I was a Nerfed Hero in Another World

I learned a few things from Lilith when she told me her story. This demonic girl was not our enemy, since our goals aligned. Even if we had different methods, Lilith and I still held the same candle. 

Lilith wanted to stop the war from happening, since she knew what could happen between the two factions. She had seen everything fall on the grounds, with her powerless body watching the scene. Since it had come to this, Lilith wanted to use the Excalibur in her hands and be the third faction. 

That demonic girl planned on something big, which Lilith would do if the situation worsened.

I also had the same goal. A superhero would always stop the war from happening, avoiding any casualties as soon as possible. It was a simple task that I needed to do with dozens of obstructions along my way.

And in order for me to do that, I needed some allies. Lilith was the best candidate for that seat, and would enable me fulfil that goal. 

Lilith never wanted to harm anyone, unless she needed to. And that thought also hit my ideals, which we could use to achieve our goal.

After ending our conversation, I finally hit the sack and left Lilith in charge for tonight. I told her that I could switch places after a few hours. But Lilith insisted that I should rejuvenate my body. 

"Are you sure you're going to be okay? Even though you're a demon, you still need rest. When we first met, I could guess that you fought something along the way," I confessed.

Lilith shook her head and answered, "It is really fine, Arthur. And besides, you trust me right? If you do, nothing would happen to your friends and to you. I will protect you from monsters approaching the area. So for now, gather those lost energy and use it for the next day. Tomorrow will be a very busy day."

I agreed to Lilith's concerns and accepted her offer. We still had a few hours left before the sun would shine again. But for now, it wouldn't hurt to rest for the time being.

There was still a new beginning waiting for me tomorrow.

And that sun came shining through the sky, with its beam blinding my eyes. Despite my pair of orbs hiding behind my skin, that light pierced through me. 

Within a few seconds, I slowly opened my eyes and witnessed Liltih staring at the campfire. Beside her were corpses that belonged to goblins and other monsters I was not aware of. Upon squinting my eyes, those beasts near Lilith had eyes voided from life. 

It only told me that Lilith took care of everything when we were fast asleep, just like she had promised.

"Oh, you are awake. You've slept for six hours. I do not know if that is enough for humans."

I stood from my make-shift bed and replied, "Actually, that's enough for any human. May I ask what happened here?" 

My hands rolled towards the pile of dead bodies  in front of me. Lilith followed my fingers and explained everything that happened when I hit the bed.

"There are goblins that lingered and attacked the shield. I wanted some peace, so I killed them. After killing them, I dragged them here inside our dome."

"Why?" I asked.

"I have not thought about it…..Apologies"

Lilith immediately took out the carcasses by burning them into crisps. She raised her hand and conjured a strong fire magic, which even melted the ground. After a few seconds, the soil turned into lava as if a volcano did this on the terrain.

I swore to myself that I will never anger Lilith or get into her bad side. If that would happen, she could cook me some human meat and sell it to me in a five star restaurant.

"You were thinking something, Arthur?" Lilith asked, and tilted her head.

"Oh, nothing," I answered, and switched the topic. "OUR CARRIAGE! WE LEFT THE HORSES OUTSIDE AND NEVER RETURNED TO THEM!" 

After screaming out loud, Meliodas woke up from his sleep and panicked. As soon as he learned it was just me, that bard went back to his dream world.

"Oh, do you mean the cart? I found them a while ago and brought them in. The carriage had your scent in it, so I saved it for you," said Lilith.

When Lilith said those lines, she waved her hands and revealed the carriage and the horse at the side. Fortunately, that horse opened its eyes as soon as it met my figure. It blared out a neigh and galloped on place, showing me how delighted it was to see me.

Meliodas woke up for the second time and glared in my direction. But Lilith levitated him up and made the guy stand from his bed. Lilith even ruined Meliodas' temporary bed after what he had done behind my back.

Even after those noises, Merleen and Fenrir never woke up from their sleep. Meliodas' spell had something in it, which made these two sleep half a day already.

But according to Meliodas, these two ladies were still asleep because of the spell he placed. The manipulation spell drained their manas, which forced them into hibernation. Luckily, that status also gave Merleen and Fenrir some benefits. 

Meliodas also stated that both the girl's mana pool would increase, together with their proficiency in magic. The manipulation spell had tapped inside their core, which shaken the arcanic veins cruising inside their bodies. Thanks to that obstruction, the magic inside those women would receive some enhancements.

I checked my system if Meliodas' words aligned to the spell's descriptions. Since Meliodas knew how the system works, he showed me the information I wanted to look at and let me read everything. 

It turned out that the bard did not lie. Meliodas told the truth, but that did not mean he would receive punishment of some sort. And from what I could think of, I let the bard learn how to ride  a horse. If there was a trip that needed a coachman, Meliodas would step in for my position and would handle the wheel for this carriage.

And thanks to Lilith's death glare, Meliodas had no other choice but to accept my demands.

As luck would have it, a groan echoed around us. As soon as my eyes met Merleen's mouth, that girl weakly opened her eyes and moaned again. Fenrir also did the same and rolled towards the side. But as soon as she realised the situation, Fenrir hurriedly stood up and stared at us with a confusing look.

After a few hours, Merleen finally woke up, followed by Fenrir. 

"You two missed a lot of things, including Lilith," I said, while pointing my finger at the girl beside me. "This is Lilith. She's the demon we've faced before you two kissed the floor."

I didn't hit behind the bush and introduced Lilith in front of those awakened women. Lilith was the demon we fought earlier, which Merleen and Fenrir didn't know. Well, not until right now.

Fenrir was the first one to react and performed a defensive stance. She revealed her form and claws, while gritting her teeth in front of Lilith. She even ordered Merleen to do the same, which she did for a second before stopping her movements. Merleen looked at me in the eyes and waited for my instructions. However, after a few seconds of silence, Merleen understood the situation.

"If Arthur isn't doing anything, so should we, right?" Merleen asked, while looking at Fenrir's eyes.

Fenrir hesitated for a few seconds before lowering her claws to her side. She finally calmed down and assessed the situation, while still remaining vigilant about everything. That wolf girl also looked at Meliodas and checked if the bard manipulated the demon or me. But after noticing Meliodas' sleeping body and his harp far from his sight, Fenrir had no choice but to believe my words.

"Explain everything that you know and happened while we were gone," Fenrir demanded, as she deactivated her spells.

Merleen ran toward my figure and hugged me. She inspected my body if I had any wounds before speaking what was running inside her mind.

"Is everything okay? Did anyone hurt you? Do you need my mana? Tell me if you need something from me, okay?" Merleen offered, while burying her face against my chest.

I couldn't help myself but gave Merleen a pat on her head while rubbing her already crazed hair. "Nothing bad happened, Merleen. In fact, we earned a new alley by our side. And this demon would be our friend for the next few days, months, or even years….Or for eternity."

"Does that mean you are friends with a demon?" Fenrir and Merleen both asked the same question, as they met my stern gaze.

I gave them a nod and replied, "Yes. Lilith and I are friends. We established our goals, which also aligned for the betterment of this world. Listen, I will summarize everything and tell you what we've learned."