Chapter 33
While Abel and Chloe were busy fighting the Orcs, Estelle, the one who had provoked the Orcs in the first place, slipped away and headed toward the village.
“Hmm…”
The village was completely in ruins. Charred skeletons lay among the burnt houses, and the only building left standing was a slightly larger one to the north. It was likely the village’s central hall.
“Squeak! Human, where did you come from!”
“…There are Orcs everywhere.”
《 Holy Arrow 》
In an instant, a glowing arrow appeared and pierced the Orc’s throat. The Orc didn’t even have time to scream before its eyes rolled back.
‘I hope the Hero is doing well~♥ I hope he hasn’t gotten too hurt~.’
Even as she swiftly dealt with the Orc, Estelle’s thoughts were with Abel.
Thud. Confirming that the Orc’s massive body had fallen, Estelle moved on. As she walked along the village’s main road, she defeated every Orc that appeared until she stopped at a certain point.
“Squeak! Meat, meat!”
“Squeak! Just as the chief said! There’s plenty of meat in the village!”
“Squeak! Eat and drink to your heart’s content, squeak! You brave warriors deserve it, squeak!”
What caught Estelle’s eye was a group of Orcs feasting in front of the village hall. There were far more Orcs here than the ones she had seen earlier on the village streets.
‘Looks like the Orcs I dealt with earlier were just the guards.’
In the center of the group was an Orc dressed in feathers, holding a bone staff.
“So, the one leading the Orcs is an Orc shaman.”
Hearing Estelle’s mutter, the Orc shaman and the Orcs all turned their heads. Estelle frowned under the intense gaze of the hideous Orcs.
“Your stares are unpleasant.”
“Squeak!? Since when were you here!”
“What are the guards doing, squeak!”
Then, one Orc shouted.
“Squeak! Chief! That human is very pretty! I want her as my bride, squeak!”
The shouting Orc was larger than the others, and his armor looked of higher quality. Estelle recognized him immediately.
‘An Orc champion too? He might be a good match for the Hero to fight….’
Even as the Orc made the absurd declaration of making her his bride, Estelle was thinking about training Abel.
“Squeak! Gelund, you’re the greatest warrior! You deserve it!”
“Thank you, Chief! Squeak, human! You’re my bride now, squeak!”
The unusually large Orc declared Estelle as his bride and raised an axe befitting his size. Estelle was genuinely annoyed.
“To hear something I wanted to hear from the Hero from an Orc… this is the worst.”
“Squeak! Warriors! Capture that woman and bring her to me, squeak!”
《 Divine Sword 》
Kwang――!
“…Squeak, Gelund?”
A massive sword of light, seemingly larger than the Orc, appeared and cleaved Gelund’s body in two.
The Orc shaman, Musural, led the tribe’s strongest warrior, Gelund. With a bit more experience, he might have become an Orc Lord. But now, he was split in two and dead.
《 Divine Arrow 》
“Squeak! It’s blinding!”
“Squeak! What is that, Chief!”
Above Estelle’s head, dozens of glowing arrows formed. Seeing this, Musural trembled in fear.
“…This, this human isn’t normal, squeak!”
“Hmph, I don’t want to hear that from Orcs.”
As the arrows began to pierce the trembling Musural’s head, every Orc in the area was soon struck down. It didn’t take long for all the Orcs there to lose their lives.
The arrows, imbued with the power of the sun god, showed no mercy to the Orcs. Estelle looked at the now quiet surroundings and muttered.
“…One left.”
Another arrow formed and pierced an Orc hiding among its comrades’ corpses.
“Chuk!….”
After slaughtering an entire Orc tribe, Estelle watched the hall for a moment before moving on to deal with any remaining Orcs in the village.
#
About an hour later, the Saint returned. She came back completely unharmed, as if there was no need to worry. Chloe and I sighed in relief upon seeing her.
“…Saint. Where did you go without saying anything?”
“Huh?”
“You disappeared without a word, you scared us.”
“Right! You just vanished without a trace….”
The Saint tilted her head, looking oddly cute.
“I left a note, didn’t I?”
“Well, yes, but….”
“Oh my♡ Hero, were you worried about me~? I’m not so weak that a clumsy Hero like you needs to worry♡”
I know you’re ridiculously strong. But still, if someone suddenly disappears, it’s natural to be surprised. How can you not be shocked when someone just vanishes into thin air?
“…Still. Let us know before you go.”
The Saint looked at me for a moment, then nodded.
“Alright, I will. But don’t worry~♡ Where would I go, leaving a useless Hero like you behind♡”
“…Sure.”
…Looks like I was the only one worried.
The Saint giggled, finding something amusing.
“But it feels nice that the Hero worries about me~♥”
“…What’s so nice about that?”
Hearing my question, the Saint silently looked at me for a moment. Why are you staring?
Then, the corners of her eyes curved like crescent moons, and instead of her usual smug smile, she gave a gentle one.
“It means the Hero cares about me in his own way, right?”
…Care about you? That’s not it. How can I care about someone who only spouts nonsense?
It’s just that….
“…We’re comrades, right?”
“Hehe, yes♡”
Really.
#
“The villagers are still alive?”
“They seem to be trapped in the hall~♡ I thought it would be too much for me to rescue them alone, so I came to get you.”
“That’s really fortunate.”
So, not everyone was dead. Following the Saint’s lead toward the village hall, I saw the corpses of Orcs scattered everywhere.
…Did she do all this?
She didn’t look tired at all…
The High Priestess walked ahead without a care in the world.
…When will I ever get to take real revenge? At this rate, I might die of old age before I even get the chance.
“Huh…”
Chloe seemed to share my thoughts, as she kept muttering exclamations while walking. Seriously, there must be at least twenty orc corpses lying around the streets right now.
…And here Chloe and I only took down three of them. Do we even need a Hero? The High Priestess could probably do the Hero’s job just fine.
“Over there.”
“That building looks intact?”
“The orcs probably left it alone to keep people trapped inside. They were messing around and eating in front of it earlier.”
“…?”
The orcs were messing around and eating? Then what about all the orc corpses we’ve seen so far?
As we approached the Village Hall with these questions in mind, Chloe and I were left speechless.
“High Priestess, what on earth…?”
“…Did you do this, High Priestess?”
“Yes, who else would’ve done it?”
At least a hundred orc corpses were scattered everywhere. They hadn’t been dead for long, as the stench of decay hadn’t set in yet.
“Y-you took down all of these, High Priestess?”
Chloe seemed utterly shocked. Considering she once handled a group of ogres alone, it shouldn’t be that surprising, but since we didn’t see the ogre corpses firsthand, this felt different.
…I think I’m traveling with someone terrifying.
The High Priestess casually stepped over the orc corpses and opened the Village Hall door. Inside, people were tightly bound with ropes.
“…There aren’t many adult men here?”
“The orcs probably killed them, thinking they’d be a threat.”
Most of the hostages were elderly, women, and children. There were especially many women. It wasn’t hard to guess what the orcs had planned for them, unless you were an idiot.
“…Disgusting.”
“Monsters are like that~. It’s the Hero’s job to save people from such monsters~♡”
The people were still terrified, even after seeing us. They must’ve been through hell with the orcs. The High Priestess smiled warmly at them and spoke.
“Don’t worry, everyone. We’ve come to rescue you with the Hero.”
Please, talk like that all the time.
It was the same voice I’d heard at the Adventurer’s Guild before. I’d heard it once, but Chloe, who was next to me, was so shocked she stared at the High Priestess with wide eyes.
It’s really startling the first time you hear it. It’s completely different from her usual voice. Her normal voice is nice too, but this one sounds like it could make a killing on spoon radio.
The people murmured after hearing the High Priestess. An elderly man with white hair asked.
“T-the Hero, you say? Is that true?”
“Yes, this is Abel, the Hero of the Mars Empire.”
“Ohh…”
The people were overjoyed. Most were relieved to be alive, but some were crying.
I couldn’t tell if their tears were from joy or from losing loved ones and surviving alone.
All I could do was untie their ropes and check their conditions.
“High Priestess, no one’s seriously injured.”
“That’s a relief.”
“Same here! Everyone’s safe!”
“You’ve all been through a lot.”
Chloe flinched when the High Priestess smiled sweetly. She must not be used to seeing the High Priestess like that.
…Honestly, I’m not used to it either.
“Thank you so much, Hero.”
An elderly man who seemed to be the village representative bowed to me. He might be the village chief, given his age.
After confirming everyone was safe, we stepped outside. The villagers were shocked to see the orc corpses scattered around the Village Hall.
We were shocked too, but it’s only natural for regular folks to be even more startled….
I asked the villagers about their plans. Since the village was destroyed, I thought we’d take them to a neighboring country. But their answer was completely unexpected.
“You’re staying even after the village was destroyed like this?”
“Yes…”
“But how will you live here?”
The only building left standing was the Village Hall. And many people had died.
“But this is the village where these children were born and raised. Most of us grew up here. As the Hero said, it’s been destroyed, but we can rebuild. Thankfully, not all the villagers died, so while it might take time, we can restore it.”
…They don’t want to leave their home.
I completely understood that feeling. I always want to go back home too. The place you’re from is the most comfortable, and you miss it when you’re away.
I asked the High Priestess, pointing at the ruined village.
“…High Priestess, can we help before we go?”
“…Huh?”
“With rebuilding the village. There aren’t many young men left, so I thought we could help with the heavy lifting. Will it take too long?”
The High Priestess blinked a couple of times at my question. Then she nodded and said.
“It will definitely take some time.”
“Ah…so…”
Is it a no?
“Why are you so disappointed? I never said no. Silly♡”
…Damn it, then just say it straight next time.
“…I thought you might object because of our schedule.”
“Of course, we’re busy too, but a Hero is someone who helps those in need~♡ In that sense, your suggestion was very heroic♥”
The High Priestess smiled as she said this. Her smile was as refreshing as a clear, breezy sky. It felt like the first time she’d shown me such a genuine smile, and I scratched the back of my head, feeling a bit embarrassed.
…Smile like that more often, you brat.
