Two months have passed since I fought with Hero Takato. Tina and I were flying around to save the various villages, cities and countries from the intensifying stampedes that occurred in every place.

I entrusted the Demon King subjugation to Takato and the others. The Demon King stayed at the Demon Continent. Takato and the others’ role was to reduce the armies of the Demon King and crush the upper echelons.

There were approximately 1 million monsters if we included all of the Demon King’s armies.

It would be hard for us to annihilate all of them in one go, even if Takato was Level 300 and I could also surpass that level if I activated my skill.

If the six of us were to go to the Demon Continent in that state and launch our attack, then there was the possibility that the monsters who managed to escape would go to the nearby countries and wreak havoc there.

And so, our strategy was that Tina and I would defeat the fleeing monsters while Takato and the others reduce the military strength of the Demon King’s armies.

By the way, Takato became docile. He would shriek in fear every time he saw me. Wasn’t that a bit rude?

I just punched his face once, but it had been really bad at that time. His face collapsed, and it was a miracle that he didn’t die, and his arms and legs were bent in all directions when he was blasted away.

He was a total mess, thoroughly battered enough for me, the person who punched him, to unconsciously heal him right away. After that, Saintess Yuri and Tina worked together, so Takato managed to keep his life.

Heroes couldn’t kill each other. When Takato regained consciousness, he trembled in fright and prostrated himself on the ground the moment he saw me.

It was probably Takato’s first time to receive such damage from a blow. That event probably instilled terror within him.

By the way, I didn’t explain my Protective Skill to Takato. He didn’t know that it would only be activated to make me stronger if the person I had to protect was behind me.

Well, I planned to keep it a secret ‘till the end’ to prevent Takato’s ego from being overinflated.

Takato begged me, saying that ‘I will do anything, so don’t kill me!”

I was the one who healed you, so there’s no way I would kill you, right.

That was what I thought, but since he was the one who said he’d do anything, then might as well make him reduce the military strength of the Demon Continent.

Even if we managed to slay the Demon King, if the surrounding cities were attacked by monsters who escaped, then it would be meaningless.

Plus, there’s another reason why I wanted Takato to do something separately from us. That was —

“Mmm… Haruto-sama, good morning.”

“Morning, Tina.”

Tina rubbed her eyes, then she puckered her lips for a bit. I lightly kissed those lips.

We already kissed countless times, but both of us were still beet-red after our kiss.

Tina and I became lovers.

I confessed to Tina on the night of the day I blasted Takato off.

Tina accepted that.

She already told me how she felt during her earlier conversation with Takato. It actually felt like I cheated for a bit, since I already heard Tina’s reply before I confessed.

My heart was racing despite that, and I was totally nervous. I was really happy that we got together.

During our two months of dating, Tina and I held hands, and kissed too before and after we slept, but we didn’t do anything else aside from that.

Tina and I decided to do the deed after we defeat the Demon King and return peace to the world.

We moved separately from Takato and the others so that no one would disturb our time together.

Of course, I didn’t slack off from my monster subjugation duties. The only time I could relax was when Tina and I went to bed, during mealtimes, and when I travelled.

Tina could already slay the monsters on her own, so we mostly went to different regions separately. We could save a lot of people that way.

The scale of the stampede became increasingly larger, so there were times when Tina and I didn’t see each other for two days.

I

missed her terribly.

Well, Tina also felt the same, so after we saved a country, I hugged Tina all day long at the luxury inn that was provided by that country.

Takato and the others also seemed to be doing fine at the Demon Continent. Takato regularly contacted me, but apparently, his group already defeated the three of the Four Heavenly Kings, the high-ranking warlocks that were part of the echelons of the Demon King’s army.

There were four cheat-class skill holders, one of whom was a Level Counter Stop Hero.

They didn’t have any problems even though the Demon Continent was teeming with a million monsters. Rather than that, I received a report from Takato that they were taking too much time tracking down the last warlock who escaped.I could only laugh dryly.

There’s only a month left before we could slay the Demon King at this rate.

Right, how long would I remain in this world after we defeated the Demon King?

I was a bit worried.

Well, we did listen to the request of Kami-sama to bring peace again to this world, so he should probably listen to our request — that’s what I thought.

── *** ──

One month passed.

We finally arrived at the Demon King’s palace. The stampedes had settled down, so Tina and I also joined Takato’s Demon King Subjugation Team.

Actually, rather than saying we arrived at the Demon King’s palace, it would be more accurate to say that he was already right before us. We already annihilated all the other monsters in the Demon Castle, and Demon King was the only enemy left.

If we managed to slay this Demon King, who was the root of all evil, then the world would become peaceful, and our journey would be over.

“Tina, I have something to tell you after the Demon King is defeated.”

I called out to Tina, who was standing beside me, as I pointed to the sword I received from the Kami-sama.

Normally, the opponent would raise a white flag at this time, but the Demon King glared daggers at us, and he seemed like he was about to cry.

Just a while ago, one of the warlocks declared that he was the close-aide of the Demon King as he attacked us, but Takato slayed him with just a single stroke of his sword. The Demon King probably realized the difference between our strength and his.

It was like we were bullying him.

He probably didn’t imagine that he would be defeated.

“….Yes.”

Tina blushed furiously. She probably guessed what I was going to say, and her guess was probably right.

There was a ring inside my pocket — and it was for her.

I

decided to stay in this world if we defeated the Demon King.

And I would marry Tina.

—That was my plan.

“Haruto, can I kill this guy already?”

Takato asked me.

“Yeah, please.”

Takato’s face nastily contorted at that moment, but I didn’t realize the true meaning behind that.

“Hey, Demon King. Nice to meet yah.”

“Hi-hiiii, Stop! D-don’t come near meeee!!!”

Takato vanished in thin air just when I thought he took a step towards him.

“And now, it’s goodbye.”

Takato was already right in front of the Demon King in a flash, and he lopped off his head with a single slash of his sword.

The Demon King’s body slowly crumbled to the ground after his head was severed. He turned into a black mist and disappeared.

He didn’t have a second form, it seemed.

— It was over.

It was a total anticlimax. So it was just something like this, huh.

I returned my sword to its scabbard, then gazed at Tina.

“Tina, it’s over.”

“Haruto-sama!? T-that’s —”

Tina was filled with horror as she stared at my body.

“— Eh!?”

My body was like a flower being scattered in the wind. It was crumbling as it fell apart.

“Gyahahahhahaah!!!!”

Takato was laughing maniacally, and his body was also starting to crumble.

W-what washappening!?

“Tina!”

I hastily tried to stretch my hand in an attempt to touch her — my hand had already vanished.

“N-No way, why….”

Tears overflowed from Tina’s eyes as she stared at me at my collapsing body.

Takato’s laughter was brimming with malice as he shouted.

“Come, you’re going back to our world with us!! Harutooo!!”

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by NovelKeep