Chapter 67

It has been two days since we returned from Fall Crown, and I’m currently buried in paperwork.

Thea, the “Hero” who came back from Fall Crown with me, is my childhood friend. We’ve been together for as long as I can remember. Even today, she’s out at the training grounds swinging her sword, dedicating herself entirely to her drills. Ever since she heard the reports about the Fenrir and the Garuda, she’s been pushing herself even harder.

Personally, I agree with what the people of Fall Crown said: while Fenrirs and Garudas might be dangerous monsters, they won’t cause trouble if we don’t provoke them. Monsters are basically no different from wild animals. I think countermeasures are necessary, like Thea says, but I don’t believe we need to go looking for a fight.

I tried to recall when she became so obsessed with killing monsters.

She used to be a tomboy, a girl even more active than me. The three of us—Thea, Ryu, and I—used to play together all the time. But when we received our status cards at the age of five, everything changed. We discovered Thea was born with the title of “Hero Candidate.”

The adults were overjoyed. Ryu and I didn’t really understand it, but seeing their reactions, we knew it was something incredible. That moment changed Thea’s life forever.

Word of her existence spread from town to town until it reached the King’s ears. The kingdom declared they wanted to support her growth into a full-fledged “Hero.” Just like that, Thea’s upbringing became a national project. From then on, she spent her days swinging a sword alongside the Knights’ Order.

I was worried about her, seeing her without a single friend her own age, so I decided to become a “Mage” to support her. I started at the church, learning the basics of magic and working my heart out so I could stand by her side. Then, that incident happened.

It was when we were eight. During a combat training exercise in a small village, a monster invaded and tried to attack a little girl. Thea shielded her, and in the process, her stomach was practically torn away.

The knights and I provided first aid, and while Maria eventually treated her, a large, nasty scar remained on her abdomen. I know Thea used to cry whenever she saw that scar. Even with the potential of a Hero, Thea is still just a girl. I suppose having such a mark on her body was devastating for her.

Since then, she’s hated anyone seeing the scar. She stopped wearing swimsuits or short shirts. Instead, she started preferring large, black clothes. They don’t become see-through even if she gets soaked, and the baggy fit ensures her stomach is rarely visible. She also took a liking to armor—it’s the perfect way to hide the scar.

That was likely the turning point. Thea began to harbor a fierce hostility toward monsters. By the time she turned ten, she believed that peace would only come by killing them all. So, she continued to slaughter every monster she came across.

Lately, that tendency has only accelerated. Ever since Ryu went missing, she’s been bordering on a rampage, terrified that he might have been killed by a monster. I just hope this doesn’t lead to a disaster one day…

“Hm?”

One of the documents caught my eye. It was about a poaching incident involving Spirits and Elves in the southern part of the continent. Our kingdom’s intelligence unit had tracked a peculiar man.

Apparently, there was a man who had been assassinating poachers and rescuing Spirits and Elves. He took down the poachers, traveled to the Duchy of Elk all by himself, and worked with our intelligence agents to help the captives escape.

The strange part was that the man called himself a “Tamer.” One of the agents contacted him, and he simply stated, “I’m just a Tamer,” so the report listed his profession as such. The reason for the uncertainty was that their “Appraisal Eye” skill failed to work properly.

“Appraisal Eye” depends on the user’s relative strength. It works fine if the target is only slightly stronger, but if the target is significantly higher-ranked, the skill fails—a major drawback. In other words, this man was incredibly powerful. The report evaluated that “Tamer” was likely a lie, and he was almost certainly a renowned warrior.

The man’s name was written at the very end. Usually, that’s the first thing you’d write, but seeing that name made my heart skip a beat. I immediately bolted toward Thea.

The man’s name was Ryu.

“Thea! Huge news!” I shouted at the top of my lungs.

“What is it, Taiga? It’s not like you to scream,” Thea replied, pausing her sparring match with Commander Gran.

“We found someone who might be Ryu!”

“…Eh?”

“A name ‘Ryu’ was in one of the reports! Apparently, he’s heading toward Fall Crown right now!”

When he helped the intelligence unit free the Spirits and Elves, he reportedly mentioned that his next destination was Fall Crown.

“The agent who helped him is still traveling with him, so finding him should be easy. What do you want to do, Thea? I assume you’re going anyway.”

“Well, ain’t that great! Go confirm it right away! Actually, I’m coming too! I wanna meet this ‘Ryu’ brat myself!”

“Wait a minute, Gran! Are you trying to get in their way? This might be the first time in years these childhood friends can reunite, and you’ll just be a nuisance!”

“No way, I’m going. I’m not handing my cute disciple over to some guy I don’t know!”

“You’re not her father! What’s with that attitude?!”

Gran and Maria, who knew the circumstances, were getting oddly fired up, but I looked to Thea. She was going, right?

“But… we’re in a busy period preparing for the Fenrir hunt… Surely…”

“It’s not a problem. Subduing a Fenrir requires years of preparation anyway. A few days won’t hurt.”

“That’s right. He’s a precious friend, isn’t he? We don’t know for sure if it’s him yet, but why not go see and clear your head? You’ve looked so exhausted lately, Thea.”

Gran spoke to ease her anxiety, and Maria gave her a supportive push. It was true that we were busy, but it wasn’t an immediate emergency. Like Gran said, it’s a multi-year operation; we had some breathing room. The King wouldn’t be angry over a day or two out of a whole year.

“…Is it really okay for me to go?”

“Of course.”

“I can’t act like a ‘Hero’ in front of Ryu, you know?”

“A Hero and a Sage still need their rest, don’t they?”

I answered Thea’s questions one by one. Whenever she gets anxious, she always asks for reassurance like this.

“Then… I’ll go.”

“Understood.”

“But, can Gran and Maria come too? I want to introduce them to Ryu.”

“I’m sure he’d be happy to meet them.”

“Maria, the lady gave us the green light. I’m going!”

“Sigh, I didn’t want to interrupt the three of them if I could help it, but if Thea says so, I guess it’s fine.”

And so, we decided to head back to Fall Crown once again.

Still, I’m a bit jealous of Ryu—to be thought of this much by Thea. Maybe I’ll play a little mean trick on him for making us worry by disappearing?

I thought that to myself as I started planning our preparations for the journey.