episode_0016

000

A city on the outskirts of the continent.

A quiet, small place with nothing to boast about except adventurers and the guild.

Usually, even during the day, nothing eventful happens.

Just. A repetition of days where time flows by quietly as always.

But today was different.

A red scroll issued by the Adventurer’s Guild. A “Wanted” request.

The target is the magic swordsman “Cleon.”

It had been exactly 10 years since a red scroll request was issued from the guild in this city.

The townspeople whisper.

About the black-haired, black-eyed young man with a demonic sword contrasting with a holy sword.

Some criticized him, saying they knew this would happen.

Some regretted it, saying they had received his help.

However, no one moved to help Cleon.

That would mean turning the entire Adventurer’s Guild into an enemy.

It was the same as not being able to live in this city anymore.

While other lodgings were bustling with activity to find Cleon’s hiding place.

Only one place.

The `Kuon’s Room` inside the mid-level accommodation remained quietly closed to outsiders.

And if you look inside.

Kuon and Sasha, the owners of the room, are sitting on the floor with dark faces.

And Laila, who came in through the window and lay sprawled on the bed as if it were her own.

Albein’s unilateral request for an order.

Without consulting them.

No, perhaps the rift between them was already too deep.

The three could only remain silent about the current situation where the guild was mobilized to pursue Cleon.

“Everyone is too much. They don’t listen to Kuon-ssi, who is actually involved in the incident….”

Sasha mumbled quietly, hugging her knees. Tears welled up in her eyes.

“It can’t be helped. The bounty is the Guild Master’s authority. It’s also a matter of the entire guild’s credibility….”

Kuon strokes Sasha’s hair and comforts her.

About an hour ago.

Sasha, who saw the request being issued by the guild, insisted on Cleon’s innocence to everyone in the guild, but

No one listened to her.

Rather, she was treated like a clueless kid.

“It’s no use talking. Deep down, there must be many guys who are jealous of Cleon…. Well, even if they’re not interested in Cleon, there are quite a few guys who are moving for the reward.”

Laila opens her mouth without moving her body.

It was quite strange that only her head moved whenever she spoke in an immobile posture.

Looking at Laila, Sasha and Kuon couldn’t help but wonder.

“…Excuse me, Laila-ssi. Why are you lying on Kuon-ssi’s bed? Since a while ago.”

When Sasha couldn’t stand her curiosity and opened her mouth, Laila paused for a moment.

Then, covering her face by pressing down on her hair, she spoke in a voice that sounded like she wanted to crawl into a mouse hole.

“Th, that’s just. A little…. My back hurts. I’ve been researching for days….”

“”Ah….””

Kuon and Sasha opened their mouths at the same time and looked at each other.

This is… that.

It was a known reaction.

An awkward silence hangs in the air.

A strange atmosphere was formed by the fact that everyone here had been embraced by one person.

It was Laila who spoke first to forcibly change the flow.

“Ah-well-…. Don’t worry. We’re the only ones who know where Cleon is. And he won’t be found easily.”

“But there might be unforeseen events…. Shouldn’t we join Cleon-ssi now?”

Sasha seems to be worried about what might happen if Cleon is outnumbered, no matter how strong he is.

She looks back and forth between Kuon and Laila with worried eyes.

But Kuon shook her head and comforted Sasha.

“Sasha. Did Cleon say? Whatever measures Albein takes, we should try not to move.”

That day. The day Laila received the core of the sword and the three returned to the city.

Cleon had asked the three of them before parting ways.

He would prepare for the fight against Albein from now on, but they should try not to get involved in the meantime.

If they were to help Albein, he would take it as opposing him.

If they didn’t intend to do so, they should leave Albein’s actions alone.

Cleon’s policy was that it would be easier to predict Albein’s actions that way.

“Hmph. He’s so full of himself.”

Laila scoffed and looked back at Sasha.

Her face showed dissatisfaction.

It must be dissatisfaction with the situation where she couldn’t stand by and watch Albein’s atrocities, just like Sasha.

It’s a matter of her pride, but

If Albein wins against Cleon.

The group will return to the party without Cleon.

Overcoming obstacles,

Kuon, Laila, and Sasha return to the side of the hero, who has become even more arrogant.

It was a future that sent shivers down her spine just imagining it.

“…But. It’s unexpected. That Ms. Luti would issue a wanted notice after only listening to Albein’s story.”

Kuon, who had doubts about the situation that had flowed this far, quietly brought up the next topic.

Sasha and Laila’s gazes are focused on Kuon.

Among them, Kuon was definitely the one who had been active in this guild for the longest time.

Sasha and Laila had never met Guild Master Luti.

One of the reasons was that Luti was often holed up in her office.

But for Laila, the Guild Master was out of her mind.

This is because Sasha hadn’t been in the guild for very long.

But Kuon has had the experience of meeting Luti.

Previously, when Albein was chosen by the holy sword and changed his class to hero.

She remembers her reading a declaration on behalf of the kingdom, recognizing Albein as a hero.

At that time, she was a kind and considerate woman to them.

Even as a lie,

She was not the kind of person who would issue an order that would surely lead someone to their death based only on Albein’s one-sided lies.

“Ms. Luti…. I’ve never met her, but. What kind of person is she?”

When Sasha said that, Kuon opened her mouth.

“Hmm…. She’s characterized by her pink hair. There doesn’t seem to be that much of an age difference between us, but she’s the person who took the position of Guild Master 10 years ago.”

Kuon herself was not very detailed about Luti’s detailed character.

All she knows is the content and appearance mentioned above.

And the level of popularity within the city.

It goes without saying that she was excellent in her skills, but she had never seen anyone who knew her privately.

“Pink…. Ah.”

Listening to Kuon’s story, Sasha put her hand on her chin and seemed to be pondering something.

“…Maybe, I saw Ms. Luti yesterday….”

“Yesterday? Where?”

It was Laila who reacted to Sasha’s unexpected story.

“Um…. At the lodging where I’m staying. I felt a little stuffy, so I opened the window…. I thought I could hear talking in the alley below my window….”

Sasha makes a sound like ‘hmm…’ and puts her arms around her, focusing on recalling her memories.

If I had known this would happen, I should have listened properly even if I was sleepy. She has the same thought.

“I didn’t know who that person was. But she was wearing a robe and I could see her pink hair.”

“Just with pink hair…. Who were you talking to?”

“…! ─Probably, Albein-ssi. I was familiar with his voice, and I could smell him.”

Sasha clapped her hands as if she had just remembered.

In her eyes, her unique golden patterns, similar to magic vision, were floating.

The eyes of a hunter chasing a scent.

The hunter’s seal contains the power of a beast that visualizes smell and enhances the sense of smell itself.

Perhaps it was activated in response to memory, and Laila pondered for a moment before opening her mouth.

“…Then. It seems like it’s Luti. But are they having a secret meeting? Were they in that kind of relationship?”

“Albein…? With Ms. Luti? No. I’ve never heard of that. If that were the case, he would have bragged to us.”

Kuon’s denial made the two nod at the same time.

Certainly, if it was Albein, who likes to show off, he would have done so.

“…And it seems like there was someone next to Albein-ssi.”

“Wait. So there were three people?”

Sasha nods at Laila’s words.

With the feeling that her head is gradually clearing up.

Sasha began to vividly recall the memories of last night.

000.5

`… Mr. Cleon.`

Sasha looked down at her soaked fingers for a moment and shook her head.

She has been unable to control her sexual desires that sometimes come since the day they mixed their bodies, and she has been comforting herself like this for several days.

Originally, she would have vented this by running through the mountains or forests and chasing prey.

Because of Albein’s curfew, she was unable to leave the city, so

It was necessary to release the accumulated heat in this way.

She wiped her hands with a towel and drank the water in the water bottle.

The cold water seemed to sweep away the heat remaining in her body as it went down her esophagus.

Haa….♥

And, Sasha, who unintentionally let out a sigh filled with moisture, covered her mouth with her hand.

Was that just now not enough? But she didn’t feel like doing any more activities.

Rather, she felt something stuffy.

Has a bad energy approached her surroundings?

Sasha opened the window facing the Living Forest where Cleon was and looked outside.

“Keuh…. Why…. You.”

At that time, a voice was heard from below.

The detailed content of the story could not be heard because it was on the 4th floor, but the voice was a woman’s voice.

Looking down, a woman wearing a robe was talking to a familiar-looking man.

The hero Albein, the man who is the center of the incident currently happening.

His face, which until recently had been considered trustworthy.

Now it looks like a wolf’s that can be found in the forest.

Then, naturally, the appearance of the other person standing next to Albein came into view.

Cape. And a sword on the waist.

Angled hat.

A red coat that is neat yet meant to show dignity, perhaps a uniform from somewhere.

She could tell from the smell that it was a “woman.”

When the patterns appeared on Sasha’s retina,

Naturally. She can see the scent wrapped around the woman in uniform’s body.

The smell of blood. The smell of iron. The smell of ink.

`Huh?`

And she had two familiar smells mixed in with her.

That is─

She saw the woman looking up at her.

Sasha was flustered and reached out towards the window.

The next moment, the woman’s face had reached right in front of Sasha’s face.

“Eavesdropping…. You’re a bad kid.”

A face shadowed by the brim of her hat.

Only eyes shining with magic vision could be seen from under it.

She was laughing.

It was a twisted smile, like a crushed crescent moon.

The next moment, Sasha felt various facts being wrapped in a bundle and hidden deep inside her head.

Her mind becomes hazy.

001

“Wait! That’s strange! It’s the 4th floor, so why is that woman’s face reaching Sasha’s face!”

Laila argues with Sasha’s story.

She was a strange woman who only moved her fingers while lying face down.

But Sasha shook her head, stamping her feet at Laila’s words.

“N, no, really! Her face suddenly loomed in front of me…. She was going to put me to sleep as it was, and try to seal my memories. I remembered everything else, but I don’t remember her face properly….”

Hearing Sasha’s words, Kuon quietly used a healing spell to erase the negative effects related to curses from Sasha’s body.

For Sasha, she didn’t particularly feel anything changing inside her.

Anyway, she had just finished conveying everything she remembered.

“… … You said you lost your mind when you saw her eyes and heard her voice? Maybe… Evil eye. That’s what it is.”

Laila quietly looked at Sasha and spoke.

“An evil eye that manipulates other people’s memories. It’s quite a high-ranking one. The fact that you’re a member of a special clan and have an eye imprint, so you resisted the evil eye, must be why you were able to preserve some of your memories.”

Sasha blinked her eyes.

Even lower than the pupils.

The imprint engraved deep inside is a curse and a blessing passed down through heredity.

It helps with hunting, but it seems that if you use it too much, it turns the user into a beast.

To think that it also had the ability to block the effects of the evil eye.

Sasha felt grateful for something in her hometown for the first time.

“But. There are quite a few evil eye users on the continent. That’s true even in the academy…”

Laila had said that far before closing her mouth for a moment.

Then, her face turned pale and she muttered something like, `No way….`.

“…What’s wrong? Are you okay? Laila.”

Kuon approaches her face, worried about Laila.

Laila looked at Kuon and Sasha for a moment and then shook her head.

Delivering this to the two of them here now….

Rather, it might put the two in danger.

Thinking so, she kept silent.

002

The next morning, at the guild’s rest area.

Most of the adventurers affiliated with the guild have been devoted to searching for Cleon since yesterday morning, and they don’t seem to have any intention of receiving new requests, so they are not showing their faces at the guild.

The only people who are out here now are those who are not interested in hunting people,

Or just old men who are sitting at the rest stop trying to nag their juniors in the name of favor.

And the guild master `Luti` is listening to the nagging from those people.

“Yo….ungsters…. lack…. of perseverance…. If the….request is a little….difficult…. they give up…. tsk….tsk….”

The guild master is listening to the sleep-inducing phrases without even making a displeased face.

She doesn’t usually come down, but

It seemed that yesterday’s wanted notice was a good opportunity for the old men to scold her.

Of course. Most of the old men gathered here were those who had achieved achievements that made it possible to say such things.

They were the ones who pioneered the roads in the Living Forest, which is now naturally the adventurers’ base.

They were the ones who found the entrance to the abandoned mine, and the ones who reached the deepest part of the dungeon and returned with the treasure, etc….

Because of that, their affection and pride for the guild was certain.

They were questioning Luti and scolding her about the wanted person who had tarnished the guild’s honor.

Their stories were slow and long.

Just listening to their stories while standing, Luti felt like her mental strength was being depleted in real time.

But she is listening to the story without showing it at all.

And a female adventurer is quietly watching the scene.

Long black hair tied into one, and a close-fitting light armor on her body.

A rapier on her waist.

The gazes of other idle adventurers around her were focused on her.

She was quietly watching Luti as if she wasn’t showing it.

“Hey, uh…. That woman…. Was there such an adventurer in our guild?”

“Well…. If she was, Albein would have taken her…. I don’t think I’ve seen her….”

The sound of saliva swallowing as they whispered and gathered.

Even if she seemed indifferent, she must have been displeased by the voices.

She glared at them.

Then the adventurers coughed awkwardly and avoided her gaze.

“Anyway… Do well…! Don’t smear mud on the name of your predecessors…!”

In the end, the nagging, which lasted for 3 hours, comes to an end.

The old men left the guild with their trembling legs.

They will probably go to the nearby pubs again and have a drinking party to find the glory of their youth.

Luti also sighed and quietly tried to return to her office.

The surrounding adventurers were sending sympathetic glances to Luti and once again burning with anger at the “magic swordsman” who had caused their idol to suffer so much.

And the female adventurer who had been watching Luti also moved.

She follows Luti up the stairs.

The stairs led to the office hallway where adventurers could do paperwork, so no one stopped her.

Luti and she walked with a slight distance, and when they stopped in front of her office, the adventurer also stopped.

“What’s wrong?”

Luti quietly looked at the woman with a tired face.

Then, she smiled bitterly and asked her what she needed.

“…What are you talking about?”

Then, after a moment of silence, the woman.

She answered with a look that she didn’t know.

Looking at her pretense, Luti shook her head.

“Amazing. You’re really like a woman. What kind of magic is it?”

“… …”

The next moment. Luti’s pupils change vertically.

Then, the woman’s appearance scatters like a heat haze and the surrounding scenery ripples.

What appeared behind the woman’s appearance was a male swordsman with black hair and black eyes.

“Cleon.”

Luti seemed happy and tired.

She uttered the man’s name softly.

It contained a hint of longing.

003

The two people quickly entered Luti’s office, avoiding the eyes of others.

Luti looked up at Cleon, who had grown taller after a long time, and smiled kindly.

“Sorry. I’ve been busy, so I haven’t had a chance to talk lately.”

“It’s been several years. It might have been better for you not to talk at all.”

Luti puffs up her cheeks as if she’s upset at Cleon’s words.

Rather than being truly sulky, she was rebelling against the fact that Cleon’s words were insincere.

“Don’t say that. It’s between you and me, right?”

Cleon turns his head at Luti’s words.

Luti looked at Cleon for a moment and then approached the office desk.

At the same time, she recommends Cleon to sit on the guest sofa.

“So, what did you do? Oh, is black tea okay?”

“What do you mean?”

Cleon pretends not to know what Luti is saying.

But Luti seemed determined to solve her curiosity and said

“That thing from earlier. You were disguised as a woman. It’s illusion magic, but I’ve never seen anything so advanced. If I hadn’t been able to read the presence of the magic sword on your waist, I wouldn’t have known it was you either.”

Then, Cleon closed his mouth for a moment and began to explain.

“A friend’s illusion magic…. A friend’s spell to suppress the sense of incongruity mixed in….”

“Laila and Kuon, huh~ The power of a magic swordsman. You seem to be using it properly?”

Cleon turns his head as if he’s lost the will to explain at Luti’s words, which immediately gave the correct answer.

“Wait! That means…. You did it with those two!”

“Hey. Lower your voice.”

Of course. `Did it` is true.

The situations on both sides were a little different, but

Cleon was uncomfortable with Luti talking about such things without any shame.

“You said you would never do it with me!”

“That’s because the situation is…. No, I still don’t intend to do that.”

Luti puffs up her cheeks at Cleon’s attitude.

No matter how you look at it, there’s a difference in appearance like an older brother and younger sister, but

The content was that of a couple who have been dating for several years.

Of course.

The two are not in a relationship, nor are they siblings.

Neither in the past nor in the present.

“Then…. Some of the crimes in the wanted notice are correct, aren’t they….”

`Sexual torture`…. If it’s limited to Laila, it might be true.

`Fighting with colleagues`…. It is true that I fought with Laila.

`Creating conflict`…. Laila coming to him is the cause of the incident.

“It’s because of Laila.”

Luti shakes her head as if she’s a little tired of Cleon’s conclusion.

“Yes, yes. That’s right. Do you know how hard it is for me because of the aftermath of the `Saintly Magic`? How about staying at the mansion?”

“Did you know.”

“I knew roughly. I haven’t told anyone, though.”

At Luti’s answer, Cleon thinks about the assassin who fought him last night.

Then, did he investigate and find his location on his own?

Since no one has come since then, he knew that he hadn’t been blabbing about his location.

“Did Albein find out your secret?”

Cleon said bluntly.

Then, Luti pauses. And the smile and composure from before gradually disappear from her face and change to a sad and self-deprecating face.

Then she slowly nods her head.

“Sorry. Cleon.”

“…It’s not your fault. There’s no way Albein could have found that out on his own. There must be guys who are trying to control him as they please.”

Cleon quietly offers words close to comfort to Luti, who is apologizing to him.

There’s no way Albein’s information network could have reached Luti’s secret.

Her secret must be hidden in the deepest place in the world.

“It’s probably the doing of the Execution Department.”

“…Execution Department?”

Luti tilted her head at Cleon’s words.

She has lived a long life, but she has never heard of such a name.

Luti’s face darkens a little after receiving an explanation about it.

“Laila…. That’s what happened.”

“Please refrain from reporting to the royal family. Kuon asked me not to hand over Laila’s secret.”

Luti nods at Cleon’s words.

Originally, it was a case that needed to be reported to the royal family.

Luti judged that trusting Cleon’s judgment in the current situation was the quickest way to solve the problem.

“They’re aiming for Albein. They’re trying to make me and Albein collide, and then target the weakened side.”

“What are you going to do?”

“I refuse to be a puppet show. I have to ruin their script.”

Cleon quietly organizes his thoughts and his eyes shine.

Then, Luti felt somewhat freed from the guilt towards Cleon that had been weighing heavily on her until just now.

Luti put black tea in front of him.

She wrapped her arms around him from behind, put her face out from behind, and placed it on his shoulder.

Breath that tickles his face.

The refreshing scent felt nearby tickles his nose.

A scene like a lover’s morning.

Cleon looks at Luti, who has approached him without changing his complexion, for a moment.

“Thank you. For not leaving this city.”

“… …”

Cleon was about to slowly grab her hand at Luti’s soft murmur without realizing it.

“My cute little brother….”

“Hey.”

When she tried to fabricate a preposterous fact, the atmosphere broke down and Cleon fell away.

Then Luti laughed as if she was satisfied.

Luti and Cleon’s eyes meet for a moment.

Then Cleon puts the black tea in his mouth and gets up from his seat.

“You can stay a little longer.”

“Are you stupid? What are you going to do if you stay here longer and get caught?”

Then Luti makes a sound like `hmm~` and puts her hand on her chin.

She showed signs of thinking about something and then answered.

“…I’ll protect you.”

“In words only.”

When Cleon flicked his fingers.

Once again, his appearance changes to `her`.

“Wait a little. I’ll solve it and come back.”

As Cleon said that and opened the door and went out.

Luti looked at his back for a moment and then put her hand on her chest.

Thump, thump. Was it because I haven’t seen him in a while and I’ve lost my immunity?

She was working hard to add `peace of mind` to her feelings for Cleon.

And she quietly opened her mouth.

“It’s not just words.”

She had only lied to Cleon

Only once.