Not All Heroes From Earth Are Bad [EN]: Chapter 56

The Legion Commander’s Regular Meeting, Day 5.

Hemis was walking down a corridor inside the Demon King’s castle.

Clack. Clack.

The sound of her heels hitting the floor echoed with each step.

Then, a massive minotaur appeared from the opposite direction.

A smile crept onto Hemis’s face.

“Oh, isn’t that Ozgeus?”

Legion Commander Ozgeus.

He was the leader of the Cowden tribe, to which Raidrun belonged, and the commander of the Demon King’s 5th Legion.

He also noticed Hemis and bowed his head.

“It’s an honor to see you, Hemis.”
“Ohoho! Please, make yourself comfortable. What need is there for formalities between legion commanders?”
“No, I could never stand on equal footing with you, Hemis.”

The reason Ozgeus treated Hemis with such deference was clear.

Hemis was a demon who had lived for the longest time, along with the Demon King.

It was generally accepted that her actual martial prowess was also a cut above that of the other legion commanders.

Of course, even setting aside all those reasons, there was no denying that Ozgeus was excessively polite.

Like father, like son.

Seeing Ozgeus, the head of the clan, it was easy to understand why Raidrun was so rigid and valued etiquette.

“Are you on your way to dinner?”

Ozgeus asked.

Continuing in that direction would lead to the dining hall.

Hemis nodded.

“Yes, are you already done eating?”

“Yes.”

“That’s a shame. Let’s have a meal together before this regular meeting ends. There’s something I want to talk about.”
“Understood. Then, I’ll be on my way. I have some business to attend to.”
“Alright. See you at the meeting later.”
“Yes. Enjoy your meal.”

Leaving Ozgeus behind.

Hemis arrived at the dining hall.

She sat alone at a large table, elegantly crossing her legs.

“The usual, please.”

As soon as the order was placed, an enormous amount of food, enough to fill the table, was brought out.

Chomp!

Hemis’s lips tore open, and the food vanished into her mouth in an instant.

It was an immense quantity of food that dozens of people could have eaten, yet it all disappeared in less than five seconds.

“Hmm, this chef certainly knows how to cook.”

Hemis smiled contentedly.

At that moment, she noticed a human woman sitting alone at another table.

Why was there a human woman in the Demon King’s castle?

It might have seemed strange, but Hemis already knew who she was.

Just then, the human woman also looked up and spotted Hemis.

A spark flew between Hemis and the woman.

“Tch. Lost my appetite.”

The woman glared at Hemis, got up, and spat on the floor.

Hemis’s lips twisted at the rude gesture.

“When will that vulgar woman ever grow up…? Ohoho!”

She was smiling on the outside, but thick veins were bulging on her lips.

She wanted to devour her in one bite, but that vulgar and rude human was also a legion commander.

A fight between legion commanders was one of the things the Demon King forbade, so she had no choice.

“The elegant me must endure…”

Hemis quietly suppressed her anger.

A soldier approached her.

“Hemis, urgent news from the Black Colossus!”

“Urgent news?”

“Yes. There was an attack.”

“Tell me the details.”

“According to the report…”

The soldier continued the report in a cautious voice.

The more the report continued, the more Hemis’s expression hardened.

“I understand. You may leave.”

After the brief report, Hemis dismissed the soldier.

She rose from her seat.

Clack! Clack!

The noise made with each step sounded more agitated.

Hemis headed straight for the heart of the Demon King’s castle, the Legion Commander’s conference room.

There was still quite some time before the meeting, but it didn’t matter.

The Demon King would already be there.

Creak…!

Finally, the conference room door opened.

Hemis faced the man sitting alone in the vast space.

The Demon King.

The one called the pinnacle of all demons.

His appearance wasn’t particularly special.

Grayish skin.

Tall with well-defined muscles, like any other demon.

One striking feature was his horns.

The imposing aura emanating from the massive horns rising above his head indicated that he was no ordinary demon.

“…”

The Demon King stared indifferently at Hemis, who had come even though it wasn’t time for the meeting.

“Demon King. Do you remember?”

Hemis said, standing before the Demon King.

“When you said you would trade with humans, I opposed it, but in the end, I followed your will.”

The Demon King listened without any change in expression.

“And as promised, I’ve been stuck in that dreary castle, spending my days in boredom. Isn’t that right?”
“What is it you want to say?”

The Demon King finally reacted.

Instantly, Hemis’s lips stretched wide horizontally.

Her smile contained more profound anger than ever before.

“I mean, it’s going to be difficult if you act like this, Demon King.”
“Difficult, you say… How insolent.”

The Demon King’s expression twisted slightly.

Hemis’s words were nothing short of threatening him.

No matter how special she was, this was crossing the line.

“Hemis. Have you lived too long and lost your senses…?”

Dense demonic energy flowed from the Demon King.

Hemis calmly smiled and faced the demonic energy head-on.

“I wonder. Isn’t it you, Demon King, who has become dull from living too long?”

Intense demonic energy began to blaze between their gazes.

***

Choi Hyun-seok opened his eyes wide and gasped.

“Kuh-heok…!”

“Y-Yongsa-nim [Hero]! You’re awake!?”

Rahel shouted, jumping up and down.

Choi Hyun-seok panted and replied.

“Heeuh, heuk… Rahel. I’m alive, right?”
“Yes! You’re alive! You’re alive!”

Rahel’s eyes welled up with tears, and she buried her head in Choi Hyun-seok’s chest.

“Ah, it hurts…!”

“Ah! I’m sorry!”

Rahel fussed and stepped back.

He didn’t expect to feel pain from just that much.

“Yongsa-nim! Does it hurt a lot!?”
“Uh… it really hurts like hell…”
“Specifically, how much and in what way does it hurt!? I’ll help you!”
“It feels like all the skin has been peeled off and then scrubbed with a hot, steel scouring pad.”

“Ugh…”

Rahel gagged as if she was about to throw up at the graphic description.

“I’m sorry. I can’t heal that kind of pain!”
“Isn’t that giving up too quickly…”
“I’m a woman who knows when to give up!”
“Please, don’t pose like you’re saying some cool line…”

“Hehet!”

Rahel scratched her cheek at Choi Hyun-seok’s rebuke.

The two of them looked at each other and suddenly burst into laughter.

“Keu-heuk, heuk…!”

“Kki-hihit… Hit!”

The small laughter soon turned into loud laughter.

“Hahahahaha!”

The two of them held their stomachs and laughed for a long time.

“Yongsa-nim. You’re really okay now, right?”

“Yeah. I feel a lot better.”

It wasn’t just empty words; he really felt a little less pain.

He always felt that way, but when he had pointless banter with Rahel, all the worries in the world disappeared.

Choi Hyun-seok, now in his right mind, began to assess the situation properly.

“So, what happened?”

Choi Hyun-seok retraced his memories.

He operated Flomot to the third stage and used Raidrun-style martial arts to deliver the final blow.

He remembered that much clearly.

“Maybe… that guy didn’t die.”

He wasn’t sure, but he vaguely remembered the guy looking down at him and saying something.

“That’s right. That monstrous guy survived Yongsa-nim’s tremendous attack and was about to swing his sword!”

Rahel explained the situation at that time, moving her whole body.

“That guy was about to bring his sword down like this!”

Rahel put a lot of strength into her eyes and continued.

“That’s when he appeared. Our hero!”

“Hero?”

“Yes! It’s that cow head… no! Raidrun-nim!”

“Ah.”

It seemed that Raidrun had appeared and saved him from certain death.

“That cow head, no, Raidrun-nim, swung his fist like this! And the bad guy’s head exploded and he died! Amazing, right!?”

Rahel even acted out falling to the floor with a thud, performing passionately.

Choi Hyun-seok clapped.

“Thank you. Good job.”
“Hehet! How was it? My acting!”

“It was good?”

“Isn’t it at a level that slaps the cheeks of an actor?”

“Not really.”

It was at a level where she would get her cheeks slapped if she tried to become an actor.

“Tch. Anyway, after that, the cow head and that silver-haired saint took turns taking care of Yongsa-nim.”

“I see.”

“I heard them talking, and they said it was a miracle you were alive. They said you should have died several times over?”

“Hmm…”

“Actually, you know…”

Then, Rahel put her hand to Choi Hyun-seok’s ear and whispered.

“I know the reason why Yongsa-nim came back to life…!”

“What is it?”

“What else could it be? It’s because this Rahel took care of you with all her heart!”

Rahel pointed to herself with her finger.

Her face was full of pride.

“Ah, thank you.”

Rahel’s cheeks puffed up at the dry response.

“What’s that! There’s no soul! No soul!”
“I’m really grateful. Really.”

Choi Hyun-seok’s expression contained not only dryness but also a slight annoyance.

He went into Bobo’s arms, who was sleeping soundly nearby.

“Haaahm… I’m really, truly grateful. Rahel. You’ll definitely go to heaven.”

Choi Hyun-seok yawned and prepared to fall asleep again.

Rahel stamped her feet.

“Fine! Yongsa-nim is an idiot!”

“Uh-huh…”

“Idiot! Loser! A lecher who only likes women! Pervert!”

“Yeah, yeah…”

No matter how much she cursed, there was no reaction.

In the end, Rahel decided to use the last resort.

“Honestly, Yongsa-nim is totally ugly. That’s why you’re a virgin until that age. Acknowledge? Uh, acknowledge!”

“You really want to die?”

There was a line that no one should cross.

***

That evening.

Choi Hyun-seok was facing Raidrun.

Since his body wasn’t normal yet, Raidrun came to see him in person.

“It’s fortunate that you recovered this time, but you must never overdo it again.”

“Yes…”

He felt like he had heard those words more than 10 times already.

How long would this boring conversation last?

Choi Hyun-seok was suffering more from the mental pain coming from Raidrun’s nagging than the physical pain.

“Anyway, even if you survived as a result, such luck won’t last forever. Keep that in mind.”

“Yes!”

Choi Hyun-seok answered energetically.

Was it finally over?

“The reason you were able to succeed with that technique. That’s…”

Not a chance.

Raidrun continued his explanation.

“To be clear, it’s thanks to Hemis. If it weren’t for the demonic energy she planted, it would have been an absolute gamble that you could never have succeeded in.”

“Yes…”

The magic power that Hemis had planted before leaving.

If it hadn’t been for that, Choi Hyun-seok would have died before even reaching the third stage of Flomot.

He felt like he had heard this at least five times already.

‘What is this…? This infinite loop… a Möbius strip…’

His head was spinning.

Gradually, he began to listen to Raidrun’s words with one ear and let them out with the other.

“In the end, this is not your victory alone. If it weren’t for the demonic energy that Hemis had arranged, you would be…”

Choi Hyun-seok’s eyes widened.

‘That’s strange. I feel like I heard that story a little while ago… Am I mistaken?’

The magic power that Hemis arranged.

The magic power that Hemis planted.

The magic power that Hemis left behind.

The story kept spinning around with almost the same repertoire.

‘I’d rather faint…’

He knew why Raidrun was going so far.

It was probably because Choi Hyun-seok had ignored his words and fought recklessly.

‘I really couldn’t help it…’

He knew he was reckless.

But at the time, he had no choice.

Even if Choi Hyun-seok went back to that moment, he would fight like that again.

Of course, listening to Raidrun’s nagging again was a completely different matter.

“So. Choi Hyun-seok. You clearly have outstanding talent. A talent that is terrifyingly amazing. But, if it weren’t for the magic power that Hemis injected into this, the victory would never…”

This time, it was injected magic power.

Choi Hyun-seok gave up.

‘I can’t take it anymore…’

Just before he fell asleep.

Salvation came down.

“That’s enough.”

A beautiful, sweet voice that pierced his ears.

Choi Hyun-seok and Raidrun turned their heads at the same time.

“Hemis-nim…?”

“L-Legion Commander!”

Since when had she been there?

Hemis grinned and looked at them.