Escape (3)

Smoke and dust billowed up with the explosion.

Good, just as planned. This was the moment I’d been waiting for.

The collision of divine power, magic power, the power of spirits, and aura. An explosion where four forces met. I was already running.

‘Status window.’

As I muttered to myself while running, a semi-transparent window appeared before my eyes.

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Name: Shin Haru

Class: Hero

Titles: ‘Owner of the Holy Sword’, ‘Savior’, ‘Otherworlder’

Stats

Strength: A

Agility: A

Endurance: SSS

Magic Power: A

Mental Strength: S

Luck: SS

Equipment: Holy Sword ‘Dawn’

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“Inventory.”

A new window opened. Countless items were neatly arranged.

In the game, it was just the inventory menu, but in this other world, it was implemented as a real subspace.

“Shadow Cloak… it’s here.”

I took out a black bundle of cloth from the subspace. An S-class relic obtained from a dungeon in the past, [Shadow Cloak]. A powerful item that erases the wearer’s presence.

As I draped the cloak around myself, my body became semi-transparent. Not perfectly invisible, but enough to avoid being seen.

‘Stole the dragon’s treasure’, ‘Seduced the Saintess’s partner’, ‘Snatching the King of the Forest’, ‘Trying to steal the master’….

The battle between the party members continued. It seemed their attacks on each other hadn’t stopped.

As expected, they couldn’t fully focus on the pursuit because they were busy keeping each other in check.

The dragon’s magic power checked the Saintess’s divine power, and the elf’s spirits interfered with the cat’s pursuit. They were holding each other back.

How long had I been running? I hid behind a large rock and gasped for breath.

“Now I can finally breathe a little.”

From experience, the dragon’s magic detection shouldn’t reach this far. I carefully lifted the Shadow Cloak and looked at the sky. Aris’s golden silhouette and Silvia’s spirits were nowhere to be seen.

The explosion at the last moment was fortunate.

The chaos created by the party members’ jealousy and wariness towards each other. Thanks to not missing that gap and escaping, I was able to come this far.

“First… should I go to the Empire?”

The Imperial capital, Chronicle. A metropolis bustling with countless adventurers. The heart of the Empire. A city surrounded by a massive magic barrier. A place where the interests of countless nobles and merchants are intertwined.

It might be safe there for a while. The party members wouldn’t be able to run wild there either. If we were a complete hero party, maybe, but now we’re all individuals.

“Aris wouldn’t be able to act recklessly either.”

Even if she’s a dragon, if she uses violence in the Imperial capital, the Empire wouldn’t stand still. She wouldn’t want to break the treaty between the dragon race and humanity.

“Silvia too.”

If the Elf Queen released her spirits, it would be no different from declaring war immediately. The barely concluded peace treaty between the elves and the Empire would become worthless.

“Seraphina… the Order will hold her back.”

The Saintess of the Goddess Order disturbing the capital because of one man? And without even a sacred wedding? The Order wouldn’t stand still. In the first place, the Imperial family is also keeping the increasingly powerful Order in check.

“Nia… because she’s a cat.”

Nia is a stray cat, so she should be more worried about getting caught by the guards.

“More than anything… they have no choice but to be wary of each other.”

All four of them are hell-bent on having me. If even one of them moves first, the others won’t stand still.

After all, they’ll think the biggest obstacle is each other. They’ll focus more on suspecting and checking each other.

“Okay. Let’s hide in the capital for now and sort out my thoughts….”

It’s a three-day journey to the capital ‘Chronicle’. There are a few villages along the way, but I shouldn’t stop by. If I leave traces, Nia will follow me.

There are three main routes to the capital. The northern boulevard, the western mountain path, and the eastern forest path.

The paved boulevard to the north is the fastest route, but…

“The boulevard won’t work.”

Aris’s magic detection range is terrifyingly wide. The title of Dragon Sage isn’t just for show. If I go on the boulevard, I’ll be discovered quickly.

“The forest path is dangerous too.”

Silvia’s spirits have already taken over the entire forest. Every leaf, every blade of grass will be her eyes.

“Then is it just the mountain path?”

A rough mountain path. But it’s the best option right now.

I mobilized all my knowledge to calculate the route.

I took out some high-quality jerky from the inventory. That should be enough for three days. And water too.

Now I’ve become a fugitive. Hunted by beings more terrifying than the Demon King, the party members I raised.

I took out a small notepad from my pocket. A notebook where I’ve written down my longing for the modern world for five years.

‘Air conditioning, web novels, chicken, Pepsi Zero…’

I wrote a new word on the last line.

‘Freedom.’

I put the notebook back and stood up. I have to leave now.

I looked back. The village is visible in the distance. There’s no turning back now.

“Sorry.”

I muttered softly.

“But I… have to go back.”

I turned my back and moved my steps to the mountain path. Now the real beginning.

But this is the best I can do right now. In order to return to the modern world, I must survive first.

***

I climbed the mountain path for several days, refining my plan in my head. But I couldn’t just run away or hide forever like this.

I sorted out my thoughts. How to survive her, them.

‘Be trapped in the dragon’s nest.’

‘Be sealed inside the World Tree.’

‘Marry the Saintess.’

‘Become the cat’s butler…’

To avoid being kidnapped, imprisoned, and restrained… I had to become stronger.

I opened the inventory and took out the map. I traced my memories of the original work, marking the locations one by one.

Powerful relics, hidden dungeons, companions I haven’t recruited….

Countless hidden elements and hidden pieces from the original work flashed through my mind.

Until now, the goal was to defeat the Demon King, so I only took the optimal route.

Things our party didn’t bother to find because we were too strong.

Now the situation is different. I need everything.

“I have to build up my own strength.”

I have to get stronger to return to the modern world. Enough to face the party members alone.

“And finally…”

I stopped walking, recalling the final plan. The most important goal, returning to the modern world.

Originally, they said the Order would send me back once I defeated the Demon King.

But will the Goddess Order’s promise really be kept?

I shook my head.

Seraphina’s purple eyes came to mind. Those eyes pleading with tears in them.

Looking at the Saintess-nim’s current state… I don’t think she’ll let me go.

Originally, if the hero party that defeated the Demon King demanded it, they would have granted anything… but with the party effectively disbanded now, it was obvious whose words the Order would listen to.

“I have to find another way.”

Maybe the Demon King knows something. The secret of otherworld transference or… a way to return.

A golden light flashed in the sky far away. It’s Aris.

Silvia’s spirits rustled with the sound of the wind. The leaves around me began to shake.

I felt a sacred aura. Seraphina’s divine power is spreading even here.

The shadow beneath my feet wriggled. Nia-gun…

“The plan is good… but I need to survive first.”

I fastened my cloak tightly and started running.

Time to put the first plan, ‘survival’, into practice. It feels like adventuring again after a long time.

A bitter smile came to my face. A development I never saw in the game.

A situation where the hero is being chased by his party members. An ending I’ve never seen in any of the original work’s clear videos.

***

As I passed through the night streets of the capital Chronicle, I looked at my reflection in a mirror. After three days of running, I was a mess.

A huge fortress wall stood tall under the moonlight. The heart of the Valtaria Empire, Chronicle.

Patrolmen passed by holding torches. I could feel the military might in their armored figures.

“Still strict.”

As expected of an empire that grew based on militarism. Military power that has become even stronger after decades of war with the demons.

Magic-engineered cannons were installed on the fortress walls. The latest weapons to prepare for the demon’s attacks.

“It’s changed a lot.”

It’s different from when I first came here five years ago. The Empire has developed further as the war became more advantageous due to the hero party’s activities.

“Back then…”

I remembered my first meeting with the Emperor. He recognized our value. He gave us generous support to raise a powerful hero party. As a result, we naturally became involved in the Empire’s politics.

“It’s here.”

I stood in front of the secret passage on the outer wall of the Imperial Palace. I groped for the gap in the stone wall and pressed a specific point.

Clang.

With the sound of machinery working, the stone wall opened slightly.

“It still opens.”

I slipped into the narrow passage. I groped forward in the pitch-black darkness, recalling my memories.

“There were stairs…”

I carefully took a step. A creaking sound echoed.

“Now to the left…”

I moved according to my memories. A path I memorized five years ago, looking at the Imperial Palace’s blueprints.

When I reached the end of the passage, a faint light leaked in. I peered into the room through the gap.

A chandelier decorated with emeralds and rubies hung from the ceiling, and a tapestry embroidered with the Imperial crest hung on the wall.

The bed was located in the center of the room. Pure white curtains hung down from all sides, creating a mysterious atmosphere. On the blanket embroidered with red rose patterns…

The Empire’s Princess, Iris, was lying down.

Her red hair, illuminated by the moonlight, flowed down onto the pillow like a rose, and her white pajamas made her elegant silhouette even more prominent.

Perhaps she sensed my presence, her eyes widened in surprise. I quickly covered her mouth with my hand, afraid she might scream.

“Shh, be quiet.”

As I whispered softly, she slowly nodded.

“I need your help, Iris.”

The memory of when I first met her flashed through my mind.

The Third Princess dispatched as a commander to the front lines. In fact, that was no different from an order to die.

But she met our hero party there, and her military talent shone. Her ability as a strategist, her charisma as a commander. Thanks to that, we won every battle.

After that, she changed. She cleverly used our power to rise to become a powerful figure in the Empire. She eliminated her competitors one by one.

The First Prince was executed for ‘treason’. Of course, it was fabricated evidence, but no one suspected it because the hero went to arrest him himself.

The Second Prince died in a ‘sailing accident’. It was Nia’s handiwork. Making holes in a ship is easy for a cat.

The First Princess ‘bought the wrath of the spirits’. She went into the forest and never returned. Silvia’s spirits must not have welcomed her.

The Second Princess went to a monastery ‘according to her own wishes’. She said she would live a life of praying for atonement. She must have been afraid of the Saintess’s judgment.

Now, she has become the true ruler leading the Empire in place of the Emperor, who is sick in bed and waiting for the day he dies.

Of course, it was worth it for me too.

Thanks to the Empire’s full support, the hero party was able to grow quickly. Besides, there was no ruler with as much talent as her. If it weren’t for Iris, we wouldn’t have been able to lead the war with the demons so advantageously.

I could see the wariness disappearing from her eyes. Yes, we knew each other too well.

A relationship where we used each other. I needed the help of such an Iris once again now.

When Iris nodded, I carefully took my hand away. Her crimson eyes sparkled in the moonlight.

“To dare to break into the Princess’s bedroom. How did you get in? What are the guards doing?”

“No, it’s the secret passage you told me about.”

“So? What is the purpose of this man who has come to my bedroom at this late hour? Surely you don’t think you can take the Empire if you take the Princess… is that your calculation?”

She covered her body, fastening the collar of her white pajamas.

“If so, you’re greatly mistaken. The blood of the Leonhardt family doesn’t give in so easily.”

“…Is this the time for such jokes?”

“You’ve come into an innocent maiden’s bedroom on such a moonlit night…. Hero, you’ll take responsibility, right?”

“Innocent maiden my ass.”

“Why? Do you want to check?”

Iris chuckled at my dumbfounded reaction. Her usual dignified appearance had disappeared somewhere, and she had returned to the mischievous Princess I had met on the front lines in the past.

But within that smile, the eyes of a sharp politician were seeping through.