I will finally embark on the road of no return called hero

Was it because of that face?

Cyd sighed as he watched the girl in front of him wrap herself tightly in her coat, as if trying to disappear.

"Have a little confidence, will you?"

"I'm fine like this," she murmured.

Cyd exhaled through his nose. That kind of response... It stung. He didn't know what she had been through, but it wasn't hard to guess it wasn't anything good.

If the world had true heroes—the kind legends sang about, flawless and unwavering—then maybe there wouldn't be people like Gray, girls who thought they had to hide just to exist.

But those heroes didn't exist. They were stories. Hopes. Not real people.

Still… that didn't mean he couldn't try to save the girl in front of him.

"Alright, enough stalling. Inside you go!"

Cyd gave Gray a firm push, but she braced herself against the door like her life depended on it, her face going red.

"Uuuugh!" She shook her head furiously, afraid that even the smallest slip-up would get her shoved inside.

"Come on, you're already here," Cyd sighed. "You really think I'm letting you back out now?"

Gray's eyes widened, and before she could react, Cyd's fingers brushed against her waist.

And then—

"Tickle, tickle~"

"Pfft—hahaha! N-no, stop that!"

The moment her hands lost strength from laughing, Cyd twisted the doorknob.

Click.

"!"

Like a startled rabbit, Gray bolted, trying to dive behind Cyd for cover.

Bad move. This was Cyd she was dealing with. The hero of Greece. A guy who had outrun gods and held his ground against beings far worse.

"Yo~ El-Melloi II, I just rescued your student from her own hesitation." Cyd casually lifted Gray by the back of her coat, shaking her slightly for emphasis.

"Uuuuugh," Gray whined, pulling her coat's collar up over her face.

Cyd quirked a brow. Something about the way Lord El-Melloi II stood in the dimming light of sunset... It felt heavy. The weight in his posture, the exhaustion in his aura—it was the kind of pressure that made even a bystander uneasy.

"Master?" Gray hesitated. It wasn't often she saw him like this.

"...It's nothing," El-Melloi II muttered, pressing a hand against the window frame.

Gray swung her legs slightly, still dangling in Cyd's grip.

"Now's not the time to act tough." Cyd finally let her down and walked up to the mage. Without hesitation, he jabbed a finger into the man's lower back.

"Ow—!" El-Melloi II straightened up instantly, grimacing. "Damn it, Cyd, you nearly snapped my spine!"

"But your face looks a lot less grim," Cyd grinned, patting him on the shoulder. "Don't bottle everything up, alright? I might be crashing at your place, but that also means I've got your back. And Gray does too, right?"

"I-I do!" Gray perked up—then immediately shrank down, retreating to the couch and pulling Cyd's coat over her head. Only a single silver ahoge peeked out, twitching slightly.

"...Gray."

El-Melloi II blinked, mouth slightly open. He seemed caught off guard by her antics, but after a pause, he sighed and turned his head away.

"...Yeah. I need your help."

Gray peeked up at him with wide eyes.

Cyd chuckled and reached over, flicking her ahoge. "Must be serious if it's got you this shaken up."

El-Melloi II dropped into his chair, rubbing his temples.

"It's bad," he admitted. "Someone stole it. My most important relic."

Cyd narrowed his eyes. "Which one?"

"...The cloak of a certain king."

The King of Conquerors.

Cyd folded his arms, studying the man slumped over his desk—no, not El-Melloi II, but Waver Velvet.

"You must have some kind of lead."

El-Melloi II pulled a letter from his desk and slapped it onto the table.

"An invitation," he said flatly. "To a banquet. On the Rail Zeppelin."

Gray flinched.

"The magic eye auction train?" Cyd mused, picking up the letter. "Once a year, a gathering of the worst scum in the supernatural world, all there to sell and buy magic eyes. A non-human train, huh?"

"More than that." El-Melloi II sighed. "It's a den of monsters. Even some Lords hesitate to cross it."

Cyd whistled. "So, basically, a place you should avoid, and yet…"

Gray tensed as Cyd rested a hand on her head, preventing her from instinctively standing.

"...You're going, aren't you?"

"Even if it costs me my life." El-Melloi II clenched his fists.

"Then we're going too."

Cyd didn't even hesitate. He reached down and hoisted Gray up again like a sack of potatoes.

"W-Wha—?!" she flailed before grabbing a cushion and using it to cover her face. "I-I'll help, Master!"

El-Melloi II opened his mouth, hesitated, then nodded. "...Thank you."

Cyd set Gray down. "So, how strong is this magic train, anyway?"

El-Melloi II exhaled a puff of smoke. "Not a matter of strength. It's... different. Their technology is beyond belief. Imagine carving out a piece of a storm or lava and safely implanting it into a person. They can do that. Even the Lords debate whether to act against them."

"Sounds like someone already did," Cyd noted.

"Yeah… One of their auctions got wrecked by Aozaki Touko and her puppet," El-Melloi II muttered, rubbing his temple. "And, well, that place is where you find monsters only a Grand-ranked magus could handle."

Cyd clicked his tongue. "No matter the era, the weak always get devoured by the strong. Magic eye holders get hunted by Rail Zeppelin, and Rail Zeppelin gets raided by them…" He exhaled. "And now, the weaker you just got targeted."

"...I won't argue with that." El-Melloi II took another slow drag of his cigarette.

"Then don't let your emotions cloud your judgment." Cyd snapped his fingers. "You may not be the strongest, but you're the kind of guy who can flip the board on someone who is. So, let's start building a winning hand. Why were you targeted?"

El-Melloi II frowned. "It's not my magic eyes. I don't have any worth stealing."

"Your bloodline?"

He snorted. "Please. My lineage is a joke."

"...Wow, alright, didn't need that level of self-awareness."

"Then it's your relic?"

"No. If it was just the cloak, they wouldn't have left the invitation."

Cyd's eyes gleamed. "Then that means—"

El-Melloi II stiffened.

"...They want me."

Cyd smirked. "Bingo."

Gray hesitated, then slowly raised her hands. "...Do I clap now?"

El-Melloi II's eye twitched. "...You're messing with me."

Cyd just grinned.

"...You're lying."