Hero Conference (1)
The capital of the Rosaria Holy Empire, Londinium.
In the radiant capital that worshipped the Goddess of Light, there existed the Hero Association, the guild for heroes.
The Hero Association, spread across the entire continent, had its headquarters here in Londinium. The sight of countless heroes visiting every year symbolized the continent's hope while also serving as proof of the Goddess of Light's existence.
As those chosen by the Goddess of Light and appointed as heroes, their guild naturally wielded considerable influence within the empire.
The Hero Association held authority comparable to that of the empire's grand cathedral, and among them, the headquarters' chairman possessed prestige on par with the pope himself, at least in terms of status.
Honestly, it made sense. How could the heroes chosen by the gods be lesser than the pope, who claimed to be the gods' servant?
Of course, even that authority had somewhat diminished lately due to the proliferation of heroes.
Yet the Hero Association's leader, the chairman, still retained his unblemished prestige.
The man who held authority rivaling the pope was Ellen van Porn, who had just turned 49 this year.
The retired ranker hero Ellen smoothed back his few remaining strands of hair and swallowed hard.
"Hoo... So the day has finally come."
Taking a light deep breath to calm his nerves, his massively swollen muscles strained perilously against the buttons of his suit.
Amid an appearance that looked ready to charge into the front lines at any moment, he wore a grim expression. He swept a hand over his face and muttered,
"Will it be okay? It should be, right? They're people too, at least. Sure, they're one step removed from humanity, but still people."
Mumbling restlessly in his anxiety, he finally fell silent as the conference room door burst open violently, turning his gaze that way.
Bang!
"Yo! How's it hangin', Chairman!"
"The Ice Dragon King, I see. Come on in."
With the shout, a striking woman made her entrance.
Her white hair, tinged with a pale blue sheen, fell to her shoulders. Flaunting her slender figure, she plopped down unceremoniously in seat [6].
Her piercingly cold eyes fixed on him, and atop her head were a pair of mismatched horns—one on each side, curled like a mountain goat's, their blue hue making it clear she was no ordinary human.
"......"
Unlike her boisterous entry, she just grinned silently without a word. Only after another figure entered the room did she change her expression and cry out.
"Oh? It's the Gravekeeper!"
"Long time no see, Ice Dragon King."
A woman shrouded entirely in white cloth, like a mourner, appeared.
As she entered bearing a massive cross on her back, the Ice Dragon King shot up from her seat and approached her in an instant.
"Whoa~ Great to see you, friend!"
Kaboom!
The chairman let out a hollow chuckle as he watched the Ice Dragon King throw a light jab at the Gravekeeper in excitement.
"Yeah, no way it'd go smoothly."
The force packed into her delicate arm made the cloth covering the Gravekeeper's face flap wildly.
Yet her face remained hidden, a sign that her unprecedented power was at work.
A beat later, the shockwave erupted, leaving a small crack in the conference room wall.
"Your greetings are as enthusiastic as ever."
Right after, with the chairman's brief mutter, the thick dust was swept away in one go.
The Gravekeeper had swung the cross on her back to clear the air instantly, gazing at her from behind the cloth veil.
Thud!
She then headed to seat [8] and propped her cross against the floor.
"Still amazing as ever. Domain Declaration, was it?"
"It's Sanctuary Declaration. A holy power bestowed by Lady Luce."
The Goddess of Light, Luce.
Only a select few, including the Great Saintess and the pope, could utter the goddess's name so casually, and the Gravekeeper before them spoke it as if it were the most natural thing.
It spoke volumes about her high standing within the church.
'She might even be a saintess.'
Among the countless heroes, rankers' true identities remained secret unless they revealed them themselves—even the chairman, Ellen, didn't know hers for sure.
The circumstances suggested she was a saintess, but she was so shrouded in mystery that certainty was impossible.
As he observed the two chatting, more guests arrived one after another.
"Ta-da, entrance."
"Hello~!"
The pair who entered together looked like twins, identical in appearance.
They seemed about middle-school age.
The girls sported neat hime cuts, but their outfits were polar opposites: the one on the left in all black, the right in all white.
Their synchronization was uncanny—even their faces were identical, making the color difference seem deliberate for distinction.
"Hey, Blackie, Whitey!"
"Not Blackie. Heuk-kyeong."
"Ugh, come on! Call me Baek-kyeong, not Whitey!"
"Got it! Whitey, Blackie!"
"It's not about the order!"
Heuk-kyeong threw punches with a blank expression while Baek-kyeong puffed her cheeks in cute protest beside her.
"Welcome, Heuk-kyeong. And Baek-kyeong."
"Gravekeeper, nice."
"Ah! Hello, Miss Gravekeeper!"
"Yes, please take your seats first."
Thankfully, the Gravekeeper calmed the rowdy atmosphere, and they settled into seats [4] and [7].
Surprisingly, the seemingly older Baek-kyeong took [7], while the younger-looking Heuk-kyeong took [4].
'Can't even tell who's who.'
They were definitely twins, but no one knew who was the older sister.
They were just registered in the association with Baek-kyeong as the elder based on order.
'Still, lively Baek-kyeong fits the big sister role better than stoic Heuk-kyeong.'
It was then.
Heuk-kyeong's gaze suddenly shifted to the door, drawing everyone's attention there.
"Eek!"
A shrill scream echoed from the doorway.
A woman who had been sneaking quietly toward her seat froze, her face draining of color.
"S-s-sorryyy!"
The beauty with a slender figure like the Ice Dragon King's clutched a long sword to her chest as she hurried to seat [9].
"Chae-hyun!"
"Eek...!"
But despite her desperate dash, she was tackled by Baek-kyeong from the side, letting out an undignified yelp as she tumbled to the floor.
"Long time no see, Chae-hyun!"
"G-g-gl-glad to see you too, Baek-kyeonggg!"
Though she looked like a cool beauty at first glance, her bitten tongue and half-crying face shattered that image, imprinting her as a hopelessly clumsy ditz instead.
"I had no idea you'd come too, Chae-hyun! The New Kingdom sent a fine proxy."
"H-Her Highness understands the need for this meeting too. I s-strongly requested it myself to come."
As the proxy stammered timidly, Baek-kyeong rubbed her cheek against her. Heuk-kyeong, standing silently behind, muttered shortly.
"Trouble."
"Hehe, sorry. Were you uncomfortable?"
"N-n-nooo."
With Heuk-kyeong's intervention, Baek-kyeong finally peeled off. The proxy quickly sat in seat [9], hugging her sword tight.
Only then did she regain her composure, letting out a deep sigh.
Watching up to that point, the chairman compared the filled and empty seats to gauge attendance.
'Let's see... 9th through 6th are all here. 4th too. Excluding the 2nd who declared absence beforehand, that leaves 1st, 3rd, and 5th.'
This conference was held to reestablish the rankings, based on the old ones.
Though the Young King had retired via the Power Stone, formal succession was required.
'I want to thank the guy who's worked hard so far.'
The main reason was gratitude, but he wasn't one to come obediently, so the excuse was a welcome for the new 9th.
With each rank shifting up, the former bottom proxy rose to 8th, creating a new 9th spot.
Rankers started from 9th, so a regular superior hero wouldn't cut it.
10th might not differ much, but formalities mattered.
Thus, the conference combined the new ranker's debut with the Young King's farewell.
'Once this meeting ends, their ranks will each rise one spot.'
The association had only announced the Young King's retirement, not the full ranker shuffle.
They acknowledged him handing 1st to Muje, but hadn't announced the overall changes.
'Wanted to test and announce the new ranker's qualifications first.'
But after today, it would be proclaimed across the continent.
The birth of a new ranker...!
It was then.
A familiar voice entered as the door opened.
"So, even in Rosario, creating a new trade route would..."
"I've told you a dozen times, I lack the authority..."
The two, deep in heated discussion, paused in slight surprise at the unexpectedly crowded room.
The newcomers were both men: a dwarf and a middle-aged man.
The dwarf drew eyes more to his attire than his face—gaudy jewelry layered on his fingers, ears, neck, and more.
The middle-aged man wore priestly garb like the Gravekeeper, though not face-veiled. His standard vestments with gauntlets covering both hands evoked a monk more than a priest.
"Welcome! Golden Duke, Pilgrim!"
"Oho! The Ice Dragon King! Long time no see!"
"Pleased to meet you, Ice Dragon King."
After light greetings, they took seats [5] and [3] respectively—
"Hm."
"He's here."
All eyes in the room turned to the door.
"......"
Entering with a chill aura, he scanned the room with iridescent, rainbow-hued eyes.
After looking around once, he stared long at seat [2], then muttered shortly.
"Absent."
With a hint of regret and disappointment, he sat in seat [1] regardless of the quiet reaction.
His sunset-red hair settled slowly with the motion, and his prismatic eyes finally turned to the chairman.
"Then, let's begin."
The conference of the top heroes.
The gathering of rankers at the pinnacle.
'That's my line...'
The Hero Conference had begun.