Chapter 13: Two Heroes
— The sudden attack of Schwarzwaldius, the Black Dragon of Destruction.
It brought catastrophic damage to part of the Crawford Magic Academy grounds, especially the school cafeteria.
Due to the dragon’s ferocity and the aftermath of a battle with a brave student, much of the cafeteria’s furnishings were destroyed. Walls, ceilings, and pillars were nearly collapsed, leaving the place in terrible disrepair.
…One week later.
Thanks to the efforts of skilled architects using magic to reconstruct buildings, and transport workers who swiftly delivered materials and necessary equipment, the building was successfully restored. The academy cafeteria, which had been closed, was once again available for use.
The reopened cafeteria was filled with many students, just as before.
Some students ate silently alone, others chatted happily with friends while dining, and some spread out their textbooks to study while eating.
The atmosphere was peaceful, as if everyone had completely forgotten about the dragon’s attack.
Shion Ichinose also visited the reopened school cafeteria. He was currently eating on the second floor, which was relatively less crowded than the first.
Suddenly, the peaceful atmosphere on the second floor changed, filled with unusual commotion.
Students looked at each other in a flustered state, all turning their gazes towards one blonde male student.
The center of attention wore a somewhat bewildered smile as he approached Shion’s side, holding a tray of food.
“…Hey,”
said the blonde student, Alphonse Fried, addressing Shion.
“Yo,”
Shion replied, looking up at the standing Alphonse.
They greeted each other like friends, though the two hardly ever interacted.
However, neither created distance between them, engaging in quite casual exchanges.
“…Mind if I sit next to you?”
“Sure, it’s free.”
“Thanks, excuse me then.”
Saying this, Alphonse placed his tray on the table and sat in the empty seat next to Shion.
Instead of starting his meal right away, Alphonse began speaking with his gaze slightly lowered.
“I thought I might find you here.”
“Is that so?”
The two weren’t close enough to have lunch together, nor had they made such plans.
Yet, Shion didn’t seem fazed by Alphonse’s behavior, answering in a very relaxed tone while chewing his bread.
“May I ask your name?”
Alphonse inquired, turning his gaze towards Shion sitting next to him.
“It’s Shion. Shion Ichinose.”
“Shion… I see. My name is…”
Alphonse was about to introduce himself after confirming Shion’s name, but Shion interrupted him.
“I know, Alphonse Fried. You were pretty famous to begin with, but now there’s not a single student in the academy who doesn’t know your name. After all, you’re the hero who single-handedly repelled the dragon that attacked the academy and saved dozens of students.”
“…Ah, yes, that’s right.”
Alphonse said this, then continued speaking as he looked around at the students in the cafeteria who were still causing a commotion, gazing at him and Shion talking next to each other.
“For some reason, that’s how it turned out.”
Alphonse lowered his gaze again and began to speak.
“…It’s true that on that day, I fought against Schwarzwaldius, the Black Dragon of Destruction. But I couldn’t even scratch it and I lost. …When I was about to be finished off, unable to move, someone saved me, and then I lost consciousness.”
“…”
“–And when I woke up, somehow it had become that I had defeated the Black Dragon. …When I regained consciousness in the infirmary, the healer told me, ‘Apparently, there was a student who witnessed you thoroughly defeating the dragon. Making such a vicious dragon swear never to approach human settlements again, as expected of a descendant of great heroes.'”
“…”
As Alphonse continued his story, Shion silently continued eating beside him.
“The rescue team that rushed to the academy had heard the story from the witness student, and it had already spread as an irrefutable fact. No matter how much I said ‘It wasn’t me,’ they wouldn’t listen, saying things like ‘You’ve just lost your memory due to the intense battle’ or ‘There’s an eyewitness student.'”
“But,” Alphonse continued.
“I know better than anyone that it wasn’t me who repelled the Black Dragon.”
And then Alphonse turned his gaze to Shion sitting next to him.
READ THE ORIGINAL TRANSLATION AT LOCALIZERMEERKAT.PAGES.DEV
“…It was you, wasn’t it, Shion? You were the one who actually repelled Schwarzwaldius, the Black Dragon of Destruction, and made it all look like my achievement.”
Alphonse could say with certainty that Shion was no ordinary person, just from the fact that he had continued eating nonchalantly despite the dragon attacking the academy.
Moreover, although Alphonse was barely conscious, he had been saved from the brink of being burned to death by the dragon’s black flames, at a speed that even he couldn’t perceive. And furthermore, Alphonse had definitely seen Shion confronting the Black Dragon right before his eyes.
Alphonse’s words and gaze were filled with such strong conviction that there seemed to be no room for doubt.
…However.
“–No, that’s not right.”
“…I see.”
Shion flatly denied it when asked.
But Alphonse seemed to accept this answer easily, as if he had anticipated it.
“…So you’re still going to hide it, huh. But I’m sure you have your reasons, so I won’t pry too deeply.”
Alphonse spoke as if still asserting that his claim was true, but understanding that Shion had some reason for denying it.
“…”
Shion maintained his silence in response to these words.
–However, while his expression remained unchanged, inwardly he was overjoyed.
Yes, as Alphonse had pointed out, it was none other than Shion who had deceived the rescue team and made all the achievements appear to be Alphonse’s.
And Alphonse believes that Shion has some deep reason for hiding his true abilities and identity.
But of course, that’s just a misunderstanding.
Shion’s concealment of the truth is simply one of his usual eccentric behaviors.
If Alphonse, who saved the students, is the “public hero,” then Shion, who repelled Schwarzwaldius, the Black Dragon of Destruction, without anyone knowing, is the “shadow hero.”
It was all a lie fabricated because he wanted to place himself in the position of this “shadow hero.”
There was no deep reason behind it; Shion simply wanted to revel in it.
For Shion, this was more important than being praised by others for the achievement of defeating the world’s strongest dragon.
The greater the accomplishment, the more joy he finds in it not being known to the public.
And the situation where only Alphonse Fried believes that Shion forcibly repelled the Black Dragon (although in reality, it was just a bluff) was the ultimate scenario for him.
His current inner excitement was far surpassing the highest record of excitement in his life so far.
Shion continued eating silently, trying not to show this excitement on his face.
“…Well, setting aside your circumstances and true identity for now… I was called back home for a week after I woke up, and there, discussions about how to deal with Schwarzwaldius, the Black Dragon of Destruction, in the future were progressing.”
Alphonse shared what he had been told during the week since the dragon attacked the academy.
“There have been sporadic sightings of what seems to be the Black Dragon around the world, but when investigation teams go to search, they can’t confirm its presence at all. For now, they’re planning to continue searching for the Black Dragon while forming a task force for emergencies. …It should be an urgent situation, but based on the eyewitness testimony that I ‘thoroughly defeated it’ and ‘made the dragon swear never to approach human settlements again,’ they’ve decided to keep the information from the public for now and handle it with just a select few people.”
“…”
Shion continued eating with an indifferent expression while listening to the story.
Alphonse continued speaking to him.
“I think some officials have come to ask you about it several times, but I’d like to hear from you again myself.”
Alphonse turned to face Shion and said:
“The Black Annihilation Dragon supposedly swore to ‘never approach human settlements again.’ Is that correct, Shion?”
“Yes, I can say that with certainty,”
Shion replied, pausing his meal to answer Alphonse’s serious inquiry.
“That beast will never attack humans again. That’s absolute.”
Shion stated this confidently in response to Alphonse’s question.
“……… “
A brief silence fell between them.
Alphonse quietly gazed at Shion, as if trying to discern his true intentions.
“…I see,”
Alphonse finally said, his tense shoulders relaxing as if the air had cleared. A faint smile appeared on his face.
“I’m glad to hear that. It’s reassuring.”
Having determined that Shion’s words were truthful, Alphonse didn’t pursue the matter further.
“Still, to think you could make the Black Dragon of Annihilation, Schwarzwaldius, say such things… You’re truly amazing.”
Alphonse spoke as if Shion had defeated the Black Dragon, but Shion neither confirmed nor denied it, continuing his meal.
“…I suppose it’s incredibly amazing people like you who are called true heroes,”
Alphonse said, his expression turning somewhat self-deprecating and melancholic.
“Not someone like me… a false hero.”
At that moment, Shion immediately refuted his words:
“That’s not true, Alphonse.”
“…!”
Alphonse was taken aback by Shion’s instant denial.
Shion had intended to continue feigning ignorance and enjoy the situation internally.
Visit the request page If there’s a Japanese Light Novel (LN) or Web Novel (WN) you’d like me to translate
When the donation goal progress bar above hit 100% one novel will be chosen for translation
| Table of Contents | Next* |
Support the Author by Buying the Original Books!
