Not All Heroes From Earth Are Bad-Chapter 101
“Hero! What’s with that picking at your food? You’ll lose your blessings!” Rachel waved a toothpick as she shouted.
She was displeased with how Choi Hyun-seok was eating.
“Eat heartily!”
“I don’t have much appetite today.”
Choi Hyun-seok listlessly pushed food around his plate.
Unable to watch any longer, Rachel strode over and placed her hand on Choi Hyun-seok’s stomach.
“Hmm, you don’t seem bloated…”
“What are you doing?”
“Checking if you’re pregnant. Why else would you have no appetite?”
“Stop with the creepy jokes. How could a man get pregnant?”
“I’m free from prejudice, you know.”
“That’s not being unprejudiced, that’s being ignorant.”
“You could say that.”
“Those are completely different things!”
Choi Hyun-seok stood up angrily but sat back down with a sigh.
“Enough. I’m not in the mood for jokes.”
“What’s wrong, Hero? Did something happen?”
Sensing Choi Hyun-seok’s unusual mood, Rachel finally dropped her playful attitude and asked seriously.
“Rachel.”
“Yes.”
“Is it okay for me, as a hero, to be like this?”
“Like what?”
“Even if joining the Demon King Army couldn’t be helped… We’re likely to end up fighting humans.”
It was an inevitable issue.
Fighting against fellow humans.
While such battles had occurred before, this was different.
Back then, it was self-defense against those who threatened his life.
He had to kill to survive.
So there were no regrets or doubts.
But not now.
He would have to face humans uninvolved with him.
He found himself in a situation where he had to fight humans who were simply battling demons to survive.
“Hmm~”
Updat𝒆d fr𝑜m freewebnøvel.com.
Rachel stabbed a piece of fruit with her toothpick and popped it in her mouth.
After chewing and swallowing, she said, “Can’t be helped! It is what it is!”
Her tone suggested it wasn’t an issue at all.
She continued stabbing new pieces of fruit.
Her casual attitude was almost disconcerting.
“Didn’t you used to lecture about a hero’s duty?”
“That was then, this is now!”
“You live life so simply.”
Rachel’s character wasn’t surprising anymore.
But at least before, she had clear objectives about protecting humans and defeating the Demon King.
Now, either she’d lost her mind or adapted to the environment.
“This is sacrificing the few for the greater good!”
She was justifying the situation with such statements.
‘Well, looking at everything so far, the concepts of good and evil, justice are indeed shaky.’
Humans = Good = Justice
Demons = Evil = Injustice
It was like a formula.
You could call it a stereotype.
But was it true?
From what Choi Hyun-seok had observed, he wasn’t so sure.
‘This much is certain: a hero’s duty isn’t simply about defeating demons.’
The hero quests so far have made this clear.
Starting with gaining demons’ approval…
There were even quests to kill fellow humans and heroes.
Looking at the quest contents alone, one might wonder if he was a villain rather than a hero.
‘It’s likely one of two things.’
Either humans weren’t justice,
Or heroes weren’t beings who pursued justice.
Choi Hyun-seok believed the answer lay in one of these two possibilities.
“Mr. Choi Hyun-seok.”
Abelson’s voice came through.
She had been eating with them, silently listening to Choi Hyun-seok and Rachel’s conversation before speaking up.
“Don’t worry too much.”
“I’d rather not worry, but it’s not that easy.”
He’d felt uneasy ever since the Tepo massacre incident.
Abelson nodded as if she understood.
“I don’t know if this will help… But I can tell you about heroes.”
“About heroes?”
“Yes. More specifically, why heroes exist.”
“Oh?”
Choi Hyun-seok showed interest.
The reason for heroes’ existence.
Honestly, he hadn’t questioned it much before, but in this situation, it was crucial information.
“Aren’t heroes here to eliminate the Demon King?”
“Similar but incorrect. Defeating the Demon King is just part of the process.”
If defeating the Demon King was just a process, what was the hero’s true purpose?
“Heroes are beings created from everyone’s wishes.”
“Everyone’s wishes…”
“Yes. Wishes are desperate desires. In other words, happiness.”
“So heroes exist for happiness?”
“Simply put, yes. Heroes exist for the absolute majority’s happiness.”
The absolute majority’s happiness.
Even humans don’t always bring happiness to other humans.
In fact, humans might be what troubles other humans the most.
From this perspective, even hero quests to eliminate humans made sense.
But not all questions were answered.
If it was for human happiness, why were there quests to gain demons’ trust?
“Are demons included in that absolute majority?”
“Well… I’m not sure about that.”
Abelson stared into space briefly, thinking, before continuing.
“But this much is certain.”
She turned to look at Choi Hyun-seok.
“This world isn’t flowing toward everyone’s happiness.”
Choi Hyun-seok saw himself reflected in Abelson’s silver eyes.
Her mysterious eyes, which seemed to draw him in, looked at him as if uncovering everything.
“That’s why someone like you is needed, Mr. Choi Hyun-seok.”
“I still don’t understand.”
Choi Hyun-seok scratched his head.
Rachel beside him raised her toothpick high.
“Hero! Just trust and follow this Rachel! Thinking with your poor brain will only give you a headache!”
“You little-!”
Choi Hyun-seok grabbed the toothpick and jabbed at the fidgeting Rachel.
“Ouch! That hurts! It hurts!”
“Die for the happiness of the absolute majority!”
“Eek!”
Just as Choi Hyun-seok was fulfilling his hero’s duty, a familiar bull-head approached.
“Choi Hyun-seok. Here you are.”
“Lord Reidrun!”
Choi Hyun-seok tossed the toothpick and stood up.
“How was the meeting?”
“Actually, I have something to tell you about that.”
***
Reidrun briefly explained what happened in the meeting room.
After hearing everything, Choi Hyun-seok’s face hardened.
“We’re launching a preemptive strike before the enemy surrounds Gardrak Castle?”
“Yes.”
Commander Grat’s strategy was simple.
With human armies approaching from all directions, take them out one by one before they unite.
“Though it seems rough, it’s a good plan. The best plans are often simple.”
“I understand that, but…”
Choi Hyun-seok had no issues with the strategy itself.
The 8th Division leaving Gardrak Castle for a preemptive strike would catch the enemy off guard.
What puzzled him was about Reidrun.
“Why are you moving alone, Lord Reidrun?”
In this operation, Reidrun would act solo.
While most of the 8th Division’s soldiers and officers head to battle, only Reidrun moves alone.
It didn’t make sense.
“As I said, my mission is assassinating enemy commanders and eliminating small units. Working alone suits this stealth operation.”
“Well, yes, but…”
“Sorry, no time. Choi Hyun-seok, stay at the castle.”
“Understood.”
By the time Choi Hyun-seok answered, Reidrun had already vanished.
Time was crucial for this operation.
With enemies gathering in real-time, they needed to depart immediately.
Not just Reidrun – most soldiers and officers were leaving for battle.
Watching their retreating figures, Choi Hyun-seok stroked his chin.
“Something’s odd…”
“Hmm~ Indeed.”
Rachel also stroked her chin with a serious expression.
“Don’t you think everything’s falling into place too perfectly?”
The enemy converges on Gardrak Castle right as Choi Hyun-seok’s group arrives.
Then Grat, who’d been holed up in the castle, suddenly ventures out.
Could be a coincidence, but something felt off.
“That crocodile head. His eyes looked shifty. Like an evil mastermind.”
“Right. And it’s strange they’re not deploying me and Ms. Abelson.”
While Abelson might be ineffective against humans, Choi Hyun-seok was different.
He was among the top battalion commanders, a valuable asset.
Strange for the 8th Division to ignore such a resource when they needed every hand.
“If it were me, I’d squeeze out every last drop of usefulness.”
“They could even throw someone they dislike into enemy lines to die!”
Rachel, true to her character, casually suggested such a cruel plan.
Suddenly, Choi Hyun-seok’s eyes lit up.
“That’s it!”
“What is?”
“Why make Reidrun move alone? Could it be a trap?”
“Nah, that’s not it.”
“Why?”
“What’s the benefit? Losing the bull-head would weaken the Demon King Army.”
“True.”
“Besides, how would they trap him? Internal conflict would be bad right now. Did that crocodile head make a deal with humans? That’s too far-fetched.”
“…”
“Even if there is a trap, why leave us here? I’d send the Hero along too if I were setting a trap. Don’t you think?”
Choi Hyun-seok was stumped by Rachel’s sharp observations.
He had no counterarguments.
“Hey, why are you suddenly acting smart? Stay as the stupid Rachel!”
“I was always smart!”
“You were smart originally? It’d be more believable if Hemis turned out to be a great beauty instead of a lip monster. Talk sense.”
“Eek! Are you done?!”
Rachel repeatedly punched Choi Hyun-seok’s chest.
Not that it hurt him.
Then Abelson, who’d been listening, raised her hand.
“Wait.”
Choi Hyun-seok stopped pinching Rachel’s cheeks and turned.
“About earlier… What if Commander Grat really did deal with humans?”
“Do you know something?”
“No evidence. But it’s possible.”
“I don’t understand. Both demons and humans are desperate to destroy each other.”
“I heard the Demon King and the Pope maintain frontlines through a secret agreement. To prolong the war. Most dismiss it, but I believe it’s true.”
“A secret agreement… If that’s true…”
Choi Hyun-seok’s mind raced.
This was the frontline.
The stalemate had lasted over 100 years.
If not just due to equal forces, but a secret agreement between the Demon King and the Pope?
It would be stranger if field commanders didn’t have contacts or dealings.
“Reidrun’s in danger!”
Without Hemis now.
Reidrun was Choi Hyun-seok’s only shield.
What would happen if he disappeared?
Choi Hyun-seok spoke with a grim face.
“Rachel. Pack up.”
“Yes!”
He’d thought enough.
Time was crucial for him too.
It was time to move.
Hope you enjoyed the chapter! If you would like to support me or read advanced chapters, you can do so by unlocking chapters.
https://ko-fi.com/ippostranslations
