Story of a Cannon Fodder who Firmly Believed He was the Protagonist, Misunderstood the Actual Protagonist as the Cannon Fodder, and Ended up Victorious
Translator: Tsukii
Editor: ink
Read at Watashi wa Sugoi Desu!
Chapter 037 – End of Sightseeing [B]
Dungeon, 23rd floor. There were many adventurers wielding their weapons and using magic to subdue the demons who marched toward the ground above.
“Damn it…”
Rhine couldn’t hold back his irritation and squeezed out such words. There was only one reason why he did so. It was because there were too many demons. There were tons of them, way more than what was reported.
Are they… are they being endlessly drawn from somewhere…
Rhine’s eyes clearly sensed that something was leading the demons somewhere. Their numbers kept growing. Rhine’s group felt their legs weaken at the seemingly endless hellish battles. They were surrounded before they knew it.
He couldn’t even report to his elder sister who waited above for him. Somebody definitely caused this march, but nobody had any idea who it might be. The eeriness and anxiety of not knowing anything became a heavy burden. Their overall morale went down.
There was no casualty. Nobody was hurt. They went through a large number of battles. Even so, there was no joy as their expression distorted bitterly.
“Stay focused!”
They were surrounded by demons, and couldn’t easily make moves while some demons were heading above ground. There should be adventurers on the demons’ way so they were still fine, but it would be bad if this situation lasted any longer.
He wielded his sword and magic to subdue those demons… but he wouldn’t be able to make it.
Damn it… the morale of the members of Romeo is falling… Damn it… If only I could lead others to act… just like my father did.
I am the deputy leader of the legion…
I shouldn’t trouble my elder sister more than this…
Rhine was thinking about his elder sister Barbara in his head. The person who supported Rhine devotedly wasn’t his parents, but Barbara. His mother died when he was young, and his father was killed.
His father, who was the leader of Romeo, was succeeded by Barbara as it was. There was a period where Rhine got foolish ideas after losing his parents. He mistook recklessness as courage, and kept exploring dungeons and nearly dying, he kept swinging his sword beyond the limit, and was desperate to get stronger.
And there was also the adolescence period. There were times where he ignored his elder sister and ate alone, and there were times he felt annoyed by his elder sister and hurled insults at her.
He merely knew that the weak would die, so he didn’t want to stay weak.
[“Why do you care of me all this time?”]
[“Rhine is my little brother after all. We’re the only siblings each other have, right?”]
[“…”]
[“Don’t be like that, okay? We know we can’t be together forever, so why not do so while we are still together? We are the only family we have left.”]
Barbara was always supporting her little brother. At some point, Rhine also began to wish to support her as well. There was no romantic feeling between them. It was nothing but how the family wished for each other happiness.
Rhine was well aware. Unless he grew strong enough and could stand on his own, his elder sister would never leave him.
Rhine was aware that as a woman, Barbara did have the desire to fall in love, marry with said person, bear a child, and show her child off to her parents.
[“Eh? You asked whether there is a person of opposite sex I am interested in? What, your preference goes that way?”]
[“…You know that’s not what I meant.”]
[“Ee-h? Really? Ah, okay okay, don’t be angry, okay? U-hn, let’s see… I guess I’ll find one after Rhine achieves his happiness?”]
[“…”]
Although Barbara was his elder sister, she continued to act like his parent at the same time.
I have to get stronger… if it’s merely this much… I.
Rhine didn’t want to trouble his elder sister. He wished Barbara would chase after her own happiness rather than helping her brother achieve his.
Therefore, he didn’t rely on his sister today. It was because he thought he was able to make use of his combat power and commanding ability to get through this irregular situation.
However, it seemed that would no longer be the case. If this continued, then his elder sister who was standing by above would have to swing her sword. She would continue to think that she had to look after Rhine from now on. And considering the abnormal number… there was a possibility that the damage would spread to the inhabitants on ground above.
“Deputy Leader! This is bad! Even the demons on the 40th floor and below are also marching!”
“Wha…!”
Rhine was astonished. In front of their eyes, there were several demons with a big body and single eyeball which were known as Cyclops. They were one of the most troublesome demons to deal with, as they possessed a certain degree of resistance to magic.
“What a thing to happen…”
Rhine’s group numbered about fifty people, while the demons kept growing in numbers. The biggest problem was in this seemingly endless battle, the morale of his comrades was falling. Some demons slipped through Rhine’s group and marched toward the ground above.
“…We’ll have to reduce the number as much as we can… as for the rest, we have to entrust it to …”
Rhine was thinking of relying on his elder sister. However, he couldn’t help but clench his fist as he did so… But it seemed that he was the only one who thought that way. The place they were in was a plain connected with many hill-like places.
“I can’t take it anymore!!”
“At this rate, we’ll die…”
“There’s no choice but to withdraw.”
“I can’t suppress it…”
A person ran away, even though they were supposed to protect the cave leading upstairs at the plain. The formation collapsed and with one started running away, many followed after, along with several hundreds of demons that marched.
There were also demons who were supposed to dwell on a deeper floor, some of which flew above and unleashed their breath. They were driven to the corner. With their comrades running one after another, the people remaining were Rhine and executives of Romeo along with a few members. The tank role escaped, causing the formation to begin collapsing, and injured people began to appear due to demons’ breath and the like.
Possible damage to ground above, setting a bad example to his sister, and irregularity that went beyond expectation. Many factors overlapped… even so… Rhine couldn’t afford to run away. He faced the endless battle alone.
His arms got injured, and his art was about to run dry.
However, the demons didn’t lose their momentum. He would end up dying at this rate… But if he did, then the damage would spread to his elder sister and the powerless inhabitants of the Free City.
“Rhine!”
When Rhine was at a loss, he heard his sister’s voice. She used wind magic to wipe out the demons between them and secure his path to retreat.
“All hands retreat! Rhine, hurry up!!”
His sister’s angry voice echoed. It wasn’t her usual gentle voice, but a strict, commanding voice as the leader of the legion. Everyone began to withdraw from the scene as if being pulled by the charismatic voice.
However, they understood what it meant if they, one of the greatest forces in the city, were unable to suppress the demons. If this number of demons got out as it was, the Free City would be transformed into a city filled with scream, despair, and chaos.
There were powerless citizens on the ground above. Perhaps those adventurers who only cared about conflict between legions would plot something. There would be people who would dramatize and spread rumors that Romeo, who failed to suppress the situation, was evil.
And there was still an evil existence which was responsible for this march of demons.
Rhine bitterly distorted his expression as his leg sped up. He saw Aliceia in front of him. She was also afraid by the number of demons.
There were also figures of members who fled ahead of him earlier. Rhine finally rejoined Barbara. They were hiding in a rocky area at a fairly high position. It was because there were many demons in the sky.
“Rhine, I’m glad!”
Barbara embraced Rhine.
“…We have to hurry and stop them… if this keeps up, then people’s lives will…”
“…It can’t be helped… I will take full responsibility for this. Things are too different from the information, so it really can’t be helped… Perhaps we could stop them here if every member manages to exert their potential, but it’s practically impossible to do so while facing death.”
“…”
“If it’s our father instead… perhaps he could have done—“
“—Leader!!”
A voice echoed. The executive Triten called out to Barbara.
“The demons changed the direction of their march!”
“Eh…?”
Triten said so. Barbara and other members looked to confirm. Certainly, the movement of the demons was beginning to change.
At that moment, they all felt a great pressure as if a waterfall fell upon them. Someone was unleashing their intimidation. It fell upon the entire floor of the dungeon.
“…Fay!”
Aliceia shouted. That voice that carried sadness and anxiety went toward a certain direction. A swordsman ran through the rocky mountain.
“He’s taunting them… every single demon on this floor.”
It was Fay unleashing his intimidation. Originally, the force would be several levels lower than what he unleashed unconsciously. However, that was still enough to stimulate the demons’ defensive instinct and provoke them.
He ran in the opposite direction from the pathway that led to ground above. He kept on running. A breath (flame) was unleashed from the sky to the ground. Fay avoided that and cut the demon down.
A horde of giant bird-shaped demons rushed toward the ground above. Only death awaited if one faced those hordes head-on. Fay forcefully strengthened his right leg.
“—gh.”
He avoided the attack and beheaded one of them as it was. However, the right leg he forcefully strengthened was rendered unusable. Then he immediately poured potions on his leg to heal it.
“…Is that bastard rushing to his death, rushing toward that horde?”
Avoid, avoid, slash, heal, slash, avoid, heal, slash slash slash slash, avoid, heal, avoid avoid, heal. He got wounded, healed it, and swung his sword. All while pain accompanied his every movement.
His blood overflowed. Demons’ fangs and claws broke his clothes. His body was injured. He was always running, breaking his leg in the process so he wouldn’t get surrounded.
He was running on a thin, thin lifeline.
“He’s laughing…”
He was laughing there all alone. Nobody could understand that.
One wrong move and he would be crushed easily and killed. He was moving next to death, nay, it was more correct to say that he was half a step into the realm of death.
There was no way anyone would laugh in that state.
It was as if one moved at a thin line which connected two tall mountains. One wrong step would lead to their death. There was no way a normal person wouldn’t feel nervous and laugh instead in such a situation. Such was the deviant man in front of their eyes.
There was no way they could go there to help. There were demons around that man like a whirlpool.
Everyone thought so.
Only suicide applicants would go.
Someone had said earlier that they felt that the person over there was someone who was rushing to an early grave. Be it Romeo’s executives like Triten, the Deputy Leader Rhine, and the members of legions, they were all thought the same.
However, Barbara saw a completely different thing to them.
Want early access to Executed Sage, Melancholy of the Demon Army Officer, and I Was a Man Before Reincarnating, So I Refuse a Reverse Harem? Support the translator on Patreon!
Also, Tsukii has picked up a new series called “A Story of a Cannon Fodder who Firmly Believed He was the Protagonist, Misunderstood the Actual Protagonist as the Cannon Fodder, and Ended up Victorious!” The title really says it all. Early access to more chapters for this story is available on Patreon.
SHOW EM FAY SHOW EMMM
THE MAN THE MYTH THE LEGEND!
Barbara fell for him please!
I just miss one day to comment and see many people.how good FAY to spread his madness to reader, LETS GOO AND KILL ALLL DEMON FAYYYYY,
I respect Fay(except for event let his eye lost, we need someone to punch him)
Thx for update
Usually I don’t comment, but this here is gold and I just can’t seem to check every now and then for more. Keep up the good work
thx for comment and glad u enjoyed it
My Man FAY!!!! A Battle Devil, A One man Army, and a Fearless Challenger, can’t wait to read more!!!!
glad you enjoy it, look forward to next week!
Another one has fallen for him?
Thanks for the awesome translation Tsukii!!
you’ll find out next week why i make cliff here, but it’s not as you thought it might be
Thank you for the chapters!
Go Fay! Show then how a true protagonist deals with the impossible!
well, more like show his madness