Volume 6 Chapter 3 The Man Who Became A Little Stronger
Edited by: Kanaa-senpai
Apparently, the carriage ride takes about a week one way, so it’s not a big deal.
”No, it’s a whole week of free time. Isn’t that pretty tough?” Suzette said, crossing her arms with a teasing smile.
A slightly hilly road blocked their path—a highland trail. Rizan Village sat perched on a small plateau in the hills. From there, the road stretched eastward endlessly across the low grasslands.
The sky was clear, and the view was exceptionally good. The air tasted sweeter than necessary; just breathing it in felt like a healing balm.
In such a setting, Klock had only one thing on his mind. He wanted to go home. He wanted to sleep in his own bed. That was it. The excitement from the beautiful scenery lasted only a moment. Once he grew used to it, boredom set in. He wanted to head to the tavern and have fun—because that’s just how people were.
”You’ll have nothing to do even if you’re at home,” Suzette jabbed. “Or, did you maybe find a job?”
”…No, not really…” Klock admitted.
By the way, Klock was currently unemployed. Since arriving on the Beast Continent, Suzette had clearly stated she was quitting her role as an intelligence officer for the Demon Lord’s army. She declared she was washing her hands of it. In turn, Klock decided to wash his hands of being a thief.
He was sick of being chased by those kinds of people. He had decided to live seriously—but reality was cruel. Why? Because there were absolutely no jobs for someone like Klock in the countryside. Compared to Suzette, who could do anything, Klock couldn’t do a thing.
”Even in the village, you’ll just wander around, hitting on women. The only difference now is that you’re in a carriage instead of the tavern. Look on the bright side.”
It was hard to feel any bright side to it. Turning his eyes away from her prickly opinion, Klock lifted the burlap covering the carriage’s cargo bed. Far in the distance, wild-looking cows grazed lazily.
It was peaceful. Too peaceful.
Having grown bored of the view, he lazily lay down on the seat in the cargo bed. If he slept now, he wouldn’t be able to sleep at night. He thought that while gradually being overtaken by sleepiness—
”What do you think you’re doing, trying to sleep? It’s almost time for the shift change,” Suzette’s sharp voice cut through the haze.
Klock jolted awake. Turning around, he saw Suzette, furrowing her brow, her eyes daring him like he had guts—while the others worked around them.
”Riding horses is a proper skill, you know. You finally have the chance to be useful, and you’re slacking off. Are you planning to live off me for the rest of your life?”
”Ah—hold on, hold on. I’m sorry. I’m just really bored. I’ll take over,” Klock stammered.
Hastily sitting up, he jumped from the cargo bed to the driver’s seat. Sitting beside Suzette, he was handed the reins connected to the two horses.
Her expression was the same as always. She didn’t seem particularly angry. A little relieved, Klock noticed she hadn’t moved to the cargo bed but remained next to him.
”You don’t like nature, do you? I grew up in the forest, so I actually feel more out of place in a town.”
”Ah, from the Demon Continent, huh. I’ve always lived surrounded by people. I lived in the gaps between them, so I can’t relax without walls to hide behind.”
”But you looked completely at ease just now,” Klock said, raising an eyebrow.
Suzette had lived in a forest town where Forestkin and Demonkin coexisted when she was on the Demon Continent. It was a very peaceful place, a tranquil town with no trace of conflict whatsoever. But as time passed, she began to yearn for the city and eventually thought about leaving the forest.
When she became an adult, she joined the military for work. That country was the United Kingdom of Gasthira on the Demon Continent—the so-called Demon Lord Army.
The existence of the Demon Lord was indeed true. It was Suzette who told Klock about the mysterious Demon Lord Army.
The Demon Lord Army was a coalition of various races. The leaders of each race attended the council and decided the nation’s policies. The Demon Lord was the representative who gathered the opinions of the races.
The current Demon Lord was Dainheorl, the leader of the Demonkin. Like all previous Demon Lords, this one too was from the Demonkin.
Suzette didn’t know that someone other than the Demonkin could become the Demon Lord, so her story fascinated Klock. The reason there hadn’t been a Demon Lord for a long time was that no one strong enough to unite the leaders of the various races had appeared.
Until just a few decades ago, the continent was divided, with each race controlling different regions. It was like a kingdom without a king—only lords.
Although the Demon Lord Army had been an absolute monarchy in the past, this generation surprisingly used a parliamentary system that respected each race. Maybe the current Demon Lord was someone who understood people well.
Of course, many uneasy rumors still circulated. For one, they treated Humans as complete enemies—imaginary foes. Given Suzette’s espionage activities, this made sense. War might break out someday.
And then, within the Demon Lord Army itself, harsh working conditions—common in developing countries—made life miserable for many. Suzette was one of them.
For Gasthira, spies like her were disposable pieces. Regular soldiers were treated like expendable items. With such careless treatment, it was no wonder many ran away. Regardless of the circumstances, Suzette had made the right choice by running away.
”Don’t you ever want to go back home?” Klock asked quietly.
”…Well, to be honest, I do feel that way. But I think it’s right to give up on it. Just like you,” Suzette replied.
A former male thief and a former female spy. They were stuck together because neither could look back on their past. She couldn’t go back to the Demon Continent, and Klock couldn’t return to the Human Continent. Both were terrified of the Demon Lord and the Hero.
”In your case, there might be a chance for forgiveness, depending on how you handle it,” Suzette said.
”I’m not that much of a challenger,” Klock replied with a weak smile.
Klock had already shared the reasons behind his situation—that he was being hunted by the Hero, with some dubious claim of reincarnation for revenge, and that he didn’t remember any of it.
When he explained all that, Suzette hadn’t changed a single expression and simply said, “I see.” Even after hearing his story, she still chose to stay with Klock and continue their journey.
”By the way, Mr. Klock, did you prepare your weapons?” she asked suddenly.
”Huh? Oh, yeah. I brought a big one for now.”
Suzette reached behind the cart and pulled out a scabbard sticking out of a bag.
”A… machete?” she asked, holding up a large knife. It was about the length of an arm, shaped exactly like a machete—just as the name suggested.
At the village tool shop, Klock had asked if he could hunt monsters with a knife, and this was what she handed him. Honestly, it looked more like something used for butchering large animals.
”Even though it’s a knife, it’s a weapon I’m not used to,” Klock admitted. “I don’t know how far I can go with it. If the enemy’s too fast, it might be tough.”
Suzette shrugged. “It’s much faster than an axe, so you don’t need to worry too much. Besides, you have a magic circle with you, right?”
Klock nodded at her words. The magic circle was something she had given him. Klock’s magic power was garbage—still, even garbage had magic power. The circle was just something written on paper, but as long as you could use magic, anyone could handle it.
”The acceleration magic can only last about ten seconds with your amount of magic power,” Suzette explained. “But ten seconds in a fight is important. Plus, with the magic circle, there’s no need to assemble the technique, so the preparatory action before activation is minimal. With your current skills, if you fight well, you could take on bears or lions.”
”That’s impossible,” Klock said flatly.
”It’s not impossible. Let’s try it right away.”
What the hell are we trying? Klock thought to himself. Then, suddenly, from Suzette’s right hand side came movement—three beast-like figures were walking toward them from deeper in the woods.
”…What’s that?” Klock asked.
”Those are monsters,” Suzette said. “Their magic power isn’t strong. But… what is it? They have a dog-like vibe.”
The creatures had strange fur, white or bright yellow, and were rummaging around, facing Klock and the carriage. They walked on four legs, about the size of large dogs, but their bodies were low, moving more like cats. Watching them, Klock got a fox-like impression.
”They’ve become hostile. I can feel the killing intent,” Suzette warned.
”Seriously? I’d like to prepare myself, so could you wait until next year? I won’t even get mad if you pee on a tree over there,” Klock muttered.
Looks like it was time to step up. He pulled the reins to stop the horse and got down, gripping the machete.
Stepping in front of the horses, Klock shook his weapon, while Suzette got down from the other side and squinted at the opponents, bare hands ready just behind him.
One of the three monsters let out a cry—Meow~. The voice was definitely feline, with an almost adorable quality like a kitten’s mew.
”Ah, it seems like it’s a stray cat,” Suzette said. “It’s a pretty smart monster, so be careful.”
”Huh? That’s a stray cat?” Klock asked in disbelief.
”It pretends to be a stray cat,” Suzette explained. “It lures others out or acts weak to deceive people and beasts. So be careful. It’s a monster with that kind of cunning.”
The monsters approached, crouching low, moving neither fast nor slow. If they had the cunning to deceive, maybe their movements weren’t what they seemed. Klock felt they could move much faster than this.
”I see. Well, it’s still a cat, but compared to that thunder girl, this is a piece of cake,” he thought, remembering the white one—the invisible speed of the lightning arrows that had flown before. Compared to that, these guys were definitely weaklings. Not worth getting too worked up over.
Even though he wasn’t a warrior, somehow he’d managed to steel himself a little.
Holding the big knife in his right hand, left hand gripping his chest, Klock jogged toward the monsters.
* * *
”That was easy,” Klock muttered once everything was settled. They climbed back onto the carriage and set off, reflecting on the earlier battle.
”The barrier device worked really well, huh? Just making it disappear sent the monsters into a panic,” Suzette remarked.
”Yeah. I didn’t know how long it would last at first, so it was hard to use. But if it lasts about three minutes when fully charged, and if Suzette can replenish it, then it’s super useful.”
This time, the MVP had been the barrier device. Once it vanished, the fight became almost one-sided. The stray cats ran around in a frenzy and, in the end, fled.
There were downsides—the range was only one meter, and since it hid the area instead of the user, it looked unnatural with gaps in the field like bushes—but it gave an advantage against monsters.
”Well, if it keeps up like this, living in this country with a lot of monsters shouldn’t be too hard,” Klock said. “As long as they’re not a hero party, we should be able to handle it to some extent.”
Hero party. Come to think of it, this tool had originally been bought to prepare for a hero party. But the woman who gave him the money turned out to be more barbaric than expected, so he never got the chance to test it.
”I used it on an A-rank adventurer before, but that guy sensed it somehow, you know?” Suzette said.
”That’s right. If it’s an A-rank, they’d probably see through it right away if they can’t see the figure. If it’s a magician, they can deal with it even easier, so we can’t be overconfident.”
Elna, who was probably around A-rank level, had made it effective during their escape from the imperial capital, but it hadn’t gone well at the museum afterward. After all, using it as a surprise attack seemed to be the most useful. It was also easily affected by the situation, so relying on it too much seemed difficult.
Well, compared to that time, Klock had more options now—especially the magic circle, which was huge. If he consumed magic power, he couldn’t use Bandit, so he needed to think carefully about it, but having more options was good.
Plus, there was Suzette. A little danger wasn’t a problem anymore. Probably.
He placed the machete on the cargo bed and glanced at the person next to him. He locked eyes with Suzette, who smiled softly. She seemed satisfied with the results of the earlier battle, radiating a gentle aura.
It seemed he’d managed to show a bit of a good side. Honestly, he was aware he was a good-for-nothing, so if he could delay being given up on even a little, he’d be grateful.
Once they arrived in Bournel, he thought he might look for a job while he was at it. If he could get a steady job, he’d move there, solidify his footing, and properly show Suzette that he’d cleaned up his act.
He didn’t think her smile like this would continue unconditionally.
Suzette was doing well. He wanted to respond to that feeling. And Klock himself…
At that moment, a roar that shook the heavens and the earth echoed.
”──?!” Both of them covered their ears.
A shockwave, like lightning striking, enveloped the world.
Klock had only seen lightning from afar, but if it were right in front of him, it would probably feel like this. The sound’s shock covered the ground, the grass, the flowers, the carriage, and the people, and the air vibrated as if a massive explosion had occurred right in front of him.
Twenty seconds. No, maybe thirty seconds.
While desperately covering his ears and looking down, suddenly the loud noise stopped.
What was that? What happened?
In the relaxed atmosphere, a sudden loud shock. Klock was so surprised he almost fell out of the carriage.
When he turned to share that feeling with Suzette, she snatched the reins and commanded the horse.
”Run!” she ordered, a full-speed escape.
”Hey! What happened?!” Klock demanded.
”It’s the roar of a dragon!! We need to evacuate immediately!!” Suzette shouted.
A dragon. The monster far bigger than a ship, right?
No way. Klock hurriedly looked up at the sky. A dragon was nothing like a stray cat. If targeted, no matter how he struggled, it would be over.
It seemed a danger was approaching that was not going to be resolved easily.
Notes:
• Suzette – The older maid from Viscount Fennec. The head maid at the Viscount Fennec’s villa. She is confident, clear-spoken, and professional.
• Rizan – Village on a hilly plateau.
• Gasthira – United Kingdom of Gasthira. Demonkin-led absolute monarchy; has a parliamentary system this generation; treats humans as enemies; suffers from poor working conditions.
• Dainheorl – He is the conqueror of the Demon Continent, appeared as the council leader, known for his godlike strength and four horns.
• Elna – Female. A young apprentice mage. Her appearance is that of a child with white hair reaching her shoulders. She wears a black hooded mantle with strange patterns. Her relationship is as an apprentice to Hermine, the Great Mage. Her power involves advanced magic, including spatial teleportation. Her combat style is magical, and she is described as childish and easily provoked.
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Edited by Kanaa-senpai.
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