I Pretended To Have Amnesia and the Hero’s Party Becomes Obsessed

10 – 1. The Worst Reunion (10)

Inside the tent where magic lamps flickered, I stood and looked around.

The hero party, the baggage carrier, Fea, and even the captain.

All the people who needed to gather were here.

I stood up from my seat.

“Now, I will explain the current situation.”

I looked down at the map spread out on the table. Then, I pointed to a spot on the map with my finger.

“This is the place where we are.”

I slide my finger over the spot with trees and mountains drawn on it. It was not far from the spot I just touched.

“And here is where the command sorcerers used to perform their tricks.”

Then, I take a black stone from my pocket and place it with a thud on that spot.

“This is the warding stone.”

As if feeling the ominous energy from the stone, Clara’s face contorts.

“We spread the ward across the entire village, intending to bind our feet to Ishu’pentaine.”

“And then?”

The collective gaze that was on me shifts to the leader. She clenches her fist and smirks.

“Tie our feet, and then what? Who was planning to come, turn us into corpses, and take away the cargo?”

The leader knows how to get the point across.

I erase the smile that appeared on my face and slide my finger over the map again. Once again, not far from here.

“Here are the command sorcerers.”

“Dorian? He certainly found a tough place to settle. But with this many people, we won’t be able to break through…”

I slide my finger again.

“And these are the command sorcerers here.”

…

The faces of both the leader and the warrior party stiffen. I continue to move my finger.

“Gularsi, Getra, Aymion, Ment, Sallion, Zadra, Nahil, and Dorian.”

My finger draws a circle around Ishu’pentaine, then returns to Dorian.

“Already, the command sorcerers have cornered us. The ward was just a precaution.”

I look around at the people inside the tent.

“We are surrounded.”

A heavy silence settles in. Faces, now tinged with earthy hues, reflect deep contemplation.

“Any chance of deception?”

Parsley looks at me with cold eyes. I nod firmly.

“None.”

I take out a blood-stained paper from my pocket.

“When I entered the lair, there was a communication device. I pretended to be a cultist and asked questions, and they willingly answered. This is the paper where I recorded that information.”

Parsley takes the paper, reads it, and tightens her face. Similar reactions follow as others read the paper.

“The knights and priests, what on earth are they doing?”

Suddenly, it was Clara who spoke. She furrowed her brow as she voiced her thoughts.

“The sorcerers of the command have come so close to the city, yet they’ve taken no action…”

It was almost a murmured question to herself, but a response came.

“Most of the knights went west for a large-scale demon extermination.”

Irene, who had been quiet until now, added.

“The clergy seems to have done the same.”

“…It means we can’t expect any support.”

Clara, unusually wearing a deeply concerned expression, gently rested her chin on her hand.

“But why would it be to this extent…”

Clang!

The sharp sound of applause drew everyone’s attention to one place.

“Alright, enough of these gloomy tales. So?”

The leader smiled faintly, looking at me.

“You didn’t bring up these dismal stories without any plan, did you, deputy leader?”

With that sentence, everyone inside the tent directed uncomfortable gazes at one particular person.

I hesitated, scratching my cheek before managing to speak reluctantly.

“No, well… it’s not like there’s a plan or anything…”

I turned hesitantly toward the warrior.

“Sir, do you remember when I mentioned the shortcut before?”

“…”

“Sir?”

Only then did Amy, who had been bowing her head all this while, look up. After gazing at me with a cloudy expression, she suddenly rose from her seat.

“…I’m sorry. I’ll go in first.”

…And without any attempt to stop her, she swiftly left the tent.

Bewildered, I could do nothing but stare blankly without apprehending her actions.

It was Parsley’s voice that managed to rescue me from my confusion.

“Sure, there might be a faster shortcut to Ahlrottle, but the path itself is treacherous and too crowded for passage. But why now…”

As if realizing something mid-sentence, Parsley trailed off.

“Could it be… the number of people…?”

I barely managed to recover from my bewilderment and nodded.

“Yes, I’m considering splitting the team.”

I brought over the chess pieces from the corner and placed them on the map.

“Here is the location of the side road. As you can see, it’s mostly in the mountain range. Also…”

“…It’s far from the village where the cultists have settled.”

I nodded.

“That’s right. Moreover, it’s a side road known only to the people living in that area. Most of them probably don’t even know of its existence.”

Parsley’s expression became serious. I continued speaking.

“And, by splitting the team like this, there’s another advantage. They won’t know who is carrying the ‘cargo.'”

“It’s meant to create confusion in tracking.”

Parsley said, twisting her red hair. It was her habit to do so whenever she rolled her head.

“But, isn’t it dangerous?”

Parsley shook her head.

“No, let me correct myself. Are your mercenaries willing to take on such a risky task?”

“They will.”

I instinctively looked at Irene. Whether she had a premonition or not, she already had a dark expression.

“As long as the pay is right.”

Irene simply closed her eyes tightly. It seemed like her future, marred by joint operations due to budget issues, was flashing before her.

The guilt was there, but there was no other choice.

We also need to make a living.

“Now, the most important question remains.”

Clara, who had been lost in thought with her eyes closed, finally spoke.

“Who will move the cargo?”

The words brought about a profound silence.

Choosing who would move the cargo was not difficult. The suitable person had already been decided. After all, it was a request for an adventurer party, so the adventurers should handle it.

The problem was the disadvantage this plan had.

For this operation to succeed, the enemies must not know who is moving the cargo.

“At this point, there seems to be one thing we must clearly understand.”

Smiling a smile hard to decipher, the leader stood up. All eyes naturally turned to her.

“We have one infiltrator among us, from the cultists.”

Certainly, it seemed that even the party of heroes had some suspicions, as they didn’t waver at those words.

However, Irene raised her hand, speaking firmly.

“Our side is not…”

“Who’s causing trouble, who’s casting doubt—I don’t want to hear about that. We can settle that later, whether with money or something else.”

The leader interrupted Irene firmly. Placing a hand on my shoulder, he continued speaking.

“The crucial point is, considering the current situation, there’s undoubtedly someone leaking information among us. Because of that, the meticulous plan our vice-captain worked hard on might become useless.”

Well, he hadn’t worked on it that hard…

“So, what do we do?”

This time, Parsley stood up. The leader smiled at Parsley’s stern expression.

“We’ll resort to the oldest method of keeping secrets.”

Then, Rose picked up one of the pieces on the map. It was in the shape of a sword.

“Originally… it was meant for the knight, but since the knight is absent.”

The leader handed the piece to Parsley.

“Let’s keep only me and the wizard aware of who’s truly moving the cargo.”

***

The next morning, I first selected the most trustworthy among the current personnel. It wasn’t particularly challenging.

When I mentioned the possibility of having to evade the command’s sorcerers without any support for at least a month, more than half abandoned the mission.

The remaining individuals were the familiar faces I always saw.

“Wow! Double the reward!”

“Finally, some money to handle.”

“Can we drink freely during the mission?”

“Vice-captain, is he a rookie?!”

The jaded ones, mercenaries of at least a year or more.

I despised myself for expecting them to abandon the cause and drafting the budget accordingly.

And simultaneously, it was eerie.

…It also meant there might be a spy among them.

Among those I’d been associated with for a year, entrusted with lives at times.

“Alright, then, I’ll announce the units that will collaborate closely for the time being.”

Clearing my complicated thoughts, I retrieved a scroll from within my robes.

It was a unit formation chart, painstakingly created to finish the mission without casualties.

“Alright, Squad 1, Baldy, Big-Eared, Trouble-Maker, Little Rat, Pig…”

“No wayy!!”

“Squad 2, Goggle-Eyes, Skinny Legs, Acrobatic…”

…

“Squad 10, Youngest, Glasses-Wearer, Beauty, Oil Princess, Rooster.”

I tucked the scroll into my pouch. Then, I turned my gaze towards the group of warriors who had been silently observing this process.

“And, it seems the warrior party should continue to act together. If anyone has questions or suggestions…”

“Uh, I have one.”

I sighed and turned my gaze.

With her plump cheeks, Feya, who was looking at me, caught my eye.

“Alright, youngest, what’s bothering you so much?”

“Why isn’t my brother and the commander on the list?”

Right, why hasn’t that come up yet?

“The commander has other matters to attend to and won’t be participating in the operation at all.”

“So, what does my brother plan to do then?”

I furrowed my brow and replied as I let out a sigh.

“I’ll be going alone.”

Feya’s dissatisfaction was at its peak in that moment.

“I can’t allow that.”

Expressions of disbelief from our mercenary squad members started to appear again. Feya clenched her fist and spoke.

“You didn’t move alone last night either, did you?”

“Yeah, and I came back safely, as always.”

“That’s not the point.”

Feya’s gaze lowered.

“I don’t like it when my brother rushes into danger alone. Take me with you.”

A sigh escaped my lips involuntarily.

“Youngest, since when have you been the commander?”

“I’m your right-hand, brother. Wherever you go, I should be there too.”

“How many times have I told you that my right hand is detachable?”

“Above all, if you go alone, who will replace your limbs and prosthetics?”

I let out a sigh at last.

“It’s because of those limbs and prosthetics that I have to go alone.”

Personally, I have no complaints about my limbs, prosthetics, exoskeleton, and voice output device… In any case, I have no dissatisfaction with my bionic body.

In fact, there are times when it’s better than my original body.

For one, with my original body, I couldn’t do things like rocket punches, eye beams, or rider kicks.

However, in this fantasy world set in the medieval era, the concept of a ‘cyborg’ was quite unfamiliar.

Near our headquarters, my name was somewhat known, but if you go a little further into the provinces…

Let’s just say that I occasionally get treated like the undead.

And because of that, I was a more easily traceable presence than anyone else in the mercenary group.

There were rumors about undead moving like humans, and if you follow that rumor, you’ll find me there.

That’s why I am a more suitable presence as a ‘decoy’ than anyone else.

It was like that even before the mercenary group started, and it was even more so after the mercenary group was formed.

And Pea probably couldn’t understand him.

“Well, still…”

It’s just a tantrum.

I reluctantly held back my displeasure.

“Pea, you too, little by little…”

“Then, how about this?”

A soft hand gently rested on my shoulder. I turned around in confusion at the dizzying lavender scent.

Clara, who had approached without notice, spoke with a cheerful smile.

“How about Rem joining our warrior party?”

The surprise at Clara’s bombshell announcement wasn’t just limited to our mercenary group. Parsley and Amy wore the same expressions of astonishment.

“What on earth are you talking about?”

Parsley took a step forward, even going so far as to say so with an annoyed expression.

However, despite this reaction, Clara merely shrugged her shoulders.

“In the end, the reason Rem goes alone is because his appearance stands out, right?”

A deep smile spread across Clara’s face.

“But if it’s about standing out, we won’t lose to Rem, right?”

That was an undeniable truth.

National certified adventurers, heroes.

Just the title alone was enough to capture people’s attention, and to top it off, all of its members were women, and they were beauties.

In fact, when I investigated them through legitimate channels, their reputation had spread quite far.

Even near the capital of the empire, there were people who recognized them wherever they went.

Certainly, they drew more attention than I did, and the opposite was not true, even if a mountain of corpses was added in between.

However, there remained a significant problem in readily joining them.

And it wasn’t me who brought it up, but the courageous Faye.

“H-Hold on, isn’t my elder brother a man?!”

That’s right.

Biologically, psychologically, I was a perfect man. Even though I couldn’t shake off the bachelor label due to my appearance, my sexual orientation was very clear.

And the hero party, all its members were even women, including the baggage carrier.

In various ways, the picture looked strange. I looked at Clara.

“Well, does it really matter?”

However, Clara’s reaction was as nonchalant as it was astonishing.

“Surely, the esteemed vice-commander of the renowned Rosem Adventurer Corps wouldn’t casually lay hands on a man, right?”

“Well, that’s true, but…”

Faye frowned as if desperately searching for a counterargument. However, either there were no words coming to mind, or her mouth repeated the cycle of closing and opening.

Eventually, I raised my head and spoke.

“Alright, youngest.”

“Elder brother…?”

I looked at Clara.

Even in my own judgment, there was no flaw in Clara’s logic. Clearly, traveling with the hero party would be comfortable for me, and it would be convenient for the mercenary corps as well.

And, above all, I had a reason to be with them.

I turned my gaze to Amy, Parsley, and Clara one by one.

“Are you all okay with this?”

A faint joy appeared on their faces at my words.

“…”

However, that joy was soon overlaid with guilt.

Even Clara, who had made the suggestion, couldn’t hide a dark emotion as her eyes momentarily flickered.

At the end, all they gave in return was a silent nod. Only Clara managed to smile faintly.

In that moment, I understood clearly.

I had to know the reason.

Why they first avoided me.

Why they showed favoritism when I claimed to have lost my memory.

And why they still showed guilt while doing so.

Because they were people who had left too much in my life to simply turn away from.

I nodded my head.

“Alright, then I will start moving with the hero party from now on.”

And so, I threw myself wholeheartedly towards the riddle.

…

“Rem, how about eating quickly?”

“Eat before the dishes get cold.”

“…Alright, Rem, eat quickly then.”

Finally, the recollection ended and I returned to reality.

I looked at the three women urging me to eat, while keeping each other in check.

…It had been several hours since I left the road.

Damn it.