Episode 27: It's Mutual

 

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"......⁉︎"

 

Raven had an expression that seemed to say he couldn't believe it. He appeared confused.

 

Well, it's understandable. He probably never imagined that the rookie adventurer he deemed useless would be someone he and Lugas couldn't even touch, even when attacking together.

 

"Are you saying you've been hiding your true strength⁉︎ Why⁉︎ No, there was no change in the color of the crystal. I don't understand how you can be this strong without any attributes......!"

 

"No, I wasn't hiding it. But there's no need to explain everything."

 

With that, I aimed my right hand at Raven.

 

——At that moment.

 

"This was unexpected, but there's no turning back now‼︎"

 

Lugas, recovering from the recoil, shouted as he swung his sword down at Milia.

 

It seemed he had decided to deal with the troublesome me later and get rid of Milia first.

 

Normally, that wouldn't be a bad decision, but this time he made the wrong call.

 

Clang!

 

The sword Lugas swung down with all his might was effortlessly deflected by Milia.

 

"What⁉︎ You deflected my strike⁉︎"

 

"You're underestimating me too much!"

 

That's right, Milia is special.

 

Against a swordsman who can only use single attributes, there's no way former hero Milia would be outdone.

 

Now then.

 

There's no problem if I leave Milia and Lisha to handle Lugas.

 

I'll neutralize Raven and capture him. Killing him is an option, but it would only leave us feeling bad. There's no benefit to it.

 

We'll just take him back to the capital and hand him over to the guards.

 

'Elemental Ball.'

 

With an image of grazing his shoulder just enough to avoid a fatal wound.

 

BOOOOMMMMMMMMMMMM!!

 

The white light ball shot from my right hand followed its intended trajectory, just grazing Raven's right shoulder, scattering the grass and trees behind him.

 

Alright, now I just need to tie him up. Do I have any rope...?

 

Just then.

 

"Raven, retreat!"

 

As soon as I heard Lugas' voice, white smoke started billowing from the ground.

 

A magic tool to create a smoke screen...!

 

It seemed they had been keeping it for emergencies.

 

Even so, I have 'Detection.' They won't escape me so easily——

 

"......⁉︎"

 

A large amount of magic from right in front of me.

 

It seemed Raven was firing arrows at us while running.

 

If it were just me, I could deal with as many arrows as he could shoot, but it would be troublesome if they hit Milia and Lisha.

 

Even if we let them go now, Raven is injured. He won't be attacking for a while.

 

No choice. I'll have to give up the chase for now.

 

I kept intercepting the incoming arrows, waiting for the smoke to clear.

 

In about a minute, the smoke dispersed, and our view became clear.

 

Finally, we can relax, or so I thought when—

 

"Rain, Milia... I'm sorry!"

 

As soon as the smoke cleared, Lisha bowed her head deeply with tremendous force.

 

"Huh? Why are you apologizing, Lisha?"

 

"Yeah, what's wrong?"

 

As Milia and I looked puzzled, Lisha began to explain.

 

"Because of me, I got everyone involved. If Rain hadn't noticed, we might have all been killed..."

 

It seemed Lisha believed she had caused us trouble by joining our party. What should I do about this?

 

"...... Well, that's true. If it weren't for Lisha, we wouldn't have been attacked by those guys."

 

"I don't know how to apologize..."

 

Lisha, who had been so cheerful until a moment ago, suddenly became quite gloomy.

 

I continued speaking.

 

"But in the end, there was no problem at all."

 

"That's true, but..."

 

"We knew there might be some trouble from the start when we welcomed you, Lisha. It's nothing for you to worry about. Right, Milia?"

 

"Eh? Me⁉︎"

 

Milia was surprised by the sudden question.

 

"Well, yes. In an adventurer's party, troubles are mutual. Although this was a bit unexpected."

 

"Exactly. Someday, Milia and I might cause trouble, and when that happens, we'll count on you."

 

Lisha seemed surprised by our reaction, her mouth agape.

 

Then, she snapped out of it, her gloomy expression gone.

 

"Rain... Milia... thank you. I love you both!"

 

With that, Lisha ran up to us.

 

Phew.

 

Finally, we can relax.

 

"We'll deal with Raven and Lugas later... For now, let's head back to the capital."

 

With that, we set off on our way home.

 

◇

 

By the time we returned to the capital, the sun was setting.

 

For now, we decided to report to the guild.

 

"This means a rank-up!"

 

"Yeah."

 

Despite the unexpected trouble, this request was for our promotion to E rank. As long as we report, we should be able to rank up.

 

While we're at it, we'll also mention the attack by the 'Black Mist Blade' adventurers on our way back.

 

"Hopefully, the reception isn't too crowded..."

 

Just as I opened the guild door—

 

"......⁉︎"

 

For some reason, the atmosphere inside the adventurer's guild was tense.

 

The city guards and knights under direct control of the court were armed, waiting in large numbers. As soon as we entered, all eyes were on us.

 

Moreover, the guild, usually bustling with adventurers at this time, was empty except for us.

 

"...This is scary."

 

"Did something happen...?"

 

Milia and Lisha seemed as bewildered as I was.

 

Just as I was about to step towards the reception desk—

 

"Don't move."

 

A conspicuous red-haired man in the armed crowd glared at us and spoke.

 

"I am Grave, the Guild Master of the capital's jurisdiction."

 

The Guild Master... the person in charge of the adventurer's guild branch.

 

Come to think of it, the receptionist said that the purchase price for the 'Red Dragon' was too high for anyone but the Guild Master to approve.

 

She mentioned that it would be ready by the time we returned to the guild... Is this about that?

 

But even so, this ominous atmosphere is unsettling.

 

"Rain Shadow. Milia Shadow. Lisha Gracia. Sorry, but we're taking you into custody."