The Man Who Remained — His Second Life Began with a Humble Bow of Apology. - Chapter 83: A slightly incompetent Hell Cerberus.

A slightly incompetent Hell Cerberus.

Cross couldn’t help but feel the disparity between their races was unfair.

After all, he had won the fistfight against Hibushi.

He’d done something utterly foolish—going toe-to-toe with an ogre in a pure brawl—and yet he’d poured every last ounce of strength into it and emerged victorious.

That said, the damage he took was far from light.

He woke up about two hours later, received treatment using Ellie’s magic, and was also given healing salves from the medical clinic in Suzaku Street.

Even after all that, his wounds hadn’t fully healed, and his body felt sluggish.

Still, considering his injuries had mostly closed up, he was grateful. He thought the treatment he received was nothing short of impressive.

Yet, looking at Hibushi before him, Cross couldn’t help but feel the stark difference between them.

Hibushi had undergone no treatment whatsoever, and yet his wounds were completely healed, his stamina fully restored.

Strength beyond normal men, resilience beyond ordinary wounds—that was the ogre race.

And even among ogres, Hibushi excelled in those innate abilities.

In the lodging near the Suzaku Gate, Hibushi bowed his head towards Cross.

“Well then, my lord representative. I sincerely thank you for treating this matter as an internal affair and for adapting to Suzaku Street’s customs.”

“If someone else were watching, sure, but when it’s just us, there’s no need for such formality. Besides, we’re the kind of men who enjoyed trading blows. No need to act so distant. That’s what a real fight’s about, isn’t it?”

Hibushi looked a little surprised at Cross’s words.

“…If you say so, I’m grateful. Forgive me for forcing our customs upon you.”

“It’s fine. I prefer this over stiff formality anyway.”

“I see. Next time, I won’t lose, Cross.”

“Honestly, I’d rather there wasn’t a next time… but if you challenge me, I’ll just beat you down again, Hibushi.”

They exchanged these words, then lightly bumped their fists together with a laugh.

With just that, they had become friends.

A simple bond forged between men. Watching this, Ellie and Ouka thought it childish, but at the same time, they couldn’t help but envy it.

“Well then… my friend Cross. I have something troublesome—truly bothersome—that I’d like to discuss with you. Though I wish I could ignore it, that isn’t an option. May I?”

Hibushi spoke seriously.

Cross nodded.

“Ah. This is about… that matter, isn’t it?”

Cross asked while deliberately looking away from Hibushi, and Hibushi nodded back.

“Yes. That matter. …Ouka.”

At his call, everyone in the room—Cross, Ellie, and Hibushi—turned to look at Ouka and her two clones, who flinched visibly.

“…Y-Yes. We are prepared…”

The three bodies spoke in perfect unison. But their tone was not of brave resolve—it was the resigned dread of animals being led to slaughter.

The truth of the incident and its resolution could be summed up simply: the fact that Cross held the position of Representative was the crux.

In essence, it was only a petty misconduct by gate guards, one of whom was an underling, within Suzaku Street.

However, the victim was the Representative. Worse, the vice-captain of the gate guards had not only failed to stop the offending guard, he had even tried to restrain the victim to protect the culprit.

Hourai no Sato was no longer a nation, but in its relationship with the Demon Kingdom, it was effectively a subordinate state.

For a gate guard—a key official in Hourai’s Sato—to act with such disrespect and even attempt to apprehend the Demon King’s proxy amounted to near-treason.

If handled properly, this incident would have ended with heads rolling by the dozens and the dismantling of the entire Suzaku Gate’s system.

Cross, at heart still a humble commoner, felt sick to think such a massive outcome could arise just because of him.

So he devised a method to lighten it as much as possible: he challenged the gate captain, Hibushi, to a fight under Suzaku Street’s customs.

By doing so, it framed the incident as Cross having voluntarily sought the fight, creating a public narrative to drown out the scandal—a reckless and forceful solution, but it worked. The matter was buried without escalation.

However, not all sins were erased.

The disrespect shown by the gate guards to the Representative and his entourage, and their attempt to apprehend him afterwards, remained unforgivable.

And further investigation revealed the goblin guard’s long list of abuses—exploiting his position for endless wrongdoings.

The vice-captain, Ouka, was directly responsible for supervising his reports and actions. Unlike Hibushi, who fought Cross as an equal and was thus forgiven, Ouka held no such leverage.

“…It’s not like I plan to do anything to her, right Ellie?”

Cross looked at Ellie, who made an unhappy face.

“I only hold a small grudge against her personally. But… aren’t there others who deserve harsher punishment? I’ve heard nothing of them.”

Cross smiled bitterly at Ellie’s sulking tone.

Indeed, the goblin guard and his underlings weren’t here.

“…My apologies for the delayed report, Ellie-sama. The sentence has already been carried out,” Hibushi said, his tone suddenly formal and polite, creating a jarring sense of discomfort even to Cross, who barely knew him. But it was clear Hibushi was showing his utmost respect.

“If that sentence was execution, then I have no complaints.”

“…No. It was exile.”

At Hibushi’s words, both Cross and Ellie frowned simultaneously.

“…Isn’t that too heavy?” asked Cross.

“Isn’t that far too light?” countered Ellie.

The polar opposite reactions came out at once—Cross felt exile was too harsh for mere harassment, while Ellie felt it was too lenient for an insult to the Representative.

Hibushi stood up and nodded to them both.

“Ouka, stay here. The two of you, please come with me.”

Cross and Ellie silently followed Hibushi out.

As they walked, Ellie spoke.

“Captain Hibushi, please… don’t treat me better than you treat Cross. It feels wrong. Just speak as you would to a subordinate.”

Hibushi nodded without pausing.

“Understood. May I call you Ellie-sama, then? It feels inappropriate for me to address a woman without honorifics.”

“…Very well. If that’s what you prefer.”

“Thank you. Likewise, call me as you wish. Now, Cross, regarding your belief that exile is too harsh—allow me to correct you.”

“…What do you mean?”

“I’d rather not say this, but this wasn’t the first time. There were victims… though I cannot reveal their details for their dignity’s sake.”

Cross felt a surge of anger.

“I should’ve just punched that bastard properly. Maybe I’ll go find him now and—”

“Ellie, you said the punishment was too light, correct?”

“Yes. I believe he deserves death. Hearing this only reinforces my conviction.”

“…You were once a knight, Ellie-sama. I assume you’ve seen your share of tragedies?”

“…Yes… I have.”

“Then… see for yourself. We’re here.”

They were brought to a cylindrical stone building near Suzaku Gate, starkly out of place amidst the town’s architecture.

Too small to be a fortress, too tall to be a normal building.

“What is this place?” asked Cross.

“A prison, technically. Though we mostly use it for other purposes.”

Hibushi led them down the spiral staircase, ignoring the muffled groans and eerie noises coming from behind passing doors.

“Just to reassure you,” Hibushi said calmly, “this facility does not violate Demon Kingdom law. You can ask the village chief later if you wish.”

Cross didn’t grasp the implication.

Unlike Ellie, Cross lacked the political intuition to understand that Hibushi was saying: this place operated right at the edge of legality.

Finally, Hibushi stopped, took out a heavy keyring, and unlocked one of the metal doors.

“Now. If you still think exile is too light after seeing this, feel free to issue additional orders.”

Cross and Ellie fell silent, struck speechless.

Inside, men were taking notes, staring at a goblin as if observing an experimental subject.

That goblin… no longer resembled anything living.

One arm was gone, its face was melted and deformed beyond recognition, eyes and horns gone. Where the arm had been was a mass of melted tissue with no bleeding, as if burned by acid.

Its entire body was charred and corroded, as though it had been doused in acid, and it simply stared into empty space, trembling in primal terror.

It wasn’t alive so much as it simply hadn’t died yet.

“This is…”

Cross could barely form words.

“At Suzaku Gate, exile is a punishment harsher than death. His underlings were exiled too, but only he crawled back. As for what happened to the others… well, you can imagine.”

“Crawled back… to here…?”

“This is the outside of Suzaku Street, Cross,/-san” Ellie said quietly, as if understanding.

“Yes. That’s what it is,” Hibushi replied, his voice devoid of sympathy.

“Understand this, Cross. Being exiled beyond Suzaku Gate is effectively a death sentence—no, worse. This is what it means.”

“…What?”

“Beyond Suzaku Gate is a wilderness of uncontrollable, non-sentient monsters. Unlike the other gates dealing with bandits or hostile nations, our enemies are beasts beyond reason.”

“…So exile is worse than death.”

“Exactly. Plenty of fools end up exiled here. At least this year, we learned the giant frogs carry poison. That knowledge alone has saved many lives.”

Hibushi looked down at the goblin.

It was more accurate to say it hadn’t died than that it was still alive.

Cross finally understood why Hibushi showed them this.

It was a warning. A display.

An unspoken declaration: We will do this to anyone who defies the Representative or the Demon Kingdom.

“Do you know my lord’s title? You understand my meaning now. That’s enough,” Ellie said softly, sparing Cross further trauma.

Hibushi nodded, guiding them back outside.

“…Forgive us. It is only by being merciless in all things that our village survives. I wanted you to understand that,” he said with a sorrowful voice.

Back in the room, they found Ouka curled up in the corner, trembling.

“The Captain showed us that to prove Suzaku Gate’s loyalty to the Demon Kingdom and… to plead leniency for Ouka,” Ellie whispered quietly to Cross.

All power now lay in Cross’s hands. He could do as he wished with Ouka.

And that was exactly the kind of situation Cross hated most.

“…I’m not going to do anything to her. Look at her, she’s terrified… poor thing…”

He spoke purely from pity.

“Eh? C-Cute…!? I understand. Then, as atonement, tonight I shall serve you in your chambers…”

All three bodies spoke at once, their voices trembling with resignation, as if offering themselves up.

“No, no, no! You don’t have to do anything like that! And besides, with that armour on, I can’t even tell if you’re cute or not—”

The three Oukas quietly removed their helmets.

Short crimson hair, small canine ears flattened from the helmet, which perked up again with a flick.

A delicate face framed by cherry-red hair and dog ears.

They were… genuinely cute.

“Am I… not cute?”

“No, all three of you are really cute.”

“Then tonight, I shall devote myself to—”

“No! I told you, that’s not necessary!”

“Then… I shall lie beneath you and count the stains on the ceiling. Is that your wish…?”

“That’s not what I meant! Hibushi, help me out here!”

But Hibushi simply turned away.

“…Well, if that’s what she wants, isn’t it fine?”

“What’s with that tone?! She’s your subordinate!”

Hibushi still averted his gaze.

“…She’s never been this bad before, but… once Ouka gets an idea in her head, no one can stop her.”

“I’m painfully aware of that right now!”

“Isn’t this fine, Cross?” Ellie interjected teasingly. “Didn’t you say you wanted someone you could do as you please with?”

“I never said that! Stop fuelling this, Ellie! And Ouka, why are you looking so eager?! I said I’m not doing anything!”

Ouka pouted and stared at him with a disappointed glare.

“…Why are you looking at me like that?”

“I simply thought I might gain a rare experience.”

“What kind of experience!?”

“…Forcing me to say it out loud… you truly are cruel, Lord Cross. But if that is your wish—”

“It’s NOT my wish! Forget it! Stop looking so disappointed!”

Cross sighed deeply, utterly exhausted.

“…Can I just… fire you from the vice-captain position or something?”

Ouka nodded solemnly.

“Yes. Stripped of my position, with nowhere to go… to be kept and used as you please… I accept.”

“Yeah no, never mind. Hibushi, would a demotion suffice?”

Hibushi shook his head.

“Dismissal, yes. Demotion, no. She’s too competent and respected. Her subordinates wouldn’t accept it.”

“…Just… let’s do nothing.”

“That’s probably best if she accepts it,” Hibushi replied.

“Then please make her accept it, Captain.”

“…That is beyond my authority or power. Impossible, Lord Cross.”

They glared at each other for a moment, before Cross let out an even deeper sigh.

“…Fine. Let me pet your ears. That’s all I’ll ask. Nothing more.”

At his words, the three Oukas tilted their heads, then quietly offered their heads and perky dog ears to him.