CH 261

“……Morning, huh.”

The dawn broke and morning arrived. I wake up, slightly aware of the noises from the room next door. I doubt they would still be going on, but when you’re young, you can have an excess of energy…

Regarding myself, there’s no problem at all. Whether it’s an overflowing emotion or anything else, if it continues for a hundred years, you can somehow manage it.

So, I quickly got dressed and left my room. At that moment, the door of the neighboring room also opened, and our eyes met.

“Hey, Burn. Good morning.”

“Woaaaah!? E-Ed!? Ah, ehm… I mean, Super! Good morning!”

“……Ah, yeah. Good morning.”

I had considered the possibility that “Euralia just consulted something that only a hero could do”, but looking at his reaction, it seems like something significant happened. Hmm, this innocent reaction… makes me want to tease him a bit.

“Hey, Burn. About last night…”

“Ni-night!? Nothing! Absolutely! Nothing happened! I was alone in my room the whole time, and Euralia wasn’t there at all!”

“I-is that so…… Well, it doesn’t really matter.”

On second thought, this seems like a case that could get complicated if I tease him about it. I decided to avoid touching it until they brought it up, and I moved to the inn’s dining hall with Burn. We ordered breakfast and while waiting, Tia and Euralia arrived as well.

“Good morning, Ed, Burn. Burn, you’re quite early today, aren’t you?”

“Good morning, Ed-san, Yuusha-sama.”

“Hey, good morning, both of you.”

“Super! Good morning, Tia! And… Euralia.”

We exchanged greetings, but Burn’s behavior was clearly odd. Noticing his demeanor, Tia came over to my side and whispered in my ear. She didn’t use [Missing Talk] because if we got too used to using it for anything other than something that absolutely couldn’t be overheard, we might rely on it too much.

“Hey, Ed, what’s up with Burn?”

“Ah, I can’t say much from my end, but… it seems like Euralia went to Burn’s room last night.”

“Eh? That’s surprising, or should I say… hmm?”

I didn’t say what they did or anything, but Tia tilted her head in thought at the solemn fact I shared.

“Is there a problem with those two being in that kind of relationship?”

“It’s not like that. I would celebrate if that’s the case… but then what about what happened before… hmmmm…”

“? I don’t really get it, but even if the past was like that, now it’s like this, so isn’t that fine… or is that not how it works?”

“……You’re right. If they’ve settled like this, then that’s fine—”

“Excuse me, can I interrupt for a moment?”

The stern expression that had been on Tia’s face for a while now faded away. Euralia spoke to me, who felt glad about it.

“Hm? What’s up?”

“Actually, I would like to have some of your time later. The Hero and I have something important to discuss with you…”

“Discuss… Ah, sure. But an important discussion, huh? I wonder what it is.”

At this point, there was only one thing that came to mind. However, pretending to be clueless as per tradition, Burn, who had my gaze directed at him, forced a slight smile.

“Well, it’s not that big of a deal, you know? I think it’ll probably be laughed off…”

“I see, I see. Well, reporting is important after all. You’re fine with it too, right, Tia?”

“Yes, of course. So, where should we hear this talk?”

“Yes. I was thinking about going to the church in this town if possible… What do you think?”

“Church!? Isn’t that moving too fast!?”

“Is it? I thought that it would be a good way to resolve various things all at once… Is there any problem?”

“Not really, but… Ed?”

“Ah… If they’re okay with it, then isn’t it fine?”

While I think it would be better to take things one step at a time, Euralia was a priest, and it wouldn’t be strange for her to view a relationship as marriage. Even if it doesn’t lead to marriage, if they want to make their relationship official in front of God, I see no reason to refuse.

“By the way, Burn, you agree with this too, right?”

“Me!? Ah, yeah… That’s right…”

“If it’s okay with you, then there’s no problem. After we eat, let’s head to the church.”

Burn’s expression was a bit cloudy, but… the face of a man who’s told to “take responsibility” after being swept away by the moment was usually like this. I suppose I’ll just have to talk to him personally later. After all, our journey to defeat the Demon King still continues.

And so, after finishing breakfast, we all headed to the church in town. Euralia seemed to have spoken with the people there and cleared out the church. In the small church, there were no other people aside from us.

We were in the chapel. The sun’s light poured in from the high skylight, and the images created from the multicolored glass watched over us as Burn and Euralia stood side by side, with Tia and me facing them.

“Then, let me speak.”

“Uh, okay.”

Taken aback by the unexpectedly solemn atmosphere, I responded in a subdued manner. Burn was a hero, after all. I thought this would be at most an announcement of their relationship…

“In fact… there is an entity inside me that is not myself.”

“…Huh!?”

As Euralia gently rubbed her belly while speaking, I inadvertently let out a strange voice. It’s a rather roundabout way of saying it, but an entity other than herself is residing within her…!?

“Hey, Burn! What’s going on?”

“I only heard about it for the first time yesterday. I was so surprised…”

“Right. That would be surprising. But why… oh, wow!?”

It’s been about four months since Euralia joined us on our journey. So, if she had a relationship with Burn from the beginning, it wouldn’t be an impossible story.

But there wasn’t a hint of such a thing. Was last night special and until then everything was cleverly disguised?

“Hey, Tia?”

“I’m hearing this for the first time too. Otherwise, we wouldn’t have had that conversation this morning, would we?”

“Right, of course.”

""

It seems that I was more flustered than I thought. But with this, Burn’s behavior made even more sense. A priest wouldn’t choose not to give birth to a child she’s carrying, and although Burn may act on a whim sometimes, he’s a serious man. If he was told he has a child on the way, he would certainly take responsibility.

But if he wasn’t prepared for this and was told about it, he would naturally be shocked. Burn, he always said he wanted to be popular… Or was that also a camouflage to deceive me?

“So, Ed-san. In fact, there’s something I need you to verify for me.”

“Verification? Me? What is it?”

“Can you come here?”

“Ah, sure.”

I don’t know what kind of verification can be done in this situation, but I walked over to Euralia’s side as she beckoned me.

Moreover, even at this juncture, I was still wary of Euralia. Unless Tia said, “It’s okay now,” I probably wouldn’t let my guard down around Euralia until the moment I was “banished” from this world.

But that’s precisely why I wasn’t paying attention to one other person. I had no doubt or danger in turning my back to him, and I didn’t even imagine that there could be a threat there.

“….Eh?”

Something hot pierced through from behind me. At the end of my downcast gaze was the tip of a shining sword.

“Yes, with this it has been proven. Ed-san… you really were the Demon King.”

As I was stabbed from behind by the Hero’s sword, blood dripped from my abdomen. Euralia was watching my dumbfounded figure with cold eyes.

(T/N: God fucking damn)