Not All Heroes From Earth Are Bad [EN]: Chapter 186

Park Hyun-ah stroked her chin, lost in thought.

“Olaven Grimier… Where have I heard that name before?”

It was a familiar name.

Although it was her first time encountering him directly, she definitely remembered hearing it somewhere.

Just then, one of the executives provided the answer.

“He’s one of the Allied Forces commanders.”
“Allied Forces commander? Commander Olaven Grimier… Could it be!?”

Park Hyun-ah’s eyes widened as if something had clicked.

“Damn it, no wonder I smelled blood. Was he the Hero Slayer?”

There was a story that had been passed around among Heroes like a ghost tale for a long time.

Among the Allied Forces, there was someone who killed Heroes.

When Park Hyun-ah first heard this story, she dismissed it as false.

Killing Heroes who were fighting the Demon King’s army on their own accord?

She doubted anyone would bother doing something so foolish.

However, one day, a little over three years after arriving in this world.

She encountered the reality of the Hero Slayer.

She was attacked by unidentified assailants.

After desperately escaping and barely surviving.

She intuitively knew that those who attacked her were called the Hero Slayers.

And only after a long time did she learn that Olaven Grimier of the Drasen Empire was behind them.

“Ha, this is interesting.”

Park Hyun-ah’s eyes turned fierce at the unpleasant memory of the past.

“What brings such a high-ranking official like the Allied Forces commander to a humble place like this?”
“Don’t be so wary. I’ve come to talk. I’ve come alone without any guards, haven’t I?”

Olaven Grimier wore a slick smile.

Park Hyun-ah scoffed as she watched him confidently enter the conference room.

“It’s obvious that your real body is somewhere else, but you’re acting so confident.”
“Oh! You’re the first to see through that at a glance. It seems the epithet ‘God’s Adversary’ who fought Gatren alone isn’t just a hollow name [虚名 in Chinese, meaning a reputation without substance] after all.”
“Cut the crap and get to the point. I have to leave this place right away because of you.”

Now that Ultimum Fes’s location had been exposed, it was not good to stay long.

Especially since the Holy Empire of Gatren was always tracking them, caution was always necessary.

Olaven Grimier in front of her belonged to the Drasen Empire, but that didn’t mean she could rest assured.

“There’s no need to move the organization’s base. I won’t leak information to the Holy Empire.”
“How can I trust your words?”

Olaven shook his head, sitting on an empty chair.

“First, I need to correct a few misunderstandings.”

He slowly looked around the conference room.

His eyes held an unknown strangeness.

“First, I am no longer the commander of the Allied Forces. The army of the Holy War is now taking over the role of the Allied Forces.”

The Allied Forces had virtually been dissolved.

As most countries participated in the Holy War, their armies naturally came under the command of the Deusis Order.

The remaining Allied Forces were less than a quarter of their original size, making them virtually defunct.

“Second. It is true that I am the Hero Slayer, but there was a reason for that.”

“What reason?”

“To stop Gatren’s Hero development project [育成, meaning ‘development’ or ‘nurturing’ in this context].”

Park Hyun-ah frowned for a moment.

“Are you kidding me? Do you even know when the Hero Slayer story came out? It’s been over ten years.”
“To be exact, it was 16 years ago.”
“You know it very well.”
“I was the one who came up with the plan to kill Heroes in the first place.”

Olaven Grimier replied with an expression that asked if it was obvious.

“So what’s the problem?”
“Gatren’s Hero development project has only been revealed for five years. And you want me to believe the words of a guy who’s been killing Heroes for 16 years?”
“Haha, you’re mistaken.”

Olaven Grimier raised the corner of his mouth.

“The Drasen Empire had already noticed and was moving to stop Hero development 20 years ago.”

“What…?”

Park Hyun-ah wore an expression of disbelief.

Olaven shrugged and continued.

“If you want, I can show you mountains of evidence. But you’ll have to return to the homeland with me.”

“…”

“Anyway, eliminating Heroes was unavoidable. Since they were bound to be brainwashed by Gatren and become enemies, how could I let them live?”

There was no falsehood in Olaven’s expression, gestures, or tone.

He may have been a master of acting, but that was unlikely.

There was no reason to lie in the first place.

Simply telling lies that he wouldn’t believe to read Park Hyun-ah’s mood?

It would have been better to send someone other than Olaven Grimier from the start.

“Lastly…”

Olaven Grimier looked around and smiled slyly.

“The Empire also knew of Ultimum Fes’s existence. The location of this place as well.”

“…”

“Everyone has an expression of disbelief.”

Olaven looked at Sullivan.

“You must be Sullivan, who serves as the strategist.”

“How did you know…?”

“Ultimum Fes moved its base to this place three years ago, didn’t it?”

“…”

Sullivan pursed his lips.

Because it was all true.

At this point, everyone’s attention could not help but focus on the leader, Carebe Cowell.

If information had been leaked, Carebe Cowell, who was from the same Drasen Empire, was the most likely suspect.

“Just in case, I’m saying that I didn’t find out through Mr. Cowell over there. Mr. Cowell left the Empire’s embrace a hundred years ago, didn’t he?”

“…”

“Everything was found out through the Empire’s independent intelligence network, so I hope there are no misunderstandings.”
“Damn it, there was a mole.”

Park Hyun-ah narrowed her brows and spat out as if chewing.

“I’ll leave it to you to think whatever you want.”

With a relaxed smile, Olaven lightly stretched his body.

“It seems the misunderstandings have been cleared up to some extent, so let’s get to the main point.”

“…”

There was no answer.

Olaven, who accepted the silence as affirmation, continued.

“I would like to make a proposal to Ultimum Fes.”

“What is it?”

Carebe Cowell asked as the representative.

Olaven closed his eyes for a moment as if thinking, then opened his mouth.

“I want you to stop the Holy War.”

Stop the Holy War.

The executives began to buzz at the unexpected words.

“Stop the Holy War…”
“What kind of nonsense is that?”
“Is he asking us to protect the Demon King?”
“Everyone be quiet. Let’s hear the story first.”

As Carebe Cowell calmed the situation, Olaven nodded in gratitude.

“To tell this story, I must first talk about the countries that did not participate in the Holy War.”
“Countries that did not participate in the Holy War?”
“Drasen Empire, Domis Kingdom, Agros Kingdom, Penten Kingdom, Odria Alliance.”

Olaven said the names of the five countries in order.

“All are countries that did not participate in the Holy War. Do you know what they have in common?”
“They are all powerful countries. Enough to influence the continental situation in some way.”

Olaven admired Sullivan’s answer.

“As expected of a strategist! That’s right. All five of these countries have strong national power.”

Drasen is one of only two empires on the continent.

It is natural that its national power is strong.

The Domis Kingdom was traditionally a country of knights with strong military power.

The Agros Kingdom had the best navy on the continent.

The Penten Kingdom was famous for its vast mineral deposits and excellent blacksmithing skills.

There was no war in which Penten’s weapons and armor were not involved.

The Odria City-State Alliance is a country of merchants that moves the continent’s economy.

Their economic power was so outstanding that seven of the ten largest merchant groups on the continent belonged to the Odria Alliance.

“But their commonality is not only that they have strong national power.”
“They are all countries where the fanatics have not been able to extend their power.”

Olaven clapped his hands at Park Hyun-ah’s words.

“That’s also correct! All five countries are countries where the Deusis Order is not prevalent.”
“So what are you trying to say?”
“There is still one most important commonality left.”
“Hey. If you’re not here to play twenty questions, just say it. I’m starting to get annoyed.”

Sharp energy emanated from Park Hyun-ah.

Olaven smiled, reaching out his hand as if he was in trouble.

“Haha, I understand. I hope you refrain from emitting energy because I get goosebumps and it’s hard to speak properly.”

He said that, but in reality, he didn’t seem intimidated at all, so it wasn’t convincing.

Anyway, as if he finally intended to bring up the main point, Olaven suddenly wore a serious expression.

The atmosphere changed 180 degrees in an instant, as if the previous playful appearance was a lie.

“You all know. The war is continuing due to the secret agreement between us humans and the Demon King.”

The secret agreement between humans and the Demon King.

It wasn’t a particularly new topic.

Because it was a story often mentioned among high-ranking nobles or royalty.

Then, shocking words followed from Olaven’s mouth.

“These five countries are the main players in the secret agreement. To be exact, it should be six countries including Gatren.”

Everyone wore surprised expressions.

The secret agreement with the Demon King.

Everyone only speculated that there might be such a thing, but no one knew exactly what was going on.

Since when did it start.

Which countries are involved.

How is it done.

No one knew the details.

But Olaven revealed the reality of the secret agreement for the first time.

“About a hundred years ago, the leaders of the six countries and the Demon King signed a secret agreement, so that this war never ends.”
“But Gatren betrayed them?”
“That’s right. Gatren unilaterally started the Holy War without prior consultation. In fact, they broke the secret agreement.”

Olaven frowned and continued.

“The remaining countries still want the agreement to continue. The Demon King must not die yet. The moment he dies, the continent will surely fall into greater turmoil.”

Park Hyun-ah smiled cynically at Olaven’s words.

“Interesting. The Drasen Empire, which is famous for being more obsessed with war than anyone else, is saying that. It’s very convincing.”
“Hahaha! That’s an old story. I’m sorry to my ancestors, but our Drasen Empire no longer wants war.”

“Why?”

Olaven Grimier grinned at Park Hyun-ah’s question.

“Because we already have everything.”

He spread his arms wide.

“The most fertile land on the continent. A powerful army. All kinds of precious resources are all the Drasen Empire’s. In addition, thanks to the external enemy called the demon race [마족 in Korean], the empire is more stable than ever.”

“…”

“We who have already tasted peace do not want war. This is also the will of His Majesty the Emperor.”

Olaven’s words were not false.

Drasen and Gatren, the only two empires on the continent.

If you ask which country is the best on the continent, most people choose the Drasen Empire, not the Holy Empire of Gatren.

Gatren’s potential comes from the power of the Deusis Order.

The dominant opinion was that Drasen was a step above Gatren in terms of pure national competitiveness.

“I understand the situation. You like this false peace and want to continue it, right?”

“That’s right.”

“Then you can take action yourself. Whether you save or kill the Demon King, you can take care of it among yourselves.”

Olaven shook his head at Park Hyun-ah’s words.

“We cannot move. That is what Gatren wants most.”

“Why?”

“Because Gatren has the justification [명분 in Korean, meaning ‘justification’ or ’cause’]. The moment we stop the Holy War, we will become the public enemy of the continent, and from then on, the fanatics of the Holy War will run to cut off our heads, not the Demon King’s.”

“…”

“Perhaps Gatren is praying to God that we will step in and stop the Holy War.”

“Hmm…”

Everyone murmured [침음 in Korean] at Olaven’s words.

They seemed to be thinking about the meaning of what he said.

Then, as if driving in a wedge [박듯 in Korean, meaning ‘to drive in’ or ‘to hammer in’], Olaven stood up from his seat.

“If the Holy War succeeds as it is, we will no longer be able to stop Gatren.”

The end of the war that has lasted for more than 500 years.

It was obvious that Gatren and the Deusis Order, who had achieved the dream that everyone on the continent wanted, would soar into the sky.

“In the worst case, the countries that participated in the Holy War may become vassal states [속국 in Korean] of Gatren. No, Gatren will do whatever it takes to make it so.”

Gatren, who succeeded in the Holy War, will move in earnest with its power on its back.

Starting with the countries that were already threatened [위태롭던 in Korean] with necromancy, they would pretend to help the small kingdoms that participated in the Holy War and put them under their feet one by one.

“Then the balance of the continent that was barely maintained [이루어지던 in Korean] will collapse…”

If Gatren’s size increases, the balance of the continent will inevitably collapse.

Small kingdom alliance.

Drasen Empire.

Gatren Empire.

If one side’s power becomes too strong in a situation where each other was keeping each other in check, the next thing is obvious.

“At that moment, Gatren will start a new war. A real war to determine who is the master of the continent.”

Olaven’s eyes coldly lowered [서늘하게 내려앉았다 in Korean].

“I guarantee that it will be more fierce and cruel than any war we have ever fought.”

“…”

“To the extent that it cannot be compared to the skirmishes [다툼 in Korean] with the demon race.”

The false peace and false war that had been maintained because there were demon race.