<h4>Vol. 1 - Chapter 3.5: The Threat Of The Demon Lord''s Chief Advisor (5)</h4>
After Serphiano left the execution site, Takashi asked Nephira for some time and returned to the waiting area for the ves.
"Lord Hero!!"
Suddenly, Exce jumped into Takashi''s arms with tears streaming down her face.
"Woah!! Exce!?"
"Thank you... Thank you so much!"
She buried her head into his chest while crying. Takashi stood there, puzzled, then her retainer, Orneo, smiled and bowed his head.
"It is thanks to Lord Hero that this old man has survived. I offer my gratitude."
"St--Stop it, please. I did nothing..."
Takashi gently pushed Exce back. Exce looked at Takashi with concern.
"Lord Hero...?"
"I am totally useless. I just saw one person killed in front of me. And in such a brutal way..."
The man''s screams as he had his limbs cut off and then finally killed, were still ringing in Takashi''s ears.
"If my turn hade first, he might have survived."
"Lord Hero. That''s..."
"No, if I hadn''te here in the first ce, this country wouldn''t be in ruins! There was this yakuza guy called Sasaki! Ah, <em ss="chakra-text css-0">HAHAHA! He was a real jerk! But if that middle-aged man hade, I''m sure tens of thousands of people would have been saved! The people in the castle wouldn''t have died!" </em>
<em ss="chakra-text css-0"> Exce gently embraced Takashi. </em>
<em ss="chakra-text css-0"> Reversing the previous situation, she ced Takashi''s head against her chest. Her soft and gentle touch soothed Takashi''s grief a little. </em>
<em ss="chakra-text css-0"> "The power of the Hero is a miracle that surpasses the might of millions of soldiers. A beacon of hope that will change this world." </em>
<em ss="chakra-text css-0"> While embraced by Exce, Takashi recalled the ideal life he wished for while in Japan. </em>
<em ss="chakra-text css-0"> The life that Takashi wanted was------ a heartwarming life in another world. He could live it ying with all the magical creatures in the warm sunlight, fishing and cooking... However, now that he had arrived in this cruel otherworld, it seemed like a fleeting dream in a faraway blur. </em>
<em ss="chakra-text css-0"> (Nevertheless... If anyone is relying on my help. If there is someone who would call me a hero even though I''m like this...) </em>
<em ss="chakra-text css-0"> Takashi stared into Ex''s eyes and dered, "I, will try my best. So that in this world, humans can live with demons on an equal footing. And maybe one day, we''ll be able to live a heartwarming life." </em>
<em ss="chakra-text css-0"> "Yes...!" </em>
<em ss="chakra-text css-0"> After wiping away her own tears with her finger, Exce smiled at Takashi. </em>
<em ss="chakra-text css-0"> After Takashi left Exce and the rest, he returned to the execution site, where he found Nephira leaning against a rock wall in the passageway. </em>
<em ss="chakra-text css-0"> "...Are you done talking?" </em>
<em ss="chakra-text css-0"> "Ye--Yeah" </em>
<em ss="chakra-text css-0"> Perhaps she might have heard his conversation with Exce. B--But, he didn''t say anything about conquering the demons, so he''s sure it''s okay, right? </em>
<em ss="chakra-text css-0"> "Humans on equal footing with demons, huh? It is nothing more than a pipe dream. Your ideal will nevere true." </em>
<em ss="chakra-text css-0"> That one sentence convinced Takashi that he had been overheard, and his body shuddered. </em>
<em ss="chakra-text css-0"> Nephira wasn''t angry, but she was leaning against the wall with her face down. She slowly said, "However... it may be possible to get a little closer to that dream." </em>
<em ss="chakra-text css-0"> "Eh?" </em>
<em ss="chakra-text css-0"> "If you be promoted from a ve to a familiar, it''s possible to have human ves. If you advance further as a familiar, you can also gain a territory as a reward. Do you understand what I am saying?" </em>
<em ss="chakra-text css-0"> (ves and Territory...? Th--That''s it! If I do it, I will be able to save those around me from the control of demons!) </em>
<em ss="chakra-text css-0"> He would have a ce of his own where he could live with hisrades like Exce and Orneo. It would be a peaceful territory where demons do not eat or harm humans. Takashi''s heart beat wildly as he imagined such happy prospects. </em>
<em ss="chakra-text css-0"> "Do--Does that mean I have to be Nephira''s familiar? </em>
<em ss="chakra-text css-0"> "Uh-huh. But as a condition for it--------Suzuki. You will enlist in the Thunder-Lance Charge." </em>
<em ss="chakra-text css-0"> "I-In the Thunder-Lance Charge!? No, but, but I''m a human though?! Yet I''m JOINING!?" </em>
<em ss="chakra-text css-0"> "The demon lord''s army also features undead soldiers and skeleton soldiers. Originally, they were human too." </em>
<em ss="chakra-text css-0"> "Indeed... Uhm? But aren''t they, you know, dead? Right?" </em>
<em ss="chakra-text css-0"> "Wh--Whether they are dead or alive is irrelevant! If there is no opposition, it would not be too difficult to recruit you into the Thunder-Lance Charge. After all that happened, Serphiano said she would like to support you from now on." </em>
<em ss="chakra-text css-0"> "Yeah, that''s right..." </em>
<em ss="chakra-text css-0"> "The former third princess and her retainer, the old man, will be sent to live in a ve cell for a while. If you be a high-ranking soldier in the Thunder-Lance Charge in that time frame..." </em>
<em ss="chakra-text css-0"> "I can im Exce and the rest!!" </em>
<em ss="chakra-text css-0"> Hearing this proposal gave him hope. Having a home in his own territory, Exce and the rest could live there... That''s it! It''s a small step, but world peace can begin there! </em>
<em ss="chakra-text css-0"> Bing a soldier of the Thunder-Lance Charge may mean bing an enemy of mankind. But Takashi looked Neph in the eye and said earnestly. </em>
<em ss="chakra-text css-0"> "Nephira! Please let me join the Thunder-Lance Charge!"</em><em ss="chakra-text css-0"> </em>