I Picked Up the Abandoned Hero

24 – 24. Heroes and Heroes

The fire that engulfed the forest continued to grow.

The elves try to get out of the forest by following the monsters controlled by the dark elves, but it’s not so easy.

The frighteningly red flame did not go out even when water was poured on it, and although it managed to hold on thanks to the rain, the heat of the fire could not be ignored.

“f*cking humans…! Are you trying to kick us out and erase us from the world!”

The elf elder lamented the sight and said,

In the past, they strictly forbade interaction with humans as well as with other races.

Still, I sometimes became friends with the elves who had left their hometown, and even when idiots who thought they were friends with all the elves invaded without permission, I let them go safely.

This was because I didn’t want to cause trouble with other races.

In addition, they knew that young elves who left their hometown owed a lot to humans, so they did them a favor in their own way.

“You have to dodge! It will soon become a sea of fire here too!”

“There is fire all around, where are you talking about escaping! I’d rather die here cursing humans. Curse those disgusting humans who dared to deceive and betray our race!”

Then, recently, a girl came and asked for help, saying that the demon king had appeared and threatened the world.

-The Demon King is ambitious to go beyond us humans and even to the elves’ holy land. So please stop the demons’ ambitions together with us before it’s too late.-

The girl called herself a warrior.

It was a word I had never heard before.

A warrior.

A chosen being created by humans to protect themselves from demons.

According to the legend, the warrior appeared to shine the light when the demon king was casting darkness.

So, although I wasn’t too reluctant, I accepted the young girl’s request.

In fact, the demon king was a threat enough to the elves, and among the demons there were renegade elves, so there was no guarantee that the elves’ hometown would be safe.

“As if we waited for the demon king to fall, we will inflict pain worse than death on the deceivers who betrayed us…!”

As proof of their alliance, the elves bestowed spells that were said to have been created by skilled elven warriors and high elves in the past.

And in fact, the girl succeeded in subduing the demon lord, and as the exchanges between elves and humans gradually began to become more active, it seemed that a truly peaceful world was coming.

Until one day, strange things suddenly happen inside the elves’ hometown.

Suddenly, some elves became extremely nervous and started attacking the people around them, including their families, and even instigated them to burn their homeland and brutally massacre their own people.

What a terrible time I had for it.

Until now, the homeland of the elves had been a holy land and an inviolable territory where not a single drop of blood was shed, but in an instant, the land was transformed into hell and countless people of their kind were killed.

-I’ll ask him for help. He will surely be able to save our people.-

Inevitably, the elves alone can’t handle this task. He sent his daughter out again, but now even the news of that child has been lost.

Under the circumstances, he must have been attacked by a human like the other elves outside, or he couldn’t talk well with the heroic girl.

In the end, the situation reached its worst, and they ran away from their hometown because they could no longer remain in the land that had become infernal. However, another inferno awaited the elves.

-If we elves get involved with other races, we will no longer be able to live a peaceful life like before. Keep this in mind.-

The elder remembered what an elf, their distant ancestor, had once said.

In other words, it was as if he had driven his own people to ruin.

Most of the elders were against cooperating with humans, but he himself persuaded them.

It was because the young elves who left their hometown to travel wanted to be treated more favorably by humans, and it was clear that the demon king would never be good for the future of his people.

Furthermore, there was an incident where an unknown demon tribe openly kidnapped another elder’s daughter.

-It’s nice to see you, the demon king, and I’ll kidnap the most beautiful elf among your elders’ daughters. If you have any complaints, please file them with the Demon King, not me.

The elves tried to catch him by all means, but the damn demon shook his hand and ran away in an instant.

Obviously, other races openly kidnapped the elder’s daughter from the land of the elves, where they can’t enter without permission.

In addition, all the elders’ daughters were lined up and each one was carefully selected and evaluated.

-I hate dwarves, but you’re a bit better. Among the dwarves, you have the biggest heart. I’m sure you’ll be the most suitable for the taste of the demon king.

Even the most beautiful elf said that the kidnapped daughter had kidnapped another elder’s daughter, not her own.

One of the many, many regrets of this elder was that he let go of the damn demon right in front of his eyes.

… Of course, at that time, her own daughter had left her hometown and was traveling outside of her.

If I ever meet that demon again, I thought to find out why he chose another elder’s daughter over his own, even through torture.

The white hair that seemed to have nothing on it, and the cheeky golden eyes that seemed to dare to look down on them.

It looked just like the demon in front of me.

“Uh…?”

“You seem to be very fond of dying regardless of age or gender? It seems like only one person was afraid of dying…”

“You bastard!!! That damn cheeky demon!!!”

The elder was greatly embarrassed by the sudden appearance of the demons, but soon turned into anger and shouted loudly.

I don’t know why that demon is here, but I was thinking of scolding him loudly before I die.

“Will you shut up before I roast you over the fire? I’m on the verge of a fit right now that I’m saving you dwarves with my own hands?”

However, when the demons tried to catch him and throw him into the fire, he had no choice but to keep his mouth shut.

Apart from dying, I couldn’t enjoy the pain.

I couldn’t even commit suicide in this situation of being caught.

‘What is it?’

But it’s really strange.

I don’t even understand why that demon is here right now, but isn’t it even flying away from the flames holding on to himself and the attendant next to him?

If it was a demon, it would have been the devil’s subordinate.

But looking at the current situation, it seemed as if that demon was saving them.

“I can’t afford to talk about Alfred! Send the elves who are lagging behind first!”

“Aren’t you being too hard on people? It just reminds me of the demon lord eating me down to the marrow, right?”

And that was not the only strange thing.

‘That human girl…’

How can I forget?

A girl with a light that was unbelievable for a human being.

A girl who used to call herself a hero has now appeared and revealed herself in the forest that is turning into an inferno.

So why do I have the feeling that the hero and this demon seem to be on good terms?

Even though I’ve heard that demons and heroes are enemies.

“First of all, this clumsy dwarf and the dwarf who met the boss by mistake are the last ones here! There are no more dwarves left!”

I don’t know who the dwarf was, but it was a landscape that even the elder of the elves who had lived for a long time could not understand.

“Okay. If so, I will buy you time, so please evacuate the elves to a safe place as much as possible…!”

In this way, the girl boldly blocked the oncoming fire without any fear.

Although the heat seemed to burn her lungs just by breathing, the girl who was called the dragon endured all of it and held her holy sword in her hand.

“What, what is this?!”

At that time, black glasses were put on the elves who were being evacuated as if they were being dragged away by demons.

My vision suddenly felt a little dark.

“Looking is good, but you guys have such good eyesight that if you do something wrong, you’ll go blind? This is a special service. Your proud warrior ordered us to save as many elves as possible without getting hurt.”

“Suddenly, what does that mean-“

“What are you talking about, you know that when you see it?”

The demon pointed with her chin at the girl holding her holy sword.

The girl gripped her holy sword even tighter, and she breathed the magic of herself and her remaining forest into her holy sword.

A blue aurora began to float around the girl, and her holy sword emitted a bright blue light comparable to the sun.

The flames were right in front of the girl before she knew it.

“I didn’t know what to do at first, so I looked at it through a telescope and my eyes got burned.”

Even so, the girl did not run away from the flames, but instead she took a step forward.

Eventually, when the light of her holy sword grew stronger, the girl swung the light toward the approaching inferno.

And the forest is immersed in blue light for an instant.

The ominous red light and the nymph’s forest that was gradually disappearing are all covered up as if purified by the girl’s light.

The elf saw it and realized it.

That the sword is the proof of the hero who cut down the demon king, the shadow that once tried to cover the world.

†††

After the light went out, I opened my eyes again.

I was expecting it, but I wonder if a situation like that could be created when a holy sword and a hero like Arcel are combined.

‘That’s enough to really work for my mother’s magic.’

After the oxidizing magic dissipates, Arcel appears.

Arsel stood firm with his sword still in his hand.

And just a few seconds ago, they succeeded in driving out the flames that were trying to devour both the forest and the elves.

The holy sword did not stop at cutting away magic, but also completely disintegrated and annihilated even the magical power of the flames.

…But I wonder if the opponent was bad this time.

Arsel succeeded in extinguishing most of the flames with that blow, but the remaining embers were still burning in every corner of the forest.

It was magic that was created for that purpose in the first place.

Only then will they grow their power again soon.

Compared to that, Arcel seems to have just put all his energy into it.

“Whoa, whoa… Whoa…”

Heavy breath.

Shaking legs and hands.

If there were enemies in the past, it seems that the character of erasing them all with the holy sword first came out.

At that time, it was a time when you could chew and eat iron, so it might be okay.

“You guys, the rest run away on their own.”

“What are you thinking, Demon? Why did you help us?”

“I told you before. That hero over there asked you to help the elves. Isn’t this enough?”

There was no reason to evacuate the dwarves anymore.

As long as these dwarfs don’t want to die themselves, they can get away with running with their own legs.

So I left the dwarfs behind and headed to Arcel.

“Isn’t it too much? You haven’t forgotten how you feel right now, have you? Retrieving the holy sword doesn’t mean the curse is gone.”

“I-I think so… I think so… I must have been so excited by myself. Maybe it’s because I’ve been holding the holy sword for a long time…”

Arsel staggered as if he was getting dizzy from overdoing it.

I helped Arcel.

I wrap the handle with a handkerchief so that my body does not come into contact with the holy sword, and put it properly in the scabbard.

The only thing left now is to check your physical condition.

“Look, most of the seals I made have been broken. After all, isn’t it unreasonable to use that much magic?”

As expected, I confirmed that most of the seals of the curse I made earlier had been burned.

Even though it was made with some care, it must be because of the magic of a hero, it seems that the seal could not withstand even one swing of the holy sword and the seal overheated.

“…Sorry. At most, it was something you put so much effort into making, but it was quickly ruined.”

“Okay, I made it expecting it to be broken anyway, so it’s easy to remake it. Even if it takes a little time.”

Although it would be difficult for him to maintain his sanity as the curse worked again, Arcel held on to his consciousness.

Right now, Arcel should feel pain similar to boiling blood all over his body, but he manages to endure it.

“You worked hard, how about taking a break now?”

“I would… I would like to, but the evacuation of the elves is still…”

“That will be taken care of by the dark elves. The monster’s sense of smell will avoid even the smell of the fire and find a way out.”

Does everyone have to be at this level to become a hero?

Or is Arsel especially enjoying this kind of pain?

Neither of the two seems to be sane.

-A warrior? You’re funny, Alfred. Do you really think being a hero is a hero? Under! It was just created by humans to use it as a plaything for themselves. A hero can be a hero, but a hero cannot be a hero.-

In the past, the Demon King said such strange things.

You can become a hero because you are a hero, but a hero cannot become a hero.

I don’t know if I should call it a contradiction, or if it’s a sophistry created by the demon king’s low level of vocabulary.

‘Heroes can’t be warriors…’

Arsel is a hero by human standards.

‘Is it because only the brave can defeat the demon lord?’

To the demons, he was a nuisance and a terrible slayer, but at least to humans he was a true hero.

There are probably many achievements, big and small, but being a warrior who cut down the demon lord is probably the most brilliant achievement.

-Especially that kid can never be a hero. Even if it knocks this body down. Of course, I wouldn’t be able to defeat this body with that trivial force. A nun from an orphanage would be more suitable for that kid than a hero.

Still, until the demon king died, Arcel said he couldn’t become a hero.

Even if Arcel defeats himself, the demon lord.

No matter what happens, the ‘brave’ Arsel said he couldn’t become a hero.

‘Well, the devil’s Korean language skills are terrible.’

It is clear that he was just drunk and said whatever came to his mind.

I saw Arcel in my arms again.

With just one swing of the holy sword, he had exhausted all of his physical strength and mana and was exhausted.

This is a look that can’t be found in the warriors of the past.

Nevertheless, from my point of view, Arsel is a hero.

I really don’t like going this far to save those dwarves, but anyway, it’s true that he saved hundreds of elves, so he must be a hero.

“So now you are resting in a safe place, I will take care of the rest.”

Call some trusty skeletons.

Let’s move one carrying Arcel instead of me, and keep the other for escort so that other guys don’t see it.

Other than that, would it be okay to put it on the side as a decoration?

“Wait… The rest… Are there still any left…?”

“No big deal, this is my personal business. Also, would you like to see the fire that has been turned off again?”

“Wait Alfred-“

“Come on! If you are injured anywhere when I go back, I will immerse you in boiling water for ten years!”

As soon as my order was given, the skeleton hurriedly left its place.

Is it because they are carefully selected? I’m quite satisfied with how fast it works.

Then what’s left is…

It is to catch and slaughter a stray cat who stole other people’s magic.

If I had run away, it would have been annoying, but since he’s a guy who uses stolen magic, foolishly, he’ll come over here himself.

“…Really, was that light your work? I never thought I’d see you here. Satan Alfred.”

A wizard hurriedly flew toward us after Arcel swung his holy sword.

And that too with a very angry face.

“Hey, who is the lady, are you pretending to know?”

“Who did you call a lady?”

“Who else is here besides the lady and me?”

“…”

But strangely, he seemed even more angry.

It looks like she is over 30 years old, but isn’t she a lady?

Or are humans not aunts at the age of 30?