KonoSuba: Blessing This Wonderful World! IF Route - Kazuma Becomes a Dark Hero of Vengeance
Sato Kazuma, an adventurer, was fighting against the Demon King's general Beldia with his party members Aqua, Megumin, and Darkness.
But just before the final battle, their strategy leaks to the enemy because of Aqua's blunder. Kazuma finally snaps, yelling, "You guys are the worst!" He banishes his party and decides to fight alone.
"I'm never trusting anyone again."
With that vow, Kazuma joins the dark guild 'Shadow Stalker.' There, he meets Maria, a former goddess turned dark priestess who
KonoSuba: Blessing This Wonderful World! IF Route - Kazuma Becomes a Dark Hero of Vengeance - Don't screw with me! — My worthless party and my breaking point
"Don't screw with me, you bastards!"
Satou Kazuma's furious shout echoed through the second-floor tavern of the Weathercock Inn.
The wooden table shuddered with a heavy thud. A tankard tipped over, frothy ale spreading across the floor. No one could make a sound. The surrounding adventurers flinched and turned to stare.
I slammed the single sheet of paper I'd been clutching in my right hand onto the floor.
It was the battle plan for tomorrow's decisive fight. No—to be precise, it was the remains of a plan that had already been completely leaked to the enemy.
The receptionist, Luna, had told me just five minutes ago.
*Kazuma-san, the entire strategy for taking down Beldia has been exposed.*
My mind went blank.
Why? How?
When I pressed her for answers, Luna, with an awkward expression, spoke the name of a certain goddess.
*Aqua-san, yesterday, here in the tavern… got carried away drinking and spilled everything to a stranger.*
I was at a loss for words.
Just when I was about to risk my life in a huge gamble to pay off our 300,000-eris debt. Just when Beldia, a general of the Demon King's army, was attacking this town—Axel—and I was hoping for a single, dramatic reversal of fortune.
Beldia. A Dullahan called the Headless Knight, clad in jet-black armor that radiates a cursed chill, stealing the warmth from anything it touches. A demon commander equivalent to S-rank, beyond the Adventurer's Guild's ability to classify.
The plan was designed to exploit his weakness. Using my skill, Drain Touch, to siphon his mana while Megumin hit him with a dose of Explosion magic. In the meantime, Darkness would endure as our shield, and Aqua would finish him off with her purification magic.
We spent five days preparing. It was an all-out gamble for us, the Kazuma Party.
And yet. Despite all that.
"Ehehe, sorry~"
Aqua laughed, her translucent, light-blue ponytail swaying. Her large blue eyes were wide open as usual, showing not a trace of guilt.
That face of hers just poured fuel on my anger.
"…'Sorry'? That's it?"
A low voice came out. So cold it surprised even me.
Aqua's smile stiffened slightly.
"Well, it couldn't be helped! The drinks were so good yesterday, I just got a little carried away!"
"A little?"
"Yeah, a little! And then this old guy sitting next to me said, 'You guys always have it rough, huh,' so I said, 'I know, right! We've got a big job tomorrow against a Dullahan!' and he was such a good listener, so I just ended up telling him the whole plan!"
"You just… ended up?"
"Because he asked about the enemy! 'How are you going to beat him?' he said! I was just telling him! Being helpful!"
I took a deep breath.
I filled my lungs with the smell of grease from the tavern and the scent of spilled ale. From outside the window, the bustle of Axel at dusk drifted in—the sound of wagon wheels, the calls of merchants.
This town is known as a starter town. It's the first place people who dream of becoming adventurers come to register, with a population of about fifteen thousand. This place, the Weathercock Inn, has the guild reception and bulletin board on the first floor, and a tavern and dining hall on the second. Their specialty is Adventurer Curry, 300 eris a plate. We were always so poor that even treating each other to that curry was a question.
Memories I'd rather forget began to surface, one by one.
—A quest reward of 50,000 eris.
That time, we exterminated Giant Toads. It was hell. Nearly swallowed by those slimy, massive bodies, we somehow managed to beat them, and I handed the bag of reward money to Aqua.
The moment I shouted, "Don't drop it!" Aqua smiled brightly and said,
"It's fine, it's fine! Trust in me, a goddess—oops!"
She dropped it in the river. 50,000 eris. All of it vanished into bubbles.
—In the forest, I walked while shifting the small body on my back.
"D-damn… the weakness after using Explosion magic…"
Megumin groaned on my back. Her long black hair, reaching down to her waist, kept brushing against my face. The Crimson Demon Clan's characteristic deep crimson eyes always faded slightly in color after she channeled her magic. One shot and she was completely incapacitated. It was a given that I'd carry her home piggyback every time.
"Megumin, for the love of—think before you use your magic… If it's always like this, we can't fight properly."
"My name is Megumin! Explosion magic is the ultimate offensive magic permitted to humankind! What kind of mage would I be if I didn't use it!"
"Look here…"
—On top of the city wall, I held my head in my hands.
"Ahh! More! Strike me more, Skeleton Knight!"
Darkness, a female knight with long blonde hair in a ponytail, stood blocking the enemy's path with both arms spread wide. Eyes closed, an enraptured expression on her face. Her mouth was slack with pleasure.
Our carefully built defensive line collapsed. Because she took every single enemy attack, her armor in tatters, and still just stood there saying "Yes… more…", two, then three Skeleton Knights slipped past towards us.
"You're definitely doing this on purpose!"
My scream echoed.
And now.
A debt of 300,000 eris.
The cause was Aqua accidentally destroying part of the town's barrier with her purification magic. The repair costs. To pay that back, I staked my life on this plan. A chance had finally come around.
And yet.
"Don't screw with me, you bastards!"
I slammed the table and stood up.
My chair fell backward. On my right hand—there shouldn't have been anything yet, no white marking-like thing—no, that comes later. Right now, there was only pure rage.
"You're all fired, as of today. I'm kicking you out of the party."
Aqua's face finally changed.
"…Huh?"
"Kazuma, that's—"
Megumin cut herself off. The small, black-haired mage's crimson eyes were wide open. Even her usual catchphrase, "My name is Megumin!" was absent.
Darkness was also staring at me, bewildered.
"Kazuma… your joke is going a bit too far."
"Do I look like I'm joking?"
My voice was quiet. But even I could tell. The look in my eyes right now was nothing like my usual pathetic, dead-fish stare.
"I-I don't trust any of you anymore. Get lost. Do whatever you want."
Leaving it at that, I ran down the stairs of the Weathercock Inn.
I thought I heard Aqua's crying voice from behind me.
—Even so, my feet didn't stop.
I passed through the guild's first floor and pushed open the door.
Outside, it was already dusk. The rooftops of Axel were dyed orange. I started walking aimlessly down the cobblestone streets. I couldn't go back to the Poka-Poka Inn. Even if I did, those three might be there.
(*Dammit…*)
I cursed inwardly.
But deeper down, there was something darker.
Anger. Sadness. And—loneliness. All of it mixed together, a thick, murky mass swirling in my chest.
If it's come to this, I'll just throw everything away. I won't trust anyone. I won't rely on anyone. I'll do it all myself.
As I walked, thinking such thoughts—
"—Don't let your anger go to waste."
A voice spoke.
I turned around. In the shadows stood a man with a hood pulled low over his face. I couldn't see his features. But his voice carried a strangely cold smirk.
"What do you want?"
The man didn't answer. Instead, he held out a single piece of paper.
It was old parchment. Unfolding it revealed a map of Axel's underground waterways. It said there was a hidden entrance at the bottom of a dry well in the commercial district.
And then, the final line.
—*Turn your anger into power.*
"Hey, you…"
When I looked up, the man was already gone.
The wind blew through. The cold autumn air chilled my cheeks.
(*Shadow Stalker… the dark guild, huh.*)
I'd heard rumors. A story about an organization formed about seventy years ago by adventurers exiled from the official guild. Dealing in forbidden skills, assassination requests—I'd never heard anything good. But—somehow, as if drawn in, I started walking, still holding that map.
Meanwhile, at the Poka-Poka Inn.
Aqua was lying face down on her bed in her room, crying while eating a rice ball.
"*Hic… hic…* What's his problem, stupid Kazuma…"
Clutching the rice ball with both hands, grains of rice sticking to her face, large teardrops spilled down her cheeks.
"I-I just talked a little too much… *hic…* Why do I have to be kicked out of the party… *waaah…*"
In front of the door, Megumin and Darkness stood frozen.
"…This is a first for me."
Megumin murmured quietly. Fiddling with her black hair, her crimson eyes were moist.
"Seeing Kazuma make such an angry face."
"…Well, he snapped in a way you'd never imagine from his usual pathetic self."
Darkness folded her arms and looked down. Her blonde ponytail swayed gently.
"Enough that even I felt fear."
"…You're not saying that in a weird way, are you?"
Megumin gave her a dead-fish stare. Darkness shook her head.
"No, truly. It was frightening. If he was that angry, then surely, he must have been at his limit for a long time."
A brief silence.
Outside the inn's window, the veil of night was beginning to fall.
"—I will bring him back."
Darkness raised her head. She looked at the two of them with serious blue eyes.
"An ending like this is far too miserable."
"…Me too."
Megumin nodded.
"I still haven't properly told him about the magnificence of my Explosion magic. Besides, without Kazuma, my means of transportation after casting Explosion…"
"So it *is* based on the assumption that he'll carry you piggyback!"
The two looked at each other and laughed a little.
But their eyes weren't smiling.
And when the darkness of night had deepened.
I stood before the dry well in the commercial district.
Just as the map said. At the bottom of the well, a stone staircase continued downward. A cool draft blew up from below, the damp smell of earth stinging my nose.
"So this is… the entrance to Shadow Stalker."
I muttered. My own voice was swallowed by the darkness.
There were still words on the map.
—*Turn your anger into power.*
Without understanding the meaning or reason behind those words, I took a step onto the stone stairs.
My footstep echoed with a *clack*.
Deep in the darkness, I thought I saw a faint, purple light.
I didn't yet know what awaited me there.
But I had no intention of turning back.
Because, after all, there was no place left for me to return to.
(*I won't… trust anyone anymore.*)
I murmured once more in my heart.
The stone stairs seemed to continue endlessly into the depths of the darkness.
One step.
Another step.
I slowly vanished into that darkness.
I felt like the purple light grew just a little stronger.
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