Banished from the Hero’s Party, I Decided to Live a Quiet Life in the Countryside - Volume 14 - Chapter 2

Chapter 2

Yarandrala Returns

Our next stop was Madam Offler’s Wonderful Clothes. It was a high-end shop despite being in Zoltan’s downtown, and Rit shopped there even more than I did.

“Welcome!” called out a strong female voice.

It was Madam Offler, the owner of the store. Tall and muscular, she had a broad smile on her refined face as she came over to us.

“Oh my, if it isn’t Rit and Red. It’s lovely to see you, dearies.”

“Good afternoon, Madam Offler.”

She bent over just a little to match my eyeline. It was part of her belief as a tailor that she had to see things from the same level as her customers to know what sorts of clothes suited them.

“What are you looking for today?” she asked.

“…”

“Oh?”

She cocked her head when I didn’t immediately answer, probably because she thought that was unlike me. But for something like this, I really did need to take a second to drum up a little courage.

“We’d like you to make clothes for our wedding.”

“Ohhh, my darlings!!!” Madam Offler clapped her hands excitedly. “The day’s finally here! I’m so happy for you both!” She took one of my hands and one of Rit’s. “Congratulations! I’ll make you the perfect outfits for your big day… As your friend, it would be the greatest honor!”

Tears twinkled in the corners of her damp eyes.

Madam Offler already had several potential designs for the dress.

She’d trusted that we would get married and had been thinking for a while now about what clothes might suit us.

“But the perfect outfit for a person is always changing. What might have been best for the two of you a month ago won’t be the best for you now,” she explained while showing us her designs. “And even after you choose something, it will still need to be adjusted right up until the day of the ceremony. You’ll have to come by several times to go through various things.”

“You’d really do that much for us?”

“Of course!” Madam Offler’s powerful voice resonated. “You’ve asked me to dress you for one of the happiest days of your life, and it’s by no means a cheap request, either. That shows how much faith you have in the clothes I make. I couldn’t call myself a tailor if I didn’t live up to that trust you’ve shown in me. I’ll use all my skills to make the perfect outfits for you both.”

Madam Offler rolled up her sleeve and raised her muscular right arm. It was the arm of a former warrior, marked by old scars, yet now it belonged to a craftswoman who had the utmost confidence in her tailoring skills.

“…Also, there’s something I want to tell you before you choose your outfits.”

““What is it?””

“I was a slave gladiator. My homeland was caught up in a war, and I was captured and sold off to an entertainer. From there, I was put into a notoriously brutal training school, where I was taught how to kill monsters and people, and how to entertain the crowd.”

“Madam Offler…”

Rit and I were both bewildered. We’d heard the rumors that Madam Offler had been a slave gladiator in the merchant city of Lark, but this was the first she’d ever told us about it.

“I fought and fought, and with the money I saved, I bought my freedom. But by that point, I didn’t know any other way of living, so I just kept on fighting. Then, one day, I found myself talking to the daughter of the tailor who made the clothes I’d been fighting in. She said she was a fan, and she told me how hard they’d worked to make me look beautiful… It was so wonderful.”

“And that was what led you to stop fighting and open a clothing store?” Rit asked.

“There were a few other things after that,” Madam Offler said with a vague look in her eyes, “but that was the first push. What I was getting at, though, is this: How do you both feel about your past?”

“Our past?”

“That’s right! There are a lot of difficult things in my past, but I incorporated all those memories into these clothes when I made them because that’s what suits me best,” she said, straightening her back.

The dress Madam Offler was wearing really emphasized her height and build, and it also had a swordswoman design embroidered into it… Or at least, that’s what Rit explained to me.

“In Zoltan, it’s generally accepted that you shouldn’t probe into people’s pasts, and I think that’s a good thing,” she continued. “If you’ve completely set aside your past, then it would be better not to leave remnants of it in your clothes. But if your past is something you want to remember, I think you should bring those memories with you to your wedding.”

“Memories, huh…”

“Just whatever you feel comfortable sharing. It doesn’t matter if the order makes sense or if things aren’t connected, but if you have any memories that are precious to you, I’d like you to tell me about them.”

Rit and I looked at each other.

She’s right. Our past is precious to us.

It had already come out that I was the Hero’s older brother, Gideon, and that the war with the demon lord’s armies was over…so it was probably fine to talk about it now.

Rit nodded, apparently having come to the same conclusion.

“Okay, but this might get pretty long, so should we sit down to talk?”

“Of course. I’ll get some tea and sweets!”

“Thank you… Now then, where should I begin?”

As I followed Madam Offler into the back of the shop, countless memories ran through my mind.

Even though she hadn’t even started making our clothes yet, I was sure they would be amazing.

It was already evening by the time we finally left Madam Offler’s store, and the sky was red with the setting sun.

“See? Aren’t you glad we decided to go to Madam Offler?” Rit said.

“Yeah. I’m sure she’ll make the perfect outfits for us.”

They weren’t the sorts of designs that would be finished in a day, so we would need to go back to her store a number of times. Not that that was any real trouble, mind you. It was a pleasure to see our wedding ceremony take shape.

“It really is starting to feel real.”

“Again with that,” Rit said with a giggle.

It was true, though, so what else could I say?

“I’m looking forward to after we get married.”

“I’m sure I’ll be used to it by then.”

“Really? You’re suuure?” Rit chided me.

We walked side by side back to our home. The thought that this was a moment we’d share countless times over the course of our lives together made me all the happier.

Years from now, we could look back on today as a wonderful memory. And when we did, maybe we’d ask Madam Offler to make some more clothes for us.

I was sure she wouldn’t let us down.

Two days later, it was finally the day of Yarandrala’s return.

I had wanted to wait for her at the port, but we didn’t know when her ship might come in. It was even normal for them to arrive a day late.

There was also a cold going around Zoltan. It wasn’t a dangerous illness like goblin fever that could be fatal, but it was still pretty bad and required a few days of bed rest.

We had received an urgent order for medicine from Dr. Newman’s clinic, and he’d even asked us to keep our shop open on the weekend. The doctors of Zoltan were busy trying to stop the spread before it went any further.

“But it’s not so easy to stop a disease from spreading, is it?”

And so, Rit and I were working in the shop.

“It’s been a while, but it’s looking like I should probably go out to gather herbs tomorrow,” I said after checking the shelves.

“Huh? We’re already running out?” Rit asked in surprise. “Wasn’t Ruti going to deliver some tomorrow?”

“Other apothecaries are also putting in orders with Ruti. It would make more sense to prioritize them since I can use my Lightning Speed to gather herbs by myself in just a few hours.”

“Is it really getting that bad?”

“Hmm, the doctors at the hospital and clinics are saying it’s spreading. That said, there are a wide range of symptoms, and it isn’t life-threatening, so it isn’t really visible around town.”

“Huh.”

“More people seem to be taking sick days, but this being Zoltan, that’s not particularly rare. The only real difference is that it means other people can’t slack off.”

“So it seems peaceful…but we can’t underestimate it,” Rit said with a serious look.

“That’s right. Dr. Newman hasn’t been able to identify it yet, but it’s too infectious to just be a normal cold, and it isn’t like any of the other diseases endemic to Zoltan.”

“So it came from outside Zoltan?”

“That’s the natural explanation… It’s rare for that to happen here, though, considering how little foreign traffic we get.”

Zoltan was out on the frontier, so it had fewer people coming and going than most other countries. It was relatively common for diseases that were spreading in neighboring countries not to make much of an impact here.

“Do we know if it’s affecting other countries?”

“We haven’t received any news about it yet. It would be one thing if it was a huge pandemic, but I don’t imagine anyone would walk however many days just to let us know about something that’s the equivalent of a cold.”

In these sorts of situations, the lack of news out here was a problem.

“For now, all we can do is give people painkillers, medicine to bring down the fever, and something to help them recover their stamina. All of those medicines are in high demand, but they’re also used to treat other illnesses, so we can’t afford to run out.”

“Mrgh. Sounds like things are going to get busy. And right when Yarandrala’s about to return, too.”

“That’s okay. We can have a proper celebration after we close up for the night. We have to do something to celebrate her getting back, after all.”

I could do my job as an apothecary and still do the right thing for Yarandrala as a friend. I would give my all to the shop if I had to, but I wouldn’t neglect my friends.

“I won’t be able to start cooking until we close up, though, so the party will have to start later. Maybe I should prepare something else to eat as a light snack.”

“That’s a nice idea! What are you going to make?”

“Just something really simple. Like a platter of fruits and cheeses.”

“That sounds perfect to snack on while we chat and wait for dinner. It might be good to break out some wine to go with it!”

“I don’t know about Habotan, but I imagine everyone else won’t get too drunk from a little wine.”

In fact, should Habotan even be drinking at all?

“We have grape juice, too, so Habotan and Ruti can enjoy that. And the time will fly with everyone chatting,” Rit said with a smile.

That was true. I could imagine everyone had lots to talk about.

…As well as some things that can’t be discussed.

“We can talk about that tomorrow, just between us and Yarandrala.”

“Yeah.”

While we were talking, the doorbell rang.

“Welcome… Oh! Look who it is.”

Habotan, wearing a ninja outfit, and Torahime, in a Jade Kingdom kimono—the demon lord’s daughter and the heavenly king of water in disguise—entered the shop.

“Good evening, Mr. Red! Ms. Rit!”

“Hi, you two. Yarandrala isn’t back yet, and it’s a little early for the party.”

“It seems her ship will be arriving shortly,” Torahime said.

“Really?”

“It should arrive in port in about an hour. The speed and shape are unlike those that usually call at Zoltan, so it is likely the ship with Yarandrala aboard.”

“Wow, how do you know all that?”

“Did you forget I am the heavenly king of water? Anything an archfay of water can do, so can I.”

So she can sense things through water, huh?

The ship Yarandrala had chartered was fast, so if it was still an hour away from Zoltan, that would mean Torahime had sensed it from more than ten kilometers away.

They’re not called “heavenly kings” for nothing.

“It seems you’ve regained a fair amount of your strength,” I said.

“Indeed. After all, I rested for quite some time… The war even ended without me knowing.” Torahime gave a self-deprecating smile.

Torahime…or rather, Altra of the Water, was the sole surviving heavenly king of the demon lord’s armies.

With Habotan held hostage, Altra had been forced to obey Demon Lord Taraxon and lead the naval forces from the outset of the war. Together with Gandor of the Wind’s wyvern knights, he had played one of the most important roles in the invasion of Avalon—a battle that had ended in defeat for the demon lord’s forces.

As a general who had fought and led soldiers into battle, I was sure Altra had his thoughts on the matter. If I were in his position…I wouldn’t have known what to say to the people who had fought and died following my orders.

“Hah…” Torahime sighed. “Our two defeats, first against Taraxon and then against humanity, will form the foundation for a new age… That is my hope.”

“A new age? Is that possible for demons?”

“For ancient demons such as myself, I could not say. However, the entire demon order was lost in this war. Habotan will have to construct a new order for the age when she rules as demon lord.”

Torahime gently rubbed Habotan’s head, her eyes filled with a mixture of expectation and affection. Habotan herself had a blank stare on her face, not understanding a lot of the conversation.

“Humans and demons cannot coexist. Otherwise another war will ensue.”

“I don’t want us to have another war where we deny everything about each other, though.”

“Agreed,” the last heavenly king said, nodding in agreement. “No matter how much our blessings desire war, I would draw a line where we both allow each other’s continued existence in this world. I hope such an age may come.”

Altra had changed.

It wasn’t as if anything in particular had happened since the battle with the false Asura heavenly kings; he had simply lived in peace with Habotan here in Zoltan. However, apparently the experience of living peacefully in a human village was a new experience for the long-lived, high-ranking demon.

That peaceful, normal life with Habotan was what had changed him. Days of normalcy had transformed even a demon, who was decreed by God as evil.

“Forgive me for keeping you here listening to me,” Torahime said.

“No, it was nice talking about the future. And while I was hoping to go meet Yarandrala in the harbor… I mean, just look.”

I pointed at the door to the store.

Frantic footsteps could be heard approaching.

“Red!! I need your help!!”

A husky voice echoed inside the shop, all the way from outside. It was the dwarf blacksmith Mogrim.

“There’s a sickness going around Zoltan,” I explained.

“A sickness?” Habotan asked in surprise.

But before either of us could say anything else—

“Red! I need medicine!!”

—Mogrim burst into the shop.

“Welcome, Mogrim. Tell me a bit more so I know what sort of medicine you need.”

“The missus collapsed with a fever! Dr. Newman took a look at her, but he said there’s a dangerous cold going around right now!”

“Ah, so that’s it. If you came here, that must mean Dr. Newman’s clinic is out of medicine.”

“All they have left is the stuff for children! He said your place would have it, so I raced over here!”

“I understand. I’ll get some for you right away.”

Mink, his wife, was someone I knew well. I split the medicine into the appropriate dosages based on her build and physical constitution, then gave it to Mogrim.

“I’m sure you know already, but this medicine just treats the symptoms. It reduces the pain and fatigue, but it won’t cure the illness. Even if Mink feels a bit better after taking the medicine, she still needs to rest.”

“I’ll be sure to tell her!”

Mogrim was a devoted husband. I doubted he would have let his wife overexert herself even without my warning, but with it, if Mink even tried to move, he would force her to stay in bed.

“But with Mink laid up, will you be all right taking care of the babies?” Rit asked.

“Uh, uh…”

Mogrim looked unsure as he held the medicine.

Last winter, we had gone on a journey together to the Wall at the End of the World. I had gone to get a jewel I could use for Rit’s engagement ring, but Mogrim had had a different goal in mind. Mink had been pregnant at the time, and Mogrim had been told she might have a difficult delivery. He’d gone to look for a rare mineral called earth crystal to craft the sharpest knife possible and make it as easy as possible on her if they needed to perform a C-section.

“The babies are just a month old, aren’t they?”

“They’re adorable, but we can’t take our eyes off them. That’s why I ran over here and why I have to get back as soon as possible… As to whether I can do everything Mink does for them, though… Well, I can’t really provide the food they need.”

Their children had been born only a month ago. The prediction of the Doctor blessing had been right on the mark, and Mink had needed a C-section. She had ended up giving birth to two cute baby boys. They had named the twins Gillius and Vargas, apparently after ancient dwarven heroes.

Seeing Mogrim look so troubled, Habotan raised her hand.

“Do you wish for this one to help?!”

“You want to help, Habotan?”

“Yes!”

She was as cheerful as ever.

“Do you have any experience taking care of babies?” I asked.

And just as cheerfully, she shook her head.

“No, not at all! But this one is eager to learn!”

“I…I see.”

Well, at least she was enthusiastic.

“Either way, I’m sure having an extra set of hands around would be a big help for Mink,” Rit said, backing her up. “Habotan is diligent and a fast learner, so I’m sure it won’t take long for her to pick it up. And I can’t speak for Mink, but I imagine she’d feel better having a woman handle her breast milk.”

“Her b-breast milk?” Mogrim asked in a fluster.

“It depends on Mink’s condition, but if she can produce milk, then I think that would be better than feeding them any alternative. They say a mother’s milk provides resilience due to their blessing.”

“Really?!”

Habotan and Torahime both watched Rit, apparently not knowing about that, either.

“It’s just what I heard a dragon from Ancient Mineral Dragon University say once, but supposedly what protects babies from illness when they don’t have their blessings yet is the residual blessing passed along in their mother’s breast milk.”

I’d read about that before as well—though in my case, it had been a study carried out by an alchemist. They had been researching whether it was possible to extract the power of a blessing in a mother’s breast milk or blood and make it into a potion, and had come to the conclusion that, in its current state, the effects of the potion would be nullified by the blessing of whoever drank it.

“It’s only effective during the first few months after birth, but with a disease going around, it would be best to have the babies drink their mother’s milk.”

“Oh, I see!!”

“That said, taking them to Mink runs the risk of the babies catching the illness, too, so I think it would be best for Habotan to collect the milk in a container and have the babies drink from that.”

Mogrim grabbed Rit’s hand in both of his, grateful for what he’d learned from her.

And Habotan…

“Lady Torahime. How should I collect the milk?”

It was an innocent question.

“…Hrm.”

Torahime averted her eyes.

I suppose a heavenly king of the demon lord’s army wouldn’t really know something like that. I didn’t know either, though, so just to be on the safe side, I looked away as well.

“All you need to do is support Mink. Help her lift her body up and hold the cup. If you just do whatever Mink asks you to, you should be fine,” Rit explained.

“Understood! In that case, this one can manage!” Habotan answered cheerfully. “There is a welcome party for Ms. Yarandrala’s return today, however, so I must depart early, but this one shall assist until then!”

“She’s coming back, eh…?” Mogrim said, a troubled expression on his face.

Dwarves and high elves didn’t get along on a fundamental level. Dwarves valued contracts and rules, while high elves focused more on trust and emotion, so that was only natural.

“Well, there’s nothing to be done about that. I’m grateful for however long you can help.”

“Thank you!”

“I can’t join the party, but give her my regards,” Mogrim mumbled, and then he left with Habotan.

“He doesn’t actually hate her,” Rit said, almost laughing.

Yarandrala had joined partway through our trip to the Wall at the End of the World. Even if different races had conflicting personalities, they could still build trust, but I found it funny to think how differently things would have ended up if they were both high elves or dwarves.

Just as I was pondering that, another customer arrived, so I went back to being an apothecary running his shop.

This person also had family sick with what was going around.

“So what will you do?” Torahime asked after the customer had bought their medicine and left.

“About Yarandrala?”

“Yes.”

I really would have liked to go to the harbor to meet her. Ordinarily, we definitely would have closed the shop and gone.

“As you can see, we can’t really close up right now. In fact, I was even thinking of staying open a bit later than normal.”

“Do you want me to watch the shop for you?” Rit asked. “I’m sure it would make Yarandrala happy if you went, Red, even if I can’t come, too.”

“No… This is a big moment in our lives, Rit, so I want you to be there.”

We would be getting married once Yarandrala returned.

She had been more upset than anyone else when I’d been forced out of the Hero’s party, and she had traveled the world looking for me and Rit, eventually tracking us down all the way out here in Zoltan. I still regretted worrying her so much.

I had fought for so long so that I might change Ruti’s fate, even just a little. My entire reason for being had been to fight the Hero blessing—an opponent so great that I hadn’t had the capacity to think about anything else. I had always known that my journey would end one day, and I’d come to accept that. Yet when Ares had confronted me and said I wasn’t a true comrade, I hadn’t known what to do with myself or how I should live my life.

Despite knowing it would worry Yarandrala, all I had been able to think of doing was disappearing and going someplace far away. I could even understand why she’d wanted to take me and Rit away with her to Kiramin, the kingdom of the high elves, when we’d reunited at the Wall at the End of the World. She was a dear friend who had looked after me from a young age, and I had put her through so much.

That was why I wanted her to be there for our wedding. I wanted her to know we were happy and that she didn’t have to worry anymore. The wedding would also serve as an end point to the misfortune that had happened that day.

“I do not know why, but it seems having Yarandrala present is of great importance to you,” Torahime said, nodding gravely. “In which case, shall I manage the shop while you both go?”

“Huh?! You’ll run the shop?!”

I was so surprised I’d just blurted that out. Rit’s mouth was also open in shock.

“Is it really so surprising? You should know this already, but I am the greatest water master in the world and have lived centuries longer than either of you. I can discern the ailments of any creature with blood circulating through it merely by observing the flow of water.”

“But do you know about medicine?”

“I am indeed inexperienced in the field of medicine. However, I have memorized all of the medicines in this store. I have committed their effects to memory and can discern the symptoms of diseases, so you need not have any concern.”

Torahime smirked. She was the fearsome heavenly king of water, yet that expression almost resembled one of Habotan’s. It was endearing.

“We’d really appreciate that, but are you sure it’s not an inconvenience?”

“I have no pressing matters at the moment. While I am curious regarding the situation on the dark continent, there is a chance Taraxon will notice if I make any moves myself, so I am simply waiting for the flow of information to reach me from their side,” Torahime said with a shrug. “And considering the debts I owe you, something like this is trivial. As such, if I can do something to help you…that is, and stay undetected by the demon lord’s forces, then I shall.”

Although we’d never directly fought during the war, it was still a strange feeling to hear a general of the demon lord’s armies say something like that. It was clear she was earnest about it, though…so I figured I would take her up on her offer.

“I understand. Then can we ask you to watch the store for a little while?”

“Of course. You need not worry about me. Go and greet Yarandrala as she arrives.”

“Thank you.”

I never could have imagined something like this happening back when I was in the Hero’s party.

It really had been painful when I’d been kicked out…but that day had made all my happiness now possible. In hindsight, that made it hurt not so much.

The Republic of Zoltan’s one and only trade port was built on the river flowing through the west side of the nation. It was a shallow harbor, meaning larger, deep-draft ships couldn’t enter it.

Situated in the path of storms as it was, Zoltan struggled to maintain a port on the sea— That weakness was probably one of the main reasons it was written off as a frontier backwater.

Well, there are a lot of other reasons, too, so maybe the port doesn’t really make much of a difference.

“There, I can see the ship!” Rit yelled, jumping to her feet next to me.

“Where…? I can’t see it yet.”

With her Spirit Scout blessing, Rit’s eyes were better than mine. A few minutes later, however, I could see the ship sailing on the sea across from the river. It was still small in the distance, so I couldn’t make out its shape, but it was moving a lot faster than the usual trade ships that visited Zoltan.

“That one?” I asked.

“A ship like that won’t be able to make it into the harbor, so it’ll probably take a little longer than Torahime said.”

It had a sleek silhouette and seemed to be a new model of sailing ship. It almost looked like one of the warships used by the demon lord’s armies.

As Rit had predicted, it stopped a short way inside the mouth of the river, then lowered rowboats.

“They’re just using rowboats to land, though.”

They were primitive craft powered by oars and arm strength. Our enemies had also used similar boats for landing. Even when technology advanced, some things stayed the same.

While I was thinking about that, a woman came into view on one of the rowboats.

“Yarandrala!”

“Yeah, I see her!”

It seemed like she’d also noticed us, because she was waving excitedly.

At long last, we were reunited!

“Red! Rit! I’m back!”

““Welcome home, Yarandrala!””

After getting out onto the wharf, Yarandrala wrapped the two of us in a big embrace.

“I missed you!” Rit exclaimed.

“Me too,” I said.

“The war’s over, but there are still many countries that haven’t settled down yet…so we were a little worried about you.”

“Thanks. It makes me happy to think my friends were worried for me,” Yarandrala said with a smile. “I’m amazed you knew exactly when I would be coming. Don’t tell me you’ve been waiting here since morning.”

“No, Torahime told us.”

“Ahh, sensing a ship out at sea would be right in her wheelhouse. That’s a heavenly king for you.”

“It just so happens that same heavenly king is currently watching the shop for us,” Rit added.

“She is?! How funny!” Yarandrala looked shocked, then smiled with amusement. “I’ve traveled this world for over a hundred years, and it still finds new ways to surprise me!”

“I want to hear all about your most recent trip…but first, there’s something we have to tell you.”

“Mm?”

Seeing me and Rit glance at each other, a huge smile crossed Yarandrala’s face.

“Tell me!”

“In three months, once the dress is ready…we’re getting married.”

Yarandrala wrapped us in another big hug.

“Congratulations…!”

We couldn’t see her face, but she sounded truly happy for us.

“Thank you, Yarandrala… I’m sorry for making you worry about me all this time.”

About a half day’s walk to the northwest of Zoltan sat a village at the base of a mountain. It provided lumber to Zoltan, and other than the occasional monster coming down from the mountainside, the people there lived their days in peace.

Today, however, was one of those occasional days.

“It’s a plague boar!”

A large boar had appeared from the woods and entered the village. Its body was covered in bubbling ulcers, and rancid pus dripped from its cloudy yellow eyes. It looked like it might collapse and rot away at any moment, but that was just the type of monster it was. Plague boars had a habit of attacking villages and then quickly retreating.

The reason for this behavior was the discolored fangs that protruded from their mouths. Anyone bitten by a plague boar would be afflicted by a disease called “bestial spirit.” It had an incubation period of about half a day, after which the victim would spiral into a state of confusion, then begin attacking anyone around them like a beast. The infected people would bite others, transmitting the disease, and once the village fell into chaos, the plague boar would return with its family to prey on the people there.

“Bring spears and bows! Don’t get too close to it!”

The men of the village shouted out instructions, using their weapons to threaten the monster and drive it away. They wouldn’t have a problem so long as no one got bitten. Plague boars were dangerous, but they weren’t particularly strong. In this world, where the path to strengthening one’s blessing came through killing, a special ability that didn’t have any effect until after it had incubated for half a day was just too slow.

However, that all changed if they had another ability as well.

“Bwoooo!!”

The plague boar howled, and a fog erupted around it.

“Magic?!”

Fog Cloud—a lower-tier spell that created a thick cloud of fog around one’s surroundings, allowing them to hide.

The next moment…

“Wha—?!”

An arrow of flame pierced a man who’d been giving out orders.

Fire Arrow was another low-tier spell that fired an arrow formed out of flames.

The man fell to the ground with a cry as the fire spread, and the villagers around him hurried to put out the flames.

His burns were extensive, and they were painful to look at, but they weren’t life-threatening. Such was the power of lower-tier magic.

But they had found themselves in a grave situation.

“Th-that monster has a Sorcerer blessing!”

In addition to its natural abilities, the plague boar also had a blessing that let it use magic. They couldn’t hit it with arrows in the fog, spells came flying toward them when they raised their spears, and if they approached it, they would be bitten and infected.

“Should we retreat back to our homes?”

“No, it can burn down the houses with that spell!”

The villagers couldn’t handle this alone; it was something they would have to call in an adventurer for. They started thinking they should implement their fallback plan. The plague boar would withdraw after a number of them were infected, so if they let a few people get bitten, they could use that time to call for an adventurer.

An old man holding a bow tapped the shoulder of a younger man with a spear. He was asking to borrow the spear, saying that he would go.

The village wouldn’t be destroyed…but distress and resignation began to loom over the villagers.

However, that heavy mood was suddenly blown away by a powerful voice.

“What incredible courage. There are even brave heroes in a village such as this!”

Two men walked in through the entrance to the village.

One of them, Taraxon, drew a sword forged in a foreign land.

“I’ll kill the monster. Bui, check the surroundings to be sure there are no others.”

“Understood.”

Bui placed his hand on the hilt of his weapon and ran off into the trees.

Taraxon’s sword hung limp in his hand as he walked toward the cloud of fog.

“Watch out!” a villager shouted.

Another fire arrow erupted from the fog, and the next instant, Taraxon twisted his body, dodging the arrow, and threw his sword into the dark haze.

“Bwo!! Bwo!!”

The beast’s cries rang out, followed quickly by a loud thud.

The fog cleared as the spell dissipated, and the filthy plague boar came into view, lying on the ground with the katana sticking out of its forehead.

“It tried to hide amidst the fog, but casting Fire Arrow just gave away its position. Even if it can use magic, a monster is still just a monster.”

Taraxon approached the beast and withdrew his sword.

The villagers cheered for him and gathered around. It was a scene he and Bui had experienced many times since they’d started traveling around the continent of Avalon in search of the Hero’s artifacts. It wasn’t the name Demon Lord Taraxon, but that of the human hero Taraxon that had left its mark in villages all around the continent during the chaos that had erupted after the war’s end.

“Thank you so much. How can we ever repay you?” the old man with the spear said, bowing deeply.

“Do monsters like that appear around here often?” Taraxon asked.

“As I thought, you are a traveler. They do, although it had stopped happening as much up until recently.”

“Do you have any idea why that might be?”

“I don’t know whether I’d call it an ‘idea,’ but about a year ago, an adventurer came to gather medicinal herbs, and apparently he exterminated all the dangerous monsters along the way. Around that time, strong monsters stopped coming down to our village.”

“I see. What happened to that adventurer?”

“Hahaha, he got himself a nice home and started spending less time coming out to the mountain… Lately, we haven’t seen much of him at all. Seems he found himself a good wife.”

“Nah, I heard they haven’t gotten married yet,” another villager added.

“Oh, my mistake. I’m sure it won’t be long before they are. No woman would want to let go of such a nice young man.”

“He sounds like quite the guy,” remarked Taraxon.

“He is. I imagine you and he would get along well.”

“No way, don’t go sayin’ stuff like that,” another young villager chimed in. “Red and Mr. Swordsman here seem like two really different types of people.”

“I think they’re quite similar, myself.”

“Red’s a nice lad, but he’s mild-mannered and can be kinda detached, don’cha think?”

“Is Red that adventurer’s name?”

“Yeah,” a younger man answered. “It doesn’t seem like he’s got a family name… Wait, actually, apparently Ms. Ruhr is his sister, so I guess he’d be Red Ruhr? Anyway, something like that, but he’s more an apothecary now than an adventurer.”

The other villagers chuckled wryly at the man’s flippant tone. Some even murmured to themselves about giving him a talking-to later.

“Red, huh?”

The same man Bui mentioned.

Taraxon smiled to himself at the strange coincidence.

“Lord Taraxon.”

Bui had returned from his investigation of the surroundings.

“What’s it like?”

“There are no other plague boars. However, I noticed something else entirely.”

“Hmm?”

“Asura chain is blooming here.”

“What? Are you sure?”

“Yes, sir. Here is one I plucked. I have dealt with it, so it is safe.”

Bui produced a peach-colored flower that looked completely normal. Seeing it, Taraxon’s expression clouded over.

It was a look he hadn’t shown once since arriving on this continent, even when fighting the giants in the previous Hero’s Tomb.

“I suspect the plague boar came down to this village drawn by its scent.”

“Why is this growing out in the wild?”

“It wasn’t when last I was here… What shall we do?”

“Investigate the surrounding villages. We need to get a grasp on the situation.”

“But the sword…”

“It can wait. Right now, we are traveling as heroes,” Taraxon said quietly before turning to face the villagers. “Tell me who in the village is ill.”