Part 4 of 8
That wouldn’t be so bad if they were simply developing crushes on her.
It would certainly not be ideal if all the noble young men around our age fell in love with the same woman, but it wouldn’t be the first time boys were entranced by beauty.
As long as they eventually snapped out of it.
But the situation was far more serious than that.
Sophia had sunk her fangs into them.
There are few skills that can induce the Charmed status effect, but they most definitely exist.
Victims will begin to worship the person who charmed them.
And now most of the young men meant to lead the next generation of demons had been spellbound by one woman and obeyed her every command.
And that I certainly could not overlook.
Not only that, but when I say she sunk her teeth into them, I mean it literally.
As it turns out, Sophia is actually a vampire, the stuff of fairy tales.
At the rate she was going, I was genuinely concerned she could very well take over the entire demon race.
Fortunately, Sophia seems to have no such intentions and didn’t even appear to be consciously creating the Charmed effect.
But she was still dangerous, so I consulted with my father to find a way to deal with her.
Unfortunately, she caught wind of my plans.
I suppose I might have been in more of a panic than even I realized.
Sir Wald and the others turned on me, showering me in false accusations.
No, I suppose not all of them were false.
I really was planning to do away with Sophia if I could manage it.
Thus, I was chased out of the academy, and to make matters worse, my father declared that he was disowning me.
I will never forget his disinterested face when he told me so.
As I later learned, since Sophia is connected to the Demon Lord, Wald’s father and some of the other nobles came to the conclusion that I had to be cast out.
Sir Wald himself was behind this manipulation.
I have always deliberately held back to ensure that Sir Wald could have first place, so perhaps I was overestimating my own strength.
Deep down, I thought that if I went all out, I could do anything.
But before I could get rid of Sophia, Wald got rid of me instead.
If you were to consider this a contest, you could say I lost to Sir Wald.
This might’ve been the first time I gave it my all against Wald and still lost.
There was a time when I hoped that Sir Wald would become stronger so that I would no longer be able to defeat him even if I tried my hardest.
But this was hardly what I had hoped for.
Nor did I ever imagine that my defeat would result in my expulsion from high society…
Even if we were not in love, I thought we at least had a certain degree of trust in each other.
But I was betrayed by my fiancé, disowned by my family, and plunged into the depths of despair.
Fortunately, my father did not kick me out without a single coin to my name; he arranged for some money to take with me and a place to go.
Namely, the Tenth Army.
Nearly at the same time I was disowned, the Tenth Army changed hands from my father to its current commander, Lady White, and began recruiting troops.
My father knew Lady White, since she was his successor, and recommended me. She was kind enough to take me in, and that is how I became a soldier of the Tenth Army.
Ever since, I have served Lady White.
I feel nothing but gratitude toward her.
I was but a young girl at the time, so if she had not made a place for me, I am sure I would have died a dog’s death long ago even with the money my father gave me.
Moreover, Lady White never treated me like a mere child and always entrusted me with jobs and training.
Those were days of madness—erm, I mean hard work and bizarre, that is, unique training methods. At any rate, every moment was filled with…excitement.
Since I was too busy running around all the time to wallow in despair, I started feeling better before I knew it.
I don’t know if that was Master’s intention, but either way, I was able to make a complete mental and emotional recovery.
It probably helped that I got so painfully beaten up and broken down every day that being betrayed by my fiancé and kicked out of my family seemed to hardly compare.
But thanks to that, my stats got far higher than I could ever have imagined.
I learned that people can surpass their limits.
Before Lady White took me in, I believed I was training to the best of my ability as the daughter of a noble family, but I’ve since discovered through personal experience that while anyone can work hard, not just anyone can surpass their limits.
My fellow trainees, now fellow members of the Tenth Army, all gave up a part of themselves to become this strong.
Master calls it power-leveling.
The bonds connecting those of us who went through the same hell of power-leveling are very strong.
And through the course of serving as Master’s hands and feet in the field, we’ve learned some of the darkest secrets of this world.
As the daughter of a noble family, I thought my future was to help lead the demon race.
But those plans vanished in an instant, and now I walk a much weightier path on the heels of my master.
You never know where life might take you, I suppose.
Or when your ex-fiancé who ruined your life, as well as the vampire who prompted him to do so, might enlist in the Tenth Army alongside you.
“Sit.”
As Sophia frowns at Master for stealing her prey, Master says a single word.
Suddenly, Sophia is kneeling facedown on the ground.
“Nnngh…grrr!”
Sophia trembles with the effort of trying to stand, but instead, her forehead keeps pressing into the dirt.
I’m told this is a curse that Master placed on Sophia as a punishment that forces her to prostrate herself.
Master placed this curse on her on the very same day that I was disowned.
In other words, she did it for me!
…Or so I’d like to think, but in truth, it was more likely intended to teach Sophia some manners.
But for me, that curse feels like revenge.
So indulge me in saying this:
Serves her right!
“Attack!”
On my command, spells shoot forth.
The magic devastates the enemy ranks, wiping out most of them.
“Forward! Don’t let a single one escape!”
But before I can even finish speaking, a white blur flashes past me and takes down the surviving enemies.
From the looks of things, my second command was unnecessary.
They would never have let anyone escape, even if I didn’t say so.
That’s the Tenth Army for you. Terrifying.
Every single member of this unit is powerful enough to be considered a legend.
Some of them even stronger than that.
Normally, the upper limit of most people’s stats is said to be around 1,000, whether human or demon.
Only a select few ever reach that peak, and surpassing it instantly earns you a place among an elite few.
But if that’s true, everyone around me right now is a legend in the making.
So why am I the one giving orders to such powerful warriors?
Frankly, I’m the weakest member of the Tenth Army.
I was born to a duke’s family, the highest-ranking of all the demon noble families, yet I cannot beat any of my fellow soldiers.
Long ago, if you had told me this would be my future, I would’ve laughed scornfully.
Well, I’m certainly not laughing now.
I was put in charge purely because I formally studied the art of war in my education as a young noble, not because I’m strong.
In other words, because I’m capable of giving orders and nothing more.
When you’re commanding such elite, skilled soldiers, even an inexperienced leader like myself could hardly mess it up.
To be honest, it doesn’t have to be me.
Anyone can do it.
It’s stressful to command soldiers who are stronger than I am.
My stomach is constantly churning.
To make matters worse, the people I’m commanding are not actually fond of me.
The reason for that is one of the longest-serving members of the Tenth Army: Phelmina.
She is my former fiancée…the one who I betrayed and drove out of noble society.
I fell in love.
And not with my fiancée.
That meant she, Phelmina, was only in the way…
Which is why I broke off the engagement and got rid of her.
A coldhearted move, if I do say so myself.
But I don’t regret it.
Even if others denounce me, look down upon me, or think the worst of me, I will never regret it.
If I was given the chance to go back in time and do everything over, I’m sure I would make the same choice.
That is how deeply I’ve fallen in love with Sophia.
The only problem is that the rest of the Tenth Army knows exactly what I did to Phelmina.
And since they went through hellish training together, they have forged very close bonds, so they don’t exactly look kindly upon me, since I joined after the fact.
Fortunately, since they’re almost excessively loyal to our commander, Lady White, they won’t let their personal feelings affect how they treat me.
Even now, they’re obeying my orders.
That doesn’t change how uncomfortable the situation is, though.
But this is all so that I can be with Sophia.
Even if she’ll never see me the same way…
I first met Sophia when she transferred into the academy.
Rumors of a mysterious new transfer student preceded her, and none of us knew how to approach her.
So I decided to talk to her.
My first impression was that she was a beautiful girl.
She looked so fragile, like a porcelain doll.
My second impression was that, contrary to her appearance, her personality was awful.
When I started talking to her, she made zero effort to hide her annoyance.
I’m the son of a duke, so Sophia was the first person who was ever openly impolite to me.
To be totally honest, it pissed me off.
I’ll knock her down a peg or two, I decided.
My original plan was to try to befriend her, probe her background, and figure out the best way to interact with her. But all that was forgotten as soon as she was rude to me.
She started it when I was only being friendly, so it was well within my rights to put her in her place.
But it would be a pain if Sophia’s background turned out to be a problem later.
Many people suspected that she had direct ties to the Demon Lord, so I would have to mock her carefully enough that she wouldn’t even notice.
So I figured that first, I would show her who was on top.
Until I found out exactly who that was.
No matter what I did, I couldn’t beat her.
At first, I was shocked to the point of disbelief.
How could I—the eldest son of a duke, the elite cream of the crop—keep losing to this nasty girl from nowhere?
And whenever Sophia won, she would always laugh at me.
I was furious.
Normally, I was always on top, so I couldn’t accept this girl mocking me.
I was so mad that my real personality threatened to show through the cracks in my friendly golden-boy act.
So I studied hard, trained harder, and swore that I would win next time.
And still my losses kept piling up.
I couldn’t believe it.
Why couldn’t I beat her?
Why did I keep losing?
Why, when I was working so hard?!
But as I continued to lose to Sophia, I started to actually respect her somewhere along the way.
In a romance novel I once read on a whim, there was a line that went like this: “When one has loved someone, the hate it turns into when things go wrong only runs that much deeper.”
For me, it was the opposite: The anger and humiliation I initially felt morphed into respect and admiration.
I had no choice but to admit it: Sophia was just far better than I was.
Once I acknowledged that truth, my heart grew lighter.
When I looked at Sophia with nothing but respect, I could see her charms more clearly.
I always thought she was beautiful, but she had only become more so with every passing year.
Her naturally disdainful personality isn’t exactly great, but unlike me, Sophia never hides how she really feels.
Once I began to see that as honesty and sincerity, I was actually impressed.
All nobles wear masks of a sort, myself included.
We use our words as weapons to jab at one another without ever revealing our true emotions.
In spite of her awful personality, I liked that Sophia made no effort to hide it.
She’s so powerfully conceited that she doesn’t care what anyone else thinks.
In fact, I don’t believe she’s interested in anyone else at all.
When I joined the Tenth Army, I understood why.
If this was the world that Sophia was accustomed to, it was no wonder that she saw us academy students as boring riffraff.
That’s even clearer to me now that I know her true nature.
For a Progenitor vampire, the kind of being that only ever existed in fairy tales, someone like me is just another boring face in the crowd.
My position as the heir to a duke’s family is important only to fellow demons.
Sophia isn’t limited by trivial matters like that, so she doesn’t care.
Ever since I met Sophia, I’ve learned time and time again just how small I really am.
Especially when I turned on Phelmina.
I have to admit, even I’m horrified that I had no compunction about shoving my longtime fiancée out of the picture to get a shot at the girl I really love.
I knew all the guys in the academy were falling heads over heels for Sophia’s charms; I felt smug that I was in love with her of my own free will, not because of some status effect.
Yeah, it’s a stupid reason to be smug, I know.
But that’s nothing compared to the fact that I took advantage of the way everyone at school worshipped Sophia to purge Phelmina so she’d be out of the way.
After all, I even ended up involving her guardians and my father just to ruin Phelmina’s life.
I must say, though, it went pretty well.
As long as I was engaged to Phelmina, I couldn’t be involved with Sophia.
Not to mention that Phelmina had decided Sophia’s powers were dangerous and was trying to get rid of her.
So I didn’t hesitate to get rid of Phelmina instead.
Did I hate Phelmina? No, I don’t think so.
We weren’t in love, but we did respect and value each other.
I’m sure that we could’ve built a good life together, even without romantic love.
But then I learned what real love feels like.
Once I had a taste of the emotion that borders on insanity, I could never accept such a tepid future.
I do feel bad for Phelmina, who did nothing wrong.
But not enough to do anything to help her.
What a horrible fiancé I am.
So maybe it’s karma that I’m in such an uncomfortable situation now.
I should have started working for my father when I graduated from the academy, but I wanted to follow Sophia, so I joined the Tenth Army.
I had no idea what I was getting into.
The members underwent hellish rituals that could hardly even be called “training” without batting an eye.
And Sophia joined in without a problem.
As a bonus, my ex-fiancée, Phelmina, was among them.
That was definitely a shock.
I fell far behind the other members as they carried out the truly insane training exercises, while Phelmina looked at me coldly, and Sophia seemed incredulous that I couldn’t keep up.
The only reason my heart didn’t break on the spot was because I had plenty of experience losing to Sophia already.
Without that, I would’ve definitely lost all confidence and gone into hiding by now.
Even now, that’s barely enough to keep me hanging on.
To be honest, I really have lost just about all my confidence already; I just haven’t gone into hiding yet.
Unlike my academy days, when I only ever lost to Sophia, I’m at the bottom of the totem pole in the Tenth Army—and Phelmina, whose life I once destroyed, is far above me.
The difference between our stats alone has widened dramatically in her favor.
Despite how it might sound, I’ve been doing all that crazy training since I joined up.
But since Phelmina’s been doing it since the current Tenth Army was first formed, she’s gotten way ahead of me.
She used to always be below me, but now she’s leaving me in the dust.
It definitely adds insult to injury, but the last scraps of my pride have motivated me to fight through the misery and try to improve.
I’ve been working like a madman to catch up.
But Phelmina was always exceptional, and now she’s been doing this hellish training for years.
There’s no way I can make up the difference between us that quickly.
If anything, it looks like the gap might get even bigger.
Finally, I cast aside all shame and went to Sophia on hand and knee to beg her to turn me into a vampire.
…I know this might sound like a bad excuse, but I always intended to ask her eventually.
I want to be with Sophia forever, and the easiest way to do that is for her to make me a vampire.
Besides, becoming a vampire means I become Sophia’s underling.
This was also a way to offer her my body and soul.
It was almost too good to be true.
There was just one concern that made me hesitate to become a vampire.
It wasn’t because I would no longer be a demon or anything silly like that.
I’d already given up on my pride as a noble long ago.
I mean, I tossed aside my fiancée in order to be with Sophia.
Obviously, I’m willing to sink as low as it takes.
I’ll follow my heart, no matter how selfish or irresponsible it might be.
My apologies to my father, but I no longer have any intention of fulfilling my duties as the heir to a duke’s family.
No, the only thing that was stopping me was my appearance.
They say that vampires live forever, without aging or decaying.
But that’s the problem.
Specifically, the problem is Merazophis, the other vampire besides Sophia.
He hasn’t aged at all since he became a vampire.
A human his age should be starting to look old, but he’s still perfectly youthful.
If that means vampires stop aging once they reach adulthood, then that’s perfectly fine.
Sophia certainly has been growing.
But she’s a Progenitor vampire, a special case.
So do normal vampires age and grow?
That’s why I wanted to wait to become a vampire until I looked like an adult.
Specifically, when I could pass for the same age as Merazophis, the apple of Sophia’s eye.
Given the danger that I might stop growing, the safest bet would be to wait until adulthood before I asked her to make me a vampire.
But I didn’t have the luxury of waiting around anymore.
I had to do something to get off the bottom rung of the ladder, and fast.
And becoming a vampire would make me strong!
It’s just a matter of sooner rather than later, really.
Even if I’m stuck looking this age, it could be worse.
Thus, I pleaded with Sophia until she finally gave in and turned me into a vampire.
All at once, the whole world looked different.
At the same time, I felt some sort of unbreakable connection to Sophia.
I was thrilled.
Ah, this is the moment I’ve been waiting for all my life, I thought.
But that didn’t change my position in the Tenth Army.
I’m still at the bottom.
My stats definitely rose when I became a vampire, but not enough to catch up to the monstrous power of the Tenth Army.
“Well, obviously. It’d be unfair if just turning into a vampire made you that strong, right? No cheating,” said Sophia. Then she added dreamily, “Merazophis was frustrated after he first became a vampire, too. But he was so determined to protect me… Ah, he was just so cool then.”
How good for him.
Sophia only has eyes for Merazophis.
She made me the same race as her, but the difference in how she treats us is like night and day.
All Sophia wants is Merazophis, and no matter how much I might want her, she’s never going to return my feelings.
When I turned into a vampire, I gained the right to be with Sophia forever.
But at the same time, I might’ve just sentenced myself to an eternity of suffering that will never bring me the happiness I want.
Even so, I have no regrets.
So I was forced to go to some stupid school, and as if my days weren’t stressful enough, I accidentally messed up the whole academy with this Charmed power I didn’t even know I was using, and now I’m being punished for it with this bizarre curse.
It doesn’t make a lick of sense!
In the first place, I was already a high school student in my old life, so sending me to school with a bunch of snot-nosed brats in my second life was an awful thing to do.
I had to hang out with these annoying kids day after day, and I didn’t get to see Merazophis at all.
Do you know how hard it was not to go crazy from the stress?
And after a few years of enduring everything, you’re going to randomly throw a curse on me as “punishment”?
Is that horrible or what?!
Worst part is that I can’t even fight it, because that’s just how the curse works.
Look, I did think it was a little strange when those stupid boys all started worshipping me out of the blue, all right?
But I sort of assumed it was puberty or whatever.
How was I supposed to know I was unconsciously applying a Charmed effect on everyone?
To be fair, I probably should’ve suspected something was up when Mr. Goody Two-shoes and the other boys teamed up to chase Ms. Class Rep away. That was weird.
Turns out that was also because of Charmed…
Oh, incidentally, Mr. Goody Two-shoes’s real name is Wald, and Ms. Class Rep is Phelmina.
Wald really does have a nasty personality that he hides under a friendly demeanor, and Phelmina is ridiculously prim and proper, so that’s what I’ve been calling them in my head.
Phelmina was always lecturing me, so I did feel a bit smug when Wald chased her out of school, but the tables turned when Master cast this stupid curse on me right after finding out what happened.
Well, I suppose I do feel a bit sorry for what happened to Phelmina.
She might be a total nag, but what she’s saying is usually right.
She definitely didn’t actually do anything to deserve being driven out of school by those boys who worshipped me.
It’s not like I told them to do it, and I certainly didn’t help, but I do feel a tad responsible, all right?
That still doesn’t justify me getting cursed at all, but I even got scolded by Merazophis afterward…
“Young Miss, what would your parents think if they saw you the way you are right now?”
I’ve never seen him look at me so sternly.
“Young Miss, I have no doubt that simply following your vampire instincts and doing as you please must be satisfying. No one will turn against you, nor can they disobey you. After all, you yourself made them that way. Did it feel like a dream? Or did you perhaps think it really was a dream, with no real-life consequences?”
Even if I didn’t mean to, it’s true that I did use that Charmed power.
And it seems that due to changes in my body via secondary sexual characteristics, I unconsciously targeted men, who I, as a vampire, instinctively see as prey.
“Your parents had only one request for me: to take care of you, Young Miss. That is my sole mission in life.”
Those words show just how deeply Merazophis still cares about my parents.
“They entrusted me with your safety. I will protect you until I die. I shall never forsake you. And if you make a mistake, I will tell you so. I will raise my hand as many times as it takes to keep you on the right path.”
With that, he slapped me lightly on the cheek with his palm.
“I will watch over you to ensure that you live a life that your mother and father would be proud of, Young Miss. If you do wrong, I will use this hand again if I must. But please, do not ever make me do so again.”
That’s just not fair.
How can I do anything but obey when he says things like that with tears in his eyes?
Ever since then, I’ve been on my best behavior.
And yet!
“Grrrgh!”
Here I am, being forced to my knees.
Master?
Don’t you think you’re using this curse just a teensy bit too often?
Unlike Merazophis, you’re just punishing me for every little thing you can think of, aren’t you?!
It would be one thing if you only used it to discipline me when I’ve done something wrong.
But is it just me, or are you using it whenever you’re in a bad mood and feel like taking it out on someone?!
“Pfft.”
As my forehead presses into the ground, I hear someone snort out a laugh.
PhelminaaaAAAAAA!
Look, I get why you hate me for messing up your whole life, all right?!
But do you really need to laugh at me whenever I’m forced to kneel like this?!
Yes, I do feel a tiny bit responsible for what happened, and maybe even guilty.
But I definitely still despise this girl.
WRATH’S BATTLE THE KEY POINTS!
Welcome back to White Explains It All!
As you can see, the fort Wrath’s going to attack is surrounded by mountains.
Basically, it’s a fort built in a basin.
The fort’s not actually on elevated terrain like the one Boobs attacked, so in that sense it might be easier to attack than that one.
But since it’s still surrounded on all sides by mountains, the only option is to attack it head-on.
The folks in the fort can see the enemy coming no matter how they approach, making it easy for them to plan and mount a counterattack.
With no room for any schemes or clever tactics, the only option the attackers have is to force their way in right through the front door with brute strength!
Sounds like a good old-fashioned brawl to me!
…Except, there’s just one little problem.
The person who’s attacking is Wrath.
Can you really see him just obediently setting up siege works and stuff?
If anything, he could probably bring down the whole fort by himself, don’t you think?
It won’t be a siege so much as a demolition.
…Yeah, probably best to just let him take care of everything!
I won’t call this atonement.
And it’s certainly not justice.
It’s just that I don’t want all the lives I’ve taken to be in vain.
That is the most I can do with these bloodstained hands.
The battlefield is a messy jumble of humans and demons.
There are no tactical formations or organized maneuvers, only chaos.
No amount of stratagems will make any difference here; all either side can do is try to defeat the enemy in front of them.
And I certainly can’t give any commands on the battlefield.
Whether in this life or my previous one, I’ve never had any experience leading troops into battle.
Since being put in charge of the Eighth Army, I’ve learned quite a bit, but the staffers who have been with these troops long before I came along can give much more precise orders than I can.
Honestly, I’m not cut out to be a commander.
In terms of strengths, I’d be better off fighting on the front lines as a simple soldier.
But considering the goal of this battle, it’s better that I don’t go too wild on my own.
If I did, there would certainly be plenty of losses on the humans’ side, but not so many on the demons’ side.
Which wouldn’t be good. We need the human and demon sides to suffer equal casualties.
So I can’t lead the charge on the front lines, but that doesn’t mean I can hang back and just give orders, either.
I’m not good at it, for one thing.
And if the Eighth Army soldiers figured that out, they’d lose all respect for me.
To put it bluntly, the Eighth Army is a bit of a motley crew.
Originally, the Eighth Army existed mostly in name only, with very few actual soldiers.
But the former Eighth Army Commander gave up the empty title and is currently focusing on politics.
The handful of soldiers who originally belonged to the Eighth Army were all merged into other units.
So where did these new soldiers come from? Well, the private armies of certain demon feudal lords were disbanded and cobbled together to make a new force.
The former Ninth Army Commander Nereo…he tried to assassinate Miss Ariel, the Demon Lord, and failed.
Before that, he also assisted the former Seventh Army Commander Warkis in attempting to start a rebellion.
After their plot was exposed, Nereo’s private army and those of the nobles who were affiliated with Nereo have all been consolidated and forcibly enlisted from their respective regions to form the current Eighth Army.
As a result, their overall morale isn’t exactly high.
Some of them are even downright mutinous.
All I’m doing is forcibly keeping them in line.
If they start to believe for even a second that I’m not in control, it’s over.
I’m sure there would be plenty of deserters. Some of them might even take that opportunity to attack me.
Since I’ve made a point to show them how strong I am, I’d like to think that wouldn’t happen, but if it did, I’d probably wind up having to turn my blade on my own subordinates.
I guess that’d ultimately add to the number of deaths we need, but obviously I would prefer to avoid that if I can help it.
So in the end, my solution is plain and simple.
If I’m no good at giving orders, I just won’t give them.
Instead, I’ll make this battle so chaotic that orders would be pointless.
And if I can also ensure there aren’t any deserters, it’ll be perfect.
Easy to accomplish by just setting up some land mines behind the ranks of the Eighth Army.
That made it clear there’s no turning back.
And if they try anyway, I’ll cut them down.
When I announced that, they were so shaken up, it was almost funny.
After that, there was only one thing left for me to do: start destroying the fort.
By throwing magic swords from a long distance so I wouldn’t be seen.
That means the humans have to run out of the fort to escape, so they have no choice but to face us.
My magic sword attacks can bring down their defenses with ease.
There’s no point trying to hide out inside. That would just cause more casualties.
And I’m still throwing swords to keep the pressure on.
The demon army can’t retreat, and the human army has to advance.
The only option left is for them to crash into each other.
If they’re basically being forced into combat, there’s no real point in trying to strategize or give orders on this mess of a battlefield.
As chaos reigns, I keep throwing magic swords at the rear of the human army and only cutting down the humans who come toward me directly.
Even with my magic swords, I’m trying to keep the damage to a minimum.
If I destroy too much of the human army, there won’t be as many demon casualties.
They are my allies, like it or not, so theoretically, I should be trying to minimize their losses, but what I’m doing is the opposite.
I’m a cruel commander.
These men are deeply unlucky to be stuck with me as a leader.
I feel bad for them, but I don’t have any other option.
Because that’s what I swore I would do.
As I keep chucking magic swords and taking down the humans who come toward me, I hear a strangely loud bellow that cuts through the insane racket of the battlefield.
“YAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAARGH!”
It goes on for so long that I have to be impressed by the sheer lung capacity.
The cry is coming from a knight, swinging his sword as he charges toward me.
Through the gaps in his helmet, I can see that he’s a thoroughly wrinkled old man.
He looks pretty elderly to me, but he’s fighting more fervently than just about anyone else here.
And he looks familiar, or at least his sword style does.
It’s the same old knight who attacked me a while back when I was still just an ogre.
“Harrumph! Such a fearsome aura! I can tell you must be the leader of this demon army! They call me Nyudoz! Let us have a fair and honest fight!”
Oof, this guy’s intense…
Once he gets close to me, the old knight Nyudoz starts yelling about single combat, heedless of the chaos swirling around us.
It seems kind of tone-deaf, to be honest.
We’re way past a “fair and honest” one-on-one battle at this point.
What kind of idiot would try to challenge someone to a duel in the middle of a chaotic battlefield?
This kind, apparently.
But his stupidity is almost…refreshing.
He’s an idiot, all right, but he’s clearly devoted to his chosen path.
The guy’s living a stupidly earnest life, staying true to his beliefs and values.
I’m a little…well, more than a little jealous actually.
It’s a far cry from someone like me, who’s been indecisive and uncertain all my life.
“Fine. I accept.”
I only went out of my way to answer him on a whim.
I had the urge to have a “fair fight” with this person, that’s all.
Mr. Nyudoz doesn’t seem to remember that we’ve fought once before, long ago.
To be fair, I was an ogre back then, and I look pretty different now.
But I’m not going to bother telling him that.
A guy like this probably doesn’t care about the past anyway.
For me, though, I guess this is a chance for a rematch?
That makes me feel a little strange, but it doesn’t change what I have to do.
“Let us begin!”
Mr. Nyudoz lunges forward sharply.
It’s hard to believe he’s supposed to be an old man, never mind one wearing tons of heavy armor, from the speed of his movements.
Humans are supposedly lower in stats than demons, but he has better footwork than your average demon for sure.
How many of the Eighth Army soldiers could move like this?
“?!”
Still, though, he can’t keep up with me.
I’ve gotten a whole lot stronger since I was an ogre.
My magic sword cuts clean through his blade.
It was probably a pretty nice sword, but between my stats and my handmade magic swords, a single strong slash separates it into two pieces.
My sword flashes toward Mr. Nyudoz’s neck next.
Before he can even attempt to defend himself, his head rolls on the ground.
This way, at least, I figured he’d die peacefully without feeling any pain.
It might be presumptuous of me to think about that, but it’s the best I can offer him.
It seems like Mr. Nyudoz was pretty important to the human army. The soldiers who witness his death fall back in horror, obviously shaken.
As soon as that cornerstone crumbles, the rest of the enemy soldiers go down like so many dominoes.
Just like that, the Eighth Army has secured its victory.
“Hawkin. You should sit this one out.”
It’s the night before the big battle when my boss, Jeskan, drops this on me.
“Can I ask why ya say that?”
“…You know the answer better than anyone, yeah?”
Can’t say nothin’ to that, I guess.
Yeah, I know why.
It’s ’cause I’m the weakest member of the hero’s party…
The five-person party consists of our leader, Julius the hero; his childhood friend Hyrince; Yaana the saint; plus the boss and me.
As the hero, Julius is top-notch in both magic and swordsmanship.
Hyrince is his shield bearer, a dependable tank who protects the team from most damage.
Our all-rounder magic user, Yaana the saint, ain’t just limited to Healing Magic—she can also dish out magic attacks and other support.
Boss Jeskan is an expert in all kinds of weapons, the best attacker after Julius.
By comparison, I’m more of a behind-the-scenes guy, so I’m not much use in battle.
My job is to keep the party running smoothly: sorting through requests and negotiating rewards, keeping our supplies stocked, travel-related paperwork, maintaining relations with the different countries, that sorta stuff.
Basically, everything that ain’t about fighting.
Of course, I do support the team in battle with my throwing knives and magic items and all that.
But I know better’n anyone that I ain’t nearly as strong as the rest of our crew.
Everyone else is a world-class expert in whatever they specialize in, but me? I’d prolly lose in a fistfight with the average soldier, tell ya what.
All I really do in battle is give whatever support I can and use every last trick up my sleeve to keep things runnin’ smoothly.
“Tomorrow’s battle is likely going to devolve into chaos. And if it does, I won’t be able to protect you.”
Basically, the boss is trying to flat-out bench me.
I know he’s doin’ it for my own good, ’course.
But still, can ya blame me if it stings a little to hear it out loud?
We’re at war with the demons.
This ain’t like anything the hero’s party’s faced before.
So far, we’ve mostly just fought some real strong monsters.
Usually, one big monster against the five of us.
Since we normally have the upper hand in numbers, that means it’s a sight less likely that the monster’s gonna target me.
Even if it did, Hyrince would always cover for me, so I hardly ever end up in danger.
But this battle’s gonna be against a big ol’ demon army. Like the boss says, good chance it’s gonna be a mess, so even Hyrince ain’t gonna be able to protect everyone.
In other words, I’ll have to fend for myself, but even I’ll admit that’s a tall order for li’l old me.
“I don’t suppose I can change yer mind?”
“……”
The boss gets even frownier than usual and crosses his arms, thinking for a minute.
“…Obviously, the person in our party who needs to survive more than anyone is Julius the hero. But other than him, I think the life that’s most important to preserve is yours, Hawkin.”
“?!”
Now, that I wasn’t expecting.
“I’m a top-class warrior. Hyrince is blessed with quick wits. Our dear Yaana was chosen out of all the other sainthood candidates. But that doesn’t mean we can’t be replaced.”
“Now, hang on a minute, boss. You can’t mean that.”
“Oh, but I do.” The boss takes a long drink. “I’m an A-rank adventurer. There are S-rank adventurers way above me.”
“But you got to A rank solo, didn’cha?”
An adventurer’s strength ain’t all about rank.
Some folks prove their worth in a party to raise their rank; others do it with achievements outside of battle.
The boss made his way up to A rank all on his own.
There’s a huge difference between someone getting A rank in a party and getting it all on their lonesome. A solo A-rank adventurer like my boss here is more than strong enough for S rank.
If he was to join a proper party somewhere, he’d hit S rank in no time flat, no doubt about it.
He joined the hero’s party before that happened, though, so he’s considered one of the hero’s followers by society, not an adventurer.
’Course, that means what he does in our party don’t count toward his adventurer standing, so he’s still A rank.
“That’s true. I’m probably strong enough for S rank myself.”
No more than a handful of near-legendary adventurers ever make it to S rank.
It’s a height that only the most gifted adventurers can reach.
“But that’s all. There are other S-rank adventurers out there. Meaning there are other warriors as strong as me or stronger.”
And yet, here’s my boss saying that achievement is hardly worth squat.
“Same for Hyrince and even Miss Yaana. There are any number of other candidates for sainthood.”
“But, boss…”
“Of course, we’ve got a lot of experience fighting alongside Julius. We work well together. Even someone of around the same strength as one of us wouldn’t be able to swap in that easily. But that’d still just be a matter of time.”
The boss tilts his glass for another gulp of liquor.
“We’re not truly irreplaceable,” he concludes self-deprecatingly.
“But don’t that mean I’m the most easily replaceable of all…?”
The boss just said other S-rank-level fighters could replace him, but we’re still talkin’ about a top-notch bunch of elite warriors.
Sure, there are other folks around as strong as he is, but that doesn’t mean they’d jump at the chance to sign up with the hero.
A lot of adventurers have their own tight-knit parties or work for a specific country.
It wouldn’t be that easy to get one to change jobs.
On the other hand, the stuff I do isn’t really much more than plain ol’ boring chores. No need for any kind of special talent, so just about anyone could do it.
Without a doubt, I’d be the easiest one to replace in the party.
“Nope. It’s the opposite. After Julius, you’d be the toughest to replace.”
“You don’t need to try and make me feel better, boss.”
“I’m not, you idiot. Just listen.” He pours some booze into my cup. “You know Julius isn’t replaceable, right? Why’s that?”
“Well, ’cause he’s the hero, of course.”
“Exactly.”
The boss nods like that’s obvious, which it is.
“But that’s not the only reason. It’s also because he’s Julius.”
“’Cause Julius is Julius…?”
I stare at the boss blankly. If this is a riddle, I don’t get it.
“If the hero dies, the next hero will be chosen right away. But it’ll be someone else, not Julius. So there’s another hero if this one dies, but there sure won’t be another Julius.”
“Well, yeah, I suppose so.”
“Now, this is just hypothetical, so don’t get mad, hear? But if Julius died, and you were told to serve the next hero instead, would you say yes?”
“Hrm…”
That’s a tough one.
I’m serving the hero because he’s Julius, so if I had to switch over to some new hero I’ve never met before, I imagine I’d have a hard time accepting that right away.
“Exactly. It’s because he’s Julius.” Then the boss continues: “And it’s the same for you.”
“Uh-huh…”
“You don’t exactly sound convinced.” The boss shakes his head, drains the rest of his cup, and pours himself another round.
“Hyrince, Miss Yaana, and I are all more or less tools. I’m a weapon, Hyrince is a shield, and Miss Yaana’s a potion.”
“Ain’t that a little harsh?”
“Well, it is an extreme comparison. But as I said, we can all be replaced. But just like Julius, there’s no replacement for you ’cause you work behind the scenes, and you have connections to all kinds of people.”
It is true that I have quite a few.
I manage the party’s requests, negotiate with the adventurers’ guild, the Church, and more, not to mention chatting it up with the nobles and royalty of wherever we travel to fulfill those quests.
And when I’m managing our supplies and equipment, I get a chance to rub shoulders with not only many merchants, but also some of the other folks on the shadier side who I can’t go into detail about.
I might be my boss’s slave, but folks ain’t usually rude to me, since I act under the hero’s authority and all that.
Julius is real friendly, so sometimes he handles it himself, but in terms of practical experience, I think I got the most business relationships of any of us.
“But what’s that got to do with anythin’?”
“There’s plenty of other folks who can fight as well as we can. But relationships are built up over many years atop hard-earned trust. Even if we put that aside, it isn’t easy to learn how to negotiate and communicate with others well.”
“I suppose not.”
I might not be a big shot, but I have been working behind the scenes of the hero’s party for many years.
Even if they put out a call for someone else to do my job, I guess it wouldn’t be easy to pick up where I left off right away.
“We just have to go to the battlefield and fight, but you’re the one who takes care of everything that comes before and after. And it’s only because you do those things for us that we can focus on fighting. Without a doubt, you’re the one who keeps our party going.”
“Well, I’m happy to hear that.”
It really is reassuring to hear.
As far as word on the street goes, I’m the only member of the hero’s party who doesn’t stand out.
Julius is real popular, and Hyrince is a hit with the ladies, since he’s got stupidly good looks.
Miss Yaana’s earnestness, dedication, and friendliness make her well-liked, too.
And lots of older ladies tend to be fans of my boss.
Meanwhile, all people think when it comes to me is that item guy, the guy who just throws knives, and even oh yeah, I forgot about that guy…
Hrmmm? Ain’t that funny. Feels like there’re tears in my eyes…
I know perfectly well that my job in the party ain’t fancy or exciting, but I gotta admit it does sting a little to be so unpopular.
It wouldn’t be so bad on its own, but some folks even say nasty things about me…
Once in a while, I’ll hear things like “How’d that guy get into the hero’s party when he’s just a slave?”
Believe me, I feel out of place enough as it is sometimes.
Everyone else supporting the hero is amazing: Hyrince is a duke’s son and Julius’s childhood friend, Miss Yaana’s the saint, and my boss is a skilled adventurer who got to A rank all on his lonesome.
Since I’m the only member who ain’t anything special, people are bound to scoff at me from time to time.
That’s why it means so much to me that somebody values my work.
“I know very well that every good relationship we’ve got is thanks to your hard work. Be proud.”
“Sure, I’d like to do that, but I got no reason…”
I don’t got anything to be proud of, really.
I don’t have high social status like Hyrince—in fact, I’m a slave.
I wasn’t chosen out of a whole lotta other candidates like Yaana.
And I can’t shut people up with sheer strength like my boss.
There ain’t a single impressive thing about me.
“No reason? That’s rich coming from the Thief with a Thousand Knives.”
“Please don’t call me that…”
That was my old nickname.
“Why not? In a way, you might be more famous than any of us.”
The boss grins at me.
I guess it’s true that lots of people’ve heard of the old Thief with a Thousand Knives.
That’s what I was called before I became the boss’s slave.
At the time, I went around stealing from corrupt nobles and merchants and the like. Then I’d sell off the goods and use that cash to anonymously buy food for orphanages and stuff like that.
Those stories got real popular with ordinary folk, and eventually there were even plays and minstrel songs about me.
From there, the story of the Thief with a Thousand Knives spread far and wide, which is how a lowly bandit like me became famous.
On the one hand, I wound up meeting some huge fans who helped me during my thieving days ’cause of that, but then again, there were people who didn’t take so kindly to my fame…
Turns out, being famous ain’t all sunshine and roses.
Once word about me spread, it got harder and harder to move around without being noticed, and in the end, I got caught while trying to investigate some nasty group of human traffickers.
They sold me as a slave, the boss bought me, and now here we are.
“Oh, I was young and foolish back then, y’know?”
At this point, the Thief with a Thousand Knives name is more embarrassing than anything.
“Whatever you say—all I was doing was thievin’, really.”
“Well, I think it was admirable. Many a nasty noble and merchant had their evil deeds exposed because you robbed them, and they were judged accordingly. And there are plenty of orphans who were saved by your donations, too.”
“I am pleased about that, I suppose.”
“Then why not take pride in it?”
I smile wearily at the boss’s encouragement.
“Just hard to be proud when I look at Julius.”
The boss doesn’t have any immediate response to that, so I continue.
“Julius is amazing, ain’t he?”
There are many words for praising a person, but there’s no point being fancy about it.
When I see Julius at work, all I can think is that he’s amazing.
“Watchin’ that kid go at it, I always think, so that’s what a hero’s supposed to be.”
“True.”
The boss nods in agreement. Nobody’s as worthy of the word hero as Julius.
He pursues what he thinks is right, no matter what.
Even more incredible is that he’s been doing that since he was just a kid.
“Compared to what Julius has done, all my deeds really amount to is runnin’ away.”
I didn’t have the guts to face evil head-on, so I used the less proper path of thievery to avoid a straight-up fight.
I don’t regret what I did, but I’m sure Julius would never do anything as cowardly as stealing. He always chooses to fight evil directly.
No matter how hard it’ll be.
When I think about that, I get to feelin’ embarrassed about how I’ve lived my life.
If I fought evil by stealin’, don’t that make me a hypocrite?
Seeing the real thing in Julius just makes me feel like that much more of a fake.
“I see.” The boss nods, like he gets where I’m coming from. “Well, I won’t deny your logic. But I can’t say I agree entirely, either. Everyone has different strengths and weaknesses, hmm? Julius is powerful enough to right wrongs directly. You weren’t, so you did the best you could with what strength you do have. What’s wrong with that?”
“I guess you could put it that way.”
Julius is a royal and the hero.
I was just a plain old thief.
That puts us in real different positions when it comes to taking on corrupt nobles.
I could’ve yelled about injustice till I was blue in the face, but it wouldn’t have made a lick of difference to the folks in power.
And if I tried to take those nobles on without any tricks or a plan, you can bet I would’ve been torn to shreds.
“Well, that just goes to show how young and stupid I was, not to mention weak.”
Even if I couldn’t fight, there must’ve been other things I could’ve done besides stealing.
Now that I’m working behind the scenes of the hero’s party, those options have only become even clearer.
I don’t have the power to take on corrupt merchants and nobles myself, but I could’ve convinced someone else to do it.
But such a simple thing never occurred to me, so I just went on thieving.
Even if I was doing it for the right reasons, stealing is a crime.
The fact that it might’ve helped some folks doesn’t mean it wasn’t wrong.
“Oh, you’re so stubborn.”
My boss heaves a sigh.
“’Fraid I was born that way.”
“Heh.” Still shaking his head, he smiles a little. “Ah, we’ve gotten off topic. Oh dear.”
“…Sure you’re not just woozy from drinkin’ too much?”
We’ve got a big battle tomorrow, but the boss has been downing a whole lot in front of me.
“Bah, you fool! How can I go into battle without drinking first?!”
“Won’t getting drunk affect your ability to fight?”
“I’m not so weak that I’d get drunk on this much liquor.”
I dunno if that’s something to brag about so confidently…
“Drink I shall, no matter what anyone says. Every drink could be my last.”
“Boss, that’s…”
“Those of us who fight for a living must accept that truth. You understand, hmm?”
“…I suppose.”
Since I’m a member of the hero’s party, I do go into battle, too.
Being weaker than the others, I’ve definitely had my fair share of brushes with death.
I always knew that if I kept this up, I was gonna die one of these days.
If I feel that way when I’m usually supporting them from the back as much as I can, I’m sure folks like my boss who’re fighting on the front lines are even more aware of death all the time.
“I’m not even sure if Julius will make it back alive, never mind me. But Julius needs those connections of yours. And in the worst-case scenario, if Julius dies, you’ll be a huge help to the next hero.”
So that’s why the boss wants me to stay behind.
But…
“I’m still comin’ with you, boss.”
“…No matter what I say, eh?”
“No matter what.”
The boss shakes his head again and drains the rest of his drink in one gulp.
“Thought you might say that.”
“Sorry, boss.”
Even if it’s only a formality, I’m technically a slave disobeying his master’s orders, but I can’t back down on this one.
I got my pride as a member of the hero’s party, too.
I can’t be the only one to run with my tail between my legs.
As part of the hero’s party, I already resolved long ago to go into battle no matter how harsh it might be.
“I really am happy to hear ya say I’m that important, boss. But any strength I got is all for Julius. I might not be Hyrince, but I still can’t go lettin’ Julius die before me. We’re here because of Julius, every one of us.”
The boss was trying to say that if something happened to Julius, I should lend my strength to the new hero, but I dunno if it’d go so smoothly.
Lots of us are only pitching in because Julius is who he is, and I’m no exception.
I dunno who the next hero might be, but it’d be a tall order for me to throw in my lot with them right from the start.
So my best bet is to do everything I can to make sure that doesn’t happen in the first place.
That Julius doesn’t die.
Even if it means that I die in the process.
Part 4 of 8