The immortal hero who thinks of the heroines as his daughters vs. heroines who want to make the hero understand them - Chap 11
The girl standing before him, Chloe, was undoubtedly an idiot. There was no doubt about it, and Rex pondered what to do next. He could let her go and have her slay monsters, but she would surely continue to take reckless challenges and eventually lose her life. People like her are a dime a dozen, so leaving her to her devices could be an option.
“……….”
He groaned. Rex was aware of avoiding “the sight of someone dying in front of him,” so to know she would die soon and still leave her would be synonymous with abandoning her.
“What’s wrong? Why are you suddenly looking down?”
“Just pondering what to do with an unbelievable idiot.”
“Oh!? … So, who is this person?”
“A girl who challenges monsters she clearly can’t beat and, what’s more, her reason is for money— which, while not trivial, is certainly something that most people would label as stupid.”
“Heh, so there are people like that, huh?”
Though Rex had declared this without a breath and with a straight face, it didn’t seem to register with Chloe. She tilted her head, her expression vacant.
Seeing her act this way only intensified his headache, causing him to sigh involuntarily.
“…Hmm? What’s that reaction for?”
“Just reaffirmed that you’re an idiot.”
“Eh! Was that about what I just said!? Hey, please correct that!”
Where exactly could he correct that? Rex thought. However, saying anything of the sort to her in her visibly aggravated state would surely make things worse, so he bit his tongue. Those around them had initially thought the two were in a lovers’ quarrel, but the situation seemed odd. One was a suspected scumbag, and listening to the girl’s words so far…
“Haa…”
Rex pondered what he should do next, directing his resentment toward Linda, who had brought this troublesome issue upon him.
Upon reflection, it was unlikely that a single Wyvern would be enough to plunge a large city into despair. While Wyverns are strong monsters, they aren’t strong enough to cause extensive damage and remain unattended. Most likely, there were other monsters besides the Wyvern, and although they weren’t necessarily cooperating, their timing had coincidentally aligned, delaying their subjugation.
Therefore, after sending Chloe back to the checkpoint, Rex sets out to take down the remaining monsters. However…
“…Why are you following me?”
Looking back with eyes filled with doubt, he found Chloe hopping along like a bit of a bird, flinging her white hair around as she pointed her finger at him.
“I want you to retract your statement calling me an idiot!”
“No can do. It’s dangerous around here; go back to the checkpoint.”
“You answer right away? Are you mocking me even more now…?”
Chloe stomped her feet in frustration. Observing her antics, Rex found himself unexpectedly entertained.
Had he ever had the upper hand like this before? In the village, he was treated as an inferior being. Although he was nominally a servant at the Spirit Tree, Linda’s innate assertiveness always seemed to put him in a subordinate position. So, probably not.
And now, he was teasing a girl named Chloe—a first-time experience. The corners of Rex’s mouth curled up slightly.
“Even if you’re from the Adventurer’s Guild, don’t think I’ll go easy on you! I won’t tolerate evil!”
“Ah, a monster.”
“What, where? Where is it? Can you take it down for me? I apologize deeply for my earlier behavior; it was not serious, just a joke. Fighting the Wyvern has become a sort of trauma for me, so battling another monster right now would be difficult; um, sorry for the impudence earlier, could you please help—”
“Joking.”
“Aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh!!!”
With a burst of fiery energy, Chloe lunges at Rex. Her form is beautiful and complete; if she could launch this attack at a monster, it would undoubtedly cement her status as a skilled adventurer. The fact that she could instantly grasp that she had been teased and counter-attacked so swiftly was evidence of her quick thinking. Rex looked surprised as he dodged her unsheathed sword.
“What!?”
Even though she thought she had a firm grip on it, Chloe watched her sword disappear from her own hands with saddened eyes. Raising her hands above her head, she lay down on her back—a pose commonly understood to indicate submission.
“Just do with me as you will; there’s no way out of this for me now!”
“I didn’t have that intention… I apologize; I took the teasing too far.”
Never having imagined that a young girl would go so far, Rex gently returned the sword while offering a heartfelt apology. Chloe, her eyes slightly tearful, sheathed her sword and glared at him.
“So, you’ll have to do something for me now, won’t you?”
“I’m truly sorry, but—”
As he lowered his eyebrows in apology, it was clear that she wouldn’t let this opportunity slip by.
“I’ve always thought that you can’t trust something if it doesn’t have form. You’ll listen to my request, won’t you?”
“Eh, ah, um…”
Seizing the moment, Chloe moved closer to stare into Rex’s eyes from an uncomfortably close distance. Her eyes seemed to expand as if her pupils were dilating, unblinkingly peering into his own.
Unsurprisingly, given such an intense stare, Rex, who was weak against such tactics, had no choice but to accept. He nodded his head weakly. It was a cornering tactic one would find hard to believe coming from the Chloe of just moments ago.
“I want to defeat monsters.”
“So it seems.”
He crossed his arms and nodded. He had heard plenty at the checkpoints, so he understood why she was there.
“But you’re just a tiny bit lacking in strength right now, right?”
“Just a tiny bit…?”
Rex questioned back with a puzzled look. Chloe saw his reaction, and her face momentarily turned red, but she quickly shook her head to regain her composure. Then, she got serious.
“Just a tiny bit, yes. So! That’s when I thought, if I’m lacking in strength, wouldn’t it be good if there’s someone to make up for that!”
“Ah, like a party member or something? Sounds good; why not make one?”
“You’re going to say that after all this build-up!? You’re going to be that person, Rex!”
“Eh, me?”
With a dumbfounded face, Chloe pointed her finger at Rex, who tilted his head in confusion. The concept of a party seems foreign to him, who has only ever delved into dungeons alone or, at most, with Linda. Still, if Chloe is asking for a favor, he’d have to accept.
“…Well, if you’re fine with me.”
“Yay! Thank you, Master!”
“Hold on.”
Stopping the cheerful girl who was openly celebrating, Rex put his hand on his forehead.
“What’s this ‘Master’ thing about?”
“It’s exactly what it sounds like! Please make me stronger!”
“I hate to break it to you, but I’ve never taught anyone anything. If you’re thinking of becoming a disciple, perhaps you should look for someone else…”
“Please take good care of me, Master!”
No good; she’s not listening.
Looking at Chloe, who was grinning from ear to ear as she gripped his hand, Rex twitched the corner of his lips.