3.20.

"..."

"..."

"..."

"???"

'What's with this atmosphere..?'

A strong medicinal smell masked the usual scent of dried straw in the drawing room.

It had been only a month since he last came to the academy pagoda, yet he felt estranged by the unusual air. The motivation to express his wish to leave the hero's party left the window completely, seeing shadows under Shiro, Risa and Evelyn's eyes– with the exception of Linzy whose tail was wagging for some reason.

"What happened?"

Sequencee had come alone to visit the three after receiving notice by Lilian and Ro the following day he returned from his adventures.

"How was your holiday?" Risa broke the silence.

"Um.. it was alright?"

"What did you do?" Evelyn followed up.

"Uh.. I killed a bunch of monsters and earned some money?"

Truth was, Sequence earned more in the first three days of his work than the next three weeks combined.

"What about your disappearance?" Shiro asked.

"What disappearance?"

Linzy stood up on tip toes and raised her hand high into the air.

'What in the.. this.. what even is this creature?'

"Did you cheat on your fiance?" Risa asked, completing the loop.

"Cheat?"

"You went out with Leticia's party didn't you?" Evelyn said.

"Yeah..?"

"So was it enjoyable going around exploring?" Shiro asked.

"What.."

Linzy bounced on the spot with an elated smile.

'What's going on. I don't get this..'

"Hey, Sequencee. We're sorry, okay?" Risa confessed.

"I never thought of this as a means to fulfill your revenge. I just wanted a chance to get closer to you," Evelyn lowered her head.

"I'll make sure to take your advice next time, so please, Sequencee, please reconsider your resignation," Shiro pleaded.

Linzy jumped over to Sequencee's side and tousled his hair.

"I.. I see.."

'Aaron is probably the culprit behind this..'

And admittedly, Sequencee's guess wasn't wrong. Shiro and co' were about to leave to find Sequencee at the guild when Aaron returned, prohibiting them to meet him until they got stronger. He drilled into them hard training through the holiday to boost their abilities so that they can stand as equals with Sequencee.

Part of it was out of guilt, thinking how much Anna's son had suffered because of her death. The other part out of misunderstanding as he didn't know that Sequencee was a demon lord.

So for the past few weeks, these three have been white knuckled into shape– with Evelyn having to exert her abilities to heal broken bones and regrow lost teeth every time they dropped. Well.. it was mostly Shiro who ate dirt. Risa was able to keep up to an extent.. and her constitution also made her more resilient.

"How about you? What did you do?" Sequencee tilted his head and looked at Linzy.

"I created a collection of master's teeth."

"..."

'I think Reese would love this girl.'

"Ahem. Anyways. Sequencee, we'll make sure things are different this time," Shiro coughed.

"You know. Just because I'm quitting the party doesn't mean we can't be accomplices."

"T-That's not it Sequencee. Being accomplices and being in a party are two different things. The relationship is vastly different. You should know that.." Evelyn said in fluster.

"Of course I know that. I just don't want to get involved anymore," Sequencee said with a sigh.

'They're desperate but still..'

"Can't convince him.. looks like we.."

Shiro slammed the table before Sequencee could complete his sentence. Wooden shards exploded, hot tea spilled. Everyone distanced themselves from the site of impact. "Do you know how many times my bones have been broken? How many times have I vomited blood? How many cuts and wounds I've suffered? The pain of your eyes exploding from impact? And yet despite all this you're telling me you're going to refuse?" Shiro glared at Sequenccee. His hazy, sunken eyes burning with mucky emotions.

'Just.. what the hell did they go through..'

"..."

Evelyn palled, Risa looked like she was about to cry, Linzy was frozen stiff. A great silence fell– lasting for a moment when the next expletives poured out from his mouth.

"Asshole. You think it was fun to call you here to beg?"

"B-Big brother.. c-calm down."

"..."

Sequencee remained silent.

'I guess it's naive to think that the hero doesn't have emotions either.'

"Damn it.. damn it.. I just.. want you to stay.. why the fuck did we have to go through all that for.. fuck all this" cursing himself, Shiro stormed out of the room.

Linzy, in panic, chased after him.

Risa trembled. Tears streamed from her eyes as she began to sob.

Evelyn's face burning in red, not knowing what emotion she should be feeling at this moment.

'Aaron clearly took it too far.. probably.'

What does it mean to be a hero? The savior of the human race, the sacrificial lamb to bring salvation to the world.

Was it naive that Shiro ever thought this otherworldly life would be one of fun and games? Or was Aaron wrong for not considering his peaceful past, pushing him to an extreme that he couldn't tolerate? After all, the main hero here was Risa. Shiro was merely a normal human with basic abilities. To push someone like him to become a hero..

'No. Don't push the blame. It's no one's fault.'

"Sequencee.. I beg of you.." Evelyn's trembling voice rang. She pressed her forehead to the floor. "Stay.. please.."

"What did Aaron do to you guys?"

Risa's sobs only grew louder.

'Alright. So two points of problems I need to consider. First I need to know what Aaron's stance on this is. Second, I need to try to resolve things between Shiro and I.'

The scene he just witnessed further reinforced his wish to leave the party.

'If only Dorry were here.. jeez..'

===

"Sir Aaron."

"What is it? Have you met them?"

Iona's information was on point. Sir Aaron was at the office preparing for the classes next week.

"Yes I have."

"I hope they'll be able to.."

"He blew up."

".. Pardon?"

"What kind of training did you put them through?"

"..."

The instructors that were in the office naturally began to tune in.

"Sorry. I think I wasn't clear. Sir Aaron, can we take this someone private?" Sequencee followed up.

"..."

"Sir Aaron."

"You're right. I could never make it up to you," Aaron said in a forlorn voice. "I'm sorry Sequencee. I'm sorry.. I wasn't able to be there when you needed our support the most.."

"Sir Aaron. That's all in the past."

'Now I have the guilt of an SS-rank mercenary to handle? If Schwii hadn't come to me and made me realize how stupid my wish for revenge was.. just how twisted would everything have become?'

The quick plaster of hate and revenge, could never fix the real cracks. Sequencee was beginning to see how his hate not only affected himself, but also others.

The reason why Sequencee hid himself right after the loss of his home– why he was never found despite the desperate search efforts by the various organizations–

'I should've just accepted the fact that I was a demon..'

Guilt, fear and self loathing.

That he thought that he was the world's enemy– that he deserved to die just as much as the demon who took away his home should have.

"Follow me."

Aaron took Sequencee to one of the private rooms. He told Sequencee to sit as he slid the door shut. The temperature of the room seemed to drop a few degrees.

"I won't allow my mistakes to repeat themselves. Sequencee, I'll say this once. Stop trying to collude with the demons," Aaron said with a stern expression.

"What?"

'The hell is he saying? Since when have I been scheming with anything..?'

"Do you think I'm blind to not see who it is that's taking care of you right now?"

"Schwii? What's wrong with staying with her? She's my fian.."

"Sequencee, you had said in the beginning that you wish to enact revenge against those very demons that killed your mother. Now you wish to join hands with them?"

"Sir Aaron, what are you trying to get at? I don't understand."

".. This is the New Dawn, Sequencee. When war arrives, it won't matter if the demons are different. United under one Sovereign, do you think they would dare to go against the order of their king? Do you think us normal people could go against His Imperial Majesty if we wished to?"

"..."

"I don't want you to fall to the wrong side, Sequencee. If you join the demons, you'll become humanity's enemy. Don't forget what the demons did to your mother. It doesn't matter that it was a mistake. Ultimately, it was a mistake which benefited them."

"And so? It's not like a war is going to happen now."

"What if it happened tomorrow?"

"So you're here to tell me to join the human side?"

'He's not wrong. If war does break out, which side would I choose? If Schwii had to take a leading role in the efforts, I'd.. probably..'

"Hey. What's so good about that demon anyways? Because they look beautiful? They satisfy your desires?"

'If war happens, the only way to push against both sides at once is if I have enough strength to support myself and those around me.'

"Sequencee. Get your head straight, please. I don't want to look at you as an enemy."

'I think I get it now mom.. the reason why you wanted to grow stronger.'

"You ask why? Well, that's because she's the one who tried to protect me. She's the one who was there when I was in trouble. She's the one who supported me even though I was a naive asshole. She's the one who helped me see the light in the dark."

'Schwii did everything for me.'

"So what about her is wrong? Just because she's a demon doesn't make her any different from any other rational race."

"It's no use huh..?"

"If I tread down the path of vendetta, I'll be betraying her expectations."

'More like.. peace is really what we make of it. There's no way for peace to last eternally.'

Aaron clicked his tongue.

Neither of them knew how to continue. Aaron revealed the concerns of the human empire, Sequencee revealed his stance. Both had to digest the truth in front of them.

"In the future. Don't blame me should something occur due to your opposition to my misgivings."

"I know."

Aaron got up and left the room. Sequencee sat there silently, contemplating.

'Schwii was right. I should've never gotten mixed up with the hero.'