Chapter 5
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 5
Chapter Title: Snare
-----------------------------------------------------------------
".....!!"
Isabella froze in place, not making a sound.
Of course, it didn't seem like her identity had been exposed, but if questioned about what she'd just been doing, she had no excuse.
With her hand awkwardly raised as if to stroke his head, she slowly loosened her grip.
".......Mmm…....."
Snore—
Adel twisted a bit on the bed for a moment before promptly falling back asleep.
"......Haa..."
Isabella let out a slow sigh of relief and quietly slipped out of Adel's room.
"......Still no luck finding him?"
The emperor of the Unified Empire, Arhad—the Conqueror King and sworn friend of the hero Adel—pressed his throbbing temples and barked at the Knight Commander.
The Second Knight Commander knelt and nodded slowly, prompting Arhad to sigh in lament.
".....Where the hell did he go. Damn it...."
It wasn't just about finding his friend. The empire's citizens were on the verge of rioting.
They'd hurled stones at him under the curse's influence themselves, and now protests were breaking out left and right.
'.....Damn it all. We shouldn't have handed that wretched woman the reins and let her torture him.'
The truth was, even imperial officials had fallen under the curse, but they'd agreed not to go beyond sentencing—no excessive punishment, fueled solely by hatred for Adel.
After all, he was the hero sent by the goddess herself. Without him slaying the Demon King, humanity would have gone extinct like the elves.
But Aileen, once the Fifth Knight Commander and his comrade, had pushed hard.
"Your Majesty, what are you saying? We must sentence him to death, as is proper."
".....Lady Aileen. I understand your point, but the curse provides grounds for leniency. There might be something worth observing..."
"What do you mean?! Thousands of imperial citizens witnessed this vile hero massacring civilians!!"
"......"
Arhad stared at Aileen slowly.
She, the former Fifth Knight Commander.
Thinking back, she'd hated Adel for a very long time.
The very existence of a "hero" seemed to grate on her, and she picked fights constantly.
This behavior now wasn't righteous fury over civilian deaths—it was petty resentment for being rejected from the hero's party.
That much was clear.
Yes, it was.
But...
He had no grounds to refuse.
"Then... would torture suffice?"
"......"
Her lips curled into a slow grin.
The reason she'd been stripped of her knighthood was partly her violent nature.
She routinely beat subordinates in front of others and reveled in torturing prisoners daily.
".....Approved."
Even so, Arhad had no choice but to side with her.
The [Perception Distortion] curse, fueled by the Demon King's blood, was that potent.
".....Haa...."
He kept sighing deeply when—
".....The Holy Knight Commander requests an audience."
"....Let him in."
The second problem child made his entrance.
The Holy Knight Commander knelt gracefully and slowly began to speak to Arhad.
".....Her condition is deteriorating badly."
"......I know, but it's impossible. You know that."
"......."
"Impossible means impossible. The Saintess is the empire's symbol. She can't leave the capital except for special cases like the hero's party. That's the rule."
".....I understand, but....!!"
Rev's mind flashed to the Saintess's state.
Saintess Lena's condition was plummeting to the worst.
Arhad's gaze softened with pity as he comforted the Holy Knight Commander.
".....Haa, we're searching as fast as we can on this end too. Comfort her as best you can."
".....Understood..."
Kuwek—!!
An orc swung a heavy fist at my head.
I ducked low, spinning naturally to thrust my sword up into its jaw from below.
It had been two and a half years since I'd last swung a sword, but my body moved on autopilot. My master's—Lloyd's—words echoed in my mind.
[Master, wouldn't training Aura be more efficient than swordsmanship drills?]
[Tch.]
[.....Agh.... Why hit me...?!]
[You idiot disciple. You gonna let the Demon King tenderize you with Aura until you're drained, then stick out your neck and beg him to kill you? Think before you speak.]
Of course, I'd shattered the Demon King before my Aura ran dry. Who knew it'd prove so useful.
Boom—!!
Elysia's long-cast Third Circle spell, Lightning Bolt, instantly roasted the three orcs in front of me.
Karin's Heal and Haste followed right up.
But the party's main damage dealer was someone else.
Boom—!!
Belial. Orc heads exploded one by one under her sword strikes.
She wasn't burning much Aura, but her precision and mastery at the limit left even me in awe.
'At this level, she could rival an imperial guard knight.'
".....We'll push deeper."
".....Wow, sis! Sis!! I trust only you!!"
".....Please don't yank my arm."
As Elysia hugged her tight, Belial gently pried her off with a troubled look.
....Knight types were all such buzzkills.
Brainwashed from childhood with formal speech and etiquette, their personalities locked into stoic mode.
Sure, there were exceptions like that psycho bitch, but she'd been stripped of her title anyway.
Last night was probably just my imagination. Likely mistaking Karin, who checked on me nightly.
".....Um, are you... okay....?"
".....Pardon?"
".....Your arm...."
....Ah, just a light graze maybe.
I swung my arm around like it was nothing.
"This much?.... Pfft, just daily life."
".....Ah, right... Of course..."
"?"
"Yes, 60 gold for the quest reward."
I took the coin pouch from Aris and started dividing it equally among the party.
But we hadn't come to the Adventurer's Guild just for payout. It was to join a major raid mission they were hosting.
"Ah, yes! Joining the raid? One moment please?"
Raid mission.
S-Rank ones drew dozens of parties, but those were imperial ops with knight orders.
Ours was an A-Rank raid dungeon.
Six parties—24 people total—subjugating Snowmen in the Frost Mountains.
Aris led me straight to the raid leader.
Luke, the A-Rank adventurer dubbed ex-knight.
His gear screamed top-tier at a glance, and his party matched.
"....Greetings?"
"Hey now—greetings!! Joining our raid group?"
"Yes. Though our party's B-Rank—"
"No problem!! Big bro, just follow us—body's all we need. Hahaha!!!"
"......"
One boisterous guy.
....Déjà vu aside, raids offered unmatched payouts. I signed us up gladly and headed out.
Lately, sans drinks, I took nightly walks.
Post-traumatic stress disorder—PTSD—had gripped me hard for a while.
Torture aftereffects were brutal; body mostly healed, but mind teetered on the edge.
....That was a month ago. Much better now.
Aileen's face still boiled my blood, but these wooded paths brought peace....
'....Huh? Wait. What's that.'
I rubbed my bleary eyes, squinting at the distant figure.
Hunters only out here.
Staring awhile, I realized what the tree-bound person was doing.
I bolted over and yanked the man from the noose around his neck.
".....Kkhk..... Kek...."
"......."
Once he stopped gasping, I looked at him pityingly.
".....You alright?"
"......"
The man said nothing.
I didn't know his story, why he'd choose this.
But I'd been driven to extremes myself.
I patted his shoulder gently.
".....Hic...."
He wept like it all hurt too much.
That was it.
The stranger bawled like a child right there.
As he cried, I stared at the noose and said,
".....I've been pushed this far too."
"......."
"Just three days passed, and the urge faded. Can't get revenge if you're dead, right?"
"......"
"That's all. Three days.... Rethink it. Too damn cold to die today, no?"
The man chuckled ruefully, mumbling 'Yeah, of all days....' before thanking me and leaving.
After he vanished, I stared at the noose long.
Not pondering philosophy or nobility—just spacing out.
Hours later?
Time to head back to the inn. Leaving this eyesore on my private stroll spot felt wrong.
Walk in tomorrow to a hanging corpse? Nightmares galore.
As I reached for the noose—
Grip...
Two hands seized my collar from behind, pinning me.
Those hands trembled violently, like seizing up.
".....Don't... do it..... Please......"