The Hero’s Party Members Treat Me Well for Some Reason - Chapter 89



On Lifespan**

Fortunately, when I emerged from exile, the party members were still continuing their investigation.

Lily was probably holed up in the study, and Adele seemed to be exploring the artifacts.

Upon checking, it appeared that only Camilla was wandering aimlessly down the hallway. After all, compared to those two, Camilla had little to gain in this mansion.

With her interest waning, all she could do was meander about, pretending to investigate without purpose.

“Hmm, what’s going on? Why are the two of you together?”

Camilla asked with a puzzled expression upon spotting us.

Yulis nonchalantly played dumb.

“We ran into each other on the way here. How is the exploration going?”

“To be honest, I’m not sure. Unlike during the Convergence, there’s nothing particularly noticeable in this mansion… So, I’ve actually left the investigation to Adele and have just been lingering around.”

“Hmm, then shall we prepare some food together? Camilla, you’re good at cooking, aren’t you?”

“That sounds good. It’s a great idea.”

Yulis naturally drifted over to the other side. Now, all that was left was to enjoy a light meal and rest before heading back.

Since I had nothing in particular to investigate aside from that place of exile, I decided to help with her cooking.

After all, it seemed like it would take quite a while for Lily to gather her books.

Fortunately, no one complained about my helping out. My assigned role was to prepare the ingredients.

It was a task that was hard to mess up and also the simplest one.

And to be honest, I was good at dismantling things, but not so much at cooking.

‘Status window.’

As I prepared the ingredients, I took a moment to check my status.

Reciting the system in my mind, a status window filled with text appeared before my eyes.

———-

Name: Luke

Lv: 85

[Skills]

Mana Control Lv8, Bright Style Swordsmanship Lv.6, Combat Focus Lv.7, Multicasting Lv.6, Pain Resistance Lv.9, Poison Resistance Lv.10, Blood Flow Acceleration Lv.5, Pain Memory Lv.6, Blood Exchange Lv.5, Vitality Absorption Lv.5, Fireball Lv.5, Indomitable Lv.2, Master of Poison Lv.2, Convergence Lv.MAX, Puppet Lv.MAX, Pain Inscription Lv.4, Blood Flow Manipulation Lv.4, Hardening Lv.3, Electrocution Lv.3, Mana Shield Lv.5······

———-

The first thing that caught my eye was my level. A remarkable 85.

Now, I was only two levels behind McGuff, the strongest in the Empire. Of course, that two-level difference was significant.

I had now officially entered the ranks of the strongest.

‘In the game, this level is usually reached after defeating the third of the Four Heavenly Kings…’

As the difficulty increased, my growth accelerated significantly. The combinations of skills I had acquired were quite impressive as well.

Good. The self-harming dark mage build is steadily growing. Just a few more skills to learn, and I can evolve into my complete form.

I’m already strong enough, but there are still a few more spells I can obtain.

However, no matter what anyone says, the biggest gain this time was this.

Puppet (傀儡) LvMAX.

It’s the power of the Puppet Master. With this, I now possess two powers.

Even obtaining just one would be an overpowered ability, and I have two.

Powers are not just for show. It was as if I had a secret weapon that could allow me to triumph over opponents stronger than myself.

In fact, I had captured the Puppet Master thanks to the loneliness summoned by the charm.

Of course, there were other ways to capture it, but… it made my overall strength even greater. Though it did cost me some lifespan.

“By the way, I heard from Lily.”

“Hmm?”

As I was lost in thought, Yulris spoke to me from the side.

It seemed she had come by while Camilla was simmering a stew. She continued speaking while peeling the carrot skins beside her.

“I heard you used up some of your lifespan again this time…?”

It was a seemingly indifferent question, but it was something I couldn’t ignore.

I nodded with a somewhat troubled expression.

“…Yes.”

“Hmm…”

After hearing my answer, she let out a deep sigh. Then, with a worried look, she asked again.

“How many years did you use?”

“Not much. About 10 years?”

“No, not just this time. The total amount.”

“Hmm…”

How many years had I used, indeed?

I rarely used it, so I didn’t remember well. But as I racked my brain, I was able to calculate it quickly.

Before becoming a hero, I spent 10 years leveling up, 20 years fighting the Charm King, and another 10 years for summoning the loneliness this time.

In total…

“…40 years.”

It is the time it takes for a single human to be born and reach middle age. A period that cannot simply be viewed as a number, and indeed, it is a very long time. I have poured all of that into the power of sacrifice.

I had been ignoring it for so long that I hadn’t realized I had already lost quite a bit of time.

“Oh my…”

Upon hearing that, Ulyss showed a look of shock. Then, with a sorrowful gaze, she looked at me and said,

“Hero, it may be unavoidable, but… please try not to use your lifespan too much from now on.”

“That’s easier said than done…”

“Hero, using up your lifespan doesn’t just mean you die suddenly at some point.”

She spoke to me as if arguing. Before I could respond, she continued.

“Surely, either way, your body will show signs of deterioration first. Before I returned to the past, you… had coughed a lot after sacrificing some of your lifespan. Your organs must have been damaged, or your immunity dropped or something like that.”

That was a fact I was hearing for the first time. So, there are signs that the body is breaking down.

Indeed, it was strange to suddenly die when the lifespan was exhausted.

Thinking back, there was that sensation of the reaper’s scythe passing by every time I sacrificed my lifespan.

It was as if it was tearing at my very soul. It was a perfect state for a discord between body and mind to arise.

Having experienced such things multiple times, it was not surprising that my body was still intact.

Startled, I quickly began to contemplate my body. I turned my slightly recovered mana to check my organs and bones.

Fortunately, there were no particular broken parts yet.

Perhaps it was because my body had grown stronger as my level increased; 40 years didn’t seem to cause any issues.

Naturally, questions arose.

‘So, how many years of lifespan do I have left?’

When I possessed this body, its age was in its 20s. I didn’t know the exact age, but I just assumed it was at least 20.

So, with 20 years of life lived and 40 years of lifespan sacrificed, I had consumed a total of 60 years.

Then what remains? How much lifespan is left?

Still, I was a hero, after all. A human with the best body and energy. I was sure I had more lifespan than most others.

Moreover, the strong of the world tend to have relatively long lifespans.

Even that gentleman, Jes Cuban, whose mana circle is now broken, has long surpassed 100 years, and MacGuff, despite being over 60, is still very lively.

In other words, my lifespan, which belongs to a high level, might have increased as well.

If that’s the case, assuming a minimum lifespan of 100 years, the lifespan I could use going forward would probably be…

‘40 years.’

And the Four Heavenly Kings still had half their lifespan left, and the Demon King was still going strong. Even if I had more lifespan to use in the future, the pressure would remain the same. It might even be less…

Thinking about the future, my face momentarily hardened. Yet, I tried to act nonchalant as I answered her.

“Yeah, well… I’ll try to be more careful from now on.”

I should do my best. If what she said is true, perhaps it was fortunate that there were signs after all.

At least it meant there was some sort of warning before I passed away naturally.

By then, I might even be able to deduce my remaining lifespan by observing my body.

As I finished that thought, the investigation by the party members was nearing its end.

Lily came bustling over, her hands full of books. She must have had a spatial bag, but seeing her insist on carrying them in her hands, it seemed she wanted to show them off.

In contrast, Adele was trudging along behind her with weary steps.

“Look at this! There are so many magic books! Back in the Demon Realm, there were only strange novels and dark magic books… It seems that this Gwaereusa was indeed a magician. Hehe, I can’t wait to go back and read them.”

“It seems you had some gains. I didn’t find much here. I got a few paintings that look somewhat expensive and a couple of old wines… but that’s about it. Paintings owned by the Four Heavenly Kings, huh? The nobles will surely love them.”

“Everyone’s here. First, let’s fill our stomachs.”

With that, we had a light meal and fell asleep in the Gwaereusa’s mansion.

It was indeed a mansion, and there was more than enough space to sleep.

Sleeping on a luxurious bed in the depths of the Demon Realm was quite an extraordinary experience.

“Well then, let’s start heading back.”

“Sigh… It’ll take a while to return.”

Having finished our investigation and preparations, we packed our things the next day and headed towards the Empire.

I quietly let out a sigh.

“Ha…”

It was time to face people again.