The Rising of the Scythe Hero

In one of my casual conversations with the queen, I asked whether she had any Yggdrasil Potion in her possession, to which I received an affirmative answer. In fact, I could have gotten it entirely free of charge, yet I still promised Mirelia I would repay the debt once I managed to unlock the corresponding recipe in Mixing.

And so, after spending a little time traveling to Mirelia's personal vault and back to the guest hall of the palace, our whole group gathered around Atla. Well, around me and Atla, to be precise. After all, the girl was weak, and there was a non-zero chance she might simply spill such a precious resource. A simple waste would have been bad enough, but the problem was that obtaining another potion like this would take a very long time, since the queen of Melromarc had only this one.

As for me, I wanted to see this girl's development as soon as possible. What kind of monster would she become if she managed to realize all that terrifying potential hidden within her?

Naturally, Fohl tried to give Atla the potion himself, but he was refused first by me, and then finished off by the cruel, merciless, and absolute refusal of his own sister. And while my refusal had a logical basis — the medicines worked more effectively when taken from my hands — Atla simply didn't want to accept the potion from anyone other than me.

She's a strange one. Were there really enough reasons for such attachment? Yes, I saved them, but still… She warmed up to me far too quickly, pushing away even her own brother who had cared for her all her life.

Although, to me it seems that in truth, Atla is just a fierce troll, hiding behind the mask of a sweet little girl. And she won't stay a little girl for long, not if I take her training seriously.

"Well then, let's begin. Open wide, here comes the airplane…" And the girl obediently opened her mouth without the slightest hesitation.

"W-what shameless behavior…" Wyndia, who was still with us, was, as always, acting true to form.

Carefully supporting Atla's chin, I slowly began to pour the potion into her, a potion worth as much as a peasant's comfortable lifetime. And the effect didn't take long to show.

The bottle with the potion and Atla herself were enveloped in a green glow that seeped deep into her body. With the help of my Qi sense, I could see how the Yggdrasil Potion was performing the impossible in real time. In mere moments, the girl's body wasn't just healing from any and all wounds — whether minor or extremely severe — but was reaching a perfect state, something that, in my previous world, no human had ever truly possessed. Because such a thing as "perfect health," no matter what anyone said, simply didn't exist.

Always, in every single case, there would be some defect, however small. It might go unnoticed, or cause no discomfort at all, but it was there. In that world where progress had long since replaced everything natural, it simply couldn't be otherwise.

And yet, right now – it was.

"This… is incredible," Atla tilted her head as if listening to her own body. "I feel so much strength within me… as if… a mountain has been lifted off my shoulders…"

"You still can't get up, but not for long. If things keep going like this, by this evening or tomorrow you'll be able to run around." I shrugged.

"Thank you, Nott-sama," Atla bowed as best as her body allowed, straining slightly.

"A-Atla!"

"Come on now," I waved my hand, looking at the girl's still closed eyes. "I didn't do this solely out of the goodness of my heart."

"I understand. The wounds on your soul, Nott-sama, have healed even more. I will do everything in my power to support you in whatever you do."

"Then you'll definitely get along with Night. Or maybe not…" I smirked, shifting my gaze to the bird, who was now staring with a thoughtful face at what I assumed she saw as a rival.

The deed was done, and it was time for our whole little crew to disperse. First of all, Wyndia was sent back to Zeltoble, to Pelgue's family. Until I was firmly settled in Melromarc, it would be much easier and safer for her to stay with them.

Then, as I was already thinking about my next steps, I noticed Naofumi approaching. He had also been somewhere within Melromarc this whole time.

"I wasn't sure whether you were strong enough to simply ignore the materials from such a powerful monster, or if you had just forgotten… So I asked the queen's people to move everything left of that dinosaur to the castle."

"Oh." At first I didn't quite grasp what he meant, but then, little by little, realization dawned on me. "O-o-oh…"

I smacked myself in the face.

"Damn. Thanks, Naofumi. After absorbing the core, I wasn't exactly in the right state of mind – I completely forgot about the rest of the carcass."

"Don't mentio— Wait, what? You… ate the dragon's core?" Naofumi asked, his voice and expression filled with emotions I couldn't quite read.

"Yeah… Just don't ask me why I did it."

"Alright… I suppose that really would be for the best…"

"So, did you feed anything to your Shield?" I decided to steer the conversation away from an uncomfortable topic.

"No," my companion shook his head. "You were the one who defeated it, after all."

"Hm… You're not so bad, Naofumi." The kid received a serious nod from me. "Alright, good luck to you. Unfortunately, I've still got a mountain of things to do…"

"Yeah…"

And that's how we parted ways. I could feel the Shield Guy's gaze on my back as I walked away, but that was all. He didn't say another word.

Meanwhile, I decided to take care of the simplest task on my immediate list. And also – the one that had just appeared. After all, it was kind of stupid… Absorbing the core had messed me up so much I had completely forgotten about everything else.

It didn't take all that much time to process the information in reality, but in my mental world – if you could call it that – it felt like I had spent an eternity. And all that knowledge… was throwing me off balance.

At least, that was how I justified it to myself.

I asked the first knight I met for directions to the designated pieces of the monster. Since they still hadn't been moved to a darker, cooler place for preservation, the remains of the Tyrannodragon were lying in the castle's backyard, and that's where I headed.

Claws, spikes, fangs, scales, and countless other parts were fed into the Scythe for a long time, one by one, in order to unlock the weapon of the same name. And only at the very end, when the brain and then the heart were offered to the Weapon's core…

[Tyrannical Dragon Scythe 0/50 (D)

Skill not mastered. Equipment bonus: Attack +180

Special effect: Tyrant (passive)

Mastery: 0]

Not only was this scythe's base attack bonus six times higher than that of the Reaper's Scythe, but it also had a greater potential for growth. The only problem was that its skill was somewhat… inconvenient.

The skill Tyrant allowed me, in passive mode, to spread a tyrannical aura that pressed down on everyone who wasn't a member of my party and whom I designated as enemies, while also lowering their stats.

That would have been fine, except the aura turned out to affect even those I didn't consider enemies. It completely ignored only my party members, even though the description clearly said otherwise. Whether that was because the skill itself was simply too strong, or because the castle soldiers were just too weak… was unknown.

In fact, I had some fairly reasonable doubts that I'd be able to obtain anything from the dragon's corpse at all. The reason for that was that Night wasn't the only one who had received a gift from Fitoria.

[Filolial Series forcibly mastered]

That was the message I got when the Queen of Filolials placed a strand of her hair into the Scythe's core — the same kind that Night now had.

Just as the message stated – the Elder Bird had forcibly unlocked for me all Scythes related to the filolials. Most of the Scythes that became available granted crafting bonuses or improved endurance/agility. Which meant, unfortunately, that filolials weren't all that friendly with raw attack power.

And since the enmity between birds and lizards was common knowledge, I suspected I wouldn't be able to master Scythes related to dragons. Because of that, at first, I even felt a bit down about the gift — it cut me off from an entire branch of Scythes that could have made me stronger.

But it all worked out.

"Nott-chan? What are you planning to do next?" Fohl was busy with Atla, Wyndia had already been sent off, and Naofumi had gone about his own business, so in the end it was just Night and Sadeena who remained with me.

"There are still a few days left before our departure to the Cal Mira islands. And before that, there's one more thing I need to finish. But I'll do it alone."

"Oh-oh? You want to go by yourself? Completely on your own?" The girl's eyes first widened in surprise, then turned ever so slightly suspicious.

"Yes." Smiling, I patted Night on the head. "So sorry, birdie, but we'll have to spend a day apart."

"M-m-m…"

Although Night was clearly unhappy with this outcome, she wasn't used to arguing with me, so she simply gave a not-so-approving, yet still accepting response. Sadeena, on the other hand…

"You're hiding something, Nott-chan," she shook her head. "And here I was, missing you these past few days. I thought now we'd finally be able to travel together…" The orca-girl made the saddest puppy eyes, playing the role of a deeply wronged woman in the best way she could.

"I just don't want to drag you into this. You still need to restore your level, and now Night can raise hers further as well. Maybe the two of you could focus on that while I'm busy?"

Yes, I was blatantly trying to change the subject — it was obvious to anyone. Probably even to Night. Especially since I'd recently confirmed that the bird understood far more than she let on.

"Ah… Tyrant. But that's exactly why we love him, right, Night?" Sadeena smiled sweetly and laid her palm on the bird's head.

"Mm-hm."

Adorable. My birdie really was adorable. Even now, after all this time, I couldn't stop being touched by her often very out-of-place seriousness.

"Well, that's settled then. It shouldn't take long, so most likely by tomorrow I'll rejoin you. I'm still curious about what's so special about those sea monsters."

"Trust me, Nott-chan, you won't regret it!"

"I don't doubt it."

…

"So, are you ready, Nott-sama?" Mirelia lifted her gaze from the documents to look at me.

"Yeah. If I'm not mistaken, today is the day that aristocrat leaves Melromarc?" It would've been a little awkward if I'd mixed up the dates…

"Yes. Lucas Almel is departing today for a diplomatic meeting. But…" The queen's gaze grew uncertain.

"Something wrong?"

"I'm not sure. Word has reached me that, as a gesture of trust between the parties of the treaty, Lucas was assigned a very powerful escort. I have reason to believe it may be one of the Star Heroes."

"Oh, really…"

That was… truly unexpected. Until now, I had only met one such hero, and that was literally yesterday. Fitoria, of course, was a unique case, and her power was simply absurd. But how strong could a Star Hero be, one who hadn't lived for hundreds or even thousands of years? How much could someone born and raised in this world, yet wielding a Legendary Weapon, achieve?

"I have a question."

"Yes? I'll do my best to answer, if it's within my power, Nott-sama."

"How long ago did the first Star Weapon gain its wielder?"

"Hm…" Mirelia thought for a moment, resting her hand against her chin. "Ten years ago, my… husband became the Hero of the Staff. Before him, only the Hero of the Axe was officially known to exist, but no one had seen him. Later, the Claw, the Whip, the Hammer, and the Throwing Weapon each found their owners. The only Legendary Gear still without a master are the Gauntlets. There's also the Legendary Carriage, but practically nothing is known about it."

"I see… Then my potential opponent could have had more than ten years of growth."

"Six, to be precise. The Hero of the Axe… let's just say, it's highly unlikely he would side with the aristocracy – of that I'm certain. But six years ago, the Hero of the Claw was chosen."

"Got it. Hard to imagine what a Star Hero could accomplish in six years, but… we'll manage somehow."

Fitoria was the kind of monster who had been leveling for over a hundred years. Compared to that, six years felt almost laughable.

"Then it's decided. Let's run through the plan one last time, and then whatever happens, happens. It's time to put an end to this drawn-out story."