Published at 26th of December 2025 7:39 am

Chapter 457: I Arrived Brimming With Enthusiasm, Only to Find That the World Was Already at Peace

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Yosh Alright Tia, be on guard!

A momentary sense of discomfort passed through my body as I set foot in the new world. But my battle-ready consciousness quickly suppressed it and focused on the surroundings. Of course, Tia was also beside me, weapon at the ready, surveying the area

? Ed, nothings coming.

Huh?

This World 026 was supposed to be a world where the threat of the Demon King covered the entire world. Instead of normal demonic beasts, the Demon Kings minions called Night Walkers were supposed to be everywhere in the world. In the first run, I was attacked by them here, fell into a predicament, and was saved by the hero in a typical encounter but whats this?

This is strange Wait, doesnt the atmosphere of the forest feel different?

We landed in the forest, slightly off the road that was becoming our usual arrival point. But while I remembered it as a darker, gloomier place back then, now it was a pleasant spot with soft sunlight filtering through the trees.

Its clearly not a dangerous place where the Demon Kings minions would be rampant. Seeing small animals flee at our sudden appearance, its as if were the greatest threat in this place.

What should we do, Ed? Night Walkers, was it? Should we look for them?

No, lets wait here for a bit. Id rather not change the location too much.

I informed Tia, who was tilting her head in confusion, that we would stay put. There was a critical aspect to meeting the hero that I wanted to alter as little as possible.

But even after waiting for about 30 minutes, we were not attacked by enemies, and naturally, no hero came to our rescue. It would be a waste of time to wait any longer.

Ah, this is troublesome. Well, we have two options

Two?

Yeah. Either we go to the nearby town to check the situation, or we directly visit the heros location.

Going to town wasnt a problem. If we just get on the road and walk a bit, there should be a fairly large town. And if we want to meet up with the hero, I can use the [Akashic Compass] to find their location and head there. Since we met here in the first run, they should probably be nearby but

In that case, why dont we go to town first? If something unclear is happening, gathering information should be our priority.

Yeah, youre right. Lets head to town then.

If it were like with Hero Jinku, where we needed to hurry or the hero and his surroundings would be in danger, it would be a different story. But this worlds hero, Magna, was quite strong.

Of course, he was strong in his own right, but especially the heros equipment he wore was overwhelmingly effective against the Demon King and its minions. To be honest, he was the kind of existence that could defeat the Demon King even if we did nothing, so theres no particular reason to rush to meet up.

So, Tia and I head out to the road and start walking towards town. The clear sky was high, blue, and clear, and the comfortably warm sunlight was truly peaceful.

Ah, such nice weather. Its quite different from the impression I got from what you told me, Ed.

Yeah I mean, why is that?

Though I kept tilting my head in confusion, we continued walking. When we reached the town and passed through the gates, we were greeted by the bustling noise of people full of vitality.

Wow, its so lively!

Hmm

That face Is this different too?

Yeah, its different. Its different, but its not a bad difference.

In the first run, this town was lively too. But that liveliness was more tense, like there was always a threat nearby, the liveliness of people living each day desperately.

But what I saw before me now were the faces of people striving to make tomorrow better. Not living to the fullest because today might be the end, but working hard to make tomorrow an even better day. In other words, it means this world is at peace.

Old man, two skewers please.

Coming right up!

To gather information as well, I buy some meat skewers from a nearby stall. The price is three copper coins per skewer It might be a bit expensive for the locals, but its a normal price for outsiders like us.

I pay and receive two freshly grilled skewers, hand one to Tia, and bite into the other. The freshly grilled meat was tender, and the rich sauce stimulated my appetite Honestly, I kind of want some alcohol.

And next to me, Tia was biting into her skewer with a beaming smile.

Mmm, mmm! Itsh delishioush!

Hahaha, thank you. For the young lady enjoying it so much, heres an extra.

Wow, yay!

The cheerful old man handed Tia another skewer. The meats shape was a bit irregular, so it was probably made from end cuts.

Thanks, old man. But is this okay? You cant be making much profit at these prices, right?

Hm? Thats not true. Food has become quite cheap these days. Well, certainly half a year ago, if I was selling at these prices, Id have gone bankrupt in three days.

Oh, is that so? Half a year ago

Yes, half a year ago. Since the day the hero defeated the Demon King, the world has changed for the better all at once.

The Demon King was defeated!?

Surprised by this statement, I almost dropped the skewer in my hand. But in contrast to my desperate attempt to suppress my inner turmoil, the old man nodded proudly, as if it were his own achievement, crossing his arms.

Thats right! It was amazing, they say. Something like, the heros sword shone brightly and sliced through the Demon Kings body? Of course, what I know is just what Ive heard from the rumors going around.

A shining sword Could it be the Luna Blade?

That was a special technique that Hero Cain was good at. Its very similar to Alexiss [Moon Scraper], so theres probably a category of techniques like that that sword-wielding heroes learn. The old man nodded vigorously at my words.

Yes, yes, that Something Blade! They say he cut down the Demon King with that amazing technique! Man, its really incredible.

I see. So the Demon King has been defeated

Leaving the excited old man be, I pondered for a moment. I see, if the Demon King has already been defeated, it certainly makes sense that the atmosphere of this world has changed. And for Hero Magna to have defeated the Demon King is also understandable.

However, whether this is convenient for us is another matter.

(If the Demon King has already been defeated, theres no hero party or anything anymore. No, if its been half a year since the defeat, maybe theres still some cleanup of remnants? If so, we might be able to slip in there And what about retrieving the Demon Kings power? If its sealed, thats one thing, but can we retrieve it if its been defeated?)

The Demon King can be defeated but not destroyed. Given enough time, it will eventually revive somewhere. The only way to prevent that was for me to retrieve the power myself but at this stage, Im not sure if I can retrieve the Demon Kings power that was defeated in my absence.

Well, I guess we can think about that later. For now, lets toast to Hero Magna who accomplished such a great feat.

Huh? Kid, what are you talking about?

The old man at the stall looked at me with a puzzled expression as I muttered with a wry smile.

Eh, whats wrong? Is it not okay to toast to the hero? Is it something like disrespect or irreverence?

Thats not it! Theres no way someone would say such sleepy nonsense when praising the hero who defeated the Demon King. Its not that, who the hell is Magna?

Huh!? I mean, Hero Magna

Dont talk nonsense! The heros name is Reiholdt! Its not some name like Magna!

Eh

Faced with this completely unexpected anger, this time I really did drop my skewer to the ground with a dumbfounded expression.

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