#078 Proof
#078 Proof
Out of nowhere, she was asking to be appointed a Hero?
On its face, it sounded like a completely groundless demand, but I understood the real meaning behind this woman's words.
"...Isn't Liliez already a Hero?"
First, I had to play dumb.
I had no interest in getting tangled up in troublesome matters.
However.
"The Crimson Mage. The Grand Mage of the 'Holy Sword Party' who faced the Great Demon King Belphegor five hundred years ago."
"......."
Someone had been dropping hints for people to figure out, but I never expected the Water Hero to actually take the bait.
"Where did you learn that?"
"The Holy Knight Order of the Azure Moon Church has considerable authority to access highly classified matters. Although you are someone who has been erased from history...."
"Erased from history?"
I had roughly suspected as much.
The Crimson Mage I had faced was practically the strongest Grand Mage in humanity, yet when I discovered there was not a single mention of her in Normance, I had lamented.
History, in the end, is the record of those who survive.
Depending on what is selected and discarded, some records remain and others vanish.
Just like how the Great Demon King Belphegor supposedly "tried to assimilate humans into the Demonfolk."
In a sense, the Crimson Mage had ample reason to be erased as well.
"Five hundred years ago, the Human Alliance neither knew of the special forces unit's existence nor believed in it. But the Crimson Mage rebuked the leaders of the Human Alliance and declared that she herself would defeat the Demon King alongside the Hero."
"...That's just an old story."
So I had heard.
-Those rag-wrapped bald bastards! All they know how to do is sit in the back guzzling wine and cutting steak, and when someone says she'll step up and fight, do you know what they said instead of helping? 'Know that this is reckless bravado and foolhardiness.' Ugh, I should have burned that king bastard's beard off.
So I had heard.
Directly from the person involved.
"But I failed. I was defeated in the battle against the Demon King."
"However, as I understand it, the Hero whom the Crimson Mage appointed did strike down the Demon King."
"...Yes, that's right."
The Crimson Mage was captured.
The Hero wielding the Wind Holy Sword came charging in.
The Crimson Mage died, and the Demon King's heart was pierced by the Hero's sword.
'Shit.'
The moment I tried to bring up the specifics, my heart throbbed again, and I couldn't get the words out.
But that was my own problem.
I had to face Liliez as the Crimson Mage.
"Liliez. If you're asking me to choose you as a Hero because the Hero I selected defeated the Demon King, then you're gravely mistaken. That—"
"I do not like speaking in circles, Crimson Mage."
Liliez raised the Water Holy Sword with both hands and held it out to me.
The Holy Sword, shaped like an elegant rapier, had a hilt formed like a wave.
"Does the Crimson Mage not know the Holy Sword's 'Activation Word'?"
"......."
"I know. That you are an Ancient."
"It's rather disconcerting when someone suddenly blurts out another person's identity like that."
It was flustering.
Because even I hadn't known.
'Wasn't she just a Grand Mage?'
Crimson Mage Bel.
She was just a mage who handled flames well.
"Mage. I met Bareness in Normance. She didn't seem to know much, but the Holy Sword she carries has undergone its Second Awakening. Was that not your doing?"
"Even if I say no, you'll keep clinging, won't you? Fine. Let's start with the conclusion you're so fond of."
I placed my hand atop her Holy Sword.
"Your Holy Sword stands before its final stage. And I possess the clue to the Holy Sword's Release."
Half of that was a lie.
In truth, I knew the Trigger Word for the final Release, and I could even fully awaken the Water Holy Sword right here and now.
"But you cannot become my Hero."
"Why is that?"
"Because my Hero is Lucius."
"Is it because the Wind Holy Sword is stronger than the Water Holy Sword?"
"That's not it."
In terms of a Holy Sword's absolute power, the Release stage comes first, the element comes second, and the Holy Sword Wielder is merely third.
"If you ask me right now which of the two of you is stronger, you are obviously the stronger one."
Lucius was still at the First Awakening, and Bareness was only at the Second Awakening thanks to me awakening her.
Compared to them, Liliez was at the Third Awakening.
If she pushed open the door to the final stage now, she could truly ascend to the realm of a 'demigod.'
That was exactly why I couldn't allow it.
"But if we're weighing who is more trustworthy, I would choose Lucius."
"Is that because he is a man?"
"Gender has nothing to do with it. What matters is the person."
"Are you saying I am unqualified to be a Hero?"
"That's not it... haah."
How should I put this?
Lucius is such a pushover that he's easy to handle, whereas Liliez is sharp-witted and clever enough that my identity might get exposed.
"...For now, I simply cannot trust you."
"I am a Holy Sword Hero."
"A Holy Sword Hero is still human. Do you think there has never been a case of a Holy Sword Hero betraying humanity and siding with a Demon King?"
"...I cannot give you a definitive no, but at the very least, I am different."
"Anyone can say that. Swearing to the Goddess is useless. If someone has already decided to side with a Demon King, what meaning would an oath to the Goddess hold?"
"......."
Liliez could not say a word.
"I understand that you're desperate. But who knows what you might do once you've achieved the final awakening of your Holy Sword's power?"
"What about this person called Lucius?"
"That's why I keep him with me and watch over him. Whether he can truly use the power of a Hero, of a champion—no.
..."
I slowly placed my hand on the Water Holy Sword.
"Whether, even after gaining such overwhelming power, he can still use it for justice."
"Justice...."
"Not for personal advancement, not out of revenge or hatred toward someone, and not as a means to prove one's faith. A Holy Sword is, in and of itself, an immense power, so no one may wield it carelessly. What about you, Liliez? What is your justice?"
"......I am."
"Shh."
I reached out to Liliez and pressed my index finger against her lips.
"Words are merely hollow. If you truly wish to prove yourself as a Hero, show me through your actions. Then I will believe you as well."
"What must I do?"
"First, protect this village."
The way to prove oneself was far too simple.
"Let's save the people first, and then think about it."
Because not every crisis was over yet.
"It seems we have more guests arriving."
The barrier was burning right now.
* * *
"Aaaah! Wh-what is that now?!"
Perhaps it would be more accurate to call them armored beetles.
The monstrous creatures, whose outer shells were made not of chitin but of steel, crawled up from the ground and surrounded the barrier.
"Dammit, earlier it was venomous insects, and now what the hell are these bizarre monsters crawling out?!"
"Hey, what kind of Magic Beasts are those?!"
"I-I don't know! I've never heard of anything like that!"
Monsters that didn't exist even in the Magic Beast compendium.
The very idea of monsters clad in steel armor was, by common sense, difficult to believe.
Yet now, with countless such monsters overflowing right before their eyes, the people felt as though they were losing their minds.
And in the end, what they sought was.
"Hero! Where is the Hero?!"
The people looked for the Hero.
There was no more certain way to overcome the immediate danger than the Hero, and with the Hero present, it was only natural for them to think of the Hero.
"Where is the Hero?! Did she go somewhere far away?!"
"Dammit, if only the Hero would swing his Holy Sword once, those things would all be—!"
"Ugh, Hero! Please hurry and wipe out all those hideous things!!"
"......."
Lucius fiddled with his fingers and lowered his head.
He felt he now understood a little of why his master kept telling him not to step forward.
"They just mindlessly look for the Hero...."
Even Rosemas was disgusted by the villagers' behavior.
The villagers had fallen into panic.
If there was anyone who could quell the chaos, it was only Sir Rapid, a 'knight' of high status.
"Everyone! Calm yourselves! For now, the enemy cannot cross the barrier! Gather around me!"
As Rapid said, the armored beetles could not cross the barrier.
"Lucius, Rosemas! Please go with Sir Black Lotus and bring the Hero here at once!"
No matter how much he tried to soothe the people, Rapid himself could think of no better solution than the Hero's help right now.
"The Hero is...."
"We'll find him right away."
Just as Black Lotus was about to say something, Lucius immediately ran toward the place where the witch and the Hero had disappeared.
Black Lotus and Rosemas also ran, following close behind him.
And then.
"No need to come running. I'm already here."
The witch returned to the village square together with the Hero.
The villagers swarmed toward the witch and the Hero, and the Hero frowned as he looked at the countless armored beetles outside the barrier.
"...Sweeping them away with the Water Holy Sword would be somewhat difficult."
"Indeed."
Clank, clank.
The armored beetles drove their pincer legs into the ground.
The venomous insects that had been flying through the sky were swept away by the spray of water, but the armored beetles, which had anchored their legs into the earth, were too much to wash away with a torrent.
"What should we do?"
"There are plenty of methods, but...."
Whirr, clank, clank.
From somewhere came the sound of machinery moving.
At the same time, the heavy thudding of something massive echoed as well.
"...What is that?"
Behind the armored beetles.
A gigantic armored beetle the size of a four-story building was walking toward them.
With every step, its enormous bulk shook the ground. It was less a bug and more a giant, a golem in the shape of a bug.
"That is likely the command unit controlling the insects."
"I-is the barrier going to be all right?"
"Whether the barrier holds or not depends on how the enemy attacks."
How exactly would the insects attack the barrier?
It was a moment when even the witch could not speak carelessly.
Clank, clank.
The armored beetles' shells began to open one by one, and something long rose from within their bodies.
Unlike antennae, it was a thick, solid cylinder.
Gleaming silver, it looked exactly like a 'muzzle.'
"......Rifles?"
Bang—!!
The armored beetles began pouring bullets into the barrier all at once.