Not All Heroes From Earth Are Bad [EN]: Chapter 138

“Yeah. You’ve been through a lot too.”

Choi Hyun-seok nodded repeatedly, as if he understood everything.

Then, he patted the demon on the shoulder.

“Those high-ranking guys only think about justification and don’t know the on-site situation at all. How can things proceed if they just throw ideas out there and tell us to figure it out?”

“Exactly!”

“It’s always us demons fighting on the front lines who suffer!”

The demon gave Choi Hyun-seok a subtle look at his words.

“Aren’t you… not a demon?”

“Hey! My friend, don’t say such hurtful things.”

Choi Hyun-seok activated his Demonic Energy.

[Perminium Mode]

Horns grew from his head, and long blades protruded from his forearms.

His skin color also changed slightly, taking on a pale gray that was hard to distinguish from human.

The demon’s eyes widened at the sight of the transformation.

“T, that form is…?”

“I received Rotark-nim’s grace and achieved demonization.”

“I see!”

“Anyway, we demons fighting on the front lines always have to be careful.”

Choi Hyun-seok suddenly looked around and whispered in a subtle voice.

“Do you know how treacherous humans are? They’re the kind of guys who smile in front of you and hide a knife behind their backs!”

It was the human hero Choi Hyun-seok, diligently introducing himself in his demonic disguise.

The innocent demon, who knew nothing, nodded repeatedly.

“I’ve heard that humans are cunning.”

“That’s right! This is the middle of enemy territory, full of such humans! The more it’s like this, the more we demons have to stick together.”

“You’re right, Choi Hyun-seok.”

“Yeah, yeah. Was your name Jalmus?”

Jalmus nodded.

The two, having already exchanged names, were becoming fast friends.

“Let me formally introduce myself. I am Choi Hyun-seok, the commander of the direct regiment of the 3rd Corps.”

“A regimental commander… I thought you were a company commander when I left?”

“I’ve gotten a lot stronger in the meantime.”

Choi Hyun-seok grinned.

“There’s no need to stand on ceremony now. We’re in different units anyway. We’re friends now, right?”

“Ahem… are we friends…?”

“Of course! How else could there be such a connection!”

Choi Hyun-seok patted Jalmus on the back.

“Friends are supposed to be comfortable with each other. So you can continue to be comfortable too.”

“Okay, Choi Hyun-seok. You were a good demon.”

“Of course. Hemis-nim didn’t put me in the Demon King’s army and raise me for nothing.”

“Hoo… so there was a reason. I can’t even fathom how deep his insight is.”

Jalmus now trusted Choi Hyun-seok one hundred percent.

“So. Speaking of which…”

Choi Hyun-seok sensed that it was time to get to the point.

“You said that what you’re doing here is experimenting with newly developed magical tools that convert magic power into Demonic Energy.”

“That’s right. Finally, our Demon King’s army is starting to counterattack.”

“Converting magic power into Demonic Energy… when did you develop that?”

“Rotark-nim has been researching it for a long time. In fact, the verification has been completed, and this operation can be said to be the first field test.”

“As expected, Rotark-nim is amazing.”

“Of course. He’s the one who established and created magical engineering technology. I heard that the human side has also been researching magical engineering recently, but compared to Rotark-nim’s, they’re decades behind.”

“Hoo…”

On the outside, he pretended to be calm, but Choi Hyun-seok felt a chill.

‘That rat bastard. I thought he was only doing chimera research. He was doing this behind my back.’

It was a relief that Hemis dealt with him belatedly.

If he had survived, he would have been a headache for a long time.

“So you use that magical tool to convert magic power into Demonic Energy. Then the density of Demonic Energy in the atmosphere increases… and in the end, you create undead?”

“That’s right. From here, our Onyx Corps Commander-nim’s role is big.”

“I don’t know much about Onyx Corps Commander-nim because I have little experience.”

“Ah, is that so.”

Jalmus nodded and muttered, ‘That could be the case.’

“Onyx-nim is one of the few Necromancers in the Demon King’s army.”

“Is that what you call a magician who raises the undead?”

“You can think of it that way.”

Jalmus suddenly looked gloomy.

“You don’t know, but necromancy is ostracized among demons. It’s considered an unfair, cowardly, and dirty trick.”

“Ah, so the secret operation is because of that…?”

“That’s right. So the only ones who know about this are the Demon King, Onyx-nim, and Rotark-nim.”

“The other corps commanders don’t know at all?”

“They don’t know. There’s no point in knowing. Especially Hemis-nim, who has been famous for rejecting necromancy since before.”

“Really…?”

Even Hemis rejected necromancy.

It was unexpected information.

It’s useless information now that he’s dead.

“Then shouldn’t you tell me? What if I tell Hemis-nim?”

Jalmus chuckled at Choi Hyun-seok’s words.

“The preparation is already over anyway. As I said, this is the first field test after all the preparations are finished. It’s over if the effect is proven here.”

“So it’s something that will be revealed soon anyway.”

“Yeah.”

This was a real problem.

The Demon King’s counterattack.

A huge plan that could turn the continent upside down was already in the final stages.

‘I have to get as much information as possible from this guy. He knows a lot of things. He’s quite smart for a demon.’

I will extract information until he becomes a very dry squid.

Choi Hyun-seok continued the conversation naturally without showing his impatience.

“I want to see that magical tool.”

“It’s under your feet now.”

“Huh?”

“There are already over a hundred of them around this village. One of them is buried under your feet.”

Choi Hyun-seok looked down at his feet.

Come to think of it, the ground was strangely even and the soil was soft compared to the surroundings.

When he put his hand in, he grabbed something hard.

“Is this it?”

When he pulled it out, he saw a disc about 50cm [approximately 20 inches] in diameter.

The disc, with bizarre magic circles intricately intertwined, looked extraordinary at a glance.

“If you inject Demonic Energy into this device, it will convert magic power into Demonic Energy for a certain period of time.”

“It’s not perpetual motion, then.”

“If that were possible, we would have converted all the magic power in the world into Demonic Energy.”

“I guess so.”

Jalmus took the disc and continued to explain.

“The Demonic Energy that comes out of the magical tool is not just Demonic Energy. It’s Demonic Energy with properties suitable for necromancy.”

“Are there different types of Demonic Energy?”

“Of course! The roots are the same, but the properties are slightly different. You know that the higher the demon, the stronger the characteristics of the Demonic Energy, right?”

“Ah, that’s right.”

Come to think of it, that was true.

Weak demons all felt the same, but demons beyond a certain level were different.

The characteristics are so distinct that you can tell who they are just by their Demonic Energy.

In the case of Hemis, it was so different that I doubted whether it was the same Demonic Energy.

‘Come to think of it, it seems like the same was true for magic power.’

4th Corps Commander Park Hyun-ah.

She was very distinctive even though she used magic power.

Magic power that is as sharp and aggressive as Demonic Energy.

Looking at this, it seemed that magic power and Demonic Energy were not all the same.

“I recently confirmed that the density of Demonic Energy is sufficient.”

Choi Hyun-seok woke up from his thoughts at Jalmus’s words.

“Uh, uh. So?”

“All that’s left is to proceed with the undead spell.”

“How do you do that?”

“The preparation is over. I’ve already drawn a large-scale magic circle in the vicinity.”

“Ah, really…?”

“Yeah. All you have to do is activate it. This area has been the site of many wars in the past, so there are plenty of materials [corpses, lingering negative energy, etc.].”

“Ah ha… that’s amazing…”

This demon is unnecessarily thorough in his preparations.

Choi Hyun-seok got up from his seat.

‘I have to blow up this disc and remove the magic circle quickly.’

There really wasn’t much time left.

I had to move immediately.

“Jalmus. I want to see that magic circle.”

“Um, it’s hard to see it.”

“Why?”

“I put a lot of effort into not getting caught. It’s a magic circle drawn by cleverly using the terrain, so it’s hard to recognize even if you observe it from the sky.”

“…”

“I’ve spent the last six months virtually drawing that magic circle!”

You could feel Jalmus’s pride in his words.

Choi Hyun-seok forcibly grabbed his fading composure.

‘You’re the Demon King’s army… please be sloppy like the Demon King’s army!’

How elite is this demon really?

I couldn’t help but lament the fact that such talent was in the Demon King’s army.

“Jalmus. Shall we go back for now? I don’t think we should leave our posts for too long.”

“Ah, that’s right.”

“So, where are you stationed? You must have a place to hide.”

“I’m on the mountainside a little away from here. It’s too dangerous to be near the village.”

“Ah ha…”

“But I’m not going back today.”

“Huh? Why?”

Jalmus looked up at the sky.

The brightly shining sun began to slowly set.

“I’m going to start necromancy soon.”

“What!?”

Choi Hyun-seok was startled and asked back.

“Start? Today!?”

“Yeah. The preparation is over, so there’s no need to postpone it any longer.”

“I see. I did…”

Choi Hyun-seok quietly clenched his fist.

‘Is this the end… but thank you for the information.’

I want to extract more information if possible, but if I don’t kill him right now, a disaster will happen.

‘Goodbye, Jalmus.’

The moment Choi Hyun-seok raised his fist.

“Ah, actually, I don’t really need to be there… shall we go for a while?”

“What are you talking about? Necromancy is about to begin, so you don’t have to be there?”

“I’m not the one who activates the magic circle.”

“Uh…?”

Choi Hyun-seok blinked.

The fist he had raised was already hidden behind his back.

Jalmus continued.

“Necromancy is not my specialty. Colleagues who specialize in necromancy will activate the magic circle.”

“You had colleagues…?”

“Didn’t I tell you? There are three of us here, including me!”

“I see! Haha…!”

Choi Hyun-seok gritted his teeth and forced a smile.

At that moment, a system alarm rang.

[Hero Quest is updated]

[The existing quest is automatically processed as achieved]

[Acquire 500 Hero Points]

[Acquire experience]

[Level up!]

[Level up!]

The message continued.

Following that, a quest popped up with a ding!

★☆★☆ Hero Quest! ★☆★☆

You have not only identified the murderer but also uncovered the whole story of the incident!

But now is the real thing.

Stop their large-scale necromancy!

· Goal:

1. Eliminate the ring leader demon (in progress).

2. Stop necromancy.

· Reward: A large amount of experience and 2,000 Hero Points

Choi Hyun-seok’s expression became serious after seeing the quest details.

“Jalmus. When are you starting that necromancy?”

“Well… wouldn’t it start right at the moment the sun sets?”

“The sun has already set?”

“Then it will start soon.”

“Ah ha! That’s right!”

Choi Hyun-seok smiled brightly.

‘Damn… how do I clear this!’

It was already way too late.

But I couldn’t give up.

I have to complete the quest not only because of the reward but also for the 2,000 villagers.