CH 4

Morning arrived early for the former young soldier.

The rhythm of life peculiar to soldiers was getting up at this time in the morning. Set woke up subconsciously due to his habits.

The first thought that I had was of getting up early in order to not be late for training but then my sleepy head immediately reminded me of reality.

Yes, there was no place for me to go back to.

“Satis is still sleeping…… Okay, now would be the perfect time to scout the area.”

I slowly walked out of the cabin, mumbling in a missionary tone.

Although I called it a scouting mission, in reality it was just a walk.

It was good to breathe in the early morning forest air like this.

Usually, when I go into the woods for training, I wouldn’t be able to do anything as calm as this.

“Hmm, is that a fruit? It looks delicious.”

Considering his physical ability, climbing a tree to fetch a fruit was definitely an easy task.

With the speed of a monkey, he scrambled up the tree and picked up about five lusciously fragrant berry-like fruits.

He smiled with satisfaction when he saw the fruits, which were as big as his palm.

I never expected to be blessed after being kicked out of the party.

He packed the fruit into a bag and returned from his walk.

“Today’s breakfast would be two of these fruits….hmm?”

Just before reaching the hut, he suddenly laid down and started creeping along, trying not to make a sound.

I looked at the cabin from behind the grass and saw Satis outside, still standing there with her empty eyes.

There was a beauty in the way she stood there, her skin moistened by the early morning forest air that made her vaguely seem like she was not an enemy.

I was taken aback by the sight of Satis standing quietly.

Her combat suit and glasses had been restored to their original state, probably by the magic power she had recovered from a night’s sleep.

Her scars and bruises were gone, and her hair was neatly tied back in a bun, just like always.

However, because of her revealing costume, she had a different kind of fascination combined with this atmosphere.

Her beauty as a woman was different from when she was an enemy.

(Did she wake up? But what on earth was going on? Let’s stay in this place for now.)

I didn’t even know why she came out of the hut.

Satis stared at the scenery outside and Set was watching it while lying face down in the grass.

Several minutes passed in this strange manner.

She suddenly let out a sigh and held out her hand towards me.

“Ow, ow, ow, ow!”

Set, who had been hiding behind the grass, was easily lifted up by the magic power she controlled.

“I’m not impressed that you would stare at a …… woman from the shadows.”

“Uggg, how did you know?”

“Don’t underestimate me. I was the Ex-General.”

She looked at the bag I was holding as she said it in amazement.

Fruits tumbled from within, one at Satis’ feet.

“Is this……for me by any chance?”

“Eh, you are going to eat it too? I found it by chance. I thought it would be good for breakfast.”

I stood up, dusting off the dirt.

I could sense Satis’s expression brighten, if only a little.

I looked at Satis who had a slight twinkle in her eye as she picked up a piece of fruit and stared at it intently.

“…Do you like fruits?”

“Yes, much more than meat.”

“I thought demons ate meat.”

This time Satis looked surprised.

“You’re going to give me one?

“I still have four more. Is there something wrong…..?”

“No, not only you saved me, but you are even helping me with food? We are enemies, aren’t we?”

“I told you. I’m not a member of the Hero party anymore. Even if I could go back to my Kingdom, they would kill me as a disgrace. I have no place to go back to, no Kingdom to go back to. It doesn’t matter who my enemy and who my friend is anymore.”

“On the other hand if you torture me to find out about my Kingdom and hand me over to your King…… At the least you would be spared extreme punishment, right?”

She might be right.

If I capture Satis and hand her over to the Kingdom, maybe …… I could at least guarantee my safety..

“……No, it doesn’t matter.”

“Boy, how can you be so calm when you have no place to return to?”

“I don’t know myself. Maybe it’s because I’ve fought in isolation on the battlefield?”

The mystery of this calmness could not be solved by Set himself.

The Hero had the absolute trust of the king.

To be kicked out of the party by him would mean betraying the King’s expectations.

Set, who could only fight, had no authority and control over the “monarchy” that was governed by the adults.

Just like how there existed a difference between a normal sword and a magic sword.

“I would become a national disgrace after being removed from the Hero’s party, you know.”

Satis was absolutely stunned by Set’s words.

This was not the kind of thing a 12-year-old should be talking about.

The situation he was in now was beyond the capacity of the average mind, let alone an adult.

What lay on Set’s back now was probably a feeling of ‘resignation’.

Although he was not aware of it, his heart was already worn out from the h**l that was his life as a child soldier.

“I see ……. I’m the same as you.”

“Well……yes, I guess so.”

Just after the awkward atmosphere was about to flow again, Seto and Satis felt the presence of the demons nearby.

I let my guard down and allowed the monsters to sneak in.

“Demons, or……! Hm, Satis?”

Suddenly, when he looked in her direction, something even more surprising happened to Set. 

“Ah……aaaah……!”

She dropped the fruit and stood cowering, wincing and trembling.

She put her arms around herself as if to hug herself, and shrank back as if she was freezing in the cold.

Her eyes were small and contracted, rattling and shaking making her seem dazed.

She looked like a soldier traumatized by the battlefield.

The memory of that night was moving back and forth in her mind.

That terrible night that shattered all her pride and pride as one of the Demon King Army’s Generals.

“Hi! Hi…!”

( She can’t move.)

In the meantime, we were surrounded by demons.

One of them had a body larger than the two of us. The other one looked like a big boar, and the last one seemed like a vicious looking spider.

There were three in all, and from the look on Satis’s face, it didn’t look like she could fight them.

“Oh, well, well …… kuku kuku, isn’t that Satis-sama?”

“True, shame on you for running away just before the execution! And this kid, I’m sure, was with the party of the Hero..”

The demons displayed contempt and ridicule towards Satis.

She was trembling as they turned over to look at him or her.

“There were signs of humans and of something familiar, so I decided to check… Kukuku, this is convenient!”

The demons all burst out in a vile laughter.

“Before we eat you, let’s go back to …… Satis-sama,” the demon said. 

“Teasing you, the only red member of the Demon King’s Army, was the best, you know? Because of this, I think I’ve come to like teasing women!!”

The vile laughter made her cower even more.

The existence that had been so commanding in the Demon King’s Army seemed like a lie.

Beside Satis, who was stuck between the trauma and the reality, and was unable to move due to fear, Set glared at them and didn’t move.

I stared at the bodies of the demons who kept their mouths straight and kept talking.

“Kuhaha! You kid! Don’t be afraid of us and keep quiet! Hey kid, ask the woman over there for help. You’ve turned into a coward who can’t fight anymore!”

Again faced with the laughing demons, Set neither retreated nor advanced.

I just stared at the monsters.

“…Hmph, are you just standing there like a scarecrow?”

“Then, die with her!”

The demons were ready to attack.

Satis screamed, and Set finally opened his mouth.

His tone was calm, which was not appropriate for this situation.

“It’ll be fine.”

These words echoed within Satis’s ears.