The three idiots who couldn't become heroes are preparing a man's meal today as well. - Chapter 105

Part 1 FINAL

Episode 105.  In a Distant Land

“Spotted forest bears! Count… 10!”

When Nishida raised his sharp voice, the horned Saintess-sama dashed forward.

We’ve spent a good amount of time together by now, and the strongest impression I have is that she’s become way bolder.

Back in the beginning, she used to freak out every time she saw a big one.

“Casting debuff on the whole area! And buffs for everyone! Kana, help me out!”

“Got it! Back when I was a dragon, I never would have imagined it… that bear could transform into something so delicious. Humans really are fascinating—being sealed for so long was worth it.”

The voice of a single girl carried the dialogue of two people.

It was surprising at first, but it seems the Saintess-sama has the soul—if that’s the right word—of a dragon we once hunted residing inside her.

We literally ate her body right in front of her.

Even so, she herself said, “Wow, never thought I’d be eating myself, but this is tasty! Seconds, please!” so I guess it’s fine.

Apparently, she used to be a dragon who devoured beasts and people alike, but after being separated from her body by the first “Hero,” she was told all kinds of stories.

Unable to eat or sleep, sealed away for ages—

Eventually, she grew interested in all sorts of things.

Man, that first Hero was something else.

He actually managed to reform a dragon.

“Kita-kun! Let’s wrap this up quickly with the usual formation! If we take too long, the ‘prey’ might get away!”

Azuma banged his large shield with a loud clang clang as he said that.

In his hands, however, was not his “full-on hobby gear.”

Unfortunately, “these” weapons the three of us had ended up breaking.

Nishida and Azuma got busted back when we were still fighting the dragon.

As for my spear, the tip snapped off after a few uses once we got flung to this region.

And to make things worse, the “black series” weapons made by Thoor and the others were already in bad shape even before that, from all the dragon-related battles.

So now, we’re back to the good old burn-through-your-standard-gear strategy.

“Master! No signs of them spreading to the flanks—just like usual, we can rush them all at once!”

Minami called out, firing warning shots with a crossbow from up in the trees.

She compressed the enemy herd into a dense, tight formation.

Once it’s gotten to this point, the next step’s simple.

As always, we just do things our way.

“Nozomi, Kana! Prep your magic! Just capture them, okay? No roasting!”

“Understood!”

“Yeah, yeah. If I use Dragon Breath again, I’ll get another lecture…”

Is it two people? Or one?

Well, maybe it’s best to say they’re two-in-one.

Saintess-sama, who just naturally started tagging along with us, raised her staff with a stern look forward.

“Nishida! You and me, we’ll hit them from both sides! Don’t let a single one get away!”

“Hell yeah! With this many big ones in one place, even if we’ve had a few dry spells, we’ll have more meat than we can handle!”

Saying that, Nishida landed beside me and crouched low with short swords in both hands.

Nice. Looks like he’s totally fired up.

“Minami, full support! Report if anything happens—and I’m counting on you to watch over Saintess-sama!”

“Leave it to me. Not a single one will get past. Though honestly, I can’t imagine any of them slipping past you three to begin with, Master.”

Trust is a good thing, but overconfidence isn’t.

I gave Minami a quick look, and she responded with a firm “Understood,” followed by a click as she swapped out her crossbow’s magazine.

With that vibe, she’ll probably be fine.

Her words were serious, and her expression even more so.

The dependable rear guard we always count on was absolutely radiating confidence.

“Alright! Let’s go, everyone! Azuma, break through them!!”

“UOOOOHHHH!!”

Azuma charged straight into the pack of beasts, a large shield in both hands.

His momentum was greater than ever before.

During a short stay at a guild that helped us out, we had our levels appraised—turns out we’d gotten a lot stronger.

So much that even we were a bit taken aback.

Which means our tank is now tougher and stronger than ever.

He plows right into bears even bigger than us and knocks them flying.

At this point, I’m pretty sure even if he rammed into a dump truck, Azuma would win.

“YEAHHH!!”

“DORYAAAH!!”

Following behind Azuma, we dove into the fray—an all-out brawl in an overcrowded mess.

Magic beasts swarmed all around us, even a half-assed swing of the spear would still land a solid hit.

Throwing ourselves into that chaos, we go wild again today.

To bring home tonight’s dinner.

“We’re through! Heading back!”

“Kou-chan! Don’t get so caught up in the action that you get run over by Azuma!”

“I know, I know! Let’s gooo!”

No matter where we go, what we do doesn’t change.

We hunt beasts, butcher them, and eat them.

That’s who we are—and it’s what we’ve been doing ever since we came to “this side.”

We’ll probably keep living like this from here on out, too.

No lofty goals. No clear destination.

We just “live to survive.”

And to survive, we “devour.”

We never look far ahead, and just because we were summoned to another world doesn’t mean we’re going to become “protagonists.”

Wearing that so-called cursed “black gear” that people avoid like the plague, we survive by eating “magical beast meat,” considered taboo.

Always clad in armor, we must leave a strong impression on those around us, but in a way, we’re probably pretty forgettable.

After all, we almost never show our real faces.

That’s why we’ll never be “heroes” or “champions.”

No matter how far we go, we’ll only ever be “hunters,” “walkers,” and nothing more.

“Master! Two coming in from the right!”

“I’ll handle one of them! Kou-chan, you take the other!”

“Leave them to me! I’ll mow it down in one go!”

“I’ll support Azuma-san! Bind!”

“Whoa… haven’t seen this big a haul in a while.”

Even on the way home, we hunt.

To fill our bellies. To make it back alive.

And while we’re at it, to bring back more souvenirs for the folks waiting.

“Hraaagh!”

I slam my spear tip into the enemy’s forehead, hurl my other spear, crouch low, and shout.

“Minami! Spear!”

“Coming!”

And so, nothing ever changes.

Yesterday, today—and probably tomorrow and the day after too.

We’re the rejects who couldn’t become “heroes.”

Which is exactly why we live as nothing more than “walkers.”

For money, for survival, for food.

We butcher the prey we catch ourselves and keep on cooking meals.

Just to eat something tasty, or to feed someone else something good.

What started out as a dumb trio’s adventure has grown to include plenty of companions by now.

Even so—nothing has changed.

“Alright! Meat secured for today toooo!”

“WOOOOH!” (×2)

“Good work out there, Masters.”

“Th-thank you for your work!”

“Man, I’m really looking forward to dinner tonight.”

Once again, today, we hunt for something delicious.

We eat to live. We kill to eat.

Animalistic, wild to the core.

And honest with our desires.

“Alright! Minami, Saintess, and I will handle the butchering! Nishida, scout the area and look for wild veggies! Azuma, prep the fire! Let’s go big today!”

“Hell yeah!” (×2)

“I’ve kind of gotten tired of fish lately. I’d really like something with a stronger flavor.”

“Bears do seem like they’d have a pretty intense smell though…”

“But this bear is super tasty!”

We keep on living.

And to do that, we cook again today.

If we’re going to eat, might as well eat something good, right?

For that one simple reason, we threw together another round of manly grub today.