0. It was summer.
It was summer when I was 17 years old.
Homeron, where I lived, was a small village far from the capital.
The total population of the village was less than 100, and it was a farmhouse that could be seen in any countryside.
And there was a happy family in a small cottage in that small village.
“Yuwol-ah…! Yuwol-ah…!”
familiar voice. A horsetail that hangs down like it doesn’t like something. It must have been her.
“Ah… on the weekend, let’s make a nap agreement…”
“That’s it, but it’s three o’clock in the afternoon! Wake up!”
Rubbing my eyes, I woke up and scratched my head with a dull look.
Ceria.
my only friend The person I appreciate more than anyone else in the world.
As an orphan, I was able to live as a member of this family thanks to her.
“I’ll wake up, so please change your voice… I’m sorry…”
Obviously, when I was young, she was a good friend, and I listened to her well, but she was 17 years old. A period of gale-force.
I’ve changed too, but she’s colder than before, and I don’t know why, but the number of ticks on me has become frequent.
“You and I decided to go downtown today and look at clothes together! I’m going to spend the whole day waiting for you! Very!”
Ah… it was… Come to think of it, today was the day I decided to go out with myself, who rarely moves from home.
“Wait a minute. I’ll wash up right away.”
There was only one reason why I, who hated going outside and moving my body, suited her.
I liked Seria. In fact, she was just like her mother, and she was a beautiful woman with fair skin, bright blonde hair, and big eyes.
If I was just a close friend when I was young, I, who became a boy, couldn’t help but become conscious of it if I was a boy of that age.
Those eyes that looked at me as if they were pouting when I woke up. The way she usually wipes off something on her face even while eating.
And above all, the image of him reaching out to me, who had been abandoned, saying, “Come with me.” everything was so good
Recently, he complains to me in a slightly angular tone, but I thought it would be nice if he would only say those words to me.
And when we grow up, I thought it would be great if one day we could confess our feelings and build our own little house in Homeron Village.
I thought that I would always want to spend a pleasant life with her, even if it was not rich enough there.
And, as always, lightning only strikes dry skies.
In fact, there were only three clothing stores in Homeron Village.
There are 2 clothing stores for the villagers. And at least there is one clothing store where things that are out of fashion in the capital are circulated from time to time.
And Seria’s hobby was to find clothes that were at least worth wearing among outdated clothes.
I was always standing in the back thinking about when I could go home today.
“Yuwol-ah, how about this?”
“I think it’s good.”
“Yuwol-ah, how about this one?”
“I think this is good too.”
In fact, I had lived in this small town all along, but I was the one who didn’t have Ali to look at clothes.
And the conclusion made by many experiences is that it is better to say that it is moderately good than my honest opinion.
“Uh~ I think that’s good too~”
I say it habitually, but it seems that I was caught talking without looking.
“Uh~ How does the snow say it’s nice while looking out the window~ Our Yu-Wol~~~ Hey~~ The weather is nice~~”
I felt my back get a little damp.
“No~ Of course I saw it… I saw it~ I know Seria too~ And to be honest, as long as she’s as pretty as Seria, she’s pretty no matter what she wears~”
She smiled shyly and made excuses, but it was clear that she knew everything. However, as if she didn’t hate compliments, her skirt was slightly raised.
“Then how about this?”
She grinned as she lifted up her lace black underwear.
He lifts his underwear lightly and puts it on his body, but this seems to be too irritating to the 17-year-old me.
I felt an earthquake in my pupils.
“Uh… Um… Uh… It’s rather nice…?”
I was the one whose inner thoughts came out inadvertently.
“transformation….”
She looked at me with slight contempt, then put down her underwear and left the store.
“I didn’t do much today either… Haa… I really need to get ahead and live in the capital.”
“How are you going to get ahead and go to the capital? hehehe”
“That’s what it says, do you really have to say it that way?”
“If you succeed, be sure to take me with you!”
“What, of course you should follow me!”
Seria responded to my words with a smile.
On the hill on the way home, we witnessed a very strange sight.
Soldiers in white armor. And their leader, a middle-aged knight in red armor on a horse, blocked our path.
It was clear that he was a nobleman or a knight of the imperial family, who would never be seen in this town.
Seria took my hand.
“Yuwol-ah…”
I clasped my hands tightly and pushed Seria back with my hand.
I took a short breath and summoned the courage I lacked to ask.
“What are you doing?”
A knight in red armor dismounted from his horse and looked at me with cold eyes. No, to be precise, I stared at Seria behind me.
“Are you Seria Aristin?”
As if he didn’t care about me, he looked only at Seria and opened his mouth.
She immediately nodded. I could feel the trembling in her hands.
“I asked what was going on…!”
“There is nothing for a lowly person like you. Seria Aristin. This is the imperial order given to you. You, who have been nominated as the hero of this generation, must annihilate the demon lord according to the will of the kingdom Ibelis.”
He said something absurd so seriously that the two of us looked dumbfounded and our eyes met.
Embarrassed, Seria opened her mouth.
“My… me? The hero…? That can’t be!”
“Are you going to disobey the Emperor?”
The knight raised one eyebrow in discomfort.
“No! No! No, I don’t have any powers…”
“Don’t worry. All preparations for your annihilation of the demon lord will be prepared by the Empire. You will be reborn as the strongest warrior through our education, and you will achieve your goal, just like the past warriors did.”
It was absurd.
The Seria I know has zero athletic ability. Zero magic talent. She was a person who was good at housework, but taking her as a warrior made sense for me to become a warrior.
Thinking about it or not, the knight continued his story.
“I’ve explained everything to your parents. They told me not to worry and come back. Of course, I prepared and delivered a reward appropriate for your merits.”
I thought it couldn’t be. Yes, her parents and my parents were a couple who loved Seria more than anyone else.
I couldn’t let her go that easily. At the bewildered woman, he thrust a wedge into it,
“If you say that you will refuse even with this much explanation, you and your family could be devastated under the name of refusal of the emperor. What should we do?”
Seria, who seems to have come to her senses after hearing that, glanced at me and spoke in a calm voice.
“I will. Hero. I don’t know, but I will follow the will of the kingdom.”
“What… what? Seria, wait!”
I couldn’t help but be embarrassed by her saying that she would do it without a proper discussion.
My head was spinning when I saw her saying that she would just do it without knowing what she was going to do.
“It’s a wise choice. Then let’s go to the capital right now. The emperor awaits.”
The knight was preparing to leave at any moment.
“Could you give me a minute? I want to say goodbye and leave.”
He seemed disapproving, but only nodded and told me to keep it short.
Seria took my hand and brought me to a bush a short distance away.
“What the hell are you thinking? Why did you immediately say you were going?”
“If you disobey, you and my family will all die. Those people are sincere. Can’t you see it?”
“still…..”
She cut me off as if there was no time.
“I’ll definitely come back when I finish my work in the capital city. No, even if I don’t finish, I’ll definitely come back whenever I have a chance. Can you survive being away for a while?”
I tried to refute her firm words, but I shut my mouth after seeing her expression.
Tears glistened in her blue eyes.
“Then you can wait. Instead, you must be healthy and not get hurt.”
I pulled her into my bosom. I could feel my clothes getting wet in the traces of her tears.
“Yuwol-ah. You know… I have to wait for you? Don’t go around meeting this girl and that girl, saying that you’re a little distant.”
“Where are the girls around me?”
She looked at me without saying a word, then made eye level with me and closed her eyes.
Her lips on tiptoe touched mine.
It felt like my brain stopped. what just happened
But it’s time to enjoy the feeling. She immediately followed the soldier and was mounted on a horse.
“Then let’s go.”
Following the knight’s words, the procession of soldiers began to move.
Turning back on her horse, she smiled at me and waved.
I was so heartbroken, but I smiled as broadly as I could and waved at her.
I looked at the place where she left for a long time and trudged back to the house.
No matter how the situation is, Seria’s parents can’t let go so easily, but I was full of thoughts that I had to ask.
And the moment I opened the door, I was shocked.
I felt an uncontrollable nausea rising up.
The brown carpet was covered in red and two heads hung over the fireplace.
But my bad luck at the age of 17 didn’t end there.