The Hero Wept

My little sister was in my arms. The sibling I thought I might never see again—and

certainly not before the demon lord was defeated.

"Big Brother!!!"

Ruti's arms wrapped around my back and squeezed me tight. She was smiling as tears

ran down her cheeks.

Both Gonz, who was standing next to me, and the chikuwa girl from the other evening

who had come in with Ruti, were slack-jawed in shock. I was going to have to explain

this all somehow, but… first things first.

I gave Ruti the biggest hug I could. I mean, I was glad to see my little sister again, too—

from the very bottom of my heart.

Ruti seemed to have finally calmed down after a little bit, so I gently pushed against

her shoulders, and she released me without fighting it. Her expression had gone back

to normal, too.

She was still grinning, but it was one of those expressions of hers that probably looked

like a blank face to people who didn't know her well.

"Big Brother… you were completely wrong."

"…? Say what?"

"I didn't feel anything special about Ares at all."

Did she mean that time when Ares put his arm around her when I left?

"Really? I could have sworn—"

"You were wrong." Ruti cut me off with an uncommonly forceful tone compared to how

she usually spoke with me. It was her way of rejecting what I'd been about to say

without giving me any room to argue, so I just let it go.

"I understand. I guess I just misunderstood."

"Right." Ruti looked sad as she corrected me.

I see. So she and Ares weren't really like that… On the one hand, that made me a little

happy, but on the other, it was depressing to realize that Ruti had been left with no one

to count on after I'd left.

…I should probably explain things to Gonz and the chikuwa girl, but how do I even begin

to provide an excuse for all this?

"'Big Brother'? So does that mean she's your little sister, Red?"

"'Big Brother'? Would you perchance be Mr. Gideon?"

"Gideon?"

"Red?"

Gonz and the chikuwa girl were both looking confused.

Argh, how do I deal with this?

Rit was out getting food for dinner. I was going to have to outline a few things to Ruti

before she got back. At the same time, Gonz needed to be set straight as well.

He wasn't tight-lipped by any stretch, but he could at least tell the difference between

things that shouldn't be shared and things that could be.

"Hmmmm."

I flipped the sign on the shop to CLOSED. There was no way I could handle customers

in this sort of situation.

"Ummm, you first, Gonz," I decided.

"So what's the deal?"

"This girl is my little sister. But please don't tell folks about her yet. I'll explain

everything later, so if you could just keep this to yourself and head back now, I'd

appreciate it."

"No problem. I dunno what all you have going on, but it's clear enough to see that it's

not like the two of you hate each other or anything," Gonz said, being accepting with a

big smile. "It's a special thing, havin' a little sister."

Like I had Ruti, Gonz had Nao. The two of them got along really well, and he even

treated her husband, Mido, like family, too, to say nothing of how much he doted on

Tanta.

Gonz stood up and patted my shoulder.

"Also, Little Miss. Red… or maybe his real name is Gideon? I don't know the story for

any of that, but he's a great guy and real dependable. In this part of town, everyone

counts on him. He hasn't done anything bad, so don't you worry about stuff like that."

"Okay," Ruti replied with a nod. However, it looked to me like her expression was ever

so slightly troubled.

The only ones left in the living room were me, Ruti, and the chikuwa girl—Tisse, her

name was. She had an Assassin blessing, and she'd joined the Hero's party to replace

me on Ares's recommendation.

I thought my duties and those of someone with an Assassin blessing were pretty

different, though…

"Where to even begin…," I wondered aloud.

"Big Brother."

"What is it?"

"Are you living together with someone?" Ruti inquired as she glanced around the

room.

Ugh. She'd caught on before I'd even had a chance to say anything.

There wasn't anything in the room that would give Rit away. However, the vase of

flowers and the style of some of the housewares betrayed that there was someone

who shared this place with me. It's a little nerve-racking to have to tell my little sister

as much, though.

"Yes, I'm living with someone."

"…I see."

"She'll probably be back before long. You remember when we were in Loggervia?

Rizlet, the princess who used shotels and traveled together with us for a little while?"

"Yes, Rit."

Ruti seemed a little sad as she nodded.

I guess I truly had been misunderstanding things when I thought she had gotten closer

to Ares.

Around the time when she set off on her journey—and really ever since she was

little—she only had eyes for me.

"Anyway, I guess you'd deserve to know how I ended up here. I imagine you heard from

Ares that I had withdrawn from the party to scout out the enemy."

"After that, Yarandrala started accusing Ares of killing you, so he explained that you

had run away."

Dammit, Ares. Couldn't keep your word, huh? Not that I had any right to complain since

I had abandoned my team.

I filled Ruti in on everything: Ares telling me to leave because I was holding the party

back, the despair, drifting out to Zoltan, opening an apothecary… and how I started

living with Rit.

"I intend to stay here together with Rit like this. And I expect we'll get married

eventually."

I got a little tense when that word crossed my lips.

Rit was a princess, and while I was a knight, I was a commoner by birth, so all I had to

my name was a low-level, nonhereditary peerage. It wasn't really an appropriate

relationship in terms of status, but Rit and I were both resolved to relinquish our titles

if we needed to.

"I see."

Ruti could tell from my expression that I was serious. She just nodded quietly without

comment.

"I'm sorry for just disappearing like that."

"…Ares is the one at fault. But…" Ruti looked me straight in the eyes. "I'll silence Ares.

So it's okay, right?"

"…"

"Rit can come, too. Let's travel together again, Big Brother." Rit sounded like she was

pleading with me. My heart was aching.

I had thought that Ruti had found someone else to rely on besides me. Ares, Danan,

Theodora, and Yarandrala had their foibles, but they were all comrades who had

mastered the paths they had taken, and they were all stronger than I was. Ares's magic,

Danan's fists, Theodora's spear and miracles, and Yarandrala's ability to control plants

outdid anything I was capable of. Even without me, I thought for sure they'd have

found their own ways to support Ruti…

"The party doesn't work together without you, Big Brother. I can kick Ares out if you

want. But we need you."

Ruti explained how poorly things had been going for her team recently. Ares had tried

to do the jobs I had been doing by himself and failed. Danan had gone off to search for

me, and Yarandrala had left the party after thinking that I had been killed. Tisse had

joined to take my place, but that was three losses with only one addition.

"…"

I had thought that Ruti had been making good progress on her quest when I'd heard

she and her party had defeated Gandor of the Wind. But nothing about the Hero's

journey was going smoothly. Just like Rit had feared, there had been significant

problems after my disappearance. And if Ruti was saying that she wanted me to come

back, that meant there was still a place for me in her group. If I wanted, I could go back

to those days of adventuring again.

But… But even so… I…

"I'm sorry, Ruti. I've already found a reason for me to stay here."

It wasn't just Rit. This store, this slow life, they had become my reason for living.

Answering the modest requests of the residents of Zoltan… the way they could get so

happy from a heater to fight the winter cold… it made me happy.

Zoltan was already my home.

"I see," Ruti responded quietly.

It was almost like she had half expected my reply.

"In that case, I'll live here, too." My beloved little sister stated her determination to

stop adventuring just like I had.

It was a selfish thing to say. It meant turning her back on the battle that would

determine the fate of the world, but could anyone really rebuke her?

What was there to say? What could I tell her?

I was consumed in a bitter vortex of thoughts. Yet that didn't trouble me in the

slightest. The more important thing was that the girl before me was suffering such

unbearable sadness.

It was soon after that when Rit came with a bag of groceries.

"I'm back! Are you there, Red? Why did you close the shop?"

I frantically dashed out of the living room and into the storefront.

"I'm here. A… guest has stopped by. They're in the living room."

"A guest?"

The floorboards creaked behind me. Someone was watching from the door behind me.

Not that I had looked back to see, though…

The bag of groceries Rit was holding dropped to the floor with a thud. She gasped and

seemed to be at a loss for words.

"Um, yeah, my little sister is here."

Even without looking, it was easy enough to tell who was at the door to the living room

from the expression on Rit's face.

"It's been a while," Ruti said quietly.

There was a clink as I set the cups of coffee I had prepared on the table. The room was

so quiet that the sound was almost deafening.

Not good.

Rit and Ruti were both focused pointedly on the drinks in front of them, making no

effort to look across the table. Tisse's gaze was fixed on a little spider resting on the

back of her hand. The arachnid was glancing all around as it made a gesture that

almost seemed like it was trying to comfort Tisse.

"Um, Ruti, where are you staying?" I asked, if only to break the unease.

"An inn in the harbor district."

"The harbor? Wouldn't the taverns in the north or downtown be a bit nicer?"

"It's fine."

"I see… So what are you going to do? Do you want to stay here tonight?"

There was a spark of excitement in Ruti's eyes at that, but she immediately looked

down again.

"No. There's still something we need to take care of in the harbor district… but the day

that's done, I would like to be together with you."

"Got it."

Something to take care of…?

"I hadn't gotten a chance to ask yet, but why are you in Zoltan?" I inquired.

"One reason was to look for you."

"For me?"

"Because you're necessary to defeat the demon lord."

The way Ruti had looked when she first saw me, and then when she'd said she was

going to live here… and now admitting she had traveled to Zoltan in search of me…

None of it really added up.

"And the other reason was to seek out someone else."

"Who?" I pressed.

"A knowledgeable person who was hiding away in Zoltan. He has some information

that is necessary to defeat the demon lord. But I already found him, so that part's been

taken care of."

"I see."

"Um!" Rit finally spoke up. "…What are you going to do, Red?"

Oh yeah, Rit wasn't here for that part.

"I'm going to stay here and keep running this store with you, Rit."

"Really?… But…" Rit glanced over at a despondent Ruti.

"You don't have to worry… I'm going to live in this town, too," Ruti stated matter-offactly.

"H-huh?!"

"We're going to head back for today."

"'Head back'…?"

Ruti stood up. Weird. I had felt like something was really off since earlier, and that

niggling sensation refused to go away. Whatever was going on with Ruti didn't seem

entirely bad, but I couldn't trust that it was wholly good, either.

"Big Brother."

"Feel free to come by whenever. I'll be here."

"I was just about to ask that." Ruti smiled bashfully as she lowered her head slightly. I

gently patted her head.

"Mm…"

"I still haven't gotten to talk with you enough. We both have so much to discuss… all

the things that happened after I left."

"Yes, but this is enough for today…" Ruti met my gaze. She looked satisfied.

"It's fine. I have lots of time to spare now."

From her spot next to me, Rit was stunned at the sight of Ruti's visible smile.

As quickly as she had appeared, Ruti left, taking Tisse with her.

Rit and I sat at the table, deep in thought.

"Hey, Red. Is this all okay?"

"What?"

"Um… Maybe it's a bit weird for me to be saying this, but… Ruti really needs you."

"Yeah."

"In that case, I can't help thinking… maybe it would be better to just go with her." Rit

looked pained.

"For the sake of the world, huh…"

If I was being honest with myself, I couldn't deny that my heart was wavering. A part

of me was unsure, especially after I'd seen how sad Ruti had looked.

"We should talk again. Ruti and I—and you and Tisse as well. All four of us."

"Yeah."

This wasn't a problem that could be quickly resolved. We were going to need some

time. There would probably be plenty of people who would criticize the Hero for

abandoning her quest. However, if anyone was guilty in all of this, it was me. Ruti had

not done anything wrong.

Even if she had been forced to bear the fate of the world on her shoulders, Ruti was

still just a seventeen-year-old girl.

Having left the shop, Ruti walked away quickly and then groaned as she pressed her

hand against her chest.

"M-Ms. Ruhr?!"

Tisse frantically dashed over to her.

Ruti took a vial of Devil's Blessing out of her pocket and drank it one gulp.

"I shouldn't have said I would stay here," Ruti whispered as a cold sweat formed on

her brow.

An intense urge from her blessing was pummeling the poor girl. Devil's Blessing was

supposed to lessen such impulses, but the world's most powerful blessing would not

let the Hero toss away her mission without a fight. It resisted with an overpowering

desire for justice, and a pain like Ruti's heart was caught in a vice.

"I have to weaken it further."

"Ms. Ruhr…"

Tisse was uneasy. She could tell that something was off about Ruti. She had not

journeyed together with the Hero for very long, but she could tell that the other young

woman was acting abnormally.

"Kyaaaaaah!" someone cried out.

Tisse immediately readied herself, but Ruti had dashed off even faster than the

assassin.

On the outskirts of the working-class neighborhood, there was a road running along

the irrigation channel that functioned as the line between it and the harbor district.

There, a high elf woman had been pulled to the ground by her hair.

"Who the hell let a goddamn long-ear sell stuff here?!"

An oden cart had been toppled nearby.

The various things that Oparara had been working so hard to cook were mercilessly

strewn all around, and the two men—their cheeks flushed from alcohol—were

grinning as they stomped on the food.

"Stop it!"

"This here's a human town, ya hear? Freaks like you showing their face in public'll give

us a bad name."

Human supremacists like them could be found just about anywhere. They were

generally denounced by most humans, too, but even still, there were enough of them

to form their own little communities in most places.

A twisted sort of pleasure warped the roughnecks' faces after seeing Oparara's face

swollen from the beating…

However…

"Huh?"

It only lasted for the blink of an eye. The next instant, a girl was standing before them

with her fist cocked back for a punch. The man it was aimed at didn't even have time

to curl up and protect himself.

"Grgh?!"

The air was forcibly knocked from his lungs, and he was hit with an agony like his

insides had been trampled flat.

Ruti had punched him while being careful to hold back just enough so as not to kill the

ruffian. Still, that restraint was not out of any sense of mercy. She had carefully

modulated her strength to barely keep him from passing out while still ensuring he

would feel the worst possible pain.

That one blow had struck the man with injuries that he would carry for the rest of his

life. The drunk man crouched over, holding his stomach and groaning as tears and

drool covered his face.

"Wh-wh-what was that?!"

The other roughneck panicked and tried to run away, but Tisse had already cut him

off.

"O-outta my way!"

He thrust his arm out to knock her aside, but Tisse just caught it and used it to send

him flying through the air.

"Ugh!"

Slamming him to the ground, Tisse pinned him using his elbow and gently jabbed a

finger into his side.

"Ugh— Ugggggggggggghhaaaaaaaaah!"

He wailed pathetically as he received a firsthand lesson in the ways an assassin

destroyed a humanoid body. It was an attack designed to cause significant pain without

leaving any visible traces.

"The chikuwa… What a waste."

Seeing the food on the ground that the human supremacists had been stepping on,

Tisse added a bit more force behind her finger.

By the time a pair of guards arrived on the scene after all the ruckus, the two thugs

had already been dealt with. Tisse and Ruti handed the shamefully sobbing men over

to the authorities.

"They'll never make that mistake again," Ruti stated.

Tisse nodded in agreement.

"Thank you both for your help."

From the looks of it, the Zoltani guards were also pissed off by the men's random act

of violence, so they didn't comment on Ruti and Tisse's aggressive response. Instead,

they chose to leave the young women with a word of gratitude.

"Phew."

Tisse felt a small sense of satisfaction. It was rare for an assassin like her to be able to

help people like that. While uncommon, it was not at all an unpleasant feeling.

Meanwhile, Ruti's reaction was almost the exact opposite. Her shoulders slumped a

bit.

"Th-thank you! You saved me there!" Oparara walked over, a wet towel pressed against

her cheek where she had been struck.

Seeing her face like that, Ruti placed her right hand on the high elf's cheek.

"Ms. Ruhr!"

Realizing with a start what she was about to do, Tisse tried to stop her, but Ruti did

not listen and activated her Healing Hands.

"Eh?!"

Oparara was shocked. In an instant, her pain was gone. Her swollen face had shrunk

back to normal.

"I still can't avert my eyes from people in need."

"Ms. Ruhr…"

"Sorry, even though it was so important to avoid using my skills…"

"N-no, it's fine… I'm sure what you did was right."

Right, that is what it was to be the Hero.

Tisse could accept it. She even felt a little bit of pride at the fact that she was standing

on the side of righteousness.

Ruti was staring at her right hand, the one she had just used to save the weak and lay

the strong blow. The impulses that had been torturing her minutes earlier had

vanished after rescuing the high elf. And as time passed, the Devil's Blessing would

start taking effect.

The reason she had run when she heard the shout was because she had thought that

she would be able to ease the urges of her blessing.

In a soft voice that no one else could hear, Ruti asked her blessing:

"Is this really right?"

My name is Tisse Garland. I'm one of the Hero's comrades, and I have an Assassin

blessing.

It is currently evening. I just came back from giving the alchemist Godwin, who we

have confined in a warehouse, dinner.

The plan had initially been for us to escape Zoltan during the night, but the Hero found

her brother, whom she had been searching for in this town, so the plan changed.

It seems like she is considering staying in Zoltan. However, it is also still necessary to

have Godwin make the medicine.

Godwin is too well-known in this town…

We would need to provide an alchemy workshop near enough that the Hero could

reach it from Zoltan while also keeping Godwin confined so he doesn't run away.

Difficult. That was the simplest way to put it.

If we had just a few more people, I could imagine a few separate ways we could

accomplish that goal, but we only had the two of us. It was my first time in Zoltan, so

there weren't any people I could trust here. There wasn't even a branch of the

Assassins Guild. If push came to shove, I would guess that her brother Gideon was

trustworthy, but…

"This is really quite the conundrum."

"Yes," Ruti said, nodding in response.

"Might it not be better to go to a different town until we've acquired more of the

medicine? We could return to Zoltan after that."

"I know that."

"Eeep?!" I recoiled instinctively at the sullen aura emanating from the Hero. She was

just sitting in a chair in thought, but it had such a powerful impact.

It had seemed for a short while like the force of her presence had softened a bit after

meeting Gideon, but that was clearly not the case.

"There's a place I would like to check out tomorrow. In the meantime, we have about

a week, so it doesn't have to be the top priority, but I would like to find a hideout."

"I—I imagine we could make something work for that long, but… a place you wanted

to check out?"

"Apparently, there are ancient elf ruins on the mountain near where we left the airship.

If the facilities are still intact, it would likely be sufficient for our hideout."

When had the Hero gotten ahold of that information?

"Supposedly, wood elves also used to live near that peak, and I've heard that useful

plants grow all around there."

Odd. I had never heard of wood elves having lived in the vicinity of ancient elf ruins.

But that was probably just due to a lack of known examples.

Wood elves held the belief that nature operated on a cyclical structure. Their

structures were one with the natural world, so after they disappeared, the shaped

trees continued to grow until all traces of the wood elves had disappeared. At least,

that was what my teacher at the Assassins Guild had taught us.

There might have been other wood elf settlements built near ancient elf ruins that had

just become unrecognizable with the passage of time.

"If the ancient elf ruins are still intact, that would probably be sufficient for a hideout…

But why…?"

Why was the Hero going so far out of her way in order to remain here in Zoltan? Seeing

her serious expression, I couldn't bring myself to finish my question.

Scary…

A tiny leg tapped my shoulder. Mister Crawly Wawly was tilting his head.

What is it? Mister Crawly Wawly was trying to say something.

Don't think so much about it? No, maybe don't overthink it? And also, really look?

It was rare for Mister Crawly Wawly to push me so insistently in order to communicate.

He started restlessly moving his two front legs, trying to communicate.

I was a little bit nervous. Mister Crawly Wawly was trying his best to get something

across to me, but I couldn't comprehend him at all.

"What is it?" I asked him to try to understand better, but he just kept transmitting the

same vague image. I couldn't understand. It had been a long time since I'd had this sort

of problem.

My efforts with Mister Crawly Wawly commanded all my attention, distracting me

from the Hero.

"Tisse."

"Hn?"

Without me realizing it, Ruti had walked right up to me. Surprisingly, her gaze was not

directed at me as I froze in shock. She was looking at my shoulder. She was staring

blankly at Mister Crawly Wawly.

The Hero stretched her hand out toward my shoulder. My thoughts froze. Fear and

panic tore through me. I must have done something to anger her.

Not Mister Crawly Wawly!!!

Before I was aware what I was doing, I had leaped backward and drawn my sword.

My teeth were chattering. It felt like a fire was burning inside my head from the terror

of drawing my weapon against an opponent I couldn't hope to defeat.

The Hero stopped moving with her hand outstretched, still expressionless. Her gaze

was fixed on me.

It was probably just a short moment, but to me, it felt like an eternity.

"…You have it wrong," the Hero explained as she looked at me. "I know that creature is

your pet. I wasn't going to hurt it."

What was she talking about? My breathing was ragged, and though I tried to listen to

Ruti, I couldn't comprehend what she was saying.

"I've seen that spider moving its legs around a lot next to you. I've even spotted it

giving you insects that it caught…"

The Hero continued to say things like that while I stood there, still trembling and with

steel in hand. A small shadow leaped into my view.

"Mister Crawly Wawly?!"

My pet spider leaped to the ground and raised both of his front legs, doing his best to

make his small body to look bigger as he stood in front of me.

"Wh-what are you…? Huh? 'Really look'?"

What am I supposed to be looking at…?

Mister Crawly Wawly was desperately flailing his small body, telling me over and over

to peer harder.

And then… I finally saw it.

"This is a misunderstanding. I would never do something like that."

Who was standing in front of me? The Hero. The person who bore humanity's most

powerful blessing, who shouldered the burden of saving the world, who lived for the

sake of what was right, and who was feared by all her comrades. However, when I

really examined her, all I saw was a puzzled girl who had upset her friend but had no

idea how.

Our perceptions of the situation were off. I had drawn my sword in terror and gone

into a stance ready to fight, but to Ruti, while she did not understand why, she could

tell that she had upset me somehow.

The Hero was too strong, and she had become too far removed from the rest of us…

murderous intent or hostility from an ordinary person did not register to her. It was

almost like how a young child could be genuinely angry, and to adults, it just seemed

charming.

And the reason I had finally managed to recognize that disconnect that had left her

isolated all this time was because I had finally really looked at her.

Thinking back now, I understood. When we had been talking on the airship, the reason

the Hero's expression had shifted from time to time while she was looking at me was

that she had been noticing Mister Crawly Wawly and smiling, just like I did. That night,

what she had been looking for outside was a small pet of her own like Mister Crawly

Wawly. That was all.

Ruti seemed at a loss for what to say…

"I'm sorry I don't know what I did to upset you, but please forgive me. I didn't mean

to, and I am very remorseful."

So she just apologized.

There was a clatter as I dropped my sword. Terrible guilt gripped me as I wondered

why I hadn't noticed any of this sooner.

I squatted down, and Mister Crawly Wawly jumped onto the back of my hand. He

conveyed an image to me.

Apologize? Yes. I should.

I walked over to the Hero—to Ruti. Her shoulders twitched ever so slightly.

I took a deep breath.

"No, I should apologize to you. I was the one who misunderstood. I'm truly sorry."

"I see… So you're not angry?"

"No, I'm not angry at all. Are you angry, Ms. Ruti?"

"I'm not."

"Good. But— Um… when you want to pet him, could you please just tell me first?"

"I understand."

I held out Mister Crawly Wawly to Ruti. She brought her left hand close.

Hop.

Mister Crawly Wawly leaped nimbly from my hand to Ruti's. And then he waved his

right leg at her to say hello.

"…What is its name?"

"Mister Crawly Wawly."

"Crawly Wawly?"

"Mister Crawly Wawly. The Mister is part of his name, too."

Ruti looked puzzled for a moment and then looked at my pet spider.

"Nice to meet you, Mister Crawly Wawly. I'm Ruti."

She smiled gently as her eyes narrowed.

My name is Tisse Garland.

I have an Assassin blessing, and now I am the Hero's friend.

The ancient elves—the first race, said to have ruled over the lands at the dawn of the

world, between the time of the gods and recorded history.

There was the first realm where fairies and spirits dwelled. The warmth of springtime

enveloped that land all year-round, and the immortal, unaging fay danced and sang. It

was a paradise of never-ending pleasure. Those that dwelled there never knew pain

or conflict. As a result, every day was incomparably blessed and filled with joy, so they

had no desire to change anything.

Because it was a paradise, the first realm was one of infinite stagnation. After observing

that first world for eons, Almighty Demis began to feel displeased with that inactivity.

That was when Demis created the second realm—this realm.

On the first day, the cosmos was created.

On the second day, the heavens, the sun, the moon, and the stars were created.

On the third day, the insects, animals, and plants that would become sustenance were

created.

On the fourth day, the monsters that filled the world were created.

On the fifth day, intelligent creatures like elves, dragons, and demons were created.

On the sixth day, the ancient elves were created in the image of a particular fairy from

the first realm that was said to be the most talented. Their destiny was to rule over

this realm. Humans were created in Demis's own image.

On the seventh day, with his work done, Demis rested, and during that night, the Asura

were born.

On the eighth day, the Asura appeared to greet God, and God became angry, declaring,

"I did not create beings such as you."

According to the holy church's book, that was how everything had been created. The

dwarves and orcs who lived on the dark continent were subspecies of elves. The

goblins who proliferated throughout the world were also the descendants of an elven

race that had originated on the dark continent. High elf scholars argued that goblins

and elves were entirely unrelated, but that remained a fringe theory.

The term ancient elves was a modern convention. In the oldest copies of the Church's

books, the creatures created on the sixth day were referred to as merely elves, while

the word used for the elves devised on the fifth day was actually fay.

There was significant debate among scholars about the relationship between modern

fay and elves, but the current consensus was that elves were a breed of fay. They were

a sort of higher kind, distinct from archfay and possessed with the ability to establish

an advanced culture. That is merely the leading theory, though. In this world where

theology and biology intertwined, it became difficult to determine what was correct.

To clarify the current understanding of elves:

Ancient elves (extinct)

Wild elves

Fays that were equivalent to elves

Wood elves (extinct)

Half-elves

High elves

The original dark elves on the dark continent

Dwarves, orcs, goblins

That marked the consensus of the elf studies field.

None doubted that the ancient elves possessed a more advanced civilization than is

even seen in modern times. However, their exact nature is still shrouded in mystery.

Scholars comparing the elven coins that could raise the level of one's blessing

temporarily to the secret medicine of the wild elves that temporarily lowered one's

blessing level led to the belief that the ancient elves had analyzed and gained some

more profound understanding of blessings.

Some among the clergy asserted that the ancient elves had incurred God's wrath for

their arrogance and been destroyed.

The true reason for their ruination was unknown. However, both the first demon lord

and the first Hero had been born in that era. The story of the latter's triumph over the

former had been passed down for centuries.

In other words, the first Hero had not been a human, but an ancient elf.

In which case, just let a modern elf be the Hero, Ruti thought as she cut through the

clockwork giant that stood before her. The slash elicited an unpleasant metal screech.

Ruti and Tisse were venturing into the ancient elf ruins that resided in the depths of

the mountain where Red went to gather medicinal herbs.

Thankfully, portions of the old structures were still intact.

The upper level had been disturbed by chimeras and adventurers from Zoltan looking

for ancient elf treasures, but the contraption for moving to the lower level was

untouched.

The device had powered down for a time because the mana crystal it ran on had lost

its charge. The gem had been replenished by absorbing magic power from the

surroundings over the intervening years. Thus, restarting the lift to the chambers

below wasn't much of a hassle.

Having explored ancient elf ruins countless times before, Ruti controlled the magically

powered lift with practiced ease as she and Tisse moved to the lower level of the

abandoned structure.

This new floor was populated by the familiar clockwork monsters that infested all

ancient elf sites. Ruti and Tisse were searching for the clockwork mother who

controlled all of the lesser mechanical enemies.

"Phew." Tisse wiped the sweat off her brow. Unlike Ruti, who seemed unconcerned as

she fought, Tisse had found herself in peril more than once during their battles, and

she was looking tired.

It's not just the defensive clockwork knights. There would only be a single clockwork

giant right before the clockwork mother in other ruins, but we've already encountered

four of them. There were even a few clockwork destroyers, and they're supposed to be

used in invasions, not guarding. I definitely saw some underwater clockwork leviathans,

too… What the heck is going on with this place?

Tisse cursed it all in her mind. Despite the seemingly endless onslaught of mechanical

opponents, she was able to continue deeper into the unusually menacing ruins

because Ruti would take down anything that stood in her way.

Finally, the two girls arrived at the clockwork mother's room in the depths of the ruins.

If they destroyed it, all the monsters it oversaw would stop functioning. Selling its

scraps would net more than one hundred thousand payril, which was why taking on

an ancient elf ruin was something of a get-rich-quick scheme.

I wonder if any adventurers would still be that excited after seeing this, though, Tisse

thought after subconsciously recoiling back half a step at the sight before her.

The clockwork mother was a mass of gears that controlled all the other mechanical

creatures in the ancient elf structure. And standing before it, as if to guard it, was a

shining assemblage of metal—a clockwork dragon.

Unlike the other machine monsters that had screeched unpleasantly when they had

moved, the dragon's body was elaborate—almost artful—in its construction. Its parts

hardly made a sound as it moved. Within its body flowed burning tar, and the spark

flickering in the recesses of its open maw evoked the image of a red tongue.

The creation was legendary, an ultimate weapon. Stories spoke of a device like this

that the previous demon lord had restored. Supposedly, it was so powerful that it had

killed some of the last Hero's comrades and forced that Hero to retreat in defeat once.

A cold sweat formed on Tisse's brow. Until now, she had never believed that clockwork

dragons existed.

"Ms. Ruti!"

Tisse was going to suggest that they withdraw for the moment and get Gideon and Rit

to help. It was too powerful for the two of them to face alone.

"It's fine."

However, Ruti appeared wholly unbothered. Her sword, the Holy Demon Slayer, hung

at her side listlessly. Ruti did not even adopt a readied stance as she faced down the

massive, artificial opponent created by the ancient elves.

There was a mansion in downtown Zoltan.

It had once been the abode of a summoner, but they eventually joined up with the

Mages Guild of another town and left Zoltan behind. The structure was one of the few

buildings in Zoltan that had a basement equipped with magical defenses.

The manor gave off a creepy vibe, dissuading most from taking an interest in it. This

left the place cheaper to rent than its neighboring homes. It was a perfect demonstration

of how Zoltan was behind the times when it came to magic.

"It suits my needs just fine, though."

Bui, the dark-skinned young swordsman, set the report he had finished reading on the

desk he was sitting at.

The documents contained information on the wood elf ruins that existed around

Zoltan.

They had almost all disappeared as trees overran them, but Bui had hired investigators

and the few available researchers in Zoltan to investigate what remained.

Bui had been tasked with finding a particular object that the wood elves had secreted

away.

Unlike other wood elf sites, which had grown into their surrounding forests, this

structure would have remained unchanged because it needed to stand watch over the

precious item Bui was after. His investigation had involved eliminating potential

places and narrowing down the object's location, and at last, he was finally nearing

the end of his search.

"No wood elf structures remain around here."

Bui drummed his fingers on the desk with a sigh. His mission had become troublesome.

Protecting something meant keeping intruders out, and that meant a structure

surrounded by walls. The damn wood elves must have sealed it away in something

other than one of their buildings.

"Did they resort to their usual trick and hide it in a natural fortress? If so, then maybe

at the bottom of the southern ocean or the Wall at the End of the World?"

While it was undeniable that either locale would be difficult for humans and demons

alike to penetrate, there were aquatic creatures at the bottom of the ocean, and

dragons, gugs, and other beings could survive the Wall at the End of the World.

Bui was searching for something that the wood elves would want to be certain no one

would ever reach. Thus, it was unthinkable that they would keep it in a place where

anything had a reasonable chance of getting through.

In which case, if it was a place in Zoltan that no one would be able to break into, then

that left just one place.

"The ancient elf ruins."

The site was a collection of half-crumbled buildings protected by blessing-less geared

warriors who continued to move even after thousands of years. Typically, the wood

elves avoided the remnants of their now-extinct brethren. However, the fact that they

had established a settlement on the same mountain as the ancient elves in Zoltan was

practically a confirmation.

Bui stood up, checked again to be sure there was no one at the stairs to the first floor,

locked the door to the basement, and then flipped a switch hiding in the nearby

bookshelf.

A segment of the wall noiselessly slid away, revealing a set of stairs leading

underground. Descending, Bui arrived in a small room with stone walls.

It was a hidden chamber with powerful magical defenses that had probably been the

previous owner's secret laboratory. Bui opened the shelf at the back of the room that

was locked by a magic key. Inside was a single large, sparkling gray gem.

Its unnatural glow inspired unease in those who beheld it, but Bui paid that no heed

as he touched the stone and bathed in the ashen gleam.

The gem was a rare magic item called an incubus heartstone. By synchronizing a gray

onyx with it and then burying that onyx in the ground, it would unleash a curse that

robbed those nearby of their spiritual energy. It was an item that converted the stolen

force it stored into magic power that could then be accessed by the one who owned

the stone.

It was an item from the previous demon lord's treasure vaults and made the perfect

tool for Asura demons. Without a blessing, magic was difficult for them to use

efficiently on their own.

"Hmm? Is this all that it has stored up?"

The blanched light dimmed soon after Bui touched it, and it transformed into a dull,

shabby stone. Bui concentrated, checking to see if the sudden dip in his spiritual

energy harvest was somehow his fault, but that didn't appear to be the case.

"Did someone notice the curse already and implement countermeasures?" Bui

groaned to himself. Even the fay should not have been able to block the hex. Still,

whether he wanted to believe it or not, the magic power provided by the incubus's

heartstone was far from enough for what he needed.

"This isn't nearly enough magical power to investigate the ancient elf ruins on my own."

He would need an accomplice.

Unfortunately, he was far removed from the demon lord's army's front lines. He wasn't

able to call in support, and there were no adventurers in Zoltan who would be of any

use.

"What should I do about this?"

Bui touched his finger to his temple as he slipped deep into thought.

He was entirely unaware that, at the exact same moment, Ruti and Tisse were already

clearing the ruins.

Two weeks had passed since Ruti had arrived at my shop.

The following three days, Ruti had been away, but after that, she'd shown up regularly.

She and Tisse registered as adventurers, and while they had not been incredibly

proactive about it, they were taking quests to clear out goblins near the town from

time to time.

The two girls were powerful. Clearing goblins was beneath them, to say the least. It

seemed likely that the reason they took the quests was to stave off impulses from their

blessings.

Exterminating goblins—humanoid creatures—who were attacking villages was the

perfect way to deal with both the Hero blessing's urges to save people and the Assassin

blessing's desire to kill people.

What's more, since all they were doing was fighting weak opponents, Ruti and Tisse

were taking the quests without any concern for the number of enemies. Word had

started to spread around town about reliable new adventurers as people saw them

heading out to the goblins' hideouts like they were going for a lighthearted stroll and

coming back after having destroyed it.

And…

"Welcome."

"Eep?!"

For some reason, the pair had come to help out at my shop today.

I had tried having Ruti stand at the counter, but maybe because of her inherent,

powerful aura, customers reflexively screamed when she greeted them.

The reaction hurt Ruti, but it also taught me something new.

"Perhaps if you were able to smile a bit more, they wouldn't react like that?" Tisse

proposed.

"Really?"

I had assumed that I was the only one able to notice that Ruti was sad over the patron's

frightened reaction, but Tisse had recognized it, too. She'd even given my little sister

some advice.

"Yep, if you can manage to smile just a little bigger, I'm sure it will be okay. Do you mind

if I leave the counter to you for a little longer?" I asked.

"That's fine." Ruti clenched her fist slightly. She was determined to keep trying.

While Ruti and Tisse were tending the shop front, Rit was checking the count on the

various medicines in storage and taking inventory.

We always kept an eye on our stock, but now was a good opportunity to be more

meticulous since we had extra help. Rit and I had been talking recently about how it'd

be a good idea to do a thorough check of what all we had.

"Doing okay in here?" I entered the storage room, carrying two cups of coffee.

With pen and paper in hand, Rit was doing her best to take count of the many medicines

we had stockpiled.

"Argh! I give up! You made me lose track of where I was!" she shouted with perceptible

despair.

"My bad, my bad. I'll help you out after this, so how about taking a little break."

"Yeah, I was getting a bit tired."

The two of us went to the living room and had a seat. We could hear Ruti speaking

with customers out front.

"Do you want to go check on her?" Rit inquired.

"There's not much point in having her do it if I'm standing over her shoulder. That kind

of thing will make her self-conscious."

"You know her well."

"She is my little sister, after all."

Rit and I both took a sip of coffee.

"Mmm, it's especially strong today. Plenty of sugar and milk, too. But it's still delicious."

I had put a little extra effort into the brew today. I used three fine metal filters and

poured the hot water over coarsely ground coffee beans. Openings in the filters would

get blocked by the beans, extracting the coffee more slowly. This left the drink very

potent, so I'd added a fair amount of milk and sugar, too.

"There is herbal tea as a palate cleanser, too."

"Because this is a coffee to be enjoyed in the moment, rather than for the lingering

aftertaste."

"Right."

"Thanks, it's delicious."

It was a way of making strong coffee to be enjoyed at a slow pace. The herbal tea beside

it was for occasionally resetting the palate so you could appreciate that fresh first sip

flavor again.

Rit and I relaxed, enjoying ourselves.

"That was great. Thanks."

"I'm glad you liked it."

Rit placed her cup down with a satisfied expression. The two of us looked at each other

in silence for a few moments. But before long, Rit stood back up.

"All right, I think I'm going to go take over the counter for a bit," she declared.

"What for?" I asked.

"It's about time they got a break, too."

"In that case, I'll go."

"Nope," Rit refused with a grin. "I'm sure Ruti wants to be able to enjoy sipping her

drink with you after all."

Rit left the room without giving me any chance to get a word in edgewise. I flicked one

of the cups. It made a nice sound.

Even though she had kept the cost down, the dishes Rit had chosen were good quality

ones.

"All right, I guess I should get some drinks ready for the two of them."

Putting the cups on a wooden tray, I headed into the kitchen.

"Thank you both for your help."

There were three cookies and a trio of sweetened cups of cocoa set out on the table.

"Thank you."

"If I may."

Ruti's eyes sparkled as she took a sip from one of the mugs while Tisse decided to go

for a cookie first.

"These are adventurer rations, right?" Tisse asked with a shocked expression. "It's…

quite delicious."

"I mixed some nuts I gathered up on the mountain into it. They give it a flavor almost

like cinnamon," I replied.

"Cinnamon… I've never had that before."

"Really? Then I'll make a cinnamon pie for tonight. Also, here, I soaked a bit of cloth in

sugar water," I said.

"Huh?" Confused, Tisse cocked her head slightly to one side.

"I thought it might make a nice snack for that spider," I explained.

I nudged a plate with a bit of cloth on it over toward her. The arachnid hopped down

from Tisse's shoulder. It raised its leg politely to greet me and then started to drink

the sweetened liquid.

"So you noticed him. Thank you very much."

"That little guy? I mean, you seemed to be getting along so well with him."

"His name is Mister Crawly Wawly."

"Crawly Wawly?"

"The Mister is part of his name, too."

A tiny smile crossed Tisse's face at my reaction. Her outward expressions were

relatively subtle, but behind that, she seemed to be a normal girl, just like Ruti.

"Big Brother."

"Hmm? What?"

"Is it okay to have lunch with you, too?"

I patted Ruti's head. I had just been talking about dinner with Tisse.

"Of course it is. That was the plan from the start."

"I see."

"And not just lunch. You're going to stop by for dinner, too, right?"

"Yes," Ruti responded with a smile. "The truth is: I love your cooking, Big Brother."

Ruti broke out in a natural grin. It was almost spellbinding. It was a lovely expression

that immediately conveyed Ruti's feelings.

"Yep, I remember."

"Right!"

"Is there anything in particular you'd like to have?"

"…I want to drink honey milk."

"Got it."