Chapter 91 Their Respective Thoughts
By my side was Reinhardt-san, and in front of me were Kasper-san and Arnold.
――On the morning after the modest expedition training, we were on our way back to the royal castle, and Reinhardt-san had joined us. He was there to ask for Arnold and Elvira's cooperation.
As soon as we returned from training, we went to see Arnold. And we had arranged for the negotiation to take place in the evening after work.
"I understand the situation. But could you please let us discuss it internally?"
As soon as Reinhardt-san finished explaining everything, Arnold said calmly. Reinhardt-san, standing next to me, nodded slowly. And I felt his amber eyes turn towards me, so I turned to face him.
"Then, I will accompany Reinhardt-san to the inn."
Arnold and Kasper-san had a stern look on their faces like never before. It's no wonder. One of their subordinates suddenly brought a man from an unknown tribe called the Rustu people, and then they learned from the man's mouth about the existence of a demon king.
Even I would have been confused and needed time to absorb the facts if I didn't have my own memories. They probably need some time to think too.
With that in mind, I turned to leave with Reinhardt-san. Just then,
"Ampère, please come back after you see Reinhardt-dono to the inn."
Arnold's voice came from behind me.
I half-turned and nodded. But Arnold wasn't looking at me anymore.
I took Reinhardt-san with me and headed for the inn. He didn't say anything during the whole journey. I tried to offer some topics to break the awkward silence by glancing at Reinhardt-san's profile, but he too had a serious expression as if he was deep in thought.
Even for the Rustu people, this must have been a gamble.
In the end, I couldn't find the right words to say to the serious-looking Reinhardt-san, and we parted at the inn without exchanging a word.
"Once Arnold's decision is made, I will inform you again later."
"Um... okay. ...Please do."
Reinhardt-san still seems to have some guilty feelings towards me. He responded in a casual tone for a moment, but then immediately bowed politely.
While gazing at the setting sun in a daze, I walk towards the castle at a deliberately slow pace. Arnold and Kasper-san are probably brainstorming right now.
However, no matter how slowly I walk, it's a short distance, and I soon reach the door to the room from earlier. I hesitate for a moment, but then make up my mind and knock on the door. "Come in," comes the immediate reply from inside.
"Excuse me."
"Ampère, what did you think?"
As soon as I enter the room, I'm asked a question without even having a chance to catch my breath. They were waiting for me.
Taking a breath to calm myself down, I answer slowly.
"I don't see any contradictions in the story of the Rustu people, and I think it's worth a try."
"Can you trust these Rustu people?"
His gaze was sharp and piercing.
From Arnold's point of view, he wouldn't want to believe that a demon king is nesting inside his beloved sister. And it's a sudden story from a tribe that just appeared out of nowhere. It's no wonder he's suspicious.
"I" was able to believe it because I know the story of the "Last Brave". My memories from my previous life were the basis for my belief in them. However, this basis is only known to "me", so naturally it doesn't make sense to Arnold and the others.
"They knew about the power of the Lukas Hero, and it's true that they've been watching over Self-destruction disease patients for a long time. They also told me about past patients."
"Honestly, I don't feel anything but suspicion when they suddenly appear and start talking about being a messenger of God or a demon king."
Kasper-san's calm voice suddenly cut in. I hastily look over there and meet his cold purple eyes.
Kasper-san doesn't seem to have any good feelings towards the Rustu people. That's clear from his expression.
"Well, I guess that's why they haven't asked for our help until now."
Kasper-san's words caught me off guard.
This was the first time he had ever shown such animosity towards someone. Kasper-san is usually lighthearted, but he is always calm and has never shown such malice in his tone or expression.
"But," Kasper-san continued,
"if the rumors about the demon king are true, then we're dealing with something that's beyond our level. It's going to be hard to help Elvira-chan without their help."
He was right. Arnold must have felt the same way, as he lowered his chin and stared at Kasper-san intently.
"Whatever path you choose, we'll back you up as much as we can, so don't worry about that. We'll leave the decision to Arnold and the others."
Kasper-san rattled off those words quickly and then shut his mouth. Not only that, but he left the room.
As I stared blankly at the door Kasper-san had closed, I heard the creaking of wood behind me. I turned around and saw Arnold sitting in a chair, his head bowed.
"Demon king... God's messenger... Ampère, do you really think they exist?"
"...It's true that monsters are rapidly gaining strength. It could be a sign of the demon king's resurrection. Arnold-san, didn't you say that the monster we met in Platonovena said, 'The return of the one is near' before he died? The one he was referring to might have been the demon king."
I tried to state the facts as calmly as possible, without resorting to emotional arguments.
Yes, the events leading up to the demon king's resurrection have already taken place. And Arnold was involved in those events. He must have been wondering about what happened in Platonovena.
Arnold didn't respond. He seemed to be deep in thought, so I spoke again.
"The people of Rustu said that Lukas's strange power was also the power of a Hero given to defeat the Demon King. They also knew about the mysterious power that suddenly appeared in my childhood friend."
'll stop here for now. I took a few deep breaths and opened my mouth again.
"I'll explain it later. I can connect the events that have happened so far with what they are saying. But... I can only connect them. There is no absolute proof that it is okay to believe them."
I looked at Arnold. He was still not moving.
I had to somehow persuade Arnold. There is no guarantee that this attempt will be absolutely successful, but if we don't even know whether it will be successful or not, we will only be marking time here. We can't move forward.
"It is true that the symptoms are being suppressed by The Drinking Water of the Spirits now, but if what the people of Rustu say is true, no one knows what will happen in the future. I'm most afraid of what will happen to Elvira-chan if we don't believe the words of the people of Rustu and just prescribe The Drinking Water of the Spirits."
Arnold looked up and looked at me. I stared into his black eyes and continued.
"I absolutely don't want to regret what I did then. If there is something I can do, I want to do it. I don't want to see any more people die from self-destruction disease."
I didn't look away from his black eyes and said slowly. It was my true heart.
――I will never let Elvira die. I don't want to see anyone else lose their life to the absurdity of this world called self-destruction disease.
Arnold lowered his head again and rubbed his brow as if to stretch out the deep wrinkles. Then he took a big breath and lowered his head again as if to think.
Silence falls. After a long, long silence that feels like an eternity, Arnold raises his face slightly and says, "That's right."
"I don't want to regret the choice I made today. Let's do our best."
――There was no hesitation in his voice.
Arnold's decision was quick. He immediately stood up from his chair and headed towards the door with haste.
"I'll request the Knight Order for assistance. In the worst-case scenario, this world might be involved."
My heart skipped a beat at Arnold's words. But I immediately nodded in agreement.
From now on, we need to be prepared for the worst. The preparations will take time, and I need to do everything I can to be ready.
First, I need to contact Lukas and replenish The Drinking Water of the Spirits. Then――
"...I'm sorry."
I quickly raised my head at the sudden words. I met Arnold's eyes as he held the doorknob, ready to leave.
"I'm counting on you."
Arnold smiled, his eyebrows slightly lowered, as if he was embarrassed or troubled. It was a look I had never seen before.
* * *
I hurried down the castle corridor to inform Reinhardt-san at the inn about Arnold's response. I passed through the courtyard, opened the double doors, crossed the castle gate...
"Laura-chan."
A voice called out from behind.
I reflexively turned around. There stood――
"Kasper-san..."
"Sorry to bother you, but can I ask you something?"
His voice was even lower than before.
I instinctively braced myself. The pale purple eyes behind his glasses seemed colder than ever.
"Did you hear the reason why the people of Rustu have been hiding the true cause of the Self-destruction disease until now?"
Kasper-san's question took my breath away. He had already figured it out in this short time. He is indeed an excellent alchemist.
I hesitated for a moment, but knew I couldn't lie.
"Only the Hero can defeat the resurrected demon king. In the absence of the Hero, they had to keep the demon king, who had been quiet, from being provoked..."
"So they deliberately hid the information to prevent the humans from curing the disease, right?"
Before I could say anything decisive, Kasper-san's voice cut me off. His eyes, fixed on me, were so serious that I could only nod in response.
Silence fell. I still didn't know what had happened between Kasper-san and my mentor, or why they were now estranged. But without a doubt, he knew about the existence of Self-destruction disease and Annette-san, my mentor's granddaughter, who had died from it.
What was Kasper-san thinking right now?
"...Excuse me, Kasper-san?"
I took a few steps towards Kasper-san, who had lowered his head. And as I peered into his face from below, he twisted his mouth into a crooked grin.
"I understand how you feel. The existence of Heroes is just too big for this world. It's scary even for an outsider like me."
Kasper-san's words sent a shiver down my spine.
――The existence of Heroes is too big.
Those words hit at the core of this world. This world was created for Heroes (players), and Heroes (players) were at the center of everything. All of the past was the foundation for the main story (future) where Heroes (players) interfered with this world, and everything converged on the main story (future).
But Hero ―― Lukas was also a young boy who was tossed around by fate.
"Well, if what the people of Rustu are saying is true."
Kasper-san laughed at that. His smile was completely back to his usual self. But that only made the cold purple eyes he had shown me earlier linger in my mind.
Kasper-san raised the corners of his mouth again and said,
"Let's do our best, Laura-chan."
With those words, he turned on his heel.
I watched him go. His back was hunched, making him look tired.
Was he also one of those who hated Self-destruction disease? ―― I thought, but right now, I had to tell Reinhardt-san about Arnold's will, so I ran off.
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