Chapter 32

32. The Jester, the Hero, and the Parrot (14)

Twenty years had passed.

I tried entering the hole created when the Holy Sword was pulled out, but a sturdy door blocked my path, preventing me from going any further.

"Devil!"

Fortunately or unfortunately, the devil showed no signs of movement.

'It seems Luthas won.'

If my friend had lost, the devil wouldn't have been so quiet.

My friend might still be alive. That hope kept me here.

Luthas and his friends left, and the teacher left as well.

The faces I knew changed dozens of times.

The academy remained as it was.

"Devil! Devil!"

Of course, no one listened to me, just as before.

No one listens to a mere parrot.

'Ugh!'

I feel unwell.

The wound left by the mysterious woman still hurts, but aging is the biggest problem.

'Will I die like this?'

It's fine if I die.

As long as I save my friend, my friend.

'It's okay to die.'

Then I met a human.

A human who looked similar to Luthas. His name was Zero, I think.

"Friend! Danger! Help me!"

"Friend... I need one too. I wish one would just fall from the sky..."

Zero grumbled.

He said it was hard to make friends because of his appearance.

'What a fool.'

Luthas told me.

Even if appearances differ, even if races differ, even if communication is difficult, you can still be friends.

"Friend! Good! You! Friend!"

Zero and I became friends.

And he said,

There might be a way to help.

"Friend! Friend!"

I called out to my friend, raising my voice.

It reached him. It finally reached him.

The earnestness of my desire to save my friend.

* * *

There was a minor (?) disturbance during the battle, but the strategy was proceeding without issues.

"Alright, I'll step out for a moment!"

Reymon, who had been hit by two layers of erosion, left his position.

He fixed his gaze on the devil's fragment and tensed up.

The only gap in this strategy. The moment Reymon, the shield, disappears.

But this time, there was no attack directed at me.

'This guy is dumber than I thought.'

Is it because the game is based on algorithms?

He only repeated attacks and defenses using thorns.

'Maybe the developers didn't anticipate this situation.'

Ultimately, this is a game that progresses according to a set algorithm.

Perhaps the devil's fragment is stuck in some kind of bug.

'Otherwise, it wouldn't be so stupidly vulnerable.'

Well, if it's a bug, it's good for us.

We were steadily whittling down its health.

Just as Reymon, who had left to avoid the third layer of erosion, returned to me.

"Ugh!!"

Something shot out from under the devil's fragment's eye.

Rodelin dodged, and Luna, who was behind it, was unharmed.

The problem was,

Squeak-!

"Ah, aah! The, the sword!"

Reymon's sword had melted halfway.

His habit of deflecting attacks as usual had backfired.

'If Reymon had dodged, I would have been hit, so this was inevitable. What I'm curious about is...'

I've never seen a skill like that before. Or rather,

I know what the skill is, but I've never experienced it.

'Corrosion skill. But I've never used it before!'

Even when I played thousands of times.

Even when other players played tens of thousands of times.

It's a skill that has never been used.

Curious players have even experimented.

But even up to the 9999th turn, the [Corrosion D] skill was never used.

That's why I confidently told Rodelin not to worry about it.

'Why now?'

My question was answered by the devil's fragment itself.

"Heh! I didn't want to show my mouth, but I have no choice!"

Only then did it come into view.

A small mouth under the large eye.

"This body can't lose to a mere mop! Revealing my complex, I won't let anyone live!"

...A complex?

'So you didn't use the corrosion skill just because of that?'

Even when fighting the Holy Sword, even when dying thousands of times to players, you never used it.

I couldn't believe it.

"Die!!"

Clang!

Reymon deflected the black thorn with his half-melted sword.

But he couldn't deflect it as perfectly as before.

"Z, Zero! I'm sorry. I, I made a mistake..."

Reymon's face was very gloomy.

No, this isn't the child's fault. It's my fault for being complacent.

"Hey! Don't just stand there, move! The ground is eroding!"

Luna shouted from a distance.

But we weren't the only ones in bad shape.

Luna was in the same boat.

'Her health is probably running low.'

She took on the role of distracting the enemy by moving around, but Luna has been going back and forth on the eroding ground.

Her health is about to reach its limit.

'The devil's fragment has about 20% health left.'

This is just an estimate based on the old man's calculations.

It's the early part of Episode 1.

Rodelin and Luna's levels are low, so there might be more left.

Reymon, the shield, is broken, and Luna, the sword, is about to break.

So now, the only option left for us is...

'Retreat and request support. Is there anything else...?'

Retreat is entirely possible.

The devil's fragment can't leave this space, and the further the erosion range, the slower it spreads.

'And we can use the cleaning skill from a distance where the thorns can't reach.'

As long as I'm here, complete expansion is impossible.

Requesting support is just a matter of asking the parrot.

'Ellester's kindness and high intelligence, and Charon's strange obsession with Luna.'

The parrot will follow as soon as it hears Luna's name.

I've also stored a month's worth of food in the subspace, so we have plenty of time to wait.

'It's a shame we can't get the hidden piece, but... there's nothing we can do.'

Unlike in the game, we only have one life.

I spoke to the parrot flying behind me.

"Parrot, do you remember team play?"

"Team! Play!"

"Yes, the two people I told you to remember. Bring either one here. Saying my name or Miss Luna's name will make them follow."

The parrot, which had been dazed for a moment, disappeared like the wind.

Now it's done. All I need to do is get everyone to retreat...

"Ugh! I, I'll step out for a moment!"

Reymon, who had been hit by two layers of erosion, left his position.

And at the same time,

"Die!!"

Pew!

A black thorn shot towards me.

It was incredibly fast. I instinctively knew I couldn't dodge it.

'I have to take it with my body and retreat...'

I have enough health to withstand it once.

I just need to avoid the head. If a critical hit lands, it could be instant death.

As I raised my hands to brace for the impact,

The parrot's feathers scattered around me.

* * *

Parrot's Diary #6

Zero was a very curious child.

He talked to me as if it were the most natural thing in the world.

'As if it were obvious.'

What was even more surprising was that he actively searched for Luthas's traces.

As if he knew about the relationship between Luthas and me, and what had happened to us.

'Well, who cares.'

He listened to a story that no one had heard for 20 years and even led the group to the place where Luthas and the devil fought.

What if he's a bit strange?

The important thing is that we can save Luthas.

"Ha ha, there should be a lever somewhere on that pillar. When I give the signal, pull it down."

Zero's words were true. There was a lever on the pillar.

I put my weight on it and pulled it down, and the children fell through.

The door that was firmly closed opened without resistance.

There was another door besides the one I saw, but it was useless in front of Zero.

'Luthas! I'm here!'

Finally, the place where we parted 20 years ago.

Luthas was not there.

Only a pile of human bones, clothes, and the hilt of a broken sword remained.

I immediately recognized whose bones they were.

The clothes were one thing, but the hand bones still firmly gripping the Holy Sword, even after 20 years.

The hand that was determined to protect the children.

It was unmistakably Luthas.

"Friend."

Friend, what are you doing here?

"Friend!"

Get up. I'm here.

"Friend!"

I... I'm here.

Get up, please.

Tears streamed down my face.

But no miracle happened to bring Luthas back to life.

'I was too late, and he died.'

My friend is dead.

Because I was too late.

I knew it, really.

Logically, it was impossible for a human to survive alone for 20 years.

I had clung to a thin hope, but now there was nothing I could do.

I had to accept Luthas's death.

I had to acknowledge my friend's death.

"..."

Twenty years.

My body is gradually aging, but my mind has grown stronger.

Now is not the time to grieve.

It's time to do what I can.

'Zero and the children?'

Clang! Clang!

The battle was intense.

I, a mere parrot, who had always aimed to stand by the hero's side, couldn't even intervene.

But there must be something I can do.

While calmly waiting for an opportunity,

"Parrot, do you remember team play?"

Zero said.

Team play. I knew it, of course, but I was also puzzled.

How did he know about the conversations and events with Luthas?

"Friend, I'll leave it to you."

Zero's request was simple.

Bring either Ellester or Charon, two humans.

I had already confirmed their faces.

I was about to fly out the door quickly.

It felt familiar. No, it wasn't just familiar. This was...

'This is exactly the same as when I parted with Luthas.'

It was the same back then.

Find someone to help, and he would hold on until then.

'No!'

I turned and flew.

After parting with Luthas.

There was something I thought about every day.

Something I regretted every day.

'Team play.'

True team play means always being there together.

Whether in joy or sorrow.

Being together always is true team play.

I should have fought with Luthas 20 years ago.

Even if I couldn't help much, I should have been there.

I am.

The hero's friend.

'I won't make the same mistake again.'

So this time, I will protect my friend.

Right here.

With my body.

Pew!

The black thorn pierced my body.

Zero's face, always calm and smiling, suddenly contorted.

In contrast, I smiled.

Friend, don't be too sad.

Team play is...

Exactly this, isn't it?