Chapter 271: Orders and Betrayal

Sanguo from the front, the Empire from behind, and Rweche pressing in from atop the city walls. This place was the very epicenter of their convergence.

Of course, the ‘Hero’ would likely be fine fighting here. But not the Lofty Knights. Knowing they were Deon Hart’s weakness, they weren’t confident they could protect themselves here without hindering him.

So, they took off running, carrying him.

“I said put me down!”

“Just a little further, sir!”

“Captain, just bear with us!”

“Good Captain, please just endure a bit longer!”

Deon struggled, but these men, trained in their own way, skillfully ran off without dropping him. Before fleeing, displaying a crumb of consideration, they grabbed a random demon soldier and told him, “Sir Deon says you all need to get out of here on your own!” They didn’t forget to pass on the message.

“…The demons are telling us to retreat while dealing with the Empire and Sanguo.”

A slightly calmer, lower voice spoke from above, as if he had finally calmed down a bit.

“The former Emperor frantically scraped together ‘Heroes’. There might still be more left. And Sanguo seems to have borrowed ‘Heroes’ from the Empire.”

The Empire was once the nation with the most fragments of the Hero’s power—commonly known as ‘Heroes’.

Ordinary humans would struggle to face them, so it would be better if the demons dealt with them. Don’t the restrictions demons face in the Human Realm disappear when fighting ‘Heroes’?

Of course, ‘Heroes’ also become exceptionally stronger when fighting demons.

Kleter, understanding, nodded and looked back at the demon.

“Did you hear that? That’s what he said.”

“Y-yes, sir…”

The demon, unsure if this reply was meant for the human in front of him or for Sir Deon being carried above their heads, hesitated for a moment. Then, he answered Deon with, “Understood,” before running off to relay the orders.

Deon, hanging limply above the mad dogs’ heads, watched the guy’s retreating back and glanced down.

“I know you’d do it anyway, but focus on dealing with Rweche and get out of here.”

“Of course!”

***

[…Deon Hart will order that.]

[…Deon Hart will order that, Your Majesty.]

King Yeonhwa of Sanguo and her strategist Sareen spoke those words. Lindel Riner, the commander of the Empire’s ‘Heroes’, listening to them through the communicator, slowly nodded.

[I don’t know Deon Hart well… but looking at his past actions, he doesn’t seem completely thoughtless. And if you two say so, then it must be true.]

However…

Before he could voice his concerns, the King of Sanguo spoke first.

[Yes, he’ll consider the situation with the Heroes remaining in the Empire. If he learns that Sanguo borrowed Heroes from the Empire, he will surely target Rweche.]

[Yes, I understand. However.]

Lindel frowned.

[Usually, in the first strike, you’d aim to eliminate the head for sure, but are you planning to deploy the Heroes separately?]

Her question implied a concern about the failure of the attack, especially since it used the King of Sanguo as bait.

With the King personally acting as bait, the plan couldn’t afford to fail. In a situation where concentrating all forces on a single strike would barely suffice, they were instead trying to divide them? Wasn’t this half-abandoning the most crucial first plan for a possible second option?

As if reading his mind, a calm answer returned.

[There’s a limit to the number of people you can mobilize in a single attack anyway, isn’t there? Too many and the weapon trajectories will interfere with each other. Besides, Heroes are strong in pride and individuality, so they don’t cooperate well.]

[…]

[And we are allies. Things won’t go well if only one country does well.]

In other words, it would be better to send the excess troops to Rweche for the second plan. If Rweche doesn’t come after all, they can be deployed to fill the empty spots.

‘It’s better to secretly deploy them in the empty spots without being noticed, and then have them join when Rweche comes.’

If they don’t come, they’ll just move as they are.

Rweche’s confirmation was still pending. The atmosphere was permissive, but it was better to focus on the possibility of them not coming.

‘Still, once the plan is finalized, it’s better to inform them before moving…’

While the King of Sanguo was drawing a picture in her mind, a serious voice came through the communicator.

[Aren’t you considering the clash that will follow immediately after the failure?]

[Of course, if things go wrong, we’ll be facing Deon Hart directly on the spot. That’s definitely a loss for us too. Ordinary soldiers, no matter how many, won’t even properly chip away at a Hero’s stamina, and it’ll just be a pointless waste of lives. There’s no guarantee I won’t get caught up in it either.]

[Knowing that…]

[But that won’t happen.]

He’s not foolish, so he’ll try to escape out of the city first.

The city they were so eager to enter would become a quagmire they couldn’t easily escape once inside. They’d be rats in a trap.

Of course, Deon Hart, being a Hero, could overturn the ‘rat in a trap’ situation if he set his mind to it…

[He’s not alone, you see.]

[…]

[He has a weakness.]

The Killer Knights.

Those guys who have been with Deon Hart since the Eight Years’ War.

She smiled softly, uttering the derogatory name for those born from past hatred, fear, and disgust.

As always, Deon Hart will move with the Killer Knights this time as well. Judging by my estimation, he seems quite fond of the Killer Knights. With that being the case, could he really endure fighting there?

‘Absolutely not.’

No matter how much of killers they are, they are no match for those who possess fragments of the Hero’s power. If many of them rushed at one, maybe, but this time they purposefully gathered ‘Heroes’, so they wouldn’t even be able to withstand, let alone win.

Even ordinary soldiers are enemies they must take seriously, so the onrushing enemies would also be a threat to their lives. Deon Hart would grit his teeth but move his position.

[So, it won’t be difficult to isolate them in one place and induce them to fight only the Heroes.]

[…It’s better if the Killer Knights are with him.]

[Yes, they’ll become hostages holding him back.]

It wasn’t something they could directly control, but… if they applied psychological pressure, wouldn’t they naturally stick together? In the first place, they didn’t seem likely to separate easily.

Yeonhwa turned her attention away from a topic she couldn’t immediately address and reviewed the planned strategy.

[More importantly, we’ll need a path to quietly enter the city.]

[Ah…]

[I’ll tell you about the secret passage.]

A passage for the raiding party to use, a passage for the party joining Rweche to use, and…

‘…….’

Yeonhwa lifted her eyes.

The guys carrying Deon Hart on their heads were moving away.

They sure are fast on their feet. Yeonhwa, who had been following their retreating backs, glanced behind her.

“Are you going to move too?”

“As a commander, it is my duty to move.”

“I understand your martial prowess isn’t that strong. Wouldn’t it be enough to just send the ‘Heroes’?”

“I just want to see my enemy’s face at least once.”

Silence flowed for a moment at the unexpected remark.

“…Foolish.”

Lindel simply responded with a smile.

“…Excluding the city walls, the place where Rweche is most concentrated is the North Gate. It’s close by, so they’ll surely go there.”

“I know. Wasn’t that the plan? You even told us about a shortcut and secret passage for that purpose.”

[…]

“So, now leave the rest to me and take shelter in a safe place. Aren’t you the King of a nation, Your Majesty?”

She didn’t even have a proper successor. The King of Sanguo couldn’t afford to die.

At Lindel’s urging and Sareen’s gaze, Yeonhwa obediently turned around. She didn’t forget to add words.

“There is no Plan C. Consider this the last stand and do your best. We even scoured and squeezed out every last ‘Hero’ we had, even those who weren’t originally on our side. You won’t fail, will you?”

“Of course, we’ll go with the feeling that we’re betting everything on this one time.”

“Yes…”

Guarded by soldiers, she walked away.

A strategist beside her, noticing the unusual atmosphere, cautiously asked if she was alright. A voice, almost whispering, was heard.

“There are too many people in the world who have lost someone precious.”

“Ah…”

“I wish they wouldn’t risk their lives for those who have already left. I wonder about that one.”

[…]

Lindel Riner pretended not to hear.

***

[What do you think is lacking in you compared to the official Heroes?]

Those were the first words he spoke to the Empire’s Heroes, who were disgruntled that someone who wasn’t even a ‘Hero’ was put in command.

[Fragments of the Hero’s power? No. You already possess fragments. Rather, even Deon Hart, before, was recognized as an official Hero despite being an ordinary person without fragments.]

Even though he had a healthier and more skilled swordsman brother, Lindel Riner was sent to the Eight Years’ War by parents who favored his brother.

The reason he, with his weak body, could survive there was because of his noble status and his mind.

His noble status was something he was born with, so let’s skip that. But among the things he possessed, his silver tongue, capable of swaying people, was quite useful. In short, it meant he could change their disgruntled gazes with just a few words.

[Currently, there are no official Heroes left in the Empire. The first Hero and the fourth Hero are dead, and the second Hero is officially missing. What about the third Hero?]

Knowing this, His Majesty and the Crown Prince, Your Highness, must have entrusted me with command.

[The generation of the Empire has changed. The time for the generational shift of official Heroes has also come. Even though there are clearly those who possess fragments of the Hero’s power, His Majesty is hesitating to rashly designate official Heroes. Do you know why?]

[…]

The air stirred. Those who had been focusing on his words since some point seemed to have noticed what Lindel wanted to say, and their eyes changed. In the uncomfortable gazes, Lindel calmly fixed his gaze straight ahead.

The answer to everything I’ve said so far ultimately boils down to one thing.

[‘Merit’]

[…]

[It’s because merit is lacking. The only thing you lack compared to the Empire’s former Heroes is ‘merit’. It’s not for nothing that those who possess fragments of the Hero’s power are collectively called ‘Heroes’. You are already Heroes, only lacking in merit, and that’s why your official title is ‘Hero Candidates’.]

You need to make a name for yourselves.

[Deon Hart, despite being an ordinary person, made his name widely known, and therefore was recognized as an official Hero.]

[…]

[Accumulate merit. Kill the betrayer of humanity, the worst Hero in history, and make your names known.]

Light flickered in the eyes of those who had been discriminated against, distinguished from ‘official Heroes’ despite possessing the same fragments of the Hero’s power.

Lindel Riner boldly spread his arms in front of them.

[I will become that path for you.]

…It’s fortunate that there’s no need to persuade the Sanguo Heroes.

They were loyal to the King of Sanguo and thus faithfully followed the order to obey Lindel Riner as well. Lindel thought as he traversed the passage that the King of Sanguo had told them about, leading the ‘Heroes’ who obediently followed him.

Before long, light became visible, and as expected, Deon Hart and his knight order came into view. Lindel hastily took the ‘Heroes’ and stood before them.

“…Put me down.”

“Captain…?”

Deon Hart, who had been carried, slightly frowned as if he noticed the opponents were Heroes, genuinely twisted his body and got down to the floor. Lindel, deeply observing the red pupils that instinctively sought out the commander while pushing back the Killer Knights, took a step forward and met his gaze.

“It’s a pleasure to meet you for the first time.”

Deon Hart, finding a familiar face in the face of someone who was clearly an enemy, momentarily wore a blank expression.

“My name is Lindel Riner.”

The expression turning into despair was instantaneous.