Chapter 29
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「That holy sword… could it be? Are you perhaps… the Hero?」
The girl clad in a circlet and battle dress asks.
Facing her, the tall man with a handsome countenance replies with all his might,
「Yes. I am─── I am none other than Ryūgūin, the heroic Hero who will protect the nation and save the world!」
Ryūgūin, the tall, blue-eyed man─the Hero─reaches out his hand to her.
「I need your power. Eris Gladius, the sword saint. Won’t you join me in saving this world?」
He earnestly implores the girl.
「O Hero. Is it truly alright for someone like me to accompany you? Your party already includes the renowned Saint Mika, known as the ‘Mirror of God,’ and Lady Angelica, rumored to be ‘The Wisest of the Wise.’ So for an insignificant, inept swordsman like myself to truly join you…」
The girl bares her heart, feeling as though she’s coughing up blood.
She then clutches her chest, looking pained.
「Is that all?」
Ryūgūin smiles with a chuckle, brushing back his hair.
「In other words, you lack confidence in yourself?」
The girl nods her head solemnly, ever so slightly.
「Don’t worry! You have an unparalleled talent for the sword that no one else can reach! I can see it!」
The girl looks Ryūgūin straight in the eye.
Facing her, Ryūgūin continues.
「I’ve discerned your talent! I will become your master until I can make your talent bloom, and guide you!」
The scene fades to black.
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「Yes, yes, faster!」
「Yes! Master!」
Ryūgūin instructs, and the girl follows his guidance.
「Faster! More! More and more! Yes! There!」
Ryūgūin’s instruction grows more passionate.
「Yes!」
「Yes, yes! Now!」
「Haaah!」
Thanks to his guidance, the girl grasps something and swings her sword with a whoosh!
She has awakened in this moment.
The scene fades to black.
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「I’m scared to fight! I don’t wanna die!」
A chubby man cries out, tears in his eyes.
「But if we don’t fight, then who will?」
Hero Ryūgūin raises his voice, not allowing laziness or timidity for the sake of this world, and presses the chubby man.
「Are you fine with this world being destroyed?」
「This world’s got nothing to do with me! As long as I’m safe, that’s good enough!」
The chubby man yells back without backing down and clumsily runs away from the spot.
Ryūgūin looks sad.
「Why won’t you understand how I feel…」
As if throwing out the words, Ryūgūin says,
「How can you say you don’t care what happens to this world───」
With a pained expression,
「───Yamada.」
He mutters.
The scene fades to black.
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「Eris, you take care of the Dragon Bone Swordsman.」
「Yes. Leave it to me.」
The woman in the battle dress responds powerfully, and the two women beside her nod with smiles.
「Good answer. Leave the Sacred Sword’s boss monster to us! Let’s go! Angie! Mika!」
「「Yes!! 」」
The two women─a woman in a clear nun’s habit and a woman with a black hat on her head─energetically reply to Ryūgūin’s encouragement.
「Sir Hero, I will protect you from all attacks.」
「I will pulverize the enemy with the various magics you’ve bestowed upon me.」
The Hero. The Saint. The Mage. The Sword Saint.
The heroes have gathered.
Ah, how reassuring…!
No matter how atrocious and extremely difficult the boss monster of the dungeon is said to be, they didn’t have a shred of fear.
The scene fades to black.
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「I’ll fight too! I’m a Holy Knight! I’m the Holy Knight Yamada! Dragon Bone Swordsman! Prepare yourself!」
As if to dampen the determination of the Hero’s party, the chubby man pushes past the girl in the battle dress and steps forward in front of the Dragon Bone Swordsman.
「Buhihihi──!」
He lets out a hearty battle cry, but the chubby man, who can barely hold his sword, is sliced by the Dragon Bone Swordsman without even crossing blades once.
「Yamada, how could you when you’ve never even trained?」
Ryūgūin mutters sadly and gives orders to Mika.
「Please heal Yamada.」
「But our mana!」
The woman in the nun’s habit, her face pale, perhaps due to running low on mana, couldn’t easily accept it.
「It doesn’t matter! Even if this battle turns against us because we healed Yamada! I won’t─── we won’t lose!!」
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「Now! Angie!」
「Understood, Sir Ryūgūin! 《Flare》!!!」
The chubby man once again leaps into the diagonal line of the magic unleashed by the female mage.
「I’m gonna get the reward money! I’ll get women too! I’ll eat delicious food! I’ll drink good booze too! Bu-hee hee hee!」
「Angieee!! Cancel the magic! You’ll get Yamada killed!!」
「But Sir Ryūgūin, if we miss this chance!」
「It’s alright! I’ll make it work somehow!」
The scene fades to black.
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Ryūgūin grips the Holy Sword.
The women─the one in the battle dress, the one in the nun’s habit, and the one with the black hat─overlap their hands on top of his.
「This is our bond!」
A mysterious beam shoots out from the Holy Sword in his hand along with his fighting spirit.
That mysterious bond beam engulfs the Sacred Sword’s monster and vanishes into the starry sky.
「You’re the only one left!」 The girl in the battle dress raises her voice.
「Eris, I’m counting on you for the rest!」
「Yes!」 She shouts, responding to Ryūgūin’s trust.
「This is the technique I mastered through training with Master! Dual Engine!!」
With the girl’s mysterious technique, an incomprehensible mysterious effect occurs, and the Dragon Bone Swordsman vanishes after uttering 「Well done!」.
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「This exploration was dangerous! Danger will accompany us going forward too! But if it’s us! No matter what dungeon! No matter what boss monster! We absolutely won’t lose!!」
Having emerged from the dungeon, the Ryūgūin party surrounds him at the center.
And then, the woman in the nun’s habit says, 「Sir Ryūgūin, the Holy Knight Yamada is not here! He was definitely with us until just now!」
To the panicking Mika,
「It doesn’t matter! He is also someone we must protect! Even if he’s not here! Even if he becomes a deserter! What we must do will not change!」
Ryūgūin’s lines, expressing his belief that they must protect even the weak─even deserters, moved the entire audience to tears.
From there, it seemed their conversation would continue further, but I simply told Milan beside me, 「I’m tired」, and left the theater.
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