༺ Retry ༻
“W-What just happened?”
“Did we get attacked? But I don’t see any injuries.”
As the ‘self-proclaimed hero’ who had been effortlessly pushing back the Demon King’s executive suddenly had their helmet shattered into pieces, a wave of murmurs swept through the crowd.
“…Huh? Something’s strange.”
“I can’t see clearly… it’s dim.”
But that confusion was only for a moment before people started bombarding each other with questions.
The Hero’s face which had been previously concealed by the helmet, appeared blurred to their eyes for some unknown reason.
“…Damn.”
As the atmosphere around them became chaotic, Ruby suddenly covered her face with her hands and dashed off somewhere.
“He-Hero? Where are you going… Eek!?”
“W-Wait a moment! That monster is…”
Ignoring the confused cries of the people, Ruby swiftly reached the exit of the slave market.
Kugwagwang!!
Amidst the chaos, she destroyed the collapsed pillars blocking the exit with a single strike and swiftly escaped outside.
““……….””
“Krrr…”
In the market, the quiet wailing of Miho, who had transformed into a monster, echoed for a while.
“Uhah, uhahaha! Uhahahahahaha!!”
Dmir Khan, who had been gasping for breath with one of his arms missing, suddenly burst into loud laughter.
“Indeed, it’s you… I couldn’t believe you orchestrated such a scheme…”
His expression was indifferent despite all the eyes fixed on him.
“I never imagined that you would be able to pinpoint the Hero’s true identity like this. You truly are amazing.”
“D-Dmir Khan. We should leave this place quickly…”
“Lemerno, you must admit it now.”
Lemerno tried to lift him up, frowning at Dmir Khan’s words, as the latter smiled as if losing an arm meant nothing.
“The Hero was really a woman, just as he claimed.”
“…D-Did you see? The face?”
“It was for a split second, but I was focused enough to roughly make out… It was indeed a woman.”
“No, wait a minute. Even if that’s true, just because she’s a woman…”
Lemerno began to argue, but Dmir Khan slyly laughed, cutting him off.
“Of course, that’s not all. She overwhelmed me to this extent and even had the Hero’s weapon, right? So, she is definitely the Hero.”
“Then…”
“Yes, now we have to search for an orphan girl with ruby eyes. I can guess her body shape to some extent, and I’ve seen her facial features, so we might be able to identify her quickly.”
As Dmir Khan spoke excitedly, Lemerno sighed and said,
“Sorry to ruin your good mood… but something still seems amiss.”
“Huh?”
“Well, it’s strange that he didn’t tell us if this was part of the plan from the beginning… The Hero’s armament suddenly breaking is suspicious as well, and……”
“S-Stop right there!!”
As Lemerno hesitantly shared his opinion, looking at Dmir Khan’s distorted expression, he quietly sighed as he heard a sudden shout in front of him.
“Let’s get out of here first and then discuss it.”
“…Understood. All troops, retreat.”
At those words, Dmir Khan nodded and issued a retreat order to the Demon King’s army.
“Ha, if you don’t surrender, we’ll attack… Whoa!”
In an instant, Lemereno disappeared into thin air along with Dmir Khan.
“…What, what just happened?”
“Goodness, we see all sorts of things.”
“At least they retreated. I don’t know what we would have done if they had attacked.”
With that, the tense Imperial Knights advanced slowly and let out a sigh.
“Don’t let your guard down yet. The enemy is still out there.”
Until then, Clana, who had been glaring at Miho, spoke to them in a fierce voice.
“Yes, yes, sir!”
“…Sigh.”
Clana then turned her gaze away from the armed Imperial Knights and spoke to Irina, who stood by her side.
“Have all the slaves managed to escape?”
“Yeah, even the young slaves who were left behind during the battle have entered the cabinets in each area.”
“Phew… We’ve survived the crisis for now. But the real problem lies ahead.”
“Yeah, we need to figure out what to do with the escaped slaves and…”
As Irina was answering Clana’s question, her voice trailed off as she noticed Miho, who had been drooling uncontrollably.
“…How to deal with that thing.”
At the end of her words, a brief silence hung between them.
“…Is that thing a monster?”
“Yeah, it’s in a state of both berserkness and demonification. Plus, according to Frey, it possesses the ability to drain people’s life force… If we’re not careful, everyone here could be in danger.”
Upon hearing that, Clana clenched her fists, preparing to speak, but Irina interrupted.
“Wait here until you fully recover your mana. I’ll take care of it…”
– Don’t worry, everyone.
““…….!!!””
Frey’s voice rang in their minds, causing them to widen their eyes and shout internally.
– Frey! We were so worried!
– Where are you? Why haven’t you contacted us until now?
Soon, Irina joined in, and not long after, Frey’s responded.
– I’ll explain later. For now, I need to fight the guy in front of us.
– What?
– What did you say?
Confused by Frey’s sudden remark, the two tilted their heads and asked.
– Look up to the second floor.
Frey’s voice echoed in their minds once again.
“…Ah.”
As they both glanced upward, they saw Frey shaking something in his hand and finally began to understand.
– I don’t know why, but that guy is currently demonized, you see? So I can control it with this.
What Frey was shaking was nothing else but the ‘Stone of Domination’.
The stone they had previously risked their lives to obtain was now showing its true worth.
– Earlier, the intruder interrupted and lowered your impact, right? So now, it’s time to really show you to the people.
As Frey spoke, he gently stroked the stone, prompting Miho to slowly raise her head and stare at the two of them.
– Mix in some flashy techniques and show off your skills, and then subdue the creature. And don’t hand it over to anyone; you two will be responsible for transporting it.
– Understood.
– …We’ll do our best.
After nodding at Frey’s instructions, the two began to quietly gather magical power in their bodies.
“…Kania.”
“Yes, Young Master.”
Frey, who had been quietly watching them, started talking to Kania with a calm expression.
“Did you see it too?”
“Are you talking about the ruby-colored eyes?”
“Yes, the ruby-colored eyes.”
As Frey nodded, Kania responded with a dark expression.
“Considering that person was wearing the same armor as the hero from that time… it must be the same person who fought against the Secret Lord of the family, right?”
“Yeah.”
“I’ll do some investigation. With a similar build and ruby-colored eyes, it might be easier to find them than anticipated…”
“It’s the Demon King.”
“Excuse me?”
As she supported the exhausted Frey and spoke with a worried expression, Kania gritted her teeth at Frey’s words and asked in surprise.
“What do you mean?”
“The Demon King… is pretending to be the Hero.”
“……!”
As Frey confirmed it once more, Kania’s expression shifted to one of bewilderment.
“How…how could that be…?”
“I saw it during the second ordeal, the Demon King’s ruby-colored eyes.”
“But, just because of that…”
“Moreover, Dmir Khan was overwhelmingly defeated, wasn’t he? It becomes evident when you consider that. I don’t know their motives, but the Demon King is impersonating the Hero.”
Upon hearing those words, Kania bit her lip and sank into thought.
“…In any case, we should visit the orphanage we established soon.”
“The orphanage?”
“Yes.”
Frey’s voice lowered as he began to mutter with a faint smile on his lips.
“There’s a very suspicious person there.”
Kwaagwagwag!!
Suddenly, a loud noise came from below.
“Kuooooooo!!!”
“Everyone, back off! We’ll handle this!”
“If you don’t want to die, get back! Hurry!”
The battle between Miho, who was being controlled by Frey, and the two girls had begun.
– Boom…
– Spark!!!
The radiant golden mana and the still dazzling but diminished fireball collided like dancing flames, marking the end of the third main quest.
“Oh, right. Thanks, Kania.”
Feeling grateful, Frey suddenly smiled and thanked Kania.
“Huh?”
“You were the one who came up with the idea to control Miho using the Stone of Domination. And you were also the one who restored my vitality after Miho drained it.”
As Frey grinned, Kania countenance turned awkward.
“No, it wasn’t me.”
“What?”
“While it’s true that I arrogantly opened the door and used the Stone of Domination to restore your life force, I wasn’t the first one to use it.”
Hearing that, Frey’s expression froze and he tilted his head in confusion
“Then, who was the one to initially subdued Miho… Wait a minute. Why was Miho ‘demonized’ in the first place?”
“…Come to think of it, I faintly heard an arrogant voice when I lost consciousness.”
“When you lost consciousness…?”
As Frey quietly mumbled after hearing Kania’s words,
“That’s right…”
She soon remembered Ferloche, whom she had encountered just before blacking out, and murmured thoughtfully.
“…We need to find Ferloche.”
“…Heh.”
Around the time the third main quest was being resolved,
“Hehe, hehehe…”
Ferloche Astellade,
“Uhuhuhuhuhuhu…”
Was sitting alone in the dark cellar of the slave market, emitting a bone-chilling laugh.
“Success? Is it a success? Have I finally succeeded?”
The laughter alone could send shivers down most people’s spines.
“Finally, finally, can I save him…?”
But due to the tears streaming down her face, her laughter appeared not only chilling but also bizarre.
“Who is he? Whom must I protect? Why can’t I remember? Do I have to remember? Is that it?”
As Ferloche spent a long time tearing at her hair, alternating between laughter and tears,
Squeak…
“Hello! Frey!!”
Upon hearing the sound of the cellar door opening, she exclaimed with a wide smile.
“…It’s me, Serena.”
“Huh?”
However, the person entering the basement wasn’t Frey, as Ferloche had anticipated, but Serena for some unknown reason.
“I arrived as fast as possible and quickly assessed the situation, but it was already over. So, I came to the place where you might be…”
“Who are you?”
Serena, who was speaking calmly, froze as Ferloche spoke with a puzzled expression.
“…I’m Serena. Serena Lunar Moonlight.”
“Ah~!”
As Serena, who had remained still for a while, spoke in a low voice, Ferloche clapped her hands and said,
“I’m sorry! I forgot!”
Her tone was as silly as usual, but Serena couldn’t laugh at all.
“You…”
“Huh?”
“…How many times has this occurred?”
Upon hearing the incomprehensible sound escaping Serena’s mouth, Ferloche began to tilt her head.
“What do you mean?”
“How many times have you repeatedly created a situation like this?”
As she said this, Serena unfolded the last three pages of the diary she had been holding.
– Flip.
July 12, Year ○○
No MAtter if I have to give up my legs or arms.
Someday, I’ll definitely heal all the sick people sitting on the streets! Absolutely! In order to create a world where everyone is happy, I will give it my all!
– Flip
I Never thought this daY would come.
I’m truly overwhelmed!
We had a meeting!
With Clana, we discussed how to scold Frey! But it’s strange! Clana’s attitude isn’t as poisonous as it used to be! This is really… a big deal!
Oh, by the way, I declared myself Frey’s partner today!
Flip.
July 14, Year ○○
I’ll think About it in due TIME.
What I should write next…
Because…
– Snap!
As she read the last part of the diary and closed it, Serena spoke softly to Ferloche, who had now reverted to a desolate gaze.
“No MAtter if I have to give up my legs or arms, I Never thought this daY would come, I’ll think About it in due TIME.”
“…Ha.”
“MA-N-Y A TIME.”
“Hahahahaha, hahahahahahahaha.”
Upon hearing that, Ferloche suddenly burst into laughter, and Serena asked with a trembling voice.
“…So, how many times is this?”
“I forgot.”
Ferloche replied to her with an empty laugh.
“How can I remember all that?”
“…….”
“That’s why I’m going to count again from now on.”
“……!”
“I forgot to bring the diary, so I have no other choice.”
As Ferloche muttered in a low voice, looking at Serena, who was wide-eyed and about to speak,
“…Retry.”
And then the world turned upside down.
Along with her real voice, filled with sorrow and regret, which was unlike the usual foolish one.
