When I said, "You can be a hero," to a child with no talent, he really started to become a hero, so I acted like I knew what I was doing, like I was a wise master. - Chap 17.2: Flick on the Forehead

A considerable amount of time had passed since Wil began his activities as an adventurer. Once a beginner, he was now becoming a little accustomed to it.

“Yes, Wil, your request this time will be this one. There will be someone else accompanying you on this request, so please meet up with them and proceed.”

“Thank you very much!”

“Wil, you’re doing well!”

“Thank you!”

With his refreshing appearance and gentle demeanor, he was slowly becoming a little popular among the beautiful guild staff members.

“You there.”

“Yes?”

A boy called out to Wil. He was about the same height as Wil but carried an entirely different aura, filled with self-confidence. He had a slightly smug smile on his face.

“I’m Drunk Validation, the one who will be working on this request with you.”

“Oh, hi.”

(Hmm? Validation? The same family name as one of the Seven Sacred Swords… could it be?)

“You seem to have guessed, I am the son of one of the Seven Sacred Swords, Fang Validation.”

“N-No way…”

(Wow!!! The son of an S-rank adventurer? Amazing!)

“Hehe, everyone reacts like you do. Well, I’m still in training according to my father, but I will eventually surpass him… Oops, I’ve said too much.”

“No, no! Please tell me more! I want to hear the legend!”

“Hehe, my father is literally a legend.”

“Amazing!”

“And I, who am under his guidance, am also amazing!”

“Whoa!”

(Hmm? By that logic, since I’m being guided by Hero Dan, does that make me an incredibly amazing existence?)

Realizing that if being the son of one of the Seven Sacred Swords made Drunk impressive, then his own position as the disciple and chosen successor of the Hero must make him even more so, Wil became aware of the surprisingly elevated status he had attained.

“Well, let’s get going on the request. Don’t hold me back too much.”

“Yes, sir!”

Leading like a boss ahead of his subordinate, Drunk walked out of the guild, and Wil followed him, entranced by the son of a hero from the legendary tale of the Seven Sacred Swords.

“You’re in training now, right?”

“Yeah, that’s right. My father told me that I’m overconfident and have various flaws. He said I needed to see the world to correct them.”

“Really?”

“Well, I think my father was just jealous of my talent and didn’t want to keep me around.”

“Is that so?”

Wil was curious to see just how strong the self-assured Drunk really was. Perhaps he could gain a hint as to how to become stronger himself, so he focused his eyes, determined not to miss a thing.

However…

“Alright, we just need to smash that nest, then.”

“Yeah, but we shouldn’t disturb the Dragbee nest too much.”

“I’ll handle it with ease.”

“Really?”

The task was to exterminate the nest of small bee-like monsters, but Wil was worried. While a high-rank adventurer could easily handle the situation with proper care, a novice might be stung to death by the Dragbees’ venomous needles. Therefore, the general approach would usually involve bombing the nest with magic without disturbing it or using chemicals to put the bees to sleep before dealing with them. However, Drunk impulsively struck the nest, agitating the bees and even slashing at it.

“No, no, no!! This is—”

“—really bad!”

As he cut the nest, a massive swarm of bees burst out. Shocked by the sheer number, the two had no choice but to flee.

***

―― Mission Failure

　The two, left with no option but to run away, had failed in their task to subdue the monster and reported it to the guild. An awkward air hung between them as Drunk pointed his finger at Will.

“I, I’m not in the wrong here! It’s because you didn’t tell me!”

“Eh, w-what…”

“If you had explained the monster’s details properly, we wouldn’t have failed.”

“But, you didn’t listen to me…”

“No, no! It’s your fault!”

Being the son of the Seven Sacred Swords, he couldn’t be firm, and his personality led him to bow his head a little, saying sorry.

“――No, no, you’re a sour grape, aren’t you?”

A familiar voice with a silly laugh reached Drunk’s ears. The spiky-haired young man, Ban, confronted Drunk.

“Well, failures happen to everyone. Maybe it was wrong of Will not to be assertive, but you were wrong to rush in too, so don’t blame it all on Will. Otherwise, you’ll be a real sour grape.”

“S-sour grape? Me… What does that even mean?!”

“For now, you two should split up for today. The atmosphere is tense, and everyone else seems uncomfortable too.”

With that, they noticed for the first time that other adventurers were watching them. Drunk clicked his tongue and went somewhere, acting childishly self-centered. Watching him, Ban headed for the guild’s reception, yawning. After a brief conversation, he waved to Will.

“Man, that was unfortunate. But hey, failure happens to everyone.”

“Ah, yes. Thank you for everything.”

“Will, you seem timid. I think it’s okay to push back a bit sometimes.”

“Ah, well, I’ve always been told that… It’s more like a habit, I guess.”

“Hmm, it feels like you’re losing mentally, so I think you should break that habit.”

“Ah… You’re right… Is the way Ban talks, always stirring things up, deliberate? Trying to have a psychological advantage…”

“Huh? What?”

“Oh, it’s just your natural way of speaking… So, what does ‘sour grape’ mean?”

“You know the story of the fox and the grapes from Aesop’s fables, right?”

“Aesop? Fables?”

“… I see, you don’t know it because it’s a story only in my world. Well, there was a book in what I’d call my second hometown, about a fox who wanted to get grapes from a tree but couldn’t because they were too high, so he made an excuse that he didn’t want them.”

“Second hometown…? I’m sorry, I don’t quite understand… But you made an excellent analogy, right?”

Although Will didn’t fully understand what Ban was saying, he bowed deeply in thanks for the help.

“Are you here for a request, Ban?”

“I’ve come to sign up for an adventurer’s exchange meeting in Trelbana’s royal capital and the Elf Kingdom.”

“I see, that’s what it was.”

“Yes, yes. Now that’s done, I’ll be going.”

“I’m sorry for holding you up.”

With a casual “don’t worry about it,” Ban left.

(As always, he’s an elusive person… The Hero Dan is also inscrutable, but that person is too. In that sense, maybe they’re similar…)