Chapter 52
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 52
Chapter Title: A Hero More Demonic Than Demons
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The human was wriggling.
Literally—as in, wriggling was the only way it could move its body anymore.
A human with its limbs severed was just like a maggot.
That's how it looked to me.
"C-Could you say that one more time?"
"I'm gathering these bastards to summon a demon. Through sacrificial summoning."
I wondered if I'd misheard, doubting my own ears.
Sure, Ashy was infamous as a hero with a piss-poor personality!
'But I figured even she had some kind of line she wouldn't cross.'
Summoning a demon directly.
Was that really something that should come out of a hero's mouth?
I didn't think so.
No matter how I looked at it, Ashy wasn't right in the head.
A hero who'd twisted into a black mage.
Just like Gertong.
"You fucking black mage pervert bitch! I've known it since you kept eyeing my asshole!"
"What? Pervert bitch?"
"……."
In my past life, I was a comrade of the hero Ashy.
I never backed down in front of a black mage.
Ashy narrowed her eyes and glared at me.
"Kang Ajin, such a foul mouth. You sure you won't regret it?"
"...I was just joking around."
Our Ashy must have some plan in mind.
She wouldn't betray humanity and collude with black mages or anything awful like that.
"I saw something weird this morning, and it must've messed with my head for a sec."
A crawling human maggot?
It was enough to kill my appetite completely.
Ashy let out a heavy sigh and yanked on my collar.
She pulled my head down a bit, then breathed hotly into my ear.
"If you pull this shit again... I'll punish you for real?"
With her bare hand gripping my dick, Ashy growled.
"And if you do it again? I'll show you just how wide your asshole can stretch."
Asshole expansion project.
Just imagining it gave me chills.
Ashy didn't stop there.
"Chloe-unnie said the holes in a human body are surprisingly flexible. Even a fist can fit in. Wanna try?"
"...S-Sorry. I won't do it again."
She's saying she'll shove her fist up my ass.
It was a horrific threat that would shatter not just a man's pride, but his dignity as a human.
The kind that made a chastity belt seem preferable.
My head bowed automatically.
Ashy loosened her grip on the collar just a bit.
My head returned to its normal position.
Ashy glanced downward.
With a gaze full of disgust, she kicked at the wriggling human maggots.
"Kuhk...!"
The human maggot rolled across the dirt without even putting up a fight.
"There's only one reason I left them like this. To summon a demon."
Ashy had regressed.
She'd faced demons once before, and this was her second shot.
Her second try, with a clear goal: finish off the Demon King quick and enjoy a happy retirement.
Ashy's power had surpassed the original story.
She'd skipped enlightenment and already awakened.
For a time attack clear, there was no reason to hesitate.
"Heroes always clean up after shit happens. The structure forces casualties because black mages strike first. But what if we summon the demon ourselves?"
With full preparations in place, proceed through a black mage's summoning.
We could summon the demon exactly where we wanted.
No worries about sacrifices.
Criminals like death row inmates had no human rights anyway—they'd make perfect offerings.
Summon the demon in an area where casualties don't matter.
Gather the heroes ahead of time and slay it with the strongest forces.
Ashy wasn't hunting enemies—she was bringing them to us.
'Assuming we can handle the demon, it's a damn good plan.'
And it was definitely effective.
"Wipe out the demons, kill Baal, and we're done."
"...What if we can't take the demons?"
"Who? Me?"
Ashy grinned wickedly.
Confidence overflowing, like demons were nothing.
Maybe it was that bold smile, but a corner of my heart felt secure.
Ashy had no better plan than this.
Like morning dew on the execution ground, the guillotine called Ashy.
"I'll pass the word to the kingdom and the church, then put it into action."
Ashy bound the human maggots' bodies with ropes.
Strung them up like dried fish for easy dragging.
"These guys have been tailing us since yesterday in the gorge. Obvious without even looking. Trash who kidnap or kill people crossing the bridge."
"Since yesterday?"
"Yeah. That's why I set up camp here on purpose. Even though the village is just a bit further."
Camping itself was the trap.
Bait laid for bandits to attack at nightfall or dawn.
'...When I woke up briefly, was she dealing with the bandits?'
I remembered a faint bloody stench.
If she'd severed their limbs, it made perfect sense.
While I slept like a log, Ashy hadn't rested.
If not for her, we might've been in mortal danger from the bandits.
"They even brought horses. Four of them."
Ashy had spared the horses.
The riders were the problem—horses were innocent.
Five horses now. Sell a couple, and our pockets would fatten up.
"Let's get a carriage with these. A two-seater should be easy."
"Sounds good."
Riding double was no picnic.
It drained stamina way more than riding solo, so a carriage beat horseback.
A comfy seat would be great all around.
We loaded the sacrifices onto the horses' backs.
Ashy led the four new horses; I handled ours.
Off to the nearest village.
"It's really close."
We hadn't walked far when the village came into view.
Not exactly thriving.
A small place with crude wooden fences all around.
Still beats camping.
For some reason, my body felt a little stiff.
"Hero?!"
The villagers recognized the hero.
A few came rushing out to greet us.
"What brings you to our humble village...?"
"Any carriages here?"
"Carriages, you say?"
Handle business and move on—that was the plan.
The young men whispered among themselves.
For carriage matters, someone higher up was needed.
Ashy waited silently for their response.
"Please wait just a moment."
One youth dashed off.
He entered a large house and returned with an elder.
Leaning on the young man, the old guy shuffled slowly—clearly mobility issues.
"If you need a carriage... I'll show you ours first."
We checked the village's sole carriage with the chief.
"Tch."
Ashy shook her head.
Nothing appealing.
Better to snag something nicer later.
"Forget it. Take your old man and go."
Ashy gave up on the carriage.
Head straight to the next village as is.
The horses were smart.
Well-trained by the bandits, they obeyed Ashy perfectly.
"Run, and you're dead."
She whispered it right in front of their faces.
Shoved the gleaming holy sword under their noses—a brutal warning.
Believe horses nodding their heads?
You wouldn't.
But I saw it.
The beasts responding to Ashy's words.
We rode on.
The horses followed without bolting.
Ashy didn't touch me, focused on riding.
The next village, Baria, took a full day.
Keeping the human maggot sacrifices alive slowed us down.
Baria was more prosperous than yesterday's stop.
Prosperous at a glance—well-fed, well-off.
A barrier separated village from outside; houses looked decent overall.
The fabric of the chief's and villagers' clothes hinted at solid finances.
"...This place ain't bad."
Ashy murmured, scanning the village.
The chief beamed and chimed in.
"Exactly! Baria is healthier and livelier than nearby villages. No better spot for a hero to rest briefly."
"No, that's not what I—"
Ashy cut off the chief mid-sentence and glared at the four human maggots.
I caught on instantly.
The chief and villagers looked puzzled, though.
I sidled up to Ashy and whispered.
"You're doing it here, right?"
"Eek?!"
Ashy shuddered suddenly and shoved me away.
The push packed real force—my body flew back easily.
"Huh?"
"D-Don't whisper in my ear like that. You scared me."
"...Got it."
Ashy's face was beet red.
She fanned her cheeks with her hand a couple times, breathing raggedly.
Felt like heat radiating off her.
My whisper had turned her on.
Got horny out of nowhere and shoved me in a panic.
Ridiculous, but I kept my mouth shut.
Obeyed Ashy meekly.
No point joking and getting it back worse.
I played middleman to diffuse the weird vibe between us.
"So why here?"
"...A black mage already set up a sacrificial summoning magic circle here. Pretty old one too..."
Ashy squinted, surveying the area.
Like she sensed something off, checking every corner.
Villagers trailed nervously behind her.
Then, abruptly, Ashy asked.
"Anything good happen around the village in the last year?"
"……."
The chief hemmed and hawed.
After prodding him three or four times, he finally spoke.
"About a year ago... we found a treasure chest near the village."
"And you developed the place bit by bit with it?"
"W-Was it yours, Hero...? S-Sorry...!"
"You've been living fat and happy."
No way it was Ashy's.
A year ago, she was training at Hero Academy.
Ashy sighed at the chief's wrong guess.
"Taking something you gave away is the worst."
"What do you...?"
"The bigger the emotional drop, the denser the demonic energy you extract. That's why black mages give their sacrifices 'happiness' first. Drag 'em to the cliff and shove 'em off."
"……."
It came up in the original story too.
To get better demonic energy, black mages toyed with human emotions.
Granted laughter, then tore it to shreds.
"Didn't realize till it happened to me."
Ashy gripped her holy sword.
Two-handed zweihänder, bigger than her body—a hero's weapon.
"In this world, nothing you get by 'chance' lasts forever. Gotta have the power to keep it."
Silver mana flared around the holy sword.
Sword aura at the ready, primed for battle.
And she swung it—at Baria village.
"H-Hero!?"
"Outta the way—you're in the way!"
Ashy shoved the chief aside.
Rougher than with me—the frail elder tumbled into the dirt.
"Chief!"
The young men rushed to help him up.
And glared daggers at rude Ashy.
Boom!Crash!
Ashy ignored their stares.
She swung wildly, smashing the village.
"Let's see how long you hold out! You put a year into this—you weren't planning to abandon it, right? You bastards!"
Ashy screeched like a banshee.
Looked utterly deranged.
By the time she'd wrecked half the village, the air began to tremble.
A sinister energy welled up under the barrier.
Black aura crept upward like vines, soon forming a massive dome.
It engulfed the entire village.
"Aw, shit. We tripped it."
In the distance, a black mage revealed himself.