Estiimated reading time: 9–12 minutes
Chapter 28
I cast an extremely powerful healing spell on Claire.
Instantly, Claire recovered and opened her eyes.
In my arms, Claire gazed at me with a rapturous look.
Huh…? Why is she looking at me like that?
That’s when I remembered. Oh right, in this Claire rescue event, Claire falls for Alto.
She was said to have an incurable disease, but I cured her with the power of light, so she’s supposed to become infatuated with Alto.
Hm? Wait a minute. Does that mean she’s falling for me instead…?
Claire looked at me with moist eyes and said,
「Lord Eld… You really are the hero of light… I’ve been searching for you for so long. I’m in love…♡」
「Uh…」
Somehow, she thinks I’m the hero of light now…?
Where’s Alto?
◆
【Mirei’s POV】
I had a dream.
To heal my sick little sister.
That’s why I wield a sword.
My sister’s illness was a bit peculiar. I showed her to all sorts of doctors and healers, but they all said there was nothing they could do.
They told me her sickness was no ordinary illness, but more likely a curse of some kind.
A curse… I had no clues about that whatsoever.
The sorcerers I showed her to said they had never seen a curse like this, and weren’t even sure it was a curse to begin with.
Around that time, I heard something from my friend, Princess Claire.
Apparently, there were signs the Demon King would soon revive.
For some reason, that really bothered me.
I started to think maybe my sister’s condition was somehow related to the Demon King’s revival.
If so, then maybe defeating the Demon King could cure her.
It might have nothing to do with it at all. But I had nothing else left to cling to.
I focused single-mindedly on defeating the Demon King, and kept training with my sword.
That’s why I cannot forgive anyone pretending to be strong.
Eld Schmerzen – the one who boasted about being level 9999 at the entrance ceremony.
If he was really level 9999, he might even be able to defeat the Demon King.
There’s no way someone like that could exist.
I couldn’t forgive him. It felt like he was mocking my efforts.
If he really was level 9999, he should be able to do anything. Even defeat the Demon King and cure my sister’s illness…
But that’s impossible. There’s no way I could just happen to meet some hero-like guy at the entrance ceremony – it’s too convenient. To me, he seemed like nothing but a big liar.
That’s why I picked a fight with him.
◆
Eld and I had a duel.
However, for some reason, Eld was abnormally strong.
My sword didn’t stand a chance against him at all.
I couldn’t forgive him. It felt like he was mocking my efforts.
I had been desperately swinging my sword, trying to become strong enough to defeat the Demon King… for my sister.
And yet, I lost so easily to him.
「Gaaaaahhhhhhh!」
My sword bounced off his arm and broke.
And the broken sword stabbed into my arm.
I was incredibly frustrated.
The sword had stabbed quite deep. If I left it like this, I might not even be able to wield a sword again.
Damn… I recklessly picked a fight with him.
And this is how it ended up.
I deeply regretted it.
I let my selfish assumptions make me doubt someone.
And because of that, I might lose the ability to use a sword.
I might lose my arm.
Then I won’t be able to protect my sister…
Damn… What am I doing…
「Ugh… You’ve got some nerve… It does seem you really are level 9999… I admit it」
He was probably truly level 9999. He was so overwhelmingly strong.
Damn it, if you’re that strong, go defeat the Demon King… I guess thinking that would be selfish of me.
If I had trusted him from the start and asked him to defeat the Demon King, would he have done it?
All kinds of regrets welled up inside me.
But he must be terribly angry with me…
For doubting him so baselessly…
There’s no way I could ask him to save my sister now.
Damn it, if only I had believed he was level 9999…
But instead of getting angry, he rushed over to me and said:
「Hey, you alright? Did I hurt you? My bad, let me fix it now.」
「Wha… Huh…?」
I didn’t understand what he meant.
My injury was essentially self-inflicted. I recklessly challenged him to a duel and brought about my own defeat.
He hadn’t pointed his sword at me at all, so saying he hurt me was a terrible misunderstanding.
Yet he gently touched my arm and somehow cast a healing spell on me.
Moreover, his healing spell was tremendous.
I had been healed with healing magic before when getting injured.
But his spell was on a different level. It didn’t just heal the wound – it had some strange healing effect.
It felt like something warm welled up from the depths of my heart.
Amazing… Is this the power of level 9999 healing magic…?
Come to think of it, his servant did say earlier that his master was an expert at healing magic…
But still, what an incredible ability. The wound on my arm healed in an instant.
Not even the court medical sorcerers could do healing magic this powerful. It was my first time experiencing it.
I wept in my heart.
What an incredibly kind person he is. Even though he should be angry, he shows mercy even to someone like me.
Regret and gratitude stirred together inside me.
With this, I can still grip a sword. I can still protect my sister. I can still cling to my dream.
「Um… I’m sorry. For doubting you about your level… I didn’t know you were such a kind person… Thank you so much. This arm is precious to me – it’s something I can’t afford to lose. Now I can wield a sword again.」
I sincerely thanked him.
At that moment, I couldn’t meet Eld’s eyes for some reason.
I realized my face had turned bright red without me noticing.
Could it be… am I falling for this guy…?
No no, what am I hoping for. I did something terrible to this man.
That’s not something I can wish for.
◆
【Claire’s POV】
I had been searching all this time.
For someone who could defeat the Demon King…
As a royal who knew of the Demon King’s revival, I thought it was my duty to find the hero who would vanquish him.
The legend says:
Somewhere out there is the hero of light. And that hero of light will defeat the Demon King.
It is said the hero of light awakens at around 16 years old, and brings peace to the world.
Noble Academy students enroll at 16 years old.
And somehow, I had a strange premonition.
I felt like I was fated to meet the hero of light at this academy.
And it happened at the entrance ceremony.
「Eld Schmerzen, level… 9999…!??!?!?」
I couldn’t believe my eyes and ears.
Could I really be so fortunate as to encounter someone like this right off the bat?
Level 9999… With that, he might even be able to defeat the Demon King.
Is it possible to just happen across someone like that?
I had to believe it was fate.
Moreover, to my surprise, he was in the same class as me.
However, something strange remained.
Is he really level 9999? Is that even possible?
I wanted to ascertain the extent of his power. And so:
At that moment, I happened to find Mirei speaking with him.
It seems she harbored the same doubts as me.
No, it was closer to being disingenuous…
But this was a good chance. I would use her as a pretext to confirm his abilities.
I proposed a duel between the two of them.
◆
The duel ended in Eld’s victory, as expected.
Not only that, he even healed Mirei’s injury in an instant.
With that… I was convinced.
There’s no mistake. He is the hero of light…!
「Won’t you join the hero party to defeat the demon king for the sake of this country?」
I invited him.
But then, my heart started hurting suddenly.
I had an incurable disease.
It’s more of a curse than an illness.
I was told it couldn’t be cured by anyone.
The court priest said it was likely a sign of the Demon King’s return.
Documents show that mysterious epidemics have cropped up a few years prior to the Demon King’s past revivals.
Mirei’s sister had the same sickness.
So we had been friends for some time.
Just when I finally found the hero of light… am I going to die like this?
My chest tightened at the thought.
Then pain welled up in my throat, and I coughed up blood.
「Cough cough… choke…!」
「Claire…!?」
Eld gently caught me in his arms.
Then, he started casting healing magic on me.
But this illness does not respond to healing spells.
Not even the most skilled court medical sorcerers could cure it, let alone alleviate the symptoms.
That’s how it should have been―
However―
When Eld used his healing magic on me, my chest gradually felt lighter.
The intense pain from earlier disappeared as if it were a lie.
Could this be… the power of the hero of light…?
With him, it may really be possible to defeat the Demon King.
Yes! Lorrd Eld must be the fated one!
「Lord Eld… You really are the hero of light… I’ve been searching for you for so long. I’m in love…♡」
「Uh…」
I decided in my heart. I will admire this person for life―
◆
【Eld’s POV】
And so, I returned to the classroom, and now I’m sandwiched between Mirei and Claire―
For some reason, I can feel passionate gazes from both of them.
Could it be these young noble ladies have never experienced romance?
They’re not even trying to hide it, with lovey-dovey beams shooting out of their eyes.
So why me…?
Those gazes should be directed at Alto!
The game’s scenario has been completely destroyed here.
Developments like these don’t happen in any of the routes!
Well, I hope it also shatters my bad ends…
Wait a minute… Doesn’t this mean Alto won’t awaken to the hero of light’s power?
He was supposed to unleash his power after healing Claire.
Then, does that mean Alto will remain without awakening to any power?
So if I healed her first instead of Alto, does that mean he’ll just remain a mob character for life…?
Sorry… Alto. Please become a noble sacrifice for helping me avoid destruction flags…
As I ate my bento alone quietly in the corner of the classroom, I thought about such things while watching Alto, eating his lunch unassumingly as well.
「Here Lord Eld, say ah…」
「Oh, uh…」
Claire is spoon-feeding me. And Arde is watching enviously.
What is this…?
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