'Fate has its Ways' - I

"So," I asked as I sipped on tea. Lila and I were having our usuals. The atmosphere around us had grown familiar. We had become friends — somehow seeing each other as of equal standing. "Did you have fun spending money that wasn't yours?"

I was not present in Judisc City to man the one-man auction, so I asked Lila for a favor.

Hearing my words, Lila rolled her eyes, however the faint smirk on her face told me that she did have fun.

"It was pleasant," She said, "There were quite a few interesting things this morning. I'm quite tempted to buy them off of you."

"Mm?" I raised a brow, using [Absolute Awareness] out of instinct.

A moment later, I realized that it wasn't anything I already had.

"You can have them then." I smiled, placing my teacup down.

"I— What?" Lila was stunned, "That's a few platinum coins worth of items! What do you mean, I can have them?"

"...A few platinum coins are a small sum to me. If you want it that much, just keep them."

"..."

I could read it in Lila's face. Her dilated eyes. The tears that were welling up. The trembling of her lips.

It all revealed a singularity of emotions.

—The realization that she was poor.

***

Midnight.

We were to leave Judisc City in a few hours, moving much earlier than the break of dawn.

Cloaked in invisibility, I slipped the counterfeit <Sword of Light> into Lila's belongings. I gave her all of the stuff from the auction so that I had a place to hide this sword.

...I was too lazy to set another stage now that I thought about it. The stage had already been set, after all. Simply handing Lila the counterfeit <Sword of Light> would have been enough. However, I still wanted to make it look a bit more natural.

Of course, with no interesting <Traits > between Judisc and Walvaskaz, I wanted to focus on my magic, as well as my own training. Therefore, the hiding couldn't be ostentatious.

Organizing some kind of large, fateful encounter would take up too much of my time.

Thus...

Although Lila would find the weapon odd, her light mana would surely resonate with it. Once she grabs hold of the sword and pours her mana into it, a new Hero of Leisha would have been made.

Fate would handle the rest.

***

—Whoooooong!

A bright flash of light stirred the caravan, jolting the people from their slumber. Everyone was tense, thinking it was an attack. However, we were in the middle of the city.

That thought brought them a little solace.

Moreover, the light came from the side where the adventurer party of Heaven's Grasp had been staying.

Everything was going to be fine. If someone attacked that group of monsters and won, everyone else would not have the right to live. We would all have to run.

So, I went back to sleep.

Kind of...

***

Daimyuon, who had been meditating in peace, suddenly shivered. First, his frown was light, thinking that it was nothing more than a gust of cold air. However, as he felt the fluctuations of light mana, his frown deepened.

"What..?"

His confusion carved a canyon on his face.

For the first time in a long while, he had no idea what was happening. It was like a pig suddenly growing wings to fly despite being untouched by any form of magic.

His entire worldview was being flipped upside down.

"Why... is there... another Hero..?"

***

Klaionus, who hadn't stopped looking for answers since the 'awakening' of Leisha's Hero, sprung to his feet.

What was that?

Another pulse of light? Another fluctuation in the air?

"Yes..!"

His roar shook the very ground beneath his feet.

"This is what a Hero's awakening is supposed to be like!"

For some reason, Klaionus felt joy instead of rage. The awakening of the Hero was detrimental to the demon race... however, the sheer irregularity of the events happening these past weeks had given him truckloads of anxiety.

The unknown was much more terrifying.

At least, with a Hero he could see, the answers he needed would eventually reach him.

The demon couldn't help but sigh in relief.

Finally.

Things were proceeding the way they should. He could act accordingly and proceed with the many strategies he had in mind to annihilate the human race.

However, there was still that seed of doubt in Klaionus' mind. It had sprouted, however, its growth was like that of a creeping vine.

Something was wrong, somewhere, somehow.

***

Sitting in my carriage, I watched Lila's lonely back, departing from the caravan before we even left Judisc City. She left alone, leaving her old friends behind.

The sword on her back seemed heavier than even her most prized possessions. Moreover, the injured angel slumbering within it was a presence much greater than even the <Wyrm With No Name>.

How the hell did Gron modify a sword that could house such a being?

Honestly, I would've called BS to that. However, the reality before me was indeed stranger than fiction.

Even though I could get the answers from [Absolute Awareness], it would take me a few months to properly understand its essence and implications.

"I didn't expect that you would indeed accept the responsibilities of a Hero."

I was proven wrong. Despite knowing Lila's mind through [Absolute Awareness], I could not predict what decision she would make. In the end, my guess was wrong. My judgment was off.

However, how could you blame me?

I remembered the few hints of savagery she had to experience as an adventurer.

The cruelty of humans that she had to purge.

As well as the sad reality of society at large.

It had seemed like Lila had already lost hope in her own race.

No...

Memories returned to me. The conversations we had over tea lasted for hours every time, and Lila had confided in me with quite a few things. With this latest revelation, I have realized that perhaps I could have been biased in my interpretation.

Her wistful smile whenever she mentioned her light mana.

The invisible weight on her shoulders whenever she moved.

That sparkle in her eyes when she spoke about heroic feats.

"I can't even call it naïveté," I chuckled. Lila didn't seem to hate humanity as much as [Absolute Awareness] told me.

It was weird. The human mind becomes complex when faced with issues like these.

"Hate and love, huh?" My eyes flashed. The conversations I had with Lila once again played in my head.

With all her experience in fighting added to the fact that she was now a Hero of Leisha, Lila could probably reach superhuman realms on par with the <Archmagus > Daimyuon.

What kind of Hero would Lila become?

No... was Lila even a true Hero?

If the heroes of the past all held a certain innocence about them, gaining power as impressionable youngsters who were then manipulated into saving humanity... What kind of 'Hero' would someone who had seen the filthy reality — and swam in it wholeheartedly — become when forced into such a task?

Suddenly, I felt as if my decision might have been a bit... rash.

"..."

After a few minutes of silent contemplation, I shrugged.

"Welp~ That's a problem for future me!"

My magic studies were currently more important.