I Picked Up the Abandoned Hero

9 – 9. Sinner and Bride

‘What happened…?’

I managed to correct my turbid consciousness.

I could taste fishy blood in my mouth, and one eye turned red so I couldn’t see.

I can’t remember what happened.

The last thing that comes to mind is the image of me and my colleagues having a toast, the place where we finally defeated the demon king after a long journey and shared the celebration.

Clang-!

And after taking a sip of the toast drink, the memory was cut off.

‘How do colleagues…’

I desperately try to recall the hazy memories.

First of all, a colleague who was in the lead to block the enemy, a person with a shield that could protect everyone, collapsed vomiting blood.

From there, I felt that something was wrong.

The knights who were toasting together suddenly drew their swords and started aiming their swords in this direction, and before I knew it, the head of the saintess who was trying to calm the people was rolling around on the floor.

‘…Why?’

Seeing the scene, the wizard screamed and tried to blow everyone away. After regaining his consciousness, the wizard collapsed with blood spurting from his chest.

The knights were rampaging, and their colleagues tried to calm them down, but it was not enough.

This is because the injury from the decisive battle with the king of the demons has not yet recovered, and above all, I have only had one sip of alcohol, but I am unable to move.

From the beginning, I was the first to fall.

Then, when I finally came to my senses and barely opened my eyes, only the scene where everything had ended was reflected.

All the knights who pulled out their swords had run away.

It appeared to be a holy sword that cut their throats.

As proof of that, I found a single shining holy sword in the middle of a pool of blood.

I got up and desperately searched for survivors.

But there were no survivors.

Even the only comrade I thought survived, only his severed dagger and a bloody piece of black cloth were left behind.

I didn’t even want to think about what a piece of minced meat covered in a piece of cloth was.

“Hero! His Majesty the King brought the palace chefs’ banquet here as a reward-“

“Ka, Sir Karkal…”

I was the only one who survived.

It was only the warrior who was holding a holy sword before he knew it, with his whole body soaked in the blood of those who fought together.

I don’t know what happened or what caused this horror.

Maybe it was because of the accumulated fatigue from the long journey.

Or was it because of mental exhaustion from seeing this horrible sight?

I lost consciousness again, and when I opened my eyes a few days later, I was locked in a prison cell, tightly restrained.

I don’t know what happened or what made us this way.

However, one fact was clear.

Everyone present was killed by the holy sword.

A legendary sword that can only be used by a chosen warrior.

The holy sword, a symbol of peace and a legacy of the future, cut down everyone there.

“Hero! No, the witch broke through the bars and escaped!”

I don’t know much after that.

I didn’t remember that even though I did it sober.

It was the day before the trial and his execution.

The Holy Sword, which returned to its owner’s arms on its own, led me outside as if there was still work left to do, and I was led away without knowing what I was doing.

My task must have been completed by killing the king of the demons, but what the hell is left?

I still couldn’t figure it out.

†††

“I see, then you had no choice but to watch.”

Arsel nodded at Alfred’s question.

But he soon denied himself by clenching his fists.

“But obviously, my comrades were killed by the holy sword. Since I am the owner of the holy sword, I can understand that…”

“But you said you couldn’t do anything but watch? If so, that’s odd.”

“…The holy sword is a sword that can only be used by warriors, and no one present can hold the holy sword other than me.”

Then there is only one culprit.

Even if it wasn’t what he wanted, it didn’t change the fact that he killed everyone as a result.

“I keep denying it, but the truth is that I killed everyone. It will have no choice but to be.”

“That’s right, I remember those guys. Among humans, he was strong enough to be counted on one hand. You are the only one who can annihilate them all in one sitting.”

Five years have already passed since then.

Leaving behind his burning hometown, he wandered aimlessly.

Arcel evaded the pursuers and crossed the forest where monsters live and the realm of demons. In the process, he gradually felt that his body was not the same as before.

At first he thought he was left with the aftereffects of the battle.

However, he soon surpassed the problem of injury and became unable to even use magical powers. After a while, he noticed that a curse was engraved on his body.

The curse gradually ate away at the body as time passed, and a while ago, I finally reached the limit of enduring the curse.

Then, luckily, he was saved by Alfred.

If it wasn’t for that, it would have been his original fate to have been killed by a curse or executed by the knights who pursued him.

“…I am a traitor. A murderer who cut down without mercy those who believed in me and followed me.”

Arcel’s eyes were moist.

My heart ached as I recalled the faces of the people I missed so much in such horrible ways.

This pain is not caused by a curse.

It was a pain like tearing my own chest.

“But you didn’t kill me, did you? You said you didn’t kill them. It’s too soon to treat you as a murderer just because you were killed by the holy sword.”

Even so, Alfred didn’t seem to take it too seriously.

It didn’t seem like he was particularly interested in whether his comrades died or not.

“The Holy Sword is a sword that only I can use. If he was killed with a holy sword like that, who else would have done it?”

“Well, do you know? There might be someone other than you who can use the Holy Sword. Maybe even a child in the countryside or an old man dying of old age can hold a holy sword.”

“Don’t take it lightly like that!”

At last, Arsel got up from the bed and shouted.

No wonder he isn’t interested in this.

Alfred was a non-human demon, and no matter how half-human blood was mixed, he could not be called human.

In the first place, to him, could the story of Arcel be worth more than the self-destruction of his enemies?

Even knowing that fact, Arcel shouted as if scolding himself.

“I was the only one who could use the holy sword! That’s the story of me killing them! Oh-“

Thump!

“Ugh…!”

Then Alfred brutally subdued Arcel.

I grabbed his hands and knocked him over onto the bed, reaching behind his back to make Arcel unable to use his magic.

“Calm down, when your emotions run high, you use your magic power without even realizing it. Then if you do something wrong, you die. I put all my effort into keeping you alive, but are you going to make it a waste?”

Alfred’s eyes shine fiercely with golden light.

It looked like he was angry.

Until now, Arcel had never seen him so angry.

No matter how much they were in the positions of an officer and a warrior in the Demon King’s Army, due to the nature of the two people, whether they wanted each other or not, they saw each other once before forgetting each other’s faces.

Whenever we met like that, Alfred always smiled or showed a smile as if he was enjoying the situation.

But that’s not the case now.

I felt as if I had mistaken someone else.

I was looking down at Arcel, cold as if my whole body would freeze, without any expression.

I don’t know if it’s right to describe it as angry.

At least by Arcel’s standards, it seemed like the closest thing would be to describe that as angry.

“Ah, did you treat me a little rough? Sorry. Aren’t you sick?”

Of course, as usual, he returns as usual, frees Arcel, and checks for any injuries.

“No, I am sorry. I just took my anger out on you. Even though I know it’s wrong, I still…”

“It’s okay, originally, emotions are calm like the calm sea at dawn, but there are times when they are swept away like waves.”

Alfred got out of bed and looked at the window.

“And what I just said is, from my point of view, sufficiently doubtful. You humans have a tendency to believe too much in appearances. In the first place, the holy sword was not given to everyone in the world, so how can you assure that only the hero can wield the holy sword?”

“But that…”

“Again, who decided that there was only one hero? Even in the prophecy of the holy sword, there was no mention of one hero, although it may be a cruel story to you.”

How nice it would have been if that was the case.

How happy he would have been if there had been someone other than himself who could use the holy sword.

Although Arcel is brief, she has had such a delusion.

A life of living a normal life by farming instead of forcibly fighting monsters and overthrowing the demon king.

Meet the man you love, get married, give birth to a child, and end the rest of your life with the person you love.

This is a dream that can never come true for the warrior of the holy sword, and it is a regret that Arcel could not abandon even when he was called a hero right after he defeated the demon lord.

“Of course, everything is groundless suspicion, and we can’t be sure unless we check everything. On the contrary, it cannot be denied unless it is verified.”

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Alfred sat down next to Arcel again.

“Besides, you say you didn’t murder your comrades yourself. If so, that’s it. It’s not good to take a lie as truth just because you feel guilty.”

“Ah…”

With that word, Arcel could no longer hold back her suppressed emotions.

“Ugh…! Why don’t you stop?!”

Tears roll down my cheeks and form on my chin, and I try to regain my composure by biting my lips, but once the tears burst out, I didn’t know how to stop.

“I don’t think someone like me deserves to shed tears-“

Alfred comforted Arcel silently.

I can’t understand the pain others have suffered.

It was also impossible to represent.

It’s something she shouldn’t understand unless it’s her person, and it’s tantamount to deceiving her, so Alfred chooses to watch her rather than express his regret.

It didn’t change anything even if I showed hypocrisy here.

“…Are you asleep?”

How much time had passed like that?

Perhaps it was because Arcel recalled the nightmare-like memories, she fell asleep exhausted.

Until now, I wouldn’t have been able to tell anyone.

As long as the hero is the enemy of humans, he will not listen to Arcel’s story, and even if he is a demon, he will not listen to her, the same enemy.

Maybe Alfred was the only one who could listen.

“Okay then, grandma. Was she listening? Would you like to come out soon?”

After confirming that Arcel was fast asleep, Alfred looked at her and said.

“If it doesn’t come out, then it’s really burning at the stake, because the burner I ordered just arrived this morning.”

“…I didn’t hear everything from the beginning.”

When she pretended to cut her neck with her finger, Shion suddenly appeared.

“I heard the baby crying sadly, so I came to check if my grandson did something in bed, not to eavesdrop.”

“That’s such a bad personality. Anyway, grandma found out what that curse really is, right? Tell me the truth, since I know that her mother suffered from the same curse anyway.”

Shion grabbed her forehead as if thinking about it for a moment, then she said with a slightly troubled expression.

“I’ll tell you what I know, so won’t you put up with being crucified again? Her arms are still wobbly.”

“I’ll think about it after listening to the story.”

“Yes, that is like the curse your mother suffered. Of course, it’s a curse that your mother lifted at once.”

“As expected, then you know how to do it, right? Because it was before I was born. All I know now is Grandma.”

Alfred looked at the sleeping Arcel and said.

This curse was different from the commonly known curse.

After making sure that the cross has not arrived yet, Shion clears her throat and opens her mouth again.

“That curse is based on a person’s guilt, that is. The effect differs depending on how much guilt you feel for your sins.”

“The conclusion?”

“The way to do it is simple, just think that you are innocent. As for your mother, she burned her hometown and killed hundreds of thousands of people, but she felt no guilt. I would have thought it was cheap though.”

Don’t run away.

Repent your sins.

Confront that sin head-on and prove yourself right.

Shion showed a phrase written in a diary and said.

“What, nothing special. So even if you cast the same curse on me as a test, it disappeared right away.”

“Your lack of conscience is just like your mother, so of course it doesn’t work, so how can I say that it only works for good children…

Unexpectedly, the identity is bland compared to the phase and effect of the curse.

“…This is a very annoying curse.”

But Alfred never thought it would be easy to curse.

Especially if it was a curse given to the ‘Hero’.