Chapter 34 – [Hero] Monster Search Operation
The information Arin obtained was, sorry to say, but not very useful.
It was information that was not very different from what we know.
We split into two teams and went around, but in the end, we didn’t get any new information.
“In the end, I didn’t find out anything important.”
Seria muttered as she combed her hair.
Perhaps it was because there was no harvest, but the planting seemed uncomfortable.
“I’m sorry, warrior. Even if we didn’t waste time in useless places…”
Arin lowered her head and apologized.
Did she say that she bought a false name and went to prison?
She was really startled when she heard this earlier.
What a prison!
Did they enter such a dangerous place?
Even though I didn’t do anything wrong!
Even though it was because of her doppelgänger, she thought it was too much.
That alone makes me feel like my stomach is bubbling over, but it turns out that the person who saved me again is the man Jeren.
Damn, why!
I thought I had barely taken it off, but to be able to put it back together like this!
I’m grateful that he saved me, but to be honest, I was a little suspicious.
Did that man really save Seria and Arin for pure purpose?
… The reason they were imprisoned was because of their doppelganger.
There is no way he would have taken advantage of this fact without knowing it.
So, is it really simple goodwill?
I am… I couldn’t figure it out.
“Are you okay. I came back unscathed, so that’s enough.”
“Warrior…”
Arin’s eyes twinkled as if moved by my consolation, which was nothing, and Seria was still braiding her hair.
Well, I went all the way to prison, but I can’t feel good.
You better give me a quick rest.
Anyway, I didn’t find out anything in particular from today’s investigation, so I have no choice but to investigate tomorrow.
Tomorrow, I decided to change teams and investigate with Seria, Arin, and Uni.
Let’s do it like this today.
Okay. This concludes today’s investigation.
It’s time to hear another story.
Did Arin hear something?
My heart is pounding.
No, let’s not expect too much.
It happened, but it wouldn’t be strange if you couldn’t ask.
I went up to my room first and calmed down.
Smart.
“D-Come in.”
After saying that in a trembling voice, Arin entered the room.
It was the priestly uniform he usually wore today.
“Whoops, are you disappointed that it’s not the clothes?”
As soon as she entered, she lifted the hem of her dress playfully.
“Oh no! I didn’t expect anything…”
“Really? For such a thing, the eyes turned to my clothes in an instant.”
“Oh, no!”
When I desperately denied it, she approached me slightly.
“I’m sorry, warrior…”
“Are you sure you didn’t ask?”
Okay. Did that happen too
I can’t help it.
I was a little disappointed, but I didn’t show it.
She too, because she has been through a lot of hard things today.
“No, I asked.”
“Huh?”
As I turned her head to look at her, Arin was smiling at her mischievously.
“Huh, are you fooled? There’s no way I can’t do such a simple thing!”
“Gee, is it real?”
Arin too!
Believed!
“Sure. I know everything the hero wants to hear.”
She proudly sticks out her breasts.
It wasn’t very noticeable because it was small.
More important than that is Arin’s attitude.
It wasn’t a very serious atmosphere.
Were all my misunderstandings groundless?
“Then let me hear… What happened?”
***
The next morning, I left the inn with Seria.
It was fortunate that he seemed to be in a clearer mood than yesterday.
“Eric, let’s go.”
She took my hand first.
Lively look.
Like her usual self, she felt better.
… Albeit somewhat contrived.
I decided to put that fact aside for a while.
Looking at the back of her pretending to be bright, I remembered Arin’s words yesterday.
The two of them were never dating.
That alone was enough to lighten the burden on my heart.
Yeah, it’s still not the worst I thought.
But I couldn’t completely let go.
… Asked if there was any relationship between the two.
Arin said he was not sure.
Seria said nothing had happened, but Arin said she seemed a bit hesitant.
I hesitated.
Why did you hesitate
Just an embarrassing question?
To understand the intent of the question?
Or not… Got stabbed in the middle?
At least I didn’t feel that way from the girl who was pulling her arm comfortably.
“Eric, isn’t this enough?”
“Oh, wait a minute… We have to go a little further.”
I pulled out a map in her haste as she suddenly popped her question.
Okay. Didn’t I trust her?
Anyway, since she said nothing happened, let’s believe her words.
… Have to believe
As I was looking at her map, she also looked at the map as she snickered her and stuck her head out.
Sweet scent.
At least her scent was as subtle as ever.
“Hmm. We are almost there.”
“Yes. Let’s ask the people around here first.”
Would it be better to change the way the question is asked?
It seemed like there would be nothing to be gained if it was the same as yesterday.
“Eric.”
Suddenly she called me.
“Huh?”
“… That power Is it the power you received from the goddess?”
That’s the power
You must be referring to the one engraved on my wrist.
I lowered my head and looked at my arm.
Now it is covered with clothes so you can’t see it, but inside it lies the new hero’s ability given by the goddess.
It wasn’t that the Goddess descended and spoke to me directly, but the situation at the time and the power that melted the Four Heavenly Kings at once were likewise the power of the Goddess without a doubt.
Haven’t we all come to that conclusion?
“… Yes. Still, it’s a bit strange for some reason.”
Even after hearing my words, Seria seemed to be thinking of something else.
“I’ve never heard of anyone having the ability to at least imitate someone else’s skills. Even in the biography of the hero and in the magic book.”
That’s me too
I’ve liked the story of the hero since I was little, but I’ve never heard of a hero using this ability.
“But if that’s not the case, why would I suddenly have this ability?”
“… Are the blessings bestowed by the goddess on the hero really correct? Only for Eric?”
First of all, we concluded that yes.
Seria agreed. Why do you have to doubt it again now?
Of course, it is true that there are parts that are not clear.
Every time I use my ability, I feel a bit uneasy.
But other than that, I can’t explain the situation.
“Sorry. I guess I just thought a little too much.”
In the end, Seria gave up first.
I was a little embarrassed too, but I couldn’t think of a case where it wasn’t a blessing from the goddess, so I accepted it as it was.
Today, I went around the area where there were traces of Magi, but I couldn’t make much money.
Even after changing the question in various ways, people who still opened their mouths didn’t know much, and people who seemed to know something didn’t.
On the way, Seria was so angry that she barely stopped her from using magic.
“But he sure knows something!”
“Yeah, but I think using magic is too much.”
“You! What are you hiding!”
“Hey… I am really nothing, lady!”
The beggar, who seemed to know something, said that and prayed on his face.
It was very burdensome to see a man who looked several years older than us.
“Hey, get up. I won’t ask.”
“Hey, are you really? Oh, thank you!”
He bowed exaggeratedly to me and quickly ran away.
“Ha… So there is no progress. If it was just one magic shot, I would be able to tell you all about it.”
Seria said she didn’t like it and crossed her arms with her staff in her hand.
She is not a new staff member, but the old staff she received from her master.
She’s definitely a good staff member, but Seria said she wasn’t used to it, so she didn’t hire a new staff member.
She always carried an old staff in her hand, though she always wore it around her waist, just in case.
“You can’t bully good people because of demons.”
“Otherwise, more people might get hurt?”
“… Huh.”
Even if you curse at me for being stupid, I can’t do it.
She certainly had a point when she said that more people might suffer in the future because of my judgment.
Still, I kept thinking that it wasn’t right to attack a suspicious person saying that I had to catch her demon.
“… Okay.”
“Sorry.”
She seemed unconvinced, but she agreed to respect my opinion.
I’m sure you don’t like my way of going around needlessly far, leaving the faster route alone.
I felt sorry.
“No.”
“Huh?”
“I also like Eric’s way… Joe, I think it’s good.”
She said that with a slightly red face.
Did you even hear my thoughts?
“It’s written all over your face.”
She knocked me over the head with her staff.
“Come on, let’s go! I’ll have to look around a bit more before the sun goes down.”
Saying that, Seria held out her hand.
“Huh?”
“Boo, it’s embarrassing, so hurry up.”
She spread her hands at me, covering her face with her hat.
Do you want me to catch it?
I put my hand inside hers gently on top of hers, and she caught it.
The feeling of warmth passing through her hands was awkward.
“Eric.”
“Huh?”
“… Please don’t abandon me.”
She said something, but she was so small that she couldn’t hear.
When I asked again, Seria didn’t tell me what he meant.
Well, it probably didn’t matter.
She had some expectations, but neither Arin nor Uni had any particularly new information, she said.
Can you really catch that doppelganger this way?
And the next day.
Returning to the dorm with no income, Uni and I found Arin flustered with a small map in her hand.
“Hero! Se, Seria is gone!”
