Chapter 22 - Yesterdays Enemy 1 (1/2)
Chapter 22 - Yesterday's Enemy (1)
The two heroes enjoyed a fun journey as they rode down the rough waters before they plummeted down the waterfall.They fell down an unknown distance towards the bottom of the ravine, and they were barely able to pick themselves out of the water.
His entire body ached, and his stomach was writhing.There was a long abrasive injury on his back, and his entire body was soaked.It was the worst feeling.He never wanted to experience it again.
“Ooh-ehhhhhk.Kol-ruhk, kol-ruhk.”
Artpe was making a bizarre sound as he threw up water.The sound was horrible enough to cool even a thousand year love.However, Maetel stood next to Artpe, and her expression remained normal.She looked worried as she patted Artpe’s back.
“Are you ok, Artpe?”
“I’m not ok!Unlike you, I can’t maintain balance while being swept away by the waterfall!”
“Why not?After I realized what was happening,I just had to wiggle my body a little bit…...”
At that moment, Artpe didn’t find himself to be endearing, since he was having malicious thoughts towards Maetel.The feeling was so intense that it made him wonder if he could have won miraculous battles as one of the Four Heavenly Kings if he had been full of malice like this!
“I wish I was hurting instead of Artpe…..”
However, he was confronted with the sincerely worried face of Maetel, so such feelings melted away.Artpe became needlessly embarrassed, so he turned his gaze away from her as he replied in a small voice.
“It’s nothing.It doesn’t hurt that much, so it’s fine.”
“Really?What a relief.”
Artpe had worried his belongings might have been lost, while he was being swept away by the waterfall.He checked his belongings, and everything was still there.He still had the two money pouches and the black egg.
Maetel still had the potion pouch within her armor, and she had held on tightly to her bastard sword and longsword. She was slowly becoming acclimatized to the fact that there were some things that were more important than one’s life as an adventurer.
It was also a fact that the two heroes were equally soaked.To make things worse, it was closer to winter than fall.The chilly winds were lowering their body temperature.
“Should I make a fire?”
“Yes, I’m cold.”
Maetel had a shy smile on her face as she nodded her head.Artpe looked up at the violet sky.It was slowly getting darker.A year had passed, so he wondered if it was possible that the soldiers of the kingdom was still searching for them near here.
“Mmm.Even if they are still searching for us, It doesn’t matter anymore.”
Even if one discounted their levels, the skills they possessed were formidable.They would be able to face down even a level 200 being possessing a high rank Class.There was also no way anyone above that level would be looking for them.They had better things to do.
“Here.”
“Wow!”
Artpe extended several strands of Mana String, and he cut down a nearby tree.His actions were so natural that Maetel started clapping.However, Artpe’s performance was just starting.
He created edges on the five black Mana Strings, and he rotated them to cut the tree into small pieces.He only moved a small portion of the wood pile.As a finishing touch, Artpe used Hyper Rubbing to cause intense friction amongst the wood.It caused it to ignite.
It burst into flame.The whole process took only 25 seconds.
“As expected, Artpe is amazing!”
“If I had a fire magic spell, I could do this in two seconds…..”
He now had a lot of money, so he wondered if he should have bought simple magic spells when he had the chance.Artpe thought about visiting the Tower of Mages in the future as he basked in the fire.Maetel stuck close to him, and she started rubbing her cheek against his cheek.
He was now used to this level of skinship, so Artpe could only let out small sighs.On the other hand, Maetel had a secret smile of triumph on her face.
“Hooo.This is comfortable and greatThe fact that we aren’t doing anything is pretty good, Artpe.”
“I don’t want you to get infatuated with that feeling.You have to be careful or else you won’t want to do anything else later.The moment you think that work is a losing proposition, your life is at an end.”
In his life as a demon, he had seen those, who hit the jackpot through creating a book or a related item….There were those, who dreamed about not working their entire lives by living off the royalties.However, these people failed to pull it off, because they were lacking in experience and common sense.
“Eh-ee.It is good to do something like this occasionally.If we do it every day, it won’t be as good!”
“....sometimes you say smart things.”
The two small heroes rested quietly against each other.
It had been a long time since they were able to spend such carefree time.They had been continuously tormented by the internal agents of the Dungeon.Their current situation was tranquil and peaceful.
He didn’t feel the need to speak.The sounds of the water flowing in the ravine and the crackling sound of the wood burning drowned out the silence.
When a little bit of time had passed, Maetel opened her mouth to ask a question.
“.....Artpe, what are we going to do from now on?”
“What do you want to do?”
“I want to become stronger.I want to help the unfortunate.Moreover, Artpe and I…...”
“Yes, you should stop there.Everything you said you’ll be able to do to your heart’s content.”
“Really!?”
Maetel’s eyes had an odd shine to it.He was sure she had misunderstood something again.It was a hassle to set her straight, so he just kept his mouth shut.However, at that moment, a loud sound could be heard without any warning.
[Crown Prince….Kill….!]
[Knights….Your highness…...]
The sound of weapons hitting each other could be heard, and he felt the surrounding Mana being consumed to activate a magic spell.Then there was a stern voice and a desperate voice mixed in with those sounds.It was a scenario that might occur at the beginning of a novel about a knight.It was such a formulaic pattern!
When Artpe assessed the commotion, his face crumpled as he mumbled to himself.
“Shit. An incident immediately occurred when you said something unnecessary.I thought I would be able to rest for at least two pages more.”
“Do you think I have some ability I don’t know about!?”
“No, I think this is just part of our karma.”
At that moment, a fight was going on somewhere close by.If Artpe and Maetel hadn’t heard it, it wouldn’t be a problem.However, once they heard the sound of the fight, Artpe knew they will get involved one way or another.
“Why?”
“This is how the world works.”
He wanted to say she was always like that in his previous life.However, he pushed down on those words firmly.
Yes, this was the destiny of a hero.It was strange, but wherever the hero went, an incident that might or might not occur in a hundred years happened.The hero inevitably got sucked into the mess, and the hero becomes the main player of the crisis.The hero would solve the problem in a dashing manner, and his or her name value would increase!
Anyways, this wasn’t something that happened just once or twice.Wherever a hero went, the hero was always involved in something.There could be an awakening of a legendary ruin, a visitation by an Arch Mage, the awakening of an ancient monster or an assassination attempt of the royal family!
It made one wonder if a hero would die from stress even before he or she got a chance to fight the Demon King.The accidental events that occurred around heroes was frequent and annoying!
“I wonder if such tumult would happen in the first place if the hero hadn’t existed.Wherever the hero goes, the unrest follows the hero.This is why we have to kill the god.”
It was such an incoherent explanation.It was like saying an apple farmer had to behead the king, because there was a good harvest.However, Maetel nodded her head in a serious manner.
“I’ll kill a god for Artpe!”