Gathering Companions V
As the sun shone brightly in the midday sky and the tranquil starry night passed, the dawn arrived with the sweet melodies of birds welcoming the new day. I made my way back to the Healing Clinic, clutching skewers, soup, and bread I had procured from the stalls at the morning market, ready to spend the night there once again.
This was after I had asked Hermes to make a reservation at the black market yesterday. Aside from the watchful eyes that had been following me, I felt another gaze directed my way. When I turned to investigate, I found a girl, covered in mud and looking quite ragged, in a position as if she were trying to escape but had collapsed instead.
I couldn’t just ignore her in that state, so I asked Stella to relay a message to the Faritia Family and then carried the girl to a nearby small Healing Clinic. Inside, there was no nurse due to the clinic’s size, and a young female doctor was managing everything alone. After a brief examination and a wash, I laid the girl down on one of the clinic’s beds and took it upon myself to care for her.
Well, I had no medical knowledge, so all I could do was change out the melting ice packs and wipe the sweat from her face and hands to keep her comfortable.
With that in mind, I had gone out to buy breakfast for three, considering how the girl would feel when she woke up in the morning. By the way, I hadn’t noticed it when I brought her in, but it turned out she was a Beastman, and a very rare Black Lion Beastman at that. Apparently, it was so rare that one would hardly hear of seeing one outside of a Beastman village without a guardian present.
In short, it seemed I was entangled in a troublesome situation.
“I’m back! How is she doing?”
“Oh, welcome back! You bought breakfast for me too, didn’t you?”
“Of course.”
“Thank you! That girl just woke up a moment ago. I checked her lightly, and it seems she has no particular aftereffects and is in good spirits.”
“I see. Is there anything we should be careful about regarding her food?”
“It doesn’t seem like she hasn’t eaten at all, so I think she’ll be fine. However, if she overeats, she might get a stomachache, so could you keep an eye on the portion?”
“Understood… Are you going somewhere?”
“Yes. It seems we’re out of some medicines, so I’ll go replenish our stock.”
“Got it. Be careful.”
“Will do.”
When I returned to the Healing Clinic, the doctor was preparing to leave, so I inquired about the girl while reminding her to be cautious. After seeing the doctor off to restock the medicines, I headed to the room where the girl was resting.
It was the innermost room of the clinic, which had been prepared for inpatient care, but it seemed that such cases were too much for a small clinic like this to handle. Although it was cleaned, it had become somewhat of a useless relic.
“…!?”
“Did I startle you? My apologies.”
“…Um.”
“I thought you wouldn’t remember, but it seems you do recall some things from before you fainted.”
“!!”
“Don’t worry, I have no intention of digging into it now. I’m curious about your circumstances, but first…”
“…?”
“It’s time for breakfast. Whatever you do, you need to fill your stomach first, and I’m sure you’re hungry too, right?”
“…That’s not—” grumble~
“You can’t hide it. Here’s your share. It’s a small portion, but there’s a second helping if you want, so take your time and eat.”
“…Yes.”
As I lightly chuckled at the girl, who blushed in embarrassment from the sound of her stomach growling, I arranged the food I had brought on the table beside her bed. She was able to sit up, and since she had moved when startled, I thought she would be fine. Indeed, she moved without issue, albeit hesitantly bringing the skewers to her mouth.
Watching her eat cautiously, like a borrowed cat or a newly adopted puppy, I took my time enjoying my own breakfast.
…But why was she so frightened? If it was fear of people or adults, the doctor would have informed me… Could it be related to her attempt to escape?
~~ An Awkward Breakfast Time ~~
“Phew… Are you full now?”
“…Yes.”
“Good. Now, I have a few questions to ask.”
“…Yes.”
“Don’t be so scared; I’m not going to eat you. Even if you were trying to kill me, I wouldn’t care about such trivialities.”
“…Um.”
“What is it?”
After we finished our breakfast, I tried to draw out the girl’s story, but she seemed ready to speak first, so I adopted a listening posture. I had intended to ask who she was before delving into her circumstances.
“Are you… the person they call the Hero?”
“No, that’s not me.”
“!?”
“There’s no need to be so surprised. It’s true that I’m not the Hero. I don’t possess the Holy Sword, nor do I have the Holy Mark that should be floating above my hand.”
“…But, according to what those people said…”
“Hmmm… It seems there’s a heavy situation at play here?”
“…No, I’m fine now. More importantly, I need to find the Hero.”
“Do you think I’ll let you go?”
Upon hearing my denial of being the Hero, the girl was taken aback, then fell into despair, and finally, in a panic, tried to get off the bed to leave. I grabbed her shoulder and gently pushed her back down onto the bed, placing my hand on her forehead to keep her from escaping.
“L-Let me go…!”
“Sorry, but that’s not happening. If you tell me about the circumstances you’re dealing with, I might consider letting you go.”
“No, no… I can’t involve unrelated people…”
“You’re already involved. Besides, the fact that you mistook me for the Hero means you must have seen something that made you think so.”
“!! But, we have to hurry!”
“Hmmm, it sounds like someone is being held hostage, doesn’t it? And it’s probably not a matter of losing their life… more like being taken away?”
“!?”
“Seems I’m right. And it doesn’t sound like only humans are involved… Given your excessive fear, could it be that the Demon Race is also involved?”
“…W-Why?”
“Oh, so that’s the case, huh?”
So, they’re involved, are they…
“Alright, where are the people you want to save?”
“…Eh?”
“There’s no need to do anything unnecessary. I’ll save everyone you want to rescue, and I’ll kill those who’ve laid a hand on them.”
“…How…?”
“Huh? I’ll kill the Demon Race, and anyone who associates with them. I don’t care what happens to them; letting them live would only bring harm. If I know they’re there, I’ve decided to kill them all. In the process, I’ll also save the people you want to rescue. That’s all there is to it.”
“…”
Is that why there was a gathering of them around here? If that’s the case, the Knight Order’s efforts might all be in vain… But if they’ve dragged me into this mess, then I have no choice but to kill them.
The mission to kill the Demon King has been lifted, so I’ve lost my reason to stand at the forefront of the battle against the Demon King’s Army. However, I have no intention of suppressing my murderous intent towards the Demon Race. It’s like exterminating a nest of wasps in front of my house; I can’t live peacefully knowing that any Demon Race exists within my reach. Therefore, I will kill them all.
“Now, tell me. Normally, I’d demand some sort of reward, but… this time is special. I won’t ask anything of you in return, but I want you to involve me in your circumstances.”
“…Thank you…”
“Not so fast; it’s too early for gratitude or tears. If you want to do that, wait until I’ve finished everything.” …Nod!
“Good answer. Now, will you tell me?”
From what I learned afterward, I needed to apologize to the King, the Knight Order, and Hermes for the situation. Now that the blood had cooled in my head, I felt I could have handled it more wisely and lightly, but given that the Demon Race was involved and there were victims, I decided to let go of my calmness.
It’s true that I should learn to control my temper better, but after over three years of dealing with it, I’ve thrown in the towel on trying to suppress it completely. Well, at least I’ve improved from my initial rampaging state that disregarded the early victims, so that’s something.