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

Chapter 156

“…What?”

“Huh.”

“…”

“H-Haha.”

It… it actually worked. This wasn’t information the Demon had given him, nor was it related to his contract with that bastard.

It was something he’d figured out on his own, so it worked out.

“Heh.”

It was so funny, yet delightful.

Deathbringer chuckled as he felt where his torn shadow lay. The thought of being able to slap that sly, arrogant Demon in the face was just too much fun.

Of course, to do that, he would first need their trust. Still, just thinking about it was enjoyable enough.

“As I said, you're free to believe whatever you want.”

He couldn’t reveal which Demon he was contracted with. Nor could he mention that he knew because of his shadow, as that would mean they’d met, which was restricted information.

Even saying it was a Great Demon would probably be considered a breach of contract. That much was pretty clear from how he began to bleed when he first tried mentioning that he knew the Great Demon’s location.

It was fortunate enough that it didn’t kill him immediately, but it was clear he really couldn’t say anything.

“It’s a trap.”

“We’re not sure about that yet. Which Demon are we dealing with?”

For that reason, he couldn’t answer that question, either.

He clamped his mouth shut. Yet, it seemed even silence was being treated as an answer.

He felt sick to the stomach, and his vision went red, likely due to blood vessels bursting in his eyes.

“You!”

“…Let’s stop the questions.”

Ah, if possible, he really wanted to hold it in until the end.

He vomited out a clot of blood.

“Young hunter, are you alright?”

Berserk rushed over to him, worry evident on her face.

“Are you really going to believe him?”

“I… want to believe him.”

“It could be one of that Demon’s tricks!”

“Well. It doesn’t seem like that to me, though.”

On the other hand, while both the Inquisitor and the Archmage were a little skeptical, they seemingly wanted to believe him. He felt genuinely grateful but started wondering if they might trust him a bit too much.

Their trust weighed on him so heavily that it almost felt burdensome. What would they do if he really had gone to the Demon’s side?

“Don’t push yourself. You need more rest.”

“I-I’m fine…”

If he had to be picky, it was more strenuous for him to have his whole body tied up like this…

Cut.

The ropes tightly binding his entire body were suddenly cut apart. Deathbringer’s eyes widened at that sudden liberation that followed. Berserk couldn’t have been the one who did it, as she wasn’t even holding the ropes.

“You…”

“We haven’t finished discussing this matter yet!”

Then, the one who’d cut the ropes was…

“Just arbitrarily…!”

That person.

“Wahaha, buddy, I knew you couldn’t hold it in any longer!”

“Demon Knight!”

Deathbringer looked past the laughing Berserk, the shocked people of the Temple, and the cheerful Inquisitor and Archmage, focusing on someone else.

Someone was quietly leaving this room, even more quietly than usual.

“But where are you going?”

“Let him be. Don’t say too much.”

It was the Demon Knight.

“…Mister.”

At that moment, the doubts Deathbringer had pushed aside resurfaced.

Was it really just a coincidence that the Demon Knight hadn’t reacted to his attack? Was what he’d seen before he fainted truly just a figment of his imagination?

Like a doll molded from all the world’s sorrow, grief, and yearning, then coated in layers of wax, but at that moment, a piece had melted and crumbled away.

Was that face, covered in shadows, faded and worn, truly his?

Thud.

But the door had already closed, and there was no one left who could answer that question. Just like always.

* * *

“We’ll depart as soon as you’re feeling better.”

Since he’d coughed up blood, Deathbringer underwent a physical examination under the Inquisitor’s supervision. The results revealed he was suffering from internal injuries that would require at least a day to heal.

“What about Divine Power… Ah.”

“You troublemaker, if you come into contact with that, it’ll only make things worse. Just take some medicine.”

He realized that not being healable with Divine Power and this Temple feeling like a nest of maggots was significantly more uncomfortable than he’d thought.

Well, he’d guessed the former from the Demon Knight’s condition, but experiencing it for himself made it much more real. As for the latter… he seriously wondered how the Demon Knight had endured it all this time.

“If we delay this by even a day… I think Mister Knight will have something to say about that.”

“I don't know about that. I haven’t seen him since he left earlier. I also haven’t heard anything about him returning, either.”

So, the Demon Knight had yet to return to the Temple.

It was a bit absurd that the man usually so obsessed with fighting Demons had become so reserved.

Well, if they were going to talk about the absurd, they should start by addressing their decision to keep him alive.

Clatter.

He looked at the shackles placed on him, albeit just for show—they were only on one of his wrists—and the chain extending from them.

The Inquisitor held the other end of the chain as if it were a leash on some livestock. Her expression looked quite stupid.

“Hey, Iron Wall.”

“What is it?”

However, she was currently the only person he could ask. He posed a question casually as if unconcerned with the answer.

“Why did Mister… Why did Mister spare me?”

From an outside perspective, it probably seemed like he’d willingly forged a contract with a Demon. After all, it wasn’t like he’d been born without free will.

So, he should have been the type of person Mister Knight least tolerated.

“Wh-Why did he…?”

He recalled the expression the Demon Knight had worn at that moment. His face seemed to crumble away like an ancient ruin, neither grimacing nor shedding a single tear.

“You’re asking a lot today. Maybe it’s because he knows what kind of person you really are?”

Ah, maybe he already knew the answer to his question. He just couldn’t believe it.

“…Hah. What kind of person am I, then?”

He asked absentmindedly.

They wouldn’t be treating him like this if they knew everything he'd done. He laughed self-deprecatingly.

“What kind of person would make that man—”

“You’re shameless, stupid, sly, rude, and full of secrets.”

“Oh my, and that’s enough…?”

“But you’re also quick-witted enough to easily uncover critical information, well-versed in the ways of the world, and very good at analyzing people, so you catch many things we often miss. Those strengths far outweigh your flaws.”

“That won’t…”

“Ah, and though this might not be too obvious, you’re also exceptional at preparing for camping outdoors, hunting, cooking, and other things. You’ve really helped us greatly on our journey. Without you, we might have faced much harsher trials wandering these lands. That deserves proper recognition, as well.”

“…Erm.”

“So, how was that? I’m still not quite as good as you, but I’ve been trying to learn from you. I’ll try even harder to catch up to you in the future… What’s with that face?”

Right, that’s how it should be.

“What?”

What did he just hear her say? What did that damn iron wall just say?

Qu-Quick-witted? Caught things they missed? Helped them greatly?

Wh-Wh-What was with that?

“Are you feverish? Your face is so—”

“H-How thick is your skin to just say things like that?!”

He quickly covered his face, feeling heat rising to his cheeks. That crazy iron wall seriously had no shame at all…!

“What are you talking about?! My skin is perfectly normal! And if you feel hot, let me check. It might be due to your internal injuries!”

“G-Go away!!”

She was crazy, really crazy.

If what she’d said had merely been empty flattery, he could have just laughed it off. But that iron wall didn’t know how to do something like that.

Her words had to have been 100% genuine, which made this all the more embarrassing.

“Just let me see your face already! I need to check your condition to give a proper diagnosis!”

“Just go away!”

Desperately trying to avoid her as she rushed at him to see his face, Deathbringer buried his head into the bed he was sitting on. Despite the iron wall’s forceful attempts to get a look at him, he couldn’t lose here. His pride was on the line.

“Can’t you just try to be more tactful or something?!”

“I-I am! But what does that have to do with this?!”

That stupid iron wall. Did she not remember their fight earlier? He’d one-sidedly thrown all kinds of insults her way, and now she was acting as if she didn’t remember any of it.

“You really are such an iron wall…!”

“Ugh! And here I was answering you with complete sincerity!”

She had been too sincere: that was the problem. Deathbringer took a deep breath, his pillow hiding the heat that had risen to his face and now refused to go away.

He felt embarrassed but also strangely good, which made his head spin.

“Enough! I don’t need any of that!”

At that point, the Inquisitor stood up, grumbling.

“Take this, you troublemaker!”

She threw something at the Deathbringer’s head. Thud. A small but hard bag hit him, which stung a little.

“Why are you hitting me with…!”

Rustle. The small pouch spilled its contents. What fell out were small, transparent orbs embedded with flower petals. They were somewhat sticky to the touch, like candy.

He became slightly dazed at the sight of them.

“This is…”

“It’s an apology gift! I know I can never apologize enough for my prejudiced behavior, but I can’t just do nothing, so I prepared those!”

But even after that, the iron wall continued to shout.

“I’m sorry! I’m sorry for making you feel bad. I’m sorry for trying to force you to reveal your secrets without understanding anything. I’m sorry for treating you like a criminal without knowing what kind of life you’ve lived! I’m sorry for everything! Got it?!”

She was such an honest and upright person, to an almost foolish degree. As one would expect from a Hero.

“I’ll be going, then!”

She was so upright and brilliant that he felt even more ashamed for not apologizing to her yet.

He thought he could understand now why God had chosen her.

Clank!

As he heard the door open, Deathbringer buried his face in the candy bag. He started to murmur.

“If I were…”

“…?”

“If I really were a criminal, what would you do then?”

For better or for worse, the iron wall had stopped after hearing his words and fell into deep thoughts.

“In that case…”

And then.

“I would help you. So that you could atone. So that you could become a better person.”

She gave him a reply in a tone so vastly different from before.

“…Without putting me in a cell?”

“What do you take me for?! I might have done so back then, when I was still naive, but not anymore! I’ve learned that sometimes, there are circumstances in this world which make certain actions unavoidable!”

Deathbringer raised his head. He could see the red-haired priest standing right before the door.

“Besides, the you I know tends to somewhat disregard the law and regulations and is inclined to support vigilante justice. But that doesn’t mean you’d just commit a crime for no reason. So, there’d have to be a reason for why you did it. I have no intention of condemning or punishing you for that!”

“Then…”

“Of course, that doesn’t mean I’d forgive you! As I’m not the victim of your crime, I don’t have that right! However, I will speak out on behalf of those who were harmed and help you atone for your sins. That’s what I believe is right!”

Her green eyes sparkled brightly. Even though those words were similar to what the Demon had whispered to him, they didn’t feel unpleasant, probably because of those eyes.

“…Even if hundreds of people died because of me? Would you still try to understand me?”

“Was it something you intended, actively participated in, or desired?”

“No, but still…”

“Then what’s the problem?”

“If it… if it was my fault that it happened…”

“Huh? Don’t talk nonsense! Why are you responsible for something you weren’t directly involved in?!”

The harsh words this truly good person offered didn’t even feel annoying to him.

It was probably because he could readily tell that she genuinely wanted to try leading him down the path of betterment.

“B-Because if I hadn’t done what I did, those people wouldn’t have died…”

“Don’t be stupid! By that logic, are those who rebelled against that corrupt Lord to save people from unjust laws also criminals?! Their actions probably escalated the fight!”

“…That’s a different story.”

“No, it’s very similar. I believe that whenever you decide to act of your own will, it’s always to resist the injustices of this world!”

“…!”

“If innocent victims were harmed in the course of violently resisting these injustices, you should apologize to them. Regardless of your intentions, to them, you are indeed the perpetrator. If you fought against something in a wrong way and caused suffering by disrupting order, you should apologize to those affected, as well. That is also part of your responsibility.”

However, that made him feel even more ashamed.

“However, just keep one thing in mind. Hold your head high and stand your ground for just one reason: you did not remain silent when faced with injustice, and even if the method and approach used was wrong, you were simply that outraged by said injustice.”

However, he hadn’t stepped forward because he couldn’t stand for some sort of injustice.

He’d done it purely out of a desire for personal revenge.

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