I Picked Up the Hero Who Banished Me

9 – [The Hero Who Caught the Demon King – 06]

Incompetence.

Powerlessness.

Those were words that felt so distant from me.

Whatever I did, I could do it, and anything I couldn’t, someone else would naturally take care of, right next to me.

I didn’t have the eyes to discern whether it was to impress me, or an act of kindness, but it was always prepared for me as if it were a given.

As a hero, I saved countless people, and even when I defeated the Demon King, no one could kill me, nothing could crush me.

Deep down, I might have wished to die at the same time as the Demon King, perhaps?

I had thought about that before.

Living as the perfect hero, constantly saving people, seemed too difficult, so I thought that just dying then, finishing my life as the hero who died alongside the Demon King, wouldn’t be so bad.

But.

When faced with death at the hands of my companions, including Alex, I thrashed about.

The first thought that came to mind was, I don’t want to die.

I thought I was ready to die at any moment, but was I wrong?

Now, I can’t even understand who ‘Olivia Reinhart’ is anymore. I can’t understand myself, the woman I am, and I don’t know why I trained so relentlessly.

That’s what I got from training like a madwoman, fighting, and shedding blood.

“Haah, haah… Ugh!”

“Calm down. Breathe slowly. Take this medicine, it will ease the pain. And try not to use your magic. If your mana nerves are stimulated, the Reaper’s poison will eat away at your body faster.”

“Hukk…!”

Even with those words, using mana was like breathing to Olivia.

How did I learn it, again?

I think I just watched someone else use it and roughly copied it.

Later, I think I heard other people spent years training to use it.

Anyway, ever since I became able to use mana, I’ve circulated it even while sleeping, it was as natural as breathing, so completely deactivating my mana nerves was harder than keeping them activated.

“Hey, Royce.”

“Yes.”

“What exactly *is* this Reaper’s poison?”

“…I only have book-level knowledge on it. It’s an incredibly powerful poison, but it won’t take effect unless directly ingested, and it only affects living things.”

“…”

“Actually, though they call it a poison, it’s more accurate to call it a ‘curse’. If you are poisoned, it’s fatal, it starts with your mana nerves, then all your physical abilities become paralyzed and lost, and finally you die after experiencing intense pain.”

“…”

I listened to Royce in silence.

“And the time it takes to die is roughly one minute, everything ends within that time. It even causes the body to decay, so they say that those who die from Reaper’s poison don’t even leave a corpse.”

“I see.”

“More than that, I’m really worried about where Alex got that. It’s not something humans could make, the technology itself is something that disappeared a long time ago.”

“I…”

I said, staring blankly up at the sky.

“I’ve been cursed by my own comrades.”

“……”

This time, it was Royce who was silent.

I don’t think our relationship was one of strong trust.

I knew that my comrades, including Alex, were a little uncomfortable with me, but that’s why I tried my best to be good to them.

At least, we were going to be together as comrades, and they certainly weren’t lacking in skill, I never felt like I didn’t need their support.

But what went wrong?

Why was I betrayed?

Why did they try to kill me?

Was the Hero, Olivia Reinhart, so untrustworthy?

Did they think that if this person goes off the rails there’s no way to stop them, before even thinking about the numbers I’d saved?

Still, I thought we’d developed a kind of intimacy, having gone through life and death situations together so many times, and I thought I could trust them more than others, but to them, I was just a monster that was difficult to deal with if I became uncontrollable.

“Royce, I’m not stupid… well, saying I’m not stupid after being done in like this is a little awkward, though.”

“I know.”

“I… can I make it to Elvenheim?”

“……”

Silence.

Royce seemed to hesitate for a moment, choosing his words.

It was kindness.

Something close to consideration, a face trying to figure out how to speak in a way that would hurt me less.

That kindness was the same as ever, and it was also the reason why I hadn’t wanted you by my side.

That kindness made you act so proactively, trying to save even me, a hero. I thought I couldn’t keep someone like that around.

“Why are you so good at sensing things in places like that?”

“…I guess, I should have been better at seeing people.”

“I’ll be honest. No matter how quickly we travel, it will take over a month to reach Elvenheim. I judged that Liviah-ssi would only be able to last a month at most.”

“I see.”

I wasn’t surprised.

I wasn’t stupid enough to not know my own condition.

Even if Royce were to treat me with all his care, my wounds were deep, and the poison was spreading through my body.

Truthfully, aside from other injuries, I could tell that the Reaper’s poison was eating away at my life, and Royce had given me a month.

Even travelling as fast as we could, it would take over a month.

There was a higher chance I’d die within that time.

“Are you scared?”

“I don’t know, it hasn’t really hit me yet.”

“…Liviah-ssi, why did you save people?”

“That’s sudden. …Because I’m a hero.”

“So, did you save someone?”

“Yeah, I have to save people. …I have to save even one more person.”

Someone whispers in my ear.

-Proud daughter, you are a hero.

-Proud child of mine, the new light of the Reinhardt family.

There’s no one hitting me now, but it feels like I’m still throbbing.

Until the moment of his death, Father told me I had to be a hero.

“I have to be a hero. I have to live as a hero, die as a hero. But I can’t, I can’t. I can’t… ! I can’t die like this. As a hero, I must die.”

“What does it mean to die as a hero?”

“Huh? Well… It’s like dying with the Demon King, or dying while saving someone, something like that, right?”

“That’s all sad, though.”

“Sad?”

I tilted my head.

If I can die as a hero, isn’t that honorable and a good thing?

Death itself might be scary for anyone, but it’s not something to be sad about.

Because it’s a death befitting a hero.

“Hmm.”

“Why are you looking at me like that?”

“Let me tell you in advance, it’s probably not your fault. It’s the fault of whoever put that curse on you. …Actually, I felt it while we were traveling together, but seeing it like this, it’s serious.”

“So, what is it?”

Curse.

It didn’t seem to be talking about the Grim Reaper’s poison.

No, I’m not dumb either, so it’s not like I didn’t understand the meaning at all.

“It’s the story of, ‘Wouldn’t it be okay for the Hero to have a happy ending, too?'”

But a happy ending for the Hero, huh.

How the hell do you even do that?

If it means living as a hero and dying as a hero, then all I can think about is dying.

What kind of death is there for a hero, other than dying a glorious death fighting against a threat to humanity?

How can I die a death that says, “That hero died well”?

“You have already done so many good deeds that they overflow. In the process, you may have made some rather aggressive, or arrogant and headstrong choices, but those choices can’t tarnish your good deeds.”

“…….”

“Just like one good deed from someone who has committed countless evils cannot wash away all the evil, one evil deed from someone who has committed countless good deeds cannot tarnish all the good.”

“Can you explain it in a way that’s easier to understand?”

“Defeating the Demon King normally, retiring normally, having a family or whatever normally, enjoying hobbies normally, dying surrounded by countless people when your lifespan is up, having a normal tearful funeral, and entering your grave… wouldn’t you say that’s a happy ending?”

“Nor, mally.”

“I think you’ve already done what you need to do as a Hero. Of course, that doesn’t mean you’re restricted from saving people. It’s just, maybe you need to look at yourself a little more? While living as a Hero, have you ever been kind to Olivia Reinhart even once?”

“…….”

Never.

Not even once.

Not only the people around me, but even I myself, had never once been kind to me.

Always whipping myself, clenching my teeth, I was determined to live and die as a hero. Even if those around me praised and lauded it, there was never any concern…

Ah.

“Before.”

“Yes?”

“You told me not to push myself even back then. Even when everyone else was saying ‘Cheer up.'”

“Hmm? …Oh, right.”

“Why did you do that?”

“Why, you ask? You’re a person, aren’t you? With those dark circles and glaring eyes, always looking on edge, can’t I say something? Has nobody ever told you that?”

“No.”

“Huh.”

Royce let out a sigh, as if he was rather dumbfounded.

It didn’t particularly feel like he was angry at me, but that emotion was somehow unfamiliar, and I unknowingly flinched a little.

After flinching, I was surprised that I’d even reacted to something.

“I was born a hero, grew up a hero, have lived as a hero. …Besides, it’s about saving people. Who would stop me? No, why should they stop me? The more I move, the more people I can save.”

“…That’s exactly right. People are still in pain, and in that pain and despair, your existence became a hope, and saved many. It was not only saving lives, but also their hearts.”

The hope that everything will be alright if there is a hero was clearly present among the people, and I had been that active.

And it had all happened in such a short time.

It felt a bit strange to be patting myself on the back, but they said that there was no hero in history who had gotten things done this fast.

Therefore, I had done well, and it could be said that I had performed the ‘hero’s work’ better than anyone.

But the look on Royce’s face, as he stared at me right now, it was like he didn’t want to show a positive reaction. It wasn’t a face that condemned me as bad, but it wasn’t one that would praise or glorify me for doing well, either.

It was like before.

When I went right into the hydra’s mouth to kill it, everyone else cheered, “Just like the hero!” and glorified my name, but you were the only one who looked at me with such discontent.

“You still don’t seem to understand the difference between risking your life and throwing it away.”

“Do I?”

“If a hero’s role is to save countless people, and give hope to those in despair,”

Royce said, adding firewood to the campfire.

“Who will save and give hope to the hero in his moment of despair?”

“……”

“Let’s get some sleep. We have to travel in the carriage all day again tomorrow.”

“Okay.”

Why you.

Why do you help me?

Why reach out your hand to the hero?

Why.

Why try to save me, when it is my role to save others?

‘I don’t know.’

Slowly, I closed my eyes.