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“I… endured it. I thought… it was all I could do, so even if you called me a f̲u̲c̲k̲i̲n̲g parasite, handyman or whatnot… I still tried my best so you’d think it was worth hiring me…”

Lucella’s head was filled with memories of Gemel, which were 90% unpleasant and 10% neutral at best. He once worked hard under Gemel. He had to work for Giselle’s sake.

Given his rare occupation as an adventurer manager, he had nowhere else to find employment, so he was grateful to him to a degree.

Everyone in Seventh Dice including Gemel were the type of adventurers that really needed a manager, and ■■■■■’s support did in fact help them rise to fame like a meteor. It was hard to say that his efforts reflected his pay, but he still felt it was worth it.

He didn’t know whether they were actually thankful for it. But he at least knew that he was needed.

“But you killed me. And what did it achieve? You could no longer do anything and ultimately became an underling of the aggressors. How could you stoop so low… Gemel!”

The party Seventh Dice was in a dire situation. There were four of them. The opponent was one. Just a single angry dragon.

“Then I assume that the retribution is also part of the conclusion that you desired.”
“How!”

Gemel yelled as if he couldn’t hold back his emotions any longer.

“H-how d-did you t-turn into that and r-return!”

It was certainly an incredibly lucky (or unlucky, for Gemel) development if you thought about it rationally. Lucella, who had been practically dead was saved, while Gemel, who accomplished a perfect crime, had all his plans thrown into chaos.

While this predicament was something he sowed, it was still understandable for him to lament about this kind of outcome.

“I’m puzzled myself, but this is apparently what they call fate.”
“You’re open!”

Suddenly, someone suddenly attacked Lucella from the side. It appeared as though they believed Lucella was too preoccupied with conversing with Gemel. The grappler Antony, a member of Seventh Dice, struck Lucella with a gauntlet.

Despite his imperfections, he was an adventurer who was close to being classified as first-rate. His punch was powerful enough to render even magic beasts that far outweighed him unconscious.

However, it only made Lucella flinch a little.

“Aaaagh?! Ouuuuch! Too haard…”

Despite wearing gauntlets, Antony was the one who ended up holding his hand in pain and stepping back as if he had punched something unbelievably hard. Lucella glared at him.

“I see. Let me hurt you some more.”
“Gkh?!”

Lucella caught Antony’s trained hand which was far bigger in comparison and simply gripped it. Antony could feel his bones breaking and the muscles shredding.

“Aagyaaaaaaaa! It huuuuuurtss!”

He collapsed with that shriek.

“≪Thunder Javelin≫!”
“Hmm?”

A beam struck the back of Lucella’s head but got deflected, creating a new source of illumination that was distinct from sunlight and casting a shadow.

It failed to burn even a single strand of Lucella’s red hair.

Turning around, Lucella saw yet another member of Seventh Dice, the wizard Gregor, standing ready with a staff. He could use some recovery spells, but he specialized in wind magic that controlled lightning. His attack magic had felled many enemies until now. But the lightning bolt released from his staff couldn’t even graze Lucella.

Then, Lucella took a step toward him.

“Eek… S- ≪Spark≫!”

The lightning attack exploded while scattering sparks. But Lucella, who was at the center of it, came out unscathed. And then, he took another step toward him.

“C-C-Ca-≪Call Lightning≫!!”

The sky flashed and a thunderbolt immediately fell on Lucella. The flash was strong enough to momentarily dye the surroundings in white and black. Still, even then, Lucella was unharmed.

And finally, Lucella had already arrived right before Gregor.

“Gah!”

Lucella roughly kicked at him. It was a simple kick, with no technique or anything. It broke his staff, bent his body, and threw him flying and rolling.

Lucella didn’t even confirm whether he was alive or dead. Lucella would just finish him off later if he was still breathing.

“T-This is impossible!”
“Huh?! You b̲a̲s̲t̲a̲r̲d̲, don’t run without m–”
“Gyaa!”

Another member, the ranger Jean, instantly made up his mind to flee once he saw the two were taken down. From the start, he was an exploration supporter. He lacked battle power a little, and specialized in running.

Seeing the two taken down in succession, he seemed to have judged that running was the only option. That was probably the correct decision. But a spear immediately pierced through his fleeing back.

Lucella had picked and thrown a nearby spear.

Jean collapsed. He crawled a little and came to a halt. Red stained the ground under him.

“You’re next.”
“Eeek!”

Finally all alone, Gemel started trembling on the spot, unable to run or fight as if his feet were glued there.

“P-P-P-Please wait! I-It’s true that I killed you…! But i-it was also me who picked you up, right?!”
“Shut your mouth. Your words repulse me.”
“I-I fought, while you handled the background work… W-We did well, right? Why not restart it?!”
“You’re the one who ended it. What would you want from a handyman at this point?”
“Eek… F-Forgive me!”

Lucella indifferently rejected his unsightly appeal to show gratitude.

Surprisingly enough, Gemel prostrated himself with his forehead on the ground.

“P-P-Please spare me! I-I’ll change and live an honest life! I’ll never do something like this again, and I wouldn’t even attempt to get involved with you! So, p-please don’t kill me!”
“H-Huh?”

He spoke rapidly with a stiff tone. Gemel threw everything away and begged for life.

The way he curled his giant body and kissed the ground was so pathetic Lucella was dumbfounded.

Lucella’s emotions went beyond anger to feeling desolate.

He thought the world was too unreasonable, as someone as insignificant as Gemel was able to use and ultimately almost kill him off.

For a moment, all Lucelle felt was emptiness, making him lose even his fighting spirit.

“…True, you’re just a lowly scoundrel. You got swayed by money and committed a crime, but you don’t even have a proper determination to commit evil. You’re just a lowly scoundrel that’s less than the rubbish, one that would only stain my honor if I kill you. And, if I let you off, you’re probably gonna live secretly somewhere and never get involved with me.”
“Y-Yes, that’s right, hehe…”

If you saw a dog poop on the ground before you, would you want to touch it? If it was at the entrance of your house, you’d most likely pinch your nose and clean it up, but you’d ignore it if it was just on the roadside that’s unrelated to you.

What Luella was feeling right now was similar to that.

Gemel’s expression turned into an obsequious smile when he saw the hope that he would be spared.

“But sorry.”

The next moment, something gigantic descended while making the mountain tremble.

“Kgh…”
“Looks like Kafal isn’t as lenient as me.”

Kafal stared down at Gemel with eyes burning with anger and tore his body to shreds.