Volume 3 Chapter 4 I Finally Realized, But...
'I knew it would turn out like this. Even I, the great me, have learned.'
I heard Gram's voice as if he had reached enlightenment, but I felt a sense of discomfort in my own response.
As I put Gram back on my back and looked down at my feet, I saw a man twitching. It seemed like he had fainted, but the impact seemed lighter than usual.
'I just weakened the "Enchantment - Weight Increase" spell right before.'
Gram answered the question I had in my mind before I could ask it.
"Why do you go to such trouble again?"
'If you had swung down normally with your strength, this guy wouldn't have gotten off so easily. He might have even caved in his skull, partner."
I wanted to further question Gram's words, which seemed to even contain a sigh, but I didn't have the composure to do so.
One of their friends unexpectedly got attacked, and two men were shocked. While I was talking to Gram, one of them seemed to have recovered and aggressively grabbed my collar.
"What the heck are you doing all of a sudden!"
"You guys are the ones trying to mess with women openly!"
"That's none of your business!"
"You're so annoying. It really irritates me to see that. If you want to get along with girls, go to the red-light district or something."
Despite the intense anger from the other person, deep down I remained calm. Dealing with these kinds of people properly can be exhausting. It's easier to ignore the heat and carry on with the conversation.
'No, no. It's definitely your fault that the other person is getting all heated up, partner. Do you understand that? If you make one wrong move, you'll be the assailant.'
I haven't made a single wrong move, so I'm not the assailant.
'Don't act like you just said something clever like "Oh, you're good with words." You're not good at all!'
So, while I was totally ignoring the guy, Gram and I were doing comedy sketches through Telepathy (channel), another guy suddenly spoke up.
"That spear... are you, by any chance, the guy who always hanging around with Silver Flash like a sidekick?"
"Who's a sidekick?"
It's more like Mikage who's following me, you know.
Regardless of how they're called, if they know even a little bit about me, are these guys mercenaries? They may look casual, but they're carrying a sword at their waist.
The guy who was grabbing my collar smirked as he listened to his friend's words.
──It irritated me.
'Can't you at least listen to what I have to say! Come on, just wait a bit before you raise your fist!'
Gram was desperately pleading, so I reluctantly unclenched my fist and waited for the man's words.
"It seems like there's no reliable companion of yours around today. Or maybe you've gotten carried away because you have a reliable companion?"
Hey, do I really need to listen to this?
'So, wait a minute! Isn't this weird!? Why am I playing the tsukkomi role? If anything, this should be your role, partner!'
Once again, a delightful conversation is unfolding on the Telepathy channel.
"──Hey, are you even listening me? Don't get carried away──!"
"Shut up! Your face is too close, you idiot!"
I grabbed the guy's collar and retaliated by headbutting him in the face.
"Ouch?!"
I felt a gruesome sensation as flesh and bones crunched, and the guy let go of my chest and fell backward, spraying blood from his nose.
'What the heck!? So you ended up getting physical after all! And the reason is pretty unreasonable!!'
"It wasn't my hand. It was my forehead."
'That's just a technicality, you idiot!!'
Caught up in the moment, my voice burst out instead of using the Telepathy channel.
"Bastard!"
The last remaining person came at me with a punch. It wasn't a calculated move, but rather a reflexive attack in response to their comrades being taken down. Their punch lacked power and precision, but it was still a punch from a mercenary who regularly fights monsters. It would still hurt if it landed.
"Oops!"
I quickly got into a defensive stance and surprisingly managed to catch his punch with my palm. Maybe this is the result of my training with Mikage. I assessed the trajectory of his punch and placed my palm there.
The man's eyes widened as I caught his fist.
"Take this──"
He raised his other arm, ready to strike again.
Without thinking, I clenched my fist tighter around the finger that was holding onto his fist.
──Snap.
"Aaaargh!!"
The man let out a strange scream as he grabbed onto his wrist and crouched down. He tried to pry his fist out of my hand, but it didn't budge. I was the one holding on and I was even more surprised.
'Partner. Quickly release him. If you keep holding on, his fist will be completely crushed.'
"Oops."
I hurriedly released the man's fist, and he held his hand and squatted on the spot. I should have put all my strength into it, but it didn't seem to reach that level.
I looked down at my own palm.
There is no doubt that it is my hand, but it feels eerie as if it is a completely different presence.
"Hey, could this be..."
'Because I constantly put pressure on it with "Enchantment - Weight Increase" You'rw quite something when it comes to "strength", partner.'
If I'm not careful, I could cause a major disaster by misjudging the amount of strength. The realization that so much power is dwelling within me slowly seeped into my mind.
Or rather, if you noticed, Gram, I wish you had told me a little more forcefully.
'Sorry about that. But, you know, right now there are more important things to worry about.'
I was reminded of my true feelings as Gram urged me to discipline the men.
As I shifted my gaze from my palm and looked around, the woman who had been grabbed by one of the men still stood in the same place.
"Hey, are you okay?"
"Huh? Um, thank you...?"
"Why the uncertainty?"
'Well, when you handle things so efficiently, i't's natural for the young lady to feel that way.'
Should I just break this spear already?
As I felt annoyed by Gram's reaction, a question mark popped into my head.
It felt like I had a similar exchange before...
"Wha-?!"
"Huh? ...Aaahhh!!"
I was a bit late in reacting to the woman's voice. It was one of the most surprising moments of my life.
The feeling of déjà vu isn't something easily dismissed.
It was the young lady I had helped on the day I first came to the royal capital.
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