I Became the Hero Who Banished the Protagonist-Chapter 4: Daphne Epifon. (2)

“Have a seat.”

Contrary to his appearance, the Hero’s voice was much lower than Daphne thought. However, it was clear he hadn’t heard the rumors about her. She shakily took a seat, unable to believe she‘d entered this interview without running away. ‘Well, I couldn’t have done this sober.‘ She slumped back in the chair, her mind still reeling from last night’s hangover.

‘I might as well say sorry now and get out.’

But before Daphne could say anything, she saw turquoise eyes across the table, begging her not to go. She didn’t know why he felt that way, but she couldn’t look away from the Hero staring her in the eye.

‘It’s okay, even if this is an illusion. Even if I leave dejected like everyone else.’

I’ll just go back to living the way I’m used to.

Her thoughts were not very comforting. ‘The Hero was going to reject me anyway.’ Locking eyes with the giant who stood behind the Hero, arms crossed while staring at me, I bowed my head deeply. It was probably Georg, the Hero’s assistant. His appearance alone was terrifying.

“Don’t be so nervous.”

The Hero’s words were a mix of indifference and gentleness. Dahpne’s eyes, which were constantly fluttering, were locked with his. When she regained my composure, he gave her a small smile and clapped his hands together.

“Are you ready?”

Daphne nodded at his question. ‘Was he waiting for me?’ Her eyebrows furrowed in confusion as he began speaking.

“Daphne Epifon, from Naia. Fourth circle, Magic Tower graduate. Second year as an adventurer.”

The Hero muttered and recited Daphne’s history. Her life was so insignificant as she listened to someone else recite it. Three sentences on a piece of paper. Those three lines contained everything she has achieved in her life.

“You’ve only been in the Kingdom briefly, so have you lived in Naia until you joined a Magic Tower?”

“Yes….”

The Hero exhaled and unfolded a piece of paper. Georg, the big man with his arms crossed, frowned and glared at him. ‘Even he seems unsatisfied with me.’ The Hero looked at him briefly before turning back to Daphne and began questioning her.

“What made you want to join our party?”

“Oh, it was… it was….”

It was a typical question. I stammered out the answer I’d been thinking about.

“I have a sense of duty to save, no, protect the world.”

The turquoise eyes bore into me. “Is that all you really want to say,” his eyes asked. Daphne’s eyes wavered. She hesitated, but one by one, she slowly began to speak.

“…While I have a sense of duty, I also wanted to take this opportunity to change myself.”

“That’s right,” the Hero’s eyes seemed to say.

“So, I plucked up the courage to apply.”

The corner of the Hero’s mouth twitched upward. Daphne couldn’t figure out why he was smiling at her answer. ‘Even he’s laughing at me.’

“What aspect of yourself did you want to change?”

“I’d like to overcome my fear.”

Fear.

The Hero seemed to be thrilled with the answer she gave. Daphne expected more questions about her ambiguous reply, but he stared at her for a while before moving on.

“Very well, then, let me ask you another question. You’re from Naia. You were introduced to magic quite late in life. You didn’t start learning proper magic until you entered Magic Tower, correct?”

Magic Tower and Naia. Daphne’s heart sank at the words. A memory flashed through her mind.

“… Yes, that’s right.”

The Hero smirked as she spoke. Her heart sank, and a cold sweat ran down her back.

“Do you have a specialty?”

“It hasn’t manifested yet….”

But at the same time, it was a strange feeling. Daphne was as terrified as ever, but somehow she answered all his questions. Her face slowly turned paler with the ongoing tension, and Georg’s expression slowly twisted. In the end, the Hero slammed the paper down on the desk.

“That concludes the interview.”

She was exhausted from the lengthy interview. But the words of rejection still weighed on her head and heart simultaneously. With a rustling sound, the Hero rummaged through a drawer and pulled out a white sheet of paper. Georg’s expression, which had been on the verge of distortion as he watched from behind, hardened.

Daphne only had one thought in her head, the line she’d heard many times. ‘I’m afraid to say this, but–’

“Here, go into the next room and fill this out.”

It wasn’t. In her hands were a piece of paper and a pen. The pen was a luxury item she’d never touched, and the paper was very stiff and high-quality. ‘Is this… a contract?’ Daphne looked at it, feeling like an idiot.

“W-what is this?”

“A contract. Please understand that we are in a hurry and are giving the results immediately.”

Daphne stood in a daze, opened the door to the office, and started to walk out when the Hero’s voice called for her. She stopped and turned around, and the Hero was pointing behind a bookcase.

“You can exit through this door.”

She nodded and then walked to the door like a broken doll. The hinges creaked as they moved, and she walked into the break room next to the office. Daphne looked down at the paper in her hand as the hinges creaked again.

“…Did I get the job?”

As if to answer my monologue, the door to the break room slammed shut behind her. She stood there staring at the contract for a long time.

***

“…I don’t want to say anything anymore.”

I shrugged at Georg’s words. I felt more relaxed, knowing I had gotten one thing out of the way. The rest of the interviewees were sent home after a cursory interview. Ultimately, Daphne was the only candidate to pass. After all the interviews, I discussed the agreement with Daphne and told her to start working tomorrow.

…No, come to think of it, I don’t know why I made such a big deal out of this when I could have just asked around and found her. I’d just set up an open job interview to convince that hunk of muscle she was a good fit, but Georg didn’t look convinced.

“I don’t know what’s in your head.”

“Did you ever try to find out?”

I replied roughly, organizing the applicants’ papers. Thankfully, Georg didn’t interrupt the interview. He did give me a few puzzled looks throughout, though.

“Okay, let me reiterate what you just did. How in the world do you go through all those applicants and choose a Fourth Circle female mage with a bad reputation among adventurers?”

“I didn’t know you cared so much about gossip.”

Georg’s veins bulged up on his face. I’d gotten used to this guy’s responses by now. He’d always stayed with me no matter how much I tried to be a jerk. It felt like someone was holding a knife to his throat, threatening him not to leave.

“There are going to be rumors that you have never seen a competent wizard before will start floating around. Aside from that, she seems to be involved with a scandal in her previous party.”

I sighed deeply.

“It seems even stranger to me that someone who spent her entire life in a backwoods village without knowing anything about magic, and then after her eyes were opened to it, was able to reach the Fourth Circle within four years, wouldn’t be selected. At least, I’ve never seen or heard of such a talent.”

“I suppose that’s why I gave her the benefit of the doubt. You may have forgotten that we have another wizard in the party. It is simply inefficient having both of them.”

Another wizard in the party. I felt like throwing up as he reminded me. I would have kicked her out if I could have in the first place, but now she was probably enjoying a vacation on the western beaches of the kingdom. ‘Just try to bring her back; I wish you luck.’

“It’s also inefficient not to take a talent of Daphne’s caliber with us, Georg.”

When he heard my answer, Georg’s face was like, “What kind of an asshole knows that and banishes two key party members?”

“Yes, she’s incredibly talented, but that doesn’t mean she’s any good until we see her skills.”

‘Why is he acting childish, just wanting to disagree with everything I say?’ I know the original Elroy was unreliable, but I realized that Georg could be the biggest obstacle to my survival if we kept arguing like this.

“You don’t care to ask why Daphne isn’t at her best?”

“Does knowing that do anything to fix it?”

“That’s what someone who hasn’t tried say.”

Georg’s voice rose in pitch. My voice, on the other hand, only lowered with exhaustion.

“I’m against it, anyway. I don’t care how good a wizard you are in theory; I’m going to only party with them once I see they will be useful in practice. If you insist, I’ll risk everything and report you to the higher-ups.”

I drummed my fingers on the desk. There was something oddly comforting about this desk. It helped me stay calm in front of Georg, who spoke as if he were on edge.

“So you’re complaining about Daphne’s unreliability?”

“There is more than that, but that is the main reason.”

“Then I’ll comply, and we’ll put her on hold.” Is what he wished I said

“If I can solve her problem and she can deliver results, will that convince you?”

Georg snorted and glanced at me.

“If that happens, I’ll not only accept Daphne Epifon in the party, but I’ll never disobey your orders or oppose any of your decisions. I will become your loyal follower. I’ll also ignore the fact you got rid of Arjen and Iris.”

Ohhhh, well said, Georg.

This might be my chance to solve two of my biggest anxieties simultaneously. The corner of my mouth twitched upward. The Hero’s grin reflected off the creaky wooden desk and looked mean and wicked. ‘I look really creepy smiling this.’ I twitched the corners of my mouth, changing my smile to something less mean, and looked back at Georg.

“You must honor your word.”

Georg nodded vigorously, not noticing anything.

“Of course. You’d better brace yourself. You need to feel the weight of that title you’re carrying.”

‘Brace myself? You should.’

I let the words hang in the air and began to reread the contract with Daphne.