Hi, I’m the Hero’s Father ～I’m Sorry For All The Trouble My Foolish Son Has Caused You～ - Chapter 54

Chapter 54   The Hero’s Father, No Mercy

“Ugh.”

“Shh. Mion-chan, don’t react.”

“Yes…”

Mion couldn’t help but frown at the overly obvious brutes.

“Hey, that’s pretty harsh, you know?”

“Even though we look like this, we’re adventurers, and we’re confident in both our money and our strength.”

“Of course, we’re also good with women. Hahaha!”

No one was trying to defend Wiel and Mion from the muscled men and their crude conversation. They avoided eye contact and kept their distance, with some even fleeing the bath.

Trying to defend themselves might make them targets. These kinds of guys are the type who can hurt others without a second thought. Ignoring them or keeping a distance was the best way to protect themselves.

Naturally, the two ignored them as well. Mion clung to Wiel’s arm, trembling.

“Don’t ignore us. We’re just having a bit of fun.”

“Yeah, yeah. Just have a drink with us. Okay?”

“Where did you ladies come from?”

One of the three brutes sat behind Wiel and the others to block their escape, while the other two went to the bath. But Wiel and Mion didn’t move. They remained expressionless, soaking in the bath.

“What do you think of our muscles? Pretty impressive, right?”

“These muscles have been honed in real battles against monsters. Normally, we’d charge to let women touch us, but for you ladies, it’s free.”

“We’re quite famous, you know. Look, look.”

The three flexed their muscles and made their pectorals twitch unnecessarily. It was so ridiculous and foolish that Mion couldn’t help but burst into laughter.

“Mion-chan.”

“B-but… with muscles like that…!”

She almost started laughing uncontrollably, but managed to hold it in. Wiel was scolding her, but deep down, she felt the same way as Mion. Seeing their reactions, the faces of the three brutes turned red with anger.

“Don’t get cocky just because you’re women!”

One of the brutes shouted in rage, but Wiel and Mion weren’t scared at all. In fact, Mion had become even calmer. For someone like her, who knew true strength and true fear, this level of anger and intimidation was nothing more than a breeze.

It seemed she hadn’t realized that her mental toughness had been inadvertently honed as well.

“Damn it…!”

“Just because you’re good-looking, you think you can mess around?”

“Looks like we need to teach you a lesson.”

The three began to slowly reach out towards Wiel and Mion—

“What are you doing?”

—And the world seemed to freeze.

Even though they were soaking in the bath, the voice felt as though it froze them from the core. They stood still, eyes fixed on the source of the voice, as if they were prey being stared down by a predator.

The figure before them was a giant of a man.

His physique was far more muscular than theirs, and his tanned skin spoke of intense training. His gaze was so powerful it could almost kill with a look alone. It was awe-inspiring and terrifying.

“Ah, you’re back. Welcome.”

“Croix-sama…!”

“I’m back, both of you.”

Croix, gracefully handing champagne to the two, made the three brutes freeze completely. It was then they finally realized.

They had touched something they shouldn’t have.

Croix, who had handed champagne to Wiel and Mion, now turned his gaze towards the three brutes.

“Now, you three. Follow me.”

“…Eh, ah…”

“Wh-what…?”

“Didn’t you hear me? I said follow me.”

His words were a direct command to their instincts. The three had no choice but to comply.

“Will those three be okay?”

“Who knows? It’s no longer our concern.”

“That’s true.”

They toasted with the champagne they’d been given, savoring the moment.

“Well… one thing can be said: their last memory in this world will be of beautiful women like us.”

“How pitiful. If they had lived their lives properly, it wouldn’t have ended like this.”

Croix and the three brutes moved to a corner of the room. There were no people around, and the wall was only a few meters high, though it was a clear glass about three meters tall.

The three brutes understood. This was a place of execution, and they were the condemned.

“Choose: either jump yourself or be thrown off by me. Decide in three seconds.”

The expected words were thrown at them. However, there was no option to refuse, and the three brutes bowed their heads in silence.

Unable to come to terms with the idea of death in three seconds, one of them fell to his knees on the floor.

“I-I’m so sorry! I didn’t realize those two were with you!”

“S-Sorry!”

“Please forgive us…!”

Seeing this, the other two also prostrated themselves.

Of course, even with such a display, Croix’s heart remained unmoved.

“So, if they weren’t with me, it’d be okay to lay hands on them? Who do you think you are?”

“Ugh… We swear we’ll never do something like this again!”

“We’ll work seriously as adventurers…!”

“It’s the truth! We’re not lying!”

“Oh, so you’re adventurers.”

Hearing their words, Croix’s expression changed.

“I used to be an adventurer myself. I traveled to all sorts of places.”

“R-Really…!”

“So, you’re our senior…!?”

“I thought so. There’s a different aura about you…”

Seeing a chance, the three brutes began to lift Croix.

Croix nodded, crossing his arms.

“Yes. I did quite a few reckless things as an adventurer. For example, jumping off a sheer cliff.”

“““…Eh?”””

“I’ll give you some advice as a senior. This is also part of the adventurer’s experience.”

He grabbed one of the men by the head and easily lifted him up.

“When you’re slammed into the water from a great height, the water surface becomes incredibly hard. Just think of it as training for hitting steel.”

“W-Wait──!?”

“Here you go.”

Croix threw one of the men towards the sea with a throwing motion.

Seeing the nearly 80-kilogram man tossed like trash, the other two were frozen, unable to do anything.

“Now, it’s your turn. — Brace yourselves, the crime of trying to lay hands on someone important to me is serious.”