chapter 27
27 – The Third Hero (10)
‘Hmm… Let’s focus on right now.’
I experienced strange things, such as a request to find me.
Of course, I decided that these were unusual events, and I have a feeling that something very serious will happen sooner or later, whether it’s good or bad.
Well, I might have to prepare in my own way. Of course, something won’t happen if I, a warrior, don’t prepare, but…
But for now, let’s focus on what we have to do now.
I decided to train Aji, so I think I just need to finish this job perfectly now.
I took Aji and headed into the forest. To go to the cave where the monsters are said to be.
Here, I was planning to give Aji some practical practice.
For that to happen, you need to have a suitable partner…
“Uh, Aji. Can you see that?”
“Yes.”
Just then, a decent monster appeared.
When I found the monster where I pointed, Aji nodded.
If it’s that level of a monster, it won’t be that big of a problem.
It’s not that big, so let’s take a look at my skills.
I gave the order to attack Aji.
“Now, attack.”
“Yes.”
Aji is going to attack right away at my command. Looking at her like that, I feel like something… Like a Pokémon. Am I mistaken?
Anyway, Aji immediately ran to the monster. And immediately the battle began.
Seon Gong ran up in an instant and stuck his fist into the monster’s face. The monster flew far away, but did not lose consciousness.
The monster immediately counterattacked. He attempted to punish the beast girl who attacked him with his quick movements and sharp fangs.
However, Aji calmly removed her teeth. With her exceptional reaction speed, she repeatedly dodged just before her teeth made contact, and each time she dodged an attack she countered.
Of course, even if he did that, the damage was minimal because the monster’s specifications were higher than Aji’s, and the wolf attacked again, but Aji calmly repeated what he had done before.
The result was a complete victory for Aji. Although it took some time, Aji was able to catch the monster without any injuries.
“This is a piece of cake.”
“It’s stronger than I thought.”
It’s a little surprising, isn’t it?
I didn’t expect it to be this easy to catch, so I might have to watch it again.
No matter how much of a beastman the opponent is, it is a monster with the characteristics of a beastman.
It’s not easy to catch such a monster without any scratches, but Aji may be more talented than I thought.
The warrior party’s leader, Naphyra, had excellent fighting sense, but I remember her not being able to do this from the beginning…
I think Aji will grow up to be very big in the future.
As a warrior, I feel that way.
‘But it’s far away.’
Of course, the talent was that great, and the battle itself was very poor.
As a beast, her abilities can be seen to be quite well-equipped.
The physical condition was excellent, and the sensory aspect was also very high.
However, Aji cannot use her power properly.
Should I say that I fight relying too much on my instincts?
Without thinking about battle, I just reacted to the opponent’s attacks, dodged them, and attacked when I found an opportunity, and so on.
Of course, this does not mean that this fighting method is bad.
Being faithful to your instincts means making the most appropriate decision for the situation.
It is absolutely not a bad thing.
However, the problem is that it is a fighting method that has no chance of winning when the opponent is similar or stronger than Aji.
If you meet an opponent who is similar or stronger than you, such fighting methods are of no use.
There is a need to plan and act more strategically.
I think I could teach you some of those aspects during the battle of Aji.
“hehehe. This is a piece of cake. Am I strong?”
“Strong.”
“Am I really strong?”
“Yes. It’s very strong.”
Well, when you praise someone, you have to praise them clearly.
It’s just that he doesn’t meet my standards as a warrior, but it’s true that Aji has a very good fighting sense.
Aji ran towards me after defeating the monster, and she happily asked me for praise.
He was wagging his tail a lot and looking forward to what kind of praise he would receive in the future.
Hmm… Is that tidy?
Is it really that great to just defeat one small monster? I thought that a little bit, but…
Because good things are good.
I was not a person who was stingy with praise either.
I obediently gave praise to Aji who wanted praise.
There is nothing wrong with giving lots of praise.
They say that praise makes even whales dance, right?
“hehehe…”
Hearing my praise, he was very excited.
She couldn’t control her joy as she waggled her tail.
At times like this, he really looks like a dog himself.
I like it so much, so let’s praise it whenever possible from now on.
The moment I made up my mind.
“How strong am I? Am I stronger than the Demon King?”
“Huh…”
But, what does he say…
I couldn’t help but look at Aji’s words for a moment.
The name Demon King was by no means an easy name.
The devil is not the name of anyone’s dog…
Well, these were words that cannot be taken lightly.
“You can’t say things like that carelessly.”
“…?”
When I looked a little straight, the atmosphere quickly cooled down.
Aji didn’t wag her tail anymore, and I don’t know why, but she intuitively seemed to think she had done something wrong.
The atmosphere suddenly froze… I wondered if I had overreacted.
I wonder if he should have said that he was stronger than the Demon King, even if only as a joke…
I thought maybe I wasn’t mature enough and couldn’t control my emotions.
To put it paradoxically, the person that even I cannot joke about is the devil.
Even if the same situation came, I think I would have been the same.
No matter how much you think about it, the Demon King is a very dangerous being.
“But it’s true that we’re strong… It’s not over yet. Let’s keep fighting.”
“Yes.”
I think I got lost in random thoughts for a moment.
I was currently training…
I slightly comforted the depressed child and suggested the next exercise.
Aji immediately perked up and started preparing for training.
# # #
‘It’s spooky…’
Alex arrived at the Demon King’s Castle and had no intention of delaying.
He immediately opened the door to the Demon King’s castle and went inside to meet the Demon King.
A dreary Demon Castle with no one around, probably because Hero Lee Han-su and Hero Herald have come, there are no demons.
Still, it was a demon castle. I couldn’t help but feel a little trembled.
Alex suddenly felt his body shaking.
Should I say that the further I walk inside, the more I feel an inexplicable sense of anxiety?
Anyway, I felt like it was really hard to understand.
‘It’s okay. ‘Because I have a holy sword.’
Still, Alex didn’t stop walking.
As his anxiety continued to grow, Alex looked at the sword strapped to his waist.
On the outside, it looks like an ordinary sword in an ordinary sheath, but this sword is actually no ordinary object.
It was an item called a holy sword, handed down from generation to generation only to warriors.
In fact, this was the source of Alex’s confidence to defeat the Demon King.
‘If you have this, you can defeat the Demon King.’
The Holy Sword, whose whereabouts became unknown a long time ago, was secretly held by Alex’s family.
It was an item that Alex’s ancestors stole from the imperial family.
They say that the ancestors were jealous of the warrior and stole it or something.
According to the story, in the past, the ancestors did such things in the hope that the warrior would fail.
But, the hero defeated the Demon King, and all such work became useless…
Alex’s ancestors still had this holy sword.
And now Alex has inherited the holy sword.
This was the truth that only he knew.
‘Only I can defeat the Demon King.’
Now that the Demon King has come back to life, the hero was unable to fight the Demon King with the Holy Sword.
It is not true that there were cases where the warriors defeated the demon king without the holy sword, but this was a definite mistake.
So, Lee Han-soo and Herald both lost to the devil.
But only he had this holy sword.
A sword that can defeat the devil.
So, he was gaining a huge advantage.
There is no way it will fail.
‘I will defeat the demon king that Herald was unable to defeat.’
Honestly, I did understand that Alex himself was weaker than Herald.
I hate to admit it, but even though his qualifications were excellent, I didn’t know that overall, he was inferior to Herald.
But the Herald didn’t have a holy sword, right?
Does it matter whether his own skills are lower or higher than Herald’s?
The person who defeats the Demon King will have his name left in history.
Alex had no doubt that he would defeat the Demon King with this holy sword he was holding.
‘Whoa… Is this this place?’
He repeated his steps with anticipation.
And not long after, he finally arrived at a room with a gloomy aura.
If you open this door, there will definitely be a demon lord.
After Alex swallowed his saliva, he confidently opened the door and swung it open.
“…?”
Alex was thinking about facing the devil like that… But what he saw was a little unexpected.
What…? Were you eating?
A demonic woman sitting at a well-set table raised her head when the door opened.
And she was looking at Alex.
It looked like that woman was probably the devil.
“Are you the Demon King? The Demon King is a woman… That’s surprising.”
Why did you come here during meal time? Should you have come a little later?
Besides, the Demon King was a woman…
Alex could not hide his embarrassment at such unexpected events.
She had been very tense at best, but it felt like the tension had gone away.
However, she had no choice but to immediately come to her senses.
“You’re annoying… Really.”
The air froze at just one word from the Demon King.