Chapter 32

The first half is from Amarth's perspective, and the second half is from Margulus's perspective.

"……Why did this happen?"

In the room of the inn, I, Amarth, pressed my hands against my face and hung my head.

The image of that guild-affiliated adventurer with the mask came to mind.

"……Why did that guy show up!"

I bit my lip, thinking that if I hadn't been there, things might have been different.

Because of that man, my position would likely be even more compromised.

Considering how my standing had already fallen due to the defective healer incident, this was catastrophic.

……However, what dominated my mind at that moment was not the decline in my position.

After all, I was facing a much larger problem.

"……If only that guy had joined the Lightning Sword, we could have defeated the Hydra!"

In fact, I had hidden the Hydra quest to give my dedicated adventurer group, the Lightning Sword, a chance to earn glory.

I had kept the Hydra quest hidden from other adventurers and planned to let the Lightning Sword take it on at the right moment.

Defeating the Hydra would boost the Lightning Sword's reputation, and as their dedicated receptionist, my evaluation would also improve.

That's why, despite my evaluation already being low due to the defective healer incident, I had acted without hesitation.

"……Why did I do such a thing!"

……But now, I was deeply regretting my actions.

Hydras, like other extremely difficult monsters, can mutate over long periods.

They absorb surrounding magic and become even stronger.

Especially when injured, they absorb magic faster and are more likely to mutate.

Therefore, if a single adventurer party fails to defeat a high-difficulty monster, it must be immediately passed on to another party.

……And guild officials who violate this rule face severe punishment.

"……What can I do! What can I do!"

I had hidden the quest because I was confident that the Lightning Sword could defeat the Hydra given enough time.

However, now that the Lightning Sword had no hope of defeating the Hydra, I felt intense anxiety.

I no longer cared about my evaluation as a receptionist.

The punishment for hiding the Hydra would far outweigh that.

I desperately tried to think of what to do.

I had been working tirelessly since I noticed the Lightning Sword's decline in strength.

I had prevented the excellent healer Lyla from leaving the party by enforcing a false regulation.

I had also forcibly added the masked man, an excellent warrior, to the Lightning Sword and incited Margulus to fight the dungeon boss.

According to my original plan, the Lightning Sword would defeat the dungeon boss, and the confident Margulus and his team would overcome their trauma and defeat the Hydra.

"Damn it! Why!"

……But all of that had fallen apart.

Faced with a situation I couldn't change, I turned pale.

There was still some time before the Hydra mutated.

However, I had no idea how to deal with it once it did.

My mind was reaching its limit.

"Those incompetent fools! What kind of top-tier party are they! I was counting on them!"

……And my anxiety turned into anger, which I directed at Margulus and his team.

But shouting wouldn't change anything, and only left me feeling empty.

It was too late to say such things now.

……And I understood why everything had fallen apart.

"……If only I had recognized that healer's true strength……"

The healer who was called defective came to mind.

Now that I realized Margulus and his team were incompetent, I finally saw the healer's value.

However, I also understood that realizing this now was meaningless……

◇◆◇

"……Why did it come to this?"

This was the day after the guild-affiliated adventurer, the masked man, had demoted us from top-tier adventurers.

I, Margulus, and Sabelia were leaning on a table in the tavern inside the adventurer guild.

After fleeing from the guild, Sabelia and I were quickly caught by guild officials and had all our possessions taken away.

We even had to sell our shared home to pay off our debts, leaving us with nothing.

But even that wasn't enough to cover the fine.

So, we had to go on quests and work again.

"……We don't have the motivation, do we?"

"There's no choice, is there?"

……But we lacked the motivation.

I vaguely remembered Amarth telling us something and then disappearing.

"I was a top-tier adventurer, wasn't I?"

The fact that I had been a top-tier adventurer made me feel even more empty.

So empty that I had no will to get up.

"……If only we could get Laust back into the party"

……Unable to bear the emptiness, I blurted out those words.

"!"

Sabelia's face contorted at my words.

We no longer had the pride to think of Laust as defective.

All we had was our attachment to our top-tier status.

"……He won't come back, will he?"

……But it was impossible to ask Laust to rejoin the party now.

Sabelia's indifferent words made me realize this again, and I clenched my lips.

Even if I asked Laust to rejoin, I doubted he would agree.

I could only see a future where he would be upset.

"……If only there was a chance to take advantage of"

Thinking this, I muttered aloud.

I remembered the moment I had lured Laust into the party with false promises.

Laust, who had never been recognized and desperately wanted acknowledgment, had joined my party without realizing it was a scam.

If only there was something like that again, I thought vaguely.

……And at that moment, I overheard a conversation from the people nearby.

"Hey, hurry up and get ready. We're going to take down that arrogant defective healer, right?"

"Wait, that guy defeated the Disaster Wolf, didn't he? Let's gather more people and attack tomorrow."

"Tch! Well, there's no choice… I didn't think he was that strong…"

"Yeah. But no matter how strong he is, we can't let him get away with it. We need him to stay a defective healer, or we'll be looked down upon. We'll do it thoroughly."

It was a conversation from adventurers who were hostile towards Laust.

By chance, I understood that they were planning to attack Laust.

"……This can work! This can work!"

At that moment, I forgot that we were in a public tavern and shouted.

Sabelia's puzzled expression was clear to me.

"……What!"

The moment I told Sabelia my plan, her expression changed.

Seeing her reaction, I smiled and said,

"……This way, we can get Laust back into the Lightning Sword!"

My face was filled with the confidence of victory.

We are about to enter the climax of the first chapter.