***
The second day since leaving the city.
Maru was walking behind a group of people headed for another city.
There were children and old people among them, so their pace was that much slower, but traveling in a group was safer.
It wasn’t as if he had the skill to travel alone.
Where was he going?
‘Is going home really the right thing to do?’
He didn’t know.
Maru still had not decided.
The direction he was heading in was toward his hometown, but there was no strength in his steps.
He was hesitating.
Was it really right to go home like this and tell his mother, “I got kicked out of the party”?
When he had set off on his journey years ago, he had swaggered out saying the Demon King was no big deal.
‘I’m so embarrassed I could die.’
As he grumbled to himself, the peddlers at the front came to a halt.
“Let’s rest here before we go on!”
“Sit by the roadside and cool off a bit! If you need to piss, don’t go far—do it nearby!”
While the group took a short rest, Maru went into the forest alone.
“Damn it. My life’s already fucked, so what’s the point of a god?”
He could pray a hundred days and never be heard.
In that case, he didn’t need one.
With that resolve, he shouldered his backpack and walked deep into the forest.
At last, when he reached a very secluded place, he took a small bowl from his pack, filled it with water, and placed it on a rock.
“Lord Belkran, this is my final prayer. From this day, from this hour, I intend to stop serving you.”
Maru let out a sigh, then continued.
“You hate me anyway, don’t you? You’re angry because of the stupid thing I did. Things turned out the way you wanted, so this foolish believer will be taking his leave. I hope you meet a believer kinder and wiser than me. I won’t even resent you anymore for dragging me into this world against my will. Let’s each go find our own way to live. Goodbye.”
After clasping his hands together and offering a reverent prayer, he slung his backpack over one shoulder again.
“I’m going now. I’ll leave the bowl there.”
It was the moment he moved his foot.
—You foolish wretch!
A small earthquake shook the ground, and from within the earth, a gigantic statue of a face slowly rose, lying on its side.
Judging by the face alone, it was impossible to tell whether it was male or female—a statue of a beautiful face.
“Lord Belkran…?”
Maru was startled, but the situation was familiar enough that he did not fall over.
He had met him several times when he first came to this world.
—You arbitrarily handed down the Hero’s power I bestowed upon you to that girl, and this is the result? How pitifully foolish.
Maru recalled those days and let out a sigh.
“At the time, it looked like she was going to die because of her illness. I heard the Hero’s power was invincible and could cure any disease, so I was desperate… Sigh. No. I’m sorry.”
—Sorry is not enough!
The wrathful voice of the male god echoed thunderously.
The birds in the trees fluttered away.
“That’s why I’m trying to leave. I’ll take responsibility for my sin and…”
—Leave? You would leave me?
“Yes.”
—Have you forgotten our promise?
At that moment, the god’s voice changed into that of a goddess.
—Do you not wish to return to your original world?
“I do. But I don’t have the power to achieve that. You know that well. It’s already too late.”
—If you have no power, then you need only obtain power.
“How? My power belongs to Kiera now.”
—That girl’s power does not belong to that girl. Its owner is still you. But because of your foolish act, you can no longer use it by your own will. It has been twisted into a power that can only be used when you command the girl completely. Therefore.
The god said.
—Since you say you deeply repent your past mistake, I shall grant you a new power.
Maru’s eyes widened.
“A new… power?”
***
One month later.
The domain of Duke Toledo.
A certain forest.
A monster three meters tall rose onto its two legs and roared.
Its shriek covered heaven and earth.
It flowed into the ears as if it would burst the skull.
Kiera, armed in white armor, calmly accepted that killing intent.
Just then, a messenger who had ridden up on horseback hurriedly jumped down from his mount.
“Lady Kiera! A message from the Duke! He says the preparations for capture are complete, so exhaust the creature’s stamina quickly!”
“Understood.”
Kiera looked back.
Natalie, Lucy, Yoris.
Her reliable comrades were waiting, fully prepared.
“Let’s go.”
“Kuhama!”
Kuhama was what Natalie shouted when she was happy.
“My bladder’s so full I’m one step away from wetting myself. I’m in peak condition. Kuhama!”
“Ugh, disgusting. Can’t you stop doing that perverted thing where you deliberately hold in your pee every time we fight? Mutt, hand me my staff. Oh, right, there’s no mutt anymore. Where did I put my staff?”
“You placed it at my feet. Pick it up.”
“What? I hate getting dirt on my staff! You delinquent priest!”
“Now, now, I will cast blessings on everyone. Please gather for a moment.”
With Kiera at the head, the Hero’s party strode toward the monster.
The closer they got, the more violently impure energies rushed at them from all sides.
‘I cut. And then… I cut again!’
Kiera’s blade danced in a blur.
Precise and swift, as if alive, it pursued the impure energies floating in the air to the very end and annihilated them.
“It’s right in front of us! Begin!”
At Lucy’s shout, the warrior Natalie immediately shot past Kiera and raised her great two-handed sword high.
The two-handed sword was swung mercilessly at the monster.
“Kuhama!”
Right after that, Lucy’s magic bombarded it, and Yoris cast protective spells on Natalie without pause.
While the monster was disoriented, striking the vital points all over its body was Kiera’s role.
But for some reason, her condition had been strange since a moment ago.
‘What…? I can’t put any strength into it.’
The Hero’s holy power had suddenly vanished.
“Kiera, what are you doing! It’s your turn! You’ve already missed two chances!”
Lucy shouted, but Kiera stood there in a daze.
‘Why won’t the power gather?!’
At that moment, her comrades shouted urgently in one voice.
“Kiera!”
“Kiera!”
“Lady Kiera!”
Thud!
Kiera’s body was struck by the monster’s swinging fist and floated up into the air.
***
Yosland, a province of the Basilite Kingdom, more than four hundred kilometers away from where the Hero’s party was.
A traveling carriage carrying three passengers was running across the vast grassland.
Rattle, clatter.
Maru yawned lazily.
Warm sunlight, a pastoral landscape, dairy cows grazing in the distance.
Even after stretching repeatedly, he still felt drowsy.
The two people sitting opposite him were a middle-aged woman and her young son.
Apparently, they were on their way to meet her husband, who worked at the harbor.
Perhaps that was why the two of them seemed quite excited.
They had already talked to their hearts’ content earlier, so there was nothing left to say.
‘Looks like we still have a long way to go before we arrive. Maybe I’ll close my eyes for a bit.’
Maru hugged his backpack and adjusted his posture.
He leaned back comfortably, looked up at the sky, and closed his eyes.
‘Sleep… One sheep… Two sheep…’
The scene from when he had met the god not long ago began to creep into his mind.
—Take for yourself the power possessed by the strongest familiar I raised.
“You’re giving me power again?”
Maru hesitated.
If he received power…
If only he had power!
At first, he was a little afraid, but gradually he became more positive.
‘I won’t have to go back to Mother in shame. I can resume my journey to the Demon King’s Castle. This time, I won’t join any party. I’ll go completely alone…!’
He no longer had any grand ambition to defeat the Demon King.
It would be enough simply to have been there when the Demon King died.
So he could boast to everyone back home that he had been there too.
So he would not be humiliated.
He just needed to have enough power to dodge around well while everyone else fought desperately in the battle against the Demon King!
“Is it an outrageous power strong enough for me to defeat a demon in one blow, even alone?”
—My familiar Leviathan was a spiritual beast with power beyond imagination.
“A spiritual beast…?”
Maru soon made up his mind and sharpened his gaze.
“Give it to me. That power. What do I have to do?”
—Head to Levia Island in the east. That island was formed from the corpse of Leviathan, who died thousands of years ago. At its center, Leviathan’s essence will be floating. Absorb it and make it yours.
The mouth of the giant face statue lying on its side gaped wide, and its tongue extended.
On top of the tongue lay a round hand mirror.
—Take this with you. Leviathan’s essence can only be seen through this Mirror of Truth.
The traveling carriage suddenly came to a stop.
“Whoa, whoa!”
Maru opened his eyes, raised his head, and looked ahead.
A group of people carrying luggage stood by the roadside.
“Peddlers?”
Thinking nothing of it, he scooted closer to his seat.
The drivers seemed to exchange a few words with them, and then the people piled in.
Five in total.
The carriage that had been nice and spacious was now packed full.
Four men and one innocent-looking young lady.
But the face of the woman sitting by the door somehow looked familiar.
‘Ah.’
She was that person.
The bard who had sung in the city square about a month ago.
Maru looked at her for a moment, then turned his gaze away.
‘How strange to meet her again in a place like this. Not that it’s any of my business.’
Clatter.
The carriage wheels began to roll again.
“How far are you going, sir?”
A middle-aged man who seemed to be part of the woman’s group spoke to him in a friendly way from beside him.
“To Keybutton Harbor.”
“Why are you going there?”
Maru reflexively frowned.
These days, Maru was full of distrust toward people.
He was simply irritated.
He especially hated those who approached him kindly.
“Why do I have to tell you that? Before you ask things of others, shouldn’t you give your own name first?”
“Ah, ah. I apologize if I was rude. My name is Carlisle.”
“I’m Han.”
“A pleasure, Sir Han. It seems you are traveling alone?”
“No, my companions went on ahead and are waiting for me.”
“At Keybutton Harbor?”
“Yes.”
Perhaps because he had no intention of conversing, lies flowed smoothly from his mouth.
“I’m sorry, but I’m going to sleep.”
Maru crossed his arms and closed his eyes.
“It would be nice if you would chat with us for a bit…”
Carlisle leaned his face in and grinned.
“Say, Sir Han. You look tired. Shall we show you something entertaining to fill you with energy?”
“Pardon?”
“Come now, Jamila, my dear! Hurry and sing a marvelous song for Sir Han here so he may be delighted!”
“No, no. It’s all right.”
“Please do not refuse my sincerity. Look there. It so happens Jamila says she wants to sing as well! Let us listen together!”
Maru turned his head and looked toward the woman.
The woman, dressed in a bright white dress, smiled brightly and said, “I hope you enjoy it,” and the people around her cheered and clapped.
Soon after, her companions began to play flutes and pluck the strings of a lute, and the woman began to sing.
“In a certain kingdom there lived a valiant queen~”
It was the song he had heard not long ago.
Maru bit his lip and reflexively looked away from the woman, staring down at the floor.
Of all things… All sorts of thoughts began to creep up on him.
With a desolate heart, he sank into contemplation.
Before long, the woman’s song reached its middle.
The mother and son were happy
As if bound by a bond ordained by heaven
Then suddenly, the prince found his first love
She was a beggar girl he met in the market alley
Pitifully, the girl had fallen ill at a young age and lived on borrowed time
But upon meeting the prince, an astonishing thing occurred
The girl miraculously regained her health
Even gained the Hero’s power, and grew endlessly arrogant
Your Majesty, give me your son
Forgetting grace, the girl tried to steal the prince from the queen
The queen did not grow angry, but calmly admonished her
Your body is yours, but the prince’s body belongs to the people
No individual can possess the prince
But the prince was curious about the world
What lies beyond the royal castle?
Could he see something more wondrous?
His curiosity showed no sign of stopping, and it frightened his mother
Lock the prince in his room and banish the girl
Mother, I want to see a greater world
The world will treat you as a monster, look at the color of your hair, look at the color of your eyes, look at the color of your skin
You will become a spectacle, and wicked merchants will catch you and send you to a zoo
The prince did not give up
He wanted to set out on an adventure with the girl
The queen vowed to protect her beloved son
She increased the guards within the castle and spent all day with him until he fell asleep
But perhaps her devotion was not enough
The arrogant girl stole the prince away
O heavens
Why do you give me another trial?
After my husband, is even my beloved son leaving me?
The queen’s tears for the prince were a love deeper than blood-bound kinship
I cannot lose you too
Go, my army
Bring back the prince, and bind the girl in the ropes of punishment and hang her upon a stake
At some point, the song ended.
Carlisle, who was sitting beside him, took out a handkerchief and wiped the corners of his eyes.
“Sniff, sniff, it truly is a sorrowful song. No matter how many times I hear it, I never tire of it, and it is so mournful. Oh, our poor queen, robbed of her precious prince by a wicked woman… Sir Han, are you saddened as well?”
“Well, I…”
Maru scratched the back of his head and took a deep breath in and out.
“It is sad. Mm… But I think the song’s been a bit distorted. It’s different from the version I know.”
“In what way?”