Chapter 98: The time of awakening. (2)

Red Dragon Express Hotel

Erin, who had been deeply shocked after seeing her mother bare her skin and dance, barely managed to calm her mind.

She thought everything would work out once the hero found the saintess.

If she could negotiate well with the saintess, she might be able to meet her mother and hear the truth.

That’s what she thought, but…

“So, you let her get away? Not just once or twice, but you lost her again?”

Erin was furious as she looked at the hero, who returned with a huge bump on the back of his head.

Frankly, this wasn’t the first time the hero had been beaten by the saintess.

How many times was he going to be caught off guard?

Could this really be the person humanity hoped would fight against the Demon King?

“I couldn’t help it. I couldn’t just keep staring when she said her front was ripped.”

Honestly, he didn’t know if anything had actually torn, but since the saintess, a woman, said so, there wasn’t much he could do.

Moreover, after parting ways like that, he hadn’t expected to be greeted by another beating rather than a friendly reunion.

Erin and Maria were both dumbfounded at the sight.

After all, this was the same hero who had shown no reaction when they had tried to seduce him.

“He didn’t even flinch when we tried, but now?”

“Erin’s words are vulgar, but she’s right.”

They weren’t wrong.

They were just as pretty as the saintess, so how could he treat them so differently?

“You two deliberately do that sometimes, so I’m used to it.”

“No, I absolutely need to meet the saintess.”

Erin whined, thinking about her mother.

She had to meet the saintess to resolve her mother’s situation.

“Because of your mother?”

“Yeah, no matter who her partner was, my mother had a child and even became a slave to the saintess. What kind of spectacular life is she leading?”

Having a child was something she could understand.

Elves live long lives.

Her mother must have been lonely for a long time in this world, away from home.

It would make sense for her to seek comfort in someone.

That part she could accept.

But how did her mother, who had found a new partner and had a child, end up as the saintess’s slave, dancing in front of a worldwide broadcast alongside a succubus?

“Well, it can’t be helped. Anyway, she’s in Korea, so if we want to find her, we can. Didn’t you mention the Church of Kanora?”

“Oh, right.”

“You said it was the Kanora Guild, didn’t you? We should visit them.”

The Kanora Guild would likely have plenty of information about the saintess.

In the end, it was inevitable they’d have to make contact with returnees.

“But be careful. There are a lot of returnees in the Kanora Guild, and they’re close to the saintess. They might see us as enemies.”

There was always the possibility of a fight breaking out.

This wasn’t just any territory—it was Korea.

One wrong move could make them enemies of the whole world.

“It seems like people in this world follow the law more strictly than in ours. Even returnees wouldn’t attack us recklessly, right?”

Maria had learned a lot after arriving in this world.

People here followed the law much better than in their world, so just approaching wouldn’t provoke a reaction.

If a fight did break out, they could always get help from the British guild.

***

I found myself in the world of the revolutionary leader.

At first, it looked like a dungeon entrance, but once I crossed over, it was a whole world, one engulfed in war—a true apocalypse.

Fortunately, I was near the headquarters of the Blue Ideology resistance, which opposed the Red Ideology, so I was able to gather information.

Near the headquarters, I overheard people talking.

“Ugh. It’s already been years since Comrade Supreme Commander was taken from us. If this keeps up, we’re in danger.”

“If only the Supreme Commander were still alive, things wouldn’t have turned out this way.”

The fact that they were speaking Korean was surprising.

The Supreme Commander.

A figure who had suddenly appeared one day, saving the people who knew nothing but to praise the dictator and live as slaves, and spreading the ideology of freedom far and wide.

Some people call him a revolutionary.

He finally managed to create a massive wave and overthrow the nation ruled by the Red Pigs, but he died before achieving all his dreams.

-That’s how they reminisced about the past. He must have held quite a high position. But what kind of ideology do they have here?

Leaving aside liberalism and communism, the ideologies here are strangely twisted.

The Red Ideology has communist characteristics but feels more like a monarchy-level dictatorship, even harsher than North Korea.

The Blue Ideology leans towards liberalism and resistance, but they act extremely, willing to spill blood to wipe out the Red Ideology.

It feels like they’ve been heavily incited by something.

So, I simplified it for myself:

Just the dictator’s government forces and the resistance army.

There’s no need for further explanation.

“It’s already too late. In any case, the problem is that this war isn’t something that can end in a day or two.”

It’s been 10 years.

Oh well.

Now that I’m here, there won’t be any more problems.

“Haven’t we almost pushed them back now?”

“If you look at the government forces’ combat power, we can take on hundreds by ourselves, but unless we form a massive wave, it’s still too early.”

Ah, I see.

That’s how it is.

This freedom army seems weak because it hasn’t unified into one force.

They’re sporadically hitting the government forces across the continent, but they lack a decisive strike.

“I really miss Commander Comrade.”

“Enough. It’s not like lamenting will bring the dead commander back.”

Maybe it’s because this war has dragged on for so long.

What’s certain is that this revolutionary leader’s rhetoric is world-class.

To miss the dead so much…

“He could move a thousand miles in a single step.”

“He appeared before the suffering people, shining brilliantly, riding a white horse.”

What the—this is just…

I stopped thinking for a moment.

What an incredible person, this revolutionary leader.

He must have had quite a way with words for people to worship him like a god.

At this point, even if I showed up pretending to be a savior, nothing would change.

My abilities don’t extend to having a mouth that leaves an impact even after death.

Even spreading the Kanora Church through that first broadcast was mostly that guy’s doing.

Here, even if I walk around spreading the Kanora Church, it would be tough.

There’s one method left, though.

Someone might say, “They need to do it with their own strength.”

But that’s almost impossible for a resistance army that has lost its center.

Honestly, the fact that they’ve lasted this long without a central figure might just mean the government forces are pretty incompetent.

After 10 years, so many must have died.

I can’t just keep pushing them to fight more.

If I do that, the Kanora Church could become nothing but a war-obsessed cult.

“Hm. There is an easier way.”

It’s not that there are no options.

There’s a saying: “Ride on the tiger’s back.”

I can adopt that approach.

This world is ultimately one established by the revolutionary leader.

Even if I spread the Kanora Church here, at best, it would form a new faction, perhaps filled with fanatics, and the world would just be split into three: the Blue Ideology, the Red Ideology, and the Kanora Church.

More importantly, it would take a long time.

So, it’s better to adopt a new strategy.

Something that can end this quickly.

‘Defeat the boss.’

Defeat the boss and claim that all of this was orchestrated by me from behind the scenes.

All I need to do is make the revolutionary leader the first disciple of the Kanora Church in this world.

It’s a good plan.

To do that, I need to go where those Red scoundrels are.

The Red Army, or the Red Ideology’s army, has the purpose of crushing the resistance forces.

And the one leading them is a guy named Ralph.

Ralph.

Now that I think about it, my neighbor’s name was Ralph.

Could the Ralph of this world be the leader of the Red Ideology?

And it seems Ralph’s subordinates are focused on capturing the resistance forces.

“We need to smash every one of those rebel heads.”

“Damn right! How dare they mock our Supreme Leader! There’s a limit!”

“Still, lately, they’ve been coming at us with too much killing intent. It’s becoming a problem.”

“Well, that’s to be expected. Recently, we’ve been mocking that so-called Supreme Commander they hold in such high regard.”

In the end, the side that wins will be seen as righteous, but this side is something else, too.

The level of worship for their leaders is just as intense.

If the revolutionary leader hadn’t died, couldn’t they have incited the people in the opposite way?

“Who’s there?”

“They’re sharper than I thought.”

I ignored them, but it seems they’re quite observant.

Well, no choice then.

At times like this, there’s only one option.

“Smash!”

I swung my mace without mercy.

“Aaaaargh!”

I smashed the heads of the Red Army’s command, shattering their skulls.

With a crack, they broke like watermelons.

I crushed the heads of these insane people.

It seems I need to deal with this side to make spreading the Kanora Church easier.

Now, let’s take a look at the supreme leader of this side.

As I slaughtered the command officers and walked down the corridor, I came across a room that seemed to belong to the supreme leader.

I quietly opened the door and peeked inside.

What I saw shocked me.

“To catch those freedom army scum quickly is the only way I can live comfortably. Ugh.”

Sitting on a blood-red sofa, which seemed to be made from the people’s blood, was the supreme leader, gnawing on meat with both hands like something straight out of a comic book.

He was eating so much that I couldn’t help but wonder how much he had stuffed himself to be belching like that.

I wanted to erase the memory of what I saw.

The phrase “eyes that shouldn’t have seen this” came to mind.

He was so obese that his neck and chin were indistinguishable, and his fingers were swollen with fat, with no room left to gain more weight.

Yet he still talked about living comfortably.

“Are you alright, Supreme Leader?”

A woman, who appeared to be his secretary, asked him that.

“Well, my mere existence is the hope of the people, isn’t it? Ahem, it’s truly unfortunate that the food entering my mouth is not being used for the war.”

Sure, of course.

Just look at that belly.

A massive blob of fat, sagging to the point of bursting.

I could barely endure the sight of his enormous stomach, which was enough to make my eyes rot.

Yet he claims he’s not living comfortably.

And to top it off, he’s lamenting that even the food being used for the war is a waste. Impressive, truly.

The revolutionary leader sure had it good.

“Yes, indeed.”

“And yet, despite all the grace I’ve shown them, they still follow that dead fool. It’s madness, I tell you!”

That’s not something you should be saying.

Why is that woman, who appears to be his secretary, looking so enraptured in front of this guy?

Her tight-fitting suit seemed like it was deliberately chosen to show off.

Disgusting.

What kind of intelligence does she have to behave like that in front of a man like him?

Perhaps it’s brainwashing?

Without it, there’s no way anyone could wear such an enraptured expression in front of that mass of fat.

After finishing all the meat, the man belched loudly and grinned wickedly.

“Ahem. Alright. Now undress. We must perform the ceremony of glory. There is no greater honor than receiving my seed, is there?”

The ceremony of glory?

Ah, I think I know what this is.

But in that condition?

Telling a woman, practically brainwashed by the atmosphere, to undress—it’s clear what’s happening.

And this supreme leader is already undressed, with his belly completely covering everything below.

In that state, he’s going to perform the ceremony?

The mere thought of it makes me feel utterly disgusted.