10 Play Monster Against Demon

Dora's old friends were in front of them, and judging by their expressions, they seemed shocked to see him. There had been no communication between them since that day.

"Hm? What a surprise, the useless debuff is here, you came to say goodbye to us? How nice." Erick launched hostilities.

"Erick, stop this, please. Hello, mister Anesidora, we weren't expecting you, are you also leaving?"

Dora made an attempt to identify the girl.

"Oh, Liliana was it? Yeah, I'm doing great, very great actually" He grinned at Elizabeth while she was in disguise and she responded with a sigh. "I heard that you had subdued the rift last time, very good job."

"... Thank you, it wasn't that hard, everyone did a great job, even though I would have liked to count you with us."

Erick let out a groan from the back.

"For what? Did we even need to use my poison skill? This only confirms that this thing is worthless, like the user somehow."

Dora's group was upset by these words, Wendy, who was too young to comprehend the situation, pulled at their mother's sleeve.

"Mom, who are they?"

Instead of responding, she simply patted Wendy's head, fully aware of how she had raised her son and not yet prepared to get involved.

"There's no need for me to join, Marie is already here as a representative, did you carry her well?"

"Idiora will never change, I don't need any protection, I play the tank here."

Marie stepped forward, holding one of her stuffed animals close to her heart.

"You don't even look sad, I'm disappointed in you."

"I'm sad, in my heart, but I have many hearts... literally. Oh, I forgot that your puppets can play many roles too."

"Yes, it's great, right?" Liliana added. "I was surprised to see her in action, you've really well trained her."

It seemed like they had both developed a good relationship.

"To be fair, it wasn't me, I'm more talented in correcting short people, like Lilith."

Marie, feeling flustered all of a sudden, playfully punched him on the arm for the second time ever. Liliana chuckled quietly, while Lilith barely reacted.

The rest of the group seemed uninterested, with Leon and Morgiana appearing bored and Sana avoiding eye contact.

"Guys, it's almost time, let's get on the bus."

"There's still a few minutes left, Leon, we can afford a proper goodbye this time."

Marie strongly disagreed with Leon, indicating that there might have been some tension between them after Dora left, but it was no longer his concern. Hope couldn't resist. and stepped in.

"Oh don't worry, we'll have plenty of time to chat, because we're coming too."

The rest of the group glanced at him with a hint of apathy, while Leon's expression shifted from surprise to a smile.

"I see, so the 3 of you have formed a party, I'm very glad for you Dora, I expected you to remain faithful to your principles, but in the end, no one wants to remain frozen, right? You on the other hand, Hope, I thought a true Hero didn't need a party. I wonder what made you give up on your dream."

"Huh! Better keep quiet if you don't know if you want to compliment or insult, and besides we always follow our principles, we don't need any team to impress the best guilds."

Dora coughed to stop him, appreciating his defense by insulting them. However, he respected three people in that group, but the situation became a clash between Hope and Leon.

"Yeah yeah, but in the meantime look at the situation, We have already been recruited into the Southern Guild, who really made the right choice?"

"From the South...Oh I see, not a private guild, huh? Yeah, that's what I'm saying, not bad... For starters."

Just this statement must have really upset Leon, judging by the change in his expression. 

"I really don't understand people trying to act strong… You are not a team, but you train together, you are not a party, but as soon as we are recruited, you follow us… You know, it's not bad to be a copycat, but it's a shame to lie about it. By the way, Dora, why are you letting him do the talking? Is he your bodyguard now?"

"Who knows, maybe lover?" With the most hideous grin Dora had ever witnessed, Erick boasted.

The boy, reaching his limit, gently massaged his sinuses.

"… Trying my best to avoid this... to be a ray of sunshine... but people keep testing me…"

"The old you wouldn't be so weak..." Sana whispered.

Each person reacted differently: Morgiana avoided looking, growing increasingly irritated; Lilith and Sana frequently shot glances his way, one with a frustrated expression and the other with disappointment; while Marie and Liliana made an effort to ignore their comrades.

"Mom, I need to leave now."

"I'll contact you later, Have a safe journey, you too Hope."

"Thanks, ma'am… But man, are you going to let them talk to you like this? I said I wouldn't intervene but now I'm involved too."

"You've already intervened… Goodbye, and take care of Mom for me, Wendy."

He embraced my family one final time, while being watched mockingly by Leon and Erick, before heading towards the bus.

Hope appeared hesitant and Elizabeth, with her transformed appearance, remained quiet.

(Don't overdo it please... Sigma Body.)

A pale orange light sparkled in his eyes. After boarding the bus, Hope and Elizabeth followed him, with the Shining Sword close behind.

A few minutes later, the bus departed, leaving his mother and Wendy behind. As the bus moved, they appeared to shrink in size.

Soon, they passed the final walls of the villages, marking his departure from this land, that had been a witness to his heroic or criminal deeds.

They had been away from the village for a few minutes, and the tension caused by Dora's former comrades made Hope and Elizabeth reluctant to speak.

Hope, in particular, couldn't hide his dissatisfaction.

"Well, seems like the first step of my legend won't be memorable, you really need to learn how to respond to certain idiots, Dora."

"Talk to me more often, I will practice, I have my own way to deal with problem."

"By not responding? Pfff... That's what we teach those who don't know how to defend themselves.''

Elizabeth pocked Hope's head.

"It's very noble not to respond to provocations, I'm with Dora on this one, you're too impulsive Hope."

The childish debate went on as Dora played with his phone, with his exes looking on in boredom. Erick let out a heavy sigh, maybe hoping for attention.

"Maybe you should listen to your lady? Don't pick a fight you cannot win."

"… What did you say?" Hope stood up from his seat and glared at Erick.

Erick looked at him one moment before turning to Dora.

"At least now we know who's the man in this house, Good call Sana."

The girl sighed, her gaze on the window.

"Erick!" Liliana shouted.

The party was quite fascinating for Dora, giving him a sense of satisfaction similar to watching a bug grow wings before clipping them. However, Hope had a completely different perspective on the situation.

"Dora, if you don't want to take care of your own mess, I won't let them make a fool of me!"

"You're not funny… Could you just wait until we reach the bridge?"

"What bridge? What are you talking about? And what's funny about being insulted? Keep your advice to yourself, man, I'm doing this my way! Eric, what did you say about me?"

Hope got up and positioned himself in front of Erick, the latter, visibly irritated, glanced at Leon, he was not willing to face a true warrior.

"Tch, get your face out of me, moron, I don't have time to deal with a couple of idiots."

"Call me an idiot again, I'll make you eat the ground, go ahead!"

Hope was ready to throw hands, but realizing the situation, Leon finally decided to act as a leader and stood up.

"Alright, everyone calms down, this is hardly the place for this. Hope, I'm sorry if you felt attacked but Erick wasn't really targeting you, could you let it go?"

"You have a terrible hearing then, and I would rather hear that from the tail of the horse, not the head."

Dora couldn't resist chuckling, which didn't sit well with Leon. 

"As a Hero I understand why you would fight for the weak, but as an emissary, I wouldn't defend a coward."

"That's it!"

Hope seized Leon by the collar, unleashing a surge of energy that sent shockwaves through the terrified gazes of his companions.

In response, Elizabeth promptly rose to her feet, swiftly joined by Morgiana and Erick, who had unexpectedly recovered his bravery.

"HOPE!"

One loud scream from Dora silenced the room. There was a common belief that in a circus, the clown was the easiest target for jokes, but everything changed when his fake gun fired a real bullet.

"This is not your scene, all this setting is for MY first performance."

"… But… You're not even doing anything."

"What don't you understand in 'wait until we get to the bridge'?"

The bus reached a massive bridge, stretching approximately 100 meters, with a small river flowing beneath it, adorned with rocks.

Dora got up and approached Leon. In this moment, silence prevailed as nobody spoke.

For many, it was the first instance of witnessing a glimpse of anger from him.

"… Hey, what do you think you're doing? Go back to your seat."

"You said that I'd be a coward if I didn't answer, but don't worry, the wings I'm gonna tear apart are not yours, for now."

Erick was on high alert, clutching his dagger, visibly nervous. It was unusual to see a powerful DPS player frightened by a minor debuff, even if it came from an Avatar.

However, in the world of emissaries, their instinct was a remarkable talent.

Sometimes, their body would react to danger without warning, like sensing bloodlust.

To Erick, it felt like a wolf swimming in murky waters infested with dangerous reptiles.

"I'm done with this bullshit, if you take another step, I take one of your hands, I warned you."

"You would damage a precious asset of the kingdom? In front of witnesses?"

"To whom are you valuable? You're worthless, and Sana will heal you anyway... But maybe after you pass out, idiot, go ahead, try me! Take one more step."

"Okay, you win, I'm not moving, I won't need to move anyway... For what I'm about to do."