Ruti’s Selfishness

I had gone to this mountain to gather medicinal herbs so many times since coming to

Zoltan that it was practically my backyard—I just came and went as I pleased. But this

time, I headed to the settlement at the foot of the mountain first.

There were lodges there for adventurers, but the place was primarily used by loggers

who supplied Zoltan with lumber, a crucial resource for a region smack in the middle

of wetlands. With no time to spare, I passed out some quarter payril to the people who

were gathered there to get some information—whether they had seen the drake, and

where it had gone.

"It flew off that way," said a boy who'd be off to fell trees himself in a year or so. The

direction he pointed was not toward the mountain. Instead, he indicated that the

dragon had gone toward the forest at the foot of the peak.

"Thank you," I replied.

I slipped a silver into his hand and took off. According to Tisse, Ruti had left the airship

in those woods.

The vessel had been locked so that no one other than Tisse would be able to pilot it,

but the machine was still largely an unknown. It was possible the drake was part of an

expedition sent out by the demon lord's forces to release the lock and steal the vehicle.

"The airship is dark-continent technology anyway, so it would make sense for them to

know more about it than Tisse."

Now I had a choice to make. Was it best to get Ruti first or head to the forest? I was a

little bit unsure but quickly decided that my first priority needed to be Ruti. Dealing

with her issue was more important to me than the fate of any flying machine.

I set out for the ancient elf ruins on the mountain where the chimeras gathered.

"What do you think, Danan? With this fantastic airship, we can travel to the dark

continent without any concern for the demon lord's blockade. Victory is that much

nearer now," Ares boasted to Danan.

"It's a wondrous find, but it doesn't look like Ruti is around," the well-built man replied.

"True. Still, the airship is a significant boon. I'll raise a barrier that only we can

approach. It would be a problem if this vessel was stolen. And with this, I'll know if

Ruti approaches it."

Ares immediately set to preparing his spell. Despite being exhausted from continually

using his magic for days on end, he had summoned a spirit drake and was now

constructing a barrier large enough to encompass the entire airship.

Shisandan was genuinely impressed on that point. As expected of the Sage who'd

traveled with the Hero, his magic power was beyond what even high-tier demons

could muster.

But blessings don't grant knowledge or wise judgment. That is the true tragedy of this

man, mused the disguised Shisandan.

Despite arriving at the mountain before Red, Ares's choice to stop for the airship

meant he would reach the ruins second. That selection would prove decisive in what

followed.

Heading up the peak, I entered the chimera territory. As usual, the monsters merely

watched me from a distance while making a point of not getting in my way. I didn't run

into anyone else who had gotten mixed up with the chimeras like that rookie

adventurer from last time, so I pushed on to the ruins.

Nature had reclaimed many of the half-destroyed structures, wrapping them in vines,

roots, and moss. The buildings were made of an unknown smooth, hard substance that

wasn't iron or stone. I'd only ever seen it in ancient elf ruins. I'd investigated this site

briefly before. Its defenses were still active, so I hadn't ventured too deep into the

place, but something told me it was far more heavily protected than the ruins in

Central.

During my studies, I had read a large amount of literature regarding the ancient elves.

The consensus among researchers was that the many ruins each had their own

distinct purposes. In a certain sense, it was an obvious point.

I had seen it for myself in the structures near the capital, where the proof of the Hero

had been sealed. I doubt either Ares or Ruti had noticed it then, but that hadn't been

a seal at all. The ruins had manufactured the proof of the Hero. The item that Ruti had

left those ruins with had not been the one used by the Hero before her, nor was it an

object from a forgotten era. It was an entirely new item that had been fabricated

precisely where we'd found it, just like the one used by the Hero before Ruti had been.

There was no sign of the chimeras who typically wandered this area. Undoubtedly,

Ruti had culled several of them, and they now gave this place a wide berth. Pressing

onward, I came upon a door with a large hole blasted in it.

"If you had just operated the system properly, it would have opened…," I muttered.

Ruti had punched her way in. From her perspective, that was probably the most

efficient strategy. Still, I couldn't help but chuckle at that sort of unsubtle method.

My little sister was by no means stupid. If she had seriously examined the door's

mechanism, she would have deduced how to work it. Sadly, she had a few lazy habits.

Past the new entrance the Hero had made, there was a dark shaft. An elevator should

have been there waiting for me, but…

"There really isn't anything here."

Just as Tisse had said, Ruti had destroyed it. There was no choice but to jump down.

"All right… Acrobatics mastery: Slow Fall."

I connected with my blessing and activated a skill. With it, so long as there was a wall

within limb's reach, I could use it to ease my descent and safely drop from any height.

I'd used the same ability to escape Bighawk's mansion.

No matter how hard I squinted, I saw only darkness below. I fished a light stick out of

the pouch at my belt. The tool was a narrow, brass rod about thirty centimeters long.

When I tapped the tip against the floor, there was a soft hum, and then the metal

started to burn without any heat. It glowed as surely as any torch, illuminating the

surroundings.

Light sticks were a cheap magic item that cost two payril and had a special spell cast

on them. They were disposable illumination sources that shone for about ten hours

after being ignited. Cheap as they were, though, they still cost about a hundred times

more than a torch. The cost was worth it, however, as they were easy to light, wind and

water couldn't extinguish them, and they wouldn't catch anything afire. Experienced

adventurers kept a few of them around at all times.

I kicked the wall over and over to keep my descent slow. The glow of my light stick

didn't even come close to reaching the bottom of the shaft. It's radius capped out at

twenty meters. Beyond that, everything was dark.

Although I kept my fall slow and manageable, dropping into the shadows was still a

nerve-racking maneuver. It felt like I had already descended several hundred meters.

Finally, I caught sight of the elevator's wreckage. Picking out a place where I could

land, I kicked the wall to maneuver toward my targeted spot.

"Phew."

Even with Slow Fall, leaping down from that high proved a little bit tiring. I had

Resistance to Exhaustion, but things that wore at my nerves were still draining.

However, there would be time for rest later.

Light fixtures here and there around the underground structure still functioned, but

for the most part, things were fairly dim. I slipped the light stick into my belt and

pressed onward.

Here, the vines and other vegetation that covered the walls up above were nowhere

to be found. Occasionally, I stumbled across the scattered wreckage of the ancient elf

defenses that Ruti had presumably destroyed. Just carrying those back to the surface

would earn more than I could make running my shop for a couple of centuries. There

was no place in Zoltan that could afford to purchase such valuable items, though.

"From what Tisse said, they were producing the Devil's Blessing in the living quarters

in the southwest section."

If Ruti was here, that would be the place. I pulled out a compass and checked my

bearing before proceeding deeper into the ruins.

One had to wonder why the ancient elves had made such a giant building so deep

underground.

As I walked, I noticed something that stood out from the various antiquities—a clay

plaque on one wall.

"This isn't ancient elf script. What is it? Wood elf?"

The previous demon lord had destroyed the wood elves. Gonz and other half-elves

were said to be their descendants, having bred with humans to propagate. With their

survival came the endurance of their culture. The wood elf language was still

understood today.

"Hero Administration Bureau?"

What was that supposed to mean? That wood elves had gone into ancient elf ruins was

a puzzle in its own right, but there being a clay sign with those words on it was a

downright mystery.

"And this leads to the lodging quarters, right?"

Tisse had stated that there were beds in each room, which would mean that they were

where the ancient elves had laid their heads at night. That's what I assumed anyway.

It should just be living quarters in this direction. So what was the point of going out of

the way to put up that sign?

"…Later. Nothing's going to come from thinking about it now."

It was more important to meet up with Ruti first. I ignored the suspicion and curiosity

welling up in the back of my mind and hurried onward.

All I had to go on about where Godwin was making the medicine was a verbal

description from Tisse. Finding the place amid the uniform rows of chambers was

going to be difficult.

"Is it this one?"

It had taken a little bit of time. Rit and Tisse were probably already starting to head

up the mountain. I slid open the oddly heavy door that was so common in ancient elf

ruins.

"Whoa there."

A glass bottle came flying at me from inside. I leaped forward to dodge it. A second

later, the object exploded with a plop. A green, adhesive goop splattered all around,

but by that point, I was already pressing my sword to the Alchemist's neck.

"Y-you're that damn apothecary! Did you come to take me in?!"

"No, I didn't come here to fight."

"That's rich comin' from the guy holding a blade to my throat!"

"You threw a bomb at me. If I came here looking to fight, your head would already be

rolling."

Godwin was gripping another sticky bomb. After a short staring match, he slowly

lowered his hands. Matching his movements, I carefully drew my sword away from his

neck.

"Where is the woman who's holding you here?"

"What, you've got business with her now? Just leave it be. You're obviously a capable

fighter, but you've got no chance against her."

"I think you misunderstand. I'm an acquaintance of hers."

Godwin looked surprised.

"Connections with Rit and with her, too? Who the hell are you?"

"I'm just an apothecary. So where is she?"

"Like I'd know. Probably skulking around the ruins somewhere."

Having to search for Ruti somewhere in these ruins would be a burdensome task in its

own right.

"…"

I could have just shouted her name, but I wanted to avoid that if possible. Ruti

undoubtedly wasn't expecting me to show up here. If she realized that I knew about

the Devil's Blessing and her breaking Godwin out of prison, she would likely be

despondent. There was a chance she'd run, too. Handling this face-to-face was best.

That way, I'd have the opportunity to explain myself and make it clear I wasn't angry.

"Hey, Godwin."

"What?"

"Call out for her."

"M-me?"

"If you shout, she should be able to hear you with the skills she has."

"Do it yourself. I damn sure don't trust you. If you're some Assassin and she thinks I

betrayed her, what do you think happens to me?"

"Then just say I threatened to kill you if you didn't do it."

"Not happening. I don't think you understand how terrifying that girl is."

What a pain.

"Nothing I can do to convince you?" I pressed.

"Not a one."

"Don't say I didn't give you a chance, then." I grabbed Godwin's left hand, the one

holding the other bomb. It was dangerous, so I wrested it away and set it gently on the

floor.

"Wh-what are you doing…?"

Godwin looked nervous as he tried to pull his hand free, but I wasn't letting go.

"Don't worry, this won't cause permanent damage."

"Wh-what do you mean…? Hey! Stop it!"

Realizing my intent, Godwin started frantically trying to pull away.

"Also, my Rit had a rough time because of you."

"Th-that's water under the bridge. We're even after you damn near cut me in half!"

"No, that was remittance for Al."

Rit had gotten into a dangerous spot with a bunch of stalker demons because of one

of Godwin's sticky bombs. This was just a little bit of payback for that.

"There." I locked the joints on Godwin's left arm and then pulled his arm just slightly

in a direction it wasn't supposed to bend.

"Gnaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaagh!!!" Unable to endure the pain, a scream welled up in the

Alchemist's throat and echoed around the ruins.

"Dammit…"

Godwin was sitting down, rubbing his arm. He stared hateful daggers at me, but I paid

that no mind. I sharpened my focus, listening for the presence that was surely

approaching.

Godwin was crucial for producing Devil's Blessing. Ruti needed him. So if she'd heard

that shout, then…

The door went flying through the air. A girl raced like lightning past it. Her sword

thrust out from the blur—aimed straight for my neck. It was similar to the move I had

pulled with Godwin before, but the speed and sharpness were of a wholly different

level.

Thankfully, Ruti's weapon stopped before it met my throat.

"Big Brother?!"

The emotion that crossed her face at that moment was something that my sister, the

Hero, should never have been able to feel—fear. At least, that's how it appeared to me.

Ruti and I moved to another room.

Godwin was agape, unable to believe his own ears. Still, his fear of Ruti remained

strong. He just did as bade when she said he could rest for a little while.

"Big Brother… why are you here?"

The chamber we were in was apparently the one she was using as her bedroom. It was

a slightly larger space about two corridors away from where I'd found Godwin.

While ancient elf craftsmen were far superior to present-day ones, the room's furniture

was already terribly disheveled. Ruti and Godwin had moved the trash out of their

chambers and into another and were sleeping on simple folding cots. Godwin's

quarters had also been stocked with alchemical tools, food, and water. Enough to be

able to get by.

I had no clue about the principle behind how it worked, but the aqueducts in these

ruins still functioned. Drinking water from an unknown source was cause for

hesitation, but it could still be used for bathing. Outside each of their rooms was a

laundry line. The simplicity of such a thing really struck a stark contrast with the

ancient elves' highly sophisticated culture.

"Brother?" Ruti asked, cocking her head to one side.

"Ah, sorry. It's just been a while since I last saw a place like this. I'm still taking it all in,

I guess," I replied.

"I see."

Clearly, I would have to be the one to broach the subject. "I heard the story from Tisse,"

I began.

Ruti's shoulders twitched. She looked down like she was trying to figure out how best

to reply.

No doubt she assumed I was upset with her. Taking Devil's Blessing and breaking a

criminal out of prison were things that the Ruti who had lived as the Hero all her life

would never have done. It was a complete and absolute rejection of the holy church's

teachings that one should live a life befitting their blessing.

"I'm sorry I was unable to help you for so long," I said, lowering my head.

"Eh?"

"I never told anyone else, but I'd been researching a way to suppress your blessing's

impulses for a while." I pulled a vial out of the pouch at my waist. It was the secret wild

elf medicine that I had given to Ademi during the incident with Bighawk.

"This substance can quell a blessing's urges, too. It temporarily lowers your level when

imbibed. Sadly, it's classified as a poison, so I don't think it will work in your case."

"Why?" Ruti asked, bewildered. "Why were you always trying to save the world? You

were always striving to get stronger even when we were little. After joining the

knights, you helped so many people. Then you joined me on my journey to defeat the

demon lord. That hopeless quest, constantly fighting the demon lord's armies,

traveling all over with only a handful of people. It's not like you were driven to help

people like I was, but you still fought."

"…Yeah, I never did fully explain myself to you."

Ruti's chosen quest—vanquishing the demon lord.

I had been there at the outset, when a raiding force attacked our hometown, and Ruti

had tried to stand against all those orcs by herself. From there, many people had joined

her group for a time, but from the very beginning up until the battle with Desmond of

the Earth, I had always been at her side.

Through it all, I had been conflicted about whether to explain how I felt. And in the

end, I never had. Even if my intentions were good, I couldn't risk hurting Ruti. I was

afraid that if Ruti knew my reason for fighting, she might feel responsible for my

choices.

"Why did you want to defeat the demon lord, Big Brother?" She was looking straight

at me, her pretty eyes filled with anxiety.

"I just wanted to protect you."

Ruti's eyes widened ever so slightly. Her gaze twitched faintly.

"That's why you battled monsters when we were little?"

"I joined the Bahamut Knights for the same purpose. I wanted the strength to be able

to protect you when you set out on your journey."

"Why? Because I'm the Hero?"

"Don't be silly. It's because you're important to me, Ruti. You were bound to leave home

eventually. I wanted to prepare myself for whenever that day arrived. If you decide to

quit being the Hero, I won't mind, and I won't blame you."

Honestly, I'd be lying if I said I wasn't a little unsure. As someone who had traveled

together with the Hero for so long, I had an intimate familiarity with the war's

progression.

Without Ruti, the demon lord's forces would wreak significantly more havoc. It was

entirely possible that Avalon would be destroyed. Such was the price of allowing Ruti

to forgo her duty. Yet even if it came to that, I would remain her ally. That was the

decision I had made.

"Are… Are you sure? I left all my comrades behind. I broke Godwin out of prison… I'm

trying to quit being the Hero. After all that, you're still going to forgive me?"

"Of course."

"Can I be selfish? Is it really all right for me to do what I want to do instead of what the

world or my blessing demands?"

Enjoying a slow life removed from the demands of the world was a luxury the Hero

could never rightly be allowed. However, I would not cast aside Ruti's right to choose.

"Live how you like. That's what I do."

Ruti slowly placed her hands on my cheeks. She stared into my eyes for a long moment

and then pressed her forehead to my chest.

"I'm so selfish, Big Brother. I'm a failure as the Hero." I couldn't see Ruti's face, but I

could feel the warmth from her hands on my cheeks. "Please… Please don't hate me."

I put my hands on top of hers. "You're my little sister, Ruti. I will always love you."

"Thank you. I love you, too," she responded softly.

The moment took me back to that storm that had hit our village when we were kids.

My name is Tisse. I'm Ruti the Hero's friend. Rit and I finally reached the entrance to

the ruins after Red had gone ahead of us.

"…I don't like this…"

Just as we were about to enter, an intense look crossed Rit's face.

"What is it?" I asked.

"I can sense someone on the mountain."

"You can?"

Rit had the Spirit Scout blessing, so her perception was better in more natural

environments. However, this was also a place where adventurers came to gather

medicinal herbs and where people from the nearby settlement came to log or hunt.

"Normal folk wouldn't venture this deep into the wilderness," Rit stated.

"You're saying this presence is close?"

I spun around. Two chimeras were lying where we had finished them off just a minute

ago. If someone else was around, they would certainly have to be quite skilled.

"Probably. I can't say for sure, though," admitted Rit.

"I suppose it's whoever summoned that spirit drake," I replied.

"Yeah. What about footprints?"

Out in nature, Rit's Spirit Scout blessing allowed her to sense something as vague as

another's whereabouts far off in the distance, but my Assassin blessing specialized in

tracking skills. I was capable of recognizing characteristic footprints on stone

pavement and picking people out of a crowd.

"There's evidence of three going into the ruins: Ms. Ruti, Godwin, and then Red. The

only new prints since the last time I was here are Ms. Ruti's and Red's. Previously, there

were two sets from about a month earlier—Red's and one other's."

"Someone else?" Rit inquired.

"Whoever it was appeared to have explored the upper level of the ruins once. They

didn't return after that single pass."

As for Red's first trip, it seemed he'd only taken a quick look around to gather what he

could. The interior of the ruins was the correct dampness for mushrooms and moss to

grow in abundance. Mister Crawly Wawly seemed to enjoy the humidity, too, because

his jewellike black eyes were glimmering as he peeked out of my bag.

"So another adventurer in Zoltan was investigating this place," deduced Rit. As we

made our way into the ruins, she seemed to be pondering who that unknown other

could have been.

When we reached Godwin's room, he shrank back in fear at the sight of Rit.

"Don't worry. I don't hold a grudge against you, and I'm not here to get revenge or

anything," she assured.

"S-sorry 'bout that."

Rit smirked a little bit at seeing Godwin tremble. She made a point of drawing her

sword to relish his reaction. She could be a bit childish at times.

"Where is Ms. Ruhr?"

When in Godwin's presence, I went by the alias Tifa, and Ms. Ruti went by Ruhr. My

real name was not particularly problematic, but the moniker Ruti the Hero was known

to just about everyone.

"She went off somewhere with that apothecary," Godwin hastily explained.

"Is that so?"

If so, then following Red's footsteps was the fastest way to find the two. Fortunately,

their tracks were still fresh. Though without a high-level Tracking skill, it would be

impossible to judge any tracks left on the strange material ancient elves made their

floors from.

Rit turned around as we started to leave the room.

"What is it?" I asked.

She opened the item box at her waist and, after reciting the command word, pulled

out a magic knife that emanated darkness, a chain mail tunic interwoven with sounddampening fabric, a thunderstone that unleashed a flash of light when used, and a

smoke wand that released a cloud of thick vapor when broken. She set them all on the

floor.

"Rit?!" I exclaimed.

"I don't have any particular attachment to your life, Godwin, but apparently, you're a

bit of a crucial person. There is a possibility that someone is going to break into these

ruins. Someone who is at least as strong as I am. Maybe even more so. I doubt you can

win against whoever it is, so use these to protect yourself if you need to."

"A-against someone better than you?! Are you kidding?! Take me with you!"

"We've got our hands full with another matter. If it looks like we can come back for you,

we will." Then she took out a potion bottle—one that contained the spell Invisibility.

"I'm leaving this here for you, too, but don't get your hopes up. This almost certainly

won't work on whoever is nearby."

Godwin was muttering complaints as he picked up the items she had placed on the

floor. "I'm beggin' ya here, don't go dragging me into a fight between a bunch of damn

heroes."

"It's better than getting executed at least, right?" Rit said with a shrug.

Godwin slumped in surrender at that, sitting on the floor. Seeing him like that was so

pitiful I felt just a little bit of sympathy for him. Mister Crawly Wawly raised his right

leg, too, urging the Alchemist to cheer up.

Had Ares not gone off to the airship, he would have discovered Red and been able to

follow after him. Instead, he had been forced to rely on his magic to search around the

mountain.

"It should be around here." He was scratching at his arm in frustration, muttering to

himself.

Ares's spell used Albert's blood like a compass that pointed toward Ruti. When poured

on the disk he was holding, the red liquid would react to the magic of Albert's contract

and be pulled in Ruti's direction. Unfortunately, the container was a flat surface, not a

sphere. It could not point up or down.

Ruti was in the archaic compound that spread out deep beneath the mountain.

"Why?! Why can't I find her?!" Ares cried, paying no heed to the blood flowing from

his arm.

Shisandan was pondering what to do as he watched the Sage's reaction. His impression

of Danan, the man whose form the Asura demon was borrowing, was that he was not

a particularly bright man. Shisandan had not been able to steal Danan's memories, but

when he had infiltrated Loggervia in the guise of Gaius, he had spoken with Danan

several times. Ares hadn't discovered him yet, so he had to be doing a convincing

enough job of playing the part.

Shisandan suspected that Ruti had already entered the ancient elf ruins. The reason

they could not find her was because she was underground. However, that wasn't

something an idiot like Danan would suggest.

Ares was a man with his back to the wall. It would even be fair to say he was unable to

think clearly at present. At a fundamental level, Asura demons had entirely different

values and philosophies from humans, elves, and even other demons. Shisandan had

eaten many humans before and observed their memories, but even still, he could not

comprehend humans' thought processes.

When he hid himself among them, he would plumb the memories of whoever he was

imitating, choose situations that seemed the most similar, and act based on those

recollections. Unfortunately, he had not gained any memories from Danan this time.

As such, he hadn't spoken more than absolutely necessary, choosing to merely follow

after Ares.

But at this rate, we won't get anywhere.

Among the memories Shisandan had consumed, there was one from a man who had

been desperate, like Ares was now. Shisandan decided he would use that as his model.

"Hey, I just remembered, but apparently, there were ancient elf ruins on this

mountain."

"And what of it?! Please spare me your prattle and just search for Ruti!" snapped Ares.

"No, I mean from what I heard, those ruins are underground."

"…Why didn't you say so sooner?!"

"Sorry, it totally slipped my mind."

"Kh, this is why I can't stand incompetents. Where is the site you speak of?!"

Did that go okay? I think I managed to fool him by acting like I thought that important

tidbit was too trivial to bring up sooner.

Sensing no suspicion from Ares, Shisandan indulged in a bit of silent self-praise. It had

been worth the wait to stand around first before bringing it up.

This one seems useful. I may not even need to deceive him for much longer. I might be

able to draw him to my side.

If Shisandan revealed himself then and there, there was no chance he would be able

to convince Ares to ally with him. After a rejection from the Hero and having his dream

crushed, however? When all were to seem lost to Ares, and he discovered a way he

might still achieve his aspirations, he'd surely take it. At that point, it wouldn't matter

that it involved dirtying his hands a bit, right?

It's just a question of timing. As I am right now, I probably have no chance of winning

against him.

For all Ares's faults, his magical power was the real deal. If at all possible, Shisandan

would prefer to put things into motion after acquiring the artifacts that lay sleeping

somewhere in the ancient elf ruins.

Shisandan was walking out in front as he plotted how to approach the task. Pondering

how best to trap his target was one of his favorite pastimes. In that regard, the time he

had tricked Rit in Loggervia had been extraordinarily gratifying.

While careful not to let Ares see, Shisandan cracked a sinister grin as he silently laid

out his moves.

At about the same time, Danan was still sprinting along the path, his face red from the

exertion. While he was far swifter than the average person due to his skills, he was still

only halfway to the mountain.

"Dammit! At this rate, it'll all be over by the time I catch up!" he shouted as his legs

pounded against the ground.

The merchants and other travelers he passed on the road ran screaming in the other

direction, thinking he was a highway robber.

"Nrrrrrrrgggggh!!!" Danan psyched himself up, but no matter how much he tried,

there was no dramatic increase in his speed. Just when he was starting to regret not

having gotten a mount, he felt an oppressive presence above.

"What?! Another spirit drake?!"

It was a giant one, catching the wind in its wings as it flew through the air above him.

It looked different from the first drake.

"Huh, that looks like Theodora's summons."

Every part of the creature's body, save its red wings, was covered in armor. Danan

recalled that the spirit beasts Theodora summoned with her clerical arts had all

sported the same sort of protective covering.

The Martial Artist knew next to nothing about magic, so he didn't comprehend that

the difference between this creature and the one he'd seen earlier was that this one

had been conjured from clerical arts, while Ares's mystical arts had summoned the

other.

Theodora's powers borrowed strength from the domain of Victy, guardian of martyrs,

one of Almighty Demis's three disciples. This limited Theodora in a way. She was only

able to call upon spirit beasts whose attributes existed within Victy's domain. Those

creatures she did summon manifested under the influence of Victy.

Ares could use clerical arts as well, but they relied on borrowing power from Larael,

the guardian of hope, another of the three disciples. Invocations made through Larael

had the same restriction on attributes, so Ares generally used mystical arts to avoid

those restrictions.

The clerical arts largely drew power from one of the three disciples, but those inclined

toward evil could source it from Sannou, a legendary demon overlord said to have

rebelled against Demis.

The spirit drake circled slowly over Danan's head. After seemingly spotting him, it

immediately began a descent.

"Huh?"

Danan started clenching his fist and stopped running, getting excited as he wondered

whether it might attack or not. While he understood that it was a bad habit of his to

forget everything going on around him whenever he sensed a strong enemy, that was

just how he was.

Ares had snidely chided him for it many times. It had caused problems once or twice

when Danan had first joined up with the Hero. Very soon after, however, it miraculously

seemed to stop creating trouble. Thinking back on it now, Danan understood that it

had been because Gideon had a full grasp on all his party members' quirks and had

worked to design the best deployments so that they could all fight at their best.

Things might have been different if he had just explained as much. No point thinking

about that now, I guess. I've got a spirit drake right in front of me to deal with first.

When the drake was low enough that it's head was clearly visible, it spread its wings

wide and slowed its glide.

"Danan! It's me!" an armored woman shouted as she leaned out from the drake's back.

"Theodora?!"

As far as Danan knew, she should have been far away.

"This sure is convenient."

This was the second time in Danan's life that he had ridden on a spirit drake. The first

had been when they had traveled to Gandor of the Wind's hideout. They had been

working together with the lightning dragons to break through Gandor's wyvern

knights, but Ares had insisted he fly a spirit drake so he could do as he pleased, and

Danan had gone along to keep him safe.

Back then, there hadn't been any time to comment about how nice riding was between

all his complaints whenever Ares's questionable steering got them into a dangerous

situation.

"Why didn't you use one of these fellas more often?" Danan asked Theodora, who was

sitting in front of him with the drake's reins in her hands.

"It stands out too much. There aren't that many mages capable of summoning a spirit

drake, and if the demon lord's forces saw one, they would surely be on their guard."

"Makes sense," Danan accepted. Spotting such an unusual beast from the ground

wasn't too difficult. Gideon had run off precisely because he'd seen that spirit drake

earlier.

"So who's he?" With a finger, Danan indicated the man sitting behind him.

"My name is Albert, sir. It's an honor to meet you. I've heard tales of your victories

against the demon lord's army, even way out in Zoltan. It's a rather long story, but I'm

an adventurer who is currently accompanying Theodora." Albert introduced himself

with a respectful bow.

Danan nodded before quickly losing interest. "Anyway, that was great timing. Now I

can get to the mountain in no time."

"Are you seriously not going to ask why I'm here? The timing doesn't seem odd to you

at all?" inquired Theodora.

"Not like I'd figure anything out even if I did think about things like that. The Hero's

somewhere on the mountain, and she needs us. That's enough for me."

"…You really are a simple man," Theodora replied with a wry smile.

There was a trace of envy in her expression, but Danan was not the sort who'd notice

that.

"I picked you up because I want you to be there for it, whatever result might come of

the choices we make," stated Theodora.

"?"

"It's fine if you don't get what I mean. Do as you please. I'll act how I see fit, too."

"Roger. I'm not sure I get it, but isn't that obvious? We'll both do what we want. That's

how it should be," Danan responded with a hearty laugh.

Albert was dumbfounded. This was another entirely different sort of hero from Ares

or Theodora.

Once Ruti had calmed down, we headed back out into the corridor.

"Red!"

No sooner had we stepped out than we saw Rit and Tisse running toward us.

"That was fast," I remarked.

"We were in a bit of a hurry," Rit said with a smile.

Ruti looked expressionless, but her cheeks were turning ever so slightly redder. It was

what she did when she was feeling happy.

"Thank you," Ruti murmured.

The four of us returned to Godwin's room to get what information we could about

Devil's Blessing.

From what the contract demon had said, the principle behind the substance was that

it used its core ingredient, an ax demon's heart, to create a demon blessing that

suppressed the user's natural one. However…

"That was how the contract demon explained it to me, too," Ruti added, before tilting

her head. "But the Hero's blessing treats the effects of a demon's heart as a curse,

eliminating it. So when I drank it, I did not develop an ax demon blessing."

"Then how is your innate blessing being suppressed?" I inquired.

Ruti tilted her head. "The blessing I developed is one without a name."

"Nameless?" I repeated, at a loss.

"Yes. When I connect with it, there aren't any skills or impulses. It's just there."

What could that be? I'd done lots of research on blessings, so I felt confident that I

knew more than most on the subject, but I'd never heard of this before. Was it really a

blessing?

"My levels are definitely shifting to that nameless blessing, and the Hero's urges are

weakening."

"If there aren't any impulses, and if that blessing's level gets higher than your natural

one's, does that mean there won't be any murderous fits?" Rit asked, hopefulness

apparent in her voice.

Ax demon blessings had caused the brutal attacks that had plagued Zoltan a while

back. If this nameless thing in Ruti really didn't have any compulsions, then there was

no danger.

"A blessing with no name… On top of being a complete unknown, it's like no other

blessing in existence. Not knowing what it might be capable of is ominous in its own

way," I said.

Every blessing had a role. Regardless of how powerful or weak a Divine Blessing was,

its name, urges, and skills were a means for the bearer to interpret their assigned lot

in life and gain the abilities necessary to fulfill that role.

So then, what could one divine from a blessing with no identifiable qualities?

"There's a lot that's still in the dark. I'd like to ask Godwin, since he's an actual

Alchemist," I stated.

We continued to discuss it as we made our way back to Godwin's room. As Ruti had

blown the door off the wall, we could see the man before entering. He twitched when

he heard our approach.

"D-don't scare me like that." Godwin breathed a sigh of relief after realizing we weren't

the enemy Rit had warned him of earlier.

"I know this is sudden, but I want to know everything you know about Devil's

Blessing," I said.

Unraveling all this was doubtlessly going to be difficult, but we had to face the mystery

of this demonic medicine head-on.

"Basically, Devil's Blessing was created as a kind of stopper meant to limit the effects

of its base—the substance that creates that nameless blessing. It achieves this by

causing a demon blessing to develop instead of the nameless one and by transferring

levels to it. With the unaltered, original drug, your innate blessing's level won't go down.

Even if you didn't have an immunity to curses, Devil's Blessing was unnecessary."

This was the hypothesis that Godwin presented to us when pressed for details about

Devil's Blessing. He had used one of his skills to analyze the medicine.

"So is the part about limiting urges something added later, too? Or was it part of the

original compound?" I questioned.

"Hard to say. There's a possibility the nameless blessing might limit the impulses of

your natural one without decreasing its level. Still, the drug's original purpose was to

create that nameless blessing."

"So then the part about it weakening your innate blessing to increase the efficiency of

leveling that the demon told Ruhr about was not its original usage?" I queried.

"Yeah, and that bit about the levels in the new blessing returning after a week wasn't

an original part of how the substance worked, either."

Things were just getting more and more baffling. The demons' alterations seemed

designed to destroy the original drug's effects.

"What about the dependency and narcotic effects?" Ruti asked.

She was the one actually taking the medicine, so that was a critical point. While she

could nullify adverse effects with her immunities, if her blessing level kept shifting, it

was possible that she could lose such impunity.

"That's just a problem with the ingredients. It uses dwarven blackfire peppers, which

are quite addictive. They are banned here in Zoltan, so acquiring them actually proved

to be the most challenging part of the whole process. There's still a lot of them left in

Bighawk's hidden stockroom for now, though."

"Is there any substitute for them?" I inquired.

"I'm just a washed-up Alchemist who wound up with the Thieves Guild. Don't go askin'

me to figure out any modifications to the recipe."

Godwin had been a key member of the Thieves Guild under Bighawk, but he was by

no means exceptionally knowledgeable when it came to alchemy.

I glanced down at the notes the man had written from his analysis and considered the

problem. Still, there just wasn't enough there for me to make a definitive statement

one way or the other about replacements for the dwarven blackfire peppers.

With Ruti's Healing Hands, she could completely cure any addiction or overdose. And

there were high-level healers in most large cities capable of magics that could heal the

medicine's damage. Such services demanded payment, of course, but such prices were

little more than pocket change to someone of Ruti's means.

I suppose we can ignore the dwarven blackfire peppers for now… though I'd like to

remove them from the equation at some point.

"The murderous impulses started occurring when the demon's blessing surpassed the

innate blessing in level. What do you think will happen when this nameless blessing

surpasses Ruhr's innate blessing?" I asked.

"I can't say for sure, but those violent urges came from the ax demon's blessing. If a

blessing that doesn't have any impulses surpasses her innate one, then I'd assume

nothing in particular would happen," concluded Godwin.

He's got the same assumption I have, I thought.

"So in sum, what are we looking at?" Tisse asked.

"Hmm. For the time being, it looks like the risk is minimal. We have to be careful about

Ruhr's level getting too low. Still, I don't think we'll have to worry about her getting

violent."

Ruti's eyes widened a bit at that. She had probably been fretting over whether we

would tell her not to take the substance anymore.

"From what I can tell, demons added all the dangerous parts after the fact. I want to

investigate the recipe in more detail myself, but for the moment, I think it is okay to

use it to suppress urges until we find another way," I decided.

Never would I have guessed that my knowledge of medicine would wind up being such

a boon for Ruti. I felt a small surge of pride when I saw that she seemed happy.

"As for other issues, there's the problem of Zoltan being viewed as problematic after

the incident with Devil's Blessing. Forget dwarven blackfire peppers, just trying to get

our hands on the other special ingredients will draw the attention of Zoltan's

authorities."

"What about just growing the things we need here on the mountain?" Rit proposed.

"That's easy enough in theory, but it's pretty difficult to raise plants brought in from

another climate. Though there's no reason not to try, either," I replied.

"Oh."

"And I'll look into the possibility of substituting some of the ingredients. It's possible

that the demons intentionally used certain additives to produce a more addictive

medicine."

Ruti had made it clear that the contract demon had been devout in its faith in Demis.

While that seemed contrary to expectation, it made sense that demons who strictly

adhered to what their blessings wanted would be faithful believers of Demis, too. Yet

those loyalists had preserved the method of producing a medicine that created a new

blessing, something that was unquestionably an act of rebellion against God.

The reason they had done so was likely because, in the form of Devil's Blessing, the drug

was a way to develop one's innate blessing even further. Still, the demons recognized

that this incredible medicine could also be used to resist Demis's designs.

Perhaps that was why the altered recipe called for such rare and addictive ingredients—

to prevent any unintended spread. Overdoses and addiction were a lethal problem for

the average person.

"It's still difficult to reconcile demons being such ardent believers…," I muttered to

myself.

When I found some time with Ruti, I wanted to discuss that point in more detail. Back

then, in the Hero's party, Ruti and I had spent many sleepless nights debating all sorts

of things about the nature of the world. I looked forward to doing that again when we

were back home in Zoltan.

That would be nice.

"What is it, Big Brother?" Noticing my gaze, Ruti tilted her head. I just smiled to let her

know it was nothing problematic. "Okay," she responded with a nod. It looked like her

cheeks had reddened slightly.

"Something's coming," Tisse suddenly whispered so that only those in the room would

hear.

Save for Godwin, we all quickly drew our weapons and focused. Godwin scurried

behind us when I gave the signal.

"I-I'm sure it will be fine with you guys here…," he muttered nervously.

Ruti was not paying any attention to him as she slowly approached the doorway out

to the corridor.

Using the Enhanced Detection skill that the Hero blessing provided, every one of Ruti's

senses became as perceptive as her vision, allowing her to discern the slightest

vibrations, changes in heat, smells, and such. Tisse's Assassin ability to sense presences

covered a wider range, but Ruti's skill was superior in close quarters since it allowed

her to see through walls.

"It's an iron snake," Ruti whispered.

A small object flew out from the shadows at the entrance. But the moment it appeared,

Ruti's sword was already bearing down on it, splitting the iron snake before it had any

chance to test its fangs.

"An iron snake? What's one of those doing here?" Rit's face was clouded.

Iron snakes were a type of golem created from a combination of magic and alchemy.

The serpent-shaped metal constructs were about thirty centimeters long. While they

weren't very powerful, they were stealthy and able to slip into all sorts of openings,

making the things quite versatile. On top of that, they had a mapping capability and

the power to display what they observed to their controller. Iron snakes were perfectly

suited to matters of espionage.

"It's an entirely different kind of golem from the clockwork ones typically found in

places like this. There's no record of iron snakes in ancient elf ruins anywhere else," I

said.

"Someone else must be here. They're concealing themself with magic, but I can just

barely detect a faint presence when I focus on it," Tisse stated. Mister Crawly Wawly

popped his head out of her bag to try to convey something to her. "According to Mister

Crawly Wawly, two humans have trod on the threads he laid out." Her spider nodded,

confirming what she said.

In the time he had been together with Tisse, Mister Crawly Wawly had raised his level,

and apparently, he could discern the general size and shape of creatures who touched

his silk from the vibrations transmitted through it.

"Two people, huh?" I whispered.

The one who'd summoned the spirit drake and some ally, maybe? It was hard to say

whether they had spotted us below on the mountain path. Regardless, they were

aware of the iron snake's destruction.

"…Is it Shisandan?" Rit wondered quietly. Her expression was filled with a mix of

unease and a dark anticipation.

"Hey, wouldn't it be better if Ms. Ruhr was the one protecting me?" Godwin whined

pitifully.

"You're stuck with me, so just suck it up."

Ruti and Rit stood at the head of the group with Tisse behind them, Godwin behind

her, and I brought up the rear to protect the Alchemist if we were assailed from behind.

"But you're the least reliable one of them."

"Ever tactful, I see."

"This is a life-or-death situation!"

Godwin was a high-level Alchemist—by Zoltan standard anyway. However, he couldn't

hold a candle to the class of opponents the Hero regularly engaged with, and he

understood that as well as anyone else here. That was why we had taken this

formation.

Ruti twitched in reaction to something behind us. I immediately drew one of the

throwing knives I had borrowed from Rit and let it fly. The weapon caught another

iron snake that had been sneaking toward us and destroyed it.

My sister and I did not need words to communicate. I was confident in my ability to

act how she intended from a single glance alone. Countless battles together had forged

our sibling bond into a kind of second-nature response.

It wouldn't be hyperbole to say that the moment she noticed something with her

extremely heightened perception, it was also shared with me.

"I know they aren't exactly built to last, but still, one-shotting an iron golem with a

throwing knife? Why the hell are you an apothecary? Did you screw something up and

have to go into hiding or something?" Godwin quietly asked in awe when he saw the

little golem's shattered head.

Tisse used a skill, standing still and focusing as she searched for any more unwelcome

guests. "The iron snakes have left this level," she declared after a moment.

We had come across a total of four iron snakes and destroyed all of them. However,

Tisse had sensed at least seven of the little things earlier. That meant at least three of

them had been pulled away from this floor.

"What about the people?" I questioned.

"They're still using a spell to hide, so I can't pin down their locations, but I think one

of them has moved below the surface," the Assassin replied.

"Splitting up?" Rit seemed surprised. If this pair was hostile, them parting was a

decision in our favor. "They must know we broke the iron snakes, right? Even if we

assume these two are entirely unrelated to Shisandan or Devil's Blessing stuff, they

must recognize by now that there is a threat down here. So why split up?"

"It's certainly odd. They may be using magic or a martial art that can throw off my

perception, but…" Tisse trailed off.

The girl was one of the best Assassins around. Only a few could hope to disguise

themselves from her senses. Was there anyone truly capable of disrupting her

perception so thoroughly?

"Stay on guard. Be ready to react in case they somehow did manage to trick Tisse's

reading, but for now, let's assume she's correct," I stated.

"Understood." Ruti nodded at my proposal. No sooner had she done so than her mouth

curved ever so slightly into a smile.

"Something up?" I inquired.

"The situation is what it is, but… I'm happy. It's been so long since you've fired off

directions like that…" Ruti was looking me straight in the eyes as she said that, but she

quickly reverted to a serious expression and faced forward again.

Everyone, even Godwin, noticed the change.

"Something's coming!" Rit called out sharply.

"Mister Crawly Wawly's webs have all been torn apart! It's a swarm of things no bigger

than fingernails!"

"Ruti! Rit! Use Levitate!"

Ruti and Rit, the two who could use the spell, quickly cast it on everyone. Suddenly, we

were all hovering slightly above the ground, waiting for the horde that had suddenly

appeared.

"Is it spiders? Ants? It can't be parasitic grubs, right?" Godwin listed the sorts of

swarms adventurers often encountered. Disregarding such threats simply because

they were insects or arachnids was foolhardy. You couldn't defeat a horde of bugs with

conventional weapons. Magic or fire were typically the best options. They could be

truly dangerous, easily capable of taking down the unprepared. However, the little

things that came skittering into sight weren't ants or spiders.

"Eeeep!" Godwin screamed reflexively at the sight of them filling the floor. Rit gasped

and shuddered, too.

"Plague Eyes…," I muttered.

They were crying human eyes. Red, tentacle-like blood vessels extended from the

backs of the things, and they used those to crawl along the floor. That alone would

have been repulsive, but after moving around for a bit, the eyeballs would start to

bubble and split apart. The frothing liquid from inside spawned more of their kind.

"It's a high-level mystic art, a combination of summoning magic and necromancy that

uses the eyes of dead humans who bore intense grudges as a medium. The conjured

things continue to create more of themselves," I explained. The crying eyes filling the

floor looked up at us, floating in the air. It was a scene that made even my hair stand

on end. "They can't be controlled and will keep increasing until the magic that first

made them runs out. It's meant to overrun anyone on the ground. That said, they're

still the result of a summoning spell, so whoever cast it will be aware if any eyes are

killed. I've heard stories about some using that method to locate an enemy."

"Attacking them will alert their master to us?" Tisse asked.

"Pretty much. Plague Eyes cover a wide area. No one would bother using them if they

knew where their quarry was already. It's fortunate that Levitate allows us to evade

them," I replied.

Conjuring such disgusting things was no small feat, but the method was not without

its weaknesses. All we needed to do was keep floating in the air until its effect ran out.

"…Weren't they trying to locate us using those iron snakes?" Rit asked.

"Perhaps the two of them are unable to share information for some reason?" proposed

Tisse.

There was no denying that using Plague Eyes here was odd. But while I was grappling

with the implications of that decision, Ruti just furrowed her brow impatiently.

"We're not going to figure it out by guessing. We should just ask directly."

"Huh?" I managed before Ruti signed something arcane with her left hand.

"Judgment Lightning."

"Wha—?!"

An intense bolt struck the eyeball-flooded floor and raced through the corridor.

The spells afforded by the Divine Blessing of the Hero were cost inefficient but rivaled

Archmage and Sage blessings in terms of immediate output. They wielded a power

that made a mockery of all the magic swordsman-type blessings that struggled to

balance bladework with spells.

Ruti's temple twitched. "Someone blocked it," she muttered, dropping to the ground

with her sword drawn. She started running.

"Wait! Don't go off alone! Rit, Tisse! Keep Godwin safe, but try to catch up as soon as

you can!" I took off after Ruti without waiting for them to respond.

She hadn't ever gone off on her own like this while I had been in the party.

Is this how she's been fighting since I left?

"Ruti!" I called.

"Around that corner."

Though I'd caught up to her, I didn't even have time to get a warning out before she

turned at an intersection. Naturally, I followed after, but seeing the figure standing

there made me forget myself for a moment.

"Ruti! I finally found you!"

"Ares?!"

Standing there was Ares the Sage, the man who had driven me from my sister's side.

In his present state, he looked nothing like the man I had once known.

Ares's handsome features had made him popular with women back in Central, but

now his hair was a wild mess, and his cheeks were sunken. Formerly calm and

discerning eyes were now wide and bloodshot, resembling the dead little things fading

away in bubbling foam on the floor.

"Let's go defeat the demon lord, Ruti. The Hero is the only one who can save the world.

And I must be there at your side. The Hero and the Sage. We've nothing to fear from

any demon lord with such Divine Blessings at our disposal."

"A-Ares, what happened to you…?" I asked.

Keeping up appearances had been paramount to him. Even when we were on the road,

he'd always taken care to maintain himself. It made how he looked now all the more

shocking.

"Come, Ruti. Take my hand. You realized we don't need anyone else, right? That's why

you left? I agree. Danan, Theodora, Yarandrala, Tisse, Gideon… They were all just

getting in our way. Useless scoundrels who could do nothing more than complain. But

we can defeat the demon lord together, just the two of us. A glorious future awaits."

Ares did not respond to my words. His cheeks were twitching in a spastic smile as he

extended his hand to Ruti.

"Ares." Ruti's voice was soft, and she was gazing at him almost piteously.

"Ruti…"

"I'm not going to travel with you anymore."

"Huh?"

"I don't know what comes next, but my journey with you has reached its end. My time

as the Hero is over. Now I'm only Ruti."

What Ares needed, what he required, wasn't Ruti. It was the Hero. That was why Ruti

closed the book on her quest with Ares. It was a parting, but in her own way, my little

sister was also drawing a line of sorts with a man she had known for very long.

Ares looked down, smile still pasted across his face. "You're too kind. You feel a need

to help a hopeless cause like Gideon. That's why you're choosing a man with a worthless

blessing over me. Because you can't bear to cast aside that hindrance, right?"

"You've got it wrong, Ares, Ruti is—"

"Silence!"

Ares moved his hand in a practiced motion.

"Ares?! What are yo—? Gh!!!" The next thing I knew, his Force Shot spell had sent me

flying. I slammed into the wall behind me with a loud crash. The impact knocked the

air from my lungs, and I couldn't breathe for a moment. Unable to hold on, I dropped

to one knee.

"There! Now it's all fine, Ruti! Let us be off to vanquish the demon lord!" Ares faced Ruti

with arms wide open, almost like he was sure that she would jump into his embrace.

Ruti did leap forward, but not in the way Ares had hoped.

"Even now, you still don't see me."

"Huh?" Shocked, Ares looked down and discovered Ruti's sword sticking out of his

stomach. "Agh! Ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh?!"

Disbelief was plain on Ares's face. His wide eyes looked down to gaze at the blood

flowing from his gut. Ruti retracted her blade without any hesitation.

"I'm not kind at all."

"Ugwahhhhhhhhhh! Wh-why? This is a misunderstanding! I'm Ares the Sage! Why did

you stab me…?"

"I avoided piercing anything vital. Healing yourself with magic shouldn't be too much

trouble. This is my answer. I don't feel conflicted about running you through for

hurting someone important to me. If Big Brother had been seriously wounded, I would

have killed you," Ruti stated matter-of-factly. Then she turned her back on him and

walked over to me. "Are you okay, Big Brother? Wait just a second, and I'll heal you."

"Ah, yeah, please."

Thankfully, my injury wasn't anything grievous. Force Shot was a spell better suited to

knocking targets away than destroying them. With my high blessing level, it amounted

to a few bruises and scrapes.

"R-Ruti… my wound is more serious… Healing… please…," Ares pleaded as he clutched

at his stomach. Yet Ruti did not even turn back to look at him.

"I'm not the Hero. And I'm never going to help you again."

She left no room at all for misinterpretation, rejecting Ares altogether.