Chapter 44
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 44
Chapter Title: The Hero Who Wants to Level Up
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“The Holy Sword has turned blue.”
“That's because we took down Drake and absorbed his levels.”
Ashy twirled her Holy Sword this way and that.
The gem decorations and such had changed from white to blue.
A faint blue glow even lingered on the blade.
'This is the setting that drives heroes to kill each other.'
The Holy Sword grows by hunting monsters or demons.
It can undergo awakening by consuming the experience points it has steadily accumulated.
But the number of monsters and demons is finite.
It's not infinite.
Once the demon world invasion begins, even monsters stop appearing, stalling the heroes' growth.
In such a situation, one realizes a certain setting.
The Holy Sword can absorb levels from other Holy Swords.
But only right after a hero dies, before their sword vanishes.
In the final battle to take down Demon King Baal, the heroes sacrifice their lives.
They funnel all their levels to the strongest hero, Ashy, and the protagonist.
'Ashy knew about it, so she decisively killed Drake.'
Drake was a hero who shone in the early to mid-game.
He was like a deus ex machina for the protagonist, Luke.
Whenever Luke was in danger, Drake would show up by chance and save him.
But that role was gone now.
With Drake dead, there was no hero left to rescue Luke.
The story's progression itself had been massively derailed.
I hadn't expected it to follow the original anyway, but I never imagined such a drastic upheaval.
All because of my jealousy and envy...
“Now that the Holy Sword's at level 4, it can take down most demons. Shall we wipe out about half of them?”
Ashy treated Drake's death as no big deal.
Her attitude, implying it was nothing to worry about, somehow felt reassuring.
She probably hadn't killed him without a plan.
Ashy must have her own strategy laid out all the way to defeating Demon King Baal.
All I had to do was follow along.
As long as Ashy didn't abandon me, there was no reason for me to leave first.
“Drake?”
“Hero? Where are you?”
Drake's harem wandered around searching for him.
But the man was already dead and wouldn't return.
'I feel a little bad.'
They must have genuinely liked Drake.
Because of my petty jealousy, they had lost the one they loved.
Yet Ashy, who had killed him directly, seemed utterly unbothered.
She stretched and passed by the frantic women without a care.
In a way, Ashy had provoked me into this situation, so wasn't I innocent?
I rationalized it just enough and ignored Drake's party.
We ran into the Yuteron Baron at the entrance to his mansion.
He had struck a deal with Ashy to keep quiet about Drake.
“I leave her in your care, Hero.”
“Shameless.”
The Yuteron Baron greeted us with a smile.
Ashy responded coolly and looked away.
We had slipped out of the Yuteron Baron's mansion early that morning.
Ashy had taken a demon extermination commission, so we were off to hunt at least one.
“And while we're at it, we'll save some people too.”
Ashy pulled a leather pouch from her bosom.
It was stuffed full of gold coins.
Saved-up money: 50 million sol.
She planned to invest it and grow it.
Neigh!
The horse the Yuteron Baron had lent us was healthy and sturdy.
It galloped energetically even with two people aboard.
I didn't know how to ride, so I just sat there blankly, leaning against Ashy.
Ashy naturally kneaded my balls.
The chastity device prevented an erection, but my insides churned with rising excitement.
Still, I'd reached a point where such skinship felt normal.
Even if the urge to ejaculate welled up, I could endure it just fine.
In fact, I could now hold back from cumming and simply savor her touch.
I even leaned fully into Ashy, feeling her soft breasts.
“Next time, how about sitting the complete opposite way?”
“Opposite?”
“Facing each other. So we can kiss even while riding.”
It was a suggestion that seemed to promise devouring my tongue whole.
“Might be better to just get a carriage.”
“You think so?”
A two-person carriage wasn't hard to procure compared to others.
No need for much luggage, and just one coachman.
About an hour's ride brought us to a village.
It belonged to the barony, marked on the map as Maroon.
“Looks like everyone's off working.”
Humans each have their livelihoods.
To make ends meet, they can hardly afford a proper day off.
So no one was around to welcome us.
“Someone we're looking for is here, right?”
“I only know the name. I know the face too, but he's more grown-up now, so it'll look different—kinda vague.”
I dismounted and pulled up my pants.
Ashy's constant fondling made it feel like her touch still lingered.
“What's the name?”
“Gulik.”
The boy named Gulik would later become a great merchant.
Not far in the future either.
Within the next two years, he'd make a fortune and start supporting the heroes.
Ashy planned to raise Gulik with the money she had now.
Or rather, support him was the better term.
With knowledge of the future, Gulik's success was guaranteed.
She'd secure the sponsor spot early, build a merchant group to milk until he died of old age, and become its majority shareholder.
“We'll just make babies without working.”
Ashy's eyes sparkled.
She already seemed to be dreaming sweet dreams.
I smiled awkwardly.
I trusted my body would work hard for it.
'Gulik, huh...'
In the original story I read, no man named Gulik appeared.
A boy I'd never heard of becoming a great merchant and backing the heroes—it was intriguing as a reader.
'Must be because of my actions in the previous loop.'
The story had progressed even before Ashy's regression.
Me and Ashy, clueless back then.
My actions had snowballed like a butterfly effect, twisting the main storyline.
'Even Ashy reforming and turning somewhat good was because of me...'
In the previous loop, I never got saved by Ashy and ended up as a sex toy.
It made sense that whatever I did after escaping inadvertently led to Gulik's success.
This time, Ashy was skipping that process and supporting Gulik directly.
I had no doubt he'd succeed with high probability.
“First, we need to find Gulik.”
I looked around Maroon Village.
Holding the reins, I wandered about.
Now some locals who spotted the outsiders approached.
Mostly ragged adults and elderly who couldn't work.
“H-Hero...?”
An old man noticed the Holy Sword on Ashy's back.
That proved her hero status.
“What brings a hero to our village...?”
To ordinary folk, heroes were a mixed blessing.
A hero nearby meant demons were close by.
People wished heroes would operate far away.
“We're looking for someone briefly.”
“Who...?”
Ashy stated her business boldly.
If she could hit and run, better to wrap it up quick.
“Looking for a boy named Gulik.”
“Gulik...? What did Gulik do wrong?”
“Nothing wrong. Just here to meet him.”
The old man fidgeted before the hero.
“Gulik... What do we do? He's in no state to meet a hero...”
“Just guide us.”
“Yes.”
Seeing for herself was surer than hearing.
Ashy put the old man in front and headed to Gulik's house.
A rundown two-story house.
Gulik lived in the attic, apparently.
We intruded without permission.
Ashy had no qualms.
A ladder led to the attic, where groans echoed down.
“Ugh... ugh...”
Sounds of agony.
From a boy who hadn't hit puberty yet.
Definitely Gulik.
'I think I know why Gulik doesn't appear in the original.'
In this world, people die easily.
Poor medical tech and environment leave little recourse.
Commoners too poor for priests are half-dead the moment they fall ill.
In the original, Gulik dies.
He succumbs to some unknown disease.
That's why I never knew the character.
But the previous loop was different.
For some reason, Gulik recovered and survived.
He bloomed into a great merchant supporting heroes, etching into Ashy's memory.
“I sense demonic energy.”
Ashy climbed the ladder, muttered from above, then came down to find the parents.
Instead of Gulik's parents, someone else appeared.
A relatively hale middle-aged man compared to the earlier elders.
“I'm the village chief of Maroon.”
“Oh? Do you know where Gulik's parents are?”
“Probably at the silver mine. Digging silver.”
“Miners, huh.”
A village settled by a silver mine.
Naturally, it would be a miners' village.
Ashy fiddled with her Holy Sword, glaring at the chief.
“Demonic energy from Gulik's body. Means black magic was used. Can you explain the situation?”
“Demonic energy from Gulik...? We know nothing. He suddenly collapsed injured, and the fever won't break—that's all.”
Ashy stared into the chief's eyes.
She met his gaze, trembling uneasily as if pierced to the soul.
“Doesn't seem like he's lying.”
Ashy released the Holy Sword's hilt.
Not a village-wide issue, then.
“Guess there's a black mage nearby.”
Ashy sharpened her senses with that simple conclusion.
A heavy pressure settled in; amid it, she detected something.
“I see a concealed magic circle.”
“What kind?”
“Can't interpret that far. Just piecing it together by feel.”
Flames kindled in Ashy's eyes.
Pure white mana light—silver flames.
“In cases like this, it's probably an infection curse. If Gulik dies, it transfers to someone else.”
“One spell to kill the whole village and extract the demonic energy.”
“A slow, groaning death magic—decent quality demonic energy too. There's probably a black mage watching us. Since we entered the village...”
Ashy drew her Holy Sword and dashed outside.
Tracking an aura invisible to me, she bolted in that direction.
“H-Hero...?”
The chief urgently called after her, but she was already gone.
“Let's wait.”
I spoke to the stunned villagers.
I calmed and soothed them.