𝐂𝐡𝐚𝐩𝐭𝐞𝐫 𝟗𝟕.𝟏: 𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐇𝐞𝐫𝐨’𝐬 𝐓𝐡𝐨𝐮𝐠𝐡𝐭𝐬
I had a dream.
A dream that I could recognize as a dream.
I think it’s what they call a lucid dream.
The content of the dream was right after I entered high school.
It was a dream about when I first met her.
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She… Mamoru Honjo was a girl who seemed fragile and likely to break easily.
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She was incredibly beautiful and academically excellent.
However, her beauty made her the object of jealousy from other girls, and she was ogled by boys.
Eventually, the jealousy turned into bullying, and the leering turned into stalking.
Mamoru always endured with a poker face, but her eyes always looked dead, as if she had given up on everything. I couldn’t stand to watch it.
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So, I tried to help.
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I fought off the delinquents who were bothering Mamoru.
I lent her clothes and a towel when she was soaked, presumably from someone throwing water on her.
I helped her clean up her desk when it was vandalized.
I tried to lend her my textbook when hers was torn apart.
I confronted the people who were bullying her.
There were many other things as well.
But I’m sure what I saw was only a fraction of the bullying.
After all, there were times when I came across a scene that seemed one step away from becoming a serious incident.
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So, even though I kept helping, it didn’t lead to a fundamental solution.
The bullying of Mamoru didn’t stop.
Of course, she didn’t open up to me either.
Still, I continued to help Mamoru.
Because I didn’t know what else to do.
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Eventually, Mamoru stopped coming to school.
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Ah, I wasn’t able to help Mamoru after all.
I cried when I realized that.
I cried a lot, soaking my pillow.
I was a little surprised at myself.
I didn’t think I’d be this shocked.
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I probably cared about Mamoru more than I thought.
I might have… loved her.
I had never been in love in a romantic sense, so I didn’t quite understand.
But the feelings of not being able to leave her alone, of wanting to help and protect her, were real.
At least enough to make me break down crying, lamenting my own powerlessness.
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The scene in the dream changes.
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After Mamoru stopped coming to school, I lost all contact with her.
Mamoru looked at me with eyes full of distrust, and I knew that it would only be a nuisance if someone like me showed up at her house, so I couldn’t even visit her.
I didn’t know her contact information.
All I had done was try to help Mamoru from the bullying that I saw in my surroundings.
It was extremely self-centered and self-righteous, and probably not what the person I should be protecting wanted.
But even now, I continue to believe that it was far better than turning a blind eye.
However, there was no trust between us.
So, I didn’t even know her contact information.
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In the end, all I could do was worry.
And while I was living my daily life without Mamoru, feeling as if there was a hole in my heart… that incident happened.
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Summoned to another world.
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I was really surprised.
I knew about stories with such developments and I even enjoyed them at one time, but I never thought I would experience something like that.
The people of the kingdom of Wolfeus, where we were summoned, told us that we were heroes.
They asked us to defeat the Demon Lord and save the world.
They told us there was no way back except defeating the Demon Lord.
I decided to fight.
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I had two reasons.
The first reason is simple.
I wanted to protect everyone else.
To be honest, I had some resentment towards those who bullied Mamoru, but I didn’t wish for their deaths.
Besides, my dear childhood friends Ayaka and Kyoshiro, and the very kind teacher, Surano-sensei.
My desire to protect these three was genuine and sincere.
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And, the second reason.
I really wanted to return to Japan.
I wanted to meet Mamoru again.
No, rather than wanting to meet her, I didn’t want our tragic goodbye to be our last.
I don’t know what I wanted to do when I met her again.
Whether I wanted to apologize for not being able to help, or to ask her to be friends with me.
I don’t know.
I don’t know, but I didn’t want to end it like that.
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Those were the feelings I had as I lived in the other world.
I trained.
I gained power.
I learned the true equipment.
I fought monsters.
When I defeated those monsters, I gained experience points and my level rose.
As my level rose, I definitely became stronger.
Those days were going well.
I thought they were going well.
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Then the scene in my dream changed again.
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This time, those days collapsed in an instant.
By the hand of the Demon Lord’s army who stormed into the royal capital.
I’ll never forget that day.
The countless people who were wiped out without even being able to scream from the first blow.
The Demon Lord laughing loudly after doing just that.
The moment I saw that, I realized she was an enemy I had to defeat.
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And… there is something that remains in my memory the most from that day.
It was Mamoru.
In front of my eyes, Mamoru was ruthlessly killing people.
That image is burned into my mind and won’t leave.
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In the end, I couldn’t do anything then either, and was easily defeated when I challenged the Demon Lord.
Emma saved me when I couldn’t move, and in the end, I abandoned everyone and many people and ran away.
Later, my classmate who was the only survivor, Mera-kun who has a unique skill called [appraisal], told me that it wasn’t Mamoru, but a monster that just looked like Mamoru.
According to Mera-kun, the monster was called an automata.
But he also said that it was highly likely that the Automata was being controlled by Mamoru herself, judging from the characteristics and skills it had.
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If it’s true that Mamoru is the one controlling the Automata…
What should I do?
I don’t know.
The current Mamoru is a subordinate of the Demon Lord, a murderer who killed everyone.
But, I can’t bring myself to hate Mamoru.
I didn’t see it directly, but I think Ayaka and Kyoshiro were probably killed by Mamoru too.
Despite that, I just can’t hate her.
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But, the current Mamoru is my enemy.
She came to kill me without any hesitation.
If we meet again, she will probably come to kill me.
What should I do then?
I don’t know.
I really don’t know.
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Now, I’ve even lost the reason to fight that I initially thought of.
The people I wanted to protect are all dead, and the girl I wished to meet again appeared as my enemy.
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Still, I can’t step down from the battlefield.
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If I need a reason to fight, I’ve found a new one in place of the one I lost.
I can’t forgive the Demon Lord who killed many people.
I must also settle things with Mamoru.
For the sake of my new comrades as well, I can’t run away, and I can’t lose.
I will continue to fight as a hero.
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…but, it’s still tough.
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The battle is full of hardships, and there are only painful things ahead.
There’s a part of me that wants to just give up everything and have an easy life.
Ah, why, why has it come to this?
I wish someone would tell me.
I wish someone would help me.
Someone, me…
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“…Ma! Yuma! Wake up!”
“…huh.”
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At that time, I was shaken with a loud voice and pulled back from the world of dreams.
This voice was Ivy-san’s voice.
She is one of the instructors who trained us, who had just been summoned to another world. Now, she is a member of the hero party and acts together.
Such a person was waking me up with a somewhat hurried voice.
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“Did you wake up? Sorry for forcibly waking you up while you were having a nightmare, but there’s an emergency.
Prepare for battle immediately.”
“…Something happened?”
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As I said that, I put on my armor and prepared my equipment.
Originally, I was sleeping in normal clothes, not pajamas, so I didn’t need to change clothes.
I have been training in the dungeon [Tombstone of the Demon God] managed by the EhrfleIt Holy Kingdom, and I am now somewhat accustomed to real combat.
I have become able to switch my head from waking up to combat immediately.
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“I don’t understand well myself, but a large army of soldiers is confirmed to be rushing from the back of the fort.
If that was all, they could be seen as reinforcements, but even from a distance, they seem to be unusually belligerent.
Now, Emma is going to confirm, but just in case, prepare for anything…”
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When Ivy-san said that far, there was a tremendous explosion, and the entire fort shook.
Something happened.
But, there is no panic.
Because I know that such a situation always comes suddenly.
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“Ivy-san, let’s go.”
“Yes!”
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And so, our next battle began.
🔹𝙰𝚠𝚎𝚋s𝚝𝚘𝚛𝚒𝚎𝚜.𝚌𝚘𝚖 ― 𝙸𝚗𝚍𝚞𝚕𝚐𝚎 𝚒𝚗 𝚊 𝚌𝚘𝚕𝚕𝚎𝚌𝚝𝚒𝚘𝚗 𝚘𝚏 𝚝𝚛𝚊𝚗s𝚕𝚊𝚝𝚎𝚍 𝚗𝚘𝚟𝚎𝚕𝚜 𝚠𝚒𝚝𝚑 “𝚍𝚊𝚒𝚕𝚢 𝚞𝚙𝚍𝚊𝚝𝚎𝚜” 𝚊𝚗𝚍 𝚎𝚡𝚌𝚕𝚞𝚜𝚒𝚟𝚎 𝚊𝚌𝚌𝚎𝚜𝚜 𝚝𝚘 𝚊𝚍𝚟𝚊𝚗𝚌𝚎𝚍 𝚌𝚑𝚊𝚙𝚝𝚎𝚛𝚜🔹
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Translator’s Blog
Blog
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