Defected Dark Healer’s Rise to Wealth
The headquarters of the Kingdom Army in the royal capital of the Rue-Humani Kingdom.
Hero Ares was stunned when he saw the members of his unit gathered in the operation room.
“Is this all…!?”
There were only three priests. Adding Ares, it made four… and that was it.
“Hey, Schwizen, what the hell is going on here!?”
Ares glared angrily at Schwizen, feeling as though he was being mocked.
“The Hero Unit is the kingdom’s ace unit! And you’re telling me to operate with a squad this small!?”
“Please, Ares-sama. There’s a reason for this,” Schwizen said hurriedly, trying to calm Ares down.
“A reason?”
Ares looked furious, but Schwizen continued.
“This operation isn’t a large-scale battle. Our objective is simply to subdue Kiwi Alaya . If we move with a large unit, we’ll attract too much attention and it will interfere with the mission.”
“Even so, what’s with this group! I’m the only one who can properly fight!”
Ares shot a sharp glare at the three priests, two middle-aged men flinching under the stare, but one of them smirked.
“Kukakakaka… Oh my, this is quite surprising,” said Hades Pluton, the Vice-President of the Kingdom Church.
“Being a priest doesn’t mean I can’t fight. I didn’t rise to my position in the Kingdom Church just through political games.”
“Hmph, this is ridiculous. Without a warrior to act as a shield, priests are nothing more than target practice for the enemy. I’m not going to a battlefield with just these people.”
“So, you mean, you’d be fine if they could prove their combat ability?”
“Huh?”
In the brief moment between words, a sharp sound cut through the air as Ares swiftly moved his right foot back and turned sideways.
Immediately after, a bullet whizzed past him.
“Oh? You managed to dodge that, huh?”
“You…!”
“Kukakaka, impressive. The title of Kingdom Hero isn’t just for show.”
Hades was holding a distinctive black, angular pistol. He had drawn it from his coat and fired in quick succession, but only now did the others realize what had happened.
“You wanna fight to the death with me? Huh?”
Ares unsheathed his holy sword, but Hades didn’t stop smiling.
“You’re quite the gentleman, taking the trouble to confirm.”
As Hades taunted him further, Ares prepared to strike with his holy sword without hesitation.
However, in that very moment, more bullets were fired from Hades’s gun.
The bullets were too fast to avoid all of them. Ares could only block them with his sword.
Clink, clink.
The sound of bullets ricocheting echoed. The priests around them quickly dropped to the ground, unable to withstand the tension.
“Ares-sama! Vice-President! Please stop!”
Schwizen shouted while retreating to the ground, unable to stand.
But neither Ares nor Hades showed any signs of stopping.
Hades, after firing all the bullets, held his gun in front of his face and quickly ejected the magazine. He slipped his hand inside his overcoat and pulled out a new one, preparing to shoot again.
“You think you can change the magazine in front of me?”
“Huh?”
Ares had been calmly counting the number of bullets Hades fired. Twelve bullets. The semi-automatic pistol of the Kingdom could hold a maximum of twelve rounds.
Now that he knew, Ares moved to close the distance.
But just then…
“Ah, so easy, too easy, so easy.”
Pishun!
The thirteenth bullet shot out from Hades’s gun, narrowly missing Ares.
“Tch!”
Ares twisted his body just in time to avoid it, but the motion caused him to lose his stance, and he couldn’t press the attack. Hades, in the meantime, smoothly reloaded the magazine and chambered another round.
“Even if the magazine is limited to twelve rounds, that doesn’t mean there are only twelve bullets in the gun.”
“You’ve been carrying cartridges in the chamber already… are you really a priest?”
“I told you, I’m the Vice-President, not just a simple priest.”
Hades fired again, but this time there was a strange aura about it.
“Lord, may you grant them <Holy Strike>.”
A holy chant left Hades’s lips as dark clouds and lightning surrounded the muzzle, sending a radiant bullet toward Ares. The bullet collided with Ares’s holy sword, creating a shining silver cross where they met.
The holy spell inflicted suffering upon those of evil, and the brilliance of the cross was so intense that it blinded the priests who were lying on the ground, unable to do anything.
“You’re underestimating me.”
Ares, however, didn’t hesitate. He sliced through the cross in a single stroke with his holy sword, and with the momentum, he moved forward, bringing the blade to Hades’s neck.
“Holy magic won’t work on me, the hero.”
“Kukaka… Well, the goal was to show off my power, after all. It was all just a game. In truth, none of those bullets were aimed at your vital points.”
“…”
“That should be enough, right? Or are you planning to cut me down here?”
Ares didn’t respond and sheathed his holy sword, looking displeased.
“What do you mean ‘that would be fine’? You had another pistol hidden, didn’t you? You’re just playing games with me.”
“…Oh, you noticed, huh?”
Hades smirked, and Ares turned to Schwizen, who was still lying on the ground.
“So, the reasoning is that we don’t need any other warriors because he’s here? I still don’t buy it.”
“No, that’s not it.”
“Then explain to me a reason that would make sense!”
Ares looked at the two priests still lying down, waiting for an answer.
“Those guys are also high-ranking clergy sitting in the seats of the Kingdom Church, but are they really capable of opposing Kiwi Alaya , the one who took Artemis by surprise?”
“That is…”
“Kiwi Alaya is strong against clergy! Isn’t that right? I can’t believe these guys are fit to hunt him down!”
“No, that’s not the case,” came the response.
It was Hades who answered.
“The point is, in this squad, the two of us will form two-man cells. You and I, as combat personnel, will have dedicated healers assigned to us.”
“Dedicated healers…?”
“In the Battle of Elden, wasn’t it the presence or absence of such healers that decided the outcome?”
“…!”
Ares instinctively held his breath.
It was true that in the final battle against Agito, one of the magic country’s leaders, in Elden, if Kiwi Alaya hadn’t healed Agito’s wounds, the outcome of the one-on-one battle could have still been uncertain.
“Therefore, this time, it’s a small elite force aimed at overcoming that weakness,” Hades continued, spreading his arms as if giving a public speech.
“Both Ares and I will only focus all our power on one surprise strike. The safety of our return will be guaranteed by the positions of these two healers with us. If you think about it, you should be able to accept that.”
“…………”
“Heh heh, for now, it seems there are no more concerns. Let’s proceed as planned and head towards the Western Elf Nation.”
Indeed, Hades’ logic seemed to make sense.
However, Ares still couldn’t bring himself to accept it.
There was one emotional reason: He simply didn’t like Hades.
But there was another, more important reason…
…Why are there only four of us?
If it was to keep the mission secret, they could send a larger unit and have it split into four-man squads on site. The more people, the higher the chances of discovering Kiwi Alaya , so there was no reason to limit the number to just four.
…Unless they already know exactly where Kiwi Alaya will appear, it would be far too inefficient.
He could have voiced these thoughts, but Ares remained silent.
There were a few reasons why.
One of them was his loyalty to Schwizen, the man who saved his life.
Even if there were some hidden motives, he thought he could play along with the plan just this once.
…But this would be the only time.
If it brought him closer to rescuing Artemis, then that would be good; if not…
Ares took a deep breath, as if steeling himself for what was to come.
—In the vast battlefield of Westwood, could the Hero Ares and Kiwi Alaya really encounter each other as conveniently as this?
“The Hero Squad will definitely encounter Kiwi Alaya . That’s a given,” Melissa answered to the question that Schwizen had posed.
This took place in the holy temple where Hades was present.
The wise Melissa, one of the proud sages of the Western Elf Nation, was now dressed in humble shepherd’s clothing.
She wore simple clothes woven from hemp and held a staff about her height with a bell at the tip, resting it on the ground.
“Mallow will undoubtedly use the Hero Squad I sent without hesitation as disposable troops, throwing them at the magic army’s main force.”
“Wh-Why can you say that so confidently?”
“Of course. No matter how much of a hero Ares is, he’s still human. To Mallow, he’s virtually worthless. So, he’ll be used as a vanguard before Mallow himself takes the field. The Kingdom’s interests are secondary.”
Melissa cheerfully tapped her staff with a jingle as she spoke.
“But Ares won’t care about Mallow’s intentions. Among the many enemies, he’ll stubbornly focus on Kiwi Alaya . However, even if the Hero Squad corners them, they won’t be able to deliver the final blow. At best, they’ll manage to fatally wound one of Kiwi’s followers… but that will be enough.”
“Heh heh heh, and then Kiwi Alaya will trigger that ‘Mythical Dark Heal,’ right? That’s your plan, isn’t it?”
Hades nodded knowingly with a smug expression.
“Well, once I’ve set the stage, I’ll just leave. I don’t want to go to hell with Ares, not when I can give up my current position.”
“Ah, that’s fine. Hades, you can dispose of Ares at an appropriate time.”
“Of course, gladly.”
Hades didn’t hesitate to agree.
Though Schwizen couldn’t help but feel disgusted at the idea of intentionally abandoning someone, he had no choice.
“Schwizen, continue to move the Kingdom’s army and keep Elden in check. Understood?”
“…Yes.”
In the end, Schwizen, like Hades, had no choice but to keep licking the boots of Melissa to ensure his own safety.
…If Melissa is the shepherd, then we’re just obedient sheepdogs, only barking and chasing the poor, helpless sheep when she jingles her bell.
