Raust's blow, and the defeat of the phoenix was over immediately afterwards.

Even after Laust's dagger had torn through his brain, the Phoenix was still alive with an extraordinary vitality.
But at the earliest, Phoenix didn't even have enough energy left to heal his own wounds, and in the end, his head was crushed by Narsena and he couldn't move.

That was the short end of the Phoenix in the lower level of the labyrinth, a super-difficult demonic beast that would have mutated and shaken the labyrinth city if only it had a little more time.

It would be a miraculous event.
Phoenix was not perfectly mutated and was also covered in wounds.
Even so, the Phoenix still possessed an extraordinary ability.

...... I didn't expect it to end so easily, so easily.

......, but the emotion I remembered for the successful completion of the quest was not relief, but astonishment.

'Hah, hah,'

Beside me, I can see Lausto still breathing on my shoulder.
The defeat was easily over, and that might not be the right word to say after seeing that figure unable to even hide his fatigue.
Even though I thought that, I couldn't wipe that feeling from my mind.
That's because I had done most of the Phoenix defeat with just Narsena and Lausto alone.

Perhaps, as a top-notch adventurer, Laust's abilities were on the verge of stepping into the same realm as his masters, who were praised as having exceptional abilities, except for the brave ones.
Remembering that slash where Raust sliced through Phoenix's head, I understand that.

'...... That's a lie.'

...... but I couldn't swallow that fact.

That slash that stuck to my head.
That is the best proof that Roust's ability is outstanding.
But even after seeing it in front of me, I still can't accept it.

─ Raust has no ability. If he works hard all his life and becomes an ordinary adventurer, he'll be a good one.

The reason for this was the words of my master, Ronald, who had assured me of my brother and apprentice's abilities.
Unlike Ria-san, who is a superb wizard, the master is focused on training his successor.
It's even said that most of the country's hired knights have been trained by their master.
As such an achievement, the master's eye for people is sure.

...... And that master told him that Raust had no talent at all.

Those words have a weight that an ordinary human being cannot imagine.
Because the master has found talent in people, no matter how seemingly untalented they may seem.
Such a master clearly told him that he had no talent.
So, when I heard about Laust's defeat of the mutated Hydra, I had a strong interest in the person known as Laust.

But even so, I still thought that Raust only had a certain amount of ability.
Narsena defeated the mutated Hydra along with Raust.
She was the human whom Ronald-san called a talent that might lead to a superb adventurer.
Narsena led the defeat of Hydra, and she assumed that Laust's ability was only capable of supporting it.

That's why I can't take my eyes off Lausto, unable to hide my surprise at his ability as if it was different from what I imagined.
I can't take my eyes off of Lausto, even though he is currently in the process of stripping off the material from the Phoenix.
I try to concentrate on stripping off the material somehow, but my gaze is sucked away by Lausto.

''Ha, ha, ......... Huh.''

Raust, who should have been out of breath, stood up when I looked at him for what must have been the umpteenth time.

'Huh?'

I couldn't hide my surprise at Roust, who stood up, and I couldn't hide my surprise.
It's a good idea to have a few minutes now since the defeat of the Phoenix.
It's natural, but it was not surprising that he could collapse at any time, Rausto's fatigue couldn't be relieved.
I'm not going to be able to get a good idea of what to expect, but I'm going to be able to get a good idea of what to expect.

"I'm sorry for taking so long to rest,

...... Contrary to my expectations, Roust's footsteps were sure.

Raust's face was filled with a darker fatigue, as if he hadn't slept in a couple of days.
But that's the only indication of Laust's fatigue.

'......... Eh?'

Seeing that, I couldn't hide my surprise.
Raust was quite fatigued as he had done various moves with all his might in this Phoenix.
So much so that after defeating the Phoenix, Raust was showing such fatigue that he felt as if he was going to collapse.
And yet, right now, Laust has recovered enough to move around.

''Well, is it okay to move around? If you're tired, you can rest.

I wasn't the only one who had doubts about that.
Lyra called out to Laust, and Aamir gave her a worried look.

'Huh?'

It was only then that Raust realized that he was being worried.

'No, don't worry about it. See, I've been working out to some extent, too.

...... But Lausto's laughing response to our concern was somewhat off.

It's true that the more you train, the faster you recover from fatigue to some extent.
I'm sure you'll find a lot of people who've been through the same thing.
I'm not sure if they thought Raust's words were a joke or not, but I can see that Lyra and the others are smiling vaguely.
And seeing this, I, like Lyra and the others, try to recognize Laust's words as a joke.

''.........!''

...... It was then that an idea popped into my head.

It was an outlandish idea.
It's a good thing that you're able to get a good idea of what you're looking for.

Normally, I wouldn't have believed that idea.
After all, it was clearly an indication that Lausto was performing an extraordinary training.

But knowing that Laust was even more unusual than that, I couldn't dismiss it as an imagination.

In my head, my mentor's words came back to me, telling me that Lausto had no talent.
It's hard to believe, but Lausto has this much ability from it.

How much effort does it take to do that?

...... maybe, really that much effort.

Laust's back, oozing with fatigue, but still walking with a sure footing, I muttered to myself when I saw it.

That was the moment when Lausto's presence in my mind changed from one of my brother's apprentices to a warrior aligned with his master. .........