Volume 6 Chapter 24 Discussion To Retake I
That night, the atmosphere at the party house was eerie.
Clay crossed his arms, gazing at something. Even Clay wasn't free from regret and self-rebuke, but...
However, as the surroundings became more chaotic, Clay's calmness seemed to increase.
"---"
"If only I... if only I hadn't called for help. I..."
"..."
From the right, Ice stared straight into empty space. Toxy cried, still full of regret. Sandra looked down, lost in thought.
Toxy was able to express her emotions, so it was okay for her. But Ice was probably the most messed up. Sandra wasn't someone who showed her emotions easily, and it was hard to understand what she was thinking.
Clay took a deep breath. At times like this, Clay's role as vice-leader was to be the pillar of the party.
Clay didn't have Wade's charisma, but that's why he had to take Wade back, no matter what it took, especially in a situation like this.
So, Clay placed his hands on the table and opened his mouth.
"We'll take Wade back. We'll do whatever it takes to get him back. To do that, let's discuss it together."
As Clay said that, Toxy and Sandra snapped out of their daze. Ice was still unresponsive. After leaving her alone for a while, Toxy and Sandra decided to talk together with Clay.
"...Take him back... yeah, that's right... we have to take him back..."
As Toxy said that, she started shaking. Clay felt the pain too. Fist of the Dragon. It was as if they had experienced being powerless like a child.
But Sandra remained calm.
"Sorry, Clay. I got out of control. Let's take Wade back. First, let's think together."
"Sandra-san, thank you. Toxy-san is okay too. If you're afraid to fight Fist of the Dragon, you can still play a role with just your poison."
"...Yeah. So, that's right. If it's an opponent that strong, it's not a good idea to face them head-on. My specialty is poison, so... Let's do it."
Toxy looked up with a fierce gaze. This should be enough to clear their minds. Finally, Clay looked at Ice. Toxy and Sandra did the same.
"Ice-san. Ice-san is..."
"Shut up, I'm concentrating right now..."
Clay's eyes widened, and he clamped his mouth shut. He sensed that the remaining 2 were also concentrating, and the room fell silent.
After a few minutes, the living room of the party house was filled with an awkward silence. Then, Ice broke the silence.
"I've found the Fist of the Dragon's hideout. I've confirmed that Wade-kun is being held there, so it's definitely..."
"Wow, Ice-chan! You're the strongest in information warfare and siege warfare!"
"Ice really did a great job. Congratulations!"
"...Ice-san. You're really amazing."
Ice wiped the sweat from her face, looking tired. Then, she took out a large map from a nearby shelf and unfolded it. The map is quite worn out.
"This is... the abandoned castle beyond that mountain. It's been secretly rebuilt and fortified as the main base..."
"I see. Wade-kun is being held there, huh?"
"Let's go quickly."
"Sandra, wait."
Toxy stopped Sandra, who was eager to go. Sandra, who had become calm, slowly returned to her seat.
"I'm getting impatient. This can't be done like this."
"I know, Sandra. But it can't be done. The Fist of the Dragon is too strong."
The room fell silent again. It was up to them to defeat the Fist of the Dragon and rescue Wade. But how could they do it?
They had to face the fact that even at the gold rank, they were no match for the Fist of the Dragon. The feeling of being utterly powerless was unbearable. Even the dragon could laugh at them, and the wall was too high.
But Ice had said...
"Fist of the Dragon is too strong... but that's not relevant right now, right...?"
At those words, everyone shook their heads. They didn't understand the meaning. After all, how could they rescue Wade, who had been taken by Fist of the Dragon, without defeating Fist of the Dragon?
In the face of that question, Ice continued,
"But, Fist of the Dragon can only be defeated by Wade-kun. Trying to do that ourselves is pointless and impossible, right...?"
"What do you mean by impossible? I also think it's impossible. But are we just going to give up on Wade?"
"Toxy-chan, calm down... There's no way we're giving up on Wade... That's just not possible."
Upon hearing Ice's calm and factual response, Toxy fell silent. Then she said, "Sorry. I was getting worked up. Can you continue?"
"Yeah... Well, you see? First of all, it's a big misunderstanding to think that we have to defeat Fist of the Dragon to save Wade."
"What do you mean by that?"
"Well, you see? Wade-kun is stronger than anyone in Karditsa, and he's only getting stronger. I'm sure that even if he's caught by Fist of the Dragon and becomes a prisoner, that's how it is."
Clay began to understand what she meant.
"Instead of us rescuing him, it's more like we support Wade-kun's escape."
"Yeah...! I think that's probably the closest... Of course, if it's an opponent we can defeat on our own, we should defeat them. But Fist of the Dragon is different."
"I understand what you're trying to say, Ice. Wade recently mentioned something about taking that big sword to the blacksmith. Should we give that to him?"
"Yeah, that's right...! I think we should do things that will help Wade-kun."
"Anyway, we can't delay any longer. Wade got caught up in some kind of torture or something."
"I don't think so."
Toxy's unease made Ice shake her head.
"Wade-kun is not that weak of a person, so I don't think Fist of the Dragon would do something like that to him."
"Yeah, Fist of the Dragon did say some weird things when we were trying to escape."
"Ah... is it because of a rival or something?"
"Yeah, that's it."
Clay thought about various things while listening to the conversation of the 3 of them. How to help? Who to ask for help? What to prepare? How to do it?
He opened his mouth.
"We don't have time to be idle. Wade-kun being captured is not just a secret between us. It was a fierce battle, and there are people who saw it. We can't keep it a secret."
"What do you mean?" Ice asked.
"It's a matter of morale. If Wade-kun loses, the morale of Karditsa's soldiers will drop significantly. We need to inform our lord and come up with a strategy, and we can't just focus on rescuing Wade-kun."
"Why?" Toxy asked.
"Because the war is still ongoing, Toxy-san. We learned that today, but as for soldiers, we're overwhelmingly superior. The commanders who saw our movements today will adjust their strategy, taking into account our movements. As a result, we won't be able to move freely."
"The lord said he would make sure we could move freely," Sandra said.
"Because they didn't expect such a large force. With 50,000 soldiers in Fist of the Dragon's army, we've already defeated around 10,000 of them today. If we avoid direct confrontation with the commander and use our strength wisely, we can make Fist of the Dragon's army retreat within 5 days."
After that, each person thought for a moment. Clay continued.
"We thought it was a trump card against the commander, but it turned out our strength was also useful for wiping out the enemy army."
Lord will surely act accordingly.
"So we're supposed to be rewarded and given positions based on today's achievements, and we'll be operating under the military's command. If we can repel tens of thousands of enemy soldiers from the Fist of the Dragon army, it will be a victory for Karditsa, at least for now."
"Victory, huh? But we haven't defeated the Fist of the Dragon, and we haven't rescued Wade either."
"That's right. It may be a victory for Karditsa, but for us, it's a defeat. That's why we have to think and act. We have to respond to Lord's requests, prepare for Wade's benefit, and secure personnel who will act for us, not just for Karditsa."
"Do you think there are people like that?"
"There are. People who pretend to dislike him, but actually like Wade a lot."
With those words, a certain person comes to mind for everyone.
"I'll handle Lord's requests. I'll also advise on imposing a gag order, to ensure that we don't fall completely under the military's command. So, I want someone else to take care of the rest."
"Well, then, I'll..."
"Oh, Toxy-san, you'll probably be told to focus on joining the military, so you can concentrate on that."
"Huh!? Oh, but I guess my deadly breath is suitable for the military... I wouldn't want it to be used in the wrong places because it's poisonous."
"I feel the same way, Toxy-san. I think only Ice-san and Sandra-san can move freely."
"Yeah...! Then I'll go ask for reinforcements, okay...! "
"I'll go get weapons. If they're not ready, I'll hurry them up."
"Right. Then I'll leave it to you like that, Clay."
Each of them nods. Then, all at once, Toxy clings to Sandra, saying, "Oh, I'm worried about Wade~!" and Sandra comforts her with an expressionless "There, there."
Clay, feeling a bit tired, gets up and says, "I'm going outside for a bit," as he leaves the entrance.
It's night. It's still dark. It's still cold. It's about time for the warm season of spring to come.
Thinking that, someone's called from behind, "Clay-kun."
"Ah, Ice-san. Thanks for earlier. It was great that everyone's feelings came together, and most importantly, we found out the enemy's headquarters."
"N-no... It's for Wade-kun's sake."
Ice responds with a smile, and Clay can't help but think the same thing.
"Ice-san, you're pushing yourself the hardest."
"Huh...?"
"It's okay, because I am too. I don't think your love for each other is light, but for us who have always been together, from the incident with Muramasa before to this time, it's a bit tough."
When Clay says that, Ice keeps a calm expression and laughs, saying, "Hehe, maybe you're right."
There's nothing there. It's just pretending to have reason, but inside, it's all messed up.
Clay speaks.
"We still need to become stronger, don't we?"
"Yeah... That's right."
"I thought it was enough already. But it wasn't. We have so much more ahead of us."
"We have to get stronger..."
"Seriously, nothing's going our way. We thought we had the dragon in our grasp and could defeat it, but it seems like it's not enough."
"Still a long way to go... for both of us."
"I want to become stronger. Wade-kun keeps moving forward, even if I catch up a little. I'm sure I need to become strong enough to protect him."
"I want to protect Wade-kun. Because Wade-kun keeps getting stronger and stronger. I want to become so strong that he won't surpass me for a while, that he can't defeat me..."
Fist of the Dragon. It made all the members of the party give up, not just Wade. Wade won't be discouraged by this level of challenge and will become even stronger, surpassing Fist of the Dragon. But the party members are different.
Two failures. It was the previous Windy, and Fist of the Dragon. To become even stronger. Even at the gold rank, they suffered defeat. So next, they must surpass the platinum rank. But what lies beyond that?
Wade will become stronger in the future. He will move towards becoming the strongest. At that time, what will they do? Will they just be left behind? Or will they follow? Or―――will they overtake?
It's decided.
"...I'm getting cold. Should we go inside?"
"Yeah, let's... go inside, okay?"
Superficially calm, Clay and Ice laugh together. But both of them left their hearts in the stagnant heat.
Become stronger. Become stronger. Become stronger.
Two pairs of eyes with such obsessive intentions were floating in the darkness.
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