Volume 4 Chapter 18 Judgment of Causality
Edited by: Kanaa-senpai
When I stepped out of the dungeon, it was early morning outside. My body felt lighter somehow, like I’d stepped into a world with different gravity.
It’s just a rocky, barren valley, but for some reason, it feels strangely familiar. By the water’s edge, the Hero Party’s horses are still tied up. Are those guys still here? Time-wise, this seems all backwards… it’s like I’ve turned into a real-life Urashima Taro.
I focus and sense 2 members of the Hero Party right next to Ms. Claire. Those guys are the type to abandon their teammates just to save themselves. I’ve got a bad feeling. I sneak closer to get a better look. One of them should be a thief, but they were getting wrecked by Lamia’s surprise attack. If I really wanted to, they wouldn’t notice me at all now──my skills are on another level.
Looks like the thief is trying to sneak next to Ms. Claire… he’s close enough to almost touch her, keeping his nasty eyes on her.
A little farther off, hiding behind a rock, there’s a knight-looking guy with a kite shield. He seems like the leader, but then again, it looked like the 4 of them were all fighting separately. The tank might be the “leader,” but it felt like a mess with how they handled hate management. They should’ve had enough strength to clear the dungeon, but the leader’s player skills were just too low.
They’re not lizards, so they wouldn’t be clinging to rocks to rest. Looks like he’s trying to ambush us from there. So, the target… is probably Ms. Claire’s master. In other words, me.
I don’t want to fight against other summoned heroes, but to them, that probably doesn’t matter. They’ve spotted a pretty slave and now they want to take her, so they’re planning to grab her. Simple-minded fools.
After Alex’s trial, I heard a lot from the people at the Hero Bureau. It’s like they have a game sense, or they wipe away the shame of travel. It seems there are quite a few people who want to do whatever they want in this other world. I don’t know if these people were always bad when they were on Earth, or if they started doing bad things because they thought they couldn’t be judged by this world’s laws. In this world, (power) strength is like justice. It’s easy to imagine someone getting a cheat with a summoning bonus and then never losing a fight.
But still, these guys aren’t that strong, are they? One-on-one, they’d be easily handled by Mr. Naga. Even so, their level is over 40, so they’re a threat to me. My normal attacks won’t penetrate their armor due to the level difference, but if I take a hit, it could be fatal.
I’m confident I can dodge their sword swings, but their sure-hit skills are tricky. Level adjustments and skills, that’s how this world is ruled. It’s just like a game. But there are always tricks and shortcuts in game rules, so I think there are ways to handle this if I’m clever.
Besides, I don’t think we’ll be fighting this time. The dragon Uno, who manages this valley, has forbidden any fighting within the barrier.
This valley is like a waiting room for dungeon challengers. Besides those who face the trials, there are also lots of support teams that come to provide supplies like food. Where there’s a bunch of hot-blooded people, there’s bound to be fights. It sounds like there have been all sorts of troubles. Uno declared a ban on fighting in the valley. It’s a no-combat zone, plain and simple.
Now, even the rowdy ones behave properly within the barrier. If those 2 fools know about this, good. If not, it’s no skin off my back. I can’t pass up a chance to use this no-combat zone to my advantage. Let’s try to settle this with just a talk.
I decided to restart from where I came out of the dungeon, right in front of the guy who’s waiting for me. He’ll be surprised to see me show up out of nowhere. I’ll make it look like I’m not suspicious, just someone leaving the dungeon.
I go back to where Nagas are. I use my Stealth just a little, really gentle. Just enough that a sharp-eyed quail might notice me. A level 40+ thief should see through me right away.
Sure enough, the moment I leave the dungeon, the thief reacts. A little after, the knight also moves. Looks like they’re communicating with a skill. They’re planning to ambush me, no doubt.
I act like I don’t notice anything, and I walk toward Ms. Claire. I make sure my movements aren’t weird. Is it convincing? It’s kind of nerve-wracking──maybe I’m bad at pretending.
The knight passes by the rock where he’s hiding, but he doesn’t come out. Is he trapping me between them?
Ms. Claire notices me and tries to say something, but── the thief, who has unhidden, presses a knife against her neck.
”Whoa, don’t move. So, this horse girl was your friend after all.”
I stay quiet and watch. He yanks his unsharpened knife around, showing off. It feels like he’s threatening me, but maybe he’s just toying with the knife. What’s going on? It’s not as scary as Uno’s training sessions.
His face twists with anger, glaring at me. But he’s not making a silly face ── he’s provoking me, for sure. Not sure what to do.
Since he hasn’t attacked me directly, he probably knows the rules of this valley. It’s a no-battle zone. Maybe I should just ignore him and keep going. But once we leave the valley, he might attack.
Still, if I head into the wolf forest, these guys can’t follow. Mr. Uruu the rabbit-killer would end this in seconds. I don’t want to trouble the wolves, but… I guess I have no choice.
When I try to get on Ms. Claire, he tries to grab my arm, but I dodge easily.
”Damn it, you little punk──don’t mess with me!”
The angry man shouts loud, losing control. His face is all red──he’s really mad. Just like a hot-tempered kettle. I think I hurt his pride when I dodged him. Or maybe he’s pissed I ignored him again. After a few more dodges, the thief gives up and grabs Ms. Claire’s arm instead.
”Let go. Or I’ll call this a fight.”
He stared at the man’s eyes, his voice filled with a bit of strength. He had gone through the special training to show off some authority, though it wasn’t his strength. It was tough, but he was able to act a little more imposing than before.
”Wait, you. This isn’t a fight──this is about arresting a criminal.”
A knight-like man appeared, blocking the path, speaking in a calm voice.
”Arrest? You’re the criminals here. Let her go. This is plain theft, and you have no right to complain if you get killed for it.”
”What the hell did you say?! I’ll kill you first!”
The thief-like man snapped back at me, his reaction instant. He wasn’t acting──this guy was the underling. The knight-like man was clearly the boss.
”Did you think we didn’t notice you sneaking around the dungeon? Thanks to your MPK, 2 of our important allies were killed. We can’t let you go.”
”That’s right. This PK bastard… just give it up already.”
MPK is a term from Earth’s online games where you use monsters to kill other players. You lead your target into an area where a strong monster chases them, then either warp away or let yourself die to change the monster’s target.
Well, it’s just an excuse, really. He’s grinning, fully aware I didn’t do any MPK, but he’s trying to pin it on me anyway.
”Congratulations, you’ve successfully earned the title ‘Witness to the Trial.’ How lucky, huh? I’m so jealous, you little shit.”
Now that I think about it, I did get the title as part of clearing the dungeon. With appraisal skills, you can see other people’s titles. Titles can be hidden easily, but I don’t know how to do it.
”You pushed monsters onto us, and while we were dealing with them, you managed to clear the dungeon. There’s no way a level 4 like you could have cleared it otherwise.”
When the man realized I’d cleared the dungeon, he shifted his complaint slightly. In games, slipping past while another party fights is common—no big deal. If anything, getting involved could be seen as “kill-stealing,” a breach of etiquette. This world feels game-like but isn’t a game, so the rules might differ.
It’s true I chased down a monster they’d weakened, but I didn’t cause any real trouble. Still, if they say I exploited them, I can’t really argue.
”Seriously, Mr. Justice, this guy’s the real villain here.”
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Edited by Kanaa-senpai.
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