Not All Heroes From Earth Are Bad [EN]: Chapter 97

Gadroch Castle.

This is where the 8th Division headquarters was located.

Gadroch Castle, situated at the forefront, does not have a space-time gate.

To be precise, it used to have one, but it was destroyed.

In any battle, space-time gates are the number one target for destruction.

Because of this, most of the space-time gates at the front lines, where humans invade as frequently as they eat, were destroyed.

Even if they managed to gather materials and reinstall them, they couldn’t last even a week, so they eventually gave up on installing them altogether.

“Hoo… It’s hot. Mr. Abelson, are you alright?”

“Yes. I can bear it.”

Thanks to that, the survivors of the Black Star were traveling to Gadroch Castle on foot.

A forced march that had lasted nearly a week.

If they weren’t executives of the Demon King’s army, it would have been quite difficult.

‘To think that so many soldiers were wiped out, and only this much is left.’

Excluding Hemis, there were only 26 survivors from the Black Star.

Most of them died in the first bombardment, and the survivors also fell in the battle with the Chimera.

The remaining personnel are the executives here.

“Hero, Hero!”

“What.”

Rachel spun around him.

She used to hide in the presence of the Demon King’s army, especially the executives, but after directly confronting Hemis, she was moving around openly.

In fact, since the corps commander had permitted it, Raidrun and the other executives didn’t say much.

“Hero, Hero, Hero!”

“What!?”

“Please ask me if I’m okay too.”
“You look fine at a glance.”

“Tch.”

Rachel pouted and climbed onto Bobo’s head.

Lying down on his wide head, she blankly looked up at the sky.

The clouds leisurely floating in the blue sky looked peaceful.

‘Reminds me of the old days…’

Those days when I worked as a Hero scout.

I remember the days spent with coffee and macarons.

Suddenly, the clouds moved and transformed into the shape of a coffee cup and a macaron.

Rachel was startled and rubbed her eyes.

“Did I see wrong…?”

Looking again, it was just clouds.

It seems she was suffering from the heat in the scorching weather.

Rachel shot cool water from her finger and wet her face.

“Kwang!”

“Why? Do you want me to do it for you too?”

“Kwang!”

Rachel shot water on Bobo’s head as well.

Then Bobo shook his head violently and slammed Rachel down.

“Kyaa! What are you doing, you crazy mutt!?”
“Would you feel good if someone shot a water gun at your head?”

“I guess not…”

Rachel flew up powerlessly.

Wetting her head with cold water didn’t alleviate the heat.

“Ugh, it’s so hot. How much further do we have to go?”
“About three more days. And what’s so hard for you when you’re flying comfortably?”

Choi Hyun-seok said reproachfully.

Then Rachel flared up.

“Hero! Do you have wings!?”

“No, I don’t.”

“Then don’t say anything! How hard do you think it is to flap wings!?”

“Alright…”

She was glaring with fire in her eyes, ready to lie down if he didn’t acknowledge it.

Annoyed, Choi Hyun-seok roughly acknowledged it.

“From here, we’ll use the forest path.”

After a while.

The scorching sun began to subside.

As they entered the forest, shade began to form.

Rachel, who was following behind, sighed and wiped the sweat from her forehead.

“Hoo~ I’m alive.”

For those walking on foot, the forest path was not welcome, but Rachel was different.

She flies through the sky, so it doesn’t matter whether the ground is even or uneven.

“Raidrun, is there a reason why we suddenly entered the forest?”

Choi Hyun-seok asked.

Until now, Raidrun had been moving quickly, taking the most even path possible.

Although the forest was shady and cool, the rough terrain would inevitably slow down their movement speed.

“From here, we are not far from the battlefield. It’s still the Demon King’s territory, but it doesn’t hurt to be careful.”

“I see.”

It was a choice to avoid human eyes.

Choi Hyun-seok was newly aware of how close they had become to the battlefield.

“Stop.”

Suddenly, Raidrun stopped and lowered his stance.

His gaze was fixed on one side of the forest.

“A palisade.”

“Is it people…?”

Raidrun shook his head after examining the palisade for a while.

“It’s demons. We’ll rest there today.”

After moving a few steps, the group arrived in front of the palisade.

“Who is it!”

A youthful voice was heard from above the palisade.

Choi Hyun-seok, who raised his head in the direction of the sound, blinked.

“A hamster…?”

A demon resembling an Earth hamster was trembling as he looked down at the group.

Raidrun presented a badge proving his identity.

“Demon King’s Army, 3rd Corps. Corps Commander Aide, Raidrun.”

“C, Corps Commander!”

The hamster was terrified at the word ‘Corps Commander’ and screamed.

Raidrun sighed softly.

“Not the Corps Commander, but the Corps Commander’s Aide. Are you from the Tepo tribe?”

“Y, yes! Squeak!”
“I would like to stay here for a day.”

“Understood!”

The hamster shouted loudly.

“O, open the gate!”

Soon, the palisade blocking the group’s path opened.

Choi Hyun-seok cautiously approached Raidrun from behind.

“Are they also part of the Demon King’s army?”
“No, just demons.”
“Are those two different?”
“Not all demons are part of the Demon King’s army. Not all humans are soldiers, right?”

“Ah…”

“Most demons live ordinary lives like this. The Demon King’s army is only a part of them.”

Choi Hyun-seok nodded as if he understood.

He had started as a Demon King’s army slave as soon as he fell into this world and then lived as a soldier, so he was bound to be behind on such common sense.

Perhaps out of consideration for Choi Hyun-seok, Raidrun added a few explanations.

“Humans lump us together as demons, but we are actually a union of several races.”

“Yes.”

“Among them, the Tepo tribe are rare pacifists. Their combat power is so poor that the Demon King’s army doesn’t accept them.”

Choi Hyun-seok felt quite a fresh shock.

He thought that demons were unconditionally battle maniacs with muscles even in their brains.

“But Raidrun, didn’t you say that this place is close to the front lines?”

“That’s right.”

“Is there a reason for pacifists to live near the battlefield?”
“That’s because the Tepo tribe is too weak.”

At the same time as Raidrun’s explanation, the group entered the palisade.

Then, hamsters about 1 meter tall were huddled together.

Abelson’s eyes trembled.

“C, cute…”

Before she knew it, her thoughts came out of her mouth.

The Tepo tribe was that cute.

Hamsters about 1 meter tall with fluffy fur were trembling as they looked up at the group.

“The Tepo tribe has no power to protect themselves from the monsters. So they settle in places close to the battlefield like this.”
“Because the soldiers deal with the monsters.”

“That’s right.”

The Tepo tribe is weaker than goblins, nothing more than trash in the Demon King’s army’s eyes.

Naturally, they were treated poorly even in cities where ordinary demons lived, so they had no choice but to separate and live on their own.

However, the land where demons live is inevitably overflowing with monsters.

To survive the monsters, the Tepo tribe had no choice but to nest near the battlefield.

Soldiers always dealt with annoying monsters in the operation area, especially the strong ones.

“It’s getting late.”

Raidrun raised his head and looked at the sky.

Before he knew it, the sun was setting over the mountains.

“Let’s prepare dinner.”

“Yesss-!”

The group cheered at the fact that the long-awaited time had finally come.

***

The group hunted nearby monsters to prepare dinner.

There were no strong individuals around the battlefield, but that didn’t mean there were no monsters themselves.

The hunted monsters piled up.

Choi Hyun-seok, who was a chef, skillfully finished boning and immediately grilled the meat.

“That guy is well-fed.”

Sizzle…!

The meat was grilled golden brown over a fire created by magic.

It goes without saying that a large amount of MSG [monosodium glutamate]-mixed salt was added in the process.

“Alright, let’s have a piece each.”

Choi Hyun-seok sliced the cooked meat and distributed it to the group.

“Mmm, this is the taste!”
“To think I’d get to eat the food that only the Corps Commander used to eat. I’m glad I survived.”

Raidrun, two regimental commanders, five battalion commanders, and finally the company commanders gathered and diligently tore at the meat.

Since they were all large, the amount they ate was enormous.

“Hero. The meat seems a bit bland today?”

Rachel said playfully.

Choi Hyun-seok indifferently picked up salt and sprinkled it on Rachel.

“Here’s some salt.”

“Kyaa! Are you crazy!?”

“You said it was bland. Sprinkle a lot.”
“Ew! You eat a lot, Hero!”
“That’s sand, you crazy bitch!”

While Choi Hyun-seok was bickering with Rachel.

Something caught Choi Hyun-seok’s eye.

“Squeak, squeak…”

“Looks delicious…”

The Tepo tribe was hiding behind a house a little distance away, watching this way.

They were drooling with their mouths wide open.

“Raidrun, can I share it with them?”

Raidrun nodded.

There was plenty of meat anyway, so there would be no shortage even if they ate it.

Even if ten Tepo ate together, it wouldn’t amount to Raidrun alone.

“Come here.”

Choi Hyun-seok beckoned.

“Have a bite.”

“R, really…?”

“It’s human… Don’t trust them…!”
“But they said they’re from the Demon King’s army…”

The Tepo tribe didn’t know what to do.

They wanted to eat the meat, but they seemed afraid of Choi Hyun-seok, who was human.

“It’s okay. I won’t eat you.”

At the continued encouragement, one Tepo approached.

“Are you really just giving it to us…?”
“You let us rest here for a day. Meat is nothing.”

Choi Hyun-seok handed over a large leg.

The Tepo who received it carefully took a bite.

“Squeak, squeak…! Squeak, squeak, squeak…!”

Tears streamed down from his eyes.

“It’s so delicious…!”

Before long, dozens of Tepo were squatting in front of Choi Hyun-seok.

They waited for Choi Hyun-seok like baby birds looking at their mother bird.

“Alright, alright. Have a bite each.”

“I, is the human an angel…?”
“It’s, it’s so delicious…!”
“I want to eat one more bite… Squeak!”

“Here you go.”

“Thank you! Thank you…!”

The Tepo shed tears of emotion without stopping.

Meat was a very precious food for the Tepo, who had no power to hunt monsters.

Moreover, it wasn’t just any meat, but Choi Hyun-seok’s meat with plenty of MSG.

It was bound to be more delicious than any other food in the world for the Tepo who had only eaten grass.

“Cute…”

Abelson, who had approached from the side, blankly stared at the Tepo.

She stroked the head of one Tepo as if possessed by something.

Sizzle…!

Then smoke rose from the Tepo’s head, and he screamed.

“Squeak, squeak!”

His body was burning in response to Abelson’s divine power.

The Tepo, who had suddenly become bald, teared up.

Choi Hyun-seok looked back at Abelson with a dumbfounded expression.

She seemed to be at a loss, as if it was an unexpected event.

“Abelson, the bald head is a bit…”

“Wh, what should I do!?”

“Let’s heal it with divine power.”

“No!”

“I’m just kidding.”

Choi Hyun-seok chuckled.

Abelson struggled to heal the Tepo, but there was no way.

Using healing magic with divine power would only inflict more pain on the Tepo than throwing him into a fire.

In the end, that Tepo had no choice but to be the only bald one in the group.

“You never know. It might grow back in a few days.”

“Yes…”

That day, Abelson was depressed until she went to bed.

It seemed to be quite a shock.

***

Late at night.

Choi Hyun-seok woke up from his sleep, annoyed.

“Why is it so hot?”

No matter how hot the weather, the forest at dawn is bound to be cool.

But it was excessively hot now.

It felt like he had entered a sauna.

Just as Choi Hyun-seok was wondering.

A smoky smell permeated his nose.

‘A burning smell? Is it a fire…?’

The smoky air turning into screams was instantaneous.

“Squeak, squeak! It’s hot! It’s hot!”
“Run away! Squeak, squeak, squeak!”

Choi Hyun-seok quickly kicked down the door and went outside.

Then he saw the Tepo tribe running around in all directions with a huge fire.

“Squeak! Save me! Save me!”
“It hurts! It’s too hot!”

The Tepo with their fur on fire screamed.

The Tepo who were still intact hurriedly ran out of the palisade.

To survive, they had to get out of here first.

But what awaited them was another death.

“You rat-like bastards.”

The blade of a sword glittering in the fire moved.

Slash!

One Tepo was instantly cut in half into two pieces.

The knight who wielded the sword shouted.

“Don’t leave a single one alive! For the Empire!”

“For the Empire!”

It was an attack by the human army.