Never-Ending Night

"This morning, we received a warning from Rit the hero. Apparently,

someone connected to the Thieves Guild was after her. Over the

next few days, the guild chief is probably going to be questioning me

and the other higher-ups about it. It's got nothing to do with me, of

course, but a few favors are going to have to be called in to clear any

suspicions. This has been a fiasco."

Bighawk scratched his arm with his thick fingers. Dir was prostrate on

the ground in front of him, not daring to say a word.

He couldn't even if he'd wanted to, since he had been gagged. On

top of being tied up, every last one of his fingers had also been

mercilessly broken to ensure he couldn't use magic.

Dir was crying from the pain and fear, but no one showed any hint of

concern for the poor man.

"You probably thought I wouldn't kill you because of whatever

valuable secret you know about Rit, but you've got it wrong. You

don't understand your position at all."

Dir was trembling, but Bighawk's eyes were cool and merciless.

"That thought is proof you underestimated me. And however

valuable that secret you know is, I don't forgive those fool enough to

underestimate me."

The large half-orc was the most-feared man in Zoltan. Dir was hit by

the realization that he had naively misjudged Bighawk as merely the

leader of a bunch of no-name rural thugs, a revelation that had come

far too late.

"Take him away."

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"Yes sir."

A man lifted the bound Dir over his shoulder.

"Nrgh!!!"

Dir desperately resisted, his frantic eyes pleading for his life.

"Still, everyone makes mistakes. I won't hold it against you forever,"

Bighawk said with a broad smile.

For just a second, a glimmer of hope shone in Dir's eyes.

"But that will be easy, since I'm never going to see you again."

Having said his piece, Bighawk rose and left the room.

"Ngggggggh!!!"

The half-orc did not turn back at Dir's gagged screams.

"What a pity," the man carrying Dir whispered in a sympathetic tone.

The thief still did not hesitate to carry Dir down into the bloodspattered room that was the manor's basement.

After that, no one ever saw Dir in Zoltan again.

It was late. The Hero, Ruti, was sitting in her tent, eyes closed as she

continued thinking.

Immunity to Sleep was one of the many various immunities and

resistances granted by the Hero's blessing. Ruti no longer needed

sleep. She could not feel the least bit sleepy. She could maintain a

perfect condition twenty-four hours a day without ever having to

rest. However, the same was not true of her comrades. She

understood that camping for the night was necessary for them.

Still, this is so boring.

The time she spent just sitting there doing nothing was dismally dull.

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According to her pet theory, standard resistances and immunities

were entirely different things. Standard resistances granted a

strength in the face of something, but immunity meant the loss of

something. She'd lost the ability to sleep, so her nights were spent

like this.

It was better when Big Brother was here, though.

She never felt bored when she could watch him as he slept. Just

placing her hand on his chest and feeling his heart beat… She

genuinely believed she could endure an eternity if she sat like that

with him.

Well, not that she hadn't occasionally snuggled up to him…or maybe

nibbled at a finger or his ear or his stomach from time to time. But

that was all just trivial playfulness… Yes, that's what she believed.

Ares…

By all rights, even tearing him to pieces would not be enough to

satisfy her. However, so long as he did not bear any malice directed

at her, she could not lay a hand on a comrade because she was the

Hero. The Hero would never injure an ally because of a personal

grievance. Her Immunity to Berserk quelled her rage to nothing more

than a slight ripple of emotion. Ruti had been robbed of the majority

of human emotions and pleasures because of her blessing.

The girl thought back to that time…

"Ruti, please hear me out. Your brother has left the party."

That was what Ares had said when he'd visited her room early that

morning. Because of her Immunity to Confusion, she'd absorbed

what he'd said in a coolheaded manner. The Hero's Immunity to

Despair meant she could not be shaken by his words. That was why

her response had been just a single word.

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"Why?"

"Gideon was self-conscious about his lack of ability and said he

would be of more use fighting the demon lord's forces through

espionage and guerilla actions than by staying with us. I tried to stop

him at first, but he was determined. Eventually, I came to accept the

logic of what he was saying. In the end, I decided to see him off with

good graces. He left behind his equipment, which we might get some

use out of it. He was an admirable man."

"Why you? Why didn't he tell me himself?"

"Probably because he didn't want you to see that side of him, I'd

guess. Even though he is far weaker than you, he still tried to

comport himself as an older brother to you. A charming bit of

conceit. I can certainly understand the sentiment."

I see, so you pushed Big Brother out.

Bursting through the various immunities, Ruti's emotions wavered

just a bit.

"Eep?!"

Even that small amount of emotion was enough to elicit a shriek

from Ares. The overwhelming pressure Ruti released subconsciously

triggered the man's survival instinct. Even so, spurred on by his

blessing that he would never hesitate to tell anyone who would

listen that he was the most capable of all, he'd taken the action he

had decided was best.

Ares gritted his teeth as he put an arm around Ruti's shoulder and

hugged her. His heart pounded in terror, and a cold sweat poured

down his back. He read back the script he had practiced so many

times. The Sage was superior in all ways. No matter the goal, he

would accomplish it. The Sage was wise. That was Ares's role.

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"I understand the anxiety you might feel at your brother not being

here anymore. Before you were the Hero, you were still just a young

girl. Compared to the lifetime you've spent with Gideon, our time

together has been short, but I will always be your ally."

Even when Ares so clearly overstepped, Ruti could not push him

aside. She'd just looked up at him with a cool, fixed, reproachful

gaze.

At that moment, though, she sensed someone's presence.

Big Brother?! He was just looking at me! He was just looking at me!!

He was just looking at me!!!

The impulses of Divine Blessings resided at the level of thought. But

in that moment, Ruti had acted on her human impulse, which

occurred preconsciously. Before her brain had processed the

information, every inch of her body cried out in despair, and she

leaped into action.

"Ugyhhhhhh?!?!?!"

Ares's body bent. The noise was less a human voice than the sound

of air leaking out of a balloon. The strongest fist in the world had

slammed into the man's stomach, pulverizing bones, smashing

internal organs, and shredding blood vessels.

The Sage's body slammed into the wall, causing several more bones

and organs to lose their shape. Had the VIP room not been

reinforced with magic, then even though it had been hit by

something as soft as human flesh and blood, even the wall itself

would surely have been demolished.

Ares the Sage slumped to the floor, looking like he had been

stomped on by a giant dragon.

"Big Brother!"

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Ruti wanted to chase after him. To clear up the misunderstanding

immediately. But her gaze was focused on Ares, who was on the

verge of death. The Hero could not abandon her comrades. Even if

the fate of the world was not in the balance, she could not ever

abandon anyone, even a truly loathsome person.

Her teeth ground together. The figure disappearing into the distance

burned at her nerves. Yet she still falteringly approached Ares.

With the vestiges of consciousness he had left, Ares watched in

terror as Ruti approached. She held her hand over him. Thanks to her

Healing Hands, Ares, who was at death's door, was restored in the

blink of an eye. His broken body had been repaired.

She could no longer sense the presence of her beloved brother. He

had run someplace far away. Through her blessing, all the girl could

manage to say was…

"I'm sorry."

The Hero gave an apology to the Sage that was completely devoid of

feeling. Ares's teeth had chattered as he shuddered in terror.

Remembering that moment, the quiver in her heart gave her the

slightest bit of pleasure.

It was a memory of one of the few times she had rebelled against the

Hero's blessing. Even though it had been only the mildest bitter wave

of emotion in her heart that had slipped through all her various

immunities, it was a pleasant recollection to her now. Especially

because the night provided her with so much free time.

After that day, Ruti had wanted to chase after her brother as soon as

possible, but the role of the Hero was to save people in need.

Defeating Taraxon, the Demon Lord responsible for so much

suffering across the continent, was the top priority.

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The Hero's journey had to go on. Because that was what it meant to

be the Hero.

"But I need my brother," Ruti whispered softly.

Daybreak was still a long way off.