Chapter 77

The messy right hand dripped with red blood.

Looking at how they attacked the lord’s mansion in this rain, it seemed they weren’t the target of poison.

However, even if they could avoid poison, they couldn’t escape our hands, so we turned them all into cold corpses.

“Ugly human bastards…”

The demon soldier who attacked the lord’s mansion glared at me while spitting blood. Even after being pierced in the abdomen, he was still alive. Demons are indeed tenacious.

“…I agree that there are many ugly humans.”

I thrust my staff and pierced the demon soldier’s chest.

“But at least the people of this village are not like that. That’s why we’re killing you, so don’t resent us too much.”

“Hahaha… So if this village deserved to die… you would have left it alone…?”

“…Maybe.”

You might call us cruel, but that’s who we were.

We weren’t the ideal heroes from fairy tales. There was always a limit to the lives we could save.

We weighed the strategic value, the higher probability of survival, and applied various other criteria to judge the worth of lives.

The moment we placed equally noble lives on the scales in our hearts, our justice was shattered.

The role of a hero is to save lives recklessly, without discrimination. That’s why heroes can save many people.

But the role of a warrior is to save lives under the right judgment. That’s why warriors can minimize sacrifices.

What a twisted story, isn’t it?

“Camilla. It seems we’ve roughly dealt with the first group that attacked the lord’s mansion.”

“…It sure looks like it.”

As Camilla pulled the spear from the demon’s chest, red blood gushed out like a fountain.

Camilla wiped the blood off her beautiful face and turned to me.

“Now that we’ve finished cleaning up, it’s time to go kill that lizard bitch.”

“…You really hate the queen, don’t you?”

“Of course. That reptile stole my treasure… No, even before that, you hate her just as much as I do, don’t you?”

The Dragon Queen must have taken the jewelry I gave her as a gift.

It seemed that the jewelry alone wasn’t enough, so she took another treasure.

“…Well, that dragon tried to defile me and make me her mate.”

“And that’s the second reason why I have to kill that bitch.”

Camilla was smiling, but behind her face, I could see a few roaring beasts.

They say that when a woman holds a grudge, frost falls even in June, but Camilla’s grudge could bring on an ice age.

When you think about it, Camilla, Layla, Her Majesty the Empress—all the women in our group were incredibly fierce.

“You were just making a very rude face.”

“Not at all. Let’s stop the small talk and go deal with the queen.”

She was still sharp when it came to these trivial matters.

“Kyle. You take charge of defending the lord’s mansion.”

“The enemy is the Dragon Queen. Surely the dragon race will be protecting her. Even if we all attack, our chances of winning are slim. Losing one person will be a significant blow.”

“As you saw, there are those who attacked the lord’s mansion. There’s no guarantee a second group won’t come.”

“But if you lose, it’s all over. Strategically, even if we abandon the villagers…!”

“Enough.”

The lives I once abandoned seemed to flicker before my eyes.

Those faceless lives I once dismissed always weighed heavily on my shoulders.

“I don’t want to live by weighing lives anymore.”

I’m tired of living as a hero, as a family head, as a dutiful son.

I don’t want to make the selfish statement of living for myself either.

But at least for the time I have left…

I want to live as Raul Berze.

“Even so, Raul. That’s still insane. Even if you take some risks…!”

“Kyle.”

I tapped Kyle’s forehead.

“You’re smart, so you know what I’m about to say.”

“Is that an order…?”

“A request. As your teacher and guardian.”

“Unexpectedly… no, as always, you’re quite cunning.”

Kyle sighed and gestured for me to leave.

“I’ll defend this place even if it kills me, so go give that damn lizard a beating. I’ve had treasures stolen by that lizard too.”

“That’s news to me. You’ve had treasures stolen by that dragon too?”

“…You never asked.”

Camilla chuckled and started poking Kyle.

“Hey, kid, what could you possibly have had stolen by that dragon? At most, a piece of candy…”

“She burned down our village, asked me which of my parents I wanted to save, and when I chose my mother, she killed her right in front of me, then killed my father in exchange for my life.”

“…I’m sorry. Damn it, you should have said that earlier. You make me feel like trash.”

As Camilla stopped laughing, Kyle awkwardly smiled and pushed my back.

“But you saved us, so it’s all good, right? Now go cut off that lizard’s head.”

“Alright. I promise.”

With that, Camilla and I left the lord’s mansion and started running towards the forest where the Dragon Queen was.

The effect of the enhancement potion lasts up to 5 hours. We had to capture the queen within that time.

But the dragons weren’t as foolish as we thought.

“They’re really going all out. Damn lizard bastards… Tsk. They’re even more vicious than their mother.”

“That’s a rude thing to say.”

“Ah.”

“Dragons aren’t that tough.”

“…You’ve really changed.”

“I only speak the plain truth. If I’ve changed, it’s only because I’ve learned something I didn’t know before.”

“But it’s a positive change.”

I adjusted my grip on the staff and prepared to face the dragons.

With that number, it would take some time, but if Camilla and I fought together, we could annihilate them.

It would be tight to deal with the Dragon Queen, but this was the surest and safest method.

“Go, Raul. I’ll handle this.”

“Are you insane, Camilla? Taking on that number alone is suicide.”

“You’re the only one who can deliver a meaningful attack to the Dragon Queen. I can only provide cover and suppression. You need to face her while the enhancement potion is still effective.”

“You’re not listening. I’m not worried about the queen, but about you taking on that army alone.”

“It seems you’re the one who doesn’t understand…”

Camilla grabbed my collar and looked me in the eye, speaking in a commanding voice.

“You’re the key to this battle. You’re willing to spend one month of your remaining life to fight, and now you’re worried about this? Don’t waste your life on something trivial.”

“Fighting them is meaningful enough.”

“Anyone can handle them, but the Dragon Queen is different. Let’s fight efficiently, please.”

“I can’t leave you in danger.”

Even for me, that number was overwhelming. Facing the queen alone was a completely different challenge.

“Danger? Me? Don’t talk nonsense and go. Don’t you know every second counts now?”

“But…!”

Memories of the past resurfaced.

Layla… Layla… Layla…

If I hadn’t left her alone that day, she wouldn’t have died.

The specter of Layla, who died that day, flickered behind Camilla’s figure.

“I can’t… I can’t lose again… Pathetically… Like that time, losing everything again… Repeating that tragedy…”

*Slap.*

A hot, stinging pain struck my cheek.

“You really have no shame saying that in front of people.”

“I…”

“Do you think Layla died for such a reason? Layla died honorably in battle. She didn’t die in an accident under your protection.”

Even so, I couldn’t leave a comrade alone again.

The heart-wrenching, gut-twisting agony that felt otherworldly—once was enough.

“I won’t die.”

Camilla grabbed my shoulder firmly.

“I’m Camilla.”

“But Layla also…”

“I’m not Layla. I’m Camilla Argos.”

I couldn’t understand what she was trying to say.

“You might not understand my words, but I understand your heart. You’re scared and anxious, right? Afraid of losing again. I get it. I’m scared too. Afraid of dying without conveying my feelings. If you don’t convey your feelings, it usually ends like that.”

Camilla leaned her face closer to mine.

“So I’ll say it. So we can survive. So I can shake off my fear.”

“What are you…”

“I like you. I like you, Raul Berze. Camilla Argos likes you.”

I was at a loss for words.

Why…

Why would a perfect woman like her like a fool like me?

My thoughts came to a halt.

“There’s so much I want to say about the reasons and depth. Honestly, I could talk about it for three days and nights. But given the situation…”

Camilla hesitated, showing a hint of shyness.

Her innocent shyness was proven by the blush on her cheeks.

Then she gently kissed my cheek.

“I’m not good at summarizing like you… so I’ll summarize it like this for now.”

“…Camilla.”

“Go now.”

My heart was still uneasy. I was afraid of losing something again. My chest beat irregularly, and all sorts of worst-case scenarios swirled in my head.

Even so, I had no choice but to run.

My anxiety and fear didn’t disappear with that kiss.

I didn’t want to betray Camilla’s heart, who mustered the courage to confess despite her shyness.

That was all.

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