I Became a Burden to the Conscienceless Party

The Lieutenant Colonel who had agreed to help me escape was killed by the hero.
Honestly, he was just one of my workplace superiors whose name I couldn’t even remember, but his sacrifice will be forever etched in my heart.

“Damn it…”

Honestly, I didn’t expect it.
That the hero would follow me, I mean. Usually, even if I said I’d be away for a while, she would simply nod her head.
It was an operation I carried out only after several such confirmation procedures.
I checked how long she would stay put and under what circumstances she would allow my outings.
And yet, of all times…

“Surely I wasn’t found out…?”

Of all times, yesterday. It’s strange that they targeted yesterday among many opportunities.
As if they had seen through our plans.

“No, this is just paranoia.”

If so, she would have no reason to keep me alive. Forgive me because we’ve been together for a long time? No matter how easy-going the hero is, that’s impossible.
Well, it’s not entirely impossible… but there’s no reason for her to pretend not to know in that case.
The hero has already become too powerful for me to handle.
In such a situation, to pretend not to know about a demon who’s been selling information and let them live? There’s no way such a fortunate thing could happen.
Yes, if I had been found out, my head would have already been cut off.

“Munch munch. Irina! There are so many berries in the forest like this.”

The blonde girl with green eyes who appeared from the forest carrying an armful of unidentified berries nods with her mouth full of pulp.

“Hero… Those berries are poisonous. You can tell just by looking at the color, can’t you?”
“Is that so? But since it doesn’t affect me, it should be fine, right?”
“No, sigh… Sit down here. I’ll cast a purification spell on you. And please throw away those berries too.”

The girl with pure white hair and blue eyes, who has a fresh impression, sighs and sits the hero down as if scolding her.
The recovery and support specialist of the hero’s party.
The saint, Irina Saintis.
Originally, there were five people in the hero’s party including me, but now we’re separated for our respective missions.
Well, when I say missions, it’s more like they’ve gone back to their main jobs, not particularly something Esmeralda instructed.

Since everyone is a promising talent from their respective groups, they often take time off.
Of course, this time it’s expected to lead to more serious activities, so they’re supposed to join in the middle…

‘I should have quit before that.’

What rotten luck.
How did they manage to gather only the natural enemies of demons in one place?
But there is one good thing.

“…I don’t think I would have been caught by the hero, if anyone else.”

The hero is fundamentally naive.
This is the result I’ve confirmed after infiltrating this party and living with them for over 3 years. Perhaps it means she’s pure as an apostle directly chosen by God. And being pure also means being that ignorant.
In other words, simply put, she’s stupid. But even if she’s stupid, she has good intuition and luck.
Just look at how she stopped my escape this time.

“Damn it, I should have considered that once the hero received the holy sword’s choice, her intuition would be good…”

I didn’t know it would be good enough to catch an escaping demon and their group. If that’s the case, it would have been better if she had caught me when I first infiltrated.
Fortunately, thanks to her purity and ignorance, she doesn’t seem to suspect that I was colluding.

“Mr. Jim, are you alright? I heard from the hero. That you were kidnapped by demons while we were sleeping yesterday.”
“Ah, I-I’m fine, Saint.”

As I was grinding my teeth alone like that, the woman who had been busy stopping the hero approached me.
This girl with snow-white hair and sky-blue eyes is the only conscience in this insane party and also my natural enemy, the saint.
Just her approaching makes me feel suffocated.
Indeed, the saint of the Celestial Order.
The concentration of holy power floating around her is literally murderous.
If I were a low-level demon, I would have melted into mere blood just from her approach.

“Don’t you think it would be better if we sleep in the same tent even at night? If something like this happens again…”
“Ah, no. That’s a bit…”
“I’m worried. Mr. Jim is weaker compared to us.”

It was a bit hurtful to hear.
But it’s not wrong, I had already become the weakest existence in the hero’s party.
Whether I reveal my true form or not.

“Still, it’s not good for others to see, and it’s easy to cause misunderstandings, so it’s better not to. I don’t want to be a bother.”

Just sleeping in the same space as you would give me nightmares.
Surely in my dreams, baby angels would appear blowing trumpets and pick a fight with sweet voices saying, “Has this bastard lost his mind?”

“Is that so… I shouldn’t burden Mr. Jim any further.”
“If that’s the case, would you let me leave this party…”
“That’s not possible.”

Irina Saintis rejected my request with a bright smile.
Why is everyone in this damn party so desperate to keep me?
And is this something to reject with such a radiant smile?

“But if there’s anything difficult, please tell me. I can only pray for Mr. Jim, but…”
“No, there are many other things you can d… Kup!”

Irina grasps my hand with both of hers and assumes a praying posture. Pure white light leaks from her palms and burns my hand.

“…”

I mustn’t scream here. It took exactly 2 years to get used to this act.
Fortunately, it’s a consolation that her prayer is not to destroy demons but to wish for well-being, so even if it hurts, it doesn’t leave a wound.

“Fufu, even though you say you don’t like it with your mouth, Mr. Jim always allows my prayers. I’m really grateful for that.”
“…”

No.
When Irina Saintis grasps my hand, my body just shrinks as if electrocuted.
It means I have no choice but to stay still because of the physical damage.
I want to run away if possible.
It’s uncomfortable to be in the same place with the saint who has a head full of flowers along with the hero!

“Then shall we go eat now? Yesterday, we couldn’t properly serve you because you were kidnapped… But today we’ve shown our skills together with the hero.”

Irina Saintis smiles brightly while holding my hand. That smile is truly fresh and beautiful. Separately from that, I wish she would let go of my hand…
The sensation is starting to disappear.

“No, I don’t have an appetite…”

And there’s no way I could eat.
The Lieutenant Colonel met such an end for my sake.
How could I eat with a normal face when it hasn’t even been a day since the Lieutenant Colonel died?
I’ll abstain from food and drink for three days and nights to honor the Lieutenant Colonel’s death…

“Because Mr. Jim had a hard time yesterday, today we specially prepared spicy hot soup with red pepper powder that Mr. Jim likes! Irina woke up early to make it, you know?”
“Yes, I’m coming now.”

Let’s just eat a hearty bowl of soup and start honoring from lunch.

A red stew boiling in the pot as if it contained hell itself.
The hero, Esmeralda, didn’t like that stew, but she decided to keep her mouth shut for the depressed Jim.

“Here! Enjoy your meal! Mr. Jim.”
“Thank you, Hero.”
“No need to thank me! It’s my role to take care of my companions’ mental health, right?”
“Ah, yes…”

Usually, it was Jim’s job to take care of the companions’ mental health.
The hero Esmeralda was, if anything, the one being taken care of. She didn’t seem to have any mental anguish, but because she didn’t know much, there was a lot to teach her in many ways.

“Phew… phew… Mr. Jim really likes this food. For me, ugh… it’s a bit spicy…”

Irina, who had received the food first, asked with tears in her eyes.
This is the part where you can tell that this food was made solely for me.
Even in the midst of that, she tried not to lose her benevolent smile, which was indeed saintly.

“Haha, is that so? Maybe it’s because it’s similar to the food from my hometown.”

A taste similar to the purgatory soup of the demon realm.
Jim, who had been dispatched for a long time, often felt nostalgic for the soup that substituted for it.

‘Yes, purgatory soup… I must have eaten it with the Lieutenant Colonel too. Now the Lieutenant Colonel can no longer eat it.’

Jim suddenly recalled the face of his workplace superior who was killed last night and put down his spoon dejectedly.

“Can I have another bowl?”
“Of course! This dish was prepared for Mr. Jim in the first place, right?”

Jim received a refill of the soup he had scraped clean and picked up his spoon again.
If he was going to put down his spoon in sorrow for the Lieutenant Colonel’s death, he wouldn’t have eaten in the first place. Of course, Jim was the only one who could enjoy the spicy hot soup.
Everyone knew he liked the soup, but not everyone could like it.

“Ugh…”

Irina ate her food with tears in her eyes, under the mission that she shouldn’t leave any food uneaten.

“Nom, nom.”

At least Esmeralda wasn’t picky about food.
If the other two from the hero’s party were here now, surely one would be crying and the other would quietly put down their spoon.
Esmeralda thought this as she ate the soup spoonful by spoonful.
As the meal was coming to an end, Esmeralda stared intently at Jim, who was already eating his third bowl of soup.

“Wh-what is it?”

Jim felt uncomfortable under that gaze and asked, and the hero, Esmeralda, answered with a broad smile.

“Nothing at all.”

Pure and innocent. A smile that even looked somewhat stupid.
But what was reflected in those two eyes was…

[Name: Jim]
[Race: Half-blood Demon]
[List of Characteristics]
Common Magic Lv. 32
Black Magic Lv. 34
Blue Blood Lv. 1
Balance Lv. 4
Tireless Stamina Lv. 2

[Comprehensive Estimate: Lv. 274]
[Note: He is enjoying the food you made with satisfaction. Some of his accumulated stress has been relieved.]

“Then enjoy your meal! Mr. Jim.”

The clearest truth of all.

‘You’re going all the way with me, you damn demon.’

The hero, Esmeralda, was keeping an eye on Jim, the demon spy, today as well.