Chapter 16: Someone, Please Tell Me What’s Wrong with Me
Time was of the essence.
Eris.
Mika. Ange.
With each passing moment, the time limit drew closer.
The barrier, Mille-Feuille, set by Ange, emitted a cracking sound, almost like a scream.
I was terrified of having to choose.
I was terrified that one of them might die.
In that moment, a voice reached me.
“Master! You told me to leave this to me, right?!”
“Eris?!”
“I’ll be fine! I swear I’ll take this guy down! So, Master, just do what you can!”
We are the best master and disciple, after all—I felt she was saying that.
There was no more hesitation.
“Eris, I’m counting on you.”
I whispered softly and attempted to cast my spell.
“Take all my mana! Aaaaaaaah!!”
What activated was my final trump card, Out Strider del Sole.
“Alright, I’ll play along for just seven seconds.”
The world shifted.
The glimmer of the Treasure Sword seemed to freeze in place.
In that moment, time felt almost stopped for everyone.
One second passed.
I sliced through one of the blades touching Ange’s barrier.
I didn’t even notice the damage to my own body.
I thrust my sword into the second and third blades.
Three seconds passed.
I shattered the fourth and fifth blades in one blow.
Four seconds passed.
The sixth blade finally realized the damage it had taken.
It was too late. Without allowing for a counterattack, I hurled the blade into the air and threw my sword at it.
Ah, there are still three seconds left.
Five seconds passed.
The barrier broke, and I wiped the tears from Ange and Mika’s eyes.
Six seconds passed.
Of course, you bear some responsibility for carelessly provoking an attack, right?
I pulled back and delivered a gut punch to Ryuguin, trying to hold back (though I wasn’t sure if I succeeded).
Seven seconds later.
Out Strider del Sole dissipated, and sound returned to the world.
“Ta-ma-yaaaaaaa!!”
The sixth blade I had launched exploded, illuminating the night sky.
Beside me, Ryuguin exclaimed,
“I don’t want to die—” but was cut off by a sudden explosive impact to his gut, “—Gero-ro-ro-ro-ro!” He doubled over, writhing in pain.
“Ahhh! The Hero-sama just threw up!”
“Noooo! The Hero-sama made a mess down there too—”
I thought I had messed up, but what was done was done. This time, that guy was just too much.
I accepted that and dashed toward Eris.
When I saw Eris exchanging swordplay with the Dragonbone Swordsman, I caught a glimpse of the Knight Commander in some of his techniques.
That’s when I felt a sense of discomfort.
No, this is different… but could it be possible?
The Dragonbone Swordsman seemed to wield multiple distinct sword styles, as if possessed by different people, each with completely different techniques and schools of thought.
Perhaps, somehow, the Labyrinth had granted the sword techniques of the strong warriors known to humanity to this monster.
But even so, what does that matter?
The strong remain strong, and the victors are the winners.
If the opponent wielding the sword is just one, then it’s merely a one-on-one battle.
What unfolded before my eyes was a duel between the strongest swordsman of all time and the current strongest swordsman—just a clash between those two.
The question of which of the two was purely stronger was simply that.
Then a strange thought crossed my mind.
The two boss monsters that should have existed might have found a one-on-one duel inconvenient from the Labyrinth’s perspective, perhaps it was an error.
Against Eris, the Dragonbone Swordsman swung his powerful arm, composed of dragon bones, with such force that it wouldn’t be surprising if it were called a dragon’s strike. With divine technique, Eris narrowly dodged each blow, continuing to parry.
At that moment, Eris, who seemed to be on the defensive, suddenly shouted, “Ha!” The Dragonbone Swordsman’s powerful sword was smoothly ensnared by Eris’s Holy Sword—Eris seized the opportunity and delivered a decisive slash.
“Impressive.”
The Dragonbone Swordsman spoke with satisfaction before turning to ash and vanishing.
“Master! We did it!”
“I saw it all.”
“Wasn’t I amazing?!”
“Yeah, you were incredible! You were amazing!”
I was at a loss for words due to the sheer skill displayed, but we both waited for the excitement to settle with time.
“Well then, shall we prepare to head back?”
“Master, look at this!”
“This is it! The boss’s sword! Wow! As expected of my disciple!”
“Make sure to praise me a lot when we get back!”
Eris extended her pinky, saying, “It’s a promise.”
“Sure.”
I linked my pinky with Eris’s and nodded silently.
However, I want to record here that the time Eris and I wished for would never come again.
There’s a saying that goes, “Easy come, easy go.”
I couldn’t possibly think that way.
“Are you all safe?”
I called out to the three standing at the entrance with expressions of despair.
“I’ll come over, so wait for me. It’s quite a distance to the portal, so if Ryuguin is tired, I’ll carry you.”
As I said that, Eris dashed toward the three.
I caught a glimpse of Eris’s expression.
Those eyes, that face.
Memories flooded back.
No way, this is wrong, stop it, why is this happening—.
Kneeling, Eris raised her Holy Sword with both hands.
“Hero-sama, if you would allow it, I, Eris Gladius, would like to become your sword—”
“!!!”
I shouted with a voice that couldn’t form words.
—This isn’t right!
I leaped forward, closing the distance to their attack range.
—This must be some mistake!
I swatted the raised Holy Sword aside.
—Don’t insult their noble souls!
I cleanly severed Ryuguin’s head in one stroke.
The severed head of Ryuguin rolled away, tongue lolling out.
Mika and Ange, momentarily stunned, quickly let out screams.
“Mika!!”
The trembling Mika replied, “Yes!”
She raised her voice, perhaps to ensure my sword wouldn’t turn toward her.
“Heal her so she doesn’t die!! You can do it even in this state!!”
Mika was one of the world’s top healers.
That much should be a piece of cake.
“Yes! I’ve performed the healing!”
“Are you scared of me?”
She looked down, her face pale.
After what I had just done in front of everyone, there was no turning back for me now.
I was aware of the emotions swirling within me like stagnant sludge. I had only been forcefully sealing them away, trying to prevent them from surfacing.
“Mika, you can use Pledge Magic, right? Use it.”
I pointed at each of them in turn.
“The targets are me, Ryuguin, and the three of you.”
I conveyed the detailed steps.
As Mika chanted Pledge Magic, a radiant balance appeared.
“The weight of the balance I can offer you is the weight of life—‘I will let Ryuguin go here.’ In exchange, I want something from the four of you that balances this weight.”
Ange stood dazed beside the bloodied Ryuguin.
Her vacant gaze turned toward me.
I felt a tearing sensation in my chest at their gaze.
“First, all three of you must ‘take care of yourselves from now on.’”
The pledge I was about to impose on them was purely my selfish desire, an ego wishing for things to return to how they once were.
“Ange, ‘be sincere with magic and yourself.’”
Once, she loved magic more than anyone and was honest with herself.
Mika, trembling in fear of me, desperately tried to suppress her shaking hands, gripping them until they turned pale.
“Mika, ‘continue to save many people from now on.’”
Once, she was a compassionate person who helped others without regard for status.
Eris, with a pale face, held her head and cried.
“Eris, ‘never forget to strive and never offer your sword to the Hero.’”
She was always a proud girl who strived to improve and would never offer her sword to a Hero.
The emotion that had caused this situation was just one—do not tarnish their noble souls.
Had they changed, or had they been changed?
What had happened? Should I trust them? Had they betrayed me? No matter how much I thought, I couldn’t find an answer.
Mika nodded repeatedly at my request, hastening the casting and completion of the spell. Once this ritual was finished, I knew I would never face them again.
They say that no one can live alone. Yet, I believe that people don’t choose to be alone out of desire; rather, circumstances often lead them to that solitude.
Memories of them floated in my mind like delicate soap bubbles, rising and bursting, one after another, only to vanish into nothingness.
This feeling was merely the remnants of my possessiveness, a reflection of my own baseness.
“F-Finished…” Mika announced with a trembling voice.
I turned my back on her, and with the signal that the ritual was complete, I left that place, severing all ties as I did so.