To Avoid Getting Wiped Out by the Hero's Party [Western Fantasy]

[Third-person narration]

[Female lead's perspective]

I'm the diligent, by-the-book tank warrior in an adventuring party.

As we reached the boss's lair, the hero suddenly turned evil.

I'd always thought there was something wrong with him. I'd warned everyone to watch out for the hero.

Nobody listened to me, the bastards. Nobody listened!

Well, now everyone's dead...

When I opened my eyes again, I realized I'd gone back to the day I first met my teammates.

The hero smiled warmly and invited me to join his party.

Trembling, I reached out and took the hand that had killed me and my teammates.

I knew I had to do something.

First, I couldn't kill him. If he died, we'd fall to the Demon King.

Second, I couldn't pursue him. He'd turned evil because the princess rejected his advances.

In the end, I figured I could only use the light of justice to illuminate his heart.

Hey, hero, stop being so gloomy and look at the world. Isn't it beautiful?

[The hero]

Every time, I watched my friends die at the hands of the Demon King.

They died such horrible deaths.

To keep that fate from coming to pass, I did everything I could think of.

It all failed.

I despaired. Maybe I went mad. In one of the loops, a terrifying idea took root in my mind.

If their deaths were inevitable, then why not let me give them a gentle death?

I killed the priest. Even until the end, his brown eyes never showed me the slightest trace of hatred.

I killed the mage. She fought back with all her might, but her magic wasn't strong enough to hurt me.

At last, I killed the warrior. I waited for her to draw her final breath, then leaned close to her ear.

"I love you."

That was the secret I'd meant to tell you only after we'd won the battle.

[A brooding, gloomy but good-hearted hero x a sunshine-bringing, lazy warrior who just wants to coast]

Reading guide:

1. Monogamous pairing, exclusive couples, the man is in love with the woman.

2. Side pairing: a slow-speaking priest who takes half a minute to chant x a cool, serious mage who chants incredibly fast.

[Blurb dated 2024/5/2]

Theme: Strive to improve and fear no powerful authority