Chapter 165
Chapter 165
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 165
Chapter Title: True Hero - 2
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Trail answered in a hurry.
“Uh, wait a second.”
Tap.
A screen popped up.
The numbers on the screen were changing so rapidly it made my eyes spin.
[Maide Mohan Cumulative Fame: 418,800]
[Adin Press Cumulative Fame: 1,105,000]
[Maide Mohan Cumulative Fame: 575,100]
[Adin Press Cumulative Fame: 901,000]
[Maide Mohan Cumulative Fame: 623,400]
[Adin Press Cumulative Fame: 791,000]
[Maide Mohan Cumulative Fame: 699,800]
[Adin Press Cumulative Fame: 751,000]
In an instant, my fame shot up.
At the same time, Adin’s fame plummeted straight down.
‘But.’
A gap of about 50,000.
My fame’s rise halted right there.
Adin’s decline stopped as well.
Trail sighed with regret.
“Just a little more, just a tiny bit further.”
“…….”
“Damn it. So we couldn’t overtake him after all. At this rate, the downpour won’t stop.”
“…….”
“Say something. Neril can’t maintain the Dor As Kane spell forever either.”
Right.
Soon the magic would fade, and the illusion would vanish.
Humanity, returned to reality, would once again take in the pouring rain with their own eyes.
How much despair would they feel then?
Enough to send my briefly skyrocketing fame crashing back down, for sure.
I closed my eyes for a moment.
When I opened them again, I had made one decision.
“Impellium. Send me back.”
“Did you come up with a good idea?”
“I don’t know if it’s good. But I think it’s the only way.”
“I see. Alright then.”
He grinned.
Then he waved his hand dismissively.
Like he was shooing away an annoying fly.
“I was about to send you back anyway. You keep barging into my room—it’s getting tiring.”
“Haha. Sorry about that. See you next time.”
“Did you even hear what I just said?”
My consciousness faded.
Impellium’s last words rang out.
“Still, it was a pretty fun time. Maide.”
I came to.
The first thing I saw was Risel stamping her feet while looking up at the sky.
“Aaah. The rain still won’t stop.”
“Is it still not enough?”
“Who knows. We can’t compare Maide’s and Adin’s fame by numbers ourselves.”
“It was just a guess to begin with that the rain would stop if the fame overtook his.”
“No point saying that now.”
Only Neril stayed quiet.
She was still breaking a cold sweat, focused on her magic.
Rustle.
I stood up.
Neril was immersed in her spell, and the others were fixated on the hole-riddled sky, so no one noticed me rising.
That’s why no one realized until I approached right behind Neril’s back.
I whispered softly into Neril’s ear.
“You’ve worked hard. Neril.”
“Gyaaah!”
“…….”
“What? Maide? Don’t talk to me while I’m casting.”
“Sorry.”
“It’s fine. ……Gyaaah!”
Is this girl okay?
Everyone turned to look at Neril’s shout.
Soon their expressions turned extremely awkward.
Risel spoke up.
“M-Maide. Did you catch a cold or something?”
“Why the sudden formal speech?”
“We feel kinda guilty.”
“Yeah. You went off on your own and gossiped without me. I’ll scold you properly later.”
A light laugh colored my voice.
Serein glanced around cautiously before asking.
“Um…… You’re not as mad as I thought?”
“Neril’s safe. The Branch of Corruption. What a truly brilliant idea.”
“Still, we gambled leaving Neril behind. Sorry, Maide.”
“I get it. I’ve never been this cornered before, so I understand. But.”
I turned my next words to Neril.
“Don’t do it again.”
“……I told you not to talk during casting.”
“I know it doesn’t matter to a mage like you. Don’t change the subject.”
“…….”
“Neril. I truly appreciate your feelings. And we actually benefited greatly this time.”
“Maide.”
“Still, you can’t go anywhere. I can’t lose you.”
Neril’s eyebrows twitched.
“Did you know what my wish was?”
I hadn’t known so much as guessed.
Neril’s body held the vital energy she’d absorbed from the Enerica family.
Her lifespan had long since ended.
The only reason Neril was still alive was that absorbed vital energy.
“A life with me. A future walking forward together.”
“…….”
“Right?”
If she hadn’t used the Branch of Corruption this time, the laws of the world might have stripped away all her vital energy.
Then Neril, whose lifespan had ended long ago, would have died right there.
Neril’s eyes trembled.
Guess I was right.
I patted her shoulder and stepped forward.
“Enough about the past. There were twists and turns, but it all worked out in the end. We even proved we could fool the world’s laws with the Branch of Corruption.”
“……It didn’t all work out. The rain hasn’t stopped yet.”
“You all went this far to set the stage. I can’t just sit back and claim the fame—that’d go against my conscience.”
“Huh?”
“I’ll handle the finish.”
I stepped in front of the communication orb.
And continued in a low voice.
“The gap between me and Adin’s fame is now tiny. One more step forward, and we overtake him.”
“How do you plan to take that one step?”
“Hm. Before that, everyone.”
I turned to my companions.
“I’m thinking of gambling once myself. Bigger than the one you all pulled off.”
“……?”
“If it works, we can perfectly drag Adin down from his divine seat. But if it fails, everything ends.”
“…….”
“That okay with you?”
Everyone fell silent for a moment.
Jenia spoke first.
“It’s fine, Maide.”
“I might not become the hero.”
“No. That’s a contradiction.”
“……?”
“You’re already the hero, Maide. The true hero.”
Her voice rang clear, without a shred of doubt.
Offense spoke next.
“This world was a playground for Adin, Velosian, and Idria doing whatever they pleased. If not for you, we’d never have seen the truth and would’ve just wandered as Kaild’s party members at best.”
“Offense.”
“Do what you want. You’ve got what it takes.”
Adwin followed.
“And even if it goes wrong, there’ll be another way. You’ve always been like that, bro.”
Risel nodded.
“Yeah. Maide always gives us faith and trust. Right, Mime?”
“Hmph. Fine, I’ll admit it. Besides, this is the perfect chance to get revenge on those heavenly gods. No way I’d refuse.”
Serein said.
“Well, my investor’s always been the heavens anyway.”
“Heh.”
“Plus, how could I stop my lifesaver from doing something?”
I turned my head slightly.
To hide the pleased smile on my lips—but Neril right beside me caught it perfectly.
She smiled just as softly and said.
“Do it, Maide. Whatever it is.”
The fisherman Noman had long since become a passionate supporter of Maide.
Hard to believe this was the same guy who’d badmouthed Maide just a week ago.
The tavern where he’d shared drinks with his old friend a week prior was already submerged and gone.
The lord had mobilized every available hand to build temporary shelters on high ground.
Even there, Noman didn’t forget to boast.
“That’s what I said. Maide will stop the rain, didn’t I?”
“You’ve got a lot of nerve picking fights.”
“What? Got a problem?”
“Never mind that you trashed Maide in front of me just a week ago—the rain stopping now is an illusion, you said. All thanks to that very Maide.”
“Urk. Th-that’s exactly why we need to support him more!”
Noman argued vehemently, spittle flying.
“Maide said it himself. If we believe he’s the hero, the rain will stop. Completely, not just an illusion.”
“…….”
“It’s all because those southern fools won’t believe in Maide. Useless, totally useless.”
Not that Noman—who’d trashed the northern Maide believers a week ago—had any room to talk, but his friend didn’t point it out.
He quietly agreed deep down too.
‘But still, the rain hasn’t actually stopped in reality…….’
Is it still not enough?
What more can we do?
That’s when it happened.
-Everyone, listen up.
Maide’s voice, now familiar enough to feel friendly, echoed out again.
Even in this near-shipwreck chaos, the communication orb had been carefully tended to on the lord’s orders.
It sat proudly at the center of the temporary shelter.
Right there, Maide’s voice came through.
-Right now, you’re all seeing a clear blue sky.
But let me say it again: that’s an illusion.
Don’t approach any lowlands or riverbanks flooded with water. Risk of drowning.
Noman swallowed hard.
The content was bleak on its face, but Maide’s voice carried a strength that didn’t match the grim reality.
-This time, I have a confession to make to all of you.
Noman and his friend exchanged glances.
A confession?
A deep breath came through the communication orb.
Like steadying himself before uttering something crucial.
At last, Maide spoke.
-Yes. I confess: I am the fake hero.
Boom.
It felt like an invisible boulder had crashed down from the sky.
-Kaild went around claiming I was fake every chance he got.
I refuted him every time, but the truth is, I am indeed the fake hero.
But that doesn’t mean I’ve been lying.
You must be wondering what kind of nonsense this is.
Let me ask you all instead: what’s the standard that divides ‘true hero’ from ‘fake hero’ in the first place?
What makes one real and the other fake?
You all know the answer to that question.
That’s right. The heavenly gods.
Up to now, the hero for humanity has been the one designated by the heavenly gods’ oracle.
In other words, the ‘true hero’ is the one the heavenly gods appoint.
Noman found himself nodding automatically.
He’d even forgotten to breathe.
-In that sense, yes, I am the fake hero.
But as you all know well, the heavenly gods are trying to wipe you out with this great flood.
They’re stealing your homes and shoving you into pits of suffering.
For one reason alone.
You didn’t obey them.
Everyone. Is this what gods who love humanity do?
Would a hero appointed by such beings truly act for humanity?
Gulp.
Someone’s swallow was audible.
His heart pounded so hard it felt like his eardrums would burst.
-I’m proud to be the fake hero.
Why? Because I don’t have to bow to such pathetic, filthy heavenly gods.
Because I can slay the Demon King with my own power, not borrowed from him.
What about you all?
If the heavenly gods truly loved humanity, they wouldn’t threaten you to believe Kaild is the true hero—they’d step up and kill the Demon King themselves.
But they didn’t.
Even in this crisis of the Demon King’s descent, they rain down floods as divine punishment on humanity that won’t trust them.
Right.
He’s right.
Why do the heavenly gods torment humanity like this?
They don’t even need to lift a finger—our lives are suffering enough already.
Just surviving day to day is hardship.
What the heavenly gods were doing now was like kicking a sickly patient who was already fading away.
-Everyone. I am the fake hero.
But at the same time, I am the true hero.
If the standard for hero is ‘one bestowed by the heavenly gods,’ then yes, I’m fake.
But…… what if the hero is ‘one raised up by humans’?
Then wouldn’t I, who has your trust and support, be the real one?
You’re the ones who can make me fake, and the ones who can make me real.
Please help me.
Believe in me!
We’re so close now.
Just one step left.
Trust me a little more.
Then we can stop the rain—not in illusion, but in true reality!
Every word from Maide struck the heart.
Rustle.
Noman wiped away the tears streaming down his face.
-The illusion will lift soon.
You’ll see the sky filled with dark clouds again, hear the rain tearing at your ears.
Now you must choose.
Will you bow to the heavenly gods to the end, submit to their power, and live as hostages?
Or will you support the ‘hero raised by humans’ and dispel the dark clouds with your own hands!
I earnestly plead.
Not to believe in me.
Believe in yourselves.
Believe that you can change the world with your own hands.
The ones who will save humanity are humanity itself.
Click.
The light from the communication orb faded.
Silence lingered for a while.
That’s when it started.
Rumble.
The cursed rain poured down once more.
Everyone in the shelter rushed outside.
The sky, clear just moments ago, was now blanketed in dark clouds.
Noman couldn’t tell if the water running down his cheek was tears or rain.
Rustle.
He turned to face the others.
And spoke in a resolute voice.
“Everyone. It’s time to choose.”