A few minutes after leaving their building, the knights stopped outside a large, wooden structure.
“We’ve arrived at the Adventurer’s Guild, Sir Hero.”
“O-Oh, so this is the place. Wow, it’s really run-down, huh?”
Indeed, the building might have looked dilapidated compared to the one Allen called home, but by the Adventurer’s Guild standards, this was on the nicer side.
The knights responded with awkward smiles. “Well, the building certainly has its history...”
“Whatever. I’m sure this is the last time I’ll be here anyway,” said Allen before opening the door. The eyes of all the adventurers inside turned to face him, but he didn’t cower in fear. Instead, he bravely strutted inside. “Hey! Are you the guys accompanying us on this quest?” he asked, looking slightly disappointed.
“Yeah, we are. Is that a problem?” said one of the adventurers, responding with a question of his own.
“No, I already knew you guys were gonna be weak, but you’re even feebler than I imagined. Still, I never had much hope for you adventurers in the first place, so don’t worry,” responded Allen, patting the adventurer on the shoulder...his expression trying to be calming. He was trying to tell them that since he was there, it would all be okay.
“Wh-What?!” The adventurer couldn’t hold back his fury. He took a swing at Allen, but a nearby knight stepped in, preventing his attack.
“D-Damn it...”
Allen sighed. “I see adventurers are stupid too. Well, I’m sure you all can at least make good meat shields...” he said, flashing a derisive grin to the man being forced down on the ground by the knights.
“What the hell is with this guy?”
“Who cares if you’re the Hero! You’re so damn full of yourself...”
The adventurers were staring daggers at Allen, and their harsh words angered him.
“You damn weaklings,” he said, cursing under his breath with a scowl.
The adventurers couldn’t rein in their anger at Allen’s haughty attitude either. They glowered back at him.
A bystanding knight stepped in to stop Allen, fearing where this would go. “U-Um, Sir Hero? We are tight on time. Let us begin our strategy meeting for dealing with these monsters immediately.”
“Yeah... You’re right.” Allen took a seat in a nearby chair. Then he haughtily began to explain his plan. “This is what I’ve thought up. First, the guys who can use magic fire off their strongest spells, the big bangs and booms. Then me, the knights, and the other offensive class adventurers will buy time until the mages can cast their spells again. That’ll be enough to take care of these monsters,” said Allen, clearly seeing no problem with this plan at all.
“Huh?” But the knights, adventurers, and even the other members of his party stood there with mouths agape.
Allen looked at them curiously. He hadn’t expected this reaction. “What? You’ve got a problem?” he asked, glaring at them all.
“Um, I’m a mage, but I can’t use such strong spells...”
“Me neither.”
The adventurers began to express their worries, which was only natural. They were all B-rank or below. Naturally, none were capable of the magic Allen was expecting.
But one voice among them was most surprising. “Hmm... I’m not very confident either,” said Mia, her worry clear from her expression. After their failed quest, she had ventured into the forest alone to test out her spells. Through much trial and error, she had cast spells over and over until she had depleted her mana, but none were as effective as they once were.
Thus, she knew that she would never be capable of her previous feats again and was now weak, though she didn’t know the reason.
“You’re still worried about that, Mia? You just happened to be in a rut back then. It’s nothing to worry about,” Allen said, attempting to cheer her up despite his ignorance.
But Mia shook her head. “No... I tried to cast magic over and over, again and again! But I couldn’t manage a single spell as strong as they used to be,” she said, hanging her head and looking completely defeated.
“What’s gotten into you? Hey, Lulu, Sheena, say something!” Allen urged the others to try to cheer her up, so they frantically tried to offer her words of comfort.
“Allen’s right! It was just a fluke. Don’t worry about it!” said Lulu.
“Indeed. Do not let a single failure weigh too much on your mind.”
Allen was certain that their comforting words would whip Mia back into shape. He placed a hand on her shoulder and tried to convince her once again. “See? They agree. And I’m here. With me, these monsters are—”
“But Allen... You haven’t trained for a while now. Even after we failed that quest, you just said you were fine and never even tried to train.” The words Mia spoke had the knights and adventurers all looking at Allen.
“N-No, of course I...” She had hit him where it hurts. He tried to think of an excuse in a panic. Regardless of whether they failed that quest, he had wanted his failure to train to remain a secret. “Th-That’s it. You see, I was busy! We needed to find new members. You all understand that, right?” He offered a desperate lie, but Mia didn’t listen. Instead, her face only grew sullener, while the knights’ and adventurers’ grew exasperated. They let out huge sighs.
“I... I can’t do this anymore. You used to try so hard! You used to glow! But not anymore. You’re no longer the Allen I fell in love with!” announced Mia, shaking her arm free of Allen’s and throwing down her staff before bolting out of the Adventurer’s Guild.
“H-Hey! Wait!” Allen outstretched his hand, but all he grabbed was air. “Mia! Let’s talk this out, and—!” He went to chase after her, but a knight held him back. “You bastard! What the hell are you doing?! I’ve gotta go after her!”
“No, what the hell are you doing?”
“Huh?” Allen wasn’t expecting to hear such harsh words from a knight. “What did you just—?”
“Hero or not, if your comrade’s been injured, you need to train to ensure that never happens again!”
“Huh? I’m the Hero! Training is for—”
“Shut up.” The knight glared at Allen, looking absolutely fed up. “To think you would lose a comrade and still just sit on your laurels! You are no Hero. That may be your class, but you have no right to use that name!” he said before shoving Allen.
He slammed into the wall. “Agh! That hurt! What the hell are you doing?!”
“You are far too weak for a Hero. We have no need for you. You’re nothing but a nuisance. Leave here immediately.”
“Huh?! What the hell?! Without me, you guys are—”
“Hey, Allen? Let’s leave.” Lulu stood before him.
“Huh? Why would I...?”
Lulu glanced around them, prompting Allen to do the same.
“Wh-What...?”
All the knights and adventurers were glaring at him, some like they were looking at mere crap. There was no longer a place for Allen within the Adventurer’s Guild.
“What the hell?!” cursed Allen before standing back to his feet. The glares demanded his disappearance, and they pierced his skin. “I don’t give a damn what happens to you guys!”
“You will be no help to us. If anything, you’ll only get in our way.”
“Oh, yeah? Lulu, Sheena, we’re leaving this town. Like I’m gonna deal with these bastards!” Thus, Allen dragged Lulu and Sheena with him out of the Adventurer’s Guild.
“What the hell are we supposed to do now...?”
“The bastards in the Hero’s party ran for it!”
“This horde has ten thousand monsters! We’ll be no match for them...”
Murmurs began to break out from the adventurers. They had all gathered with the intention of defending the town, but they knew well they lacked the strength needed to do so.
So then why had they accepted this quest? That was because of the Hero. Heroes received special quests from the nation and were recognized as capable of defending the people from the threat of monsters. They were supposed to be the strongest forces on the continent, the greatest powers afforded to the kingdom, empire, and principality. One of those very Heroes was going to fight to protect this town! And hearing that from the knights, the adventurers had decided to participate in this quest.
However...
“I mean, was that guy really a Hero?”
“Wasn’t he weak?”
“The rumors say he’s the strongest of them all, but...”
The Hero that had appeared before them was not the man they thought he was. It only caused their anxieties to balloon.
“Hey, knights! This wasn’t what you told us!” One of the adventures begged the knights for an explanation.
“I sincerely apologize... Even we didn’t think the Hero was such a man. The last time we witnessed him in battle, he was incredibly strong, and he worked well with his comrades. His strategies were excellent. Just why...?” The knight that had shoved Allen—who seemed to be the captain of the brigade—lowered his head. A few dozen knights followed in his footsteps.
They hadn’t foreseen these circumstances either. This was not their first encounter with the Hero, and many had witnessed him in battle on multiple occasions. Back then, his party was perfectly coordinated, and he deserved his title without doubt. That was why they were so confused.
“Just what happened to the Hero’s party...?”
That’s when the door to the Adventurer’s Guild swung open. There stood a woman adorned with armor and missing her left hand.
“L-Lady Rina?” asked one of the knights.
“Yes, that’s right. I may not be of much help, but please allow me to aid you in this quest,” she said, bowing her head. Her shield was strapped to her back, illustrating her genuine desire to fight.