Translated: Sei, MTL-sensei-tachi
Edited: Sei, Grammarly no Danna
Source: Syosetu

Support us on Ko-Fi or Patreon to make this translation and the translators keep alive.
Thank you for your support FrankMagri

TL Notes:
My family is facing an unexpected financial challenge. If you are in generous mood. Please support us. 
You can commission me (Request Novel) on Ko-Fi or Patreon (I can only translate Japanese, though). 
We would be forever grateful for any contribution, big or small, to help us overcome this difficult time. Thank you

Chapter 324


　Ururu-san has started joining me for my morning training.
　Since this run is basically meant to check on the town’s situation, I ran through the streets with her at a leisurely pace ——— and then I met up with Nero-san, who was doing his early-morning training, and we had a light sparring session.

"Usato-kun, do your best!"

　Of course, I had Ururu-san watch from the sidelines.
　But sparring with an opponent of the same skill level as Rose is definitely a great experience for me, too.
　...It's worrying that my healing disruption technique is starting to be seen through on the second day, but at least I've realized there's still room for improvement in this technique, so that's good enough.

"So, now you're going to meet my subordinates... but don't be shy."
"It’s fine. I know what to do."

　And then, in the afternoon.
　Nea, Hannah-san, and I had made our way to the former soldiers’ barracks where Koga was staying.
　As you’d expect from a soldiers’ barracks, there was a training ground nearby, the perfect place for practice.

"This is where hell begins..."
"It’s just training, why are they so fired up?"
"You'll find out soon enough."

　Nea looked utterly worn out, while Hannah tilted her head in puzzlement upon seeing her like that.
　Keira might show up, but... for today, it looks like she’ll be joining the two of you on the tour.

"Ah, there it is."

　Koga stopped and pointed at three demons standing at the edge of the training ground.
　Three? ...I guess you could call them an elite few? I hear the Demon King’s Army has been disbanded, after all.
　... Besides, those three look familiar.

"Isn't it a little too late, Captain Koga?"
"His habit of being late isn't anything new, is it?"
"He’ll show up eventually. All we can do is wait."

　These are the uniquely powerful soldiers I fought in the dungeons of the Demon King’s Castle.
　A female demon with hair a shade of gray verging on black, specialized in speed.
　A man who wields wood-based magic, his mouth hidden by his collar.
　And then there was the giant man, clad in rocks like armor.
　Just as I was astonished by these three, who had left quite an impression on me, they seemed to notice us and turned to face us.

"Geh?! A healing mage?!"
"I knew you were coming, but why are you here...?"
"This is a truly bizarre coincidence."

　...You weren't told?
　As I watched Hannah and Nea sit down in the shade a short distance away from us and turned my gaze back from them to Koga, who had been walking beside me, he stepped forward to face them.

"Oh, oh, it looks like you're all here."
"Captain, what exactly is going on here?"

　Koga returned a beaming smile to the question posed by the demon man, who had hidden his mouth behind his collar.

"There's nothing more to say; this guy will be in charge of your training."
"""Ha?"""
"This is Usato, Vice Commander of the Kingdom of Ringle’s Rescue Squad. Well, you’ve all fought him at least once, haven’t you? He’s better suited for teaching, so I’ve decided to leave it to him."

　Both I and they were confused by the sudden introduction.
　Wait, did you just tell them? Isn't that a bit too casual?

"Can I request a transfer to Amira-onee-sama's department right now?"
"How many times do I have to tell you to let me know about things like that in advance...?"
"I want you to act with the awareness befitting someone in a leadership position."

　What a total backlash...!?
　Koga, who had been laughing heartily at his subordinates’ fierce objections, turned to me and pointed behind him with his thumb.

"The stern-looking one on the left is El. She’s a crazy one who’s weirdly devoted to Amira."
"Could you please refrain from introducing me without my permission?"

　Ehto, so the fast runner is El-san.

"The normal-looking guy in the middle is Kevin. Well, he's pretty normal among this group."
"Is it really necessary to say ‘normal’ twice...?"

　Kevin seems like a pretty ordinary guy.

"The big guy on the right is Wal. He’s a bit old-fashioned in his speech and mannerisms, but he’s actually a pretty sensible guy."
"Healing Mage-dono. We met on the battlefield before, but it's nice to meet you again."
"Ah, thank you very much for your polite introduction..."

　Greeted by Wal, who seemed to be the eldest, I instinctively replied as I always do.
　Being Koga’s subordinates, they’re all quite capable.
　... Well, putting that aside for now.

"Koga"
"Hmm?"
"Next time I see Senri-sama, I’ll advise her to correct your careless attitude."
"Why would you do that...?"

　It's those kinds of careless mistakes that lower your evaluation, you know?
　This is something that absolutely needs to be fixed, or things will be incredibly difficult from now on.

"As Koga just told you, I’ve been put in charge of training the expedition team heading to the Monster Domain, as well as any candidates who join us later."

　First, I tell them that I’ve been assigned to lead the training.
　Then, El-san glares at me with a defiant look.

"You just show up out of nowhere and expect to be the instructor? There’s no way I’d accept that! And of all people, it has to be you!!"
"I wouldn’t take it to that extreme, but it’s definitely a complicated situation..."

　As he scolds El, Kevin looks conflicted.
　Since we were enemies not long ago, I knew this reaction was to be expected.

"I suppose that’s only natural. I don’t expect you to accept me that easily either."
"Hmph!"
"You’re saying I need to prove I’m capable of teaching you? Well, that makes things simple."

"Please refrain from causing trouble by fighting or anything like that."

　Hannah-san, who seems to have guessed what I’m about to do, warns me, but of course I already know that.
　Sure, sparring would be the quickest way, but forcing them to acknowledge me by brute force is out of the question for me.

"Well then, shall we play tag (onigokko)?"

　In that case, I’ll just have to make them acknowledge me in some other way.

●
——— read on seireitranslations.blogspot.com ———

Hannah POV

　Usato-kun, the healing mage I serve as an assistant to, is a strange fellow.
　Even from the perspective of the human race, his behavior is odd, and the fact that he doesn’t change his attitude toward demi-humans at all just adds to the strangeness.
　Honestly, even now, I doubt the very fact that he’s a normal human.

"Nea-san"
"What is it?"

　Nea is Usato-kun's familiar.
　She, who admits to having a worse personality than mine, was staring at the scene before her with a distant look in her eyes.

"What kind of game is 'tag' (onigokko) again?"
"Apparently, it's a game where one person is assigned the role of the 'oni' (demon) and chases after the people who are running away."

　The three of them chased Usato-kun; whoever touched him first won.
　Although both sides were allowed to use magic, Usato-kun himself didn’t use anything, not even the gauntlet he normally wears in battle. In fact, he wasn’t even using any strange magical acceleration.

"Does this guy have eyes in the back of his head...!?"
"He’s dodging everything...!?"
"This is the height of unfairness!"

"Can you even play that game of tag with a blindfold on?"
"Normally, that's not possible. Normally."

　On top of that, with a cloth wrapped around his eyes to restrict his vision, the scene before me became even harder to believe.
　Is that the “Magic Perception” technique, a derivative of the “Magic Circulation” method that was spread recently?
　A technique that extends one’s senses to detect magic scattered throughout the air.
　I knew Usato-kun was the one who came up with it, but...

"I'll stop his movement!"
"..."

　He leaped to dodge Wal’s charge from behind without even looking back.
　As he spun in midair, he used Wal’s back as a foothold ——— and dodged the wooden staff Kevin had sent flying.

"Is this also being detected?! Is he really not seeing it!?"

"Usato's magic sensing ability simply allows him to detect the location of living creatures and objects moving within its range, but his reaction speed is so high that it makes it a troublesome ability."
"So that means surprise attacks don’t work on him anymore?"
"Well, I guess so."

　It’s a useful skill once mastered, but it’ll probably take a lot more time to master it to that level.
　To begin with, I wonder what kind of process led him to master such a mundane training method as “magic circulation” in the first place... That’s what interests me the most...

"Kevin! Aim for his landing! Coordinate with me!!"

　El and Kevin aim for his landing.
　Indeed, since Usato-kun isn’t currently using that inexplicable burst of magical power to accelerate, he has no way to dodge it.

"Is this the end, then?"
"No, it's not over yet."
"Eh?"

　Just as I let out a startled gasp, Usato suddenly unleashes healing magic from his entire body.

"Healing Disruption"
""?!""

　The two froze, their faces showing their shock.
　In that split second before he came to his senses, Usato-kun landed safely on the ground and moved away from the spot.

"...What was that just now?"
"Healing Break. It’s a baffling technique where he throws a powerful healing spell at his opponent in the middle of combat."
"No, I really don't understand it at all."

　Wait, why would you deliberately do something that heals the opponent?
　And why did those two stop moving?
　This technique is so beyond my comprehension, it’s driving me crazy.

"What’s wrong!! You won’t even be able to lay a finger on me like that!! Weren’t you supposed to give me a run for my money?!"
"This guy isn’t human...!?"
"Guh..."

　More than anything, I can’t accept the fact that he’s winning so easily.
　Standing with his arms crossed before the three of them, who were kneeling on the ground, Usato-kun showed no signs of fatigue.
　And to think he’d been running all over the training ground just a moment ago.

"...If anything, isn’t the ‘oni’ (demon) the one running away?"
"You’ve got a point."

　To think even his familiar would admit that...
　A healing mage charging across the battlefield.
　To think he could overcome the gap between our races just based on sheer physical stamina, it’s nothing short of absurd.

"...He has done this before, but it’s still better than that time."
"Was it even worse than that?"
"We decided to ban magic and not let him use one arm or one leg, but he was still moving around just fine."

　Uwaah, how on earth does he manage to move around on one leg?

"Are you taking us for fools?!"

　For some reason, El lashes out at Usato in a fit of rage.
　He tilted his head in confusion, but was there something surprising about his actions?

"You healed us too? What's your intention!?"
"Well, I’m using healing magic, so of course you’re going to be healed."
"That’s exactly why I’m saying I don’t get the point of healing us!!"

　  ?  I’m not entirely sure, but does that mean Usato-kun was intentionally casting healing magic on the other person too?
　As if those words had finally made sense to him, he crossed his arms while still blindfolded.

"Part of the reason is that I have to release magic to sense it... but yeah, I guess it’s also because this way, we can train for longer."
"...Ha?"
"I don't need to go to the trouble of healing you guys when you're tired, and more importantly, you can come at me with all your might. Wouldn't it be a waste not to take advantage of this?"

　I feel like I've just heard a really terrifying story.
　What on earth is that guy talking about?

"If we use this, even people who don't use healing magic can train while healing in a way that's similar to ours. ...Well, the effect will probably be considerably weaker, though."

"So, basically, if he wants to, he can force them to keep training while forcibly restoring their stamina...?"
"Nea-san, what’s actually going on?"
"...It’s a nightmare. I mean, he does know some restraint, so I don’t think it’ll get completely out of hand, but... hmm."

　Is it really that bad...!?
　It’s not right if it tests your mental endurance more than your physical.

"Now then."

　Usato-kun removed his blindfold and looked at the three of them, who were standing there speechless.
　Seeing the expressions of confusion, humiliation, and astonishment on their faces, he gave a slightly embarrassed smile.

"So, have you finally acknowledged me?"
"Kuh, I have no choice but to admit it...! You're definitely faster and stronger than me...!!"

　El stood up, wiping the dust from her cheek.
　Her eyes were still glaring at Usato-kun, and her determination, that she would never lose, came through loud and clear.

"But don't get the wrong idea...!! I may acknowledge your skill, but that doesn't mean I approve of you!!"

　El pointed a finger at Usato-kun in a defiant tone.
　Given how I was, I couldn't help but be genuinely impressed by her astonishing mental fortitude.

"I'm definitely going to beat you to a pulp, so be prepared!"
"...Fuh, that's more like it. At this rate, I'll be able to go all out."
"Eh, all out...?"

　Far from getting angry at that declaration, Usato-kun just smiled even more broadly. With his arms still crossed, he spoke to Koga-kun, who had somehow appeared beside him.

"Your subordinate has potential."
"Right? They have got some serious guts."
"Fufufu, I'm looking forward to training from now on."
"Hahaha, I'm all for it, as it sounds like I'll get to see something interesting."

　Uwaah, they look like they're having fun!
　It's not just that Koga-kun and that princess named Senri look alike, but what really stands out is how much they resemble Usato-kun.
　He seems more lively than usual, and it looks like this expedition's training is going to be quite challenging.

——— read on seireitranslations.blogspot.com ———

Author's Notes:
In a past side story, the demons who appeared inside the Demon King’s Castle made an appearance.
Among them, El is particularly well-suited for the Rescue Squad because of her competitive spirit.