Chapter 134 The Enemy Of My Hometown
――He was chased by a monster and invited into Fontapuune-sama's barrier, along with the "Last Brave" party members and Hero-sama's future best friend. Who would have thought we'd meet like this, in a place like this?
I was so surprised that I stared at his face for a few seconds,
(And, anyway, I have to heal him first)
I snapped back to reality, took out a healing potion from my pouch, and held the container to the young man's mouth.
The young man's eyebrows twitched. Had he regained consciousness?
"U...gh."
A faint groan. I slowly poured the healing potion into his slightly open mouth. His Adam's apple bobbed up and down.
His eyelids slowly opened, revealing beautiful green eyes, just like I remembered. I gazed into his unfocused eyes and asked,
"Are you okay...? "
"Where is this...? "
"We're in the forest near Flaria. You were being chased by a monster and..."
As I spoke, the young man gradually understood his current situation, and a light flickered in his unfocused eyes. Then, he said "that word".
"Ah! Hero!"
"Huh?"
Did he just say Hero?
The young man sat up with a start, but then groaned and clutched his head, apparently feeling lightheaded.
I hastily supported his back and laid him down again.
"Hey, are you okay?"
"Marta"
Marta approached us, sheathing her dagger ―― I think it was Lu-kun and Ta-kun. When I looked, the monster that had been chasing the young man was completely charred, its original form unrecognizable. Marta must have finished it off with magic after stabbing it with her sword.
Marta looked around and muttered,
"I took care of the monster, but the weakened barrier might have returned to normal. We should ask Avour about it."
"Yeah, that's a good idea."
So, what's worrying me is the barrier set up in this land. Inviting a young man and even allowing monsters to invade means the barrier must have weakened temporarily. After letting in the injured person, the naturally weakened barrier will return to its original state, but... what's going to happen in this situation? Honestly, it's unsettling.
I agree with Marta's words. But one thing, I'm worried about going back to Flaria right now. There might be more monsters outside the barrier.
"But, is it okay to go outside the barrier now?"
"Hmm... you, who were attacked, were there many monsters around you? Was the city attacked by monsters?"
Marta crouched down and peered into the young man's face. He, still lying down, lazily shook his head.
"No, the ones from earlier were the ones that chased me, and I don't think there were any other monsters."
His tone is becoming clearer and clearer. Seeing him like this, I'm relieved that he probably hasn't been affected by strong poison or paralysis.
However, we can't let our guard down. The healing potion I administered earlier was only a temporary measure, and we need to hear more about his symptoms and give him a suitable healing potion.
Now that we know there are no monsters outside, I want to head to the Flaria branch as soon as possible.
"Then maybe it's better to go back to the city first. We haven't finished treating him yet..."
Yeah, Marta nodded in agreement with my words, gazing intently at the young man's face from directly above. Then, she observed his face from various angles, her eyes darting back and forth.
The perplexed young man and I are wondering what's going on. A few seconds later, Marta's muttering cleared up my doubts.
"...he's not a monster in disguise, right?"
It seems she's suspecting that this young man might be a pawn sent by the demon king to break the barrier. As someone who knows about the "Last Brave," I want to trust him unconditionally, but there's a possibility that things might not be what they seem. Until we can determine whether he'll become an ally or not, it's better to stay vigilant.
Marta reached out to touch the young man's cheek, and pinched it. Was she trying to see if he was possessed or not?
"Ow! What's with you?!"
"Aah! Is that how you treat your lifesaver?!"
The young man was about to scold Marta, but when he heard the words "lifesaver," he suddenly became meek. There was nothing he could say after that.
He gently brushed Marta's hand away from his cheek and apologized sincerely.
"I'm sorry. I really appreciate your help, thank you."
"No need to thank me."
Marta didn't seem to mind and forgave him easily.
Seeing the 2 of them chatting lively like this brought back fond memories. These 2 were the mood-makers in the Hero Party, after all. It wasn't the first or second time they had made them laugh with their quick-witted conversations.
They had met the "Last Brave" heroes twice in Flaria, and I couldn't help but feel excited, thinking that the Hero Party's strength would increase. The event might be biased, but I was looking forward to it.
* * *
After that, I, Marta, and the injured close friend Character returned to the inn to take a break. As soon as we entered the room, Marta raised her voice.
"Avour Is the Fontapuune barrier still up? Is it okay?"
'What happened?'
Suddenly, a red light orb appeared out of nowhere. I could see the young man holding his breath beside me.
"It seems that Spirit-sama invited this person who was attacked by a monster, and the monster came in together with him. We defeated the monster, so I don't think the demon king knows the location, but I want to make sure the barrier is up properly."
Marta's words made Avour-sama nod, saying "I see." Then, Avour proposed to check just in case, and Marta agreed without hesitation, about to leave the room we had just entered.
"I'll go check with Avour. Laura, take care of this person."
"Ah, okay."
With that, she left, and the door closed with a bang. In an instant, I was alone with the young man.
I glanced up at the young man. Our eyes met, his green eyes locking onto mine. But he quickly averted his gaze.
――What's with this, it's so awkward.
"Umm, let's go to the Flaria branch to get a healing potion, for now."
I forced a smile and called out to the young man. Then, without waiting for a response, I tried to leave the room, reaching for the doorknob――but was stopped by a call from behind.
"Wait! My name is Julius Hauering. Thanks for really saving me."
I turned around. The young man――Julius Hauering――was bowing his head towards me.
"The Last Brave" where he became friends with the protagonist, and in the end, they recognized each other as their only true friend, the young man with chestnut-colored hair, Julius. He was skilled at using his fists and legs to quickly take down monsters, and was also good at healing magic, often helping them out. That's right, there was a reason why he was good at healing magic――
No, now's not the time to think about my past life. I saw that I couldn't recover on my own and was close to running out of MP, so I had to get a healing potion from the Flaria branch anyway.
"I'm Laura Ampère, an alchemist. I just made the healing potion, so thanks should go to Marta... the woman from earlier."
We exchanged greetings and headed towards the Flaria branch together. It wasn't a long distance, and I didn't want to bother Julius, who still didn't seem to be in top condition, with questions, so there was no conversation between us until we reached the branch.
There were many things I wanted to ask. Why was he here now? He seemed to be searching for the Hero, but what for? Was his hometown village safe?――
"...Who's that guy?"
As we entered the synthesis room of the Flaria branch, Arnold greeted us, his eyes wide with surprise. Iris and the others must have been on their lunch break.
I introduced Julius to Arnold, who was staring at us with a puzzled expression.
"He was protected in Flaria's forest. I'm Julius Hauerling, a traveler. Fontapuune-sama, or another Spirit-sama, invited him into the barrier."
"Thanks..."
Julius gazed back at Arnold, who was staring at him with caution, and gave a slight bow. Arnold approached Julius with large strides, looking down at him, and asked:
"Were you attacked by a monster?"
"Uh, yes."
"Is your body numb?"
"A little."
Arnold asked several more questions about his symptoms, seeming to understand the situation. He took out a healing potion from the shelf and handed it to Julius. Then, without saying a word, he gestured with his eyes, saying "Drink it."
Julius was taken aback by the curt response, but as the one being treated, he couldn't say anything, so he silently took the potion and started drinking it slowly. Meanwhile, Arnold glanced at me, so I grabbed his arm, saying "Excuse me," and pulled him to the corner of the room.
I had to report the situation.
"It seems Julius-san was attacked by a monster, and Fontapuune-sama and the others invited him into the barrier to help him. Marta defeated the monster, so I think the demon king doesn't know the location, but there's still a possibility."
I whispered this to Arnold, who let out a small sigh and crossed his arms. Deep wrinkles formed between his eyebrows.
Honestly, this isn't a good situation at all.
"It's been some time since Lukas and the others left. We can only wait for their return while strengthening our combat power."
"That's right. That's all we can do――"
"――Hey, you just said Lukas?"
"Huh!?"
I was startled when a sudden voice came from behind me, and I jumped a little. When I turned around, Julius apologized and asked,
"Is Lukas the name of the Hero? Are you guys acquaintances of the Hero?"
"Acquaintances, that is..."
The details of the conversation didn't reach my ears, but it seems Lukas's name did manage to reach him. Still, I had no idea how to respond to Julius's question, so I looked up at Arnold for help.
He didn't show any signs of agitation on his face, and instead, opened his mouth with a completely neutral expression.
"Sorry for the late greeting. I'm alchemist Arnold."
"Arnold... black hair... ah! You're the rumored black-haired magician!"
Julius's face suddenly brightened up. The rumored black-haired magician. I had a vague idea, but it seemed Arnold was quite famous due to his abilities.
The wariness he had towards Arnold until now seemed to vanish, and Julius flashed a cheerful smile as he took Arnold's right hand. Then, he forcibly greeted him.
"Wow, what great luck I never thought I'd meet someone like you, a friend of the Hero, in a place like this. Which means... the Hero is here too, right?"
"No obligation to answer a stranger like you."
Arnold shook off Julius's hand with an annoyed expression. It had been a while since I saw Arnold's prickly attitude towards others. I thought he had mellowed out, but it seemed Arnold was still a difficult person to deal with in general.
Julius toned down a bit after being strongly rejected by Arnold. He lowered his eyebrows and asked again.
"Ah, no, sorry. I got a bit too excited... I mean, is it because of me that the situation is getting worse?"
"......"
Arnold didn't answer. In reality, that was the case, but he couldn't easily nod to Julius, who didn't know about the spirit's circumstances. If he nodded, he would have to explain the situation.
Julius looked at us two, who didn't answer, with a serious expression and said,
"Don't be on guard. I want to be of power. ...No, I want to take revenge on the demon king."
"...Revenge?"
An unexpected word flew out of Julius's mouth, and I couldn't help but tilt my head.
The Julius of "Last Brave" was a person unrelated to words like "revenge". He was always bright and cheerful, and together with Marta, he would liven up the party members. When the protagonist was troubled, he would worry together with them, making him a reliable and ideal friend character. He would joke around when the time was right, and be serious when the situation called for it, and that gap was also charming.
(He joined the travel companions because his hometown village was attacked by monsters and was saved by the Heroes...)
So, when the Heroes visited his hometown village, it was right in the middle of being attacked by monsters. The Heroes saved the village, and as a token of gratitude, he joined the Heroes' party.
――Because I knew that flow, I was a bit worried about what was happening to his hometown village. However, the village where "Last Brave" Julius was from was a very ordinary village in the country of Ostria. If that was the case even now, I thought that maybe Knight Order leader Vake and new magician Flor had strengthened the village's barrier, but――
Julius hung his head. However, he only hung his head for a few seconds before immediately looking up again. ――At that time, a clear "hatred" was floating in his green eyes.
"I want to take revenge on the enemies who destroyed my hometown."
――Like that.
My breath caught. My fingertips trembled. I clenched my fist tightly.
The continuous unexpected developments left my head spinning in confusion.
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