Kumo Desu ga, Nani ka? (LN) - Volume 11 - Chapter 10

JULIUS, AGE 16: FRIENDS 

“Heya. Been a while.” 

Two swaying mounds. 

Even through her clothes, the movement is obvious. 

Watching me like a hawk, Yaana notices my gaze and nudges me sharply with an elbow. 

“Hi, Aurel. It’s been a while.” 

I compose myself and greet my fellow apprentice. 

Right now, we’re in a certain town in the empire. 

“All they told us was to meet with the person in charge here, but I had no idea it was you, Aurel.” 

“Ah-ha-ha, right? I am a mage of the imperial court, y’see, believe it or not. Heh. Y’never know what the hell’s gonna happen in life, huh?” 

Aurel grins, looking nostalgic. 

She was originally Master’s caretaker, but he determined that she had magical potential and made her his second apprentice. Apparently, this led to her becoming a court mage. 

Aurel herself had only ever planned on getting a random job, getting randomly married, and living a somewhat random life, but things have turned out very different for her. 

“Is it tough work, being a court mage?” 

“Damn right it is.” She gives me a dead-eyed look. “All the other mages are just as pervy as our dumbass master, y’know. And they call me ‘ma’am,’ too! They’re way older than I am, dammit!” 

A group of old men like our master? 

Yeah, that definitely sounds tough to deal with. 

“Oh, but enough about my gripes. Let’s talk business. The guild master’s waiting for us, so c’mon with me, please.” 

With that, Aurel leads us toward the adventurers’ guild. 

“Seems like we’re kinda linked to this guild by fate, huh?” 

“What do you mean?” I ask. 

“You know, the mutated ogre that got away from Master?” 

“Ahhh, I see. That was here?” 

I’ve heard about this before: the unique ogre that appeared in the empire. 

It was far more powerful than any individual ogre should be, and it brought down many adventurers before our master was sent out to deal with it. 

Master even went into battle against it with the world’s strongest swordsman, yet it still escaped from both of them, which became major news. 

However, the ogre hasn’t been seen since it ran off into the Mystic Mountains, so it’s assumed that it was killed by the ice dragons that live there. 

And apparently, this is the very town where that ogre first appeared. 

“Ugh. Collecting herbs again?” 

“Don’t complain, Kunihiko.” 

As we arrive at the adventurers’ guild, two kids around Shun’s age are leaving the building. The boy’s eyes briefly meet mine as we pass each other. 

“Hey, if it ain’t Mr. Gotou. Is the guild master around?” 

“Oh, hey there, Aurel. Just a second.” 

The man walks into the back of the guild hall with practiced steps. 

That part of the guild is off-limits to anyone but employees, and this Mr. Gotou looks more like an adventurer to me. Is he allowed back there? 

“Come on through, he says.” 

“Gotcha. All right, this way.” 

Once Gotou calls out from farther inside, Aurel heads in, motioning for us to follow. 

Down the hall, we reach the guild master’s office and enter. Awaiting us inside are Mr. Gotou and an older man who’s probably the guild master. 

“We deeply appreciate you coming, Sir Hero,” says the man. “I am the guild master here.” 

“And I’m Gotou, an adventurer in these parts. It’s an honor to meet you.” 

“My name is Julius Zagan Analeit, the hero.” 

Once our introductions are complete, the guild master gestures for us to take a seat. 

“Well then, let’s get right to it, if you don’t mind. How much have you heard so far, Sir Hero?” 

“Very little.” 

We haven’t been given any real details about why we’re here, just that an unexpectedly troublesome situation has arisen. 

“I see. Well, I suppose I’ll explain from the beginning, then.” 

With that, the guild master starts explaining the trouble in the town, or rather in its immediate vicinity. 

“This town is very close to the Mystic Mountains. And if you go a bit farther east, you’ll reach the buffer zone with the demon-realm border. In short, the demon realm is quite close by.” 

This town is at the very border of the empire, so it’s a hairbreadth away from the demons. 

“However, it’s impossible to cross the Mystic Mountains. It isn’t as if there are no routes around the range at all, but there are tribes that guard those areas. It might not be quite as dangerous as the open mountains, but it’s still very harsh. In other words, demons almost never make their way through to here.” 

On top of being inhabited by ice dragons, the Mystic Mountains are far too cold for anyone to regularly traverse. 

The only paths around the mountains are inhabited by clans that make their living hunting demons. 

So while it might be close to the demon realm, there’s little fear of demons invading here. 

“But there was an incident a few years ago where one of those clans was slaughtered by one of the Demon Lord’s subordinates. And therein lies the problem.” 

“Are you saying demons have started attacking?” 

“Not exactly. Well, demons have come through, but not to attack us.” 

I assumed this meant that the demons were taking this chance to slowly advance, but it appears I was wrong. But he’s saying a demon did come? 

“What is it, then?” 

“Demon refugees.” 

That was the last thing I expected to hear. 

“What? Refugees?” 

Sitting next to me, Yaana widens her eyes in confusion. 

Incidentally, Aurel is sitting on my other side. 

And the sofa isn’t particularly large, so we’re all packed pretty close together. 

I know this isn’t the time to worry about such things, but the soft feelings on either side of me are very…distracting. 

No! This is serious. I have to focus. 

“There are very few of them who have made it through, but since that clan was destroyed, the occasional demon has attempted to use that gap to reach us here. And they all invariably say they’re fleeing the demon realm. In short, they’ve come here because they can’t live there any longer.” 

For a moment, I’m stunned into silence by his explanation. 

Demons are the fated enemy of humanity. 

They’re a symbol of terror and our constant opponent in an endless war. 

So who would expect some of those demons to flee their territory and come to the land of humans as refugees? 

“Erm, so…where are they now?” 

“While I do pity them, we certainly can’t let demons enter the human realm, so we either send them back or dispose of them here.” 

So they try to run away only to be met by a cruel fate? 

I can’t help feeling bad for them, even if they are demons. 

“We’ve interrogated captured demons about the situation in the demon realm, and it appears things are quite bad over there.” 

“How do you mean?” 

“It seems that ever since a new Demon Lord took over, the taxes, forced enlistment, and so on have all been quite harsh.” 

I’d already heard through the Word of God religion that there was a new Demon Lord in charge. 

I didn’t know what sort of person that was, of course, but it sounds like they must be a terrible tyrant. 

“So that’s why they’re fleeing? Guess demons don’t have it easy, either,” Hyrince murmurs. 

“But that’s all just the setup. This is where the real problem begins.” 

The guild master produces a single piece of paper. 

“What’s that?” 

“One of the demon men who made it here was carrying this. He said he came to deliver it to us.” 

“May I take a look?” 

“It’s written in the demon language…” 

“That’s all right. I can read it.” 

I’ve studied demon language thoroughly in preparation for a possible war, so I can converse and read in it without a problem. 

And the paper now in my hands contains startling revelations. 

To summarize: The new Demon Lord’s rule is so severe that they’re plotting an uprising. 

They want to cooperate with humans to defeat the Demon Lord. 

This Demon Lord is incredibly powerful, so they hope to borrow the strength of the hero for this. 

And they want to meet in secret to discuss this possible deal. 

“It’s suspicious.” 

“Very suspicious.” 

“Smells like a trap, all right.” 

Hyrince, Jeskan, and Hawkin immediately suspect a trap. 

“But it’s true that the demon realm is in such a terrible state that many demons are trying to flee into our lands, right?” says Yaana. “So maybe they really are asking for our help?” 

The letter contains a time and place for the secret meeting. 

It’s set to happen in a deep forest in the buffer zone with the demon realm. 

And the appointed time is just a few days from now. 

“It definitely sounds like a trap to me,” Hyrince grumbles. 

“I know.” I nod. 

“Then why are we walking straight into that trap, huh?” 

“I guess we’re betting on the tiny chance that it isn’t actually a trap.” 

We’re currently in the forest, heading toward the meeting point specified in the letter. 

As far as the authenticity of the letter, we reached the conclusion that it’s almost certainly a trap. 

It’s true that demon refugees have been filtering over the border, but it’s still absurd to think that they would turn to their bitter rivals, the humans, to help them start a rebellion—much less the hero, who could be called the mortal enemy of demons. 

Judging by the testimonies of the refugees about the state of the demon realm, the contents of the letter are believable to a certain degree. 

But it’s just too unnatural. 

Even if they really are plotting a rebellion because the new Demon Lord is too cruel a ruler, it’s highly doubtful that they would want to ask for help from their enemies. 

It’s far more natural to assume that the letter is a trap in order to lure out the hero—me. 

So we’re going into this assuming it’s a trap. 

Of course, if we know it’s probably a trap, the wisest course of action would be to ignore the invitation. There’s no need to put ourselves in danger by showing up. 

But we’re risking it anyway, in case the demons really are in serious trouble and are asking us for help. 

That’s probably not the case, but from what we know about the situation on the other side of the border, it’s not entirely outside the realm of possibility. 

In the million-to-one chance that it’s a genuine plea for help, if they really want us to aid them in overthrowing the Demon Lord, then I can’t ignore that. 

Besides, it could be a rare opportunity to lessen the animosity between humans and demons, if only a little. 

The enmity between the humans and demons won’t evaporate so easily, but it could be a chance to take a step toward peace. 

I know I’m being overly optimistic. 

That’s just a fantasy, and in all likelihood, what’s waiting for us is a trap. 

But there is a slim possibility. 

And I couldn’t bring myself to throw that chance away. 

“Yeah, I figured you’d say as much.” 

“If that is your choice, then of course I will follow you.” 

“Heh. You’re a softy, but that’s what’s so great about you.” 

“If it’s a trap, we’ll deal with it, eh?” 

My friends all kindly agreed to come with me. 

I feel bad for bringing other people into it, too, but here we are, jumping into a trap. 

“Ahhh, what the hell am I doing in this forest? I am a noble’s daughter, even if I’m broke as hell, y’know? Where did I go wrong, huh?” 

Aurel follows along glumly, muttering complaints. 

Aurel and some empire soldiers have joined our usual group today, as well as a few adventurers, including Mr. Gotou. 

Altogether, there are twenty of us. 

It’s enough people to proceed cautiously through the forest, keeping an eye out for traps without getting in one another’s way. 

The area designated for the meeting is deep in the forest, without a path to be found, so we’re cutting through brush and forging our own way there. 

“I’d like to give the damn idiot who picked this meeting place a piece of my mind.” 

“Perhaps they were trying to avoid being seen by the clans as well as the Demon Lord.” 

There are multiple clans living throughout the buffer zone, positioned wherever people might be able to pass through relatively easily. 

Maybe an inaccessible place like this was the only way to avoid them. 

And they probably had to keep away from the eyes of the Demon Lord, too. 

“Huh?!” 

I whirl around. 

“Wh-what’s the matter?” Yaana asks nervously. 

I don’t answer, staring into the depths of the forest. 

But…there’s nothing there? 

“Julius, what’s up?” 

Noticing my strange behavior, Hyrince cautiously approaches. 

Jeskan and Hawkin pull out their weapons and get into battle-ready formation. 

“I felt like someone was watching us.” 

The others all follow my gaze, peering into the darkness. 

“…Ain’t nobody there.” 

Hawkin has the sharpest senses of all of us. 

“…Maybe I just imagined it?” 

“Don’t be so sure,” Jeskan warns. “Could be someone was sneaking around and ran away when you noticed them.” 

“We know this could be a trap. It doesn’t hurt to be on the lookout for an ambush.” 

“Right.” 

We proceed more cautiously, keeping a close watch on our surroundings. 

All conversation falls silent as we tensely make our way to the meeting place. 

When we arrive, two people are there waiting for us. 

One is a young boy and the other a woman. 

A bewitching demon woman, wearing skimpy clothing that reveals her very ample bosom. 

They’re even bigger than Aurel’s?! 

“Glad you could make it!” 

The female demon grins triumphantly and steps closer. 

As I stand there frozen, she grabs my hand. 

That was a failure on my part, I think. 

My guard dropped while I was looking at her chest, even if it was only for a second. 

It’s in this moment that I recall what Jeskan said before about how I should build up a resistance to sexual provocations. 

And that there are demons who specialize in that sort of thing. 

“Guh?!” 

Pain ripples through my body. 

Immediately, I shake off the woman’s hand. 

Is this Poison Hand, the skill that’s popular with assassins?! 

But if it can break through my resistances and cause this much damage, it’s no ordinary Poison Hand! 

It could be the advanced skill Poison Attack or maybe even its evolved form, Deadly Poison Attack?! 

“You’re jumping us already?!” 

Hyrince shoves his way between the female demon and me. 

At the same time, the young male demon unleashes a magic spell. 

Aurel counters it with a Fireball, and the spells cancel each other out. 

“You think you can compete with MY magic?!” the boy demon shouts in surprise. 

As if on cue, a large group of armed men emerges from the thicket and charges at us. 

“Dammit! I knew it was a trap!” 

“Attack! Don’t let them get away!” 

Jeskan readies his weapon, and the female demon shouts orders to the hidden soldiers. 

We would have noticed such a large ambush before long—which is exactly why they’re making the first move, to crush us before we get the chance to run. 

“Hiyah!” 

I cut down the first demon soldier who charges me. 

Blood sprays through the air, and the soldier behind him stops as if rooted to the spot. 

“Didn’t you want to defeat the Demon Lord?!” 

I knew they were lying from the beginning, but I can’t help calling out to them anyway. 

“As if we’d ever stand a chance!” 

The response catches me by surprise. 

The female demon isn’t mocking me for being fooled or ignoring me—she’s shouting back, as if in frustration at their hopeless situation. 

“We have no choice but to obey! There’s no turning back for us now!” 

The female demon produces a whip and cracks it in the air. 

Whips have a wide range of attack, but they’re not as powerful as they look. If she combines it with Poison Attack, though, it becomes a lethal weapon that can poison anything it touches. 

Hyrince blocks the oncoming whip with his shield. 

“You really think these guys can be reasoned with?!” 

He makes no effort to hide his irritation. 

We were on guard for a trap, but we still didn’t expect to be attacked so suddenly. 

…No, I shouldn’t make excuses. 

I knew it was a trap, but I still carelessly let my guard down and approached the female demon, letting her get the upper hand. 

That just means I have to make up for that blunder right away! 

“Take this!” 

I slash at one attacking soldier with my sword, then bring down another with a Fireball spell. 

Then I loose a Light Sphere at the female demon. 

“Gah?!” 

She tries to deflect it with her whip, then grunts in surprise as the spell sends her whip flying and hurts her hand. 

Clutching the injury, she takes a step back, and several demon soldiers move between us to shield her. 

I couldn’t finish her off… 

“There’s too many of them. Julius is in trouble… Tch! Retreat!” 

As soon as he sees my condition, Hyrince calls for a retreat. 

I took a lot of poison in that first attack. To be honest, I’m in serious pain. 

Besides, we’re vastly outnumbered, so our chances of winning this fight are slim. 

“Jeskan! Give Julius a hand!” 

“You got it! Come on, Julius!” 

Jeskan supports me with his shoulder. 

“Don’t let them escape! We’ve got to bring them down here and now!” 

The female demon shrieks at her men, still clutching her wounded hand, and they charge after us. 

The young male demon keeps shooting magic at us, but Aurel has been consistently countering it. 

Hawkin tosses one of his ace-in-the-hole magic items, stopping their charge. On top of that, Mr. Gotou swings his sword, and lightning crashes down on the enemy. 

Amazing! So he has a lightning magic sword?! 

“Withdraw! Now!” 

Hyrince takes the lead, urging everyone to flee. 

I start running as best I can with Jeskan’s support, while Yaana runs alongside me, using Healing Magic to cure the poison. 

With my last strength, I fire a wide-range Light Magic spell behind us. 

It’s not as powerful as Holy Light Magic, but unfortunately, I haven’t learned a wide-range Holy Light Magic spell yet at my skill level. Even if I did know one, I’m not sure if I’d be able to use it properly in this situation. 

“Dammit!” 

Unable to wait and see if my spell did damage, I keep moving forward as Jeskan holds me up. 

Yaana’s magic seems to have rid me of most of the poison, but I haven’t regained the health I lost. 

As Yaana keeps casting Healing Magic on me while we run, my body starts to recover, but I can tell that I won’t be able to fight any longer. 

“Keep going! We’re getting away!” 

“Take this!” 

I hear Hyrince shout from behind me, followed by Mr. Gotou’s voice even farther back, accompanied by a thunderous rumble. 

A flash of light follows behind us, then the belated sound of Mr. Gotou’s magic sword attack ripping through the air. 

“That’s it! Keep running!” 

Hyrince is bringing up the rear, but his voice sounds relatively close, so we must be succeeding in shaking off the enemy. 

But it’s still too soon to let our guards down. 

I keep hobbling forward, hanging on to Jeskan for support. 

But then… 

“Huh?” 

Maybe it was just my imagination. 

I thought I saw something out of the corner of my eye. 

But when I turn around, there’s nothing there but trees. 

“What’s wrong?!” 

“Sorry. It’s nothing.” 

Jeskan casts me a glance, but I must have been seeing things. 

There’s no time to dwell on it right now, so I tell myself I imagined it and keep on running. 

How could there be a bunch of dead men out in the woods strung up in white thread like grotesque decorations? 

And a pure-white girl standing amid it all? 

A vision like that doesn’t make any sense. 

I must have been hallucinating because of the poison. 

Yes, I’m sure of it. 

Thus, we managed to escape with our tails between our legs. 

Fortunately, not a single person was lost, and I recovered quickly thanks to Yaana’s healing. 

Still, I have to admit it was a disaster. 

“I’m sorry, everyone. I knew it was most likely a trap, but I still wasn’t on my guard enough.” 

“It’s fine,” Hyrince reassures me. “They were really well prepared. We were ready for a trap, but when we showed up to talk and they immediately attacked us with poison, it was tough to react right away.” 

“But if I’d been more careful, maybe it wouldn’t have happened. And on top of that, I slowed you all down afterward. I should be ashamed of myself as the hero.” 

“Oh, come on. It’s our job as your friends to back you up when that happens, right?” 

Jeskan pats me on the shoulder. 

“But I made Hawkin use up a valuable magic item, too…” 

“Those’re made to be used, y’know? Ain’t no point dyin’ to conserve ’em.” Hawkin smiles. 

“And, Yaana, you had to heal me…” 

“It’s the saint’s job to support the hero. I simply carried out my natural role.” 

If anything, Yaana looks happy she was able to help. 

“You really saved us, Mr. Gotou.” 

“Nah, it’s nothin’. If anything, thank this sword, not me.” 

Despite Mr. Gotou’s modesty, I don’t think we would have all gotten away unscathed if it wasn’t for him and his sword. 

Like Hawkin always says, tools are part of a person’s strength. 

“Thank you, too, Aurel. If you hadn’t fended off that boy who seemed to be one of the leaders, we might’ve been in serious danger.” 

“Ahhh, it’s no biggie. Honestly, running away after was the bigger pain.” 

It’s so typical of Aurel that I can’t help chuckling. 

Yaana mutters something about “only because of those absurdly large bits of yours…!” but I’ll pretend not to hear her…although it probably is hard to run with a chest like that. 

In an effort not to look at the area in question, I glance around at everyone’s faces instead. 

Not a single one of them looks angry with me. 

If anything, that makes it worse. 

“…Why do I have to be so weak? Argh. I can’t stand it!” 

Instinctively, I clutch my scarf as tightly as I can. 

I really am weak, like Master said. 

No matter how hard I try, nothing ever seems to go right. 

I’m not strong enough to make it happen! 

I can’t help but be frustrated and ashamed. 

“Julius…” 

Hyrince stands up and walks over to me. 

Then he brings his fist down on my head. 

“You damn moron!” 

“Ow?!” 

As I flinch and look up, Hyrince stares straight into my eyes. 

“Listen, why do you always try to do everything on your own? Why do you put all the responsibility on your own shoulders?” 

“Hyrince is right. We’re your friends, aren’t we? That means we’re supposed to rely on one another. If one of us makes a mistake, another one of us just has to step in and help. I don’t want you to save me all the time—I want us to save each other.” 

“Exactly. Do you remember the promise we made? I’m supposed to see that hopeful world of yours by your side, right, Sir Hero? By your side—not behind you. Or do you think I’m unworthy to fight beside you?” 

“I am older than ya, too, y’know. You oughta try relyin’ on your elders more, hey?” 

“You guys…” 

Hyrince, Yaana, Jeskan, and Hawkin. 

They’re my friends and comrades. 

“If you can’t do it on your own, we’ll just have to do it together, right? Even if you’re not strong enough alone, we’ll be strong enough as a team. Take what just happened. You might not’ve stood a chance if you were alone, but we were with you. That’s why we all made it back alive. You’ve got friends who want to fight at your side, see? So try to depend on us more.” 

Hyrince puts a hand on my shoulder. 

I see… So even if I am weak, I have friends who will back me up. 

“I’m…weak.” 

That truth hasn’t changed. 

On my own, I can barely do anything at all. 

But if I’m with these trustworthy companions of mine, we can do so much more. 

“But you’ll stay by my side anyway?” 

““““Of course.”””” 

The four of them all respond in unison. 

As long as they’re around, I’m sure I can accept my own weakness and keep moving forward. 

Now I finally understand that. 

“Awww, that was hella sweet.” 

“Aurel, come on—read the room.”