Chapter 270

Chapter 270

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[Translator – Night]

[Proofreader – Gun]

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It was when the Hero had recovered about seventy percent of his strength that contact came from Izaro.

[Let’s rendezvous in this village. We’ll discuss our future plans when we meet.]

Ironically, the village Izaro had designated was Lonkers.

The Hero and Nyhill prepared for their departure.

Nyhill used her emblem of the dark division to borrow two horses from a nearby relay station.

[TL/N: Dark Division and the shadows are the same, just diff ways of calling them.]

It was late autumn.

The morning air was cool yet refreshing.

Clop, clop.

The Hero’s gaze turned to the girl riding beside him.

Nyhill, adept at disguise, appeared quite unfamiliar.

However, the Hero couldn’t shake off a sense of déjà vu.

‘...It’s been less than a year, but it feels like several years have passed.’

He recalled the time earlier this year when they headed to Lonkers together to meet Noubelmag.

Back then, he was incomparably weaker and more inexperienced.

His relationship with Nyhill was vastly different too.

At that time, he couldn’t have imagined that she would disregard all danger to assist him.

If Nyhill weren’t by his side now, let alone the fiasco at the academy, he would have struggled immensely emotionally.

“I am not the Hero.”

“That doesn’t matter to me.”

Her words were sincere.

Nyhill’s attitude had remained unchanged.

She had nursed and assisted him devotedly over the past few weeks.

‘Even though you’re now free from the orders of the dark division.’

...She could have left to live a completely new life.

Knowing her life had been relentless and fiercely competitive from birth until now, the Hero resolved to repay her kindness someday.

Nyhill, rarely flustered, suddenly stopped.

“...Please wait a moment. I think we took a wrong turn.”

She then hurriedly rummaged through her belongings to check the map.

The Hero smiled wryly.

“That’s Lonkers, alright.”

Lonkers, bathed in the morning sunlight, was bustling and lively.

Nyhill, looking bewildered, entered past the wooden fence.

Busy merchants brushed past them.

On the newly paved wide stone path, stalls displayed fresh produce from farmers.

Children ran around laughing between the stalls.

Aromatic food scents filled the air.

The streets were clean and tidy.

Though it wasn’t on the level of cities or towns in the central region, it had changed so much that the previous desolation was unrecognizable.

“What on earth...”

Having seen Lonkers once before while heading to the extreme west, the Hero was less shocked, but Nyhill seemed quite surprised.

The girl, standing dumbfounded, quickly scanned her surroundings.

“...I thought I had read the map wrong.”

“This is undoubtedly Lonkers. The village you saved.”

Nyhill replied softly.

“We saved... it together.”

Then, feeling embarrassed, she scratched her cheek.

“It would be nice to show this to Noubelmag.”

Imagining how the blacksmith might react, the Hero smiled for a moment.

“He would surely be pleased. Despite pretending otherwise, he seems quite attached to the villagers.”

He might grumble but wander around exploring.

Then he’d likely sit at one of those stalls and drink his fill of beer.

The Hero chuckled quietly and turned to look for a place to stay.

It was at that moment that a group of familiar-looking men passed by.

“The vigilante corps.”

They were the ones who had fought alongside him against a horde of monsters.

Now appearing to be fully committed to their roles as guards, they were clad in sturdy-looking armor, far removed from their previous ragged state.

“Oh, are you travelers? Have a great time!”

“If you need any help, feel free to ask.”

“Welcome to Lonkers, a safe village, though modest!”

Of course, none of them recognized Nyhill and the Hero, who were in different guises.

The guards passed by, offering friendly greetings.

“...Hmm?”

Only Hans, trailing behind, looked curiously at the girl and the young man.

He was still wearing the gauntlets enchanted with electric magic that the Hero had gifted him.

The Hero nodded slightly at Hans, who couldn’t take his eyes off them.

“It’s become a nice place.”

Shaking his head as if dismissing a ridiculous thought, Hans soon smiled brightly and responded.

“Welcome to Lonkers. Enjoy your stay.”

The sight was a great comfort to the Hero.

.

.

.

The Hero booked the largest room at the Lonkers inn and waited.

Izaro arrived at midnight.

Knock, knock.

Opening the door, the Hero frowned momentarily at the unexpected situation.

Humanity would face extinction in no time.

Therefore, it was necessary to understand the exact nature of this change.

“Do you have any idea about this?”

“Hmmm....”

Izaro pondered before shaking his head.

“The ones who created you were Zero and Depikio Lugo.”

“So, you don’t know anything.”

“I do know one thing.”

Izaro continued with a calm expression.

“Their priority in creating you wasn’t potential or strength. It was excluding ???’s malevolent nature.”

“......”

“Although they failed to artificially instill goodness, ???’s consciousness was surely eradicated. If that weren’t certain, they would have definitely discarded you.”

As the Hero, this was somewhat reassuring.

Izaro’s deep-set eyes turned toward him.

“But aside from that, you must have felt the need to analyze ‘this change’ in detail.”

The Hero nodded.

“It’s a stepping stone to becoming stronger.”

“Exactly.”

His rapid growth was bound to slow down now.

He had to take a step back from human society.

Of course, he was already incredibly strong among humans.

But as long as Theo, Malekia, and the Demon King were alive, he could never afford to stop growing.

“You’re currently in a position where you have to act independently.”

The Hero nodded.

‘My very existence is like a seed of discord.’

Thus, his options were greatly limited.

“Either you fight or you focus on growth.”

The Hero’s eyes slightly furrowed at Izaro’s words.

“If I fight, I’ll end up joining the fray as a third force.”

“Indeed. It’s uncertain if you can ally with humans... Most likely, you’ll end up conducting guerrilla warfare in the demon territories alone.”

...This wasn’t an immediately appealing option.

“What about focusing on growth?”

“It means stepping back and concentrating solely on growing stronger.”

In other words, disappearing from the human world for a while.

“It won’t have a significant impact on the grand scheme. Whether you’re the Hero or a doppelganger, your existence alone can still deter the demons.”

“.......”

“You’ve already given humans the impetus to grow. Now, it’s time for each to spend time achieving their results.”

It was clear from his tone which option Izaro favored.

“...It sounds like you have a specific method for growth in mind.”

“I need to explain something briefly.”

Izaro leaned towards the Hero.

“As you might have noticed, Zero has been doing everything possible to conceal all information about the ‘doppelganger’ since the beginning of the Second Era. This was for your future activities. Of course, I also helped him deal with the mistakes you made during your inexperienced days.”

“I’m aware.”

“During that process, we discovered the existence of a hidden family. They, like us, had been delving into the tragedies of the First Era.”

The Hero tilted his head at the unexpected news.

“A family...?”

Izaro asked in a calm voice.

“Do you remember Platooz Namsov?”

The Hero’s body stiffened.

Platooz Namsov.

The name of the master of the Magic Tower, seen in Zero’s memories.

An arrogant and ignorant man who opened the ‘door,’ bringing endless misfortune to this world.

He was also the worst human being who evaded responsibility by committing suicide.

Sensing something, the Hero asked with a hardened face.

“Are you saying his descendants are still around?”

“...They’ve been atoning for generations.”

Izaro briefly explained the history of the surviving Namsov lineage since the catastrophe of the First Era.

They had been collecting all data and records about the doppelganger and the Demon King, preparing countermeasures.

“The Namsovs didn’t know of your existence until now. But they must be aware now.”

“...Can you guess what stance they’ll take?”

“They’ll likely see you as the only savior. The only one who can absolve their sins and the misfortunes of this world.”

An unexpected answer.

“You’re suggesting we contact them.”

“If we combine the strengths of those people, myself, and you, there will surely be results. Perhaps you’ll even come to terms with the mysterious power of ??? you mentioned.”

...It was a task that could take an unknown amount of time.

Izaro’s eyes glowed blue as he looked at the contemplating Hero.

“Don’t forget.”

“.......”

“In the end, this fight will only be resolved when either you or the Demon King dies.”

As long as the Demon King lived, the demons could never be eradicated.

“You said there’s a little over three years until the Demon King returns.”

“.......”

“The final battle will be then. If we’re not prepared by then, everything we’ve done will be meaningless.”

The Hero was well aware of this fact.

Izaro stared at him with deep eyes.

“I await your decision.”

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[Translator – Night]

[Proofreader – Gun]

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