My Status as an Assassin Obviously Exceeds the Hero's

"...So, you all intend to come along too?"

The sun had fully set, and it was almost the same time as when we set sail last night. As the group heading to No.7 gathered on the ship's deck, the hero, Kyousuke, Nanase, and Tsuda—who hadn't been here yesterday—were waiting fully prepared. The fact Tsuda, who wasn't onshore this morning, was here probably meant they decided they wanted a shield in case anything happened.

"You'll be bringing people who might board this ship, right? Then we should come along and see for ourselves."

"We are here on behalf of noncombatants Hosoyama, Ueno, and Kazuki. Since this ship flies, there’s nowhere to run, and we can’t let suspicious people onto a ship carrying noncombatants."

"I-I'm not saying we distrust you, Oda-kun, but it's better to have more eyes to judge whether it's dangerous or not, right?"

Nanase, Kyousuke, and Tsuda explained their reasons. Their points were valid. If I were in the heroes’ position, I would do the same. That’s why I couldn't tell them to wait on the ship. What I worried about, though, wasn't the three planning to board or No.7 itself—it was the heroes' unpredictable behavior in Morte along the way.

"...Oi, Onii-san, it's about time."

Prompted by Lattice Nail's calm voice, I sighed. It couldn't be helped.

"Alright. But... don't look at things you don't want to see. This place isn't the peaceful, safe place we grew up in. Don’t forget you can look away."

"...Yeah. Got it."

Trusting the hero's nod, I got off the ship with Yoru on my shoulder, Lattice Nail, the heroes, and the others.

Crow, who had been with us yesterday, stayed on the ship—either from lack of sleep last night or too much drinking after a long time—so Noah had come in Crow's place.

"This Demon Clan territory is rundown. I heard that long before I was born, their territory was said to be at the cutting edge of technology and envied by engineers worldwide."

"Yeah, that was before the first generation hero blew up the northern part of the Demon Clan territory. The north that no longer exists was apparently amazing. Their technology was generations ahead of other races! Of course, their generations are based on Demon Clan lifespans..."

"Goodness! By Human standards, that’s an artifact from over ten thousand years ago!"

It was astonishing to hear the Demon Clan's average lifespan wasn't even clear to themselves—some reportedly lived at least five thousand years. Do they ever get tired of living?

Noah's face brightened with excitement. For the first time, Noah's apparent age finally matched the expression on her face—so cheerful I could almost imagine flowers drifting around her.

"Is the north completely underwater?"

"Yeah. The civilization that used to be there, the people who lived there—it's all gone beneath the sea. Come to think of it, my uncle insisted on investigating the north. My father strongly opposed it, so it never happened."

"...I see."

Noah nodded with disappointment. If it still existed and hadn't sunk, I had a feeling they'd have dug it up to investigate. Maybe it was better that it was sunken now.

"Master, what will you do? You didn't like the idea of taking the heroes."

"...I can't do anything about it now. I have to deal with what has already happened."

I answered Yoru, who sat on my shoulder, while confirming the heroes were behind us.

I really had no idea what would happen. I couldn't predict how the heroes would act. That's why I wanted to avoid heading to Morte.

I had a premonition. There might be something there that would determine us and the heroes.

"Lattice Nail, is there a way that doesn't pass Morte?"

"Hmm, there is, but we don't have time today. It would be a detour."

I asked Lattice Nail quietly so the heroes wouldn't hear and she made a troubled face.

"I see. Sorry for asking too much."

"It's fine... Well, even if you don't guard them that much, I think they’re strong."

"Did you say something?"

"Nah~?"

I tilted my head, not catching the last word, while Lattice Nail smiled knowingly and hurried over to Noah's side.