I'm Actually Not Overpowered!
Chapter 58 Origin Of The Tragedy

[Earlier That Day]

Lucy patrolled the settlement, just as she had done the previous day—and the one before that.

Ever since the Hero left and entrusted her with defending their territory, Lucy took it upon herself to watch over the denizens of the unnamed village.

With a sword on her hip—made from the parts of an S Class Beast she slayed by herself during her time as an Adventurer—Lucy looked around ever so diligently.

There was no sign of danger, but the little girl refused to take any chances.

'This is what he told me to do, after all.' She smiled to herself, glad that the Hero gave her such an important task.

As she explored the outskirts of the town, leaving the north and moving closer to the south, Lucy remembered her first encounter with the powerful young man that she now respected.

It was beyond mortifying that she had once suspected the Hero, Sam, of being a fraud and even outright despised him.

She thought of herself as strong and looked down on him as weak.

However, after their brief exchange, and the words he spoke to her, Lucy found another feeling replacing the negative emotions etched within her.

"I won't fall below his expectations!" With those words, the redhead marched on.

The Harvest of the town had already commenced, and in another day or so, it would conclude.

So far, the townspeople were doing all they could to preserve the foodstuff they obtained in prime condition—at least, until the Hero's arrival.

Everyone knew that he had a solution to everything, and this matter was no exception.

'By storing our food well, it won't spoil, and we'll have a stable means of nutrition. There's bountiful water as well...' All of these things were innovations brought by the Hero.

Their territory was walled, and there were garrisons at every cardinal point which served as guards.

They had a wide gate located in the south, for welcoming visitors and residents alike.

The bath was also amazing.

The rooms were comfortable.

The toilets were hygienic.

The food was delicious.

Everyone had one function or the other, and their society was thriving—growing into something similar to a city than a mere community.

Lucy had experienced so many awesome things, all thanks to Sam... and according to him, he was just getting started.

"I can't wait to see more!" She grinned to herself.

Now in the South, Lucy decided to look as far as she could see, hoping to see the sign of the Hero—or the Legendary Black Beast he had as his tamed monster.

If things worked out well, he would be returning very soon, so she wanted to be the first to catch a glimpse.

Unfortunately, after staying for some minutes—not exactly knowing how much time had elapsed—Lucy saw nothing.

'I guess he's not returning yet...' It was regrettable, but the red-haired girl understood.

She couldn't afford to be selfish during this time.

"He'll be back soon tho—"

Lucy's eyes widened instantly as her senses picked up something... something dangerous!

It was approaching from the Northern gate, but she could also sense several other dangers spreading out.

'This... this is—?!'

Lucy didn't have time to think or hesitate, as she quickly sped away from her comfortable position and decided to return to the North.

"Hugo, pass the West side and meet me at the North. I'll pass the East!" Lucy instantly barked at the Golem which stood as the guardian of the Southern Gate.

The large construct hummed silently, whirring into action as it began moving.

Its movements were too slow for Lucy's tastes, but she was in no position to complain.

'Danger! I sense Danger!' With that in mind, the girl began her race to the center of chaos.

****************

Lucy was right!

As she dashed back to the North, she encountered feral beasts who could only be said to be Demons.

'Lower Demons? They're attacking?!'

According to what she heard, they shouldn't have been able to pose any problem to the settlement any longer.

Ever since the Hero took care of them, no Demon had even come close to their camp. Why would they be attacking now?

'Did they replace out that the Hero is away? No... they don't have that level of intelligence!'

Lucy analyzed the situation as she went for the blade on her waist.

Powering herself up by coursing Mana through her veins, the Level 30 warrior took to action and sliced her opponents into chunks of meat.

'I don't have the time, so I'll just kill them in one blow!'

Using [Mana Strengthening], the girl strengthened her muscles and gave a powerful slash, cutting through the Lower Demons like tofu.

Before they died, Lucy could see their whimpering expressions, but she showed no remorse.

Still, it made her wonder...

'They were frightened. Why would they keep fighting if they were scared?'

Lower Demons followed instinct. They were scavengers, through and through.

While they preyed on the weak, if a more powerful creature appeared, they would retreat—especially if it was one they could never hope to what despite their numbers.

'So why...?' Why did they fight with Lucy till the very end?!

There was only one answer that popped into the girl's mind, and that had to be the source of danger that was coming from the North.

"A stronger person is leading them?!"

That was the only possible answer, and while it made Lucy nervous, she decided to march on.

'I have to protect everyone! I have to fight!'

*****************

As she passed by the Eastern Garrison, she saw it engulfed in flames.

The watchman was not there, so Lucy had to assume that he was most likely dead.

"Damnit!" Since she didn't have time to waste, she kept running.

At this point, Lucy could see black smoke ascending to the sky, so she had to assume that a fire had broken out.

'The Hero's residence! The Harvest! The People!'

While others might have thought it strange that Lucy had quite a lopsided list of priorities, the girl thought she arranged things in perfect order.

The only reason she sought to protect the people was because of the Hero, and the Harvest was also their means of survival.

As for the Hero's residence, it was a sacred place akin to a shrine devoted to the gods.

There was no way Lucy could allow it to get desecrated.

Now increasing the tempo of her movements, Lucy closed the gap in one big jump and crossed the fence to the compound's interior.

>BOOOOOOMMMM<

Shockwaves dispersed as she flew in the air, finally getting a bird's eye view of the catastrophe that visited their settlement.

It was terrible.

Numerous places had been set ablaze, including the farmland.

Several people were struggling to hold back the wave of Demons, but ultimately failing.

Thanks to the Hero disposing of their previous weapons of war, and the unarmed state of the residents, it was difficult to fight against the feral Demons.

Lucy watched everyone being torn apart until she could not take it anymore.

Activating all her Skills at once, the girl's body burst into flames as she led a crimson trail down her path as she descended.

>BOOOOOMMMM!!!<

Like a meteor, the girl crashed upon the site filled with most Demons and brandished her blade confidently.

"I am your opponent!" With that voice echoing across the vast compound, everyone had no choice but to look in her direction.

The energy Lucy exuded couldn't be ignored, and the fact that she made short work of the Demons before her was a testament to her prowess

She was in a rage, and nothing could stand in her way.

"Evacuate everyone through the Southern Gate. The Hero should be on his way, so hopefully, you can meet up with him!" Lucy told the wounded residents, before turning all her focus on the enemies that charged at her.

"COME AT MEEEE!!!" She roared in both fury and excitement.

Killing Demons was something that she could never grow weary of.

Memories of her first sight of blood, and the tragedy she experienced as a child, began playing in her head, but Lucy pushed them all out.

This was no time for meaningless thoughts—just simple action!

>SWISH!<

She sliced her opponents.

>VWOOOSHHH!!!<

She sped through her adversaries, cutting them all up

>BOOOOOMMMM!!!<

She released waves of destruction and decimated all that stood in her way.

Lucy was an unstoppable beast, tearing down the frightful Demons until none approached her any further.

Their fear had reached a critical point and all of them began to retreat.

"GHRIIIIIKKKKKK!!!"

The multitude of Demons, still over two dozen, ran away.

Their four limbs scratched the surface of the ground as they picked up speed.

"You caused all this chaos... yet you think you can escape?" Lucy's voice was low, but a lot of emotions were packed in them.

Her eyes gleamed dangerously.

"There's no way I will allow that!"

With her shout piercing the air, Lucy leaped into action, ready to tear apart more Demons and fulfill her duty.

"I'll kill you all!!!"