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“That’s fine. I’ve done everything I need to do, and I won’t die right away.”

Surprisingly, the voice that answered was calm. Of course, I couldn’t imagine him answering in a dying voice. Perhaps even on his deathbed, he’d still be smiling mercifully.

“What happened to the others?”

“Scattered. Arjen… well, he didn’t try to hunt us down, thank goodness.”

His smile turned bitter.

“Fortunately, he didn’t find my heart, so I could heal myself. My hands and feet weren’t chopped off, either, but I’m afraid I won’t be able to move much right now.”

Andrei slightly turned his head toward me.

“What are you going to do with the mercenary?”

“I don’t know yet, and I don’t know what happened to him.”

A shadow fell over Andrei’s face. His hazy eyes half-closed, then opened again.

“Arjen seemed to be possessed by something…it all started when he intercepted the black mist before it reached me…After that, he swung his sword like a maniac.”

“Did that something take over his mind?”

“…I have no idea.”

Andrei shook his head. I frowned.

“For someone with an evil entity infiltrating his body, he seemed conscious and communicative…though his attention seemed elsewhere, so I can’t say he was in control.”

I looked back at Isila, and she agreed with the Bishop. It was strange. Unless that darkness had consumed him, there was no other reason for his sudden turn. What the hell had happened to Arjen?

“…Do you have any idea?”

“No. He was always thinking about something while we were together, but I don’t think it was something as shallow as whether to betray us or not.”

His men are dead, and he’s seriously wounded. Losing his temper would have been easy, but Andrei remained calm. Or perhaps it was the shock that pushed him over the threshold and brought him to his senses.

“Did you notice anything else?”

“…Strong, not in strength, but in finesse.”

I nodded, asking him to explain.

“That’s what made me think the mercenary wasn’t possessed. Usually, when something strange enters a person’s body, their magical output is unusually high, or their muscular strength becomes inhumanly strong, but… that wasn’t the case with Arjen.”

“It was as if he had found his hidden potential.”

“I thought I could hold my own in hand-to-hand combat, but I didn’t have a chance. He overwhelmed and toyed with me. I was barely able to create a chance to escape. Or maybe he let me go on purpose.”

“Do you have any idea where Arjen went….”

“I don’t know. I don’t think he could have gone far, but….”

Andrei looked at me quizzically.

“Never mind. It’s not like I can tell you what to do, so I’m sorry I can’t help you in this state.”

He smiled weakly, and I shrugged. Maybe he’d said too much, but his voice had no strength.

“Are you going to leave already?”

“I need to catch him before he causes any more trouble. I can decide what to do with him later.”

I nudged Isila’s shoulder as she tried to follow me out. She squirmed, caught the Bishop’s eye, and sat back down. When Andrei looked at me questioningly, I shook my head.

“It would be best to stay here, Isila, and be the Bishop’s hands and feet.”

“Yes, sir.”

After facing that darkness, I realized that my decision not to bring anyone was for the best. It was something I must face alone. I gripped my Holy Sword.

I would see ‘it’ again soon enough.

Words from the darkness. They weren’t meant to deceive or entice me.

“Hero.”

Suddenly, I heard Bishop Andre call out to me. I lowered my head to look at the Bishop.

“The deaths of the Inquisitors were calculated. I hope you don’t have any feelings about it. Leave us out of the value judgment, and do it with your own thoughts.”

Those were cold words. I couldn’t bring myself to nod. It wasn’t like I was being asked to turn a blind eye to the death I knew, and I couldn’t bring myself to mention it to Arjen.

“I can’t ask you to promise, but only that you will remember my words.”

“…I will.”

I nodded heavily and turned away. I could hear the wet cough Andrei had been holding in. I could hear Isila shifting in panic. I left the church, leaving it all behind me. I could only hope that the two would get through the night unscathed.

***

“One room. Three nights’ lodging? That would be twenty gold.”

The innkeeper handed over the keys grimly, not taking his eyes off the paper he was reading. Short, haphazardly shaved hair, a muscular body covered in wounds. He must have been a successful adventurer once. Made enough money to buy an inn and retire. It was the life an adventurer would envy.

“There’s something I’ve been meaning to ask you.”

I turned to face the innkeeper, bundled up in a worn hood. He looked up with an air of familiarity as if he’d seen one or two such guests.

“So…”

The innkeeper looked at me for a long time like he was trying to read me. It was like he was trying to see who was under the hood. I released a handful of mana to block my appearance. He sensed the faint spell, and the newspaper in his hands fell.

“…Who are you?”

The innkeeper asked, his voice dripping with cold sweat. Any adventurer with the wits to survive this far would know it was foolish to ask.

“…Wrong question; what do you want to know?”

“Do you know anything about this man?”

I pulled out a poster with a mug of Arjen and showed it to him. The amount written below was eight million gold. The innkeeper took the paper and frowned.

“I see… So you’re also here to get this infamous eight million gold?”

“Do you know something about it?”

The innkeeper glanced around. At my questioning look, he leaned his head to me and opened his mouth to speak in a low voice. His gaze was drawn to the table behind me to a group of rugged-looking adventurers silently discussing something.

“Do you see the atmosphere? This place is usually not this solemn, and it’s all because of those guys who went to get this eight million gold not too long ago.”

The innkeeper tapped the number eight million on the poster. I let out a long sigh. Arjen’s actions were taking a much more radical turn than I had anticipated.

“A party of ten notable hunters, mercenaries, and adventurers set out to capture this Arjen Elmion. It’s not that I haven’t heard his name before, but….”

“Neither Arjen nor the ten adventurers have been seen for days.”

“The adventurers are quite divided. Some fear retribution, like the ten missing adventurers, and some want to go after this eight million gold. Though to me, it all seems like a fool’s errand.”

“You’re not wrong. It is a fool’s errand.”

I retorted, reaching for my keys on the counter. I could feel a few ears perk up and focus on the conversation between me and the innkeeper. No adventurer in their right mind would touch the innkeeper, and they’d probably pounce like a pack of dogs after my conversation with the owner.

“You seem relaxed for someone who knows.”

“I know at least you won’t screw me over.”

“I don’t know what you’re talking about. But what do you think about those moths?”

“They are only after the shine in their wallets.”

I laughed bitterly. It had been a while since I’d felt so tested.

“Just answer me one last question.”

“As many as you like.”

The innkeeper smiled.

“Those missing bounty hunters, where were they headed?”

“The borderlands. Well, I don’t suppose Arjen Elmion is still staying there.”

“That’s enough.”

I leaned back. Hostile stares flew at me like a rain of arrows, and I heard the innkeeper’s voice behind me.

“Would you like to join us for dinner? It’s potato stew tonight.”

At the innocent question, I scowled from under my hood. I wondered if this was the same man who had been so intimidating.

“Uh, no thanks. Can I take it up to my room?”

“I think you might have a chance, so cheer up.”

With the owner’s words behind me, I turned to leave the inn. My footsteps echoed through the quiet lobby of the inn. In time to the beat of my steps, adventurers’ hearts pounded. I wonder if I look like I know something. Thankfully, I reached the entrance and knew what would happen to me.

As expected, I’m blocked in the doorway by a giant, followed by several adventurers. I decided to stand still and listen to their story.

“Speak for yourself. I don’t want to pretend to be friendly.”

A huge voice accompanied by a more enormous body. I mistaken him as Georg for a moment. He might be bigger, but he was nowhere near as intimidating. The approaching adventurers behind him aren’t much better.

‘How can I persuade them to stop hunting Arjen without hurting them too much?’

They locked the door. I stole a glance at the innkeeper, who was pretending to read the newspaper. The eyes of the beasts. Eight million gold is what they want, after all.

“So, shall we begin in honor of our bounty hunters who went before us?”

(There are a lot of moths today.)

I agree.

I let out a long sigh, drawing on my mana.

The space began to shudder.

“Open the door.”