Chapter 33: The One Who Isn’t Honest

“…You’re saying you’ll help me get back on my feet.”

Marcel, still lying on the ground, looked me straight in the eye.

“How… could you possibly do that?”

Huh, so instead of jumping at the offer, he starts with questions first.

Well, I guess that makes sense.

Looking back, the stakes of this duel were bigger than I thought.

If I lost, I’d have to give up my freedom and join the Royal Knights.

If Marcel lost, he’d have to leave the Royal Knights and party up with two D-Rank Hunters.

No matter how I look at it, the conditions were stacked against Marcel. I’m just a run-of-the-mill D-Rank Hunter, and he’s an A-Rank Hunter.

Still, the reason he agreed to these terms was probably because he never even considered the possibility of losing to me.

Well, the result was Mr. Marcel’s overwhelming defeat.

Let’s see, so how do I convince him here?

‘Ah, right. That’s it.’

My deliberation didn’t last long.

“…Mr. Marcel, do you know a person named ‘Yoschuko Verdiol’?”

At my question, Marcel tilted his head.

“Yoschuko Verdiol… you mean that brute?”

There was a brief silence right after I said my former name, but that wasn’t important.

‘That brute,’ he says!

I almost snapped right then, but I barely held it in.

Well, I do acknowledge that my alias is ‘the Brute.’

That derogatory nickname, which anyone would hear as negative, reflects my personality.

I admit it now. My personality back then was absolute garbage.

But hearing it directly from someone else feels damn weird.

Besides, before my body changed, I’d never even met Marcel, let alone heard his name.

So this is my reputation, huh.

‘…No, that’s not right.’

Thinking again, maybe it’s a good thing I only heard ‘brute.’

If the word ‘murderer’ had come out of Marcel’s mouth…

Would I have been able to think this calmly?

…Anyway.

I quickly brushed those thoughts aside and spoke with a composed expression.

“…Ahem, he’s my teacher.”

Though it’s actually me.

“Your teacher? That was a slip of the tongue. He… was a remarkable S-Rank Hunter.”

Marcel’s words sounded more like he was making it up than recalling it. Was that just my imagination?

“I’ve heard the story that the two of you closed an S-Rank Gate alone a few times.”

Hearing my own story come up made me feel a little better. So he does know that much.

Well, any Hunter would know. It was an incredible achievement for me and that guy.

“Though I’m not sure if that rumor is true.”

“It is true!”

I shouted, dumbfounded by the absurd comment.

Why would he dismiss something that actually happened as just a rumor!

“Please don’t dismiss my teacher’s great achievements as mere rumors.”

“I’m sorry…”

This won’t do.

Starting today, I’ve added one more goal.

I need to change Yoschuko Verdiol’s reputation.

Even if I can’t help being called a garbage personality and a brute, I can’t stand my achievements being treated as nothing.

—Murderer!

…Uh, well.

Thinking about it, that might be difficult.

“Um, so…”

“Yes?”

“How exactly are you going to help me?”

“Ah.”

I’d gotten so caught up thinking about my past self that I almost forgot.

“If you hear advice from my teacher, an S-Rank Hunter, you’ll definitely be able to grow stronger.”

Though S-Rank equals me.

“…Even if I try to get stronger here, there’s bound to be a limit. Would it even mean anything?”

“Don’t try to set your own limits.”

I lowered my voice and spoke to Marcel.

Though, with a girl’s voice, it probably didn’t carry much weight.

I used to think the same way Marcel did.

The timing was the same as when I was broken, too.

Back during the Dark Moon incident.

The moment I locked eyes with Moonlight, who took down Apollo in a single blow — Apollo, whom even me and that guy together couldn’t handle.

Even though I was clearly saved, I felt like something inside me was being torn to shreds.

Yeah, now I can put that feeling into words.

I’d call it overwhelming defeat. The defeat that came from the thought that the gap between myself and that person could never be closed.

But, unlike Marcel, the reason I didn’t break back then was because I was able to set one goal.

‘Even if I can’t reach that bastard, I’ll at least become strong enough to make him turn his head.’

That’s how I was able to get back up.

I got knocked down again later, but still.

“I won’t reach that Moonlight bastard.”

That was more for myself than for Marcel.

Honestly, even now, I don’t think I could beat that guy.

But I’ve changed a lot since the Dark Moon incident.

I’m sure I’ve become strong enough to make him look back now.

With my current skill, Moonlight will definitely turn his head. No question.

“Was the past you the kind of person who set limits on yourself?”

“…”

“No, you weren’t. You didn’t set limits, so you aimed for the highest place you could imagine.”

“But with my skill, S-Rank is—”

“It’s not impossible. S-Rank Hunters aren’t that big a deal.”

I cut off Marcel, who was speaking as if venting his frustration, and said it like it was the most obvious thing in the world.

“…Huh?”

Marcel’s eyes went wide at my words.

Hmm, now that I’ve said it, that’s not really something a D-Rank Hunter should be saying.

“…That’s what my master used to say.”

Let’s just blame Verdiol for this one.

“…That does sound just like him.”

I wanted to ask what “just like him” meant, but I held back.

Because right now, I’m not Verdiol.

“Aren’t you afraid?”

This time, Marcel asked me.

“I… learned during the Dark Moon. When a person stands at death’s door, they can’t do anything. After that, I lost all confidence. Even in A-Rank, let alone B-Rank Gates, one mistake and people lose their lives. Every day, I hear news of someone dying in a Gate. I couldn’t stand the thought that someday it would be me.”

His confession was fairly long.

But it didn’t take me even a second to think of my answer.

“Of course I’m afraid too.”

Who in this world isn’t afraid of death?

“But isn’t that just what being a Hunter is all about?”

Facing Demon Beasts means putting your life on the line.

No matter the rank of the Gate or the Demon Beast, that’s a common truth for all Hunters.

“There’s no one in this world who doesn’t fear death. Don’t be ashamed of something so natural.”

“…Yes.”

Marcel only answered weakly.

Well, if a single answer could overcome it, he would’ve solved it long ago.

“I’d like an answer now, if you don’t mind.”

Marcel lost the duel.

So he’s in a position where he should accept the conditions I set.

But I don’t plan to drag him into the party by force.

The atmosphere of the party and mutual trust are very important.

In a place where you have to risk your life, the only ones you can trust are your comrades.

Even someone like me, who prefers to be alone, knows that much because I once had companions.

So if Marcel turns down this offer, I plan to let him go without a fuss.

Though I will ask him to keep quiet about what happened today.

Marcel looked away for a moment, seeming to think quite seriously.

About ten seconds passed like that.

After his lips twitched a few times, Marcel finally spoke.

“…Alright. A loss is a loss, and I did promise before the duel.”

He said that, but his face didn’t look like he was being forced into it at all.

Marcel took the hand I held out.

“Ms. Verdi, I’ll trust your words.”

Hearing that, a thought crossed my mind.

Maybe Marcel wasn’t unable to move forward because of fear.

Maybe he just needed someone to push him from behind.

I grabbed Marcel’s hand firmly and pulled him to his feet.

“?!”

Marcel looked at me with a surprised expression as he was lifted up.

I wondered why he was suddenly startled, but I figured it out quickly.

‘Right, this body’s only about middle schooler-sized…’

He must be shocked by how strong I am.

Thanks to the body enhancement spell I cast beforehand, my strength is far greater than an adult male’s.

So with this strength, I’ll push you forward from behind.

So you won’t fall again, and so you can run faster than before.

“…”

As if nothing was wrong, I flashed Marcel a bright smile.

“…Thank you.”

Maybe the tension finally broke, because Marcel answered with a faint smile along with his thanks.

* * *

So the duel ended, and we were just wrapping things up.

“Ms. Verdi!”

A voice I’d forgotten about rang out.

“Deneb.”

“I really thought something was going to happen to you!”

To Deneb, who was making a fuss, I answered with a slight curl of my lips instead of a reply.

“I never thought you’d actually beat Mr. Marcel…”

“I told you, an A-Rank Hunter is just—”

Ah, well. When I actually tried to say it, I felt Marcel’s eyes on me.

“It was a tough fight. If I hadn’t provoked him at the start, I wouldn’t have been able to break his focus.”

That should be enough to smooth things over, right…?

“As expected of Ms. Verdi! So meticulous!”

Thank goodness this idiot is easy to convince.

‘Did he hear me…?’

I turned my head slightly and cautiously checked Marcel’s reaction, but he was calmly gathering the Demon Beast materials as if nothing had happened.

Looks like he didn’t hear. Phew~

* * *

*KUUUUNG—*

Time was almost up. Soon this dungeon would lose its master and close.

“Let’s head out soon.”

“Yes!”

“Yes.”

After double-checking that we hadn’t missed any Magic Stones or Demon Beast materials, we immediately headed toward the Gate.

But then.

‘Ugh…’

A strange nausea rose in my throat.

‘Well…’

I’d gotten way too excited and said things that weren’t like me.

I never thought I’d actually feel sick from it.

And not from someone else’s words, but from my own.

Of course. Someone like me, who avoids being with others and is full of negative emotions, couldn’t easily say such hopeful things.

I only barely held back the rising nausea and said them because I had a goal.

Of course, it was true that I felt sympathy for Marcel. But thinking about it, I think it was closer to self-loathing.

Because I kept seeing my own past self, buried under the covers, reflected in him.

I just didn’t want to feel self-loathing toward a party member I’d be working with from now on.

“Ugh…!”

What a ridiculous person I am.

Feeling nauseous from my own words.

“Ms. Verdi, are you alright?”

“Would you like some healing?”

Deneb and Marcel, who were walking ahead, looked back at me with worried faces.

“…”

Instead of answering, I barely managed a faint smile to reassure them.

‘For a while… I’ll have to keep being with these two.’

Being with others… I’m not exactly thrilled about it, but…

And yet, why is it?

No matter how many times I think about it, Marcel will be used in my plan, and Deneb will be my broke Porter.

What is this feeling, like everything inside me is about to well up at once?

And.

Why do I feel oddly excited?

I feel like I’ve felt something similar before.

When was it… I can’t really remember.

Anyway…!

Soon, using the position of Marcel, who’s now a party member, I’ll challenge a B-Rank Gate — the very threshold of High-Rank Gates!

“Ugh…”

Please stop! This is dangerous! I was just looking so cool a moment ago — if I throw up now, everything’s ruined!