Chapter 26: Brain Destruction

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The 【Hero】Arianrod was enraged. She resolved that she must eliminate those wicked, depraved women of the party 【Dawn】 at all costs. Aria did not understand the circumstances. That was because she had charged in headlong before hearing any explanations. However, she was extremely sensitive when it came to the man she loved making other women fall for him.

Aria had tried to take advantage of the mysterious opportunity to recreate her childhood life with her old friend and plotted to live together, but Finn told her that he was already living with three beautiful party members. At that moment, her brain boiled over instantly, and she died.

“F-Finn… What in the world happened here?”

“I don’t know. It just ended up like this before I knew it…”

“Ah…! W-what a terrible thing…!”

Vasily clenched her lips as she looked at Aria’s completely altered state. Her face looked as though her soul had left her body. Her mouth hung half-open, her eyes devoid of light. She muttered something under her breath, her appearance so eerie that—given how beautiful her features were—it almost looked as if she had been violated.

No way… Did the <Knowledge> actually hit the mark?

She had believed Finn would overturn it. Was that belief mistaken?

Had I… made a terrible mistake?

Filled with regret, Vasily stepped closer to bring Aria back to her senses and realized she was muttering something. Vasily steeled herself and leaned in to listen.

“…my… Finn… was taken… taken away… my… prince…”

The content was the complete opposite of what she had feared. Having imagined the worst, Vasily abandoned the thought altogether as something ridiculous. With a troubled expression, she looked at Finn, who had carried Aria back on his back. She gave him a wry smile, and spoke bluntly.

“So that’s all it was. I already knew, you know.”

“—Eeeeeehhh!? Why didn’t you tell me!? Why didn’t you stop it!?”

Still on his back, Aria regained her senses and screamed, utterly destroying Finn’s ears. He couldn’t hear anything anymore, but a sharp pain shot through him as if his eardrums had ruptured, making his body tremble in a strange mix of pain and pleasure.

“Well, this is my territory. There’s no way I wouldn’t know.”

A person who could casually order Guild Headquarters Chief Marcus with, “I’m assigning you a designated request. Oh, don’t ask about the details and don’t forget that you can’t refuse,” would of course be fully aware of what was happening in the royal capital, especially the movements of her own disciple.

“I told him to introduce proper talent to the guild. Well, they turned out to be a bit… eccentric.”

“…I-I mean, it all worked out for the best, so let it slide. Okay?”

“Ah, haha… Finn-san has helped me a lot.”

Meanwhile, Marianne, who was thrown into confusion when Finn and Aria barged in during their conversation, had no time to calm down and surrendered to the pressure Vasily directed at her. Proper talent… Two who excelled in ability but lacked cooperation, and two who lacked ability but tried to work together.

A shield bearer and a nun who couldn’t even properly heal, a swordmaster and an elf. Certainly, now that everything fit together, it could be called a match made in heaven, but how was it back then? At the very least, Finn, who had suffered the most, seemed pleased, so Marcus could be said to have unintentionally become the person who made Finn happiest.

“By the way, Finn. You didn’t get dragged into any trouble, did you?”

“Hm…? Sorry, I can’t hear.”

“…Ah. That scream earlier ruptured your eardrums.”

With that, Vasily let out a sigh. She stood up and approached Finn, who was still carrying Aria. Aria was resting her chin on his shoulder and then, Vasily wrapped both of his ears in her hands.

“—【Heal】”

Light born from her dark-skinned hands regenerated his ruptured eardrums.

“Aria. I understand you’re happy to see Finn after so long, but don’t cause him too much trouble. He may be family, but he’s also an adventurer belonging to a Gold-Rank party.”

“Ugh… sorry, Finn.”

“It’s fine. I’m happy to see both of you again too.”

“…Hehe. I see. So Finn feels that way too.”

“You little brat, saying something so sweet…”

“Geh—”

Aria, still being carried, wore a blissful expression. Vasily looked not entirely displeased as she ground her elbow into Finn, while Finn let out a slightly pained sound as his side was gouged. As the three of them interacted in a warm atmosphere, Guild Headquarters Chief Marcus remained seated on the sofa, desperately thinking about how to escape.

There were three reasons. First, it was overwhelmingly awkward. Seeing a legendary dark elf he’d known since childhood making that kind of… indescribable face while clinging to a younger man was about as awkward as watching a family member show their man-or-woman side.

Marcus was no longer young. He had a wife and a daughter. When his daughter had brought home an adventurer, who was the third son of a noble family, and called him her boyfriend, it had turned into a wonderful party filled with endless shouting. A man worthy of recognition by battle-hardened adventurers was bound to face a very high bar. Moreover, he had been helped by her several times since becoming Guild Headquarters Chief, so precisely because he didn’t see her as a woman, the awkwardness was even worse.

Second, he couldn’t predict where a verbal landmine might be hidden in what he said. A Platinum-Rank adventurer, the first Guild Master, someone connected to a High Elf prophet and a mysterious figure said to have granted knowledge only to her. She was a secretive schemer working in the shadows for some grand purpose.

That was the general image of Vasily Valvaroi.

Marcus, who held information that would prevent him from dying easily if leaked, didn’t want to carry any more burdens. He didn’t want to hear anything about prophecies, or about Vasily supposedly being destined to die. And finally…

The Saint sitting next to him was clearly not acting normal. Her grip on her staff was so tight it creaked in protest. Her eyes were wide open, fixed on the three of them without wavering.

(This is a battlefield of love, isn’t it!?)

【Dawn】was already a party surrounded by all sorts of rumors as it was. Finn was said to be a smooth operator surrounded by three beauties, or that the three beauties were fighting over him, or that it was an intense harem party. People really said whatever they liked.

They denied it, and anyone who got carried away was thoroughly beaten down. Even so, the rumors never completely stopped. It was fueled by jealousy toward Finn, who had reached Gold Rank despite being “just a shield bearer.”

In reality, anyone who picked a fight would get beaten senseless, and the other three wouldn’t stay quiet either. That was the only reason people didn’t say it to their faces. Such foolish parties did exist, and most of them eventually disappeared somehow. They might make a brief appearance in underworld gossip afterward, but that was it. Even if this party were like that, with strength that placed them among Gold Rank adventurers and even said to be closest to Platinum Rank, anyone could understand that it wasn’t a party built on lust alone. And even if it were built on lust, from the guild’s perspective, their strength alone would be enough.

…However. There were limits to everything.

(Y-you, you idiot, Debyura!! What the hell is going on with you!? The 【Saint of Holy Smite】, 【Tempest】, and 【Crimson Sword Saint】 are right there! And now even 【Heavenly Saint】 and the 【Hero】!? That’s insane! You’re the only one who’s completely abnormal! This isn’t normal at all!!)

To Marcus, Finn Debyura was a mysterious boy who had suddenly received an order from above: “Introduce to him proper talent.” His origin was that of a villager. A filthy child with no backing whatsoever. He was hardly someone upper management would care about. Still, an order was an order. To avoid complaints later, he added Carla and Astrea, who were rising stars at the time, and Marianne to support the shield bearer.

Who would have imagined his true identity as a disciple of the 【Heavenly Saint】 and the childhood friend of the 【Hero】?

A… a love entanglement between Gold-Rank and Platinum-Rank adventurers…

A shiver ran down his spine. If, (hypothetically, of course) 【Starry Sky】 and 【Dawn】 were to fight, what would happen? The answer was simple: the royal capital would be annihilated.

Seven individuals, each capable of wiping out a grand noble on their own, clashing was nothing short of a nightmare. There was almost no force in the capital capable of stopping it. Perhaps only the 【Saint of Rewinding Heavens】…

No, no, no!! It’s over! The capital is finished…!

It wasn’t a matter of winning or losing. The moment a fight broke out, it was game over. Marcus thought desperately, sweat pouring down his face like a waterfall.

Marianne was clearly in a foul mood. Aria clung to Finn without concern, Vasily indulged her, and Finn let it happen. Alicia, meanwhile, maintained an air of indifference. Alicia looked harmless at first glance, but she was Astrea’s sister. Which meant there could easily be some kind of past connection between them.

He couldn’t let his guard down. But here, he had to stay calm. Understanding that one wrong move would turn the capital into a sea of flames, Marcus carefully chose his target. Marianne was not in her right mind. It was better not to touch Arianrod. Alicia didn’t seem interested. That left only one option…

“—…Haa… Alright. Hey, Heavenly Saint. It’s about time you left.”

Vasily was the only choice. No matter how smitten she was with a man, Vasily was reliable. She was a woman steeped in intrigue and schemes, but also someone who had been involved with society for a very long time. She wouldn’t ruin the royal capital over a lovers’ quarrel in a place like this. Believing that, Marcus summoned his courage.

“…You’re right. Shall we be going?”

“…! Ah, so that means Finn too…”

“I’d like you to come along, for the request.”

For a moment, Vasily glanced at Marianne. There was a crunch. Marcus chose to ignore it with all his might. He didn’t want to see it, nor acknowledge it.

“As I said earlier, I won’t eat him. If you’re worried, why not come along?”

“…Tomorrow morning. I will head over then.”

“Is that so? I’ll be waiting.”

With a wry smile, Vasily said this and ushered the three of them out of the room.

“Come on, get down. What kind of sight is that for a Hero to show?“

“Eh~, it’s fine. This is Finn we’re talking about anyway.”

“It’s not fine at all… sorry about this. I’m Alicia la Aeras. Astrea’s older sister.“

“Her sister, huh. I’m Finn Debyura. Astrea has always taken good care of me. And don’t worry. it’s not a bother. If anything, I’m relieved Aria hasn’t changed.“

“…Wow. This is bad, isn’t it? Hey, isn’t he absolutely the type you can’t just leave alone?“

“…Haha. I have no idea what you mean. Honestly, my Finn is too popular for his own good.“

“…………(speechless)“

The voices coming from down the hallway gradually faded away. The four of them left. What remained in the room were Marianne, eyes wide open, grinding her teeth and gripping her staff, and Marcus, staring out the window with a distant gaze.

“……I just remembered something urgent. Please excuse me.”

“…Yeah. See you.”

After watching Marianne stagger out, Marcus let the chair creak as he stretched. Then he exhaled deeply and squeezed out a single sentence.

“…Maybe I should go on a trip with my family or something…”

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