episode_0008

1.

Regretting one’s choices.

What if things had been different?

What if I had done it that way?

Was I too hasty, no matter what?

Leuwen repeated these meaningless worries over and over again, reflecting on that day.

However, even if there is regret, it wasn’t the wrong choice.

When Leuwen thinks about the number of lives saved by returning to their hometown, it was indeed the right decision.

It was difficult to expect support from the empire, which is focused on defending the demon realm, to help the rural village. And since the village had suffered an attack once and its finances were not good, relying on mercenaries or adventurer unions for village protection was not feasible.

The village had no choice but to protect itself autonomously.

That’s why Leuwen’s return was a great hope for the village.

Leuwen slaughtered the demons.

They cut down every visible demon.

It benefited not only her own village but also several other villages nearby.

After defeating the demons and restoring the ruined village, they recruited people to defend the village.

They taught and trained the gathered individuals how to wield a sword.

Five years have passed, and now they are proudly active as a guard unit, expanding their influence to protect other neighboring villages as well. Leuwen is currently leading a large-scale guard force as the captain of the guard unit.

During this journey, she never wasted a single day.

However, a part of her heart was always empty.

She was doing meaningful work, but she couldn’t feel the fulfillment.

Even while the members celebrated with drinks after repelling demon attacks, Leuwen could only force a smile and couldn’t join in the joyful atmosphere.

Five years have gone by.

Despite the passage of those five years, Leuwen still can’t forget Evan.

If they had broken up out of hatred, she would have forgotten him within a year. But because they had parted when they truly loved each other, she couldn’t forget even more.

He comes to mind when she closes her eyes.

He appears in her dreams as well.

Even when spring rain falls and winter ends, Leuwen is still stuck in winter.

“…Evan must have forgotten me, right?”

Leuwen hunched her body.

Perhaps he has met a better woman and is living happily.

She wishes for his happiness, but the thought of another woman being by his side twists her insides.

Greed, I understand it.

I also know well that it’s a selfish thought.

Isn’t it something I brought upon myself?

However, just the thought of another woman being embraced by Evan felt like everything would crumble.

“…I miss you.”

It’s fine if I can’t speak.

Even if I were to be cursed at for speaking, it’s fine.

I just wanted to see Evan’s face once.

His smiling face.

2.

Leuwen’s day starts early in the morning.

Quietly leaving the house while her siblings are still asleep, she heads towards the forest.

In the morning, she patrols the forest.

If she encounters monsters, she hunts them down.

If she meets merchants, she escorts them until they leave the forest.

Although she leads the guards and is the captain, she spends most of her time alone. She only works with her subordinates during major operations, while on regular days, the vice-captain takes care of everything.

The vice-captain keeps urging Leuwen to come and live at the guard’s quarters, but Leuwen firmly refuses.

It would certainly be more convenient.

Things like meal preparations would be taken care of by the member in charge of meals.

However, she didn’t want to leave her home and live at the guard’s quarters.

It’s the house her parents sacrificed their lives to protect.

-Clang!!

Leuwen casually swung her sword, cutting down the monster.

She doesn’t know where they keep appearing from, but no matter how many she kills, the monsters reappear and establish habitats in the forest.

Silvery threads rain down on the monsters.

Five monsters were sliced into several pieces.

Dealing with a few monsters is an easy task.

Since coming down to her hometown and killing monsters every day, she no longer feels threatened by ordinary monsters.

When was the last time she got injured?

She can’t even remember.

She had split a giant monster attacking the neighboring village into two halves at once.

The members show great admiration, but honestly, she doesn’t really understand.

Hmm… Is it really that impressive?

Subjectively speaking, Leuwen considers herself to be at the level of an adventurer with experience in subjugating monsters.

The members don’t know because they’ve only been in this rural area. They have no idea how many more skilled knights there are in this world.

“…”

Expressionless, Leuwen wiped off the blood from her sword.

She collected the corpses of the monsters.

She only gathered a few valuable materials.

There was nothing worth selling separately at the market.

Leuwen started wandering through the forest again. She would wander through the forest and hunt monsters until sunset. That was all she could do. She didn’t think about doing anything else. She could leave it to her comrades and spend her time leisurely. The weather had become warm, so she could go on a picnic with her siblings. But she didn’t. It was because of guilt and a sense of duty. If she tried to do something else, her conscience would prick her. She couldn’t even rest comfortably. Whenever she tried to take a break, guilt would stab her. So, all Leuwen could do was hunt monsters. At the moment she thrust her sword into the neck of a monster, she felt nothing. It was then that she heard someone screaming. “Aaaah!” A scream echoed through the forest. Leuwen immediately ran towards the source of the scream. She sprinted through the forest, swiftly maneuvering between the trees. Her black hair fluttered in the wind. When she arrived, she found a group being attacked by monsters. There were more than ten monsters, wolves walking on two legs. They were armored and armed with swords and axes. Among the monsters, there were occasionally creatures like them, behaving intelligently like humans. Usually, they couldn’t communicate, but occasionally there were monsters that could speak human language. Some had already fallen victim to the monsters. A person with an axe stuck in their chest. Another person missing an arm. They weren’t dead yet, but they would die if left like that. Leuwen immediately raised her sword high and charged. A fiery determination burned in her golden eyes. Those kinds of monsters were probably much tougher to deal with than the ones she usually faced. So, she needed to focus. She first swiftly beheaded the two closest ones. She cleanly severed their thick necks. The heads of the two creatures, who had been sticking out their long tongues and giggling, fell off. Startled by the sudden intruder, the monsters turned to look at Leuwen. She didn’t give them a chance to counterattack. She inwardly took a deep breath. She moved swiftly. A sharp silver line was drawn in the air with each swing of her sword. Blood splattered and flesh flew every time she swung her sword. The monsters started to retaliate only after half of their heads had fallen off. “Kuaaack!” A wolf monster charged, spitting saliva, and swung a hand axe held in both hands towards Leuwen’s head.

Leuwen easily dodged by bending her upper body to the side.

-Thunk!

She kicked Maesu’s side.

She felt the bone break on the sturdy iron boot.

-Crack!

Leuwen rotated once and diagonally severed Maesu’s body.

With an ordinary iron sword, she cleanly cut through the tough armor and muscles with its sharp blade.

Leuwen snatched an axe from Maesu’s falling body after it was severed. Then, with a swift motion, she threw the axe, piercing another Maesu’s face.

-Squish!

The axe lodged into the snout of the wolf-like Maesu.

“Kwaaah!!”

She stabbed the sword into the screaming Maesu’s throat, causing the sharp blade to penetrate all the way to the back of the neck, shattering the vertebrae.

The muscles contracted, preventing the sword from being pulled out.

It doesn’t matter.

Leuwen let go of her sword and took the one held by the wolf-like Maesu.

It was different in length and weight from what she usually used.

But that didn’t matter either.

Leuwen is not picky about weapons.

Through countless battles, she has become proficient in almost all types of weapons. Having repeatedly navigated life-threatening situations, she naturally learned how to use different weapons.

The remaining three Maesu met a futile death without inflicting a single wound on Leuwen.

“Hoo…”

A breath escaped through her dry lips.

Around Leuwen, the corpses of the Maesu were scattered, displaying a grim scene.

She brushed her hand through her hair.

“…”

She looked at the people who had been attacked.

They stared at Leuwen in astonishment.

“…Treat.”

Leuwen pointed at the injured individuals. In response, the people who had been staring at her blankly began to move busily, starting to treat the wounded.

Fortunately, no one had died.

If they had been a little slower, things would have turned out differently, but ultimately, they were not too late.

“Hmm…”

While the people were providing medical treatment, Leuwen gathered the bodies of the Maesu.

Gathering the bodies was important not only for earning money but also to prevent the Maesu from being resurrected or summoning other Maesu if their crystals were left unattended.

“These are useless.”

The weapons and armor used by the wolf-like Maesu were too worn out to be sold at a decent price. They only collected the crystals from these creatures.

When Leven was deeply absorbed in his thoughts, a leader who was leading the group approached him.

“Thank you. I owe my life to you.”

Leven glanced at the man from the corner of his eye.

“…Huh?”

As soon as he looked at the man, his tired eyes widened, and his golden pupils shimmered.

“…E-Evan?”