Common sense is a tricky thing. It’s harder to accept when things are slightly different than when they’re entirely different. Amidst such currents of common sense, I spent my time soothing Tia who had been toyed with. Before long, Gou arrived at the inn. He was about to have dinner, so we decided to join him at the nearby tavern-cum-diner.
On this occasion, Tia actively started a conversation with him.
“Hey, Gou-san. I don’t know much about it, but are there any other privileges for a hero?”
“Hmm? Well, apart from the right to rummage through pots and chests, there’s the right to freely choose your comrades, I suppose?”
Excluding the part about hero privileges, Gou was fundamentally a very ordinary, good person. After briefly contemplating Tia’s question, he gave his answer. He then chugged his ale-filled mug, cleared his throat a few times, and continued the conversation.
“A hero is given the right to choose up to three companions for his journey. It doesn’t matter who they are, as long as both parties agree, whether they are criminals or nobility, they can become comrades. And while they are comrades, any duties imposed on them are exempted.”
“Exempted from duties?”
“Yes. If they’re a criminal, they won’t be arrested for the time being, or they could even get out of prison and start activities. If they’re a noble, they could have a deputy manage their territory, and if they’re a merchant, they could receive compensation for any losses incurred due to their absence. You two are mercenaries, right? Make sure to apply properly. That way, you should get a daily reward based on the average of your previous year’s income.”
“Wow, that’s quite generous.”
“Indeed. It’s a system that could easily be misused.”
With Tia nodding in admiration beside me, I let out a sly grin. But Gou lightly brushed it off and continued the conversation with a laugh.
“Gahahaha! Of course, there would be people who think like that, but it doesn’t mean they are exempt from committing a crime. Even if they become my comrades, they will be arrested normally if they commit a new crime, and because of the limit of three people, they can’t indefinitely maintain the privilege of being ‘companions of the hero’. If both parties agree… in other words, if I say no, they immediately cease to be comrades.”
""
“So that part is well-managed, huh. But do hero parties often have people coming in and out? That would make it hard to increase the level of teamwork.”
“Well, everyone has their own circumstances. For instance, if someone just wants to fight strong opponents, they might join when facing a formidable enemy, but drop out when they need to solve a small village’s problem. There are also those who will help protect their hometown but naturally won’t follow you elsewhere, and on the contrary, there are those who join the party in order to go abroad. The role of a hero involves traveling all around the world to defeat the Demon King, and it’s not an easy decision to abandon all one’s life foundations to follow that. I do hope to encounter such comrades someday…”
“Hmm, that’s indeed a tough issue.”
Tia’s party with Hero Alexis wasn’t composed of the same members from the beginning. Many people came and went, and in the end, it settled with Tia, old man Gonzo, and me. But I was fully prepared to drop out at any moment. If I had properly left, someone else would have filled that gap.
“But I’m relieved. Gou-san, you’re someone I can hold a conversation with properly”
“Eh? What do you mean?”
“Ah!? No, I was talking about something else. Sorry, don’t mind me.”
“I see. If you say not to worry about it, then I won’t worry! Gahaha!”
With Tia frantically waving her hands, Gou laughed, genuinely unbothered. Yeah, things seemed to be going well between them.
We finished our meal in a relaxed mood, and decided to leave town the next day. As we walked in a single file line at Gou’s request, he began to explain our immediate Goal.
“Our destination this time is a cave ahead. It’s said that a demonic beast has settled in the cave used for trade in this region, causing problems for people.”
“A demonic beast… so our objective is to subjugate it?”
“That’s right. We should reach a village at the foot of the mountain after about three days of walking. We’ll gather information there before challenging the beast. Prepare yourself for combat in a confined space.”
“Understood.”
“Gout it.”
Nodding at his succinct explanation, we continued on our way. We were attacked by demonic beasts a few times, but the ones that appear along the highway aren’t particularly strong. We swiftly defeated them to confirm our teamwork, and without any real trouble, we reached the aforementioned village.
“Alright, we’re here! Now let’s immediately…”
“Go ask around for the situation?”
“Go around the houses, breaking pots and rummaging through chests!”
“………………”
At Gou’s enthusiastic comment, the light seemed to disappear out of Tia’s eyes for a moment. As I followed, holding Tia’s hand, Gou calmly entered a house. But unlike before, there were residents inside, who stared at us in surprise as we barged in.
“Huh!? Ah, Yuusha-sama…!?”
“Yeah, I’m intruding.”
It was unclear how, but it seemed that everyone in the world knew that Gou was a hero. That’s probably why he could walk around the house, breaking pots and rummaging through chests, without any reproach.
Crash!
“Hmm, nothing inside.”
“………………”
“Hey Ed, I’m feeling so guilty it’s like my chest is going to burst.”
“Hang in there, Tia. You’ll get used to it.”
Watching the hero commit what seemed like theft in front of a silent homeowner was a complicated feeling, but if that’s what’s normal, then we had to accept it. When Gou moved to the next room, there was a boy about five years old.
“Yuusha-sama!?”
“Yeah, that’s me… there’s no pot, but there’s a chest.”
Gou glanced at the surprised child and started to rummage through the chest.
“Oh, three copper coins.”
“Ah…………”
Gou stuffed the found coins into his bag. But the boy looked visibly downcast at this, and Tia gently spoke to him.
“Hey, was that your money?”
“Y-yeah. That… I was saving it to buy a present for my mom’s birthday.”
“I see… Hero Gou, put that money back in the chest right now! Or I’ll blow your head off!”
“Woah, Tia!?”
Despite my startled shout at Tia’s serious expression and her hand on her sword, Gou calmly responded.
“I can’t.”
“You can’t!? You’re not ashamed to steal money that a little boy was saving for his mother!?”
“I’m not. This is a privilege granted to the hero. If I felt ashamed to exercise it, I wouldn’t be fit to be a hero.”
“――Ah! Then…”
“But…”
Just as Tia was about to put more force into the hand gripping her sword, Gou began rummaging through his bag.
“It seems my bag is full. I need to throw something away before I can move on… Is this good?”
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Gou took a bundle of medicinal herbs out of his bag and casually tossed it onto a nearby bed.
“Uh…?”
“Anything a hero discards becomes the property of the first person who picks it up. You can do whatever you want with it.”
Gou told the confused boy just that, then left the room. Tia and I watched his retreating back with indescribable expressions… and the strength left Tia’s hand.
“What the heck…!”
“Um,Onee-chan?”
“Oh, that. Those herbs should sell for about five copper coins, so you can use that to get your mom something.”
“Really… thank you, I guess?”
“Hmm, I’m not sure it’s right for you to thank me… Anyway, that’s how it is, so be good to your mom, okay?”
“Okay…”
Leaving the boy with a complicated expression behind, Tia, holding my hand, exited the room. When we left the house, Gou was waiting outside.
“You’re here. Let’s move on to the next house.”
“Hey Gou-san. The boy thanked you, you know?”
“That’s none of my concern. I just threw away a tool because my bag was full.”
In response to Tia’s words, Gou said this without looking back. I couldn’t see his face, but his voice sounded somewhat relieved.
“Okay, let’s leave it at that… Sigh, heroes in this world are really troublesome. Or is it just Gou-san who’s troublesome?”
“Hahaha, who knows?”
The strange privilege and the rigid hero. In response to Tia’s question that seemed a mix of amazement and frustration, all I could do was give a bitter smile.