I woke up on my bed, Lae was sleeping on the floor, I felt sorry for her, she could have returned to her room. Well, I guess she chose it herself.

I woke her up and we went to the empty tavern, we were the only ones there yet.

After a little while, Oliver came, then Erian and Mark was the last one to come, he looked quite terrible, he probably didn't sleep much that night.

The silence filled the room, how embarrassing.

I looked at Erian, she was looking on the floor, I didn't like her, but I needed to thank her for last night, what group leader would I be if I didn't?

“Hey, Erian, thank you for helping me out last night.”

She looked at me with a neutral expression.

“It's my duty.”

Her voice was polite but cold.

Alua entered the room with two soldiers that brought us fruits on a platter as breakfast.

As we began to eat, Alua started talking.

“I have a few announcements to make: first, an escort is heading here from Hoss in a flying ship, it will take two days for them to arrive, they will then escort us to Hoss, you will take refuge here in the meanwhile.

Second, we decided to change the leader of your party, mister David demonstrated good capabilities as a leader, but he seemed to lose his cool easily in tough situations, he also failed to protect one of the members and the fact that he uses the demonic attribute wouldn't look good in the eyes of the populace. Therefore, we decided to appoint mister Mark as a party leader for the time being.”

Her words hit me hard, I wasn't the leader anymore, I just threw away everything that I built these past few months.

I clenched my fists in anger.

It couldn't be helped though, it was the result of a choice I made, I had to make the best of what I had. After all, even if I wasn't the leader anymore, it didn't mean I couldn't influence the group.

Alua continued to talk.

“Also, the people that attacked us yesterday were identified as assassins from Zaven. You probably already heard rumors about a possible war, they were true, and yesterday's action was the last nail in the coffin, now a war is inevitable.

You have now the minimum degree of strength to not die immediately to medium-level warriors, so I will request you, as heroes chosen by the goddess, to show your presence in front of the populace to give them the courage to protect us. Both Hoss and the empire will participate, so I am asking this to you too, mister Mark. You, saintess, will also have granted the request you made to the church, you will have your personal medical camp and you will have the permission to heal allied soldiers and civilians from both factions.

You heroes will be well protected, and Zaven won't have occasions like the one for yesterday, I also doubt they will risk their best assassins for you, instead of aiming for the strategists or commanders, so don't be afraid. That is the minimum I will ask of you, but if you feel ready, it would help the soldiers to see you fight by their side, although we would make it so that you fight in a favourable spot. I won't force you if you don't feel ready to kill other people, but it would help us, and you also would have the chance to participate in killing the wounded, gaining easy strength from their souls, what do you want to do?”

I was the first to speak.

“Let's fight.”

Everyone looked at me.

“We will probably have to face other wars in the future, this is an occasion to experience it first-handed without risking too while and also having the occasion to gain a lot of power.”

No one else said anything.

Oliver was the second one to speak.

“I don't like the idea of killing people, but I'll adapt if I have to.”

Mark was silent, he was looking down and I couldn't see his face. After a bit, I heard his voice.

“Power? What do we even need it for? Why do we have to go there and kill people..... I don't want to do that if I'm not sure I can protect the people I love with that power. I want us to refrain from fighting people, actually, I would prefer not to fight anymore at all....... I don't know what I have to do anymore.....”

He looked at me, his face was distorted in a grin, tears were streaming down his cheeks and his voice was broken by his sobbing.

“Why do I have to be the leader and decide...... I too couldn't protect Jane, I can't do it okay. I can't be the leader, I can't be the one that has to protect the others........ I don't want to fight anymore.”

Everyone stayed silent, I didn't know what to say either. Seeing him like this made me feel strange.

I was happy that he wasn't feeling confident as a leader since like this I could try to maintain my influence, but seeing the only person I respected break like this also left a shitty taste. As stupid as he was the sanest person I knew, seeing him lose his combat spirit was really sad.

It couldn't be helped though, that's how naivety works, one day or another he would have to face reality and realize that the world was a shit.

I still had the chance to direct him in the right direction though.

I was about to speak but Alua was faster.

“We choose you because we thought you could do it, so you shouldn't doubt yourself, mister Mark. But I understand that you need time to get over your recent loss, you don't need to give me your answer now, you can think about it, I'll be waiting.”

After having said that, she went outside.

Now it was my time to speak.

“You don't have to bring upon yourself the weight for Jane's death, it's something that happens during wars, and if someone has to be blamed, it is me. I tried to save her by using my demonic mana, but when I told her to stay still since she didn't trust me after I betrayed her trust, she instead jumped into a mine. Willing or not, we'll have to face similar situations in the future, if we don't become as strong as we can something like this may happen again, that's the kind of world we are in.”

“A world like this........”

His tears stopped, he suddenly smiled and restarted to talk.

“Right, if we somehow return to our world no one will have to die anymore, we won't have to fight, and we could be ha-”

“That wasn't what I meant, even in our previous world we would have to fight, only in a different way. In the end, we would have to strive all the same to be happy, most would fail, and continue to live while bearing the weight of failure. Here, at least, we can understand who our enemy is and fight them face to face.

What I meant is that irrational things like murder happens and will continue to happen, and to fight them, we can only become stronger than anyone, and to become stronger than anyone, we have to commit such acts ourselves, that's just the nature of the world. Everyone else also knows it, and, sooner or later, they will come at us. Mark, get yourself together and fight with me, and, one day, we will be able to change the nature of this world. I want you by my side, no...... I need you by my side Mark”

I stretched my hand towards him.

He looked at my hand, without moving a muscle.

“A world like that..... that's madness.”

I lifted my stretched arm.

“Exactly.”

And slapped Mark in the face.

“The others will attack you, just like this, then they'll try to take everything away from you, or just have fun while watching you suffer, and at that moment you will have to react and fight.”

I slapped him again.

“Or you won't be able to protect yourself.”

He still didn't show any aggressive reaction.

“I don't care about myself.”

I was about to slap him again, but then I remembered what kind of person he was.......or wanted to be.

“Right, I forgot you were like this.”

I raised my hand again, but this time there was demonic ki imbued in it, and then punched myself.

Marked jumped on his feet.

“David, What are you doing?!”

I made demonic ki flow through my whole body.

“You feel this ki? It's demonic ki, it while slowly hurt my body, and I have no intention of expending it, I'll just let it flow until I exhaust it that way, not unless you fight me.”

“What are you thinking!?”

“I told you, you won't be able to protect what you hold dear unless you fight, so now fight me, and accept this world for what it is.”

He looked at me, then closed his eyes for a few seconds.

“I refuse a world like that.”

I said nothing and raised the demonic ki I was circulating.

Mark raised his hands.

I stepped forward.

“Wait.”

Erian butted in.

“Why do you have to fight now? It doesn't make any sense. Just let Mark rest, he needs time to surpass the loss.”

'Tch, always so annoying.'

“We don't have that time now, we have to always keep getting stronger, there's no time for grief.”

I also wanted Mark to be motivated to fight again and choose to participate in the war, and I hoped that imitating the manga we liked could help him. In those mangas sometimes it happened that the protagonist regained his motivation thanks to the rival forcing him to fight him, I was trying to imitate that.

“We have, why are you so stubborn into fighting in the war? Just let him be and don't try to force him to kill people, just go kill some monsters if you want to fight that much. Also, don't you know what you're saying? You're saying you need to kill people, to kill living beings with families that pray for their safety, just to alleviate your paranoia. I know that the world can be harsh, but saying that everyone is evil is as naïve as saying that everyone is good, you're a fool.”

'So irritating.'

“They're soldiers, they knew it could happen when they enlisted, and they would probably die anyway. Also, I think that almost everyone is mad, it's different from being evil, an evil person knows what they're doing. I think that can be changed though, but to do it, we need power, and to get it, we need to take it from others, that's how it works.”

She looked at me with a disgusted look.

“A fool like you can't change anything, you will only make things worse. I shouldn't have healed you.”

I didn't reply to her and looked at Mark.

“The ki is circulating, what will you do?”

He clenched his teeth and raised his guard.

I moved forward and started attacking him, I used only punches and kicks, I didn't use any grab.

He used his holy and earth ki to reinforce his defence and continued to block without fighting back.

I stopped the attack, stood a few steps away from him, and said:

“Have you forgotten? I can only use raw ki to regenerate wounds and reinforce my defence, and if I use raw ki I'll have less demonic ki. Why aren't you hitting me? You think you can protect others with only that level of determination?”

I raised the quantity of demonic ki I was circulating in my body.

Mark clenched his teeth again, he then threw a punch at me.

I smiled and blocked the strike, it was quite weak, but it was something.

I started exchanging blows with Mark, he started becoming more and more aggressive.

“Good, that's what I wanted to see, show me your determination.”

I started fighting seriously, I didn't use any spell, but I started to also use fire ki and dodge the heavier attacks.

I dodged a left jab with a side-dash, I threw a straight, and mark, instead of blocking, took the punch and also hit me with a straight.

We hit each other at the same time.

We both staggered, but the one that regained himself first was Mark, and he threw a powerful punch, stopping it at one inch from my face. I stopped circulating demonic ki.

“Good job there, that's what you have to have at all times, fearlessness, determination, and ruthlessness, that's how you protect the ones you love. You always had the first two, but you lacked the third. I want to rely on you from now on, and I want you to rely on me, are we in this together?”

He took a deep breath, raised his head high, and said:

“I still don't believe the world is as twisted as you think it is, but we are indeed in a difficult situation, we are in a world where there are people that can level to the ground mountains with kicks, we need the power to protect our friends, we are in this together, and I also want to participate in the war, I'll show you I can become a hero that can protect us.”

I smiled, happy that my plan worked. Mark then lowered his head and continued to talk.

“But I don't think I'm fit to be a party leader. You just showed it to me, I'm still not ready for it, you're the fittest one for now.”

He then raised his head again and showed a smile.

“But I will surely surpass you one day, that day I will be the one cheering you up.”

My smile changed, this smile seemed strange and uncomfortable, but I knew this smile was a sincere one, I forced myself to not suppress it.

“I look forward to that day.”

We were now both smiling while looking at each other.

“What the fuck are you smiling now!”

Erian chimed in again.

“Mark, you can't be serious, do you know what you are saying? You are going to war, fighting to subjugate a country, killing innocents, and subjecting them to the rule of an empire that considers them inferior, and you smile like it's none of your busyness. What the fuck is wrong with you? That's not the Mark I know.”

Mark kept smiling and looked at her.

“I'm sorry you don't like it, I don't like it either, but it's the fastest way to get stronger, I would be powerless if I didn't, wouldn't I? Zaven also collaborated with the Hollow, didn't it? I guess someone has to do something about it.”

“You would do that just to not be powerless?

….......

I misjudged you, I thought you cared about others, but it seemed you too are like everyone else, I really am alone after all.”

She now had a lonely expression, I felt a little displeasure seeing that, but I couldn't do anything.

She continued to talk.

“And that thing about the hollows, the empire is not te-”

Alua entered the room.

“We prepared something to help you pass the time, here are some cards.”

She put a deck of cards on the table, then looked at Erian.

“Books will also be delivered shortly in your rooms if you want to read them.”

Erian bit her lips, then said.

“Whatever, I'm only wasting my breath.”

She went out of the room, and I saw tears gathering in her eyes when she did.

Now there was only one last thing to do.

“Mark, about being the party leader, you should be the one doing it, you were the one that was chosen, after all.”

“But...”

“Don't worry I'll be supporting you from the side, I'll help with the battle plans and I will act as an advisor when we have to make a decision, you don't have to shoulder everything yourself, we're in this together.”

Why be the one in the spotlight when you can control the scene from behind the curtains?

I didn't plan to use Mark as a puppet, he would be the leader that guided us into battle and the face of the party, but I would be the one making the decisions. That was the optimal course for everyone, I was sure Mark would understand, I planned to talk with him about it the next time we were alone.

I would be the mind, and Mark would be the arm like this no one could stop us, and no one could undermine my grip on the party.

I ended up turning things around and realizing my goal with a single move.

I smiled and started to make plans in my head.