Me, the Weakest Member of the Hero’s Party? I’m the Villain Though? - Chapter 1
Prologue
Sometimes, I find myself thinking.
How did I end up here? How did I end up in this situation?
Chwaaah—!
A massive, man-eating plant bared its gaping maw, spewing a thick, dark green liquid. Immediately, the mage, Gerard, raised his staff and deployed a shield.
“If that sticky liquid touches you, your body will melt.”
As Gerard delivered his cold analysis, Kakaros, a forest sprite, stepped forward.
“The flower bud is its weak point. Aim for that.”
Gerard cautioned Kakaros, who was already aiming at the man-eating plant.
Kakaros gave a nod and released the bowstring. The arrow sliced through the wind, flying with fierce momentum.
“Whoooaa!”
However, the arrow was easily deflected by the plant’s swinging tendrils.
“Lysian, it’s dangerous so step back.”
Realizing that this opponent wasn’t as simple as it seemed, the Saint, Elonen, grabbed my arm and spoke. Beyond him, I could see the hero, Kyle, glancing back.
“Yeah, leave this to us and get to safety!”
I lightly shrugged.
To be honest, this mid-to-high-level monster wasn’t much of a threat to me. If I just revealed the slightest hint of my hidden miasma, it would undoubtedly flee in terror.
After all, I was a dragon, the most powerful of all monsters.
But since there was no real need for me to step in, I simply gave a slight nod and retreated.
“…Alright.”
As soon as I withdrew, Gerard swung his staff and launched a full-scale attack. Seizing the moment when the plant momentarily let its guard down, Kakaros rained down a barrage of arrows.
While the monster reeled from their relentless assault, Kyle finally charged forward, sword in hand.
“Haaah!”
Leaping high into the air, Kyle raised his sword and delivered a mighty swing. The massive man-eating plant split cleanly in two, spraying its dark green liquid everywhere.
I merely watched from behind a large tree trunk, observing their efforts.
“Did we get it?”
Kyle, completely unaware of the grave mistake he had just made, casually uttered the ultimate flag-raising phrase. Fortunately, after confirming the monster was truly dead, the four of them rushed over to where I was.
“Lysian, are you hurt anywhere?”
“I’m fine.”
Elonen asked with concern, but I was in such pristine condition that it almost felt embarrassing to answer.
I had been hiding behind a tree the whole time, so I hadn’t even gotten a scratch—my hair wasn’t even slightly out of place.
But then, suddenly, Kakaros grabbed my hand and lifted it.
A single drop of the dark green liquid had splashed onto my sleeve, leaving a small, melted hole. Without a word, Kakaros rolled up my sleeve, revealing slightly reddened skin.
Elonen, alarmed, immediately grabbed my arm.
“Oh no, it got on you! That could’ve been dangerous. I’ll heal you right away.”
It was just a minor burn from a single drop, barely the size of a fingernail, but Elonen immediately started casting a healing spell.
Watching the scene from a distance with his arms crossed, Gerard remarked indifferently.
“That’s why I told you to stay back. The weak shouldn’t be getting in the way.”
Kyle suddenly shoved Gerard aside and stepped right in front of me, even pushing Elonen to the side.
“There might be other injuries. You should take it off, just in case.”
“…I told you already, I’m fine.”
I shook my head in refusal, but Kyle just grinned and grabbed my collar.
“I’ll be the judge of that. Take it off.”
By now, I was used to Kyle’s unreasonable behavior, so I could only let out a deep sigh.
No matter what, I couldn’t shake the thought that I had ended up in a group full of weird punks.
