Interlude: The Heroes’ Resolution
One hour after Takahisa and Lilianna left the mansion, Takahisa was sitting on his bed alone in his guest room.
On the walk here, Lily asked me what happened. Of course she would—I was incredibly depressed until recently.
In the dark room with no lights on, Takahisa sneered at himself. He had self-awareness of how unwell his mental state had been. However...
I don’t get it. Why was I so panicked into acting like that?
Takahisa himself was unable to figure out why he had done such a thing. He’d wanted to be with Miharu, but Miharu herself had declined that, saying it was impossible—which caused him to panic and attempt to take her to Centostella by force.
I love Miharu, but...
When he reflected upon his actions, even he found himself too high-handed. What was he going to do if he succeeded? It was clear he hadn’t even considered that. Just what was he thinking back then?
I guess that’s just how unstable my mind was back then.
After wandering into this world all alone, without his family or friends—or Miharu, the object of his desires—he was forced into the role of a hero. Then, when he finally reunited with Miharu and the others, he was told they were unable to stay together...
Mentally backed into a corner, there was no room in his heart to accept reality. That’s how the current Takahisa analyzed himself.
But there was a vital factor missing from his analysis.
That factor was Rio, whom he had forgotten due to the rules of god. The greatest reason why Takahisa had been so desperate was because he had learned that Miharu had feelings for Rio.
I loved Miharu first. Before we wandered into this world, I was the one who was always beside her. That’s right—the man Miharu’s most intimate with is me. Yet this guy who came out of nowhere—this criminal who’s killed people before—is standing beside Miharu as though he’s some good guy. On top of that, Miharu actually wants to be with him. She was obviously tricked by him in the time we spent apart.
I have to be the one to protect Miharu.
Regardless of his justification, Takahisa had acted on his impending sense of danger when he realized his relationship with Miharu was about to be taken from him. He’d clung to the fact that he knew Miharu and had been in love with her for longer as a reason to frantically search for Rio’s faults.
However, due to the rules of god activating upon Rio’s recent transformation into a transcendent one, Takahisa had lost his memories of him.
Maybe I wasn’t as mentally strong as I thought. Anyone would have rejected a forceful invitation like that... There’s no way I would have done such a thing if I were thinking straight. Argh!
What was he thinking, doing such a thing to his beloved Miharu? Takahisa writhed in agonizing self-hatred. He honestly couldn’t understand why he did such a thing.
He believed he wasn’t the type of person to do such a thing. He honestly believed he was a person of good values. Indeed, putting aside the events stemming from Rio’s involvement with Miharu, Takahisa was a righteous person with high ethical standards.
That was why he was unable to understand his past actions, now that he had forgotten about Rio. He felt truly repentant and regretful over everything.
He couldn’t imagine himself in a situation where he would discard his ethics in order to obtain Miharu. If he had been thinking logically, he would have realized that such a thing would only worsen his relationship with her.
In reality, the current relationship between Takahisa and Miharu had hit rock bottom. No, it was almost at rock bottom—he had received a chance to redeem himself, after all.
Brooding about things won’t help. I’ll have to regain her trust through my actions from here on. Because at the end of the day, I still love her...
He wanted to be beside her once more. He wanted to be with her as long as he could. He was in love with Miharu, so he couldn’t give up on her.
It’s not over yet. This is a new beginning. I want to be the one to protect Miharu.
He couldn’t afford to make mistakes anymore. He would never do such a thing again. With a mix of determination and excitement in his heart, Takahisa was unable to sleep that night.
◇ ◇ ◇
The next morning, Rodania, the capital of Marquess Rodan’s territory and the headquarters of the Restoration, had been occupied by the Beltrum Kingdom’s army.
Thanks to Rio’s quiet struggles, a number of enchanted airships had safely escaped from Rodania, including one with Christina on board. In the middle of that Restoration airship’s journey to the Galarc Kingdom for refuge...
“Huh...?” The hero, Sakata Hiroaki, woke up on a bed in the cabin.
“Sir Hiroaki!”
“Hiroaki!”
Inside the cabin were Roanna, Flora, Kouta, and Rei. When they noticed he had regained consciousness, they immediately leaned forward in their seats.
“You guys...” Hiroaki looked around at them and blinked.
“Do you feel any pain anywhere?” Roanna asked worriedly.
“I’m fine. I don’t feel any pain anywhere.”
Hiroaki sat up and stretched his body as he answered.
“Thank goodness...” Relief spread across the group’s faces.
“So I lost to that snobby brat, huh... Damn it. It seems I made you all worry. Sorry.”
Hiroaki grimaced at the memory of what had happened before he was knocked out. Despite that, he made sure to apologize to the four of them for making them worry.
“Sir Hiroaki...” The group beamed happily.
“But I’m surprised we all made it out of there safe. What happened?” Hiroaki asked, furrowing his brows.
The majority of the people boarding the ship were noncombatants. The enemy fleet had been advancing on them from the skies, and the situation was clearly hopeless.
“Man, it was a crazy sight. After you were knocked out, a knight came to save us. Then Yamata no Orochi appeared in the lake and bought us enough time to get away,” Rei explained excitedly.
“Did you just say Yamata no Orochi?” The look of suspicion on Hiroaki’s face harshened.
“Not the weapon, but the move. You showed it to us once before, right? Weren’t you the one who used it?”
“Me...? How could I have used it while unconscious?” That shouldn’t be possible.
“But I don’t know anyone else who could pull off such a move...” Roanna said, implicitly expressing her belief that Hiroaki had used it. It was the only explanation she could think of for the situation, but she didn’t seem fully satisfied by it herself. There was a faint look of confusion on her face.
“That may be true, but... Are you saying I used it in my sleep? That my hero powers awakened when I was asleep?”
“Yes, I believe that to be the case...” Flora said, exchanging a look with Roanna before nodding hesitantly.
“Well, it does sound like a typical turning point in a story.” But with no memory of using the move, he wasn’t entirely convinced.
“We were able to escape thanks to you, Hiroaki. Everyone on the ship is grateful,” Rei reported to him.
“I see...”
“Aren’t you happy about it? It’s your achievement.”
“It doesn’t feel like it, so I have nothing to be proud of. Besides...”
I lost to that snobby brat called Renji either way, were the words Hiroaki swallowed with a bitter expression. Whatever the truth was, he wasn’t in the mood to celebrate a deed he had no memory of.
“Besides what?” Kouta asked curiously.
“No, it’s nothing... What’s the Restoration going to do now?”
He had no idea how many people managed to escape, but most of the people on board were noncombatants. They probably didn’t have any assets or supplies either. Wouldn’t it be difficult to maintain their organization in such a state? That’s what Hiroaki thought.
“We’re currently headed for Galarc Castle. As soon as we land, Princess Christina intends on asking King Francois for asylum,” Roanna explained with a stiff face. Of course, whether or not they accepted was up to Galarc. If they refused, the Restoration would have nowhere to go.
“I see... If there’s anything I can do, just say the word.”
It seemed that even Hiroaki understood how grim the future was. Whether it was because he had grown attached to the Restoration or because he regretted losing to Renji, he volunteered his assistance, albeit bluntly.
“Oh...” Roanna and Flora gasped quietly and exchanged a look with each other.
“Merely having you here is a huge blessing to the Restoration.”
“Yes. And my sister will make sure everything works out!”
They should have felt uneasy, yet they admirably showed no signs of that in their reply.
“I see...” Hiroaki mumbled, then sighed. “Uh...” He opened his mouth to say something to the two of them. But without saying anything specific, he began ruffling his own head.
I’m not really the type to work towards an objective or exert myself for others, but...
Why was it that when he looked at the two girls, who were clearly younger than him, he felt like there was something he could do as well?
It might not be the time to be thoughtlessly making light novels... We’re definitely going to complete that novel one day, though.
What was there he could do? He’d need to give that some careful thought from here on. If he became stronger, would he have more leverage as a hero? Above all, he couldn’t stomach the thought of losing to Renji and his embarrassing behavior.
That’s why...
For now, I need to be able to beat up that brat the next time we fight.
Hiroaki quietly found resolution for his own sake.
◇ ◇ ◇
Elsewhere, another hero was opening his eyes after the battle in Rodania. He was Kikuchi Renji, the hero that had assisted the Beltrum army along with Reiss from the Proxia Empire.
“Mrgh...” Renji came to in the noble district of Rodania. The feeling of chilly outside air had stirred him from his sleep. He blinked slowly at the view of the elegant noble district before him.
“Yo, you finally awake?” a man called out to him.
Renji looked in the direction of the voice. “You’re...”
The man who had spoken was a large man with a black sword sheathed at his waist. There was a second man standing beside him. If he recalled correctly, these two were...
“It’s Arein. And this is Lucci. Remember it already, you ungrateful brat.”
“Yeah. Who do you think carried you all the way here?”
These were the mercenaries Reiss often hired as external forces. Position-wise, they were no different from Renji’s status as a mercenary. But while they were of equal status, they hadn’t had any reason to get to know each other until now. In the first place, Renji struggled at remembering names and faces.
Or rather, he didn’t have any interest in others if they didn’t pose a danger to him. He wasn’t interested in associating with others. He personally believed himself to be a lone wolf going his own way.
However, he was still capable of distinguishing when to feel gratitude or not. On top of that, he was shameless enough not to express gratitude when he didn’t want to, but in this case...
“I see. Sorry about that... Lucci, Arein,” Renji said with a small sigh.
“Hmph.” Lucci and Arein exchanged looks and snorted in satisfaction.
Embarrassed by his expression of gratitude, Renji quickly changed the topic. “So where are we?”
“Rodania.”
“I can see that...” Renji fell silent as he tried to look back on his memories, but for some reason he couldn’t recall what happened before he fell unconscious.
“What happened?” he asked with a skeptical look.
They had made an attack on the evacuees escaping for the harbor, where he defeated the water hero who didn’t understand the difference in their abilities. But that’s where his memories ended...
“Some weird guy appeared and defeated you,” Lucci explained after a beat.
“I see... I...”
He had fought with someone. That much he remembered. But he couldn’t recall their facial features. When he tried to remember their appearance, all that came to his mind were brief flashes of hands and feet. That, and the heavy blow to the back of his head. That was probably what had knocked him out.
Renji touched the back of his head gently. Fortunately, there was no pain.
“From the looks of things, you don’t remember that well either,” Arein said, upon seeing Renji’s reaction.
“What do you mean...?”
“We all remembered everything until we left the scene. But once we left, we all forgot who you fought and what they were like.”
“What’s happening here?”
“No clue. Mr. Reiss said it could be a powerful magic artifact that prevents recognition...”
Both Arein and Lucci had discontented looks on their faces.
“Something that convenient exists?” Renji’s eyes widened in interest.
“We don’t know. No one’s kept track of every magic artifact that exists in this world. And there are plenty of ancient artifacts that no one knows how to use out there. It wouldn’t be strange for there to be artifacts with weird effects,” Lucci replied.
“I see... Well, whatever. Where’d Reiss go?” Renji looked around at their surroundings.
“He’s with Duke Arbor. They failed to capture Princess Christina, so they’re discussing what to do from here.”
“They got away in that situation?”
“After you were knocked out, more troubles occurred. A huge water monster rose from the lake and protected the airship the princess got on. Mr. Reiss suspected the sleeping hero on their side brought out his power somehow,” Arein answered.
“What? That water hero created a monster out of water?” Renji furrowed his brow in disbelief.
“It seemed like he manipulated the water with his Divine Arms. The lake returned to normal once the airship left, but that thing was capable of taking out the city in a single breath. Its power was on par with your ultimate move—Endless Force Blizzard, was it?”
Lucci saw the way Renji’s pride was triggered—and purposefully chose his words to throw more fuel on the fire.
“Just being on par isn’t enough. Water can’t win against ice,” Renji said coolly, but he wasn’t amused by the thought of another hero being strong. From Lucci and Arein’s point of view, it was clear that Renji’s sense of rivalry was burning within him.
I will get stronger... Even stronger than I am now. I don’t have the time to be losing to some coward who fights while hiding their identity.
Contrary to the ice element he controlled, the fighting spirit in Renji’s heart flared.
My strength is what proves my worth.
Renji hated to lose—or rather, he had an intense fixation on strength. No one could defy the strong. The strong were the right, which was why he didn’t want to lose to anyone.
That’s why Renji wanted to be stronger. Strong enough for no one to defy him. He truly believed that he had to get stronger.
And there was someone who thought highly of that competitive spirit.
“If you want to get stronger, I’ll help you out. I want to get better at using this thing too.”
Lucci drew his sword from the sheath at his waist, offering to go along with Renji’s training with a fearless smirk.
“...”
Renji frowned faintly, glaring at the black sword. This was because he had a bit of a history with Lucci’s sword. He had once suffered a terrible defeat from Lucius, the previous owner of the sword.
He would never forget that bitter moment. He always had a competitive personality, but that defeat was the event that made him even more obsessed with strength. That despair, that humiliation, that hopelessness—he never wanted to feel like that again.
Of course, the original owner Lucius was now dead, but...
“What’s wrong? Intimidated by the sword our commander used to defeat you?” Lucci asked, delighted at Renji’s silence.
“No, I accept. We can train together, but only on the condition that you make the most of that sword’s ability.”
“Hah, cocky brat. But I’m out to find the bastard that killed the commander and avenge him, so I’ll be happy to do just that.”
As Lucci’s words implied, the members of the Heavenly Lions had also forgotten everything about Rio. Thus, they had also forgotten that he was the one who had killed Lucius, but setting that aside...
This guy’s sword specializes in attacking from blind spots. He used it to make a surprise attack from behind earlier too. It’d be good training.
Determined to never lose again, Renji greedily focused on making himself stronger.
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