Chapter 12 – The Hero’s Son

＊

Daniel was struggling to stay conscious, but even lifting his head, which kept drooping downwards, seemed too much for him.

I crouched down and tapped him on the cheek.

“Don’t you dare faint already. Get up.”

“You… you,”

“Me, what.”

“How could you… do something like this…”

“Isn’t that rich coming from you, who poisoned my maid and is after my fortune?”

“Ugh…”

Daniel had lost so much blood that even talking seemed to be a struggle.

I used Divine Power to heal his fatal wounds from the dagger, except for the fingernail marks on his abdomen.

As soon as his body recovered, Daniel jumped up and grabbed his sword.

I smiled and slowly stood up as well.

“Aren’t you even going to say thank you?”

“… What the hell are you?”

“I’ll tell you slowly. Let’s not rush things, shall we?”

Daniel looked confused.

The mysterious tycoon had the skills of an assassin, and he could also wield Divine Power.

He quickly recalled the rumors about Baron Salvier in his head, but he had never heard anything like this.

Daniel adjusted his grip on his sword and shook off all thoughts.

For now, the important thing was something else.

He didn’t know the Baron’s identity or intentions, but since he had healed him, perhaps a conversation was possible.

With that thought, Daniel spoke.

“Please forgive my sister’s crime. Baron. Please, help me save Rose.”

“Why should I forgive the criminal who poisoned my maid?”

“… I’ll do anything.”

“For example?”

“If you tell me to leave the city, I’ll give up everything and leave. If you tell me to guard you without pay, I will.”

“If I told you to die?”

“…What?”

“I’m asking if you would die if I told you to.”

“…”

Daniel trembled with immense fear.

He couldn’t shake the thought that he should disarm the Baron right now and escape from this place.

Of course, if he harmed the Baron, he might not be able to save Rose, and even worse things might happen later.

But Daniel’s senses were warning him.

This person is dangerous.

He felt it would be much safer to sneak into the prison where Rose was being held and break her out.

Daniel, huddled up and ready to strike if he came any closer.

I watched him, calculating the situation that was about to unfold.

If a thief or assassin revealed their position and fought a skilled swordsman, the swordsman would most likely win.

But was I just any ordinary thief?

People trembled at the names of heroes and mages, and I too was a member of that legendary hero party.

And

[Practically the thief who cut off my head.]

“…!”

As if sensing something ominous, Daniel instantly rushed towards me and swung his sword.

Daniel, who had swung his sword at empty air, staggered back in shock, losing his balance.

Baron Salvier had literally disappeared before his eyes.

Of course, assassins and thieves often hid in the shadows, but he had never heard of anyone disappearing in an instant like this.

Daniel, sweating profusely, regained his stance and then bolted towards the door he had entered through.

He frantically pulled on the handle, but the door wouldn’t budge.

‘I definitely broke the lock, so why won’t it open?’

As Daniel looked closely at the door, he saw an ominous and cold chain tightly binding it.

The way the chain passed through the wall and wrapped around the door seemed like magic,

and the ominous feeling it gave off seemed far more terrifying than that.

The chain didn’t break even when struck with a sword.

It didn’t even budge, let alone break.

Only the shock was transmitted to his hand, as if he had punched a huge wall.

Only then did Daniel seem to realize something, and he turned around with a hollow laugh.

“It was a trap. From the beginning.”

“That’s right, you’re pretty sharp.”

Feeling the cold blade of a dagger against the back of his neck, Daniel froze and asked.

“Where did it start?”

“The letter you received. I was the delivery guy who brought it. Your lovely Rose never wrote such a letter.”

“… Do you even know about my relationship with Rose?”

“Yeah, I saw it all. It was disgusting, you two siblings.”

“Ugh!”

Daniel almost lost his mind for a moment due to shame and anger.

I pressed the dagger against the back of Daniel’s neck to calm him down.

Feeling the thin, sharp metal slightly pierce his skin, Daniel calmed down and slowly opened his mouth.

“Why are you doing this?”

“There are two reasons. You know one of them.”

“… I sincerely regret what happened to your maid. I apologize.”

“Hahaha.”

I let him go and once again hid myself in the darkness.

As the dagger disappeared from his neck, Daniel leaned against the wall, raised his sword, and looked around.

It was quite amusing to see him looking around anxiously.

“The hero’s son isn’t looking too good.”

I smiled and slowly walked towards Daniel.

Daniel, terrified, screamed at me not to come closer and swung his sword.

I strode towards him without caution.

Despite swinging wildly and irrationally, the clean trajectory of the sword crossed my neck.

At the same time as the sound of sharp metal embedding itself in flesh, my vision soared into the sky before plummeting towards the ground.

Daniel stared at my body, separated from its head, and muttered foolishly.

“…What?”

“…Oh.”

The body, now without its master, slowly walked over and placed its head back on its neck.

Daniel was stunned, his mind unable to keep up with reality.

His head had fallen off, yet it was moving.

“Robin taught you well.”

“Am I dreaming right now?”

Black chains instantly ensnared Daniel’s sword, snatched it away, and threw it aside.

Having lost his weapon in vain, he leaned against the wall and muttered.

“…I’ve heard of it.”

“…”

“The black chains of light made of magic power that the Demon King wields.”

“That’s right.”

“But, just now, you were clearly using Divine Power…”

“I was.”

“…Who the hell are you, no, who are you!”

“Me?”

I slowly took off my mask and dropped it. As I stroked my face with my left hand, which was covered in Divine Power, even the rotten skin that looked like burn scars returned to normal.

Daniel, carefully examining my face revealed by the golden light emitted by Divine Power, seemed to be struggling to remember who I was.

I opened my mouth mockingly.

“Didn’t your mom and dad tell you?”

“…! Could it… could it be”

“Oh, you get it? Who I am.”

Daniel’s expression twisted in shock.

“E… Edward…”

Edward. My father’s comrade and Aunt Mela’s lover.

The legendary thief who dealt a fatal blow to the Demon King in the final mission to assassinate him.

And the noble hero who sacrificed his life for his comrades and humanity.

Even now, countless people offer prayers in front of his massive statue erected in the capital.

Why was he…

“…Why, why do you have the Demon King’s power, Edward!”

“Where should I start,”

“…”

“People will be coming to rescue this ship soon, so I’ll keep it short.”

“…”

“Do you know that your cowardly father, Robin, betrayed me and killed me?”

＊

I briefly summarized the truth and explained it to him.

Daniel wore a blank expression throughout my explanation, and then began to chuckle.

“Hehe,”

“Why are you laughing? It’s a sad story.”

“Hahaha, you fool,”

“…?”

“Do you think I’d believe such words? You monster.”

“Huh,”

“You’ve insulted my father and the great hero, Edward!”

“Oh, really.”

“It’s no use trying to deceive me, Baron Salvier. Even though it was for Rose’s sake, I was somewhat bothered by committing evil deeds, but it seems the Goddess has given me this opportunity to defeat an evil monster like you!”

Was it out of respect for his father,

or because he couldn’t believe in the existence of a hero wielding the Demon King’s power?

Daniel glared at me, screaming.

He seemed to have erased even fear with anger.

“My father was truly saddened by the death of his friend, Edward-nim! That’s why he erected Edward-nim’s statue alongside his own, but there’s no way such a father would betray Edward-nim!”

“He erected my statue? Wow, Lara didn’t mention that.”

“Lara…? You know Aunt Lara?”

“Of course I know her, I’m Edward after all.”

“So it was you who made Aunt Lara disappear!”

“No, it’s because she found out Robin betrayed me.”

“Shut your mouth!”

Daniel picked up the dagger I had thrown on the floor, gripped it in reverse, and charged at me.

“Ha, a daughter who’s a thug, a son who’s a moron, and they’re even hooking up with each other. Robin and Jennifer are both sons of bitches, but I feel sorry for them since their offspring are such a disaster,”

“You bastard!”

“Calm down. Moron.”

A massive shield made of Divine Power blocked Daniel’s path.

Daniel crashed into the golden barrier and fell on his ass.

“So, according to your theory, how would you explain my Divine Power? You moron.”

“This is… that…”

“And, I don’t think you realize why I’m telling you all this.”

“…?”

At the same time as the golden barrier disappeared, I also vanished from Daniel’s sight.

Chains that appeared outside of Daniel’s bewildered vision tightly bound his entire body.

I grabbed him by the neck and lifted him up.

“Because you won’t be leaving here alive.”

It was noisy outside.

It seemed the workers had brought people and reached near the ship.

I dragged Daniel away from the bow where people were gathering and headed in the opposite direction.

Daniel realized what I was about to do and urgently spoke to me.

“Baron Salvier-nim! P… Please save me.”

“Why are you still calling me Baron Salvier? Do you still not believe that I’m Edward?”

“N… No, I believe you! I believe you! Please, I beg you. Without me, Rose!”

“Don’t worry, Rose will soon follow you to your side.”

“Goddamn it! Why… why are you doing this to us?”

“…? I told you everything.”

“Even if our father is a coward, even if our father isn’t a hero but a rogue who betrayed and murdered his comrade, that’s not the children’s fault!”

“…”

“There’s no law that says children should pay for their parents’ sins. Please, save my sister and me. I’ll help in any way I can. Please.”

“You see,”

“…Please.”

“I don’t want Robin or Jennifer to pay for their sins.”

“Baron… no, Edward-nim…”

“I’ve been thinking about how to make them suffer the most.”

“…Then…”

“I’m going to take everything from those bastards. Honor, position, wealth, life, and even one of their children.”

“…Agh! Aaaagh! Save me!”

As Daniel screamed for help, I slashed his uvula with a knife and sealed his mouth with chains.

Even so, Daniel’s small screams as he struggled and choked, unfortunately, didn’t reach the people.

I patted Daniel on the head.

“Congratulations on becoming my first sacrifice.”

“Uaaaa, aae!”

Holding Daniel, who was crying and struggling, I jumped into the sea.

As we sank, I healed his throat with Divine Power.

Daniel spewed bubbles in the water and tried to scream, but all that could be heard was the sound of gurgling as he swallowed water.

Even that was shattered by the sound of the waves and sank.

In less than a minute, I sat down on a coral next to Daniel, who had sunk to the bottom.

I stared intently at Daniel’s face, contorted in agony as he suffocated.

1 minute

Daniel screamed until he had exhausted all the air in his lungs, then struggled with a painful expression.

3 minutes

No more bubbles came out of Daniel’s mouth.

His desperate struggles were gradually weakening.

5 minutes.

I continued to watch him.

Until the moment life faded from Daniel’s face.

The hero’s eldest son. Died like that.

I removed the chains from his body and placed a handful of jewels on his corpse.

I walked along the bottom of the sea and left.

I planned to appear on a beach far from the harbor to prove my alibi.

As I slowly walked through the water, the sun was rising.

Sunlight began to penetrate below the surface, and the darkness in the water receded, gradually illuminating the surroundings.

Wow,

I had never thought the sea could be so beautiful.

Corals and shells, colorful fish and transparent jellyfish.

I gently touched a jellyfish in front of me with my finger.

It was cute how the soft, squishy sphere trembled.

It was the first time I liked my undead body.

＊

Two days later, Daniel’s bloated corpse floated to the surface of the harbor.

At first, people thought it was a murder case,

But Hobeba, who was hospitalized, testified that Daniel had boarded the ship to steal the Baron’s fortune after fighting with him.

As testified, a wound on the abdomen and jewels presumed to belong to the Baron were found on the corpse.

And inside the Forget-Me-Not Inn, a lock presumed to have been broken by Daniel was also found,

So people concluded that he had boarded the ship to steal the Baron’s fortune to raise his sister’s bail,

And then jumped into the sea to avoid people’s attention and drowned.

Among academy officials and nobles, there was a brief opinion that Hobeba was responsible.

But he had been severely injured by Daniel and hospitalized for two days, so such opinions quickly subsided due to protests from the harbor workers.

I testified that I had been on the beach to watch the sunrise to pray for the health of the poisoned maid on the day of the incident,

And it was confirmed to be true thanks to the people who met me on the beach that day.

I greatly lamented the death of the hero’s son, forgave the crime committed by Rose, and said that I would pay the bail myself.

People once again praised the Baron’s character,

And the town’s festive atmosphere was plunged into chaos.

News came that Jennifer had collapsed in shock,

And that Rose had been released.

.