――――――
Today, our party finally reached C-rank!
The guild lady told us that as an adventurer party, we’ve officially joined the ranks of the intermediates. She even praised us. It feels like a dream that country folk like us could become such respectable adventurers.
Sister gave me so many compliments, too.
Cain and Lloyd were practically dancing for joy because we’re having a feast tonight. They really are so greedy; they should try to be more like Sister—
Wait, Sister... you’re drooling. Look, you're actually drooling.
Honestly. Even if we have been promoted, we’re still a tiny party, so we can only splurge a little bit, okay? Money is important.
――――――
Sister bought me a new staff.
She told me that since I’m C-rank now, I should be using a respectable weapon.
It’s such a wonderful staff; it almost feels like it’s too good for me.
Thank you so much, Sister. I’ll cherish it forever!
...But Sister, where did you get the money for this?
I have a feeling the party’s funds have gone down.
Didn't I tell you we were flat broke this month because you ordered so many expensive dishes the other day?
Sister??
――――――
We’ve decided to take on an escort request.
If we don't do something soon, we’ll be eating nothing but mushrooms every single day, so we have to earn some money fast.
The client, Mr. Staffio, is a very kind man. He even said he would provide all of our meals for the journey! I can't even afford to buy proper travel rations anymore, so I’m really grateful...
Two adventurers who are acquaintances of the client are going to help us. They both seem a bit frivolous, but having extra hands will be a big help.
Come on, Cain, Lloyd, if you want to eat meat, you have to work hard!
Sister, you’ll be able to eat your fill once this is over, too!
Let’s do our best!
Still... I didn't know you could get requests directly without going through the guild.
I'd never heard of that before.
――――――
Wait... something's wrong.
My body feels... numb.
My head is spinning.
Sister, Cain, Lloyd... no one can move.
...Was there poison in the food?
But this meal was given to us by those adventurers.
...Eh? Why are they laughing?
—Ah.
Oh no.
These people... they're bad people――――――
――――――
When I woke up, I was in a small, dim room.
The floor and the walls were all stone; it was a hard, cold place.
My hands were tied with rope. Sister, Cain, and Lloyd were nowhere to be found.
I desperately called out their names, and then someone entered the room.
...It was the client.
He had been such a kind man, but now he had a creepy smile on his face, as if he were a completely different person.
The two adventurers were with him.
It was hard to believe they were truly enemies because they both smiled so gently—but that only made me more terrified.
It was as if they were wearing masks.
――――――
They dragged me by the rope to a large room.
There were several scary men there.
Sister and the others were tied up just like me.
Sister’s face turned white as a sheet when she saw me and called my name.
I tried to run to her, but the rope jerked me back and I fell.
Listening to the men's laughter, I finally understood.
The client had been a bad man from the very beginning.
The request had been a trap from the very beginning.
We had been caught by villains.
...The moment I realized that, I lost myself to fear.
I don't remember much of what happened after that.
I just remember calling everyone's names over and over.
I remember Cain and Lloyd screaming through gritted teeth for them to leave me alone and do whatever they wanted to them instead.
And Sister’s smile—an impossibly gentle smile.
"It's okay. I'll protect you, Ruerie."
That's the only thing I remember—and yet.
That one memory is stuck to me. I can never forget it.
――――――
That night was hell.
The men didn't do anything to me.
I was simply locked in a dim room.
They took my equipment and my Storage, but they weren't violent with me. They even gave me food and a blanket.
But—but I could hear them.
Faintly, from a room far away.
Cain and Lloyd's agonizing voices.
Sister's screams.
The men's laughter, thick with filth.
I was so scared.
I couldn't believe this was reality.
I could hear them—in the darkness where I couldn't even see my own palm by the light of a single candle. The voices, the voices, the voices, the voices, the voices, the voices, the voices――――
I felt like I was going to lose my mind, and I started sobbing.
Those two men came in and punched me, then kicked me in the stomach.
If the client hadn't stepped in to stop them, they might have done something even worse.
He scolded them, saying I still had a use and not to leave unnecessary scars.
But I didn't feel like I had been saved.
What on earth did he mean by "use"?
What was going to happen to me?
What was happening to Sister and the others?
I didn't know anything.
I couldn't do anything.
No matter how hard I tried to stifle them, the tears wouldn't stop.
――――――
I heard a loud noise.
The sound of things being smashed and mown down—and something like a roar.
...After that, I couldn't hear Cain or Lloyd's voices anymore.
――――――
I think... the night has ended.
In the end, I couldn't sleep a wink.
Now, I can't hear Sister's voice either. It's okay, I'm sure they're just sleeping. That's all it is. I mustn't imagine the worst—I was so desperate to tell myself that, there was no way I could sleep.
Eventually, those two came to my room.
Remembering the pain of being kicked, I cowered in the corner.
The two of them knelt before me and spoke.
"Hey, don't you want to save your sister?"
"If you help us out a bit, we'll save your sister for you."
...There was no way I could believe them.
I knew better than to believe them, and yet.
I didn't have a choice.
I had heard Sister and the others suffering all night long.
I had done nothing but cover my ears and tremble.
Even if I knew it was a lie... I felt like I would go insane if I didn't do something to help them.
――――――
I am a bad girl.
I did what the bad people told me and thought of a way to trap adventurers.
When those two laughingly suggested they would pretend to be Cain and Lloyd, my blood boiled. I knew I should never have allowed it... but I couldn't say a word.
Then we went to the town of Luther, and I helped them deceive the party they had targeted.
In that party, there was a girl about my age, and one even smaller than me.
Thinking that these girls were going to suffer the same fate as me made me feel like I was being torn apart by guilt.
And yet, despite that, there was a part of me trying to feel relieved that my sister might be saved. I was horrified by myself.
I am a bad girl.
I will accept any punishment. So please, I beg you.
Someone, help.
Please help.
I don't care what happens to me.
Please.
Save Sister. Save everyone.
Help them, please...!!
Someone...!!
/
Naturally, at first, I thought killing another human being was out of the question.
Even though I’ve now remembered my Knowledge of the Original Work, I used to be someone who firmly believed this world was a classic royal road fantasy of swords and sorcery. I had the natural preconception that the threats humanity fought were monsters, and that humans lived by supporting one another.
I was forced to realize how massive a misunderstanding that was some time after Gramps's training became Spartan, right around when I became able to defeat ordinary monsters without issue.
It started when some Ruffians drifted into the vicinity of our village. At first, everyone prayed they would just move on, but they began breaking into the village night after night to steal food. Eventually, it escalated to the point where they attacked and seriously injured villagers who witnessed their crimes.
I don't remember exactly how the decision was reached, but Gramps and I were tasked with taking the scoundrels down.
The fight itself was no problem. The Ruffians were just three thugs without a shred of martial arts knowledge; it was much easier than fighting monsters.
But right after that, Gramps quietly asked a question that I can still remember as clearly as if it were yesterday.
"Well, boy. Can you kill them?"
Naturally, I flatly refused. There was no way I could do it. It was different from cutting down a monster. To me, having lived my previous life as an ordinary person from Earth, killing a human was an absolute taboo.
All three Ruffians were blubbering, tears and snot running down their faces as they begged for their lives. We’re sorry, we’ll never do it again, we swear to God we’ll change, so please, just spare our lives—
No villagers had been killed yet. I saw no reason to kill men who were repenting so desperately.
Gramps narrowed his eyes at my protest.
"I see."
Far from being angry at my rejection, he seemed almost understanding. Saying only that, he released the Ruffians.
The three men fled, their tears of terror turning into tears of gratitude, shouting every word of thanks they could think of. Just as they were about to disappear into the trees...
"We’re following them. Erase your presence."
Without waiting for my answer, Gramps started walking. I hurriedly chased after him, about to complain, when he spoke again.
"This is a good opportunity. Take a good look at what those men, saved by your mercy, will do."
I shut my mouth.
It was normal for Gramps to look grim, but his expression then was different. It was as if he were ready to cut those men down from behind at any second.
Even though he had long since retired, he was a man who had once been feared as an ogre by his own comrades. As a man who had martyred himself to the way of the sword, it wasn't unusual for him to boil with indignation when faced with those who strayed from morality.
I had a bad feeling.
—And several hours after I had shown them mercy, deep in the forest far from the village.
Those men, without a moment's hesitation, attacked a young female adventurer who had become separated from her party.
A few hours.
That was all it took. Only a few hours after they had been on their knees, begging for their lives with snot running down their faces.
They threw away every word they had said to me and laughed as they prepared to torment that girl.
"――……"
"This is reality, Wolka."
I could hear the men's laughter.
I could hear the girl's screams.
"You showed them mercy and spared their lives. This is the result!"
Suppressing an almost explosive righteous indignation, Gramps lectured me.
"They exist in this world... the kind of bastards who are beyond saving."
"……"
The sensation of something that had been inside me for a long time being destroyed and collapsing was overwhelming.
More than the wonder of seeing magic for the first time...
More than the shock of seeing a monster move for the first time...
More than the exhilaration of finally grasping the Quick-draw Technique I’d dreamed of...
It was this crushing disappointment that killed every other emotion. It carved the truth into me more deeply than anything else: this world was fundamentally different from the one I knew.
"I won't tell you not to hesitate. But never show them mercy."
Just as Gramps said, even after seeing such a vile reality, I still felt resistance.
But, at the very least...
"...At least this will protect someone's life."
As I drew my sword once again, mercy had vanished from my hand.
This is a world of rotten, bottom-tier dark fantasy.
There was no way the ethics of a peaceful world like Japan, where even possessing a weapon was illegal, could be applied to a world where carrying a sword was as common as breathing.
...Honestly, it wasn't the kind of lesson a ten-year-old should be learning.
It's a foul memory that deserves nothing but contempt, but that bitterness is what made me who I am today. It’s not that I’ve come to love killing, but I’ve found the conviction to carry the weight of the lives I take.
Perhaps, even more than his swordsmanship... that was the greatest thing Gramps hammered into me.
/
The carriage jolted. From the outside, it probably didn't look like it was going that fast, but inside, it felt like we were tumbling down a slope. If this were a normal trip, I’d be shouting at the driver to slow down.
If this were a normal trip.
"Well then—if you value your life, you'll stay nice and quiet."
Cain and Lloyd—no, the false Cain and false Lloyd—sat on wooden crates, leaning forward provocatively with their arms on their knees, pointing Shortswords at Master and me. The cheerful, refreshing smiles they’d worn were gone, replaced by an ugly, predatory malice.
I took a quiet breath.
"Done playing adventurer, are we?"
"...What, you noticed? Man, I'm disappointed."
"Hard not to."
Anze’s judgment had been the deciding factor, but even without her, we would have reached the same conclusion.
Master watched them with a frigid gaze.
"That was a rather blatant seating arrangement. It was obvious you were trying to split our party up."
"Ah, really? I figured for a girl like Ruerie, saying that much wouldn't be weird. I guess it was suspicious after all."
The false Cain looked at us with playful eyes, as if asking if we'd found anything else.
"Ruerie's sister wasn't at the church," I said.
"Ahahaha, that! Even I wanted to tell her, 'Ruerie, seriously, that's such an obvious lie!' I mean, look at your injuries. Anyone can tell you’re being treated at a church, right? And yet her sister is supposed to be at the church, too?"
He laughed, as if it were the funniest thing in the world.
"Don't you think it would've been better to just say we were a three-person party? Well, Ruerie loves her sister too much. I guess she couldn't stand her not being 'there.'"
He spoke as if he were a member of an audience commenting on a play.
"But hey, don't be too hard on her," he added with a chuckle. "The poor thing really tried her best to come up with that."
So that was it.
These guys weren't just using Ruerie as bait. They had forced her to do it all. They had used her friends as shields and made her orchestrate the trap herself.
"She’s never tricked anyone before, so it can't be helped. She worked hard, she really did."
The false Lloyd’s mouth twisted into a grin. The carriage creaked incessantly, which was a mercy; it meant Ruerie couldn't hear this disgusting laughter from the other wagon.
"We told her, see. We said if she helped us lure some adventurers out, we'd let her precious sister go. Man, you should've seen her. She got so desperate it was almost hard to watch."
I felt Master’s nails dig into my arm. Not yet, Master. I understood how she felt—I was losing my own patience—but we had to endure just a little longer.
"Why go that far?" I asked. "There was no reason to make her do that part."
"Huh? You don't get it."
I really didn't.
"It’s more amusing that way."
I had no intention of ever understanding a thought process that nauseating.
"Making someone do something they don't want to do is what makes it fun. Just think about it. A little girl like that, crying while she does what we say... desperately trying to figure out how to lie and act just to save her sister... isn't that just the funniest thing you've ever heard?"
To these people, it was all a game. Deceiving, toying with, and hurting others was nothing more than a spectacle for their amusement.
"……"
In that moment, I felt a small sense of relief. I was glad they were irredeemable bastards.
At the very least, I wouldn't have to hesitate to cut them down.
"But hey, if you knew who we were, why did you follow us so obediently? Couldn't bear to leave poor Ruerie behind? How heroic."
The false Cain narrowed his eyes, clearly annoyed that we weren't panicking.
"But do kids like you even have experience killing people? Just so you know, we've got a lot of scary former mercenaries on our side."
"……"
"That knight seemed like he'd be a pain, too, so our buddies are holding him down. They took crossbows and Scrolls with them; I bet he's dead by now. Too bad."
The carriage slowed. The false Cain was so drunk on the situation that he couldn't stop talking.
"I’ve liked Yulitia and Atri since I saw them in town. Tormenting girls like that with superior numbers and making them obey like Ruerie... it's the best feeling in the world. So, we're gonna have you literally be the 'burden' that makes them give in!"
The narrow path opened into a clearing. As the carriage stopped, several figures emerged from the forest to surround us. There were four by our wagon and about ten by the other. Including the men who had gone to intercept Rosche, there were more than twenty of them.
It was a large operation for mere thugs.
"Yo, how'd it go?"
"Easy as pie."
A massive, muscular man who looked like an Orc stepped onto the back of the wagon. I wanted to tell him that if he had the discipline to train his body that much, he should have just gotten a real job. There was no reason to sink to being a Ruffian.
"Sorry, kid. We're gonna find a good use for your friends. Just give up quietly."
The driver had stopped pretending to be a civilian as well. He puffed on a cigar, acting as if the fight were already over now that they had us surrounded.
To be fair, for any normal young party, it would have been the end. They were split up, outnumbered, and facing veteran mercenaries. And as the false Cain said, many young adventurers who are fine fighting monsters freeze up when they have to kill a human. Adventurer rank doesn't measure your willingness to take a life.
"Come on, get out. Let your friends see you looking all pathetic as a hostage."
Their assessment was perfectly logical. Based on the situation, the injured man and the mage were helpless hostages, and the swordswoman and heavy warrior would be forced to surrender to save them.
Based on the situation.
"Hurry it up, or I'll have to use this. I'd rather see the look on your faces first, though."
The false Cain switched his Shortsword to his left hand and reached into a pouch on his right hip. They clearly had more than just numbers—likely some kind of magic item to paralyze us.
"Let's see... ah, here it is."
He was incredibly overconfident. He had switched his weapon to his off-hand and even looked away from me.
I wasn't even within the reach of the sword he was holding. What did he think he was threatening me with?
On the other hand, the arm he had extended so carelessly... was well within my reach.
I probably didn't even need to step in. No matter what he pulled out, Master could have neutralized it instantly. I could have just stayed quiet and watched.
So, this was purely my own ego.
He’d certainly talked a big game.
"Tell me..." I muttered. "Are you actually stronger than the Grim Reaper?"
"Tada! This is—"
He cut him.
/
Even after his prosthetic leg had been shattered, Wolka had never stopped swinging his sword.
During the wait for repairs, he had focused on exploring how his body could move and what postures allowed him to strike with only one leg and limited vision. He knew that the journey to the Holy City would be dangerous, and he needed to know exactly what he was capable of in his current state.
He had ignored the worried, pained looks from Liesel and the others as he trained. Because he had been forced to train in similar conditions by his grandfather, his mind adapted to the limitations quickly.
He tested every position—kneeling, leaning against a tree, sitting. He realized that since he didn't have to balance on his legs, sitting was actually the most stable way for him to fight. He focused on the principles of relaxation he had seen in Atri’s movements, mastering the art of the draw without relying on brute Strength.
By the time his leg was fixed, he had mastered a seated draw that was so fast it was nearly impossible for the human eye to track.
He was far from his peak, but Wolka was still a formidable force, even while sitting down.
A man who had endured hellish training just for the sake of the blade...
A man who had slain a monster of legend while on the verge of death...
A man who had pried open the door to a higher realm in his final moments...
There was no way a common thug who had never truly staked his life could hope to see the stroke coming from a Sword Demon like him.