How To Leave The Hero Party- Chapter 16

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Translated By Arcane Translations
Translator: Xrecker
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Claire flinched at my cold response. Seeing her at a loss, I gestured behind her. The people waiting in line looked awkward.

This was why I disliked traveling with them.

The title “Hero’s Party” carried so much weight that people were hesitant to approach them.

It hadn’t mattered much in the game, but in reality, it was a problem.

“We can talk later.”

“O- Oh…”

Claire nodded and joined the back of the line. The others, relieved, quickly received their meals. After a while,

Claire approached me, mess tin in hand.

“Um… you’re going to eat dinner, right…?”

“Of course.”

“Can I… join you?”

“Sure.”

I filled my own mess tin with soup, bread, and stir-fried meat and headed towards a table. Claire followed and sat down, nervously glancing at me. She took a bite of the soup and smiled faintly.

“Delicious… Just like the food you used to make…”

Claire ate slowly, savoring each bite. We ate in silence for a while, until Claire finally spoke.

“Are you… ever going to forgive us?”

I dipped a piece of bread into the soup and looked at her. Seeing the anxiety in her eyes, I smiled.

“No.”

“…Oh.”

“The only reason I’m even talking to you now is because you were just a bystander back then.”

“I- Is that so…?”

“But if you try to mediate now…”

–Stab!

I pierced a piece of meat with my fork, then popped it into my mouth and chewed thoughtfully.

“…you become an accomplice.”

Claire seemed surprised by my bluntness. I watched her wavering orange eyes, then took another bite of my bread.

“Besides, our relationship is over. To rebuild it, we need to establish a new dynamic.”

“…Right…?”

“And I have no intention of rebuilding it. Your attempts are burdensome.”

Claire fell silent, fidgeting nervously under my gaze.

After finishing our meal, I stood up.

“I don’t see Evangeline around.”

“Ah… about that…”

Claire hesitated, unsure what to say. I had been curious to see how much she had changed, considering the rumors of her complete transformation.

“Do you… miss her?”

“Not really.”

She would be fine.

Claire seemed surprised by my lack of concern. As she hesitated, I placed my mess tin in the bin and returned to the command tent.

The sky darkened, and the crimson moon, a symbol of Hardcore Mode, rose.

If the White Moon Cult’s goal was to replace the Red Moon with a White Moon, lowering the difficulty, I might have considered supporting them. But that wasn’t the case, so I had to stop them…

“How long are you planning to follow me?”

“Huh? Oh…”

“Do you have something else to say?”

“Well… Hyun-woo… I… um… Hyun-woo…”

“What.”

“…You’re still… willing to listen…”

“Like I said, you were just a bystander.”

Claire’s expression crumpled. I looked at her, then smiled and patted her shoulder.

“So, there’s no need for me to be angry at you.”

Of course,

The other two were a different story.

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As Hyun-woo, his words sharp and dismissive, entered the command tent, Claire bit her lip hard.

He considered her a bystander, and therefore, wouldn’t hold her accountable.

But what about Leventia and Evangeline?

Claire sighed heavily and walked towards the edge of the encampment. Reaching a secluded area where few people ventured, she cautiously opened the flap of a tent and closed her eyes.

“Heh… hehehe… hehehehehe…”

Inside, a beautiful, half-naked woman lay on a cot, giggling.

A raven-haired beauty, her long, pointed ears, once her greatest pride, now partially severed. She stared blankly at the ceiling, muttering to herself.

“You truly are amazing… Ufufu… hehehe… Yes, I’ll bestow upon you the title of Honorary Elf… hehehe… ufufufufu…”

Evangeline Rootwiche.

The proud and haughty descendant of elves, whom Claire had known since childhood.

But now, she was just a pitiful woman, lost in a haze of alcohol and drugs.

“Aah… Sage… you… hehehe… ufufufu…”

Claire knew who she was seeing.

Hyun-woo.

Hyun-woo and Evangeline hadn’t been on bad terms.

In fact, they had been quite close, much to Claire and Leventia’s annoyance.

Whenever Evangeline complained about the uncomfortable sleeping arrangements, Hyun-woo had always taken extra care to make her comfortable.

Whenever she, a vegetarian, lost her appetite, he would prepare meals with fruits and vegetables he had somehow managed to find.

Knowing her love for music and songs, he would learn new pieces and play them for her.

He had always indulged her whims, almost to the point of spoiling her.

“Aah… yes… yes… I’m sorry… So… you’ll forgive me, right? Right? Hehehe… You’re so kind… Honorary Elf… no… I’ll give you a place among the elves… Wait, Hyun-woo…? Don’t they say that those who marry elves are accepted as elves? Heh… hehehehe… You would accept me, wouldn’t you? You would… you would…”

Her ecstatic ramblings trailed off. It was starting.

The side effects of the drugs and alcohol.

“Ah… aah… aaaaah…!! I- I’m sorry! I’m sorry! I’m sorry!”

Evangeline screamed, clutching her mutilated ears, her head bowed low. Her hands fumbled, searching for a dagger. Seeing her about to harm herself again, Claire rushed forward and grabbed her.

“Evangeline!”

“Let go!! Let go of me!! Let go!! What Honorary Elf?! What elf?! Aaaargh! Let go! Let go of me!!”

Tears streamed down her wide, frantic eyes. Evangeline, who had been gradually deteriorating since Hyun-woo’s departure, now seemed to despise her elven heritage.

She had mutilated her ears, the pride of any elf, and now she was trying to cut out the tongue that had spoken ill of him.

“Let go of me!!”

She had tried this several times before, but Claire had always stopped her.

Looking at Evangeline, consumed by regret and self-loathing, Claire sighed heavily.

She…

Didn’t know what to do anymore.

“Evangeline… Hyun-woo is here. Hyun-woo…”

Evangeline’s hand, reaching for the dagger, went limp. She stared at Claire blankly, then shook her head.

“That’s impossible… That’s impossible… He wouldn’t come here… to see me…”

He wouldn’t come to see her, pathetic as she was.

He wouldn’t come to see her, the arrogant fool who had abused his kindness and taken him for granted.

At first, it had been arrogance.

A mere human.

She had scoffed at him, calling himself a Sage.

Then, it had been curiosity.

He could do so much, worthy of the title “Sage.”

So, she had indulged herself, leaning on him.

Elves easily become attached to those they open their hearts to. So, she had leaned on him.

That comfort had bred possessiveness.

He was so accommodating, fulfilling her every request, that she had become comfortable, accustomed to his presence.

Her feelings for him grew, and as she realized he held a special affection for her, her arrogance blossomed.

She wanted to make it clear.

That he belonged to her, and her alone.

That he should only have eyes for her.

So, she resented his kindness towards the Hero and Leventia.

Towards anyone but her.

-If you’re going to be nice to them, pay more attention to me.

-You’re supposed to take care of me, aren’t you?

-If you keep acting like this, I won’t give you back your Honorary Elf title.

She had thought the Honorary Elf title, a great honor among elves, would be a significant reward for him.

She had thought he would stay with her until the very end.

So, Evangeline had acted selfishly.

She hadn’t realized that her selfishness would amount to nothing, that it would only lead to regret.

“Aah… that’s impossible…”

She had just… she had just wanted him…

To see only her.

But why…

Why had she become like this?

Yes.

It was because she was an elf.

An elf who looked down on humans, living a life of arrogance.

Three days after Hyun-woo’s departure, Evangeline, consumed by regret and despair, had mutilated her ears.

She had cut off her ears, the source of an elf’s greatest pride.

“Heh… hehehe… Now… now we’re the same… Hyun-woo…”

Her ears were small now.

So,

So, she would become a human, like Hyun-woo.

So… please…

But Hyun-woo didn’t return. And all she could do was…

Alcohol and drugs.

Finding solace in the memories conjured by hallucinations.

Apologizing to the hallucinations, acting cute for them, whispering words of love.

Feeling miserable and despairing, knowing it was all in her head.

There was nothing else she could do.

Even though elves were supposedly immune to intoxication and addiction.

Even though she knew the hallucinations were merely a product of her desperate longing.

Claire, watching her, felt a pang of guilt.

If she had known it would come to this, she wouldn’t have been a bystander.

If she had known, she would have done something.

She wouldn’t have shirked her responsibilities.

It was her fault the party had fallen apart, her fault Hyun-woo had been hurt.

Consumed by guilt, Claire sank to the floor, covering her face with her hands.

All of this…

Was her fault, the Hero’s fault.

She trembled, her shoulders shaking.

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As I prepared for the night’s operation, the adjutant entered the tent. His grim expression suggested something was wrong.

“What is it?”

“Um… Mr. Sage… I apologize, but…”

“Why are you apologizing? Just tell me what’s wrong.”

“Lady Leventia… insists on participating in tonight’s operation…”

“Hmm… let’s go see her.”

The adjutant and I headed towards the staging area. There, fully armed with sword and shield, stood Leventia, bowing deeply.

As the others looked on, unsure how to react to her unusual humility, I approached Leventia and said,

“What are you doing?”

“H- Hyun-woo.”

At the sound of my voice, she straightened up and knelt before me.

Knights weren’t supposed to kneel before anyone but their liege lord.

The reason Leventia was doing this…

“This won’t change what happened.”

“E- Even so… Even so… please… just… give me one more chance… To fight for you… Please? The place you’re going is very dangerous. I’ll be your shield, your sword… So please… just one… just one more chance…”

It was true that the place was dangerous, and her skills as a tank would be valuable, but…

There was no need for her to come.

“I… don’t need you.”

Despair washed over Leventia’s face.

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