I Became a Foreign Worker Loved by Transcendents

After reuniting with Tashian, I returned to the camp and took the time to hear about everything that had happened so far.

According to the prophecy given before the riot, they safely escaped from the empire and were able to protect their belongings in a place swarming with monsters…

And that Airi, who remained in the capital, was now under the protection of the Imperial family.

“So, Airi is currently being protected by the Imperial family, right?”

“Yes, so don’t worry. In fact, considering she predicted what would happen, she’s probably much safer than we are.”

Indeed, her prophecy was almost absolute, as long as there was no intervention from a transcendent.

The mere fact that Tashian, who had no physical power, arrived here safely made me realize that worrying about Airi was unnecessary.

But what bothered me was why, knowing everything, Airi didn’t act together with Tashian but instead chose to act separately.

“But why did Airi send only Tashian separately?”

At that question, Tashian responded with a bitter expression.

“I’m not exactly sure, but… she might have established some sort of cooperation with the Imperial family.”

“Cooperation…?”

“While you were away, I saw her talking with the Imperial family members or being directly invited by them quite often.”

The Imperial family making contact with her…

It wasn’t something too strange. After all, I held an important position in the Imperial family, and although Airi hadn’t formally become my betrothed yet, she was in a position where she could be considered as such.

They might have used that pretext to invite her, and during the process, they learned of her power and requested cooperation…

Doesn’t that mean Airi is now by the side of that suspicious Crown Prince?

“I understand your concern, but try not to worry too much.”

Just as I began to feel uneasy, Tashian handed me a note she had been holding.

It was surely the prophecy Airi had passed on to me.

Tashian, who had come all the way here just to deliver it, smiled as she clasped the note in her hands.

“That child is much smarter than me, who has spent a meaningless thousand years. I’m sure she’s relying on the Imperial family to find the best possible future.”

“The best possible future… you say?”

“Yes, so don’t worry too much and focus on the present. I came all the way here to help my son.”

She came here just for me.

Feeling a lump in my throat at those words, I quietly put the note into my chest and hugged her.

“Yes, then I’ll be relying on you for a while.”

“For a while? That’s a rather disappointing thing to say.”

Tashian hugged me back as well.

Then she brought her mouth close to my ear and whispered softly.

“If you need help, don’t hesitate to ask. The reason I’m still in this world is that you’re still here.”

Even in this harsh world, I had family.

That single fact was enough to melt away the despair accumulated from all the hardships I had faced.

No matter what would happen from now on, this person would always hold my hand.

And I had no doubt that she would be there, waiting for me, wherever I returned.

“So, now that our greetings are done, shall we go greet the others?”

But that moment of relief was brief.

After she left my side, she exited the tent and started approaching the expedition members who were taking care of the refugees nearby.

“Tashian? Wait, what are you about to do…?”

“Hello, expedition members. I’m Hyo-sung’s mother~ It seems my son has been in your debt for quite a while…”

“Tashian? Tashian?!”

Before I knew it, my startled body had leaped toward her.

I could feel all eyes on us due to the commotion, but the immediate embarrassment I felt made it hard to care about the attention.

“Tashian, wait a moment. What are you doing?!”

“What do you think? I’m just taking this opportunity to thank the comrades who have taken care of my son~”

“Thank them? I’m not a child; why would you…?!”

“That’s a strange thing to say. My son isn’t a child? Could it be that you don’t want to be my son?”

“No, that’s not what I meant…”

“Oh, by the way, I brought some bread in my luggage. It would be nice to share it with everyone. If I want my son to be well-liked, I should help out, right?”

“Tashian, I appreciate your intentions, but please listen to me first.”

“Don’t worry, son. I’ll make sure everyone knows all the good things about you so you can get along well.”

“Tashian, please!!!”

Damn it, why do I have to go through something I never even experienced during elementary school class president elections in this world?

---

But no matter how embarrassing it was, I couldn’t bring myself to disappoint Tashian.

Despite my desperation, Tashian went ahead and greeted the expedition members, and I ended up experiencing something straight out of one of those online stories where a family member shows up at your workplace.

“Please take good care of my son. He has many shortcomings, but he’s a good kid,” and so on…

The sincerity behind those words made it impossible to stop her forcefully, but just listening to it felt like torture.

“Hero, you have a mother.”

“Your mother is beautiful. She looks very young.”

“But she doesn’t resemble you at all.”

“Shall we take this opportunity to ask why she named her son that?”

“Everyone, shut up and get back to your seats!”

Only after I shouted at them did the expedition members hurriedly return to their places.

Seeing them chuckle as they left, I could tell they were already planning to tease me about this later.

Damn it, as if being called Woo Hyo-sung isn’t enough; now I have to deal with being called a mama’s boy too.

“Hero.”

But not everyone was in that kind of mood.

Sanson, who had a particularly stiff expression during the greeting, approached me afterward and began asking a question, perhaps out of suspicion.

“Could that person be… the dragon from that time…?”

“It seems you’ve figured it out, but please keep it quiet. The situation is a bit complicated.”

Now that I think about it, all the expedition members have seen Tashian’s true form.

Even though Tashian didn’t seem to recognize them, some of the more perceptive ones might have guessed her true identity.

Given that her true form was on a level that no ordinary disaster could compare to, the fact that she was claiming to be my mother would be quite a complicated matter for them.

“…She’s the most precious family I have right now.”

But regardless of the past, it was a fact that she was my second mother.

When I expressed my feelings earnestly, Sanson relaxed his stiff expression and gave me his response.

“And she’s also our benefactor. If you and she hadn’t come out in time, we surely would have been defeated by the undead.”

“Haha, is that how it turned out?”

So, she wasn’t only the family of the leader they followed but also the benefactor who saved their lives.

Well, it might be good to blend into the expedition from such a position for now. Just as I was about to express my gratitude to Sanson, though…

“Kyaaaaah!”

A scream echoed from somewhere in the camp.

I immediately stopped talking and directed my gaze to where the sound had come from.

The scream came from the tent where Flang was staying. Tashian had just gone in to greet her.

“Tashian! What’s going on?!”

“Well, the moment she saw me, she screamed…”

“Master! Get away! Move away from her immediately!”

Tashian looked bewildered, while Flang was trembling, pointing a crutch at her.

Her actions were clearly out of hostility, but the emotion reflected in her eyes as she looked at Tashian was undeniably fear.

Fear? This woman who has hunted all kinds of creatures is afraid of Tashian?

“Flang, calm down.”

“How can I calm down?! I can’t even fathom the scale of the entity standing beside you!”

Despite my attempt to stop her, Flang didn’t lower the crutch she was pointing.

The paleness of her face was even more severe than when she had seen the monsters in the sanctuary.

“How can such an overwhelmingly powerful being exist in this world? If she were to go on a rampage, humanity—no, this entire world could be destroyed. And for such a being to appear just as we leave the sanctuary… how much more despair must this world put us through…?!”

…She’s already lost her sanity.

Judging by her words, it seemed she had realized Tashian’s true identity, but she had been so overwhelmed by it that she ended up in this state.

Even if she’s lost her power, a dragon is still a dragon, huh?

If Flang was reacting this strongly, I couldn’t even imagine what Tashian was like at her peak.

“Oh dear, you’ve been hurt quite badly.”

Just as those thoughts crossed my mind, Tashian approached Flang.

Flang, shocked by the action, froze in place. She was trembling so much that she couldn’t even muster the strength to swing her crutch.

“Eek! D-don’t come any closer!”

“Let me check your condition for a moment. Where does it hurt the most?”

“Wh-what are you trying to do to me?! What are you going to do?!”

“What do you think? I’m going to fix whatever I can right now.”

Tashian took out a tool and started tapping on Flang’s joints.

After a few minutes of watching Tashian work on the frozen Flang, she put away her tool and started to frown.

“This is quite badly damaged. It looks like it will take some time to fix it properly.”

“Fix it… Tashian, can you actually repair Flang?”

“The structure is complex, but not so much that I can’t figure it out. If we have the time and a proper place, I can definitely fix her.”

Tashian answered my question nonchalantly.

Her serious expression as she examined Flang’s condition made her words feel deeply convincing.

Her body was one that even the priests could only watch over, but Tashian was truly a master craftsman, capable of creating an Ego Weapon.

“But I don’t think I can properly repair her here; we’ll need to move to a different location… Oh, by the way! Son, could you read Airi’s prophecy?”

“Prophecy?”

“It should tell us the next destination. I think it would be best to fix her after we get there.”

Right, if Airi went so far as to send Tashian herself, she must have written down the next destination.

Confident in that thought, I unfolded the note with the earliest number and saw that it listed the time to read the letter and the location we should head to in order.

[Please read this right after Tashian has joined you.]

The time to read the letter was now.

And the key to the path leading to our next destination was held by the trembling girl before us.

“Hey, Flang.”

“M-Master, who… who did you bring here? How did you manage to bring such an unbelievable being…?”

“I’ll explain that on the way, but for now, I need you to answer my question.”

I understood her feelings, but since Tashian didn’t have any ill intentions, there shouldn’t be any problem.

Based on what was written in the note, I asked Flang a question.

“Come to think of it, Flang, you were managing the territory before joining the expedition, right?”

“Y-yes. That’s right. Though it was more of a cover identity…”n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om

“I heard you were using that cover identity to create a refuge while you were away. Do you think it’s still maintained?”

While preparing for the succession ceremony, she began work on creating a refuge centered around the territory as a precautionary measure…

Recalling the stories I had heard while we were together, I spoke, and Flang, glancing at Tashian, nodded with difficulty.

“Yes, it probably wasn’t affected by the riot. It’s in a place far beyond anyone’s interest, on the very edge of the empire…”

“Perfect.”

Our next destination had been decided.

A place to take the refugees, and a location where we could prepare for the ‘great danger’ that awaited us.