CH.736 The Hero in the Past
“Question.” Wilma spoke up. “How did you know the All-Mighty did nothing? Maybe he had a more subtle plan? I know the Goddess and the other Gods said that he didn’t do anything, but isn’t there a chance?”
“Two things. One is a spoiler, so not telling. But Laura learned how to read System information without being noticed.” I answered. “So she began following communications between the System Agents. Messages related to the All-Mighty's continent.”
“And that is how you learned that Hajime was declared an Enemy of the World.” She concluded.
“Yeah. And when the Hero summoning would happen, and where the Hero would appear.” I told her. “The All-Mighty had his reasons to do what he did, but again, spoilers. And I’m not the biggest fan of his reasoning, even if they make sense from his point of view. But he was just one Ultimate System Support, so he lacked the other viewpoints the other Gods have, having multiple viewpoints. So he fixated on the idea he had with no one to snap him out of it.”
“... tunnel vision. Doesn’t sound so Godly.” Unika noted.
“Remember that these Gods are just highly advanced System Supports.” I reminded her. “Think about it this way. Would Oku do better? Could he stay objective?” I asked. “Retorical question, by the way. The All-Mighty made his decision based on what his holder experienced while he was alive and his personal experience while being a god. And not like it wouldn’t have worked, it is just… ”
“What was his plan?” Alice asked. “What did he go through?”
“Spoilers. Stay tuned to find out.” I teased.
Considering how grandiose it sounds, the Hero summoning wasn’t all that flashy. At least to anyone in this world. I don’t know all that happened in the background, but what I do know is this.
The other three System Gods, The Lord of All, The Great God and The Divine Lord sent a help request into … somewhere. Some sort of realm of the Gods. And no, I don’t mean the System Gods, but actual Gods that can traverse through the multiverse.
It would have been really cool to see how those Gods would respond to a call like that, but sadly, I couldn’t do it. But I did manage to be there when the Hero was summoned.
Well, one part of me was there. I still wanted to keep an eye on Hajime as well. Luckily during my time here, I’d learnt how to use Soul Magic to make duplicates of my soul, so I could be in multiple places at the same time. And I mean I could also duplicate myself with time travel, so it really isn’t even all that new. But with Soul Magic, I was aware of what each copy of myself did.
And thanks to my race and unique-racial skill, each of the ‘me’s could make themselves a unique body. And thanks to Laura, each of us were linked so we could all use all of my skills. Including abilities given to me by Pack Opener.
So I watched as the Hero appeared. It came with no warning, no flashiness, not even a mana pulse or anything. He wasn’t there and then he was.
Naturally the first thing I did was Appraise the man.
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And I learned something I would be destined to forget. The Hero’s name. Luckily, while I might forget, The Memory Palace never will.
“... wow. We know the Hero’s name.” Cailie muttered.
“Yeah. Pretty cool, right?” I asked.
“You already knew?” Lua asked. "Did you even forget it?"
“Checked it as soon as the world forgot it. Had to make sure the Memory Palace would remember it, and it did. And now, I never forgot it, but confirmation. And that’s a spoiler. I'm giving you too many of them.”
“This place is too powerful.” Alice complained, but it was clearly a joke.
“... should we, you know, tell people about it?” Unika asked.
“I plan to, yeah.” I answered. “Make a movie or tv series out of the Hero’s adventurers. Sure most won’t accept his name, but that is not our fault.”
I was honestly afraid for the Hero. He wasn’t all that strong. Like yeah, level 80 is nice and all, but nothing compared to Hajime. Even though he had deteriorated even more, he was still level 408 when the System was removed from him.
Now, I was a little surprised the Hero didn’t have his System Support. I knew he didn’t, as he doesn’t have it when he meets me, but still. I suppose it is the incompetence of the All-Mighty or something. Maybe the other Gods had to go through some hoops to give it to him, since he is not on their continents.
Anyway. I had to prepare for my part of this entire operation. I had already altered the body of one of my copies to be the demon that would meet him, I just had to set up a nice little stall where I’m ‘selling’ random things. Then I’ll just make it so that only the Hero can see it. Yes, I can do that with Space Magic.
My form took a lot after the Goddess. In terms of facial structure and hair length. No, I didn’t have rainbow hair. I could do it, but I have to focus to keep something like that active. Instead, I just went with white hair.
I had two pairs of wings on my back, one was made with Draconic Body while the other was with Demonic Might, giving both of them a different texture. Both were dark red in color,with the membrane being a lighter red. It just contrasted nicely with white hair so I went with it.
I wore a succubus outfit I purchased from the demon world, just to stay on brand. I also had a whip attached to a belt I added to my outfit, just to show that I was armed.
The stuff I sold were random things from the demon world. Just simple handmade stuff I traded some miasma stones for and nothing that would change the timeline in case the Hero purchased it.
Soon enough, the Hero found this small town and while walking through it, he focused his eyes on my stall. I mean, he would. It is quite different from the few others.
“Excuse me.” He spoke up as he approached. “I have a few questions. Would you be willing to answer?”
I had been facing the table, turning pages on an empty book I had ‘on sale’, but I closed it and looked up at the Hero, looking directly into his black eyes. They weren’t actually black, just really dark brown, but I can understand why people would describe them as black.
The Hero looked to be about 19 years old. Maybe a bit older. Him being Japanese might be throwing me off. He had an alright build, but compared to people in this world, who are often built like absolute tanks, he was quite lean.
“Oh? You can actually see me? That is surprising.” I greeted him. I had made my voice seductive but very confident, hopefully fitting a succubus who had outgrown the need to tempt people. “New in town? Are you just passing through?”
“...” It took the Hero a bit to answer, seemingly taken back by my words. But soon enough, he gathered himself and answered. “New in here, yes. May I ask you something?”
“That already is a question, but go ahead. Though remember that I may choose not to answer.” I answered. I loved using that line, so I had to use it on the Hero.
“I don’t mean to be insensitive, but you are a demon, correct?”
“Sure am.” I answered casually, picking up a miasma coin I had set on the table. I flipped it into the air, catching it in my hand and ‘ate’ the coin. In truth, I just placed it in my mouth, then into Storage, replacing it with a snack from Storage.
“... and do all demons eat money?” The Hero asked.
“Money? No. That was solidified miasma. And demons do eat it.” I answered.
“... I see. … But isn’t the demon lord, you know, terrorizing the people? How do they let a demon just live here?”
“Oh, I don’t live here.” I said. “I’m like you, new in town. I needed a place to rest for a day before I run further.”
“Run? Run from whom?”
“Do you need to ask?”
“... is he that bad? Would he attack his own?”
“The demon lord is no demon.” I told him. “Not physically. A cambion at best, that demon, elf, human mix is the worst.”
“So he isn’t a demon?”
“No. Far from it. Born a human, but with aspirations of greatness or something. I really don’t know. He turned himself into an Elf, but even that wasn’t enough. So he mixed in some demon.”
“... did you … you know, work for him?” The Hero asked.
“No. But I knew him. I’ve known him for over 40 years. I’ve kept an eye on him. I thought about stopping him, but I can’t. If I did … it wouldn’t end well. So I escaped. Took a few things with me and ran.”
“I see. … Why tell me all of this?”
“Because you can see me.” I answered. “There is a barrier around me. Only those strong enough, or with enough potential, can see me. And I’ve been looking for someone like that. So, a mysterious stranger. Do you consider yourself a hero? Someone who can defeat the Demon Lord?”
“... It is what I was … What I was asked to do.” The Hero answered. “... I died. And was brought back to be a Hero.”
“... I hope you passed peacefully. And I am glad you are here. Dying cannot be fun. Even if I’ve never personally experienced it, I know some who have.”
“I see… May I see that book you are holding?” He requested.
“Oh this? It is no book. Just an empty notebook. Planned to use it as a diary, but my penmanship is quite terrible.”
“Perhaps I should keep one…” The Hero said. “How much?”
“I … I won’t charge you.” I answered. “As long as you answer this one question. Do you really think you can stop him? The Demon Lord?”
“I will die trying.” Kanata declared.
“... I see. A second question. You didn’t die here, did you? In this world. You came from another world.”
“... You have been honest, so I shall as well. Yes, I did.” Kanata answered.
“I thought so. Your hair. Eyes. Aura. Everything. For those who know, it is obvious.”
“... you are as well, aren’t you?” He asked. “But not like me. You never died. Then how?”
“The Demon Lord’s actions are ripping this world apart. I fell through a crack. And without the protection of the System, I became this.” I spread my arms and wings as I said that. “I was one of the lucky ones. The others died or were turned into monsters that still serve the Demon Lord. They have no choice.”
“... and you can’t even oppose him.”
“No. But you can. So let me say something I’ve wanted to say for a long time. Since I stole this piece from the Demon Lord’s treasury.” I said, my voice rising from the excitement. “It is dangerous to go alone, Take This!” As I said that, I bought the Holy Sword out of Storage, holding it in my hands.
The sword reflected the sunlight of the near midday sun, and the Hero carefully reached his hand out. I let him take a hold of it, before releasing it from my grip, digging ‘under my table’ for a scabbard. Which naturally was in Storage, but it looks better this way.
While doing so, I also got Ibu’s coin maker from Storage, and as I came back up, Kanata had finished observing the sword.
“A sword needs a scabbard, right?” I asked, as I handed it to him. “... also, I hate to ask more, but there is one more thing. One more request.”
“Anything. It can’t be more difficult than killing the Demon Lord.” Kanata said.
“This.” I lightly tapped the coin maker. “Can make those miasma candies I ate earlier. I want you to take it with you. And if you find a demon who could be a King for the demons. No, a God for the demons. Give it to them.”
“Why can’t you?” Kanata asked. “You seem like you could do it.”
“Sorry, but I can’t. You know why. Even as I am, I am still under the influence of the Demon Lord. If he gets his hands on me …”
“I see. I understand. I shall do my best.”
“I know you will. Please. Save the world.”
“I will.” Kanata said, taking the coin maker and placing it into his Inventory. He did the same with the Holy Sword and his new journal.
He took a few steps, seemingly on his way when he turned around and said one last thing.
“My name is Kanata Otehon.” He introduced himself. “What is yours?”
“...” Admittedly, I had a ‘demon name’ ready to go, but I wasn’t quite sure what human name I should use. Luckily I can think a ton in just a second, so I didn’t suffer any awkward silence while thinking about it. In the end, I went with something that would somewhat work with my chosen demon name.
“Anastasia. Anastasia Bayer. But in this world, I go by Aspirin.”
“Aspirin? Like the medicine?” Kanata asked.
“Don’t ask me why demons name themselves after medicine. I just know they do.” I answered. “I picked it as I remembered it, and it is similar to my old name.”
“I see. Anastasia. I won’t forget you. I hope we meet again.” Kanata said.
“And I won’t forget you, Kanata Otehon. Even if the whole world does, for me, you are always the Hero who promised to Save the World.”
As Kanata walked away, I turned myself invisible and quickly took everything back into Storage. So when he turned to look at me again, I was just gone.
That led to him taking the sword out of his Inventory and looking at it.
“A pride of a demon who can’t oppose her lord. That is what brought this sword to me.” He said, and based on his mana use, he Appraised the sword while at it. “Demon’s Pride and Fall. That shall be your name. Anastasia’s Pride brought you to me, and because of it, the Demon Lord shall Fall.”