Chapter 245

28. Ah, Is That So? (2)

“It’s over.”

To sweep away hundreds of demonic forces without a single scratch, truly a monstrous feat.

Indeed, this guy is also a monster. There are just too many monsters around him, that’s all.

-But it’s not his surroundings, it’s the owner’s surroundings, right?

-Well, he’s also around me, so it’s the same thing.

-Is that so?

-Yes, it is.

Technically, this guy might also be one of the monsters around me.

“Is the treatment finished?”

“Yes.”

Nodding my head, I pointed to the guy lying on the ground, sticking out his tongue.

“We’ve treated him perfectly.”

“The fact that he looks dead might just be because of his mood, right?”

“Of course.”

The guy looked like a corpse when I first saw him.

He had numerous minor wounds all over his body, and his stomach had a small hole in it.

But who are we? We’re the strongest healer combo, Iron Bat and Shuttle!

As Shuttle emitted a brilliant light and Iron Bat swung the iron mallet between them, they brought the dying guy back to life.

Look at him! He’s sticking out his tongue and asking to be killed!

He’s speaking perfectly and breathing as well.

“Laria! Is Fesche alright?”

“Heryl! She’s alive! Fesche is alive!”

A handsome guy popped out behind the hero.

-Does a god have a face?

-Of course not.

-Really?

-Of course! If gods could see faces and choose their disciples, then there’s no way the owner would be a disciple of a demon.

-So, you see his face?

Yes, even gods must have had no choice.

If you make a hero and a saint look like villains, see what happens when you pick them as disciples. They’ll be scared and run away if you ask them to stay overnight in a village like ours.

Then the hero’s party will end up homeless and, due to accumulated fatigue, won’t be able to fight properly!

That’s why heroes should be pretty and good-looking.

-But won’t that cause more problems? The owner’s disciple almost got swayed too.

-Oh, that’s true.

I nodded involuntarily at Iron Bat’s words.

As symbols of the sect, heroes hold a higher position than most nobles, but there are nobles who cannot overlook this fact.

There are people who can’t forgive that a mere commoner became a hero and reached a position similar to theirs, and there are princesses who are against the hero.

This is almost like a death flag.

Most flags come from things you’ve seen in old comics, novels, or movies, but this is from my own experience, so it’s even more certain.

That’s why gods should change the heroes to average guys instead of handsome ones. It’s for the sake of world peace.

“Sa...ve...me....”

“Fesche!”

“Don’t worry! All the demon forces of the Evil Sect have been defeated by the natural sect’s hero, Sween Dall!”

The Hero guy, who was dying just a moment ago, finally regained consciousness.

“Sa...ve....me....”

“Commander, what’s that....?”

“Ignore it.”

“Yes, sir.”

After I slightly raised the iron mallet in my hand, which had been used to hit Sween Dall, the guy fell silent.

“His condition was too serious. Though we treated him, the mental shock must have been great.”

Since treating the guy, Sween Dall had been making a gentle smile and approached the other heroes.

“That’s right, Saint?”

“Y-Yes.”

As Shuttle, who had been treating him together, awkwardly nodded her head, a priestess-looking girl with sparkling eyes looked at Shuttle.

“Thank you! Thank you so much!”

“No, I didn’t do much.”

That’s true. I only acted with a sacred light to hide the appearance of the iron mallet.

“No, thanks to you, our comrade is alive.”

But it will probably look like Shuttle healed him to the others.

When even heroes from other sects bow their heads, Shuttle looked at me with a troubled expression.

Well, I can’t do anything about it. So, you do what you can.

“It’s alright. If those who believe in the gods don’t help each other, who will help?”

Shuttle, who was hesitant to approach me, finally smiled faintly and told me not to worry.

Yes, don’t worry.

“So, I wanted to say....”

Shuttle quickly dug into the opportunity he had created.

“Wouldn’t you gather your strength to save the world?”

“Strength... Do you mean?”

“Yes. The world is in peril. The Demon King, acting completely different from before, and the systematically moving forces of evil. To stop them, even the Heroes must unite their strength and resist.”

While it was an action I had to take to survive, it also helped the Heroes. In reality, the one called the Demon King was in full control of his senses, allowing the organized forces of evil to move strategically. The evidence was the part of the evil forces that the Hero just swept away. Originally, the forces of evil were mindless monsters, and although there were cases of a few straying from the group, there were never hundreds of them gathering together like that.

“Gathering Heroes, you say?”

“That’s correct.”

“But you...”

“I am Naran.”

“Yes. As Naran mentioned, the forces of evil are moving differently from the past. They’ve created separate armies to disperse their troops.”

“That’s why we need to gather even more strength.”

“No. That’s why we can’t gather more strength.”

“What do you mean?”

It was an unexpected answer. While some inexperienced Heroes believed they could handle anything with their strength, this one was different.

“The enemies are currently scattered, attacking multiple villages and cities simultaneously. If we concentrate our strength in one place, there will be casualties.”

Surprisingly, they were considering the well-being of ordinary citizens. Heros were truly creatures beyond comprehension.

-The master’s temperament makes them into fools, protecting people...

-Before judging their temperament, let’s consider reality. It’s noble to fight to save ordinary people, but winning is essential; otherwise, it’s all for naught.

Look at it the other way.

Why are the forces of evil scattered?

If the Demon King didn’t know my exact location, he would have dispersed his troops to find me.

But that’s not it, is it?

The forces of evil are scattered to defeat the Heros.

It’s the situation the enemy wanted. In such a situation, the fate of these Hero fools is to fight.

Truly a pitiful existence.

“I see.”

Despite this, I couldn’t blame these pitiful beings.

Although I felt like going somewhere alone and letting out a frustrated sigh, I had to endure it. My goal was not to gather a few Heros, but to gather tens or hundreds.

I had to stimulate the foolishness of these Heroes who weren’t fools themselves.

“But if we continue like this, the damages will only increase. The Demon King, who is worshiped by wicked demons and corrupts the world, must be defeated; otherwise, the forces of evil will keep replenishing.”

“But we can’t abandon ordinary citizens.”

“We’re not abandoning them. We’re moving strategically. Our goal is not the forces of evil. We need to eliminate the root cause.”

“By root cause, do you mean the Demon King?”

“Yes. More precisely, it is up to the strongest Hero, Sir Sween, to personally defeat the Demon King.”

As I nodded, the Hero looked at me with a face full of things he wanted to say.

Did I not mention it?

-No, you didn’t. You said you’d gather Heros to defeat the forces of evil, not that your disciple would defeat them.n)/o--v(/e/-l-.B.)I()n

-He’s also a Hero. So if we include him among the Heros, it makes sense.

And this guy once said that he defeated the Demon King alone.

-He gave up because he couldn’t beat the elite of the continent, right?

-But a man shouldn’t be so wishy-washy!

-He gave up on men, huh, Master!

Hmm... Let’s consider what they say for the sake of survival.

“This Demon King is different from other Demon Kings. If he is in danger, he will undoubtedly gather his forces to protect himself.”

“That could be true. But if not, the damage to ordinary citizens will be unimaginable.”

That’s true.

Even if just one demon-possessed ogre appeared, a small city would be razed to the ground. With just three or so, they could attack even a large city without knights or swordmasters.

But if I admit that, I might as well give up on my plan.

“It’s okay. The Karan Empire is moving right now.”

You can just sell the empire.

“You mean the Karan Empire?”

“Indeed. It’s effective to sell the empire. Even the Heros are surprised!”

“Really?”

“The priest prayed to the gods to confirm, and it seems that the numerous armies moving around have wiped out over half of the forces of evil.”

Have they not heard this news yet? They seem really surprised.

“I-I see, Hero! The gods of the earth said that the forces of evil moving all over the place are being annihilated!”

“Indeed, it is the empire...”

The Hero started to shake.

Indeed, even though he was a Hero, he couldn’t defeat hundreds of armies. It was no wonder his resolve was breaking.

Well, he wasn’t an ordinary soldier despite rumors, but from a Hero’s perspective, it might be seen as being similar to that.

-Are Swordmasters and Grand Magicians considered similar to ordinary soldiers when they summon gods, demons, and elemental kings?

-But he isn’t one of those guys!

They were hard to explain and even harder to understand.

They were not knights, but a group with the capacity to abduct people. However, their average skills were comparable to Swordmasters or Archmages.

Explaining this would likely have an even greater psychological impact.

“Now is the chance while the Imperial Army is on the move. If the soldiers of the Empire can overcome the forces of evil and the heroes gather their strength to defeat the demon lord, the Apostle of Evil! We will be able to live in a peaceful world again!”

It is not only for my peace but also for the peace of the world. So I am not lying.

Look at these pure eyes striving to save the world!

“Understood.”

Perhaps because he saw my sincere eyes, the hesitant Nature Hero nodded and expressed his willingness to join us.

With that, we obtained our first companion... No, ally. Together, we moved forward to rescue the endangered Heroes and persuade them to join our cause.

Initially, like the Nature Hero, other Heroes also refused to join forces, but we persistently convinced them with earnest words.

And after a while, as Heroes with double-digit numbers gathered, the number of those who refused gradually decreased, and soon, voluntary Heroes began to come to gather their strength.

As the number of Heroes increased, starting with the Nature Hero and reaching 100 members,

“To defeat the wicked servants of evil! Charge!”

“Roar!”

The unit comprised of Heroes advanced.