Friend (2)
The hero, who had quit training from the very first day and was slacking off, found Karin charging at him in a rage. "Then how exactly do you plan on getting stronger!"
"My ear! My ear's gonna rip off! Stop yanking it!"
The hero, whose ear was being mercilessly twisted by Karin, sprang to his feet and drew the holy sword Gramhilt. Under the training ground's lights, Gramhilt sparkled with a beautiful milky glow.
"This holy sword! If I can just awaken its power, I can flip everything in one shot!"
"What are you, some kind of gambler? So how does this awakening even work?"
"Bonds. Love. If there's love, I can grow stronger. Please, I want to get stronger through the power of love... Tell me you love me!"
The reaction was ice-cold. Karin looked at him like he was something filthy, and the other heroines weren't much better. Only Leticia sighed as she watched the hero's desperate face, about to speak.
"Fine, okay. I lo—"
"I love you! Am I stronger now?"
At that moment, someone cut in and clapped a hand over Leticia's mouth. It was Naelle. She grabbed the collapsed hero's hand, beaming with a bright smile.
"Doing your best is what matters! If this is your best, hero, then I think it's fine to rest here today! You've worked really hard, haven't you?"
Exhausted from Karin's scolding, the hero stared at that sunshine smile in a daze and mumbled.
"An angel... No, mom..."
"M-mom?"
He buried himself in her arms and began to cry.
"Mother, why did you abandon me..."
"I-is that so? You must have had it so hard. You can stay like this a little longer."
"Stop that!"
Karin dragged the hero out of Naelle's much smaller embrace, shouting angrily. "Don't indulge him like this or he'll pick up bad habits. And you need to be more wary of men!"
"But he's a friend."
"A friend, not a mother. Really, I'm so worried about you. From now on, I'll keep strict watch so you two are never alone together!"
Pulling Naelle away from the hero and hugging her arm tight, Karin made her declaration. She had few friends and cherished Naelle in her own way. Thanks to that, even while staying with the hopeless hero, nothing concerning ever happened.
But there were days when that surveillance grew lax. It was shortly after Jain had joined the party. The group was staying in a neutral city at the edge of the Demon Continent, stocking up on supplies for their journey.
"Lost again..."
Karin, who challenged Jain to a duel every single day, dropped to her knees after yet another defeat in their magic match. Normally she would have turned away in annoyance, but today's Jain was different. He approached her suddenly with a request.
"Hold on. Before you run off crying again, I have something to say."
"W-who said I was running off crying!"
"You know there's a festival in the neutral city tonight that only couples can attend, right?"
"Huh? Oh. Yeah, I've heard about it."
"Can't you go with me? There's something I absolutely have to do."
It was for an achievement. There was one that could only be cleared by attending that festival, and he wanted to knock it out as soon as possible. At those words, Karin's face flushed bright red and she yelled.
"N-no way! Who would go to something like that with a pervert like you! Absolutely not!"
She fled into the tent. She was so flustered she even left her bag behind.
"Guess not. Can't be helped."
Jain sighed and turned to Ren. But this was still the period when Ren was taking Soria's warnings to heart and staying wary of him.
"I-I also have, um, plans, so I don't think I can."
He looked at Leticia, but the response was similar.
"I still have training I must finish, so it would be difficult."
The only one who showed even a slightly positive reaction was Elaine. The moment Jain's gaze landed on her, she flashed her fangs in a grin.
"Well, I've been curious about Demon Continent festivals myself. If you ask nicely, I could go with you. But I don't have any money. If you generously cover all the costs, I might consider it?"
"Ugh, you smell like a cheap whore's milk bucket."
"Hey!"
Oh well. He'd just have to clear the festival attendance achievement later, after everything else was done, by bringing a girl with him separately. As Jain nodded to himself with that thought—
"Um, if it's okay with me, shall we go together?"
Naelle tugged at his sleeve as she spoke up. Jain's eyes widened in surprise.
"You?"
"Yeah! I've always wanted to attend a human festival at least once! There's a tavern I really want to visit too! Is that all right?"
If Karin had been around, she would have blocked it without question. But she was currently holed up in the tent, furiously punching her pillow.
"I'd be grateful. Please take care of me."
In the end, Jain and Naelle attended the neutral city's festival together.
*
That evening, on the outskirts of the neutral city. Jain stood with his arms crossed, back against the wall as he gazed at the sky. He turned at the sound of a voice calling him.
"Have you been waiting long?"
Naelle came running over with a bright smile. She had changed into traditional Demon Realm clothing rented from a shop. Unfamiliar with the high heels, her steps were unsteady. In the end, she tripped right in front of him.
"Careful."
"Hehe, thanks. These shoes are pretty, but they're really uncomfortable."
Fortunately, Jain caught her just before she hit the ground. The traditional Demon Continent attire emphasized beauty over practicality—revealing and not very comfortable. But the sacrifice made it stunning. Naelle, already an exceptionally beautiful elf, drew every eye around her like a magnet.
Jain, however, remained unmoved.
"Let's handle my business as quickly as possible, then finish up by drinking at that tavern you mentioned."
His tone was purely businesslike. He needed to clear the achievement fast. As they moved through the festival together, Jain attacked every game with ruthless efficiency. Records at the old stalls fell like autumn leaves in his wake.
"Well now, it's been ten years since I pulled out this dalgona mold. This is it! If you manage to extract the Thousand-Armed Avalokitesvara drawn on this dalgona... Wait, you already did?"
"This is a technique I've never used in my twenty years as a con man! Among these eighty-one cups, the ball is... Hey, can't you at least wait until I finish talking before you get it right?"
"I've never lost an arm-wrestling match in the last seven years! ...Ow ow ow ow, I surrender!"
Crunching through the fish-shaped candy he'd won as a prize, Jain hunted for his next victim. The following target was a stall where you shot arrows to knock down prizes.
"This is your specialty, so you should join—"
Only then did he realize he'd lost Naelle. Moving too quickly through the crowds for achievement hunting must have separated them.
"Mister! You playing or not?"
"Just a moment."
After excusing himself from the stall, Jain soon spotted her. She was holding a light-blue cotton candy, surrounded by men and wearing a flustered expression. It looked like she was being hit on. The uncomfortable heels kept her from running away easily.
"Come on, hang out with us. We know a great spot."
"I'm sorry, but I'm with a friend."
"A friend? Boyfriend?"
"Yes. A male friend, but..."
"What kind of guy leaves a pretty girl like you all alone? Forget that insensitive idiot and have fun with us."
One of them—a muscular blond—grinned slyly and reached for Naelle's hand. The next instant, he let out a scream like a rag being wrung dry.
"Ugh, uuuuugh!"
Jain had rushed over, seized the hand instead, and crushed it with a powerful grip.
"Y-you! Who the hell are you!"
"An insensitive idiot."
"Okay, okay, I was wrong! Just let go!"
Surprisingly, the blond admitted defeat easily and backed off. His hand had been bent into a surreal shape by the grip strength. Once the men retreated, Jain sighed and apologized. Naelle, still holding her cotton candy, stared at him with wide eyes.
"Sorry. I was the one who suggested coming, but I let you get into that mess. That guy was right. I was being insensitive."
"Huh? You actually know how to apologize?"
"Of course I do. What exactly did you take me for?"
"A friend."
Naelle smiled brightly, broke off a piece of cotton candy, and popped it into Jain's mouth. Sweetness bloomed across his tongue like bubbles.
"That was kind of cool just now."
"Really? Glad to hear it."
"You have something you absolutely have to do here, right?"
Jain nodded. Naelle answered with a radiant smile.
"Still, it's a festival. Why not enjoy it while we do what you need to? You don't have to rush through everything like you're being chased."
This time, Naelle was right. Jain scratched his head, then held his hand out to her.
"Is walking still uncomfortable?"
"Yeah, I'm not quite used to it yet..."
"So nothing like before happens again, let's hold hands from now on."
"Okay!"
Naelle smiled brightly once more and gripped his hand tightly. An elf's hand was white and slender like a pianist's. But it was warm. From then on, they didn't lose each other and safely completed the festival achievement.
After watching the fireworks that signaled the festival's end, the pair headed to the tavern Naelle had been eager to visit and started drinking. Naelle sat at the table with sparkling eyes, gulped down the strongly pine-scented liquor, and slammed her glass down.
"Puhaaa, this is the stuff!"
"You like to drink?"
"Yeah! I especially love this pine scent! They said the Demon Realm's pine smell was stronger, and it's true!"
"Ugh, pine caterpillar."
"P-pine caterpillar?"
She didn't know what it meant, but it sounded insulting. The drunk Naelle giggled dizzily and filled Jain's glass to the brim.
"Here, this pine caterpillar will pour you a drink! You're not backing out, right?"
"What, you're challenging me to a drinking contest? Warning you now—I'm ridiculously strong."
"Hehe, I've never lost a drinking match in four hundred years."
"Today's gonna be your first loss."
"I won't lose! If I do, I'll grant you any request you want!"
"You really mean that?"
Jain's eyes sharpened. Tension flickered in the gazes of the people around them. It was the kind of promise a woman shouldn't make lightly. Even the bartender wiping glasses tried to intervene.
"Um, miss elf. You really shouldn't make promises like that so casually with a man..."
"I won't lose! Bring three more bottles!"
Naelle laughed brightly and ordered boldly. And, of course, she lost.
"Hic... ugh, you were the real pine caterpillar... Doesn't your head hurt?"
"I warned you. My drinking capacity is fucking strong."
That dawn, Naelle could no longer control her body. Jain carried her on his back as they left the neutral city.
"Still... I didn't think it'd be this bad... Uuk."
"Oh no, are you throwing up again?"
Jain set her down and patted her back. Once her stomach settled and she was back on his back, Naelle spoke in a small, embarrassed voice.
"Sorry... It doesn't smell, does it..."
"It's fine. Now it's time to keep your promise."
"Promish?"
"You said you'd grant me any one request, remember?"
"Yeah! Tell me!"
After choosing his words carefully, Jain asked directly.
"Are you a virgin?"
"Yeah!"
"Then let's keep it that way until the adventure ends. It's a promise."
Even through her drunken haze, Naelle looked dazed as she asked back.
"Is it really that hard that you need to get a promise for it?"
"Of course. Men are all wolf bastards. You have to be careful."
"Pfft, so you're a wolf too?"
"No, I'm definitely not."
"What is that... Your logic is weird."
"Anyway, you're pretty, and way too defenseless. Getting a promise like this is the only way I can relax."
He meant it. In the original story, Naelle was the type who got dragged into every hunting event and scam event imaginable. This world was mostly like the game but had enough differences that such events could lead to unexpected accidents. Elves took promises seriously, so making one should prevent any problems. That was Jain's reasoning.
"P-pretty? Me?"
"Obviously."
"I've never heard that before... Back home, everyone treated me like a child..."
"A child? How old are you?"
"Four hundred..."
"You're a child at four hundred?"
"I-it's young for an elf!"
Naelle puffed out her cheeks and smacked Jain's back repeatedly. Soon tiring herself out, she lowered her head.
"Okay. I'll promise."
"If you can't keep it, I'll be incredibly disappointed."
"I said I got it."
"I'll be as furious as if the world itself collapsed. Understand?"
"I said I got it! Stop worrying, uuk."
"Here we go again."
Jain patted the back of the elf who had once again made a grand mess of things and looked up at the sky. The moon over the Demon Continent carried a faint bloody tint.
*
A little time passed after that. It was right after they had defeated the second of the Four Heavenly Kings, the Screaming Archdemon.
"What is this?"
Karin, cleaning up the Archdemon's corpse, found something in its stomach and widened her eyes. It looked like a jade talisman that had been deliberately split in two.
"Just looks like a broken talisman."
"Ah, that's what I was looking for. Hand it over."
Jain snatched the necklace-shaped talisman from Karin's hand. She passed it without complaint. To her, it didn't seem particularly valuable. After summoning water to wash it clean, Jain handed one half to Naelle.
"Hey, got a present for you."
"Huh?"
"Take it. It'll save your life one day."
"Really? Okay! Thank you!"
Naelle's eyes widened, then she smiled brightly as she accepted the talisman and hung it around her neck. True to form, she asked no further questions. Watching her, Jain felt a weight lift from his chest. He hung the other half around his own neck.
With this, I'm fully prepared for the next event.
The talisman's name was the Summoning Talisman. If the wearer sensed a life-threatening crisis, it would automatically summon the person holding the other half. The reason Naelle needed it was simple.
An assassination event is coming soon.
The Empire, which had been skeptical whether the first victory was mere luck, now had its feet held to the fire after the hero party defeated the second Heavenly King. The disposable hero party had somehow hit a massive jackpot. They hurriedly organized a grand welcome and sponsorship banquet to invite the group, but the rushed nature of the event meant security would be lax. An assassination attempt was scheduled to take advantage of that moment. This talisman was the final insurance to stop it.