Raising the Lowest-Ranked Adventurer, the Heroic Girl – Wasn’t I Just a Substitute Old Man?

Raising the Lowest-Ranked Adventurer, the Heroic Girl – Wasn’t I Just a Substitute Old Man?

Volume 4 Chapter 21   Towards the battle with my destiny

“Everyone, great job!”

“‘Good work!'”

After the battle was over, we left the gate and bought some ice cream and juice from a convenience store on a whim to have a celebratory gathering. We sat on a bench in the nearby park, congratulating each other and rejoicing in our victory.

However, despite winning, Kitahara had a somewhat somber expression on her face. I wondered what could be bothering her. It’s not like we were attacked by enemies, so she couldn’t have been injured. Even if she was, it would be easily treatable.

As I was pondering, Kitahra slowly spoke up.

“I’m sorry. I couldn’t be of any help.”

Not being able to contribute, huh? It seems that Kitahara is feeling frustrated because she was the only one who couldn’t participate in the battle and was left behind in a separate location.

“Oh no, you’re definitely contributing!”

“Well, in the first place, with this rule that one person can’t move, there’s nothing we can do about it, right?”

That’s true. With this rule of “protecting the treasure without leaving your spot,” if we attack the enemy, someone has to stay behind to guard the treasure.

Besides, we’re starting from a flawed premise.

This time, Kitahara stayed as the guardian of the treasure, but that doesn’t mean she wasn’t participating in the battle.

Kitahara may not have directly engaged in combat, but she was actively involved in the battle itself.

“In fact, it’s wrong to say that you’re not contributing. If I hadn’t received your enhancements at the beginning, I would have been left behind by these guys, you know?”

When we started the match and headed towards the enemy’s territory, Kitahara first cast physical enhancement and protective magic on all of us.

Without that, I might have struggled even more against the enemy instructor, and I think I would have exhausted a significant amount of physical and magical energy before reaching their location.

I was able to run without getting tired and without being left behind all thanks to Kitahara’s support through magic.

When I mentioned this, for some reason, it was Asada, not Kitahara, who nodded repeatedly, seemingly convinced.

“Yeah, that’s right. You’re pretty slow, huh?”

Asada said that while looking at me and laughing as if mocking me. But if I may say so myself, I want to tell him not to compare himself to me.

“Could you please stop comparing me to a brainless gorilla?”

“Who’s brainless?”

“You are. You swing that big two-handed hammer around with just one hand. Don’t let me hear you say you’re weak.”

“Mmm…”

Unable to counter my words, Asada furrowed her brows slightly, pursed her lips, and let out a small growl, appearing a bit annoyed.

Seeing Asada’s lack of retort, I smirked in response, taking it as payback for her laughing at me earlier, but then I got kicked in the shin. Ouch.

“Well, if you’re worried about it, just do your best next time, right? After all, next time you’ll have to move whether you like it or not.”

Ignoring Asada and returning my gaze to the main topic, I addressed Kitahra.

To be honest, whether you performed well or not this time doesn’t really matter.

No matter how much we say, “You did a great job,” Kitahara won’t easily accept it. That’s something she has to come to terms with on her own.

So what’s important is not what others think, it’s something entirely different.

In other words, it’s about the next opponents—the team of young lady.

“Regardless of whether you said you were not able to participate in this battle, you’re definitely going to participate on the next battle, so if you’re concerned about your performance, just give it your all at that time.”

“Next? … Ah.”

“Tenshi Asuka.”

Upon hearing my words, Kitahara seemed to realize who the next opponent was, and her face lifted with a start.

And upon hearing Abe’s words, the other two, aside from Kitahara, also adopted serious expressions.

“It’s a tournament format, so they won’t face us unless they win, but they’ll probably be the first to come.”

“Yes, that’s true. We’ll do our best.”

In terms of the match format, whether we’ll face the specific opponents or not is uncertain.

The fact that our next opponents will be the young lady is just an educated guess, but most likely, this guess won’t be wrong.

“Everyone, let’s give it our all next time.”

“Yes. We’re looking forward to the next ‘match’ as well.”

──◆◇◆◇──

After the second round ended, several more days passed.

Up until today, as expected, that unwanted “Dragon Slayer Hero” has been coming to us almost every day.

Although he didn’t actually participate in training every day, he would show up at least once a day, making it quite exhausting for me.

Well, I guess he’s a good sparring partner for Miyano and the others, right?

Especially Asada, it must be a valuable learning experience for her.

After all, Sieg can’t use magic.

He’s considered a Special Class and referred to as a “hero,” but unlike Miyano, he simply has exceptional physical abilities.

Still, being on par with other heroes who can use magic is quite impressive.

Even though Sieg can’t use magic and only relies on his exceptional physical abilities, Asada is quite similar. She can’t use magic either and only possesses physical abilities that come close to the Special Class level.

Of course, there’s a difference in overall power between a Special Class and a First Class, but for Asada, who possesses similar abilities, Sieg’s battles should be full of lessons to learn from.

While I can teach them about the tactics of battles, I can’t teach them the actual fighting style, so I think it’s a valuable experience for them.

…Well, as a consequence, I ended up having to endure his conversations.

“Now then, today is the third match. In other words, it’s the showdown against the young lady… How are the preparations?”

“Perfect.”

But well, after all that, today has finally arrived.

It’s finally time for the match against the team of young lady, who could be considered our fateful opponents. The training we’ve done so far should prove useful.

“I see. Shall we go then?”

“Yes, let’s get going.”

As Miyano’s words received nods from the other members, we stood up and made our way out of the waiting room.

“Speaking of which, where there’s smoke, there’s fire.”

However, just as we were about to leave the room and head towards the gate, we happened to come across the team of young lady, our opponents, who were also walking in the same direction.

It seems they’re heading towards the gate as well.

“Huh? Ah, it’s Asuka-san.”

Curious about why I had stopped, Miyano voiced her question and peeked over my shoulder to look down the hallway.

“Good morning, everyone.”

As the young lady responded to Miyano’s greeting and halted her steps, she turned around to face us and offered her greetings.

The young lady’s gaze swept not only Miyano but also Asada and the others who had emerged from the room, before returning her attention to Miyano once again.

Miyano and the young lady locked eyes for a few seconds.

In her expression, there was no trace of arrogance or complacency, but rather a serious determination that conveyed no room for carelessness.

“We’re going to win today.”

With those words, the young lady slowly spoke and then turned her back to us, walking away with her comrades.

“She said it. What will we do?”

“We will win this time.”

Perhaps inspired by the young lady’s words, Miyano’s expression, which had been somewhat relaxed until now, turned serious, and Asada and the others also adopted a similar aura of determination.

Their condition is perfect. Now it’s a matter of how far they can go…

“Alright then, let’s go.”

“Yes!”

With that, I believe they can win this time.