The Second Hero (2)
"Anyone who wishes to become the Hero, step forward now."
After the Hero Lee Hansu was banished from the Empire, the vacant seat had to be filled once more. The Chancellor summoned every official of the Empire and began recruiting candidates for the position.
And so the search for the next Hero began — and a great many people turned out to be keenly interested in the role.
"I believe this is where I must step forward. I, Herald, Knight Commander, shall become the Hero and defeat the Demon King without fail."
First came Herald, the Knight Commander well past sixty.
"I must disagree. Sir Herald, are you not already rather advanced in years? Please, rest easy. I will be the one to bring down the Demon King."
Then Alex, who had only just been appointed Knight Commander himself.
"You knights ought to remain and protect the Empire. In times like these, I — a son of House Eners — shall step up. As a noble, one must set an example."
And finally Jacks Eners, no knight at all, but a young noble serving as a bureaucrat in the Imperial Palace. All three of them had their eyes fixed on the Hero's seat.
And though they did not come forward, everyone else standing behind them wanted it just as badly. They simply lacked the standing of those three, and so could not bring themselves to step out with any confidence.
Becoming the Hero right now would be the sweetest deal imaginable.
The Hero's office was wildly popular, and the reason was obvious if you thought about it for even a moment. Nearly every demon had already been dealt with by the previous Hero, Lee Hansu.
Objectively speaking, the former Hero Lee Hansu had handled things rather competently — aside from failing to defeat the Demon King. He had crushed almost the entire demon host. All that remained was the Demon King herself and a handful of stragglers. Even her once-terrifying Four Heavenly Kings were gone.
The war against the demons had already been won so thoroughly that over ninety percent of the continent belonged to humanity, with barely ten percent left in demon hands. In a situation like that, all you had to do was take down the Demon King. It was the equivalent of showing up to a finished meal and planting your spoon in the rice.
There was simply no reason not to want the job.
And if I become the Hero now, I won't even get blamed for anything.
Besides, the previous Hero had left without completing his mission. No matter how poorly the next one performed, no one was going to tear into him for it. Succeeding a failed Hero meant that failure itself carried little cost — and success would be an absolute triumph. In other words, the position was a no-lose investment.
The title of Hero normally came with honor and reverence, but also with crushing pressure and hardship. Right now, though, it was an extraordinarily precious opportunity — a chance to become the Empire's champion with almost no effort at all. No wonder everyone was climbing over each other for it.
"Three candidates have come forward. Sir Herald, Sir Alex, and Secretary Jacks."
Even so, there was only one seat. And the one who would decide who filled it was none other than the Chancellor who led the Empire.
He looked the three men over and weighed his choice. He was well aware that the Hero currently had very little to do — but that was no reason to appoint someone carelessly. The Hero was not merely the one who defeated the Demon King. Afterward, the role remained a powerful symbolic figure of tremendous importance. As the man responsible for guiding the Empire, the Chancellor needed to choose with care.
He deliberated a while longer, then reached his decision.
"In my judgment, Sir Herald is the one best suited to the role."
The Chancellor's choice fell on Herald, the Knight Commander past sixty. A white-haired old man as the Hero — a few faces in the hall looked puzzled, but most people accepted it without difficulty.
Herald might look like a frail old man at a glance, but everyone in the palace knew his skill had not dulled in the slightest. He could still hold his own against young knights in sparring. And the vast experience he had accumulated over a lifetime of service as a knight was nothing to dismiss. Had Lee Hansu not been summoned to this world a year ago, the Hero's mantle would almost certainly have gone to Herald.
"You have my gratitude, Chancellor."
"Give it your all, Sir Herald. I place my trust in you."
"Thank you. This body may be old, but I shall prove my skill has not rusted. Unlike the previous Hero, I will defeat the Demon King without fail and uphold the honor of every Hero who came before me."
Weighing all of this, the Chancellor judged Herald the most fitting choice. Before the assembled crowd, he formally named Herald the Hero — and the newly appointed Hero steeled his resolve. The previous Hero, Lee Hansu, had failed. He would not. He would restore the Hero's tarnished honor.
The hall erupted in cheers at his declaration.
"Wooooah...!"
Applause poured down like rain.
Yes. This seat was always meant to be mine.
And Herald himself was not without confidence. He was no longer young by any measure, but he was a knight who refused to believe he had grown old. If anything, he considered himself far stronger now than in his youth. The body aged, yes — but technique and strategy only grew sharper with time.
In truth, he even believed he was stronger than the previous Hero, Lee Hansu.
That Lee Hansu fellow was nothing special.
Lee Hansu was a special individual transferred from another world, granted power directly by the Goddess. It was because of him that Herald had been passed over for the Hero's role in the past. At the time, Herald had felt no particular resentment. He had wanted the position, certainly, but he had accepted that the title of Hero went to the strongest — and that was that.
But if Lee Hansu was weaker than him, that changed everything.
Some time ago, Hero Lee Hansu and Herald had fought a friendly spar. A match between the Hero and the Empire's renowned Knight Commander — Herald had fully expected a crushing defeat. The result, however, was nothing of the sort. It ended in a draw, and Herald never once felt outmatched by Lee Hansu. If anything, by judges' decision, the victory was his. He had pressed Lee Hansu from start to finish.
After an experience like that, Herald could not bring himself to acknowledge Lee Hansu. If a man like that could be the Hero, there was no reason Herald could not. He was certain Lee Hansu would fail to subjugate the Demon King.
And that prediction had proven precisely correct.
Now that he was the Hero, the time had come to reclaim everything Lee Hansu had taken from him.
"Hello, Sir Herald — or rather, Hero Herald. Our time together may be brief, but we look forward to working with you."
"Ah, the Hero's party members. A pleasure. I look forward to working with you as well."
While Herald was still savoring his new title, the Hero's party members approached from across the hall.
The Saintess, Ayla.
The elf, Karne.
The beastman, Nafira.
The mage, Luna.
Every one of them a beautiful woman — the party that had once followed the former Hero, Lee Hansu. Any man would have fallen for them at a glance. Even standing still, each of them seemed to radiate her own distinct charm.
Herald, however, had little interest in them. To a man past sixty, they looked like little more than grandchildren.
Well, inheriting them as they are is probably for the best.
The composition of the party was traditionally left to the Hero's discretion. If he needed members, he could recruit them. If he did not, he could dismiss them. Herald saw no reason to make changes. The women were already more than adequate as a Hero's party — and with only the Demon King left to deal with, swapping them out would have been pointless.
For the moment, at least. If the party members proved less than favorably disposed toward him, Herald was fully prepared to replace them at any time. But that concern seemed unnecessary.
"Hero Herald, if I may — what is your faith?"
"From the day I was born until this very moment, I have never followed any religion but the Goddess Church."
"Heh. I like that. If there's anything you don't know, feel free to ask me anytime."
Of the party members, the Saintess Ayla was the first to address him. She asked about his religion with a somewhat curt expression, and when Herald answered that he followed the Goddess Church, her face softened at once. She regarded him with a gentle warmth, as though the coldness had never been there.
To Ayla, a Hero — no, a human being — was simply expected to believe in the Goddess Church. From that perspective, the mere fact that Herald was a believer was enough for her to mark him as someone worthy of being treated as a Hero.
"I look forward to working with you."
"Likewise. Our time may be short, but let's give it our best."
"Yes. I may have my shortcomings, but I will do my utmost as the Hero. Please trust me and follow my lead."
Ayla treated Herald kindly, and the elf Karne and the beastman Nafira welcomed him as the Hero as well. It was not an especially warm reception, but at least they did not reject him. They intended to treat him as the Hero he was. With only the Demon King left to defeat, it hardly mattered to them who held the title.
Hmm... no matter how I look at it, he seems so much weaker than Lee Hansu...
But there was one exception.
The mage Luna simply stood and watched blankly while the others exchanged greetings with Herald. It was not that she disliked him. He was old, yes, but mannerly and decent enough. Still, something about him failed to inspire confidence. He simply did not feel like a Hero to her.
When she thought of a Hero, she thought of someone like the previous one — Lee Hansu. No matter how she tried, she could not find that same quality in Herald. And so she could not bring herself to welcome him. He simply did not feel like a Hero.
"Ah... Mage? Are you well?"
"Ah... yes. Hello."
"I may be lacking, but I look forward to working with you. If there is anything I fail at, please do not hesitate to point it out."
"Ah. The pleasure is mine as well."
When Luna continued to stand there staring, Herald took the initiative and greeted her himself. He asked if something was wrong; she told him it was nothing.
Don't entertain anxious thoughts.
He was the new Hero, after all. Luna decided she would try to trust him in that capacity. Passing judgment on someone the moment he was chosen was an ugly habit. There might be things about him she simply did not know yet — and no one could say what the future held.
She forced her uneasy thoughts down as best she could.
Ugh... is this really the right choice?
But the anxiety would not stop.