A heavy silence settled over the territory.

But only for a moment.

“That’s right!”

“Sir Mide really is the true Hero!”

“The Hero and his brave companions!”

“Thank you. Truly, thank you!”

Finally, everything felt like it had returned to its rightful place.

My party members approached me.

Offense quickly asked,

“Mide. What about Idria? You definitely stabbed her heart.”

“Yeah. I felt it at the tip of my sword. I’m sure I shattered her core.”

Thud.

At those words, Adwin collapsed to the ground.

Before I realized it, he was crying.

“T-Then… does that mean my father can come back now?”

“Adwin.”

“Hyung… the fight really is over now, right? Can I… go back home? See my father?”

The boy who was always so mature was finally showing emotion befitting his age.

And he wasn’t alone.

“What about Ophelia? Where’s her real body?”

“Did that bastard Hyran disappear too, now that the Demon King’s dead?”

“I want to see Lord Grade again…”

“I should probably go see my parents.”

I had never seen my party members express their feelings so openly like this.

Something swelled in my chest as I turned to Neril.

“Don’t you have anything to say?”

“This is weird.”

“Yeah, yeah, it is. …What is?”

She frowned and said,

“Kaeld is gone.”

Everyone immediately jumped to their feet.

They frantically looked around.

Sure enough, Kaeld who had been sitting there like a saint, looking like he had given up on everything, was nowhere to be seen.

Serein said,

“You think he ran? That bastard is like a cockroach.”

“When you say cockroach, do you mean he’s hard to kill?”

“Well… I meant disgusting, but sure, that too.”

“Don’t let your guard down until we have dealt with Kaeld completely. Taking him out is the real end.”

That brought everyone back to their senses.

Xenia spoke up.

“Sorry. I got a little carried away. I guess experience really does matter.”

“You want to die?”

“Thanks, Miss Neril.”

Neril snorted.

Honestly… I was thankful too.

I have shown enough disgrace for someone who’s supposed to be the Hero.

Offense scratched his head and asked,

“But hey, Mide. Why did you suddenly give that big reputation boosting speech?”

“Huh?”

“I mean, the Demon King’s dead, right? Our journey’s basically over. Didn’t seem like the time for it.”

“Now that you mention it… guess it’s just a bad habit.”

Everyone chuckled quietly.

But not Trail.

He didn’t laugh.

[…No. You did well. You need to keep building up your reputation.]

‘What are you talking about?’

[I’m still alive, remember.]

‘That came out of nowhere.’

[I exist solely to kill Idria. The Celestial God has bound my soul to that fate.]

A chill ran down my spine.

‘What…?’

[The moment I kill Idria, my life in this world ends too.]

‘Wh-What?’

[I have lived through countless ages that way. No matter what happens this time around, I doubt that truth has changed.]

‘Hold on. Wait a second.’

What the hell is he saying?

If that’s true, then…

‘You would die the moment I killed Idria?’

[Yeah.]

‘Why didn’t you tell me something that important?!’

[Why are you yelling like it’s the end of the world?]

‘Trail. You are my comrade, same as the six others standing here. That means by killing Idria, I nearly killed you too!’

He gave an awkward laugh.

[Thanks for saying that.]

‘I meant it.’

[Anyway, listen. I’m still alive, right?]

‘…’

[Which means Idria isn’t dead. You must have barely missed her core in the end.]

That can’t be.

There’s no way my senses were wrong.

Then what happened?

‘I need to check the secrets.’

[Whose secrets? Idria’s?]

‘…I don’t know yet.’

I briefly stopped time and began to investigate secrets that could confirm Idria’s life or death.

But I found nothing related to Sobius, Sabach, or even the other Fingers.

At the very least, none of their secrets mentioned Idria’s life or death.

[Can’t make heads or tails of it, huh.]

‘…’

[Mide?]

‘Trail. Don’t get mad when you hear this.’

[Depends on what it is.]

I smiled faintly.

‘I’m… kind of glad you’re still alive.’

[What? What are you saying?]

‘I think I need to study Idria’s end more thoroughly. Because I don’t want to lose you by killing her.’

[Hey.]

‘I’m not saying I will let the Demon King roam free. I’m saying… we will kill her after you have freed yourself from that fate.’

Trail didn’t respond.

No, he couldn’t.

I couldn’t see him, but I was sure he was desperately trying to hold back the emotions bubbling up.

‘Hey. Are you crying?’

[Shut up and look at this.]

‘Huh?’

[Watch it while I get my emotions under control.]

Tap.

A screen appeared.

<Ding! You have gained 15,000 reputation points.>

<Reputation needed for next level: 295,900 / 500,000>

<Your name will now echo throughout the Gabriel Territory.>

<Total reputation points to be earned from this incident: 18,000>

<Your name echoes through the Drucker Territory. (All points retrieved!)>

<Your name echoes through the Quelk Territory. (All points retrieved!)>

<Your name echoes through the Lior Territory. (All points retrieved!)>

<Your name echoes through the Avis Territory. (All points retrieved!)>

<Your name echoes through the Raynus Territory. (All points retrieved!)>

<Your name echoes through the Tetra Territory. (All points retrieved!)>

<Your name echoes through the Capital. (All points retrieved!)>

<Your name echoes through the Hasphil Territory. (All points retrieved!)>

<Your name echoes through the Dronoar Territory. (All points retrieved!)>

<Your name echoes through the Atrium Territory. (All points retrieved!)>

<Neril Slane and five others now believe you are “the Hero who slew the Demon King.”>

Nice.

‘…’

Wait. Not nice.

My own party now believes I’m “the Hero who killed the Demon King.”

Not exactly the best time to correct that in this mood, but…

“Everyone, could I have your attention for a second?”

“Hm?”

“Yes, sir!”

“Uh… this is really embarrassing, but I have to say it.”

“What is it? Why are you hesitating so much?”

I scratched my head.

“The Demon King isn’t dead yet.”

“……”

“Trail guaranteed it, so it must be true. So, uh…”

“……”

“Let’s travel together a bit longer.”

At that moment, a new message popped up on the screen.

<Neril Slane and five others now see you as ‘the Hero who almost killed the Demon King.’>

Ah.

That’s… acceptable, I guess.

Then Neril spoke.

“It’s a shame we couldn’t finish off Idria… but we still got a pretty big win in this territory.”

“Huh?”

“My Append View spell is still active, you know.”

“Oh! That’s right.”

“I thought just capturing Padania’s true nature would be enough, but we even got the part where the Demon King herself came to rescue her. Let’s spread this footage everywhere.”

A grin stretched across my face. This content belongs to N0veI.Fiɾe.net

Sure, the people of the Gabriel territory could testify.

They could confirm that Padania was one of Idria’s servant and that Kaeld was the same.

But would word of mouth be enough?

To humanity, the name of a Hero is absolute. How many would believe “a former Hero was a servant of the Demon King” just from a rumor?

But if they saw it for themselves, that would be a different story.

“That’s amazing. Let’s watch it now.”

“Huh? Right now?”

“I want to see if I look good on camera.”

“Pfft. You’re unbelievable. Fine, hang on.”

Neril quickly formed a hand seal.

A moment later, the recorded footage began playing in front of us.

It was incredible, truly awe inspi… awe…inspiring?

A strange silence fell.

Adwin cautiously asked,

“Neril noona… you haven’t cast the spell yet, right?”

“……”

“Noona?”

“T-That can’t be. I’m sure I activated it correctly…”

Neril’s voice trembled.

I looked at the video again.

It contained nothing.

Only a vast, white void.

“Did the spell fail?”

“No. There’s no way. I would never make such a stupid mistake…”

“It wasn’t your mistake.”

“Mide?”

“Someone interfered. Definitely.”

I had shattered Idria’s core just moments ago.

And yet Trail said she wasn’t dead.

I didn’t make a mistake. I never make mistakes with my technique.

“Someone must be backing the Demon King.”

“…! C-Could it be the Celestial God? That bastard agreed with her plan.”

“No. Remember, Impelium said he couldn’t exert power outside the starting point.”

“Then who?”

Good question.

Who could it be?

Idria was on the brink of death.

Her core had definitely been destroyed.

And it wasn’t the first time.

Bion Kunze had pierced her heart multiple times before.

“Kugh…”

But this time was different.

She knew… this time, there would be no coming back.

“Th-The children… at least the children…”

Once she died, the Fingers of Lies would vanish.

Sobius, whose body had already disappeared.

Sabach, whose injuries remained unhealed.

And the other Fingers, all of them would cease to exist.

She feared their end more than her own.

But reality was cruel.

Her body was growing cold. Her vision blurred. Her mind faded.

And then…

“You have been through a lot, Idria.”

A voice she had never heard before.

No one should be able to enter this cave.

Desperately, she forced her eyes open toward the sound.

There stood a man with dazzling golden hair and a soft, gentle face.

If not for the situation, she would have mistaken him for a young scholar.

“You… who are you?”

“It hurt, didn’t it? You were sad, weren’t you?”

“……”

“I pity you. Killed by Bion over and over, only to be reborn again, as if your very purpose was to die.”

“S-Shut up. I asked who you are.”

“Forgive me for only showing up now. I brought a gift, if that’s any consolation.”

Thud.

The man tossed something down.

It was Kaeld, unconscious.

Clink.

Next to him, something rolled across the floor.

The real Hero’s sword.

“Kaeld? The Hero’s sword? How did you…?”

“He ran the moment things wrapped up in Gabriel. Not that I’m judging, but you may have picked the wrong hand to play.”

“I asked who you are. That’s the third time.”

“Oh, and I tampered with that spell the mage in Mide’s party used. I will continue handling that magic going forward, don’t worry.”

This man clearly wasn’t interested in listening.

Idria gathered what strength she had left to ask once more:

Who are you?

But she didn’t need to say it.

“Wait… huh?”

Her body was healing!

The shattered core was regenerating. Torn flesh stitched itself together. Lost blood returned to her veins, and strength flowed back into her limbs.

And all of it happened… just because the man pointed at her.

“The lies Mide shattered can’t be undone, so I shared some of my own lies with you.”

Idria sprang to her feet.

She had fully recovered her power.

But despite the miracle, she felt more wary than grateful toward the man.

“What are you talking about? Your lies?”

“You have done a fine job gathering lies over the years, but you still haven’t caught up to me.”

“……”

“No need to be embarrassed. It’s only natural. The scale and span of my harvesting is on a whole other level.”

“Hah. You speak as if you’re the Demon King of Lies.”

At that…

The man nodded, as if it were obvious.

“Demon King…? I don’t know if that’s the word. But something like it, yes.”

“W-What? That’s ridiculous. I was born at the beginning of all things! No one could have gathered more lies than me.”

“The ‘beginning’ you speak of is laughably recent.”

He plopped down across from her.

“I get where you’re coming from, but you should learn a little humility.”

“……!”

“Oh, I’m not scolding you. If it came across that way, I apologize.”

Idria disliked how he spoke like he was looking down on her from above.

And yet… something about it felt strange.

His voice was gentle. Warm.

She had never heard anyone speak to her like that before.

“I will ask one more time. Who are you?”

“It’s a bit hard to summarize in one word. Hmm… how about you call me Father?”

“…Ha.”

“I mean it. ‘Senior’ wouldn’t be wrong either, but I prefer ‘Father.’”

“Very well. Then, ‘Father,’ what’s your name?”

The man smiled softly and answered:

“Velosian.”

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Source: Webnovel.com, updated by NovelKeep