九話
薄明かりに照らされる一軒家。
暗闇に慣れてしまっていたからか、目に優しい暖色の光でも尚、思わず目を細めて顔を顰めてしまう。けれど、それに構わず走る。
彼女は走って、走って———駆け走って。
言われた通り、冒険者がもし本当にいるのならば。あの言葉がその場しのぎの嘘でないならば、きっと———。
ソフィアは、乱暴に扉を押し開けた。
「は、ぁ————」
中腰になりながら、膝に手を置き、切れた息をゆっくり空気を貪る事で整えつつソフィアは部屋の中を見回した。
中には、見慣れた人物が数人と見慣れない身格好をした者が5人程。
———冒険者だ。
それをソフィアは相手側に確認するまでもなく、断定した。そして、ガバッと勢いよく頭を下げる。
「助けては、頂けませんかッ!!!」
夜中にもかかわらず、他の事など御構い無しに彼女はそう声を張り上げた。
「ソフィア、お前今の今までどこにいたんだ......人がどれだけ心配していたと思って」
鬼気迫る様子のソフィアに対し、いの一番に話しかけたのは彼女の父親であり、村長でもあるアレクだった。
けれど、そんな事は知らないと言わんばかりにソフィアが取り合う素振りを一切見せない。
「......嬢ちゃん。そりゃ、どういう意味だ?」
「時間が、ないんですッ。早くしないと、ユリウスが......」
ユリウス。
そのワードが出た途端、即座に扉の外へ出る者がいた。
言わずもがな、ユリウスの父である。
「あれ程忠告しただろうがあんの、バカ息子がッ」
そこにはユリウスの家が映されており、淀みない歩調で駆け足気味に彼は飛び出した。
「......どういう事か説明しなさいソフィア」
怒りを孕んだ口調で、静謐にアレクが言う。
唯一、ユリウスの父親だけが事態を大凡理解していたようだが、それ以外の者はアレクを含め、どういう事なのか。
その答えに至る事は叶っていなかった。
「ユリウスが、あたしを、庇って......」
これは己の考えなしの行動が招いた結果。
故に、ソフィアは自責に苛まれながら、言葉を一つ一つ紡いで行く。どうか、助けに向かってくれませんか。という想いを込めて、涙の如く感情のこもった言葉をこぼす。
「ユリウスが、あたしを助けにきてくれたの。でも、そのあと、大きな魔物が、きて......」
「......大きな魔物?」
怪訝に尋ねるのは冒険者の男。
「あたしやユリウスよりもずっと、ずっと大きくて......。ユリウスは、オーガって言ってた」
ソフィアはあの時は怯えていたが為にまともに視認出来ていなかった。だから、ユリウスが口にしていた言葉通りに彼女は伝える。
しかし、それを伝えた途端、目に見えて冒険者達の顔が厳しいものへと移り変わっていた。
「今、オーガと言ったか? 嬢ちゃん」
「い、言いました、けど......」
「なら、希望は捨てておけ」
そう言って、男は近くに設えられていた椅子にどかっと腰掛ける。それは、行かないと。
助けに向かわないと口にしていると同義の行動であった。
「この暗闇の中、オーガを相手取るなんざ、恐らくオレら5人でも間違いなく死傷者が出る上、勝てるかどうかすら分からねえ。ましてや村人1人。嬢ちゃんをこうして逃した時点でそいつは良くやったよ。上等過ぎる働きだ」
「一応言っておくが、たとえ状況が異なっていたとしても、オレらは魔物に有利に働くこの時間帯で動く気は無かった。ましてや、死人を迎えに行く事になんの意味があるよ。ねえだろ? つまり、そういう事だ」
「ユリウスを、助けてはくれないんですか」
「骨を拾う行為を助けるとは言わねえ」
恐らく、既に死んでいるか。
運良く生き延びていたとしても風前の灯火だろう。冒険者の男は、これまでの経験からそう確信していた。
「だから、諦めな嬢ちゃん。とはいえ、夜が明ければオレらも動く。それは約束しよう」
「......それじゃ、遅いんです」
「それは嬢ちゃんの事情だ。オレらが知った事じゃね——」
「待って」
各々が意見を固辞し、平行線に話が進まないと思われた最中。会話に割り込む声が一つ。
「ねえ、貴女。その助けてくれた人って......アッシュグレーの髪をした男の子かしら?」
声の主は、女性だった。
「あ、は、はい。ユリウスはアッシュグレーの髪ですけど......」
「あー、やっぱりあの子だったんだ」
「知り合いか?」
「いいえ? ちょっと前にすれ違った時、言葉を二、三交わしただけの仲。でも、そう。あの子が......」
そう言葉をもらしながら、冒険者の女性は足を動かす。向かう先は———外に続く扉。
威圧を込めてか、何処と無く先程までとは異なり、低い声で男は問う。
「だって、気分悪いじゃない? 私の役目は村の人間を外に出さないように警戒する事だった。でも、そんな私は自分ですら気付かぬうちに外へ送り出してしまっていた。それも、10歳かそこらの男の子を」
「自分の意思で勝手に出て行ったやつだ。お前が責任を感じる必要はないだろうが」
「ええ。そうね。でも、少し気になるの」
「気になるだぁ?」
どこか楽しそうに、女性はつい先程とも言える出来事を思い出しながら己が考えを言葉に変える。
言葉にし難い何か。
「それに、何かの拍子でオーガが弱ってくれれば回復される前に叩いた方が良いでしょう? 村の付近まで向かって待機しておくくらいなら建設的だと思うわよ?」
「お前は、そのガキがオーガを弱らせる程の実力者だと?」
「そんな事、知ってるわけがないでしょう? だけど、物事は何が起こるか分からない。そうでしょう?」
彼女は椅子に腰掛ける男性だけではなく、ずっと無言を貫いていた他のメンバーへ意見を尋ねるように視線を向けた。
否定の言葉どころか、声すら上がらない。
「決まり、ね」
「......だが、オレらは助けに向かうわけじゃねえぞ。それは、忘れるな」
「もちろん。でも、面白いことが起こってそう」
そう言って彼女は腰付近に手を当てた。
Chapter 9
There laid a lone house illuminated by the twilight from afar.
Perhaps because she was used to the darkness, even such warm and gentle light made her squint, but she ran regardless of that.
She ran, and ran-- and ran...
It was as I said, that the adventurers were really out there, and my words weren't just makeshift lies... Then--
Sofia abruptly pushed open the door with great force.
"Ha-aaaahhh--"
Sofia looked around the room with her resting on her knees, slowly gulping down air to catch her breath.
Inside the house, there were several familiar figures and about five unfamiliar-looking people.
...They were adventurers.
Sofia affirmed it without even needing to confirm it, and with a gulp of her throat, she bowed her head down vigorously.
"Would you please help me?!"
She raised her voice in the middle of the night, without regard to anyone else.
"Sofia! Where the hell have you been all this time...?! People have been worried sick about you!!"
The first person to speak to her was her father, Alec, who was also the village head.
But Sofia makes no pretense of taking up the conversation, as though she was unaware of such a thing, and just kept bowing her head to the said unfamiliar people.
"...Just what do you mean by that, little girl?"
"We are running out of time... If we don't hurry up, Julius will..."
Julius.
As soon as that certain word was uttered, someone immediately went out the door.
Needless to say, it was Julius' father.
"I even warned him about this, that stupid boy--"
Looking ahead, he saw Julius' house, to which he rushes out with a steady gait.
"What is this? Explain yourself, Sofia."
Said Alec quietly in an angry tone of voice.
Only Julius' father seemed to have a general understanding of what was going on, but everyone else, including Alec, had no clue of what was going on.
Everyone else, including Alec, was unable to come up with an answer.
"Julius... He protected me..."
This was the result of her own reckless behavior.
Tormented by remorse, she continuously pleaded with the people for their help, spilling out words filled with emotion with the hopes of them going off to her rescue.
"Julius came to help me. But right after that... a huge monster came..."
"...A huge monster?"
The man who questioned it suspiciously was an adventurer, the man who was arguing with Alec when Julius was listening in.
"It was a monster way bigger than Julius and I combined... He said it was an ogre."
Sofia was too frightened to see properly at that time, so she told them exactly what Julius had said.
But as soon as they heard that, the adventurers' faces visibly turned into stern expressions.
"D-Did you just say it was an ogre, little girl?"
"Y-Yes, but..."
"Don't bother worrying then."
With that, the man then slumped into a chair that has been placed nearby.
It was the equivalent of him saying that he wouldn't go, and he wouldn't help.
"In this darkness, even the five of us would probably suffer casualties. Hell, I don't even know if we could win. I'm just glad that the ogre let you go, and you did a good job running your way back here."
"I'll say it now, but even if the situation had been different, we still have no intention of taking action at this time. Not only is it advantageous to the monsters, but what's the point in picking up the dead?"
"You... won't help Julius?"
"I wouldn't call the act of picking up his remains 'helping' him."
Most likely, he was already dead.
Convincing her with his experience, he stressed the fact that if he was lucky enough to survive, it wouldn't be long before the adventurers found him.
"Give it up, little girl. Though, we'll start to move when this night is over. I could at least promise you that."
" It would be too late by then."
"That's your problem. It's none of our business."
"Wait--"
In the midst of what seemed to be a parallel conversation in which each side was adamant in their opinions, one voice interrupted the conversation.
"Hey, does the guy who helped you.... perhaps, have ash gray hair?"
It was a woman's voice.
"Oh, y-yes. Julius has ash gray hair..."
"Ahh-- So it was really him, huh?"
"Do you know him?"
"No, we had just passed each other earlier and exchanged a few words. But, I see... It was him, huh..."
Following those words, the woman got to her feet... and walked straight to the door leading outside.
The man asked in a low voice, somewhat different from before, with a hint of intimidation.
"I feel terrible, but do you not? My role is to be on the lookout and keep the villagers from going out, but I've already allowed one without even realizing it. I was sending a boy of 10 or so years old out into the forest."
"He left on his own volition. You don't need to feel responsible for that."
"I guess so. But... I'm a little curious."
"Curious?"
Somewhat delighted, the woman recalled an event that occurred not too long ago, expressing her thoughts in words.
Something that was difficult to put into words... was what I thought she was feeling.
"Besides, if the ogre gets weakened in any way, we'd better strike it before it recovers, right? Isn't it better to at least go to the vicinity of the village and stand by?"
"You think that brat is good enough to weaken the ogre?"
"How could I possibly know that? Though, you can never know what could happen, can you?"
She looked not only at the man sitting in the chair but also at the other members of the group who had remained silent for a long time, as if to solicit their opinions.
Not a voice, let alone a word of denial-- just silence.
"It's decided, then."
"But we're still not going to help you, keep that in mind."
"Of course. Though, I feel like something interesting would happen."
She put her hand near her waist, then to the shaft of her lowered sword.
Star-Slaying Swordsman
星斬りの剣士
https://www.novelupdates.com/series/star-slaying-swordsman/
Action Fantasy Martial Arts Mature Psychological Shounen
Adapted to Manga Dark Fantasy World Male Protagonist Mature Protagonist Medieval Philosophical Romantic Subplot Sudden Strength Gain Sword And Magic Sword Wielder Transplanted Memories
https://ncode.syosetu.com/n7336gg/
アルト／遥月