The next day, I found myself climbing a mountain unexpectedly while breathing in the fresh air. The reason was absurd—Altera had declared that she would exterminate the bandits.
Apparently, this was the minimum consideration she could offer to those slaves.
Though well-intentioned, for appearances’ sake, we needed to make it look like the slaves had placed a request and then help her take it on. That’s why I ended up following her around from early morning.
“…Over there, I think. The smell… it’s familiar. Um, is it really true that you’re helping us with absolutely no reward…? Sorry to ask, but… sorry… I just can’t believe it…”
Surprisingly, Altera was indeed helping them without any charge. Sometimes that happens. When clients are too poor, they create requests with no reward, clinging to the slimmest of hopes.
Of course, anyone with common sense wouldn’t do it. A request that only consumes resources. But Altera wasn’t someone who followed such common sense.
“Don’t worry. Altera finds satisfaction in gaining renown, right? Isn’t that so, Altera?”
“Yeah, well… truthfully, I wanted to go after those giants? But it’ll probably take too long. However, since this girl knows the main hideout of these bandits… well, it might be boring compared to hunting giants, but every journey begins with a small step.”
She just wanted to help, but the way she avoided acknowledging it was somewhat amusing. It was even kind of cute.
“Alright, that’s enough talking. They said they were captured by those bandits, didn’t they? Altera wants you all to live safely, which is why she’s helping.”
“Hey! I told you not to say that!”
Did I say anything wrong? I wasn’t criticizing her character or anything; I was simply pointing out that her motivation to help was good.
She still doesn’t seem to realize how much smaller details like this can help her become famous.
“Altera, you said you want to become famous, right? If so, doing good deeds will get you there faster than hunting giants. Would you rather be known as the gold-ranked adventurer who helps pitiful people or the one who only hunts monsters?”
“That’s… ugh, it feels like you’re flattering me on purpose…”
Altera blushed slightly and spoke in a subdued tone, turning her head as if being praised was something embarrassing. Her action resonated with something deep inside.
Could she be sensitive to compliments?
“Do you find receiving compliments embarrassing?”
“Just… shut up already. Damn it, what is this kid staring at again?! The path!”
As Altera yelled, embarrassed, the girl who had been standing frozen finally jumped in surprise and started moving. Still, she glanced back with an envious look—it was somewhat heartrending.
Every time I see people like this, I feel the urge to help, but if I start helping, there seems to be no end.
I wasn’t planning to settle down and nurture them carefully anyway. That’s why I deliberately kept my abilities hidden and left the kingdom.
“Um… I don’t quite understand, but it looks like you two have a good relationship. We’re almost there now. The last time I saw, no one else besides us had been captured… but I don’t know how things are now.”
In other words, if Altera sweeps in and clears everything out with a single move, she might inadvertently harm any innocents who might be present.
Of course, that’s assuming there are any innocents left.
Altera took her usual contemplative stance, focused, and tapped the ground several times with her tail before saying she needed to get closer to confirm, then stood up again.
“At least leave some evidence behind, Altera! Otherwise, they might not believe us and cause trouble!”
Well, looks like we wait. Honestly, she’s strongest when she acts alone. All I need to do is stay here with this girl until Altera comes back.
Soon, Altera’s figure blurred, and not long after, a trembling vibration accompanied by birds taking flight filled the air.
“What… what’s happening?! The ground just shook…”
“Oh, nothing serious. Altera is just doing her thing. We just need to wait here until she’s done.”
As the rumbling sounds of “boom boom” and the sound of tearing screams reached us, the young captive began shaking violently.
…It feels strange to keep referring to her as a child or a kid. To ease her tension and calm her down, I decided to strike up a conversation.
“…Come to think of it, I haven’t heard your name yet. What’s your name?”
The girl, who had been trembling so badly that she tucked her tail between her legs, stopped shaking upon hearing my question and answered obediently.
“My… my name is Mari. It was named after my great-grandmother… My mother said she thought about it even while I was in her womb… hic.”
“Ahh, I see…”
I managed to relax her, but accidentally brought up a sad memory. While I’ve comforted adults caught in despair before, I’ve never consoled a child in such a state, so I struggled momentarily when I felt a chilling sensation.
I immediately raised my sword toward the source of the chill and blocked it.
The sound of metal clashing rang out, and Mari, startled, began shaking again, trying to figure out what was going on.
It was just a bandit. They were skilled at concealing their presence until they got close enough.
“Damn.”
Given our situation, it seems I faltered at a critical moment. My right side was torn open, leaving a ragged wound.
I pushed him away lightly, protecting Mari while readjusting my grip on my sword. Something felt off—I realized I wasn’t using my usual longsword but the one I’d taken from the Fungal Kingdom.
…Is it worth testing its abilities? Is it just for show, or does it have other effects?
If it helps, great; if not, no big deal. With that mindset, I swung the sword.
This bandit excelled at ambushes, but once we engaged, he was easily overwhelmed. His physical condition wasn’t normal either.
When I slashed his chest lightly, something unexpected happened.
Cracks formed along the blade, and something flowed out of the bandit and was sucked into the fissures.
The bandit collapsed lifelessly. So anticlimactic. Checking for signs of excessive bleeding or anything unusual, there didn’t seem to be any.
Yet, his chest continued to rise and fall, indicating he was still breathing, and bright red blood kept flowing.
As if something vital had been extracted.
“…Uh, is he dead? Are we safe now…?”
The sword glowed ominously with a violet light. At first glance, it looked like human eyes were visible, but upon closer inspection, it was merely emitting a bright violet glow.
“It seems… so.”
Just in case, I stayed alert, but nothing else appeared. Mari clung to me like a baby bird to its mother, refusing to let go.
That’s how things remained until Altera returned carrying someone’s arm. Apparently, the sight of the severed limb shocked the girl, who promptly fainted upon seeing the exposed muscles and bones.
“…Sorry, that’s all that was left. Oh, hey! That’ll work!”
Altera awkwardly extended the arm but quickly discarded it upon noticing the fallen bandit, instead circling the body.
“Hey, Altera. Hold on, he’s… still alive… Doesn’t seem to bother you much, huh? Nothing at all. Be careful not to get your cloak dirty; I’ll carry Mari.”
We need to investigate the sword’s ability further…
—
Even though I told him to stop praising me, Myungho wouldn’t quit. Honestly, it makes me happy, but it also feels strangely teasing, which irritates me.
But deep down, I’m pleased to be acknowledged, yet it’s embarrassing when he openly praises me like that…!
“I already told you to stop last night…!”
“Now try what I taught you.”
“…No, I won’t do it. Stop it!”
“You’re learning fast. I stumbled over the pronunciation a few times, but you’re doing great. At this rate, you might not need my translation soon!”
Please, stop already…
It’s annoying, but since it’s Myungho, I’ll endure it. Anyone else, and they’d already have gotten a punch.
Eventually, I couldn’t take it anymore and shouted.
“Stop!”
“Haha, alright, I’m sorry for teasing you. It was fun, though. Wait here for a bit, I’ll wake Yuna and Akashi.”
…Didn’t you just speak perfectly a moment ago? Now you’re pretending not to notice, making me even more irritated. Praise me properly instead of randomly!
We planned to leave today, but since I don’t have much to prepare, I relaxed while eating iron ore and suddenly remembered to glance at the necklace.
It’s only the beginning, but soon I’ll meet that guy.
Sometimes I think about giving up revenge and living happily ever after, but looking at the necklace stops me.
At least until I crush that arrogant horn of his into his eye sockets, I can’t walk around happily.
Yeah.
Reinforcing my slightly lax spirit, I reminded myself of the reason I stepped into the world.
Revenge. Only that.
“Hey, Altera? Are you ready? Let’s pack up and go. Yuna and Akashi are already awake.”
Thinking about it, even if my goal is revenge, do I really need to be so serious about the process?
Mother would forgive me if I enjoyed myself a little. With that thought, I packed my things.
