Chapter 68

Koushou could be described as such. The Scissor Mantises that had been chasing them were easily wiped out by the small figure, who then rushed into the battlefield. His skills were terrifying. Who could he be? No, the fact that he could use recovery magic suggested that perhaps...

"Mai, what happened?"

"Mami! You're safe!"

As he released his victorious arm, Mai's face turned to one of surprise at the sight of her fellow girl. It was only natural, as she was supposed to have been dead. The two embraced and rejoiced, and he sighed in relief. He chuckled, saying it wasn't like him, and stood up.

The people around them were also in a daze, wondering what had happened, looking puzzled. When he turned his gaze towards the battlefield, the rescue tanks were in sight, and the allies were pushing back the Scissor Mantises.

He sighed in relief, thinking it was all over, and brushed off the dust. His mana was almost depleted, and he was exhausted. To be so drained by just one spell meant that the spell needed improvement.

"Did you save us?"

"Yeah, but it's nothing much, just a thank you for the pizza. I didn't do anything—"

"Koushou, that's amazing! To defeat those monsters so easily!"

Seina approached Koushou as if to pounce, and without minding the blood that was smeared on him from lifting Mai, she grasped his hand with admiration.

"Huh. It's nothing much. But you'll get your hands dirty, Seina."

Since Mai was fine and no longer needed help, he casually waved her off. With a wry smile, Mai and the others shrugged. As long as she was alive, it was fine. Bye, mob girl.

"Don't be greedy!"

"Sure, sure, thanks a lot."

Mai waved and left. They probably wouldn't meet again. It wasn't because he hadn't managed to save her in time, making things awkward. He said his final goodbye and immediately turned to Seina.

The cool guy Koushou seemed to have captured the heart of the holy girl, as his nose grew and his lips curved. He did what he had to do. That was him. With everyone's wounds healed and no deaths, the regret from before vanished, and he spoke with a pretentious tone.

"I'm sorry for not protecting you in time. I'm not a very good knight, am I?"

While apologizing, he showed a smile, thinking he was cool.

"No, don't worry about it. It's proof of your victory, Koushou. Ah, saying 'Koushou's victory' sounds strange, doesn't it?"

Seina giggled, looking cute even in disguise. He couldn't help but melt in front of a heroine who seemed to have jumped out of a novel.

"No, no, it's my name that's strange, hehe."

Seina's route was set. After all, she didn't mind holding his blood-covered hand, even though it would get her dirty. Her eyes, hidden behind her glasses, must have been sparkling with admiration for the man she liked. The warmth of her gentle grip felt good.

There was a slight lump in his heart, but he decided to think about it later. If he thought about it now, he might feel sick and collapse.

Because he felt something was off about Seina and the others, who didn't seem to care about their surroundings. She was the heroine he had liked so much in the original story. It must be his imagination.

He didn't even say he was glad Mai was saved or look for injured people, but he must have been overwhelmed. Seina was kind-hearted. There was no doubt about it.

"Sorry, Koushou. I didn't think you were that strong. That magic was amazing."

Shin approached, praising Koushou sincerely with no malice, his eyes full of respect. As expected of the protagonist, there was no jealousy. As expected of the protagonist. If it were him, he would have glared with envy, but he confirmed the protagonist's kindness and laughed in return.

"Huh, if you awaken to 'Mana,' it's that easy."

"Yeah, as the heir of the Kanade Duke family, I should be able to do that much. But now, Koushou, this will become a rumor, a heroic act."

"Is that so? Is it that big a deal? Ah, maybe, maybe not."

He laughed and got carried away, almost saying he might become Seina's fiancé, but stopped at the last moment. In the original story, Seina didn't have a fiancé. There were candidates, but they were arrogant and unpleasant, and the story ended with a template where they bothered Shin. He couldn't make the same mistake, so he thought just in time.

"Maybe, Koushou could become one of my fiancé candidates! Ah, sorry, I shouldn't say that."

"No, don't worry about it. I'm honored."

Sorry, protagonist. Seina is mine, he laughed, feeling as if he had ascended to the heavens and broken through the atmosphere.

"Who cast that recovery magic?"

"It must have been Seina. No doubt about it!"

"Right! She must have rushed here to save us!"

People were discussing the caster of the recovery magic. The battlefield seemed to be under control, with the monsters being driven back by the samurai corps and adventurers. The remaining Scissor Mantises were being hunted down, and the people were relieved and stopped evacuating. The remaining Scissor Mantises were being dealt with by the tanks.

"Seina, people might misunderstand?"

"Shh. I'm incognito. Let's keep it quiet for now. Her identity will be revealed later anyway."

"Y-Yeah, that's true."

Seina smiled and tightened her grip on his hand, and Koushou nodded in agreement. After such a flashy performance, it was probably fine not to deny it now. Denying it might reveal Seina's true identity.

Seina tickled his hand and tilted her head, making Koushou even more elated. Despite his lack of experience with women, he smiled happily, but he might have been a bit too carried away.

"Danger!"

"Huh?"

"Ah!"

At Shin's sharp voice, he turned to see a large, strong-looking Scissor Mantis in front of him. The Scissor Mantis, larger and stronger than the previous ones, raised its scythe towards Seina, who screamed and clung to him. The Scissor Mantis's arm was gathering mana, preparing to use a martial skill, clearly intending to kill.

Ah, this scene was in the illustration, he thought, with his mana almost depleted and unable to escape because Seina was clinging to him, he vaguely recalled the original story.

"Stop it!"

Shin's desperate voice echoed, and a transparent vibration wave was released from his hand, hitting the Scissor Mantis's arm just as it was about to use the martial skill. The mana in the Scissor Mantis's arm exploded and disappeared, preventing the martial skill from being used, and the Scissor Mantis staggered back.

Koushou recognized this scene.

It was 'Magic Destruction,' a spell that could only be used by those with the 'Void' attribute, capable of destroying any magic. This spell was Shin's specialty and a crucial skill.

The Scissor Mantis, though staggered, quickly regained its stance and prepared to attack. With Koushou's mana depleted and Seina as the healer, and Shin just awakened, they couldn't resist. But he wasn't anxious.

Kanade Yamato would come to the rescue just in time. As if waiting for the right moment, he appeared conveniently.

'One Flash!'

A heavy voice echoed, and a thin line of light cut through the Scissor Mantis's body, which then split in two.

"Hmph, it seems a rat slipped through."

"Huh? Why?"

Turning to the heavy male voice, he saw Taisei Ouga standing there, dressed in a kimono with a sword in his hand. Behind him were nearly a hundred samurai in 'Magic Armor,' and next to him stood Yami in a black dress.

"You scoundrels! This is a full-scale attack!"

From the crowd, about ten men emerged, raising their staffs and preparing to attack. Some of them threw magic stones, which turned into Scissor Mantises when they released smoke.

He realized they were 'Monster Tamers.' Not a job class in the game, but people who controlled monsters, hence the name. Unlike 'Summoners,' who summoned monsters, 'Monster Tamers' used magic stones to create and control monsters. Once a monster was created, it couldn't return to a magic stone, making them difficult to use, but they were useful as disposable tools. In the original story, they often appeared in front of the protagonist.

He understood why the Scissor Mantises suddenly appeared. These men had been summoning them. They had been operating in secret to avoid revealing the flow of mana, so they couldn't control them precisely. As a result, the Scissor Mantises moved unnaturally, like tin soldiers, and chased away the people around them.

"Hmph, it seems someone was targeted."

Ouga glared at Seina, who shrank back, looking uncomfortable. Koushou now understood why Seina was targeted in the original story.

She had been targeted from the beginning. In the original story, Scissor Mantises were everywhere, and many people were killed, so it wasn't clear.

In the original story, Kanade Yamato would come to the rescue and drive away the Scissor Mantises. But the current situation was very different from the original.

For some reason, the monsters were prevented, and many people were not attacked by the Scissor Mantises. Therefore, the actions of these men stood out. They probably wouldn't have been noticeable in the original. The purpose was unclear, but they were likely under the control of the Kanade Duke. There was no mention of the criminals being caught in the original.

"Ugh!"

'One Flash'

Ouga released a sword technique, a thin line of light aiming to cut the men, but they swung their staffs and cast a spell.

'Buffer Wall'

A rubber-like, elastic wall appeared in front of the men, blocking 'One Flash,' and the line of light soon disappeared.

"Hmm. So you have the skills to cause a terrorist attack."

Ouga narrowed his eyes and his face turned serious. Even without wearing 'Magic Armor,' he could block the top samurai's martial skill, indicating considerable skill.

They were wearing 'Magic Armor' of the half-plate type, hidden by illusions or magic items, and were aiming to kill.

"Father, I will head to the battlefield. I received a message that I couldn't see Mii's figure. It might be related to this."

"Yes, we must capture these men and make them confess their plans. Go, Yami. Half of the group will go with you to provide assistance!"

The monster tamers summoned more Scissor Mantises, and the others prepared to use magic. Ouga gave the order.

"Then, we will head to the battlefield!"

With a flutter of her skirt, Yami rushed off. Thus, Ouga and the others began a fierce battle with the terrorists.

"Shin, are you okay? Did you use any magic just now?"

"No, I don't even know what happened..."

Seina, who had moved away from Koushou, spoke to Shin with concern.

"Damn, so it's going to follow the original story, huh?"

Koushou clicked his tongue. As in the original story, Seina, who was saved from the brink of death by Shin, would develop a faint crush. And when they met again, she would fall in love. Shin would complete many difficult events to help the kind-hearted Seina in trouble.

Despite his bored expression, he thought about why this event had changed so much. Ouga's presence here was related to Yami being alive. As a result, Ouga didn't semi-retire, and the samurai corps retained its strength, so it was likely that Taisei Ouga, not Kanade Yamato, came to the rescue.

The Scissor Mantis attack would likely be prevented. Although it seemed unlikely, if the hidden treasure of the hidden temple didn't end up with the Kanade Duke but with the emperor, the core of the original story would be shaken. It was probably all due to the reincarnated person. As a god who knew the original story, he found it annoying, but...

Mai and the others had survived. This time, it was good. He also thought about subtly preventing events that would result in deaths in the future. He didn't want to live with a guilty conscience.

The number of events that would result in deaths was too numerous to count, and the times and places were often unclear, so it would be difficult, but he wanted to protect his surroundings.

He didn't intend to interfere much with the story itself. After all, only Shin, who had the 'Void' attribute, could defeat the demon god, and changing the story too much would be dangerous. If Shin didn't grow and couldn't defeat the demon god, the world would end.

Moreover, upon careful consideration, it was impossible for the hidden treasure to end up with the emperor. The seal of the temple, which only the royal family could open, was broken by a notorious magician who could transform into anyone. It was impossible for the guard samurai to discover and defeat him.

With his mana almost depleted, there was nothing Koushou could do. The final battle would proceed without him, and he watched Ouga's battle from a distance.

He was in a position befitting a mere extra.

In the rear, the small figure was about to engage in a fierce battle with the boss mantis and its group.