Ch.BONUSOutside. First Wedding Anniversary (2)

The Hero’s greatest duty is to defeat the Demon Lord and protect humanity.

Past Heroes (excluding Gwon Heejin) willingly… well, whether they were willing or not, they threw themselves into the Demonic Land to fulfill that noble mission.

I did make my mark in the Demonic Land too. I even slaughtered the Demon Lord about a year and two months ago.

However, there were several differences between my predecessors and me. I wasn’t from another world, my journey didn’t end with defeating the Demon Lord, and…

‘I’ve killed just as many humans as demons.’

That thought crossed my mind as I had already executed over thirty people.

“AAAAARGH!”

The people I was killing were citizens of the Principality of Microssia.

I wasn’t killing innocent citizens for entertainment.

It’s true that after killing so many, I’ve become somewhat desensitized, but I didn’t enjoy murder. I was simply administering treatment to achieve political goals in the shortest time possible.

“Your Highness. Should I take over for you?”

I turned my head to see my junior Katie staring at me.

The youngest member of the Hero’s party, a member of the Wellington Order that I established a few months ago, and a promising talent who had already reached the highest Expert rank.

And now she was a female knight who had followed me to the principality to help with the dirty work.

She was watching the prisoners while giving me a puzzled look. As if to say, if these people were going to die anyway, wouldn’t it be better to get it over with quickly?

“No. It’s better if I do it.”

There was no reason to drag this out.

I grabbed the collar of the man who was kneeling before me, sobbing, and forced him to stand. If I wanted, I could beat him to death, strangle him, or even take his life with just my pinky finger.

But there was no need to dirty my hands.

“Wait, just a moment… AAAAHH!!”

The prisoner fell off the cliff after being lightly pushed by me. Some of the residents watching from a distance flinched in fear.

The execution site was a sheer cliff over 50 meters high. I was told it had been used for this purpose for a long time.

The people I was executing were members of an organization operating from Nasos, one of the many islands of the principality.

The Principality of Microssia, which until last year was known as the Allied Nations.

Many of the dozens of islands that made up this place were still lawless territories. It was inevitable since it had only been about a year since they changed their sign to a principality.

It would be difficult to escape the chaos for quite some time. They were just now barely appointing local officials and dispatching liaisons to each island.

Criminal organizations had thrived in this chaos. The men dying now were members of an organization that distributed large quantities of hallucinogenic plants.

The boss, who had lost all his subordinates and was left alone, was looking at me with resentful eyes.

Even with his face distorted by extreme fear, he still glared at me as if he wanted to kill me, and there was even moisture gathering in his eyes.

“What’s wrong with farming? Huh? What’s wrong with it…!”

“There’s nothing wrong with farming itself. But if you threatened ordinary farmers who grew olives and wheat with knives and forced them to grow inedible plants, that’s a different story. I heard you even monopolized the already scarce freshwater?”

“We were just trying to survive…! And these days, people are changing their crops voluntarily without us forcing them!”

“I know. Even residents of nearby islands are voluntarily giving up growing food crops. Even children are chewing that grass all day. …That’s why it’s more problematic.”

At these words, the face of the man about to die was filled with confusion.

From his perspective, he might not think it was a serious crime. After all, he was just selling plants with hallucinogenic, stimulant, and appetite-suppressing effects.

According to Hannah, it was due to some compound contained in the plant. Fortunately, it didn’t seem to have fatal adverse effects on the human body.

“In 3-4 years, we might consider cultivating it systematically for recreational distribution. By then, food concerns will be gone.”

“What are you talking about?”

“But now is not the time. The grass you grow requires too much water. Not only that, it rapidly depletes the soil’s fertility. It’s not a suitable crop for a principality that’s barely self-sufficient in food.”

“If that’s the case, you could have just explained it.”

“There’s no time or resources for that. This is the fastest way.”

“You fucking bastard!”

“Go.”

The next moment, the man was kicked by me and fell off the cliff.

A single scream, followed shortly by the sound of flesh breaking. That made over thirty-five people I had sent to their deaths by falling.

“…There was no need for you to personally carry out the executions.”

“No. It’s better to use the Hero’s authority to pass judgment. Anyway, this should be enough of an example.”

Now even farmers who were considering changing crops after hearing that mood-enhancing grass was more profitable than wheat would flinch and focus on their current farming.

Of course, I didn’t intend to stop at just making an example. I would need to provide sufficient support for farmers who had been forced to change crops under threat to return to growing wheat and olives.

Killing some, leading most to survival. That was my job.

‘I wonder if someday I’ll be able to resolve things without bloodying my hands.’

It had only been two years since I took power. I didn’t know when better days would come. I also didn’t know how many more people I would have to kill or send to labor camps.

All I could do was work day by day to hasten the arrival of peaceful days.

*

Fortunately, I hadn’t flown to the principality just to carry out executions.

In fact, I had another purpose.

It was a trip to celebrate our first wedding anniversary.

The men who just died would feel wronged if they knew, but it couldn’t be helped. I wasn’t in a position to leave the imperial capital solely for a vacation.

“Erick. Where have you been? You said you were going for a short walk.”

I saw Ember’s frowning face as she held baby Arthur.

She had become slim again, perhaps because she had lost the weight she gained during pregnancy. Her expression was also blooming cheerfully, probably because she was enjoying the scenic principality.

“Sorry. Since we’re here, I just went to check on the security situation.”

“If you’re going to apologize, do it to Hannah. She fell asleep waiting for you.”

As she said, Hannah was sleeping next to Ember, breathing heavily. Since her first pregnancy, her sleep and appetite had increased significantly. Though not yet noticeable to others, her belly was slightly swollen if you looked carefully.

My two wives who had been working as hard as I had since marriage… no, even before that.

This trip was taken to comfort the two of them by making time despite my busy schedule. There was no need to reveal that I had killed over thirty people.

I forced a smile and sat between the two of them.

And that wasn’t all. I also soothed Hannah, who naturally leaned against me even in her sleep, and took Arthur from Ember to hold him. As a bonus, I ate the excessively salty olive flesh that Ember offered me with a fork.

“It’s too salty.”

“The locals eat it like crazy. By the way, this building is really magnificent. I heard it used to be a royal palace?”

“…It belonged to the royalty of a country called Cadeira. Since it’s an ownerless facility now, there’s no need to worry about it.”

“How can it be ownerless? Strictly speaking, it belongs to you, Erick.”

“That’s true.”

Virtually everything in the principality was mine. It was possible because I had annihilated the ruling class of this place before I became the Hero.

Ember probably knew that fact, but she didn’t seem to mind.

She was chattering about how she heard from a servant that this place was famous for hot springs, and that there was a place called “Ibiza” half a day’s journey by boat that might be worth visiting. She seemed to consider this trip as a belated honeymoon.

Seeing her excited appearance made me feel guilty for not taking better care of her until now.

“Oh, Erick. How about coming here periodically, like once every year or two, for inspection? It’s more certain to check with your own eyes than to receive reports through liaisons.”

…Perhaps she was deliberately showing excitement. It was possible for Ember. After all, she was the one who secretly commanded the empire’s only intelligence agency.

There was no need for either of us to reveal our thoughts, so I just went along with it.

“…Already? We have a child.”

“No, you mentioned it. That the hot springs are famous. We should enjoy them leisurely tonight.”

I had already planned how to spend this evening.

We would have dinner a bit early, leave Arthur with the maids for a while, and then enjoy the hot springs together.

We wouldn’t just be bathing. After dismissing the attendants, I planned for us to spend intimate time together as a couple. Ember had long since completed her postpartum recovery, and Hannah was past early pregnancy, so it would be fine as long as we weren’t too rough.

My two wives who still maintained their fresh beauty, my child who whimpered before me, and the child still in its mother’s womb.

It was right to do my best whenever I had the chance. If I didn’t enjoy enough time with my family because I was busy, I might regret it when I got old.

“Erick?”

Hannah, who had just woken up, mumbled something in a small voice and leaned against me. Ember watched us leisurely, crossing her legs.

…How happy would I be if I could live solely responsible for my family’s well-being? Even though I knew it was impossible, I couldn’t help but feel that desire.

‘I suppose it’s okay to enjoy myself a little.’

I decided to set aside the weight of the murders I had committed and the doubts about whether I was going in the right direction. If I didn’t rest like this occasionally, I wouldn’t be able to handle the enormous responsibility placed on me.

Just then, a warm breeze mixed with the smell of the sea blew in.

It was a comforting wind that made me momentarily forget even the terrible screams of the humans I had just killed.