Episode 16

“Ha-ha! It’s all pure white now, Captain!”

“Don’t get fatalistic—calm down a bit.”

Everything around them, monsters included, had frozen and was decaying. By Zeke’s hand, the more than fifty monsters had been exterminated.

“…Zeke-sama? Where are you going?”

Zeke strode across the frozen plain without hesitation, scanning the area for his objective.

“Use your head. No matter how many swarm, if they can’t be controlled, they’re just a rabble.”

It would have taken considerable power to command nearly a hundred Breeze Weasels. You did not become the boss by luck or coincidence.

Even with a Unison Link, simply chaining mana together would make it blow up uncontrollably. First off, an ordinary specimen could hardly do it. Which meant the likely answer was…

“Hmph. You’re a bit sturdier than the rest, it seems.”

“Wh—what is that thing⁉︎”

A Breeze Weasel was normally a monster about thirty centimeters long—but lying dead before them was a gigantic Breeze Weasel nearly two meters tall.

“As you can see, this one’s an aberrant variant. Got big and then got cocky, no doubt. Pathetic.”

“An aberrant variant… They’re said to arise from sudden mutations during growth…”

“Aberrant variants” were a catch-all in the game for monsters bigger and stronger than normal. Unlike ordinary monsters, they had techniques and traits they normally shouldn’t, and a head-on charge without a plan would get you killed.

“Load it on the wagon. We’re taking it back.”

“This thing? Why would we do that?”

“Are you stupid? How exactly do you intend to prove the extermination? Think anyone will accept ‘we beat them,’ just like that?”

“—! Understood. I’ll arrange it at once.”

(If we bring back an aberrant variant, that couple will have to accept it.)

The battle on the Nordan Plains had ended. There were injuries, but no one was gravely hurt or killed. Hiroto was satisfied with how efficiently they had farmed experience.

(I have to get stronger. I’m not even at the starting line yet.)

If things followed the original, Zeke (Hiroto) would eventually stand against the protagonists. He did not plan to seek combat, but anything could happen. If it came down to life and death, he would just have to steel himself.

—There would be no more “continue.”

“As you can see, the monsters were exterminated. Peace should return to the village.”

“…It appears so. We are truly grateful.”

Even though the monsters should have been slain, the villagers’ behavior was strange. They seemed frightened of something.

No villagers besides Atri had joined the operation, but some had watched from afar.

A raging storm had risen, then an explosion, and at the end, winter had come. They were terrified by events beyond comprehension.

“What’s wrong? You’re awfully meek now. Where did that bold front go?”

Zeke smiled. It was an evil smile.

“…Please forgive us. We truly thank you.”

“Hmph. Next time, don’t howl over trifles. —You wouldn’t want to freeze to death, would you?”

Zeke turned to leave, as he had no more business here. The taut air slowly slackened.

“…A demon.”

“An ice demon. He’s going to freeze the whole village!”

Once panic began, it could not be contained and spread. From now on, this village would live in fear of the footsteps of the “Ice Demon.”

(No, seriously—I can hear you just fine!)

She had been waiting all this time—for someone who would find her in this closed-off world. For someone who would save her from inescapable senselessness.

She wanted to run over right now and give thanks. She wanted to tell him how grateful she was. And yet her legs froze, and she could not move.

Because she was afraid of losing it again.

“You there—what are you doing?”

She turned, and there was the boy in question. A black-haired boy about her age.

“Why… are you here?”

“Because my work is done.”

Her vision blurred.

“Wh—why did you help me?”

“It’s none of your concern. I had my reasons.”

Tears welled and would not stop.

“No one… ever came looking for me.”

“…Don’t lump me in with the others. I’m special.”

The tears would not stop, and yet her heart was warm.

“Is it… okay, for me to be here?”

“How should I know. Whatever someone does is their own freedom.”

A heart that had been lost began to fill.

“I’m Atri. And you are?”

“…Zeke Lagias.”

She thought she saw a rainbow.

A month had passed since the monster attacks were resolved. Since then, there had been no damage to the village, and calm days had flowed by.

A caravan of peddlers visited such a village.

“Village chief, a question: why is there a single child living on the outskirts of the village?”

“…It’s village business. Don’t get involved. We provide food, clothing, and shelter.”

“That much is only natural. What I want to know is why she is ostracized from the village.”

“If you’re that concerned, then take her with you. She has no family.”

“—! Very well. If we have your permission, we’ll do just that.”

“Hah? Do as you like, then.”

(Well, I’ll count it as one hassle taken care of… If only they’d take that demon outside the domain too.)

Strangers had come to Atri’s house.

“You’re Atri, right? We are with the Freak Trading Company, merchants who travel from place to place. Come with us from now on.”

It was sudden and surprising, but she did not hesitate. —Because she had already been saved.

“Thank you. I’m Atri.”

“This is my son. Go on—introduce yourself.”

“I know, I know… I’m Van Freak. I help my dad for now, but my dream is to become the strongest swordsman someday!”

A lively, brown-haired boy answered with bright energy.

“I see. Nice to meet you.”

(I have to work hard too. I want to stand by his side as soon as I can.)

“Hey, what are you doing with those scissors?”

“I don’t need this anymore, so I’m cutting it. From now on, I need to see straight ahead.”

A story the game never told—the moment when the protagonist and the heroine met.

The story began to move, bit by bit—without deviating from the main line.

If anything was different, it was that the worst villain in the work and the heroine already knew each other—and that the name “Atri,” which should have been discarded, still existed.

—He would keep resisting. As long as he lived.