharmacy’ were her answers. When Fiel looked around at the ingredients in the mixing room, her gaze and voice became cold:
“From baron herb ～ to the love root prana, and even kama leaves… these are all spiritual herbs that don’t grow in this continent♪”
“────!!”
As expected of the race of the forest. Sora and Shiro made wry smiles, and Kurami opened her eyes wide, surprised.
Fiel’s discerning gaze was able to determine the herb’s origins just by glancing at their medicinal effects ── ‘Sora and Shiro’s words don’t deserve any trust’ is what her enlightened eyes were saying. They had described themselves as penniless and homeless, so then ── How did they start a store?
Fiel’s gaze was trying to find the truth of the matter, however Jibril just smiled sweetly and said:
“Ah, I teleported around the world to gather them, and then I gradually began to cultivate them on the garden in the back using magic ♥”
“How can you say that this is a new game!? You’re just cheating as much as you want!!”
Kurami flared up at the answer from the living cheat, but Sora calmly interrupted her with his hand and said:
“Can you stop your strange accusations? Items always carry over in a new game+.”
Yes ── even if they are completely broken official cheats!! And since they are official and part of the game, then what reason is there not to use them!? That’s right──!!
“Thus, we used an item we didn’t have on the first playthrough: Jibril’s power!! And with it, we safely graduated from being unemployed, penniless and homeless! By selling ingredients, we got the funds to open up a store. Then, we did the development and marketing of our products by ourselves ── did you get all of that!?” Sora said, exaggeratedly.
“… Great work… Jibril…” Shiro said and gave Jibril a thumbs up.
“To think I was praised for such a trifling matter, aah… this is too much of an honor for me…” Jibril said as she folded her wings and kneeled.
“… I see, now I understand what you’re doing,” Kurami muttered.
“In short, it’s just the usual ── you’re running an illegal scam, right!?” Kurami bellowed. She endured her anger to try and listen to their explanation, but Sora just──
“…I’m sorry. ‘Illegal’ and ‘scam’ ring too many bells… which one are you talking about?”
“Can you not do shrewd stuff like being apologetic all of a sudden!? I’m talking about your breast enlargement medicine ── your evil scheme to sell me those fake breasts! ── Now, give me back my dream breasts!!” Kurami said with tears in her eyes, but this time Sora just looked at her in puzzlement.
── Huh? Sora tilted his head and took out a small bin of breast enlargement medicine.
“You just need to keep drinking it. If you drink it everyday, then ── congratulations! Now you have big breasts!”
“Yes, they are fake breasts that deflate if I don’t drink that again, right!? Even greedy businesses should have some limits, you know!?” Kurami criticized him with a pained scream, but she still took the bottle.
“… Fake breasts…? Ah ～ I see. So since they are fake breasts it’s a fraud… is that what you’re saying?”
Sora finally understood what she was angry about, so he nodded a few times ── and said…
“Then tell me, Kurami… How can you enlarge breasts without it resulting in fake boobs?” Sora asked solemnly. And for some reason that made Kurami gulp.
“Kurami… since you have my memories, you should already understand. Our previous world also had breast enlargement methods… that’s right ── there were many ways to make your boobs bigger… but you know what────?”
That’s right, when they played ‘Existence othello’ Kurami and Sora shared their memories so she knew. On their previous world there existed a great variety of dream-like breast enlargement technologies. However. All of them are, in the end, the same as this breast enlargement medicine────
“All breast enlargement techniques are essentially ── just pads”
“────────────────ah…… Aah”
──Whether you stuff a chest with fat or with silicone, in the end, you’re just stuffing it with something. It’s simply a pad! The only difference is whether you’re padding inside the breast or inside the bra! Inflating it with air is a fraud, you say? Then all breast enlargements are a fraud. Why? Because!!
“Even if you try to obtain big boobs, the very act of trying is equivalent to an admission that they would be fake boobs!!”
“No ── stooop!! I don’t want to hear it. I-I don’t want to admit it.”
“I want to have big boobs ── the moment you have that aspiration is the moment you admit that you don’t have big boobs. Having that thought is essentially a proof, a realization that you have small boobs!! No matter how much you pad them, that’ll never change!!”
“────No…… Noo…… s-stop── please… stoooooop”
It was cruel… but it’s a truth that she must accept. Shiro, Fiel, and even Jibril averted their eyes quietly. Kurami was shaking and covering her ears, but Sora hardened his heart and sternly continued:
“You have small boobs! You’re someone who wasn’t blessed by nature! No matter how much effort you put in, you’ll never get genuine big boobs ── and that’s precisely why you have to take pride in your fake boobs, even if they’ll never come close to the real thing, or else──!!”
That’s right… I can also get real big boobs. Or rather, when my fake boobs hung from my chest, they were already real, big boobs.
She has to deceive herself like that, make smug face, and take pride in it. Or else──
“You would be even less than a fake.”
──── She didn’t make a sound.
Kurami fell to her knees, and silence fell together with her, but Fiel:
“Kurami…? I want you to listen to me reaaally well ～…”
She gently hugged Kurami ── and as a member of the race with the most proficient spellcasters, the Elves, she continued:
“There certainly exist some magics that can enlarge your breasts… buuut”
For example alteration magic, or disguise magic, or perhaps… Fiel listed the possible ways to do it in her head. But as expected, it was just as Kurami had admitted and Sora had said: no matter how far she went──
“Those are aaall ── in the end ～ fake boobs… dreams are just dreams… after all”
“… Wah…. ww…… Waaaaaaaaaaaaaaah”
──Transforming something fake into something real… Is impossible, even with magic ── a dream.
And synonymous with reality ── was Kurami’s despair as she wailed. But Sora and Shiro’s eyes shined with tears too.
“Yes ── it’s nothing but a dream. A dream that will simply disappear once you wake up ── but you know what?”
Sora and Shiro wiped the corners of their eyes and sat back down with arrogance. Then, they spoke with a glint in their eyes:
“… That’s precisely why… there is ‘demand’…”
“And businesses are always those who ‘supply’ a demand”
That’s right ── in every era, in every world, there will always exist products in short supply. But more importantly, there are also intangible products that are always on shortage ── and by selling that!
“Therefore, we just need to sell it ── A dream. A medicine that’ll let you see a transient dream!!”
That was precisely why Sora had hoisted the ‘Pharmacy of Dreams’ sign. He continued:
“After all ── a dream is a dream precisely because it doesn’t exist in reality all the time──!!”
Yes. In the end, it’s just a dream ── just fantasy, nothing more than fiction.
Please do follow the dosage and instructions on the label! The medicine had been described perfectly on the label. The dream inside it was──
“Aah, the paradox of a big breasted Kurami is about as realistic as world peace!! It’s nothing but an absurdity that goes against the fundamental laws of the universe! Even hopes and dreams should have some limits! Even so, you are free to dream whatever you want!!”
“…………………… Hey.”
“Therefore, a ‘spice’ that adds dreams to your flavorless reality ── may not be a wonder drug ── it may be nothing more than a fake. However, since that medicine is ‘entertaining’, it has an endless demand ── an infinite market value!!”
“Hey, Shiro. Do you happen to sell a ‘dream’ that would let me hit Sora!? I’ll pay any price, you know!?”
Sora’s words made the kneeling Kurami stand up, so Sora nodded deeply.
── That’s right. When faced with your dreams (anger), even despair falls short. That very fact is proof of that demand!
Therefore, they’d supply the masses with small dreams like a ‘love potion’ or a ‘breast enlargement medicine.’ And just by doing that──
“Thus, store management is perfectly on track── and we have a mountain of people waiting outside!!”
“It is going… too well… for people with anthropophobia… like us… it’s so deadly prosperous that… we can’t go outside…”
“But well ～ We are hikikomoris, so we didn’t have any intention of going out since the very beginning! We are just doing wholesale using Jibril’s instantaneous deliveries! It’s both easy and comfortable! Mwahahaha, society is so easy!!”
“This is just the natural result of my Masters’ wisdom and management skills ♥”
The siblings laughed loudly and Jibril kneeled in front of them, but Kurami and Fiel just nodded with half-lidded eyes.
── Of course we couldn’t find them no matter how much we looked…
Then, Kurami sharpened her half lidded eyes, and to stop them from ignoring her again she yelled──
“ ── Please manage the country instead of a store──!!”
She yelled so loudly that she shook the small store. And:
“If you have these management skills, doesn’t that mean you weren’t ousted from the throne in the first place!?”
── The reason why Sora and Shiro were ousted from the throne ── No. The method by which they could be driven out.
A method to beat Blank, Imanity’s strongest gamer, the undefeated kings. A method to steal the position of designated representative from them. A method to do the impossible──
“You kept forcing the ‘Association of Commerce and Industry’ to do your bidding using the pledges!! It was because you kept oppressing them that they had an excuse to revolt and perform a coup d’état, right!?”
… That’s right. In short it had been just a ‘coup d’état.’ That made Sora and Shiro smile with sarcasm.
Credits:
TL: https://www.patreon.com/hikarinokaze
Editors: Qzhuo, New-specialist, DigzGwentplayer, elysainempire
Typesetting: Haxton Fale