episode_0201

“H, Hero! Are you okay?!”

“I’m fine. More than that….”

It stings a lot on my back because I blocked the explosion with it, but I’m fine.

The problem is, since it was an explosion that could wound my body, it’s safe to say there are no survivors around.

As proof, there is nothing alive around.

Of course…, there are no remains of any form.

It was a scene that was perfectly described by the word ‘annihilation’.

And since there’s nothing around, the enemies are pinpointing us accurately.

“A living human is over there!”

“Kill him!!”

“Kill them all!!”

“Tsk….”

I don’t know where the Holy Sword is.

But if it’s just dealing with the small fries….

Just as I was about to draw out my power to face the approaching enemies, my strength suddenly gave out, like a puppet with its strings cut.

“What….”

A sensation I’ve never felt before.

The sensation most similar to this was when I fought the Great Sage Equaling Heaven fiercely a long time ago, and my power was restricted as I was on the verge of death. But the difference from that time is that back then, it felt like my body was drooping like waterlogged cotton, but this time, it really felt like it was snapping.

[system : Power is restricted according to the role of the character [Merchant : Leon].]

[system : The maximum stat value for the character [Merchant : Leon] is 10.]

[system : Since your current stats are above 10, all stats are fixed at 10.]

“What the hell is this?!….”

Power is restricted according to the role of the merchant Leon?….

What kind of nonsense is that?!

Clearly….

Inside this mirror world, I seem to have been a merchant who went around buying and selling things.

I definitely have those memories.

But that’s that, and this is this, isn’t it?

What does me using my power have to do with having my power restricted!!

“Levia! Run away!”

“Y, yes?!”

“Run away now! I don’t have the ability to protect you right now!….”

The moment I said that, the enemies instantly approached and aimed for me and Levia.

I hurriedly pushed Levia away and tried to confront the enemies, but Levia grabbed my sleeve and pulled me back, pushing me away instead.

“Levia?!”

“W, what needs to survive… is the Hero!….”

Thanks to Levia’s efforts, I was able to escape the enemy’s attack.

But in return, Levia was cut in half by the enemy’s attack and died instantly.

“Levia!!!”

“Ha, all that does is extend your life by a few seconds….”

But as the opponent said, the time you can buy with that much effort is only a few seconds.

The enemy, already close at hand, aimed for me again.

“Keuk!!”

Levia’s sacrifice is a sacrifice, and I have to live.

I kicked off the ground and ran to escape their attack.

Swoosh!

But no matter how much I run, my stats are only 10.

At best, I’m just an ordinary person, and there’s no way a normal merchant can escape from monsters that have gathered to conquer a city.

The sound of flames burning.

It’s definitely a magical omen.

Looking back is a waste.

Even one more step….

I have to run away even one step further.

I have to earn a chance to survive by running away as far as possible.

“Heh heh heh….”

“You stupid bastard.”

“It’s funny to see such a weak human running away.”

How long has it been since I heard such ridicule?

I haven’t heard these ridiculing voices since I defeated the fragment of the Demon King, ….

Kwaaaang!!!

A deafening roar erupts along with the scorching heat.

It’s the sensation of my body burning. A sensation of my body turning to ashes and disappearing without a trace.

With that sensation, my consciousness disappeared.

* * *

“!”

Chirp chirp chirp chirp

“W, where is this?….”

What I see when I open my eyes is a gray tent.

It seems to be a cheap makeshift tent…. Why am I here?

“I’m….”

For some reason, my head is throbbing.

I also feel like I have a slight fever…. For some reason, my head is foggy as if it’s covered in mist.

“My name is…, Leon…, was it? And….”

Yes, I am Leon.

I was an adventurer.

An adventurer who travels around the world with his lover. When I’m short on money, I also take on simple requests, and I was an adventurer who travels the world with my lover.

Sigh…, sigh….

As my thoughts cleared, I heard a faint breathing sound.

When I turned my head in the direction of the breathing, my lover ‘Levia’ was sleeping there.

Only then did I feel like the fog that had filled my head was clearing.

Kiss

I lightly kissed Levia on the forehead and got up from my bed.

Of course, being careful not to wake Levia up.

“Ugh euuuugh~!”

I stretched my back vigorously and looked around.

The surroundings were full of white snow.

At the same time, a chilling cold air swept over my body.

“Ugh…, it’s cold. Let’s see…. Where did I leave the flint?….”

I added new firewood to the spot where I had made a bonfire last night, and then lit a fire.

Thanks to my long life of traveling, I skillfully lit a fire and warmed my body, which had stiffened from the cold, with the bonfire.

“Well…. If I put together all the stories I’ve gathered, it seems like I’m pretty close to the target destination….”

The reason we came here was one thing, to carry out a certain ‘request’.

This request was directly issued by the royal family.

As such, the compensation presented by the imperial family was really enormous.

If I receive the reward, I can settle down in a quiet neighborhood, so there is no need to say more.

“It worked out well. I’m starting to feel physically lacking from traveling around here and there…”

I’m over 40 years old now.

Some may say that this is just the prime of my life? But….

I don’t think so.

Above all, as an ‘adventurer’ who adventures in such harsh places, I think it’s time to consider retirement.

Moreover….

“Now it’s time to make a kid with Levia…, ahem.”

My precious lover whom I met on my travels.

Levia.

A grateful and lovely person who chose to adventure with me because I love her and she loves me.

As I am thinking about having a formal wedding and having children with her, I no longer want to wander around in such harsh places. If I have children, I have to refrain from strenuous activities.

If that happens…, this request will be the foundation for us to settle down.

“But rumors about a witch…. What is the royal family trying to do by confirming these rumors….”

I scratched my cheek and recalled my memories.

The reason we came here is to find the existence of the ‘Snow Mountain Witch’ who lives here.

If that existence really exists, then they asked us to provide the appearance and detailed location of where they live.

If it doesn’t exist, then we were asked to provide evidence to prove that it doesn’t exist.

“…Well, is it not my business?”

“Leon?….”

“Ah, Levia. Are you awake? I lit a fire, so come and warm up.”

“Okay…. I understand….”

Levia, who approached carefully, sat right next to me.

Whether she wasn’t fully awake even though she had woken up, or because of the warmth of the bonfire, she was nodding off, but she soon leaned on my shoulder.

I enjoyed watching her and enjoyed the moment of leisure.

It was about 10 minutes later that Levia came to her senses.

We took out food, made a soup that was close to a stew by mixing it appropriately, organized our equipment, put out the bonfire, and then moved our feet.

“Hoo…, hoo….”

“Do you really think…, she lives in a place like this? The witch?…”

“Well?…. If she doesn’t live here, they told us to bring evidence that she doesn’t live here…. I don’t know what to bring, so I’m just keep looking around…”

Awooouuuuuuuu~!!

“!!”

“W, white wolf!….”

The representative monster of this Snow Mountain, and one of the things that causes great casualties along with avalanches and landslides to those who climb the mountain.

Moreover, white wolves, like their name ‘wolves’, act in groups, so if you become a target, it is impossible to survive.

“Where is the monster repellent incense?!”

“H, here!….”

Levia hurriedly took out something.

This object, which emits a slightly pungent scent, was specialized in repelling monsters that are sensitive to scents, such as white wolves.

She took out the object and lit it.

With a hissing sound, the wick burned and a pungent scent spread rapidly in all directions.

“W, with this, we should be okay for a while.”

“But…. Since we’ve been targeted by monsters once…, shouldn’t we go down?”

“…Yeah, let’s do that.”

Once you’re targeted by a white wolf, it’s best to back off.

If we wander around here aimlessly, we will have no way to escape when we have used up all the monster repellent incense.

At that moment as we were about to run away, there was one fact that we overlooked.

They are much smarter than we think, they have been watching our actions longer than we think, and the fact that they have gathered a group now means that they have finished ‘preparing to hunt’.

“! L, Leon!”

“T, these bastards?!….”

They are approaching despite us having lit the monster repellent incense.

Did they realize that they could hunt us if they only endure the scent for a short time?

“D, don’t come closer!”

I took out a weapon for self-defense, but….

I wonder how effective it will be against those things.

Still, in order to protect at least Levia as much as possible, I hid Levia behind my back and swung the weapon around, but the monsters approached step by step from all directions as if they were cornering their prey.

“Leon!….”

“I, it’s okay. Levia. We’ve had many adventures so far, right?…. We’ll definitely….”

We will be able to survive this time too.

The moment I was about to say that, a white wolf jumped up and pounced on us.

What I felt was death.

Only death.

Thud!

Clang!!

“?!”

At that moment, a giant ice spike flew from somewhere.

It pierced the thick hide of the rushing white wolf and killed it instantly, and the white wolves, seeing their dead comrade, ran away in a hurry as if they were frightened by something.

“…W, we lived….”

I let out a sigh of relief and turned my gaze to where I felt a gaze while holding Levia’s hand tightly.

“….”

There, a beautiful woman with purple hair was looking down at them.