Chapter 193
Chapter 193
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 193
Chapter Title: 20. This World Won't Leave Me Alone. (5)
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“Great work out there!”
“No, no!”
“It was an honor to meet the Hero!”
Clack!
True to its place on the front lines against the demonkin, every soldier here had impeccable discipline.
But even these soldiers idolized the Hero!
No, to begin with, the Lübella City Union was renowned across all nations for treating Heroes with the utmost respect.
Before the cities here were established, when the battle against the demonkin was at its fiercest and Lübella was on the verge of falling, it was a band of Heroes who came to its rescue and defeated the Demon King, saving Lübella.
Countless Heroes had fought here, and countless had fallen.
To honor them, every city in the Lübella City Union had memorials to the Heroes, and the residents were raised from childhood learning that they lived thanks to those heroes' sacrifices.
That was why this place was a paradise for Heroes—even self-proclaimed ones who weren't endorsed by any church received preferential treatment if they had a reputation or notable achievements!
And right now, the Hero drawing the hottest attention across the continent was none other than Swin, who had earned the title of Dragon Slayer.
And that Hero was currently...
“Pretty big sis, that bro's a total perv, right?”
“Yeah, probably.”
...getting called a pervert by my daughter under the watchful eye of the iron bat.
“Hey, hold on a sec...”
“Ellis, you mustn't hang out with perverts like that. He's so dangerous he dragged me out of bed when I was already in my pajamas trying to sleep.”
“Eek! Trash! Pervert! Pedo! You hopeless maggot!”
“...Ellis, who taught you to say stuff like that?”
“Daddy said to yell it if I see a pervert. And...”
“And?”
“To tell big sis Ar to beat him up!”
“Hey, wait!”
“As expected of my little sister! You learned well!”
“Aah...”
With the soundproofing spell deliberately lifted, the Hero's screams echoed from inside the carriage.
No one was around, but there might be someone with sharp ears at the city gates, so let's get a move on.
“Let's go! Brownie, New Brownie!”
Hiiiing!
Brownie, whipped into action, and New Brownie, bought from a nearby village, both neighed.
They weren't as well-trained as Brownie, but as the village's finest steeds bought at a premium price, they picked up speed nicely.
“Gaaah...”
“Big sis, I slayed the perv!”
Along with a soul-leaving groan came my daughter's delighted voice.
“Mmm... impressive.”
No. 17 praised her in a trembling voice.
Seeing someone getting pummeled by the iron bat right in front of her must have scared her stiff.
“Yeah, big sis Ar is the best!”
“My little sis is awesome too!”
“Right! Ellis is awesome!”
Hee hee hee~
My daughter, giggling happily with pleased hums, seemed to have taken a real shine to No. 17.
She was clinging to her calling her “big sis, big sis”—enough to make me uneasy!
I was starting to worry if my devilish daughter might charm No. 17 too.
- That won't happen.
- With her charm, who knows. Be careful. Keep a good eye on the Hero too!
- Hmm... Isn't that the more ridiculous worry? The odds of little sis liking the Hero are basically zero, right?
Zero-ish odds are the dangerous kind.
In gacha games, the ones that hit always pull what they want on a free 0.1% roll, while the losers dump their whole paycheck into a 1% rate ten times higher and get nothing.
- No idea what you're talking about, but why 0.1% and 1%? Usually it's 0.1% vs. 10%, right?
- For realism.
Rare gacha games always have rates under 1%.
The shady ones fine-tune the decimals and rig it so you never get the drop.
It's a miracle when someone actually scores in that mess!
So unless the odds of my daughter falling for the Hero are a perfect zero, we gotta be cautious—extra cautious!
Your classic story: the red-haired, red-eyed princess knight who sees the protagonist naked in chapter 1 of volume 1 calls him a perv, but by the end of the volume, she's in love. Super common trope!
My cute pink little girl already has max heroine appeal, so caution and more caution!
- Sis really might never get married... Poor thing. Of course, I don't like the idea of the Hero marrying her either.
Kwek.
Watching the Hero squeal like a stomped frog, my daughter cackled in delight.
That made about three screams from the Hero.
Thanks to him screaming once a day without fail, we'd established the formula: 1 day = 1 scream.
Which meant three days had passed.
And in that mere three days, we'd finally arrived here.
“The Last City, Babelion.”
An elite force where every soldier rivaled the Empire's best, a territory on par with a normal kingdom's county yet home to eight Swordmasters and five Archmages—humanity's greatest shield!
- Weird, right Master?
- Yeah. Why's humanity's strongest shield weaker than Yuglasia?
Even pushing just the students, no profs, it feels like we could take it.
Thinking that way, the walls supposedly stained red with demon blood looked like poorly painted bricks, and the Babelion citizens—who could each take three soldiers from another nation—seemed downright ordinary.
- The Empire's insane.
- More precisely, anywhere connected to you.
Don't pin it all on me like that; it feels off.
I'm innocent, you know?
“Halt! Stop!”
As we approached the gates, two sharp-eyed soldiers advanced on me with spears leveled.
Normally they wouldn't draw weapons right away, but beyond those walls lay the border dividing the human and demon continents.
Basically a military demarcation line!
No ordinary person would ever go there.
But we had good reason to cross.
“Greetings. I'm Swin, proxy of the God of Nature.”
“Swin the Hero... You mean that Dragon Slayer Swin?”
“The one who took on a dragon single-handedly to save Neiden Kingdom's princess!”
The soldiers' eyes went wide.
Impressive reaction, considering how far Neiden Kingdom was!
“The rumors are spreading across the continent now. You'll be married off the second they catch you.”
“Urk...”
As one soldier ran off to fetch his commander, the Hero let out a small groan.
He knew it too.
The Lübella City Union prioritized fighting demonkin above all. Even soldiers from Babelion—the closest to the border—knew his story? That meant his romance with the princess had spread everywhere.
“Better think fast. Mirua's enough to hand you over to the princess if Neiden offers special treats.”
“It's an absurd deal, but Mirua makes it convincing.”
“Just convincing? Really?”
“I wanna believe that, but it feels real, and I'm terrified!”
His raised voice drew over a soldier who'd been watching us from afar.
“Something wrong?”
“Nothing at all.”
The soldier eyed us suspiciously but, thanks to Hero privileges, didn't press and returned to his post spear in hand.
“This is all the instructor's fault.”
“You started it. And you're just on the run from some minor northern kingdom. I'm the Empire—Empire!”
At last, the Empire mention shut the Hero up.
“You're Hero Swin, correct?”
“Yes.”
But even his clamped-shut mouth had to open again.
The first soldier had returned with his commander.
“I'm the Babelion Baron in charge of the gates.”
“Babelion...”
“Ah, no grand meaning like you're thinking. All gate commanders here get the surname Babelion as a grant.”
This castle is your name, your honor, your life.
After explaining his title, the commander spoke solemnly.
“This is the first city against the demonkin. But every soldier—no, every citizen—of Babelion knows that if it falls, the demonkin set foot on the human continent. That's why we call it the Last City.”
The Hero nodded at the pride-filled voice.
“Impressive.”
“Hahaha, nothing compared to you, Swin, who smashed a dragon for a beautiful princess.”
Having already verified the Hero's holy sword, golden sword aura, and church seal, the Babelion Baron's face brimmed with goodwill.
“But even a Hero needs a damn good reason to pass.”
Not a trace of goodwill in those words.
“No matter who you are, this is the front lines against demonkin. We can't just open the gates willy-nilly.”
You can judge the troops by their commander.
Not the lord, but even a low-rank gate noble like this? No bribes worked in this city.
Without the Hero, crossing would've been a hassle.
A blessing in disguise?
“Yes. The reason I'm here is...”
The Hero began reciting his prepped scenario.
An oracle from the God of Nature demanded he cross to eliminate a threat beyond.
It'd take considerable time. Better preempt any demonkin threats.
And...
“This has the cooperation of the Karan Empire too.”
“Indeed.”
Nod.
No. 17 stepped out from the carriage and nodded.
“And you are...”
“Ria El Nermia.”
“No way—the Nermia heir, master of the Great Archdemon of Fire!”
Ooh, more murmurs from the soldiers than when the Hero introduced himself.
The power of beauty.
I'd bought her decent clothes since pajamas were too pitiful, crafting a likable look for first impressions.
Worth picking the pretty ones!
“Yes, this aligns with my lord's—the Imperial Princess's—will.”
She hesitated naming the princess but, tugged by the iron bat who'd exited with her, slipped right into natural acting.
My disciples for the win. With skills like that, they'd thrive anywhere!
“The church of nature and the Empire...”
Even the Lübella City Union couldn't ignore the massive backing of the Karan Empire.
With a divine oracle for humanity thrown in, what could a mere low noble do?
“Opening the gates requires the lord's permission. Can you wait a moment?”
The Babelion Baron stepped away briefly, soon returning with a bulkier musclebound man.
“The Marquis overseeing Babelion.”
I was a bit surprised myself at the man's polite bow to the Hero.
Guardian of the Last City, Babelion!
Not a vast domain, but due to its uniqueness, every nation recognized his marquisate—and he looked more like a mercenary.
“With the God of Nature's profound will and your fearless courage charging into the evil demonkin lands, no demonkin could stand against you, Hero. I wish you fortune in battle.”
No typical noble fawning over a Hero.
Just polite. Impeccably polite.
Every gesture showed respect as he ordered the gates opened.
- Doesn't seeing folks live so earnestly prick your conscience?
- Nah. They look ripe for the fleecing.
- What a personality...
The iron bat kept nagging my character lately, which grated, but leaving here came first.
To avoid surprises, I positioned her closer to the Hero and No. 17.
“Thank you for your kindness.”
With my disciples back in the carriage, I bowed as coachman to the soldiers, crossed the gates.
Boom!
The gates slammed shut right after the carriage passed.
I glanced back briefly, then forward.
“Same old.”
Even the demonkin border looked no different.
A white world blanketed in snow. Bare trees here and there added desolation.
“From here on... demon continent, huh?”
And so, I set foot on demonkin soil.