The Hero Luna's Awakening (8)
After Uncle left his seat, Hare kept Estia’s arm firmly locked in her own, holding the girl who was muttering to herself. In that situation, Saten was…
“Saten… could you stop reading that book by yourself and help me hold her?”
“Is there any real need for me to do that? You seem to be handling it just fine on your own.”
“She looks like she might suddenly bolt… Are you seriously going against Uncle’s orders right now…?”
That’s rebellion. You ungrateful little brat.
Hare glared at Saten with sharp eyes. But Saten continued reading her book with a completely blank face, as if none of it concerned her. It was a flawless act of ignoring her.
“W-was I just ignored…? Did I really just get ignored…?”
As expected, I can never get close to Saten.
Hare found her utterly detestable. With a sullen expression, she stared down the path Uncle had taken and muttered under her breath.
“…Why did Uncle believe Luna’s lie? It was obviously fake.”
The claim that Uncle died in her dream—as if something like that would actually happen. The hallucinations were lies too. It had to be a scheme to draw Uncle’s attention.
“Luna is a bad kid too… A bad kid who lies to Uncle…”
“The uncle who falls for such a lie is stupid as well.”
“…What? S-Saten…? Did you just call Uncle stupid…?”
“Yes, I called him stupid. But normally, Uncle isn’t stupid at all.”
He’s actually quite intelligent, the type who thinks things through before acting. He’s only being a bit foolish today.
“I don’t understand. Why would a normally smart uncle fall for an obvious lie like that…?”
“Apologize…! Apologize right now for calling Uncle stupid…!”
“Why should I apologize to you? If Uncle’s words turn out to be correct, I’ll apologize to him myself when the time comes.”
“…”
Anyway, Saten is so annoying…!
Hare shut her mouth, unable to come up with a rebuttal.
‘But…’
What if the dream Luna saw was real? What if Uncle really died?
What would I do then…?
Hare’s worries did not last long.
“If Uncle dies… I’ll die too…”
If someone killed him, I would make sure to kill that person first. Then I would end my own life. Right by Uncle’s side…
Hare stared in the direction he had gone, nurturing deep, dark emotions within her heart.
Was it fortunate? There were no traces of the Grimoire cult at Luna’s house. Every member of her family still had their heads attached, and Luna threw herself into their arms, reuniting with them in a flood of emotion.
“Hwaaa… M-Mom… D-Dad… My little siblings…! Y-You’re all alive—!!”
“What nonsense are you spouting, you crazy girl?! Let go when you talk, you wench! And when did you get this strong?!”
“Hic… Mom…”
Luna clung to them tightly, shedding bitter tears. Having witnessed her parents’ deaths before, this reaction was only natural. The family I had seen last time had all died horribly, so her intense response made perfect sense.
While watching their emotional reunion, Luna’s father cleared his throat.
“Ahem. More importantly…”
He stared at me.
“Who is this person? That black hair… he looks strangely similar to our village’s guardian deity…”
“What do you mean Uncle is the guardian deity! Don’t insult him! That uncle is just… an uncle… Wait, how am I supposed to explain this?”
…Right. How exactly should I explain myself to her family?
Saying I was an adventurer would probably be the safest choice. But now was not the time for explanations.
The stench of Grimoire was drifting in from nearby.
Knock, knock—
At the sound of someone rapping on the door, Luna cried out in terror.
“N-Now’s not the time…! E-Everyone run…! Y-You’ll die…! If you don’t run, you’re all going to die…!”
“What are you even saying, you crazy girl? Why would we die?”
“I-It’s true…! Q-Quick, run to the back…!”
Luna finally seemed to grasp the situation and began shouting in a panic. There was no need for her to waste energy like this, so I flicked her forehead.
“A-Ack—!! That hurts—!!”
“Stay quiet. You’re making a scene.”
“Then are you telling my family to just die again?!”
“…They won’t die.”
“Huh?”
Your family will not die.
With those firm words, I walked toward the door that kept producing the persistent knocking sound. The closer I got, the stronger the stench became. Several of them were clearly waiting right outside.
Careful not to break the house, I gently opened the door and faced them. It seemed Luna’s father had seen them too.
“W-What the—?! What are those weird things?!”
“Luna, take your father inside.”
They would only get in the way of the fight.
I stepped forward among the expressionless, doll-like figures. At their head stood a red-haired man wearing an arrogant expression. He had to be the Demon King—the one who had already killed me once before.
I was about to close the door to begin the battle properly when Luna’s desperate voice rang out.
“U-Uncle…! D-Don’t go…! If you go, you’ll die…!!”
“…Luna?”
She was gripping the door, preventing it from closing. The moment she appeared, the red-haired Demon King revealed a greedy, murderous intent. It was not a gaze a girl like Luna could endure yet.
I blocked the killing intent aimed at her and spoke.
“D-Don’t go…!! U-Uncle can’t die…!! Y-You still have to teach me swordsmanship… and give me money…! You have to do everything while you’re alive…!!”
“…Luna, let go of the door.”
“I won’t!”
Luna gripped the door even tighter, as if she would never release it. Her stubbornness was truly impressive.
I spoke to her as gently as I could.
“Luna.”
“…Yes.”
“What did I tell you last time?”
“You told me to close the door and run away…”
“Then this time, don’t run.”
“…Huh?”
“Close the door and wait. I’ll come back.”
That should be enough.
Luna’s hand trembled as she held the door, clearly torn. Then she met my eyes through the narrow gap. Her pupils quivered with worry and fear.
So I told her,
“I won’t die this time. So trust me.”
Someone has to fight. While the hero grows, I must protect her.
Perhaps she saw the resolve in my eyes, because Luna slowly loosened her grip.
“Good girl. When I return alive, I’ll give you a long-overdue compliment.”
“Yes… Please, you must come back, Uncle…”
With her final words still hanging in the air, I slammed the door shut.
When I turned around, six pairs of eyes bored into me. The red-haired man glared with pure murderous rage. Last time we had both died, but this time would be different.
The time for revenge has come. Information on the Demon King has already been recorded. What choice will you make?
[1. Fighting is too much trouble, so open the door for the Demon King.]
[2. Use the recorded information to defeat the Demon King.]
“Number two.”
I checked the future. There wasn’t much to see.
The page that had been burning with black flames greeted me with a clean sheet, as if nothing had happened. At the end, my victory was clearly written.
The information on Grid had already been recorded in the book, after all.
‘Then now…’
The time for revenge had truly arrived.
There was no need for introductions. I pulled the magic staff from my subspace.
Boom—!!
“My attack didn’t work again…?”
Demon King Grid spat out the words in disbelief at the absurd situation.
“Goddamn it.”
How could he read every single one of my moves?
Grid could not understand it. He knew his own strength was lower than the other Demon Kings. Still, he had never once imagined he would struggle this badly against the Goddess’s dog. As a Demon King, he should never have even considered the possibility.
“Damn it… For this Demon King Grid to be pushed back like this…”
It was humiliating. The way that Goddess’s dog looked down at him filled him with rage. His Grimoire’s prophecy should have been flawless.
Even though he knew it wouldn’t work, Grid launched another attack at Lee Junwoo.
“Bite him… Mouth of Greed…!!”
The massive maw charged forward with the clear intent to devour him. Red energy surged with explosive force, yet it still failed. With one light flick of the staff, the Mouth of Greed collapsed helplessly to the ground.
Grid roared in fury.
“Fuck! How the hell—!! How are you dodging everything—!! You cursed Goddess’s mutt—!!”
“…You simply revealed too many cards.”
“What?!”
“It means you showed me every hand you possess.”
Fuck, what kind of nonsense is that? Those were attacks I had never used before.
Grid felt deeply wronged. Splitting mouths, stabbing with tongues—he had used every technique, yet the man acted as if he already knew them all. No new attacks even came to mind anymore.
It was true helplessness.
For the first time since becoming a Demon King, he tasted the powerlessness he had never felt before. Every pattern had been recorded and analyzed perfectly by Minerva. The solution and interpretation were flawless.
Thud.
Having revealed every card, Grid fell to his knees to show his final hand. Lee Junwoo looked at him without a trace of emotion.
“…Are you begging for your life?”
“Y-Yes. I cannot defeat you. I admit it… Just spare my life…”
Grid had always been greedy for life. He did not want to die; his goal was eternal life. But such pathetic reasons meant nothing to Lee Junwoo.
“So what?”
“…What?”
“Are you asking me to spare you?”
The Demon King who threatened the peace of the world?
In a situation where every problem had been solved and the perfect answer prepared, refusing to write that answer would be the act of a fool.
“When others begged you for their lives, you ignored them. When they pleaded, you laughed.”
Therefore, you deserve to die.
There was no need to speak of a future whose answer had already been decided. Lee Junwoo cast his magic toward the kneeling Grid. Magical formulas bloomed in the air, and fierce mana pressed down on him.
“D-Damn it…!!”
Grid reacted instantly, trying to throw himself toward the Mouth of Greed to escape.
“I already told you. Every card you possess has been revealed.”
Of course, Grid’s movement was entirely within the range of Lee Junwoo’s predictions. In their previous encounter, they had fought a desperate, bloody battle with nothing held back. Only after both sides revealed everything had a victor emerged.
And now…
‘Since I alone possess all the information…’
There was no way he could be an opponent.
Grid tried to hurl himself into the giant maw to flee. Having already seen that exact move in the recorded information, Lee Junwoo’s magic was already flying toward it. Grid slowly began turning into dust.
“Now disappear, you worthless Demon King.”
“…D-Damn it… Next time… I see you… I’ll kill…”
“It is unfortunate I could not annihilate you completely.”
Since it was not the hero who struck the blow, true annihilation was impossible. Still, the creature would need years to recover and would not show himself again anytime soon.
Grid scattered into dust along with his Mouth of Greed. Not a single detail differed from the answer sheet. A perfect solution had been delivered.
‘Now that the threat is gone, I can go back inside.’
Lee Junwoo turned and walked toward Luna, who had handed him the page.
“U-Uwaaah—!! Die, you monster—!!”
“It’s me, Luna.”
“Eh…? U-Uncle, you’re alive…?! L-Last time you lost… How…?”
“…First, put down the knife.”
Luna, who had been about to stab me with a kitchen knife, lowered it in relief. She must have assumed that since he lost last time, he would lose again. Both of them had died then, so it had been a draw. I stroked her head.
“I told you to wait. I don’t lie, Luna.”
“Eh… lie…”
She immediately labeled it a lie the moment I said I didn’t lie. Anyway.
Luna stood there staring at me, then finally seemed to grasp reality. A bright smile bloomed on her face as she shouted.
“Then…! Uncle came back alive…! O-Our family isn’t going to die either, right?! Right?! Tell me I was correct! Right now!”
“…You were right, Luna.”
“U-Uncle…!!”
She suddenly rushed forward and wrapped her arms tightly around my waist. With heavy sobs, she began to cry.
“I-I’m so glad… Hic… I was so scared… When Uncle died that time… Hic, and everyone else died too…”
“That future will not happen anymore. Forget it, Luna. What matters is the reality before us.”
“Hic… Th-Thank you… for saving… my family… Thank you so much…”
Luna cried like a waterfall, buried in my chest. I hoped she wouldn’t wipe snot on me, but that was probably beyond her control right now. I gently patted the girl who had experienced that horrific future and met the gazes watching us.
Luna’s family. They were all staring straight at me.
‘The inevitable has arrived…’
Among them, Luna’s father spoke.
“U-Um… May I ask one thing…?”
“…Yes.”
“What exactly is your relationship with our daughter… and who are you, if I may ask…?”
His tone had become far more polite. He already looked almost certain. Feeling his gaze, I pondered.
‘Should I explain myself as the guardian deity… the kidnapper… or an ordinary adventurer…?’
This question, which had no perfect answer, was the biggest problem for me.