"Here's your tea," Aqua said with a gentle tone. "Drink it before it gets cold."
"Thank you very much." The young man took the cup with both hands and stared at its contents with clear suspicion. As expected, the tea had turned into plain water. He probably thought Aqua was messing with him.
Still, Dikon didn't say anything and simply took a sip of the hot water. He clearly didn't want to seem rude.
"Mmm… I-it's good, I guess," he said. "And once again, thank you for saving me. By the way… may I ask what the two of you were doing in the middle of this forest in the dead of night?"
"We were just about to have se—"
I lunged at Aqua, clamping my hand tightly over her mouth. Was she stupid?!
"W-we were in the middle of a serious strategy meeting for a quest!"
"A quest. I see. And by any chance, does it have to do with the Fang Demon?"
"How do you know about that?" I asked, intrigued.
"Well… you see… I'm also from that area. I know about the disappearances. What that creature is doing is truly cruel and heartless."
"Don't tell me you came out here alone, thinking you could rescue those girls all by yourself."
Dikon swallowed hard. His hands started trembling—not from fear, but from anger and helplessness.
"You see, the Gloryuss family is an ancient noble house that has always served the Dustiness family," he began to explain. "My father has always held Lord Ignis in high regard. Even when he appointed Lord Rufus to manage the region, my father never questioned it."
Rufus Lyamnsen was the feudal lord who had given us the quest to rescue his missing daughter, Tia. She had been kidnapped by the demon along with the other girls.
"However, there are many rumors about Lord Rufus's reputation. And when the disappearances started, quite a few of us believed he was handling things very poorly. For starters, he should have gone to the authorities immediately. But for some reason, he didn't."
"Yeah, I admit that caught my attention too. But aren't the authorities in Axel busy preparing the city's defenses for the Destroyer's arrival? Or at least that's what a friend of ours told us."
Dikon nodded.
"But that was after the kidnappings had already begun. Up until then, Lord Rufus refused to lift a finger to find the daughters of all those families. And if he finally decided to do something now, it's only because his own daughter got involved. But what about the families who can't afford a reward? That's why I… set out alone with the intention of rescuing them."
I see. The boy just wanted to help, and unlike Aqua and me, he wasn't expecting anything in return. I have to admit I felt a little guilty.
"The quest we took is precisely to rescue Tia Lyamnsen," I admitted. "Lord Rufus's daughter."
"Yes… I figured as much. But well, it's already been two weeks since I started this journey. At the time, I hadn't heard of any rescue effort. But I couldn't just sit around doing nothing… So even though my father was against me going on this mission alone, I felt it was my duty as a noble."
"I understand. First of all, let me say that what you've done is truly admir—"
Wait a second.
Did he say two weeks?
That can't be right. Aqua and I only left Axel two days ago. We're not that far from the city.
So what has he been doing all this time?
"Err, sorry, but did you just say two weeks?"
"Yes… it's just that… even though I'm wearing this expensive armor and have a high-quality sword, my stats are terrible. They're really, really low. That's why even the weakest enemies give me trouble. So… advancing on a quest, no matter how simple, takes me twice or even three times as long."
As he told us this, the boy kept rubbing his hands together with his head down.
"Oh, come on. You don't have to be so hard on yourself," I said. "Besides, everyone struggles against certain types of enemies. We've had trouble dealing with giant toads ourselves, right, Aqua?"
"I'd rather not remember that."
Maybe I shouldn't have mentioned the toads. Aqua's arch-nemesis.
"Even when I use high-level spells like Inferno or Blizzard, I can barely do any damage," Dikon continued.
"Inferno or Blizzard, huh?" I repeated in surprise. "Those are seriously powerful spells. If you have them, I don't think you're that bad."
The amount of skill points needed to learn those was enormous.
"Well… I'm not so sure…" the boy said.
"What do you mean?"
"Kaizer…" Aqua whispered in my ear. "I've heard that wealthy people can access powerful spells even when their level isn't very high. He probably bought those spells. You shouldn't keep pressing the issue. You'll only make him feel more miserable. Besides, the poor guy already has enough on his plate being an Eris worshipper. To be honest… I actually feel a little sorry for him."
Dikon gave a shy little smile.
"Hehe… err… I can hear you, you know? But yes… I suppose you're right… I'm so pathetic that I had to buy most of my spells. And even then I can't beat the weakest enemies…"
Then an idea occurred to me.
"Hey, Dikon, could I see your adventurer's card?"
"Eeeh?! W-why? What for?"
"Well, if I see your stats, maybe I can give you some advice. Like which attribute you should focus on improving first, things like that…"
"Mmm…"
"I promise I won't laugh."
"O-okay. Here, take it."
Very reluctantly, Dikon handed me his adventurer's card.
I have to say that even after everything he had told us, I couldn't believe his stats were this bad.
God, I even thought his card might be bugged.
His attack stat was in the gutter. His defense was practically nonexistent.
Is this real? With stats this low, it was hard to believe he had made it this far alive.
No wonder his father didn't want him leaving the house.
"Wow! And I thought my stats were terrible! Kaizer, look at this!"
Aqua, who apparently lacked a single tactful bone in her body, blurted out right over my shoulder.
"Would it be too much to ask you to at least try to be a little considerate once in a while?!"
"G-give me back my card, please! I don't deserve this level of humiliation!"
I kept looking through Dikon's stats, and while most of them were indeed abysmal, his Luck and Intelligence weren't that bad. In fact, his Intelligence seemed to be even above average.
"Hey, your Intelligence seems really high. That can be crucial in battle, you know?"
"You think so?" the young man asked, his eyes wide.
I nodded.
"Yeah. Sometimes a battle isn't decided only by strength, but by strategy. And if you work on polishing that attribute, your Intelligence could be key in a quest. At least more than Aqua's. OUCH!"
I took an elbow straight to the ribs.
"Then… can I really become an adventurer too? Is that what you're trying to tell me, Mr. Kaizer?"
I handed him back the card.
"Sure. Just focus on your strengths."
Because focusing on your weak ones would be a complete waste of time, sorry.
"In that case… please let me go with you!"
"With… us?"
"You're going to face the Fang Demon, right? Take me with you! After all, that's exactly what I was planning to do. I know I'm very weak, but… but… I'm sure that if we crossed paths today, it must be because the goddess Eris put you in my path. So please! I beg you! A-also… I have lots of high-level potions!"
Damn rich kid.
"Suggesting that I was guided here by my own junior," Aqua grumbled. "Kaizer, this kid is rude. But… I suppose we can't just leave him here alone."
"Wow, Aqua. It's reassuring to know you have at least some sensitivity. But yes, you're right. If we leave him in the middle of the forest, even the weakest creature that crosses his path will probably kill him."
"So, what do you say?" Dikon asked, full of hope.
I smiled.
"Dikon, welcome to the party."
And just like that, in a completely unexpected way, I gained a new ally.
After that, Aqua used her "Break Spell" and made all the fog disappear. I would have loved for her to tell me from the beginning that she could do that, but seeing the results, I decided not to complain.
The real surprise came when the three of us saw that the demon's castle was practically right in front of us. It had been impossible to see through the thick mist. The fortress towered over us, its spires so tall they seemed to brush against the night sky.
"What do we do?" Dikon asked.
"Since we're already this close, there's no point in backing off just to come back tomorrow," I replied. "Besides, it'll be dawn soon. I say we go in now and put an end to this once and for all."
"And it's all thanks to my skills! You'd better start thinking about buying me some expensive wine when we get back to Axel."
"Aren't we supposed to be a team?!"
Ignoring Aqua's unreasonable demands, I gripped Kronos tightly and readied my shield.
"Alright, time to rescue those girls," I said.
The demon stirred restlessly inside his castle. For some strange reason, a sudden wave of unease washed over him.
And then he noticed it.
The barrier? No, that was impossible. Had someone actually break it? But how? Who? An adventurer? No, that didn't make any sense either. He knew for a fact that the closest city to the Forest of Doom (or at least, that was the ridiculous name those foolish humans had given it—ha!) was Axel. The infamous city of rookie adventurers.
The mere idea that someone from a place like that possessed enough power to shatter a barrier he had personally created was simply absurd.
And yet, the barrier was gone. That was an undeniable fact.
But then… who, or what, had done it?
The demon shuddered, a dark memory resurfacing. He remembered what had happened to Beldia.
Hadn't Axel been the last city the Dullahan visited before he was killed?
Could that very same threat now be standing at his doorstep?
Or worse… what if they had come to steal his precious trophies? The ones he had worked so hard to obtain, the very foundation of the new life he planned to build.
He wouldn't allow it.
If anyone was foolish enough to enter his domain to steal his prizes, Demian would not tolerate it. He would give them a fight they'd never forget!
Using his magic, he closed his eyes and concentrate.
A little more.
Just a little more.
There! He Found them!
It was two young men and a single woman.
Idiots! Did they honestly think that would be enough to stop him?
The demon let out a cold, shrill laugh.
Perhaps one of them was a mage with a ridiculous stroke of luck. That had to be how they broke his barrier. It was the only logical explanation.
But there was absolutely no way they could defeat him.
To hell with Beldia. If the Dullahan was stupid enough to get cocky in battle and end up killed by rookie adventurers, that was his own fault.
Demian wouldn't make the same mistake.
Standing in the dark room, the demon suddenly realized it had been quite a while since his last meal.
He licked his fangs.
The nervousness vanished, replaced by something else entirely.
Now, he was just impatient.