Is This Really an A-Rank Party? # Looks Like It. So What the Hell Am I Supposed to Do Now?
I watched the Red Claw party from a distance, still debating my next move. Should I actually save them? Or should I keep playing the helpless civilian, slip away to the Adventurers' Guild, and call for backup? First things first—let's check if they're even still alive. If I pick off the golems from behind while slowly advancing, that should work.
"Damn it, what are we supposed to do?"
"No matter how I look at it, we're screwed."
"The encirclement is closing in. They'll find us here too."
"We should hide deeper."
"Hey, has anyone seen that woman since a while ago?"
"W-wait, where did she go? If she dies, we're in huge trouble! Maybe she fell behind while we were running?"
"We're the ones in danger right now. Just stay hidden here."
From what I could see, they were desperately trying to stay out of sight. Yeah, at this rate, they might actually survive. I didn't like that kid Rota one bit, but the others seemed decent enough. If I drew the monsters' attention and melted them with my light, the Red Claw should be fine.
"Grrrrraaaah!"
Whoosh—!
After doing it a few times, their numbers had dropped considerably. I even spotted what looked like their leader among them. Curious what would happen if I took him out, I turned that one into sparkling light too. There was no real fight. Just zap them with this and done. It seemed like anything I recognized as an enemy got completely incinerated into ash.
This could be a great way to screw over Sophia even more. After all, she only got the Holy Sword shoved into Schwald's hands and got dragged along until she somehow earned the Saintess title too. If I played this right, maybe I wouldn't even need that idiot prince—I could handle things myself—
No. Don't get ahead of yourself. Even a stone bridge should be tested before crossing. Right now, I needed to resolve this situation first.
"What the—? It looks like their numbers suddenly dropped?"
"At this rate, we might be able to break through!"
"Just a couple High Orcs, no big deal!"
"Let's go save Miss K too!"
At least this party still seemed determined to rescue me. I couldn't stand Rota, but the others genuinely wanted to protect me. Even if it was just a request, I could respect that level of commitment. I needed to get back soon and start writing anyway. The way I'd used that light earlier gave me some pretty good material too.
Hm? Wait a second. What was that?
The situation was turning sour. The Red Claw charging at the remaining High Orcs had seemed like a good idea at first. I mean, they're adventurers—they should know what they're doing, right? I figured they could handle one or two. But then—
Crack!
"Guhhhk!"
Maybe adventurers really were just a bunch of brainless idiots. That kid Rota had gotten knocked flying. He'd rushed in first and taken a beating. Sure, he'd landed a hit with his weapon at the start and even struck a decent adventurer pose, but the orcs were stronger than expected.
Should I just abandon them and go alone? No. That would definitely cause weird misunderstandings later. Even if I was the one being escorted, if I survived while all my guards died, the Adventurers' Guild would definitely get suspicious. Besides, I had this weird power that could take them out.
"Fuck this shit."
The curse slipped out loud. Why did these useless bastards always rush in alone and screw themselves over? The bald leader, Adel, had jumped out to protect Rota and left an opening for the orcs. Rella and Yuri couldn't attack properly either—if they did, they might hit their own leader and the kid who were getting pummeled right below them. Naturally, the orcs had no intention of leaving the archer and mage alone. Before long, they were charging straight at the two women.
Guess I had no choice.
"Sigh."
There was one thing I'd learned from today's mess: if I ever wrote an adventurer episode, it should be about idiots who get themselves killed charging at monsters and the hero who saves them. After all, in this world's setting, both resistance fighters and adventurers were bound to exist.
Time to find a solution. One thing was certain—if I ran to the Adventurers' Guild for help, the Red Claw would be reduced to red powder by the time I got back. So I needed to change my approach. In the end, I had to step in myself. And if that was the case, there was only one way.
High Orcs, of all things. There probably wasn't a more ridiculous situation. And they had a client under their protection. They'd left that client exposed to the High Orcs' threat. That was bad enough, but then they'd ignored the danger, assumed only one or two remained, and charged in—only to get wrecked.
'This can't be happening. High Orcs shouldn't be this strong.'
They'd fought them once before, so they thought they could handle one or two. That's what they'd believed. But that belief had been spectacularly shattered. Rota, who charged first, was taken down immediately. Adel, who tried to save him, left an opening and got smashed in the side before being stomped on. Rella and Yuri, attempting to provide support, were also overwhelmed by the orcs.
But right then—
Something about the orcs' behavior changed.
"Grraaah?"
The orcs' eyes turned toward a single figure standing there. More precisely, it was a woman wearing a pure white hood. Beneath the hood was an abyssal black hair color rarely seen outside the Demon Realm, paired with snow-white skin and a seductive expression. By appearance alone, calling her an unparalleled beauty wouldn't be an exaggeration.
A woman radiating an intensely alien, unknowable aura. A halo seemed to glow behind her—except it wasn't light. It was something deeply suspicious, like darkness itself. An ominous energy closer to shadow than radiance, to evil than good, swirled around her.
The woman muttered something, then stretched out her hand.
"Th-that's..."
In that instant, everything changed. Light burst from her hand, and in the blink of an eye, the orcs turned to ash. In mere moments—before anyone could even react—the creatures that had been beating the Red Claw vanished like melting snow.
"N-no. No! Run! That's dangerous!"
Adel and his party members froze in terror. What the hell was that? Just a casual flick of her hand and everything died? What on earth—
At first, they were terrified. The woman approached the Red Claw slowly. With every step, the grass beneath her feet turned ashen gray, and the surroundings became scorched.
"I see."
What do you see? They wanted to ask, but no words came out. Rella and Yuri had already wet themselves. Who was this woman? Was she going to kill them too? Maybe that was exactly what she intended. After all, she was reaching her hand out toward them right now.
As the woman drew closer, Rota wanted to scream. He'd met her eyes. He'd locked gazes with that witch. This was bad. Those blood-red eyes were looking at Rota and smiling. Her beautifully curved eyes were fixed on him.
He didn't want to die. There were still so many things he wanted to do.
"N-no. No! I don't want to die!"
Hssssss—
That sinister light flowed from the mysterious woman's hand and enveloped the Red Claw party. Was this the end? Terrified, they clung to each other and closed their eyes.
But when the light faded...
The Red Claw's broken bodies felt as light as if spring had returned.
Healing Light
Ah, shit. That was way too close. I never expected that gamble to actually work. Those idiots must have thought I looked like a ghost with the hood on, because they were scared out of their minds. So they probably didn't recognize me. That's why I ended up using a healing ability I didn't even know I had.
The problem was that they'd all passed out, so I had to stand around waiting for them like an idiot. I'd only meant to blind them with the flash, put my wig back on, and leave. But now I was seriously doubting whether these people were actually A-rank.
"How can grown adults piss themselves like that?"
This was pretty rude, wasn't it? Screaming in terror at the mysterious beauty who'd come to save them. What terrible human beings.
Still, the character Milene was supposed to be kind and never look down on people of lower status. So I'd endure it. But fainting just because they saw a woman? That was a bit much, even for them.
"Ugh..."
Anyway, the piss-soaked A-rank party known as Red Claw finally woke up. They all looked half-dazed, as if they couldn't understand the current situation. The only thing I could do was smile at them.
"Oh! You're all awake."
"What... what happened to us?"
"Miss K? You're alive!"
"Ahaha. Of course I'm alive! Why would I be dead?"
I scratched my head awkwardly, pretending I had no idea what was going on, and observed their reactions. The two men didn't seem to have the mental capacity to worry about me. The women didn't look much better either. They'd barely regained consciousness, but everyone was in rough shape.
Yeah, I figured as much.
"Miss K, you should run. That thing is too much for us to handle."
"Is that so?"
"We can't let our client die."
What the hell were they even saying? The orcs were already dead, and they'd been the ones who fainted after seeing me. Now they were talking like this?
"But the High Orcs are all dead already."
"Ah."
"No, that woman in the hood..."
They seemed to have been half out of their minds. I couldn't really blame them, but still—I'd healed them properly, hadn't I? I'd just wildly blasted out light without thinking, but maybe it hadn't been a proper heal. Maybe there were mental side effects or aftereffects.
This might make good novel material, so it was important. From what I'd experienced today, everything I'd done felt more realistic than the descriptions in the novels I'd written so far. It would definitely help with my writing.
So I played dumb.
"A woman in a hood?"
I tilted my head as if I had no idea what they were talking about. Seeing my reaction, Adel rubbed his face wearily before changing his expression.
"Ah, things really got out of hand. Sorry you had to see us looking so pathetic. By the way, where were you?"
"Oh, I got lost midway."
If I hadn't shown up in that form, claiming I'd gotten lost probably wouldn't have worked as an alibi. With orcs everywhere, how could a civilian survive? But if that mysterious hooded woman had already killed the orcs, then my survival would make sense to them.
"You didn't run into any orcs?"
This kid Rota still seemed to dislike me. How dare this brat glare at me? Was he taking his frustration out on me because he got beaten so badly? I'd been trying to be nice, but he was still acting like a little shit.
"I barely managed to avoid them and then found all of you unconscious."
"Damn it. We ended up like this, but you..."
Rota spat out again. Could he stop saying whatever came to mind? What the hell was his problem?
"No, you should watch your words. Did I ever use any of you as a shield? Besides, I was separated from the group the whole time, so I wasn't even under your protection."
"What?"
"Rota, that's enough! Are you saying Miss K should have gotten hurt too?"
"No, it's just weird! We all got hurt, but even with that hooded woman around, something's off! What about the High Orcs?!"
Wow. This guy really was sharp.