Not All Heroes From Earth Are Bad [EN]: Chapter 82

Fortunately, Raidrun’s misunderstanding ended as a minor incident.

“Hmph, hmm! I showed a disgraceful side.”

Recovering from his embarrassment, he sat down with Choi Hyun-seok and Abelson and began to explain the reason for his visit.

“…So, the legion commander recommended you.”

Raidrun finished his explanation.

Having heard the whole story, Choi Hyun-seok wore a complex expression.

To be honest, he was mostly taken aback by the request to leave the Black Fortress, even if it was just for a short while.

“So, you’re saying I have to go to a place called the 2nd Legion?”

“Yes. The spatial interference magic field [a device that disrupts spatial teleportation] is essential. Traveling to the 2nd Legion won’t be particularly difficult, so don’t worry.”

“I understand. But Raidrun, may I ask you one thing?”

“What is it?”

“Why me of all people?”

Choi Hyun-seok was curious.

Why was he chosen among so many soldiers?

Even though Choi Hyun-seok was part of the Demon King’s army, he was still human.

To send him outside the Black Fortress, where he could run away at any moment, was incomprehensible.

Raidrun’s answer to his question was clear.

“It is the legion commander’s will.”

“Are there no other reasons?”

“Ahem, no…”

Raidrun, feeling a bit guilty, turned his head and spoke.

He couldn’t bring himself to tell Choi Hyun-seok that the 2nd Legion Commander, Rotark, was a mad scientist and wanted to see him.

Just as Choi Hyun-seok sensed something strange in Raidrun’s attitude, Abelson raised her hand.

“Just a moment. You can’t send Choi Hyun-seok alone.”

“Why not?”

“Choi Hyun-seok’s body is currently in an unstable state. I don’t know what might happen if he goes alone.”

“Saintess, are you saying you have to go with him?”

“Yes.”

“Then go together.”

Raidrun readily agreed.

He agreed so easily that the one who brought it up was taken aback.

“The legion commander has already spoken. She said you would have to go together.”

Abelson’s eyes widened slightly at the mention of the order.

For some reason, Hemis seemed to have foreseen this happening.

Choi Hyun-seok, who was listening from the side, was equally surprised.

‘Sometimes, that lip monster is really creepy.’

At first glance, Hemis seemed to act arbitrarily and without thinking.

However, these occasional glimpses made him suspect that she actually saw through everything.

“Anyway, we plan to depart at noon today, so you two should finish your preparations by then and come to the legion commander’s office.”

“Yes.”

“And a cadre [a small group of people specially trained for a particular profession or task] will accompany you on this operation.”

“Who is it?”

The mention of a cadre accompanying them was not particularly surprising.

In a way, it was only natural. Who would send a hero and a saintess alone, knowing what might happen?

Of course, they would have prepared a safety measure.

“The cadre who will be traveling with you is…”

The name that came out of Raidrun’s mouth was quite welcome.

“Former Regimental Commander Roiger.”

***

Regimental Commander Roiger.

He was one of the regimental commanders of the direct subordinate regiment stationed at the 3rd Legion Headquarters, the Black Fortress.

However, he was dismissed from his position for failing to prevent the human attack during this incident.

Currently, he was under house arrest.

What Raidrun said to Roiger was completely unexpected.

“Are you saying I should go to the 2nd Legion with Choi Hyun-seok?”

“Yes. It is the legion commander’s order.”

Roiger was puzzled by Raidrun’s words.

Why him?

Roiger was under house arrest and unable to engage in external activities.

There was no reason to create trouble by sending him out in this situation.

As if understanding his question, Raidrun continued.

“Once this is over, you will work as the legion commander’s personal secretary.”

“Personal secretary…”

Roiger’s eyes widened at the words ‘personal secretary.’

Looking at the position alone, the legion commander’s personal secretary was much higher than a regimental commander.

“Hemis thinks highly of you. This dismissal from the regimental commander position is merely for show. The Demon King’s army is strict with losers.”

Hemis had been quite complimentary of Roiger from the start.

Unlike most demons, he was intelligent, and his combat abilities were decent for a regimental commander.

Moreover, he came from a family with a good lineage, so his future potential was also excellent.

So, this dismissal was not about getting rid of Roiger, but rather a preliminary step to bring him completely under her control.

“So, all you have to do is go to the 2nd Legion’s research lab with Choi Hyun-seok and retrieve the items needed to create the spatial interference magic field device. Understand?”

“I’m sorry, but I don’t think I can.”

“What…?”

Raidrun’s eyebrows twitched for a moment.

To dare to object to the legion commander’s order.

Although he was very lenient with Choi Hyun-seok, Raidrun was usually not like that at all.

If another demon had shown such an arrogant attitude, he would have immediately crushed their head with a knuckle blow.

However, Raidrun held back.

He also thought highly of Roiger, so he decided to listen to what he had to say.

“What’s the reason?”

“To be honest, I don’t have the confidence to control Choi Hyun-seok and the saintess.”

Roiger was a smart demon.

Therefore, he objectively assessed his own strength.

‘Honestly, Choi Hyun-seok alone is overwhelming.’

He clearly remembered the power Choi Hyun-seok had shown during the last battle.

Even if it was a kind of doping that pushed Flomo to its limit, that was also his ability.

‘Besides, his strength doesn’t just come from physical abilities.’

Of course, even with Flomo, Choi Hyun-seok’s physical abilities were still below Roiger’s.

Nevertheless, Roiger was doubtful.

Could he really beat Choi Hyun-seok?

Simply looking at physical specs, the hero Taylor Andrew, who had died before, was far above him.

Even that hero Taylor was defeated, so there was no guarantee that he could fight and win against Choi Hyun-seok.

However, what was certain was that it would not be an easy fight.

‘He puts everything he has on the line in every battle. That’s why he’s tricky.’

Choi Hyun-seok, as he had observed so far, was such a human.

A berserker who always fought with his life on the line.

Because he threw everything away, he exerted power beyond his capabilities.

He achieved victory even against enemies who were overwhelmingly stronger than him.

In a way, he was a human who was more suited to the Demon King’s army than he, a demon, was.

‘And if the next saintess joins forces… there’s no chance of winning.’

Controlling Choi Hyun-seok alone was overwhelming.

But the next saintess, Abelson, was with him?

He could never win.

Abelson had no combat power, but it was a different story against demons.

The tremendous divine power she emitted was a weapon in itself to demons.

“If I may be so bold, I think it would be better to send a cadre who is higher up than me.”

Roiger suggested.

However, Raidrun shook his head.

“The legion commander has already decided. Just go.”

“But…”

Raidrun held out his hand to stop Roiger from speaking.

“The legion commander has already taken care of the parts you’re worried about. So, don’t worry about it and just go.”

“… I understand.”

At this point, he had no choice but to accept.

If Raidrun said it so firmly, he had no choice but to follow.

Also, since Hemis had taken care of it, the things he feared would not happen.

“Then finish your preparations by noon today and come to the legion commander’s office.”

“Yes.”

Leaving the tent where Roiger was, Raidrun headed to his own office.

On the way back, he was deep in thought.

‘There must be a reason why Hemis said that…’

In fact, Raidrun had the same questions as Roiger.

He had told Hemis that it would be difficult for Roiger to control Choi Hyun-seok and the saintess.

Wouldn’t it be better to send only Roiger, leaving Choi Hyun-seok and the saintess behind?

However, Hemis’s answer was unexpected.

“Well, I think differently. If it’s Choi Hyun-seok I know, he’ll probably come back even if we push him out of the Demon King’s army.”

“Is that so…?”

“Choi Hyun-seok is a cunning human, unlike what he seems. Especially in situations where his life is at stake, he knows how to survive.”

Hemis’s argument was simple.

In the current situation, it was more advantageous for Choi Hyun-seok to stay in the Demon King’s army, so he would not leave.

When Raidrun’s expression did not ease even after hearing the explanation, she said.

“Don’t worry too much. If Choi Hyun-seok runs away, I’ll find him somehow.”

“…”

“I’d rather he run away once. Wouldn’t that be fun? I’m so curious to see what kind of expression he’ll make when he’s caught again and meets me.”

Hemis smiled slyly as she said the last words.

As if she sincerely hoped that would happen.

“Hoo…”

Raidrun shook his head to shake off his thoughts.

‘It’s a useless worry.’

It was already a confirmed matter.

Nothing would change even if he worried about it.

Raidrun stopped thinking.

Now, he could only trust his superior.

However…

‘Is Choi Hyun-seok really not in a relationship with the saintess…?’

Worrying about Choi Hyun-seok’s love life seemed like it would remain in his head for a long time.

***

Gratiam, the capital of the Gatrean Holy Empire.

Pope Orban IV was angry with a smile on his face again today.

Within his benevolence was a deeper anger than usual.

“Another failure?”

Before the Pope, his confidant, Cardinal Elrond, and several high-ranking officials were kneeling.

“I tried to overlook it once or twice. Everyone makes mistakes. But… how many times is this?”

They had nothing to say, even if they had ten mouths.

Even if the Pope was the one who ultimately approved the operation, they could not hold him responsible.

In the Gatrean Empire, the Pope was no different from a god.

In the end, the arrows of responsibility could only fly to the executives who planned and executed the operation.

“Tell me. Why did it fail?”

The Pope was wearing a benevolent smile, but his eyes were burning with strange madness and anger.

Cardinal Elrond did not dare to make eye contact and slammed his forehead on the floor.

“I’m sorry!”

“I asked for the reason. Do my words not sound like words to you now?”

“That’s not it…”

“I can’t understand it at all. The forces dispatched this time were at the level of the empire’s best knight order.”

50 heroes.

Even though they were made into dolls, each of their powers was comparable to a renowned knight.

Even their leader, Taylor Andrew, was not a doll.

He was a strong man who would soon be worthy of the title of hero.

“As the enemy’s forces were not insignificant, I gave them forces that could suppress them reliably so that we would not suffer any damage. Am I wrong?”

“That’s right…”

“Then tell me. Cardinal Elrond. Why did it fail? What’s the reason?”

Elrond bit his lip tightly.

After thinking about something for a while, he finally spoke.

“Do you remember that I reported earlier that there was a traitor hero?”

The Pope frowned at the sudden mention of a traitor hero.

“Yes. I remember.”

According to newly obtained intelligence, a traitor hero was residing in the Black Fortress along with the next saintess.

However, it had been less than a year since he became a hero, and his power was still insignificant.

He was not worth paying attention to, but an uncontrolled hero was a troublesome existence, so he had issued an order to assassinate him.

“Are you saying that the traitor ruined the job? I heard that the hero’s level was only that of a knight. Am I wrong?”

“No. You remember correctly.”

To be exact, he was a little stronger than a knight, but it wasn’t much different.

A skilled person who could adequately serve as the commander of a knight order in a rural territory.

He wasn’t weak, but there were so many knights with that level of skill in the empire that they were a dime a dozen.

To ruin the job because of one traitor.

The Pope could not understand.

“In fact, I dispatched a recorder [a person who documents events] to this operation. And yesterday, the recorder sent me a video of this battle.”

A recorder is literally someone who specializes in recording something.

The fields in which they operate are very wide, and in some cases, they are dispatched to actual operations to record the progress.

Elrond took something out of his arms.

It was a magic device that recorded the video.

“The reason for the operation’s failure is all contained in the video recorded here.”

“Hmph…”

The Pope didn’t like it, but he decided to watch the video first.

Elrond was a competent subordinate.

Even though he had experienced several failures recently, the trust and achievements that Elrond had built up over the years were not insignificant to dismiss him right away.

The Pope decided to decide Elrond’s punishment after watching the video.

“This is…”

As the video continued, the Pope’s expression changed from moment to moment.

Finally, the video ended.

The Pope opened his mouth.

“Cardinal Elrond. Get up.”

Elrond, who had been kneeling, carefully got up.

“Cardinal. How long has it been since this person became a hero?”

“According to the spy, it’s been a little over half a year.”

“Half a year…”

There were one or two things that bothered him in the video.

But it’s only been half a year since he became a hero.

It was a growth rate that defied common sense.

Generally, it takes at least 5 years for even the most talented hero to reach that level.

“This is quite a serious matter.”

The Pope’s expression darkened.

He continued in a serious tone, as if he had never been angry.

“Perhaps he is a more troublesome existence than Abelson Marriott. What is his name?”

“Choi Hyun-seok.”

“Choi Hyun-seok… From now on, mobilize all information networks to monitor every move of this person and report it without fail.”

“Yes.”

“And if there is an opportunity, do not hesitate to send the best forces to kill him. Even if it means calling a hero, no, a legendary being, you must succeed. Do you understand?”

“I will keep that in mind.”

It was the moment when the existence of the hero Choi Hyun-seok was first imprinted on the Pope.