Chapter 105

「It seems that this beastman had some kind of dealings with the demons . 」

I raised my eyes .

The only demons that I knew of were Aulum and Mahiro, but I’ve been called things like an ‘inferior species’ and ‘low class’ .

That’s why I thought that they had the same attitude towards other races as well, but was I wrong .

「I also spoke with a Ul guild member that I’m acquainted with, and I found out that Gram came to this dungeon a few days ago . 」

I see, that’s suspicious .

I nodded in agreement .

If he’s employed a strong mercenary, then it wasn’t necessary for he himself to become strong .

Or perhaps I should say, from the stories I’ve heard, it seems that he was the very picture of a scoundrel . so I’d imagine he’s a round and rather pompous man who hates moving on his own .

The physiques of these kinds of fellows were definite .

…come to think of it, Retice’s king was, on the other hand, thin . Was he thin because he was like the last boss?

「According to that guild member, Gram had put on a large overcoat, covering himself from head to toe . One needed to show their dog tag when entering the dungeon and that was how he found out that it was Gram . if not for that, he would not have known . 」

It was obviously suspicious .

I gave a wry smile .

『Perhaps the overcoat protected him from the monsters . 』

Yoru said this from on top of my shoulder .

Everyone’s gazes transferred over from Kurou to Yoru .

「What do you mean . 」

『It would’ve offered more protection if the monsters possessed the same strength as those in the demon’s territory . In this dungeon, the monsters are so weak that they cannot be detected even with magic power . These kinds of weaklings are nothing to the demons, but Mahiro created the overcoat because he was tired of their constant attacks . Magic circles are interwoven into the interior, causing all of the monsters in the dungeon to avoid him . 』

Yoru answered Kurou’s enquiry without faltering .

If it was an overcoat that Mahiro created, its effects should be outstanding .

Or rather, were the monsters on the lowest level that weak?

If that’s the case, were the monsters in the demon territory that much stronger .

「Then it’s going to be Gram . 」

Kurou left his seat .

His attitude emphasized that it was the end of the conversation .

I watched Kurou as quickly went off somewhere, and then I turned my attention to the hero .

「So, what are you guys going to do after this?」

Perhaps the hero did not think that I would start talking to him, he was surprised and blinked his eyes .

The boy who often talked to me, lent a hand to such a hero .

「Our goal is to defeat the demon king . 」

Yoru laughed scornfully at that answer .

『You are going to defeat the demon king-sama? That’s ridiculous!』

Perhaps he wasn’t pleased with that response, veins were bulging on the forehead of the boy who had a monkey on his head and a cat on his shoulder .

「Haa? I heard it just now, what’s with this cat . Just who’s side are you on?」

「Right–, right–! You were also arguing with Asahina-kun, what’s with that?」

The girl with the Kansai accent jumped on the bandwagon as well .

They were quiet up until just now, was it because the scary Kurou was here?

There were a lot of familiar faces and the tension was gone as well .

『I am Master-dono and Miss Amelia’s ally! Master-dono was no match for the second-ranked demon, so there’s no way you bastards would defeat the demon king-sama!』

「You don’t know that!」

「We became stronger as well!」

I wanted to see just how much stronger they had become, but the feminine boy who seemed to be a knight was on the verge of tears, so why don’t we stop here .

When I saw his teary eyes, the word ‘crossdresser’ came to mind .

「Do you guys want to sleep outside?」

When Kyousuke asked this simple question, the two people shut their mouths .

「Even though we say that, it’s to encourage ourselves . I know that, right now, we are no match for him . We came to this town in hopes of finding the skilled blacksmith and dungeon we heard so much about . 」

That kind of thing happened in the dungeon, so it’s been barricaded for the time being .

Meaning, they came here for nothing .

Kurou as well, he was in that mood, so he probably wouldn’t accept any requests .

「However, right now, we can’t make use of the dungeon and we’ve also concentrated on the requests of the Adventurer Guild, so we are not worried about money . 」

The hero said this as he carefully chose his words .

I was listening to him while covering Yoru’s mouth to prevent him from retorting .

「That’s why, if Asahina-kun is going to follow you, then we want to accompany you as well . 」

「I refuse . 」

Without thinking, I gave an immediate reply .

Perhaps he had expected this answer, the hero did not give any response .

「Kyousuke too . We will not be fighting together, and I do not need anyone who needs to be protected . I don’t need a healer right now either . 」

If we have to protect them, we won’t win against the demons .

I glanced at Kyousuke who was biting his lips with his head down, put Yoru onto the desk and got up from my seat .

「There’s something that I want to ask Kurou about . I’m going to leave for a little bit, so in that time, think about it well . Besides, it’s illogical to persuade me . 」

I put my hand on top of Amelia’s head .

Amelia jumped .

「I’m fighting for Amelia’s sake . If Amelia says that it’s ok, then I won’t have any complaints . If you’re going to try and persuade someone, then it should be her . 」

I’m counting on you, I whispered this to Amelia, and left the room .

As I did that, the hero and Kyousuke were looking over here, but I ignored it .

It was not an excuse to leave the room . I looked for Kurou as I truly had something to ask him, and while searching for him, I ended up at the smithy next to the house .

Kurou was looking at the various tools, thinking about something .

「Kurou . 」

When I called out to him, he slowly turned around to look at me .

「Aah, it’s you, huh . 」

I was leaning against the doorway, looking at Kurou .

The moonlight just happened to be illuminating him .

I didn’t know what he was thinking about in the dark, but for now, let’s settle an important matter .

「There’s something I want to ask you . 」

Kurou frowned .

「Sorry, but right now—— . 」

「What are you most afraid of?」

When I cut him off in the middle to say this, Kurou’s eyes finally regained focus .

He turned his confused gaze towards me .

「What are you saying?」

「I’m curious . What are you most afraid of?」

I was truly, just curious .

However, I thought that Kurou and I were thinking about the same thing .

That’s why I tried asking him .

If it’s Kurou, he would probably understand these feelings within my heart .

「…what I’m most afraid of, in this world is,…」

Kurou’s gaze turned toward the moon that was behind me .

It was not the sharp gaze that he usually had, but a fragile one .

「An extended hand, not reaching . 」