十話
「......どうして、貴女は助けに向かおうとしてくれるんですか」
向かう最中。
あの時あの瞬間。冒険者の者が集まっていたあの場にいたからこそ、彼女は否定的な意見で押し通されかけていた事を知悉していた。だから不思議に思い、疑念を抱く。
どうして貴女だけ、ユリウスを助けようとしてくれたのか、と。
「......そう、ねえ。簡潔に言い表すとすれば、その理由は間違いなく、勘ね」
「勘、ですか」
「そう。勘。剣士としての勘が、向かった方が良いって忙しなく訴えかけてくるの。だから、私は気になった。だから、私は向かおうと思った」
決して、助けるとは言わない。
彼女自身も、終始向かう事に否定的だった男の意見が何より正しい事を知っている。けれど、気になった。だからそれを知っていて尚、向かうのだ。脳裏に渦巻く疑念を晴らさんが為に。
「まあでも、これも何かの縁なんでしょうね。手の届く範囲にいると判断すればちゃんと助けてあげるから安心なさい」
きっと、他のメンバーも私と同じ考えの筈よ。
そう言って彼女は渋々といった様子で追従する4人の冒険者へ視線を移しながら軽く顎をしゃくった。
「ま、あいつは希望を持つなと言ったけれど、いの一番に貴女を逃したのならば、先の見えない愚か者というわけではないでしょうし......」
自分が強いと思い込んだ身の程知らずならば、守り切れると考える筈。けれど、彼は何よりも先に彼女を逃した。
「生存している可能性はまだ十分に———」
ある、と。
当初、彼女はそう言葉を紡ごうとしていた。
けれど、現実彼女は発言を止めてしまった。否、止まってしまったと言い表した方が適切か。
言葉を思わず失ってしまったと言っても良い。
「......おい。リレア」
後ろから付いてきていた冒険者の男もその
に気付いたのか。慌てた様子で駆け寄り、女性冒険者———リレアの名を呼び、確認を取る。
「......ええ。私にも聞こえてる。剣士である私がこの音を聞き間違える筈はないわ」
この音。
どこからか響くとある音に彼女らは反応したのだとソフィアは会話の内容から理解するも、なんの音なのかが彼女は分かっていない。
「あの、音って———」
「ねえ。ソフィアちゃん、だったわよね?」
疑問を解消するべく尋ねるも、それを遮るようにリレアも同様に問い掛ける。
「あ、はい。そうですけど......」
「この村に、剣士はいるのかしら? ......それも、腕に覚えがあるであろう剣士」
『剣士』
その言葉を耳にした時、ソフィアの脳裏に1人の少年の姿が浮かび上がる。
『———俺は、星を斬りたいんだよ』
口癖のようにそればかり口にし、村中のみんなに呆れられていた1人の少年の姿が。
村に腕に覚えのある「剣士」どころか、そもそも武器を扱える人間すら片手で事足りる程だ。「剣士」と限定されたならば、村には1人としていなかった。......だが。
「剣士」に憧れていた者ならばいた。
唯一、『星斬り』に憧れていた少年が1人だけ、いた。
「......いません。でも、村に1人だけ「剣士」に憧れているバカがいます」
憧れていた。
それはつまり、「剣士」ではないという事。
ソフィアが並べる言葉は、リレアの問いに沿う答えではなかった。にもかかわらず、リレアは黙って聞き入っていた。やはりそうだったのかと言わんばかりの笑みを浮かべて、揚々と頷いていた。
「......そう。やっぱり、私の勘はよく当たるわ。道理で妙に手が疼くと思った。......あの子、剣士だったのね」
リレアはソフィアから視線を外し、駆け寄ってきていた男性に再び焦点を当てる。
「ロウ!! これで死んでるだなんて、口が裂けても言わないわよね?」
「......まだそいつと決まったわけじゃねえ。それにオレは夜中は動かねえってあれほど言って———」
「四の五の言ってんじゃないわよ。とっととついて来なさい」
「い ゙ッ!? お、おい!! くそ、髪引っ張んじゃねえ!!!」
むんずと髪を掴まれ、無理矢理に引っ張られながら男———ロウは痛みに相貌を歪ませ、片足でたたらを踏んだ。
「ちょっと私達はユリウス、君だっけ? その子、迎えに行ってくるから後よろしくね?」
呆れた様子で一連のやり取りを眺めていた他3人の冒険者は、リレアが口にしたよろしくねの意味。つまり、ソフィアの事を押し付けて早足に先へ駆けて行く彼女を眺めながら、深い溜息を吐いた。
終わりの見えない打ち合う音は、淡々とひたすら続く。
「ほんと———」
これがもし仮に、殺し合いの中で生まれている衝突音だとして。この音を生んだ張本人達は一体、どれほど苛烈な攻防を、斬り合いを繰り広げているのだろうか。
少なくとも、どちらも常人ではないのだろう事は想像に難くない。
「はた迷惑な化け物がいたものです」
半ば諦めたかのような面持ちで、辟易を隠す素振りもせずに男はそう言葉を吐き捨てた。
Chapter 10
"...Why are you willing to help us?"
While on their way, Sofia asked the woman walking alongside her.
She was there at that moment, heard all the negative repercussions that could happen to her from that place where all her adventurer comrades gathered...
It was precisely the reason she had doubts, as if to ask why she was the only one who wanted to help Julius...
"Let's see... if I had to put it simply, I'd say the reason is, without a doubt, my intuition."
"Your... intuition?"
"Yes, my intuition... As a swordsman, that is. It was pleading me to go there, so I did."
She was saying that helping wasn't what she came for..
She herself knew that the opinions of the adventurers who were negative about heading there from the beginning were more correct than anything else, but nevertheless, it bothered her.
"But, well... I guess that's really something. Rest assured that I'll help him if I consider him still indeed our reach."
I was sure the rest of the team was thinking the same way she was.
With that remark, she looked reluctantly at the four adventurers who were following her, and lightly cupped her chin.
"Well, I wouldn't tell you to get your hopes up. But if letting you escape was the first thing he did, then he's not some fool who can't foresee the future..."
If he was a fool who just thought he was strong, he would think that he could protect himself.
"There's still a good possibility of him being alive--"
A possibility, she said.
At first, she tried to mince her words that way.
But in reality, she had hesitated, or perhaps it was more appropriate to say that she stopped from doing so.
You could say she was at an unintentional loss for words.
"...Hey, Lilea."
One of the adventurers who had been following behind us must have noticed the unusual atmosphere.
He rushed up to her in a panic, called out the name of the female adventurer who was with me, Lilea, and asked for confirmation.
"...Yeah, I heard that too. As a swordsman, there is no way I could have misheard that sound."
This sound...
Sofia understood from their conversation that they were responding to a certain sound coming from somewhere, but she didn't know what it was.
"What do you mean sound--"
"Sofia-chan, right?"
She asked in order to clear her doubts, but Lilea interrupted her and fired back a question in response.
"Um... Yes... Is something the matter?"
"Are there any swordsmen in your village? ...One that is confident in his own skills, that is."
"Swordsman."
As Sofia heard that very word, a sole image of a boy came to her mind.
"--I want to slay the stars."
A boy that was appalled by everyone in the village, saying such words as though he was saying them all the time.
Not only was there not a single skilled swordsman in the village, but even those who could handle a weapon could only do so much with one hand.
There was someone who longed for being one.
A young boy, who longed to be a "Star Slayer."
"...No, there weren't. But there's one idiot who longed to be one."
He longed to be one.
Therefore, he still wasn't a "swordsman."
Sofia's words were not an answer to Lilea's question, but despite this, Lilea listened in silence and smiled as to say what she was thinking was right all along.
"I see, I knew it. Seems like my intuition was right all along. No wonder my hands were tingling so strangely... That boy... was a swordsman."
Lilea removed her gaze from Sofia and refocused on the man who had been running up to her.
"Lowe! You're not going to tell me that he's dead, are you?"
"We haven't decided on that kid at all yet. And I told you I don't operate at night."
"Don't grumble on every little detail, come follow me quickly!"
"He...?! H-Hey! Don't pull on my hair!!!"
Lowe, the adventurer, scrunched his face in pain as his hair was grabbed and pulled forcibly, stomping his foot on the ground.
"Hey, that Julius kid, was it? We're leaving him to you, okay?"
The other three adventurers, who had been watching the series of exchanges between the two, let out a deep sigh, and rushed at the dumbfounded Sofia.
Hit by hit, one after another, the sound of endless striking continued unceasingly.
"I really wonder what--"
Supposing this was the sound of a clash of opponents killing each other...
At the very least, it was not difficult to imagine that neither of them was an ordinary person.
"What an annoying monster you are!"
With a look of resignation on his face, the boy spat out these words without any pretense of hiding his exasperation.
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