The Incompetent Hero and Baekho (2)
Taking a patient who hadn't even fully recovered along with us would only get in the way.
That was what I thought, so I was about to refuse Baekho's suggestion—until Seollin unexpectedly spoke up.
"I think it would be better if we travel together too."
"Seollin?"
Baekryeon clearly hadn't expected her to say anything of the sort either; she looked at Seollin with open puzzlement. Sensing both our gazes, Seollin only frowned harder.
"What?"
"Nothing. Just… I didn't think you'd be the one to say that."
"Mm… I, too, never expected Lady Seollin would suggest that traveling with Lady Baekho would be for the best."
"Just how do you two see me, exactly?"
It wasn't so much how we saw her as…
When Baekryeon and I both fell silent and looked away, Seollin let out a long sigh and continued.
"In the first place, Lady Baekho has already been targeted once. Is there any guarantee the Beastman Alliance won't come after her again?"
"Ah."
Now that she mentions it…
"Are you a genius or something?!"
"…Are you an idiot?"
The game never explained why those people had captured Baekho in the first place. Whether the Beastman Alliance—and by extension the Demon King's fragment forces—had gone after her purely as a plot device to push the heroine Baekryeon toward the protagonist, or whether something else was involved, I had no idea. But now that we had already broken her free of their hands, there was no guarantee they wouldn't try again.
"…But don't the Four Sacred Beasts have restrictions? I thought that was why Juzaku couldn't help humans."
"Mm… such restrictions do exist. But they were the ones who laid hands on me first, so Lady Hyeonmu will not take issue with it."
Is that really something you can just brush off like that? I wondered, but if she herself said so, what was I supposed to do about it?
Whether we traveled as three or as five wouldn't change much, so preparing to leave didn't take long. More importantly, with the isolation decree lifted there was no longer any reason to force an overland route; we only needed to take the sea lane straight to a region near Sichuan.
We set out for the ship, but we had to match Baekho's still-unsteady pace, so progress was slower than I'd hoped. In the end we decided to camp for the night and each began making preparations.
While I, the one who actually owned a tent, set it up, Seollin started on the meal, and Baekryeon went off with Baekho to look for firewood…
"What are you doing?"
"Resting?"
"Get up and help with something before I stop asking nicely."
"Hiiing."
I promptly collared Lucy, who had been planning to freeload, and finished pitching the tent. I'd put the damn thing up so many times I could do it with my eyes closed; it was up in moments. I looked around.
Lucy had attached herself to Seollin and was helping with the food. Baekryeon was still walking with Baekho.
"Will this much suffice?"
"Yes, Lady Baekho. That will do perfectly."
"…I see."
Of course, to Baekryeon, Baekho was the founder and ancestor of her entire clan. Revering her was only natural. From Baekho's side, though, her own daughter treating her with such stiff formality clearly left her awkward and fidgety—it was written all over her face. Baekryeon didn't seem to notice.
"What are you staring at so hard?"
"Why are you here? Weren't you helping Seollin with the food?"
"She told me I was in the way and to get lost."
She's bragging about it.
I swallowed the words that rose to my tongue and said nothing. Lucy followed my line of sight, realized it ended on Baekryeon and Baekho, and nodded.
"Those two look good together. Just like parent and child."
"…You knew?"
"I didn't know. Are they parent and child?"
"…"
I seriously considered for a moment what I was supposed to do with this girl.
"If what I know is right, they are. But Baekryeon doesn't know it. She only thinks of her as a distant ancestor."
"My, no wonder… I thought I smelled something delicious. So it's because she carries the blood of a Sacred Beast so thickly."
"…When are you dropping the vampire act?"
"Act? It's real, you know."
This girl still hadn't come to her senses…
How the hell does a vampire become a nun in the first place? Say something that makes sense.
"Anyway, while we're traveling, Baekho's health is your responsibility. Handle it."
"Hmm… her vessel of qi seems fully restored, but the lingering aphrodisiac poison still in her body is beyond what I can purge."
"Isn't there detoxification among the holy arts?"
"I already tried. But to clear a poison that's been steeping for decades, you'd need a priest with far more holy power than I have."
In other words, we would have to go to the Holy City.
Looks like we're going to end up wandering all over the place…
"Doryeong, I have gathered all the firewood."
"Oh my~ Welcome back~"
Lucy greeted Baekryeon and Baekho with a bright smile. Whatever her mouth said, her social skills were solid; she seemed to get along reasonably well with both Baekryeon and Seollin.
"Lady Baekho~ From now on I'm in charge of your health~ If anything feels off, just tell me anytime~"
"U-um? Th-thank you."
Baekho nodded awkwardly.
"How curious, though. A bloodfiend possessing holy power… Have the bloodfiends of late changed somehow?"
"There are all sorts of people in this world~"
"…Huh? What did you just say?"
At my question Baekho tilted her head.
"I-I said bloodfiend. Is something wrong?"
"…She was actually a vampire?"
"I've told you how many times already. Does this Hero have a problem believing what people say?"
No—how the hell does a vampire use holy power!!
"More importantly, do you know about the Holy City?"
"Of course I do. There are plenty of vampires like me. And the one they call the Saintess of the Holy City is our princess, you know."
"…"
Has the Holy City I know already gone to hell and vanished?
That evening.
"Good thing I bought a roomy tent."
Crackling…
Standing watch outside, I looked at the tent where the women were sleeping. When I'd bought it in the Roman Kingdom I'd asked for a good one, but at first they'd given me something so huge I'd almost returned it… Now I could only call it foresight.
"Haa… Once we take down the Heavenly Demon, what the hell am I supposed to do next?"
Everything I knew rested on the success story of the Incompetent Hero. The plot of that story, right up to the fragment of the Heavenly Demon—that was the full extent of my knowledge. After that, nothing.
I figured this might happen, but I still should've played the sequel.
I'd heard the sequel, The Adventure of the Demon Beast Hero, covered the other fragments of the Demon King… but I'd transmigrated into this game world before I ever got the chance, so I knew nothing. Of course, the original success story of the Incompetent Hero did drop a few clues about the other fragments.
The most obvious was the Black Dawn Society—one of the forces called the Demon King's army on the central continent of Filgrea. Some of them followed one of the Demon King's fragments, the Witch Tamiel. Then there was another fragment said to sleep on the western continent of Filgrea where the World Tree stood… name never revealed, so I didn't know it. That made two. And one more that remained completely unknown.
"My head hurts… Makina. You know anything? You're a holy sword. You must've gone toe-to-toe with the Demon King back in the day, right?"
[Mm… I know the names of each Demon King, but… the details, I don't.]
"You don't? Why not?"
[It's a kind of safety lock… an information-control measure so that Heroes don't take in the power of a Demon King's fragment too early and fall into despair.]
At Makina's words my brow furrowed on its own.
"Do I look like I'm about to despair?"
[That's not it, but…]
As the holy sword Makina herself had said, at this point the only beings who could rival my strength were Je-cheon-dae-seong, Pyung-cheon-dae-seong, and a fully restored Demon King. Just those three. Makina knew it too, which was why she trailed off awkwardly.
[This is something I can't do anything about…]
"There are four fragments of the Demon King total. One is the Heavenly Demon, another is Tamiel. At least give me the names of the other two."
[Yes. The Demon King of the western continent is Surtr. And… the King of Illusory Heaven.]
"The King of Illusory Heaven?"
What the hell is that?
I was about to ask about the completely unfamiliar name when something rustled from the tent and someone stepped out.
"Baekho?"
Baekho emerged carefully from the tent; the moment our eyes met she flinched and looked at me in surprise.
"A-are you standing watch alone?"
"Yes. I'm the only one who can respond properly in an emergency. Is something wrong? Is the bedding uncomfortable?"
"N-no, nothing like that. It's actually quite comfortable and pleasant."
Yet for all that, her expression looked awkward. Anxious, almost… or maybe restless.
"J-just for a moment… I think I'll take a short walk."
"At this hour?"
"…"
Baekho didn't answer; she simply looked away. Something about that reaction snagged in my mind. I sighed and nodded.
"Don't go too far. We never know when or where we might be attacked."
"Mm… I'll keep that in mind."
Baekho vanished into the undergrowth. I watched her for a moment, then drove Makina into the ground.
[M-Master?!]
"Keep watch here. You said we can still talk even if we're far apart, right?"
[Th-that's true, but! Master~!!]
Leaving Makina's wail behind, I killed my presence and followed Baekho.
How far had she walked?
In a place some distance from the tent, Baekho…
"…Hnnngh♥"
…began to masturbate.