After the forest ordeal that led to Ken gaining a blue grizzly cub sidekick, Rose doesn’t sugarcoat her plans for him: he’ll be joining her in the vanguard of the coming war against the Demon Lord’s army, healing the wounded on the front lines.
The first battle will be led by Amila, who knows, fears, and hates Rose, but will be delegating the actual fighting to the faceless Black Knight. There’s also a demon mad scientist named Hyriluk, who developed the giant snake Ken and Rose fought, and has developed a stronger one.
Rose urges Ken to steel himself for the duties that await him, but she does at least let him sleep in a real bed. And while he was once annoyed by his roommate Tong’s snoring, now he finds it comforting. The next day, Rose has Ken run an obstacle course with Blurin (his bear) on his back, simulating the act of carrying a wounded soldier through the hell of battle.
Tong and the other non-healing members of the Resuce Team are all too happy to provide the hell, and after about four hours. Ken finally reaches his limit and collapses earlier than he expected. Rose tells him that’s due to the added stress of a combat zone, something he’ll have to overcome.
Next, Ken runs through the town with Blurin on his back, a sight that would be cause for concern among the townsfolk if he weren’t wearing the familiar garb of the Rescue Team. Everyone assumes there’s a good reason he has a blue bear on his back.
Ken, whom we know to be an extremely Good Guy, has a wholesome interaction with a grocer who offers him a free peffle (one of the tasty tomatillo-looking fruits of this world). He promises to return, which is when I imagine he’ll meet the fox-eared girl featured in the OP.
As Ken heads to the castle to visit Suzune and Kazuki, a flustered young man in a lab coat chases after him and soon falls behind. Ken eventually notices him and stops. Turns out this man is Orga Fleur, who along with his younger sister Ururu are the two other Healers in the Rescue Team.
Orga is appreciative of Ken’s healing, as he’s not as good at healing himself as he is others. He explains that in battles he and Ururu stay in the rear as supporters. When Ken asks what’s rattling around in his head—can he really be in the vanguard—Orga trusts Rose’s faith in him.
When Ken reaches the castle gates, he’s pleasantly surprised that Blurin, technically a monster, is allowed to pass along with him, as Rose vouched for him. Kazuki is out in the woods training with Sir Siglis (mentioned by name by Hyriluk as a human to watch out for), but Suzune is there, and overjoyed to see Ken.
Suzune is super excited to pet Blurin, but even when the bear rejects her with a rude swipe, she still “savors the feel of his toe beans.” Then Ken sees the callouses on her hand, takes it in his, and heals it, making her blush. When she asks if he came to see her, Ken says he came to see her and Kazuki. It’s clear Suzune wouldn’t mind being considered special to him … clear to anyone but Ken!
Visiting Suzune, seeing her callouses, and hearing that Kazuki is also training hard is ultimately what steels Ken for the battle to come, not all the running around with Blurin. Back home all he could do was admire people like them, who could do things he couldn’t. But in this world, there’s plenty he can do to support them. He can literally be the Heroes’ hero.
That night he spots Rose gazing at the moon and tells her while he initially feared the battlefield, his desire to save Suzune and Kazuki is stronger than that fear. Rose smiles, for this is exactly what she wanted to hear from her presumptive heir, and gives him a gentle punch to the chest, declaring him an official member of the Rescue Team.
The next morning, she surprises him with a mission: he’ll be joining Hero Suzune’s training outside the castle. Both Ken and Suzune are such cute and fun characters to watch, and their chemistry is so strong, their finally teaming up is something I’m very much looking forward to!
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