26. New Hero (1)
The border where the demon world and the human world meet. As such, this place where there is constant conflict with the empire is an unsafe place, commonly called the ‘front line’.
1st Corps Commander Jaykar looked at 0th Corps Commander Demon Arut, who was holding his hand.
As the human world where the sun is located is right in front of us, he was wearing black robes, and the corners of his mouth were slightly raised as if he was smiling, which was rare.
‘As expected, your expression becomes richer now that you’re outside the Demon King’s Castle.’
It must have been frustrating because you couldn’t see blood in the Demon King’s Castle. So, he must have always had a stiff expression on his face.
Jaykar thought to himself as he looked at his brightened face, as if he thought that he would have quenched his thirst by hunting monsters and could now enjoy a proper battle. Since I have such high expectations, I have to make sure that he participates in the battle no matter what happens.
And the thought soon became words and came out of my mouth.
“You must have heard the news that the 9th Corps commander died.”
“yes.”
“Because of that, the situation is not going well. “I would like you to join the battle as soon as it breaks out, is that okay?”
***
My name is Deonhardt.
First of all, he is an unremarkable human being who holds the undeserved position of commander of the 0th Corps of the Demon King’s army.
Honestly, this situation was burdensome. Thinking about when all the facts were revealed, I was already scared. That’s why I saved myself so much.
However, even though I was worried about the burden and repercussions, I never resented this position.
──It was like that until a little while ago.
‘Shit…’
Has there ever been a time when I resented this position as much as I did today?
I stared blankly at the black cloth wrapped around my arm with rotten eyes. This is a very familiar item to me. An enchanted cloth used when dealing with humans or when exposed to sunlight.
They said it was made by the Demon King himself using magic. What kind of magic did you say was there?
“…Was it a magic that not only blocks light but also maintains an appropriate temperature?”
“Yes, and the Demon King recently added one more feature.”
“It’s a surprise… No, yes? “What…”
“It’s an automatic repair function. He said that it would be difficult to completely tear or cause major tears, but minor scratches that occurred during the battle would be easily repaired.”
“Oh….”
I’m not happy at all.
Ed is absorbed in winding the cloth without knowing my true feelings. It was more like a black bandage than a black cloth, and it was being rolled up so damn fast.
‘You can take it a little slower…’
The words that lingered in my head and tried to come out of my mouth over and over again soon turned into a sigh filled with resignation and quietly dispersed into the air.
Okay, let’s stop.
What can I say to a guy who is so tactless? Even if I say it, my mouth only hurts. Rather, it is fortunate if it does not have an adverse effect.
This guy, if you tell him to slow down, he’ll say ‘What are you saying!’ and start wrapping the cloth even more passionately.
“Would you like to try moving your hand?”
Before I knew it, I looked down for a moment at the black cloth that was carefully wrapped around each finger, and then clenched and unclenched my fist. The elastic fabric expands and contracts accordingly.
The moderate pressure was annoyingly good, so I nodded slowly, muttering a curse under my breath.
“It’s comfortable.”
“Fortunately, the. Then please hold out your other hand.”
When I held out my other hand, Ed politely held my hand again and began to wrap the black cloth.
As a man obsessed with his duties as an adjutant, he was concentrating on wrapping the black cloth meticulously without leaving any gaps, instead of complaining about the weakness of his superiors who increased the workload.
When I saw that, a question suddenly occurred to me.
‘Bare skin is weak enough to cause problems even if exposed to sunlight for just a short period of time. ‘Isn’t he annoyed?’
Annoying boss. A weak human, not even a demon. Nevertheless, he was a fool who came all the way to the front line and put himself in danger.
I don’t know what value I have for quietly following along without a single complaint.
I don’t think this is something that can be overlooked simply because he has a good personality…
‘Isn’t this a demon?’
No, that’s definitely not the case. I shook my head, recalling Ed’s bare forearms that I had seen once.
Both arms were full of strange patterns. Should I call it a tattoo? In any case, it was absolutely not something humans could imitate.
“Could you please refrain from moving a little?”
“ah.”
It stopped moving immediately. If the fabric is wrapped incorrectly and there is a gap, only I will lose.
At this borderline, where each other invades each other’s territory several times a day, is it really possible that we will never be exposed to sunlight?
Yes, as you may have noticed, I also participated in the battlefield.
‘Shit.’
Why would a guy like me be taken by such bait when he would naturally find out later anyway?…
I cursed in my mind at the cunning demon lord and remembered the conversation I had with Jaykar a little while ago.
[You must have heard the news that the 9th Corps commander died.]
Until then, I had no thoughts. I just thought, ‘I heard that.’ All I could think was a dull thought like, ‘Maybe that’s why I came to apply.’
I planned to leave the battle to Ed and the corps members and safely watch the situation from the rear.
Even the Demon King always said to fight when you wanted to, so there was no problem.
It was definitely like that…
[Because of that, the situation wasn’t going well. I would like you to participate as soon as the battle breaks out, is that okay?]
I froze with my smile on my face.
I don’t think this is it. Something is going wrong.
I tried to deny the ominous premonition that washed over me like a wave, and stiffly raised the corners of my mouth and asked back.
[Only the corps members, right?]
[No, you too.]
Shit.
Denying reality failed and retreating failed. How can you not curse at something like this?
I laughed out loud as I watched Ed’s quick hand movements as he finished tying the knot.
This brings me closer to the day I die today. It’s so rewarding that I feel like I’m going crazy.
…Shit.
“It’s done. And the face…”
“Yes.”
Ed picks up another cloth that was lying next to him.
The face was gone in no time.
He wrapped his nose in black cloth and then put on a robe. The robe that completely covered the eyes seemed like it would interfere with visibility, but thanks to the magic the Demon King himself placed here, there was no problem with vision.
Moreover, the hood couldn’t come off unless he took it off himself, so it made me think that the devil king had nothing better to do.
‘Anyway, the amount of magic power is like a monster…’
This is something he can do because he is a demon lord. If it were other demons, they wouldn’t have even thought of wasting their magical power in a place like this.
The magic power of demons is limited, and the magic power consumed by magic is not recovered.
Magic is breaking the rules of the world.
It may seem like a trivial magic, but the magic that does not remove the hood defies gravity, and the magic that secures vision violates the rules set by the world that are taken for granted, allowing one to see beyond opaque objects.
As such, the price was certain. Regardless of the permanent consumption of magical power, it is said that the hero’s appearance date is getting closer.
‘Even though the Demon King knows this, he does this.’
How could I, who am neither a hero nor a demon lord, connect the use of magic and the appearance of a hero?
The Demon King spoke with his own mouth.
Well, the fact that they are using so much magic means that they are confident that they will win even if a hero appears.
‘Well… it’s none of my business.’
I stood up, fiddling with the hood that covered my eyes.
“I will take a look at the military tent to check on the body of the 9th Corps commander.”
Of course it’s an excuse. My original intention was to find a place to hide to pass the time.
If the battle starts, there won’t be time to find me, so all you have to do is get the timing right and hide before then.
I went out with such useless hopes──
“Wow….” “
…He is the real Commander of the 0 Corps….” “….” ──────────────────────── “Wow….” “…He is the real Commander of the 0 Corps….”
“….”
—The eyes of everyone outside turned to me at the same time. I could see it clearly.
Heat blooms in the eyes of the soldiers who see me.
With morale rising steadily in real time, I quietly resigned myself to the fact that I was glad I was wearing a hood.
…It’s not good to hide.
***
“Commander of Corps 0?”
The commander’s military tent where all kinds of reports are piled up.
Cruel, the Empire’s newly recognized hero, raised his head without realizing it. The dry, sunken eyes were aimed squarely at the soldier.
The cold and hard eyes did not match the soft yet strong title of ‘Hero’, but they were enough to bring victory in the war, so the soldier straightened his posture without a single doubt.
“Yes that’s right. According to the scout, the morale of the Demon King’s army is increasing because of this. On the other hand, our morale is…”
“…It’s a pain in the ass.”
Even though he slurred the ending of his words, it doesn’t mean he couldn’t predict what was going on. Cruel quietly touched his forehead with an exasperated sigh.
Isn’t the commander of the 0 Corps a very famous person?
The Devil’s Joker. A being known to be stronger than the commander of the 1st Corps, the devil’s agent.
Although it is unusually well-known, when you try to find out more about it, nothing comes out, making it even more suspicious.
If such a being were to join, the situation of the war would change in an instant.
“If the existence of Commander 0 is true, the situation will be different. “We should not think of victory, but of defeat.”
“….”
“It is dangerous to fight head on.”
So, is there any way to deal with him other than direct confrontation?
Actually, the answer has already been found.
Someone might have a better answer, but at least his head was screaming that this was the best way.
Nevertheless, the reason for this hesitation is because the trivial title of ‘hero’ is holding him back.
Without realizing it, your index finger taps the desk at regular intervals.
For a moment, only silence and a slight noise lingered in the tent. He neatly organized the documents on his desk, stacked them on one side, took out something, wrote it down, and spoke.
“I’m sending an assassin.”
“It’s very unlikely.”
The answer came from a man standing like a folding screen in a corner.
Despite the firm rebuttal, Cruel responded immediately without a change in expression, as if he had expected it.
“If the skills of Commander 0 Corps are real, then yes.”
“….”
“But what if Commander 0’s skills were inflated? Or, he may be letting his guard down because there are so many demon lords around, or maybe the presence of the 0th corps commander was created by the demon lord army to boost their morale.”
If even one of these can be saved with just one assassin, it will be a great harvest.
Instead of reprimanding his quick-witted subordinate who had been silent from the moment he mentioned the 0 Corps commander’s skills, Cruel ordered again in a cold voice.
“Send an assassin.”
***
The battle entered a lull.
The reason is that the fourth hero of the Empire, Cruel, who had been pushing hard, stopped fighting for a while after hearing the news of the commander of the 0th Corps entering the war.
The intention behind this was to check whether the 0 Corps commander’s skills were real or fake, and the assassin in charge of this important task was now entering the Demon King’s army tent, very nervous.
[Keep this in mind. The priority is not the head of Corps Commander 0. Make it a top priority to make sure your skills are real.]
When I heard that, I snorted inwardly.
It can’t be real. It may be true that it is a bit strong, but what is known to the public is too much to even pretend to hear.
He’s stronger than the commander of the 1st Corps and even the devil can’t do anything about it?
If that were true, the Demon King’s army would have already swallowed up the empire.
‘I’ll burst that bubble today.’
This was the confidence of someone who was more skilled than any other assassin. The fact that we have arrived here now with such an important task on our shoulders is proof of that.
Even if he couldn’t take the head, the assassin was confident that he could at least inflict a fatal wound and run away, so he went straight to the commander of the 0 Corps and started his work… ‘
This is crazy.’
I started to panic within 30 minutes.
0 Finding the corps commander was not difficult. All you have to do is find where all the soldiers’ eyes are directed.
The problem was his ability to avoid assassination.
At first, he waited for the 0th corps commander, who went in to inspect the body of the 9th corps commander, to come out, and then threw his dagger just in time.
Of course, I expected that it would not be easy. It was just an attack to determine capabilities in case the capabilities were false.
Even so, since it was a sincere attack, if his skills were mediocre, he would have passed away without even knowing when or how he was attacked.
however.
“ah.”
Isn’t he bending down very naturally at the right time, as if he had expected it?
Thanks to this, the dagger passed through the air and stuck in the trunk of an innocent tree.
If I had just bowed silently, I would have thought it was my skill.
The problem was what he said after dodging the dagger.
“What kind of stone is there….”
Was it caught on a stone?!
No no. It’s difficult to be deceived by words like that. Even though you say things like that, aren’t you looking at every corner of the military camp?
He was probably looking for me by talking like that out of fear of surprising his subordinates.
So, from now on, it’s a battle of wits.
Find it or kill it before it happens.
