Ch.6Chapter 6. The Defeated Female Knight Is Eventually… to the Orc……

Blacklist.

A list typically created to identify individuals who should never be accepted or who require caution when dealing with them.

I understood why an adventurer’s guild that deals with people would have such a list, but I couldn’t understand why I had ended up on it.

“So you’re saying the adventurer’s guild specifically singled me out and told people not to hire me?”

“Not exactly. It seems that because there have been frequent incidents that draw attention whenever you’re hired by them, adventurers who heard these rumors have collectively protested against hiring you.”

“That’s the same thing.”

While no official list had been created, if enough adventurers were complaining, the guild would have no choice but to take it seriously.

But I still couldn’t understand the reason even after hearing it.

Incidents that draw attention? Me?

Even when heroes cursed at me, treated me like a slave or a dog, I still served them with a service smile and did everything properly. I worked honestly without pocketing anything, so why were they nitpicking about irrelevant things?

“I worked diligently, so why am I being blacklisted?”

“The problem is that you’ve continued to work diligently.”

“Wow, is this world so broken that even diligence is a crime now?”

This is why this world has over a million unemployed young people.

Unless you’re a special talent with top grades, you won’t be recognized no matter what you do. Who would roll up their sleeves and work passionately in such conditions?

This world would be better suited for a million Foreign Laborers rather than a million unemployed, but anyway.

“Listen, young man. Do you know how dangerous the work of an adventurer is?”

For someone like me who quietly works and saves money, this news was not just devastating to my future earnings but also felt like a betrayal.

As if trying to make me understand, the guild master stroked his wrinkled face and quietly explained.

“Demon Tribe, the Undead, vampires, Beastman, and so on… With so many dangerous creatures around, there’s always high demand for adventurers who take on these risks. Especially the tasks undertaken by those called heroes are among the most dangerous. Do you understand this much?”

“Yes, well. Everyone knows that.”

“Now, let’s look at the missions you’ve taken on so far.”

The guild master showed me my records from the labor union one by one.

Those documents contained detailed records of all the jobs I had done, and a significant portion involved serving heroes.

“Do you know how many of the heroes you’ve served are still alive?”

“How many?”

“All but three are dead! They’re all dead, my friend!”

Bang, bang! The guild master slammed the documents with his hand and glared at me.

There was an indescribable frustration in his expression, but I had several issues with being held responsible for this.

“Look, I know heroes are valuable personnel, but isn’t being an adventurer a profession with a low survival rate to begin with? I just carried their luggage, I didn’t hit them from behind or anything, so why is this my fault?!”

“That’s not it. The problem is that you frequently return alive.”

“Wow, now even surviving is a problem. Are you saying workers like me should follow them and die as bullet shields?”

“The problem is that only you keep coming back alive. If it happened once or twice, we’d say you’re lucky. If it happened more than five times, we’d call you a survival king. But when it exceeds ten or twenty times, people can’t help but be afraid.”

“But…”

The guild master looked at me with pity, without any malice but clearly frustrated.

Guessing that nothing I said would improve the situation, I could only grab my forehead and quietly lament.

“The problem is that all these heroes are blockheads, so why is it my fault?”

It was the moment when what I had always thought to myself finally burst out of my mouth.

***

Yes, heroes are all idiots.

It’s not that they’re inherently wrong. The system in this world is designed to make them that way after they’re summoned.

For instance, think about when they’re first summoned.

When it’s confirmed that their special abilities are SSR-grade in front of the summoners, nobles, and royalty, cheers erupt from all directions.

Just like when a new collectible character appears in a gacha game, fanfares play, spotlights shine…

Naturally, after receiving such praise, heroes would think:

‘I was nobody in my previous life, but in this world, I’m a hero who will save the world?’

‘Don’t I seem pretty awesome? Has my time finally come?’

Of course, the more ordinary their previous life was, the more irresistible this is.

As powerful figures support them and provide resources from everywhere, their sense of inferiority fades day by day.

They truly believe they can save the world. Moreover, they think they are the strongest and greatest beings in this world…

With such a sense of superiority, they reign as the strongest within the empire’s bubble, then venture into this perilous world with contempt.

Yes, it’s exactly what the technical term “Dunning-Kruger” describes.

“Hero! We need to retreat from here for now!”

That was the same procedure followed by that damn female knight I met recently.

“Shut up! I was summoned to this world as a hero. Do you think it’s appropriate for me, with the mission to save the world, to retreat in the face of the Demon Lord’s army!?”

“I also think we should wipe out the Demon Lord’s army. But now is not a good time, is it?”

The job I had at that time was a large-scale spontaneous quest arranged by the guild.

We were to monitor the Demon Lord’s army that had begun to station near the port city and buy time for people to evacuate in case they invaded.

Naturally, if the Demon Lord’s army showed no movement, there was no need to provoke them by charging in.

“Hero, isn’t it enough for you to just observe their movements from here? Looking at what those guys are doing, they don’t seem to have any intention of invading this city and are just searching the surroundings. Why would you want to provoke them by charging into their camp…”

“Ha, whatever their scheme is, aren’t they enemies we’ll have to deal with eventually? No matter how strong they are or how many there are, they’re no match for me, a hero, so why should I consider such circumstances?”

“But the evacuation isn’t complete yet. At least wait until everyone has left the city…”

“Ha! If I just kill that officer, everything will end. He’s just a pathetic orc, shouldn’t be hard to take care of, right?”

“I don’t think you should underestimate him just because he’s an orc. If an orc has risen to become an officer in the Demon Lord’s army…”

“Silence! Who are you, a mere porter, to talk so much? You just need to carry my equipment and follow behind me!”

And so, despite my dissuasion, the hero made me carry her equipment and dragged me into danger, charging alone into the Demon Lord’s army’s camp.

After taking down just a few small fry, she was completely defeated.

By unnecessarily provoking the Demon Lord’s army that had been quiet, the port city was devastated, and people who hadn’t completed evacuation died as a bonus.

Yet, the female knight showed no awareness of this and only glared at the orc who had defeated her with resentful eyes.

“Kugh, how dare an orc…”

“Hmph! Being an orc is just my birth, but now I am rightfully an officer of the Demon Lord’s army!”

Of course, the Demon Lord’s army isn’t stupid enough to keep a dull-witted orc in such a position.

So when facing someone considered an officer, it would be more reasonable to see them as an extraordinary warrior who has transcended their orc origins to become an officer.

Naturally, not someone that an ignorant hero relying solely on strength could confidently charge at and handle.

“On the other hand, you fought hard, but you’re just a rookie who was summoned to this world not long ago!”

“I’m not a rookie! I… Kugh!”

Finally, her strength gave out, and she collapsed to the ground with her injured body.

Seeing her miserable state, the orc planted his iron mace on the ground with a thud and looked at the female knight with cold eyes.

“Rookie hero, what do you think I’m going to do to you now?”

“…Ha, what orcs do is obvious.”

Even as a rookie, she would have received various education and training as a hero in the royal family.

This would have included basic knowledge about beings that disrupt the world, such as elves, demons, undead, and others.

Among them, orcs were known as a race with vigorous reproductive abilities, whose numbers increase exponentially if extermination is delayed even slightly.

Anticipating a future derived from such common knowledge, she glared at the orc with venomous eyes and said:

“But no matter what you do, I will never submit! No matter what you do, I will never…”

“Very well, I respect your resolve and will kill you without pain!”

The officer orc immediately raised his iron mace in response to the female knight’s declaration.

The female knight’s face, realizing something was wrong, began to turn pale.

“Huh? Wait…”

-Crack!

A horrific sound.

When I reflexively opened my eyes again, everything was already over.

All that remained was blood and brain matter splattered on the ground, and limbs trembling from rigor mortis.

Soon, the officer standing before the corpse raised his iron mace proudly and shouted:

“I am an officer of the Demon Lord’s army who knows honor! As a warrior, I will grant a fitting end to anyone who stands before me!!”

Of course, someone who has risen to become an officer in the Demon Lord’s army despite not being a demon can act beyond common sense.

Dragging the brain-crushing iron mace, he began walking towards where I was.

“Now for the next… Human over there. Come here!”

“Eek…”

If even a powerful and well-connected hero was defeated and had her head smashed, how could I possibly resist?

As I approached as ordered, he looked at me coldly and said:

“Human. What would you like me to do with you now?”

“Please spare me, sir! I have too many things I want to achieve before I die!!”

Even though I might die anyway, if given a choice, I should naturally bet on wanting to live.

For that, I hit my forehead on the ground so hard it hurt, but if I couldn’t endure that much pain, the next thing hitting my head wouldn’t be the ground but the blood-stained iron mace.

“Hmm! So you don’t want to die!?”

“That’s right, sir! How could I want this precious life given by my mother and father to disappear in a place like this?! They say even rolling in a dog poop field is better than the afterlife. If you spare me, I’ll work like a dog!”

“Hmm! I like your honesty with yourself! I respect your courage to bow your head for what’s precious to you, so I’ll spare your life!”

“Thank you, boss!”

“And you said you’d work for me? Then after you leave this place alive, tell your kind clearly! If they provoke us again like this, they will pay the price!”

“Of course I’ll tell them, boss! I, Hyoseong Woo, will clearly convey your military achievements!”

And so, by desperately begging for my life, I was able to survive even after facing an officer of the Demon Lord’s army.

Indeed, knowing courtesy and humility is the way to live a long life.