---

---

She seemed to intend to carry the Healing Sword herself.

Well, let's move on for now.

It's tough!

Tougher than I thought!

Jasmine is quite voluptuous, it seems. Beneath her robe, she's quite curvy.

Her chest, hips, and thighs are all large, not from fat but from well-toned muscles underneath.

Her waist is incredibly slender, and even her thighs felt muscular upon touch.

Normally, a man would be happy to touch the body of a voluptuous woman, but I'm not happy at all.

She's heavy! Incredibly heavy!

I was a bit flustered by her large chest the moment I carried her, but it's too much for a long haul!

I'm tired of the sensation of being crushed by her large breasts on my back.

I wish she were more petite and slim like Saffron.

Catreya is petite but also quite voluptuous, so that wouldn't work.

Iris is out of the question, too. She's tall.

In situations like this, someone with Saffron's physique would be ideal.

I definitely don't want to carry a tall, voluptuous woman's body.

It's just troublesome and tiring.

"...Are you getting excited by Jasmine's body right now? She's got quite a nice figure, doesn't she?"

Cineraria walking beside me made such a comment, prompting me to glare at her with a demonic expresshion.

"I don't have the luxury to think about that right now...!"

"Whoa, my bad. It was just a joke..."

Cineraria must have meant it as a light-hearted joke, but I was so tired that even stopping for a moment felt like I might just collapse, showing I had no room for levity on my face.Surprisingly, she apologized to me.

Ah, but I'm done for.

I want to give up.

I want to let Jasmine down and walk on my own.

I acted like a cool, kind-hearted young man, but why do I have to deal with such a hassle?

They're people whose reasons for being enemies of Hero Shion are unclear to me.

Even if I try hard now, these two will never be moved by my kindness.

They're not the easy type to fall for someone just because he was a bit nice. They'll definitely repay kindness with ingratitude later.

But still, I don't want them to die. Maybe it's my bad habit.

I just can't let these two die.

It feels wasteful.

It's wasteful for talented people to die due to carelessness or failure.

Ordinary people like me are dime a dozen, but these two have rare talents.

I vaguely admire those who are blessed with talent.

So, I hate the idea of them dying.

The sisters wielding the sacred swords shouldn't die.

Prince Heath is an exception, though.

He might have talent, but he's no good.

He doesn't give off that "it's wasteful" vibe.

Because he's a foolish prince.

"Do you think Jasmine is a good woman?"

"…Huh?"

Perhaps out of boredom, Cineraria, who was panting as she walked beside me, started talking to me.

Do people feel compelled to speak, even to someone they dislike, after being silent together for so long?

"That woman is quite dangerous, from my perspective."

Is this going to be another backstory?

These two seem to talk about each other's backgrounds when the other is unconscious.

I don't really want to listen.

"The Healing Sword, you see, originally belonged to someone else among the saintly swords. The person our master originally chose as the wielder of the Healing Sword was actually a man."

"The Healing Sword was also held by your master?"

"That's right. Our master is a strange one. He gives us the saintly swords and wants us to obey his orders, but we're also free to defy him. Aside from his orders, we're allowed to use the saintly swords however we like."

"Huh, that's quite something to say. The saintly swords are equally powerful if mastered. Isn't it dangerous for your master if you defy him?"

"…Hmph. No one dares to defy our master."

I didn't feel like asking why.It's probably not about charisma.

Cineraria isn't the type to want to serve someone.

It's just strength. Simply, a strength that doesn't allow others to even think of opposing them.

And that's the mastermind behind these people?

"The man who was originally the wielder of the Healing Sword was quite a scoundrel. He misused the Healing Sword, which could heal others' wounds."

"Eh? Can the ability to heal wounds be misused?"

"He extorted healing fees from those he healed, whether they were injured or sick."

"Ah... Overcharging, huh?"

"That's right. It was a remote area story, so you, being from the capital, might not know, but he had formed quite a large cult-like group. He was like a cult leader who could heal any injury."

It seems Cineraria was complaining with disdain.

"But he did actually heal the injured and sick, right?"

"That's why he had many followers, and the healing fees were high. Despite being able to easily heal with the Healing Sword, he was an unpleasant guy."

"Is it that bad? It's normal to want to make money from a special talent, isn't it?"

"That guy, when the person who couldn't pay the healing fee was a woman, he'd demand their body."

"Eww, that's low."

"Right?"

When I agreed, Cineraria somehow seemed happy and responded.

"Why did the saintly sword, which can heal people, choose such a scoundrel as its wielder?"

"I don't know. If you start questioning that, then why I was chosen by a saintly sword becomes unclear too. If only good people could use it, there's no way I would have been chosen."

"Cineraria and the Healing Sword seem to match well."

When I said that, she didn't seem very happy.

Huh? Why, I wonder?

Should I have said something like, "I think Cineraria is a good person at heart~" even if I didn't mean it?

But someone good wouldn't be able to wield a sacred sword that controls zombies.

"Anyway, Jasmine, who was still a teenager at the time, went to the wielder of the Healing Sword to have him heal her sick parents."

"Let me guess, did that scum say he'd heal your parents in exchange for your body as payment?"

"Exactly! You get it. You understand the mindset of a scumbag, don't you?"

"No, no. That makes it sound like I'm a scumbag too."

"There's no one scummier than you, right?"

"Wow! That's harsh!"

"Hahaha!"

Cineraria burst into laughter.It's easy to forget, but we're in the middle of conquering a dungeon.

We're exhausted and on the brink of total annihilation.

Why are we chatting in such a situation?

As we're guided by Holly through the shortest route in the dungeon, avoiding encounters with monsters, Holly, left alone, puffs her cheeks, becoming increasingly sulky.

"So what happened to Jasmine in the end?"

"She managed to keep her chastity."

"That's good. But how did she manage to get away without anything happening?"

"Jasmine was actually willing to pay for her parents' treatment with her body. But just when things were about to happen, the Healing Sword, which was leaning against the wall, moved on its own and cracked open the head of the guy who was supposed to be its wielder."

The Healing Sword moved on its own and killed its wielder?

That means,

"A change of wielders...?"

"Right. The Healing Sword, tired of its current wielder, chose Jasmine as its next wielder and protected her in that crisis. It was due to the sword's ability to be remotely controlled."

It seems that was the case.

I remember, Safuran also called the Vacuum Sword to her from a distance when she was in danger, and Pratanas had taken the Thousand Mile Sword from an assassin who tried to kill him and turned the tables on him.

So, being a saintly sword wielder comes with its risks.

There's no problem in battles against the monsters, the minions of the Demon King, but in combat against humans, if the opponent has greater aptitude, there's a risk of having one's saintly sword taken away.

Well, being killed with one's own weapon if you can't handle it properly is a risk with any weapon, not just saintly swords.

Maybe saintly swords aren't meant to be used against humans.

"I don't believe in gods in this world, but when I heard that story, I genuinely thought divine punishment had been meted out to the Healing Sword's wielder."

"Well, they're called divine swords, so the wielders must be qualified accordingly."

"That's why, if you start talking about that, I can't understand why I can wield a saintly sword. I'm a pretty bad person, even if I say so myself."

"True bad people don't think of themselves as bad, you know."

Cineraria snorted in disinterest at my comment."There's a term called 'criminal with conviction', right? Someone who knows what they're doing is wrong but doesn't try to stop. That's me."

"Huh? But a criminal with conviction is someone who does wrong while believing they're right."

"What? Really?"