A World Without a Hero (2)

One month ago.

-Clang!!

In the basement of a castle in the Failon Kingdom, a vast secret room.

-Kang!!

A huge hammer and a blade wrapped in blue light collided in the air several times.

“The fact that she can certainly subdue the Princess’s manic state is the reason we need Miss Delphina… but it would be best to prevent such situations from occurring in the first place, if possible.”

Amid the loud resonance of clashing blades, the chief butler of the Failon royal family spoke quietly.

“The important thing is to eliminate the cause. To remove all threats around so that the Princess doesn’t have the opportunity to be gripped by negative thoughts in the first place.”

-Clash!!

Once again, the aura-wrapped blade and the hammer head collided, making a thunderous sound.

“Polaris Academy is a neutral zone that no country can arbitrarily interfere with. However, that doesn’t mean there aren’t foolish countries that truly wouldn’t attempt any tricks.”

“…”

“The fanatics of the Holy Nation, the extremists of the Republic, the nationalists of the Empire… numerous threats will target the Princess, and you must protect her from all of them.”

-Clang!!

Simultaneously, the blade held by the chief butler broke in half and flew away.

“…And, at this level, it seems more than sufficient not to worry.”

At the same time, the hammer head that was being swung toward him, who had lost his weapon, came to a abrupt stop.

Chief Butler of the Failon Kingdom’s royal family, Daryl Bertrand.

Former lowest seat of the Kingdom’s Seven Swords, and after Cornelio Difind’s disqualification from the Seven Swords due to wartime desertion, the 6th seat of the Kingdom’s Seven Swords.

“My, perhaps it’s because I’m old, but my memory is fuzzy. How old is Miss Delphina this year?”

“16 years old. My birthday hasn’t passed yet.”

“…Oh my, oh my.”

Grasping his tingling wrist, Daryl exhaled a satisfied sigh.

“At the age of 16, strength comparable to the Kingdom’s Seven Swords.”

Daryl Bertrand looked at Delphina, who was pointing the end of her hammer at him, and said:

“Even though your opponent was just a nominal, aging Seven Sword, it’s excellent talent.”

“Thanks to my mother’s strictness.”

Delphina answered as if it were nothing special.

“And I heard that the Princess became the 5th seat of the Seven Swords before me. Compared to her, someone like me…”

“Her Highness is a descendant of the royal bloodline.”

However, at Delphina’s subsequent words, Daryl shook his head.

“She is someone born with the bloodline of heroes, with innate talent that no one can dare compare to. There is no reason for Miss Delphina to undervalue herself.”

“…But for such a person, would protection like this even have meaning?”

“Of course.”

Daryl picked up the broken blade fragment and said:

“With a member of the Kingdom’s Seven Swords taking on the role of bodyguard, where in this world would there be a more reassuring ally?”

“I should be going with you!”

And, back to the present.

Toward Princess Evangeline sitting in the pure white carriage painted entirely in white, Delphina shook her head and murmured in a regretful voice.

“If I had gone, I would have just flipped everything over…”

“That’s exactly why you can’t go.”

Evangeline shook her head and admonished her.

“And, didn’t you say you had urgent business?”

“That’s true too.”

“If it’s related to our home country, it’s nothing serious, right?”

“It’s not that… serious. It’s certainly nothing for you to worry about.”

Toward Evangeline, who asked with a worried expression, Delphina waved her hand and smiled awkwardly.

“…Then I’ll be back. Do your work well, and don’t worry unnecessarily.”

“Have a safe trip.”

Toward the pure white carriage gradually moving away, Delphina silently waved her hand.

As the carriage receded, and eventually when it appeared smaller than her finger.

Delphina took out a piece of paper from inside her garment.

Delphina took out a small pen and drew a small mark on the paper.

Shortly after, blue letters began to engrave themselves under the mark.

[Reconfirming the sighting information of former Kingdom’s Seven Sword 6th seat, Cornelio Difind. Request for urgent elimination.]

Simultaneously, a small map was engraved on the blank space of the paper.

A rough map marking the estimated location with a circular symbol.

But Delphina was not confused. She had already confirmed through an urgent report two days ago that he had been sighted somewhere within Polaris Academy’s neutral zone, or in one of the nearby satellite city-states.

She had to kill him and conclude the incident as quickly as possible, without letting Princess Evangeline know about this fact.

Delphina’s mind was racing quickly.

Approach route, approach method, necessary auxiliary personnel, time required, etc.

After putting all the information in her head, Delphina crumpled the paper in her hand and stuffed it inside her garment.

‘…Wait.’

Delphina, who was about to turn around as if ready to depart immediately, stopped in place as if recalling something.

She recalled what Evangeline had casually told her after going out briefly because of a ‘prior engagement’ a little less than a week ago.

The Princess had said that day she met with Instructor Lore and asked him about Cornelio.

And Lore said he didn’t know.

And in less than a week, top-secret information flew in from the home country confirming the sighting of that Cornelio.

Could all of this really be a coincidence?

Well. Whatever others might think, at least Delphina didn’t think so.

Delphina changed direction and moved her steps again.

To meet an important ‘person of interest’.

“…Hero, you say?”

“Yes.”

The Saint answered with an unchanged serene expression.

What is this person talking about?

“That hero from old tales?”

“Yes, that hero you know is correct.”

Even to the question I threw out thinking it couldn’t possibly be, the Saint nodded as if it were obvious.

Hero.

The owner of the sacred sword chosen by God through an oracle to confront the Demon King, appearing in old tales.

In the original game, only the war between the Failon Kingdom and the Demon King’s Army was partially depicted, with not a word about such content.

But in this world, not with the information from the game, the concept of a hero clearly existed.

One didn’t have to look far.

The first king of the Failon royal family, who founded the Failon Kingdom, was that legendary hero.

However, at the same time, there was a title that only the founder of the Failon Kingdom had.

The Last Hero.

Even now, more than 100 years after his passing, a new hero had not appeared.

Even though in the Western Continent beyond the Death Swamp, a new Demon King had gathered demons and monsters to create a force called the Demon King’s Army.

The oracle to determine a new hero had not descended.

At least, as far as I knew.

Toward the Saint, who had closed her mouth without continuing, I carefully asked:

“…Has an oracle descended, by any chance?”

If by chance an oracle had descended after 100 years, and that oracle pointed to none other than me.

It could explain why she tried to invite me by any means necessary.

“No.”

But the Saint shook her head again this time.

To me, who was about to ask why on earth she had called me then, the Saint quietly said:

“But we need a hero.”

The Saint raised her hand and gestured to the large man standing behind her.

The large man, who had been standing still as if he were a statue, moved for the first time.

The large man reached out and grabbed something that had been placed behind the Saint.

In his hand was a sword.

Even though the blade was hidden and confined in an old scabbard, brilliant light seemed to leak through the gaps.

At the indescribable pressure emanating from that sword, I asked in a half-suppressed voice without even realizing it myself:

“…What is this?”

“The Sacred Sword.”

The Saint answered with a smile.

“It’s the most powerful sacred relic in the Holy Nation that can only be wielded by a hero chosen by the oracle.”

A symbol of the hero, and a weapon that no one but the hero can wield.

If a person other than the hero grasps this weapon, the sacred sword is merely an ordinary sword with a dull blade.

But the moment a hero grasps that sword, the dull old sword turns into a divine weapon of God that sweeps away all enemies who stand in their way with sacred flames.

The Saint, who had received the sacred sword, placed it on the table between her and me.

And toward me, extending both hands, she said:

“Princess Knight of Failon, hero of the Human-Demon War.”

Blood-red eyes gleamed fiercely between narrowly opened eyelids.

“Would you become a hero?”

Maintaining my silence, I quietly asked her:

“…I heard that the oracle has not descended.”

“That is correct.”

The Saint answered with the same benevolent expression.

“Then hasn’t a hero not been determined?”

“That is also correct.”

The Saint nodded again. She was like a nodding doll that could only nod.

“Then how dare you, Saint, presume to speak God’s words and urge me to become a hero?”

-Chang!!

Simultaneously, the two large men moved like lightning.

Pure white armor, decorated in the room.

The decorative halberds held by those empty armors were instantly pointed at me.

“Impudent…”

“Were you going to say ‘impudent’?”

I asked, holding both halberds simultaneously with my left hand.

Even though the large men, who seemed to be at least 2m tall, wielded halberds longer and larger than their height.

They couldn’t move an inch, with both halberds caught between my steel fingers.

Taking my eyes off the large men who were sweating profusely, I turned my gaze back to the Saint.

Even in this explosive situation, she was still looking at me with an unchangingly serene expression.

She said quietly:

“Lower your spears.”

“But Saint…”

“I said lower them.”

But the large men did not move.

The Saint narrowed her eyes.

“Do you not hear my order to lower them?”

“B-but Saint.”

The large man standing on the opposite side said in a confused voice.

“We cannot withdraw the weapons…!”

Only then did the Saint’s expression waver.

“…The Failon royal family is the descendant of the hero, who inherited the bloodline of the Last Hero.”

The name of the hero was no different from the pride and symbol of our family.

This was an issue that Evangeline Failondia, as a princess of the Failon Kingdom, absolutely could not let pass.

Toward the Saint, who looked alternately at the large men and me with a confused gaze, I opened my mouth.

“That you dare to urge me, such a person, to usurp the name of the hero… may I take this as a challenge to our royal family?”

-Creak…!

Over the two halberds whose tips were grasped between my fingers, cracks began to gradually form.

“Wait, Princess Evangeline. Please calm down.”

The Saint urgently opened her mouth.

“My proposal is absolutely not with such an intention.”

I silently released the strength from my left hand that had been holding the halberds.

-Thud…!

The two large men who had been groaning and pulling on the halberds fell backward, and the Saint said to me:

“The reason I urged you to become a hero is because our humanity is now facing an unprecedented crisis. Doesn’t the Princess know this well?”

“…Crisis, you say?”

“I’m talking about those enemies of God beyond the Death Swamp, who are biding their time, building their strength to attack us again!”

At the Saint’s words, who was shouting as if in an ecstasy beyond her control, I bit my lip until it nearly broke.

It was as if I could already hear what words would come from her mouth.

And it was one of the things I never wanted to hear.

“Before the Demon King’s Army builds up its strength again and strikes at us, we should first raise an army under the name of the hero…”

“Now.”

The Saint’s words stopped abruptly.

Heat rose to my head to the point where my vision became distant, and my mouth moved on its own.

To a degree that I couldn’t control myself, my voice was trembling.

Sorry to say this Delphina, but your thinking was shallow.

“Are you now urging me to start a war?”

They’re not fanatics, they’re mad warmongers.