With All My Heart, Let’s Fight Together~♡
“Wow....”
The gate glowed brilliantly, and when I reopened my eyes, I was standing in an entirely different location.
*Is this the Gate? Teleportation is insanely interesting.*
“Hero-nim~♡ You seem so excited, like a child~♡”
“...When exactly did I say I was excited?”
“Right now, your eyes are sparkling~♡”
*After all, I did just get teleported. Of course I’d be surprised.*
But the surroundings were chaos. Soldiers were dashing everywhere, officers barking orders at them, and even troops were waving civilians away and shouting for them to return.
“...So a dangerous threat really did appear.”
“Correct.”
Glancing beside me, I saw Elfride scanning the area carefully, as if searching for someone.
“Elfride, who are you looking for?”
“Ah, I was looking for the commander here. I’m sure they received word that we’re coming....”
“Welcome, Hero-nim!”
The moment Elfride spoke, a man approached at the perfect timing. The reins on his horse bore a commander’s insignia, so he had to be the commander.
“You are the captain of the garrison.”
“Yes! My name is Reynold Konstantin!”
“Commander Reynold, how is the situation?”
The captain gave a detailed report on the current state of affairs.
“Currently, Mother-class monsters and Amon-class monsters have appeared in the neutral zone between the Apollo Kingdom and Vesta Kingdom. The problem is that these monsters are gradually moving toward our kingdom. Normally, monsters appearing in the neutral zone should be exterminated through joint efforts by both kingdoms, but given that they are heading toward Vesta Kingdom and that you, Hero-nim, are all staying in our kingdom at the moment, we have decided to launch a solo operation.”
“The Apollo Kingdom isn’t sending reinforcements?”
“Yes. It seems multiple monster waves are occurring simultaneously. The appearance of Amon-class monsters is likely the cause.”
“Time to exterminate them then.”
Elfride immediately drew her sword. However, Revius stopped her with a word.
“These are Amon-class monsters. We shouldn’t fight recklessly—some careful planning might be necessary.”
“...Isn’t this monster mine to deal with, along with Revius? You can handle the monster wave, Abel. You’re not yet strong enough to face an Amon-class monster.”
“I know. Who said anything about leaning on commoners? What I’m trying to say isn’t that.”
*...Why keep calling me a commoner? Are they challenging me to fight?*
“...Then what exactly are you trying to say?”
“We don’t need the Hero to take down the monster. There’s someone here who’s stronger than us.”
Revius said this and looked toward someone. His gaze rested on the Saint—the very Estelle.
Huh...? How does she know that?
I was staring at Revius in surprise when the Saint’s answer came from beside me, and it was striking.
“I don’t know how to fight, though?”
...?
I couldn’t help but stare at the Saint. She was tilting her head exactly as if she really didn’t know how to fight.
*...You need to hit her a little harder for her to believe it, you brat.*
“...Are you speaking nonsense?”
Revius seemed just as dumbfounded and spoke in a dazed voice.
“How am I supposed to know how to fight? I’m just the Saint. If it were a normal monster, sure, but I can’t defeat a monster like an Amon-class one.”
The Saint continued acting like she truly didn’t know how to fight.
This was making me think differently. Was there some hidden reason?
*...Come to think of it, how much power would the Saint need to use to take down an Amon-class monster? Cardinal Antonio told her to avoid relying on divine power as much as possible.*
*...Could it be that using that power is necessary to defeat the Amon-class monster?*
No. If the Saint weakens, who’s going to protect me!
I spoke while staring at the commander, who seemed bewildered by the situation.
“...Y-yes. We’re the Hero party, so I always fight for the Saint.”
In the end, I joined in on the Saint’s bluff.
#
‘...Abel?’
Elfride was puzzled why Abel was lending his support to the Saint’s lie. She used her sword’s ability to check his true intentions.
‘The Saint doesn’t want me to use my power?’
Abel really wanted the Saint not to use her power. Elfride was surprised, but if Abel felt that way, there must have been a reason.
Elfride decided to support Abel’s words as well.
“Why would we let the monster extermination fall entirely on the Saint? And the Saint can’t possibly be stronger than us, can she, Revius?”
“...Elfride, you must not understand...”
“Enough. Even if what you say is true, the extermination of monsters is the role of the Heroes. Isn’t that correct?”
“That’s...”
Revius couldn’t counter Elfride’s logic. It was the correct and factual approach.
“Here’s the plan. The Amon-class monster will be taken down by me and Revius, and you, Abel, will guard against the monster wave. If possible, deal with the Mother as well.”
“Understood.”
“Commander, does this work?”
Reynold, the border garrison commander, nodded.
“Yes, Hero-nim. I will prepare for immediate departure!”
After Reynold left, Estelle looked at Abel and Elfride who had helped her and seemed a little puzzled.
‘...Thank you for helping, but why did you help?’
In truth, Estelle could have handled the Amon-class monster herself, but she had chosen not to enter the fray so the Heroes could have their growth opportunities.
As she had told Elfride earlier, she had planned to assist only if the situation became truly dangerous. Abel probably knew that, and he had said he didn’t want to fight.
‘...Is the Hero misunderstanding something?’
Estelle looked at Abel intently, and Abel, sensing her gaze, approached cautiously. Then, with one careful word, Estelle burst out laughing.
“Saint-nim, well done.”
“...Hehe♡”
“...Why are you laughing?”
“Huhuhu, just because♡”
There was no way the Abel who had helped her so well could look anything but adorable to Estelle. The Saint flashed a faint smile and gave him a light pat on the head.
“You did great~♡”
She ruffled his hair. Abel startled and stepped back.
“.....W-what are you doing!?”
Estelle giggled at his reaction.
‘So cute♥’
#
“Heroes! We’ll engage soon, so please receive our blessings in advance!”
The commander said this and left to check the number of soldiers again. Yes, they should receive the blessings.
“Saint-nim, bless me.”
“Of course~♡”
The Saint approached quickly and gently placed her hand on my chest.
《Solaria’s Blessing》
Divine power from the Saint flooded my body. My strength surged and all fatigue vanished. Better than a fatigue potion.
Elfride was also receiving a blessing from Saint Cynthia, and Revius was...
Thinking about it, I had brought Celine, so there was no Saint to bless Revius.
“Saint-nim, can you only bless one person?”
“Yes. One priest can only bless one person. If you try to bless another, the existing blessing will disappear.”
“...Hmm.”
Then I had no choice but to let Celine bless Revius...?
“Celine.”
“...Yes, Hero-nim. I’ll be right back.”
...She hadn’t said anything yet.
“You knew what I was going to say....”
“Were you going to ask me to bless Hero Revius?”
“...Exactly.”
Was I that transparent?
“For an emergency situation, there’s no other choice. You don’t need to feel bad, Hero-nim.”
“...Hmm, thank you.”
Celine approached Revius. Revius looked at her and asked why she had come.
“You should receive a blessing so you can fight.”
“...Hmm, that’s right.”
Revius, thankfully, acted rationally, and Celine blessed him.
“...Celine.”
“...Why are you saying that?”
“I should come back, right? I won’t lay a hand on you ever again.”
That crazy bastard again....
“I’m sorry, but I have no intention of doing that.”
“Wha.......”
Celine cut off Revius’s words with a decisive reply that had nothing to do with what he had said. She then returned to my side.
“Why are you looking at me like that, Hero-nim?”
“...Ah, nothing. Revius seemed to be saying something strange again.”
“He’s always been like that.”
He’s always been like that.
Revius was glaring at me in anger. Just as I was about to say something, he suddenly jolted and turned his head away.
Why was that? Like he had seen something scary....
At that moment, someone poked my side repeatedly. There was only one person who would do something like that to me.
“...Why are you poking me, Saint-nim. It tickles.”
“Hero-nim~♡ We’re about to start soon, so climb on the horse~♡”
“...Eh?”
Suddenly I was supposed to ride a horse?
“Ah, do you not know how to ride a horse?”
“...I’ve never ridden one.”
“Huhu♡ There really is a scrub Hero here♡ One who’s supposedly a Hero~♡”
Crap, you’re teaching me how to ride?
“Then you’ll ride behind me.”
“...Eh?”
...Could I even get on a horse?
“...You’re looking at me with such a strange gaze, Hero-nim.”
“...No? I don’t see anything strange. It’s just that the horse seems high....”
“...I can definitely ride it. Unlike some scrub~♡”
How was I supposed to climb on that tall horse with my height?
“Is that so? Go ahead and try.”
“Hmph, watch this.”
The Saint approached the horse and suddenly stroked its mane. Wasn’t she supposed to be riding it?
“Good girl~.”
To calm the horse in case it spooked. I needed to remember that.
After thoroughly stroking the mane, she stepped into the stirrup and leaped up with all her might.
“......Fuhat!”
“...W-why are you laughing!?”
The Saint was clearly shorter. Because she couldn’t swing her leg over in one motion, she was clinging to the saddle like a koala, slowly maneuvering her way up.
“No, your posture is ridiculous. Khehe...!”
“...W-well, this is how I ride! I don’t know about you, but as someone who can’t ride a horse....”
“Is that how it’s done? It didn’t seem like it....”
I watched Celine as she mounted the horse. She placed her foot in the stirrup steadily, pulled herself up, and naturally swung her leg over to the other side.
“This is how you ride a horse.”
You’re deflecting because you’re embarrassed too. The Saint was indeed embarrassed, her cheeks faintly red.
“I’m not letting you ride.”
“Eh...? Then I’ll ride with Celine.”
“Ah, no! Climb on here!”
What was I supposed to do?
I tried to imitate what the Saint and Celine had done. I stepped into the empty stirrup, leaped, and swung my leg over. Oh, it worked.
“...You said you’d never ridden before, right?”
“You’re taller than I am, so it was easy.”
“......Unlucky.”
This was unbelievable. Who was born small?
“Take your foot off the stirrup.”
“Ah, yes.”
“You need to brace your thighs and hold tight. If you don’t, you’ll fall.”
Hold what?
“Hold what?”
“It’s your waist. Do you need me to explain it~♡ You big idiot♡”
“...Hold your waist?”
“Yes. You’re not having weird thoughts about me, are you~?”
“I wasn’t.”
But...could I really hold it?
I reached out my hand. Was I supposed to grab the waist like this?
“Hero-nim, what are you doing? Are you embarrassed♡ Even holding the waist like this and you’re already blushing, you’re such a scared virgin Hero~♡”
“I got it! I’ll hold it!”
...This was unavoidable. It was a completely sincere act.
I grabbed both of the Saint’s sides with both hands. Whoa, they were thin. Extremely slender.
“Kyaa!?”
“W-why are you doing that?”
“...Hero-nim, who told you to hold me like that~♡ Holding my waist like this is fine~!”
“Ah.”
...Ah, right.
I wrapped my arms around the Saint’s waist and clasped my hands in front of her stomach.
“Is this okay?”
“...Yes, it’s perfect.”
This posture was a bit... close to her body.
...In more ways than one.
“Everyone, are you ready?!”
“Yes, let’s go.”
The commander nodded and gave the order to the troops.
“All forward!”
#
Thud!
Thud!
Thud!
Every time the hooves pounded, the ground shook. We waited at a position where we could observe the monsters with our eyes. The soldiers, including me, held their breath.
“...Is that the monster?”
“It’s a giant-type monster.”
...It was insanely large. Even roughly estimating, it was over 50 meters.
“...This will be tough.”
“Even tougher than floating-type ones?”
Flying ones were already tough. Their mobility, not being able to fight on land—it was all inconvenient.
“Mobility will be much slower, but the problem is the form of my sword and Revius’s sword. Mine is a rapier suited for thrusting, and Revius’s is a small dagger. Those won’t suit a giant monster. A weapon that can deal a massive wound in one strike would be ideal.”
“...Like my greatsword?”
Elfride didn’t deny it. Nodding, she added, “That’s right, but you won’t be facing that monster. Besides....”
Elfride’s gaze turned to the Saint in front of me.
Huh? Did Elfride already know?
...When had she been showing off her strength like this?
“...Anyway, I’ll make sure you don’t have to fight that monster. So, Abel, you handle the other monsters as much as possible.”
“Understood.”
Elfride turned to Revius and said, “Revius, let’s go.”
“...Understood.”
Revius dismounted and drew the twin daggers at his waist. They looked identical but had different colors.
Two?
“Saint-nim, which of the two daggers is the Holy Sword of Joy?”
“Oh my, I thought you’d ask if the sword was a pair. Your observation is a bit slow~♡”
*That’s right, I could have thought that. I was just thinking simply.*
“The one with the red tip and overall black is the Holy Sword of Joy.”
“Ah, I see.”
“The other one... seems to be a relic from the Ludria Church. It was probably made for the temple to use as a pair with the Holy Sword of Joy.”
“I see.”
Elfride also drew her rapier and dismounted.
“Abel.”
“Yes.”
“Best of luck.”
“...Yes, Elfride, take care too.”
Elfride nodded and stepped forward. The soldiers following her and Revius carried long-range weapons capable of firing cannons.
“We’re going too, Saint-nim.”
“Of course~♡ The scrub Hero finally gets to shine~♡ Before we go, I have something to tell you.”
“What is it?”
“Under the Amon-class monster, there will likely be a number of Upper-class monsters. Trolls are the basic ones, but powerful Upper-class monsters like Wyverns may appear as well.”
Wyvern? I thought Wyverns were among the strongest Upper-class monsters.
“Can I even beat that?”
“Huhu♡ I’ll make sure you can~♥”
Make sure?
The Saint carefully placed her hand on my chest again, just like when she blessed me.
“...Saint-nim?”
The blessing was already active...?
《Solaria’s Protection》
“!”
Divine power from the Saint flooded my body anew.
*What is this? It feels several times stronger than before. I could literally smash a rock with it.*
“How is it?”
“...What is this?”
“It’s the strongest blessing I can give you.”
“...Even blessings have tiers?”
“Yes. With your current strength, you should be able to defeat a Wyvern easily. But never let your guard down, okay?”
The Saint warned me one last time, concerned for me.
...I already knew that much.
“...Thank you, Saint-nim.”
“I want to protect the soldiers. That requires sufficient power.”
“...Y-you’re not using your power, are you?”
It couldn’t be forced. There was also the request from Cardinal Antonio....
“...Oh♡ Are you worried about me? But it’s fine. This is just one type of blessing, not the kind you’re concerned about. So fight with all your heart~♡”
That settled it. I nodded, drew my sword, and felt how light it had become. The sword had always been light, but now it felt even lighter.
...There really were cheat keys.
“...Whew.”
I looked ahead.
The monsters I had to bear... there were hundreds of them.
If asked if I could do it, I could answer with certainty.
“Let’s go!”
I could do this now.
---