I Became the Hero Who Banished the Protagonist chapter 60

60. People waiting for the end (1)

A week later, I received a summons from the palace. Bishop Andre seemed to have succeeded in concluding a new agreement with the Kingdom of Cairos. Along with that cooperation, it seems that even in the Holy Land, the crown damage case has decided to pass it on without catching the pod. I accepted the greetings from the palace guards with a feeling of shame in a corner.

“It’s a call-up order, it’s been a while since I received it. Is it the first time in half a year that you are summoned for something other than an event?”

Georg murmured. Since it was not an official event, they were dressed with minimal etiquette. Daphne was exuding a much more mature prayer, as if she had succeeded in saving mana. You’re probably at the end of Circle 5, knocking on the door of Circle 6. Once the wall blocking her way was shattered, Daphne’s growth was not rough. I felt the neat mana with pride.

“Did you say doomsday worship? I’ve only heard of it through rumors, but I never thought it would exist.”

“I am hearing it for the first time. Those who worship the apocalypse and calamity.”

Daphne tilted her head cryptically at Georg’s words. Marianne kept her mouth shut as always beside them, but the silence was different from usual. I stared at Marianne, then straightened my steps again and walked away.

“The fact that the activities of those who were secretly hiding from the eyes of surveillance have been caught means that they may already be plotting something.”

Georg said with a frown. Daphne rubbed her arm and swallowed dryly.

“They can say this because they’ve never seen a catastrophe, right?”

“Some people say that because they saw it.”

I said so. I don’t know if it’s the people who are fascinated by the power of disaster, the people who worship evil spirits from the beginning, or the people who are angry with people because of the disaster.

“It will probably be a completely different fight.”

Daphne nodded and turned to Marianne.

“Still, I can’t just send Marianne. You made a good choice, Illroy.”

“I think so too. Anyway, this is much better than being ripped apart. It’s strange for us to stay still now that we know there are people like that.”

Marianne opened her mouth in a quieter voice than usual.

“sorry.”

“No, if you’re going to say sorry, Illroy should say sorry. It’s the hero’s decision to drag us all along. Isn’t that right, Illroy?”

Georg playfully rejected Marianne’s apology and looked at me. I looked at him and raised one corner of my mouth.

“I’m not very sorry.”

“A arrogant, conscienceless, vile party leader.”

Georg grunted, taking a longer stride and walking ahead of me. Daphne, who was watching Georg and I talk, smiled and approached Marianne.

“There is no need to feel sorry for each other. At times like this, all you have to do is say thank you for coming with me.”

Marianne blinked her golden eyes at Daphne. She usually doesn’t talk so much, so she looks mature, but looking at her like this, I felt a little bit that Marianne was the youngest member of our party.

“Yeah… thank you.”

Of course, that expression didn’t change at all.

We followed the guide of the guards and walked through the wide corridors of the palace. Occasionally, the ministers I met while passing by secretly averted my eyes, or bowed in a humble manner, or reacted to one of the two. Where is the one that doesn’t try to catch more?

“Inside, His Majesty is waiting with the Bishop. Also, the bishop said that the person who came to cooperate this time came again… .”

The guards stopped in front of the conference room and glanced at the tightly closed door.

“You’ll find out the details when you go inside.”

The guards knocked on the door three times, and the conference room doors opened with a rattling sound. The first thing I saw was the queen.

“Illroy, the brave, sees Her Majesty the Queen.”

I first bowed to the queen, then slightly turned my gaze to check the scenery inside the meeting room. Bishop Andrew seated across from the Queen. Of course, there should be, and there are a few people in priestly clothes that I have never seen before. They were probably Bishop Andrew’s subordinates, the Heretic Questioners.

And, I frowned when I saw the people sitting between the Heretic Questioner and the bishop.

Why are those guys here?

—

Usually, winter in Evernode refers to the period from October to mid-April. Of course, that’s what people call it, but when the end of August approaches, there is no warmth left that can be called heat, and a chilly air begins to permeate the air.

“Good workmanship. Maybe it’s because he was a mercenary after all.”

Arjen nodded curtly at the knight’s praise. Should I say that the knights and soldiers in the north did not welcome Arjen and Isis? They were still wary and difficult to deal with. Whether they guarded himself or not, Arjen didn’t care much, but there was one fact that got on his nerves a little.

“Well, really. The hero also showed great performance when he first went on patrol.”

That vigilance all came from the hero.

“You are very sad too. If I had stayed in the hero’s party, I would have enjoyed all the glory I could have while alive.”

Arjen felt annoyed whenever the word warrior was mentioned. Whether he did it, or with the help of the Archduke of Quenor. The fact that he had achieved the ideal he had previously spoken about in the Kraken battle, and that he could not have sacrificed anything in the process, went against the mercenary’s heart.

There was no clamor from Bakhtins. Arjen didn’t take their pain lightly, but he thought it couldn’t be helped. In the end, if I hadn’t done that, we would have all died together. The warriors, saints, and mercenaries, as well as the wounded and clamoring residents of Baktins.

“I’m really curious, why did the hero send a strong person like you?”

Arjen was too strong for the knights to go over. If it was similar to Georg or Marianne, he would have understood it, but Arjen’s inaction was already powerful enough to be said to be a step below the grand duke. Even if there was an internal feud, it would be a waste of power to just let it go.

“You know nothing. I just did my job If he hadn’t let me out, one day I would have quit the party.”

Arjen answered nervously without even realizing it. The knight who accompanied Arjen was looking at him with his eyes narrowed. Arjen gritted his teeth and turned around and walked away.

“He didn’t acknowledge me, and I didn’t acknowledge him either. That’s it.”

“… yes. i get it.”

There are no heroes. Saving everyone is a dream come true after all.

Arjen, the mercenary, inserted his sword. With an infinitely calm face, the face of the madman who said he had to go to the limbs came to mind. I remembered the look in his eyes when he said he had to carry firewood into the fire. Self-sacrifice is deception. He couldn’t tolerate it that way. Some people’s way of life is poison to others.

“… He said something funny and fell asleep.”

Arjen stood at the gate of the outer castle and looked at the streets of Evernode. No pain, no grief, no. Someone might be sad, but no one was left to be sad.

“Damn it.”

Arjen stopped swearing and returned the horse to the stable. I didn’t feel like staying here for very long. It was so different from the world he knew. The world the mercenary knew was not that warm to accept him. The mouth wrote. In the end, the scenery that the hero achieved was something that the mercenary could not achieve. It felt like a bloody smell came from the tip of my nose.

“Arjen.”

Waiting for Arjen to come out of the stable was one of the Holy Kingdom’s entourage. Arjen sighed, shook off all his thoughts, and greeted the priest.

“what’s going on.”

“It has been decided to leave Evernode. The saintess and the grand duke are waiting for you.”

Arjen nodded and moved on. There was no such thing as post-war recovery, so I thought I would leave quickly, but there was a feeling that it was a little sudden.

“It seems like an urgent decision.”

“There was a call from Seongguk. It seems that there are more urgent matters than the restoration of this place.”

urgent matter? Arjen frowned. Did Isis have a problem?

“Please go in and talk about the details.”

Before the priest even knocked on the door, the door to the mansion meeting room opened. The atmosphere in the meeting room was more serious than Arjen had thought. Isis was serious, but she was saying something with a face that had become half-sexy. At the sound of the door opening, the two lifted their heads at the same time and looked at Arjen.

“… Are you a mercenary? Sit down first.”

As Arjen sat down, the priest who was leading the conversation between the Archduke and Isis let out a long sigh. He was a middle-aged priest who was the leader of the recovery support personnel.

“At this point, I think it would be better to tell the story from the beginning.”

The priest raised the glasses that were halfway over his nose and turned his head toward the mercenary.

“The doomsday worshipers have reappeared, Arjen. Have you ever heard of them?”

Arjen nodded. It wasn’t that I lived on knife rice for no reason. It was also not unknown that a group called the Doomsday Cult existed.

“I thought it was a dying organization.”

“Nope. This time they suddenly turned on the stretch. It is said that he escaped the eyes of the Kingdom of Kairos and the Holy Kingdom, hiding in the back alleys and underground of the world, and came back to the world due to the stirrings of the third and fourth disasters.”

Arjen frowned. It is true that the appearance of disaster is just the right time for them to begin their activities. However, in such a short period of time, he has increased his power enough to be caught off guard.

“It is said that activities have resumed within the Kairos Kingdom, but the Holy Kingdom is also not unrelated to this. Seongguk decided to take the lead in catching them. The Kairos Kingdom even said that they would provide all possible support while maintaining close contact.”

The priest briefly summarized the situation, and Arjen suddenly made the same expression as the people in the room. It wasn’t that he didn’t know how bad the apocalypse worshipers were. The evil deeds I heard about during my mercenary life were things that made even a bloody mercenary tremble.

“Since it’s a matter for the Holy Kingdom, you mean the saintess can’t be left out.”

The priest nodded at Arjen’s question.

“Yes. You’ll probably accompany the heretic inquisitors to investigate the area where doomsday worshipers have appeared. They will take care of the dirty work on their own, so the saintess will appease the people around her and take care of the victims in collaboration with the nearby church branch.”

Heretic Questioner. those fanatics. Arjen frowned slightly, and Grand Duke Quenore, who had been listening to the story, sighed.

“It’s messy. Thinking that they might have even reached out to Evernode, I can’t stay still.”

“… This will probably be fine.”

Archduke Quenor smiled bitterly at Isis’ answer.

“It is bittersweet. Of course, there is no need to make the residents uneasy, but they will increase the number of patrols. Like back alleys where our eyes don’t usually reach. For the time being, I’ll have to look closely at that side. First of all, thank you for passing on valuable information.”

The Grand Duke thanked the priest and turned his head towards Arjen.

“Are you still going to accompany the saintess? After hearing the story, they say that you have no obligation to stay together.”

“… no. Since you are hired, I will escort you to the end.”

Arjen said that while looking at Isis. She was visibly anxious. Is there any reason to be so anxious?

“… yes. Good luck.”

The Grand Duke seemed to have something to say, but he shook his head and stood up.

“Thank you for supporting us at Evernode. I wish you good luck on your journey ahead.”

“I just did what I had to do. Thank you for welcoming me warmly during the difficult times.”

A strong sense of guilt appeared on Isis’ face, who said it was something she had to do. A few weeks after reaching Evernode, Isis’ expression always looked like that.

I was in the middle of walking to pack my things after leaving the Strop Mansion. The priest sighed as he looked at the back of Isis as he trudged ahead.

“This is the right thing to do, but it will be a difficult journey.”

When Arjen turned to the priest, the priest cast a shadow over his face.

“Is there anything else going on?”

“That is…”

When Arjen asked in a voice full of impatience, the priest glanced at Isis and lowered his voice.

“The Doomsday Worshipers who appeared this time are said to be in the Baktins area.”