Conversation between heroes

After a few hours, Margarida and I returned to the shop where we had arranged for Werner to pick us up once it got dark.

“Margarida, please don’t tell anyone what happened today,” I told her.

“Alright,” Margarida replied.

As it began to grow dark, Werner showed up with the cart.

“Hello, Werner,” I greeted him.

“Come on, it’s dangerous to stay in the commoners’ district too late,” Werner said.

So Margarida and I got into the cart. It seems that the nobles are afraid of being in the commoners’ area, probably because the risk of robberies is huge at night there. We rode the horse-drawn cart to the nobles’ district.

“Thank you very much for your help,” I told Werner.

We got down from the cart and I paid him some coins for the ride.

“It was such a busy day, I’ve never walked this much before,” said Margarida.

Something kept bothering me: the real reason Margarida had invited me on this outing.

“Margarida, could you tell me the real reason you invited me for this trip?” I asked her.

Suddenly, she stopped walking and looked at me with a frightened expression. Of course this brat is hiding something. She probably would have already come up with an excuse if she weren’t under the effect of Slime’s Pleasure. But since she was, she wouldn’t resist telling me the real reason for this outing.

“It was my father who asked me to take this trip with you, because he thought that walking with a beautiful princess like me would make you forget the anger you’d feel at not receiving your equipment,” Margarida answered.

Then Margarida began to cry.

“Please forgive me, I shouldn’t have done something like this to someone as great as you,” she said.

She was only saying that because she was under the effect of Slime’s Pleasure, but unfortunately, in the nobles’ district I had no chance of humiliating her. So, this time, I would let her insolence slide.

“It’s alright, I forgive you, because I know the princess has a good heart and meant no harm,” I told her.

She then smiled at me.

“Thank you,” said Margarida.

“By the way, remember to deceive your father, because if he learns about everything that happened today, I’ll be in danger,” I told her.

“Don’t worry, I won’t tell him anything,” said Margarida.

We both returned to the palace. King Albert saw his daughter Margarida smiling happily by my side. He must have thought his daughter was acting according to their plan. But what a fool—he has no idea I’m deceiving him completely.

“Hello, hero. I heard my daughter took you to see the kingdom of Argarill. Did you enjoy the trip?” King Albert asked.

“I loved it,” I replied.

The king looked at the bags Margarida was carrying.

“What’s inside those bags?” asked King Albert.

“Clothes we bought for Princess Margarida at a shop in the commoners’ district,” I answered.

He was shocked to hear that.

“At a clothing shop in the commoners’ district… my daughter, you visited the commoners’ district?” asked King Albert.

“Yes,” Margarida answered, still smiling.

“Besides that, Margarida and I went to the fields to fight slimes. She fights really well,” I told the king.

Margarida blushed and looked at me.

“Hearing you praise me like that even makes me embarrassed,” Margarida said.

“What do you mean, my little princess fighting slimes in the fields?” the king asked, alarmed.

I was delighted to see the king with that expression. Watching that bastard look like that was such a beautiful and wonderful sight.

“Margarida, let’s go to my room to talk,” King Albert said.

“Alright, Father,” Margarida replied.

“Copy Hero, the other heroes are in the heroes’ reception room, you can go there if you like,” said King Albert.

“Alright,” I replied.

King Albert took his daughter to his room to talk to her. I hoped Margarida wouldn’t mess things up. Then I decided to head to the room where the other three were. I opened the door and entered. They were all looking at me strangely. I just hoped they weren’t planning to kill me now.

“Hello, everyone,” I said.

Masahiko walked toward me and grabbed my shoulders.

“Dude, I can’t believe you had a private outing with that gorgeous princess. Tell me, how did you manage that?” said Masahiko.

Was he messing with me by saying that? Did the king not tell them the real reason behind my outing with Princess Margarida?

“That’s way too obvious,” said Yukiko.

Masahiko, Ayano, and I were puzzled by Yukiko’s remark.

“Yukiko, what do you mean by ‘too obvious’?” Masahiko asked.

“The three of us—me, you, and Ayano—were the only ones who received equipment. But only Araya got to tour the kingdom with the princess while we stayed behind training with our gear in the training room,” said Yukiko.

“That means two things: either Araya was excluded, or he was given special treatment,” Ayano said.

Wait a second—are these three idiots thinking I’d betray them for no reason? Looks like I’ll have to tell them part of the truth.

“In fact, Ayano’s first guess is correct. The king of Argarill considers me a disposable piece,” I told them.

They were shocked by what I said.

“Can you prove it?” Yukiko asked.

“Yes, I can—and I have to thank Masahiko for the help,” I replied.

Yukiko, Masahiko, and Ayano were confused.

“What do you mean, my help?” Masahiko asked.

“You had three diuretic pills. I saw them fall out of your pocket this morning while you were asleep,” I said to Masahiko.

Yukiko and Ayano looked at Masahiko.

“Why did you have diuretic pills in your pocket?” Yukiko asked.

Masahiko stayed completely silent.

“That’s pretty obvious—he had those pills so he could bully the otakus and nerds at school,” Ayano said.

“Masahiko, you’re disgusting,” Yukiko said.

“Hey, you bastard, don’t you know it’s wrong to steal from others?” Masahiko shouted angrily.

“I bet you did the same thing to the otakus and nerds,” I shot back at Masahiko.

He looked furious.

“But I still don’t understand how the diuretics helped you discover the truth about the king’s real intentions. Could you tell us how you know that?” Yukiko asked.

Of course, I couldn’t tell them the whole truth. But at least part of it—enough to see if they could be trusted.

“I put the three diuretic pills inside Princess Margarida’s bread,” I told them.

“Why would you do that?” Yukiko asked.

“I found out I wasn’t going to receive equipment, so I tried sneaking into the king’s or the princess’s room to talk to them. I managed to sneak in and speak with her. She told me she would take me to tour the kingdom as an apology, but I was suspicious. So I slipped the pills into her bread,” I explained.

“What a pathetic excuse,” said Yukiko.

“Anyway, we went on the outing. At one point she really needed to pee and asked to leave, but I told her it would be disrespectful to me if she cut it short, so she agreed to continue. Then she told me why she wanted to leave. I told her closing her eyes would help resist the urge, and she believed me, so I took her to the commoners’ district,” I told them.

Ayano smiled.

“Taking a princess into the commoners’ district must’ve been quite the humiliation for her,” Ayano said.

“She really did feel humiliated when she saw she was there. So I forced her to tell me the truth, or else I’d leave her there. Then she confessed that the king plans to test our abilities within a month. If we do well, no problem. But if you fail, you’ll be put through grueling training. And if I fail, he’ll kill me,” I told them.

They were shocked by what they heard.

“The king didn’t tell us that. He only said that if we failed, we’d train in our weak areas,” Masahiko said.

So it seems the king is trying to deceive them too.

“What did the king tell you about your equipment and abilities?” I asked them.

“The king told us we can only use equipment made from materials related to our items. If we used equipment made from different materials, we’d become weaker. That’s what the king said,” Ayano explained.

“That’s true. But did he mention anything about my ability?” I asked Ayano.

“He told us it was an unknown and useless ability,” Ayano answered.

It seemed worth telling them the truth, at least partly, to gain their trust.

“My ability lets me use any equipment without becoming weaker,” I told them.

They were all stunned by what I said.

“We already tried using each other’s equipment, and it didn’t work. But you’re saying you can use anything? Tell another joke. I’ll show you what happens when you try using something that doesn’t match your ability,” Yukiko said.

Yukiko asked Ayano to lend her the bow and arrows. Ayano picked them up and handed them to Yukiko. But as soon as Yukiko tried holding them, she collapsed. Masahiko also tried, but he couldn’t hold them either.

From what I observed, they couldn’t hold each other’s equipment at all. Ayano took the gear back for a moment so Yukiko and Masahiko could stand again.

“Araya, now it’s your turn,” Yukiko said.

I just hoped I was right and my theory worked. Ayano then handed me the equipment. I held it with no problem at all. Their reactions were pure shock. They couldn’t believe what they were seeing—that I was able to hold Ayano’s equipment.

“How is this possible?” Yukiko wondered aloud.

“I told you, but you refused to believe me,” I said to them.

“It looks like we owe you an apology for doubting you,” Yukiko said.

Yukiko and Ayano apologized. Masahiko was reluctant, so Yukiko pinched him.

“Ow, ow, ow! That hurts!” Masahiko complained.

Finally, Masahiko apologized to me.

“Did the king tell you anything about team formations?” I asked them.

“He told us tomorrow we should go to the adventurers’ guild and look for adventurers to form teams with us,” Masahiko said.

So it seems the king wants each hero to form their own team instead of adventuring together.

“I have a plan. How about we ask the king to let the four of us form a team together?” I suggested.

“That’s a great idea,” Masahiko replied.

“Then let’s take a bath, and at dinner we’ll ask the king,” I said.

Everyone agreed. We all bathed, dressed, and went to dine in the royal hall for the first time. There we were—the heroes, the king, and the princess.

“Tomorrow will be an unforgettable day for you, because you’ll go to the adventurers’ guild and choose adventurers to form teams with each of you,” King Albert said, smiling.

If that old man thinks it’ll go his way, he’s sorely mistaken.

“I have a suggestion. I’ve already discussed it with the other heroes,” I told the king.

“And what suggestion would that be?” King Albert asked.

“We four want to form a team together. Would you have any objection to that?” I asked.

King Albert looked stunned, unable to believe what he’d just heard.

“No, but I think it would be better for you to split up and meet new people. Don’t you agree?” King Albert asked.

“I think they can still meet new people while being together. I don’t see a problem with them forming a group,” Princess Margarida replied.

The king looked shocked and disappointed. He hadn’t expected that brat of a daughter to side with me. But she was only doing so because she was still under the effect of Slime’s Pleasure, which would last until today. Tomorrow, I’d have to renew it.

“Alright, my daughter, I suppose you’re right. Then tomorrow, the heroes may form a group together,” King Albert said.

The four of us were very pleased with the king’s decision. Later, we went back to our room. I had already laid down and was preparing to sleep when I saw Yukiko standing and staring at me.

“Hey, Yukiko, do you need something?” I asked.

“Yes, I need to talk to you, quickly and urgently,” she replied.

I got up from bed, and Yukiko and I left the room. We saw a guard, and she asked where the balcony was. He showed us, and we went there. I really hoped it was something important, because I was exhausted and sleepy.

“Hey, Yukiko, what do you want to talk about? I’m very sleepy, so I hope it’s truly serious,” I told her.

“I understand. I’ll be simple and direct—are you blackmailing or drugging Princess Margarida?” Yukiko asked.

I couldn’t believe what I was hearing. How could she think that? I couldn’t let her discover the truth, or I’d be doomed.

“I don’t understand what you mean by that,” I said.

“The princess was acting strange at dinner. And she favored you. That could only mean you’re drugging or blackmailing her,” Yukiko said.

I calmed down, realizing she had no concrete proof—only suspicions.

“So you’re accusing me without evidence? Besides, she noticed something, and that’s why she acted that way,” I replied.

“What did she notice?” Yukiko asked.

“That those who try to deceive me will be trampled and will have to obey me if they don’t want to be trampled again,” I told her.

Yukiko trembled upon hearing that.

“Now let’s go to bed, it’s very late,” I told her.

So we both returned to the room and went to sleep.