Strange Grief Wants to Retire ~ The Weakest Hunter Dreams of a Hero ~ - Volume 4 - Chapter 2.1

Chapter Two: A Strange Trial

Even when lined up against those of other neighboring nations, the imperial capital of Zebrudia was among the most prosperous capital cities. Its streets were clean and lined with street lamps. With the exception of the decaying district, the capital was well illuminated at night. It had a large population and, because of the many rowdy hunters, knights patrolled the city fairly frequently.

However, should you take even a step outside the walls of the capital, you’d find yourself in a dog-eat-dog world just as you’d find in any other country. There was no light from man-made sources and monsters appeared frequently.

There were phantoms wandering from their homes, just as there had been with the recent White Wolf’s Den incident, and there were bandits who might choose to strike. The empire diverted resources into peacekeeping, but even their inability to stamp out threats should help indicate how dangerous the outside could be.

With our carriage going at a steady pace, we left the capital and I was already beginning to regret my decision to go on a vacation. I looked out the window and saw dense clouds covering the sky and hiding the moon from view. The scenery outside was cloaked in almost total darkness and therefore inscrutable to me because I had no form of night vision.

We should have at least departed in the morning, I thought. I’m an idiot. This isn’t like the incident with White Wolf’s Den. I had the freedom to choose when to depart, yet I chose to go at night for some reason. I want to go back and deck the me from a few hours ago. 

It was common sense among hunters to leave in the morning unless you had a specific reason to leave at another part of the day. After all, most monsters and phantoms could see in the dark. Liz, Sitri, Tino, and even Eva all knew this. I wished they had at least once asked if I was certain about leaving at night. Sure, the fault was mine, but they seemed to have too much faith in me.

I barely left the clan house much less the capital itself, so this was my first carriage ride in some time. The particular vibrations I felt through my body were strangely nostalgic.

Once a treasure hunter started to get financially comfortable, they often began using carriages. This wasn’t for transporting themselves, but mainly for conveying their spoils. Hunters who made use of carriages, and were competent enough to keep them safe, saw explosive rises in their income.

Grieving Souls used a carriage, but Ansem was too big to fit inside and both Liz and Luke would run along outside, so it would be only me, and occasionally Lucia, riding inside. Looking back, that was fun in its own way. I wasn’t too fond of the recent crucibles I had been thrown into, but those old adventures were fond memories of mine.

The carriage Eva procured was a medium-sized one and one likely made with hunters in mind. It wasn’t roomy enough that I could stretch out my legs and sleep, but it was sturdy and the roof was furnished with a seat for a lookout. There was also suspension which helped reduce the vibrations. When taking luggage into account, there wasn’t enough room for a full party to fit in the cab, but that was typical as far as most hunters were concerned.

The carriage continued to move along regardless of my regrets. Black and White were in the driver’s seat, and Gray was in the lookout seat. I was impressed at their ability to keep the carriage running in such darkness.

It looked like I was once again the only one unable to see in the dark. Owl’s Eye was charged up, but this wasn’t really the time to use it.

Sitting across from me, Sitri had the map unfolded and she was glancing at her sister, who sat next to her.

“Why aren’t you running, Lizzy? You always run...” she asked.

“Huh? That’s because if I leave you alone with Krai Baby, you’ll lay your dirty hands on him. You think I’m gonna let that happen?” Liz responded.

“I’m just a bit uneasy having White, Black, and Gray being the only ones outside. I was hoping you would run along outside.”

“You think you’re uneasy?! Besides, what’s it matter? Killiam and that chimera are outside. How come you’re inside this time, Siddy? You usually take the driver’s seat.”

“That’s because I’m testing White and Black—”

Amid the darkness, Liz and Sitri began bickering with flames in their eyes.

In one corner of the carriage, Tino, who had been more or less abducted by Liz, was sitting and hugging her knees just like I was. It seemed she still wasn’t over the incident with the mask. She hadn’t said a word beyond some initial greetings and apologies. It was lonely not having anyone to talk to, but it was hard to address her when I knew I’d just be turned down.

One thing I could be thankful for was that I didn’t have to look at the three ruffians Sitri had hired. Still, I didn’t think there was a person alive who would look at us and think we were headed out on a vacation.

Maybe it wouldn’t be quite so bad if we hadn’t left at night... I began to think, when our carriage was passed by a gray macho atop a strange lion. It was Killiam riding Drink.

Drink growled with excitement and Killiam gripped the reins with enthusiasm. Their overwhelming vigor made me want to barf so I looked away from the window.

Sitting in silence, I realized something: we hadn’t run into many monsters. With that running alongside our carriage, I suppose even monsters wouldn’t want to approach us. Drink and Killiam were more monstrous than anything in those woods. They were like something out of a nightmare. In this wilderness, something not meant to be, was.

Looks like it’ll be a safe trip.

“Krai, which route will we be taking?” Sitri asked.

She placed the open map next to a glowing vial, vaguely illuminating it. The map was centered on the imperial capital and showed its surrounding areas. Sitri’s own notes were scrawled here and there.

Our current objectives were to buy time, enjoy a vacation, and meet up with the rest of Grieving Souls. They were currently at Night Palace, which was within Zebrudia but a good distance from the capital; even a straight trip there shouldn’t be too arduous.

“Does anyone have any opinions?”

Liz gladly answered without delay.

“I’ll go where you go,” she said.

Sitri also nodded with a grin.

They had always been like this since we became hunters. I kept on failing as a leader, but they were either just too resilient or had far too much faith in me, something I wasn’t sure how to feel about.

I looked at Tino and, with tears in her eyes, she raised her head and nodded.

I want to protect her. Not that I can.

“I’ll go where you go,” she said.

“Eh, sorry about T. I guess she’s lost her confidence,” Liz said.

“Yeah, it happens,” I replied.

Liz sounded even more gleeful than usual.

I haven’t shown Tino my good side in a while. On this trip, I need to at least once remind her she can count on her master.

I reached out and drew a large circle around an area between Night Palace and the capital.

“For starters, let’s not pass through here,” I said.

“Understood, we won’t pass through here,” Sitri said. “Might I ask why?”

“Gut feeling. Let’s not take a single step into this area.”

The area in question was the domain of Earl Gladis.

I might have been talentless, but I had experience. The Thousand Tricks never faltered. I had caused a fair bit of trouble with Lady Éclair, so I went and looked up the boundaries of her family’s domain. I hadn’t accepted it, but they had given me a named quest. Even without accepting them, those things were bad news; I didn’t want to think what would happen if I did.

Sitri didn’t seem to mind that I offered no rational explanation for my decision and just smiled warmly. That made me feel better.

By not entering Earl Gladis’s domain, we would be taking a much longer route to the treasure vault. Really, the worst thing that could happen would be not running into the rest of Grieving Souls, but my policy was safety first.

“Understood. Then we’ll either cross the mountains to the north or pass through the forest to the west. Mountains or the forest, huh?” Sitri stopped to think. “Where do you stand on this, T? Which sounds better, a thunder dragon or a roving ogre?”

“Huh?!”

Tino looked up and for some reason, looked at me and not Sitri. She wore a timid, squirrelly expression. The thunder dragon, needless to say, was a powerful and elusive dragon capable of controlling thunder and lightning. The roving ogre was, uh, actually not something I had ever heard of before, but its mention was enough to paralyze Tino.

I quickly tried to deny Sitri’s implications.

“There’s not gonna be any dragons or ogres or anything bad!”

Thunder dragons were a rare breed. Sure, they did live in mountainous areas—I had even encountered one in fact—but they were rare even compared to other dragons. Normally, you couldn’t find one even if you tried.

As for the latter monster, even its name was unfamiliar to me so I couldn’t say. However, I knew a fair bit about forest monsters, so I figured it must be rare if even I didn’t know anything about it. Sitri was worrying too much.

Liz puffed her cheeks, crossed her arms, and offered me fire support.

“We’re not gonna run into any of those things, Siddy. Didn’t you hear Krai Baby? We’re out for other humans! Quit making half-assed predictions!”

I said there’s not gonna be anything bad! I guess they just don’t have any faith in me.

“What’s wrong with trying to follow Krai’s line of thinking? Sure, I often miss the mark, but I think these are reasonable guesses,” Sitri said. “Am I wrong, Krai?”

There’s not gonna be anything. I’m certain of it. This is a vacation, not an adventure!

I decided I might as well err on the side of caution. I didn’t reply to Sitri’s eager question, I just dragged my finger along the map. Avoiding the Gladis Earldom on the way to Night Palace would involve either traversing a forest or mountains. The forest route would be the longer of the two detours, but it’s not like we were in any hurry.

“Isn’t that the longer way around?” Liz asked.

“We’d take far too long getting to Night Palace that way,” Sitri protested. “The flatlands aren’t a good place to find rare monsters. Our earnings will be minimal. I may be overstepping my bounds, but I’ll remind you not to hold back on the account of Black, White, and Gray. I believe in taking risks in moderation.”

Sitri rarely said no to me, but her reasoning was sound.

She’s a scholar, but I guess she’s a treasure hunter at heart. What does she mean by earnings?

Usually, I’d let myself be swayed by their arguments, but this was different. I decided to make my stance clear.

“It’s fine, our objective is to have a good vacation! Here, don’t be so worried, Tino. Trust me on this.”

“M-Master...”

I looked at Tino, who had tears in her eyes, and then at the other two before letting out a sigh.

“This really is nothing more than a vacation. Life’s been hectic recently, and not just for you, Tino. Liz, Sitri, you two have both been working too hard. I brought you all out of the capital, but I think you should take this opportunity to rest your bodies. This is just a trip. A vacation. A break from monsters and phantoms. We’ll eat good food, take it easy, and do fun things—nothing dangerous. I’m serious.”

It probably sounded funny hearing that from a guy who only ever took it easy—I had just recently foisted a carcass collecting job onto Tino after all—but it was how I felt. I was both the man who foisted work onto them and the one urging them to rest afterwards.

Tino’s shoulders shook and she stared directly at me.

“C-Can I believe you, Master?” she asked.

Yeah, of course you can, Tino.

The moment I began to nod affirmingly, I heard the sound of raindrops. I checked the window and saw that a number of droplets had hit the window in the span of a moment. It was hard to believe that there hadn’t been any precipitation just a few minutes ago.

There was the intense howling of wind and pounding rain. The sudden change must’ve startled the horses because the carriage rocked. The cab was well sealed so no rainwater got in, but those horses out there were living creatures. This would probably be nothing to a platinum mustang, but it was impossible for a normal horse to run under these conditions.

Amid the wind and rain, I heard some small irritated voices. I began to wonder if Black, White, and Gray were okay.

I was struggling to decide what to do about the inclement weather, when a bolt of lightning flashed across the sky. Then came the thunder. Then the carriage bounced and came to a halt. I managed to hold back a scream. It’d look really lame if I screamed when nobody else seemed to be perturbed.

The carriage continued to be slammed by wind and rain and it didn’t seem like it would be stopping anytime soon.

What to do...we might die out here. If this storm had arrived a bit quicker, we would’ve delayed our departure. What awful timing.

I began to get cold. I pulled on a jacket and buttoned it tight. This wasn’t the first time I had been hit by a storm while outside. In fact, the rain was attracted to me. It was because my luck was so bad.

“What a sudden torrent...” I said.

“Shall we step outside for a moment?” Sitri asked. “The horses are rentals, so we should take good care of them.”

“All right, T,” Liz said abruptly. “We’re gonna run.”

“Huh?” Tino’s mouth hung open.

Liz paid her no mind and stood up and did some light stretches. Perhaps because of the cold weather, faint wisps of steam rose from her body. She took another look out the window and nodded with satisfaction.

“What a storm... What more could you want for a training session?” she said. “You always come through, Krai Baby! Siddy, you’ve got some potions, don’t you? Aah, we’re gonna be building lightning resistance so could we get a liquid lightning rod, please?”

“Sure thing,” Sitri said.

Come on, you can’t pin even the weather on me.

Sitri pulled out a white glimmering potion from her bag. Liquid lightning rod. I had seen it before, it was an insane potion made to attract lightning. I had also heard the basic principles of it, but I couldn’t really remember them.

On top of the lightning rod, Sitri quickly lined up a variety of other potions, put them in a unique circular box, and handed it to Liz.

Tino was stiff as a board. She looked at Liz with a vacant expression as though this were all some sort of dream. Perhaps her life was flashing before her eyes.

“Liz—”

I tried to stop the madness, but Liz looked at me with her brightest smile that day.

“Don’t you worry, Krai Baby! T’s got plenty of mana material and she’s been training, she probably won’t die in a single hit!”

“Huh?! Master...”

“Juuust a moment!”

I stopped Liz on instinct. I couldn’t let her inflict such a harsh trial on our junior. Tino looked at me with misty eyes.

Don’t worry. It’s fine.

“You’re such a worrywart, Krai Baby,” Liz said. “It’s fine, T’s not a kid and she’s responsible for herself. My calculations say she has enough resistance, and as long as she doesn’t instantly die, Siddy can come to the rescue with her potions.”

Her eyes shined as she put forth this insane reasoning. It was incredibly harsh, but this same training was what Liz’s mentor had once subjected her to. The only difference now being Liz’s participation. What lunacy.

There was far too much of a power differential between Liz and her disciple. Tino looked at me with eyes that pleaded for help. It was then that I remembered I had the perfect item on me. I reached into my pocket and pulled out something slimy.

The color drained from Tino’s face. It was Evolve Greed, my special something for unleashing one’s latent powers. I hadn’t been sure if I should take it with me, but it was new to my collection and I thought I might be able to find a use for it so I brought it along.

I couldn’t use Evolve Greed, but when Tino wore it, it had enhanced her abilities. Her speed, strength, and her resistances had, most likely, all increased. Excluding the slight elation it caused, it was a powerful Relic and I had a feeling its psychological effects could be acclimated to.

Evolve Greed spoke in a weary voice after spending so much time stuffed into my pocket.

“How dreadful that was. Oh, am I to take the stage?”

I was certain Tino’s lightning resistance would go up if she wore the mask. She seemed a bit traumatized by it, but I hoped she could overcome that. I looked at her with great expectations.

“Lizzy, I-I’ve decided I want to start training right away!” she yelled.

“Ah—”

Tino almost fell over as she flew out of the carriage. Liz sat there wide-eyed, and I held the mask in my hands. Tino had left the door open so strong winds blew into the cab and showered us in rain. After a minute of silence, Liz clapped her hands.

“Way to go, Krai Baby! Only you could stamp out T’s cowardice so easily. I’m gonna join her, okay?”

“Lizzy, T, I made sure to leave some liquid lightning rods out, so don’t forget to take them!” Sitri called out. “Honestly, T, you’re so prone to escapism.”

Is that really escapism?

Liz grabbed a liquid lightning rod and disappeared into the darkness and out of my vision. Burned into my memory was the look of betrayal Tino gave me just before leaving the carriage. I looked down at the gloopy-faced thing I held.

Precious things always slip from my hands. Always. 

“I’ll go and prepare the tent. Krai, feel free to wait in the carriage for a bit,” Sitri said.

And as if nothing at all strange had happened, Sitri began preparing our camp, wearing a grin all the while.

Through the window, I saw Killiam riding atop a large white chimera and howling in the storm. It was like the end of the world. What a horrible vacation. Thunder boomed as though in an attempt to block out my thoughts.

***

Fierce winds and rain beat against the windows in the lounge of the First Steps clan house. Dense clouds covered the sky and thunder rumbled from time to time.

The lounge was filled to capacity. There were people who planned to undertake quests but turned around the moment the storm began. There were people with nowhere to go after their usual inn closed due to the weather. There were people who decided they wouldn’t be able to go outside the next day either and holed up in the lounge.

They all sat at tables and watched the sky through the lounge’s large windows.

Lyle, whose stomach had made a full recovery, held a bottle of liquor in one hand and rambled in a loud voice.

“‘Vacation’ he said. Goddamn Krai. It’s all going to hell right from the start,” he said.

“Nothing good ever happens when the CM begins to move of his own accord,” said one of Lyle’s party members.

It was common knowledge that the Thousand Trials were not something you wanted to get involved in. No matter how much time passed, they never got any easier. It was normal for a treasure hunter’s work to get easier the more powerful they became. The Thousand Trials, however, were different. Because they were “Trials,” they aimed to always push one to their limits.

Members of First Steps were considered special because they had overcome these Trials. That was fine, but they were sick of being wrapped in these Trials without even being asked if they wanted to.

“Besides, didn’t we just do one of his Trials?!” Lyle shouted in a drunken voice. “He didn’t give us any time to rest. Don’t make us risk our lives on a regular basis!”

Other clan members began to join in.

“You’re right!”

“I haven’t even finished resupplying!”

“He’s always hiding information!”

“We shouldn’t stand for it!”

“He thinks we’d go out in this storm?”

“He conflates us with people of his level!”

“He conflates us with Liz!”

“Tell us what you’re planning!”

“Pay us!”

“Teeell us!”

Even though Krai himself wasn’t present, everyone in the lounge became riled up. They stood shoulder to shoulder and shouted to the ceiling. Isabella and Ewe, who had both chosen not to participate, faced each other and let out exasperated sighs.

“Everyone here sure gets along nicely...” Ewe remarked.

“I suppose Liz and Sitri are fine, but I wonder about Tino,” Isabella said.

Grieving Souls were used to these sorts of Trials, but she was worried about the junior clan member who had been swept along. Once you were caught up in one of Krai’s Thousand Trials, there was no escaping. The sky seemed to almost respond to Isabella’s worried gaze as it suddenly began to light up.

A panicking clan member dashed into the lounge. They didn’t seem to care that they were drenched head to toe.

“Hey, everyone! Big news!” they shouted in a hoarse voice. “Hidden Curse is going to war with Akashic Tower. Their top members are on the move and we’re gonna be feeling the shock waves!”

This caused an instant shift in everyone’s mood.

Hidden Curse was an old clan and considered one of the best even in Zebrudia. Their clan master, the Level 8 Abyssal Inferno, was known for her intensity that matched up even with Grieving Souls. If Hidden Curse came into direct conflict with another group, there would be no telling how much collateral damage might occur. The Explorers’ Association might start dispatching their own.

Lyle scratched his head and wore a look of despair.

“Damn Krai,” he shouted. “He said he’s going on a vacation!”

Other hunters joined in.

“Aaah! We’ve been had!”

“And we had just been freed from Drink!”

Isabella let out a deep sigh as she watched as her fellow clan members began to once again scream and shout.

***

Tremendous rain and wind blew across the dark plain. The continuous bolts of lightning and their thundering impacts seemed almost lethal. Hunters were still human and therefore in many ways helpless before nature’s might.

“Shit, a storm?! You’ve gotta be joking.”

The storm hit him from the side, his single jacket only doing so much to protect him. His loud curses disappeared into the winds and went unheard. From the top of the carriage, Gray, the unwilling lookout, hopped out of his seat and down to the ground. In the driver’s seat, Black and White were drenched in rain and trying to calm the startled horses.

From the corner of his eye, Gray caught sight of that infernal woman calmly setting up a tent, unbothered by the storm. She removed the tent from the piled-up luggage and assembled it with practiced hands. Through wind and rain, mud and darkness, she moved without pause.

She wore a thick robe and a large backpack. She didn’t particularly resemble a hunter with her refined looks and lack of weapons, but her skills removed any doubt that she was indeed a hunter—and a first-rate one at that.

But what distinguished her more than anything was her expression—she didn’t look perturbed in the slightest.

Her eyes suddenly shifted towards Gray as he alighted from the top of the carriage. Lightning flashed and those pink irises flitted from Gray to White to Black. She was just one small woman. The three of them had been taken down by the other one, the infamous Stifled Shadow, and she had left the carriage in spite of the raging storm. That indescribable chimera was nowhere to be seen either.

This looked like a good opportunity to flee. Visibility was low, but they hadn’t gone too far from the capital and it would be hard to pursue someone in the storm.

As Gray considered this, Sitri Smart furrowed her brow with displeasure.

“White, Black, Gray, you’ve finally gotten your chance. Don’t do anything to embarrass me,” she said.

There was just one issue and that was the collars around their necks. The grimy collars were a form of magical artifact and they were originally intended for restricting the movement of slaves. Slavery wasn’t practiced in Zebrudia so these collars were a rare sight, but after spending many years in the underworld, Gray was familiar with what they could do. By pressing a remote switch, the wearer would feel a strong electric shock.

It wasn’t as strong as a Relic, but it could deliver a powerful and stable flow of energy for a long period of time. Even someone with high levels of mana material wouldn’t be able to hold out forever.

The collars were durable and relied on in certain countries that employed slave labor. They were also designed to give a strong shock if they were hit hard enough, so one couldn’t even attempt to remove them. Gray and the others were bound by an invisible chain and Sitri didn’t seem like the type to hesitate before giving them a shock. In fact, this sort of item wasn’t even something you could obtain in Zebrudia through conventional means.

Gray figured White and Black had both reached the same conclusion. If they had all responded to Sitri Smart’s sudden summons, it meant they were all in agreement—they had screwed up. They shouldn’t have taken that job to retrieve the item from the auction.

It was too late for regret, the die had been cast. Some hunters were good people, but Grieving Souls, the ones who had caught Gray and the others, were clearly the opposite.

These hunters could’ve just handed Gray and his cohorts to the guards, but instead chose to keep them under their control. If they did that, then these hunters probably wouldn’t even hesitate to kill them. They could consider their lives forfeit if they didn’t comply. Really, it was possible they might even be liquidated without any particular reason.

All Gray and the others could do was what they were told and pray they didn’t invite the hunters’ wrath. Even if all that awaited them was their demise, they had no choice but to pretend otherwise and keep on living.

Then, a thought occurred to Gray. If all three of them attacked Sitri, couldn’t they take her down before she could press the switch? They could take her down and steal the switch. If they could just do something about the collars, it was possible they might obtain even a small degree of freedom.

White, Black, and Gray all specialized in dealing with hunters. They rarely took targets head-on, but they were confident enough in their strength. The fearsome man in the carriage seemed like he could be a problem, but he didn’t seem too interested in Gray and the others so perhaps he could be negotiated with.

This might be the first and last time they’d see Sitri defenseless and separated from her comrades. They could keep obeying her, but things would only get worse if they continued down that route. Fortunately for Gray and the others, their weapons hadn’t been confiscated.

Gray made up his mind and raised his head, but at that moment blinding light tore the darkness and a tremendous rumbling echoed about. The sensation shook Gray’s vision and he stumbled. White and Black desperately tried to calm the terrified horses.

Lightning struck nearby. Gray instinctively closed his eyes and covered his head. He heard a quiet voice.

“Still not used to lightning, are you?”

Gray hesitantly opened his eyes. Sitri was standing close and looking up at him. Under the circumstances, her calm eyes and the smile on her lips didn’t look fearless but rather insane.

Sitri removed a potion from her pocket and pressed it into Gray’s unsteady hand.

“You see, I became used to the lightning long ago,” she said, voice just a whisper. “The trick to developing resistance to lightning is—listen well now—to be continually struck by lightning. The first time it happens you’ll nearly die, but if you repeat the process then your mana material will strengthen your body in that direction. The liquid lightning rods were developed for that purpose.”

Madness. Inconceivable. Suicide. Gray wanted to write off her ideas as any of these things, but Sitri didn’t sound like she would permit that.

It was well-known that a hunter’s will could affect how they were strengthened by mana material. It was also well-known that all high-level hunters made use of that function. However, even with that in mind, what Sitri was suggesting didn’t sound like it could be described with a tepid word like “training.”

Gray remained speechless and just looked at the potion in his hand.

“Oh, that’s right,” Sitri compounded. “If you develop greater lightning resistance, the shocks delivered by the collars might become bearable. How troubling. This weather is optimal, isn’t it? Perhaps it’s a message from Krai. Perhaps he’s saying, ‘If you’ve got the resolve then you can run.’”

A message. Lightning struck again. What a thunderous night it was. Gray thought he heard a faint scream somewhere. Gray, White, and Black were all standing stock-still. Sitri smiled.

“I hate to ask this of you, but could I ask that you guys look after the horses? I can’t rely on Killiam for these sorts of matters. Ah, and don’t worry about the tent. I’m used to these sorts of situations, I’m afraid you’ll only get in my way.”

Sitri turned her defenseless back to them and went back to setting up the tent. Within the glass vial shoved into Gray’s hand was a glowing white liquid that he had never seen before.

He decided to rethink his escape plan.