Chapter 3: Last Smile
“How about you join us, Son-in-law?”
It was an invitation from Sensei.
But I—
“No, I’ll pass this time. You must have a lot to discuss, Sensei…”
At my response, Sensei rested his chin on his hand and let out a thoughtful “Hmm.”
“What’s with that reaction?”
Seeing me give him a sidelong glance, Sensei sighed, looking somewhat lonely.
“We need to talk about various things, Son-in-law. We should meet again soon.”
With that, Sensei left the room. If I were to meet Pulmy, Ange’s guardian, the conversation would inevitably turn to that time. It was a trial I could hardly endure. Thus, I had no choice but to decline Sensei’s invitation. Besides, my reasons for refusing weren’t limited to just Ange.
Aside from the Hero Party, there weren’t many people who had known about my existence since I was summoned to this world. Pulmy was one of those few.
And that was precisely why I didn’t want to see her.
This world was harsh for me… I couldn’t help but feel that even she might deny my existence.
If that became a reality, I would— I couldn’t bear the thought of my heart shattering into pieces again.
After finishing discussions and lunch with Anon and the others, I began preparing for the Fog extermination… or rather, Anon and the others had already started moving.
They had already assigned several parties, including those with exceptional Presence Detection Skills, to explore and eliminate the Fog.
Additionally, they had a rough idea of where to set up the temporary huts that were planned to be constructed in large numbers, and now we were just waiting for Sensei’s confirmation.
In the end, I was not consulted for my opinion, and things were progressing smoothly.
In short, what was expected of me was merely combat power… Smart people always think that way, don’t they? What do they think of us (muscleheads)?
While I grumbled in my mind, I was aware of my own muscle-headedness. As expected, when it came time to decide the party for the Fog extermination, I was asked for my opinion but ended up saying nothing constructive.
That said, the party formation this time was quite simple. There were two basic rules: the party must consist of at least four people, and one must have the Presence Detection Skill to scout for the Fog.
All the tedious brainwork was thrown entirely onto Anon, Saga, and Kuroe, while I, in a state of mindlessness, mumbled to myself, “Animals are nice,” and “Good boy, good boy,” as I played with the Eagle Dragon, which I had relied on many times before (it was always the same dragon).
After a while, while feeding it monster meat (safety confirmed) from my Magic Bag and teaching it tricks like “shake hands” and “more,” I was caught by Anon.
“What on earth are you doing…?”
I couldn’t admit I was escaping from troublesome matters to play with the dragon, and I felt my face heat up. Sensing something, Anon gave me a wry smile.
“I have a favor to ask. Although it’s just until the Sealed Labyrinth appears, could you help us take care of the Fog like everyone else?”
There was no way I could refuse Anon’s request. I love Anon.
“Leave it to me.”
I readily agreed. After that, there was further discussion among Anon, Saga, and the others, and as a result, my party was decided.
The members were me, Milo Assaultbody, the son of Saga, the leader of the Berserga Mercenary Corps, who had inexplicably taken a liking to me, and Deete, a mage girl also from the Berserga Mercenary Corps.
Deete, whom I met for the first time—Berserga was known for being a rare muscle-headed group, so a mage was quite unusual, but she was said to be exceptionally talented, endorsed by Saga and Camus.
Indeed, Deete was small, with braided hair and glasses, giving off a typical class representative vibe. If she wasn’t exceptional, it would have been a mistake.
By the way, the one with the Presence Detection Skill in this party was Milo. That made perfect sense; Milo had a wild beast-like aura.
Now, you might wonder, “Why did they end up with a three-person party right after explaining the minimum of four?” I wondered the same.
“You’ll be fine.”
Saga told me with a look that seemed to say, “Why are you asking something so obvious now?” Well, I guess that was the reasoning.
Regaining my composure, the three of us promptly set out to explore and exterminate the Fog. It was a joint effort to foster camaraderie, but I was somewhat optimistic that it might end up being a letdown. However, we unexpectedly encountered the Fog right from our first exploration.
Fortunately, even without my involvement, Milo and Deete were able to handle it with ease… Wait, huh? That means I didn’t do anything!
“Big bro, big bro, I did it!” Milo boasted to me, while Deete watched from a distance with a somewhat judgmental gaze. I continued the exploration while encouraging them.
In the end, we only encountered the Fog once, and there were only three of them, so it wasn’t too overwhelming. However, we came to recognize their presence once again.
After finishing the extermination, we returned to Ash’s mansion and disbanded.
Once I returned to my room and let out a sigh, I looked out the window. The sun had completely set, and the night was beginning to fall.
That night, I had a dream.
However, it was too vivid to be called a dream, too fragmented to be called vivid, too intense to be called fragmented, and too hazy to be called intense.
A beautiful woman—Pulmy—screamed.
“Fall back and regroup!”
Following her command, many panicked knights and mages retreated from the front lines.
Pulmy dashed out alone to buy time for a counteroffensive against the massive XXX that was surging forward like a tidal wave.
With a shortened incantation, azure flames ignited in both her arms.
She skillfully dodged the attack of the enormous XXX, which sought to engulf everything, and with incredible speed, she struck with her azure hand, completely severing the giant’s body. The cut blazed with azure flames.
Yet, the XXX continued to pulse with energy, and Pulmy retaliated by shooting her azure flames at it. She kicked up with her azure-tinged legs, which glowed with azure flames, to create some distance.
With soldiers still trapped in a state of panic behind her—protecting them—Pulmy faced the XXX.
“I’ll hold on until the two of you arrive! They will surely turn this situation around!”
Her efforts were nothing short of lion-hearted.
The azure flames she unleashed.
The azure hands that slashed.
With a single, powerful azure flame, she turned the XXX, which threatened to breach the crumbling defense line, to ash in an instant.
Her struggle continued.
She maintained the front line.
Finally, from the reformed mage unit, high-level magic rained down like a storm.
The elite mages, including Honest, and many clans, along with the Order of Knights of the Arcana Kingdom, poured their all into annihilating the XXX.
Pulmy, the central figure among them, was at the pinnacle of humanity in martial arts, magic, combat techniques, and strategy.
Yet still—
The scene shifted.
I heard the rough breathing of “Kohyu, Kohyu.” It was Pulmy.
She was now battered and bruised—her left arm was gone.
The front line had long since collapsed, and there was a young mage boy who had been left behind.
The XXX, now even more massive, sought to consume everything it touched, and was about to engulf the boy as well—
Pulmy pushed him away. She summoned her last ounce of strength to resist the XXX desperately.
She was buying time for the boy to escape.
And when she confirmed that he had made it out, she smiled—
“Ange.”
That was her final word.
With a thunderous crash, the massive XXX descended, swallowing her whole.
Even so, she—at the end of her life, burned everything she had, scattering in a brilliant azure light, taking everything with her in a magnificent explosion.