Me, the Weakest Member of the Hero’s Party? I’m the Villain Though? - Chapter 115
As I listened quietly, information from the original work that I had forgotten came back to mind.
Unlike his appearance, which made him look about the same age as Elonen or Kyle, Gerard was already well into middle age. Those with a mana core simply looked young because their aging slowed down.
But Gerard had spent most of those long years alone. When he was younger, he had lived with his younger sister, but after she died, he had been alone ever since.
“In my own way, I thought you might feel uncomfortable just staying with the group without doing anything, so I gave you something you could at least do.”
Only then did I understand what he was trying to say. Right now, Gerard was apologizing to me.
“In times like that, you can just say you’re sorry.”
I said it that way because I wanted to tease him a little. In an instant, Gerard’s face turned red like a ripe apple.
“Who are you saying should apologize!”
Well, with that prickly personality of his, instead of saying sorry, he was the type to shout, ‘Y-You crazy bastard, you started it first!’
“What I mean is, it wasn’t because I disliked you or was trying to bully you.”
At last, Gerard forced the words out, then abruptly turned his back to me. He had been fidgeting the whole time, and now he stood there hunched and stiff, not moving at all, as if he were waiting for my answer.
So I deliberately walked around in front of him and crouched down. When our eyes suddenly met, Gerard’s face flushed again and he dropped back onto the ground.
“Thank you.”
“F-For what…?”
Gerard, now sitting on the ground, looked up at me blankly and stammered. I held out my hand to him and spoke again in a clear voice.
“Thank you for accepting me into the group. Let’s get along from now on.”
Gerard stared silently at the hand I had extended toward him.
After chewing the inside of his cheek, he finally seemed to make up his mind and took it. His hand was larger and rougher than I had expected.
“Me too. I look forward to working with you.”
I hadn’t expected to make peace with Gerard like this. Still, since we were going to travel together, there was nothing bad about getting along with the group.
“Then let’s get ready quickly.”
“Yeah. If they come back and nothing’s prepared, they’ll complain.”
Only then did Gerard regain his usual expression, grumbling as he busily began moving around.
* * *
In the deep hours of dawn, when everyone was asleep, I woke from a light sleep and opened my eyes wide.
When I lifted my head and looked around, the fading firelight softly illuminated the inside of the cave. Around the campfire, the party members were huddled together, sleeping deeply.
If it was now, I thought I could speak with Larry in secret.
I tried to get up, then suddenly realized my hand wasn’t free. When I turned my head, Kyle was tightly gripping my hand.
“What the.”
Why was he holding someone else’s hand so tightly while sleeping? Maybe he was worried I might run away in my sleep.
I let out a baffled breath and carefully pried Kyle’s hand away. I had to move very carefully in case he woke up.
After finally freeing my hand, I quietly slipped out from beneath the cliff.
As I walked through the forest, I went over the last conversation I had with Larry. I needed to find a quiet place where the others wouldn’t hear and call him out.
―Master!
The voice suddenly came from right behind my head, and I almost fainted from shock. My shoulders jerked as I quickly turned around.
“You appeared without making a sound.”
―Ah, since you were heading somewhere quiet, I assumed you were coming to find me. I’m sorry. Should I bury my beak?
Since I had been planning to call him anyway, I didn’t really have anything to say. Larry even looked ready to stab his beak into the ground, so I waved my hand.
“That’s enough. Did you find out what I asked about last time?”
―Ah, yes, yes. You were looking for the whereabouts of Natalion’s Necklace, right?
Why did they always give sacred relics such unnecessarily complicated names? I only remembered after Larry said it.
“Yes, that.”
―From what I found, it seems it did end up in the hands of the Devotees of Darkness, just as expected. It’s said that their leader, the Corrupted High Priest, has it.
Corrupted High Priest? What was that now? Just hearing the title made him sound like someone extremely troublesome.
“What’s a Corrupted High Priest?”
―He was originally the High Priest of the temple that serves the one true god, Rauson, but he betrayed them and became a priest serving the Dark God. He’s said to possess immense divine power, and he’s gathering followers with it to revive the Dark God.
I didn’t know who that man was, but it was obvious he must be the one who had persuaded the immortal mage, the lich.
If that was the case, then this mana crystal must have been made by him as well. That meant I would have to learn about the spell sealed inside it from him.
In the end, it meant I would have to meet that Corrupted High Priest and speak with him.
