The Heroes Who Executed Me Are Obsessed With Me

Yaphenon Gorge.

In a place where all the soldiers had been swept away, a lone knight stood, clad in heavy armor.

Mayal.

A Guardian Knight of the Holy Alliance.

He was said to be one of the mighty, capable of splitting a river with a single swing of his sword. That same man now stood upright, holding his position.

Drip.

Only a trace remained.

Drip, drip.

Like metal rusting away in an instant, his armor slowly collapsed. From his ankles, knees, waist, back, to shoulders—one by one, the plates broke apart in the wind, revealing Mayal within.

A face twisted in horror.

Mayal stood frozen in that posture, contorted in disbelief.

"This... can’t be..."

He could still speak, but that was all.

"How did you obtain such power..."

He couldn’t understand how the mage standing before him had reached a realm said to be achievable only by the first sages who built the magic towers.

But natural disasters were not meant to be understood by humankind. They simply overwhelmed and destroyed those in their path.

"Zen... Jang..."

Without ever hearing an answer, Mayal eventually collapsed to the ground.

Crack!

His mouth stopped moving, and his body turned stiff as fractures ran across it.

Crash!

Mayal’s body shattered like a porcelain doll, fragments scattering in every direction.

Thud.

One broken piece rolled and came to a stop at someone’s feet.

“……”

A single mage stood there, not even flinching.

Yuru, Master of the Blue Tower and former member of the Hero’s party—it was her.

"I... did it."

Covered in blood, she looked down at her own hand.

A forgotten ancient magic had awakened within her. The power that couldn’t be summoned no matter how many books in the tower she read or how many attempts she made, now dwelled inside her.

"So that’s how it is."

She had never pushed herself to the limit, never used up all her mana until it was truly depleted.

Even when fighting the Demon King, she had remained confined within her self-imposed limits, only exerting her power to that extent.

But it was only after experiencing loss for the first time in her life that she was able to empty everything—and in turn, embrace it all.

"It was a trial."

A bitter smile crept onto her lips.

"This was all destined to happen."

The wheel of fate had turned so that she could reach what was once unreachable.

"I can get it back."

Clay, too, was just a victim of that same fate.

She believed that his resurrection was part of a plan—one designed to ensure she never truly lost him.

"It’s all just a trial."

A glint of madness shone in her eyes.

"Wait for me, Clay."

Dragging her broken body, she began to walk, step by slow step.

"I’ll bring an end to every last trial."

♧

"Mayal’s resonance has vanished."

The Holy Alliance.

Within the massive round table where the Guardian Knights gathered.

Three Guardian Knights were present.

"Did Mayal fall?"

"Hmph, a pathetic fool."

A blind man, eyes closed with a long sword placed neatly across his lap, and a woman with a carefree air about her, both spoke in turn.

The man clad in golden armor, a massive hammer resting beside him, simply gave a slight nod. He was the one who had mentioned Mayal’s disappearance.

"I’m not saying this for amusement."

He sat at the head seat of the table.

"Take this matter more seriously."

"Yeah, yeah~."

The woman replied, locking her fingers behind her head and leaning back, flaunting her carefree attitude.

"Still, it’s not like we were the ones who died, so no need to get too worked up."

Seat Three.

She was the third-ranked among the Guardian Knights.

"But still, he was one of us. Dying alone like that... isn’t it sad?"

Seat Two.

The blind man shook his head with a sorrowful expression.

"Ravi. Cadis."

Calling out their names, the First Seat addressed them.

"Do you know why I didn’t summon the other Guardian Knights?"

It wasn’t because they were absent.

The First Seat hadn’t asked them to come in the first place. It wasn’t that the others were avoiding the meeting.

"Hmm, sounds like you’ve got something important to say."

Seat Three, Ravi, shrugged, "What could be more important than Yuru or the Crown Prince?"

"I see nothing either."

"That’s because your eyes don’t work."

Ravi sneered at Seat Two, Cadis, and then turned her gaze to the First Seat again.

"So, what’s the reason you called us here, Valuel?"

Valuel—he wasn’t a Hero who had received a direct blessing from the gods, but he was born with a body capable of containing overwhelming levels of divine power.

Thanks to that strength, he reigned as the leader of all Guardian Knights and was in direct communication with the Emperor of Holy Krata, the head of the Holy Alliance.

And now, he revealed a shocking truth.

"The Hero has been sighted."

Hero, Clay.

The royal family had sent word: a spy planted within Ezer had reported a sighting of him.

“It seems Beatrice is the one with him now.”

“What?” Ravi’s eyes widened, “What are you saying? The Hero is alive?”

“Do you really believe he’s alive?” Valuel spoke in a low voice, “He was definitely dead. Beatrice is merely using his corpse.”

“That crazy bitch…” Ravi grimaced, “I figured that lunatic was still alive, but seriously, what the hell is she doing?”

“I don’t know her purpose.”

There was no way she could stir up a movement by claiming the Hero had been resurrected. And even if she could, it was doubtful such a move would help her rally the Demon King’s army once again.

“Whatever it is, it’s clear she’s planning something unpleasant for the Holy Alliance. There have always been rumors of a fourth hidden Demon King’s Castle. We can’t overlook this.”

“If we can’t overlook it, then what exactly are you planning to do?”

Cadis raised an eyebrow, keeping his sword upright in front of him.

“If you intend to slay her, just give the order.”

“Hey, hey, stop right there. That woman might burn your mouth off.”

Ravi clicked her tongue.

“If Beatrice is scheming something, there’s no way she’s being careless. That’s a trap waiting to happen.”

“Exactly.”

Valuel nodded once.

“She must have a plan. His Majesty of Holy Krata suspects that Beatrice is trying to form a new Demon King’s army.”

“A new Demon King’s army?”

“He believes she’s aiming for more than just rallying the remnants.”

And then, Valuel finally laid out the core of it all.

“His Majesty has issued a command.”

“A command?”

Ravi tilted her head, and Valuel spoke as if spitting out the words.

“To annihilate the new Demon King’s army.”

“Annihilate?”

Ravi let out a dry chuckle.

“Well, that’s not surprising. If something like that pops up, of course we should crush it.”

“Ravi.”

Valuel’s tone grew heavier.

“The Demon King may be dead, but the resilience of the demon race is unmatched. They lack fear, and their malice runs deep. They’ll multiply in no time.”

“Well, that’s true. But how is that any different from before?”

“That’s the problem. Nothing has changed.”

Humanity had suffered enormous losses during the war with the demons. If not for the Hero, they might’ve been completely defeated.

“And this time, we have no Hero.”

They couldn’t rule out the possibility of a new Demon King’s rise. This time, they needed to prepare thoroughly.

“What are you trying to say?”

Ravi looked puzzled.

“We’re only doing what we can, right? It’s not like there’s anything else we can do.”

“His Majesty has issued a royal decree.”

Valuel passed a scroll that had been resting on the table. Ravi took it and unrolled it, her eyes going wide.

“What is this? Is this for real?”

“Every word on that scroll was given in earnest by His Majesty.”

Ravi scanned the scroll once more.

“Damn… this is going to be fun.”

“Ravi.”

“Oh, come on. You read it too, didn’t you?”

Ravi snickered.

“Since I became a Guardian Knight, I’ve been holding back because of those damned priests watching everything. But now, His Majesty’s finally realized that brute force is the real answer~.”

“I’ll read it next.”

Cadis took the scroll and ran his eyes—still closed—down its length.

“Hmm.”

Though his eyes never opened, he absorbed every word. Then came a sigh.

“This goes against the very faith we Guardian Knights uphold.”

“It is the command of His Majesty.”

Valuel shut down his protest.

“We are to carry out everything written there. We swore our loyalty to His Majesty.”

“But—”

“Just do it already.”

Ravi elbowed Cadis.

“Anyway, we just have to fool the others who aren’t here and get them to help us quickly. So you just do your part and leave the rest to me.”

Turning her head, confident as ever, Ravi met Cadis’s frown.

‘A storm is coming.’

Watching the two of them, Valuel silently recalled the order written on the scroll:

–Awaken the ancient gods and unleash them in demon territory.

The very beings once sealed by Elhaen, the chief deity of mankind—gods from an age long past, enemies of the god himself.

♧

The Ancient Gods.

They were six native deities who once assisted Elhaen, the chief god of mankind, and operated primarily around the continent of Pandea.

But unlike Elhaen, who came from beyond with commandments in hand, these native gods had always safeguarded Pandea. They harbored resentment toward Elhaen’s intrusion.

In the end, they only bowed because they were overwhelmed by Elhaen’s immense power.

But not long after, they rebelled against him. For seven sunrises and sunsets, the battle raged on.

In the end, the Ancient Gods were defeated.

Creation. Total Being. Blood. Sacred Body. Eternity. Immortality.

Each of them wielded destruction rooted in their primordial powers. Even so, Elhaen only managed to seal them—barely.

Afterward, Elhaen vanished from Pandea, leaving behind only traces of his existence in the form of power passed down to humankind.

“Ancient gods, huh…”

Clay muttered as he reviewed mythological records among the demon race’s texts brought by Cardin.

He was familiar with the stories.

However...

‘It’s slightly different from what I knew.’

Humans believed the Ancient Gods were destroyed by Elhaen.

‘Perhaps I should be wary.’

The Ancient Gods had once been worshipped by humans too. Though they opposed Elhaen, the patron of the Holy Alliance, there was no telling how they’d view the demons if they returned.

‘No, they’ll definitely be hostile.’

In both human myths and demonic records, the Ancient Gods refused to acknowledge any other divine force but themselves.

The Demon King had been deified by the demon race. Even if they denied that claim, it was unlikely the Ancient Gods would care.

Knock, knock.

A knock came at the door.

Clay lowered the scroll he’d been reading and turned toward the sound.

–Clay, is this a good time?

It was Beatrice.

–I heard your coronation has been decided. Shouldn’t we check the sword you’ll use for the ceremony?

The Demon Sword.

As Clay stepped forward and opened the door, he saw Beatrice standing there—and beside her, the Demon Sword, Syltanaro, wearing an anxious expression.

“G-Greetings, my lord.”

Whatever had just happened, Syltanaro bowed respectfully.

(End of Chapter)