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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 8
Chapter Title: As a Commemoration of Becoming Companions - 1
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Neril was as cold-blooded before her regression as she was now.
Even after I uttered her true identity, she didn't charge at me in excitement.
Of course, her stiff face was preaching that one wrong word from my mouth would get my head lopped off.
She spoke.
"Shall we talk?"
"That's what I've been waiting for."
Just then, a new customer entered the tool shop.
"Uncle Gray! ...Huh?"
"..."
"Wh-who are you? Where's Uncle?"
"Ah, shut up."
Snap.
Neril lightly flicked her finger.
The customer who had come to the tool shop collapsed flat.
Whoosh. Thud.
She waved her hand, sealing the shop's door and all the windows.
In seconds, this darkening place had only me and Neril with our eyes open.
'Still the same as ever.'
In the meantime, I had brewed some black tea.
"Did you kill him?"
"Just put him to sleep. Lately, killing people carelessly has been giving me restless nights."
"That's just your age."
"Yeah. You can go ahead and give up on sleep while killing."
I shrugged lightly.
Thud.
I set the black tea in front of her and opened my mouth in a serious tone.
"My apologies for the rudeness on first meeting. Have a cup first."
"I'll pass. The scent is faint—clearly low-quality black tea."
"..."
"First things first. You said you were waiting for me... How did you know I'd come to this territory?"
Of course, I didn't answer with "memories from before my regression."
She had to be curious.
As far as I knew, I'd tracked down the hidden Neril in the current empire only twice on purpose.
Once was Croz, vice-captain of the empire's elite unit 'Alcahad.'
The other was Dame Side, captain of the Knights of Light.
For reference, those were 50 and 30 years ago, respectively.
She'd know calling her "auntie" was quite forgiving.
"Hmm. Shall I introduce myself first?"
"Oh my. I'm not interested in your name. Answer my question first."
"Maide Mohan. Freelance mercenary. Nice to meet you."
"You're really annoying, aren't you? Wait. Maide? Maide Mohan?"
"That answers your question too, doesn't it? With that name."
It was awkward saying it myself, but I was a fairly renowned mercenary on the continent.
Just look at the title "Sword Emperor"—something no mercenary ever gets.
[You're not just any Sword Emperor.]
'Shut up.'
As if responding to Trail, Neril said.
"The Unyielding Sword Emperor, huh. You look much younger than I thought."
"Compared to you, who wouldn't be young?"
"Every word turns my stomach, doesn't it?"
"Sorry. Just trying to lighten the mood."
"Hmm. If the Unyielding Sword Emperor could track me down, then the rumors about you were actually underrating your reputation. Not exactly pleasant, though."
In any case, her doubts seemed resolved.
I gauged the mood and spoke.
"Now, can I ask a question?"
"Go ahead."
"Won't you join hands with me?"
At those words, Neril's expression turned peculiar.
Her face said she couldn't quite grasp what she'd just heard.
Regardless, I continued calmly.
"I don't see what's so strange about it. Plenty of mercenaries are mages. If you've got the skills, there are jobs that pay better than mercenary work."
"It's so absurd I don't know where to start."
"Take your time. Think it over."
I crossed my arms, striking a pose that said I was really waiting.
After a moment, Neril's mouth opened.
"Hand over Gray and get lost."
"..."
"I don't know how he hired you, but I'll pay you double whatever he offered."
"I told you, I'm not hired."
"You're a mercenary, right? Mercenaries do anything for money. Protecting a murderer should be a breeze, laughing all the way."
She glanced at my unmoving expression and continued slowly.
"No reaction? So you know about his past too?"
"Anyway, you're refusing to join me? Why?"
"Sigh, kid. Why do you think I'm called the Witch of Atrocities?"
"..."
"If you're thinking of making me a companion, you must know most of my infamy is framed. But doesn't that strike you as odd? Just say 'Neril Slaine did it,' and every crime gets pinned on me."
Of course, I knew the story.
I'd heard it straight from Neril herself before the regression.
But I feigned a serious face, as if pondering it for the first time.
Then, with a sudden realization, I said.
"I see. You've made a deal with some high-up in the empire."
"...Ho."
Neril didn't hide her surprise.
"You're sharp."
"I recalled the times your 'crimes' happened. Always during harsh droughts or floods—natural disasters—or when the public was restless from maladministration."
"..."
"Now I get it. The top brass used you as a scapegoat for their emotions and crimes. So the commoners' rage and curses aimed at you instead of the imperial family and empire."
Neril fell silent for a moment.
Meanwhile, I kept going.
"Fifty years ago and thirty years ago, the empire clashed with you twice, right? I heard those fights were brutal. You were in real danger."
"..."
"Especially thirty years ago—it was life or death. There, you realized the empire keeps advancing. At this rate, the next pursuit might not leave you intact..."
"..."
"So you sought a deal with the empire. Or maybe they approached you first. 'Let's stop fighting and help each other instead.'"
She'd been mildly surprised at first, but now Neril's eyes were wide open.
That's why, before the regression, Neril wasn't that moved when Kaild cleared her name.
She'd accepted that infamy herself.
In a most cautious voice, Neril asked.
"What the hell are you? Even as a top-grade mercenary, how..."
"Anyway, that doesn't connect to refusing my offer?"
"I'm still tied to the empire. When they need something buried, they contact me. I take the reward, go to the area, and—you know—leave appropriate evidence."
"You mean scattering your mana so investigators pin it on you."
"You guessed that far? You're really capable."
That was praise I often heard from her even before the regression.
Neril crossed her arms and continued.
"I hate guys who spout sweet nothings. That's fleeting—what lasts is results. And good results need good skills."
"..."
"In that sense, I like you quite a bit. So I won't kill you."
Ah, thanks so much.
"That was quite the conversation. But my answer is no."
"..."
"I was desperate enough to take dirty deals with the empire because I had something I needed to protect desperately. I couldn't just wander like you."
...
Something to protect?
'No way it's that old man.'
[Seems like it.]
The old gentleman who'd screamed to death by Gray, seen with the Eye of Omniscience, came to mind.
Assuming my guess was right, I spoke.
"'Had' sounds like it's gone now."
"...Yeah. He's dead. Gray and his gang killed him."
"So you came here for revenge. You've already dealt with the rest of the gang."
"..."
"Then if I hand over Gray, will you join me? You have nothing left to protect anyway."
Neril seemed to ponder briefly.
Her eyes wavered.
"Looks like I misunderstood. You're not hired by Gray."
"I said that from the start."
"Fine. Hand over Gray, and I'll join you."
"Hahaha."
I burst into cheerful laughter.
Neril's face turned awkward, unsure whether to laugh along.
But just as she started to smile faintly to match the mood, I spoke.
"Don't lie."
"...What?"
"You'll kill Gray and vanish after, right?"
For the first time, bewilderment crossed Neril's face.
I resurfaced a memory from before the regression I'd recalled recently.
Back then, Neril had clearly said.
That the tool shop owner was her last atrocity.
That she'd accepted Kaild's recruitment to find her final battle against the Demon King.
Which meant.
"You seem to have no more attachments to this world."
"...!"
"A fifth Demon King will descend on the continent soon."
"What? What's that out of nowhere?"
"And a hero will appear too."
"...Your tone is so certain—it's not bluffing. If you know that... Wait, are you the hero?"
"Something like an aspiring one."
Neril tilted her head.
I pressed on regardless.
"The real hero will be properly announced via oracle elsewhere. But I have to become the hero."
"You... are insane?"
"For that, I need skilled companions. To shove aside the oracle-chosen hero and stand as the true hero of the continent."
"..."
"Seven years. Just work with me for seven years. By then, I'll be the hero and have slain the Demon King."
She didn't reply, and silence stretched between us.
It was so quiet even the air's flow seemed audible.
Only when my ears started ringing did Neril speak.
"When do I get Gray?"
"Seven years from now. Payment on completion."
The air froze instantly.
I'd thought I was used to Neril after our considerable ties, but no.
Her deliberate killing intent felt heavy even to me.
Crack. Crash.
The teacups before us shattered, unable to withstand the pressure.
"He's underground, seems like. Where Gray's hiding."
"Right."
"What if I burn this whole tool shop right now?"
"In front of a top-grade mercenary? You'd go down first."
"Fine. Sigh. Alright."
Neril slowly rose from her seat.
"I'll kill you first."
Neril set a time and place for our appointment and left.
She must have figured she couldn't cause a ruckus in the middle of town, even boiling with rage.
'Just from this, it's clear. Someone so rational couldn't leave atrocities everywhere. Massacres of entire villages? All framed.'
[Is this the time to chat so leisurely!]
'Don't yell. My head hurts.'
[What's your plan? Just hand over Gray and team up.]
'Then it'd be like before the regression—just boosting her infamy.'
[And that's bad?]
'Very. Companions' infamy harms my reputation.'
Trail shut up, as if he'd never considered that.
I explained calmly.
'Even Kaild, with his fraudulent oracle support before the regression, got tons of flak for teaming with Neril.'
[Hmm.]
'If I can boost my fame through intervention, it can drop because of someone too, right?'
[You get it better than me now. I can clock out.]
'I never climbed.'
[Your thinking runs deep. Any more atrocities from Neril would be a minus for you.]
'Yeah. And we need to clear her existing infamy too. We'll figure that out step by step.'
Trail seemed convinced but soon tossed another question.
[One more thing. Why spill all your secrets?]
'Huh?'
[About becoming the hero. That basically says you're not one. Why admit it upfront?]
'Oh, that.'
[You had plenty of ways to fool her. Even if the oracle goes to Kaild, call it a mix-up. You're good at lies, aren't you?]
'...'
[Starting by confessing you're a fake hero? She'll never side with you now.]
Trail's point was valid.
But this was unavoidable.
'Then I'd be just like Kaild.'
[...Huh?]
'Kaild was fake but lied to his party and companions that he was real. If I deceive Neril from the start, I'm the same guy.'
[Well, yeah, but.]
'And above all, relationships started on lies can't be trusted.'
I'd lived my life distrusting others.
Seeing everyone around me laden with sins was my daily life.
Human distrust had rooted deep in my mind.
This time, I wanted companions I could truly believe in.
Hiding that I'm a fake hero means I'm lying to them first.
How far can I go trusting relationships built on lies?
'That would just repeat the failures from before the regression.'
[...]
'I won't ask you to understand. I'm probably the only one in the world who can.'
[Hmph. Should've been a philosopher, not a mercenary. Wrong career.]
Judging by the joke in his last words, he'd let it slide here.
Step step. Thud.
Chatting with Trail, I'd arrived at the meeting spot before I knew it.
An abandoned lot at the northern edge of Quelk Territory.
The time was exactly midnight.
Neril sat on a small rock there.