Not All Heroes From Earth Are Bad [EN]: Chapter 83

“I can’t take everything, so I’ll have to pick a few.”

Preparations for the journey were in full swing. Their sudden departure from the Black Fortress made things hectic.

Choi Hyun-seok hadn’t even organized the items he’d received from the Heroes yet.

Since time was short, he decided to focus on accessories.

“This is too bulky… How about this? Looks pretty good. It raises Strength by 3.”

Choi Hyun-seok held up a gold necklace from the pile of items.

Rahel, standing next to him, shook her head.

“You can’t wear a gold necklace.”

“Why?”

“Sir Hero, have you ever heard the term ‘pork-broth-soup-bro’?”

“What the hell are you talking about all of a sudden?”

“Never mind if you don’t know. Anyway, you absolutely can’t wear a gold necklace. You’ll look way too… conspicuous.”

Rahel stared intently at Choi Hyun-seok.

Choi Hyun-seok was tall and quite burly.

His expression wasn’t particularly friendly either.

To be precise, it was closer to intimidating.

If Choi Hyun-seok wore a gold necklace on top of that, it would remind her of certain… unsavory characters. [Rahel is likely referencing a stereotype of gangsters or tough guys who wear gold necklaces.]

‘Hmm, it would be perfect if he had tattoos too.’

While Rahel was lost in ridiculous thoughts, Choi Hyun-seok was still busy rummaging through the items.

He shouted, “Hey. Don’t just stand there, help me out.”

“Okay!”

Rahel dove into the pile of items.

She checked various accessories, looking for something that would suit Choi Hyun-seok.

“Hmm, this looks good?”

“Oh, it raises Magic by 5?”

“This looks good too!”

“Look at this ring here. It lets you use skills?”

“Sir Hero, Sir Hero! This bracelet is super pretty!”

And so, they diligently shopped using the Heroes’ belongings.

Choi Hyun-seok, having equipped all the gear, hurriedly left the barracks.

“Let’s go quickly! If we’re late, the Lip Monster [referring to Hemis] might do something crazy.”

“Yes!”

They lost track of time looking at the items.

Choi Hyun-seok hurried to avoid being late.

“Hoo…”

A moment later, in front of Hemis’s office.

Choi Hyun-seok took a deep breath to calm his racing heart from running.

Just in time, Roiger also arrived, walking from the opposite hallway.

“Greetings!”

Choi Hyun-seok greeted him energetically.

Roiger, approaching, tilted his head.

His eyes narrowed as he looked at Choi Hyun-seok.

“What’s with that getup?”

“Pardon?”

“No. It’s nothing…”

Roiger, about to say something, sighed and shook his head.

Choi Hyun-seok was puzzled when Abelson’s voice was heard from behind.

“Mr. Choi Hyun-seok.”

Choi Hyun-seok turned around with a happy face.

“Did you finish preparing well?”

“Hiek…!”

Abelson was startled when he saw Choi Hyun-seok’s face.

Choi Hyun-seok, surprised by that, looked around.

“What’s wrong!? Is it an enemy!?”

“Ah, it’s nothing…”

Abelson lowered his head.

His cheeks were flushed red, and his shoulders were shaking, as if he was holding something back.

Roiger, watching the two of them, sighed deeply.

“Let’s go in quickly. The Legion Commander is waiting.”

“Hmm? Alright.”

Thinking that Abelson and Roiger were acting strange for some reason, he knocked on Hemis’s office door.

***

Hemis was sitting on the table seductively, as usual.

Hemis grinned as she saw Choi Hyun-seok and Roiger entering.

“Choi Hyun-seok. What’s with that getup?”

“Pardon?”

“If you were trying to be funny, you succeeded. You look like a circus clown. Ohohoho!”

Hemis covered her mouth and laughed in a high-pitched voice.

Choi Hyun-seok couldn’t understand.

‘Why is everyone like this?’

They kept asking about his getup since earlier.

All he did was wear a few accessories.

They were all precious items that raised stats or granted skills or abilities.

“Have you perhaps looked in the mirror?”

“… I haven’t had time to look yet because I was in a hurry.”

“Over there. Go check it out.”

Hemis pointed to the corner of the office.

There was a full-length mirror there.

Choi Hyun-seok tilted his head and approached the mirror.

‘What could it be like?’

Finally, he stood in front of the mirror.

Choi Hyun-seok’s mouth dropped open.

‘Ah… It is serious…’

In the mirror, there was a bizarre man that was hard to describe.

A muscular giant of 198cm was wearing over 10 colorful rings and had stacked three or four flashy bracelets.

Both ears were a sight to behold.

Different earrings that didn’t match each other showed off their presence.

Strange piercings were attached all over his face.

He was even wearing a crown on his head.

‘Wait, when did I put on a crown?’

He was so busy putting them on that he didn’t even notice.

It seemed like Rahel had secretly put it on him.

It was surprisingly comfortable, so he just thought it was a hat.

“You’re too greedy. No matter how many of those items you wear, your foundation won’t change.”

“Yes…”

“And even if you hang them all over, they’ll break or fall off during battle, right? Choi Hyun-seok. You enjoy hand-to-hand combat, so.”

He hadn’t expected that.

He vaguely thought that it would be the end if he wore them and became stronger.

When he thought about it, they could break or fall off during battle.

“And you have to be careful when wearing equipment that increases physical abilities. Side effects can occur. It’s especially dangerous to wear them in layers.”

“Ah… Is that so?”

“Yeah. In the end, it’s worse than not wearing them.”

Choi Hyun-seok looked upset.

He began to take off the accessories one by one.

After taking off everything he was wearing, a pile of jewelry accumulated.

‘Tsk… I went through all that trouble for nothing.’

Choi Hyun-seok smiled bitterly.

Hemis approached and picked up a ring.

“Oho? This looks good.”

Hemis turned the ring around and examined it.

Watching her, Choi Hyun-seok thought.

‘What was that… I’m sure it was a ring related to magic.’

He remembered that it probably increased magic usage efficiency.

He wore it because he thought it would be useful even if he didn’t know the exact effect.

“If I do this.”

Hemis, examining the ring, injected magical energy into it.

Then, black currents began to flow from the ring.

Zzzzz!

The ring, originally white, gradually turned black.

Finally, she returned the completely black ring to Choi Hyun-seok.

“Here, check it out.”

Choi Hyun-seok received the ring and checked the detailed description.

□ Ring of Lies Unsealed
Description: The legacy of the great mage Lies. A ring that Lies especially cherished, it shows excellent efficacy in handling magic. The original ability was revealed as the seal was released.

Ability: Magic Control Ability increased by 25%, Magic Usage Efficiency increased by 25%.

Required Hero Points: –

Choi Hyun-seok’s mouth dropped open as he read the description.

‘What the hell is going on…?’

The effect of the ability had increased dramatically.

He remembered that it was probably 5% when he checked it before.

He thought that was good enough, but now it had increased by 25%.

It would definitely be a big help.

“That ring. The name is the Ring of Lies, right?”

“Yes. How did you know?”

Choi Hyun-seok was surprised when Hemis recognized the ring.

Could it be that she can also see the name of the item with the system?

The answer that came back was unexpected.

“Was it about 200 years ago? There was a guy who was bragging about being a great mage. His magic was quite unique, so I remembered him.”

“Could that mage be…?”

Hemis pointed to her mouth with her finger instead of answering.

“He was quite delicious.”

“I see. You are indeed the Legion Commander. Haha…!”

Choi Hyun-seok smiled, sweating profusely.

‘I’m not going to end up like that, am I?’

Wouldn’t Hemis say this in 100 or 200 years?

-There was a unique Hero named Choi Hyun-seok a long time ago, and he was quite a delicacy! Ohohoho!

Choi Hyun-seok shook his head as he imagined it.

‘That’s absolutely not going to happen!’

He absolutely refused to be remembered as Hemis’s delicacy.

“Anyway, I called you to see your faces before you leave. I have to go to the Legion Commanders’ meeting now.”

“Yes.”

“Then, are you ready?”

“Pardon?”

Choi Hyun-seok blinked.

Suddenly asking if he was ready?

“Legion Commander. What kind of preparation are you talking about…?”

“The preparation to go to the 2nd Legion. Aren’t you ready yet?”

“Ah! Of course, I’m ready! Haha!”

“Good. Then, good luck.”

Hemis snapped her fingers!

At the same time, Choi Hyun-seok’s vision reversed.

Whoosh-!

When he carefully opened his eyes, he saw an unfamiliar forest.

Choi Hyun-seok looked around with a bewildered face.

“Where is this?”

“Hmm, it doesn’t seem to be near the Black Fortress.”

Roiger also looked like he didn’t know what was going on.

He took out a map artifact from his chest and looked at it for a long time.

After a while.

Roiger raised his head as if he had grasped the situation.

“Choi Hyun-seok. I know where this is.”

“Where is it?”

“It’s a forest about 100km away from the Black Fortress.”

“Pardon…?”

He was blown too far away with a snap of a finger.

***

Demon King’s Castle Central Conference Hall.

The vast conference hall was desolate.

There were only five attendees.

The Demon King and four Legion Commanders.

“Rotark is not coming again today.”

Originally, there were a total of five Legion Commanders in the Demon King’s army.

Even though there were only four present, it was because Rotark, the Legion Commander of the 2nd Legion, did not attend.

Today’s meeting was a temporary meeting, not a regular one.

Therefore, it was not mandatory to attend.

The problem was that Rotark had hardly ever attended temporary meetings.

Even if it wasn’t mandatory, it was an excessive act.

It was even more so considering the weight of today’s agenda.

Looking at Rotark’s empty seat, the Legion Commanders each offered a comment.

“Hasn’t it always been like that? Rotark has never attended temporary meetings.”

5th Legion Commander Ozges said.

“I understand that temporary meetings are not mandatory, but it’s still frustrating.”

That was the word of 1st Legion Commander Doritugs.

“What’s the point of including that moron? He’ll just spout nonsense. Just proceed quickly.”

4th Legion Commander Park Hyun-ah took the next turn.

“Heeuung~”

3rd Legion Commander Hemis, for some reason, didn’t say anything and just hummed.

“Haa…”

Demon King Tegrad sighed and rubbed his temples.

It was a sight he had seen dozens, hundreds of times, but it couldn’t be helped that it hurt his head every time he saw it.

Tegrad, who shook his head, opened his eyes.

“I will proceed with the meeting.”

At the words of Demon King Tegrad, the Legion Commanders all closed their mouths.

Four pairs of eyes were focused.

No, three pairs of eyes and one giant lip.

Facing them, Tegrad opened his mouth.

“As everyone knows, today’s agenda concerns 3rd Legion Commander Hemis.”

There was no particular reaction because everyone already knew the content.

Tegrad continued.

“Hemis held a large-scale event that was not in the regulations. Thanks to that, a large number of casualties occurred. Each of them was an outstanding talent who could have become a future battalion commander.”

Battalion commanders were high-ranking officers.

Even if you add up the entire Demon King’s army, there are not even 10,000 people with the power of a battalion commander.

It may seem like a very large number, but it is less than 5% of the total ratio.

It was a very valuable resource.

“Decisively, she failed to prevent the human attack, resulting in a large number of deaths. Ozges. What is the total damage scale?”

At Tegrad’s question, 5th Legion Commander Ozges held up the document.

“This is the total damage tally from the tournament and the human attack. Ninety-seven deaths, one hundred and fifty-five seriously injured. The number of minor injuries is countless.”

After Ozges’s brief report was over.

Tegrad continued again.

“In addition, Hemis attacked 4th Legion Commander Park Hyun-ah. She broke the rule that battles between Legion Commanders must be authorized. Personally, I think this is a very serious issue.”

The Demon King had emphasized it before.

Battles between Legion Commanders should never occur without permission.

Except for the commander determination battle directly supervised by the Demon King, Legion Commanders should not clash under any circumstances.

Hemis broke that rule.

“Therefore, the agenda for this temporary meeting is what punishment should be given to 3rd Legion Commander Hemis. Anyone with an opinion should feel free to speak.”

As soon as the Demon King finished speaking, someone raised their hand.

A long, snow-white finger stretched into the sky.

The Demon King’s eyebrows twitched when he saw it.

It was Hemis herself who raised her hand.

“Speak. Hemis.”

As permission was granted, Hemis’s lips curled up.

“Your Majesty. This meeting is fundamentally wrong. Isn’t the reason the Demon King’s army exists to trample on humans?”

“What are you trying to say?”

“I mean, identifying the traitors should come first. This incident happened because someone colluded with humans and passed on information. Isn’t the reason I attacked Legion Commander Park Hyun-ah because I mistakenly believed that she was a traitor?”

A cold silence fell at Hemis’s words.

No one here was unaware that the Demon King was making deals with humans.

In other words, Hemis was calling the Demon King a traitor and, at the same time, pointing out that he was the cause of this incident and should be punished.

“That’s interesting.”

Demon King Tegrad chuckled.

At the same time, immeasurable magical energy flowed out of him.

Kugugugu…!

The atmosphere vibrated due to the magical energy.

Cracks began to appear in various parts of the building as it could not withstand the vibration.

“Hemis. Answer me. Are you challenging me now?”

“Oh my, Your Majesty. I’m sorry. Please calm your anger.”

Hemis apologized, putting her hands together.

But her mouth was still smiling.

No, now it was beyond simply smiling, and the corners of her mouth were raised to a grotesque level.

“I was just saying that we should find the traitors. I don’t know why you’re getting angry like a thief with a guilty conscience. Ohohoho!”