The Wrong Way to Use Healing Magic

It is a memory from when I was an apprentice soldier in the army of the Demon Lords before I became Commander of the Third Legion.

I accompanied my master Nero Agens and his men on a mission.

It was supposed to be a simple mission.

We went to the human realm to capture powerful demons for the Demon Lord who would eventually return and to create a new demon, now called Barzinak.

A scene that is still vivid in my mind's eye.

I was ordered to stand by in the rear, but by the time I arrived at the site of the battle, I sensed something unusual and found it had turned into hell.

Trees torn into pieces.

Fallen down, my brothers and sisters and humans.

And then I saw the master crucified to a tree, his right shoulder pierced by his own sword, and a woman glaring at him with eyes full of hatred.

.

With her right eye cut open and blood seeping from every part of her body - a normal person would not even be able to stay conscious - the woman crawled on the ground and tried to put an end to her master, who was already losing consciousness.

Her body was dying, but only her eyes were fixed on him.

It was truly terrifying.

I never thought such a person existed.

I struggled to move my body, which was immobilized by fear, and fled from the place with my master.

The whole time I was on the horse, I felt like I had not lived because of the woman's eyes on me.

"Uhmirah."

"......."

"What a nice greeting. I'm your superior officer, right?　I am.

Before the battle, I was remembering the past, but I was interrupted by Cóga, commander of the 2nd Legion.

As for why he is still my superior, it is because it is easier for me to move as a soldier and I have grown attached to my men who follow me .......

The place where our army was now encamped for the night was in the woods, right in front of the big river whose bridge had been destroyed by Rhodes once before.

"What do you want?"

"No, I just went to a meeting a while ago, and after it was over..." he said. Wow, that Third Corps commander is a real nasty guy."

"That's why she's better suited to be a corps leader than I am."

Hannah Lohmeier, the new Commander of the Third Legion, is excellent.

She has a flexible and cunning mindset compared to me, who is intuitive and only knows how to fight.

And her magic is suitable for logistical support.

I'm sure she'll be a nuisance to the other soldiers.

So, what else do you have?

"Nero's old man has left the command to his second-in-command and is going on the run."

"......, huh?"

A halfway powerful man is a hindrance in a master's fight.

There is nothing wrong with that, but I'd be lying if I said I didn't have my doubts.

Speak of the devil...

"Hmm?"

Coga's voice makes you look up and follow his gaze.

He sees Nero Agens, a blonde haired demon master with a sword at his waist, standing near the riverbank. I can only see his back, so I can't see his expression, but he is staring intently at the scenery beyond the river.

"Are you sure? He is your master, isn't he?　Shouldn't you at least talk to him a little?

"...... yeah, I know."

We have not exchanged a word since the master's return.

Partly because he was busy just before he marched out, and partly simply because I did not know how to talk to him now.

Since his return to the demon king's domain, he has changed.

The wounds he had received from his own magic sword were so great that even after the Demon Lord's resurrection, he was unable to return to battle and was forced to recuperate.

At that time, the master was filled with remorse for forcing his subordinates to die and with an extraordinary amount of obsession due to his defeat in the battle with Rose.

Perhaps that is still the case today.

I'll leave this to you.

"Huh?　What?　You want me, the corps commander, to stand guard?　Don't ignore me...

Ignoring Koga's voice, I head for the master.

The closer I get, the clearer the image becomes.

I was about to call out to him, slightly nervous at the sight of his dull golden hair, the armor covering his right shoulder, and the magic sword at his waist, when - without warning - he drew his sword and with a light movement, cleaved the space in front of him to the side.

"What?

Instantly, a blade of wind shot out from the red blade, heading for the one-headed high mountain at the end of the great river.

A few seconds later, a tree on one side of the mountain is cut down, creating a cloud of dust.

Puzzled by the sudden action, the master with the red magic sword in its scabbard looked at the mountain and spoke.

"Five."

"What?"

Recon. I took them out before they sent the intel. I don't know if that means anything.

For a few seconds, I couldn't understand the meaning of his words, but the moment I did, I got goosebumps.

He had killed the man who had been scouting from inside the mountain. And he did it in spite of the fact that he could not see properly in the darkness.

Once again, we are made to understand just how out of the ordinary he is.

"It's been a long time. Amira.

I was simply amazed at the ability of a master I had long forgotten, when suddenly he called my name.

He stopped a little behind me and moved his face slightly toward me, smiling.

"It's been a while. Master."

"Master. You still call me that?"

The self-mocking words startled him.

The master's appearance has changed completely.

At least, before the fight with Rose, he never used to speak self-deprecating words.

"You are the master who taught me how to fight. That will never change, no matter what."

"...... you have become stronger."

He mutters emotionally and shuts his mouth again.

I cannot guess how he is feeling.

But I have always wanted to ask him something.

"Are you thinking of taking revenge against Rose?"

Is he trying to humiliate himself against Rose as I once did?

Unlike me, who was so angry just to avenge my master's death, he must have his own reasons for doing so.

He has lost all his men except me in the battle against Rose.

He gave a small shake of his head at my question.

"...... No, I am not qualified to avenge my enemies. Rather, I am the one who must atone."

"Atone for what?"

"Because I'm the one who forced them ...... to die."

He made Rose's men go out of the way and fall together.

Considering the strength of Rose and his men at that time, it would have been obvious that they would become a threat later on.

I am not saying that the master's judgment was right, but if Rose's men had lived, they might have become untouchable.

"My time has stopped since the day of the battle."

His mutterings were filled with strong emotions.

"Before, I used to think that any sacrifice was unavoidable for the sake of the prosperity of the demon tribe. However, after the defeat at the hands of Rose, his enthusiasm and ideals disappeared, and all that remained was the urge to fight."

Nothing else?

Yeah. I have only one goal, to fight Rose. That's it.

The master was stuck in the past.

He was hungry for a fight with Rose, someone he had never met before, someone of equal power.

Everyone here should be fighting for the Demon Lord, for the survival of the demon tribe as a whole, but this person is fighting not for the present, but for the past.

"Isn't Rose fighting now?"

I answer in surprise at the unexpected question.

"...... Yes. As a healing sorceress, she is on the battlefield, healing wounded enemy soldiers.

"So she chose to save rather than kill."

I could not see the expression on the master's face as he muttered this, but I knew that he had something on his mind.

He was silent for about ten seconds before he finally opened his mouth.

"If that's the case, you must be a very troublesome person.

"Yes, absolutely. In the last battle, even his disciples came out of nowhere, and even I was having a hard time with the presence of two brave men. ......"

Remembering the healing wizard called Usato and the two heroes, he complained even in front of his master.

"Apprentice?　The healing wizard's ......?"

"Yes. I am a genuine healing wizard of the same kind as Rose.

How good are you?

At least good enough to beat out Kohga.

Technically, Koga had some extra strength, but there was no way he was a proper healing magician when he was forced to faint even for a moment.

Once I saw him locked in a cage in Hinomoto, he looked like an ordinary boy - but I could see a strong will in his eyes.

"...... I see."

After listening to my story, the master nodded quietly and fell silent.

Did he have any thoughts about what Rose's student had said?　Either way, for the master, this march must be a battle against the past.

For me, it is also a battle for the ...... Demon Lord, and by extension, for the demon tribe.