Summoned by the Heretics – Even in Another World, the Zealot Who Worships Death Remains an Outcast - Vol 3 Chapter 52

The hunter looked at the confident young man, Flip, with a puzzled expression.

This was a truly odd gathering.

While it might be strange for a 12-year-old like the hunter to say such a thing, there was undeniably a mismatched impression.

“What brings you here?”

The hunter thought for a moment at Flip’s question. However, it didn’t take long to realize it was pointless.

“Nothing at all.”

With those words, the hunter turned away. That was the right response. It would be more suspicious if a child tried to give a legitimate-sounding reason. Leaving disinterestedly was the best course of action.

But at the same time, the hunter considered—was it just a coincidence that he had been approached now?

Were they simply concerned about a child wandering alone?

That didn’t seem likely.

“Nothing at all?”

Without turning back, the hunter continued walking towards home, maintaining the guise of an ordinary child.

“Would an envoy from Bainte spend their time in this country’s café doing nothing at all?”

At that, the hunter turned around sharply and pointed a finger at Flip. Why or how this information had been leaked could wait.

The mission had been compromised. The reason for that wasn’t clear, but if that’s the case…

There was only one option—eliminate him.

“Well, hold on. What do you hope to achieve with such a weak attempt?”

Flip spoke calmly to the hunter.

The hunter may have been a child, but they weren’t foolish. A fool wouldn’t have survived this far in such a harsh environment.

While lacking formal education, the hunter wasn’t without wisdom. Killing someone in the middle of town wasn’t the right move.

If the other side had intentions to talk, listening first wasn’t a bad idea.

Besides, even if the hunter eliminated Flip, causing a commotion in town would mean the mission was considered a failure. They would likely be abandoned by Bainte as well.

The hunter’s position as a Divine Mage was solely due to their strength. There was no expectation of returning without succeeding in the mission.

“I apologize for the delayed introduction. I am…”

A hero.

Flip said it as if it were the most natural thing in the world.

The hunter, caught off guard, couldn’t hide their shock, but Flip continued speaking, ignoring the hunter’s reaction.

“These women are my party members, each a practitioner of Divine Magic.”

A hero’s party. The hunter didn’t know their faces well. The hero had been chosen as such before the hunter was taken under protection.

The hunter knew there were mages and warriors among the hero’s companions, but the warriors kept themselves hidden, while the mages concealed their identities as well.

Above all, the hunter was out of touch with current events. Partly because of being a child, and partly because they were in a position of being sustained by Bainte solely due to their abilities.

Having survived such a fierce struggle for survival, the hunter rarely moved away from a place of safety.

“Each of them—mages, warriors, and dancers.”

Flip introduced them that way.

The usual Chelin was referred to as a mage. Regista, with her green-dyed hair, was introduced as a warrior. And Müller, slightly more dressed up than usual, was introduced as a dancer.

All were introduced in turn.

“A dancer?!”

The hunter raised their voice, to which Flip made a gesture indicating they should refrain from doing so.

Please stop, he conveyed, as they were having their identities concealed by the mages’ abilities.

The hunter thought, This isn’t being heard.

The dancer, perhaps the most famous among Divine Mages, wielded the most revered magic of all, said to be granted to those who receive the highest favor.

Despite gaining that magic, she continued her main occupation as a dancer in the country of Venti, swayed by no one and nothing.

That was common knowledge.

“Indeed, she lent us her power due to the debt she owed for the eradication of the organization.”

For the purpose of preventing the assassination of Sukui.

This was an unexpected turn of events.

Mental-affecting magic generally didn’t work on Divine Mages. They were on a different level altogether as mages. Touching their emotions was unforgivable.

However, the dancer, though she hadn’t used it in her lifetime, was known to possess emotion-reading magic based on past records.

Could that dancer’s magic affect Divine Mages? That was something no one likely knew.

“I didn’t think that a Divine Mage would come to stop an assassination attempt.”

Flip’s words made the hunter realize they had no way out.

It was impossible. Given that their identity had been discovered, it was clear that the man’s words were true.

The characteristics matched the fragmented information the hunter had heard about the hero’s party.

That meant force wasn’t an option. Although the hunter was among the strongest Divine Mages, the opponents consisted of three equally powerful mages and an unknown hero.

His tone suggested he intended to protect Sukui, which meant it wouldn’t be surprising if the hunter were to be killed right here and now.

To be honest, facing four opponents alone didn’t completely shake her confidence.

If she caught them off guard and the battle conditions favored her, there was a possibility.

However, she didn’t want to take such a gamble.

As the hunter remained silent, contemplating her next move, Flip spoke calmly.

“Please run away.”

The hunter stared blankly.

Then she realized.

In the distant forest, where a massive hole had vanished.

She didn’t even need to look in that direction.

She could see it—a lone man standing there.

“You cannot kill the man named Sukui.”

“We know this very well,” he said.

The weight of those words, coming from multiple Divine Mages and a hero, was not lost on the hunter.

“However, Bainte won’t be pleased if you return without completing your mission.”

She should consider the worst-case scenario.

“As a hero, I understand the darkness of Bainte very well. In any case, I don’t think that country has a future.”

Therefore, Flip passionately continued.

“Please run away. With your abilities, you could easily live somewhere else. You could even be taken in by the country of Van. In any case, it’s best if you leave here.”

The hunter agreed with Flip’s words.

But it wasn’t because of what he said.

In the distant forest, that lone man.

It wasn’t that he was immortal or anything like that.

He was simply beyond her control.

She could see it. The hunter could tell the nature of her prey.

But something was off about him.

Having lived surrounded by many creatures, she understood.

That thing was not human.

When she saw Sukui, who had come perilously close to death and momentarily dropped his knife, the hunter realized.

She was stronger than him. Overwhelmingly so.

But she also understood that this mission was impossible to accomplish.

“Alright.”

She wanted nothing to do with him.

She didn’t think she’d be killed if she returned to Bainte after a failed mission, but she was still a child.

Since being taken in as a hunter due to her exceptional abilities, she had never failed nor been reprimanded.

So she simply didn’t want to report that she had failed.

“I’ll hide out somewhere suitable. It’ll work out somehow.”

She looked at Flip. In the hunter’s eyes, he appeared as any ordinary young man.

But that was likely due to the mage’s manipulation.

Her true identity had been seen through by the dancer, and information about her target had been concealed by the mage.

She wasn’t particularly fixated on the hierarchy among Divine Mages.

However, for someone like her, who had lived by survival of the fittest, continually losing was unacceptable.

“Well then, see you around.”

With that casual remark, the hunter finally left the town.

Watching her departure, Flip started to head home.

“Seriously, give me a break.”

“That’s fine, right?” he thought, addressing Sukui in his mind.

With the repeated attempts to recruit and attack Sukui,

They had felt that it wouldn’t be strange if a strong opponent—or even a Divine Mage under Bainte’s control—was sent after him.

If Bainte was desperate and Sukui kept repelling their pursuers, it was inevitable that this time would come.

And this was their countermeasure.

Sukui’s plan this time was simple.

Chelin, Flip’s sister, could manipulate people’s minds through mental magic.

While it wasn’t anything grand—it couldn’t control people freely, but could only slightly raise or lower their tension or provide minor psychological boosts or weakenings.

However, depending on how it was used, it could serve as a good detection tool.

Sukui had begged Flip to dress up as the hero, as depicted daily in public images, and have Chelin test whether she could use magic on the townspeople.

In this world, there were no photographs. When Flip had asked about the appearances of the organization’s executives, he could only get descriptions of their features.

Despite the existence of convenient mental magic, major nations tempted Divine Mages by pampering them lavishly.

Mental magic didn’t work on Divine Mages. This assumption was easily confirmed with a bit of research.

Testing Chelin’s magic was simple.

And he asked that anyone on whom the magic didn’t work be considered suspicious.

In reality, while Chelin’s compatibility played a part, this was the first time she felt her magic was completely blocked.

Even though she was a child, Flip, upon Chelin’s suggestion and careful observation, finally realized the height of the hunter’s physical abilities.

The rest was just covering it up with the reasoning that the dancer had found her.

Sukui knew he probably couldn’t win against a Divine Mage, but he also wouldn’t be killed. He figured that if they told her the mission couldn’t be completed and that returning to Bainte would be difficult,

He wanted Flip to persuade her not to come back.

“That’s ridiculous.”

Indeed, the logic held.

With this method, they could find any Divine Mages lurking in the town.

If they claimed to be the hero’s party, the enemy might not feel like fighting.

However, there was the possibility she might attack without listening, and if a battle ensued, not only could they lose, but the town could be destroyed.

That’s where Flip’s skills came into play, but to be honest, he felt like he was on the brink of death.

“I thought I was going to die, even if it was a request from big brother.”

Regista scratched her green-dyed hair, which she had changed as a precaution, looking displeased.

She wouldn’t refuse a request from Sukui, and after all, it was connected to the issue with their father.

However, she hadn’t expected to be asked such a big favor immediately afterward.

“It’s good that we noticed that suspicious request.”

Müller, dressed more lavishly than usual and feeling embarrassed as she wanted to change out of clothes that highlighted her voluptuous figure, spoke calmly.

“Well, the quest for the Revive Fly was certainly perfect to catch big brother’s attention.”

Regista agreed.

When the quest for the Revive Fly came up, Flip had a bad feeling.

There was nothing particularly strange about it, but it was a rare occurrence.

Feeling uneasy, he couldn’t rule out that it might be connected to Sukui’s danger.

And so they went around the town.

“Well, thanks to big brother’s great performance, we managed to help Sukui. Let’s get him to praise us when we get back.”

Regista, unusually enthusiastic, said.

Müller smiled, not entirely displeased by the idea.

Flip resigned himself. Not only had Sukui defeated their father, who was inherently a problem between the siblings and stronger than Flip,

He had even been awarded a medal, and there was talk of giving him a title.

He might not be able to stop not just one, but two sisters from leaving the nest.

“Chelin, please stay with your big brother.”

When Flip muttered that, Chelin turned away.

Flip laughed weakly.

“But will she be alright? Even if she’s strong, she’s still a child.”

Müller spoke worriedly about the hunter, and Flip brushed it off lightly.

“Even if she’s a little girl, she’s a Divine Mage. A powerful mage who could wipe out an entire town. It would be rude for us to worry.”

“Exactly, sis. After all, she’s stronger than big brother, right? She’ll be fine.”

While the two seemed carefree, only Müller looked concerned, but hearing that the hunter was stronger than Sukui, she was convinced.

Someone that strong wouldn’t have any problems.

Thinking that, the four of them headed home.

It would be a little while before the hunter, struggling with the gap from her previously lax life and her overwhelming naivety about the world, found herself unable to go anywhere.