Published at 17th of July 2024 7:27 am

Chapter 404: To Accomplish Is Only the Process, Usually the Afterward Is More Challenging

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“My mission, as well as the world’s fervent wish to subdue the Demon King, has been accomplished. Now, what remains is…”

In the now quiet grand hall of the Demon King’s castle, while the afterglow of victory still lingered, Schwarz quietly readied his sword. The tip of his blade pointed towards… me.

“I see? That makes sense.”

“What!? Wait, both of you!?”

Thus, I too readied my sword to face him, and before us, Tia voiced her confusion.

“What’s going on, Ed!? And you too, Schwarz!?”

“Please understand, Tia-san. I am a Hero…”

“And I am the Great Demon King. So, a conclusion is necessary, right?”

“Ah, I suppose there’s no helping it,” Tia sighed with a gentle smile, stepping back slightly. Ah, Tia really is wonderful. She understands immediately in situations like this. If it weren’t for Tia here, someone else might be screaming, ‘Why are you two fighting now? Stop it!’

Conflict creates nothing? That’s not true. There are things that can only be born through conflict. Did you know? Like me just now, through the clash of steel, even with the dead, understanding can be reached.

“My name is Hero Schwarz! Great Demon King End! Let us begin, fair and square!”

“Come at me, Hero!”

The clash was even more dazzling than our fight against the Demon King Eldereid, as my [Dawnbreaker] sword met his. The resulting brilliance, like the rising sun at dawn, momentarily blinded me.

But even without sight, I knew. If both of us put our all into it, there could only be one trajectory. Schwarz’s holy sword extended its tip, aiming to sever my neck, but—

“Hmph!”

“Ugh!? Ah… I lose, then.”

Before that could happen, my sword had already pierced Schwarz’s chest. His body thudded to the floor, yet not a single drop of blood was shed.

“Why didn’t you kill me? As a Demon King, am I not your sworn enemy?”

“Hah, don’t flatter yourself. You’re not strong enough to be killed by me yet.”

If one has the skill to cut anything, one also has the skill not to cut. Besides, I have no intention of killing a hero who couldn’t even manage to sever my neck.

But the conclusion had been reached. Schwarz, lying sprawled on the floor, muttered almost to himself.

“Are you leaving already?”

“Yes. The Demon King has been defeated and I’ve reclaimed my power. There’s no reason for me to stay in this world any longer.”

“I thought one couldn’t escape from the Great Demon King?”

“Of course, I won’t let you escape. But that doesn’t mean I’ll always be with you. Don’t think you can just run away because we’re apart. If you indulge in a lazy life, I’ll always come to end you. But well, you’ve improved somewhat now. If you don’t intend to keep me as your guardian, then hurry up and drive me out of this world.”

“Tch… then leave now! This place is no place for someone like you!”

Ping!

—Condition met. 10 minutes remaining until return.

“…Well then, Hero. Let’s go, Tia.”

“Yes.”

I took Tia’s hand and turned my back on the fallen Hero Schwarz. As we began to walk away, a trembling voice echoed from behind.

“..If you say I can’t defeat you! Then I will surely escape from you! I’ll create a world so peaceful and uncomfortable for a Demon King that you’ll never want to return… So, this is goodbye for this lifetime! Ah, but Tia-san, you’re always welcome to visit. Next time, come with me—”

“Schwarz, you really are… Well, do your best.”

“I’m sorry, Schwarz. I’ll always be with Ed…”

“Ugh… never come back! You damn Great Demon King!”

As Schwarz spat out these last words, I waved my hand without turning back. We then left the Demon King’s castle, leaving behind yet another world.

—

“Welcome back! Oh, right! Ed, how are you feeling?”

“Hmm… seems fine to me.”

Back in the <White World> Tia, with a startled expression, asked me as I checked my condition by bending and stretching my arms and legs. It seems that returning back here doesn’t affect my body in any adverse way.

“Phew, it was close this time.”

“Yes. I never expected you to start suffering all of a sudden…”

“No, not just that, but the real danger was in the village of the curse.”

“Eh? Why? It felt like we resolved that quite easily?”

Tia tilted her head in confusion, and I couldn’t help but respond with a wry smile.

“Listen, Tia. What was originally supposed to spread in that village was a curse that could be mistaken for a contagious disease. What do you think would have happened if the influence of the god’s fragment had retained that property?”

“That means… those people would have spread all over the world!?”

“Exactly. We managed to handle it right from the start this time, but if it had spread beyond the village…”

If even one villager had gone to a nearby town, the number of infected would have exploded. In no time, people all over the world would have become ‘apostles of the god,’ and I would have had no choice but to act as the true Great Demon King.

In that sense, we were extremely lucky this time. If Schwarz had first gone to Eden and then to that village… Just thinking about it sends shivers down my spine.

“Wow, I didn’t realize it, but we were in a really dangerous situation…”

“That’s right. Well, it’s over now, so it’s fine. Now, let’s see… oh, it’s here this time.”

With a shrug, I approached the table. This time, the {Record Of The Hero’s Story} had appeared properly, and Tia and I began to read through it together.

“Schwarz really had a tough time, didn’t he?”

“Having a strong sense of justice can often lead to running around in circles.”

Doing the right thing wasn’t always welcomed by everyone. Being too righteous can be stifling, and if people can take it easy, they often don’t mind a bit of dirt; that’s just human nature. But it seems Schwarz wasn’t very good at navigating these waters. Well, I knew that much.

“And that’s the last of it.”

Schwarz’s life, read in a book, passed by in a flash, and only a few pages remained. What was written there was about what happened after we parted ways again.

—The 006th World {Record Of The Hero’s Story} Final Chapter: The Seed of Moderation

Hero Schwarz, having accomplished the subjugation of the Demon King, found that his struggles were far from over. He argued that “not all who sided with the Demon King are inherently evil,” and actively worked to win over the former Demon King’s Four Heavenly Kings while opposing the annihilation of the demon race.

Rumors had long circulated that Schwarz had traveled extensively with someone claiming to be the Demon King, and at one point, he was even denounced as a traitor to humanity. However, undeterred by these accusations, he devoted much of his life to mediating between humans and demon race.

As a result, gradually, the demon race began to be accepted by the people. Several races, initially lumped together as ‘demons,’ started to be recognized under different names such as beastmen and fishmen, accelerating this trend.

Of course, this shift also sparked new seeds of conflict, and wars frequently erupted in the post-Demon King era. Peace was always temporary, and tranquility was never more than fleeting. Yet, the conflicts based purely on “because they are demons” or “because they are humans” significantly decreased.

By removing a major source of conflict, Hero Schwarz inadvertently scattered smaller seeds of conflict across the world. The hero, sometimes called a legendary hero and other times a destroyer of order, reportedly left behind the words, “I’ve finally escaped. If you have complaints, come and chase me next time.”

“…So, he really got away with it,” I muttered as I closed the book and quietly looked up at the ceiling. Although it was just a white ceiling, my thoughts reached out to that distant world, now beyond my reach.

“Fufu, looks like he escaped,” Tia chuckled.

“Indeed. Chasing him seems to be a task for the distant future.”

Truly, the reputation of the Great Demon King is in tatters. But, in a way, that’s inevitable. The Great Demon King does not let the hero escape, but in the end, it seems the hero always wins.

“Well then, as the losing Great Demon King who let his prey escape, shall I move on to the next world?”

“If so, I’ll take responsibility for the failure and revert from a Dark White Elf to just an Elf.”

“You don’t want to be a Brilliant Gorgeous Elf?”

“I’d rather not.”

Rejected with a completely genuine expression, I felt a slight sadness as I reached for the door to the next world. “Well then, Tia-kun, not brilliant or gorgeous, just an Elf. May I explain about the next world?”

“Of course! this regular Elf, Lunaritia, will listen to Ed’s story.”

With a bright smile, Tia looked endearing as we prepared to embark on our journey to a new world.

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