Reincarnated Devil's Strongest Hero Training Plan ~The baby he picked up has grown up so well that his father is confused~ - Volume 2 Chapter 12

Reincarnated Devil’s Strongest Hero Training Plan ~The baby he picked up has grown up so well that his father is confused~

Volume 2 Chapter 12   What I saw

Ekina and her companions, although not effortlessly, continue to break through the traps set in the underground passages by the black-clad figures. Occasionally, the curious Ekina triggers a trap on purpose for fun, getting caught in a net meant to capture people, but they mostly overcome the traps with the calm knowledge and strategy of Fradalia.

According to Ekina, triggering and playing with traps, once she knows they are non-lethal, provides valuable experience, which is why she does it. However, Abel, watching his childhood friend taking such risks, feels anxious and on edge.

From Fradalia’s perspective, these traps are mere child’s play. She is confident she can always rescue her younger companion if needed, so she does not see it as a problem.

“Phew~ I had fun. That was quite interesting!”

“Hey, Ekina! You should be more cautious…”

“Eh? If I don’t experience getting caught in traps now, I’ll be in real trouble when it actually happens.”

Grinding her teeth in silence, Abel can’t deny that experiencing adult-level traps, even without lethal elements, is invaluable. It’s something that can only be done at a time like this. However, he clearly wants to point out that there could be a trap meant to lure them into letting their guard down, only to kill them.

Ekina, noticing this, waves her hand and assures him she’ll be more careful from now on. Since she usually activates traps only after assessing them, such worries are generally unnecessary.

Still, Ekina secretly feels a bit happy that her childhood friend cares about her. Turning her back to Abel so he can’t see her face turning red, she suppresses her smile and acts nonchalant to hide her embarrassment.

Of course, from Fradalia’s angle, everything is perfectly visible. She chuckles at Ekina’s clumsy attempt to hide her embarrassment, with her elf ears turning red, and decides to support Abel to foster their relationship.

“It’s okay, Abel-kun. Your kindness is being conveyed to Ekina-chan. She’s taking some risks because she wants you to notice her, isn’t that right?”

“Wha—!? N-no way! Sis, don’t say random stuff like that!”

“Hahaha. That’s right, I guess I was being a bit too mean.”

Ekina, usually nonchalant, turned red-faced, glancing back at Fradalia. It was a rare sight that made Abel, who was standing there with his mouth slightly open in surprise, think that she looked rather cute in a way different from usual.

How pure and innocent. Without Ekina, Fradalia, or his rival Granbelt, who wasn’t here now, Abel seemed like the kind of boy who could be easily deceived by bad people on his own.

But this heartwarming scene scored high points with Wasabi. With a water tentacle, it gave a thumbs-up and declared, “Good job,” in a strong, yet surreal manner. Ekina, embarrassed, quickly swatted the tentacle away.

The three of them, plus one, continued progressing smoothly through the underground passage, deactivating all visible traps in preparation for their escape. They finally reached the end. The passage opened up into a large room, spacious enough for multiple people to fight in. In the slightly open area, five black-clad figures and the boy who had previously picked a fight with them were engaged in a secret discussion.

The boy’s leader seemed to be begging with his head pressed to the ground, but since they were observing from a hidden spot behind some rocks, only Ekina, with her dark elf long ears and the demon gene enhancing her hearing, could make out the conversation.

“Hey, Ekina. What are they saying?”

“…………”

“…I see. I think I get the gist of it.”

What they heard were the despicable words of the black-clad leader and the painful pleas of the boys begging for their comrades’ lives. It was too cruel a scene for the five-year-old Ekina, who, despite her twisted nature, still had high hopes for human kindness.

Abel and Fradalia noticed Ekina’s unusual anger and understood the situation. Abel, usually trusting and unsuspecting, especially as a child, grasped the gravity of the situation, which surprised Fradalia. Her initial confusion quickly turned to understanding as she grasped the reason behind it and muttered to herself.

“…Yes, if even Ekina is this angry, then even Abel, who cares for and believes in her more than anyone, would understand.”

Abel’s eyes, filled with an anger matching or even surpassing Ekina’s, were fixed on the scene. His grip on his dagger was so tight that his knuckles turned white.

“Abel.”

“What is it, Ekina?”

“…No, never mind. Just don’t do anything reckless. Our mission is to investigate, after all.”

Ekina knew their task was to investigate, not to eliminate the cause. If they turned back now, they would have enough evidence, and their mission would be complete. The knights or higher-ranking adventurers could handle the problem. But even knowing this, Abel couldn’t accept it.

“Sorry, but I can’t promise that.”

“I see. Yeah, that’s just like you.”

“Sorry.”

“It’s okay. I’m a bit angry too.”

Having known each other for so long, Ekina knew how Abel would react. He was a kind-hearted person who couldn’t abandon people in distress, even if it was a problem others could solve later. Even if leaving it to adults might solve the issue, he couldn’t stand by while the boys suffered before his eyes. After all, entrusting important matters to others didn’t guarantee that the adults would save the boys’ precious family members.

Adults would likely be satisfied just eliminating the problematic adventurer hunters. If that happened, the boys and their families Abel truly wanted to save would surely meet an unfortunate end.

Moreover, adults who didn’t care to understand the circumstances might even treat the boys as part of the gang and dispose of them.

That’s why he couldn’t back down. That’s why he couldn’t lose.

Although Abel always lamented that he inherited nothing from his parents, this wasn’t true. The flame of determination in his eyes was unmistakably the “heart of a hero.”

And because Ekina loved such a childhood friend, even though she knew they could have handed the problem to her father after completing the mission, she disguised her true intentions with anger and joined Abel.

If she wore a cute outfit and used eye drops to make her eyes teary, saying “Daddy, please,” her father Kakyu would probably pretend to be fooled and help. But this time, that wouldn’t do.

Because she didn’t want to miss seeing her childhood friend in such a cool moment.

Thus, the three and their familiar prepared for battle, devising a strategy to strike first and launched a surprise attack.

…Meanwhile, the lower-class demon and former assassin, secretly watching, were thrilled by the children’s growth.