Chapter 83: Sisterly Reunion

The red-haired hero, Aldebaran.

Her day began, as usual, with her comrades yanking her out of bed.

“Come on! Wake up already, Leader!”

“Uuugh…”

“You’re doing this again? You’re the one who said we’d do morning training today, Aldebaran-san!”

She had low blood pressure and often looked practically dead in the mornings.

Apparently, she wanted to do something about it herself, but it was beyond her control.

“Are you sure about this, Leader? If you don’t get up soon, I’ll let the pervy lesbian maid have her way with you.”

“Eh, are you sure about that?”

“……”

No matter how many times she called out, there was no response. Ilya—the younger sister of Irine and chief maid—let out a long sigh.

The Hero Aldebaran’s party was about to face a decisive battle with the demons.

They needed every bit of training they could get.

“But, but, I already have my Lady… I mean, Aldebaran-san is adorable, sure, but Lady Ilya is perfection itself…”

“Ughh… just lemme sleep a bit longer…”

“Ahhh! So cute—Aldebaran-san all sleepy and dazed is so cute! At this rate, I—I’m gonna lose control of myself…!”

“Leader. Your chastity’s in danger, seriously. If you don’t wake up now, I’m not responsible for what happens.”

Ilya sighed again as she watched the maid growing increasingly worked up.

The maid hesitated for a moment, then—snorting through her nose—climbed on top of Aldebaran.

“Is this really okay? But it is my Lady’s order… ♪”

“Uuuugh…”

“J-Just the tip, then… I’ll just s-slowly, gently pull back the clothes…”

“If you don’t wake up right now, Leader, this is seriously bad. You’ll never be marriage material at this rate.”

At last, without any orders, the maid actually started pulling off Aldebaran’s clothes.

Holding a flower vase (maid-smashing use only) just in case, Ilya let out another weary sigh.

“Fuhih… Fuhhihihi!!”

“Ah—Leader’s under attack.”

“I-I’m okay! Just the tip, just the tip, h-hihi!!”

The hopeless maid had officially crossed the line, so Ilya raised the vase high into the air—

“—DANGER!!”

“Gwah!?”

Aldebaran suddenly bolted upright, launching the maid across the room.

“Well, that was dangerous, Leader. How are you feeling?”

“…Worst dream ever.”

“Y-y-y-you’ve got it all wrong! I didn’t want to do any of that! It was Lady Ilya’s orders…!”

“……”

“I’m so sorryyyy!!”

The maid instantly dropped into a dogeza pose.

Without hesitation, Ilya narrowed her eyes and glared coldly at her subordinate, Sarah, who’d so easily shifted the blame onto her master.

“Gather everyone, Ilya.”

“Ah, yes. …Did something happen?”

“I’ve got a bad feeling. Like something irreversible just occurred.”

But something was clearly off with Aldebaran.

Apparently, the danger she’d sensed wasn’t about her chastity.

“…!”

It had been a long time since Ilya had seen Aldebaran so serious.

She swallowed silently.

“…I’m going to speak with the Goddess.”

“…Understood.”

With just that short command, the Hero—

Clad in her crimson cloak, headed for the church with her comrades.

---

“He’s dead.”

“D-Dead…?”

She staggered slightly and leaned on the young mage for support as she stepped out of the church.

Her eyes were visibly heavy with exhaustion.

“They say the Hero of Sefa was killed… and his power stolen.”

“What?”

“That man… He failed, damn it…!!”

Aldebaran spat the words out in frustration.

“…Eh? What…?”

The Hero—dead.

Hearing that word made Ilya’s mind go completely blank.

—Then what happened to the Hero’s companions…? What happened to her sister, Irine!?

“What about the others!? Leader! What happened to the Hero’s… the Hero of Sefa’s party members!?”

“Calm down, Ilya.”

“What about my sister!? Tell me, what happened to her, Aldebaran!!”

Her voice cracked with anguish as she pressed the Hero for answers.

But Aldebaran only shook her head in silence.

“All we know for sure is that Karl was killed and his power stolen.”

“T-Then that means my sister is safe!?”

“…There’s still a chance she made it out unharmed.”

The Hero said this and gently pulled Ilya into an embrace.

“Don’t think too deeply right now. Just believe that your sister is alive—and wait.”

“…”

“Irine is a strong woman. Even if Karl was killed… I’m sure she managed to escape on her own.”

Those words, Ilya bit down on them hard, taking them in.

Her sister was strong.

With magic, she was a genius of their clan. In battle, a musclebound pervert of a powerhouse.

But even so—even with all that—could her sister really survive against those terrifying demons?

“If Irine’s alive, she’ll definitely come to us here in the capital.”

“…Yes, you’re right.”

“So wait for her.”

…There was nothing Ilya could do right now.

Quietly, in Aldebaran’s arms, the younger sister began to sob.

---

…Late at night.

“Sis…”

Ilya thought back to the pendant she had given her sister.

…At some point, the tracking magic had stopped working.

Around the time Irine left Yowin, the protective charm she'd entrusted to her stopped responding to the tracking spell.

Apparently, the magical energy inside had run out. She’d made it to last at least a year, but it seemed there had been some kind of failure.

“Where are you now, Sis? Have you made it this far, still on the run?”

“…My Lady, it’s time to sleep.”

“Sarah, please return to your room. …I’d like to be alone for a while.”

She thought of the Hero, Karl.

Even in hindsight, he had seemed terribly unreliable. He lacked the charisma and strength that Aldebaran carried.

When she heard he’d been killed, her first thought had been: Yeah… that figures.

“…If I know my sister…”

But Ilya knew her sister’s personality very well.

That woman was not the kind to just turn tail and flee after her comrades had been slaughtered.

“She definitely would’ve lost it the moment Karl was killed and charged straight at the demons—!”

Aldebaran had told her to wait.

To trust that her sister was on the run and would eventually return. To believe, and wait.

But still—

“There’s no way someone like her would run away…!”

It was because she was her little sister that she understood.

If it were Irine, she would’ve either gone for revenge or stayed behind to make sure her comrades escaped.

…There’s no way she could’ve gotten away herself.

“Sis…”

The pendant could no longer track her.

The Hero had been killed, unable to fulfill his duty.

“…It was all too reckless…”

“Stop! That’s nonsense!!”

The girl closed her eyes under the moonlight, picturing the smiling face of her sister—who wasn’t there.

“Don’t worry! When you’re lost, the standard tactic is to scout from high ground!!”

“That doesn’t explain why you’re wearing a monkey mask!?”

“Because no noble would ever allow the public to see them flailing around like this!”

……

Suddenly, things became noisy around her. When Ilya opened her eyes, a monkey-masked figure was floating mid-air.

“UWAAAAAHHH!! It was you, Irine!?”

“…Wh-Whoa!? That’s… actually a cool move…?”

“…Lev!?”

The monkey-masked figure flailed her arms and legs wildly, slowly rising into the night sky.

A suspicious masked weirdo performing incomprehensible gestures on a dark highway. An individual you’d normally want nothing to do with.

And yet—it was her sister.

“……”

“Hey monkey, someone’s watching you. …Look, that girl over there.”

“I’m wearing this mask, so public opinion means nothing to me!!”

“…Wait? That girl… I think I’ve seen her before…”

Surrounding Irine were all her old companions, scolding the monkey mask’s antics like it was nothing new.

…She was alive. The sister she never thought she’d see again had made it safely to the capital, Pedia.

“That girl’s running this way, isn’t she?”

“Ah. I remember now—that’s…”

Ilya broke into a sprint.

Ignoring the maid trying to stop her, she dashed down the moonlit road.

Straight ahead—toward her sister, who had made it back alive to the capital.

“What kind of trouble do you think you’re causing people, you moron of a sisterrrrrr!!”

“Gwoeh!”

“The monkey mask got dropkicked!!?”

And without hesitation, she landed a perfect dropkick.

---

“Kneel. Sit properly, Sister.”

“…I-Ilya? Is that you…?”

On a public road, the older sister found herself forced into a formal kneeling position by her younger sibling.

“What exactly were you doing, Sister?”

“Ah, well… It was dark, and I couldn’t find the road, so I flew up to scout it out.”

“As expected of you, Sister. So you’ve mastered such a technique using wind magic adaptations.”

“Eheh~♪ Yes, well…”

“But there was quite a powerful gust raging around, you know. Even wind, if it turns into a storm, can cause real damage. Did you not consider how much trouble you might’ve caused the people around you, Sister?”

—A full-on scolding.

Despite being the older one, Irine was getting verbally smacked around by her little sister’s logic and morals.

“What happened to your pride and dignity as a noble? Do you intend to disgrace House Welmund like this?”

“...N-No, um… That’s not…”

“Sister, I’m disappointed. I trained hard every day, always believing in you—my admirable, dependable older sister.”

It was painful to watch.

Being scolded like this by her younger sibling filled the scene with sorrowful melancholy.

“L-Lady Ilya, perhaps it’s time to…”

“…You’re right.”

Until Maika, ever perceptive, subtly threw in a lifeline, the little sister’s loving lecture continued without pause.

“Phew… My shoulders are so stiff now.”

“And also, please take off that monkey mask already. It’s seriously creepy.”

“…Creepy!?”

Gaaan—Irine reeled in shock as her beloved sister casually insulted her mask.

It seemed Irine had truly believed that, being her sister, Ilya would surely appreciate the refined taste behind the mask’s design.

---

A few days after we drove the demons out of Anat.

Just before sunset, we reached the capital without incident.

“Wait, is this even the right road?”

“It’s too dark to tell.”

We had planned to stay at the Sefa church that once took care of us, but by the time we moved through the city, the sun had already gone down.

So we got lost… and when I tried to scout from the sky…

“What kind of trouble do you think you’re causing people, you absolute idiot of a sister!?”

I got kicked. By my little sister.

“…For now, I’ll guide you to our leader.”

“Leader?”

“The one leading the party I’m staying with—Aldebaran.”

“Wait, you mean that Aldebaran!?”

To my surprise, it turned out my little sister was being looked after by none other than Aldebaran’s party.

How the hell did that happen? More importantly, why’s Ilya even in the capital…?

“…Well, well. So you’re still alive, you ugly bastard.”

“Like I’d ever die, shorty.”

Karl and Aldebaran, reunited after a long time—yet still cold to each other as ever.

Even though Karl’s goddess had died, their chemistry remained horrendous.

Seriously, just get along already.

“But I can see it. —You’ve lost something, haven’t you?”

“…Yeah.”

“That swelling power I once sensed from you as a Hero is gone. …So the story about your power being stolen was true after all.”

“So you already knew. …That’s why I came here tonight. To talk about that.”

And so, Hero Aldebaran seemed to grasp it the moment she saw Karl—

That the Hero’s power no longer resided within him.

“It happened in Anat—”

---

And so, Karl gave a rough rundown of what had happened in Anat.

That the goddess had been killed.

That Ilyu had been the Demon King.

That the Hero's power had been consumed—stolen from him.

“…Are your goddess types complete idiots? She didn’t even notice the Demon King standing in front of her and got herself killed like a fool?”

“Lady Sefa, the goddess, did everything she could to save humanity. Don’t insult her.”

“And that’s the result? …Hah. She may have had divine power, but clearly lacked the vessel to be a true goddess. Seems my judgment was spot on.”

Aldebaran rubbed her forehead, having heard the whole story.

…Even after nearly being killed, Karl’s still a devout believer in Sefa? This guy’s hopeless.

“…So?”

“Aldebaran. Since Karl no longer carries Lady Sefa’s divine blessing, there’s no reason for us to remain your enemies.”

“Hmmm.”

“We, too, have risen up to protect humanity. We would like to join your ranks.”

Since I was the one closest to Aldebaran, I made the request for us to join her party.

…She listened, then looked mildly troubled.

“What do you think, Boss?”

“…Wouldn’t it be better to have more allies, Al?”

Her party members seemed fairly open to the idea.

Although… that rabbit bastard isn’t here. That guy would probably object.

“I have no objection to letting Irine join us.”

“Me…?”

“I know your capabilities. One can never have too many powerful mages. And besides, you’re here with a spirit master.”

Apparently, Aldebaran held me in surprisingly high regard.

Well, I am a noble who can fire a spirit cannon. Aside from Aldebaran standing right here, I might be the strongest offensive mage among all humanity.

Not that having absurd magic talent is something worth bragging about.

“…I appreciate that.”

“But—”

Of course, I could guess from her tone.

She probably wasn’t too keen on the other people I brought along.

“That noblewoman there… Sakura Tendou, was it?”

“Me? Did I do something?”

“…Afterward, I had to deal with some agents from your family. Frankly, I have some serious issues with House Tendou.”

“Eh?”

…Wait, what?

“W-Wait a minute! Who from my family!? The Tendou estate in Rewin is already—”

“It was some booze-reeking old man calling himself Gouki Tendou. Caused me quite a bit of trouble in the volcanic city.”

“Dad, what the hell are you doing!?”

Sakura turned bright red and shouted.

…So that’s where her missing father’s been hiding out.

“What exactly happened?”

“He tried gouging travelers by jacking up the price of fire mana stones. So I punished him.”

“Y-You didn’t kill him, right!? If anything happened to my father—!”

“Then that Gouki guy fell in love with me and proposed. Now that was a problem.”

“……”

……

“He said he felt the flames of love in my fire magic.”

“Well, that’s… um…”

“His boozy breath and constant following made it unbearable, so I ran without saying a word. I want nothing to do with the Tendou family ever again.”

“…So basically, Sakura, Aldebaran’s your new mom now?”

“Absolutely not!!”

What a twist. My condolences.

“Old man, what the hell are you doing at your age...?”

“I’m cutting ties! If what I just heard is true, I’m severing all ties with Father!”

“From the looks of it, she’s not lying, Aldebaran-san.”

“Don’t analyze it so calmly, Irine!!”

So that’s how it is. With a background like that, no wonder she’s pushing back.

“First off, we can’t afford to protect dead weight. I don’t sense any real magic from Sakura—she probably doesn’t have much skill either.”

“Oh my. I believe someone like Sakura-san is a rare and exceptional healer, you know? Her skills are remarkable.”

“What, a healer? ...Hmm, in that case, the story changes.”

“She’s healed me from fatal wounds many times. At least from what I’ve seen, she’s the most skilled medic I know.”

After hearing my introduction, Aldebaran let out a thoughtful hum.

Honestly, Sakura is an insanely talented healer. Even if it’s only physical trauma she specializes in, there’s probably no one else who could fix you up after half your body gets blown off.

“I see. In that case, I’d like her to join us. Up until now, our only healer has been Kichou. If he goes down, we’re completely screwed.”

“...Well, fine then.”

“And one more thing—when your father shows up, convince him. He’s seriously a pain.”

“Sure, even if I have to stop his breathing to do it.”

Sakura's eyes went a bit lifeless, but with that, Aldebaran finally acknowledged her as one of us.

Now then...

“But what about the others? Irine, do you see anyone else worth their salt?”

“Those two—Rey-san and Lev-san—are outstanding swordsman and martial artist, respectively.”

I introduced the two who were solid in close combat. These two should pass with no problem.

“Is that so? I don’t know much about swordsmanship. Inon, your thoughts?”

“Yes, yes, leave it to me, Al.”

Seems Aldebaran can’t judge a swordsman’s strength just by looking, so she left the assessment to a comrade.

Stepping out from behind the hero came a swordsman with silky blond hair and the look of a princely noble. His eyes were so narrow you could almost call them closed—that kind of stood out.

“...Hmm, no openings. Especially the older brother—his form is impeccable... But I’d say that sword is stained with blood.”

The narrow-eyed blond swordsman smiled at Rey and Lev as he offered that evaluation.

Hmm. Definitely the pretty boy type—not much muscle on him. Is this guy actually strong?

“...And what about you? A noble swordsman? Hmm, looks like classic magic-sword style to me.”

“Indeed. I’m Inon von McCune. I serve as assistant instructor at the McCune-style dojo.”

“...I see.”

Rey narrowed his eyes at the pretty boy as if taken aback. Seems he sensed something.

Hmm... In terms of muscle, Rey should be the clear winner, but—

Judging from Rey’s reaction, this silky-haired guy must be pretty strong.

“These two are definitely capable fighters. I’ll vouch for them, Al.”

“Understood.”

With Pretty Boy’s endorsement, the sibling pair Lev and Rey passed.

Now, who’s left...

“Maika-san possesses a brilliant strategic mind.”

“I know. I saw her in Yowin. Basically, she’s your command center, right?”

“...Well, I wouldn’t say it’s that big a deal—”

“She’s a pain as an enemy, and a low-risk asset as an ally.”

It’s hard to put Maika’s brilliance into words, but it seemed Aldebaran more or less got the idea.

...She’d definitely be a handful as an enemy, that’s for sure.

“Yeah, that’s pretty much her.”

“But I’m still keeping in mind the chance that you’ll turn against us, Maika. Your guiding principles are rather... skewed. If there’s a clash in ideology or belief, you’d probably switch sides without hesitation.”

“Hmm.”

“Why not go home quietly with the man who’s lost his hero’s power? As long as you stay by his side, you likely won’t stray far off the path.”

Aldebaran gave Maika a cold glare.

Bad vibes. Honestly, I’d sensed it for a while now—these two really don’t get along, do they?

“I’d like to do that, too, you know. But that idiot Karl refuses to stop fighting.”

“Yeah. I’m fighting.”

“I see. So you’re the reason she’s clinging on, Karl. But what can you even do now, without the hero’s power? Just go back to the countryside already.”

“What can I do, huh? Well... I can still save Ilyu—the Demon Lord.”

…Hearing those words, Aldebaran’s eyes flew open in fury.

“You. Do you side with the Demon King?”

“Ilyu… That girl who called herself the Demon King—there’s no doubt she’s my comrade. That’s why I’ll save her.”

“Then am I to take this as a declaration of hostility against us? We are the ones sworn to defeat the Demon King.”

“So what, then? If we destroy Ilyu, everything’s fine? You’re saying the right answer is to seal up that girl again—someone who can’t even die—and make her suffer for thousands, tens of thousands of years all over again!?”

“She’s coming to wipe out humanity!! If we don’t destroy her, we’ll be the ones wiped out!”

“But don’t you get it? If we can save Ilyu, we can save everyone! If we could just reach out and join hands—!”

Hearing Karl’s naïve idealism, Aldebaran flared with rage.

Ahh… this man really is hopelessly straightforward. As if anyone would welcome him after hearing something like that.

“Empty dreams. Pretty words. Foolish fantasy.”

“And what’s wrong with that?”

“At the very edge of humanity’s extinction, you’re mouthing fantasies and reaching out to the Demon King—and you think there’s nothing wrong with that?”

Smack.

Before I could even react, Aldebaran had already pointed her staff at Karl.

“…!”

“Ah ah, don’t move.”

Rey instinctively reached for his sword to protect Karl, but the blond guy had already slipped behind him and wrapped an arm around his neck.

Whoa, fast. Blondie really is strong.

“Once more, I ask: Karl, are you my enemy?”

“I’m Ilyu’s comrade. Nothing more, nothing less.”

“So you do stand with the Demon King.”

“I help my comrades. That’s the one belief I hold.”

And then, sparks of flame began to dance at the tip of Aldebaran’s staff.

She’s seriously going to roast Karl! Crap, what do I do—should I activate Muscle Heaven now—?

“────I like you!!!”

“…Huh?”

With a loud boom, the flame burst into a cheerful flower-circle pattern that floated in midair.

…Wait, what?

“Though we may differ in ideals, I can feel the sincerity of your love, Karl. I’ll allow you to serve under my command.”

“Uh, what?”

“Haha!! So that’s your core, is it? I took you for a soft-spoken, unreliable fool—but you’re not bad at all. Quite the man, aren’t you? No, I’m impressed!”

It was like all the fiery rage from earlier had never existed.

Aldebaran laughed heartily and wrapped an arm around Karl’s shoulder.

“Um, Miss Aldebaran? Are you really okay with Karl joining us?”

“Of course. …To be honest, my own views lean closer to Karl’s.”

“Huh?”

“To reach out to those who can still be saved—that is the way of Macroism!! If there’s truly no road to reconciliation, then we must destroy our enemy—but to abandon that path from the start is the height of foolishness!!”

Amazingly, Aldebaran actually shared Karl’s viewpoint.

…Not giving up on reconciliation, huh. True, if that’s possible, it really would be ideal—but still…

“Do everything you can and show me, Karl! I entrust that path to you!”

“Y-Yeah!!”

“I shall strike down the Demon King with unwavering resolve, for the sake of protecting humanity. But before that────I’ll give you and the Demon King a chance to speak. What you do with that chance is up to you.”

Yeah… she’s right. Not giving up is important too.

I want to save Ilyu as well. If there’s a way we can take each other’s hand and live in happiness────

“…Hey, is Aldebaran kind of an idiot?”

“Our leader’s pretty dumb, yeah.”

“She’s the type who agrees to things on impulse and suffers later.”

Behind me, my comrades were absolutely roasting her, but hearing Aldebaran’s words made me reconsider.

Yeah. Starting out by giving up on reconciliation—that’s not the way either.

“All right, then! I hereby recognize all of you as my comrades. Starting tomorrow, you’ll join morning training!!”

“Hell yeah!!”

“Defeat the Demon King—and save the Demon King!! The Holy Aldebaran Party is hereby formed!!”

With Aldebaran’s rousing declaration, I threw my fist high into the air.

---

“By the way, why is my little sister Ilya part of your group?”

“Hmm? Ah, about that—”

And so, the little sister was immediately made to sit in seiza on the spot…
…where she received a long and thorough scolding from her older sister.