Chapter 55
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 55
Chapter Title: The Man Who Opens His Eyes to a New World
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Right after hunting down the demon Belial, the dome enveloping Baria collapsed.
It was crumbling because the supply of demonic energy sustaining it had been cut off.
Cough... Hack! Hack!
Grape trembled violently, spitting up blood.
With only his head left, it looked like a quivering ball from the outside.
Purple hair made it a purple ball.
Ashy scanned the village square, searching for remnants of the demon.
Evidence she could show to Baron Yuteron.
Unfortunately, she found none.
Belial's body had already scattered as black dust, and the demon summoning magic circle had been purified and vanished by Ashy's celestial energy.
Tch, guess I'll have to go through the Church. What a hassle...
Ashy sheathed her holy sword and slung it over her back.
It meant the battle was completely over.
This black mage is still alive. You sure we don't need to kill him?
Yeah, I'm thinking of keeping him around.
Ashy grabbed Grape by the hair.
Grape writhed in pain.
It hurts! It huuuurts! You fucking bitch!
Maybe because you don't have a body to thrash around with? You look kinda weird like that.
Are you really a Hero?! Is this how a Hero treats a prisoner who doesn't even have the strength to fight back?!
Grape spat toward Ashy, venting his rage.
A normal Hero would treat a prisoner humanely.
But Ashy wasn't a normal Hero.
Yeah, I'm a Hero. So shut your trap, you piece of shit.
Guh...!
Ashy slammed Grape to the ground.
With the sound of his skull cracking, Grape foamed at the mouth and passed out.
Blood was flowing from his head.
He's not dead, is he?
He won't die from that. You have to smash his head just right so he can't regenerate his body.
Ah... So you're saying you'll periodically bash his head in? That right?
You're quick on the uptake, Puppy. Tell me whenever stress builds up.
Ashy said she'd lend him out as a sandbag instead, smiling brightly as she spoke.
I had nothing to say.
A hollow laugh escaped my lips.
I brushed off the response and offered to help with the cleanup in Baria Village.
After the demon vanished, the villagers began to stir one by one.
They came to their senses and started grasping the situation.
The demon... Did the Hero defeat it...?
Yeah.
Ashy didn't deny it.
There was no one else but her who could have taken down the demon.
Thank you...!
Thank you for saving us, Hero!
The black mage set up a magic circle in the village... We almost became sacrifices for the whole village...!
The villagers faced the truth.
There had been a sacrificial summoning ritual in Baria, and Hero Ashy had saved them from it.
It revealed the horrific future where the entire village might have become sacrifices for the demon summoning.
The people of Baria expressed their gratitude to Ashy.
Bowing or shaking hands was the least of it.
Some prostrated excessively or burst into messy sobs.
Children who knew nothing were oblivious, but parents with kids poured out their emotions, adding their children's lives to the thanks.
My chest tickled warmly.
Even though I hadn't done anything, this outcome—proud by any measure—stirred something in me.
Ashy shoved the people away.
She scowled, telling them she didn't need thanks and to get lost.
What do we do about this...
The villagers sighed as they looked around the devastated village.
It was Ashy's doing, but they couldn't blame her.
She had the greater good on her side.
The village chief drew everyone's attention.
There are still intact houses. Let's start by sorting out the ones in decent shape, one by one.
......
We're grateful to be alive. If the Hero hadn't saved us, we'd all be demon fodder by now.
...How are we going to rebuild the village...
Someone grumbled.
The chief quickly corrected the complaint and soothed them.
Worrying about rebuilding is a luxury only the living can afford. So we're having a happy problem!
That's right! A happy problem!
The aunties shouted.
They steeled their resolve in agreement with the chief.
Since it's like this, we should build bigger houses. Baron Yuteron will support us, right?
Of course! Our village was destroyed by a demon! Not just Baron Yuteron, but the Sun God Church will help too!
Woooah!
It was clearly Ashy who wrecked it, but at some point, it had become the demon's doing.
The villagers hypnotized themselves and got to work.
The demon had swept through, but they couldn't dwell on the shock forever.
The people of this world recovered quickly.
Heh, nice.
Ashy smiled contentedly at the villagers.
Then she glanced at me.
Did good, right?
Ashy poked my side and whispered.
Her expression looked expectant.
Yeah, you did great. Amazingly so.
I stroked Ashy's head.
She leaned into me, chuckling softly.
Like a purring cat.
I kept petting her until she was satisfied.
It was my role, at least—Hero Ashy stress management—so my hand didn't stop.
Someone's coming.
While I was spacing out, knights appeared in the distance.
Holy knights in gleaming white armor.
They were riding toward us.
I gently pushed Ashy aside.
She scowled at the holy knights, clearly missing my touch.
But nothing changed.
We had work to do.
Since we'd exterminated the demon, we needed to hand over the aftermath to the Church.
Hero?
One man approached from the group of holy knights.
Judging by his fine horse, he seemed to be a high-ranking holy knight.
He looked at Ashy and surveyed the surroundings.
We detected the demon's presence and mobilized urgently. What happened to the demon?
I killed it.
...The Hero defeated the demon? That's a relief.
His gaze landed on Ashy's holy sword.
It had a blue gem embedded, proof of its high level.
Even so, it seemed insufficient.
He couldn't imagine her taking down a demon alone.
Where did your other companions go?
The holy knight looked around.
Squinting, searching for others besides us.
Ashy replied indifferently, consistent in her attitude.
I took it down alone. I wanna head back quick, so handle it yourself.
...You alone, Hero?
Yeah.
She dumped all the reporting and demon-related duties on the holy knights.
Belial, rank 68. That's how he introduced himself.
Belial... You defeated him single-handedly... Impressive, Hero.
The holy knight glanced at me briefly.
I was spotless, not a speck of dust on me.
It didn't look like I'd fought a demon.
His judgment was correct.
He skipped the minor Q&A.
For rewards or recording achievements, the Church would assign points appropriately.
We could claim them when continental peace arrived.
Ashy found these processes annoying.
She gave vague answers, hoping they'd handle it, shortening the procedure.
The holy knight didn't probe further.
Where do you plan to return to?
Heading up to Torsso. There's a teleport mage at the Church branch there, right?
Yes, he's staying at the Church. If you're going to Torsso, I can guide you.
The holy knight called over one of his subordinates.
Yes, Captain!
The subordinate saluted and addressed him as captain.
He was apparently the captain of the Torsso branch holy knights.
Escort the Heroes back to Torsso.
Understood!
The captain had no intention of dragging out the conversation with Ashy.
He released us quickly.
And that one...?
Ashy picked up Grape's head.
The captain then took interest in Grape.
I sense demonic energy, Hero. I'll cut it down right now.
Sticky demonic energy rippled from Grape's head.
The holy knight captain sensed it and drew his sword.
Ashy frowned and waved him off.
Meaning sheathe your sword.
This one's useful. So go mind your own business.
...A black mage? We can't just let him go.
Sigh.
Ashy sighed.
In the story, the holy knights always caused incidents whenever they appeared.
It was to highlight their rigid personalities, clashing with Hero Luke.
This time was no different; they were defying Hero Ashy.
Of course, it wasn't incomprehensible from his perspective.
He was just fulfilling his duty to eliminate black mages on sight.
Even so, Ashy didn't have to unconditionally understand his actions now.
She wasn't the type to anyway.
Unless you're the border knight captain, bring the Saintess or Saint to talk to me. I won't ask for the Pope.
W-what did you just say? The Saintess and Saint...?
Keep yapping here and I'll cut off your arm. Shut up.
Ashy had no intention of persuading the holy knight captain.
Or maybe she was persuading him in her own way.
Conversation wasn't the only means of persuasion.
Ashy leaked killing intent bit by bit.
A ferocious aura that made demonic energy seem tame.
Even the captain, who must have trained extensively, had his legs shaking.
Facing a woman a head shorter than him, his face was pale with fear.
...W-why are you sparing the black mage... Do you know how dangerous they are...?
I'm stronger, so it's fine. I said I'd cut off an arm if you keep talking. Which one should I take?
Ashy was about to draw her holy sword right then.
If left alone, the captain's arm really would fly off.
I urgently grabbed Ashy's arm.
I clung to her hand reaching for the sword, linking arms.
Let's just go back.
Leave this guy be?
Yeah, the captain's just doing his job. Honestly, keeping a black mage alive is the weird part. Getting mad here will only hurt us. It'll just ruin our reputation for nothing.
Ashy subsided.
Her lips pouted out, but it was fine.
She was still within Kang Ajin defense range.
The holy knight captain was perceptive too.
Having seen those eyes that wanted to kill him, he backed off on his own.
He didn't bring up the black mage Grape again.
S-search the village immediately. Check for any remaining remnants!
Yes!
The holy knights dispersed to inspect Baria Village.
Ashy and I led our horses toward Torsso.
Torsso was a small city not far from Baria.
From there, we headed straight to Yuteron.
Thanks to the teleport magic linking Church branches, it took less than a minute.