Zester, the hero of "Hammer".

　He is one of the new recruits selected by the Center Guild.

　He was selected because the official selection of the heroes, Radie, was not making good progress in defeating the Demon King, and he suggested that the possibility of defeating the Demon King would increase if more than one hero was sent out.

　However, in the end, they suffered a painful defeat by the Demon King's army and the new attempt ended in failure.

　In order to announce that conclusion, Zester returned to the Center Guild alone.

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Pigalo is dead. Crushed by his own arrogance, he met a miserable end, as befits a brave man.

　He talks in detail about the deaths of his peers who were chosen to be brave at the same time.

I realized anew that the title of hero is a heavy one. I realized once again that the title of hero is a heavy one, and that it should not be given easily to two or more people. I will also give up the title of brave and retrain myself from the very beginning.
'Wait a minute!　Wait for me!

　Saying that, one of the Center Guild Directors was in a hurry.
　His name was Roselwy.

　The Center Guild Board of Directors is the guild's highest decision-making body with a maximum of nine members.
　The person who sits in that chair is not only wise, but is required to be of the highest standard in both financial strength and power. It is a title that is obtained by the "chosen one" in a different sense than the brave ones.

　Among them, Roselwy, who now sits across from Zester, is the youngest member of the board of directors.
　He was a young man who had only been given that title for a few months.

　He was also the leader of the proposal to appoint Sester and three others as new brave men.
　That's why Zester is in a hurry to claim that he will return the brave men.
　He was desperately trying to comfort her, trying to dissuade her from doing so.

'Don't you think you've given up a bit too much, Kimi?　A brave man.　You've had to endure rigorous training to become a hero, right?　Years and years. It's worth it, and you've finally become a brave man in fact, but are you willing to let go of your dream with a slight stumble?
'Of course it was a devastating experience. Once I was left out of the selection process, and I was moved to tears. What a joy it was to be chosen again by that brave man.
Then...?
But that's why I was keenly aware of the weight of the title. The weight of the title of brave. When I became a brave man, I realized for the first time that the person who becomes a brave man should not be chosen easily.

　Zester bowed his head again.

''Please. Please propose to the board that I step down as a brave man. I will refrain from accepting the stripping of my title.
'That's why I'm telling you to wait!

　Director Roselwy was in the extreme of frustration.

　The idea of the brave plural launched by himself.
　However, that novel attempt was about to have a disastrous result.

　If one of the newly selected brave men and women would succeed in defeating the Demon King, then all the better.
　Humans would fulfill their long cherished dream of hundreds of years and obtain the Demon King's hidden wisdom.
　There will be unprecedented development and prosperity.

　And Roselwy himself will go down in history as a key player in this event.
　In this life as well, he would be a lifelong success.

　But that is only if he succeeds.
　The reality is that we are now on a downward spiral towards failure.

　If the attempt to select multiple heroes is confirmed as a failure, all of the responsibility for it will go to Roselwy, the originator.
　The fact that he has been proceeding all alone in an attempt to monopolize his achievements has been avenged when this happens.

　He is a young newcomer who still has no foundation in the Board of Directors.
　If the revelation of a fiasco that could be attributed to only one person, the seat on the board of directors that he had just assumed was in jeopardy.

　That's why the Zester in front of him had to be challenged again as a brave man at all costs.

　Of the three brave men he selected, Pigalo, the brave man of the 'Sword' died and the only one who returned was Zester, the brave man of the 'Hammer'.

''........Speaking of which, wasn't there another one?''
"Altamir told me that he would give up his 'bow' heroism. At all events, he would marry and retire as an adventurer himself.

　It was better for Zester to just show up in person.
　Anyway, in order to discourage Zester, Roselwy desperately urges him to stay behind.

I'll give you a chance to talk to him, so that you can stay on as a hero.　So?　Let's try again. Isn't that what a true brave man is made of, to keep going without failing, no matter how many times you fail?
Everyone has their own way of being brave. I want to end my life as a brave man with grace.

　Roselwy felt like he was going to boil over from the bottom of his heart.

　Why was this man so resigned?
　With his own downfall, he would have cut off Roselwy's political life.

'But you're young. Aren't you too young to abandon your dreams?　If you give up the path of bravery, what do you want to achieve in the future?
Don't worry about that. I know the path I have to follow in the future. Once I've lifted the burden of bravery from my shoulders, I'm determined to pursue that path.
What's that path?　Would you care to elaborate on that for me?

　Anyway, I try to get as much information out of him as I can now, trying to get the materials for persuasion.

　Then Zester, suddenly became crisp........

''It's, well........it's nothing to say here.
Why?　You can tell me, can't you?

　As for Roselwy, he wanted to take it in the direction of 'Then it's more advantageous to have the title of a brave man in some way' by hearing Zester's new goal.

　Anyway, I wanted to keep Zester as a brave man.
　It was Roselwy who was in a means-tested mood to do so.

'What's the matter?　Go ahead, tell me!　Because maybe I can help you with that!　I will stand by your side, no matter what!

　Zester has been an adventurer for most of his life.
　He has no desire to leave it all behind and take a completely different path.

　I'm sure the new path he's taking is related to the brave man in some way.
　I'm sure that's why I'm persistent in asking him.

''........It's training. I'm thinking of retraining from the ground up.

　Zester said, as if defeated by the roots.

'Training?　Then there's no need to quit being a hero!　You can train while earning the rank of brave, and when you're strong enough, you can try to defeat the demon king again!　Even the brave Radey is training as a brave man now, so there's no inconvenience in that!
That's not good enough...!
Why?
Why don't you ask me why...?

　Zester is becoming more and more crisp.
　The fact that he is hiding something is becoming increasingly clear.

　You will be able to get a good deal more than just a few minutes of your time.
　On the contrary, there was no way to prevent him from being verbally pursued by Roselwy, who was a man of the sea and a thousand miles away, so he finally confessed.

'I would like to seek guidance from someone.
Do you have one?
He will not train me unless I quit being a brave man. I have made a mistake in front of him. I must quit being a brave man to put an end to it.

　When he finally heard it out, Roselwy sighed, wondering what it meant.
　Zester's intentions sounded like selfishness, concerned with trivial matters.

You can't depend on the satisfaction and dissatisfaction of one person. Save the title of hero, and train as a brave man.
'No!　I can't show him that I'm ready for this!　Even if I renounce my bravery, I must avoid being abandoned by that person!

　Zester's patience starts to creak at Zester's stubbornness.

''I don't understand. I don't know who you are, but are you saying that catering to one person's mood is more important than being a brave man?　Was being a brave man such a light thing?
No, that's not...?
'Think about it. Think about it, the brave men represent the human race. The brave man is the representative of the human race and is admired and worshipped by everyone. If a brave man asks for instruction, it is only natural that he would be willing to teach you.

　That's what you're saying, 'Quit being a brave man if you want me to teach you'.......

You are so unreasonable and arrogant. Does that person understand the significance of being a brave person?　To be so reluctant to cooperate with a brave man is to be an adversary to humanity.
Director!

　Zester stood up and approached him.
　Being freaked out by Zester, a huge man, it was as if a wall was closing in on him.

''I'd like to ask you to rescind your words right now!　Master Dariel is not such a petty person!　And moreover, it was my intention to volunteer to become an apprentice after I quit being a hero, and that has nothing to do with Master Dariel!
''Then there's no need to quit being a brave man.......?　That way, everyone will be happy...!　Right?　Right?

　Unable to endure the brave-grade rage, Roselwy quieted him down while trembling all over.

　But even so, Zester's departure is directly related to his own progress, so he can never back down.

''Roughly, who is that person?　How can you, a brave man, be so concerned about it?　Is he supposed to be better than a brave man?
Or maybe you could say that.
What?

　I meant to say it sarcastically, but the unexpected reply puzzled Roselwy.

''To that person, a brave man may be insignificant. To someone with true strength, titles are worthless.
What do you mean?　There is no one in this world worth more than a brave man!　Because the brave are the strongest, and the strongest are the bravest!
''That means He is in a realm that transcends even that. After all, that One, that One...!

　Zester must have been exhausted from the repeated questioning.
　His ability to think was slowed down and he couldn't help but mention it.

''........Dariel-sama is Arantziel-sama's son!