Stupid Heroes ~We Draft Candidates~ (WN): Chapter 37

 

Chapter 37: Second Attack

 After school, Ren unusually remains in the classroom. He just stood by the window and stared out.

 Kazuki and the others, who didn't go home because Ren was still there, hesitated to talk to Ren, and were not able to spend as much time as they wanted to.

"...Pulled out. That's not good."

 Such a mutter suddenly leaked out of Ren's mouth.

"What do you mean, not good?"

 The answer to Kazuki's question was a loud bursting sound from outside and a vibration that shook the window.

"What!?"

 Kazuki and the others rush to the window in a hurry. What caught Kazuki's eyes were the figures of people scurrying about near the main gate.

"...A suicide bomber?"

"Looks like it."

"Anybody hurt?"

"It's hard to tell from here, but maybe two or three people got hit?"

"No way..."

 Kazuki is stunned to learn that there were casualties in the attack.

"It's too early to grieve. Some people should be saved if they receive treatment quickly."

"...That's right, we have to help."

 After hearing Ren's words, Kazuki pulls herself together and heads to the scene.

"Even if Kazuki doesn't do it, the doctor is already on his way."

 Ren held her back. Ren knows that a medical team has been stationed at the academy in preparation for an attack. The team should already be in motion.

"I see... that's good."

"Well then, I think I'll go home."

"Eh?"

 From Ren's words, Kazuki understood why Ren remained in the classroom for today.

"...Did you know?"

"What are you talking about?"

"Don't take me for a fool! Did you know there was an attack today!?"

 Kazuki was directing a harsh gaze at Ren. This is the first time this has happened since they started talking.

"...What if it is?"

"Why didn't you tell everyone about it!? It would have saved their lives!"

"I have no obligation to—"

 Ren couldn't speak until the end. Before that, Kazuki's hand slapped Ren's cheek as hard as it could.

"……Ouch."

"It hurts even more for someone who's been hit by the attack!"

"...I bet it does."

"They could die, you know!?"

"So what?"

 No matter how loud Kazuki appealed, it didn't reach Ren's heart.

"What do you..."

"Everyone dies, and I don't think dying is a bad thing."

"No, it's not."

"Is it better to live in a dirty world?"

"……That's right"

 Kazuki hesitates a little when answering this question from Ren. Kazuki had wanted to die many times before. Still, she returned the affirmation with her mouth.

"Then you should live. I'm not recommending that you die."

"That's not what I'm saying. Why doesn't Ren care about people? Why don't you try to help people who might die?"

"I don't care because it's not worth it. I don't help because I would be happier if I died."

"No way..."

"Do you understand?"

“I don’t know. I don't want to understand. How am I supposed to live with myself if Ren says that to me!?"

 For Kazuki, Ren is her emotional support. She admires Ren's strong feeling to push himself through no matter what people around him say. If even Ren thinks it would be better for him to die, she wonders about herself.

"Ha?"

 Ren, who doesn't understand Kazuki's feelings, doesn't understand why those words come out.

"If you say that dying is happier, I can't live."

"...Is it hard to live?"

"...Yes, that's right."

"Do you want to die?"

"Sometimes"

 Different from the previous answer. Kazuki affirmed her desire to die.

"You're misunderstanding one thing"

"What?"

"I don't care if people die, but I don't want to die myself. No, I do want it, but I will never take my own life, and I will try to live in any situation. ”

"...You want to die, but do you mean you won't die?"

 While having a desire to die, Kazuki is also living. But Ren's words are different from her own. Kazuki cannot die. It is not a strong feeling like Ren's.

"Yes"

"Why?"

"I'm stubborn. I hate being born in such a disgusting world. But I don't want to run away. That's why I will live."

 Like this. Ren doesn't really know why he is so determined to live. Perhaps [willfulness] is the only word he can think of.

"......May I ask why you hold a grudge?"

"What do you get out of knowing that?"

"I want to know Ren's sorrow."

"Sorrow is an exaggeration. But that's okay. It's nothing to hide. Some people know."

"Then tell me."

 Tension spreads in Kazuki's heart as she wonders if she can see a little of Ren's true feelings.

“The reason why I hold a grudge is simple. My parents always feared me. I was born into this world, but my parents never loved me."

“…………”

"My mother almost killed me when she told me that this monster wasn't her child."

"No way..."

"I didn't want to be killed, so I killed her instead."

"Eh!?"

"I am a criminal who killed my own mother. Nevertheless, the police decided that I would never do such a thing when I was a child, and they didn't charge me. It's a strange world. They let murderers go free."

“…………”

 Kazuki was left speechless by Ren's shocking confession. The same goes for Kou and the others who are listening to this.

"I don't want to lose because I'm shunned by such an abnormal world. That's why I'll live at all costs."

"...That's from our original world, right? This world might be different."

"It's the same. Humans are humans in this world, or humans are rotten. They are no different from humans in our original world."

"I see……"

 Kazuki doesn't know what Ren's basis for saying that is. But Ren knows a lot she doesn't know. Kazuki thought that if Ren said so, he must be right.

"I don't want you to get your hopes up about me. It's useless. I am a murderer. I can kill people, but I can't save them."

"...I killed someone too."

"Eh?"

 Even Kaauki made a surprising statement.

"The child in my womb."

“…………”

"I don't even know who the father was. I killed my own child. Just like Ren's mother."

"...Why, that's?"

 Ren thinks that it's not something that should be discussed on purpose here.

"Hearing Ren's story, I thought I was also being hated by my child."

"But that doesn't mean you need to talk about it."

“…I want Ren to know. I have always regretted having an abortion. It wasn't what my ex did that made me suffer. It was the fact that I killed my child."

“…………”

"Now I can see that clearly. By lamenting that I was deceived and had a terrible experience, I was trying to forget the fact that I killed my child."

“…………”

 With his eyebrows frowning, Ren listened to Kazuki in silence.

"I'm sorry. Ren. Forgive me."

"...Those are not the words you should be saying to me."

 Ren finally opened his mouth to Kazuki who apologized to him.

"But I'm sure Ren's mother too."

"You are not my mother!"

"……Sorry"

"...I'm going home. I hate you. Don't come near me again."

"……Sorry"

 Glancing at Kazuki with a cold gaze, Ren left the classroom. It was the first time for everyone to see Ren's attitude up to this point. Partly due to the heroicness of the confession, everyone stood stunned.

"Fumu. It looks normal. But it doesn't matter."

 In the midst of such tension, a voice came through.

"Ah... you are"

 Knowing that it was Luna, Kazuki opened her mouth.

"It's settled. I'll make you a candidate for Ren's mistress."

"Eh?"

 Kazuki was surprised to hear these one-sided words.

"I'm going to make you his mistress."

"But he hates me."

 Kazuki's feelings are expressed when she is told that she is a candidate for a mistress and does not refuse it.

"Ren said he didn't like it."

"Yes, he said it clearly."

“Ren has no interest in others. I don't think you can say you don't like someone and not say you don't like an individual."

 The opposite of love is not hate, but indifference. That's what Luna is saying.

"That's what Ren said to me."

"It's better not to expect too much. You are only a reserve."

“…………”

"Then it's goodbye."

 After saying something quite rude, Luna chased after Ren. Instead of her rudeness, she softened the atmosphere.

"......What was that?"

 Riko, who had been frozen for a long time, opened her mouth.

"I don't know what it is either."

“Is Kazuki a candidate for Ren’s mistress?”

"No, that's... she's joking."

“I hope so. But, Ren and Kazuki, what kind of life are you two leading?”

 Riko thought she knew about Kazuki, but she had never heard of the abortion.

"I'm just an idiot. But about Ren... is it true?"

"I have no way of knowing. Even if it's true, it's self-defense, right?"

"That's right."

"I'm still shocked."

"Yes..."

 The fact that he killed someone, for whatever reason, is shocking. It's a world far away from their own.

"But it's not just Ren, I'm sure other people will kill someone someday."

 Manami has denied that thought. Hero candidates are training their skills for fighting, in other words, for killing people.

"Ara, Manami is actively defending him. Do you want to be Ren's mistress too?"

"No. Ren looked really sad when he was talking, so I feel sorry for him."

“I thought so too. It must be hard for him to have to kill her mother."

 Ren spoke lightly, but both Manami and Kou read his inner feelings. Putting aside whether it was actually true or not, the two of them felt that way.

"You're just a good-natured person. To have sympathy for a murderer."

"Riko!"

"I was just telling the truth. I'm not saying it's bad. Just the problem."

"Problem?"

"I wonder if those feelings will ever reach Ren."

"""…………"""

 No one could answer Riko's question.

◇◇◇

 Even though it's right near the main gate, it's a crime within the academy. The shock was great. The raid site is noisy with people moving around.

 Even so, the church knights who acted as escorts were just moving around. The assailant blew himself up and turned into pieces of meat. The only thing the knights can do now is to solidify the surroundings so as not to allow further attacks. Even if they knew there would be no subsequent attacks.

 The ones who were really busy moving around were some of the people who were treating the wounded.

"...For the time being, we'll treat the slightly injured."

"Yes, I understand"

"Don't forget to make sure they are not injured by the fragments."

"……Yes"

 With the doctor's words, Shizuru's excited expression suddenly darkened.

 The doctor didn't mean to be sarcastic, he was just kindly telling her what to be careful about. The doctor with that kind of feeling didn't notice Shizuru's depression and started treating the injured.

"Same as last time. The wound remains, so I can see where the fragments are."

"But doctor, you can't keep him from bleeding any longer, right?"

"...That's right. Surprisingly, it was right last time."

 Blood will continue to flow if the wound is not closed. If you want to prevent them from bleeding to death, it's effective to close all the wounds once and re-incision only the necessary parts. In other words, the treatment will be the same as before.

"Would you like to close it with healing magic in the same way?"

"If we do that, we won't be able to locate the fragments."

"Let's remember where it is and close it up afterward."

"But then we don't have time to check the deep places. At this rate, he'll die."

 If he bleeds to death at this rate, there is no choice but to close it. As a doctor, rather than worrying about the future, he must avoid death now.

"Then?"

"Yeah, healing magic."

"I understand"

 With the doctor's permission, the assistant, who is also a healer, cast magic on the injured person. The burn heals and the wound closes up in no time.

"Okay, mark it now."

"Yes"

 The assistant marks the place where the wound was. The doctor quickly moves on to removing the fragments, tracing over the cleanly closed skin to see where the fragments are located.

"...This is not that deep."

 Even from the top of his skin, he could feel the hardness of the buried metal. Without hesitation, the doctor cuts the spot open lengthwise with a knife. He then inserted his finger through the cut and removed the piece of metal.

"Okay, next."

 The doctor knows that speed is the key to this treatment. He immediately set about removing the next one. When he succeeded, the doctor called out to his assistant.

"Cover it up."

"Yes"

 The assistant casts another healing magic. The knife wound was closed up nicely.

"It looks like he is going to be saved."

 Shizuru called out to the doctor who was continuing the treatment.

"...Is the treatment over?"

“Yes. It's just the minor ones."

"I see"

"How many are left?"

“…………”

 The doctor answers Shizuru's question with silence.

"Doctor?"

"...Can you do the same thing as him?"

"He"

"The one who treated last time."

"What do you mean, the same thing?"

"Can you find out where the debris is?"

"...But doctor, right now."

 She can't. If she could, Shizuru would proudly tell him.

“If it is shallow, I can tell by the feel of my hand. But if it's too deep, I can't feel it."

"What was the purpose of the markings? That should tell us."

"There is a vital spot on a person's body where a single thrust will kill them."

"That's……"

"It's good, I have to try anyway."

 He will do as much as he can. Deciding so, the doctor begins to move his hand again. He then takes out two fragments from his body and instructs healing magic.

 That was it. The doctor's hand suddenly stopped.

"Doctor?"

"...I can't do any more. The position is close to the vital point. I don't know the depth at all."

"If you cut it, you might be able to tell."

"Don't say irresponsible things. What will you do when he died?"

"But he'll die if the fragment remains buried."

“Not necessarily. There is a chance he could live."

 He doesn't know where the fragment is buried. He doesn't know whether he will live or die.

"That's just irresponsible."

 Shizuru blames him for that, but she soon learns that it is this attitude that is to blame.

"Then you try it."

"Eh?"

“If you fail, the patient will die. Do you understand the weight of that? If you want to accuse me of irresponsibility, first show me that you can."

“…………”

"Hey, let's take him to the hospital. Let him rest for a while and see what happens."

 When Shizuru fell silent, the conversation ended and the doctor, along with his assistant, carried the unconscious hero candidate on a stretcher.

 Shizuru couldn't stop it. She just stood there and watched.

 He was moved to a carriage that was parked outside the main gate. After that, he will be taken to the hospital by horse-drawn carriage.

 When the carriage started moving, Shizuru decided to return to the classroom. Looking back, Shizuru sees a male student staring at the main gate from a distance.

"...Ren? Ren!"

 Without giving a single thought to Shizuru who called his name, Ren left the place.

◇◇◇

 The regular debriefing session from the Church Knights was wrapped in a heavy atmosphere.

 The deputy commander, who stood up while reporting, was sweating heavily from his forehead in a room that shouldn't have been hot.

"The culprit is one person. Since he blew himself up, nothing has been found to identify him."

"I don't believe he is carrying something like that."

 Heinz returns a light sarcasm to the deputy commander's report.

“Yes. I think so, too. We were caught completely off guard by the fact that he entered through the main gate so brazenly."

“Your words are strange. How can you be caught off guard when he entered brazenly?"

 Furthermore, Heinz points out the contradiction in his words.

"……That's."

 The line of sight of the deputy commander turns to the knight commander sitting next to him. The knight commander, who is being looked at, looks unconcerned and remains motionless with his eyes closed and his arms crossed.

"Why don't you just admit it honestly? You were being careless."

"……Yes, that's right"

"But there's more to it than that."

"What is it?"

"Don't play stupid. I know that the guard at the main gate left."

 Everyone here already knows that there was movement in the guards before the attack. This makes Heinz even more grumpy.

"We didn't let them go completely"

“Are you saying that you just reduced the number of guards?”

"...There's a reason for that."

 It seems that was the intention. The deputy commander tried to come up with another excuse.

“The Class A hero candidates are going home, so you posted guards over them.”

"……That's right"

 Heinz said it first.

"The opening was exploited and the main gate was broken through, causing casualties."

"There were no victims."

"...There will most likely be more victims in the future."

 Treatment was interrupted midway. Heinz has heard this information as well.

"No, he would return without problems."

"How can you say that? The academy's doctor said he wasn't completely cured."

"Additional treatment was then performed and all the fragments were removed."

"...By whom?"

 Heinz wondered how the treatment, once given up, could be resumed.

"Wouldn't it be the doctors at the hospital?"

"...You mean you don't know?"

 The deputy commander did not have the answer Heinz sought.

"Whoever treated him, it doesn't change the fact that there were no victims."

“So the Church Knights have no responsibility?”

"What responsibility could we possibly have?"

“…Are you underestimating us thinking that we are students?”

"N-no, nothing like that."

 The deputy commander's voice is trembling as Heinz looks at him harshly. If this is the case, it would be better not to make a bullish statement from the beginning.

"Not you. I'm asking the Commander."

"...Nothing like that."

 As expected, the knight commander doesn't seem to be dismayed like the deputy commander.

"Explain what kind of measures you plan to take against this blunder."

"It is not a blunder. Our knights are properly fulfilling their duties."

"How can you be doing your duty if you let the attack happen?"

"Only the dropouts were attacked."

"What did you say?"

"Our mission is to protect the hero candidates. We are not here to protect the dropouts who can't be a hero."

 Because they thought like this, they can move the escorts without hesitation.

“…Are you serious?”

"Of course."

"If that's the case, we're not talking in the Knights. I'll make a protest against the church."

 The knight commander's idea is not acceptable to Heinz.

"What is the reason for your protest?"

"The church has an obligation to protect the hero candidates. It is unforgivable to abandon it."

"I'm protecting the hero candidates."

"Everyone summoned is a hero candidate!"

"That's your opinion. I don't want to be forced into it."

 This would be the last strong words of the Knight Commander. He was only a man of authority in the limited world of the Church Knights.

"Ara, does the church have an opinion?"

 Princess Milianea raises her doubts about the commander's remarks.

"……What do you mean?"

"Whether or not we choose a hero is up to us, the bidders. The church does not have the right to decide."

"That's……"

 It's just as Princess Milianea says. The bidder decides who to bid on. The church can't decide if one is not a hero candidate.

"Yes. I think so too."

"What……"

 Princess Grace agrees with Princess Milianea's point. The real nature of Princess Grace, who still looks very young and quiet, will be revealed at once from here.

"And I've been wondering about it for a while. Do you mind if I say it?"

"I do not mind"

"You are the knight commander, are you not?"

"That's right"

"How dare a knight commander treat me, Princess of Luine, with such disrespect?"

"Wha?"

"I'm a royalty, even if I'm a child, I can't be looked down on by a knight commander in another country. It's the same as Luine Kingdom being looked down upon."

“…………”

 The knight commander, who had looked at her as a child, was completely struck by the royal authority that Princess Grace exuded. The shock was great as he was taken by surprise.

"Do you know what that means?"

"...Ha"

 The anger of Princess Grace is the anger of the Luine Kingdom. Princess Grace's protest is the Luine Kingdom's protest. A threat not to take lightly.

"It's fine. Then, can you answer Ruben-dono's question?"

“…I will increase the number of knights on duty.”

"That's all?"

"...If I strengthen the defense, the attackers will not be able to get close."

"Is that so? Somehow, it seemed like you were thinking about a lot more things before."

"That's……"

"Ah, I beg our pardon. That wasn't a report from the church knights, was it?"

“…………”

 In addition, Princess Grace was even sarcastic with the knight commander. The knight commander, even though he knew it was sarcasm, couldn't complain anymore.

“Knight commander. I am not satisfied with your solution. Can you take it back to your office and come up with a satisfactory solution?"

"……I understand."

"I can't wait too long. You understand that, right?"

"Ha"

"Well, let's finish for today. I'm looking forward to the next time."

 The meeting was completely ended by Princess Grace. Heinz has a surprised expression on it. Princess Milianea smiled wryly.

"It's amazing. As expected of the Princess of the Luine Kingdom"

 Princess Milianea calls out to Princess Grace.

"No, I am not. Compared to my brother, I can only lament my lack of talent."

“His Highness the Crown Prince.”

"Yes. My brother is suitable for the next king of the Luine Kingdom, no, he is called a virtuous ruler. Maybe in the Luine Kingdom, it may be narrow for my brother."

 Princess Grace speaks provocatively. The attitude she showed to the knight commander is plain.

"That's... no, it's fine. It's a pity, if he's such a wonderful person, I definitely wanted to meet him."

"If you come to our country, you can meet him."

"That's why I said it's a pity. I will not bend my knees to the Luine Kingdom, no, I will not be allowed to visit."

 Princess Milianea was no less determined.

"What about that?"

"No"

 Their gazes cross.

"Ah, both of you. I'm sorry, but can we leave it at that? I'm not used to the horror of women."

 Heinz, who was sandwiched between the two, interrupted the conversation to calm the situation.

"I guess you just haven't seen it yet"

"Yeah, that's definitely true."

"……That is?"

“All royal women are the same. Ruben-dono’s fiancé was also a member of the royal family, right?”

"Is that so? I didn't know."

"...Let's leave it at that. That would be good."

 His fiancé is different from these two. Heinz sincerely hoped that it would be so.