episode_0003

000

A rest area inside the guild.

Adventurers who aren’t taking on requests spend most of their time here if they don’t have schedules.

It’s a place like a meeting square for adventurers, where they naturally interact, share their circumstances, and exchange information.

Sometimes, a senior’s grateful story.

A colleague’s tale of failure.

That annoying guy’s success story.

A conspiracy theory about a new type of monster appearing.

It was not uncommon for people to visit this place to resolve concerns that only adventurers could share.

`Sasha`, who had not been an adventurer for long, was also one of those adventurers.

A few days ago, she joined the party of the hero Albein, a promising adventurer even in this city, and she had no emotions other than anticipation for the adventures she would experience in the future.

She knew that there had been some trouble in the group just before, but she thought that it gave her an opportunity, so she couldn’t miss the chance.

However, she never dreamed that this adventure would become a source of pain and worry.

The beginning of the change was a week ago, during a request in the `Living Forest`.

Even though the request was not that difficult for Sasha’s level, Albein’s party failed again.

Was it because Albein pushed himself too hard, like cleaning up the previous dungeon? That wasn’t the case either.

The level of the enemy did not exceed expectations, and there were no problems with tactics or action plans.

If there was a problem, it was with the priest `Kuon`, the healer who supported the party.

“Kuon… what on earth is wrong?”

After laying the fainted Albein on the bed in the lodging.

Lyla, who had shallow wounds all over her body, spoke to Kuon as if scolding her.

The power of her healing magic was less than half of what the entire party had expected.

Albein is a hero who is capable of attack, defense, and healing.

However, he is basically in charge of the front line, blocking attacks and concentrating on cutting with his sword.

That’s because he trusts that Kuon’s healing will assist him.

However, Kuon failed to properly protect Albein from the continuous attacks following the plant golem’s regeneration.

As a result, the front line collapsed and the party disintegrated.

The group, with no one left to protect the rear, barely managed to escape from the forest while supporting Albein.

It was a nightmare.

The forest literally recognized the party as weak, and even the small fries that had been hiding until now underestimated them and started to jump out and attack.

They wouldn’t make attacks that threatened their lives.

But even if they were just small fries, if dozens of them gathered and chased after them, the courage in their hearts would crumble in the face of that fear.

“Why didn’t you properly protect Albein!”

When Lyla raised her voice, Kuon could only lower her head and shed tears.

“C, calm down, Lyla. Healing magic is difficult, so something might be causing the power to be weakened.”

Sasha tried to calm the enraged Lyla, but.

Lyla couldn’t easily calm down.

Eventually, she ran out of the lodging and didn’t return until the next morning.

Kuon blamed herself for not being able to protect her loved one and for not even knowing why this was happening, and cried all night long.

Sasha prayed that this situation would pass quickly.

The next day.

Albein recovered from his injuries and opened his eyes, but.

Kuon’s healing power did not return.

No, it was even worse than yesterday.

She used to be able to heal simple scratches just by raising her hand and concentrating her magic power without prayer or incantation.

Now, she had to recite more than 10 lines of prayer just to stop the bleeding.

“Magic is greatly affected by the state of mind or soul. Why don’t you talk about what’s bothering you?”

Yesterday, Lyla blamed Kuon so much, but after a day passed and Kuon’s condition worsened, she felt pity even though she was her rival.

She treated her a little more kindly.

However, the problem wasn’t just with Kuon.

Albein, who felt impatient after hearing that Cleon had solved the aftermath of their failed request alone, was the same.

Then, when he was informed that Cleon had told the guild to give them half of the request reward, Albein’s face turned red with shame and anger.

“─Until Kuon’s healing power returns. We won’t take on any requests. I can’t suffer another embarrassment like this.”

“I’m sorry… Albein….”

Eventually.

The group disbanded on the spot for the time being.

Lyla went in and out of the city’s libraries to investigate Kuon’s abnormality,

Kuon was spending her time at the town’s temple praying and even fasting to restore her healing power.

Albein tried to take on requests that he could do alone.

But each time, he was informed that Cleon had already taken all the requests in advance, and he got angry and headed to the town’s bar.

A week passed like that.

But Kuon’s condition showed no signs of improvement.

“Haa~. What am I supposed to do…”

Sasha, who was lying face down on the table in the rest area, sighed, worried that the party might disband like this.

“Oh my. Do you have any worries?”

A warm voice, as if worrying about Sasha, was heard in front of her.

Sasha hurriedly raised her head.

There stood a beautiful woman who had covered her neck with a brown robe.

Light brown skin and blue-green hair.

And enchanting purple eyes.

Femininity that can be seen even over the robe.

She was a stranger.

But the feeling she gave off was stronger than any other aura Sasha had ever felt.

“Ah, um… who are you?”

“Ah, I’m sorry for suddenly talking to you. I’m `Gala`. As you can see, I’m an adventurer like you.”

Even if she said, as you can see….

The atmosphere she gave off was too different to be called the same adventurer, but Sasha thought that there were many types of adventurers.

And buried her trivial questions and doubts.

“Gala… right. I’m Sasha.”

“Sasha… ah, you’re the child who recently joined the Hero’s party?”

Gala added, `You’re younger than I thought,` and looked at Sasha with a surprised look.

“Am I famous?”

“It’s not that you’re famous, but the hero is famous… I heard that the magic swordsman left the party recently and a new member joined.”

…Magic Swordsman Cleon. In the current recession of the hero party, he was silently carrying out requests from the guild even alone and gradually restoring the honor of his name.

Sasha, recalling the conversation she had with him here a week ago, became a little depressed. Because the day when five people would gather and adventure again seemed to be getting further and further away.

“According to rumors… this is the biggest crisis since the Hero’s party was formed?”

“Ah, yes… actually….”

Sasha was the type of person who didn’t keep such depression and anxiety inside and spit it out.

More than anything, she had a great desire to tell her feelings to the adult in front of her and feel a little more comfortable.

Gala listened to Sasha’s slow, rambling story and was silent for a while before opening her mouth.

“It seems like she’s parasitized by a magic bug. The lady named Kuon.”

“Yes…? A magic bug?”

It was a name that Sasha heard for the first time.

Hearing the name, she only felt like it was a bug related to magic power.

“Magic bugs are one of the rare creatures on the continent… they parasitize humans and suck their magic power. In the process, they spread a `dark magic field` on the body of the parasitized target to prevent humans from resisting.”

──Dark Magic Field.

It occurs randomly in dungeons with a high concentration of magic power, and it has the characteristic of strengthening the power of attack spells but weakening the power of healing spells.

According to the essential basic knowledge of adventurers in Sasha’s head.

Certainly, there was something in common between the weakening of Kuon’s healing magic and the effect of the dark magic field.

“But it’s troublesome. Magic bugs are living things, so you can’t do anything about them with a priest’s dispel spell. But if you pour attack spells into the body, the lady could be seriously injured.”

“I, is there no way?”

Sasha finally knew the cause, but the information flowing from Gala’s mouth made Sasha even more anxious.

That’s why she couldn’t stand it and looked for a solution, but─

“There’s a way to take it out with surgery, but not in a city as big as this one… and the extraction procedure leaves a big scar on the body.”

“Th, that…”

As expected, she couldn’t hear a hopeful answer and collapsed on the chair as if collapsing.

What will happen to this party if Kuon’s condition does not recover…

At worst.

Kuon may retire as an adventurer and Albein, who is her childhood friend, may return to his hometown with Kuon.

Then me.

“Ah. But there’s a more certain way.”

Gala added, as if blocking Sasha’s thoughts.

Sasha’s nerves were focused on the word of hope that was suddenly thrown at her.

“Is that magic swordsman still in this city? The one who left the hero party….”

“Mr. Cleon… do you mean? Yes! He’s still working hard on the guild’s requests these days!”

“Is that so? That’s a relief. Their power is the most useful for dealing with parasitic creatures like magic bugs.”

Gala smiled brightly and told Sasha.

At that time, when she was trying to prepare for the worst possible situation, a ray of hope left for Sasha flickered before her eyes.

“I! I’ll go see Mr. Cleon.”

“Oh my. Right away? But I heard he was expelled from the hero party. Do you think he’ll help?”

When Gala said that far, Sasha hesitated for a moment.

But then she nodded and answered.

“…Of course! I’ll try to persuade him.”

With that said, Sasha left the guild and headed to Cleon’s lodging.

Gala watched Sasha’s back for a while and then smiled.

That smile was definitely not one of reassurance or one of an adult looking at a fresh human being.

It was a mocking laugh, watching a toy move as desired and ridiculing its ridiculous appearance.

001

Knock knock knock!

A urgent knocking sound rang in Cleon’s room, where he was lying on the bed with his eyes closed, meditating.

When Cleon, who quietly opened his eyes, checked the person outside the door, Sasha was standing there with a nervous face.

When Cleon slowly opened the door, a shadow naturally fell on Sasha, and Cleon looked down at Sasha.

Cleon’s eyes looking at Sasha were as cold as before, and Sasha was a little overwhelmed by Cleon’s expression.

“What’s wrong…? Was it Sasha?”

“Ah, yes. It’s been a week, Mr. Cleon.”

`Was he always this tall…? For some reason, he seems a little taller than Mr. Albein….`

Sasha didn’t notice because Cleon was sitting down a week ago.

Cleon’s physique had become a little bigger than before.

As he completely controlled the magic sword, which had been taking away experience and everything else necessary for growth, the limiter that had been on him was released.

Of course, Sasha wouldn’t know this, so she would think it was just her imagination.

If Albein or Kuon saw him, they would have noticed this change.

“So, what’s the matter?”

“Yes, yes… there’s something I want you to help with… about Kuon.”

When Kuon’s name came out.

Cleon twitched his eyebrows for a moment.

Sasha, seeing that, thought that he was still angry…. and closed her eyes tightly.

“Come in. Let’s talk inside.”

With Cleon’s voice continuing like that, she sighed in relief and entered Cleon’s room.

The door of the room slowly closed and a click sounded from the doorknob.

“So? Is the reason you guys haven’t been moving lately because of Kuon?”

Sasha leaned forward slightly, feeling a little resentful at Cleon’s reaction as if he was glad.

Cleon sits on the bed in the room as if not paying attention to that.

“It’s not Kuon’s fault! The bad thing is the `magic bug` that parasitized Kuon’s body!”

“─Magic bug, huh. She’s been targeted by a troublesome guy. That Kuon.”

“Do you also know about magic bugs, Mr. Cleon…?”

Cleon closed his mouth for a moment at Sasha’s question and nodded.

And then he continued.

“I just had a chance to see it before. I was asked to heal a human parasitized by a magic bug.”

“Ugh…!”

For Sasha, that word was more than the answer she wanted.

A rare magic bug in the world.

And a magic swordsman who can save people from it.

And Cleon, who has experience among magic swordsmen!

God hasn’t abandoned the hero party yet!

──She must be having such a naive thought.

“Please. Mr. Cleon! Kuon… please save Kuon!”

Sasha bowed her head 90 degrees and lowered her head.

Of course, there was also a desire to get the group back to normal as soon as possible and go on an adventure again….

But Sasha’s own goodness, empathizing with Kuon’s suffering, was even greater.

Cleon came to that conclusion, looking at the desperate girl in front of him.

A girl who is still innocent.

Unlike Lyla and Kuon, who were blinded by their affection for Albein and kicked him out.

From the moment he decided to use her until now.

There was one conflict in Cleon.

Is it right for a girl who sends pure goodness to him without malice

To be caught up in his revenge?

“I’ll do anything. All I can give you right now is money, and it’s a small amount… but I’ll pay you back even if I have to go on an adventure in the future…!”

This child can purely grieve at the tragedy of others and purely rejoice at the comedy of others.

Like when I talked to Galatea before.

Not knowing the ways of the world may be one of the reasons for that personality.

“That’s right! If you help Kuon, surely─”

But therefore.

“Surely, Albein and Lyla─”

Because of the foolish goodness that comes from that purity.

“─They will accept Mr. Cleon back into the party!”

He had no choice but to touch Cleon’s reverse scale.

“──Ah, I see. Haha… that’s right. I could have thought of that.”

Cleon quietly answered, looking at the woman who bowed her head in front of him.

At the moment he felt that the conflict inside him had disappeared, he felt other desires boiling inside.

“Okay. Sasha. Let’s help Kuon.”

Sasha, hearing Cleon’s words, raised her head happily.

Cleon’s eyes were smiling, softer than before.

Sasha, relieved by that expression, also sighed in relief and answered.

“R, really? Thank you! I’ll try to persuade Mr. Albein as much as possible!”

“There’s no need for that. I’ll take the price in something else.”

“─Th, then. Is it money after all?”

Sasha, who was making a carefree calculation of how much money she had now, doubted her eyes.

Cleon stood up from his seat and began to take off the thin clothes he was wearing.

He started taking off his top and bottom clothes.

“Kya, kyaak! Wh, what!? Mr. Cleon?!”

Sasha, flustered, covered her eyes and stepped back, but Cleon didn’t care and took off his underwear.

While doing that.

He was talking in a calm tone.

“The way to pull out the parasitic magic bug from the body is to use the body fluid of the magic swordsman. The magic swordsman’s body has a special magic power organ, so various body fluids have an effect that is poisonous to monsters and creatures sensitive to magic power.”

“Wh, what does taking off your underwear have to do with that!”

“The types of body fluids are saliva. Sweat. Blood. Tears. If you’re in a hurry, even urine is fine… but the most effective is. The magic swordsman’s semen. It contains the essence of human life force. It’s a natural principle.”

“Se─”

Something was held in Sasha’s hand covering her eyes.

A cold feeling. Sasha was relieved that it wasn’t a human part and slightly opened her eyes.

It was an empty large-capacity potion bottle.

The amount of liquid that can be contained inside is about 500mL.

With a thud, Cleon sat on the bed again.

Beyond the bottle in front of her, Cleon’s thing was visible.

The length as well as the thickness is bigger than what she has in her hand.

The moment she recognized that, her face turned red.

“You said you wanted to save Kuon?”

At Cleon’s words, Sasha nodded in a barely audible voice.

As if her body temperature had risen due to the sudden excitement.

Sweat started to flow from her forehead and back.

“The medicine is here. Take it with your own hands.”

Cleon was watching Sasha’s appearance and pointing to his own thing, which was not yet fully grown.