88
Chapter 88
The walk from the station to our destination.
I naturally ended up walking with Lucy.
Of course, given her personality, she rarely initiated conversation.
Still, our conversation flowed better than expected.
After traveling with Ciel, I had grown accustomed to being the one to start conversations with quiet companions.
After sharing various small talk for a while, one topic came up.
"Why did you join the Imperial Knight Order?"
From my perspective, I had just thrown it out as light conversation. But for some reason.
Lucy's expression darkened the moment she heard those words. She, who had always answered my questions faithfully, remained silent for the first time.
Wondering if I had stepped on a landmine.
I was about to tell her she didn't have to answer if it was difficult to respond.
"...It was because there was someone I admired."
As if deeply recalling something, Lucy, who had been frowning, spoke those words.
"When I was in a life-threatening crisis in the past, there was someone who saved me. I wanted to become a knight to help others like that person did."
It should have been a heartwarming story. Yet her face had grown somewhat pale.
But the question of why didn't come out.
It couldn't come out.
"...It was the Hero. A Hero with the same name as you saved me back then."
Hearing those words, I too was left speechless.
Until now, no one had known about the Former Hero.
Rubia, Ciel, Rien. No matter who I asked, no answer came back. A Hero whose traces couldn't be found in any books or records.
And that clue unexpectedly came from this girl.
"...Why on earth did I forget such an important fact?"
Lucy muttered with a bewildered expression.
After that, I asked Lucy about the Former Hero several more times.
The story she told was simple.
A black-haired man had saved her young self from a burning mansion caused by someone's attack.
And seeing that person's gleaming sword, young Lucy was able to recognize that the man before her was the rumored Hero.
She said she didn't know what happened after that, or why everyone had forgotten about the Hero.
This was quite a significant discovery in its own right.
At the very least, I could confirm that there had been a Predecessor.
The protagonist of the previous work definitely existed.
And it seemed to have been created based on the character I used to play.
Ian was my go-to nickname. And black hair was the default setting when I didn't customize anything.
The previous work didn't have any mention of Lucy or the Valiere family. The plot seemed to have diverged a bit, though.
But at least the existence of the Hero itself was now certain.
'Which means someone forcibly erased everything about the Hero from this world.'
Just how the original plot had gotten twisted.
Who was truly responsible for this anomaly.
What their motive was for erasing everyone's memories.
I still lacked the evidence to uncover any of that.
But I could at least clearly identify the most likely suspect.
'What the hell did those Empire bastards do?'
Whenever some messed-up situation arose, pointing fingers at the Empire was right nine times out of ten.
It was obvious those bastards were behind something this time, too.
My face naturally scowled at the thought.
Even Lucy, who should have retained vivid memories of meeting the Hero in person, had only just recalled them.
That meant someone had cast Mind Control powerful enough to work on someone as strong as Lucy.
Considering that manipulating a person's mind required High Magic that only an Archmage could use...
I couldn't even fathom what kind of monstrous entity could pull off something like that on such a massive scale.
It was an overwhelmingly daunting situation.
My head naturally started to spin, but...
I shook off my worries with a single sigh.
'In the end, no matter what happens, what I need to do doesn't change.'
The more these hidden truths came to light, the more certain it became that the enemies I would face in the future would be formidable.
But I had no intention of just sitting back and taking it. If there was something I could do, I had to do it all first, right?
I had no choice but to travel around diligently, build my strength, and prepare for the impending destruction.
And well, that was exactly what I always used to do.
As I walked along, lost in these various thoughts, a distinct noise suddenly began to ring in my ears.
The sound of a hammer striking metal.
Metal clashing against metal created a massive roar.
The vibrant atmosphere and exotic scenery captivated my gaze.
Blacksmith Street.
Our destination unfolded right before our eyes.
*****
Blacksmiths lined the streets.
Lucy and I walked between them.
The shock from earlier was still lingering a bit, but walking down this street in person was definitely a unique experience.
It was a place I frequently visited to gear up when playing the previous game.
'Some things have changed, and some things haven't.'
Over the past ten years or so.
Some places seemed to have shut down, while others were still running as usual, just with different people.
I couldn't stay feeling down forever.
To change my mood, I looked around to check on the status of the blacksmith I had favored in the previous game.
However, what caught my eye as I looked around wasn't a blacksmith, but Lucy.
For some reason, she was staring intently at a blacksmith shop as if trying to burn a hole through it.
"See anything you like?"
Before Lucy could answer my question, a Dwarf approached us.
"You can't tell much just by looking, can you?"
The Dwarf encouraged us to come in and see for ourselves if we were interested, leading the way.
It was an incredibly smooth sales pitch.
I hesitated for a moment... but soon decided to play along.
'Well, I did need something like this anyway.'
The Black Fang army I was temporarily protecting.
With my suspicions growing by the day that the Empire and the Final Boss were connected.
Supplying them with weapons and armor wouldn't be a bad investment.
Giving our kids some high-end equipment as a gift sounded like a good idea, too.
With those thoughts in mind, I looked around the Dwarf's blacksmith shop.
Swords and armor were on display.
Each and every piece was flashy, giving off the impression of high quality.
The prices were quite steep, but that was usually the case for Dwarf-made equipment.
I picked up a random sword.
"Is it okay if I swing this?"
A question I asked just in case.
"Of course! How else would you know if it suits you without trying it out?"
The Dwarf declared proudly.
He seemed quite confident in his own skills.
I gave the sword a casual swing.
Of course, I was extremely careful to control my strength, not wanting a repeat of the incident at the Training Ground.
And... my expression turned to one of doubt.
'What's wrong with this?'
While I'm close to a novice when it comes to swords.
Even I could tell that something was off about this sword.
A completely messed up center of gravity.
It didn't feel like it would cut well at all.
No, that wasn't the only strange thing.
The description clearly stated it was made of Orichalcum, a precious metal.
But this was way too heavy.
Even though the in-game lore clearly said it was a lighter and harder material than others.
Sensing something suspicious, I immediately returned the sword.
Because it gave me a bad feeling.
However, just as I was exiting the blacksmith, the Dwarf grabbed my arm.
"What do you think you're doing! How could you handle such a precious sword like that!"
It definitely wasn't there when I returned it. Yet he was pointing at a scratch that had magically just appeared.
Despite his furious tone, a smirk he couldn't hide lingered on his lips.
This current situation.
It was obvious what was happening.
'I knew something felt off.'
He had clearly brought us in with this exact intention from the start.
Just as I was about to frown and start arguing with the Dwarf...
"Do not worry, my Lord. I have grasped your intentions. Please, leave this to me."
Lucy suddenly stepped in front of me.
Saying she had understood my will.
And that she would handle this problem herself.
I hesitated for a moment, but soon nodded.
'Certainly, taking this opportunity to learn more about Lucy isn't a bad idea.'
Even with the Geas in place, her track record so far made her a somewhat unreliable subordinate.
I was actually quite looking forward to seeing how Lucy would refute this swindler's nonsense.
As soon as she saw me nod, Lucy marched heavily into the blacksmith shop.
And then, Lucy made a declaration.
"It was you who said it was fine to swing the sword as a test."
Pointing out that he was the one who permitted a test swing in the first place.
I couldn't help but be inwardly impressed.
Since she was a musclehead, I hadn't expected much from her brains.
A more logical point than I expected.
Anticipating what kind of persuasion would follow next, I watched Lucy.
And the words Lucy came up with were....
"Therefore, I will also swing it once."
A completely out-of-left-field statement.
Lucy picked up a random sword and took a deep breath. An absolutely perfect Drawing Stance.
...It was only then that I realized what was about to happen. But there was no time to stop her.
"3rd Form, [Wild Dance]."
The sword traced a beautiful trajectory, like a dance.
Everything on display, the furnace, all the equipment, the walls, and the pillars. Everything was sliced through.
-Craaaash!
A massive roar echoed immediately after.
The severed blacksmith shop collapsed in an instant.
Naturally, everyone, including the Dwarf and me, was left speechless.
Without saying a single word, she had silenced all objections.
In a way, you could say it was a perfect persuasion.
...Though the fact that it was a physical persuasion was a bit of an issue.