I once wanted to be a hero.
A hero, with his shining holy sword, slays monsters, and after defeating the Demon King, marries the princess, becomes king, and lives happily ever after.
When I was a little child, I admired such heroic tales.
The other kids were excited, saying things like, "I'm going to become a hero and save the world!" and "If I become a hero, I'll be popular!" But that wasn't my motivation.
"Become a king and live happily ever after."
I, Jirei Laro, found this fascinating.
The reason is that I've always been extremely lazy, and I thought, "If I become king, I can just laze around every day!"
In fact, there have been many instances in the past where heroes have defeated demon kings and become kings. So I can do it too. I can become a king and do my thing!
From that day on, I tried my best. I actually died and was resuscitated. At that time, I seriously thought I was going to die.
I underwent training that could be considered reckless for a body as young as mine, challenged monsters of a clearly superior rank in deadly battles to push past my limits, and believed that magic was also necessary for a hero, so I studied desperately on my own.
And after a dozen years, I became stronger.
I had become strong enough to single-handedly defeat a dragon species that a group of S-class adventurers could only defeat.
All that was left now was to get the Holy Seal—proof that I had been chosen by the Holy Sword—engraved somewhere on my body, and I'd become a hero. In just a little while, my long-cherished wish would come true. I'd become a hero.
One day, after downing a damn disgusting magic potion, I was at a restaurant cleaning my palate when I overheard a conversation.
"--The hero has it tough too. I heard he hunts monsters every day without taking a day off. What's more, if a nearby village is attacked in the middle of the night, he apparently doesn't even have time to sleep. Even with the blessing of the holy sword, it's still tough..."
"The reason we can live in peace like this is because the Hero and the Knights have reduced the number of monsters..."
"Hey, adventurers are also reducing the number of monsters, you know?"
"You can't rely on adventurers. They won't move unless you pay them money. When I saw them causing trouble and getting arrested by knights, I realized they're not really reliable."
"That's true, but really, being a hero is amazing. I used to aim to be one too, but I gave up when I heard that even if you defeat the Demon King and become king, you'll still be busy."
"You idiot, how can someone who drinks alcohol and lazes around in the middle of the day become a hero?"
The men were laughing with blushing faces and chatting happily.
"...You're kidding, right?"
When I heard the conversation, my mind went blank.
Is the hero even busy after becoming a king?
Well then... then what was the point of my efforts?
"...Okay, I've decided."
A few hours had passed since my brain short-circuited and I was left in a daze.
"Let's do some work and relax."
I threw the magic potion I was holding onto the ground and ran toward the magical real estate agency to find a place to stay.