Can Someone (Anyone!) Please Turn Off the Auto-Skill Setting?! - Chapter 69
Whether due to old age or nerves, the village chief trembled as he spoke. When Nancy confirmed that they were indeed the heroes, the chief handed over a small box he had been clutching tightly. Inside were a few pieces of gold and some gems.
“This is all we have, as we live day to day. If you pretend not to have seen our village, we will continue to live quietly here, away from the war.”
Aaron scoffed at the idea of them living ‘away from the war’. Historical records made it clear that the Ferron race had been at the forefront during the reign of the Demon King.
The chief did not deny this. However, he explained that it was an event from over a thousand years ago, and now, most Ferrons were weary of the endless wars and exploitation by the Four Cardinal Guardians.
“Unlike higher-ranking demons, low-level demons like us don’t even live a hundred years. Joining the Demon King’s cause was a distant memory, a dream from long ago.”
The chief bowed deeply, hands clasped together. He admitted that they had been forced to give food to the Four Cardinal Guardians’ subordinates when threatened. Losing the crops they worked so hard to grow was bitter for them than the alternative.
“So you’re admitting that you’ve supported the Demon King’s army?” Aaron pointed out.
The chief trembled and nodded, but in a quieter voice, he defended himself.
“That much I cannot deny. But no one from this village has ever attacked a human.”
How could that be verified here and now? Aaron believed the chief was lying, but beside him, Nancy nodded.
“Now that you mention it, we’ve been attacked by plenty of demons, but none of them were Ferrons.”
Aaron couldn’t shake the feeling that Nancy was taking the Ferrons’ side. Shouldn’t she, as the hero, be the first to lead their extermination?
The Ferrons watched Aaron nervously, sensing his hesitation. He also sensed it—they feared him, as all demons should.
But… when had demons ever been the weak ones?
They were inherently evil, beings that needed to be vanquished. Yet, these Ferrons didn’t seem evil at all. As Nancy had said, they were just trying to live peacefully.
Aaron found himself at a crossroads, caught between the values he had always believed in and Nancy’s reasoning. When he tried to lift his sword again, it felt even heavier than before, much heavier.
In the end, Aaron lowered his sword.
“Let’s hurry on our way.”
Turning his back on the box the chief had offered, Aaron grabbed Nancy by the arm and pulled her along. She tried to protest, reaching out for the gold in the box, but in the end, she had to leave it behind.
Even as Nancy voiced her disappointment, Aaron paid her no mind. He hastily moved away from the village, unsure if he had made the right choice. Doubts plagued him—should he have turned back and exterminated the village after all?
Just then, the young Ferron boy, unaware of the situation, came running after them.
“I’ll show you a shortcut to the Demon King’s castle!”
The boy’s innocent enthusiasm only made Aaron feel worse. The more cheerful the boy acted, the more ashamed Aaron felt for having threatened and drawn his sword on an innocent child.
As they walked, the boy suddenly stopped and looked back the way they had come. Nancy and Aaron thought he had something to say, but his gaze was fixed far beyond them.
His nose and ears twitched, and fear clouded his face.
“A subordinate of the Four Cardinal Guardians has come to the village. They’re here to steal our food again!”
The boy’s eyes pleaded for help, as if to say that if they lost their food again, they would surely starve.
Nancy glanced at Aaron, feeling conflicted. She knew they could help, but she suspected Aaron wouldn’t want to. If he outright refused, that would be one thing. They had barely escaped a tense situation earlier, and if they offered aid again, Aaron might start to suspect her of having some secret connection with the demons.
But her worry was misplaced. Before Nancy could say anything, Aaron was already sprinting back toward the village.
By the time Nancy and the boy caught up, they found the subordinate of the Four Cardinal Guardians buried headfirst in the ground.
“Huu.”
Aaron exhaled deeply, looking thoroughly satisfied. The Ferrons, who had been too scared to show their faces earlier, came out of hiding and gazed at him with admiration in their eyes.
Finally, Nancy and Aaron left the Ferron village for good. The father and son followed them a long way out, waving their arms and tails in thanks.
“Never thought I’d live to hear a demon say ‘thank you’.”
Aaron, despite his earlier relief, now seemed troubled. Sensing his conflicted emotions, Nancy teased him, asking if he shouldn’t have accepted the gold or at least the radishes they had offered for the journey.
“That village will be in danger again soon—worse danger than before. Now that they’ve been marked as traitors who received the hero’s help.”
“…Wait, did you plan that all along? Did you ‘help’ them only to bring the village down without lifting a finger?”
“Unless we fully seal all the Four Cardinal Guardians and end the war, that village won’t stay safe.”
Nancy felt a sudden chill at his words but then brushed it off with a laugh.
“Then we just need to keep doing what we’re doing. After all, we successfully sealed Bije, the hardest one to deal with.”
They had overcome the biggest hurdle. Nancy, for the first time since becoming a hero, began to believe that maybe, just maybe, she could accomplish this seemingly impossible task.
