Chapter 8

"Welcome back."

"Back."

When I entered the house, Mother greeted me. Unlike Father and me, Mother is a magician. So she doesn't know much about assassins. But assassins can use magic too. That's why when I was little, Father trained me in the ways of the assassin, and Mother trained me in magic. When I was a child, it was normal for the three of us to have meals together, but we hadn't done so recently, so I was happy.

"Why is Noah home? What happened to the hero party?"

"..."

"I got fired."

"Oh... Well, it can't be helped, can it?"

"Y-Yeah..."

It's too miserable to tell the truth. Then Mother came over to me and stroked my head.

"I can tell just by looking at your face. It must have been tough."

"Yeah..."

I sobbed and cried. The kindness from Mother made me release all the pent-up feelings I had been holding in. I felt the same warmth as when I was with Rubia. After a few minutes, my tears finally subsided.

"You should think of it as a valuable experience, right?"

"Y-Yeah..."

"But it's hard to move on, isn't it?"

"Yeah."

"Then why don't you use those feelings as motivation?"

Use these feelings as motivation? What does that mean?

"How do you feel about the hero party now, Noah? I can't know since I'm not you. But it must have been painful to be abandoned. So use those feelings to show the hero party what you're made of! Show them how strong you are! Show them that you were an essential part of the party!"

"..."

"How do you think the party members will feel? I think they'll regret letting you go. And probably, they'll come back to you."

"Come back?"

Why? After they abandoned me?

"Yes. They'll ask you to go on another adventure! And at that moment, you can say something like, 'I won't return to you guys.'"

"But if I do that..."

After all, they are the hero party. The party that saves the world. Refusing their invitation means...

"Don't worry about us. It's the hardest thing to see you suffering. Noah, you should only think about yourself. You've done a great job already. Maybe it's time to let go of the burden on your shoulders."

"Thanks."

"You're welcome."

I really can't match Mother. She knows me like Rubia does. She acknowledges me. If that's the case, I want to use my power for people like that. Just as our conversation ended, Father started speaking.

"About Rad, he is a survivor from the assassin family in the southeast."

"Huh? And the southeast..."

"Yes. Rad is a surviving prince."

"No way..."

I had heard that the assassin family was the royal family. But I didn't think they actually existed...