The Wrong Way to Use Healing Magic

After the meeting with Mr. Farga, we returned to the castle from the underground fountain to help stop Mr. Karon.

Norn was fired up to protect the city, and Leona was depressed in contrast to her, which made me somewhat uneasy, but we decided to rest in the room allocated to each of us for the day.

"As expected of a guest room in a castle, it's no less luxurious. ......"

The room I was given was very spacious and luxurious.

I was used to the rustic rooms of the lifeguard's quarters, Kirija's dormitory, and Eva's house in the ward, so it was hard to feel at home in such a luxurious room.

"......Well, I'll be here for the time being, so I guess I'll have to get used to it."

After three to five days, after which Master Farga will remake the armor of the brave men for my exclusive use.

The shape of the weapon, its ability is determined by my mind......, but I guess it means that it will be changed into the most suitable weapon for me, like the one Karon-san has.

"The right weapon for me, you know..."

...... blunt weapon?

Or something that can make use of my quick feet?

If it's something I'm looking for personally...,

"I want something that can protect me."

It is easy to hurt someone with any weapon, but it is difficult to defend against any attack.

Especially, Mr. Karon's attack is so powerful that a single blow can be fatal. It is not a good idea to go up against him without a weapon.

"First of all, we must think about how to deal with Mr. Karon before using weapons.

A close encounter with him can be literally grueling.

I am confident that I can buy as much time as I can if I just try to evade and intercept, but that won't be enough to defeat Mr. Karon.

The most ideal way is to taunt him at close range and deliver a powerful blow to knock him unconscious.

A half-hearted blow cannot penetrate his body.

Perhaps the decisive blow against him would be to strike him with a serious fist, as I did to Evil Dragon. His body is as hard as the dragon's, but not as hard as the dragon's. That's what I felt when I actually put my fists on him.

But can I really put my fist on him, a human being, like I did on the evil dragon?

It's too dangerous to give him an attack without ...... giving him a little warning."

If you are not careful, you will not be able to recover.

There is a possibility that he will die before his healing magic can cure him.

No, can you deliver a big blow while avoiding his attack in the first place?　It is highly doubtful that Mr. Karon would allow us to save our strength in a situation where a moment's gap could be fatal.

"There is still time. Let's think of countermeasures while training.

For the time being, tomorrow we will practice force control and evasion drills in anticipation of Mr. Karon's attack.

After making plans for tomorrow, I lay down on my bed to rest, when suddenly there was a knock at my room door.

"Usato, are you awake?"

"Yes, I'm awake."

It's Amako's voice.

He gets up from the bed and invites Amako into his room.

What's going on?　I ask as I set a chair and a table for her to sit at. Amako replies simply, "I was just having some free time.

"Also, I didn't feel comfortable in such a big room."

"Ha-ha-ha, I know what you mean. I know that feeling."

If the room is too big, it's hard to relax.

Chuckling at her words, I sit down in the chair I moved myself.

"Did you see Neah and Mr. Alk when you came here?"

"Mr. Alc was cleaning his sword and Nair was already asleep.

Isn't he going to bed early?

I feel like going to bed early and getting up early is becoming a daily routine for a vampire.

Normal nighttime activity time is supposed to be at night, but lately Nair spends more time during the daytime. She is gradually becoming healthier and healthier, and I can't help but notice the ambiguous look on her face.

"I was tired, wasn't I?　I knew it."

"I'm sure you're right. I'm sure you're tired from your trip, but after what happened today, I'm sure you are."

I had Nair's help during the battle with Mr. Karon.

To be honest, I might have been in danger without her spell of resistance.

...... Since there is nothing we can do against the cold air, we will have to rely on Nair's magic.

"......I'll help you this time."

I had been thinking about it for a while, and Amako said something like that to me.

I immediately understood that her words meant that she would join in the fight against Mr. Karon.

"......Amako."

"It's okay. I won't do anything dangerous, I'll just try to do what I can. Besides, Usato is ...... so reckless that ...... I'm very worried about him."

It is true that I might do something reckless this time, too.

From the outside looking in, I'm really walking a tightrope, aren't I?

At the time of the evil dragon, I fought alone and got a painful blow, and at the time of the Samaritan's Curse, I failed to notice the existence of the sorcerer and was almost destroyed by the souls bound by the curse.

The more I think about it, the more I realize that I've been doing things that she should have been worried about.

"Ha-ha-ha, I'm sorry. I'm sorry for worrying you all the time."

"...... Yeah. You should take better care of yourself. No matter how strong your body is, it will be ruined one day. ...... maybe?"

I wonder why he said "maybe" and then added a question mark.

Amako looks at me with a subtle expression on her face.

"I want Usato to save my mother, but I don't want him to sacrifice himself for her."

"I have no intention of sacrificing myself. I have a lot of work to do.

I'm going to save Amako's mother, finish the trip safely, and then reunite with Inukami-senpai and Kazuki in the Lingle Kingdom.

There are more, but I can't collapse until I accomplish them first.

"Besides, tomorrow we will start training to be ready to fight against Mr. Karon. Aruk-san will join us and Leona-san will work with us, so we should be able to achieve some success."

"I hope so. ......"

"Is there something on your mind?"

When I asked Amako, who had a subtle expression on her face, she looked away from me as if she was having a hard time saying something.

"I have a feeling that those people are still hiding something ...... from us.

"What are you hiding?"

"I don't know what it is, but ......"

......Hiding things, huh?

Leona and her friends are hiding something.

One possibility is that it is something they don't want us in other countries to know, but what is it?　It must be related to Mr. Karon for sure. ...... hmm?　Come to think of it...,　

"How did Mr. Karon have the dragon factor?"

It was explained to me that he is not an ordinary human being. I was told that he was not an ordinary human being, but he never told me the reason why he had the dragon factor.

That may not be the most important part, but if the Fargas are intentionally hiding the source of his power, it makes me ...... a little uneasy.

"Amako, is it possible to have a story about a person transforming into another species?"

"...... No. I have never heard of such a story. That's why it's quite strange that Kalon is transforming into a dragon.

"Is that funny?"

"If there is, it's a curse. Or ...... it might have something to do with his blood. If his ancestors had subhuman blood, it would be the same as if a few generations later a person would be born with subhuman blood.

"...... heh."

This means that what Mr. Karon has in him is the dragon factor, which means that he has a dragon in his blood.

It sounds like a myth or a fairy tale.

"Well, no matter what Mr. Karon's bloodline is, it doesn't change the fact that we are going to fight. We might be able to learn that the Norns are hiding something from us sooner or later, so we shouldn't worry too much about it.

"That's true, too."

Amako nodded her head.

Yes, we do not need to know why there is a dragon factor in Mr. Karon at present.

The problem is that his body is being strengthened by his transformation into a dragon body. Probably, his body must have been transformed into a dragon, triggered by the outburst of the evil dragon on the night he was awakened.

When he woke up, he had the "ferociousness" of a dragon, and when he left his prison, he had the "monstrous power" and solid "scales" of a dragon.

And today---the first change is that he has awakened to the tail and horns of the dragon.

"...... Either way, it's not a good idea to let this go on much longer."

It could get any more out of hand.

"Speaking of which. The demon people who were summoned from the Lingle Kingdom today are ....... Is he a black knight after all?"

"Hmm?　Yes, that's right.

I had been thinking about it for a while when Amako asked me about it.

Amako had seen the black knight in her premonition, but she had never met Ferrum, who was inside of the black knight.

"He was kind of different from what I expected."

"Ha-ha-ha, that's what I thought when I talked to her."

"What's he like?　From what I saw today, she seems like a strong person. ......"

I talked to Amaco about Ferrum.

I explained briefly how he had fought on the battlefield as a black knight, the exchange in jail after his capture, and how he had joined the lifeguard corps.

"He's such a foolhardy boy that he leaves his own injuries alone. Well, she's my junior too, so I was a little worried if she was doing well in the rescue squad. Today, after seeing him for the first time in a while, I'm glad to see he's doing well.

And I didn't expect your armor to be shaped like the uniform of the lifeguard corps.

Does it mean that he didn't actually dislike life in the rescue squad that much, even though he said "No, I hate it"?　I would be happy if that were the case.

"......"

"......?"

Amako looked at me quizzically, her mouth tearing up at the fact that Ferrum was doing so well.

"...... Usato?"

"Hmm?"

"You're more of a womanizer than I thought."

"Wait a minute. Where did you learn that word?　I'm not mad at you, just tell me."

Upset, I lean forward and protest in a commanding tone.

It's too obvious. It's shocking to hear Amako say that to me, even if it's only half-jokingly said by a senior colleague.

I'm about to cry.

No, I was already crying.

I don't understand why I'm called a womanizer when I've never made a move on the opposite s*x in the first place.

"Because that's the only way I can think of."

"No, no, no, why are you sulking there? I'd rather be sulked at than you!

Amako's mouth is agape.

I try my best to make excuses, but her stony eyes remain fixed on me.

I then tried to prove my innocence with gestures, but in the end, I ended up getting the dishonorable title of "Usato is unaware" from Amako.

The story ends with Amako's disgraceful title of "Usato is unaware.

The next day I visited Mearaq.

After resting my body in a large unfamiliar room, I was served breakfast made by the maid, and then went to the training hall of the castle in Mialark.

Amako went to feed Bulrin and Nair didn't want to go outside, so the maid took us to the place where Mialark's books were kept.

Mialak's training area was larger than I had expected, and as I stood there, I began to do some light preparatory exercises.

"Whew!"

He is not dressed in his company uniform, but in the uniform he wears for training in the lifeguard corps.

I wear this kind of clothes because I can move around as much as I like, even if I get dirty.

"Well, we can't just do what we always do ......, we have to set a proper goal."

Instead of training in the dark, as we do every day, this time we will set clear guidelines.

Mr. Karon, whom we are going to face, is not so naive that he can be defeated by just taking appropriate countermeasures. We should not take the easy way of thinking that we should train our muscles because we will be defeated by our strength.

We should go to ......, but the fact is that we don't know what we should do first.

"Mr. Usato..."

Can I help you?　Mr. Aruk.

As I was twisting my head in thought, Aruk-san approached me.

He was wearing the same simple clothes as I was, and he was holding a wooden sword in his hand instead of a serious one, as if he was in training as usual.

"Since you seem to be in trouble, I thought I would give you a piece of advice.

Thank you. I can train myself, but I don't know what to do if I want to fight. ......"

My fighting style is a combination of amateurish physical fighting and surprise attacks with healing magic bullets.

I don't have any solid techniques, and I'm just a fighter.

"No, in the case of Usato-dono, although he has the art of fighting, he didn't have to learn the art of fighting, so in a way it can't be helped, can it?

"Is that so?"

Yes. But it doesn't mean that problems like the battle with the evil dragon, the curse of Samaritan, and ...... this battle with Lord Karon won't happen in the future. In order to protect yourself, you need to learn the art of fighting.

Indeed, our next destination is the land of the beastmen.

A land of subhumans who hate humans. There's no way nothing can happen to us in such a country.

Even then, we may not be able to get through the battle using only our physical abilities.

Mr. Aruk, please teach me how to fight.

Mr. Aruk nodded at my words.

He is a first-class knight. It is much better to study with him than to train alone.

"Well then, I would like to check your moves first, so let's play a hand-to-hand combat.

"What, out of the blue?"

"Yes, I have to see it to believe it."

......This is the second time I've fought you, Mr. Aruk.

The first time was when he was manipulated by Nair, but that time he didn't show his true ability, so we can't measure his strength.

"Please use magic and be as serious as possible. Otherwise, it will be meaningless.

"Well, are you sure you're serious?"

"If something goes wrong, I'll ask Usato-dono to heal you."

Mr. Aruk said this jokingly, but the fact that magic is used means that Mr. Aruk will also use fire magic.

His ability backed up by his solid experience and skills must be quite strong.

Let's not let our guard down here, and let's just borrow his chest and challenge him.

Taking a small deep breath, I look over at Mr. Aruk who is checking the condition of his wooden sword, and move to the center of the training area where no damage will occur.

"---Wait a minute."

Hmm?"

But just as we were about to step into the center of the training ground, a woman appeared from the castle.

"What, Leona?"

"...... sorry to interrupt."

She walked up to me with her blonde hair tied in one knot, and she---Leona-san took one look at me with a slightly thoughtful expression, and then she spoke to Mr. Alc.

"Mister Aruk, can you leave that role ...... to me?"

"What?"

I was wondering if Leona-san, rather than Aruk-san, would be interested in a handshake with me.

I wondered why she would make such a proposal, but then I remembered what Mr. Farga said to Leona yesterday, and that's why I thought of it.

"For my part, it is a proposal I would not have wished to make, since I would be able to get your thoughts as a knight. ...... Usato-dono?"

I don't mind either.

I know that Leona is a strong person, and so does ALC. There is no way that she is lacking for an opponent who can fight head-on with Mr. Karon.

......And, although it is my personal feeling, I feel that this person is dangerous and can't be left alone.

I don't know what kind of problems she has, but I can't start without stepping in first.

"Thank you for granting me this absurd request."

She bowed beautifully and walked to the center of the training ground with the wooden sword she already had in her hand.

As I watched her walk away, Aruk-san spoke to me.

"She's quite a skilled person," he said. I am sure that she is more experienced and skilled than Usato-dono. Be on your guard and fight your own battle.

"How I fight: ......Yes, I understand."

It might be a good opportunity to see how well my way of fighting works in the current situation.

Unlike the first time, my opponent is not Aruk, but still, he might be a good opponent for me to meet with because he does not know Leona's moves at all.

"Let's give it a try.

I muttered to myself, and braced myself as I headed for the center of the training ground where Leona was.