Isekai Kansha - Chapter 70

Chapter 70: Resolve

After turning back together with Zack and the others, Jin’s group headed straight for the Adventurers’ Guild as soon as they arrived.

Naturally, when The Giant’s Twins' Arms, who were supposed to be out on a request, returned with their equipment in tatters, it was easy to imagine that some unforeseen trouble had occurred.

Including Jin’s party, everyone was promptly shown into a meeting room, where they had just finished explaining the circumstances of their encounter with Gerd and how he was subjugated.

“Thank you for your hard work. And… thank you very much.”

The one who bowed as he said this was a male guild staff member from the Adventurers’ Guild—someone Jin and the others had parted ways with only a few hours earlier. In his hands was Gerd’s adventurer card, which Jin’s group had submitted. The hand gripping the card trembled slightly.

This staff member had worked at the Tron Adventurers’ Guild for many years, and of course, he had known Gerd and his companions. In fact, since he was from the same hometown as Gerd, it wouldn’t be wrong to say they had been close. When Gerd and the others left the city of Tron, they had even entrusted him with looking after the remaining members, including Zack.

He had mourned the cruel fate that befell those who had been active far away, but if, in the end, they were able to be watched over by juniors he could almost call beloved disciples, then to him, that was still a kind of salvation. Moreover, the way Zack and the others described Gerd’s final moments struck him as the best possible death he could imagine.

His words were an official “thank you for your hard work” as a guild employee regarding the subjugation of the bandit Gerd, and at the same time, a personal “thank you” for freeing his friend Gerd from madness and bringing his body back.

“I’ll take responsibility for his remains. It can’t be done publicly, but I’ll make arrangements so he can be properly buried.”

For an adventurer to fall into banditry was the one thing the Adventurers’ Guild most desperately sought to avoid. Precisely because adventurers could so easily become separated from ordinary people due to differences in level, it was something that could never be permitted.

And yet Gerd had indeed fallen into banditry, and by his own hand had taken many lives. Normally, a burial would be difficult to grant him. However, since the existence of the body was not known to anyone, this veteran staff member—who had connections in many places from his long years of service—was able to make the necessary arrangements.

“P-please take care of it.”

Along with the members of The Giant’s Twins Arms, Jin bowed his head. Hearing the reassuring words of the staff member, Jin felt as though a weight had finally been lifted from his shoulders.

After that, Jin’s group excused themselves and left ahead of the others. From there on, the remaining procedures would be handled by The Giant’s Twins Arms, and in the official records, Jin’s group would be listed merely as having “assisted.”

The reason was simple: Jin and the others were D-rank adventurers registered in the city of Lientz, so they technically had no standing to be involved in a request from the city of Tron in the first place. On top of that, taking Jin’s wish not to stand out into consideration, their mention in the records would be kept to an absolute minimum.

Of course, if the reward were also minimized, Zack and the others would never accept it. As such, it had already been agreed that everyone would gather later at the guild tavern, where Jin’s group would receive half of the reward money. As for non-monetary spoils, Jin’s party would take Gerd’s greatsword, while all of Gerd's other equipment and belongings would be inherited by Zack and the others.

The back-and-forth—Jin trying to refuse, and Zack’s group insisting that it wouldn’t be right otherwise—played out in the reverse of how things usually went, and was ultimately settled in this way.

When Jin’s group left the guild, the priestess Ashley accompanied them. Guided by her, they first transported Gerd’s body by carriage to the temple. After unloading the body, they parted ways with Ashley on the spot. After that, they returned to the inn where they had stayed the previous night, rented rooms again for the day, and decided to rest individually until the agreed time.

“Repair.”

Jin’s repair magic activated. As the carapace of the Mad Ant Queen he had on hand diminished, the scratches on his armor vanished. Carefully tracing over the damaged areas, Jin cast the repair spell again and again.

Thanks to the fact that it was made using monster materials, the armor was in better condition than he had expected, despite having taken several of Gerd’s attacks. In contrast, the damage to the glaive was more severe. While repair magic had restored its appearance so that no chips were visible, it hadn’t been hammered back into shape, so its sharpness was no longer perfect. Just like the armor, returning it fully to its original condition would require Gantz’s maintenance, but for now, he would have to make do.

Still, Jin had never imagined that a black iron glaive—known for being heavy but exceptionally hard and durable—would suffer this much edge damage. Put another way, it was precisely because he had Gantz’s black iron glaive that he had been able to withstand the ferocious onslaught of Gerd’s greatsword.

The same went for the armor’s gauntlets. If Gantz hadn’t brought this glaive to him before he set out on his journey, Jin shuddered to think that he might no longer be alive. At the same time, he felt deep gratitude toward Gantz.

“Whew…”

With the repairs finished and nothing left to do, Jin realized he had let out a sigh.

As long as he kept busy, it distracted him, but in idle moments, his thoughts inevitably drifted back to the fight with Gerd and how it ended.

“Not good, not good.”

Jin lightly shook his head, forcing those unnecessary thoughts away. Worrying and thinking things through were important, but letting himself get trapped in them and become negative served no purpose.

“Oh, right. Come to think of it, there’s still plenty I need to do.”

It was rather late to realize it, but Jin hadn’t even properly looked at Gerd’s greatsword yet, let alone used Appraisal on it. He also hadn’t checked the skills that had grown or newly appeared during the fight with Gerd. Realizing how little mental leeway he’d had, Jin gave a wry smile.

There was still more than enough time before the appointment, so Jin was just about to sit down and focus properly—when the sound of a knock on the door interrupted him.

“Jin-san, may we have a moment?”

“Ah, yes. I’ll open the door now—just a second.”

Hearing Aria’s voice, Jin hurriedly opened the door, only to find that not just Aria but also Erza and Rachel were standing there.

“What’s going on, all of you? Well, come on in.”

He motioned for the three of them to enter, but inside the room, there was only the bed and a single built-in chair that looked usable. After closing the door, Jin took a small table and several chairs out of Infinite Storage and arranged them so everyone could sit.

“Sorry, we’ve made extra work for you,” Aria said apologetically.

But to Jin, it was hardly any effort at all. As soon as everyone took their seats, Jin also took out some 100% fruit juice he had stocked up on from Infinite Storage and set it out.

“Don't be sorry. So, what’s up?”

He asked while gesturing for them to help themselves to the juice.

Out of the corner of his eye, Jin watched the three of them hesitate. He took a sip of his own juice and waited for them to speak.

“Uh… well, we were just wondering if you were okay.” 

Erza said, sounding uncomfortable.

That alone was enough for Jin to understand. I see… so that’s it.

“You came because you were worried about me?”

When Jin asked, the three of them nodded with solemn expressions.

Because they knew how kind Jin was, they thought that killing someone would weigh heavily on him. And even if the other party had been a bandit, it wasn’t as though there was nothing about his circumstances to sympathize with.

It was only natural that they would worry.

Up until now, Zack and the others had been around, so there hadn’t been a chance to talk. Thinking that now it would be fine, they had come to visit Jin’s room like this.

“Thank you.”

Their kindness sank deep into Jin’s heart. It would be a lie to say it wasn’t painful, but this was something he had to resolve on his own. And unless they were his lovers, which they weren’t, he couldn’t bring himself to lean on his companions and seek temporary comfort.

This was where a man’s pride had to come into play.

“But I’m fine. I’ve already sorted out my feelings.”

Jin told them this with a smile, and it wasn’t a lie told solely to reassure them.

Jin killed magical beasts to obtain materials and magic stones, just as animals were killed to obtain meat and hides. Those things were used to support daily life and enrich people’s livelihoods, and none of them was ever wasted.

As someone whose job as an adventurer involved taking lives, be they magical beasts or animals, Jin believed that not letting those lives be wasted was the bare minimum of his duty.

And this time was no different.

Jin had killed Gerd, but in order not to waste that life, he intended to make Gerd’s way of life and actions a lesson and turn them into nourishment for himself.

He would learn from the parts of Gerd’s past that were worth emulating, understand the tragedy that befell him, and engrave it into his heart so that he would never walk the same path. Unlike fighting magical beasts, battling a human like Gerd contributed almost nothing to physical level-ups, but in terms of skills and experience, it had given Jin an immense opportunity for growth. And that, too, was one of the things Gerd had left behind.

Jin believed that not wasting the life Gerd had lived was the duty of the one who had taken it.

If the opponent had been a truly irredeemable villain, Jin probably wouldn’t have struggled this much. He wouldn’t have tried to learn about such a person’s life, and the guilt would have faded quickly. But because Gerd was someone he could partially sympathize with, Jin had continued to think about it this deeply, and Aria and the others couldn’t help but worry as well.

“……”

Even after hearing Jin say he was fine, Aria and the others didn’t change their expressions.

They stared at Jin in silence, their faces full of concern, as if silently telling him not to overdo it.

Jin felt genuinely happy, thinking that he truly had been blessed with good companions. So he decided to let out just a little of his weakness—and his true feelings.

“It’s true that I’ve sorted out my feelings. But it’s also true that killing someone was a shock. I’ll probably keep remembering it at unexpected moments and worrying about it from time to time.”

Jin said this with a wry smile, but then his expression turned serious as he continued.

“But you know, I don’t regret it. And I won’t ever erase the option of killing from within myself. If someone comes at me intending to take my life, then it’s only natural that I fight them with the same resolve. Still…”

At that point, Jin cut himself off. He raised his right hand to his chest and clenched it tightly into a fist, staring at it.

“I want to become strong. Strong enough to handle even the fiercest enemies with ease. Strong enough that choosing not to kill is just as easy as choosing to kill!”

This time, Gerd had been overwhelmingly stronger, and if Jin hadn’t killed him, it would have been Jin who was killed instead. But if Jin had been far stronger than Gerd—truly beyond him—then perhaps the option of not killing might have existed.

Of course, that was nothing more than a hypothetical, something that didn’t exist in reality. Still, if there was one thing Jin regretted, it was his own weakness—the fact that, in that moment, the only choice he had been able to make was to kill.

What Jin was talking about was unrealistic, a harsh path with no clear end in sight. Even so, he strongly wished to reach that point someday.

“So do I.”

With those words from Erza, her two palms closed around Gin’s clenched fist.

“I was frustrated. I felt pathetic, leaving all the fighting to you, Jin, and only being able to heal with potions or provide cover with my bow.”

Tears welled up in Erza’s eyes from the frustration, but she clenched her teeth and endured, refusing to let them fall.

“I want to be strong too. Strong enough to fight shoulder to shoulder with you. Strong enough to help you when you’re in danger.”

Holding back her tears, Erza spoke as if making a vow, her sharp gaze fixed on her own hands wrapped around Jin’s fist.

Then, as if in succession, another hand was laid on top.

“I want to become strong as well. Strong enough that I won’t need to be worried about even on my own. Strong enough to support you all, not just with healing magic.”

Rachel had been frustrated, too. She had believed she could fight better than average even in close combat, but this time she had learned painfully that it was nothing more than a misunderstanding. If she needed a guard just to protect herself, then the front line’s actions would be restricted—and she would only end up holding them back.

To make effective use of her healing magic, Rachel strongly felt the need to first raise her own combat ability.

“I feel the same way. I realized firsthand how dangerous it is to fight high-rank opponents like this unless I hone my magic further—and train in close combat as well. I need to become stronger, too.”

The last hand to join was Aria’s, gently covering everyone else’s.

For Aria, who had always worked solo, the battle between Gerd and Jin had seemed like an ideal form of combat. What made it possible was Jin’s exceptional close-combat ability. But when thinking in terms of a party, improving magical offensive power was paramount. Aria analyzed that if her magic had carried more decisive force at that moment, Jin’s fight would have been far easier.

This time, all three of them had initially taken on the role of healing the members of The Giant’s Twins Arms, leaving everything else to Jin until the very last moment.

That decision was made out of trust in Jin’s strength and abilities, and there was no doubt that it had been the best way to save everyone’s lives. Still, Aria and the others were not the type to be content with remaining in that position.

Jin placed his free left hand on top of the pile of overlapping hands.

He had irreplaceable companions. Jin savored that realization deeply.

“Let’s all become strong—together. We’ll raise our levels and hone our skills. I’ll teach you everything I know, all the techniques and knowledge I have. And whatever you can teach, share it with everyone, too. Becoming strong on your own might be difficult, but if we work together, I believe we can all become strong.”

Jin then looked each of them in the eyes—Erza straight ahead, Aria to his right, and Rachel to his left.

“We’ll all get stronger!!”

At Jin’s call—

“““Yes!”””

The three voices overlapped as they answered together.

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