episode_0003

I had just escaped from prison and barely suppressed the urge to cheer at the recent turn of events.

“Things resolved this easily?”

While I was contemplating how to escape, my comrades managed to break out on their own, which I was immensely grateful for. Of course, there would be a wanted notice out for us after the jailbreak, but if Arienne became even stronger and returned later, the situation would undoubtedly change.

“I should be able to draw the Holy Sword then.”

That way, she could prove herself as a hero, so there wouldn’t be a major issue.

“It might take some time to draw the Holy Sword, though.”

As long as I keep assisting her.

Concealing our identities and enabling covert operations were also crucial.

“Now I can finally breathe a sigh of relief.”

It was truly the worst-case scenario, but things had somewhat improved due to recent events.

At least there was now hope.

“This is the perfect timing.”

Hurrying towards the office, I called Lena through the communication device.

Upon my summons, Lena quickly arrived and inquired, “What’s the matter?”

“Lena, I have something to do. Remember the party you were sponsoring last time?”

“Yes. You suddenly decided to sponsor a party and have been investing money generously.”

Avoiding Lena’s probing gaze, I casually scratched my cheek.

“…Was I that generous?”

“Yes. You mentioned it would be a significant party someday and asked me to support it wholeheartedly. Wait… wasn’t that woman challenging Lady Cariel the leader of that party?”

She suddenly remembered and shot me a knowing look.

Trying to maintain composure under Lena’s prying gaze, I said, “Haha. No, right? Coincidences like that don’t just happen, do they?”

“Lady Cariel.”

“…Yes?”

“How many years has it been since I’ve served Lady Cariel?”

I transmigrated into this world six years ago.

And I met Lena five years ago, so Lena must have been following me for about five years.

“Probably around five years…?”

“And all that time, I’ve been faithfully serving Lady Cariel. But do you think I don’t know when Lady Cariel is lying?”

“…”

“I’ve been waiting, thinking you would tell me eventually. But this is something I must address now.”

Seemingly determined to make me listen, Lena fixed her gaze on me.

I desperately avoided her eyes.

“Sigh… Really. Your stubbornness is something else. Are you really not going to tell me?”

Instead of replying, I just nodded.

Seeing my response, Lena sighed as if giving up and continued, “Fine. If you’re that unwilling to talk about it, you don’t have to.”

“Ahem. So, back to the point about the sponsored party. I want to meet them in person. Get me a mask enchanted with a disguise spell. If I manage to contact them, we’ll arrange a meeting.”

“What if they refuse?”

One of the reasons they were avoiding the other party was because of the money and information I was sponsoring them with.

However, being in the position of a sponsor, refusing such a request was practically impossible.

If they declined, who knew what repercussions might follow; rejecting the request would be utterly insane.

“That’s not the only concern.”

Moreover, what I believed in was the protagonist’s character.

The protagonist doesn’t forget a favor once received.

Hence, the probability of refusing this request was slim to none.

But even if they did refuse…

“That might be because of the party members.”

Although the party members were somewhat close to the line, unlike the protagonist, they wouldn’t blindly accept such requests.

Considering the impending wanted status and the need to tread cautiously, it was evident that extra caution was necessary.

Nevertheless, there was a solution.

“If they decline, apply some pressure.”

As mentioned earlier, the current protagonist and party are influenced by me to some extent.

With a bit of pressure, even other party members would surely have to accept it unwillingly.

“I’ll contact you right away.”

“Sure. Let me know when the meeting time and place are decided. I have other things to attend to, so I’ll head out first.”

“Okay.”

I grabbed my coat and headed outside.

***

A party centered around Arienne and her.

They were currently holding a meeting in their hideout while concealing their true identities.

“What’s that fake hero guy thinking?”

“No matter how you think about it, we should have caught him back then and interrogated him. Why did Arienne stop us?”

“Arienne must have had her reasons.”

“Yeah. When has Arienne ever stopped without any reason?”

While the others were noisy, Arienne quietly recalled the earlier situation.

‘What on earth.’

Precognition.

It was an ability unique to heroes, a dangerous situation where they could be informed in advance to prepare for it.

Due to Arienne still being too weak to even draw the Holy Sword, she couldn’t handle the ability properly, and it would occasionally activate on its own.

Every time it happened, Arienne escaped from various crises with the help of precognition, but it hadn’t activated for quite some time, so she had almost forgotten about it.

‘But it just activated.’

That meant that the fake hero, Cariel, was as strong and threatening as that.

Arienne acknowledged that Cariel was stronger than she had thought, but considering there were areas where she had let her guard down, she believed that it wouldn’t be easy to defeat him if she wanted to fight properly.

However, recalling comrades whose throats were slit within the precognitive vision…

‘I probably would have died too.’

She could see that it was not just a misconception.

He was stronger than she had anticipated.

Arienne bit her lip tightly.

‘My mistake.’

Without properly understanding the opponent’s abilities and recklessly engaging, the situation had taken a turn for the worse.

Although she managed to escape luckily, she would likely be wanted nationwide, restricting her actions.

For her, who needed to become stronger as soon as possible, it was a critical situation.

‘If only I had covered my face…’

At least the situation wouldn’t have been as bad as it is now.

Arienne bowed her head under the weight of overwhelming guilt.

And in a small voice, she muttered, “I’m sorry. Because of me…”

As her companions looked at her, some engaged in fervent discussions before bursting into laughter.

“Why blame yourself? If you think about it, it’s all our fault. Our mistake in underestimating the enemy’s strength.”

“You don’t need to blame yourself. You’ve worked hard enough.”

“That’s right. Don’t hate yourself too much. We’re here for you.”

“It’s not like Arienne to be like this. Whenever this happens, let’s always strive harder! That’s what we say to lift the mood. Can’t you be so gloomy even though we’re fine?”

In response to her companions’ comforting words, Arienne lifted her bowed head.

Her expression still wasn’t great, but there was a slight improvement.

As they continued in this heartwarming atmosphere,

The mage of the hero party, Arel, cautiously spoke up.

“Now that Arienne’s face is known, something important remains.”

“What is it?”

“Our sponsor. In fact, everyone knows that the reason we were able to come here is largely due to our sponsor.”

No one disagreed with Arel’s statement.

As he said, essentially, the reason they were able to come here was largely thanks to the mysterious sponsor.

Not just financial support, but also providing information and obtaining rare magical items and goods, they were able to reach their current situation relatively easily.

“Why is that?”

“What seems to be the problem?”

Innocently responding, Arell tilted her head.

“Arien is currently being mistaken for a fake hero pretending to be a real one. His face has even been exposed. Wouldn’t our sponsors recognize us by now?”

Finally, others seemed to realize, wearing expressions of shock.

Especially Arien, whose eyes were almost lifeless, resembling those of a dying person.

“Are you saying that our sponsor might cut ties thinking Arien is just an imposter hero? Is that it?”

“That’s right. If it’s just that, we’re lucky. Depending on how the sponsor who knows our information comes forward, our future could change.”

“But Arien is a real hero, isn’t he!?”

“We can’t prove that, which is the issue. The fact that Arien can’t produce the Holy Sword to prove his heroism makes it even more problematic. What do you think, Arien?”

“…”

Instead of answering Arell’s question, Arien closed her eyes and recalled the time when she first formed the party.

With nothing, she felt despair, but like a ray of light, a sponsor came to her rescue.

She didn’t know who the sponsor was, but she intended to find out after everything was over and repay this kindness, even if it meant giving up everything, fulfilling her mission and dream.

She wouldn’t hesitate to give him anything, not even if he demanded her body.

However, the fact that the sponsor, who could be considered her savior, could turn his back on her hurt her deeply.

As a result, a strong resentment towards Cariel grew in her heart.

“If only it wasn’t him.”

Things wouldn’t have turned out this way.

She wouldn’t have received unnecessary misunderstandings from the sponsor.

She chewed on these bitter thoughts, but sadly, there was nothing she could do.

As the atmosphere grew tense,

A letter fell at their location.

Except for them, only one person knew about the secret hideout.

Since the person helping them was the sponsor, Arien and the other party members widened their eyes.

Arell immediately used magic to unfold the letter, making it visible to everyone.

The letter read:

“I hope to meet you soon. Let’s meet at your hideout. Tomorrow. I won’t accept any objections.”

An authoritative tone.

As the other party members tried to voice their opinions,

Thud!

Arien slammed the table and said firmly, “We will meet. I won’t entertain any objections.”

Knowing what the sponsor’s presence meant to Arien, they quickly agreed.

They left Arien alone and she remained, staring at the letter for a long time.