[19th Round] Unique Smile
“Run!”
“Sir Hero?! What’s the matter?!”
“Why do we need to run?”
Lanuvel and Mercenary A were surprised. The Hero, who went to recruit Elf Princess Sylvia, returned alone. No, he was being pursued by numerous guards.
But they didn’t stand still.
The dummies rushed after Richel.
I also followed them at a short distance.
They couldn’t stay in a city full of guards. No, they couldn’t stay in the Dumpling Kingdom, at least for as long as the charges hadn’t been dropped yet.
“Tsk tsk, this is where his lack of experience becomes apparent.”
I commended his refusal to be disarmed and arrested, but it would’ve been better for him if he cooperated with the guards until the misunderstanding was resolved.
Because of his actions, the misunderstanding only intensified.
His response was tantamount to confessing to a crime.
Sylvia wouldn’t disappear like monsters upon death, and her body was in very good condition.
He could be saved if her corpse was enchanted to avoid decay and brought to Saintess A of the Holy Kingdom. It would’ve become clear that she died of shock, unable to withstand the kisses of the powerful MAX-Class Citizen.
But the suspect escaped.
Until Sylvia was sent to the Holy Kingdom and resurrected, the Hero’s Party would be on the list of wanted criminals.
▶ Appearance: Are you sure?
‘Of course, Trainee Teacher.’
I experienced the same situation in my 1st round.
I prevented an attempt on my life by getting rid of a female assassin, but I was wrongly accused of murdering an innocent beauty, turning me into a fugitive.
▶ Curiosity: How did it end?
Since the murderer’s identity was murky, I was found innocent since only citizens of the country and important people were under protection.
Until then, however, I had to hide and sleep in the woods like a homeless person.
Mosquitoes left no part of me unbitten!
That incident caused me a lot of trouble.
“So, where are you going now?”
Richel was accused of killing Elf Princess Sylvia.
He couldn’t stay in the Dumpling Kingdom anymore.
And a trip to the Elf Kingdom in the western part of the Central Continent was tantamount to suicide.
His remaining options were the Holy Empire to the north and the Holy Kingdom next door.
He could also go to the lawless and uncivilized zone in the south, where the territory of the former Demon Lord used to be located.
“Sir Hero Riel! Lanuvel has been here before! I remember there being a cliff ahead!”
“Trust me.”
After leaving the capital of the Dumpling Kingdom, Richel jumped off the cliff.
Lanuvel and Mercenary A followed without hesitation.
Was he giving up on his adventure and committing suicide?
No, I doubted it.
FSUH! FSHU!
A ship with huge sails appeared under the cliff.
The ship, carrying the Hero and the dummies on the deck, took off vertically into the heavens, ignoring gravity.
I knew of such vessels.
To be precise, I had been on one of those.
“On the ‘Flying Ship Laurita.'”
It was the inspiration for the hoverboat later created by Sage. However, the original and the copy were like a maglev train and a steam locomotive in terms of their differences in characteristics.
Laurita was a Relic belonging to the guardians of the northern continent of Fantasy.
I was curious what kind of “Relic” was displayed in Hero Richel’s status, but it turned out to be one of the “flying ships” that usually flew between the cities of angels like intercity buses.
▶ Additional information: Flying ships are vehicles designed for young angels who are inexperienced in flying.
‘Thank you for the detailed explanation, smart and beautiful Trainee Teacher!’
That aside…
“He’s cheating again.”
This might sound strange coming from someone who had consistently used spatial transportation magic circles since the 2nd round to avoid requests for salvation from the locals, but the flying ship, which looked like a private jet with vertical takeoff and landing, was too much of a fraud.
With it, Hero Richel would be able to get anywhere in the Fantasy World in a very short period without any restrictions.
▶ Problem: It doesn’t violate school rules. The student already owns it before he was summoned here.
“If so…”
After hearing Trainee Teacher assert that he didn’t break school rules, I spread my wings of the righteous hero and followed the vessel heading west at an extremely high speed.
They had gone past the Elf Kingdom and crossed the ridge separating the Central and Western Continents in the blink of an eye.
The Western Continent of the 4th curriculum was dark and cold due to the huge congestion of Lucifers, colossal flies that fed on light, covering its skies.
However, it was different in the 5th curriculum.
The food chain and environment weren’t destroyed because the Lucifers’ natural enemy, Zeuses, the gigantic mosquitoes, weren’t driven to extinction by the Phantom King Shakespeare.
As a consequence…
▶ Explanation: There has been a rapid development in electrical engineering. Zeuses, releasing electrical discharges, were used as generators.
It was as Miss Trainee said.
Locals had begun selling electrical appliances in this part of Fantasy.
I thought it would resemble Earth, but many strange inventions had appeared since they weren’t without magic.
Ui-ee-hik!
Br-r-r-r!
In the 4th curriculum, Lucifers dominated the skies of the Western Continent. Now, however, planes were flying all over the airspace.
Fantasy aircraft.
Naturally…
“Unregistered aircraft! If you don’t land immediately, we will open fire! I repeat! If you don’t land immediately, we will open fire!”
Radars and air traffic control were created and implemented as well.
Those might seem unnecessary measures to some due to the huge space the skies offered, but if even just one of those vehicles crashed into a city, it would cause enormous casualties and damages.
▶ Pride: The Western Continent made significant progress over the past two millennia thanks to cadet Kang Han Soo.
I learned about it from my demons and followers’ reports.
However, I didn’t know their airspace control had become this advanced.
“Don’t shoot! I’m a hero!”
“Regardless, you are wanted at the Central Continent! You must disarm and land immediately. If you refuse, we will be forced to open fire!”
“This is madness! it’s the same here as well…”
Soldiers quickly surrounded Richel’s flying ship using vehicles that looked like winged motorcycles.
Their uniforms were too bizarre for them to be called guardians or knights.
Moreover…
▷ Race: Vampire
▷ Level: 783
▷ Job: Celestial Lancer (Riding = Lance Mastery ↑)
▷ Skills: Riding S, Lance Mastery A, Keen Sight A, Flying B, Blood Drinking B…
▷ Status: Vigilant
More than half of them weren’t humans but vampires. For side characters, they had quite great stats.
“What should we do, Sir Hero?”
To Lanuvel’s question, Hero Richel answered firmly:
“Anyone who opposes the Hero in his journey to save the world is to be considered evil! Flying Ship Orgat! Switch to combat mode!”
BOOM BOOM BOOM!
Their vessel went into battle.
Dozens of shots rang out. Without any guidance, it automatically aimed and fired at the warriors surrounding them.
The Celestial Lancers of the Western Continent were no slouches, but the combat power of Orgat was far higher.
It lifted the enemy’s siege in just a few seconds.
“I also want one for myself.”
It was like a super robot!
I knew I had my wings of the righteous hero and the Snow Woman’s feathers for traveling, but I still wanted to take possession of his flying ship, which was why…
“Sir Hero! This is amazing— Huh?!”
I landed behind Mercenary A as she admired the vessel’s combat power, grabbed her by her slender neck between her 6th and 7th vertebrae, and threw her off the deck.
“Wow~”
Afterward, I targeted Lanuvel, who was watching the aerial battle while leaning against the railing.
She hadn’t yet noticed that Mercenary A had fallen overboard.
I crept behind her… and gave her a good kick in her ass.
“Kya?!”
Her upper body bent forward, and Lanuvel toppled over.
“I got rid of my stress~♪”
If Lanuvel used flight magic in time, she wouldn’t die.
I would really love to get rid of her on the spot, but I didn’t want to make Hero Richel’s life any easier, leaving me with no choice but to restrain myself.
I took comfort in the fact that her buttocks would hurt, and she wouldn’t be able to walk normally for quite a long time.
“Hey! How did you get here?”
My junior finally noticed me.
“With the help of my righteous heart~♬”
“What?”
Instead of answering, I tapped my foot lightly.
An invisible wave swept across the deck of the flying ship.
My goal…
[A warning! A warning! Intruder alert!]
[Intruder detected…]
[Welcome aboard, Captain.]
[Battle mode canceled.]
[Please set the course.]
I hacked into Richel’s flying ship and took ownership of it.
If he died and regressed, Orgat would reappear in his stats, but at least he wouldn’t be able to use it for this round.
“I’m sorry, but you need to leave my ship.”
“How dare you?!” Filled with anger, Richel shouted, pulling a sword from his belt and rushing at me.
The divine energy on his blade shone brightly.
It only made me laugh, however.
“What a pity.”
I thought he would be better because he had human blood in him, but he fought like the rest of the stupid chickens.
He blindly relied on divine reflection, leaving himself defenseless.
I decided to show him the MAX-Class Hero’s method of fighting.
Its main focus was setting the tone for the entirety of the fight.
Facial expression and eye movements were very important in executing it.
While in combat, I often used the “smile of the Righteous Hero,” which instilled confidence.
That made it easy.
“Ah!” Richel’s legs buckled, causing him to lose his balance and roll along the deck of the flying ship.
I didn’t do anything.
I just looked at him.
“What happened to you?”
My junior’s entire body was trembling like an aspen in the wind.
“W-who are you? How can a human exude so much wrath? How can one soul withstand madness that powerful and intense… It can’t be! This is absurd!”
“What nonsense are you talking about?”
I could only laugh in response to his cowardly excuses after suddenly losing his fighting spirit.
And human?
I was the Second Demon Lord.
A unique one at that, considering I still hadn’t lost my heart as the Righteous Hero.
“Go away! D-don’t come near me!”
“What? But I’ve never even moved from my spot yet.”
“Stay back! Go away!”
Richel didn’t listen to me at all.
While I did nothing but stand, he retreated so much his back hit the deck rail.
At that moment…
FSHUH!
As if committing suicide, he jumped off Flying Ship Orgat.
“It didn’t quite work out as I planned…”
I just put a little force into my gaze, and he already got so scared?
It looked like he was raised in an enclosed environment.
As his senior, not the Demon Lord, I was worried about how he’d be able to live independently.
“Ahem.”
At that moment, I heard a cough behind me.
They clearly weren’t planning on attacking me. Otherwise, they wouldn’t have made their presence known in such a peaceful manner.
Turning around, I saw a beautiful vampire and a man with his arms crossed over his chest.
They looked familiar.
However, since I was hiding my identity, I greeted them with the smile of the righteous Hero and pretended it was my first time meeting them.
“Greetings. I am Aristocrat A from the Central Continent. I have no ID with me, but I was chasing the criminal who killed the Elf Princess to get the bounty on his head.”
In response, they grinned and looked at each other.
“Haha! Great Hero, hiding your identity is useless. Even after two millennia, you’re still the only being in this world that can smile like that.”
“You’re the reason why we’ve become so happy. Isn’t that right, Shakespeare?”
“Ahem, that’s right.”
The strongest archmage and the epitome of beauty on the Western Continent.
They were like the perfect harmony of yin and yang, in which there were no flaws.
But I grew a little concerned.
“Looks like my trademark smile might be a problem.”
The last time I met the couple in front of me was 2,000 years ago…
