Chapter 180

I heard about her past from Rose’s mouth.

I had a lot of thoughts when I found out how painful her past had been.

“Welp, time to continue with my training.”

Well, that’s just that, I’ll just continue with my training.

With that thought in mind, I stopped Nea and Ferum, who came out of their dorms sighing absently after running endlessly around the rescue squad’s training grounds since early morning the next day, and trained them in the evasion skills that I once gave to Nack.

“Nea! Ferrum! Unlike the Leader, I can’t hit fast! I know it’s not fast enough for you, but you’ll have to put up with the change of pace!”

“”Don’t be silly!””

“No questions asked! Healing Bullet!”

With the gauntlet on my right arm, and a couple of magic bullets floating around, I’ll swing them at Nea and Ferum without aiming.

Ferum and Nea are smiling coldly as they fly sideways to avoid the magic bullets of healing magic that are being shot at them.

“He didn’t hesitate to hit me with a ranged attack! It’s all good that I dodged it just in time, but—“

“I can avoid your magic bullets with ease! Blegh!”

“Oi! Why are you provoking him without thinking?

“It doesn’t matter! The current us should be able to avoid his magic bullets!”

Nea grabs up Ferum’s collar as she sticks her tongue out like a kid.

Hmmmm, I think I’m still being far too lenient.

It’s no wonder. If you’re used to Rose’s magic bullets, my magic bullets will feel as slow as a turtle.

Aside from Ferum, I’m happy to see that Nea handled the situation so well.

I guess she’s also working hard.

But I can’t have a situation where I’m not good enough to train the two of them. Guess I’ll have to get serious about training too.

“Ferum! You still don’t know anything about that idiot’s training!　You don’t understand him at all!”

“Hahaha, as expected! You’ve grown up, both of you! Then I guess it’s time to go all out!”

“Look! I knew it’s going to end up like that!”

I create a magic bullet in my right palm.

Recently, I’ve only been creating an advanced version of the healing punch, but now I’m going to practice an enhanced version of the healing magic bullet.

“First up, Ferum, better keep up!”

“Why me? No, wait, I mean come on! I can easily avoid those magic bullets!”

I grasped the magic bullet created in my palm and lightly swung it over.

It’s a rapid-fire healing magic bullet that emits a healing acceleration fist from the back of the hand.

By using instantaneous acceleration in my palm, I can dramatically increase its speed…….!

I call it—-

“Healing Acceleration Bullet!”

“Eh, it’s quite fas——–Blegh!”

The magic bullet, which is released with an acceleration in the manner of a side-throw, hits Ferum in a panic.

As soon as I saw the bullet landing, I moved my target to Nea.

Nea, who turned pale when she saw Ferum kneeling next to her after taking a direct hit from a magic bullet, hid behind Ferum and used her as a shield.

“Oi, you piece! What are you doing!”

“Be useful as a shield for a change! Why does this muscle-for-brains healing magician have so many tricks up his sleeve?”

“How dare a member of the rescue squad uses an ally as a shield?”

Nea is a member of the rescue squad, albeit a familiar.

Even if that were the case, there’s no way for a rescue squad member to use an ally as a shield, even in training.

This time, I threw a magic bullet at Nea’s forehead in the wrong direction.

“Fu- Fufu! Where are you throwing it?”

“Don’t let your guard down! Healing Remote Bullet!”

“What?”

I swung my right arm wide, bending the magic bullet just once.

It suddenly swooped down, hitting Nea’s head whilst she had a triumphant look on her face.

“Muho!”

Nea let out a strange scream, held her head and frowned for a moment, but soon looked up with a strange expression on her face.

“Ugugu…. Wait a minute, it’s not as shocking as I thought it would be.”

“Oh, now that you mention, I’m totally fine too …….”

Ferum, who had been hit first, looked at me with a surprised expression.

I smiled wryly at Nea and Ferum, who looked at me strangely.

“Of course. This is also a training exercise for me to adjust my magic power. I thought I’d train you both while also training my senses to regulate the amount of magic I have.”

This training isn’t just for Ferum and Nea, it’s also for me.

In order to reduce the amount of magic power consumed by bursting the systemic enhancement, I have to get used to manipulating the magic power.

It’s like adjusting the amount of magic power itself, so it’s a little different from Kazuki’s outstanding magic manipulation?

“Even if you get hit, you won’t get blown up, so maybe it’s easier ……?”

“It’s better than being a monster ……?”

I don’t know what they were thinking, but their expressions brightened.

They seemed to be muttering something to each other, but I couldn’t hear them at this distance. Could it be that they are thinking the same thing as …… me?

“I know what you two are thinking. I know, less shock and mental damage is a good thing.”

“Yes, it is! You didn’t do this training knowing what you were getting into, did you?”

“Yeah, you think so too? If that’s the case—-“

I nodded to the smiling Nea and created a magic bullet in my right hand.

The impact and mental damage are minimal. In addition, it saves my magic power as well.

“You can train a lot!”

“”……””

I couldn’t tell if it was because they were a bit far away, but for a moment it looked like the light was lost from Ferum and Nea’s eyes.

In the evening, as I trained incessantly, I checked the amount of magic power I had, and called out to Nea and Ferum, who were on their knees and gasping for breath.

“Are you okay?”

“Your magic bullets are harder to avoid than Rose’s! It’s too crazy that the same throw can change into three different types!”

“Are you really a healing magician?”

What a total slap in the face.

Well, the difference between me and Rose is that we have some application for magic bullets.

Healing magic bullets that release multiple magic bullets.

Healing acceleration bullets that rapidly accelerate.

Healing remote bullets that can change their trajectory by only one direction.

If these were flying at random, I could see why it would be impossible to avoid them.

“You dodged them properly a few times, didn’t you?”

“I got hit a lot more than that, though!”

Nea sat down on the ground as well, looking at Ferum who sat down in disgust.

I also sat down on a training tool — or rather, a square-shaped stone weight that I kept in the training area.

“Ferum, there was a reason why I was in charge of your training today.”

“Huh?”

“The Leader put me in charge of you.”

Ferum looks at me suspiciously.

Nea, on the other hand, glared at me with a scowl.

“Hey, then why did you make me train with this person today? If you wanted to talk to her, you wouldn’t have needed me, would you?”

“……? Well, evasive maneuvers are good for you, so there’s no reason to leave them out, right?”

“Yeah, I didn’t get caught up in it, it was purely out of kindness…….”

As for Nea, it’s for her own good.

Even if this girl doesn’t want to, we should do it if the accumulation of what we’re doing now will save her from danger one day.

While looking sideways at Nea, who has an indescribable expression on her face, Ferum speaks to me.

“You’re in charge of me, why?”

“I’m talking about what you’re going to do once the battle with the Demon King’s army starts.”

“……”

Perhaps she knew that she would be told this someday, but Ferum held her tongue without much surprise.

Regardless of that, I say the words with a slight frown on my face.

“Ferum. Just to be clear, your position is very much in jeopardy.”

Black Knight.

That was the figure and name of this girl when she was fighting in the Demon King’s army.

And she was also the enemy that almost killed Kazuki and senpai.

“You were originally our enemy who belonged to the Demon King’s Army. On the battlefield, you may have hurt and …… killed many knights as an enemy.”

“……”

I don’t know about that.

Maybe our strongo moen took away the injured and miraculously saved them all, maybe not.

According to Rose, some of the knights have a grudge against her, and some are afraid of her. She didn’t tell me if it was because she was a demon or for some other reason, but they are suppressing those feelings.

I told Ferum again.

“You can never pretend that fact doesn’t exist. Do you understand?”

“That’s what …… I know best.”

I could see the regret in her face.

Living here may have changed her way of thinking…… but it may have conversely become a mental burden.

“…… The battle against the Demon King’s army is imminent. What do you want to do then?”

“What do you mean, …… what options do I have?”

“You can stay in this kingdom. …… In that case, you will be temporarily placed in the dungeon.”

“Hey Usato, what’s a dungeon ……?”

Nea tried to raise her voice when she heard the word “dungeon”, but Ferum was not so perturbed and reacted with conviction.

“Well, you can’t just leave me out in the kingdom without Rose. It’s a natural response. So, what’s the other one?”

“…… The other thing is that you’ll be going into battle with us as a member. The next battle is going to be on a larger scale, so we’re going to need at least one hand. ……”

Up to this point, I was speaking as a vice leader.

But my true intentions are different.

“Honestly, I don’t want you to choose this side. Not only because you’ll be dealing with your own kind, but also because it would put you in danger.”

Originally, the reason why Ferum was put here was to correct this girl’s character as a Black Knight.

I heard that making her a rescue squad member was something of a pretext, but Rose left me in charge of Ferum.

This means that Ferum is well-equipped to be a member.

“You’re …….”

“Hmm?”

“What does Usato want …… me to do ……?”

At this point, Ferum left the decision to me.

Hearing these words, I stood up, crossed my arms, looked down at the anxious expression on Ferum’s face, and said.

“It should be your choice.”

When I said that, Ferum looked surprised.

Nea has a “I knew it” look on her face.

“That’s not true. ……”

“No, this is a choice you have to make. I gave you a choice, but you don’t have to follow it. You have to figure out what you want to do. If you need more time, wait as long as you can.”

From the way Rose was talking, I didn’t think it was possible for her to betray me.

I, too, strangely didn’t think that she would betray me.

For as long as I can remember, I’ve been able to use my own magic.

At first, I think it was a black robe that protected me from everything.

I don’t think I had the power to return wounds to anyone.

Still, people around me, including my parents, were afraid of me.

They thought I had awakened to the dark side of magic.

That I was a child who would bring bad luck.

That I was a child who would bring disaster.

I have wished many times that my magic would disappear. But when I was in danger, my magic would kick in and cling to me on its own.

When the people around me saw this, they moved away to avoid me.

In a way, it was natural for me to leave the people who were my parents.

I began to think that I didn’t want to be understood or understood by others if they would hate me or be afraid of me anyway.

If they can hurt me, I will hurt them.

If I can hurt you, I will hurt you.

In a place called the Demon King’s Army, where it is allowed to hurt others, I kept thinking like this, and after a long time, my magic was equipped with the characteristic of “reversal”.

It is the ability to return the “wound” received on the armor to the opponent. As long as I’m dealing with living things, Im invincible, but I’m not as effective against the Second Legionnaire, who has the same dark magic as me.

The bastard was the first type of demon I had ever met, but I somehow understood that he was fundamentally different from me in his thinking.

I remembered that bastard’s ——

“Ferum, you and I are looking for the opposite of what you are looking for. I’m looking for a rival, and you’re looking for someone who understands.”

He said something like that, but at that time I denied it, letting my emotions take over.

I thought I was fighting because I wanted to feel alive.

When I objected, Koga said, “I knew it! You’ll deny it! Yeah!” But recently, I think I understand what he was talking about.

…… The man in front of me right now, looking down at me with a serious expression, is Usato.

The guy who recently became vice leader of the rescue team is giving me a choice.

“…… Ferum, what are you going to do?”

My emotions are stirred by Usato’s worried look at my mute face.

He, or rather this place, is too kind to me.

I can assure you that what is being done to me is a devil of a place. It’s a fact that will never change.

They make you run endlessly, kick you around, and hurl abusive language at you to the point of breaking your heart. It’s a hellish place, but …… this place was still kind to me.

“Huh? Do you really think there’s anyone in our house who’s afraid of demons?”

This is the first time that Rose said to me when I first joined the rescue squad.

They’re not afraid of me because I can use dark magic, and on the contrary, they treat me like a normal person, even though I’m supposed to be their enemy.

It’s not that I don’t care about them, it’s just that they’re more terrifying than the demons.

In such an environment, they receive training, eat together, and live together.

This was different from the time I had spent living alone, sharing time with someone else.

I realized that I really liked my life in this rescue squad.

“All the people here are weird.”

If only I hated myself as a demon, I wouldn’t have to feel this way.

If only he had blamed me more for my sins when I was a black knight.

If you had been angry and hated me, I wouldn’t have felt so heavy and painful, but now I feel like I want to be here so much.

The black knight disappeared, and the rescue squad came to be in this place. I guess that’s the kind of change that came to me.

As I thought about this, I pushed down the emotions that were building up in me and muttered.

“I hate you, …….”

“What? Oh, uhhhm …… I’m sorry?”

I was amused by Usato’s normal hurt expression, but I continued to speak.

“I hate it when you go into people’s hearts and stir them up …………. I hate it when you do that!”

“…… Oh, wait, Ferum. You’re crying—“

“Shut up. I’m not crying.”

I shouted to Nea next to me and wiped my eyes.

Usato looked at me and gave me a surprised look, but without saying anything, he locked gazes with me.

“I’ve always been alone. I used to think that being with someone was really stupid. But then they put me in here, and I got hurt a lot.”

“Yeah.”

“There were people who looked like demons, and there were people who looked human but were monsters.”

“……, yeah.”

“I thought you were weaker on the outside but weirder on the inside, and in some ways you were more of a monster than Rose.”

“……”

“Uhh, calm down, Usato. Okay? Deep breath, deep breath ……!”

Nea tried to calm down Usato, whose expression did not change as he smiled.

For a moment, I felt something like fear, but I didn’t care and said the next words.

“But then I realized that I wanted to be here. This is the place where the black knights and …… dark magic have accepted me regardless of ……”

I’ve only been scared my whole life.

I had accepted it and lived with it, but now that I know this place…… I guess I’m dead as a black knight.

A black knight who rejected everything and refused to accept anyone’s words.

The man in front of me now must be the one who saved me.

“This is where I’m going to return. That’s why I fight as a member of the …… rescue squad.”

There was no turning back now.

I was now completely an enemy to the Demon King’s army.

The moment I came to that conclusion, I remembered my earlier words, and a fierce sense of embarrassment came over me.

Usato nodded to me and walked up to me.

“Then let’s fight together. Not to steal, but to fight to save lives as a rescue squad member.”

“…… Ah.”

i looked down at Usato’s words, but nodded.

Then, without warning, Usato extends his hand towards me.

“Well then, I guess you don’t need this anymore.”

“What?”

Just as I was about to brace myself, I heard the sound of something snapping around my neck.

In the hands of Usato, there was a magic tool with the belt torn off, which had been attached to me until now.

“The Leader gave me permission to take it off. Oh, but don’t abuse it too much. Worst case scenario, you’ll end up sealing your magic power again.”

“…… Wha- What.”

Usato laughs as if it’s nothing.

But that wasn’t the part that surprised me.

Did this guy just tear off a keyhole with his bare hands?

“Oh, don’t worry about it. I have a spare, and I heard it can be used again if you repair it.”

He put the magic tool away in his pocket as if it were a matter of course.

I’ve never been able to handle something that he could rip off with his bare hands. …… No, don’t even think about it!

At any rate, I’ve got my magic back for the first time in a long time, so I’m going to put it to the test.

The magic clings to my body from my feet and changes into the shape of my clothes.

“…… Yeap, I feel better with these clothes.”

What took shape was a black version of the white group uniform Usato was wearing.

A disgusted voice leaked out at the shape that hadn’t changed since Usato had called me.

“Dark magic changes with the mental state of the user. The fact that it took the form of our uniform means that …… yeah, that’s what it is.”

“That’s what this is, isn’t it? It means you like it here a lot.”

“Shut up! Don’t say it so clearly!

I shouted to Usato and Nea, who were staring at me.

I can tell that my magic is changing.

I know it’s that kind of magic, and more importantly, I’m aware that I’ve changed.

“Hey, Usato. I’m going to check if my magic has changed.”

“Check what?”

“Try pinning it to this dress. I’ll see if I can reverse it.”

I held out my left arm and covered the end of my hand with magic.

This is the ‘reversal’ ability that I used when I was a black knight to return the wounds I received.

“Eeeeh, isn’t it going to return the pain to me. ……”

“Don’t try to sound like a decent human being now. I want to see the power of dark magic too.”

“Oh, so terrible ……”

While carrying Nea, who had somehow transformed into an owl, on his shoulder, Usato brought the finger that had made a flick closer to me.

Usato doesn’t seem to put much effort into it, as if he knows the pain will come back to him.

“Then let’s do it.”

Once I’m hit by the magic, I can reflect it back.

With a shudder, Usato’s flick hits my left arm.

I don’t feel any pain, just like before. So far, it’s the same, so I try to remind myself to reverse it, but–

“…… I knew I couldn’t do it anymore.”

“I don’t feel any pain either.”

So that means that my magical ability to “reverse” has disappeared.

In a way, it is natural. Now that I don’t need to keep others away or hurt them, I shouldn’t need the ability to hurt them either.

As I convinced myself of this, the magic power covering my left arm started to move regardless of my will.

The magic power that started moving was absorbed by Usato’s left hand that was being held up.

“”Huh?””

The movement of the magic power as if it was biting, everyone in the place was shocked.

“Whoa!

“It sucked!”

“What?

The magic was drawn to Usato by itself!

Usato is confused when he looks at his left hand.

“U-ugh, what’s this! It feels disgusting!”

“Don’t talk about it like it’s dirty! It’s my magic!”

“No, it’s stuck to me! I feel like it’s sucking my magic, are you sure it’s okay?”

Usato impatiently shows me his left hand.

The black magic was sticking to his left wrist like a glove.

Immediately, I remind him to go back, but since it’s been a while since I’ve handled this magic, I can’t control it well.

“Huh, I haven’t used it in a while, so I can’t handle it well.”

“From the looks of it, there’s been a sudden change in the magic itself, so I guess it means that Ferum herself can’t control it either.”

“Don’t be so cool about it!　…… If Ferum can’t do it, I guess I’ll just have to pop her with an impact from the inside. It hurts a bit, but it’s better than letting it go in this state.”

I don’t know what Usato will do, but for now, I strongly remind myself to get my magic under control as soon as possible.

This isn’t the first time something like this has happened.

This kind of thing is just a matter of making sure you recognize your own magic.

It’s not that difficult, so after a few seconds or so, the magic is back under my control, and I quickly try to restore the magic in Usato’s hands.

However–

“Healing magic burst palm!”

“Whoa!”

Something like a shock emanates from next to me, and I lose my balance and almost fall over.

If you look at the direction of the impact, you will see that Usato has released the green magic of healing magic from his left hand.

As usual, my magic was clinging to my left hand, but it soon left Usato’s hand and came back to me.

“I’m glad I got it ……. For a moment, I thought it was no good because it kept its shape. ……”

“……What was that all about?”

Usato and Nea are relieved to see his left hand unharmed.

Well, as it turns out, we were able to put back what was clinging to Usato’s hand, and that’s all that matters for now.

As I was thinking about this, Nea, who had her wings over her mouth, turned her body towards me.

“But you’re stuck to Usato, it’s like you’re assimilating him. Maybe that’s what you’ve become capable of.”

“Kii, don’t be creepy!”

Nea’s words gave me goosebumps.

It wasn’t impossible, considering what had just happened.

But to think that it really was–

“Ha ha. That’s right, Nea. With abilities like that, I’d be in trouble too.”

“……”

I kicked Usato in the shin with my toe as he laughed and said that.

The person who was kicked had a kerolitic expression on his face and scratched his cheek.

“Hey, why did you just kick me?”

“Shut up! Think for yourself!”

I knew it wouldn’t work, but I knew I had to try.