Having finished a simple breakfast, the party set off to hunt Krumo’s shadow.
Da-eun was left alone in Atysha’s official residence.
Even the host had left the house, meaning there was nothing Da-eun could do.
Atysha told her not to worry, but as a guest, Da-eun couldn’t just go rummaging through an empty house.
“Hah…”
Sitting on the edge of the bed and staring blankly out the window, Da-eun sighed.
If her mother had seen her, she would’ve shouted, “You’re gonna make the ground collapse!” and smacked her on the back.
“I’m weak…”
Da-eun contemplated Kana’s words.
The one who held the title of the weakest among the Four Heavenly Kings was indeed that very person.
She knew that person was herself.
And even if she followed along, she wouldn’t have been much help.
No.
It would’ve been lucky if she hadn’t been a burden; her kind comrades would’ve undoubtedly been too busy worrying about her to fight properly.
A total nuisance.
To put it metaphorically, she was like a log soaked with water.
“But… I don’t want to just watch from the sidelines.”
If the party that went to defeat Krumo’s shadow, especially if Kana got hurt and returned, she wouldn’t forgive herself for having done nothing.
So Da-eun stubbornly insisted on going, even knowing it wouldn’t be much help.
“Looking back, I feel a bit sorry…”
About how much trouble her stubbornness must have caused Kana.
She grinned bitterly, recalling the little girl who pretended not to care while stealing glances at her.
– Weak, lol
– ???: You don’t fit in our party.
– After being expelled from the party for being weak, I awakened cheat abilities and now seek revenge on the party members who abandoned me.
– Yikes; that’s a bit harsh.
– Anyway, Joanie is too weak to do anything, right?ㅠㅠ Cheer upㅠㅠㅠ
– But isn’t the party leader strong enough?
– No, definitely not.
– Sure, they are strong. If things go south, just call out to Kana.
– Ah, this was it, huh.
Da-eun’s viewers were too busy laughing at her misfortune.
At first glance, the comments seemed to offer comfort, but a closer look revealed they were making fun of her.
In short, they were the type of comments that say ‘turn around’ or ‘hit her.’
Hah.
Taking a short breath, Da-eun switched the broadcast screen.
This was her usual outro when ending a stream.
“…That’s it for today’s broadcast. I’ll turn it back on later if I can.”
– ??
– ?
– Seriously, what the hell?
– How long has it even been since you’ve turned it off????
– Don’t go, don’t go, don’t go, don’t go, don’t go, don’t go!
– Mom, it’s cold! Mom, it’s cold! Mom, it’s cold!
– Yeah~ go ahead and end the stream~ Just hold your breath until I get back~
– It says so, right?
“Then, goodbye.”
The audience’s protest pierced the sky, but Da-eun ignored it and ended the broadcast.
Whether it was later or tomorrow, chaos would ensue once she turned the stream back on.
Da-eun already imagined the chat exploding with angry viewers.
‘Future me, please!’
But that was a problem for her future self to deal with.
The future her would certainly have a field day with phrases like ‘dumb girl… irresponsible girl…’ but for now, Da-eun felt nothing but refreshed.
“What should I do now….”
Having turned off the broadcast, should she log out and do some housework?
While considering this for a moment, Da-eun felt something hard, long, and cool in her hand.
It was the longsword she used.
She stared at the sword blankly.
‘Because I’m weak.’
Kana’s voice replayed vividly in her head like a recording.
“Can a weak person even live happily?”
Yet she thought she had improved quite a bit.
Da-eun thought of the shock of being held back by Selin and let out a pout.
“Should I practice swordsmanship?”
Just wait. I’ll practice hard and punch Kana right on her snobby nose.
It was a resolution with a virtually zero chance of happening, but as long as it motivated her, that was enough, right?
With her sword in hand, Da-eun stepped out of the residence with the fierce determination of a general leading an army into battle.
It seemed word had spread in just one day, as the demon race did not regard her with the same caution as before.
If yesterday their curiosity was at 20 and their wariness at 80, today their curiosity was at 80 and their wariness at 20.
Da-eun caught one of those curious gazes and asked if there was a vacant lot suitable for training.
“Ah, over there? Thank you for telling me.”
Thanks to the kind demon, Da-eun easily found a training ground.
It was, quite literally, an empty lot.
“Well, you asked for an empty lot, so it’s only natural.”
It was only natural that Da-eun politely declined the demon’s offer to guide her to a proper training ground.
“It’s a bit awkward to practice under the gaze of strangers.”
Da-eun still remembered the looks of gym rats staring at her when she first stepped into the gym.
Of course, it was a different kind of gaze… but she didn’t want to be met with looks of ‘that’s not how you do it.’
After all, she was used to swinging her sword at an empty space.
“Surely it was like this…?”
Recalling the tiny hands that had corrected her posture, Da-eun took her stance.
The feel of the sword hilt, which used to feel awkward, was now familiar.
The day had finally come when she’d be training alone… how surprising for her viewers, shocking for her friends, and surely Kana would be a bit jealous… right?
Da-eun giggled at her nonsensical thoughts.
Swish!
The sword sliced through the air with a sharp sound.
If someone had witnessed that, they would have been in awe at the surprisingly powerful strike, but Da-eun, who practiced her swordsmanship, frowned slightly.
“…I still don’t get it.”
How does one handle mana?
Using a skill did imbue the sword with mana, but what Da-eun truly wanted was not that.
She wanted to know how to control mana without using a skill.
That was the level she aimed to achieve, yet she hadn’t figured it out yet.
Once, she asked Kana how to handle mana well.
‘Mana?’
‘Yeah. I want to use mana like you do, Kana.’
‘You’re already using mana… Ah, right.’
Hearing Da-eun’s words, Kana nodded as if she understood something.
‘I can tell you if you want.’
‘-you can?’
‘Just practice with the sword first.’
If you move your body, you’ll naturally pick it up.
Kana had said that.
‘But if you still don’t get it, I’ll tell you directly.’
‘Uh, okay… please.’
Those were certainly thankful words, but why did they fill her with dread?
Anyway, Da-eun, who had received a promise of help from Kana, still felt restless.
She wanted to show Kana she could succeed on her own.
“Does Yuki know…?”
Somehow, she felt Yuki might know.
Muttering to herself, Da-eun struggled to control the mana.
Of course, her attempts ended in failure once again.
“Huh…”
Da-eun, who had been focused on her training, felt her shoulders and arms groan after swinging her sword for who knows how long.
How many minutes had passed?
Maybe even hours.
Her body was tired, but she felt a sense of pride in having been so engrossed in her training.
Surely she had progressed a step, no, half a step closer, right?
Gurgle.
“Ah.”
As if to point out how absurd that thought was, Da-eun’s stomach growled at an opportune moment.
Although there was no one around, she glanced around awkwardly and scratched her cheek.
“It’s already empty. I should hurry back and eat… but I guess I don’t really need to.”
Da-eun remembered that when she returned, she’d have no one to share a meal with.
All the food in the residence was infused with magical energy… and well, it might be better to eat here.
“No! The shadow known as Krumo might just be a grandly named creature, and it could very well have been taken down and is back by now!”
Yes, Kana is strong, so that could totally be the case.
Alright then. Let’s head back to the residence.
Fumble, fumble.
Dither, dither.
As Da-eun stumbled and faltered, her footsteps finally decided on a destination.
As she turned to head back to the residence, she suddenly noticed the sky darkening.
“…Huh?”
Is it going to rain?
“Rain would be a hassle…”
She mumbled as she looked up at the sky.
Her eyes widened in surprise.
Whooosh!
A fierce wind whipped through Da-eun’s hair.
But she didn’t even think to fix her messy hair.
What loomed in the sky was a gigantic shadow.
The smell of burnt ash carried on the wind.
“What is that…?”
Just as Da-eun tried to voice her doubts…
KABOOM!
Crimson flames poured down to the earth.
*
Tilting her head.
“This is the right place…”
Atysha, who led the way for us, tilted her head.
“Are you sure?”
“I’m sure… look… there are traces left…”
“Hmm.”
I scanned the massive claw marks and the scattered corpses of monsters around.
Sure enough, it looked like it was the place.
Yet, not a single trace of Krumo’s shadow, nor even a shadow of Krumo’s shadow, could be found.
The shadow of a shadow? That’s a bizarre phrase.
“Something will come up if we keep looking.”
If it has dragon characteristics, it might sense we’ve intruded into its nest and come looking for us.
So our party searched the area for several hours, waiting for it to arrive, but…
“…It’s not coming.”
“It’s really not coming…”
“It’s not showing up.”
Still, not a sight or sound of it was to be found.
“Maybe it has already moved its nest?”
“That’d actually be a relief, but…”
Atysha commented, feeling a sense of foreboding.
“Hmm…”
Under normal circumstances, I’d have scolded Atysha for making such ominous comments.
But I wasn’t feeling particularly optimistic either.
Why should I state bad things?
Wouldn’t it only serve to bring down the mood?
“By the way, it’s really close to the village.”
It was quite surprising there had been no friction until now.
If one focused, they could almost see the village.
As I casually looked in the direction of the town, something caught my eye.
“…Atysha.”
“Yeah…?”
“Could that shadow of Krumo be a monster resembling a wyvern with black scales?”
“Yeah… but…?”
“Yeah.”
Ah, that was the cause of the ominous feelings Atysha and I shared.
Nodding, I softly spoke.
“We’re doomed.”
It seems the thought of preemptively attacking before the enemy attacked was not only our idea.
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