We descended the mountain to the ruins of the village of Pagos.
　Just to be sure, I did some research based on the information I got from the mountain, but I couldn't find any new clues.
　It seems that Arios holds the key, after all.

　The memory of the adventurer's death that Sora and Luna taught me...
　What has Arios gotten himself into?
　I have to question them directly.

　Aksu and Cell seemed half-convinced that that brave man.......but they didn't have enough material to deny Sora and Luna's words, so they were convinced for the time being.

　Thus, we went back to the village of Zisu to meet Arios.

''Nya... it's been a long time since I've felt this way.

　When we arrived at the village of Zisu, Kanade said something like that.

　We've spent several days getting to the village of Pagos and back.
　It's not surprising that you feel like it's been a long time.

But....isn't there something wrong with the atmosphere?

　Tania tilted her head slightly.
　Sola and Luna agreed with her.

''That's right.
I'm kind of tense,
Is it... something... that's happening?

　Nina's body shrank in size as if frightened by the stinging air flowing through the village.
　I pat Nina's head and reassure her.

''Hmm........Rain. Arigato.........
Don't worry. I'm here, and we're all here.
Yes.
'And yet ... you're right about Sora and Luna, you're acting weird?　What's going on?
Hey.

　Earlier, Axe and Cell, who had been looking around the village, returned.
　They were in a hurry, and even Cell, who was always calm and collected, had a change of color.

''What's going on?''
'Oh my God!　I think the devil's out.
Wha...?

　While we're away from the village...?

Axe, I'm not sure there are enough words to describe it.
Oops, yeah. Sorry.
Yeah?
Ah, I mean. What's the name of that thing from here on out...?
...River End.
'Yeah, yeah, that's it. I heard the devil showed up there.
'In River End?　How did you get there...
Well, you know. Well, I don't know about that, but I hear there's been a lot of strange murders lately. So I looked into it and...
I think we've reached the devil.
Oh, my line!

　Axe looks sulky, but Cell is unconcerned and continues to talk.

''It just so happens that some of the defeating teams that were present at the scene were engaged.
...and the result?
All of them.

　Cell says with a bitter face.

　I've heard that this urgent request can only be accepted if you have the right rank.
　And yet, none of them survived and were wiped out....

　Apparently, the enemy may be more formidable than we thought.

'Just as unfortunate, I should say, but we've gotten some information about the demon. It seems the demon has left River End and is heading for this Zith.
In this village....
'We didn't have good information controls in place, and the villagers got to know.
I see.

　No wonder the whole village is tense.

　The demon that destroyed the village of Pagos and waged the carnage at River End is approaching.
　Knowing such a thing would frighten everyone.
　I was rather surprised that they weren't panicking.

''What's the future course of events?''
I checked with the guild and they're planning to intercept the demons in the area around this Zith. There's a strike team on their way here right now.
Will it be in time?
I don't know nothing new on the demon. We don't know how much mobility they have. Maybe they'll get here before the strike team does.
Then we'll have to do it ourselves.
Yeah, sure.

　It hurts not to have a strike team, but....
　But we're not defeated either.
　We have everyone, and even if we're dealing with a demon, we'll still be able to eat it up to a certain point.

　It's just....
　The opponent is an unidentified entity.
　How much power you have that's what I'm worried about.
　If I could, I wouldn't want to put everyone in danger.

Rain.
Yeah?

　Chomp, I was tapped on the shoulder by Tania.
　Along with Tania, Luna is looking at me with a serious face.

'Didn't you just think of something stupid?'
He didn't want to put us in harm's way or anything like that.

　That's great. Can you two read minds?

It's...
"Don't give me the benefit of the doubt.
We'll be with Rain no matter what.

　Everyone else nodded at Luna's words.

'Indeed, this could be dangerous. From what I've heard, the demons are nearly as powerful as our most powerful species or perhaps even comparable to the demon race. But that doesn't mean we can't run away from them.
I mean, if you start talking about the dangers, there's no end to it, right?　Even if it's a simple request, you might run into some unexpected danger...
'There's no end to the amount of time you can spend worrying about those things. I mean, I don't want you to worry about it. We're one of us, aren't we?
'You're worried about me because, well, I'm not happy about it?　But you know what?　I want you to trust me there, not worry about it.
"We can handle it. You can put your back into it. I'm more than happy for you to know that.
Well I'm sure you're right.

　I felt like I was waking up to their words.

　My party, finally made.
　My precious friends.
　I guess I was making a terrible mistake because I didn't want to lose that.

　If you keep them away from danger, you will never be able to form a true bond with them.
　Some things will only come from being together at all times.
　It's as if he was so cowardly that he forgot that he didn't want to lose his friends.

'...Okay, I get it. I mean, I'm sorry. Like you two said, I've been thinking about some weird stuff.
Oh, my God....get a grip, will you?　You're my master and you need to take a stronger, bolder stance.
'Hmm. I suppose the Lord could be more brazen, could he not?
'Ha. I don't know if I can be brazen, I don't know if I can be brazen, but I'll give it a shot.

　I've been known to take the wrong turn at times.
　Now I have friends who can help me get it right.
　That seemed to make me very happy.

'Have we come to an agreement?'

　Cell asked with a somewhat soft expression.

''Uh ... sorry. I got sidetracked.
'Okay, I don't mind. It's better to talk about this now, rather than messing around at the last minute.
'Well let's get back to the point, when the time comes, we'll intercept the demon ourselves. How much time do you think we have?
'Well it seems that the events of River End happened just a few days ago, so I think we have a few days to spare. Even if we assume that demons are the most powerful species, I don't think they can traverse a path that would take a week on human feet in less than a day.
'Yeah. I agree with you.
As long as the strike force arrives in time to intercept them. If they don't, we'll be there to intercept them.
'I'd like to set up some traps, if possible, to evacuate the residents. We're going to be busy.
Hey, hey, Rain.

　With a bite, Kanade tugs at my clothes.

'Yeah?'
'I don't mind the demon but what about the brave one?'
That's the thing.

　It's a bit of a headache.

'A brave man destroyed the shrine where the demon was sealed, didn't he?　And you killed the adventurer who was there, too, didn't you?　I'm sure he has an evil plan!　We need to question him.
No ... not right now.
'What?　Why?

　Our answer seemed to be unexpected, and Kanade made a strange face.
　Everyone else, why?　He has a look on his face as if to say.

'I don't know if it's true but Arios is a hero to the people here. What do you think would happen if it turned out that someone like that was actually planning something bad behind the scenes?
Um ... angry?
'Mostly correct. Normally, we'd all be in the process of questioning Arios and all hell would break loose. That's not a good time.

　We had to be prepared for a demon attack...
　If that kind of commotion happens, you're not even a demon anymore.
　It will not be able to intercept them, and if they are not good enough, they will destroy themselves.

''So you're going to leave the brave men alone then?
'I wouldn't want to do that if I could...'

　I don't mean to make a scene.
　But I'm not going to leave it at that.

　Even if Arios had some kind of evidence...
　Over time, you might get rid of it.
　Other clues might be lost as time goes on.

　So we don't want to do that.
　If I could, I'd like to talk to Arios and the others without them finding out...............
　Now that Arios is the hero of the village it would be difficult to get rid of the people around him completely against such a thing.

''We'll put Arios behind us for now. Right now, we have to think about intercepting the demon first.
Nya I'm not in the clear.
Bear with me. I'll ask her when it's all settled...

　And then.

'Whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa, the devil!　The devil is out!!!!

　I could hear the villagers screaming.