Chapter 86
I carried Riche, who had collapsed from magical exhaustion, towards the Empire.
I had already sent the cart away, and it was only about a two-hour walk anyway.
“But why do I have to carry her?”
“Because you’re the strongest, Lord Luke?”
“Can’t I just leave her behind?”
“If you abandon her there, she’ll really die…”
That was a pretty serious thing to say.
“To begin with, you guys could easily carry her if you used your magic.”
Who’s the master and who’s the slave here?
“Even without using magic, Lord Luke feels as light as a feather, doesn’t he?”
“That doesn’t feel great.”
“Honestly, you must enjoy it. She’s all snug against your back.”
It’s true, the sensation of her against my back felt nice, but you’ve done this too much already, Luna.
Are you satisfied with just a light touch after everything you’ve done?
“Ugh.”
If Riche were awake, she’d be throwing a fit about this conversation, but the reason she’s quiet is because she’s asleep.
“How can someone faint from magical exhaustion just from one hunt?”
There are things that are just impossible to understand and empathize with, even when trying to put yourself in someone else’s shoes.
It’s like how people who eat food differently can’t relate to each other.
“Lord Luke is the weird one… Other adventurers struggle even to hunt once a day.”
“Then why?”
“They can’t hunt as easily as you do, and if they need to repair their gear, they have to take a day off. Plus, they can’t just advance to the next level immediately.”
Was Luke’s body actually that overpowered?
I don’t think I’ve felt much fatigue while using this body—except when I was drinking, of course.
“Right… Get some rest.”
You’ll have to wake up soon anyway.
So we walked for quite a while in the direction of the Empire.
As we got closer to the Empire, I deliberately changed direction.
“Luke? Where are you going?”
“I’m just taking a little detour around here.”
“Huh?”
I went back the way we came and moved a bit away from the Empire.
Luna and Yui might have been thinking I’d gone crazy, but the truth is I was looking for something.
And what I was looking for wasn’t exactly hard to find.
If anything, it was on the easier side, and maybe it would even come looking for me.
As I strolled through the forest, Luna whispered softly to me.
“Lord Luke, we’re surrounded.”
“Oh, perfect timing.”
What I had been looking for had indeed come looking for me.
“Stop right there.”
A man who appeared to be the leader of the group swaggered forward.
“Hand over everything you have. Then I’ll spare your lives.”
At that, other bandits hiding nearby burst into laughter and revealed themselves.
“Were you looking for bandits, Lord Luke?”
“Yep.”
What’s there to hide?
That’s right. I was looking for bandits.
This world is such that hardly anyone but adventurers and merchants dares to venture outside the Empire’s borders due to monsters.
So, it shouldn’t be normal to encounter bandits right in the middle of the forest.
But humans always find a way.
There are monsters? Then they just need to find a place without monsters to ambush.
Or maybe they’ve driven the original monsters away by some means and taken over their spot.
Now, would any bandit be sane enough to cause trouble right in front of the Empire?
That’s why I changed direction upon spotting the Empire.
There has to be some distance for the bandits to settle and rob.
That was the reason I had wandered in the forest.
“What are you muttering about? Are you deaf? Hurry up and hand over everything!”
The man presumed to be the leader barked.
In the eyes of the enemy, we probably looked like golden goblins.
Having an injured companion means we can’t fight effectively, and above all, they definitely have the numerical advantage.
“Get lost.”
Who would willingly comply? There’s no bigger fool than someone who complies with bandits.
They said they’d spare our lives, but would a bunch of scum like them really keep that promise?
Especially with a witness? Of course, it’s all a lie.
The bandits seemed unphased, probably because they’d never met someone like me who didn’t flinch at their threats.
With the newfound justification to kill, they drew their knives and grinned sinisterly.
“Hey, Riche. Wake up.”
“Yeah… Did we arrive…?”
“Yep. We’re here.”
Riche leaped off my back, wobbling a bit.
Then she looked around.
“What’s going on…?”
“You’ve been surrounded by bandits.”
“Didn’t you just say we arrived…?”
“Yep, we arrived at the bandits’ territory.”
Riche seemed at a loss for words at my reply.
Her expression looked like she was questioning if she was really talking to a human.
But I’m not lying!
I just said we arrived; I never specified that we’d reached the Empire!
And do you know this, Riche?
You gain experience points from both monsters and humans.
“You’re going to kill all these bandits now.”
“But I still haven’t recovered much magic…”
“That’s your problem.”
Whether by punching, kicking, or biting them to death—find your own way.
If a person can’t do anything just because they’re out of magic, how is that any different from a battery-operated machine?
“Killing men and taking women. Heh heh.”
That’s some sexist nonsense you’re spewing.
I unleashed my manly man aura on the surrounding bandits.
Instantly, the sound of knees crashing to the ground echoed around us.
“Ugh!”
“Ugh…!”
“What the hell?!”
Alright, now everything’s ready.
“Riche, you’re not going to move an inch in the dormitory tomorrow.”
Why?
Because I’m going to make it happen.
“Okay, go ahead and kill them.”
“This time it’s not a demon, it’s real people…”
“Why? Are you feeling guilty?”
Riche looked weary, but I couldn’t tell if that was fatigue from guilt or just waking up tired.
So I asked.
If she felt guilty, I’d have considered stepping in to deal with these bandits for her.
But I had no plans to deal with them myself.
“No… not anymore.”
After killing a classmate she transformed into a demon, she probably started gathering her thoughts.
I mean, it’s strange to feel guilty about killing evil people, right?
People have died at their hands, and if you let them live, you become an accomplice too. And if you don’t kill them, you might get raped, you know?
Didn’t you hear what they said? They only want to kill me. What are those trash bags going to do with the women they take?
Riche walked over to the bandits who had collapsed to their knees without any resistance.
“Pl-please spare me!”
Even the ones who had just threatened us to hand over everything were quick to beg for their lives once they realized they were in deep trouble.
Do they really think begging will save them?
If you spare the person who just tried to kill you, you’d probably get bombarded with comments online to take them out!
Riche extended her hand towards the nearest bandit, her movements so light it almost looked like she was petting him.
But as soon as her hand touched his head, flames erupted, engulfing the bandit’s body.
The bandit merely conjured a small flame with his magic, but their clothes and human bodies burned easily.
“AAAAH!!!!”
Instead of just attacking the heart or neck to make it quick, she opted for the most painful method possible—burning them alive.
Once she burned the leader of the bandits down, Riche expressionlessly moved on to another bandit.
“AAAAAH!!!”
“AAAAAH!!!”
Screams echoed from around us.
As Riche’s brutal method played out, Luna quietly approached me.
“You’ve really changed since the beginning, Riche.”
“It’s all for the better.”
Only a day had passed.
We had only watched, so it wasn’t much, but for Riche, a lot must have happened.
“But it’s a shame. There’s so much fire.”
“What do you mean?”
“I wish we had marshmallows. We could’ve roasted them on sticks.”
“…”
As I salivated over the mental image, Luna looked at me like I was insane.
Only after witnessing all the bandits burning did Riche return.
“All done.”
“Then let’s head back.”
“Yeah… I’m a bit tired.”
“This time, walk on your own.”
Where do you think you’re trying to get carried again?
I could excuse it this time since she fainted before she could say anything, but if she faints again, I’ll just leave her.
“…What a shame.”
“What?”
“Oh, nothing.”
What do you mean nothing? You thought I wouldn’t hear that? I’m not some dumb rom-com protagonist.
What’s there to be upset about when you have perfectly fine legs?
Want me to give you a piggyback ride?
As I shot a half-serious glare at Riche, she hurriedly walked ahead.
“Let’s go! Let’s get some rest!”
“Tch. Did I get caught?”
*
“Did I really get caught?”
At the highest point of the tallest building in the Empire.
A cloaked figure sat curled up at a corner, resting his chin on his fist, murmuring to himself.
“No news…”
Normally, by now, I should have received plenty of information, but nothing has come through.
The figure closed his eyes and briefly recalled the past.
Months ago, he had come across a student being bullied by nobles and turned them into a demon.
Turning humans suffering from the absurdity of the world and their own weakness into demons was easier than breathing.
And since he had been given a command related to the Academy, he had sent the student as an informant.
Thus, he received vital information like the academic calendar and Dean Lucia’s movements at regular intervals.
But since yesterday, there had been no word.
It should’ve been the day to receive the information.
He didn’t suspect betrayal. Now that the student was a demon, who would help him if he stood with humanity?
That left the possibility of being discovered and executed.
“If it’s taking this long, it must be the Dean, right?”
The name “Dean” definitely held some weight; perhaps it wasn’t just a title. He figured that his conclusions came quicker than he thought.
However, while he anticipated being discovered, he never expected it would happen this quickly.
The figure genuinely thought so, completely unaware of the truth.
“Hmmm… what to do?”
The student who had been acting as his informant had done his job quite well.
Thanks to him, there had been numerous attempts to attack while the Dean was absent, but he couldn’t inflict any real damage.
Information was still necessary, and he was gradually preparing for the next attack, but with communication cut off, he had no way to gauge the proper timing.
“If I can’t gauge the timing… then I’d just have to bring the schedule forward, right?”
He had no way of knowing when his target would strike.
Thus, there was no reason to waste time.
That was the figure’s reasoning.
“Alright! I’ll prepare and attack when it feels right!”
