Chapter 171: Nightmare (7)
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 171: Nightmare (7)
I’m sick of it.
That was what Han Jisu felt three years after being summoned as the Hero of another world.
He could no longer feel the fear and anger he’d first felt on the battlefield. It was inevitable. No matter what he did, he lived, and his companions died.
There was a time when he had desperately tried to become stronger to reduce the sacrifices of his allies.
Perhaps thanks to some talent, he grew incomparably stronger than when he first stood on the battlefield.
But his enemies grew stronger too.
As if to maintain a balance, the stronger he became, the more powerful foes appeared on the enemy side, and all his efforts came to nothing.
I’m exhausted.
Exhausted from struggling to get stronger, to protect someone, anyone.
Exhausted from the frustration of failure.
He was sick and tired of it all.
“Sir Hero, His Majesty the Emperor summons you!” a knight in red plate armor announced as he approached.
Another battlefield?
He’d just been told to rest, and now they were sending him out again? Was the situation that dire?
As it turned out, his assumption was wrong.
The Emperor had not summoned him to throw him onto a new battlefield.
In the audience chamber, besides the Emperor, his royal guards, and his vassals, stood a group of unfamiliar figures.
“Is that the so-called Hero? Why’s he look so scrawny?”
A giant of a man with messy, long hair clicked his tongue. A woman in white armor smacked him on his scarred back.
“What insolence toward the Hero, Barbarian. Apologize at once.”
“Ha! Are you weaklings sticking up for each other? Pathetic. Hey, Emperor. Instead of investing in these scrawny things, invest in me and my tribe. Just give us each an Orichalcum axe, and I’ll bring you the head of that Demon King bastard right now.”
“How dare you be so rude to His Majesty the Emperor? Bow your head at once.”
A middle-aged man in light attire shot him a sharp glare, his hand moving to his sword. The barbarian looked at him, dumbfounded.
“What’s this? The woman stays quiet, and now this guy’s starting shit?”
“That is because you were disrespectful to His Majesty. And Ash, why are you just standing there?”
At the man’s words, the blonde woman who had just hit the barbarian’s back tilted her head.
“What about?”
“This barbarian was insolent to His Majesty. Why did you do nothing? You should have stopped him, just as you did when he insulted the Hero.”
“Me? Why?”
“Because your superior was insulted, so naturally—”
“His Majesty the Emperor isn’t my superior. My superiors are the Pope and the Hero.”
“…”
The middle-aged man was left speechless.
Ash puffed out her chest with a proud, triumphant look on her face.
“…Humans.”
An elf woman with long green hair and a beastman with wolf ears watched the scene with pathetic looks in their eyes.
Han Jisu found them just as pathetic.
“Your Majesty. Who are they?”
“From now on, Hero, they will be your companions. Let me introduce them one by one. First—”
“I don’t need them.”
“…Pardon?”
“I said I don’t need companions. Is that the only reason you summoned me?”
“W-Well, yes, but…”
“Understood. Then I will return and continue my rest.”
Without hesitation, Han Jisu turned his back and left the audience chamber. He could hear the vassals behind him muttering about his audacity, but he didn’t care. As the Hero, he wouldn’t be punished for something so trivial.
Besides, if they were talking about rudeness, the ones who had forcibly dragged him here to play a hero he never wanted to be were far ruder.
It was only because of his mild-mannered nature that he hadn’t already raised hell several times over.
He left the audience chamber and was walking down a corridor, intending to leave the palace entirely.
He sensed someone following him.
Han Jisu looked back. The woman who had been trailing him stopped when he did. A beauty with a gentle impression and blonde hair that fell to her waist. It was the woman from the audience chamber, Ash.
“Are you heading this way too?”
“Yes, I am, Sir Hero.”
“I see.”
Han Jisu continued forward. Soon, they reached a fork in the path, and he took the path to the right.
He glanced back and saw Ash had also turned right.
He turned around and went down the left path.
Ash also turned around and followed him down the left path.
When Han Jisu stopped, she stopped too. He narrowed his eyes.
“What do you think you’re doing? Didn’t you say you were just heading the same way?”
“Pardon?”
“You went right just a moment ago. Why did you turn around and come left? Why are you following me?”
“Because this is the path I must take.”
Ash placed her right hand on her chest and declared with a triumphant expression.
“I am Ash, Commander of the Holy Knights of the Temple of Lady Meria. The path the Hero, chosen by Lady Meria and the other gods, walks is the very path I must follow! Do not worry. I will always have your back… Ah!? Why are you suddenly running, Sir Hero!”
“Shut up. Don’t follow me.”
“I’m afraid I can’t do that!”
“Agh, what a pain.”
Han Jisu clicked his tongue and leaped from the palace corridor. Ash followed suit, jumping after him. Thud! Landing from a height of three stories, Ash smirked and looked up.
“You can’t get away from me just by jumping… Huh? Wait?”
When she raised her head, Han Jisu was gone. Her eyes darted around, but she couldn’t even see his shadow.
“Sir Hero? Sir Hero??”
Panicked, she started running forward blindly, calling out his name. After she was gone, Han Jisu, who had been hiding prone in some bushes, got to his feet.
“Why the hell is she chasing me…”
He sighed and brushed the dirt from his clothes. He decided to find a random inn in the city, get some sleep, and forget about the day’s events.
But that day was only the beginning.
“Sir Hero! Good morning! Let’s do our morning training together! Shall we start with a run? It will be a good way to warm up!”
“After a lap around the city, I’m sweating waterfalls. But thanks to that, the breeze feels wonderfully cool.”
“There might be poison in the food, so I shall taste it first! Nom. Hmm… Sir Hero, rather than eat here, shouldn’t we just return to the palace for our meals? This is honestly no better than dog food… No, that’s not what I meant. I wasn’t implying you’re the kind of person who eats dog food… Sir Hero?! Wait a moment!”
“I found you! You were back in your… Ah… S-Sorry. I didn’t realize you were changing… Kyaa?! I-I’m sorry, please don’t throw the chair…!”
At first, he thought she would get tired and give up after a few days at most, but he was mistaken.
Ash continued to follow Han Jisu relentlessly.
On top of that, her stalking skills were improving day by day.
How is she the Commander of the Holy Knights?
A thief, maybe.
He grumbled internally as he headed for the temple. He planned to meet the Pope and ask him to get this annoying woman off his back.
However, his plan was thwarted before he even reached the temple.
The people the Emperor had tried to assign as his companions were blocking his path.
“See? I told you. The Hero would come this way.”
“Hah… Well, I’ll be damned. Of all the paths he could have taken, you knew he’d pick this one?”
“Whatever, just pay up. One gold each. You promised you’d pay if I was right.”
Ash collected money from everyone—the swordsman, the barbarian, the beastman, and the elf. Then she approached Han Jisu and offered him half of the winnings.
“…What is this?”
“It’s money I earned thanks to you, Sir Hero. So we’re splitting it.”
“I was wondering why you weren’t following me today. Was it so you could bring these guys along?”
“I didn’t bring them. They asked me for a favor. They wanted me to help them meet you.”
“And why would you do that?”
“…Pardon? Ah…”
Sensing the displeasure in his voice, Ash glanced around nervously before discreetly placing another gold coin in his hand.
“W-Will this be enough?”
“…I’m not even going to bother.”
Speechless, Han Jisu let out a deep sigh. He looked up at the four people blocking his way.
“So? Why did you want to see me?”
At his question, the barbarian stepped forward. He crossed his thick arms and boomed in a thunderous voice.
“You, become my companion!”
“No.”
“Haha, so decisive. But you don’t have the right to refuse!”
“Why not.”
“Because if I don’t make you my companion, the Emperor will cut off support to my tribe! As their king, I cannot allow my people to starve. Therefore, become my companion, Hero!”
“I said no.”
“If you’re going to be that way, then I have no choice. I’ll drag you along by force!”
The barbarian shouted, spreading his thick arms wide. At his signal, the elf awakened her mana, the beastman nocked an arrow to his bowstring, and the swordsman quietly drew his sword.
Ash frowned.
“What do you think you’re doing? Do you dare raise your swords against the Hero?”
“I have no choice. Like the barbarian, I have a promise from the Emperor.”
“Same here.”
“My apologies. It is to uphold the Emperor’s command, so please try to understand.”
“You said you would ask politely… You bastards tricked me!”
Ash gritted her teeth and drew her sword.
“Sir Hero. Do not worry. I will take responsibility for protecting your back!”
“Bullshit. You get over there too.”
Han Jisu grabbed Ash by the scruff of her neck and threw her toward the four opponents.
“Huh? Kyaa!?”
Though thrown suddenly, the veteran knight landed safely with a practiced roll.
“S-Sir Hero? What do you mean, ‘get over there too’…?”
Han Jisu ignored Ash’s bewildered gaze. Instead, with a face full of irritation, he drew his own sword.
“Just because I’ve been doing what I’m told, you think I’m a fucking pushover, don’t you?”
He angrily threw his scabbard aside and pointed the tip of his sword at the five of them, including Ash.
“Come at me, you motherfuckers. I’ll tear you limb from limb.”
“The Hero is right. You’d best not think you’ll be walking away from this in one piece!”
Ash shouted as she scurried to Han Jisu’s side.
She was thrown again.