Chapter 33: Extra: The Party Falls Apart

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After that, Julius and the rest of the Hero’s party mainly continued subjugating monsters.

Conquering a dungeon involved not only combat but also dangers such as traps. Julius himself must have felt that keenly after what happened at the Trad Ruins. He judged that the current party was still too unstable for dungeon exploration and chose to focus on subjugation requests for the time being.

She agreed with that decision. If they tried to force results now, someone would simply end up losing their life. Most of the monsters targeted for subjugation were mid-level threats that endangered villages, such as ogres, wyverns, and trolls. Of course, none of them were a real threat considering the strength of Julius and the others. But even so, something continued to bother Elena.

Their coordination still didn’t click, and Garo’s 〈Resonance Skill〉 had yet to activate with anyone. At this rate, the reason they used to justify banishing Lloyd—the fact that the 〈Resonance Skill〉 wouldn’t activate—was on shaky ground. Perhaps because he was aware of that, Julius’s attitude toward Garo had gradually grown harsher. Of course, the matter of Lloyd’s banishment was kept from Garo. As far as he was told, Lloyd had died in battle, and Garo had been ordered by royal decree to take his place. 

However, Garo’s behavior had clearly become strange. He seemed irritable, and whenever anyone spoke to him, his replies were vague and half-hearted. His coordination in battle was also lacking, and he’d started fighting even more crudely than before, merely swinging his axe wildly. It was fine as long as the enemy was a single monster, but if they faced multiple strong opponents, it wouldn’t have been strange for the backline to suffer casualties at any moment.

“Garo seems kind of on edge. Even when Julius warns him, it’s like he isn’t really listening… He apologizes, but it doesn’t feel sincere at all.”

That was Fran’s impression. And she largely agreed with it. If things continued this way, something strange might occur…Elena carried a vague unease like that.

And then—at last, an incident happened.

One day, while Fran was out shopping, Elena spent time alone in their room at the inn. Perhaps because she was still tired from the battles, she sat on the bed reading a magic tome when suddenly the door was knocked.

“Fran? Did you already come back?”

Calling out, she opened the door, only to find Garo standing there.

“…Did something happen?”

Elena tilted her head in confusion. He had never come to visit the girls’ room before.

“Sorry, Elena. I’ve got something I wanna ask you.”

“A question? That’s unusual. All right, come in.”

This might be a good chance to clear up the recent strange feelings she’d had. Thinking that, Elena invited Garo inside the room.

“I only have tea to drink, but do you want some?”

“No, I’m good.”

Garo sat on a chair inside the room and then glared at Elena from head to toe.

…? What is this…?

Elena frowned.

Something was wrong. The look in his eyes wasn’t the usual rough light. It was something murkier, an indescribable emotion mixed with hunger and obsession.

“So, what did you want to talk about?”

Elena sat down on her bed and asked. Garo let out a small sigh, lowered his gaze, and then began.

“That Lloyd Valt who used to be in this party, is it true he’s still alive?”

“—!?”

She involuntarily sucked in a breath. She had never expected that topic to come out of Garo’s mouth.

“That can’t be true, right? He died fighting the Red Dragon—”

“Cut the excuses. The other day, you were talking in that village about going to bring Lloyd back.”

“…………”

Damn it. So Garo had overheard her talking with Julius back then. If that was the case, she couldn’t make excuses anymore. It would be better to tell him everything honestly.

“…Yes. Lloyd is alive. Julius banished him from the party.”

“What!? The hell is that supposed to mean? Doesn’t that mean he went against His Majesty’s orders?”

“That part is… Well, it’s kind of gray…”

Whether or not Julius actually disobeyed the king’s orders wasn’t completely clear. The royal command—to “take care of the party”—had been given to Lloyd. Lloyd did follow that order earnestly, but Julius was the one who severed him from the party. It did go against the king’s intentions, but it didn’t mean Julius had directly violated the decree.

“But Julius always hated Lloyd. He must’ve just been waiting for a reason to banish him.”

“So what? I was ordered to join this party because of the Hero-sama’s selfishness?”

“Well… I suppose that’s what it comes down to.”

If she looked at it that way, Garo was pitiful too. It wasn’t that he lacked ability. As a warrior, he was skilled. He only fell short when compared to Lloyd, who excelled in roles like strategist, observer, and mediator.

“…Don’t screw with me.”

Garo’s low voice echoed through the room. That voice, filled with anger, made a chill run down Elena’s spine.

“I… I was satisfied being a Royal Guard. Everyone liked me, and when I went home, my mom welcomed me warmly. And now you’re telling me I got dragged into these dangerous fights just because of the Hero-sama’s selfishness…!? And you, Fran, and that bastard Julius… You all treat me like I’m useless!”

“Wait, calm down. It’s because not everyone can do it. It’s definitely not because your abilities are low. His Majesty only approved you because he believed you could handle it—”

“But I’m just a replacement who isn’t strong enough, right!? Don’t screw with me!”

Garo kicked the table in anger. His head was completely overheated, and he had lost all calmness.

…This is bad.

She sensed it instinctively. It had been a miscalculation that he overheard her conversation with Julius. Elena had made a few careless remarks then as well. She had never meant to belittle Garo, but she had clearly said the words “not strong enough.” The anger would naturally turn toward her.

“You were laughing at me, weren’t you? Laughing at how slow and useless I am compared to the last guy!?”

“I never said that! You’re just not used to the party yet—!”

“Shut up! If it was just that, you wouldn’t be trying to bring the last guy back!”

The dry slap that rang through the room coincided with a burning pain lancing across Elena’s cheek. The impact sent her tumbling onto the bed. It was the back of Garo’s hand that had struck her cheek. Before Elena could press her hand to it, Garo mounted her body like a follow-up attack, pinning both her wrists with one hand.

“I keep getting forced to do nothing but dangerous crap, and I don’t get any reward for it—who the hell would put up with that? Let me have something good for myself for once.”

The man looked down at her with a vulgar, desire-filled gaze and hurled those despairing words at her.

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