Goodwill and Malice

My name is Tisse Garland.

I'm an assassin with the Assassins Guild with the Divine Blessing of the Assassin, and

at the moment, I am an adventurer guiding Van the Hero.

I'm also an average, everyday inhabitant of this world and shuddering internally at

how extreme this boy's thoughts are.

Presently, I'm in the castle that the hill giant Dundach has claimed, in a region far

removed from Zoltan proper.

Hill giants are the most common of all the giant species, and the ones that interact

with people most often. As the name suggests, they tend to live around larger hills and

smaller mountains, but they can appear anywhere with a sufficiently warm climate

and enough food to sustain them.

In other words, places well suited to humans were also well suited for hill giants.

This has led to frequent skirmishes between the two sides. Hill giants were the classic

staple of all old cliche stories of village heroes slaying monsters.

"Hill giants possess only slightly weaker intelligence than humans, and if there's one

with a Blacksmith or Armorsmith blessing among them, they'll have weapons and

armor. Their size and arm strength are about what you'd expect, and when it comes to

reproductive capabilities, they propagate at about the same rate as humans. Although,

talking about it that way for people is a bit off."

Ljubo had a lecturer's demeanor that befitted a cleric as he explained hill giants to

Van.

"Hill giant assaults never last long. In the end, humans have always emerged

victorious. Do you know why that is, Van?"

"Yes, sir! Because that is how Almighty Demis wills it!"

"That's correct. Hill giants are not given blessings befitting heroes and champions.

Ultimately, they always fall to us."

"Because most giants of any kind have only Warrior blessings!"

"Indeed. The fact that the Warrior blessing, which can do nothing but buff physical

abilities, is the most common in this world can be said to be God's revelation of our

world's ways."

"Right. Warrior does not possess a great role for itself, but it is the blessing that

provides meaning to all others. There is no value in people with Warrior blessings, but

those blessings hold a great meaning in a religious sense."

"Mhm. Why has Almighty Demis given the name Warrior to the Divine Blessing

representative of the average person? It is an expression of the desire that every being

in this world fight to develop their blessings. Remember, no matter how much an

opponent might surpass us in physical might, that strength is as nothing before the

Divine Blessings afforded to us by God."

Van nodded over and over at Ljubo's words.

I led the party as a guide, and my eyes were glazing over a bit while I listened to the

pair behind me, though it didn't show on my face.

My irreplaceable partner, Mister Crawly Wawly, had the Warrior blessing. I could not

begin to express how crucial he was to my life. He sat on my shoulder, watching the

white clouds drift across the sky, seemingly unbothered by Van and Ljubo's

conversation.

"What do you think, Tisse?" Esta, who walked beside me, asked.

"If the goodly Cardinal has said so, then surely that is how it must be." I responded

with a tepid answer to avoid any conflict.

"I see. Maybe I'll ask again in private when we've made camp."

Esta shrugged with a smile.

Maybe it was because of the mask, but her personality seemed a bit different from

when I'd traveled together with her while she was Theodora. Mister Crawly Wawly's

eyes also widened a bit as he beheld the woman.

"Hah. After nothing but their back-and-forth, I'd come to miss your reactions."

Theodora would never have said something like that.

Mister Crawly Wawly tapped his legs as though intrigued. He seemed to have taken a

liking to the woman's new demeanor.

We were currently behind the castle that had been stolen by Dundach, preparing to

slay the hill giant.

"Umm, just to confirm, I am only here as a guide. Will it be a problem if I leave the

fighting to all of you?"

"That should be fine. Right, Van?" Esta replied.

"That's what we agreed. However, if you see someone you can defeat, you are more

than welcome to fight!"

"Welcome to fight?" Tisse echoed.

"Of course! It is a virtue to defeat monsters to strengthen your blessing! And that

virtue is greater than any mortal contract!"

I felt wary of his innocent smile.

"Thank you; however, I don't feel confident battling giants, so I'll just hold a lantern for

you all once we enter the castle."

"I see. That's a shame." Van looked apologetic. "You must strive to grow stronger. God

is always watching you."

I don't think I will ever come to like this Hero.

Giants tended to have better night vision than humans.

It was gloomy in the castle, and the braziers filled with a nasty smelling oil were unlit.

With only the faint light that came through the windows, the hill giants could see as

well as if it had been midday in an open field.

I stood at the rear of the group, following behind the others with a lantern raised. My

sword was not drawn, but my goal was to learn more about Van the Hero and his party,

not slaying giants.

"They're coming!" the fairy named Lavender in Van's cloak shouted.

Hill giants ran toward us, heads scraping the ceiling.

Also…

Crack!

…wood splintered as two more giants flew out from a side room. It was quite the

surprise attack. How would this other Hero respond?

"Hahhhh!"

Van brandished his sword twice.

A pair of giants' heads fell to the ground, spilling blood. Unconcerned about the

splatter, Van smiled and shifted his sights to the next enemy. His sword was terrifically

fast. To behead the monsters in a single cut spoke to a fair amount of skill.

He was indeed the Hero… and likely stronger than I was.

"Holy Blessing!"

Light shone from Ljubo's hand, a clerical art that strengthened allies while weakening

monsters within its glow.

"Now that it's come to this, I suppose I'll have to fight, too."

Esta slew the hill giant nearest her with such deft spear work that I nearly forgot we

were in a narrow corridor that should've made swinging a polearm difficult.

"Go, Vaaaan! You can do it!"

Lavender darted all around the Hero while cheering him on.

She wasn't actively fighting, but she seemed to act as a lookout, ensuring Van was

never attacked from a blind spot.

And she seems to be watching me as surely as any monster…

Lavender didn't trust any humans other than Van.

"Van!" Lavender shouted.

There was a whooshing sound as an arrow the size of a lance sped toward the boy.

Down at the end of the hall, there stood a hill giant a head taller than the others,

wearing a helmet adorned with a feather—Dundach, most likely.

"Ah!"

Van deflected the arrow away with the shield in his left hand.

Dundach was holding a ballista designed for siege combat, a weapon likely left over

from the castle's previous ruler.

Ordinarily, it required a winding lever to pull the bowstring back, but Dundach reset

it quickly using his hill-giant strength.

A shot from that ballista couldn't be stopped by any normal shield, yet Van's didn't

have so much as a scratch.

That was a powerful magic shield.

"The next one's coming!" Esta shouted as she prepared to defend using her clerical

magic.

"Hmm. I thought these enemies were a bunch of nobodies, but this one's putting in

some real effort!"

Before Esta could activate her spell, Van dashed down the hall and leaped at Dundach.

"Ugaa?!"

"I looked down on you, believing you were an unfaithful monster for holing up in a

castle without killing people. Yet your murderous intent is marvelous!"

"What are you?!"

"One who defeats evil! I am Van the Hero! A monster like you ought to kill people more

viciously and then be slain by me in turn!"

"Hero? Someone like you—"

Van beheaded Dundach before the giant could finish speaking.

"Evil has been vanquished."

The boy looked so pleased and at ease after killing the huge creature.

I see. So this is what being faithful to the Hero's impulses looks like…

Mister Crawly Wawly had never been frightened of Ruti, but he skittered from my

shoulder to my bag after watching this Hero.

Quietly, he signaled to me, "Van is a scary human."

I was spending the night alone on watch duty, staring at the fire. We'd made camp

along the road.

"You can sleep, Mister Crawly Wawly."

He shook his head, however. I gently rubbed his stomach, and after he quivered

happily, he leaned against my cheek.

"Mind if I sit next to you?" someone asked. I'd sensed her presence approaching, so I

wasn't surprised.

"Help yourself."

At that, Esta took a spot near me. Then she set a tripod and pot over the fire. She

seemed to be preparing a garlic soup. After a little while, steam began to rise.

"How about some dinner?"

"Thank you."

Esta filled a cup with broth and handed it to me.

A sip revealed it was actually pretty tasty.

"…"

"Ljubo is fast asleep. He's powerful, but he doesn't have an adventurer's mentality at

all. Van and Lavender will be out hunting monsters all night like always to improve his

blessing. They won't be back until morning."

It seemed clear Esta was implying that we wouldn't be overheard.

"I don't know how else to say it; that Hero is absurd."

"I can't disagree. Honestly, I'm glad for someone to discuss it with." The masked

woman smiled bitterly. "There were things I found difficult about traveling with Ruti,

but… My time with Van has been really eye-opening."

"Van appears quite faithful to his religion and the Hero's impulses."

"Well, the Hero is meant to be the manifestation of God's providence… Still, I wonder

if the first Hero was like that?"

"Whoever they were, they're nothing but a legend now," I replied.

"As stories passed through the generations, the more problematic episodes were likely

removed. Hmmm…" Esta cocked her head. "What do you think?"

"I couldn't begin to say. That's not really my specialty."

I did have a friend in the Assassins Guild who knew a lot about old stories, however.

She might know something, but I had no idea what she was doing nowadays.

I took another drink of the soup and felt my body warm up a little.

"I never imagined you'd have an interest in cooking," I said.

"Hah, I actually took the Cooking skill. After giving it a try, I realized just how hard it

was to make food while camping, but it's pretty fun."

Esta sounded proud of herself. She truly had grown to be gentler and more sociable

compared to her time as Theodora.

"Has Red rubbed off on you?"

"I guess so. I'm striving to be like he was… but it's proving pretty difficult with this

new Hero."

Esta gave a self-deprecating smile. If someone had asked me to guide that Hero, I don't

know that I could've managed. Van believed in his Divine Blessing above all else.

The rogue assassins I'd fought recently had been that way, too. They trusted only their

blessings and had lacked the mentality to operate as proper contract killers. They'd

been skilled at their work once but had grown to be common murderers motivated

solely by the joy of killing. Ultimately, Drog, fearing for his life, had even given up his

client—a taboo in our world.

Van feels similar…

Suddenly, Mister Crawly Wawly started hopping up and down on my shoulder, making

himself known.

Evidently, he wished to communicate something.

"Mister Crawly Wawly wants to ask if you're going to leave Zoltan without talking to

Albert," I said.

"I would like to meet up with him if possible, but he wants to operate independently

of Van. And truthfully, I'm afraid to leave Van alone while we're in Zoltan. Whenever I

take my eyes off him, something happens."

"Sounds like you have it rough."

"I guess… I do." Esta's reply felt keenly earnest. Looking at her, I realized I'd said

something I should have kept to myself.

"Albert's a bit lonely without you." I intended the remark to be a joke. Albert did hope

to see Esta, but I was playing it up a bit.

"I-I see, he's lonely… and wishes to see me…"

Huh? Wait, wait, wait. What's happening here?

There was no question that the ever-stern Theodora had softened a bit after donning

a mask and becoming Escarlata. Yet that epitome of clerical solemnity and warrior

rigidity was blushing and covering her mouth just like Rit!

"U-umm, if you see Albert, let him know that I'd like to see him, but the present

situation prevents that. I certainly haven't forgotten about him or anything… Wait,

what am I saying? Sorry, please forget that."

For a moment, I was so stunned that I forgot all about Van. That was sloppy of me.

Who would've thought something like this might happen. The world is truly a mysterious

place.

Mister Crawly Wawly stood on the back of Esta's hand and patted it with his forelegs

to console the woman.

At noon the following day, Rit, Ruti, and I were sitting in the village plaza before a

hastily assembled stage of wooden crates. We each had a plate of curry-fried fish.

Finding out that this food called curry could be used like this was a fun moment of

discovery for me.

"Log pullers, one and all.

Shoulders heavy and hips aching.

Yet our fathers trod here,

Dragging timbers, never breaking.

Surely, we can do the same.

And any with cause to complain,

Should dance and sing, dance and sing."

Villagers sang and danced to the melody of the lute and flute. The sound of their steps

on the wooden boxes had a pleasant reverb to it, and it really made you want to get up

and join them.

"Red, Rit, Ruti, please enjoy yourselves."

The village elder gave us all cups with cider reserved for special occasions. It had been

aged for four years.

Today was a feast to celebrate defeating the ogrekin and the village's salvation. We

were the guests of honor, and everyone was having a fun time.

"Zoltan doctors are strong. It's inspirin' to see."

"It would be lovely if people like you came to live here. If you ever feel like working the

fields away from the city, our door is always open."

"Come by our spear training again, Mr. Red!"

People of all ages came to talk with us.

Saving villages and being celebrated by their inhabitants had been a thing of the past

after we started taking it easy, but it really was nice to see everyone laughing and

smiling.

"This isn't so bad, every once in a while."

I sipped the cider. It had a sweet tanginess like it had been made using sweet apples,

but there was also a bitterness behind it. It was a pleasant drink.

"This is tasty." Ruti looked into her cup as she swirled the cider. She wasn't a big fan of

alcohol, yet she appeared to enjoy this. "I don't really like beer or whiskey, but I like

fruit wines and cider." She took another sip. "I want to enjoy alcohol that you like

someday, Big Brother."

"Well, for now, I think it's safe to say we're both fine with this."

"Mhm. I'm glad."

I drank a little more, and the two of us chuckled.

"Red!"

Hearing Rit's voice, I looked up. She had left to get some more food at some point and

was calling for me.

"What is it?"

Ruti and I both headed over.

"This tastes really, really good."

Rit had a fork in her right hand that she waved excitedly.

"What does?" I asked.

She was eating a kind of fried bread.

"They said this is the village's best, most luxurious treat!"

"Oh, I see. White bread fried in oil. It does sound good."

"And there's a fragrant smell to it. This was made using good oil."

Ruti and I both bit into the warm bread. The rich, flavorful sauce within spread over

my tongue.

"Curry?!"

Now I understood why Rit was so excited.

This is tasty!

"White bread, quality oil, and curry sauce. Each is surely a precious ingredient in this

village. I can see why it's a rare commodity."

"It's precious, but it's also a Sant Durant specialty, a luxury they can only make because

all the ingredients are local."

Ruti and I both savored the curry-filled bread. One bun was slightly larger than a fist,

yet we both finished ours quickly.

"Ha-ha-ha, I'm glad you all liked our special treat," one of the village women said,

laughing. "Go on, now, we have more, so help yourselves to as many as you like!"

"Are you sure? Aren't these kind of a rarity?"

"It's fine, it's fine. This is Durant the hero's village! I always dreamed of preparing our

special bread for champions like our founder!"

The woman handed us each another bun filled with curry.

"Thanks to you, that dream has come true."

She laughed again, while her neighbors sang. The village elder had climbed onto the

stage at some point, hiked up her skirt, and was cutting loose with a magnificent tap

dancing display.

People whistled with one hand and held mugs of cider in the other, cheering.

"This is nice," Rit said, beaming.

Our vacation had been nothing but fun memories.

"Eeeeeek!"

A scream pierced the din of revelry.

"What is it?"

We immediately hurried to the source, noticing a horrible stench as we got closer.

"Ugh, this is awful!"

A woman hit by pegasus droppings looked utterly mortified. Peering into the sky, I

spotted a group of the winged horses flying east.

"Looks like you're fresh out of luck… Hey! What are you doing?!"

When a man laughed at the woman's misfortune, she grabbed a clump of dung and

flung it at his face.

"Who asked you! Now you're out of luck!"

A crowd formed, keeping its distance but cracking up.

"Now that's something you don't see every day," the village elder remarked.

Hmm?

"Is it rare for pegasi to fly over the village?"

"Yes, they live in distant fields to the west. This is the first I've seen any near Sant

Durant."

"The west…" That got me thinking.

"Red, what is it?"

"Well, after hearing that pegasi are an uncommon sight in these parts, I wondered if

maybe the ogrekin were similar."

"In what way?"

"If those ogrekin were connected to the ancient elf ruins, they should've kept closer to

the village at the base of the mountains than here."

"You're right…"

Rit's expression darkened.

And then, the sky darkened as well.

"What?!"

All manner of winged monsters and birds soared over the village, headed east. People

watched dumbstruck at the sight.

Before we knew it, the odd migration had passed. The monsters left, and the sky was

silent again.

"It's like they're running from something," Ruti whispered.

I had a bad feeling about this.

My name is Tisse Garland.

I'm an assassin in the Assassin's Guild with the Assassin blessing, and my stomach

presently aches from the tense atmosphere in the air.

"Er. Umm… What?"

"I'm telling you that your thanks is a nuisance."

A cold sweat formed on the confused mayor's brow as Van the Hero snapped at him

sharply.

All of the gathered nobles of Zoltan were stunned and looked down glumly. Van's

rebuke was far too sharp and lacking in decorum for the local movers and shakers of

Zoltan, who'd hoped to celebrate the Hero's victory over Dundach.

Esta grimaced and shook her head. Even Cardinal Ljubo, with his ingratiating smile,

went stiff. His eyes darted around awkwardly.

"Yeah! Yeah! Van's right!"

Lavender alone was unbothered, and her voice was the only one to break the silence

in the Zoltan assembly.

What a horrible feeling.

As I was the type of person who really cared about the mood of a place, my stomach

squirmed, and I desperately wanted to leave.

"…This is… Um, my apologies… We are simple country people far removed from the

ways of Central… I fear we may have mistakenly done something to upset you, good

Hero… I hope you can forgive us."

The mayor did his best to give an apology.

Esta hurriedly stepped forward before Van could open his mouth. "Unfortunately, we

must be on our way as our quest is to defeat the demon lord. It pains us that we cannot

accept your kindness, but please understand. We must depart immediately on the

Vendidad, but we shall never forget your warm reception."

Esta lowered her head after her hasty explanation. She was attempting to smooth

things over after Van's rude outburst.

"N-no, not at all. We understand! We were thoughtless not to consider the weight of

the Hero's mission. All of Zoltan shall pray to Demis that your journey shall end in

success."

Nobles' faces relaxed into smiles. Fortunately, it looked like things would end without

a fuss.

"Now let's go." Esta turned to Van.

At last, Van the Hero would depart Zoltan, and the trouble would be over.

I breathed a little sigh of relief.

"The prayers of heretics fall on deaf ears."

Where did that come from?!

An icy chill fell upon the room.

Denying someone's beliefs was the ultimate insult. Everyone took their faith seriously

to some extent. Everyone in the world was a follower of Demis. Tossing around the

word heretic was dangerous.

Even Esta was at a loss for words, unable to conjure up a solution to keep the situation

under control. She shot a look at Cardinal Ljubo, asking for help.

"V-Van, my boy, that really isn't an appropriate thing to say in a place like this. I'm sure

you have your thoughts, but please apologize and take back what you said." Although

uneasy, the cardinal did convey a sense of gravity in his words.

However, Van just smiled and shook his head. With anger and sadness building from

the assembled Zoltanis, Van remained his usual, cheerful, confident self, utterly bereft

of any self-doubt.

"No, there is no need. I am a Hero who has trained as a devout. God granted me the

Hero blessing in addition to Ruti's to correct this sort of heresy. I'm sure of it."

"Heresy is a strong word, Van." Even Cardinal Ljubo was losing his patience.

Mayor Tornado's face was paling as he struggled to conceal his outrage.

What is Van hoping to achieve with this?

Van held up his hands, still grinning.

"If you are not possessed of an evil Divine Blessing, then there is but one thing that

you should do!" The boy weathered the confusion and animosity, untroubled, basking

in it. "Join us in fighting the demon lord's armies! To remain here in Zoltan is to turn

your backs on God's teachings!"

"Wh-what?"

"All people with righteous gifts from the almighty must gather and stand before the

demon lord's army! Living without meaning in a place like this is a sin against God!"

"Without meaning?!"

"It is written in scripture that sloth is a sin. And the sloth you have committed is the

gravest of all. You have abandoned the roles set for you by God, and for that, you must

repent. With the Hero's advent, you bear a sacred duty to fight and vanquish evil."

"…Do you think anyone here would want to join you after the scorn you've shown us?

We have a homeland to protect and our own lives to lead. I'm afraid we cannot meet

your expectations." Mayor Tornado's voice trembled. He could barely restrain his fury.

Van didn't seem to react in any way to the anger or rejection. He grinned the same way

he always did. It was unnerving.

"Just leave your country. What value is there in a nation in the middle of nowhere?"

"This is a proud land that our forefathers worked hard to build. Hero or not, you've

gone too far!!!"

"Etiquette is a thing that governs mortal relationships, but I am speaking of God's holy

word."

Mayor Tornado and the Zoltan nobles glared at the boy, having abandoned any effort

to mask their rage. I was just as upset as they were.

Ruti, Red, and the others all loved this place and thought Zoltan was great, too. The

slow life I knew here was filled with precious memories.

I focused myself, prepared to draw my sword at any moment to stop Van if he

attempted to harm the mayor.

Yet not even Mayor Tornado's words seemed to give his smile cause to falter.

"That is unfortunate. I shall pray that you someday recover your faith."

Van turned to leave. "Please give me a little time before we depart," he said to his party

members.

"What are you going to do?"

Van's eyes shone with hope as he answered Esta's question. "I believe I just had a

revelation about my duties as a Hero. I must act in order to save this world."

"What are you…"

"I am going to use the Fairy King's Shield."

"Don't be stupid! Ljubo and I told you that is not to be used!"

"To stand by and do nothing in the face of such heresy is a sin."

"W-wait!"

Van dashed off, ignoring Esta's warning. She frantically gave chase but was confronted

by a tiny figure with her hands raised.

"Don't get in Van's way!"

"Move, Lavender! Van is going to attempt something terrible, the sort of thing a Hero

should never do."

"I agree. But so what? I like Van, so everything he chooses is right by me!"

"Gh…! You should never have joined the party!"

"I don't care what you think of me. I've got Van's love! So what'll it be? You want to

fight?"

"…"

The little fairy that rode on Van's shoulder was summoning incredibly dense magic

power.

"Ah, Esta. Stop it."

"Cardinal Ljubo!"

"I agree that Van's course of action is problematic, but this will be a valuable learning

opportunity. A mistake will be good for him, and fortunately, it's only the backwater

Republic of Zoltan. A few losses here won't harm the Hero's reputation."

Cardinal Ljubo shook his head, as if this were a minor hassle. Then he sat in a chair

and pulled out a cigar.

"Does anyone have a light? Eh, I'll do it myself." Fishing around in his cloak for a

moment, the cardinal retrieved a match.

"You stay put, too, Tisse. I'll kill you if you get in Van's way," Lavender stated coldly.

"Fairies aren't exactly my specialty, but…"

This was more than some common sprite. Red would've deduced her abilities

immediately. Were he here, perhaps I could've employed a better strategy.

I regretted not knowing more about fairies, but reached for my sword hilt.

"You really wanna do this?" Lavender spat.

"…"

I did not know what she was capable of, but seeing that Esta hesitated was enough to

tell me this was dangerous.

However, my friends were a lot more reliable than some great fairy.

I knew I could entrust things to them.

A thread ran out from the hall, carrying Tisse's signal.

Mister Crawly Wawly could sense the vibrations through his web as keenly as if he

were present in the room.

Atop his pigeon friend, he soared to Yarandrala and Danan.

No matter how powerful a magic user was, they wouldn't notice a spider.

A tremor happened to pass down a thin strand, and then a pigeon took flight. That was

all. That there happened to be an arachnid riding the bird was of no importance, surely.

Even for someone who could sense blessings, Mister Crawly Wawly was only a run-ofthe-mill Warrior.

However, that spider was a hero in Zoltan, trusted by the strongest girl in the world.