Chapter 63 : Honor and Pride (1)

I want to become stronger.

As the princess of the prestigious Okami family, Hoshino has always sought strength.

However, there was a time when she realized that she needed to become strong on her own, not through textbook-like rote education.

That moment came on the day when the Okami family almost perished due to the monster of the sword.

And watching the pleasant-smelling monster that saved her, Hoshino, who now pursued strength, began to train herself even more intensely after that.

To become the strongest hero.

And to protect the people around her next time, she vowed to defend them herself.

She increased the intensity of her training, swinging the wooden sword not a hundred times, but a thousand.

For her, the conditions set by the monster of the bow were as good as a windfall.

“I may not look like it, but I’m one of the stronger monsters in the weapon series.”

“The three most used weapons by heroes. The sword, the spear, and the bow. Guns, well, their limitations are pretty clear. But I, on the other hand, can unleash unlimited power depending on the user.”

Unlike firearms, which have a fixed answer from the start, a weapon like the bow can become either a failure or a golden weapon depending on the user’s abilities.

The bow (弓).

In the past, before firearms became widespread, archers were highly regarded, second only to cavalry.

Moreover, back then, the price of a horse was often compared to that of a Lamborghini.

Compared to such “ultra-expensive equipment,” a bow that could be made with just a stick and some string might be humanity’s greatest invention.

…The monster of the bow, born from the fear of humans being pierced, confidently thought so.

And this version of herself, Hoshino from the Okami family, would surely be able to handle it.

“My conditions aren’t that harsh. I just want to enter your body and indulge in this world as much as I can.”

There’s no need to kill anyone directly.

Compared to other contract monsters who commit murder due to their contracts, this was a very cheap deal.

“Just lend me your body for three hours a day, whenever I want. Of course, if no one starts trouble, I won’t harm any humans.”

“…Then why do you want to enter my body?”

“Hmm? Well…”

A relatively aggressive monster towards humans.

The bow monster, who would be in the top two of monsters who would like to form a contract, simply wanted to experience how and for what reasons humans die.

“Because I want to see how and why humans die!”

“…!”

For a monster, this was like an amusement park and a zoo.

It was a concept similar to an addictive TV show or a social media platform that people can’t stop watching.

For monsters, the greatest pleasure came from the death of humans, whether they killed them directly or indirectly.

Just the fact that someone died was enough to bring genuine pleasure to their minds.

The bow monster, who had been hiding in the human world to avoid extermination, had always been disappointed that it couldn’t directly witness such scenes.

But if it could borrow Hoshino’s body, it could leisurely sip tea while witnessing humans being killed, or maybe even enjoy watching them die from suicide or being torn apart by another monster.

In fact, if a monster were satisfied with this level of enjoyment, it might be seen not as a dopamine addict, but as someone lacking dopamine.

“If you’re a hero, Hoshino, you should know this well, right? There are few monsters that offer such ‘kind conditions’ as me in a contract.”

“…I know. I’ve seen people contract with monsters and break their fingers three times a day.”

“Hehe. Compared to that, my conditions are pretty sweet, don’t you think?”

Contracting with the monster of the bow.

If she did that, an enormous, first-class monster’s power would flow into her body immediately.

Even Yoon-ha, for example, contracted with a high-risk monster and became an S-rank hero at a younger age than Hoshino.

‘And Yoon-ha-sensei was just an ordinary person before she contracted with a weapon monster.’

The story of an ordinary high school girl who became an S-rank hero after meeting a good monster.

While it might be unknown among regular civilians, among professionals with connections to hero associations like Hoshino, it was a well-known story.

So, if someone with such little experience became that strong, how far could Hoshino, already an A-rank hero before the contract, grow?

The reason Eve ate the forbidden fruit in the Garden of Eden.

The irresistible temptation of the devil.

“No, Hoshino! Contracting with a monster without the Hero Association’s approval is illegal.”

Hoshino heard the voice of the homunculus talking about rules, but it didn’t really reach her.

What did they say?

“Young people should suffer to grow?”

“Pain is part of youth?”

Screw that.

What if she broke and could never stand up again? What would she do then?

“Now, hand…”

The bow monster let go of Hoshino’s hand, which had been half-lidded.

Then, it stepped back and, out of sight of Zero, gently extended a hand.

Even if she were a genius with a sword, if she took this hand, her very constitution would change as the bow monster’s nature took over.

Of course, as someone from a prestigious swordsmanship family, if she took the bow, she wouldn’t be able to fully bring out her original talents.

“It’s fine. After all, I’m not going to become the ‘strongest’ anyway.”

In terms of the food chain, maybe she would be ranked 3rd or 4th?

That was enough to live a joyful life in human society.

There was no need to strive to be the strongest.

Princess.

You will just be with me, always…

Snap.

As one of the mediocre strong, is it enough to remain like this for life?

…Just as I was thinking that.

“Krururuk.”

“…Ah!”

“Huh?”

Hoshino, who almost lost herself, lured by the devil’s temptation.

The one who grabbed the princess’s wrist midway.

He was the past benefactor whom Hoshino had always wanted to meet closely.

“What… is this?”

Currently her attendant and, at the same time, her one and only boyfriend.

He was the horned masked beast.

About five minutes ago.

“…A foul smell?”

Kang Jang-hoon, who had been waiting inside the limousine as per Lady Hoshino’s order, suddenly caught a terrible stench.

A stench so bad that it made him frown, prompting him to look around hurriedly beyond the window.

“A bat beast?… No, this stench is too bad for a second-class beast.”

This was City B.

A district where, at this stage of Part 1’s official story, there shouldn’t have been any significant incidents.

Even bat beasts merely passed through this city briefly, as the real stage was supposed to begin in Part 2, which takes place after the first anniversary.

So why was there already such an ominous foul smell?

There was only one plausible guess.

The daughters of the weapon beasts, who would start appearing properly in Part 2.

Among the ‘Weapon Series’ beasts, one of them— the Bow Beast—

Had chosen this place, the district of Hero City with the largest underground sewer system.

To establish her own forward base in the underground of City B.

‘But was she already here at this point?’

Isn’t that too soon?

…Just as he was pondering that, he recalled an unexpected encounter with a deep-sea beast at the aquarium before.

Given that precedent, he couldn’t rule out the possibility.

“Makoto Clan Leader?” Um…

“Jang-hoon? I told you not to come out recklessly since there could still be beasts around.”

“That’s true, but… I suddenly need to use the restroom.” Haha…

“Restroom?”

Making up an excuse, he stepped outside.

“I’ll just go to that public restroom over there, so you don’t have to worry.”

“Hmm… Well, that should still be within my range.”

Since he got permission from Makoto Clan Leader, he planned to quickly transform into his beast form inside the restroom.

As explained earlier, City B had a vast underground sewer system.

If he used the public restroom, which was directly connected to the underground pipes, he could dig a tunnel and quickly reach Lady Hoshino.

As he felt an ominous premonition, he hurried towards the public restroom.

“Then, I’ll escort you, Jang-hoon.”

“Y- Yoon Ha-eun, Sensei?!”

That’s right.

Now that he thought about it, there was another S-Class hero here besides the Okami Clan Leader.

Since he had to dig a tunnel, there would inevitably be some noise.

Even if she didn’t stand right in front of the stall, Yoon Ha-eun insisted on waiting at the restroom entrance.

He appreciated her concern, but right now, he really wanted to refuse.

However, in City B, which had become a ghost town due to a second-class beast, there was no reason to reject an S-Class hero’s goodwill.

Especially for a man who couldn’t even protect himself.

Here, refusing such a hero’s goodwill would only raise suspicion.

So what should he do?

“Hero Yoon Ha-eun, why are you being so embarrassing?”

“Avanka Councilwoman?”

Just as he was sweating nervously—

“A man using the restroom, and you’re waiting outside? That’s such a ‘conservative’ mindset.”

“But…”

“There are three S-Class heroes here. The bat beast would only approach from the air. Do you think we’d just stand by if it tried to attack Jang-hoon inside the restroom?”

“Well, that’s true.”

Was it luck?

At the perfect timing, Avanka Councilwoman covered for him.

Thanks to her reasonable argument, he was able to enter the restroom alone.

But was it just his imagination?

Wink.

“?!?”

For a moment, it seemed like Councilwoman Avanka winked at him.