Seeker 372

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Chapter 372. The Fate Of Those Who Became Servants

"──! Then can we ignore the 'servants' and go straight for the vampire boss?"

Yuzuki places his hands on the table and stands up.

Surprisingly──well, maybe it’s not so surprising, but he can get emotional when there’s a matter involving people’s feelings.

But the guild master still wears a troubled expression.

“It’s not that simple. In three other cases, even after killing the vampire without defeating the 'servants,' the servants kept wandering independently as monsters, harming people.”

“What… so, what’s different from when they turn back to humans?”

“That’s the mystery. In cases where they reverted, things to consider included the short amount of time they’d been servants and the fact that some of these servants were former adventurers. But even that doesn’t guarantee success. Cases where former adventurers had been servants for a longer period didn’t result in them turning back even after the vampire was killed.”

"............"

Silence casts a heavy atmosphere over the room.

The guild master continues speaking.

“We don’t even know if those are the conditions. It might be some other factor, or, worst-case, even incorrect records. The current situation is lacking sufficient information. We must also assume there’s a chance they won’t return no matter what we do.”

“So, we just have to do the best we can within the range of information we have?”

As I summarize it that way, the guild master says, “Exactly. Thanks for understanding,” and lets out a deep sigh.

It’s a heavy subject.

Even if we manage to take down the root of all evil, there’s little hope of restoring what’s been lost.

That’s the harsh reality of battling monsters, but it’s still hard to swallow.

At that moment, a notification sound rings in my mind, and a mission appears in my vision, one I’d never seen before.

───────────────────────

A Secret Special Mission Has Appeared! (Mission content will not be revealed.)

EXP Reward Upon Completion: 30,000 Points

───────────────────────

What is this?

How am I supposed to do a mission without knowing what it is?

Kazane and Yuzuki also look puzzled.

I guess that’s natural.

Concluding that there’s no point in worrying about it, I decide to ignore this so-called Secret Special Mission.

After confirming a few more points, we leave the meeting room.

Since time could be a factor, I want to act quickly.

But as we step into the hallway, we run into a wolf-tribe boy coming out from a room further down.

His eyes are swollen and he looks exhausted, but when he sees us, he hurriedly rushes over.

“You’re going to defeat the monster that turned my sister into one of them, right?! Please, let me come with you! I know it’s not true… my sister can’t be a monster! Even if she is, I’ll turn her back myself! So, please…!”

Ignoring the guild staff trying to stop him, he clings to Kazane.

His words are everywhere, blurring the line between reality and his wishful thinking.

Kazane looks troubled and turns to me.

I crouch down a bit to meet his eyes and ask gently.

“How will you ‘turn your sister back’?”

“I-I don’t know, but… but… I have to… or else… sniff… ugh…”

The boy starts sobbing again.

I didn’t feel like scolding him for crying, nor could I think of any other words to comfort him.

──In truth, maybe I shouldn’t say anything here.

Even if I tried to comfort him with lies, it would only prolong his sadness.

If things went badly, he might even end up resenting us.

I know that, yet I find myself saying it anyway.

“We’ll do everything we can to help your sister. So, please wait in town.”

“What… you’ll… help my sister?”

“Yeah, trust us. We’re the strongest adventurers in this guild, believe it or not.”

I smile reassuringly, hoping I seem reliable.

Among the adventurers here, we probably are the strongest.

But no matter how strong we are, there are things we can’t do.

Saying “We’ll do everything” is just a convenient lie.

The boy wipes his tears with his sleeve, takes a step back, and bows deeply to us.

“Understood. No, thank you… Please, I’m counting on you!”

I nod and stand, leading Kazane and Yuzuki down the stairs.

As we step out of the guild, Yuzuki speaks.

“Senpai, was it okay to say that?”

“No, it wasn’t. I’m nothing but a terrible liar.”

“But Daichi, you looked really cool. ──At this point, we have no choice but to make that lie true.”

“Even so, there’s not much we can do. We’ll just do our best and hope.”

After making the minimum preparations, we set out for Midna Village, guided by the villagers.