Volume 5 - CH 2

-And so, a little while later, as the two of them begin to work together for training.

Mist calls out timidly to Cyclo.

“…… Um, Master.”

“Hm? What’s wrong, Mist?”

Mist asks Cyclo with a determined look on her face.

“Today …… she is the Master’s sister, isn’t she?”

“…… yeah. That’s right.”

“Is it okay …… if I ask what happened?”

When asked by Mist, Cyclo has mixed feelings.

He wanted to tell Mist, but he also wanted to forget about it and pretend it had never happened, since it was in the past.

The two conflicting feelings… and as a result, Cyclo chooses to speak up.

“Yeah. It’s okay …… Simply put, I was falsely accused and made a criminal slave, and taken on as a laborer in Northfolia. I was a baggage carrier for the Adventurer’s Guild, but …… Alice is a famous adventurer. She was going around advertising me as incompetent and a scum.”

As he spoke, Cyclo felt anger welling up in him.

“I’ve been treated very badly by the adventurers because of it. Being beaten and kicked was normal. I somehow managed to do my job while being abused …… but eventually the abuse escalated and I was pushed into the abyss of the Deep Hole.”

“So …… that’s how it happened.”

“Yeah.”

Cyclo nods and speaks.

“That’s why …… I feel that I was indirectly pushed down by Alice. If she hadn’t spread bad news about me, I wouldn’t have to suffer so much pain and misery. That’s why I can’t forgive her.”

Even as he spoke, Cyclo did not neglect to search his surroundings.

As if he was taking it out, he threw a pebble he had picked up, and finished off the wild rabbit by caving in its skull.

“Does the Master ……  not want to forgive Ms. Alice for what she did?”

Asked by Mist, Cyclo turns around with a surprised expression.

“That–what do you mean by that?”

“I mean it just as it is. Does Master not want to forgive Ms. Alice, whom you hate? Or do you want to make up with her? Which do you want?”

When asked by Mist, Cyclo felt as if his emotions were being stirred up into a mess.

(What do I–what do I want to do? What do I want from her, from Alice ……)

He doesn’t know. At least, he didn’t have any feelings that he could clearly verbalize.

“…… I’m sorry, Mist. I don’t know. I don’t even know what I want ……”

“Master ……”

Mist gently leans over to Cyclo, who hangs his head and shakes his head, takes his hand, and squeezes it.

“It’s okay. It’s okay to take your time. Let’s think about it and make a decision. No matter what the answer is, I will be by your side, Master.”

“Mist — Yeah, I understand. Thank you.”

Encouraged by Mist, Cyclo regains some of his composure and holds her hands.　

(……I need Mist after all. That’s why…)

Cyclo was quietly making up his mind.

When Karim decided that the training is sufficient, they moved on to the next phase.

“Then the next step is to practice searching in the forest. Let’s try it one by one, with me watching from behind. Then… let’s start with Mist-chan.”

“Yes, I’ll do my best!”

Mist was so enthusiastic that she went to the front and started the search.

Cyclo and Karim follow at a short distance behind.

And then — naturally, Cyclo moves to Karim’s side and snuggles up a little behind her.

“What do you mean, Cyclo”

Karim asks.

Cyclo had “Mystletainn” in his hand and was holding it against Karim’s back.

“I thought that we should have a go talk again …… What’re you up to by approaching us?”

When Cyclo says this, Karim sighs and says.

“It’s just like I said. I wanted to protect a girl like Mist…”

“I’m sure that’s you’re true feelings, but you don’t have to go to the trouble of forming a party with me to do it. Why do you insist on partying with us?”

Cyclo presses the muzzle of his Mystletainn harder against Karim’s back, asking.

“Like I said — that’s because I also had trouble because of my special Job skill, and that I sympathized with Mist.”

“Yeah. I’m sure that’s not a lie either. But on top of that, there’s something you want to accomplish even if you have to form a party, isn’t there?”

Cyclo asked Karim doubtfully.

“Speak up. I’m ready to pull the trigger on Mystletainn anytime.”

“…… I see.”

Karim mumbles in agreement.

“In other words, it’s easier to deal with me by force if I’m right in front of you than if I’m playing tricks on you somewhere you don’t know about. That’s why you brought me into the party.”

“If you understand it, then spill it already.”

“You don’t trust me that much?”

Karim asked, and Cyclo frowned.

“I don’t trust anyone else. The only one I trust is Mist.”

“Don’t trust, huh. You say funny things again.”

Karim snickers at Cyclo’s response.

“You’re acting like you know the truth about the world. It’s natural that you don’t trust strangers, right?”

“…….”

Cyclo was perplexed by Karim’s unexpected retort.

“Untrustworthy. On top of that, they live their lives somehow, deceiving themselves, weighing risk and profit, and somehow managing to get by. You think you’re the only one who’s special, and therefore…”

“…… Shut up.”

Cyclo tried to block Karim’s words, but it was no use.

“Cyclo. You just look like an empty-headed, spoiled, sulking little brat who’s lived his whole life without knowing how to question others.”

At these words, Cyclo had no choice but to shut up.

He wanted to refute what Karim had said.

But – he couldn’t say anything.

Cyclo, too, was somewhat aware of it.

But even so, he could not correct his own behavior. He could not bring himself to do so.

If he tries to do so, he feels that he himself will be tainted with pitch-black emotions, and he will be destroyed.

While being tormented by such feelings that contradict his rationality, he has always given priority to his emotions in the end.

That is why Cyclo could retort to Karim’s words.

“But… it’s precisely because Cyclo is such a little brat that I have such high expectations for him.”

“…… Eh?”

Karim’s suddenly gentle voice and words made Cyclo lose his interest.

“Cyclo is just a stupid, gentle, little brat, who suddenly gained a lot of power. It’s only because of people like you that there are things you can do. There are things that can be changed. That’s what I think.”

A different kindness from Mist’s. Karim’s words of approval for Cyclo are enough to make Cyclo lose his hostility.

“That’s why, if you don’t like it, you can always kill me. In exchange, can you promise me something?”

“Promise?”

“Yes. In place of me, I want you to destroy the world where your will, your wishes, and everything else are twisted by your skills. I want you to create a world where people can honestly aim for their dreams as they are.”

Karim tells Cyclo earnestly.

“If we can make that kind of promise – I don’t care if Cyclo kills me anytime.”

Karim’s attitude that she was willing to give her own life finally made Cyclo give up.

“…… Tch.”

With a cluck of his tongue, he puts out Mystletainn and moves away from Karim’s back.

“It would be troublesome if you force such a troublesome promise on me. I’ll let you off the hook for now.”

Hearing such an unfaithful statement from Cyclo, Karim smiles.

“I see. Never mind then.”

Thus, after confirming Karim’s intention, Cyclo decided to accept Karim as a party member once again.