Watching the unconscious intruder being dragged away with grim eyes, the corps members were frantically repeating 'I died today' in their minds.
Someone said they heard that the Commander was going to visit us today. They thought it was a joke until they were taking a short break after eating when a guy came in from outside and shouted for them to gather quickly.
Initially, he was not believed. The Commander of the 0th Corps visited so rarely that it may as well happen when pine cones ring.
However, the guy's face, which was as blue as a blueberry, did not contain a single lie, and the moment they found out that what he said was true, they panicked and ran like crazy towards the training ground.
And they were able to meet our corps commander.
"I'm curious."
The answer the one who stepped forward received when they had the courage to ask the question about what brought him here was meaningful.
What are you curious about?
The doubts didn't last long.
Demon walks leisurely somewhere as if he were taking a walk.
Then, in an instant, with incredible speed, he bent down to avoid the sword aimed at his neck, then turned his upper body and struck the enemy's solar plexus with his elbow. All of them were quick, flowing, natural movements.
Only then did they know. The meaning of the word 'curious'.
'I'm curious.'
─They really didn't know.
Did they really not know that we had allowed intruders into the training hall?
They wondered if he was truly so relaxed about such a topic.
Without even looking at them, who were frozen in shock, Demon leisurely raised his wooden sword as if to stun the opponent.
And then a loud sound echoed throughout the training hall.
Bam!
***
After barely stopping the corps members who kept bowing their heads in apology and beating themselves up, I locked myself in my room again.
All work to be done had been completed.
I took a walk in the garden and looked at the 0th Corps. Since I ate at the restaurant as Ben requested, I won't have to go out for a while.
I was rolling around on my bed, happy about my long-awaited peaceful daily life, when I heard a knock on the door.
"This is Deputy Ed."
Ed is my deputy, right? He went all the way to the human world to find a different puzzle or cube for me, who was bored to death, but he finally came back.
I jumped up from my seat with a heart full of anticipation.
"Come in."
Ed's expression, which I hadn't seen in a long time, was somewhat stiff.
Did something bad happen outside? No, but the Demon King said that the position of adjutant to the Commander of the 0th Corps should be filled by a suitable person, so he chose the guy
who was mentioned as a candidate for commander of the corps. So, if you have Ed's skills, you can easily put most guys in trouble...
"I brought a new cube. It's a slightly unique cube called the Mirror Cube."
"Oh."
"And..."
He glanced to the side, breaking into a cold sweat.
Since he was still standing in the hallway with the door open, I had no idea what he was looking at.
Eventually, Ed swallowed dry saliva and slowly opened his mouth.
"...The Demon King has come to visit."
"Oh."
...Oh?
"If you're not busy, would it be okay for a moment?"
Thud. With the sound of heavy footsteps, someone familiar entered the room.
After taking a quick look around the room, their gaze turned to me sitting on the bed, and then curves brightly like a half moon.
After a moment of silence, after understanding the situation, I threw down the pillow I was hugging and stood up.
Why is the Demon King here? I didn't get into an accident this time...
...But there is one thing that bothers me.
"Is this about that intruder?"
"That's right."
As expected, he smiled happily and gestured towards the door, as if I had not disappointed his expectations.
"I have something to say about that. If it's okay, let's go see the prisoner together for a while."
Doesn't that mean we should go to the dungeon together?
What's going on? Could it be that the intruder said something strange about me? Since he was also a human, he must have had some credibility.
I don't know what it is, but I don't want to die in vain like this. I glanced back at Ed with the intention of asking him to save me.
And I could clearly see him avoiding my eyes.
Damn you.
There was not a single ray of light in the dungeon. It was even wet.
Yes, I ended up getting dragged in.
"Open it."
With one word from the Demon King, the iron bars that seemed sturdy opened at once.
The soldier who opened the door bowed and disappeared when told to leave.
The Demon King, who was looking at the back, turned his gaze and looked at the human in the prison.
The intruder, who was now covered in blood, glared at him with harsh eyes, but the Demon King paid him no heed and strode in and knelt down in front of him.
"Deon."
He used my real name. He was the only one who knew my real name, as everyone else had misheard my introduction.
At the same time, the intruder's gaze turned towards me.
The look in his eyes is that they wanted to chew me up if he could. Maybe it's because of my mood that his eyes look more murderous when he looks at me than when he looks at the Demon King.
Either way, the Demon King roughly pulled up the intruder's hair and turned his head to look at me.
"Take a good look at this guy. Does he look familiar?"
I don't know much about it, except that I'm also a human...
When I answered in silence, the Demon King began to explain step by step as if he was trying to give me a hint.
"Even though he is a human, he has a power that becomes particularly strong against me, a powerlful 'demon king' who can defeat most demons alone."
I heard that the guy's body was in a mess, but it looks like he was playing with it.
But that's not important now. After hearing the Demon King's explanation, my expression hardened without realizing it.
"No way..."
"Yes."
The Demon King, who let go of his hair as if tossing it, laughed, shaking off his bloody hands.
"The dregs of a hero. In the empire, they are called fragments of heroes and praised—"
"...Heroes."
"It's not even funny."
***
A hero has two choices when he dies.
If I were to give priority to just one of them, it would be to spread the 'power of the hero', which will crumble away upon death, across the entire continent to create, even if only slightly, someone who can take on the Demon King.
It would be nice if the power itself could be completely transferred to one person, but it cannot be transferred during life, and the hero's power begins to crumble upon death, so in the end, all that can be done is to scatter the fragments and retain some of the hero's power at the cost of dying anyway.
The empire tried to gather those with such fragments, calling them 'heroes'.
Of course, the title 'Hero' was not given to just anyone.
Unofficially, all those with 'Fragments of Heroes' are called heroes, but officially, only those with outstanding abilities and outstanding achievements are given the title 'Hero', giving them a different level of glory.
Unfortunately, the person covered in blood in front of me was an 'fragment'.
'Fragments of a hero who did not become an official hero.'
Even though he couldn't be called a 'hero', he was called a 'hero candidate'. It would be a waste kill him carelessly.
That kind of guy broke into the Demon King's Castle.
'Why on earth?'
The bright red eyes shone with a creepy light.
The emotions reflected at first glance are none other than confusion and doubt.
It is not a simple curiosity such as why or how he came here. It was a question about something incomprehensible.
There is no reason for a hero candidate to come here. He did not contain any message, seemed to have no particular purpose other than eliminating demons, including the Demon King, and even decisively attacked Deon himself.
'Why did you attack me? 'What reason is contained here?'
─What on earth is 'he' thinking?
"...Therefore, there will be a Corps Commander meeting this afternoon. I'll go out to meet you in person, so I'll see you later."
"...."
In response to no response, the Demon King stood up and looked at Deon.
He didn't even blink his eyes.
It looked like he was deep in thought. His usually stern expression became even more stern and stood still.
'I don't think he has any intention of going up together.'
He shook his head inwardly and spoke vaguely with the intention of confirming.
"Are you planning on staying a little longer?"
"Yes."
"Okay then, I'll wait outside."
The Demon King who left the cell slowly disappeared.
...The worries are over.
Deon, who had been assessing the distance by the sound of receding footsteps, lowered his gaze and looked at the intruder.
Dry eyes with no clear meaning. Red eyes, shining as if soaked in blood, look at the intruder.
However, the intruder did not avoid his gaze. Instead, he raised his head stiffly and glared at Deon.
Those eyes were full of obvious hatred and anger, based on a feeling of betrayal.
Eventually, the blood-covered lips slowly opened.
"Deon Hardt."
It's been a while since he heard his full name.
A strange look appeared in Deon's eyes.
The intruder gritted his teeth and spit out the words as if chewing them with boiling anger, hatred, and cold resentment.
"You traitorous bastard."
"...."
Aha.
This is the answer.
The eyes, which had been narrowed and strained, relaxed as if steam had escaped. In the same way, the voice, with all the tension gone, uttered the words in a flowing voice.
"You are a loser."
"What?"
He wasn't worth worrying about. He just wasted his time.
As if there was no value in answering the stupid question, Deon asked the question without hiding the pitiful look in his eyes.
"What crime did you commit to become discarded like this?"
"What nonsense is this! Discarded? What nonsense!"
"What did you do to offend the Emperor?"
"Lunacy! His Majesty has given me an important mission! If I was out of his sight, he wouldn't have given me the mission!"
Even as he said that, his eyes began to tremble slightly as if something was stabbing him somewhere.
In a space where the only light is a candle that seems ready to go out at any moment, Deon quickly caught the trembling and climbed over the iron bars and entered the prison.
Like the Demon King, he knelt down in front of the intruder and unlike the Demon King, he did nothing.
He just quietly looked at him and said, "No, the fact that you called me a 'traitor' is proof of that.
You fell out of favor with the Emperor and are now abandoned like this."
"That can't be possible..."
Deon, who pointed out the reality in a patient voice as if teaching, decided that there was no need to waste any more time here and stood up.
A conclusion had been reached.
There was no need to save this guy. No, it would definitely be better to kill him.
However, knowing that he did not have the authority to decide this, Deon looked down at him and raised the corners of his mouth.
Next, a powerful voice with the intention of being heard by someone rang through the basement.
"His Majesty knows everything."
"!"
After seeing the guy's eyes widen, Deon turned around without looking any further.
A fierce struggle followed behind his back.
"This Imperial bastard!!"
This is truly shallow loyalty.
Deon, who was walking with a sneer on his lips, stopped when he saw the Demon King waiting for him at the entrance to the dungeon.
The Demon King, who was looking at his expressionless face as if asking when he had laughed, slowly opened his mouth.
"I heard." He then says with a helpless laugh, "It's too much. If you say that, I have no choice but to kill him. Still, if I do it well, I might be able to use his death somewhere. You did that on purpose, right?"
"..."
"That's enough. I said it inside, but you didn't seem to hear it, so I'll say it again. There is a Corps Commander meeting scheduled for this afternoon. I plan to pick you up myself, so please wait in your room."