As it turns out, I didn't die.
Amelia and I are both unharmed.


...... Are you okay?


Because this guy is here to help.
His black tail wagged in front of me.


'Crow....... 'Why are you here?'


When the night asked, Crow glanced at Leah and snickered.
He didn't answer the question.
He looked at Leah for only a moment, and in the next moment, he wasn't looking at us anymore.


''After the human race, it's the beastman race? And it's that Crow. ......

Can you tell me which Crow is which? I'd like to know how it's handed down to the demons too.


In contrast to Crowe, who raised the edge of his mouth belligerently, Mahiro's face had an impatient smile on it.
While the two of them were sparks in the air, we were urged by the night to take refuge by the wall.
Before I knew it, the body-control magic that had been cast on Amelia was gone.
And the 'shadow magic' that was using my body had also disappeared.


''Night, do you know Crow and Mahiro?''


In a state of full wounds, I leaned against the wall and breathed.
Next to me, the night in the form of Commander Saran was doing the same.
Amelia is far away from me.
Even though she was being controlled, she must be worried about the fact that she almost killed me while she was conscious.
I'm not having any symptoms other than anemia thanks to the 'shadow magic', though.


'Crow, the previous brave member, was not blamed by the king or his people even if he ran back without defeating the Demon King. That's because Crowe and the then brave member nearly captured the Demon King's castle with just two people.''


My eyes widened.
Amelia seemed to know, and she didn't seem particularly surprised.
Indeed, it is strange that someone who has escaped and returned to live in a house with a fine forge, albeit in the middle of nowhere.
It would normally be a suicide ...... after a disappointment, wouldn't it?
It's a good idea to be able to have a good idea of what you're looking for.
It's not that they didn't capture the castle, but the fact that they were about to do so is troubling.


''I was near the Demon King at the time, so I was only aware that the heroic party had been killed on their own and escaped, but it wasn't until I heard from my subordinates a little while later that I learned that they had been forced to get close to the Demon King.''


What does that have to do with Crow erasing the magic that was cast on Amelia and me?
Perhaps noticing my eyes, the night gave me a look that said, well, wait a minute.


It's a good idea to have a good time with them. But Mahiro wasn't fully prepared to face off against Crowe either.''


Then the night looked at the two of them.
I looked in that direction, too.
Mahiro's face was not the same as when he was fighting us, and he didn't have the luxury of time to spare.
I thought I knew I was lower than Crow, but it was kind of annoying.


'It's been a while, Mahro Abe,'

'The lifespan of the beastmen is about a human race plus a hundred years, right? Why aren't you just sitting down yet, old man?


Certainly, "Adria's Nightmare" was a hundred years ago, and Crow went to the Demon King's Castle as a heroic party before that, so he should have time to become good enough to be chosen as a heroic party.
Does that mean that his lifespan should be coming soon?
The beastmen don't know the difference between young and old, do they?


''Don't lick it, kid. I'm not as old as I was in my prime, but I'm not that far behind either.''


Crowe bared his teeth and growled.
Mahiro glanced over at me.


'Looks like it. In an instant you've unleashed my magic.


It seems it's Crowe's doing, after all, that me and Amelia's magic is being broken.
Crowe snickers again.


''The 'body puppet' was almost undone. Did you lose your concentration? Or have you been attacked to the point of being cut off?

You know, you're a mean old man.


Mahiro's mouth is getting worse and worse.
He's always smiling, so why not switch to a respectful character?

Crowe laughed without being fazed by Mahiro's hateful mouth.


'Apparently the summoning of the heroes this time wasn't a bad thing. Looks like there was at least one guy with guts.''


Am I talking about me?
It's like a different assessment than when we first met.

The two men who had been talking stared at each other for a while, and then Mahiro backed off.


'I'll let you off the hook for today,'

I could say the same thing.


Apparently, the standoff went to Crow.
Mahiro clicked his tongue and held Aulum, who had been unconscious at some point on the demon.
Crowe also broke free of his battle stance.

I stood up and stared at Mahiro.
Mahiro noticed my gaze and stood in front of me with Aulum in his arms.


'I'll back off for today, but next time I won't show any mercy, even if we're both Japanese, lesser breeds.

'You hurt Amelia. I'll pay you back twice as much and you can wait for me to wash your head.


The standoff between me and Mahiro ended when the night pulled away from me.


'Lord Lord, let's get home quickly.'


When I turned around, Crow was quickly withdrawing with Leah in his arms.
I grab Amelia's hand, which is lying face down.
Amelia huffs and looks up at me.


'Let's go home.'