At the word ‘false accusation’, Trail let out a low groan.
He was pretty quick on the uptake too, so he must’ve figured out what that meant.
Before the regression, Kaeld had shown a unique approach from the very start when recruiting party members.
He would cleverly identify a person’s weakness or trauma, and approach them with a warm attitude, pretending to heal or solve it.
Everyone fell for it.
I was the only one it didn’t work on, so he had to try something else… but, well, let’s move past that for now.
Anyway, the way he approached Neril wasn’t all that different.
‘Didn’t he clear up the false accusation placed on her?’
Apparently, Neril didn’t bawl her eyes out or anything pathetic like that.
It wasn’t in her nature.
But instead, she’d felt a strong curiosity toward Kaeld.
I remembered what she told me in the carriage on the way to the region for our quest before the regression.
“I’d never met someone like that in my life. Everyone else either ran away in fear of my reputation or didn’t even bother to find out if it was true. Let alone try to clear it.”
“Yeah.”
“I mean, sure, there are hundreds of bad rumors about me, so one of them being cleared didn’t mean much. Still, it was fascinating. His approach was just completely different.”
“Okay.”
“You’re so damn dry.”
She really was a strange person, Neril.
Even with my blunt attitude, she was always the one to start the conversation with me.
[Judging by how clueless you are… were you maybe single your whole life before regression…?]
‘……’
[Nope. Forget I said anything.]
This guy always gets all polite when he’s cornered.
‘Anyway, let’s get started.’
[With what?]
‘What do you think? I’m going to use that grand-sounding ability of mine — the Eye of Omniscience or whatever.’
[Huh?]
‘Neril’s not the type you can win over easily. Even if I ask her to join forces, she won’t give a damn. I need to have a card to show her.’
[Aha. Whose secrets are you going to reveal?]
I recalled what I saw before the regression.
More precisely, the bloody letters that floated above her head.
—Sinned against May Erenica and 287 others.
‘May Enerika.’
[Very well. Feel the majesty of my Eye of Omniscience throughout your body.]
I ignored him.
Soon, a screen appeared.
Now then.
What kind of adorable secret was our dear Witch of Carnage hiding?
Let’s take a look slo— huh?
<Error. The secret between ‘Neril Slane and May Erenika’ is of Rank B.>
<Requires Eye of Omniscience Level 3 or higher to view.>
To hell with the Eye of Omniscience.
‘……’
[……]
‘Say that thing you just said one more time.’
[I have no excuse.]
His voice dropped, then he immediately pushed back.
[Wait! Logically, this isn’t my fault! It’s your fault for having a low level!]
‘I didn’t even say anything. Why are you getting defensive?’
[…]
‘Well, nothing I can do about it. Honestly, when you think about it, it’s weirder if a party member of a hero just had their secrets laid bare like that.’
So, you need a high level to peek at higher-tier secrets.
‘Looks like I won’t be able to view Kaeld’s or Bion Kunze’s secrets either.’
[Most likely not.]
Can’t be helped.
I put all my focus into recalling my memories from before regression.
Surely there was something in our conversations, attitudes, expressions, or glances — some hint.
[You can actually recall all that?]
‘I have an extremely good memory. Practically inhuman.’
[Do people usually say that about themselves with a straight face?]
‘Of course, most of it’s probably useless. But thankfully, my instincts are also inhuman.’
[…]
Every once in a while, I’d get this sudden flash in my head, like lightning.
Yeah, to use an example—
Like when I saw my father’s name appear above my mother’s head.
…Useless memory. That’s not what’s important right now.
Anyway, instead of just replaying conversations or actions from the past, I had to recall those moments when the lightning struck.
And focus on the memory that flashed through me then.
Soon enough, a vivid memory sparked in my head.
It happened during the journey for the quest before the regression, when we were staying at an inn. I’d gotten up in the middle of the night to pee.
On my way down to the first floor, I saw Neril sitting at a table in the inn’s dining hall, with a rather chilling atmosphere.
Kaeld was seated across from her with a serious face.
On instinct, I suppressed all sound and presence.
I’d already figured out by then that even my party members, including Kaeld, couldn’t detect me if I really wanted to hide.
“Calling someone out for a private meeting in the middle of the night. How classy, Mr. Hero.”
“You’re rather sharp with me, Ms. Neril.”
“It’s not just you. I hate everyone.”
“……”
“So? What do you want?”
“This might sound sudden and rude, but… Ms. Neril, you’re the infamous Witch of Carnage, right?”
Kaeld usually spoke casually to all party members, but not to Neril.
She was a bit older than the rest of us.
“So what?”
“I did my homework before recruiting you. I know that most of your terrible reputation wasn’t from things you actually did. You were framed.”
“You used that line when you recruited me, remember?”
“But I also think that some of it — especially the last atrocity right before we met — was something you really did.”
Neril crossed her legs in silence.
Kaeld kept speaking.
“It was in the Quelk territory, wasn’t it? You brutally killed the tool shop owner there.”
“He deserved it.”
“There’s no such thing as someone who deserves to die.”
This guy, who fooled 148 million people, sure looked saintly saying that.
“Even if there were — was that shop owner really someone who deserved death? He just sold herbs and farming tools in that territory.”
“What do you know.”
“I don’t. That’s why I’m asking you to tell me.”
“What if I don’t want to.”
“You’re a party member, and I’m the leader. It’s my responsibility to manage the team. If you continue causing atrocities, it’ll be hard to keep traveling togeth—”
“Ha.”
Neril stood up abruptly.
“First of all, let me ease your worries. No more atrocities. Once this Demon King subjugation is over, I’m gone. I’ve done what I needed to do.”
“You’ve… done what you needed?”
“No need to explain that part. Just know that I’ll be a quiet, well-behaved party member from now on.”
“Ms. Neril. As a comrade, I want to genuinely understand what’s in your heart.”
Neril let out a deep sigh.
Then she looked up at the stairs above.
To be honest, I got nervous back then, thinking I’d been caught.
But she hadn’t seen me.
“When my party members found out I was the infamous Witch of Carnage, their expressions were hilarious. At first, I just introduced myself as a mage who’d turned her back on the world.”
“……”
“They all had different reactions. How could you bring in a witch like her? That monster should be killed.”
“……”
“But one of them stayed pretty calm. Like, As long as she does her job well, who cares? That kind of face.”
“…You’re talking about Mide.”
“That’s the most desirable attitude. The next best is being wary or scared of me. The absolute worst is—”
She glared coldly at Kaeld.
“Doing what you’re doing. Trying to console me or soothe me by digging into my past.”
“……”
“You think I joined the party because you cleaned up my reputation? That I’m here out of gratitude or some emotional debt?”
“……”
“I just found the last place I belong. And what’s more fitting for an ending than the fight against the Demon King?”
Kaeld’s brow twitched.
Neril yawned once and waved her hand dismissively.
“I’ll head up now. Sleep well.”
I stopped reminiscing.
[Hoooh. So that’s what happened.]
‘Yeah… Wait, are you seriously peeking into my memories now too?’
[But how do you know this memory is even useful? Don’t give me vague stuff about intuition.]
‘Neril said she had finished her work, and after the incident with the tool shop owner in the Quelk territory, she stopped the carnage. Then she jumped into the Demon King subjugation to find the final stage of her life.’
[Aha. So causing carnage to the tool shop owner was that “work” she mentioned.]
‘In other words, revenge. I don’t know why such a powerful mage like her would have that kind of grudge against a mere shopkeeper, but still.’
I counted on my fingers.
‘Timeline-wise, she hasn’t contacted the tool shop owner yet. Her final carnage happens a week from now.’
[So then?]
‘Exactly.’
I have to get there first.
I’ll take hold of her target of revenge before she can.
Then I’ll use it to blackma— ahem, negotiate.
Feeling confident, I smiled.
Inside my head, Trail chimed in with his usual nonsense.
[Uh, you really gonna do that? Think it through again.]
‘What’s wrong with this flawless plan?’
[She’ll be pissed, obviously! If you hold her hard-earned revenge target hostage and try to use it for leverage, of course she’ll blow up!]
‘I told you, it’s a negotiation.’
[How about trying to calmly talk to her instead? Like, Let’s work together to defeat the Demon King and save the continent kind of pitch.]
You really don’t know Neril at all.
Let’s just say you’re a Neril-illiterate.
The carriage traveled three more days before arriving at the Quelk territory.
After such a long journey together, the coachman and I had become close enough to put arms around each other’s shoulders.
“Must’ve been rough traveling so far. Here’s the rest of the fare.”
“Oh, thank you! Will you be needing a ride back?”
“I haven’t decided on my next move yet.”
“Next move?”
“Never mind. Anyway, Quelk is a decent-sized place. You’ll probably find a passenger for the return trip soon. But just in case, I added a bit extra to your fare.”
The coachman bowed deeply once again.
As we entered the domain, Trail commented,
[You’re surprisingly polite.]
‘What did you expect?’
[Thought you would be rough around the edges, being a mercenary and all.]
‘At least I’m more polite than you, so don’t worry.’
[So how are you going to find Neril now? Like you said, this place is pretty big.]
‘Pull up the map.’
[…]
Trail grumbled something but brought up the familiar screen.
A map of the entire continent filled the display.
But I shook my head.
‘Just the Quelk territory map.’
[What do you take me for, your secretary or something?]
‘Ah, sorry if that’s how it came off. It’s just that you’re so capable—you can do anything, so I thought this would be easy for you.’
[Hmph. Of course it is. Easy peasy.]
Soon, a zoomed-in map of the Quelk territory appeared.
……
He is easy.
Anyway, I examined the screen carefully and spoke.
‘No need to find Neril directly. The hint is that her next target of carnage is a tool shop owner.’
[…]
‘Speaking from experience as someone who has wandered all over the continent, tool shops are usually located between residential areas and the village entrance. They have to cater to both travelers and locals, after all.’
[Aha.]
‘That means they’ll be clustered around here. Let’s check this area first.’
I set off.
There were ten tool shops in the Quelk.
The first owner had sinned against only five people. A diligent young man.
His blood lettering didn’t include Neril’s name.
The second owner had twelve. Still no Neril.
The third—nine. Again, no Neril.
The fourth—thirty-nine? What the hell.
In my experience, if someone’s harmed more than twenty people, they’re usually not just an ordinary person.
Anyway, Neril’s name wasn’t on this one either, so I turned around with a baffled laugh.
The fourth owner spoke up.
“What, just leaving like that?”
“Yes. Nothing that caught my eye.”
“Don’t be like that—pick something, will you? Cah, ptuh.”
He spat on the floor of his own shop.
“Business is crap these days. Why don’t you at least take a dagger or something? You look like a mercenary.”
“Sigh. How much?”
“How much were you expecting to pay?”
“……”
Smack! Thud.
Creeeak.
I dusted off my hands and walked out of the fourth tool shop.
Just then, a customer who looked like an adventurer approached, about to enter.
To save him the trouble, I kindly spoke up.
“They’re probably closed for the day. This tool shop.”
“Huh?”
“Seems the owner’s exhausted. Said he needed a nap.”
Leaving the confused adventurer behind, I headed to the next shop.
For some reason, I felt oddly refreshed.
After checking a few more shops, I arrived at the seventh.
The writing above the owner’s head read:
– Has against Frank de Levan and 89 others.
I expanded the screen, and there it was—the fourth name from the top, a name I recognized.
– Neril Slane.
Found her.
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