I Became a Burden to the Conscienceless Party

With Tina added to the hero’s party, the atmosphere became much brighter.

“No, but that guy…”

Esmeralda could act like an ordinary girl, free from all sorts of constraints, only when talking with her.

“The hero seems very happy to reunite with Lady Tina, Mr. Jim.”
“…”
“Since she’s only paying attention to Lady Tina, shall we play by ourselves?”
“No.”
“Yah! Bug repelling spell!”
“Kyeeeeeeek!”

Irina’s palm touched Jim’s back as he was half-heartedly answering while watching Esmeralda and Tina’s movements.
Struck directly by Irina’s unexpected celestial guardian attack, Jim let out a strange scream and rolled on the ground.

“Hahaha, what was that?”

Of course, Irina laughed cheerfully, seeming to think it was Jim’s joke.

“Ahem! I-I was just trying to liven up the atmosphere a bit.”
“You really surprised me!”
“Haha…”

Jim, who had nearly been exterminated as a bug, had no choice but to laugh along.
Tears almost came out, but fortunately, no wound remained.
Perhaps if he had been an ordinary demon, that attack could have led to death, but wasn’t Jim that rare half-blood between demon and human?

“Pufufu Esmeralda, did you see that? The acting feels so real. Isn’t Jim actually a demon?”
“…”

Tina turned around at Jim’s scream and laughed holding her stomach.
Jim, who was trying to get up after rolling on the ground, couldn’t raise his head for a moment.

‘Could she have really noticed? I’m afraid to look at her face, just like that.’

But perhaps understanding Jim’s feelings? Esmeralda laughed along with Tina and said:

“…That’s impossible. Come on, Tina. If Jim were a demon, he would have died from Irina’s attack just now, right?”

Esmeralda’s defense based on standard information from human history and information only she knew.
Jim got up, dusting himself off, thinking he was relieved.

“You never know. Jim could be a half-blood between demon and human.”
“Oh, there’s no way such a thing exists…”

But Tina’s attack didn’t end. Her grinning expression seemed to be just teasing Jim, but it also looked like she was trying to trap him.

“Oh my? That could be possible, couldn’t it?”

And Irina responded to Tina’s joke.
Jim, in a moment of crisis.
Even Esmeralda found it difficult to defend Jim at this moment.
If she were to get serious here, wouldn’t it only raise more suspicions?

“Then shall we check?”
“…Pardon?”
“Here!”

This time, Irina not only touched him but used her whole body to embrace Jim. Of course, her body was surrounded by holy power.

“…”

Esmeralda held her breath while her eyes widened at the sight.
Now she could only trust Jim.

Fortunately, Jim seemed to have prepared himself mentally from the moment he heard Tina’s joke, as he endured Irina’s deadly embrace without so much as blinking, let alone screaming.

“…”

But he couldn’t speak.
Enduring the pain was all he could do. Jim was completely stiff, which to someone who didn’t know might have looked like he was stiff from embarrassment.

“What’s that? It’s no fun.”

Tina, who had started the joke first, clicked her tongue at the scene that looked like a new couple who had just started dating.

‘I’m not having fun either, you bitch.’

Jim gritted his teeth inwardly.
The only one having fun right now was Irina, who was playing tricks on Jim.

“Hey! Get off! How dare you engage in romance in the sacred hero’s party! And you, saint, act modestly like a proper saint!”
“You sound similar to our church leader, Lady Tina. Even though there’s quite an age gap, fufu.”
“What? Are you picking a fight? Esmeralda! This is picking a fight, right?”

Esmeralda watched Irina’s reaction on Tina’s behalf.

[Note: She is pondering how to get rid of Tina.]

“No, it seems like Tina is overreacting?”
“Traitor! I thought you were my friend!”

Esmeralda saved Tina.
But her salvation went unrecognized by anyone.

‘So this is the path of a hero. A lonely and painful path.’

Esmeralda secretly held back tears while looking at Irina.
To think she’d consider getting rid of someone just for saying that? Esmeralda indirectly understood how sinister the politics within the church must be.

“We don’t have time to rest. We need to meet up with Milia quickly, right? Tina, you said Milia was waiting at the base camp, right?”
“Huh? That’s right. She said she planted all sorts of trap magic, so there shouldn’t be any problems. Even if something happens, we should be able to know at this distance.”

Boom!
As soon as Tina finished speaking, a huge explosion was heard in the distance.

“Ugh… I hope nothing happened because of what I just said?”

Tina muttered awkwardly.

The explosion heard from afar. Tina flustered and Esmeralda blinking.
As I watched the two of them rush off, I suddenly realized.

‘Huh? Now that the two of them are gone, can’t I just run away?’

Rising feelings. Quickening pulse.
I quietly turned my body in the opposite direction from where my companions had headed.

“Shall we go too?”
“…Yes.”

And then I saw Irina smiling brightly behind me and turned back to the front.
For some reason, my spine chilled.
I felt like I shouldn’t be here. Hadn’t I almost physically gone to heaven from Irina’s holy power embrace just a moment ago?

“Fufu.”
“…”

I ran. I decided to run with all my might. To escape the grim reaper behind me, to avoid the white death following like a shadow.
As I ran to avoid death, what I encountered was…

“Arrrgh!”
“Please! Please kill me!!”
“Aaagh! Aaargh! It won’t come off my body! What the hell is this! Aaargh!”

Crack! Crunch! Crackle!

A scene of hell unfolded in the human world.
Screaming demons and amorphous objects clinging to those demons.
Burning, crumpling, breaking.
While the demons rolled on the ground, screaming in pain, the perpetrator merely watched with interest.
As Esmeralda was at a loss for words and Tina trembled…

The last member of the hero’s party.
The unparalleled magic prodigy, joint successor of the continent’s 7 Great Magic Towers.

“Ah, Jim. Long time no see. Welcome.”

Milia Aslin
She greeted me.
A somewhat gloomy impression, brown bob cut, red eyes, baggy black robe.
And most importantly, breasts that stand out clearly even through such a baggy robe.
Indeed, the strongest magician in the hero’s party.
If Irina Saintis is “definitely larger than average”, she is just large without comparison to the average.
They say magicians need to be smart, but doesn’t she look like she’s added two extra heads to her chest?
As I was trying my best to secretly peek at Milia’s chest, she wiped the blood splattered on her cheek with her sleeve and smiled broadly.
Don’t smile. I might get attached.
I tried to shake off Milia’s enchanting magic and asked:

“Ahem! Um… Lady Milia? What exactly are you doing?”
“Hm? I’m experimenting? Look, this is a new magic. It’s a viscous liquid imbued with each element, so it can deliver continuous impact.”

So you’ve created such a terrible magic.
And you were experimenting its effects on our demons.
Deliberately keeping them alive. Milia’s appearance, watching the screaming and writhing while recording something, indeed resembled that of a madman.
If Milia reports this magic to the Magic Tower, a new entry will immediately be added to the list of forbidden magic.
No matter how you look at it, it’s magic specialized for torture. Once Milia’s magic is listed as forbidden, it will be used effectively by each country’s secret units.
I’m already starting to feel sorry for the demon soldiers who will be taken as prisoners.

“Ah, Jim. This is a gift. I read it first, and it was interesting.”
“Huh? Ah, yes, thank you.”

As I was looking at the writhing demons with a terrible feeling, Milia handed me a book.
She occasionally gave me books like this as gifts. It must be because I’m the only one who enjoys reading as much as she does.
Of course, in a sense, Irina also enjoys reading, but all she reads is the Bible.

Enjoying genre novels like this is an interest shared only by me and Milia.
Since Milia reads all sorts of miscellaneous books, there are often strange books mixed in, but her recommendations were usually worth reading.
Now, what kind of book is it this time?

[The Lady Knight and the Tentacle Dungeon]

Oh, it’s an erotic book.
Honestly, being the odd one out in the hero’s party was uncomfortable in many ways, but in some sense, this is fortunate.
Although I wonder about a woman who gives such things as gifts.
Let’s just say it’s good.

“Tell me your thoughts after reading it.”
“…Pardon?”

She wants me to share my thoughts after reading this?
Milia’s expression remained unchanged in its gloomy atmosphere, making it difficult to distinguish whether it was a joke or serious.
Moreover, it’s surprisingly shocking that she can hand over such a book while conducting cruel experiments.

“Ahem! Hem, hem… Well, I’ll think about my thoughts later… Anyway, I’ll read the book well. Thank you for the gift, Lady Milia.”
“Mm.”

But one can’t be careless with received gifts. I decided to keep Milia’s gift safe and read it occasionally.
I’ll read it when I’m lonely at night.
How poetic.