The Returnee’s Guild Must Grow Properly

“……”
Still no answer.

I decided to use the last of my patience and tossed out a question designed to provoke him.

“The ones who approached you… were they throwing around the name Erosia?”

“You…!”

Dragon Slayer shot up from his seat, immediately reaching for my collar.

“What are you doing?”

Before he could grab me, the Demon King intercepted his hand in an instant.

As Dragon Slayer’s trembling hand was held mid-air, I spoke nonchalantly.

“Demon King, let him go.”

The Demon King glanced at me, then at Dragon Slayer, before releasing his grip.

Dragon Slayer rubbed his wrist, glaring daggers at me. That only lasted a moment.

“Ugh… grrk…”

Suddenly, he clutched at his mouth, bowing his head. There was no mistaking it—something was wrong.

“…What’s going on with him?”

I muttered absently, but the Demon King answered as if it were obvious.

“His tongue is paralyzed.”

“Why…?”

Had the Demon King cursed him without my knowledge?

Just as I was starting to wonder if the Demon King had as bad a temper as the mage, he straightened his posture and continued.

“If one fails to properly comply with the pact, their tongue first becomes paralyzed, and then it gets severed entirely. Do Haun, if you wish, I can cut it off right now.”

“No, no! That’s okay, Demon King!”

I may have said something about tongues being cut off to Dragon Slayer, but who would actually want to witness something so gruesome? Definitely not me!

Meanwhile, Dragon Slayer glared at me like I was his mortal enemy.

Well, to be fair, what else were we?

…A Guild Master of Returnees and one of their guild members. And let’s not forget that this guild member once tried to kill their Guild Master.

The realization struck me like a cold splash of water, leaving my thoughts chillingly clear. Without saying anything, I placed my hand on Dragon Slayer’s forehead.

He immediately tried to swat my hand away, but I bound his arms with the chains again.

“Ugh… mmph…!”

“You should’ve just answered me. Would’ve saved us both some trouble.”

His rage-filled gaze practically burned, though it was all he could do at this point.

“Demon King, if I don’t come to in three minutes, wake me up.”

“Are you planning to sleep alongside this wretch?”

“No, it’s not like that…”

I hesitated, wondering how to explain, but in the end, I just nodded. Close enough. Using that as my last thought, I activated the Saintess’s power.

[Authority, ‘Synchronization,’ activated.]

I really didn’t want to use this.

I silently wished that whatever I saw would be connected to Gloria. Something tied to Dragon Slayer’s most intense memories.

But my hopes were crushed as soon as I found myself standing in a field.

At first glance, it appeared to be an unremarkable rural road surrounded by open plains. That is, until you noticed the broken walls scattered about.

And the massive, nameless birds perched atop those ruined walls.

As the wind blew, the birds spread their enormous wings and took flight, soaring into the blue sky. Their white feathers fluttered beautifully against the azure backdrop, but I didn’t have time to admire the scene.

[Synchronizing with the memory of Dragon Slayer, ‘Lee Sion’.]

The message appeared, and then, a low, steady voice reached my ears.

“Erosia.”

I turned my head toward the sound.

Under the shadow of a crumbling wall, a woman in a hood stood, bathed in the dying light of the setting sun.

“…Why are you here?”

Standing across from her was a younger Dragon Slayer—or rather, Lee Sion—appearing slightly more mature than the image I had of him in my own memory.

There was another difference in Dragon Slayer’s memory compared to what I remembered. His right arm, the one that once wielded a sword, was gone.

“……”

I didn’t care about the name Erosia, but I could’ve gone without seeing this.

“It’s not really anything important,” the woman said as she removed her hood.

“Or perhaps it is.”

Her white irises were engraved with golden magic circles.

The moment I saw her, I knew. The Erosia Dragon Slayer had so desperately searched for was no ordinary individual.

“Erosia?”

“Lee Sion.”

Erosia approached Dragon Slayer—no, Lee Sion—and gently placed her hand on his cheek.

Yes, Erosia! Now slap him!

But that didn’t happen in Dragon Slayer’s memory.

Instead, a golden magic circle spread across the sky.

The Dragon Slayer reached for the hand on his cheek, only to look up in confusion as the magic circle illuminated the heavens. By then, Erosia’s hand had already pulled away.

“Erosia? Why did you suddenly cast magic?”

“……”

She didn’t answer. Instead, she took a step back and bowed slightly to the Dragon Slayer.

“Thank you for saving our empire from the Death Dragon, Libitina.”

“Why are you suddenly saying that…”

Dragon Slayer’s words trailed off as the golden magic circle began encircling him.

“Erosia! What are you doing?!”

“I have been ordered to execute you as the Protector of the Empire.”

“What…?”

I thought they might have been lovers, but was I wrong? Then why were Erosia’s eyes trembling so helplessly as she looked at him?

“Lee Sion, this is my final kindness to you.”

She stepped forward again, placing her hand on the magic circle surrounding him.

“Your name will be remembered for a long time: Dragon Slayer Lee Sion.”

Damn it.

As her voice faded, Lee Sion’s emotions surged toward me.

Indescribable and overwhelming, they threatened to consume me. I took a step back, trying not to be swept away.

At that moment, the golden magic circle surrounding Lee Sion began to glow brighter.

“Erosia!!”

His desperate cry was the last thing I heard before the sharp scent of blood filled my senses.

This. This is why I didn’t want to use this power.

It wasn’t about reliving a heartwarming memory of a lost lover; it was this brutal scene.

“Do Haun.”

Someone called out to me, pulling me back, and I gasped for air.

“Are you alright?”

The Demon King’s hand gripped my arm as I struggled to steady myself. I pried his hand away and nodded, signaling that I was fine.

After taking a deep breath, I asked, “…Has it already been three minutes?”

“You looked so unwell that I woke you a minute early,” the Demon King replied.

I wiped the cold sweat off my forehead.

“And that bastard doesn’t look much better.”

Following the Demon King’s words, I glanced at Dragon Slayer.

He clutched his chest, silently crying, his face contorted in anguish.

I grimaced at the sight.

“Should I not have woken you?”

“No, you did the right thing.”

Running a hand through my hair, I made a request to the Demon King.

“Demon King, can you lift the paralysis on his tongue?”

“Do I really have to?”

The Demon King looked at me with a dissatisfied expression. It seemed he didn’t find Dragon Slayer’s choking gasps pitiful at all.

I gave him a wide grin and said, “Please.”

Finally, the Demon King removed the paralysis from Dragon Slayer’s tongue. I was prepared to heal him myself if he refused, but thankfully, that wasn’t necessary.

Even with the spell lifted, Dragon Slayer continued to gasp for air, unable to speak properly.

I stepped closer and knelt in front of him.

“Dragon Slayer.”

“You…!”

Suddenly, he lunged forward and grabbed my collar, pulling me back. My head slammed into the cluttered table behind me, sending a sharp pain shooting through my skull.

“Do Ha—”

“I’m fine, Demon King,” I interrupted, turning to him with a firm shake of my head. He looked visibly annoyed but stepped back without interfering.

The impact was harsh enough that I worried about a bump forming, but it wasn’t anything I couldn’t heal quickly.

“You… who do you think you are to steal my memories?”

“……”

Ignoring the accusation, I gripped Dragon Slayer’s wrist tightly and asked, “And who do you think you are?”

Tears began to spill from his reddened eyes, dripping onto the floor. I grimaced at the sight and continued.

“You tried to kill me just to meet the person who killed you. What does that make you?”

Dragon Slayer’s face, contorted in anger, twisted further into something resembling anguish. Whether it was guilt, shame, or something else entirely, I couldn’t tell.

“Listen to me carefully, Lee Sion.”

I grabbed his collar and pulled him closer, our faces mere inches apart.

“You can’t kill me. Even if you did, you would never meet that person—Erosia.”

As reality began to sink in, his body seemed to deflate.

“You know that. You’ve seen it yourself.”

Tears streamed down Lee Sion’s face in silence. He raised a trembling hand as if to silence me but eventually let it drop, defeated.

Watching his pathetic state, I drove the point home with the last image I had seen in his memories.

“You saw it, didn’t you? Erosia ending her life with yours. You fool.”

******

I hadn’t gotten what I wanted from Dragon Slayer’s memories. Instead, I’d returned with nothing but a heavy heart and a lingering bitterness.

Sniffling for no reason other than frustration, I crouched by the roadside outside the Hero’s shop.

“That is dangerous.”

“It’s not.”

I hadn’t even noticed the Demon King following me. His nagging voice came out of nowhere, but with no cars in sight, I failed to see what was so dangerous.

He frowned but knelt beside me, mimicking my posture. We sat there quietly, both looking equally dejected in front of the shop.

“…Do Haun, are you pitying that man?”

The unexpected question made me turn to him.

“Huh?”

“I asked if you pity that man—Dragon Slayer or Lee Sion or whatever his name is.”