Stupid Heroes ~We Draft Candidates~ (WN): Chapter 53

 

Chapter 53: Hero's Springtime

 Yuya and Princess Amalia were frequently seen together.

 If anyone was listening to the conversation between the two who criticized the open discussion between men and women in the academy, they would have been dumbfounded.

 Even if not, there are many people who are stunned.

"Yuya-sama! Please release your hand!"

 Princess Amalia is walking down the corridor with Yuya pulling her hand.

"Why?"

 She kept begging him to let go of her hand, but Yuya never listens.

"A man and a woman walking hand in hand..."

"It's normal in the world I was in. Amalia, do you hate holding hands with me?"

 Common sense in another world is often insane in this world. In that case, Yuya didn't know which common sense to follow.

"That's... but I'm a princess."

"Amalia, you should stop this obsession with being a princess. I don't want to know Amalia as a princess"

“…………”

 Princess Amalia, who has been raised as a princess since birth, has no idea what Yuya is trying to say. It is a silence due to that, but Yuya seems satisfied. He mistakenly believes that his words have struck a chord with Princess Amalia.

"Come on. we're here. I'll introduce you to my friend."

“…Is this Yuya-sama’s classroom?”

"Yes. Shizuru! I brought Amalia!"

 Yuya calls out to Shizuru who is in the classroom. It's the worst situation for Princess Amalia. It doesn't matter to Shizuru, the people in Class A are all from countries bigger than Princess Amalia's. The royal family and even their subjects are far more extravagant.

 And moreover, those around Shizuru are.

"Hoh. Are you the rumored Princess Amalia? Heinz Ruben of the Lemberg Empire. Nice to meet you."

"……Yes"

"I'm Hyde Spencer from the Izrim Magic Kingdom. Nice to meet you."

"Pleasure to meet you."

 Heinz and Hyde, the two most powerful nations among them.

"Amalia-san, nice to meet you. I'm Shizuru Tojo."

“I am Amalia Armstrong, Princess of the Saint Miriam Kingdom.”

"Mei's seat is vacant, so sit down."

 Princess Amalia was urged by Shizuru to sit in Mei's seat.

"Um, why was I called here?"

 Princess Amalia doesn't know why she came here in the first place. She is in a classroom that she doesn't want to get close to if possible.

"Eh? You didn't hear?"

"Yes"

"For talking."

"What are we talking about?"

"Whatever you want to talk about. I mean, it's a chat."

"Chat?"

"Yes. Since Yuya is always with Amalia-san, we decided to talk together."

 She just doesn't like the fact that Yuya is acting alone and has nothing but to talk with Princess Amalia. For Shizuru.

"With everyone?"

"That's right"

"But……"

 Heinz and Hyde. Princess Amalia wonders what she should say in front of these two.

"I'm sorry. Yuya is a hero. One person should not monopolize his time. But it's not fair to tell him not to talk to you, so we'll talk together like this."

"I see"

"Amalia, don't worry about it so much. You'll get along with everyone in no time."

"Yes……"

 Yuya's optimistic words made Princess Amalia's face cloudy. It's not what Yuya says he cares about.

"However, it's surprising. I didn't know that Her Royal Highness of the Saint Miriam Kingdom was enrolled."

 Before Princess Amalia could calm down, Heinz quickly opened his mouth.

"Why?"

“Even though the wounds of the Great Upheaval have healed, the national government must be in a difficult situation. I thought you couldn't afford to do the bidding."

"Is it so?"

 In response to Heinz's story, Yuya turned his question to Princess Amalia.

“I didn’t come here to bid… No, I think it would be nice if I could do it, but the actual situation is as Ruben-sama said. I think I will just learn at the academy and go home."

"I see……"

"Have you found a candidate?"

 Furthermore, Heinz then turned the conversation to Princess Amalia.

"...Is that something you would talk to someone from another country?"

"No, not normally, but it should not be a problem for us to hear it. Or what is it? Does the Saint Miriam Kingdom intend to compete with our country or the Izrim Magic Kingdom?"

"That's... impossible."

"I agree."

 Heinz shows a satisfied expression. He's happy to get the answer he wants from Princess Amalia's mouth.

“Heinz, don’t bully Princess Amalia.”

"Hey, don't say that. I don't have a hobby of bullying weak women. On the contrary, I think I care about women more than anyone else."

"But Amalia is troubled, isn't she?"

"Is that so? Did I bother you?"

"No, not at all."

 Princess Amalia couldn't say that she was troubled here.

"See. So, who is the hero candidate you're interested in?"

 Heinz repeated the same question again. Heinz has the intention of thoroughly hammering the nail so that she would not get any funny ideas. But this went a little too far.

“If I dare say it… it’s Ren Takashiro-dono.”

"Hoh."

 Heinz's eyes grew even sharper at Princess Amalia's reply. And Princess Amalia met it head-on.

 Princess Amalia, who was annoyed by Heinz's provocation, showed the courage she had hidden in front of Yuya.

"Amalia?"

"Yes"

"Why his name?"

"Actually, I don't know the details. If it's Class C, which is said to be dropouts, I just thought that it is possible even for our country."

"But why, Takashiro..."

 Princess Amalia's provocation has stimulated not only Heinz, but also Yuya.

“I heard that it is a well-known name in Class C.”

"I see. But he is a waste of money no matter how cheap he is."

"I just answered the question. I am not thinking of bidding for him."

 Unexpectedly, Yuya was in a bad mood, so Princess Amalia simply withdrew the matter about Ren. In fact, she has no intention of bidding on Ren in earnest.

"That's true"

"Yes"

“By the way, who does Her Highness Amalia know the name of?”

"Heinz!"

 Heinz is asking again, and Yuya raises his voice.

"It's not a strange question. It is natural to want to know who is known and to what extent."

"Maybe so."

 Heinz has no intention of backing down just because Yuya raised his voice.

"So, who do you know by name?"

 Heinz persistently directs his questions to Princess Amalia. He had a slight glimpse of Princess Amalia's true nature. He was giving priority to finding out what it was.

"Yuya-sama, Shizuru-sama"

"Of course."

"Mei Katsuragi-dono, Jin Takamiya-dono, Ren Takashiro-dono."

"What about the rest?"

"...Akira Mita-dono, Kenji Shimizu-dono, Takeru Mizushima-dono, Yuki Shiraishi-dono, Manami Hasegawa-dono, Kotaro Iguchi-dono, Satoko Kanda-dono, and the late Kazuki Harumoto-dono."

 Princess Amalia listed the names one after another. Yuya was a little surprised by that.

"Those are Class C hero candidates."

 Heinz doesn't look particularly surprised and is talking to Princess Amalia.

"Yes. If it's Class C, I greedily checked it out."

"I see... I'm thinking a lot."

 Then it is not unnatural to know the names. She neither knows too much nor too little. This in turn deepens Heinz's suspicions. Heinz is not the type of person who immediately erases his suspicions once he has learned the answer, no matter what the answer is.

"Has the name Ren Takashiro been heard in the Saint Miriam Kingdom? That's surprising."

"I heard that he was escorting all the hero candidates."

"What? How do you know that!?"

"That's... he showed up once."

 Princess Amalia responded a little frightened to Heinz, who yelled at her.

"...Ah, that's right. Sorry for shouting out. I completely forgot."

"No."

 And Heinz immediately returned to a calm tone. Princess Amalia knew she was being tested, but even if she knew it, she wouldn't be able to run away from this place.

 She turned a frightened gaze at Yuya and asked for help.

"You don't need to talk about that guy, do you? Let's talk about something else."

"Talk about what?"

"Right... I want to gain actual combat experience. Is there any way?"

"Reason?"

"No one can beat me in a head-on fight. Then I thought I need to gain more experience to become stronger."

 Strongest in the academy. Probably, even in the whole continent, there are very few people who can compete with Yuya on an equal footing. As Yuya said, the classes at the academy had become meaningless.

"...It's not wrong. But in this situation?"

"What do you mean by this situation?"

"The escort is still going on."

 The matter of the Anti-Hero Alliance has not yet been settled for Heinz.

"It's just a formality."

"...How can you be sure that there won't be any more attacks?"

"If there is an attack, we will just turn the tables on them."

"That doesn't give you permission."

"Yes, it will."

"...No way, the church?"

 Yuya asserts that he will get permission. Heinz thought that there were grounds for doing so.

"We belong to the church. If the church allows it..."

"No. Does the Church think the Anti-Hero Alliance no longer exists?"

 If so, Heinz thinks, they are a bunch of incompetent people. This is something he has felt for a long time.

"There may be tails, but the head is gone. As an organization, it collapsed."

"Who told you that?"

"Who was it? Some of the knights."

"Talk about sloppy."

 They were actually incompetent. To make things even more troublesome, those incompetent were on Yuya's side.

"Really?"

"I heard that someone has escaped."

"Are you talking about children?"

"Children?"

 Yuya said something that Heinz had never thought of. Heinz doesn't know why the children appear here. 

"Orphans in the monastery. Those orphans killed our comrades."

"No. Those orphans didn't run away, they were captured by the guild, right?"

"Ah, yes. They said they were slaves. It's a terrible story."

"That is!?"

 When Princess Amalia heard Yuya's words, she let out a voice of surprise.

“…Is Princess Amalia interested in slaves?”

 Heinz was curious about that reaction.

"No...... I just thought it was pitiful to have a child as a slave."

"Right? I don't know the details, but it seems that Takashiro asked for that."

"Ren Takashiro-dono?"

"Yes. Slaves are prohibited in our world. And yet, he asked for slaves. He is the worst kind of person, don't you think?"

 Yuya brought up the story of the children because he wanted to say this. Princess Amalia seems to be interested in Ren, so he tries to erase her thoughts. It was jealousy.

"...In other words, the orphans who were enslaved are at Ren Takashiro-dono's place?"

"It seems so, but I don't know if it's true."

 Yuya doesn't seem to think about how he is saying Ren is the worst because of that fact or what he doesn't know.

"I see……"

“More importantly, he doesn’t need to be called with -dono. You can call him with just his name."

"……Yes"

 The conversation from that point on, the topics fly here and there as Yuya comes up with.

 He tries to brag about the good points of their former world and appeals to how great he is.

 On the other hand, he asked about the delicious food in the capital, or just about anything that might interest Princess Amalia.

 As a result, it stopped Heinz's pursuit, so it was a blessing for Princess Amalia.

◇◇◇

 It was her first time coming here, but it seemed like she would be able to get there without any obstacles.

 Even Princess Amalia, who is unfamiliar with the church capital, knows the location of the church. And the destination is behind the church.

 She went out the back side of the church through the path she had been told about. The rest is a straight road.

 As they proceed along the well-maintained sidewalk, they saw a gate that looks like the entrance to a cemetery at the end of the road. There is also a building right next to it.

 A slight tension runs between Princess Amalia and Emily.

 They hide it and step into the cemetery, looking sideways at the house standing by the side. They see a cemetery surrounded by a low wall that continues on.

 It was larger than Princess Amalia had imagined.

"For now, let's go inside."

"Yes"

 Pushed forward by Emily. They just walked back down the cobblestone passage between the gravestones. She can't see any figure at all.

"As expected, it doesn't look like they're outside."

"This means they're inside the house."

"It's not that easy to make contact with them."

"That's true. First of all, we have to confirm its existence. After that, we'll figure out what to do."

“Yes. Then we'll leave it at that."

 Saying that, Emily began to check the letters engraved on the gravestone that was there.

"Layla Hawkins. Died ten years ago. Age 42."

"...Let's say I knew her as the acquaintance of my grandmother. When she found out that she is buried in the church capital, she asked me to visit her grave."

"I understand"

 From there, they went back to the gate they came in from. Once out of the cemetery, she stands in front of the entrance of the house on the side.

"Okay, I'll go."

 With a nervous look on her face, Emily knocked on the front door. The door soon opened from the inside.

"……Huh?"

 Emily thought there was no one at the door, but soon realized she was wrong. By a voice that came from under her sight.

"Who?"

"……And you?"

 There stood a little girl who couldn't even reach Emily's waist.

"You?"

"I'm Emily. I'm here to visit a grave."

"The cemetery is not here"

"I know. I didn't know where the grave was, so I came to ask."

"I see... Ren! A visitor!"

"Eh! Ren!?"

 Emily panicked at the girl's words, but it was already too late. In response to the girl's voice, someone she didn't expect to be there comes out the front door.

"Mii. It's time for you to take a nap."

"Because there's a visitor."

"Ah, did you meet them? That's great."

"Am I great?"

"Yeah, great. I'll take care of the rest, and you can take a nap with the others."

 Ren pats Mii's head with a smile.

"What about Ren?"

 Mii, who was stroked on the head, also smiled happily.

"I'll be back when I'm done with the visitor."

"Then I'll wait."

"It's fine to wait, but sleep and wait."

"Yes!"

 After answering cheerfully, Mii trotted away into the back of the house.

"...So what's your business?"

"Um... I wanted to ask where the gravestone was."

 Emily answered Ren's question with the answer she had prepared.

"Is this your first time here?"

"Yes. I was asked by someone to come to the capital."

 This is also a story that she decided to discuss with Princess Amalia just a little while ago.

"I see. It's a common story. So, who is the person you are going to pay your respects to?"

"Layla Hawkins. What year did she die?"

"Ah, no problem. There's only one person by that name."

"...No way, everyone's name?"

 Emily is surprised by Ren's answer. She never thought he would remember the names of all the people buried in the vast cemetery she just saw.

"If you look at the tombstone every day, you will remember it even if you don't like it."

"I see"

"Then, I will guide you. Please follow me."

 The door opened wide and Ren came out. He looked back at Emily when he saw Princess Amalia, who was standing a little away from the entrance.

"Who is that person?"

"She is my master. Hawkins-san is an acquaintance of her grandmother."

"I see. Then please come with me."

“Yes. Ojousama, he will show you around."

"Yes. Please."

 Ren entered the cemetery without even looking at Princess Amalia, who thanked her. After that, the two hurriedly chased after him.

 Even after entering the cemetery, Ren didn't seem to hesitate. They are going down the same road that the two of them just walked on. And the place where he stopped was the grave of Layla Hawkins.

"Here it is"

"Thank you"

"It was close, wasn't it?"

"Eh?"

“You were in this area earlier, weren't you? If you had found it then, you wouldn't have had to go all the way back."

 A smile appeared on Ren's face. This smile was completely different from the one he was pointing at Mii earlier.

"Ah, yes. I should have searched a little harder."

"By the way, do you know who Layla Hawkins is?"

"Well, not that much. Anyway, I was just told to send flowers to her."

 There is no way she could have known. She just learned the name of the gravestone.

"It was the Ojousama who told you, wasn't it?"

"……That's right"

"Do you know Ojousama?"

 Ren turned his question to Princess Amalia.

"No, I don't know much about her, I only heard that she was the one who took care of my grandmother."

"I see. Your grandmother has been taken care of..."

 Hearing Princess Amalia's story, Ren now shows a sorrowful expression.

"What is it?"

"Nothing, it's better not to say that publicly."

"Why is that?"

 Princess Amalia is inwardly upset about what she has failed to do, but she does not let it show on her face as she asks Ren.

“Layla Hawkins was a person who aimed to master magic.”

"Oh really"

"For that reason, she was a maniac who did not hesitate to use any means necessary to achieve that, and repeatedly experimented on innocent living people."

"Eh!?"

 At the unexpected content, Princess Amalia unintentionally raises her voice in surprise.

“It seems that the purpose was to create an artificial demon, and she was conducting groundless experiments on people, such as implanting magic stones in their bodies. Naturally, there were no results, and she just piled up dead bodies. When it was discovered, she was sentenced to death.”

"...I can't believe she were that kind of person. If my grandmother heard that, I'm sure she would be sad."

"Doing your best, huh?"

 A wry smile appeared on Ren's face. He was tired of the silly charade.

"What?"

"She's such a person that she still hasn't let go of her attachments and remains in this world as a spirit."

"No way?"

"She says she doesn't know anyone from the Armstrong family, but does your grandmother really know her?"

"...Do you think I'm from the Armstrong family?"

 Princess Amalia can no longer hide her turmoil because her identity is exposed.

“Yes. I am also a student at the Church Academy. You are Her Royal Highness Amalia Armstrong of the Saint Miriam Kingdom, aren't you?"

"Yes, that's right"

 There is no point in playing dumb here. Princess Amalia affirmed Ren's question.

"And the purpose of coming here is to meet the children."

“…Why do you think so?”

“You are the one who will be in trouble if you tell the reason.”

"Why would I be in trouble?"

 In this regard, Princess Amalia shows off. She does not understand that it is useless to Ren.

"Because those children were raised by the Anti-Hero Alliance."

"I did not know that"

"No, you should have heard about this just the other day. Have you forgotten it?"

"You……"

 Just as Ren said, Princess Amalia came to this place after listening to Yuya just the other day.

"You know what I'm talking about, don't you?"

"No. I don't know."

"...Troublesome woman"

 Ren is getting irritated with Princess Amalia, who continues to make meaningless pleasantries.

"What!? You're rude!"

 Emily, the maid, complained loudly to Ren.

"It came out. It's always the same as what your subordinates say. As soon as you hear a little snide remark, I'm rude."

 In a sense, Ren shows a look of boredom at the development as expected.

"You!"

 His attitude further stimulates Emily.

"The reaction is the same. I don't have time for such promises. So let me make this clear."

"What?"

“The children are mine. I have no intention of lending what belongs to me to anyone else. I will not even allow you to touch them, much less allow them to be destroyed by anyone who thinks of destroying them."

"...You're in a position to say that after you enslave the children?"

"I am in a position to say so. At least I'm in a better position than you, who stood by and did not get your hands dirty or put your life in danger."

"I-I..."

 Princess Amalia's voice trembles at Ren's scathing criticism. It's not so much a fear of criticism as it is a fear that Ren knows that she is associated with the Anti-Hero Alliance.

“Let alone someone who tries to take advantage of children. That means you don't see the children as objects to be loved."

"...Are you saying you can love them?"

"I do, but whether I can love them or not is another matter. I only keep them because someone asks me to. I promised, and I will keep my promise. I will not let them die for nothing."

 The reason Ren is protecting the children is because that is the promise he made to Kazuki. Ren has no intention of breaking that promise.

"……I see."

"Don't come here again. Don't try to contact the children. If you break it..."

"What if I break it?"

 She never gave in to threats. Princess Amalia showed such an attitude.

"I will reveal what you are trying to do to the remnants of the Anti-Hero Alliance of the former monastery."

“…………”

 Ren's words were completely unexpected. Princess Amalia freezes at those words. She had expected him to at least tell the church that she was a member of the Anti-Hero Alliance.

"In that case, I don't need evidence, right? Many of them are fanatics. How would they react to a traitor? I'd like to see that."

"...I understand. I will never touch the children again."

 As Ren said. As a traitor, Princess Amalia thought, they would be relentless in their attempts on her life. With this thought, Princess Amalia no longer had a chance.

"Then that's fine"

"How much do you know?"

"Nothing. I don't know anything that would surprise you."

"I see."

 Princess Amalia is not stupid enough to take Ren's word for it.

 Ren is saying this. He knows something that the people of this world take for granted but does not inform the hero candidates.

 From Princess Amalia's point of view, it was the same as saying that he knew everything.