Is It Bad That the Main Character’s a Roleplayer?

Chapter 66: From the Very Beginning (1)

The Archmage sighed and turned his attention to the situation before him.

The party consisting of the Inquisitor, the Demon Knight, the Thief, and Windhand departed for the next stronghold.

What remained were the Temple’s people, the wizards of the Magic Tower, Windhand’s subordinates, and the people they had rescued.

Meanwhile, he was able to observe the environment’s advancing Demonization. The longer they delayed the Purification, the greater this disaster would become.

“First of all… Your role is extremely important.”

However, this was Yabad. This land didn’t tolerate religious organizations. If they made just a single mistake, they might fall into an unfortunate situation where people who should be cooperating would be fighting against each other.

“You must mediate between these people and us.”

So, he firmly requested this of Windhand’s subordinates and the adventurers. They were the only ones who could communicate with this area’s residents.

The wizards? He held no expectations of them. They were idiots who, even if he asked this of them, would just forget their tasks because they were too immersed in their interests.

He held no trust for those of his organization.

“I know it might be rather unpleasant to do this, but… please help us.”

“Hmm, no need to worry. You hired us, after all.”

“I mean, it must be rather troublesome for you in various ways.”

Fortunately, the adventurers immediately agreed to cooperate.

“…Don’t worry, Sir Archmage. We also have brains.”

“This is really annoying, but… This is my homeland, so I will cooperate.”

Although Windhand’s subordinates weren’t happy about it, they were also willing to work together. It seemed the public fight between the Inquisitor and Windhand had some impact on them. And the Demon Knight’s words.

“And about these people’s treatment, I was trying to find a way to send them to Jacrati somehow. If that’s possible, then…”

“We should send them there?”

“We can’t send them back on their own. They seem far too anxious for that, don’t they? However, splitting our forces would be rather difficult, as well. We also don’t know if they are the only ones. This might happen again later.”

Of course, they didn't know when their reinforcements would arrive, either. Or if they would come at all.

If they allowed it, then…

“So, the thing is…”

“Look here, Mr. Wizard.”

“Ah, go ahead.”

“…Is there actually a way to solve this? I don’t really want to think about it, but you’ll be able to drive out those damn Demons… and Vipurit from this land, right?”

The Archmage thought briefly before answering the question of Windhand’s subordinate.

Should he tell him the truth or give him hope? Many possibilities and their outcomes flitted through his mind.

“If we’re just discussing the conclusion, then I think it’s possible.”

With the combined strength of the Demon Knight and the Demon’s natural enemy, the Inquisitor, there was almost no Demon they couldn’t kill, even with the added disadvantage of their lacking compatibility. Rather than synergizing with each other, one side would suffer damage one-sidedly.

They had the Thief with them, who was skilled at detecting traps and gathering information, and there was also Windhand, who requested to come along.

He didn’t know whether Vipurit was actually there, but there was a high chance of it.

“However, if you wish to reduce the damage further… You’ll need help. Help from the people of the mainland.”

“…Are you saying you’ll bring even more of the Temple’s people here?!”

“It’s not anything unexpected, now is it?”

Getting rid of Demons didn’t end with just killing them. The land was stained by Demonic Energy and needed to be Purified, and even after that, one had to turn over every stone to ensure all remnants were gone.

Those tasks couldn’t be taken care of immediately with physical strength alone, either.

“What we need now is time and manpower. And the more of one you have, the less you’ll need of the other.”

“We still have fifty people!”

“Please look at this situation calmly. Montana isn’t small enough for just fifty people to completely survey.”

Fifty people was far too few.

If one truly wanted to use just fifty people, assuming they all worked hard without a single moment of rest, it would take them a year at best.

It may take even longer. The longer it took to Purify this place, the more Demons would appear, and when more Demons appeared, the Demonization would only accelerate.

It would become a very fierce power struggle.

“Alternatively, another way would be to obtain thousands or tens of thousands of Purification Stones. However… As you know, they aren’t something that can be made so easily. Even if you were to bring all the stones available on the market, it wouldn’t be enough. If you were to ask the Temple for them in the name of the Yabad region, they would provide them for free, but even the Temple cannot give you items they don’t have.”

“…!”

In the end, the problem was time. If they didn’t want to bring in any more people from the Temple, they would need more time, which would cause more damage to the region.

“I know this is nothing short of a disgrace to you. I know it was hard for you just to accept us. However, there is no other way. The people of the Magic Tower alone aren't enough for this task.”

What a cruel twist of fate.

“Then why are you telling us that?”

“Deck captain…!”

At that moment, someone stepped forward. He was the one who went with Windhand to request help, so he seemed to be the vice-captain and next in rank.

He looked to have noticed the hidden intentions of the Archmage, who now realized why Windhand left the crew to him in his absence.

“I need someone to spread the word to Jacrati.”

So, the Archmage answered him honestly. The deck captain’s face crumpled together slightly.

“There is a way to contact others there. I left behind one wizard for that reason. However, it matters who gives this report.”

“So, you want us to tell the Lord that she should bring in more people from religious groups?”

“I’m not forcing you to. And I don’t want you to request that of her directly, either. I just want you to show a positive inclination to this option.”

“So that’s what this is about.”

Was it still impossible? He felt a little disappointed but quickly gave up on the matter. As survivors of that atrocious massacre or their descendants, their attitude toward the Temple was understandable.

“If there is a God, he sure is cruel. How could he make us make that choice? He really is cruel.”

However, it seemed he’d judged too quickly.

“…However, it’s true that we can’t do anything about this. Fine, let me talk to the Lord. You said I could contact her from here, right?”

“Deck captain!”

“What?”

“It’s the Temple we’re talking about…!”

“So what? Do you think I’m doing this because I don’t know? My mother was the leader of the volunteer army. I know better than most what those damn Temple bastards did here! But do you know any better way? Is there even one?”

“That’s…”

“Kids are dying!”

“…!”

“It’s not just kids. The adults and the elderly will either be dragged away or chewed to death by those monsters! You can tell what will happen to them if we don’t do anything just by looking at these people! Vipurit joined hands with the Demons and sold this land!”

“This…”

“The captain’s choice was the right one. I can’t forgive those Temple bastards. I can never forgive them. But… If only they can save this land, and we have no other choice, I can give them this one last chance. Damn it, I hold this land a lot dearer, after all.”

“…”

“So… I will make that call. I’ll persuade the Lord somehow.”

Sometimes, hatred could be overwhelmed by the passionate love that one held for something else.

* * *

* * *

“Y-you. How?”

It had been six days since we arrived in Montata.

I advanced as fast as I could while keeping my fatigue in check. I also filled my satiety level by eating some preserves made from wild vegetables.

At one point, I was lucky enough to come across some horses.

Thanks to that, I could move significantly faster for a time. If not for the Demonized beasts who’d kept attacking, I might still be riding it.

“Are you guys monsters…?”

“…Please don’t include me in that.”

While the Inquisitor could keep up with my speed, the other two seemed to be running out of stamina. I could hear rough breathing, and the dark circles beneath their eyes almost reached their chin.

Compared to normal people, their physical strength might be overwhelmingly better. It was just their luck that they were stuck with me.

“Don’t say such weak things!”

“I told you, I’m not a monster like you!”

“This isn’t a physical problem. You’re just mentally weak!”

“What kind of strong mentality fills my stomach and lowers fatigue?!”

Deb and the Inquisitor quarreled for the first time in a while. It really had been some time since they chatted like that, so I enjoyed listening to them, but—

“Shut up.”

I had to interrupt them. Not only were we in the middle of the enemy camp, but we’d also heard some people laughing and talking and were currently moving toward those sounds. The dumplings seemed to have forgotten all about that.

“S-Sorry.”

“I got scolded all because of you.”

“I-It’s not my fault…!”

“…One thing’s for sure: if you two don’t keep it down, you’ll definitely get scolded again.”

Windhand pointed out in a matter-of-fact tone. The two others trembled and decided on a temporary truce. They really were cute kids.

“You’ve been having it hard as well…”

Well, because of my character setting, I didn’t have a choice in what I said.

So it might be a bit vague to say I was having it hard because of them. Even if they growled at each other like that, they still knew how to do their jobs and handled everything diligently. They never did anything to hinder me once things became serious.

Rather, watching them play with each other in such a childlike manner was quite cute.

「A hostile existence has entered a radius of 30m.」

Then, a notification rang in my ears. Right then, the commotion we had heard from further away became even clearer.

Tap.

I placed my hand against Windhand’s stomach as he stood beside me to stop him in his tracks. Deb, who had been arguing with the Inquisitor, also seemed to have heard those sounds and covered the Inquisitor’s mouth.

“Enemies?”

Probably. I hid behind a tree and looked in the direction the sound came from, behind a hill.

“I’ll go take a look.”

The steep slopes were full of dry, dead leaves. Right when I was wondering how we could get through there without getting noticed, Deb volunteered to go and check. He removed his shoes without making a single sound.

Rustle, rustle.

While I couldn’t say he was moving silently, I only noticed these noises because I was watching him walk away. The people beyond the hill would hardly be aware of them.

Deb slowly climbed the hill. Dead leaves were attached to his hood—I had no idea when he did that—making him even more covert.

Rustle, rustle.

After some time, Deb crawled over the hill, looked back at us, and moved his fingers. With five fingers spread out, he shook them once and turned over his palm, showing the back of his hand with two fingers raised. Finally, he turned it over again and shook four of his fingers.

“Fourteen people?”

That was a bit much. It was now my turn, so I worried whether I might let one escape. Well, I probably wouldn't.

“Will you be okay?”

Did Windhand still not trust me? I glared at him fiercely while holding the hilt of my sword and began moving forward.

Deb desperately but silently waved his hand.

Then, he diligently formed some signs with his fingers.

“…Hostages?”

That made things much more complicated. I was spectacularly terrible at protecting people! This would be the perfect job for a wizard or inquisitor!

“Hostages make things a lot more difficult.”

“…Those captives are probably from here.”

“Don’t worry, I’ll save them.”

“…”

Windhand’s expression, which had seemed incredibly furious just moments ago, became ambiguous as they spoke back and forth. His anger over the current situation appeared to have shifted to the background, at least.

“It doesn’t feel good hearing you treat me with respect, so just do whatever you feel comfortable with.”

“…! Got it!”

“…”

He had been with the Inquisitor for six whole days. Could he have figured out her character? Or had it perhaps become harder for him to get angry at her? Either way, it didn’t really matter to me.

“Their formation.”

Anyway, I urged Deb, who had just returned, to give me information. The young man squatted down and began outlining the situation beyond the hill with a stick.

Fourteen people formed a protective circle around a carriage with children inside. Some adults were bound near the carriage.

Crunch.

Crack.

When I heard there were children trapped in the carriage, the hilt of my sword grasped within my gauntlet-clad hand gave off some eerie sounds as if they were rubbing together. What followed was the sound of Windhand grinding his teeth.

The atmosphere had suddenly become quite bleak.

“…I guess they set up camp because the sun will set soon. There’s a stream nearby, and the hill gives them a good view of everything approaching them.”

They would absolutely regret this.

I hated crimes that harmed children in any way the most! Wouldn’t it be more pitiful and sad if everyone died, adults and children alike, such as in a war, rather than just seeing some kids locked up in a carriage?

They seemed about the same to me. I usually didn’t advocate personal revenge, but those bastards really deserved to get hit. My character setting also allowed for these actions, as well!

“Go back, don’t get in my way.”

I took out the scimitar and turned it half a turn.

To be clear, what I just said was more like insurance for me. I mean, they might even take a child or one of the others hostage in a fit of rage.

At that moment, the Inquisitor, who’d taken a step back, unfolded her defensive barrier, Deb took out some shackles, and Windhand even declared that the Inquisitor was a decent person despite being from a religious organization, which made me more at ease.

Of course, I felt a bit uneasy as I’d spoken quite ambiguously… Did they understand what I wanted them to do?

If not, I would have to kill them all before they’d even get an opportunity to take a hostage.

“Understood.”

“But I can fight, as well…”

“You idiot, he wants us to secure and protect the people while he attracts their attention.”

Fortunately, the meat dumpling clearly understood what I was getting at.

“…Those were his intentions?”

“Most certainly. As expected of the Demon Knight…!”

“Although he pretends otherwise, he sure is a kind person.”

Oh no. It hadn’t been perfect. Rather, they managed to corrupt my image.

Aaargh. Stop ruining my image with your weird interpretations. That kindness isn’t my character’s kindness. They’d instead managed to reveal part of my personality! Of course, my character was extremely kind deep down, but it shouldn’t show like this, no, no, it couldn’t be like this, uwaargh!

“Eek.”

I quickly swung my sword and stopped it right before Deb’s nose. In that instant, wind blew up the dry, fallen leaves.

“Begone, before I rip out your tongue.”

Notably, my facial expression probably seemed extremely angry right now. I should keep my distance, and whenever I notice them getting comfortable with me by saying I’m kind, I should do something like this again.

Crunch.

I turned toward the hill without changing my expression. My boots crumpled the leaves as I climbed up.

Tatatak.

The moment I crested the hill, several arrows flew toward me. [Ground Crash], a skill that activated whenever I struck down with my Zweihänder, released huge amounts of Arcane Power everywhere.

Those arrows flying at me getting bounced off was just a bonus.

“Wh-What the hell is that thing!”

“I-It’s a Knight!”

“He knows how to use Arcane Power! He’s a Knight!”

“Didn’t they kill all the Knights?!”

The Arcane Power subsided, and I looked down at the ground filled with cracks.

People tied to a carriage with their legs shackled. The slave traders who set up camp before those people. I could see plenty of signs of merrymaking around the place.

‘I have to kill them all.’

I put strength into my legs. Bang! As I kicked the ground hard, my body went straight down the hill.

Slash!

I killed the first guy.

“Brats.”

I looked over the guy I killed after kicking his face as I landed. All the children trapped in that iron carriage were looking at me.

“Close your eyes.”

In an instant, pitch-black energy began to form around the scimitar’s silver blade.

“You shouldn’t watch these kinds of things.”

The children very obediently closed their eyes.

Soon after, two black slashes flew across the area, avoiding the carriage and the captives outside of it.

Screeek. The scimitar let out a metallic sound.