“Loyalty! It’s been a while! Sir Hans!”
On the castle wall, Hans felt a familiar voice tugging at his ears. Indeed, when he turned his head, an unexpected figure stood before him.
“Clarence? Is it really you, the Clarence I know?”
“That’s right. Sir Hans.”
“Well, this is really a blast from the past! Has it been nearly two years?”
“Probably around that.”
Hans recalled the familiar voice from when they took down the evil witch. However, unlike before, Clarence was now dressed in the armor of the royal guard. It seemed he had returned to the knights.
Two years might seem like a short time, but in situations like this, it was an eternity. Demons and monsters were invading, causing countless deaths.
Surviving for two years was impressive, even if the demon clan’s power had waned. After all, Clarence was a candidate for the Royal Knights; he wouldn’t go down easily…
“But where’s Margaret? I don’t see her around.”
“…She is…”
“…”
“She has retired from the guards and is working in a village.”
But why the sudden heavy tone? Damn it.
At that moment, Hans, worrying if something had gone wrong due to Clarence’s serious expression, had to suppress his erupting anger. Right, right. It’s a good thing, after all.
However, hearing that she had retired was unexpected for Hans. Regardless of her skills, it was Margaret who always showed enthusiasm for protecting and helping people.
As Hans mulled over this, he quietly gazed at Clarence. She was alive and working, but something might have happened to her. Perhaps she had lost an arm or something.
“Is Margaret doing well? Healthy and all?”
“Yes, she’s doing fine with all her limbs intact.”
“Then why did she suddenly retire?”
“I… asked her to. I begged her to retire.”
“What, what? Is this a love confession or something?!”
Clara, who had been observing with disinterest, finally chimed in. She sometimes reminded Hans of a high school girl—clumsy, noisy… you name it.
Hans, being intrigued like Clara, didn’t stop her. Initially, Clarence refused to answer, but under continued assault, he eventually surrendered.
“Just to let you know in advance, it’s not a confession yet.”
“Not yet?! So you plan to do it later?!”
“W-well, that’s…”
“Everyone, quiet! It’s starting to move!”
Actually, Hans wanted to hear more about Clarence’s story, but sadly, he couldn’t. Perhaps sensing Hans’s presence, Ayanharr, who had been quietly sitting outside the castle wall, started to move.
The golden eyes of that creature met Hans’s gaze. The moment he registered that, Hans was taken aback. In the past, it had the head of a bull. Undeniably a minotaur.
However, his current appearance was more like a human, specifically resembling a beastman. He had brown skin, muscles everywhere, and his eyes gleamed gold.
Yet, the most striking feature was his horns. Sprouting on either side like a beast, they gleamed sharp like spearheads. What the heck is that? Did he awaken all by himself or what?
“What’s with the sudden transformation?”
“I’ll explain from here.”
“Captain Melissa?”
The one who answered Hans was Captain Melissa of the Royal Guard. Oddly enough, she had a distressed look on her face. The reason was clear. After a moment’s hesitation, Hans spoke to her.
“I’m sorry to hear about the deputy commander and the members.”
“Honestly, I still can’t believe it. The deputy commander isn’t someone who would go down that easily…”
“I think so too, but we can’t stay trapped in the past.”
“…That’s a fair point.”
Melissa snapped back to reality and began the briefing. How on earth had that minotaur become so drastically changed? The royal guard hadn’t just been annihilated. They had done their utmost to investigate.
And their will had reached this place. Ayanharr had suddenly appeared one day. From the start, he was in human form. He claimed to have been training continuously, focusing only on Hans.
“He said he was hiding in a dark cave, thinking only of you, Sir Hans, and training non-stop.”
“Coming from a monster, I guess I have to acknowledge that persistence.”
“Yes. The deputy commander, having confirmed that, set out personally to hunt Ayanharr down, but…”
“…That’s enough.”
Hans shook his head. He didn’t want to hear reports that would dig up painful memories. Anyway, what was important now was dealing with that guy over there first.
“It can’t be helped. I’ll take care of it myself.”
“I’m sorry, Captain.”
“But I’m glad Sir Hans is stepping up.”
“Is it really that great?”
Hans tilted his head at Clarence’s words. Then, Clarence nodded and replied.
“Yes, actually… I plan to propose to Margaret formally once this is over.”
“……”
“I’ve gone through trouble finding the flowers she likes.”
Stop!
Stop the death flag!
*
It shed its past name.
It was such a tremendous shock that it even discarded the name it had given itself. It was a humiliation that it could not endure, not only losing the battle but also having its life spared by the enemy.
Yet, it chose to escape rather than die on that spot. Though it wanted to end its life then and there, for some reason, it did not know why.
All that remained for it was a thirst for revenge. It wanted to avenge the man who had humiliated it. But it was still too weak to reach the power of that man it had seen back then.
So it began training. Hunting lesser demons known as Naeroth, continually honing itself. It was no easy journey, battling enemies far stronger than itself.
Pushing against its instincts, the minotaur challenged opponents far mightier. Naturally, it suffered numerous wounds and almost died several times. But it kept fighting.
Eventually, in the end, it triumphed. As it regained consciousness, it found itself called Ayanharr. It deemed the time had finally come.
“I clearly stated it.”
Ayanharr warned the humans. If they didn’t bring that man immediately, more lives would be lost. It was not mercy, but an impulsive desire to fight him as soon as possible.
“If you don’t bring him here, you’ll all die.”
There would be no further warnings. Ayanharr moved with a speed that couldn’t even be compared to before. Its first target was none other than a knight.
A knight from its memories.
That man who had been right next to him. If it took care of him here, that man would surely come soon after. That was the only thought in its mind. And it acted on it.
Meanwhile, Clarence, targeted by Ayanharr, was escorting Hans and his party. Though it was closer to guiding them, he hadn’t expected Ayanharr, who had been sitting still, to suddenly move.
‘This is something I can’t react to…’
The overwhelming speed made it impossible for him to respond with his own power. But he realized he was going to die here. Coincidentally, there was no sign of a flash in sight.
What appeared last was—
The smile of the woman he genuinely wanted to see once more…
“Seriously, dial down the death flags a bit!”
Ayanharr’s iron-like fist met the sword. It was a dazzling white sword, exuding an enchanting aura.
His fist, capable of shattering castle walls, was blocked by the blade.
“Ha ha! As expected… you are…!!!”
“Stay back! This is my responsibility.”
“Thank you! Sir Hans!”
‘Something’s off…’
Hans felt a sense of confusion. While it was true he had unconsciously jumped in to save Clarence from danger, under normal circumstances, he would have used Time Stop. It was the most assured method.
But Hans didn’t use Time Stop. Neither did he use Time Deceleration or Time Acceleration. The moment Ayanharr attacked, his body reacted.
This was truly a first for Hans. Until now, he could count on one hand the times he had reacted with his own strength. But just now, he had read Ayanharr’s attack.
Not only did he read the attack, but he also blocked Ayanharr’s clearly much stronger assault without wavering. No matter how he thought about it, it seemed impossible.
‘Well, anyway…’
“Finally, you’ve arrived, my only worthy opponent.”
‘What’s good is good, I guess.’
Hans’s mind, usually clouded with panic at the onset of battle, became eerily calm.
All that filled his thoughts was the determination to kill this bastard. His demeanor seemed to transform into that of another person entirely.
“Wait a minute, Captain! Let me handle this?!”
“…Huh?”
Of course, once Clara suddenly appeared, Hans was left with a dazed expression again.
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