“Big brother, are you sure Claire and Hercus should be the ones giving the materials back?”
“Why not? They’re the best for the job. Claire is well connected and sociable, and Hercus is familiar with the situation in school and will help us solve problems. Aren’t they perfect for this?”
“That’s not it… I’m saying people should know you were the one who took the materials from Isaac and are giving them back to everyone.”
“Ah, that. It’s fine. If I say I was the one who took them back, some people might be suspicious, or too stubborn to take them. We can leave that a bit ambiguous.”
The two brothers, Yuugo and Phi, were talking in the corner of the courtyard that was de facto Yuugo’s home.
If there was one thing that was different, it was the skeleton horse next to them. But it was very well behaved, sitting on the grass, showing no intention of interrupting their conversation.
Phi peeked over at Skull, and as he watched his brother naked from the waist up doing push-ups, he continued talking with a somewhat displeased expression.
“But then it’s a net loss for you. You won the duel and everything, but you didn’t get any materials, or the praise either. All you did was get hurt…”
“Phi… I get what you’re saying, but if you’re expecting to be paid, you can’t call yourself a hero. If people are in need, you help them and that’s it. I don’t need to be given things or acclamation. That’s what it means to be a hero.”
“…Is that one of those hero conditions?”
“Yes! Hero condition number three! You’re starting to get it!”
Yuugo stopped his push-ups to ruffle Phi’s hair, who closed his eyes a little.
The praise from the big brother he respected made him happy, but also unhappy about him going unrewarded. He looked at his brother’s back while he wiped sweat off his body and got dressed, and hung his head.
Yuugo’s back still had red burns. Phi knew this was the price he paid for using the powerful flaming armor, and felt something close to irritation as he thought about how so few people knew about his contributions to protecting the order not just in the school and city, but the whole world.
Even at that point, a lot of students still looked down on him, as the worst scum in the school, the one who had his fiancee taken from him, and the one whose bad behavior meant he deserved to be disowned by his family.
Phi felt bad because they were taking back their materials, not knowing it was his brother who got them back from Isaac, and Yuugo gently pat his head.
“…Sorry for worrying you so much, Phi. I need to make sure not to worry you all.”
Safeguarding his pride as a hero was one thing that was not negotiable for Yuugo. But he also understood that he would need power to continue doing it.
When his life as Yuugo Kurei ended, what he saw was the boy he saved looking at him and crying.
Even if he tried his hardest to stick to his sense of justice, that was meaningless if that made people cry.
He knew from experience that a hero had his happy ending when he returned to the people that cared about him.
“…If I was stronger, no one would’ve had to cry.”
“Big brother…”
Not a long time had passed since this incident ended, and Yuugo still regretted it.
Neid lost his memory and was in a state where he could not even talk properly, and Isaac, who was used by him, lost his life. He wished he could have saved both.
Could this tragedy have been avoided if he was stronger?
If he could have beaten the main culprit while keeping damage to a minimum and without making anyone sad or worried, surely a different future would have awaited them.
Then… Lost, the one behind it all, was right.
Lost told Yuugo to get stronger, and while this irritated Yuugo, it was also the best solution to break through that regret.
But… Thinking back to people like Isaac, Neid, and even Rush, who continued to seek power and ended up drowning it, Yuugo realized that alone was not enough.
Hero condition number two… Being strong meant nothing on its own, he could not forget to be kind. Yuugo told himself this was very important, and superseded the advice Lost gave him, as Phi spoke with a worried expression.
“Don’t just bottle everything on your own. I don’t know if I can do anything, but I’ll do what I can…”
“Yes… Thanks Phi.”
He felt hesitant and regretful. He knew better than anyone that he was not someone who could come up with perfect answers.
But still… Yuugo wanted to at the very least keep a smile on the face of his dear little brother. And as he thought that, someone called out to him.
“Yuugo! Are you doing okay!?”
“Melt, An, Marcos… You came all the way out here?”
“I need to talk to you about Blaster. But actually, the biggest reason why I’m here is so I can see if you’re not pushing yourself too much while you’re still recovering.”
“You’re still camping out here? You’ve got yourself some supplies, but it’s still kind of irritating to see…”
Said Marcos.
Skull also woke up after hearing the voices of the people there to see how Yuugo was doing, and moved in closer.
This place became lively all of a sudden, as they all spoke to Yuugo in turn.
“Have you been training or something? Your burns still aren’t healed. You need to take it easy!”
“The students that went away because of the incident with Rush should be coming back soon. School is about to begin again too. Make sure you get yourself in top condition before then. It will be during our school life that we will compete to see who can become the most wonderful magic knight!”
“It’s not just your body that has to be in top form, Blaster too, right? I need Skull’s help with some things, so rest up, Yuugo.”
Yuugo scratched his cheek and smiled awkwardly, as everyone told him to rest.
It seemed the future where people would not have to be worried about him was still far away, he thought as he felt thankful to have friends who cared for him, and looked up to the sky while whispering.
“Yes… I still have a long way to go.”
Between his school life actually starting, and training every day to become a magic knight, it seemed what came before was just a prelude.
And so, he could not let himself be stopped by regret. First, he had to think about moving forward, and then keep going.
Not everything went the way he wanted. He knew he was inexperienced, and did not feel good about everything that happened.
But still… He thought he had to say one thing.
“This case is complete. There is no such thing in this world… As a never ending rain.”
Where there was someone being struck by the rain of sadness, someone would extend an umbrella.
And he wanted to be the hero that blew away those rainy clouds.
With another goal in mind and friends around him, Yuugo felt deeply how important this moment, these precious days were, and he nodded to himself while vowing to become stronger.
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