Yuri, The Hero, And The Heroic Adventurer

My name was Yuri Claudevel.

At the moment, I had come to watch the combat tournament under the name Julia.

If I used my real name and the Hero somehow found me, it seemed like it would only lead to trouble. So inside the arena, I’d decided to use an alias.

Apparently, Julia was a fairly common name in this country.

Right now, I had bought a bottle of salted fruit water from a concession stand in the corner of the lobby and was heading back toward the stairwell landing where Roy was waiting.

Along the way, I stopped when I noticed a large mirror hanging on the corridor wall.

“…”

Looking at my reflection, I found myself thinking all over again that I looked like a completely different person.

This hairstyle made me look more mature… I was already around the age of adulthood, but somehow my face still looked childish sometimes.

Then, without warning, I remembered what Roy had said when he’d seen me dressed like this.

“It really suits you, Yuri.”

Maybe… I should grow my hair out.

Now that I was going to live as a woman, I didn’t have to keep cutting it short anymore.

R-Right, I needed to hurry and bring Roy his drink. He’d looked really hot earlier.

Just as I was about to start walking again, someone stepped directly into my path.

My eyes widened.

…Why was he here?

Standing in front of me was the Hero who had expelled me.

“You’re the girl who came in with that stuffed bear, aren’t you?”

“…”

I silently nodded.

Had we really stood out that much?

I hadn’t realized Van had seen us somewhere.

Why was he suddenly approaching me now??

“My name is Vanrost Rain. I’m the Hero, as it happens.”

“……………………”

Yes, I knoooooooow very well that you’re the Hero.

Because of my disguise, he apparently hadn’t realized in the slightest that I was Yuri.

I was glad he was oblivious, but it was also a little exasperating. Then again, he’d never even noticed that I was a woman.

“I heard from the receptionist that you’re S-rank. Why waste your time teaming up with a bear like that? Why don’t you join us instead?”

“—What?”

He gave me a sweet, sweet smile I’d never once seen while I was his companion.

……………………Gross.

You only just threw me out recently.

And didn’t you dismiss me to cut personnel expenses?

Why are you trying to increase the number of party members again?

“You’ll have a far more exciting and fulfilling journey if you travel with us.”

No, thank you. I traveled with you for a long time, and it wasn’t exciting in the slightest, nor did I ever feel fulfilled.

-“Your lodging expenses? Just use this and find somewhere.”

-“Money for everyone’s medicine? You should just use more Healing Magic instead of holding back, you cheapskate.”

-“What do you mean we don’t have enough money for food!? Here, this should be enough!!”

Whenever you gave me money for necessary expenses, you’d always throw the coins at me like that.

And it was never remotely enough.

I had to make up the difference myself by hunting and gathering medicinal herbs.

-“Yuri’s cooking isn’t anything special. I could make something way tastier.”

-“I could use support magic like that too. Don’t get full of yourself.”

-“You should be grateful we’re even letting an E-rank like you tag along.”

Everything I did had been met with nothing but criticism from all of them.

…Now that I remembered it, I was starting to get angry.

Thinking about it now, why had I ever deserved to be complained at that much?

If they were so dissatisfied, they could have helped out themselves.

Irina and Camula always said they were tired from fighting, but I fought too, and I had been exhausted as well.

And the only reason I’d remained E-rank was because Van had forbidden me from taking the promotion exam.

I’d obeyed everything I was told because of the sense of duty that had been instilled in me for so long, but once that duty disappeared and I started living with Roy, I’d finally been able to look at myself objectively.

Now I understood just how unfairly I’d been treated.

Still, what exactly was he thinking?

Sure, I’d become S-rank, but I couldn’t imagine Van recruiting me for that reason alone. His standards for female companions were strength and good looks… Wait, did that mean my disguise happened to match Van’s taste in women?

Absolutely not.

There had once been a time when Van nearly kissed me. He’d been drunk and was completely messing around, but I’d hated it so much that I’d refused him.

I could travel alongside him as a companion, but seeing him as a man was impossible.

Van smiled, showing his white teeth, and held out his hand to me.

I bowed with a completely blank expression. Just in case he recognized my voice, I spoke in a higher pitch than usual.

“I decline.”

“…What?”

Apparently, he hadn’t expected me to turn him down.

That made sense… Plenty of adventurers wanted to join the Hero’s party. Naturally, some of them were attractive women, although even Van wouldn’t choose a weak adventurer no matter how much she appealed to him.

There were probably plenty of women who would consider being personally invited by the Hero a dream come true.

Unfortunately, for someone like me who knew what the Hero was really like, it was nothing but hell.

Without changing my expression, I answered in a flat tone.

“I don’t believe I would be of any use to Hero-sama.”

“What are you talking about? If you’re S-rank, you’re more than strong enough to contribute immediately.”

It looked like he still hadn’t recognized me from my voice.

I’d changed my manner of speaking too, and when I traveled with them, I’d always deliberately spoken in a low voice.

Besides, I hadn’t really been allowed to speak much in the first place… He might not even remember what my voice sounded like.

“No. I’ve only just become S-rank, and I’m still a newcomer as an adventurer, so joining Hero-sama’s party would be too much responsibility for me.”

“It’s fine. I’ll teach you everything personally, step by step. There’s no need to worry just because you’re a beginner.”

As he said that, the Hero grabbed my left wrist—the hand that wasn’t holding the bottle.

Ugh… He just grabbed me without permission!

Every hair on my body stood on end, and I reflexively shook his hand off.

Then I quickly backed away to put some distance between us.

Van’s previously sweet smile twisted with irritation. Yes, that’s right. That was the face you’d always shown me.

You finally looked like yourself again. If anything, it made me feel relieved.

“You… intend to defy the Hero!?”

So he was still just as quick to resort to violence.

I raised my arm, preparing to block the Hero’s slap.

“Whoa, whoa, whoa. That’s a pretty villainous line for a Hero-sama.”

Van’s slap never reached me.

Someone had caught his raised hand… Ah… um, who was he again?

He was the man who’d been waving during the parade earlier.

“Nick Bluestar, you…”

“She’s obviously rejecting you, Hero-sama.”

“Stay out of this… Do you understand what happens when you defy the Hero?”

“No idea. I’ve defied you plenty of times before. Has anything happened?”

Nick Bluestar shrugged.

No matter how much Van was the Hero, there was no way he could force the leader of the Twilight Ravens, the strongest party in human history, to obey him.

“Miss, that drink’s for the bear, right? You’d better get going.”

“…Th-Thank you very much.”

I bowed politely to Nick Bluestar, then immediately ran back toward the stairwell landing.

There, Roy had already put his bear head back on and was standing up with his claws extended.

“Sorry, I kept you waiting.”

“Ah… Yuri, thank goodness. You were taking so long that I was about to come looking for you.”

“You’re such a worrier, Roy.”

I smiled cheerfully, but if I’d returned even a little later, Roy might have sent Van flying just like that A-rank adventurer earlier.

Picking a fight with the Hero would obviously be bad.

He had been chosen as the Hero for a reason, so his swordsmanship was unquestionably strong, and his magical power was on an entirely different level.

The explosive magic he’d used when defeating the dragon at the ancient ruins had been terrifyingly powerful.

Roy definitely had strength comparable to an SS-rank adventurer, but even so, I doubted he could defeat the Hero.

Roy removed the bear head again and gulped down the entire drink in one go.

He must have been incredibly thirsty.

After replenishing his fluids, Roy seemed completely revived and sprang energetically to his feet.

“All right, then! Let’s head to the spectator seats!”

“Yeah!”

I was glad Roy was feeling better.

Nick Bluestar had really saved me.

The Twilight Ravens he led had seemed like a party with a wonderful atmosphere.

If I’d traveled with people like them, perhaps I really could have had the exciting, fulfilling journey Van talked about.

…But I preferred my current life, living peacefully together with Roy.