My Desertion Would Be Faster Than Heros' Obsession-Chapter 80

Sanchez continued his explanation like this was the most normal conversation ever.

"I used to work under a blacksmith, so I know how blacksmiths and carpenters handle hammers. But your technique isn’t like theirs. It’s much closer to how mercenaries use hammers in combat."

"O-oh... I see...." Karon stammered.

"Yes. I, too, have occasionally used a hammer to smash skulls—"

The rest of Sanchez’s sentence was so disgustingly graphic that my brain automatically censored it for self-preservation.

"**DON’T—**just don’t explain it!" I hissed. "Goddamn it, you’re horrifying."

I was still reeling from what Sanchez had said when I noticed Karon, standing there, still looking completely clueless.

You were raised by imperial foster parents after your Arkon birth parents died in the army... right?

But if he really grew up in a normal household, then why would he know how to kill people with a hammer?

What the fuck did you do before joining the army, Karon?

***

For the next task, I handed Karon a bucket and sent him to fetch water.

That was just an excuse, of course.

If this village was in his memories, I wanted him to take a good look around and see if anything came back.

I was a little worried about sending him alone, but if I left, the work here would fall apart.

For now, I was helping Aquila repair a broken fence.

When the flood hit, the posts had been ripped out of the ground, so we were digging them back in.

"So you sent Karon alone?" Aquila asked.

"Yeah."

Aquila fell silent, deep in thought.

"Do you have any guesses about his past?" I asked.

"Hmm. Not really. I haven’t heard anything concrete."

"Yeah... I figured. It still feels weird, though...."

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I sighed, my brows furrowed.

"Damn it, he better be fine. Feels like I sent my kid on his first errand alone."

"Agreed. Parenting is hard."

"It really is...."

"Don’t worry. We practiced."

"...Did we?"

As we dug into the wet soil, our voices naturally lowered.

And then—

"Salvia."

"Yes?"

At this point, I was used to this voice appearing without warning.

I lifted my head and saw Winter standing there.

The moment Aquila saw his elemental opposite, his face darkened.

"I need you for something. Come with me."

"Ah. Yes, sir."

I quickly stood up and glanced at Aquila. He was clearly irritated, probably because he was now stuck doing all the work alone.

Oh well. Can’t be helped.

Winter led me through the village until we stopped in front of a building.

I remembered hearing that the villagers had set aside a space for us to rest.

Of course, low-ranked soldiers like me never got the chance to use it.

And now, Winter had brought me here.

The house looked like a normal family home, but inside, there were hastily placed tables and chairs.

"Salvia, just sit here and do this paperwork."

I followed orders and sat down, taking the documents he handed me.

It was a basic list of necessary supplies for the repairs—probably something no one would actually read.

More importantly, it was an extremely easy task.

Compared to shoveling mud all day, this was basically a vacation.

Huh.

If this were a romance novel, I’d probably think Winter was treating me kindly because he had feelings for me.

But I’m not falling for that bullshit anymore. Not in this goddamn world.

At the table next to me, our current officer, Jay, was passed out, snoring.

Yeah, I fucking knew it.

Jay was probably supposed to do this paperwork, but he dumped it on me instead.

This wasn’t special treatment.

This was just some high-ranking bastard making me do their work.

Winter, meanwhile, was flipping through his own documents, clearly busy.

Ignoring the idea of some romantic development, I just picked up my pen and got to work.

"Salvia."

"Yes?"

"Eat while you work."

Winter pushed a paper bag toward me.

"This is from the village."

"...Thank you?"

Confused, I took the bag and peeked inside.

My eyes immediately widened.

This... This is...

Black-market food!

Inside were soft bread rolls topped with whipped cream.

Sugar.

So much sugar.

My hands shook.

It had been forever since I last ate something sweet.

The problem was that without sugar, I turned into a complete asshole.

I could literally feel my personality deteriorating every time I missed a sugar intake.

I’m sorry, rookies. I was a bitch because I was hungry.

I hesitated, looking at Winter as if asking for permission.

Winter simply asked, "Is something wrong?"

"Ah, no... I just... Can I really eat this?"

"You’re allowed to eat outside food while on external duty. There are no regulations against it. In fact, during long-term missions, we rely on outside food for meals."

Winter was always strict about rules.

If he was allowing it, then it was completely fine.

I see. He’s not being nice. He just follows the rules exactly.

And soon—

I was happy.

The whipped cream melted in my mouth, and for the first time in months, I felt calm.

This is the taste of civilization!

As I happily stuffed my face, Jay continued snoring at the next table.

Winter, meanwhile, looked unusually relaxed, a small smile on his lips as he watched me eat.

Well, of course he looks relaxed.

We’re out here shoveling dirt while he gets to sit and do paperwork.

"Salvia. Cream."

"Ah. Right."

I quickly wiped my mouth, picked up my pen, and started writing.

***

That night, as we returned to base, I finally remembered that Karon existed.

To be fair, the shock of eating real food had been so overwhelming that my brain completely erased everything else.

But when I saw Karon again, something was off.

His usually bright brown eyes were narrowed in discomfort.

His smile, which was always present, was gone.

"What's wrong? Did you remember something?" I asked.

"Ah, well...."

Karon started to say something, but suddenly, he winced and grabbed his head.

His expression twisted in pain as if a massive headache had just hit him.

I watched as he shook his head, trying to fight through it.

"S-sorry... my head just hurts a bit...."

"Are you okay? Do you want me to stay quiet?"

"No, no... I'll just try to push through it."

"What do you mean 'push through it'—your head is hurting, just rest."

I sighed and patted his back gently.

Something in this village is triggering him, for sure.

Did he used to live here and move away?

But as I looked at Karon's confused expression, I figured it was best not to press him too much.

For the rest of the walk back to base, Karon was strangely silent.

Normally, he would’ve tried to talk to me, eager for attention.

But this time, he was deep in thought, his eyes unfocused.

"Karon, does your head still hurt?"

"No, it’s fine now," he replied, his voice calm and steady.

It was too calm.

I turned to Aquila with wide eyes, and he looked just as shocked.

Why is he so quiet? You think this is weird too, right?

Yeah. Something’s definitely wrong.

Even though his headache was gone, Karon remained quiet the whole way back.

And for the first time, his brown eyes seemed... darker.

So instead of talking, Aquila and I just kept sneaking glances at him, watching him like he was some kind of wild animal we weren’t sure was tame anymore.

***

Back at base.

"Hey, Aquila. What if this is... that kind of thing?"

As soon as we got some free time, I dragged Aquila to a corner.

Because there was no way I was relaxing after what just happened.

"Karon... looks like he regained part of his memories. So does that mean he's slowly turning into his past self?"

Aquila crossed his arms, considering it.

"Maybe. If his memories are returning, it makes sense that his personality might shift too."

"So then... does that mean he used to be calmer and more mature?"

Would Karon gradually change into a more composed person as his memories returned?

I sighed, feeling weirdly sentimental.

"Damn. Our youngest is growing up...."

This felt exactly like watching a kid hit puberty.

That bittersweet feeling of watching someone change and grow.

So this isn’t a big deal after all.

At first, I was worried something bad might happen, but in the end, it was probably fine.

It was better for Karon to fully regain his memories, right?

It would stabilize him in the long run.

...Except.

Did this happen in the original story?

Think, think.

I tried to recall the scene in the novel where Karon talked to Dalin about his past.

That moment when he explained why he had always followed Salvia.

When he talked about how Salvia had taken care of him when he was confused and lost.

"So, Karon, have you regained your memories now?"

"No! But I don’t think it really matters."

Wait.

In the original novel, Karon never recovered his memories.

That was a permanent plot point.

It was never resolved because the author just used his memory loss as an excuse for his cheerful personality.

They just slapped a convenient backstory on him and called it a day.

That novel was so goddamn lazy... why the hell was it even popular?

Still.

The male leads were at least portrayed as cool and charismatic, dammit.

Unlike this ridiculous mess I’m in now.

But in the original story, Karon never remembered anything and stayed happy-go-lucky forever.

So then...

What the hell is happening now?

I hadn’t done anything special—so why was Karon suddenly recovering his memories?

...Wait.

Could it be...?

"Shit. Did hitting things with a hammer actually help?"