Bait

Eleven years old—that was the age the man standing before her claimed to be.

"A lie?"

Looking at what, exactly?

Latera gave the man a slow once-over. He stood a full two heads taller than her. His voice was deep and resonant, nothing like a child's. Even being generous, he looked less like a boy and more like a young man well past twenty.

Suspicion was only natural. Anyone with eyes could see he was a fully grown adult male.

Latera fixed him with a prim little scowl.

"How can you possibly be eleven looking like that? Want me to fetch you a mirror?"

"You said this place exists as a soul, didn't you?" the man answered curtly. "I guess this is just what my soul looks like."

"A soul can only take a form it has actually experienced. It's not as if the Hero reincarnated with all his memories intact..."

Latera trailed off, staring at him with sudden doubt. Then her eyes flew wide.

Reincarnation...

The word she herself had just spoken lit a spark. Her face lit up with excitement as she whirled on him.

"Don't tell me—Hero, are you a reincarnator?"

"...Who knows."

Who knows? The answer was anything but clear.

The man put on a deliberately grave expression and turned his head away. He looked like he was hiding something, yet even when Latera peered into his heart, no useful information surfaced.

Apparently she still hadn't earned his trust.

Latera glanced at the translucent message window floating before her eyes. Her senior had called that panel—visible only to guardian angels—a message window. The ability to peek into the hearts of those who entered this place gave her an overwhelming advantage.

Just like that, the man's thoughts appeared on the window exactly as they were.

But even that soon went blank.

Because the man had simply stopped thinking.

For a little while now he had been keeping his thoughts to an absolute minimum. Even so, he was still human, with a human heart. Just as an ordinary person screams when stabbed by a knife, he couldn't help reacting to the stimuli reaching his eyes and ears.

Latera's brow furrowed.

New lines immediately appeared on the message window.

Yes, I am.

Latera affirmed it inwardly. But she no longer bothered to voice the fact that she was reading him.

Every time she acted as though she were peering into his mind, the lines that flickered up second by second made it plain the man was thinking poorly of her.

She wanted a good relationship with the "sir" she had waited so long for—yet she was only making him wary.

Am I being hated? This isn't how it's supposed to go...

In the space of only a few minutes Latera had learned her lesson. She reached a conclusion: right now the message window was no help at all.

She decided to shove the distraction aside for the moment.

Judging by the fact that the man had already thought her shameless, her own lack of tact was only going to keep putting him on guard unless she did something about it.

A firm resolve took shape inside her.

"Fine... I'll just take the Hero's word for everything. That your soul looks one age while your body in the living world is still young—all of it."

Latera stepped back a pace and smiled at him.

"What... aren't you changing your attitude a little too easily?"

The man eyed her with open suspicion, but she only gave a bitter little smile and shook her head.

"I had a feeling that if we kept going like this we wouldn't get anywhere. Besides, I don't know anything, so I have to take in new information. Even if the Hero is lying to me, the ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠truth will come out eventually—and I live a very long time."

"..."

"And honestly, isn't it better that you're not some old man with one foot in the grave? I know how to look on the bright side."

Latera decided to adjust the way she dealt with him. This was the meeting she had yearned for so desperately. If she continued as she had a moment ago, she might end up making an enemy of him altogether.

"...Positive thinking isn't a bad thing."

When Latera took that one step back, the man stroked his chin for a moment.

The message window beside her shuddered violently. Latera squeezed her eyes shut and ignored it.

"Let's keep talking."

"...Okay!"

Latera clenched her fists tight as she answered. She looked ready to do anything if it meant getting closer to the man in front of her.

I tried to make Latera understand the situation I was in.

"If I leave with you, the risk goes up."

"Is there a bigger problem than just being too young?"

"A much bigger one."

I put on a deliberately solemn face and nodded. I wasn't sure I should say this, but nothing better came to mind.

I took a deep breath and forced the heavy words out.

"I can't handle mana."

"...That's really serious."

"If it were only mana, I'd be lucky. I have no talent for the sword, no talent for magic, and no sacred power either. The contracts I made with demons aren't entirely unrelated to that. As you can see, I'm not in a position to be picky."

Once she understood my circumstances, the girl's eyes squeezed shut. The fists clenched at her sides trembled as they gripped her clothes. Had she already guessed what I would say next?

But I didn't have the luxury of considering her feelings, so I finished what I needed to say.

‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠

"If I take you out with me when I still can't do a single thing properly—what do you think happens? People will decide I'm the next Hero, and the Evil God's underlings who oppose me will come to kill me."

"..."

Latera fell silent. She probably couldn't bring herself to answer. The life of the Hero who had appeared for the first time in five hundred years, versus her own freedom.

Which way the scales tipped was her choice, but from everything she had shown so far... I doubted she would treat my life so lightly.

I roughly weighed my own value. How precious it was to be the only suitable person who could enter this place—Latera's reactions made that clear enough.

"I don't think of myself that way at all, but... let's pretend I possess selfless devotion and an extreme altruistic heart."

"...Yes."

"Even with that pretty title, I still can't do anything."

"...It's not like I don't know that."

Latera chewed her lip as she spoke. From where I stood, she looked to be in considerable inner turmoil.

"Then I can take it that you understand my situation?"

"Of course."

Latera nodded once, firmly. Then her brows twitched as if she had made up her mind about something.

"Not just that. I also understand what the Hero wants from me."

She strode right up to me.

Then she laid her hand against my chest.

The gentle, stroking touch sent a shiver down my spine. I flinched at the sudden contact.

"...What are you doing?"

I raised a hand to her shoulder to push her away, but something stopped me—the strange feeling that if I shoved her off right then, my heart itself might be ripped out with her.

Latera lifted her eyes and glared up at me.

"Just stay still."

"...At least tell me what you're trying to do before you sexually harass me."

"You said the demons made contracts with the condition that they would follow the Hero, right? I'm better than demons. I'll prove it to you right now."

Latera was doing something to me. That much I could tell for certain.

The ring above her head—which until a moment ago had simply floated there—began to thrash. Given the considerable height difference between us, I could watch the halo bend, spin, and twist from extremely close range.

My heart started to grow hot. It wasn't the searing pain of being set on fire, though.

After a short while the ring, which had been pouring out beautiful, brilliant light, gradually quieted.

Latera took her hand from my chest and stepped back. I groped at the place where her palm had been.

I had the distinct sense that something had been done to me—but it wasn't the alarm of impending danger.

"I've granted Blessings to the Hero's soul."

"Blessings?"

"They're the boons a guardian angel can bestow on a Hero. I placed three just now: the Blessing of Vigor, the Blessing of Wrath, and the Blessing of Focus. And... as a bonus, I gave you sacred power as well."

"..."

I stared at Latera with a blank expression.

She paid my reaction no mind and ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠kept talking.

"The Blessing of Vigor grants you an untiring heart. The Blessing of Wrath will let you draw out greater strength the angrier you become. The Blessing of Focus... once you decide to do something, your will won't be shaken by ordinary interference."

Latera closed one eye, crossed her arms, and smiled as if to say, Look at that. Her old self-confidence was back.

"You already know what sacred power is."

"...Of course I do."

"For now, I've given you every Blessing I can under the present circumstances."

"Meaning you could have given more?"

"Obviously. But it was still too soon. If the Blessings overflowed, your soul would just burst."

"..."

"Even setting ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠that aside—well? I'm far more useful, right?"

"...When you put it like 'useful,' it makes me sound like I'm treating you as a tool. Let me rephrase."

In answer I didn't bother hiding the smile that spread across my face.

"You're someone who can help me."

"Right?"

Latera suddenly closed the distance and clasped my hand in both of hers.

"See? We really are a perfect match."

"Yeah..."

When I gave a short laugh, Latera beamed right back at me.

"And as for me? My patience is enormous. I can wait until the Hero is ready to meet me. I already waited five hundred years... even if I wait until you're an old grandfather, that's only sixty years. That's nothing."

"You're awfully sure I'll come back for you."

"Of course. And I learned something just now while talking with the Hero."

Learned what?

Before I could ask, Latera shoved hard against my chest.

"Did you know? What I just gave you was only a sample."

I began to stagger backward. Latera pushed my chest again.

"I believe you'll come to receive the rest of the Blessings."

With that, she stopped shoving. As I stumbled back, I felt the ground under my feet suddenly drop away.