I Want to Be a Hero

"Zhang Xiu? You're back? Huh! What's all this on you...? And these girls...!"

March 7th and the others, who had just driven off a crowd of vagrants, were startled by the blood-drenched Zhang Xiu, especially by the women draped in sackcloth behind him.

"What did you...? What happened? And these girls...?" Seele's expression tightened, then turned somewhat pale.

Having spent so many years in the Underworld, how could she not recognize what had happened?

She immediately turned away and clicked her tongue. "Tch, damned scum..."

Among them, only March 7th, Stelle, and Bronya had not considered that possibility. They simply assumed the women's clothes had been accidentally torn during the fighting with the vagrants, so they had covered themselves with sackcloth.

But after Zhang Xiu calmly explained, leaving out some descriptions unsuitable for children, the three of them turned pale as well.

"They... how could they...?" March 7th's eyes widened, her body trembling.

"Keep heading down. I'll take them to Natasha..."

Zhang Xiu did not linger long before leading the victims upward, but Seele stopped him.

Under his questioning gaze, Seele let out a heavy breath and said, "Don't let word get out. Otherwise, those miners' families will go mad and rush down here..."

"Don't worry. I know, which is why I had everyone cover their faces."

Watching the group gradually depart, Dan Heng sighed, then turned and continued downward. "Let's keep going..."

Just before they reached the top, Zhang Xiu suddenly remembered that he had not yet cleaned off the blood. He had Yaoshi create a stream of water to wash away the bloodstains, then dried his clothes and body.

"Look! Someone's coming out!"

Their arrival naturally drew the attention of those above. Natasha came to the front as well, but just as she was about to ask a question, she caught sight of the people wrapped in cloth behind Zhang Xiu.

"...Come straight to my clinic."

"My wife has already healed them, and they've put on new clothes... but they'll only come out if they can cover themselves."

As they spoke, Yaoshi created two wooden barriers, completely blocking everyone else's view and extending forward.

Natasha's clinic stood at the end of the path, and in this way, they arrived inside the empty clinic.

"Leave them in my care. If possible, I'd like to ask you to return to the front lines and treat the wounded there."

"...All right. Sorry for the trouble." Zhang Xiu nodded.

Just as Zhang Xiu and Yaoshi were about to leave, the girl they had first encountered tugged at his clothes again.

"Please... please take me with you. I want to help too..."

Her request brought Zhang Xiu to a halt, and he looked gently at the blond girl before him.

"Can you tell me your name?"

"Shaya. My name is Shaya," she answered hastily, her small hands tightly clasped against her chest.

"All right, Shaya. If you want to help us, then do your best to help yourself and everyone else become who you were before... okay?"

"Yes! Okay! Shaya will do her best!" The girl nodded vigorously, even puffing out her chest.

After giving her a few words of advice, Zhang Xiu and Yaoshi left the clinic and headed back the way they had come.

Left behind, Shaya watched Zhang Xiu's retreating back intently, her tightly clenched hands now at her sides.

"I'll definitely... do my best..."

By the time the two returned to the Great Mine and made their way down, Stelle and the others had already come face-to-face with Svarog, whom Clara had asked to help the miners.

"Ah, Zhang Xiu! You're back... How are those people doing now?" Hearing footsteps, March 7th turned around and saw a dispirited Zhang Xiu and an unsmiling Yaoshi approaching them.

"They're all fine. It's just... they're hurting inside. Natasha has taken them to her clinic for treatment."

He struggled to lift the corners of his mouth, trying to reassure everyone, but he could not relax no matter what he did.

"Zhang Xiu, you're not in good shape right now. You should return to the hotel and rest."

"No, no, I can still fight. Have you... run into Svarog?"

Zhang Xiu raised his head mechanically, his heavy gaze instantly settling over Svarog's entire body, making him instinctively shield Clara.

"Threat assessment..."

"You...! You! Don't stand in everyone's way!!" Zhang Xiu's face instantly twisted into a vicious expression.

The pent-up pressure inside him erupted at that moment, and black branches and shoots began sprouting uncontrollably from his body.

His frenzied aura formed a visible vapor, bearing down on everything around him like a flood.

"Zhang Xiu! Calm down! Don't attack recklessly!" Dan Heng stepped in front of him.

An oppressive atmosphere spread once more, and just as everyone stood at a loss...

Yaoshi embraced Zhang Xiu from behind.

A long, gentle song flowed from her lips and spread all around them.

The branches and shoots on Zhang Xiu's body stopped growing and slowly burrowed back inside him.

The song's melody made Zhang Xiu's eyelids flutter, and drowsiness climbed from the depths of his heart into his mind.

Just like that, he fell asleep in Yaoshi's arms.

When he groggily opened his eyes, a somewhat familiar ceiling greeted him.

"Where am I...?"

Zhang Xiu tried to reach out with his right hand, but felt something weighing it down.

Turning his head, he discovered Yaoshi lying quietly beside him, her expression as gentle as ever.

"Husband, would you like some tea?" With a soft laugh, she produced a cup of pale brown tea.

"Thanks, honey... Has everyone come back?" Zhang Xiu accepted the tea and looked at his reflection in it.

"They have all arrived here safe and sound."

"That's good. That's good... Should I... apologize to everyone?" A trace of uncertainty entered his eyes.

"They did not blame you, husband. Still, offering a few words of apology would be wise." Yaoshi helped the groggy Zhang Xiu to his feet.

After draining his tea in one gulp, he let out a heavy breath. "I didn't know what had gotten into me back then. I just wanted to hit something."

He shook his head and handed the empty cup to Yaoshi.

"Um, thank you. If it weren't for you, I might have done something terrible..." Zhang Xiu shook his head with a bitter smile.

"We are husband and wife. It is only right that we support one another, just as you did before." Yaoshi leaned against Zhang Xiu's back, her slender, seemingly boneless fingers wandering over his collarbones.

"May I ask you something, husband?"

"Ah, of course. Whatever it is, just ask." Zhang Xiu shivered slightly and gently rested his right hand on Yaoshi's.

"What is your dream, husband?"

"My... dream?" Zhang Xiu turned his head in confusion.

"My dream is... to build a paradise? That's more of an ideal, isn't it?"

"My dream, my dream..." His expression grew distant, as though he were remembering something, or perhaps weighing whether to say it aloud.

"I want to be a hero."