“This is the spot,” I said. I had used my detection magic to head to the signals’ source. Under normal circumstances, protecting Claira, a member of the imperial family, would have been our top priority. But she had insisted we check out the signals as well, so all of us had gone together. Even Therion, though he did voice some complaints.
Once we arrived, we found an obviously suspicious wooden structure, which looked like a large shed. The signals were coming from inside.
“They’re in there.”
Therion cursed under his breath. “Let’s get this damn over with. We’ve gotta head for the capital.”
“Yeah, you’re right.” I took the lead and knocked on the door, but I didn’t receive an answer. They must have been wary of us. “Um...”
What did people even say at times like this? The words “I’m human” would only make us look more suspicious.
While I wavered, Therion angrily walked up behind me. “Out of the damn way! At times like this...” He kicked the door in, breaking it right off. “That’s what you’ve gotta do!”
Therion’s methodology was clearly one of the worst options available to us.
I peered inside to find what seemed to be the townspeople. They all quivered in fear, shriveling back into themselves.
“P-Please, spare us!” someone tearfully begged. The children were shaking in their boots looking like they had just seen a ghost.
“Oh, now you’ve done it,” muttered Cross.
“Um, don’t be afraid! We’re adventurers! See?” said Yui, revealing her adventurer’s badge.
“A-Adventurers...? S-rank adventurers?”
“Then they really are here to save us!”
“D-Don’t listen to them! That beastman’s clearly not an adventurer! They’re devils! They’ve gotta be with the demons!” shouted a fearful man, pointing his finger at us.
“Huh? Who the hell you calling a demon? You wanna die for real, bastard?!” That claim clearly upset Therion. “You’ve gotta be begging for death if you’re lumpin’ me in with those assholes!”
“Eeek!”
Therion was glowering at the man so ferociously, he looked almost scarier than the demons.
Claira tried to cover for him. “P-Please be calm. This man is a Hero. Haven’t you heard of Therion, the Hero of Crystal?” asked Claira, kindly addressing the fearful townsfolk.
“Th-The Hero of Crystal? I’ve heard of him! He keeps fighting with the Holy Principality and causing all sorts of trouble! They say he’s the most fearsome Hero, though the kingdom and empire technically recognize him. But he’s...he’s that Hero?!”
“H-He is. And since he’s a Hero, you all have nothing to worry about.” Just as Claira had told me earlier, it seemed like Therion really was quite infamous. Though the rumors about him did seem to be true.
“Th-Then you’re here to save us?”
“That’s right! I drove all the demons away— I mean, this kind young man and this scary young man drove them all away!” said Yui, looking at me and Therion.
The townspeople gave us a look that said, Really? These two did?
“Th-Then we’re...!”
“W-We’re saved!”
“They drove out the demons!”
“They’re a scary Hero and some S-rank adventurers! We’re not gonna die!”
The townspeople cheered and cried. They had nowhere to go, but once we explained the situation, the kingdom would likely help support them. The king would want to keep the fact there were demons in his domains a secret, after all. Plus, Claira seemed to think the demons’ presence was her fault and clearly wanted to make it up to them.
Well, if Claira asked, they’d probably receive some reparations. But since we were keeping her identity as the second imperial princess a secret, these people had no way of knowing that.
So, what had happened to that town? We decided to hear the story as we walked. Thus, we were off to the royal capital, the townspeople in tow.
✦ ✦ ✦
I’ve never fought alongside anyone my whole damn life—hell, I’ve never even worked toward somethin’ with anyone else before. “Cooperation” is just for weaklings who can’t do a damn thing by themselves. Flocking is for sheep, damn it!
If I could do it alone, I’d better. That’s just how I’ve lived my life. No matter how tough my opponent, I’d always fight it out alone. Why? ’Cause I didn’t need anyone holding me the hell back. And honestly, it’s just easier that way with my skill set. The strongest Holy Knight, adventurer, or even Hero out there could only get in my damn way. They were all effin’ useless.
Which is why I couldn’t frickin’ believe it when I heard adventurers were in charge of protecting Claira. What were they, stupid?
That’s why I had headed for the royal capital, and I found Claira on my way there. Somehow, she was fine. But just like I knew they’d be, those stupid adventurers were beaten to a damn pulp by that demon.
Ugh. They were so damn useless.
I was disappointed in these stupid adventurers. Was that really all S-rank adventurers were made of?
But there was something obviously weird about the white mage with them. First, he could cast spells without any enchantments. Sure, maybe if he was special like me and Claira, he could do that with some simple spells. But the ones he cast were high-level as hell, and he did it like it was nothing! It was so easy for him, I bet he could even do it in his sleep.
Yeah, I was shocked, to be honest. I kept tabs on everyone who was strong, but I’d never even heard of this guy before. And apparently, he was just a D-rank adventurer!
But after fighting with him, I realized this white mage was no joke. His MP consumption down buffs, strength up buffs—all of his damn spells—were at the top of their class. The average weakling supporter couldn’t hold a candle to him.
“Just what is this guy?”
I was walking toward the capital, making sure to keep an eye on Claira from behind the whole time. These brats kept staring at me, which was hella annoying. But if I yelled at them, Claira’d get angry, so I had to ignore them.
“Damn it! Why the hell do I gotta babysit these bastards...”
“Did you say something, Therion?” asked Claira, twitching her ears.
I thought I was being pretty quiet, but I guess she heard me. “It’s nothing,” I said, turning away.
Damn it! Why the hell did I have to protect these guys?!
Apparently, Grist had snuck into town as a guest just a few days ago. He went out for a drink, and he must’ve gotten plastered. A human picked a fight with him and tried to throw a punch, which pissed Grist the hell off. So, he just went ahead and destroyed the whole village.
Well, from what they said, Grist had a shitty attitude from the start. But if someone picked a fight with him, then they kinda deserved it.
Those who managed to escape hid in that shed, eating the scraps inside to survive. Apparently, the place was meant to be a shelter, so they had the bare minimum they needed.
Still, there was no telling there weren’t any demons hiding among them, so I was against taking them with us from the damn start. But according to that white mage, he didn’t detect any mana signals that belonged to demons with them.
And this was what Claira wanted too.
“Ugh, this is so damn annoying...” I cursed loud enough for the brats and townspeople to hear me as I kept a careful watch on Claira from behind.