Ex-Hero, Now Freeloader - Chapter 8

『Bweeeeeeh…!』

When I got back to my room, the holy sword was crying her non-existent eyes out.

The sound echoed in my head more than a Mandragora’s scream.

「Geez, what the hell is wrong?」

『R-Rain…! You came back!』

「Well, this is my room.」

Since the holy sword is my partner, I suppose I should call it our room.

『Y-you’re late! I almost drowned in a lake of my own tears!』

「Nothing came out of you.」

『The tears are in my heart!』

「…Then I guess I gotta pull you out before your heart drowns. So? What is it?」

I pick up the sword and bring it near a table.

I lean her on a chair and take a seat opposite her.

「I shall make you some tea, Master Rain.」

Ferris followed me, said that, gave a bow, and left.

It’s just the two of us now. Me and a holy sword with a will of its own.

『…You can’t just leave me behind. It’s dangerous.』

「Hmm… But that’s not the reason for all this, right?」

shock The holy sword shook in surprise…I think.

『W-w-w-whatever do you mean?!』

Has she really been the holy sword of every Hero since the first?

This is more than just a poor attempt at deception.

「I didn’t want to ask because you didn’t seem to want to tell me, but you’ve been acting especially weird lately.」

『…』

Usually, she’d say something like『Whaddya mean weird?』or『Whaddya mean especially lately?! Am I acting differently?!』 but she’s just…clamming up.

「Tell what you were going to say before, about the thing you were hiding.」

It seemed like something really difficult to say, so I didn’t push it.

『…Ngh.』

I waited for some time while she kept going back and forth between mumbling something and staying silent.

I thought I’d wait, but it doesn’t look like she’ll say anything like this.

「There are cursed swords, right? Swords with amazing abilities, but place a curse on the user?」

『…Yeah.』

「There used to be tons of holy swords in the past, but now every one of them except you became a cursed sword, right?」

『…That’s right.』

「For cursed swords, in exchange for great power, they curse you. So then, what about holy swords?」

『…』

「I’ve never felt like you took anything from me. That thing about dead Heroes passing on their power into the holy sword seems like the real deal, but lately, you’ve been all like『Don’t cheapen my value!』.」

In fact, it feels more like she’s afraid that I, the Hero, won’t want to use her.

「So, I thought about it a little. I’ve met several people with cursed swords, but none of them could talk. If they really were holy swords just like you…are they dead?」

『……』

「Maybe the will within the holy sword chooses its user. It’s not that only a Hero can wield you, rather, it’s because you acknowledge a Hero as your owner, so you can’t be swung by anyone else.」

『…H-hey, just how long are you…』

「With that idea, I can sorta see just how a holy sword can fall to become a cursed sword. Whoever made the holy swords wanted the sword itself to choose its owner. While the condition isn’t as tough as being only limited to Heroes, it was still strict.」

『…Yeah, but it’s not every day that you meet someone with the attitude of「Putting another’s happiness before your own.」or「Live and die fighting for justice.」, and even if there are, it’s another thing to run into them.』

No surprise there. It’s a big wide world. Even now, new cursed swords are occasionally being discovered.

「So eventually, the holy swords wanted an owner regardless of conditions?」

Perhaps because tools are meant to be used or the will within the holy sword willed it.

『Yeah, anyone was fine. But that’s not good. Great power must not be given to the unworthy.』

「While I don’t really get it, the holy swords that did that lost their minds and cursed the unworthy utilizing their powers.」

I guess it was impossible to make it so that the unworthy wouldn’t be able to even use them in the first place, but those who made them probably thought of something. The creator of the holy swords is unknown, so I have no idea who they are.

Yet somehow, I sense evil.

Almost as if the holy swords were made knowing that they would become cursed swords.

…Well, that’s just what I think.

It’s ancient history now.

「But that doesn’t explain your change in attitude. As long as you wait, the one with the Hero emblem will surely be born, so your place on the side of humanity is guaranteed. And now there’s me.」

Well, I guess you could say that I handed the sword over to the Demon King Army in my era.

『…Urgh…』

「Holy sword…no, let’s go with Mika. It’s time to talk.」

『…But, I mean…』

Hmm… Is it that difficult to talk about?

…I know, I’ll try that.

The kids have done this to me quite a lot recently. I just can’t resist for some reason.

「No?」

『…』

「No matter what?」

『……』

「Aw, I see… You don’t wanna talk to me? …I’m sad.」

『…!』

「Even though we’ve been together for ten years…sigh」

『H-hey, wait a minute. You don’t have to look so sad.』

「I just might cry…」

『Y-you’re that concerned…? I-I see… F-fine, I get it. I’ll talk!』

Well, this method also works.

Even if I say so myself, even the War God was shocked and amazed by my grasp of people’s minds.

Everything I said other than the crying bit wasn’t a lie, nor did I trick her.

『So…well… You remember that a holy sword will change its shape to best suit its user, right?』

「Ah, that’s right. The first time I held you, you shrank.」

She would change to the most optimum size for me as I grew older.

While she hasn’t done so recently, she would help adjust any excess mana put into a spell by mistake, help out with the creation of unfamiliar spells, and use her own mana to protect me in a pinch.

『W-well… Ever since the sixth generation of Hero…uhm…』

「Yeah?」

She mustered up her courage to speak as if talking about a traumatic event.

『They said I was…t-too noisy…』

I have no idea how to respond.

「……I-I see.」

It’s true that she talks a lot, but she always prioritizes the user’s safety and victory.

Knowing that I don’t like to kill, she would yell at the enemy, telling them to surrender.

Even if a little noisy, she is most certainly an ally.

『At first, I tried to be quieter, but the next generation of Hero said the same thing to me…』

Said the holy sword tearfully.

『While you are grateful for my support, the tenth generation Hero told me「Don’t do anything unnecessary.」…』

I thought it would be easier for her since she only has to worry about her user being a Hero, unlike the other swords where the condition depended on the wielder’s personality, but I guess not.

Although I heard tales of the tenth generation Hero doing their job properly, pushing back the Demon King into Makai.

…Wait, could it be…?

「…Wait a minute, do you…optimize yourself even when the Hero feels that he doesn’t need you…?」

In other words, if the Hero thought『It’d be nice if this holy sword would shut up.』, she wouldn’t be able to speak the whole time she was being used?

That’s…no different from having your mouth sewn shut.

In a hoarse, raspy voice, Mika answered…

『……Yeah.』