Making a Hero (1)
"What is a hero?" said the man in the black hood, his voice calm.
"A blade that guards life. A protector of civilization. A sword that slays evil. A demon king killer."
Each word came out in a voice stripped of emotion. Yet behind the voice of this man shrouded entirely in pitch-black darkness, faint traces of feeling seeped through.
"It's a title praised in many ways, but in this era, its meaning has been corrupted into that of a mere butcher."
Contempt. For the heroes praised by all. He despised them.
"From the first nameless hero onward, the heroes of ancient times deserved such praise, but now it's different. Look at this era. Look at this tragedy."
Around the man lay the corpses of countless people, each killed in various gruesome ways. The remains of false heroes who had proclaimed themselves as such.
"If God had chosen heroes like in the old days, there wouldn't have been this problem... But now it's an age overrun by foolish trash impersonating heroes."
The man kicked away the head of a fake hero lying at his feet. The severed head bore eyes that seemed to protest its incomprehensible death.
"Trash belongs in the trash bin, so I'll dirty my own hands to clean away the filth staining this world."
The man drew the sword from his waist, growling low.
"Then let me ask you lot. Are you fakes impersonating heroes like this trash?"
It's said to be inspired by a mass murder incident from a few years before the novel's publication, though whether that event actually happened remains unclear. However, the societal outrage toward fake heroes at the time allowed the book to be released without any restrictions.
I sat at the table, watching the boy munch on a cookie with his small mouth, and said,
"There, you seem to have calmed down a bit now."
"Ah, yes. I think I have."
A brown-haired boy you could see anywhere. His appearance was so utterly ordinary, without any standout features, that it would be hard to remember his face clearly at a glance. Kind of... like he's made of air, I guess. Plus, he had this subtly weak presence.
The perfect talent for infiltration.
"So, will you tell me your name?"
"My name?"
At my words, the boy hesitated for a moment before cautiously replying,
"I don't have one. I don't have a name."
Hm? No name? Huh. Did his parents not even bother giving him one?
"No name? You mean your father didn't give you one?"
"I don't have a father."
"Th-then what about your mother?"
"No mother either. I've been an orphan since I was little."
Ugh! Talula...!
"I... I see. Sorry about that."
"No, it's fine. I'm used to it by now."
A kid who looked barely over ten, skin and bones, saying he's used to not having parents. So heartbreaking.
I cleared my throat with a small cough and looked at the boy.
"Then, since you're the first hero, I'll call you Hero. It doesn't feel right for me to name you."
If his parents didn't name him, he should do it himself. Better than some outsider like me, right?
"It's just a title, but as long as you're alive and don't abandon being a hero, you'll be the only one. The title 'Hero' will mean you, so it should be fine to call you that."
"Hero... But what is a hero?"
Hm? Hm... We have to start from the basics? I thought I'd mentioned it in the oracle.
I said succinctly,
"A hero is one who protects."
"One who protects?"
"Yes. One who protects. Chosen by the Goddess of Life, safeguarding lives from monsters that seek to harm them."
Lesser monsters could be hunted by other humans or beastkin, but those infused with fragments of darkness were too much for humans alone. Even if they managed it, the casualties were huge. Elves, dwarves, lizardmen, giants—they handled them easily... but humans and beastkin were so fragile.
"Protecting lives... from monsters..."
The boy mulled over my words. A kid like that becoming an orphan? Probably lost his parents to monsters. In a way, I might be exploiting his thirst for revenge to turn him into my tool.
Man, I'm such a jerk.
"C-can I... really do it?"
"It depends on you."
I gazed at the boy. His hands trembled faintly. No confidence, endlessly timid. Time for a word of encouragement.
"But if you truly want to, you can do it, no problem."
"If I want to..."
"If you need power, I'll give it to you. Want to learn how to swing a sword? I'll teach you. Whatever you need, providing it is my role in guiding a hero."
I looked at him and continued,
"Of course, it won't be easy. There'll be moments your life hangs by a thread. Times when it's so hard you'll want to quit everything. But if you don't give up until the end, you could become a figure etched in history."
His trembling hands slowly stilled.
"Hero. Won't you do it?"
The boy thought deeply for a moment, then nodded slightly and opened his mouth.
"I'll... try. It's a little scary, but... I'll give it a shot. To protect others, so no more kids have to live without knowing their parents' faces, like me."
Yeah. That's the spirit.
I just gave a small smile at the boy's resolve.
"By the way, I have a question."
"Hm? What is it?"
The boy looked at me—or rather, my horns—with eyes full of curiosity.
"What are those horns? I heard that among beastkin with horns, females don't have them."
Hm? Is that true? Don't some animals like deer or sheep have females with horns too? Or maybe beastkin are different? Not sure. Anyway, time for an excuse.
What excuse to use... Ah, right.
"These horns are completely different from beastkin horns. I'm not a beastkin to begin with."
"Not a beastkin...? Are you perhaps a dragon from the legends?"
Ugh! Right on the nose!! No, no. Let's use this to my advantage.
We'll be together for more than a day or two anyway. Implanting that I'm special will be useful in many ways. Plus, as the proxy of a big shot like the Goddess of Life, being an ordinary beastkin would look kinda lame, right?
"To be precise, I'm a being created by infusing the power and life force of a creature called a dragon—or wyrm—into a human body. Made personally by the Goddess of Life. That's why I ended up with dragon horns on my head."
Precisely, by the Goddess of LifeGenesis Dragon herself! But this kid doesn't need that trivia.
"Power of a dragon... That's amazing..."
"Yes. Quite amazing."
"Then... um... what should I call you?"
"Hm? Me?"
"Yeah. I'm fine with Hero, but... you're not exactly a 'sis,' right."
...Sis? The unfamiliar title made my thoughts freeze for a second. Sis? Sis...
"Ah! S-sorry! I was taught to call any older woman 'sis'..."
"Hm. Doesn't matter much. But only call me that when we're alone. It'd be awkward in front of others."
Never thought I'd hear "sis" in my life. I've been called "mom" before, but sis is a first. Wait, isn't "mom" more shocking? Why am I more stunned by sis?
"Okay, sis it is. But what about in front of others?"
"Hm. In front of others..."
Proxy of the Goddess of Life? Too long, and two "of"s. Awkward. Drop "of Life" and just Proxy of the Goddess? "Proxy" feels distant. Better word?
A woman sent directly by the goddess... Saintess? Nah, not saintess. Saintess sounds like a heroine, someone to romance and. The type to sacrifice herself at the end for tragic obsession vibes. Nope, not me.
I'm more the black type, empowering and using the hero! Ahem. Definitely not saintess!
Then... miko? Priestess. Priestess... Yeah, that works. Faith is still primitive, so "priestess" fits. Add a twist: priestess with dragon power, so Dragon Priestess.
Hm. Perfect.
"In front of others, call me the Dragon Priestess. That seems appropriate."
"Got it. Sis."
Sis. Sis... Not a bad feeling.
And so, in the hidden chamber of the Life Temple, I began living with the boy who would become the future Hero.
......
Oh, by the way, I later learned that some female beastkin do have horns. Whatever, doesn't matter now!