Volume 8 Chapter 26 The Village Head's Council
In front of a large squirrel that cuts that is becoming mottled in green and purple, Toxy said.
"Honestly, I was really struggling when I landed a critical hit on Sieg. It was a real close call, you know?"
"Was it?"
"Yeah. Unlike Ice-chan, I didn't have any new magic tricks up my sleeve, and I was getting really anxious. Ice-chan's got a strong heart, so she just kept challenging Sieg head-on, but I was getting really frustrated."
Hehe, Toxy chuckled awkwardly.
"So, I thought, 'What if I'm the only one left behind, and everyone else moves forward without me?' I was really serious about it, and I thought about it a lot. I asked Hydra about everything I could do, and we thought about it together..."
"Ah."
I just nodded, encouraging Toxy to continue.
"Sandra was able to do it with her talent alone. Clay reached his goal through hard work. So, I thought, 'What can I do?' and I came up with the idea of using poison."
"Poison, huh?"
"Yeah. What do you think? I did something pretty cruel, even I think so."
"..."
I thought for a bit, then replied.
"If I were you, I'd poison Sieg with a meal."
"――――Pffft."
Toxy burst out laughing at my response.
"Hahahahahaha! Ahahahahahahahaha! Can you believe it?!"
"I also learned some dirty tricks from Arthur during our political struggles."
"Hehehe, ahahaha... Yeah, that was a big hit. I poisoned Sieg's breakfast."
Toxy looked down, her gaze falling.
"I was really desperate at the time, and I thought this was the only way. I wasn't in a normal state of mind. I poisoned him, and Sieg started bleeding, and... everyone looked at me..."
Toxy's face contorted in a complicated expression.
"Everyone was shocked, but Alex and Sieg said it was okay. Alex especially said, 'I thought Toxy would do something like this.'."
Toxy looked at me.
"Those 2 are a bit weird, so I'm a little scared... but Wade said the same thing, so I felt relieved. They've been telling me that 'any usable hand is fine'."
"Don't you think I'm weird too?"
"If Wade is weird, then I'll become weird too. After all, I'm Wade's weird wife."
Toxy said, leaning her body weight on my chest.
"No matter what happens, I won't leave you alone. I love you, Wade."
"...Ah, I love you too, Toxy."
I hugged Toxy tightly and patted her back. Then, I said, "Well, let's get started."
"The previous village head was killed, so does that mean I'll become the new village head?"
"That's probably it... let's head back to the village for now."
"Yeah, let's do that."
I glanced at the squirrel's dead body and left the forest. Suddenly, I remembered something.
"Wade, what's wrong?"
"I was thinking of giving something to you, Toxy. It's something I don't need anymore, so maybe Toxy can use it."
What I took out was the Black Death Sword Nergal.
This sword is extremely toxic, and even if you don't draw it from its scabbard, ordinary people will feel unwell. It's a fittingly poisonous sword for The Cursed Thirteen Blades of Victory, which has a theme of disease.
But Toxy didn't even flinch. The Thirteen Blades are said to choose their wielders, but in reality, it's the opposite. Those who aren't suitable will die quickly, and those who are suitable will continue to use them.
"Is this...?"
"Yeah. The Black Death Sword Nergal. The Cursed Thirteen Blades of Victory, which brings disease. I think Toxy can wield it."
"Eh? I don't have very good memories of The Cursed Thirteen Blades of Victory, though..."
Despite showing a displeased attitude, Toxy received Nergal and gazed at it intently, blinking rapidly.
"...But maybe I'll get used to it. Since I have it, I might as well keep it."
"That's great. Well, if you don't need it anymore, just give it to someone who thinks 'this is it.' I also received it as an inheritance."
"Got it."
Toxy gently placed Nergal at her waist belt. It was as if Nergal had been there from the start, fitting perfectly at Toxy's waist.
Then, we set out. Even in this hellish Nilfheim, morning exists. A strange, unknown light, like the sun, peeked out from behind the mountains.
When we returned to the village, Renril, the older brother of the demon siblings, approached us.
"Did you kill the village head?"
"Yeah, that squirrel guy."
"That's good. We received a message from the village head union, saying they're preparing for a meeting, so I wanted to let you know."
"Thanks. I appreciate it."
As I bowed in gratitude, Renril took a deep breath and trembled slightly.
"...What?"
"No, I thought that was a phrase of gratitude I heard in rumors, and it's better to be a human sl*ve than a demon sl*ve..."
"This hell is still hell, even today..."
It seems the concept of gratitude hasn't taken root yet. That's amazing, in a bad way.
I chased away Renril, who was following me like a dog, asking "Can I do more, more?" and returned to the house I secured first. Everyone was taking a break, drinking soup.
"Ah... Welcome back, Wade-kun, Toxy-chan..." "Welcome back, both of you."
"I'm back, Ice, Clay." "I'm back, too. Hey, Sandra?"
"Zzz..."
When I looked closely, Sandra was the only one sleeping, holding a bowl of soup. I didn't assign her any work, but maybe she's tired. Or maybe she's just fed up.
"Let's leave the soup for Sandra."
"Ah... Really, Sandra-chan is sleeping..."
"Sandra's hopeless, I guess."
Ice and Toxy started moving, taking care of Sandra. I let out a wry smile and approached Clay.
"How's the situation?"
"It's going smoothly. We've prepared a house for everyone, and the demons finished hunting for several days' worth of food. You can ask Toxy-san about their treatment yourself. Also, there's a village head meeting or something."
"I heard it from Renril. I also defeated the previous village head, and since I got warped, I'll just be sent flying automatically, right? I don't really get it, though."
I don't really feel like I've become the village head, so I tilt my head. Then, Clay said:
"I think it's okay to feel at ease about that part, though. The demons are all like 'master, master,' so if the previous village head was defeated, the new one will probably be chosen by the villagers."
"That makes sense, I guess. Then, it's fine to just ask the villagers who came back about it."
I nod. As expected, Clay is really sharp, and I'm impressed. Then, Clay looked at me and said, "But what I'm worried about is..."
"If you're safely chosen as the village head, the question is how far the effects of that warp thing will reach. That's a bit of a problem, I think."
"What do you mean?"
"You'll leave here and head to the Demon King's castle once this whole ordeal is over. It's a long journey that'll take days. If another incident happens along the way, you'll be the only one who gets sent back here."
"That's a real pain!"
That guy was really annoying. And to make matters worse, if we don't resolve this, it'll be like the Roman Emperor's tail, dragging on forever. What can we do?
"So, the way to change the village head is by the villagers' influence, evaluation, and the death of the village head. If we just leave it, it'll automatically switch, but..."
"My Anahata Chakra isn't something that dies and revives, you know?"
It's like my body is rebuilt without dying, which is the effect of my second heart, the Anahata Chakra. If it doesn't change unless I die, that's a bit of a problem.
As I was worrying about it, Clay said:
"So, I thought this..."
"Yeah?"
Clay told me his idea, and I listened with a puzzled expression.
After hearing him out, Clay said, "How about it? With this, you probably won't become the village head, Wade-kun."
I took a deep breath and answered Clay.
"Clay, you've gotten used to this hellish place. It's a real mess."
"It's because Wade-kun has started to get used to it too, you know. As someone who claims to be your rival, I couldn't lose to you."
"I thought Clay was more like a partner or something."
"Well, in that case..."
"What's with the 'well, in that case'?"
I complained, and the 2 of us burst out laughing. Then, I answered.
"I'll accept that proposal for now. Whether I do it or not is up to me to decide."
"Got it, Wade-kun."
Just then, a loud, clear sound like a horn echoed from somewhere. A magic circle-like thing appeared around me.
"Whoa, it looks like I've been called. Well, Clay, everyone, I'm off."
"See you later, Leader."
"Wade-kun, do your best...!"
"See you later, Wade!"
"Hmm...see you later..."
"Haha, well, I'm off then."
I laughed at the last one, Sandra's sleepy words and waved goodbye. At the same time, my vision went dark.
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