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Volume 6 Chapter 123

Tina’s Memories

Three weeks have come and gone since coming to the land of the beastmen.
Only one more week remains now before returning to Infrus Magic Academy.
We will be exploring the ruins of Vestia this whole week. These ruins have a dungeon inside, and it is a place associated with the hero who defeated the Demon King hundred years ago. Normally it is forbidden for anybody to enter as a precaution to prevent adventurers from raiding it.
The dungeon could still hold some treasure, equipment and items, left behind by the previous hero. In fact, weapons and other valuable items used by previous heroes have been located in other dungeons once visited by the previous heroes.
Some of these dungeons that the previous heroes have conquered have been sealed off, in the belief that such items should be kept for the next generation of heroes.
I was permitted to enter the ruins because I am now the owner of this country and Tina is a descendent of the hero. There was no one to complain.
However I was cautioned by Leo, the king of the beastmen, to refrain from destroying the ruins as much as possible.
The purpose of our exploration is to walk in the footsteps of the hero that Tina looked up to so much.
I was curious to learn what kind of person he was.
More importantly, I wanted to know his name.
Hundred of years ago, there were five heroes that defeated the Demon King and saved the world. Naturally, books were written about them.
Oddly, the hero that Tina admired was not mentioned in any book. People simply referred to him as the 『Guardian Hero』, because his strength grew when he had someone to protect.
Besides that, there is very little information about him.
There were records of monsters he vanquished, but no description of his name, appearance, or fighting style in any book.
Despite being one of the heroes who saved the world, he was the only one without any portraits or statues.
Is there a special reason why that is?
A few years ago, I did ask Tina for the hero’s name.

──＊＊＊──

「Tina, can I speak with you?」
「What is it?」
「Tina, this hero you travelled with, his name is never mentioned in any of the bookings…… Do you know the reason this is?」
「Oh, that’s because, despite saving people, he never once shared his name」
「He didn’t share his name? Why?」
「He said that he was ashamed that he didn’t have the power of a real hero — he was ashamed he had to use me in order to fight」
The Guardian Hero was transferred to this world without receiving the skills and status from the gods. So he needed Tina.
Even with protecting Tina, his power was not at the level of what a normal hero who had been transferred would be. Still, he continued to help save people as a hero.
Together with Tina, he helped people.
Tina has the blessing of 『Descendent of the Hero』. It is the blessing that appears in the bloodline of heroes every so generation.
Tina and the Guardian Hero saved many countries and cities from the threat of monsters while mutually learning from each other.
「 I see…… But, Tina, you must have heard his name, right?」
「Of course! He is—」
Tina’s expression went blank.
He, the hero’s name is— wha, why…… why?」
「Hey, Tina, are you alright?」
Tina’s face turned pale.
She could not remember the hero’s name.
It is more serious than that, it seems.
It is as if someone has stolen her memory of the hero’s name.
In the end—
「Tina!」
Tina fainted.
She was sweating more than normal.
After a while, she regained consciousness, but she did not remember what we were talking about. I checked her status, but I could not find anything amiss.
But I had seen how she reacted earlier……
It is as if something is forcibly sealing her memories of the Guardian Hero — looks like the case.

──＊＊＊──

Since then, I avoided asking her anything about the Guardian Hero.
And I thought that these ruins might provide some clue about the name of the hero or Tina’s memories.
This is because this was the first ruin that Tina and the Guardian Hero had visited together.
I was a bit nervous about bringing her along. She did collapse just trying to remember the name of the hero. But I had a feeling that I might find a way to retrieve her memories that have been erased or sealed away here.
「Read?」
「「「Yes!」」」
All my classmates, including Tina, were coming with me to the dungeon in the ruins.
The dungeon is said to have taken the Guardian Hero and Tina a month to conquer, but with this number of members, we would be able to clear it in a week.
I heard that the Hero and Tina were able to level up to around level 100 after completing the dungeon, and I surmised that with a number of our classmates already above level 100, we should have no problem— that is what I assumed.
Although, if it is not possible to clear it in a week, we can just return to Infrus Magic Academy and try again next time we have more time.
It was now time to enter the dungeon of the ruins.