20. Uncomfortable Accompaniment
After a night of this and that, we woke up early at dawn and were heading back the way we had hurried back to Cologne.
First of all, since I had entered the forest after receiving a request to cut the head of a depal, Robin and I were discussing how to deal with the lord when we returned to Cologne.
“Ha, f*ck. What should I do? I caught the depal, but there’s no proof.”
“Hmm… In that case, I’d rather just hand over the armor…”
“I don’t know if that works, I… Have armor but no body? Anybody can see this.”
“That… But… You were a former warrior party member, wouldn’t the lord trust you too?”
It’s really embarrassing. It’s true that Depal was rehabilitated, so things went well, and it’s good that Argyle’s power was weakened as a result.
However, if the request is not successful, my grand dream of going to the capital using the gate will collapse.
If you don’t admit that you caught and killed the depal…
f*ck. You have to wait, what
If that doesn’t work, you can wait for about two weeks until you get a gate access permit from Duke Alexis.
The problem with the warrior’s party is that… It’s just a matter of staying stuck in an inn or moving an inn.
If it works, it’s good, if it doesn’t, don’t.
By the way…
“…Defal.”
“Hmm? Did you call me?”
“Then, who else is the Defal here besides you?”
Why is he following me?
“Hey, Depal. Did you know that we are going to Cologne and follow you? Yesterday I made you free. Do you know how to live well?”
From noble mtl dot com
No one has seen Depal’s bare face in the first place… But there may be people who can recognize her identity by looking at her window.
“We will either submit the armor to the lord as evidence, sell it as spoils, or sell it altogether… Your identity could be revealed by the spear you’re holding… What’s wrong with your expression?”
As I continued to nag at each other, I turned to look at Depal, who was glaring at me with her cheeks slightly inflated, her snake eyes open.
I’m saying this because I’m thinking of Defal, but did my nagging sound like that?
“…Nothing.”
“It’s nothing, but your expression is full of grumpiness, like a child who was deprived of sweets.”
When I suddenly approached Defal and tried to examine her expression, Defal swung her face away and pushed me away.
Why is he suddenly like this?
“Hey. What’s wrong with me? Why are you like this all of a sudden?”
“You… Are too close… Aren’t you…”
What…
“…Uh… Sorry… Ok. Hmm.”
Seeing her suddenly red-hot and sulking with a fresh girlish tone, I felt her fingers curl up for some reason.
I knew roughly that Depal had… Changed a bit since last night, but the person has changed altogether.
Seeing Depal look so embarrassed, my face seemed to heat up little by little, so I hurriedly changed the subject while clearing my throat.
“Kuhmm… Anyway, if you go to Cologne, your true identity might be exposed. I can understand why you’re following us now that you’ve nowhere else to go, but unless you erase all traces of your life as a Depal, it’s a bit difficult to follow us. It’s a little bit like how I acted as the demon king’s army…”
Come to think of it, the window wasn’t the problem.
As long as you don’t change the name at all…
“…I will delete it.”
“Yes, yes. Now live as you please… What?”
“I want to erase my past as a spear puppet depal. And… I formally apologize for raiding the supply units.”
“That, well… You can’t argue right or wrong with something like that. Because war is like that.”
I don’t have a personal grudge with Depal, and the things I did as a Demon King’s army were the result of following Argyle’s orders.
In the first place, in war, this works, that doesn’t work. Where would this be?
“Can you change me so that I can live a new life as a human being?”
As he said that, Depal’s eyes and tone as he looked at me seemed to have a desperate heart.
…I never thought he would want to see the city this far.
“Are you okay? Of course, I am the one who brought you back to life, but no matter how dark your past is, it’s easy to shake it off…”
Before I could finish my words, Depal suddenly lifted his spear and slashed his spear in two.
“Can I do this?”
“No, you bastard…”
Was Depal originally such a decisive character?
Why are you so desperate to follow me?
I acknowledge her powerlessness, but since I am no longer a member of the party of warriors trying to defeat the demon king, I don’t really need her power.
…No matter how much I think about it, there’s no merit in taking him with me…?
As for the good thing… The pretty face makes me feel good just looking at it?
Since I was making such an embarrassing expression, Depal opened her mouth first as if frustrated.
“Didn’t you say you would take care of me…! Telling me to live as a human from now on, and telling me to be at ease as I will take care of it…”
What is this crazy b*tch talking about?
Depal began pouring out remarks that would be misunderstood by others.
“You made me like this… Now that you have achieved your goal, are you telling me to quit!”
“No, when the f*ck did I say that…”
“Take responsibility! You made me this way… You’re responsible!”
Depal, whose face was red as if her face was about to explode, swayed her short blue hair and grabbed me by the collar with her teary eyes and began to drive me away.
Hopefully the rest of the party will stop it, I hurriedly looked around… The f*ck. He was watching Depal’s skit with interest while chewing on a biscuit.
“Kehehehe… Now… Wait a minute… Let go of this…”
“Take care! I mean take responsibility!”
“Al… OK!!! I’ll take responsibility!!! I’ll take responsibility for you and make you act as a human being…! Khehehe! Some of this…”
After hearing my clear answer, Depal finally released his hand from his collar.
You crazy b*tch… You’re not even a Minotaur, why are you so strong?
“Senior… I don’t know if this is okay.”
“See you later.”
At my venomous words, Robin trembled and avoided my gaze.
Depal, who grabbed me by the collar, pushed me on the back with a smile on his face.
“hehehehe… Now, let’s go to Cologne!”
“f*ck… My life… It’s a very fictional life. The world looks beautiful.”
…Now I don’t know. Be it what it is.
* * *
An impenetrable fortress located deep in Merden Forest.
Under the banner with the number 7 written on the pattern of the demon king, two men and women sat facing each other.
“So, why did you come all the way here?”
Argyle, the puppet who commands the 7th corps of the demon king’s army, looked at the man in front of him and narrowed his forehead.
‘Unlucky bastard.’
Always betting on Argyle’s affairs one by one, sending Argyle to Merden Forest is just the tip of the iceberg of what this man has done.
Her Past Due to bad memories of the man in front of her eyes, she couldn’t see him well at all.
“Argyle. It seems that Depal has been scrapped?”
“…That child was meant to be released someday. Unlike Bacchus, his face is still unknown to humans.”
“Oops, that must be difficult. How could such a soft-hearted depal tear humans to pieces like that… And did it in a very mean way? Secretly using brainwashing magic to slaughter humans, are you now pretending to be a parent? “
– BANG!!!
Argyle’s fist slammed the table with a loud thud, leaving a large hole in the middle of the table.
“…If you tease your tongue any more, I’ll put you in a wax mold too.”
“Oops, taking care of wax dolls is a bad thing. hahahaha…”
Killing the man in front of me right now would not be a thing.
This forest wasn’t his ‘territory’. But…
As Argyle managed to calm the bubbling inside, the man quietly put the teacup down.
“Argyle. This is your last chance. I don’t know what you think of me, but you haven’t forgotten how to take care of me all this time, have you?”
“…What do you want?”
“Furp… No no. I’m not saying this because I really want something… Why do family members keep such a distance?”
Argyle clenched his fists, turning the wax pen in his hand into powder.
What kind of family is this, this bastard.
“…If you mention family just one more time, I’ll rip you limb from limb and throw it in salamander rice.”
“You are very sensitive~ Uhm… Good! Let’s get to the point.”
The man who emptied his teacup before he knew it, opened his mouth to Argyle with a rather serious expression on his face.
“Defal’s signal is completely cut off. It seems that the mana stone was taken away… So far, you’ve covered up some of your mistakes, but losing the mana stone is a big sin. I may not be able to cover it all. Your brainwashing from Depal must have been lifted, and maybe you were taken over by the humans.”
“…It was my mistake. I will pay for his sins.”
“I don’t mean that… ha ha…”
Seeing Argyle’s stubborn look, the man sighed and stood up.
“Anyway, the front line on the Iron Plateau side is getting stuck recently. It looks like the Demon King is having a bit of a headache because of the sluggish wires… Well, thanks to Huntly collecting the corpses of the other 4, the power will be replenished again.”
“Did Huntly collect their bodies?”
“Um, well… The hero made a very dirty rag out of those four corpses? Still… Huntly’s skill is certain. Even if you can’t save all four of them because you don’t have enough items for the ritual, I heard you can reliably revive at least two?”
“…Can’t all four be revived… It seems that the situation of the main unit is not so good either.”
“It’s because the four of them were defeated, and the power was weakened. So… You’ll have to break through Merden Forest quickly too. I’ll see how I can put an end to this Depal affair.”
“Thank you.”
“Ha… Yes. I’m sorry I’m busy. You wouldn’t want to see my face either.”
After saying that, the man tousled Argyle’s hair, which had purple hair unique to the demon tribe, and turned his back and began to open the gate.
“Brother is going. Reinforcements will arrive soon, but don’t be too rough with them. Do not die from the hero.”
Soon after the man disappeared into the gate, Argyle, who was staring at the empty space where the gate remained, opened his mouth softly.
“…What about you…”
With her tousled hair untidy, Argyle walked toward the tent where her staff were gathered.
If you get beaten by a hero, you won’t be able to lift your face up because your brother will embarrass you.