Part 3
Although it took longer than I expected, I finally returned to the front gate to find that the adventurers and the undead had already finished their fight.
Some of the adventurers seemed to be injured, but most of the adventurers were still up and seemed alright. After confirming that my party was safe, I breathed a sigh of relief.
"Looks like you took care of things on your end, Dust. The undead here have been wiped out, so all that's left is…"
Taylor patted me on the shoulder and praised me, but his eyes weren't on me, but on the battlefield.
His eyes were fixed on the enemy's base camp.
Although it looked like there weren't many left, each monster remaining was far more powerful than any of the low level monsters from before.
I could probably take most of them one-on-one, but these guys would be way too much for everyone else.
"Ahhhhh, I just want to drink a bunch of beer and relax!"
"I get what you mean, Dust. Working so hard like this, I'm going to become a proper upstanding man at this rate."
"Dust, Keith, what's so bad about that? We are almost done, so just hang in there for a while longer.After the war is over, I won't interfere with your indulgent and depraved lifestyle for a while."
Normally, Lynn would kick our asses and force us to help. It's rare for her to have such an attitude.
Keith and I looked at each other, then bumped fists and laughed.
"Don't forget what you said! When this is over, I'm not doing anything for awhile!"
"No taking it back. Dust, we'll have a great time afterwards!"
"Alright, I give up… I really can't do anything with you two."
"I'm glad we got them motivated, but is it really okay…"
Lynn and Taylor, the two serious party members, sighed deeply. I wasn't sure what they said, but I chose to ignore them.
"Okay, let's get back to work. Can you guys still fight?"
After I asked the other adventurers, everyone raised their weapons.
"Of course! I'm only just warmed up!"
"There's only a few of them left now, we can still beat them."
"Beer always tastes better after hard work."
Although they were all bruised and battered, everyone was still full of bravado.
They're probably barely holding on, but it's fine. If you're not going to put on a good front here, then when are you going to do it?
Several adventures were unable to fight and were sent back to Axel for treatment, but I recognized all the remaining ones.
These guys… Were all regular customers of the Succubus Shop. In fact, that shop was the most important motivator amongst the warriors of Axel.
After the morale boost, we approached the enemy base camp directly.
The other party seemed to be planning to fight us head-on, staying still and waiting for our arrival.
The enemy troops numbered only about fifty, so we outnumbered them; however, the enemy's monsters were all incredibly strong.
If this was a quest, every single one of them would've required a party of veteran adventurers to defeat.Seeing these sorts of odds, most people would be terrified.
Thinking of that, I turned around and looked back, only to find the adventurers all smiling arrogantly.
"Hey, hey, I'm really eager to fight. I'm so excited, I'm shaking all over."
"Ha, even now, you're still such a novice. Look at me, I'm not scared, you could learn a thing or two!"
"You look like you're about to cry out of fear! I haven't been scared once!"
…No, they were scared half to death.
I can't blame them. To be honest, I also—
"I really want to go home."
"What are you saying!? You can't give up here."
When I muttered this, Lynn immediately yelled back at me.
Complaining wouldn't change anything, that much was clear.
I left the shaky adventurers in place and walked forward. Taylor, Keith, and Lynn followed behind.
"You guys can stay behind me."
"Don't be ridiculous. I said I wasn't going to let you steal the limelight."
"Yeah, as the captain and a Crusader, how could I cower and hide behind someone else?"
"We're a party. We gotta be together wherever we go."
I've got one reliable group of party members.
As long as I had them backing me up, I could keep going forward, no matter how strong the enemy was.
I slung my spear over my shoulder and took a big step forward.
"Humans, do not tread any further. If you come any closer, I'll be forced to attack you."
A loud voice shook my whole body, so I stopped.
The enemy's formation split in two, and a human figure appeared in front of us.
It was a wonderful beauty who looked out of place on this battlefield. She raised a charming smile and looked at me with a cold gaze that chilled my spine.
She wore a deep V-neck white shirt on her upper body and a long skirt with slits on it on her lower. The fullness of her chest and posterior was impeccable.
Just looking at her, I could tell she's completely my type. I wanted to ask her to sleep with me for a night, but judging from her statement… It seems she was the commander-in-chief of the Demon King's Army.
"Beautiful onee-san, are you the leader?"
"Yes human… Oh, that human man has an enticing aura. Just looking at him makes me hot and aroused. If you're willing to switch sides, I will save your life and make you very satisfied every day."
Was she joking and teasing me? I looked at her suspiciously, but it didn't seem to be a joke. Was she serious?
At the idea of being seduced by such a beautiful onee-san, my heart began to waver.
"Hey, do I look like a man who will be deceived by good looks?"
"That's exactly what you look like." x3
"You guys stay out of this!"
My party and the adventurers had all responded so quickly in unison.
"It's a great proposal, but I'll pass. But if you want, I can rub your chest a few times— Gahh!"
I felt a shock on the back of my head. I didn't need to look to know that it must have been Lynn hitting me with her magic wand.
Just how many times does she need to hit me before she's satisfied?
"This human is very funny. Oh my, how rude of me, I haven't given you my name yet. I'm the commander-in-chief in charge of the attack on Axel. My name is Rouzelli. Pleased to meet you… Or not. Anyway, you'll die here."
Since her voice and manner were attractive, I didn't really want to attack her at all. However, when she revealed her threatening aura that made her previous sexy aura immediately vanish, I couldn't help but swallow nervously.
"Huh— but this was quite the surprise. I heard this was the town of beginner adventurers, but to think that such a town could reduce our forces by this much. If this continues, I won't be able to show myself before His Majesty the Demon King and the Generals. So, although it's a little embarrassing, will you please just die miserably with the residents of this town?"
As she spoke, she tried to come off as charming and sexy by tracing her fingers along the curves of her body. I was reminded of a certain someone whose eyes would light up and say 'that's really worthy of reference!'
"That's really worthy of reference!"
That's right, she'd sound just like that.
"Wait… Why are you here?"
"Huh? No one was there just now, right?"
Lynn and my other party members didn't seem to know how she got there either.
Loli Succubus had appeared next to me and was eagerly observing Rouzelli.
"I finished spreading rumors, so I came back. I felt like if I stayed there any longer, I'd have gotten caught up in fighting on their side. That woman is really sexy! One day, I want to also become that kind of attractive and beautiful woman."
"That'd be impossible."
"Grr!"
After I pointed out the obvious, she puffed up her cheeks and glared at me.
"Oh, what a cute little girl. Although she's not much for reinforcements… where did you come from?"
"Ah, I came out of the ground."
"The ground?" x 5
I looked at the ground where Loli Succubus pointed, but I could only see dirt. I looked harder, but didn't see anything special about the ground.
"Hey, what do you mean 'from the ground'—"
I was about to ask, but the soil in front of me suddenly swelled into a familiar shape.
"Fuhahaha! It is actually Moi! Oh, I do enjoy this type of surprised negative emotion."
With that familiar laugh, the dirt changed into a familiar form — a demon wearing a mask.
"Sir! What are you doing appearing like this? Ah, forget it, but is it really okay for you to be seen by the Demon King's Army?"
"Ah, yes…"
"Th-that mask is, Va-Va-Vanir-Sama!"
Rouzelli screamed as soon as she saw Sir Vanir… Wait a scream?
I glanced at her and found her face pale and fixed with a look of extreme terror.
"Sir, what did you do to her?"
"Who knows, Moi does not recall seeing her before."
Although his masked face wasn't exactly easy to read, he seemed to really not know her. Rouzelli just kept pointing at Sir, opening and closing her mouth like a fish.
That clearly wasn't going to get us anywhere, so I started asking some questions.
"Sir doesn't seem to know you, but you seem to know him. How is that?"
"He doesn't remember? After everything he did… In the Demon King's Castle, every day he cruelly toyed with us!"
Rouzelli was starting to get fired up. The other monsters were also holding their heads and shaking as if they were distressed with her.
It didn't seem to be a lie or a joke. Sir Vanir really had done something incredible.
"Describing it like that is an exaggeration. After all, even in the Demon King's Castle, Moi needs to eat. Moi would pretend to be Wiz or another popular female general and lure them into the bedroom before revealing it was a trick. Or, give out high-calorie pills disguised as diet pills and reveal the truth a month later. That is all Moi recalls."
"That's exactly it, aaah!"
"Sir, that must be it!"
Rouzelli and I screamed at the same time.
Sir tilted his head and pretended to not understand, but I could tell he was faking it.
"Vanir-san, that really does sound like too much. Also, as a woman, that sort of prank doesn't sit well with me. Wait, did you say you pretended to be me?"
"Do you have any idea how hard it was to lose all that weight!? Ahhhhhhhhhhh! Even Wiz-sama is here!?"
Seeing Wiz poke her head out from behind Sir, Rouzelli screamed again.
She was quite the screamer, it was getting a little absurd.
"Long time no see. I remember you; you're Rouzelli, a candidate for General. How are you doing?"
Wiz seemed to remember her and greeted her kindly.
"Wait, how could you two be here?"
"Because Moi works at a shop in this town with this incompetent shopkeeper."
"In this town? Working at a shop? Huh?"
I wondered if she didn't understand, or didn't want to believe it. Rouzelli looked around in a panic suspiciously.
I decided to ignore her behavior for now.
"Sir, let's get back to my question. Is it really okay if your identity is completely exposed?"
"About this matter, Moi has concluded that there is no need for concern."
"Since Vanir-san doesn't think it matters, I'm also relieved even though I haven't asked him to clarify why yet. What are you going to do?"
Wiz simply believed in Sir Vanir's confidence and followed him.
….At this time, my heart was filled with an ominous feeling. Why would Wiz just believe it? She had spent a lot of time with Sir, so it may have been something I wouldn't understand.
"Must thou even ask such a question? Moi shall annihilate this group and leave not even a single survivor of the Demon King's Army in this world."
"Ah, so that's it… Wait, what? Are you really going to do that?"
"So that's why you don't care that they know your identity, you really are incredible!"
When I heard Sir's proposal, I was immediately relieved, but my party members had mixed expressions. I couldn't tell if they were surprised or dumbfounded.
"…Vanir-san and Wiz-san were members of the Demon King's Army before? Although I could have guessed about Vanir-san, I would never have suspected Wiz."
"If what he just said is true, does it mean they're going to betray the Demon King and help us?"
"I don't get this at all."
This new information seemed to throw them all into chaos.
I was curious about how the other adventurers were taking this, so I turned to look… But they weren't listening. To be precise, they were far too busy to listen.
"I'm not sure why, but the monsters all seem to be in pain, this is our chance! Let's kill them now!"
"Use magic and arrows to crush them!"
"Hey, fight! We can't lose here!"
The adventurers had entered battle mode while saying stuff that made me question which side was the Demon King's army. Everyone was fighting desperately, paying no attention to us.
The monsters also seemed to be aware of the difference in the atmosphere, and they were getting ready to receive us from a distance… No, that's not right, they were trying to escape from Sir Vanir in the chaos.
I could tell because, even though they were fighting, the monsters would sneak a peek at Sir Vanir from time to time. This definitely hurt their focus in battle.
Perfect. Thanks to this, the adventurers could fight evenly with the monsters. Thank you, Sir Vanir.
"Vanir-sama, Wiz-sama, will you really stand on the side of the humans?"
"Well, Moi merely joined the Demon King after his repeated requests, just to pass the time. Moreover, Moi is now a former General, and as such, a free agent. That inept shopkeeper is a General in name only who is responsible for maintaining the barrier."
"Yes, this is the case. My contract is to remain neutral and not interfere."
"Then, since these people are enemies of the Demon King's Army, wouldn't siding with them violate the contract?"
Rouzelli's words were reasonable. They were now interfering everywhere, and their position was far from neutral.
"Yes, since I am assisting Axel, perhaps that can't be considered neutral anymore."
"Then the current situation is considered a breach of contract?"
Rouzelli, who had been full of despair, seemed to think this development would be beneficial to her, her expression suddenly changing to hopeful.
"However, the condition for me to maintain the barrier and remain neutral is that only adventurers or knights in combat occupations should be attacked."
"We haven't dealt with anyone other than adventurers! So—"
Rouzelli trailed off. A chill released from Wiz's body surged, making her speechless.
Since we were so close, we were also affected by this blast.
"Ugh! It hurts! Quick, let's hug together to keep warm."
"Get away from me. You can bear with it for a little while!"
"Although I typically don't reject beautiful women even if they're cold to me, this is a little too much."
"…Hey, can you guys not hide behind me?"
We used Taylor, the most burly figure, as a shield and hid behind him.
Although he complained, Taylor didn't usually have much chance to shine. This was a good opportunity for him to be useful. He should be thanking me.
"Just die miserably with the residents of this town.' Isn't that what you said just now? This town is very important to me, and I will not let you hurt my shop or my precious customers!"
The cold vortex of Wiz-centered madness was getting bigger and bigger as we scrambled to get away from it. If we stayed here we'd be turned into icicles.
"It's been a long time since she acted like the Ice Witch."
Sir Vanir said with his arms wrapped around us. The surface of his body was all frosted.
Wait, when did he escape?
"Wiz actually has such a terrifying side."
"She used to lose her temper often, and she would get furious whenever Moi teased her. She would constantly come to me to vent intense negative feelings; it was like a high-quality bento delivery."
Sir's analogy was a little unnerving.
Putting what happened in the past aside, Wiz was now willing to seriously take part in this war, for which I was really grateful. Our combat power had greatly increased, as seen from the Explosion magic and this current situation.
Sir Vanir seemed to have been bought by Luna and was willing to help, so he would definitely win.
"It's our victory, it seems."
"Delinquent adventurer, this kind of careless remark seems to be called 'raising a flag'. Kazuma said that such cursed remarks would attract phenomena completely opposed to the content…"
"Ah, I've also heard Kazuma talk about that. But, it seems pretty obvious who's going to win here."
Exposed to the biting cold, Rouzelli's body surface had been frosted over, leaving her trembling. Wiz moved slowly closer to her.
No matter how you looked at it, it was a sure win.
"If this phenomenon lasts a little longer, Wiz won't lose, but don't underestimate her. She will most definitely commit some outrageous mistakes… After all, it is the destitute shopkeeper who is the reason for her own poverty."
"Sir, you think too much… Hey, did Wiz suddenly fall down?"
The blizzard stopped abruptly, and Wiz was lying face down on the ground.
Huh? There was no warning at all, what was going on?
My thoughts couldn't keep up with this unexpected sight at all, making me speechless, but Rouzelli, who had been intimidated by Wiz, seemed to be the most surprised of everyone. She stared at the immobile Wiz.
"She really didn't think about it in advance. How can she make herself burn with anger with the name Ice Witch? Moi can't bear this troublesome matter."
Sir Vanir sighed, as if only he understood the situation.
"Wiz suddenly fainted, how could this happen?"
"The Explosion magic is to blame. Using that magic consumed a lot of her mana, and even more was used up in the previous offensive and defensive battles. As such, unleashing more magic will lead to this sort of consequence."
Ah— of course! The Explosion Girl also couldn't move immediately after finishing her spell. Although Wiz had more magical power than Megumin, the previous battles should have almost exhausted her reserves.
"I… I'm not quite sure why, but that's one less threat!"
After recovering, Rouzelli felt relieved and became arrogant once again.
"Wiz may be out of the fight, but we still have Sir Vanir here, did you forget? You have no chance of winning! Go on Sir, show her what you got!"
After I finished what I wanted to say, I gave the scene over to Sir Vanir.
"Tossing all the responsibility over to someone else, how despicable!"
"Even I'm not that much of a scumbag."
"I can't believe we're in the same party."
My party began talking badly about me behind my back.
When I looked back, they immediately looked away and moved in the other direction… Don't pretend you don't know me!
"It doesn't matter if you want Moi to clean up, Moi can't do that."
"Sir, come on. Don't be lazy, please help. Wait, what do you mean unable to do that… Oh, so that's it."
I looked in the direction Sir had indicated with his chin and saw Rouzelli shrink her body into a trembling ball and begin to grow a pair of wings from her back.
Her swelling body tore her clothes from the inside, revealing a body covered in bright red scales and two horns sticking out of her head.
To most, this scene would have been quite amazing, but to me, it was actually unremarkable.
Huge wings grew from Rouzelli's body that had now swelled several times in size. What appeared before my eyes was one of the strongest monsters known to the world — a dragon.
Judging by the scarlet scales, it's a red dragon.
It rose into the sky with its wings open and deftly hovered in mid-air.
"In the air, even Vanir-sama cannot attack me. It's humiliating to take this form in front of humans, but you can consider it a parting gift. After many years, dragons can learn the ability to assume a human form. Are you so scared that you can't speak? I can't blame you… Huh? Why don't you have any reaction? Couldn't you at least be a little more desperate and scream in fright?"
"Even if you say that…"
I replied impatiently to the voice that I heard not in my ears, but echoing within my mind.
Looking at this dragon, although she was very different in appearance and speaking fluently, my only thought was 'Faitfore will be able to speak clearly like this in the future.'
My friends had seen the process of Faitfore changing from a human to a dragon several times, and naturally they were used to it.
"Fine, no matter, anyway, you'll surely become afraid sooner or later. Try to attack me with magic or bows and arrows. Any attack is no match for my scales."
Keith and Lynn tried releasing arrows and magic. Even considering that their power was weakened by the distance, Rouzelli's hard scales blocked everything, not showing any harm at all.
"Hehe, there is nothing you can do now. Long-range attacks don't work, and you can't come closer. Come now, beg for mercy… Hey, why did that young girl suddenly take off her clothes?"
Rouzelli felt she had the upper hand and gave a great speech, but Faitfore ignored it and took off her clothes.
Lynn and the others hurriedly erected a human wall around Faitfore, so no one could see her.
"Oh well, it's because otherwise her clothes will get torn, which would upset her. After all, she seems to like that dress very much. She's even folding the clothes. Good job, Faitfore."
"Un, Lynn taught me to do that"
"This kid does learn quickly."
Even in this situation, she can take off her clothes and neatly fold them. She really grew up. I patted her head as a reward, and she squinted happily.
"How can you act so carefree! Do you even know what's going on now? How dire things are?"
Red Dragon asked, tilting its head.
Even though we were very exposed to attack, it had not attacked us yet. It really believed there was nothing we could do.
"Because there's nothing to worry about. Everything will be alright. Sorry to keep you waiting so long."
I turned around and stabbed the bottom of the spear into the ground, smiling maliciously.
Strong wind gusts came from behind me, and dust was blown all around.
After the wind stopped, Faitfore, who had turned into a dragon, appeared.
She unfurled big white wings and roared into the sky.
.
-------------------------------->
.
"Rahhhhh!"
"How did a white dragon appear in such a place!?"
'She needs to be surprised quite a few times a day to be satisfied, huh?' I thought and jumped onto Faitfore's back, but Lynn also jumped up and sat behind me.
"We'll also need support with long-range attacks," Keith protested.
"I'll be more relieved if Lynn is with me."
Not only would her magic be comforting, but her presence would also help me too.
"Then I want to go too!"
"At times like these, think before you speak, Keith."
Keith also wanted to jump on, but Taylor grabbed his neck.
After pulling Keith off, Taylor held him down with one hand and gave me the shield he usually used with the other hand.
"This is all I can do. I expect you to come back."
"Ah, dammit! I'm letting you have the best chance to shine, so make sure you kick her ass, you hear?"
"Leave it to me. I'll leave the rest of the enemies to you, Keith, Taylor."
I took out the spear, Taylor took out his sword, Keith took out his bow, and we all overlapped the points of our weapons.
Faitfore fluttered her wings vigorously and flew into the air.
The red dragon flew higher and higher, as if to escape, and we followed after her too. We wanted to be seen by as few adventurers as possible, so this suited us just fine.
After flying some distance from the battlefield, the red dragon finally stopped and looked at us.
"So, you can actually keep up with my speed. I never thought I'd meet a rare white dragon in such a place, but I was even more surprised that there is a human that can easily control it. Do you have the rare job, the Dragon Knight?"
"You guessed it. Although, it'd be more accurate to say that was what I used to be."
There was really no reason to hide that now, so I just told the truth.
"Oh? A Dragon Knight. I have indeed heard of a knight in the neighboring country who was the youngest to become a Dragon Knight."
"Yep, that's me."
"I knew it! I heard that you are a dragon tamer who could charm any dragon. That's why I feel hot in my chest when I see you. Now, how about you stop riding that white dragon and ride me instead?"
Although it tried to tempt me with a charming voice, the dragon-shaped body that it was trying to seduce me with made me unsure exactly how to react.
Also, Faitfore turned her head towards me with protesting eyes, which made me really concerned.
"Sorry, my partner is the only one for me, I'm not about to cheat on her with any other dragon— Pfft, ah! Don't lick my face! Hey, I'll lose my balance, stop it!"
Faitfore seemed to be satisfied with my answer judging by how she licked my face with her big tongue, completely blocking my view.
"Oh I got rejected. It doesn't really matter, the law of the dragon race is for the strong to eat the weak, and so all must obey the strong. I will defeat you and that girl and made you mine by sheer force of will."
"I don't hate strong women, but there's already someone I love"
I don't need to say anymore to get the point across. She's right here—
"Oh? This is news to me. You actually have a lover?"
"Gah?"
Why are you both looking at me like that? Of course I'm talking about you two!
It would be too embarrassing for me to explain it clearly here. To hide my embarrassment, I rubbed their heads rudely.
Faitfore was very happy, but Lynn stared at me angrily.
"What are you doing? My hair's all messed up now!"
"You sure are an insensitive woman!"
"What do you mean!"
I figured she would have understood. I confessed to her before, so uh… Huh? Lynn's neck was red. Is she also hiding her shyness?
"Can you be serious? Don't flirt in front of me. We're fighting!"
"Sorry."
"I'm sorry."
"Uuu—"
We apologized after being reprimanded.
This dragon seemed to be the type that could see peoples' faces and communicate. That being the case, I thought that I might be able to negotiate with it.
"So uh, you're sure you're not gonna retreat? You do realize that even if you beat me, you'll have to face Sir Vanir, right?"
"That, uh — well, I actually do really want to run away with my tail between my legs, but I can't do that. That's the trouble with being in charge. The Demon King's army is doing its utmost to capture the Capital and Axel at the same time. If I can't win now, it'll cause all sorts of problems."
The Dragon sighed and held her cheeks in her hands. It was a surreal scene.
"You could always just leave the Demon King's army. Since you're a powerful dragon, I can help introduce you to other jobs."
After all, I know better than anyone which countries are looking for Dragon Knight candidates.
Rouzelli can communicate fluently, so she would be easy to control.
"Dragons who don't have lairs are usually looked down upon, and it's very easy to live in the Demon King's Army. And I've killed so many people… It would be too embarrassing if I finally surrendered to humans."
"I see. Well, I guess it can't be helped. I'll do my best to defeat you!"
Rouzelli seems to have strong reservations in her heart; it would be useless to talk anymore.
"Oh, how nice, you really… He's a good man. Come on, it doesn't matter who wins or loses. Let's fight to our hearts content!"
We separated a distance and faced each other head-on.
The Red Dragon was about twice the size of Faitfore. Although Faitfore had superior speed, in a contest of strength she would have no chance of winning at all.
As a Red Dragon, Rouzelli would have the Fire attribute. So she would have fire resistance and would only be slightly injured if attacked with fire breath.
On the flip-side, we had to pay close attention to fire attacks. Faitfore has fire resistance, and I would benefit from that through our contract. However, Lynn was a different matter. If she got caught up in a breath attack, she'd be incinerated.
"Make sure to avoid her Fire Breath at all cost."
I patted Faitfore on the neck, brought my mouth to her ear, and gave her instructions.
She seemed a little puzzled at first, but after seeing Lynn behind me, she nodded vigorously. She's a pretty smart kid, I could see she understood.
Right at this moment, Rouzelli opened her mouth wide, almost as if she'd guessed my worries.
Flames emerged from her mouth.
"Faitfore—!"
I just managed to turn Faitfore aside in time to dodge the flame breath.
We flew past our opponent, and I immediately turned around behind her.
"She's weakest from behind!"
I wanted to stab my spear into her weak back, but she flicked her tail hard at me, so I immediately went on the defensive.
If a human took a blow from a dragon head on, he wouldn't get away lightly. I tilted the shield Taylor gave me to receive the blow, letting it slide off the shield.
Despite that, a shockwave ran through my body. My contract with Faitfore had given me some part of her powers, so I was able to withstand it.
"Wow! You okay?"
"Yeah, I'm okay."
Although I answered Lynn in a relaxed tone, I was becoming more and more anxious.
Only dragons who have lived for a long time can transform into a human. I was mentally prepared from the beginning for this to be a difficult fight…but Rouzelli was even more powerful than I'd anticipated.
She outclassed Faitfore in every way except speed.
I managed to make a few attacks, but they were either blocked by the tail or deflected by the red scales.
Lynn casted spells at her whenever she was able, but Rouzelli showed no signs of pain. Her magic resistance was incredibly high. Anything short of a high level magic spell from a Crimson Demon would be powerless against her.
The power gap is so great, could it be that she…
"Hey, aren't you, like, super old?"
"Ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhh! What are you saying all of sudden! See how shiny my scales are? I'm still young and spry!"
The Red Dragon started waving her hands in the air, protesting strongly.
Younger people don't use the term 'young and spry.
"Because the longer dragons live, the stronger they get. Since you're so strong, I assumed you must be old."
"Don't say such rude things! That's right, I may be considered a seasoned dragon, but the main reason I'm so strong is because of his Majesty the Demon King. Haven't you heard? As long as His Majesty is alive, the power of his subordinates will increase greatly. If the Demon King was defeated, my ability would greatly decrease."
"Uh, isn't that kinda like cheating?"
"Dragons are already incredibly strong, so with that added bonus… No wonder she's so powerful."
I completely agreed with Lynn's statement.
We could dodge her attacks and get within range to attack, but even then we couldn't penetrate the scales. Although I wasn't sure how much her power was strengthened by the Demon King, our only chance would be if she lost that added strength.
… But it was useless to hope for something so far-fetched.
"Hehe, where is that majestic attitude now? Come on, stab me with a spear."
Because our attacks were all ineffective, Rouzelli got arrogant.
Shee hovered in mid-air and coaxed me with her index finger.
How dare she provoke me in such a hopeless situation!
"This, this bastard!"
"Hey, she's just trying to provoke you, don't be fooled. Calm down, calm down. Don't worry, you can do it."
Hearing the soft whispering voice in my ear, my raging anger suddenly faded.
This situation seemed… Familiar
It was when I first joined Lynn and her team.
* * *
At that time, I hadn't completely lost my habits from being a knight. I misjudged the distance of an attack because I wasn't used to my longsword. As a result, my partner was attacked and we fell into a crisis.
"Damn it, this is my fault! Run away! I'll take care of this one and buy time for you to escape!"
Just when I was about to make up for my failure by charging the monster, I fell forward from a sharp impact on my back.
"Ow! Hey, what are you doing!"
Looking back, I saw, with hands on her hips and an angry face, Lynn.
"New Guy, don't try to be a hero. You used to be alone right?"
"That's, that's right…"
She bought her face right in front of me; I could feel her warm breath.
"Remember, we're a team. If you can't win alone, ask a party member for help; if you fail, ask a party member for help. On the other hand, if a party member is in danger… You understand what I'm saying?"
Here, she clapped her hands down on my shoulders and smiled at me.
"Let's do it together. Don't worry, you can do it!"
* * *
"Hey, why are you in a daze at a time like this? Snap out of it!"
Lynn's scolding brought my consciousness flying back from the past.
"You saved me again."
"Again?"
Don't you remember Lynn?
"Just talking to myself. Okay, let's attack again. Lynn, I'll need your help."
"Finally, my turn to show off. I'll show you I'm not a woman who needs to be protected. Right, Faitfore?"
"Hoooo!"
These two were really starting to get along pretty well.
As a counterattack, Faitfore spit out flames of her own, but Rouzelli didn't seem to take them seriously and seemed as if she was going to go right through them.
"Just as I expected, Freeze Gust!"
After Rouzelli passed through the flames, a cold white mist appeared in front of her.
She collided with the cloud. Since Red Dragons have magical resistance to fire, this cold air should be effective.
"Graaaaaah! You really got me! Where did you go!?"
The impact of the cold air had stopped Rouzelli's movements while she shook her head and yelled fiercely. We took this opportunity to move to a higher position than her.
…What's with that reaction just now? Cold may be her weakness, but her reaction was exaggerated. She may be trying to deliberately draw us in by making it seem like she was weakened. Although I remained skeptical, she seemed really uncomfortable.
"What, that's strange. The magic worked."
The caster herself was also taken aback.
We could see the red dragon looking around in panic below us, and it seemed every movement was much slower than before. Did the cold drop her body temperature?
I don't think so. It seems that her overall state was worse than before, so our magic may have begun to work.
Deterioration means… It was impossible… Perhaps it was!
"Have you succeeded?… Kazuma!"
"What are you so happy about, this is no time to be laughing!"
Did I really laugh? If I really had guessed right then this was a great opportunity created by my best friend for me.
"Lynn, hold on tight!"
Faitfore quickly dove, head down, almost falling straight towards the ground.
"Kya…"
I heard Lynn let out a short shout behind me, but it seemed she was able to close her mouth.
Lynn tightened her grip on my belly, showing how desperately she was enduring the fear and speed of falling.
Although the wind blasted against my face, I kept my eyes open and stared at a certain point on the red dragon's back.
The only scale on a Dragon that grows upside down, the Gyaku (Inverse) scale, is the weak spot of any dragon. I brought my spear down with all my might on that scale.
The spear penetrated deeply into the dragon's body
Rouzelli immediately lost her strength and fell to the ground.
Both the adventurers and the Demon King's Army saw the dust and smoke from the impact of Rouzelli slamming into the ground. After realizing that their commander had been defeated, the monsters began to retreat one after another.
After confirming that the crisis was resolved, we chose to land in a place hidden from the battlefield. I carried Faitfore, who was back in human form, back to the front gate where my party and the other adventurers were waiting.
Part 4
"Hey— are you guys alright?"
I waved my hands and ran towards the group of adventurers.
Although everyone was sitting on the ground exhausted, most likely from the sense of accomplishment from protecting the town, they seemed to be in good moods… Well, at least they were before seeing me.
They all frowned or gaped at me.
"You ran away again at the last moment! How dare you show your face here! The enemy weakened all of a sudden, so we managed to make it through somehow, but we had a really hard time with it, you know!?"
Even the enemies here have weakened. Kazuma, you really succeeded.
"You always show up only once the situation is safe… Dust, you trash, scum, evil devil!"
"You're trembling, even though you were hiding somewhere safe, you're still afraid?!"
Seeing that the group was alright made me happy, but they continued to curse at me.
They had no idea how much work I put in behind their backs!
"I'm trembling because I'm so angry with you! Who are you calling afraid, huh? You don't know how much I've contributed secretly! Taylor, Keith, tell them of my heroic deeds!"
I threw the topic to my two party members, but they just shared a look and sighed deeply.
"Yes, um, you really worked hard."
"Yeah, you did great, okay?"
"That's all you have to say? Come on, now's the time to praise me!"
After I yelled at my party members who gave such lame responses, they leaned forward and whispered.
"…Dust, if you want to hide who you and Faitfore really are, we can't really talk about what you did."
"Yeah, to praise you while hiding that is impossible."
When I heard that, I was speechless.
To proclaim my heroic deeds, I would have to reveal my true identity.
I certainly don't want outsiders to know the Dragon Knight's past, but protecting Faitfore is much more important. The White Dragon is a rare and valuable species. If her identity was exposed, she would definitely be targeted by thieves.
Putting Faitfore first, I decided to swallow my pride.
"Don't lower your head, tell us what you did now!"
That's right, even though they had no right to say these things, I had to endure it.
"Don't go silent because you can't think of a reasonable excuse! You're usually so talkative, but now you shut up! Coward!"
Patience…
"That's why women don't like you. Of course, your attitude is probably why you're still a virgin."
...
"Who are you calling a virgin! You're all a bunch of nasty bastards! Well, you've all been tricked into this war! All you women who thought you could go confess your 'feelings' to Kazuma and leech off of his success for life, I got you! That was just a rumor I started. Idiots, morons, you fickle women deserve to be tricked! Now you can come crawling back to all us men with 'bad attitudes.' Oh, and as for you guys, I also lied about all those teasing dreams! How does it feel to have been horny because of a plan that I made? Ah hahahahaha!"
Ah, that felt great. After I had said everything I wanted to say, I felt much better.
After my counterattack, everyone was stunned speechless.
"Humph, why are you still gaping at me… Hey, wait, we already beat the Demon King's Army, so stop pulling out your weapons. A celebration is no place for violence."
Everyone drew their weapons and began to inch closer to me.
"Wait, wait, I was wrong. I'll reflect on it! Can't we talk about this? I'm against violence. How about we all get a drink!"
With my furious pleading, everyone seemed to calm down a bit. They stopped, put down their weapons, and heaved a collective sigh.
"You're just like Kazuma, your only gift is annoying others…"
"Hey, don't confuse me with him. Kazuma does it unconsciously, I did it on purpose."
I clearly explained the difference between myself and Kazuma, but then I heard the sound of metal sliding on metal.
Adventurers were redrawing their sheathed swords.
Then they all stared at me, took a deep breath, and said,
"You're even worse!"
-x-X-x-
Konosuba Dust Spinoff 7: Epilogue
Several hours have passed since the siege of Axel.
Despite facing down such a huge battle, the town was filled with the usual hustle and bustle. Even the severely injured have been healed by the priests and were now happily reveling in the celebratory banquet.
If this town has something that could be called its 'style', this was definitely it.
If there's one thing that concerns me, though, it'd be a certain strange rumour that's started circulating throughout the adventurers.
"I swear! I saw two dragons fighting in the sky! A red dragon and a white dragon were fighting an epic battle! I'm not lying!"
"I saw it too. And there was someone riding on the white dragon too! It must be the legendary Dragon Knight here to save us!"
A few adventurers were passionately talking about such tales to their friends, though the ones they were talking to seemed to just be giving them lip service and didn't seem convinced at all.
It should all be forgotten in a few days.
We were sitting in our usual spot at the guild, drinking wine while surrounded by such gossip.
"I wonder what Kazuma and the others are doing now? Did they manage to reach the Demon King's Castle after all?"
Taylor muttered under his breath to no one in particular.
"Kazuma said he only wanted to bring Aqua back, but if the past is any indication, he probably got caught up in something big and they all ended up getting involved to take down the Demon King."
Keith speculated in between mouthfuls of beer and food.
"It's possible. Then, he'll probably fight the Demon King with underhanded tricks while complaining the whole way. If that's the case, Dust, do you think he has a chance of winning?"
Lynn threw the topic to me, making me think for a while.
Could Kazuma fight the Demon King? Well…
"In theory, he should have no chance of winning, but he always seems to find a way. We've taught him all our skills, and he has always had good luck."
Despite saying that, I sincerely believed that Kazuma would be able to successfully defeat the Demon King.
If my prediction was wrong and something unexpected happened, I could always help out and rescue him with Faitfore.
Speaking of, what was my reliable partner doing? I looked over to see Faitfore digging into a large meal in the form of a young girl.
Well she worked hard today, so she can eat as much as she wished.
"Kazuma needs to come back safely and return the precious sword that the Hero used…"
"Oh, right! If my best friend becomes the hero, the value of the sword I lent him would be worth a small fortune. I'll be able to live a leisurely life after I sell it"
"You don't have the slightest intention of selling it…"
"Lynn, did you say something?"
"Not particularly."
She was so happy just now, so why did her mood sour all of a sudden? I never understand women.
"If Kazuma defeats the Demon King, he'll become a Legendary Hero. It's kinda crazy to think about."
"True. If that happens, he'd become a completely unreachable existence for us."
Keith and Taylor stared off into space with troubled looks.
"Ha, don't be ridiculous. If he really did defeat the Demon King, he'll just brag about it and get carried away until we get annoyed and start a big brawl. That's how it always goes."
Kazuma definitely wouldn't change much. If he changed at all, he'd just be more obnoxiously confident.
I tried to imagine that scene, but surprisingly it didn't piss me off that much. It would still be annoying though.
He might be involved in a battle to decide the fate of the world right now, but we are just casually drinking.
The adventurers continued to drink in the guild throughout the day, getting gradually rowdier.
"We really did great this time! It's not like the Dullahan and the Destroyer when we had to rely on Kazuma."
"Yeah, this time we can finally hold our heads high and say 'We won this battle!'"
The team of adventurers nearby began to brag loudly.
The battle of Axel was won as a result of everyone working together. Though I was certain I played the most important role, it's better not to mention that.
It's fine to let them bask in the limelight.
"Oh, everyone did well, except for a certain someone who was slacking off!"
"I know, and he claims to be the representative of the town! Ahahahahaha!"
"Hey, hey, stop talking. The coward is going to cry, you know? Gyahahahaha!"
I instantly knew who those words were intended for. They were looking my way with those infuriating faces of theirs while laughing away.
"You bastards! You're still saying that? Alright, I'll make your bodies understand just how much I've done for this town!"
"You're still saying that!? I still haven't forgotten how you shattered my dreams so cruelly!"
"I'll never forget how you led me on with those cruel tricks of yours!"
I picked up my chair as they approached me with angry mutterings.
"Alright, that's enough! This is a celebration party, so don't do anything stupid now. You don't want to get knocked out and wake up to find you missed the entire party, do you?"
"Yeah, everyone's having a good time, don't ruin it for them."
After being scolded and preached at by Lynn and Taylor respectively, they reluctantly returned to my seat.
"Ha, you deserved that."
"Shut it, Keith! It's not like you did much either! Ouch! That hurts! Don't smack me on the head! What will you do if I become stupid!?"
"Hmph, as if you could get more stupid than you are right now."
I grumbled at Lynn as she swung her wand, but she just snickered at me.
It wasn't exactly the most loveable expression.
I thought the distance between us had shortened a bit after all this, but here we were, back to our normal relationship. But my feelings for her remained the same. Is that what they mean by falling head over heels for someone?
I slowly enjoyed my mug of beer while listening to Lynn's nagging.
After a rowdy and raucous party, Lynn and I found ourselves alone in a square near the main gate. We were sitting on a bench staring up into the night sky.
...How did we end up like this?
I said I was going outside to sober up, and Lynn, her face flush, said she was coming with me and followed me out.
So we walked casually in the middle of the night and made small talk… That's how we got here.
What exactly was she planning here?
I was trying to keep my cool while having a conversation, but I just can't get a read on Lynn.
Some people would've called this a good mood. However, I'm not proud of this, but I have absolutely no idea what to do in such a situation.
Sexual harassment I'm used to, but this tender atmosphere was new and terrifying.
I snuck a look at Lynn only to see her looking at me with innocent eyes and a flushed face.
Ah, I see, this expression must mean she's asking for a kiss! That's right, that's it! If I didn't kiss her now, what kind of man would I be?
I put a trembling hand on Lynn's shoulder.
Although she seemed a little surprised, she didn't resist. Seeing this, I closed my eyes.
"I want to finish what I couldn't before…"
This is going to work!
As I slowly moved my face closer, the moment our lips would touch–
"No—!—"
Suddenly, a white object yelled and jumped out of a nearby bush.
The thing slammed into my stomach hard.
"Gah! What's going… Faitfore?"
"Huh? What are you doing here?"
The young girl was rubbing my stomach with her cheeks, Faitfore.
Lynn and I were dumbfounded at her sudden appearance.
"Hey, hey! Dust is my master. Lynn is bad! Grrrrr!"
Faitfore bared her teeth at Lynn.
"You-you got it wrong, I'm not gonna take him away!"
"Roarr."
Lynn quickly tried to calm her down and held out her hand, but Faitfore just got ready to bite the hand.
This was the first time I'd seen her show anger in her human form… But thinking about it calmly, I couldn't really put her at fault.
"Calm down, Faitfore, it's nothing like that. But how did you get here anyway?"
"Umm, Cheese and the others chased after Dust, so I followed them."
"I see, I see. Cheese… Keith, you mean?"
"Un, he's over there…"
Faitfore immediately answered and pointed to the bush where she'd come from.
At that moment, I heard a rustle and couldn't help but notice the branches shaking.
"Okay, whoever's hiding there, come on out."
After I shouted angrily into the bushes, the bush answered with a raspy "meow".
"What the hell, it's just a cat. Okay Lynn, squash it with magic."
"Right, I'll put it out of its misery."
Lynn walked around my right side with a wicked grin and pointed her wand at the bush.
"Stop! Don't do it, I'll come out right now!"
Three figures rushed out of the bushes.
Standing before us were Keith, smiling awkwardly, Taylor, scratching his head idly, and Loli Succubus, holding a notepad with a gleam in her eye.
"I tried to stop them, I'm sorry."
"I was really interested! It was a bit awkward, but that's alright, please continue!"
"Just forget we're here and go all the way… We'll just come out and interrupt right before anything good happens."
Only Taylor apologized, and the other two showed not even a sign of remorse.
I couldn't make out what Keith said at the end, but that look on his face meant nothing good.
"What do you think I'm going to do after you completely ruined the mood? Right, Lynn?"
"Did it? I'm completely fine. If anything, maybe we should let them watch."
"Ehh?"
This unexpected answer caused me to let out a cry in surprise. I looked to my left and saw Lynn smiling at me.
She closed her eyes like before and stood on her toes.
Although I was uncomfortable with the gazes all around me, I couldn't leave Lynn like that.
At that moment, I made up my mind and brought my face close to hers.
"Mwahahahaha! What a shame, it was actually Moi!"
…And Lynn's face shifted into Sir Vanir's right before my eyes.
"So many high-quality negative emotions! This shall offset some of the money you owe."
Stunned in silence, I couldn't make a sound… Wait, the money I owed him was for asking him to help protect Axel, right?
"You already got 10 million Eris from Luna, isn't that good enough…"
"These are two different things."
I was too careless at that time, how could I have made such a stupid deal. While I was wallowing in self-pity, someone placed a hand gently on my right shoulder. I turned my head and saw Lynn give me a wry smile.
That's right, Lynn was standing on my right, not my left. With everything going on, who would've noticed that!?
"What's the matter, delinquent adventurer, your whole body is shaking. Do you have a fever?"
"No, I don't even have the strength left to be angry…"
After Sir Vanir left contentedly, we returned to the guild together.
Faitfore seemed exhausted and fell asleep on my back.
Feeling that she was going to slide off, I stopped and carried her in my arms as I caught up with my friends.
"Let's go have some drinks! Come on, it'll be my treat, so don't look so depressed."
To think that Keith would offer to give me a treat. I suppose miracles do happen.
"You are undoubtedly the one who contributed most to the successful defence of Axel. the others might not know about it, but we do. Isn't that enough?"
Even Taylor was acting nice; was he drunk? He must just be messing with me.
"Although his battle plans were underhanded and despicable, Dust-san did his best! It's amazing!"
Loli Succubus nodded admiringly.
"What's wrong with the three of you? Did you eat something strange?"
"You know… We were being nice because you won't be able to be acknowledged by the others. You did really well this time."
Lynn said with a broad smile as she lightly pressed her fist to my chest.
…So they really did care about me.
I voluntarily gave up my status as the youngest Dragon knight and was expelled from my country to become an adventurer… But there were still people who cared about me.
Even though I lived my life as I pleased, followed my instincts and got up to stupid things, my friends never left me. Not only that, but they willingly walked side by side with me.
I might be a fool who withdrew from his spot on the main stage, but I can still play the part in front of my friends, right?
"What are you standing around for? Come on, let's go!"
I was stuck in place, but Lynn took my hand.
This wasn't the time to immerse myself in the regrets of the past.
I am going to live my life in this town, alongside my beloved friends.
.
----------------------------->
.
-x-X-x-
Konosuba Dust Spinoff 7: Short story 1 (Gamers)
"What should we eat today? Lynn, what do you think?"
As usual, I called up the waitress with the biggest breasts in the guild's tavern and asked for Lynn's order.
"Hmm, well, I think I'll have my usual salad."
Lynn gently returned the menu to the table with a soft smile.
Her unexpected demeanour caused me, Taylor and Keith to freeze up.
We quietly traded glances. Everyone had looks of astonishment on their faces.
Once the salad was brought to her, she used a fork and knife to slice it up into small, bite-sized pieces, daintily brought those pieces to her mouth, and finally chewed slowly before swallowing.
She wiped the tiny drops of dressing that got stuck to her lips with a handkerchief and took a sip of water.
…This is creepy.
Normally, she'd just stick a fork in it and start gobbling it up without paying any mind to what others would think. What is she putting on airs for?
We wordlessly turned around on our seats and huddled together.
"W-What's going on here? Is Lynn feeling sick today?"
"Her back is completely straight too, it's like watching an entirely different person eat."
"She didn't get replaced by another person yet again, right?"
A shiver went down my spine upon hearing Keith's question.
He must be talking about Princess Leonor, who had been masquerading as Lynn just a short while ago.
Looking back at her, that style of eating certainly did seem like what the nobility and royalty did during official events. It is an elegant and pointlessly tedious way of eating.
Thinking that she had switched places again made me want to run away for an instant, but that idea was swiftly dispersed.
"That's not possible, I think. You know, apologies to Lynn, but, her chest…"
Taylor sheepishly said while glancing at Lynn's chest.
Keith and I followed his gaze… And that chest definitely belongs to Lynn. It's possible to increase your bust size with padding and the like, but there's no way she could've shrunk her chest down to that size.
"What's wrong, you guys? If you don't start eating soon, your food will get cold. Seeing grown men huddle together like that is kinda creepy, you know?"
And her mercilessly direct way of speaking is definitely Lynn's style.
Now that I look back again, she's back to her usual way of eating.
What was with her needlessly elegant way of eating just a moment ago?
"S-Say, Lynn, you don't have a fever, do you? Or maybe you're feeling under the weather… Ack, sorry!"
Apparently, Taylor was more taken aback than he seemed, as he accidentally toppled the mug of beer on the table.
It flowed toward Lynn and flooded the entire table. I braced myself for the cursing and burst of magic to follow… But nothing came.
Fearfully looking towards Lynn, she was simply smiling quietly.
"Oh, it's fine, please don't worry about it. Ah, no wait, erm, this is fine, right?"
"What happened to you!? Where did the usual violent and quick to anger Lynn go? Right now it's like I'm talking to a normal, upper-class woman!"
I grabbed Lynn by the shoulders and shook her, and she simply smiled at me and stood up.
Then, she picked up her staff and pointed the tip at my head.
"Right, die."
"W-W-Wait a minute! I'm joking! I'm joking, Lynn-sama."
"Calm down, Lynn, he could've phrased it in a better way, but you still were acting strange."
"Yeah, yeah, you're not that refined a woman… Well, what Dust said!"
As we desperately tried to calm her down, Lynn slowly lowered her staff and sat back into her seat
With her crossed arms and her glowering looks, this is definitely the usual Lynn.
"I wondered what was going on… Sigh, you know, I had to pick up aristocratic manners on short notice back then, so whenever I let my guard down, it tends to show up. 'If it isn't properly ingrained into you, you'll slip up,' the butler said, so he made me practice all the time."
With an exasperated look on her face, Lynn let out a huge sigh.
Oh, that bearded butler, huh? He's been dealing with Princess Leonor's selfishness for more than a decade now. That butler was a big reason why that wild princess was able to put out an image of being a proper lady in front of others.
With a butler like that in charge of her instruction, I suppose this isn't surprising.
I also underwent a bit of training when I had to accompany the Princess to a dinner party as her escort. Just thinking of how harsh that training was made me shudder.
"Lynn, you've sure been through a lot. It's my treat today, just focus on resting your body and soul."
I wiped my eyes and said those kind words.
"L-Lynn, what happened to you over there…? Don't tell me…"
"After being captured by evil aristocrats and held hostage… Well… Sorry for not realizing it sooner. You can take a break from questing for a while. We'll be able to manage on our own. Of course, we'll split the money with you evenly."
The other two followed my lead and treated Lynn with kindness.
"A-Aren't you letting your imaginations run wild? They didn't do anything to me! You said you'll treat me and all, but isn't that the money that I lent you!? Cut it out already, don't give me those pitying looks!"
Lynn tried her best to excuse herself, but we continued to treat her with kindness.
-x-X-x-
Konosuba Dust Spinoff 7: Short story 2 (Toranora)
"I'm thinking of joining the Axis Cult."
The pen rolled out of my hand and slipped onto the floor.
I thought it was a bad joke at first, but looking up at her face, she seemed deadly serious.
As I was writing down my dream request at the Succubus shop that I frequented, Loli Succubus said something completely outrageous.
"Are you feeling suicidal because you got caught and beaten up when you visited them to show a dream? Even if you want to die, that's a horrible way to go. There are better ways to go out."
"I'm not looking to die."
"A succubus joining the Axis cult is nothing short of suicide. You'd have a better chance of survival stripping naked and diving into a horde of monsters."
Both the Axis Cult and the Eris Church hate the undead and devils with a passion. If her true identity is revealed, she'll definitely be exterminated.
Loli Succubus should be well aware of this fact. She's seen them in person and is deathly afraid of them, after all.
"Dust-san, do you know what the opposite of love is?"
Suddenly, Loli Succubus said something incomprehensible again.
She's completely out of it today. I know I should stay out of such a troublesome conversation with a woman in such a state, but I can't help but be curious about what she said earlier.
I suppose I'll go along with her for a while.
"That'd be hate, obviously."
"Pfft, you don't get it at all.
She proudly puffed out her chest and said, but what else could it be?
"Listen up, hating someone is the same thing as having great interest in someone. Your feelings are affected by them, after all. Indifference is not feeling anything for the other person at all! Haven't you experienced something similar before, Dust-san? When you aggressively tried to hit on someone, first they'd get angry with you, before eventually ignoring-"
"Right, that's enough!"
That brings to mind more incidents than I can count.
"In other words, the worst response you could receive is indifference, not hate."
"When you put it that way, I can see what you mean… Still, what does that have to do with you joining the Axis Cult?"
I don't see the link at all. The more I hear about this the more confused I get.
"This morning, I went to Vanir-sama's store to give him my aid… But Vanir-sama ignored me. No matter what I did he wouldn't give me a response, and just stood in a corner the whole time…"
"Couldn't he just be in a bad mood?"
"That's not it!"
She leaned over the table and pushed her teary face up towards mine.
It's amazing how flat she looks even in this situation.
"Normally he would say something kind like 'Urgh,how annoying. Moi is busy right now, so if you have that much free time, go sweep the floors instead.'"
"That's kind?"
"Even harsh words like that are a sign of love!"
I now understand what they mean when they say that a maiden in love is blind.
"So I thought about it, if I was going to be ignored, I would much rather be hated. And thinking about what Vanir-sama hates most, that could only be the Axis Cult!"
It's true that Sir hates the Axis Cult. The only thing he hates more is that Aqua girl. I don't think I've ever seen the two of them have an amiable chat before.
"That'll definitely make him hate you, but if things go badly you might end up getting vanquished, you know?"
"That would be preferable to spending the rest of my life without receiving attention from the man I love."
"Eep… Scary…"
Looking at those bloodshot eyes, it doesn't seem like she's joking.
If I let things go on as is, I get the feeling that she might actually become a pretty fanatical Axis Cultist.
"Joining the Axis Cult seems like something of a last resort, so let's try going back to Sir's place to check one more time before we resort to that."
"If he ignores me again I'm signing up immediately!"
I dragged Loli Succubus to the Magic Item shop.
Sir was definitely standing in the store, with his back to the window.
Just seeing his back doesn't tell me anything.
"He's stood in that same spot since this morning, ignoring me…"
""Well, let's head inside."
I opened the door and entered, and Loli succubus followed me like she was trying to hide behind me.
"Oh, Dust-san! Ah, Succubus-chan is with you too."
The (technically) owner of this store, Wiz, called out to us.
"Is Sir in a bad mood? He seems kinda silent."
Normally Sir would at least offer us a word, even if it's barely veiled complaints. I can kinda see why Loli Succubus would be so distraught.
Even now he's simply staring at the wall in silence.
"Ah, no, that's not Vanir-san, that's just a husk that Vanir-san has shed. He said something about leaving it here as a repellent against Aqua-sama before heading out to do some shopping."
I wordlessly stared at Loli Succubus, but she already had a wide smile on her face.
"Of course. There's no way Vanir-sama would ignore me like that!"
This girl's mood sure changes in a hurry!
But, oh well, that's fine. I much prefer her smiling without a care in the world than being depressed.