Motivation

"――――!”

　The 30th time.
　He opened his eyes in surprise to find himself in a dimly lit room.
　Nao was sitting in the corner of the room, exhaling smoke towards the open window.
　The only small light in the darkness was the tip of the cigarette that Nao was holding in her mouth.
　As Nao inhaled, the tiny light spot seemed to slightly enlarge, as if to assert its existence.


(……Thank God. She's alive.)


　Akira let out a huge sigh of relief when he saw Nao smoking a cigarette absentmindedly.
　Then, he quickly looked around to check the situation.
　Apparently, the place where he will Return from Hell this time was the apartment where he was resting with Nao. Judging by the situation, it seemed that they were in the middle of allocating points between them.

(After all, does defeating the boss change the place where one Returns from Hell? )

　Akira pondered his thoughts on the changed destination after returning from the dead.
　So far, the place where he had returned to after dying twice was always immediately after defeating the boss. To be precise, it might not be accurate to say that the first change point was immediately after defeating the boss, but even so, there was definitely a connection between the boss's defeat and the change in the Return from Hell destination.


(……But for now, let's focus on Nao-san.)


　Akira murmured to himself and turned his gaze to Nao.
　Arthur hadn't shown himself yet, but there was no doubt that the man was already in the room.
　After meeting that man and being introduced to Hanayagi Ayaka, Nao was killed.
　In that case, they couldn't meet Ayaka in this life.
　Having made up his mind, Akira immediately called out to Arthur in the darkness to ask for him to come.


"Arthur, you're there, aren't you?　There is no need to hide anymore. Please come out."
"Ichijou?　What is it, suddenly――――"

　It was at that moment that Nao was surprised by Akira's words and raised her voice.


"…………Ohh?　I'm surprised. How long have you known I've been here?”

　Interrupting Nao's words, the man appeared as if he was oozing out of the darkness.


"...!?”


　It was so sudden that Nao jumped and froze in place.
　When Arthur appeared, he smiled a contented smile at the surprised Nao, and then he turned his gaze to Akira, who didn't seem surprised at all, and gave him an inquisitive look.

"Fumu. It seems that the young lady didn't notice me. Then, you are the only one who has seen through my 『stealth』…… Fumu. Hmm, hmm, hmm. I'm curious as to how you managed to do that. My stealth should be impossible to detect with the 『Enemy Search』 skill, right?”
"It's nothing big. I already knew you were there."

　Akira said this in a soft voice.
　Then, Nao, who probably understood the meaning of the words, gasped in surprise.
　Arthur let out another groan at the sight of Akira's group, and then opened his mouth with a thoughtful expression.

"I see.　Is that the result of some kind of skill, like precognition?”
"……That's how it is. So I already know why you came out in front of us. With that out of the way, I'll get straight to the point. I'm sorry, Arthur, but I can't grant your request."

　Arthur showed a slight surprise at Akira's words, and then a small smile appeared on his face.

"……Umu. I thought I'd lived a long time, but this is the first time I've been rejected before I've even said anything. Can I ask you why?”
"Because your friend―― Hanayagi Ayaka is going to kill Nao-san."
"Wha-!?”

　At those words, Nao let out another cry of surprise.
　No wonder she was surprised. From Nao's point of view, it was as if she had been suddenly told that she was going to be killed in the future.

"You're sure about that?”

　Nao asked Akira.

"……Yeah. If that wasn't the case, I wouldn't be here right now."

　To this, Nao muttered “I see...” and closed her mouth.
　The reason for Akira's return from hell. She probably sensed this from Akira's words.
　Akira looked away from Nao, who had kept her mouth shut, and turned his attention back to Arthur.


"If we continue to travel together, we will eventually meet Hanayagi. If that happens, there's no guarantee that Nao-san won't be killed again. As long as that person is your companion, I have no intention of acting with you."
"Hmm…… It's hard to believe at first, but…… Hanayagi-kun killed the young lady?　How?　The young lady is a higher level than Hanayagi-kun. Her stats are also inevitably higher."
"She used the iron sword I had. Using it will make the difference in strength and endurance irrelevant."
"Iron sword?　Is this what you are talking about?”

　Then Arthur reached for the iron sword by the wall and tried to lift it up. ――However, the iron sword did not move at all.
　Arthur looked away from the iron sword and turned his attention to Akira.

"Really, Hanayagi-kun is going to do that to this young lady with this?　This sword is too heavy to lift."
"With your strength level, Arthur, that might be the case. But if it's the strength of Hanayagi, she can lift it."
"Hmm... I see."

　Arthur removed his hand from the iron sword and stroked his beard thoughtfully.

"I don't know if that story is true or not, but…… If you know about Hanayagi, which I haven't told you about yet, I can't say for sure that your story is a lie. ……However. In this situation, the more Hanayagi-kun's motives become unclear. If I hear correctly, you met Hanayagi through my introduction, right?　Even so, do you think Hanayagi would want to kill someone she's just met?　I think it's more likely that someone else killed her."


　Akira thought about it, and it was as Arthur had said.
　The entrance to the tenement building where Arthur's bar was located was blocked off by a barricade. That said, it was a place where anyone could enter as long as they knew how to get in. In addition, Arthur also said that there was another entrance and exit.
　It would not be impossible that another person entered after Arthur left and Akira's party fell asleep and killed Nao.
　But if that's the case, why did Hanayagi Ayaka disappear from the scene?
　Why was Nao the only one killed in the first place?

(The reason Nao-san was killed…… That's probably because she has lower stats than me. The Orc's iron sword's attack power alone won't break my Endurance. So, out of the people remaining, Nao-san, who was easy to kill, was killed? )

　He guessed that was the reason.
　Arthur addressed Akira, who was lost in thought.


"……Therefore. I'm going to go with the theory that someone other than Hanayagi-kun killed the young lady. Even if Hanayagi-kun did kill the young lady, I will keep a close eye on him so that it doesn't happen again... but it seems that you have no intention of listening to what I have to say."


　Arthur said this looked at Akira and smiled.
　It was as Arthur said. Whether it was Hanayagi or not who killed Nao, if they continued to act together, there was no denying the possibility that Nao would be killed again.
　The only way to overturn a predetermined future was to change its very foundations.

"I agree. This conclusion will not change no matter what happens. I ― no, we ― are not going to the Killer Bee's hive.”

　Akira clearly utters those words.
　Arthur then let out a sigh and opened his mouth, a smile that did not reveal the emotions appearing on his face.

"……Very well. I'm afraid I'll have to give up on you guys. If you change your mind, come and ask me. Do you know where I am?”
"Is it a bar in a multi-tenant building off the main street?”

　Akira replied to Arthur's words.
　At this, Arthur smiled.

"……I see. You even know that? Then, the credibility of the words you said becomes even higher. Hmm, but still, Hanayagi-kun killed someone……? We often hear that people are not always what they seem to be, and that's definitely true. Should I reconsider my decision to work with her?”

　When he mumbled, Arthur turned and started walking towards the front door.


"Well then, I'm going to leave you to it. If there is a connection, we will meet again."

　As he said this, Arthur's figure slowly faded away, as if melting into the darkness.

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 ToC    

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