Is It Bad That the Main Character’s a Roleplayer?
Chapter 237: Full of Suffering (10)

Is It Bad That the Main Character’s a Roleplayer

Chapter 237 Full of Suffering (10) - Part 1 Complete

Deathbringer sat curled up inside a tent. The Inquisitor lying before him still hadn’t woken up yet. He had no idea how much longer she’d remain asleep.

“Please, wake up quickly…”

He knew this wasn’t something he should say to someone who’d suffered just as much as the Demon Knight. However, Deathbringer couldn’t afford to wish the Inquisitor would rest any longer.

After all, the Inquisitor was the only person who could change the current situation.

“The two great sages holding those guys off are reaching their limit…”

The moment the Demon Knight awoke and said he’d accept whatever conclusion they reached, the differing opinions had become a full-blown conflict. And, naturally, the dominant side was for an “execution.”

Even with two great sages defending the Demon Knight, their side lacked solid evidence or justification, which made it even harder for them to persuade anyone. The lord of the city had also awoken and was now leaning to the other side, believing it was enough if the accused himself accepted this judgment.

“Damn it…”

So if there was no reason not to do it, and if the person involved submitted to death, was that all it took? Was a decision made while under so much pressure truly his own?

It was true that the Demon Knight was dangerous, but it was because of that dangerous power that everyone here had survived.

“At this point, I’m even starting to hope that damn bastard will succeed…”

If Meister somehow succeeded in persuading the Demon Knight even though they hadn’t known each other long, Deathbringer was sure he’d feel a sense of loss.

However, that didn’t matter. As long as the Demon Knight didn’t end up dying like this, as long as he didn’t have to face such a miserable end… He was willing to accept being someone utterly worthless to the Demon Knight.

That was more than fine…

Swish.

At that moment, someone entered the tent. It was Berserk, who was carrying the Archmage on her back.

Maybe it was because she’d been running around without proper rest for several days, but the air around her seemed particularly heavy. It had a coolness and weight that resembled the air at dawn.

“Why are you here… carrying Miss Wizard?”

“I found her passed out from overworking. The assigned healers also looked exhausted, so I just brought her here.”

Deathbringer fell silent for a moment at Berserk’s words. There was nothing he could say to that.

“Give her to me.”

With her help, he carefully laid the Archmage beside the Inquisitor. The lightness of her body seemed to weigh down on Deathbringer even more.

It was hard to tell because of all the fur, but she seemed even thinner than before.

“And the turtle?”

“…It’s sleeping over there.”

“I see.”

With the not-so-small Inquisitor and the Archmage lying side by side, half the tent was already filled. Once Deathbringer and Berserk sat down in the remaining space, that was it. There was no more space left in the tent.

Naturally, those two couldn’t even stretch out their legs as they settled.

“…What’s going to happen to us now?”

“Who knows? The only thing that’ll change is whether the Demon Knight will continue to be with us.”

Well, wasn’t that the most important issue, though?

Deathbringer raised his head at Berserk’s words. He wondered if she truly had no opinion regarding the Demon Knight’s treatment.

“…Miss Fighter, are you really okay with Mister Knight dying?”

The moment he asked that, Berserk raised her head. The look in her eyes was endlessly gloomy, saying more than words could.

“I know he isn’t someone who deserves to die like this.”

That single, soft sentence summarized this whole wretched situation.

Deathbringer’s head lowered again. A deep despair shredded his heart to pieces.

“Urgh.”

Just as he was about to be completely overcome with sorrow, a faint groan changed everything. Both of them, who were about to close their eyes and surrender themselves to the heavy silence, hurriedly whipped their heads around.

* * *

The Inquisitor instinctively knew when she saw this pitch-black world. This place was God’s…

“O Lord.”

She recalled the moment she first received the divine revelation that led her to begin her journey as a Hero.

That moment had been just like this: surrounded by darkness, only herself visible in this void.

And God, God had… only left her with one-sided orders.

“This lowly servant dares to ask.”

Back then, when she’d received those unilateral words, had she only responded with obedience?

The world she’d been taught was so distinctly black and white that she’d never had the mind to doubt anything. She was a frog in a well, believing what she’d learned to be the entire world. For her, obedience had been much easier than doubt, and submission more comfortable than distrust. That was why she’d never even dared to question anything.

“Why did you choose me?”

But now, things were different.

She resolved to seek answers to all the doubts she’d been harboring before God could even speak to her.

Asking questions did not mean disrespecting the other, and having doubts did not mean she lacked devotion to the other. She’d learned that the world couldn’t easily be divided into black and white, which gave her the courage to ask.

“Why does he have to suffer?”

It was the prayer of a mere mortal who’d realized there were far too many things she wished to save, yet she possessed far too little strength to do so.

“Why was Bemurchen…”

She now needed an answer from the Almighty God.

Why had a person as lacking as her been chosen as the Hero?

Why did that selfless man have to suffer so much?

Why did the people of this city have to die, unable to receive God’s divine protection?

Why, why…

“O Lord, please grant me an answer…”

[────]

“…?”

[──Go─]

At that moment, a voice rang in her mind. No. It wasn’t really a voice. It was more like letters seeping through her ears. Or maybe something even more fundamental—

[Nor—Go—]

Flash.

Had it been like this last time? Just as she tried to recall, the Inquisitor saw it. In a world filled with nothing but darkness, a single light appeared. Maybe it had fallen. Maybe it had just formed. Or maybe something that had been hidden had finally become visible to her.

Something that had always been there had finally opened its eyes.

[Go—North.]

Thousands, tens of thousands, countless eyes looked down on her. Above her head, before her, beneath her feet, from every corner of this darkness.

[Seek—your answers—there.]

The world, nature, the unknown.

Something people should forever fear and revere was looking straight at her.

[…Follow—the—one who walks—the path.]

The darkness shattered, and the world was bathed in light once more.

* * *

“Haah!”

The Inquisitor’s eyes instinctively snapped open. Stale, unventilated air rushed into her nose and mouth. A slight warmth lingered, perhaps for the sake of the patient’s comfort.

“Iron wall!”

“You’re awake.”

The warm air gently seeped into her lungs, but she didn’t immediately regain her composure. The Inquisitor took a few more breaths and rolled around her eyes.

A lantern hung on one side of the tent, illuminating the faces of those around her.

Deathbringer and Berserk were standing upright, while the Archmage lay sound asleep beside her. There were those three here.

Checking their faces, worries she hadn’t even been aware of slowly left her mind. Now, if she could just confirm the Demon Knight was safe, most of her concerns would be lifted entirely.

Not noticing her face had brightened, the Inquisitor finally spoke up.

“You’re all… alive.”

However, a coarse, raspy voice left her throat as soon as she did.

It felt so unfamiliar that she thought she sounded like an old woman. She sat up and raised a hand to her neck.

“Is your body alright?”

“It’s not, cough, not bad. Just a little stiff.”

She could tell she hadn’t moved for quite some time since her body felt pretty stiff. However, a bit of movement could fix that quickly, so she didn’t even consider it a problem.

“What’s the situation?”

Her physical condition was far less important than learning how the situation had changed while she was unconscious.

She hurriedly urged the two to tell her how many had survived, what had become of the city, and where the Demon Knight was.

She set aside the oracle she’d just received in her dream. After all, it could also wait until later.

“Seeing as all three of you are fine, things don’t seem that bad—”

“…Well.”

However, contrary to her expectations, the faces of the two she’d pressed for answers gradually stiffened. Their reaction was nothing like she’d hoped for.

“…Is it really that bad?”

“…That depends on how you look at it.”

Is that so? So it was that kind of situation.

However, she couldn’t just sit here remaining ignorant and anxious. Straightening her posture, the Inquisitor waited for an explanation.

Soon, Deathbringer’s calm voice filled the tent.

“…So the reinforcements arrived, and things are starting to settle down somewhat, is that it?”

“If you put it that way, yeah.”

“Hah.”

Surprisingly, the answer she’d waited for was better than expected. After all, they’d avoided a future where everyone here was utterly annihilated, and the main threats—Greed and that unknown turtle—had all been dealt with.

If worse came to worst, everyone could have just been wiped out, so this ending could almost be said to be the best possible. Good news, so to speak.

“The individual who contributed the most to saving the city is locked in a cell while others discuss plans for his execution?”

Except for one thing. The treatment of a single person.

“Take me to him.”

“…You’re going?”

“Of course I should go. Why wouldn’t I?”

She wouldn’t deny that sacrificing a few for the sake of many was often the most efficient solution. If a single person was making everyone anxious, it made sense to restrain them to some degree.

However, while understandable, was it really the right thing to do? Did the current situation truly justify these actions?

“Killing someone over mere possibility is no different from executing a perfectly innocent person just because they might become a criminal. In other words, a completely absurd act. A cowardly act by those afraid of being harmed.”

On the other hand, the Demon Knight had already given his all to save this city. Even if he’d had to use the power of a Demon to do so.

He’d successfully controlled that Demon, and he hadn’t harmed a single person. There wasn’t a single reason to treat him like this!

“I absolutely refuse to entertain such nonsense! Do you hear me? I’ll make sure he’s repaid for his devotion!”

The Inquisitor naturally argued for the Demon Knight’s survival. This was just an undeniable truth to her. Something that didn’t even warrant a single doubt.

“What if he chooses to die himself?”

It was then that Berserk, who had been silent until now, spoke up.

“His treatment has certainly been influenced by others’ opinions. However, even if you exclude those, do you really think the Demon Knight would still want to live?”

“…!”

“What if he still chooses death regardless of what anyone else says? What will you do then?”

“Th-that’s…”

The fighter, whose atmosphere had drastically changed from before, rested her hand on her knee, seeming completely calm. Her listless expression brought back a conversation they’d once had.

“Didn’t I tell you before? Fate won’t wait for you.”

The arms resting on top of her knee hung limply, like those of a corpse.

“…And as I told you before, I will persuade him. No matter what!”

“I see… So that is still your choice.”

However, she wasn’t dead yet. The eyes connected to that slackened arm narrowed. Her eyes were like those of someone who’d begun to see what lay ahead by watching the world around her.

“Do as you please.”

But just because someone understood something didn’t mean they could act on it. Berserk was no different.

“Struggling against fate is a right granted to all.”

Rather than interfering with the Inquisitor using her slight foresight as an excuse, she chose to remain a spectator as usual. Faded golden eyes shone through her lowered eyelids.

“…Let’s go.”

But something about all this made it feel doomed to fail, leaving the Inquisitor quite unsettled. It was a particular kind of anxiety that all beings had.

“Alright.”

However, what possibly could’ve happened in the few hours she’d been awake?

There was no way Deathbringer had been careless while watching over the Demon Knight all this time. And it was the middle of the night, so he’d probably just returned to his quarters for a moment of rest.

What could’ve possibly happened in that time?

“Ah, before we see the Demon Knight, let’s stop by the infirmary first. Or is the place he’s at closer?”

“No, the infirmary is definitely closer.”

“Then let’s go there first.”

Making a judgement based on her common sense, the Inquisitor came to a decision. Clang, clang, clang, clang. It took her less than ten minutes to realize how wrong that judgement had been.

“The Knight is gone!!”

Amid the ringing alarm bells, someone kept shouting.

“The Demon Knight is gone!!”

Berserk had been right.

Fate had not waited for her.

* * *

> [Oh my. What in the world happened to this city?]

> [I’m hungry.]

> [Ah, just wait a moment, I’m almost there… Hmm? Aren’t those the Knight’s companions?]

> [I’m huuungry.]

> [Ah, just hold up, okay? But where’s the Knight?]

And then, vegetation began to bloom across the ruined land once more.

____