Chapter 12
The hero was furious. "What?" My head went ice-cold with rage at Pairil's words drifting from inside. I didn't know when Lina had become such an important existence to me, but just hearing these bastards trash-talk her snapped the thin thread of my reason.
But Pairil didn't stop there. "Let's use this chance to properly fuck that bitch Lina and give that geezer Ghetto a real beating too."
"I'm curious if that bitch Lina's already been with that bastard."
"Heh, we'll know once we shove it in. Whether she knows what a real man's like or not."
I ground my teeth at Pairil's words. I'd originally planned to just half-cripple them, but since they'd dared to think about touching my precious ones, there was no such thing as "just enough" anymore.
"I don't know. I don't wanna get involved in this."
"You pussy. Can't even fuck when it's handed to you? Just wait till Allen leaves the village, then pick up where we left off, easy."
"...You guys do it. I'm done with that shit."
"What a fucking loser. You're done for now."
"Haha, leave him be, Pairil. That guy's always been a coward."
No need to hear more. As I stood with a cold expression, the cabin door opened and one of the lackeys stepped out.
For a split second, I debated what to do with him, but he'd opposed Pairil's filthy plan, after all. I approached him slowly. Noticing me too late, he jolted in shock and collapsed to the ground.
"...You're lucky. That choice just saved your life."
I said it looking down at the frozen bastard. "Get lost. If you don't wanna die."
"Th-thanks."
Confirming he'd bolted into the woods, I slowly headed toward the cabin. Were they having so much fun just scheming? Laughter poured from inside—Pairil and his last remaining lackey.
I kicked the door clean off its hinges. True to its shoddy wooden build, it shattered with a solid crack from one strike.
"Wh-what the hell?"
"...Allen?"
Stepping inside, I grinned brightly at Pairil and his lackey, who'd frozen solid. "What's so funny? Let me in on the joke."
They couldn't respond properly. Obviously—they couldn't say shit like "fuck Lina" or "deal with old man Ghetto" to my face.
"Fuck, shit! Get him!"
All they could rely on was their meager skills that might work in some backwater village. Pairil spat curses and swung his sword at me. His last lackey gripped a knife and charged too.
I ducked Pairil's swing and kicked the lackey's lower body as he rushed in.
"Gahk!"
The lackey clutched his groin and crumpled. Terrified, Pairil lost it, screaming and slashing wildly at empty air.
"Die, die! You fucking dog!"
I dodged his strikes effortlessly, one after another. His clumsy swings looked slow enough to yawn at.
We were fighting in the cramped cabin. Inevitably, his sword lodged into a shelf on the wall.
I watched Pairil strain to yank it free, then lightly kicked his gut, sending him tumbling. He dropped the sword and rolled across the floor.
"...You two are irredeemable trash."
I looked down at Pairil sprawled on the ground and his lackey. The self-loathing hit again—having to save a world full of scum like this.
"Fucking dogshit. You got lucky with some power and now you're acting all high and mighty..."
Pairil glared venomously, grinding his teeth. His brazen attitude left me dumbfounded. What balls did he have to keep snarling in this situation? Not that begging now would change anything.
"Ha, if you wanna die that bad, I'll kill you."
"Bullshit. You, kill someone? Huh? Ever even killed a man before?"
I tilted my head at his words. Was he bluffing because he thought I'd never killed anyone?
I stared at Pairil, incredulous. "Fuck. Do whatever you want. I might lose today, but I'll get revenge on you somehow."
"...Why do you assume tomorrow's guaranteed for you?"
I asked Pairil with genuine curiosity.
"Just a few days ago, you couldn't even squash a bug. How much could becoming a hero really change you? Huh? Look forward to it—I'll pay you back double for today."
No way...
Looking at Pairil, I finally recalled what I was like back then. Yeah. I really had been that weak-willed, unable to kill even a bug. That's why I could only seethe inside when the villagers treated me like a plague.
"P-Pairil... What if this guy really snaps?"
"Don't pussy out, idiot. Think a hero's gonna do shit to small-time punks like us?"
Listening to Pairil banter with his lackey, I finally let out a laugh. Lina too, but these guys were seriously deluded about what a hero was.
A hero upholding justice, fighting the Demon King? Half-right at best. In my previous life, I'd killed way more humans than Demon King forces.
Even with a common enemy like the Demon King, human selfishness and greed knew no bounds.
'The one chosen by the gods? Hilarious. Aren't you following the crown prince, not any god?'
I suddenly recalled a man from deep in my memories. Barkan, the chieftain leading the barbarians beyond the empire's borders. He defied the emperor's orders and died by my hand.
'Hero. Think about it. What crime did these people commit? I'm more afraid and resentful of your armies than the Demon King's forces.'
And to his last breath, Barkan worried only for his people.
If I hadn't sided with the crown prince's faction, and if I didn't need the empire to defeat the Demon King, I never would've killed him. Muscled head to toe, loved his booze and women a bit too much, but Barkan was a damn fine man in my eyes. If we'd met differently, we might've been best friends.
'If I killed a guy like that with my own hands, you lot are...'
Sighing at Pairil, who blindly believed in the "noble hero" image I'd crafted. Compared to Barkan, their lives weren't worth the dirt under my toenail.
"Come on, do your worst, punk! Huh?!"
Maybe because I'd zoned out thinking, Pairil got even cockier. Probably thought he was right. Come to think of it, letting him live after the Lina incident might've been my mistake.
"Fine. You want death? I'll give it."
I casually pulled Pairil's sword from the shelf. Then approached his lackey on the floor—not planning to save Pairil for last, just that the lackey was closer.
"N-no, fuck... D-don't come closer."
"Don't be a pussy, there's noth—"
Pairil yelled at his terrified lackey, then clamped his mouth shut. Because I'd just lopped the lackey's head off with his own sword.
For a small-time village punk, he had a decent blade—severed clean, the head rolled across the floor.
Thud roll.
As the nameless head bumped my foot, Pairil started screaming. "Aaaah! Y-you psycho! You killed him!"
"Nah?"
"...D-don't come. You monster."
"I've never killed a person. Just cleaned up some trash."
I said it to Pairil as he scrambled backward on his ass. The blood-slick floor was slippery, but it didn't hinder me.
"...S-sorry. I'll leave the village, please... L-let me l-live..."
Three steps. In those three steps, Pairil begged on his knees, but I didn't forgive him. Forgiving him now would just make his dead lackey the pitiful one.
"Gurk!"
His throat impaled, Pairil gurgled. Resentment toward me and fear of death flashed in his eyes.
Then, moments later, his eyes went blank, emotionless voids—the hollow gaze of the dead I'd seen countless times before.
Confirming Pairil's death, I yanked the sword from his throat and wiped the blood on his clothes. Not a famed blade, but good enough for now.
'Now this place is truly at peace.'
Stepping out of the cabin with Pairil and his lackey dead inside, I thought that. With the two village troublemakers gone, things should stay quiet for a while.
Of course, only until the Demon King's army started raiding.
"Are you leaving?"
The village chief approached the saintess as I, she, and the holy knights prepared to head to the capital. She nodded, and he glanced at our group before extending a hand to me.
We had no bad blood, nor any good ties, so I just stared at his face.
"Never thought a hero would come from our village. Forget any grudges from before. The villagers were just wary of an outsider like you."
The chief awkwardly withdrew his hand. Glancing behind him, I saw some villagers eyeing me uneasily. No wonder—their despised drifter had suddenly become a hero. Probably ruining their sleep.
"Nah, don't sweat it."
I replied curtly. No plans for revenge on the villagers. Even without me doing anything, their lives ahead wouldn't be smooth.
"Allen. Time to head out?"
As the chief and villagers backed off, old man Ghetto approached with Lina. I couldn't let just them travel alone, so I'd already had the saintess assign escorts.
No need to worry about the old man's safety. Demon King's army wasn't active yet, and she'd prioritize their protection more than anyone—thinking of them as my leash.
"Old man, pack your shit properly and follow. Don't whine about forgetting something later."
"...Am I a kid?"
"Old folks forget more than kids."
"Tch, rotten punk."
As I bantered with the old man, Lina watched quietly. She'd been shocked I became the hero, but my words about sticking with him seemed to ease her anxiety.
"See you in the capital."
Lina said it calmly, and I just nodded lightly. Not like we wouldn't meet again; short goodbyes were easiest.
"...Lovers or something?"
After bidding Ghetto and Lina farewell and rejoining the group, the saintess asked, eyeing me.
Her thinking of taking Lina hostage too, on top of the old man? I scowled. "What's it to you?"
"...Yeah. None of my business. Sorry for asking."
Offended by my reply, she frowned and boarded the carriage. As I stared at her carriage, Jena approached me.