Selen, Proxy of the Goddess

On the plains near the earthen house I'd built for my lover, I brought out the entire Hero party and lined them up. The air was still. Every last one of them had wiped the smiles ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠from their faces and was watching me for a cue.

"Don't come down on them too hard."

"Stay out of this."

"Understood."

Logan toddled off and took her place beside Eluke and the other world's Liam.

"Hey. Other Liam."

"Couldn't you just call me Liam? Nicely?"

"Shut up and pay attention."

I'd come all the way out here on purpose — so that bastard would have to sit with what he'd done.

"This is unfair. All I told them was to respect you."

"Eluke. If you would."

A pretty hand clamped over that babbling mouth, and silence fell. I took my time looking over the faces of the Hero party.

Breni, still so young. Ruel, the fairy who lived for a good prank. Wifilud, who had made friends for the first time in his life. I decided not to scold any of the three. Each of them had circumstances that made it more than a little unfair to hold them strictly to account.

"Selen."

There was only one party member who needed to answer for this mess.

"Look at me."

Selen, who had been staring at the ground, lifted her gaze and met my eyes.

"You're the real problem."

Maybe it was from spending so much time around those simple kids. The upright character that had so pleased me when we first met had gone somewhere, replaced by something far too sunny.

"Don't you remember? I told you the Hero party isn't a children's game."

The fact that she looked her age was no reason to look the other way. The weight of the Hero's title was too much for shoulders that young and soft.

"Unni..."

She looked thoroughly cowed. For a moment my resolve almost wavered, and I had to lock it down hard.

"I even warned you that you had to lead them properly. So what the hell are you doing right now?"

I was deeply disappointed. She had done so well until now that I almost felt betrayed.

"You're the one who should feel the heaviest responsibility of anyone."

I stepped right up in front of ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠her.

"A Hero has to live for other people. For everyone's lives to stay peaceful, you have to be the one who sacrifices. This isn't the time to be playing around making weird statues."

A Hero had to take the lead and command their companions. If she just got swept up in the mood and grinned like an idiot the way she was now, she would almost certainly be crushed under the Demon King's presence. Looking the other way would be a flaw that invited death. Wasn't that why our own Hero party had lost in the end — because Liam never got his head on straight?

"Act properly. In a way that befits your position as the Goddess's proxy."

I finished speaking and waited for her answer. After a moment, a fierce will filled those platinum eyes.

"So you're saying we shouldn't even laugh or talk?"

Clear defiance. She was talking back to me.

"At the very least, you shouldn't be pulling pranks. Think about what you did to that pureblood vampire."

I pictured the vampire whose body from the neck down had been replaced with Aura.

"Are you insane? A Hero party taking part in turning someone into a freak like that?"

I pressed her hard, but unlike before, Selen didn't flinch. From girl to Hero. She was looking at me from an entirely different place.

"Unni... what does the former Saintess want us to do?"

When we first met, all I had wanted was for her to beat me. But as time passed, a single wish had taken root in my chest.

I wanted them not to die to the Demon King. I wanted them to be happy. I hadn't been able to keep my distance, and we had ended up close. I didn't want to lose anyone near me again. I didn't want to be left alone.

"So please. Just stop with the pranks."

"......"

Selen kept her mouth shut for a long moment, then shook her head.

A firm refusal. She pushed my feelings aside.

"Why?"

"The Sun does not wish for us to protect the world as a lonely sword and shield."

A smile as warm as sunlight bloomed on her pretty face, as if she had no intention of making an enemy of me.

"The Goddess wants the Hero party to move forward together with everyone."

Selen took the hand of Wifilud, who stood to her right.

"Why do you think She chose a vampire as Guardian? It means we should stop shunning them and get along."

Next she took Breni's hand on her left and nodded.

"Why do you think a dragon became the Sage? It means we should mingle even with races that keep to themselves."

For a second I thought I had misheard.

"Breni. You told them?"

"Nope! Turns out you can't fool a fairy with magic!"

Ruel waved at me from atop Breni's head.

"The reason the Great Warrior is a fairy is so that we stand against evil even alongside the frailest of races."

Such conviction. A will so firm I could tell nothing I said would shake it.

In the end, the issue was direction. The concept our Hero party had valued was suppression — taking on the role of blocking every attack for everyone's sake and thoroughly crushing the enemy. Selen's Hero party, on the other hand, prized harmony. They dreamed of an ideal where everyone came together as one.

Which was the better path? I firmly believed we were right.

"You won't beat the Demon King your way."

"Are you saying the Goddess is wrong?"

"......"

It was a line of reasoning I couldn't easily refute. Whether it was the truth or a well-fitted argument, the moment she claimed to be following the Goddess's will, I had to concede.

"Clitia is always right."

That was when the other world's Liam walked out to stand beside me.

"A battlefield isn't a playground. I don't care what the Goddess says — I can't accept that."

Annoyingly, it felt reassuring.

"See? It really wasn't my fault, right?"

"...Yeah."

Contrary to what I had first thought, the Hero party had changed under Selen's lead. He was still infuriating, but this time he wasn't guilty.

"I told you so many times to revere Clitia, and you're talking back to her? Point by point?"

Just who had he introduced himself as? Selen faltered slightly.

"Public and private matters should be kept separate, shouldn't they?"

"Clitia always deserves special treatment."

"This is a Hero party matter. Even if you are her ex-boyfriend, you shouldn't interfere."

A completely absurd word had just slipped by. I shot the blond bastard a cold look, and he winked with one eye.

"In a broad sense, it's true, isn't it?"

It pissed me off, but now was the time to deal with the problem at hand.

"Selen. Let me ask you one thing."

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

"Please do."

"Then why did you turn that pureblood vampire into... that?"

I asked because I wanted to understand, somehow.

"The Saintess said last time that not every pureblood vampire has to die."

Wifilud answered from beside her. His voice was still flat, but there was a hint of vitality in it.

"That pureblood agreed to follow my will."

"So we helped suppress their bloodlust."

Bolstered by the supporting fire, Selen's expression brightened considerably.

"Their body is healing little by little. Once they've fully recovered, they'll be able to control their bloodlust by their own will."

The appearance was grotesque, but if it was true, it was considerably valuable. A technique that could even control instinct?

"Clitia, don't waver. Your view is the right one."

"I know."

I settled my swaying heart. Meanwhile, the other world's Liam squeezed himself in between me and Selen.

"I've got a good idea. You know Clitia's planning to raid the pureblood vampire gathering, right?"

What was he scheming? I decided to watch for now.

"I heard it's to find the Vampire Lord's location."

"But this time, apparently, they're splitting up and gathering in two places."

A number that lined up perfectly. I realized what he was after.

"We settle it by results — which side's method is better suited to achieving the goal."

It would still be dangerous for the kids in the Hero party. I was worrying about that when Selen nodded vigorously.

"We'll be fine. If you're afraid you might lose, you can give up now."

A provocation I couldn't possibly ignore.

"If you really want it, I'll give it to you."

"It'll be hard on your own."

"I've got this one and those two."

I pointed in turn at the blond bastard, Eluke, and Logan. The reformation of a Hero party that had been gone. Two of them were from another world, but I was putting them to work anyway.

"I won't go easy."

"That's what I was hoping for."

A competition between Hero parties was now set.

After Selen and her Hero party returned to their lodgings, the former Hero party — myself included — gathered inside the earthen house.

"This situation has turned rather amusing."

"I didn't see this coming."

I had only meant to give them a moderate scolding. Things had taken a strange turn.

"This is exactly what I intended."

The other world's Liam was lying with his head in Eluke's lap, grinning.

"I did good, right?"

It was a competition well suited to teaching them a lesson. They would learn through experience that a festive atmosphere alone had its limits. Of course, I didn't answer honestly — I didn't want him getting cocky.

"But we've no Great Warrior and no Sage, and two Saintesses. The composition is a mess."

"Can't be helped."

There was no way to fill the vacancies. What we were now wasn't a proper Hero party — just the remnants of a defeat.

"Then why don't you, as an Aura user, take on the Great Warrior's role?"

"Fine by me."

When it came to Aura manipulation, I was confident I wouldn't lose to anyone. Plus I had the fist-fighting Ivar had personally taught me, so even I had to admit I suited the Great Warrior role pretty well.

"Now we've more or less got the shape of it."

The awakened Hero: the other world's Liam. The Saintess who became Pope: Eluke. The Guardian who had entrusted her body to a spirit: Logan. And me, temporarily taking on the Great Warrior's role. One seat was empty, but since none of our roles overlapped, it looked reasonably convincing. And our skills were superior, so we would probably win unless something went wrong.

"Then shall we depart first thing tomorrow?"

"Once we hear the exact locations, we leave immediately."

I stood up from my chair and scooped Logan up.

"We'll sleep outside, so you two have the place to yourselves."

"Thank you."

"If you feel like having fun, no penetration. You've been warned."

"...Understood."

Surely they wouldn't do it again. Leaving my lover, who was avoiding my gaze, behind, I stepped outside.

The sky had already grown dark. Stars were spread thick across it, shining brilliantly.

"So ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠you've learned to appreciate nature as well."

"It just happened."

I stared blankly up at the night sky for a moment. Then I found myself speaking.

"Don't you miss Erin?"

"You felt the same? I suppose it's because the Sage's seat happens to be empty — I find myself thinking of her."

That cute face grew a little downcast. But soon the brightness returned.

"Erin may well have left a piece of herself in this world. As I did."

"You think so?"

"She was an exceptional mage, and wiser than anyone. What do you say we allow ourselves a little hope?"

The odds were slim, but wandering around looking was better than sitting around gloomy.

"Yeah. Let's hold onto hope."

I forced a bright smile. Erin might be watching from somewhere, after all.

"Watch closely."

Remiraen tossed a captured ghoul onto the dark magic circle drawn on the floor. A thick stench spread. As the flesh melted away, the ghoul's appearance transformed completely — clear, pale skin and a beauty that drew gasps. Glossy pink bobbed hair. A lean figure without an ounce of excess.

"How is it?"

"I love it..."

A single word, overflowing with every kind of joy.

"It's still the early stages, so it's incomplete."

"Copy everything perfectly. Down to the organs and the cellular level."

"Understood. Then the blood flow in particular will be the issue."

Remiraen pondered for a moment, then picked up a communication magic tool.

"My friend is a blood specialist, you see? We'll need to collaborate."