Ch.73Transcenders (4)

# Transcenders (4)

The next morning.

After a good night’s sleep, Esmeralda went to the lobby feeling refreshed and found her companions gathered there.

‘Hmm, no problems today either.’

La•Pa wasn’t there.

It seemed he had decided it was better to watch from somewhere out of sight rather than remain here.

Esmeralda examined her companions, who appeared no different than usual, then turned her attention to Tina.

She had returned to her original form overnight.

No horns to break, no wings to snap, no tail to cut off.

Isn’t that fortunate?

“Your gaze is a bit unsettling, Esmeralda.”

“I’m glad you’re safe, Tina.”

“Safe from what…?”

Tina’s intuition was exceptional as always.

She had instinctively read the underlying meaning behind Esmeralda’s “glad you’re safe” comment.

“But Lug, you still look pale today?”

“Ah, yes. It seems my fatigue hasn’t gone away. I feel weak and even have chills. Hero, I’m worried I’ll slow us down. Perhaps I should…”

“Don’t worry. If you collapse, I’ll carry you all the way to the Demon Lord’s castle.”

“…”

Lug clicked his tongue as if he hadn’t expected that response. True, if he could quit just because he was tired or sick, he would have done so long ago. He’d already been scorched by dragon’s breath, so what difference would this make?

“But where did that person… no, that dragon go?”

“Ah, if you mean La•Pa, he left early this morning. He said his presence would only make the atmosphere tense…”

Tina scratched her cheek and pulled over a luggage bag that had been sitting in the corner of the lobby.

“He said this is a token of apology for what happened… Though I doubt something like this will make you feel better.”

“What’s inside?”

“The church has potions, the magic tower has magical tools, so what our Truth’s Eye can offer is just one thing.”

Tina opened the luggage bag with an apologetic look. Inside was a vast amount of gold coins.

A dazzling brilliance that could blind one’s eyes.

The last traces of distrust, doubt, and dissatisfaction in Esmeralda’s heart vanished instantly, as if purified.

“Oh, and La•Pa has no intention of being hostile to—”

“I forgive him.”

“Huh? I wasn’t finished.”

“It’s fine. If Tina trusts him, then I’ll trust him too.”

“No, I don’t trust that guy. How could I trust him after what happened to me? I’m just planning to coexist with him despite not trusting him.”

“I… I see.”

Esmeralda, who had momentarily been blinded by gold and forgotten important facts, was brought back to her senses by Tina’s bold declaration of distrust.

Yes, La•Pa was suspicious.

Both for transforming Tina’s body and for avoiding her gaze.

Esmeralda had good intuition, though not as good as Tina’s.

While she might not actively oppose La•Pa, she shouldn’t let her guard down completely.

After all, he was a monster who had openly blocked Esmeralda’s power right before her eyes.

Unlike Eirene Saintess who had deceived her or Millia Asrin who had been thoughtless, he literally blocked her ability.

She couldn’t even guess how he had done it.

Esmeralda’s power, born from the stimulation of the holy sword’s inherent power.

In some sense, it wouldn’t be an exaggeration to say it resembled divine power.

And he had not deceived but actually blocked such power.

It was already overwhelming enough to face the Demon Lord without adding more enemies.

‘Ah, but dragons…’

Dragons were often involved in Esmeralda’s journey, almost as much as demons.

Most cases involved chasing away or subjugating rampaging dragons.

In fact, Esmeralda had already dealt with several dragons.

Then shouldn’t La•Pa, being a dragon, already be considered an enemy?

‘I’ll just remain cautious for now.’

No, even if that were the case, the conclusion wouldn’t change.

Although Esmeralda was a hero, she couldn’t solve everything.

Right now, defeating the Demon Lord was the priority. That’s why she took up the sword. She wouldn’t forget that, even if the path became winding.

For now, La•Pa had indirectly expressed his lack of hostility by giving them gold coins, so she could focus on her own mission.

“Then shall we just keep this in mind for now?”

“…Well, that’s probably best.”

Tina nodded, understanding Esmeralda’s intention.

It was overwhelmingly advantageous to remain neutral rather than hostile.

After all, most of what the Truth’s Eye did was erase dragon-related traces from ruins, so it was difficult to definitively label them as “evil.”

Though clearly suspicious… there was no evidence.

“Well then…”

Esmeralda looked around at her companions and slowly nodded before speaking.

“The hero’s party is finally complete. Now let’s do what we need to do.”

“Yeah!”

“Defeat the Demon Lord…”

“Yes, let’s finish this quickly.”

And so, the hero’s party’s journey to defeat the Demon Lord began anew.

***

The hero’s party, which had scattered in all directions with excuses about wanting to return to their villages, was finally reunited.

It took nearly a year for them to disperse and gather again, so in a sense, I could say I accomplished something remarkable.

After all, the party fell apart because of my escape plan.

Of course, it’s unavoidable that the hero’s party achieved absurd growth during that short time.

Trials that couldn’t kill the hero only made her stronger.

And now, as the hero’s journey was about to resume…

“…Isn’t there any way?”

-Hmm…

I felt my life was in danger.

Let’s be honest.

I couldn’t grow at all during this past year. How could I practice magic while acting as a porter?

Yet the hero’s party had now become strong enough to challenge a corps commander.

I don’t know where they train, but they keep getting stronger.

Considering the high-risk battles ahead, my chances of survival are extremely low.

I wanted to meet the Demon Lord as safely and quickly as possible, not risk my life enjoying the journey.

I don’t like this. What I want is dialogue, not resolution through violence.

I, Lug, am a cultured demon, different from these barbarians.

-Actually, there is… a way.

“Oh! As expected of Commander Lilith. I knew I could count on you.”

-Ahem! It’s not that impressive.

Indeed, Commander Lilith is my only comfort.

I should confess to her after this mission ends.

-Ahem! Attempting the same failed strategy again would be truly foolish.

“Yes.”

-However, that’s not always the case. If you know the cause of failure and can correct it, even a failed strategy can be useful. In fact, it might be more effective in terms of catching the enemy off guard and striking when they least expect it.

“Aha!”

I don’t understand any of this.

But since Commander Lilith is saying it, it must mean something.

-So for this operation, Major Lug’s cooperation is essential.

“Yes, you needn’t worry.”

Well, I trust Commander Lilith will handle everything.

***

“12th Corps Commander. May I entrust this to you for a while?”

“Of course! Just trust me, Commander Lilith. This kind of work isn’t much different from what I usually do.”

“…”

Awe and pity.

Lilith felt two emotions toward Twelve, the 12th Corps Commander, who boasted that he would handle the enormous task during her absence.

Respect for his confidence in easily resolving such a significant matter.

And pity for his unfortunate fate that forced him to handle such tasks with ease.

“Well, I should be able to finish this within two hours.”

But above all, Lilith felt reassured.

A being within the Demon Lord’s army who could actually think.

How precious a talent—no, a demon talent!

A wave of emotion.

For Lilith, who was practically the strongest in the military administration despite entering through connections, Twelve appeared as a savior.

“May I ask why you need to leave your post?”

“Ah, yes. It would be courteous to tell you.”

Lilith nodded and decided to answer Twelve’s question.

“As you know, His Majesty is particularly concerned about Major Lug.”

“Indeed… the last incident was chilling.”

“Honestly, I can no longer grasp exactly how His Majesty views Major Lug.”

Belphegor had clearly stated that Lug was special.

But recently, he glared murderously at Corps Commander Ten who had praised Lug for being special.

When someone insulted Lug, Belphegor accused them of contempt, and when someone praised him, Belphegor called it insubordination.

Since Lilith had only viewed Lug positively, she couldn’t determine how to judge the situation.

Was it like a praise version of “only I can criticize him” mindset?

She wasn’t sure.

“So I plan to meet Major Lug directly to confirm.”

“That’s…”

It would be good to check at least once to confirm this.

“Isn’t that too dangerous? The hero’s party was strong, though not as much as I expected.”

“Hehe, it will be fine.”

Of course, the hero’s party was frightening.

How could Lilith, who couldn’t defeat Twelve, overcome the hero’s party that had succeeded in defeating him?

But it’s alright. Her purpose wasn’t combat.

“Major Lug has agreed to cooperate, so there shouldn’t be any problems.”

“That’s a relief, but…”

Of course, Lilith didn’t know.

She didn’t know that Lug had only half-listened to her and didn’t remember exactly what she said.

She didn’t know that her plan had a high probability of failure.