I shouted in shock.
‘…! Wh-Who are you?’
[You’re trying to cut Iori through the barrier of mana, aren’t you?]
‘Could it be…’
[But if you want to do that, you should bend your knees a little more. Watch carefully. With your current stance, you can’t deal a critical blow.]
…
Ah.
That’s right.
I need to bend my knees just a bit more. About three centimeters.
[Just two centimeters. Any lower and you’ll lose power.]‘You understand a technique you’re seeing for the first time better than I do. As expected of you, Lady Lepia, the embodiment of the sword.’
[Fufufu. I don’t like that nickname. It’s too embarrassing.]
‘It actually fits well in this situation. I don’t like being called the “Sword master of No Killing” either.’
But don’t.
Don’t say that while using my body. I swear I’ll die.
“I loved you.”
I said don’t, dammit!
Lepia spoke.
“Why didn’t you say that when we were together?”
“Because I was unworthy.”
“One of the Empire’s great nobles, unworthy? I was a commoner.”
“A Hero is someone far beyond commoners or nobles. That’s why… I tried so hard. So I could be worthy when I confessed to you.”
“…”
“I believed that if I killed the Demon King of Greed, I’d finally be worthy. So I planned to confess afterward…”
“But you couldn’t. You made a noble sacrifice.”
“I saved you, Lady Repia, so I don’t regret it. But not being able to convey my feelings—I’ve always regretted that.”
Lepia used my facial muscles to make a sorrowful expression.
Do you really have to do that too?
Just give me my body back already.
“Can I hear your answer?”
“Uh, um… the owner of this body is desperately resisting.”
“What?”
“He says he can’t allow that kind of thing using his body.”
“What a crazy, arrogant brat.”
“Fufufu. He’s a fellow Hero. Don’t say that.”
At that, Iori suddenly became meek.
“My apologies. He is indeed a Hero.”
Seriously, doesn’t your entire personality change depending on who you’re talking to?
Lepia’s playful voice echoed in my mind.
Since she’s speaking through my soul, it must be audible only to me.
[Iori’s always been like that. That arrogant attitude toward commoners—I always hoped he’d change. But when it comes to someone he sees as more noble than himself, he gives absolute respect, loyalty… and love.]
‘Can you maybe skip the love part? At least for now?’
[Fufufu. Got it. It’s time to wrap this up anyway.]
She spoke again using my voice.
“Then let’s go back, Iori Otix.”
“Wait…”
“I’ll give you my answer in the World of Nothingness. Our comrades are there too.”
“…”
“And stop calling Ort a ‘pig bastard’. If you say that over there, he’ll get mad.”
“He’s just so out of shape… No, I understand. I’ll stop.”
Lepia nodded in satisfaction.
“Before you go, return the lifespan you took from the villagers. You can still convert mana into lifespan, right?”
“I shall obey your command.”
“Good. Head on first. I’ll follow after speaking with these people.”
“Yes. I’ll wait, my Hero.”
In the next moment,
Tivre’s body faltered.
And he collapsed endlessly to the ground.
“Flying.”
Thankfully, Neril cast a spell, preventing him from splattering on impact.
“That bastard really sees people he doesn’t acknowledge as less than bugs.”
“…”
“And I used to admire someone like that… what a waste of my life.”
“…”
“Why are you looking at me like that?”
Well.
You kind of have a bit of that in you too.
—
Once Iori returned their lifespans and Xenia healed them again, the domain was filled with vitality.
Lepia gave me back my body.
I climbed atop Agril and declared in a loud voice.
Neril amplified it magically so it echoed throughout the entire territory.
“Everyone! Please, do not worry any longer. The nightmare is over.”
“…!”
“The ghost incidents in this domain were all caused by a remnant of the past—not Mariana Ayn.”
“Ahh…”
“In fact, she pleaded with me to protect all of you. She asked me, Mide Mohan!”
An enormous cheer erupted.
“Uwooooah!”
“Waaah. Lady Mariana, I’m sorry I doubted you!”
“Mide, Mide Mohan!”
“The legendary Hero!”
“Thank you so much. Really, thank you for saving my daughter!”
“Over here! Please wave your hand this way too!”
I kept waving until their excitement died down.
But as it didn’t seem like they’d calm down anytime soon, I had no choice but to make an exit.
Xenia sent Agril away and muttered,
“She says not to call her for a week. What do we do?”
“Give her meat.”
“Meat doesn’t fix everything! Neril, was that sarcasm just now?”
“Yup.”
“Wow. She just said yup with that refreshing smile…”
Anyway, we all headed back to Mariana’s house.
There, a mother and child were anxiously pacing in front.
Mariana, looking far more lively and healthy than before, cried out:
“Ah! You’re safe.”
“Mariana.”
“I’m… I’m so relieved.”
She wiped away the tears welling in her eyes.
Adwin stepped out from behind Mariana and spoke.
“As expected of the reincarnation of Hirahan and a child of the Crimson Moon. I was going to watch a little longer before stepping in, but I see it would’ve been unnecessary meddling.”
“Hirahan? Crimson Moon? If they were beings of the other side, there’s no way I wouldn’t know them.”
“Uh… well, I just made those names up.”
Xenia took some time to return Adwin to normal.
Meanwhile, we entered the house and sat down at the dining table.
I asked Mariana,
“What exactly happened?”
“My son, Adwin, did it.”
She looked at Adwin with a face full of pride and affection.
“He discovered a fusion of souls I didn’t even know about—and then managed to separate them.”
“Ahem. I-it was nothing, really.”
“Oh, come on. If you say it was nothing, it just makes me look pathetic.”
“Mother…”
“As I said, you’re far more gifted than I am. From now on, stand tall and be confident.”
“Yes!”
“…But don’t let it go to your head, alright? You know what I mean.”
Adwin looked slightly gloomy and bowed his head.
At that moment, I heard Lepia’s voice.
[That boy has a remarkable talent for necromancy. Could you ask that lady if I can borrow his body for a moment?]
‘Huh? Why not just speak through my mouth?’
[It’s uncomfortable. It feels like there’s another soul inside you.]
…
She must mean Trail.
Now that I think about it, he’s been awfully quiet for a while.
‘Adwin said something similar too.’
[He’s an exceptional necromancer, so he probably sensed it more precisely than I did. I just sense there’s another soul besides yours.]
‘Who… could it be?’
The moment I asked, I regretted it.
This was a question I should’ve directed to Trail himself and received an answer directly from him.
Fortunately, Lepia seemed unaware.
[Well, I wouldn’t know either. I thought you knew.]
‘Hmm, I don’t. Anyway, let’s ask Adwin.’
I told Adwin that Lepia wanted to borrow his body.
Mariana immediately objected.
She instinctively didn’t want to allow her son’s body to be used by a being that had once fused with her soul.
But Adwin calmly reassured his mother.
“It’s alright, Mother.”
“But—”
“As I said, she’s the second-generation Hero. There’s no way someone like that would be evil. And I’m sure the soul fusion wasn’t something she chose.”
“…”
“We need to find out what’s going on. And I’m the only one here suitable for spirit possession.”
Except for when he gets a little weird, that kid has an above-average character.
In the end, Mariana gave her permission.
Soon after, Adwin began to chant something.
On the back of his arms, runes and symbols briefly flashed and then vanished.
Just as Tivre had said, it looked like he had made the incantations invisible beforehand.
A short while later—
Adwin—no, Lepia—opened her mouth.
“Hello, everyone. I’m Lepia Odgar.”
“Second-generation Hero.”
“Yes. I had hoped there would be no more Demon King descents. I wanted my generation to be the last…”
She glanced at me.
“Unfortunately, we’re already up to the fifth generation, huh.”
That statement, which clearly acknowledged me as a Hero, made Neril and Xenia smile even more brightly than I did.
I was used to shamelessly accepting praise from others, but getting acknowledged by an actual Hero… made my face heat up.
I did something unlike myself—acted modest.
“Ahem. The oracle hasn’t come down yet, though. Calling me a Hero seems premature.”
“You were going around calling Iori a Hero multiple times though.”
“Well, in front of my senior, I should be a little humble.”
“Hehe. The oracle will come soon enough. …Though, now that I think about it, the Demon King has already descended. So why hasn’t the oracle come yet?”
Everyone’s faces changed at that last comment.
It was probably because of what Lepia had added—‘the Demon King has already descended.’
Xenia asked with a trembling voice,
“What… do you mean by that?”
“Since I’m borrowing a necromancer’s mouth, let’s say I’m speaking from the underworld. While there, I heard a certain voice.”
“A voice?”
“The voice called itself as the Demon King of Lies and Deception—Idria. It said it was showing me respect since I was the Hero who fought the Demon King of Greed.”
“…”
“He told me he wanted to borrow my soul for a bit. And then—he literally took me.”
Her tone was calm, but the impact wasn’t.
Especially for Neril and Xenia, who both turned to me at once and said,
“Idria—that’s the name the Martial King and Mariana encountered!”
“The Demon King of Lies and Deception… and she’s already descended?”
I felt sorry, but I couldn’t quite share in their shock.
Partly because I already knew…
But also because my mind was fixated on a different point.
‘This is strange. Can a Demon King really interfere with the underworld?’
Necromancers can open the gates to the underworld and summon spirits, but that’s done by politely asking for their cooperation—not by forcefully taking them.
Lepia’s soul, especially, should be in a completely different league from ordinary spirits.
That’s when I finally heard Trail’s voice again, after a long silence.
[Idria is in a whole different league from the Demon Kings of the past.]
‘Where have you been?’
[That weird woman was clinging to you. It was uncomfortable. That Hero was annoying. Don’t ever let her in my body again.]
‘My body, you mean. Not yours.’
Trail ignored my protest and continued.
[Anyway, Idria is just too powerful. Probably because the world is overflowing with lies.]
‘Huh? I feel like you mentioned something like that before.’
[Yeah. A Demon King descends when a particular negative force in the world becomes overwhelmingly strong. For example, the Demon King of Desolation appeared during an unprecedented famine.]
‘Hmm. And during the era of the Demon King of Destruction, there was a massive war.’
[Exactly. And in this era, lies are everywhere. Far more than in the times of Destruction, Greed, Corruption, or Desolation.]
Trail clicked his tongue once and added,
[So Idria is especially powerful. Don’t make the mistake of comparing her to past Demon Kings.]
Read advance chapter on Patreon. Click here.