Not All Heroes From Earth Are Bad [EN]: Chapter 199

Leaving the Demon King’s castle.

Choi Hyun-seok was discussing the system alerts with Park Hyun-ah.

“You’re totally lying about not seeing my messages, aren’t you?”

Disbelief filled Park Hyun-ah’s eyes.

The message Choi Hyun-seok mentioned was just too outlandish.

“The system only mechanically issues quests and gives rewards. I’ve never heard of it making puns like you claim.”
“Well, it’s not the first time! My hero quests have been playful from the start.”

Park Hyun-ah moved closer to Choi Hyun-seok, her eyes still narrowed in suspicion.

“Hmm, the little punk actually seems to be telling the truth…”

“I’m telling you, it’s true!”

Choi Hyun-seok pounded his chest in frustration.

“Come on, sis. Think about it. What would I gain from making something like that up?”

“Amusement?”

“Not amusing.”

“Alright, alright, you little rascal. No need to get so worked up.”

Park Hyun-ah chuckled and started walking.

“Okay. Let’s just say that’s the case.”
“Haa, I’m telling you I’m not lying.”

Choi Hyun-seok scratched his head, looking flustered, and followed her.

“By the way, sis.”

“What.”

“What about the Holy War?”

Park Hyun-ah’s expression turned serious at the mention of the Holy War.

Choi Hyun-seok’s face also lost its playful demeanor as he continued.

“Isn’t the whole point of the Holy War to kill the Demon King?”

“That’s right.”

The Holy War, declared by Pope Orban IV, had the ultimate goal of claiming the Demon King’s head.

But now, the Demon King was already dead, killed by Choi Hyun-seok.

“Now that the goal has been achieved, shouldn’t the Holy War end naturally?”

“Well…”

Park Hyun-ah furrowed her brow and stroked her chin thoughtfully.

“Actually, the Demon King’s head is just a convenient excuse. The real goal is, of course, to conquer the continent.”
“But that continental conquest doesn’t justify continuing the Holy War.”

Gatre [Likely referring to a powerful empire or kingdom] valued justification above all else.

Since they succeeded in killing the Demon King, the stated goal of the Holy War, it should logically conclude.

“That doesn’t mean we can be sure the Holy War will end. The true purpose of the Holy War hasn’t been achieved yet.”

“Yes? What purpose?”
“Think about it. Why did they start the Holy War to take the Demon King’s head in the first place?”

Choi Hyun-seok paused, considering the question, and then answered.

“Isn’t it because they don’t want the Demon King’s army around anymore?”
“Exactly. The Demon King’s army has become a liability, an obstacle to conquering the continent, so their real goal is to completely eliminate them.”

The purpose of the Holy War was to cripple the Demon King’s army, along with taking the Demon King’s head.

“But the Demon King’s army only retreated and lost territory. Their forces are almost entirely intact. In fact, other than losing their leader, they haven’t suffered much damage.”

“That’s true.”

“So the Pope must be in a bind. The stated goal has been achieved, so they have to end the Holy War, but the Demon King’s army is still a threat. If this continues, their plan to swallow the continent will be disrupted.”

If we break down the Pope’s plan into stages based on what we know:

Step 1 – Weakening other human forces.

Step 2 – Eradication of the Demon King’s army.

Step 3 – Integration of small kingdoms.
Step 4 – Continental unification war.

Step 1 was achieved through the Demon King’s army’s necromancy [The practice of raising the dead].

Next, they tried to achieve Step 2, the eradication of the Demon King’s army, and Step 3, the integration of small kingdoms, simultaneously through the Holy War, but…

“The Demon King’s army is still a force to be reckoned with. If this happens, even if they integrate the small kingdoms, they will inevitably be overwhelmed. Because they have to face the combined might of the human forces and the Demon King’s army.”

While talking, Park Hyun-ah thought of the Demon King Tegrad.

The thought crossed her mind that this might have been his intention all along.

“The situation is complicated.”

Choi Hyun-seok sighed.

“They make a living by using their brains like that.”

As they talked, they arrived at the entrance of the Demon King’s castle.

“Let’s go back and have a meeting with everyone…”

Just as he was about to suggest returning to Ultimum Pesto [Likely a city or base of operations].

“You were having an interesting conversation.”

A strange man appeared before them.

He walked over casually and stopped in front of Choi Hyun-seok and Park Hyun-ah.

“The Demon King is dead. Is that true?”
“You have no manners. You should introduce yourself before asking questions.”

Choi Hyun-seok’s eyes flashed with coldness.

In all likelihood, this man was an enemy, but it was important to know his identity first.

“Would it help if I said I was a hound of Gatre?”

The man raised his hand.

Suddenly, masked thugs appeared and surrounded them.

“Hound?”

Choi Hyun-seok tilted his head, confused.

“Sis. What do these hounds do?”
“You’ve fought them to death, and you still don’t know?”

It wasn’t surprising that Choi Hyun-seok didn’t know about the hounds.

No enemy had ever revealed that they were a hound.

“In short, they’re in charge of dirty work. Most of the Gatre bastards you’ve clashed with so far were probably hounds.”

“Ah.”

Choi Hyun-seok turned his head and looked at the man again.

“So. You’re a hound?”
“I am Kuan Obriel, the captain.”
“Hoo, not just a dog, but the top dog.”

Choi Hyun-seok nodded slowly.

“Now that I know who you are…”

He lightly loosened his body and then pushed off the ground.

“Now die.”

Mana surged from his body.

Nobilis [Likely a special ability or technique]

Form 4 – Authoritative Death

A wave of purple energy was unleashed along with his outstretched fist.

***

Kuan Obriel smirked as he watched Choi Hyun-seok charge towards him.

‘He’s rushing to his death.’

Choi Hyun-seok and Park Hyun-ah’s strengths had already been assessed.

Through an internal spy, he had learned that the two would appear at the Demon King’s castle.

He gathered all the hound members and prepared for battle.

‘No matter how strong you think you are, you have no chance of winning.’

As Choi Hyun-seok extended his fist, purple mana erupted.

“That pathetic aura!”

Kuan decided to meet the attack head-on instead of dodging.

He was a skilled warrior who had reached the level of a legend.

There was no way he would be pushed back by Choi Hyun-seok’s aura, who had only just begun to tap into his legendary power.

“Gatre Holy Swordsmanship.”

Gatre Holy Swordsmanship.

It was an aura that had become familiar due to its frequent use by people from the Gatre Empire.

However, even if it was the same aura, it was completely different when used by someone who had reached the level of a legend.

Gatre Holy Swordsmanship

Form 2 – Holy Ascension

Spin the body once and raise the sword from bottom to top.

A speed that is neither too fast nor too slow.

The movement is clean and efficient.

Whooong-!

The sword pointed towards the sky.

At the same time, magic in the shape of a giant dragon soared from the ground.

The dragon, made of pure magic, rushed out as if to devour the mana fired by Choi Hyun-seok.

Kwaaa kwa kwa kwa-!

The two auras collided, creating a powerful whirlwind.

And…

‘I’m being pushed back!?’

The magic dragon exploded.

The purple energy not only tore the dragon apart in an instant, but it was also hurtling towards him.

Kuan Obriel hurriedly raised his sword.

Kwaaang! Chiijik…!

His figure was forced backward upon colliding with the mana.

A rough scraping sound echoed across the floor.

“Cough!”

A stream of blood trickled from Kuan Obriel’s mouth.

‘What kind of power is this…!?’

Although it was only a brief exchange, the difference in power was undeniable.

Obriel sensed that something was terribly wrong.

‘It’s not just the beginning of a legend. This is…’

He had fully entered the realm of legend.

Judging by pure destructive power alone, he was strong enough to be in the upper echelons of legendary warriors.

“How did this happen? Just a few days ago, he was struggling against the Cardinal…!”

Kuan Obriel couldn’t comprehend it.

Choi Hyun-seok and Vincenzo Cardinal’s battle had been thoroughly documented by the Imperial Archives.

He had personally analyzed the battle in detail.

At the time, Choi Hyun-seok’s power was nowhere near this level.

Choi Hyun-seok’s response to his unspoken question was a simple shrug.

“I leveled up a bit.”

He loosened his shoulders and beckoned.

“Shall we stop the warm-up here and get into the main event?”

“Don’t be arrogant!”

Kuan Obriel gave a signal.

The gathered hound members immediately began casting a large-scale spell.

Unique Magic

Wretched Blade

They had already completed all the preparations.

The magic was activated instantly, leaving no time to stop it.

Uwoong…!

Soon, countless blades materialized.

The sky was filled with thousands of razor-sharp blades.

***

“Shit… this isn’t good.”

Park Hyun-ah frowned.

She recognized that it was an unusual magic based on the spell’s structure and the energy it contained.

“Let’s take care of it before it’s too late!”

Choi Hyun-seok ignored the magic and charged forward.

He believed that killing Kuan Obriel, the enemy leader, would resolve the situation.

However, that was a naive assumption.

Weeeing-!

The blades that filled the air spun rapidly, blocking his path.

“This is nothing!”

Choi Hyun-seok used mana to deflect the blades, but there were simply too many.

Paat! Paat-!

If he knocked down one, two more would take its place.

If he blocked two, five blades would fly in from behind.

The mana contained within each blade was so potent that even with mana protecting his body, he was still getting cut.

At this rate, he would be sliced to pieces before he could reach the enemy.

“Sis! What do we do!?”

“Break through somehow!”

“Yes!?”

“Break through! We have no choice but to smash the caster’s head!”

Currently, Kuan Obriel and the hound members were standing still, focusing intently.

They were likely concentrating on maintaining the large-scale magic.

“Even if we take down a few casters! The magic will weaken! Then, we can escape!”

Park Hyun-ah shouted with difficulty while dodging the blades.

Choi Hyun-seok nodded and activated his mana.

‘We have to break through with everything we’ve got, all at once.’

Since the blades kept blocking the way, it would only drain their strength to hit them with ordinary attacks.

They needed a power that could crush all the blades at once and reach the enemy.

‘We’re going to use aura with all our might.’

Since obtaining mana.

Choi Hyun-seok had never used aura at full power.

This was because his body couldn’t handle it due to mana becoming overwhelmingly stronger than his other stats.

‘It’s possible now.’

However, his stats had increased significantly after killing the Demon King.

▫Name: Choi Hyun-seok

▫Title: Legendary Hero

▫Level: 1176

·Strength: 410

·Agility: 407

·Stamina: 410

·Mana: 520

There was still a gap, but it was much smaller than before.

‘I’m going to put everything in!’

Choi Hyun-seok pushed his power output to the limit.

‘With Nobilis Form 4…!’

‘Nobilis Form 4 – Authoritative Death’ was an aura created based on ‘Raidrun-style martial arts’ [A specific fighting style].

The biggest advantage of Raidrun-style martial arts was its overwhelming power.

In other words, it was the most optimized aura for mindlessly pouring mana like now.

Kugugugugu…!

The ground around Choi Hyun-seok began to tremble.

Paat, Paat-!

The blades continued to cut Choi Hyun-seok’s body.

Blood splattered.

Choi Hyun-seok stared straight ahead with unwavering eyes.

‘Here I go.’

Finally, all the mana gathered.

Choi Hyun-seok’s fist moved.

Kwajik-!

The ground cracked.

Nobilis

Form 4 – Authoritative Death

A massive storm of mana was unleashed.

The storm, which seemed capable of swallowing everything, flew towards Kuan Obriel.

Then, as if on cue, the blades appeared and blocked the way.

Kwaaaaaaaa!

The blades collided with the storm and shattered miserably.

Hundreds of blades were destroyed in an instant.

However, behind them, twice as many blades awaited the storm.

Chaeng! Chaeng! Kwaang!

In the end, the purple storm failed to completely penetrate the wall of blades.

About three-quarters of it was destroyed, but hundreds of blades still remained.

“This… shit…”

Choi Hyun-seok frowned and knelt down.

His body felt like it was breaking from the excessive power output.

Then someone tapped him on the back.

“Nice shot.”

Choi Hyun-seok struggled to lift his head.

“Sis…?”

He saw Park Hyun-ah smiling.

“I have to show you what happens when you give a wizard time to prepare.”

Park Hyun-ah snapped her fingers.

Whirrreureureuk-!

A pillar of fire erupted from the ground.