After Ten Millennia in Hell

Chapter 339 - Hero Maker (2)

The others stared at him in confusion at how he had said something completely absurd so confidently.

“What... do you mean, hyung-nim?”

“Think about it, Si-Hun. If it were up to you, who would you give the title of the continent’s savior to?”

“Well...”

Kim Si-Hun fell into thought for a moment. A savior of a continent frequently appeared in novels, cartoons and films, so it was not difficult to conjure up an image in his head.

“I guess it would be... someone chosen by a god... who confronts great evil... and protects the people?” Si-Hun answered.

“Right?”

“Oh.”

Si-Hun’s eyes widened. He came to realize why Kang-Woo, who was smiling joyfully, had said something like that.

“Si-Hun, you’re...”

He had been chosen by Gaia, was confronting a great evil known as the Demon of Prophecy, and had protected countless people.

“The perfect fit for a hero from another world.”

“W-Wait!!” Si-Hun shouted in bewilderment. He understood Kang-Woo’s point, but... “Th-The same could be said for you, hyung-nim!”

Kang-Woo had also been chosen by Gaia and was fighting against great evil. No, considering Kang-Woo’s accomplishments, Si-Hun could not even hold a candle to him.

“No, it can’t be me.” Kang-Woo shook his head without hesitation.

If one just looked at the conditions of being a savior, there was no one more fit for the position than Kang-Woo. However...

‘I can’t be the hero.’

He had something else to do— something very special that he could not tell his other party members.

‘And...’

Kang-Woo narrowed his eyes. High elves apparently possessed the ability to locate the Demon God’s corpse, and Holy Sword Ludwig, which had been blessed by them, used to have the ability to locate the Demonic Sea.

‘It’s too dangerous for me to be the savior.’

Worst-case scenario, his identity would be exposed. There was no need to risk the breakdown of trust that he had built ever since before he had become the Protector of Light.

“But why? No matter how I think about it, you’re far better suited for—”

“Because you’re the master of the Holy Sword Ludwig.”

Kang-Woo could not tell Si-Hun the true reason why he could not be the savior; he needed a good excuse.

“Although it had been broken back when Ludwig had been corrupted, that sword used to be imbued with the blessing of the high elves. If a high elf will appear before a savior, wouldn’t it be natural that they would appear before the master of the holy sword?”

Si-Hun bit his lip.

Kang-Woo’s logic was hard to refute. It certainly was better for Si-Hun, the master of the Holy Sword Ludwig, to become the savior.

“I vote for Si-Hun too,” Cha Yeon-Joo expressed.

“Yeon-Joo?” said Si-Hun.

“First off, your looks are on completely different levels. Kang-Woo is... Well... What’s the best way to describe it?” She put her hand on her forehead and searched for the right expression, and then clapped her hands together. “Oh. He kinda looks like trash.”

“Excuse me?”

‘Trash?’

Kang-Woo glared at Yeon-Joo.

Yeon-Joo clarified while snickering, “No, I’m not saying you’re ugly. How should I say this? You look like you have a bad personality... It’s your eyes.”

“I’d say the same thing about you,” Kang-Woo rebutted.

Yeon-Joo also did not look like a very nice person.

“Whatever the case, it’s true that Si-Hun looks the part more, isn’t it?” said Yeon-Joo.

“Urgh.” Kang-Woo nodded while groaning.

Although he did not want to admit it, it was an undeniable fact that Si-Hun visually looked far more like a hero than Kang-Woo did.

‘Are my eyes that sharp?’

Kang-Woo unconsciously touched his eyes. Han Seol-Ah, who had been sitting next to him, grabbed his hand.

“Fufu, don’t worry,” Seol-Ah said with a smile. “There’s no one in the universe that looks tastier than you.”

“Ahem. Thanks, darl—”

‘Hm? Tastier?’

“My, I’m sorry. I misspoke.” Hohoho. Seol-Ah giggled.

Kang-Woo stared at Seol-Ah in confusion, and then turned back to Si-Hun.

“Anyway, you get it now, right?”

“Mm. Even if I take the visual aspect as a joke... I guess I can’t argue with the holy sword aspect.” Si-Hun, who had been in thought, nodded. “So what do you have in mind specifically?”

Making a savior was easier than looking for one who knows where, but it was still difficult in the absolute sense.

“I’ve thought of something,” Kang-Woo responded.

A specific scene had popped up in his head the moment that he had first thought of the plan.

Kang-Woo stared at Si-Hun and asked, “Si-Hun, you said that Princess Iris would be passing somewhere around here, right?”

He recalled the piece of information that Si-Hun had given him a while ago.

“Oh, yes. That’s right,” Si-Hun replied.

“Let’s tail her.”

“Tail... the princess?”

“You know that the empire isn’t in the best state right now, right? If the political situation is this unstable, people are bound to harbor grudges for the people in leadership. You never know, Princess Iris might get attacked by a rebel army.”

Actually, Kang-Woo did know; she would most definitely be attacked.

‘Because I’ll make it so.’

Kang-Woo’s eyes shone sharply.

‘A hero will appear within the crisis!’

It was the perfect first step for a hero that would save the continent.

“Hahaha. I doubt a rebel army would appear out of nowhere like that, hyung-nim.”

“Well, I was half-joking. I had another objective in mind.”

“Another objective?”

“To become a hero praised by the entire continent, you need a dependable backer. Whether you kill an evil demon or wipe out a horde of monsters attacking a town, it’s pointless if no one knows about it.”

“That’s...”

It was true. No matter how many hero-like things one did, they would never become a hero if their accomplishments were not spread across the land.

“Are you suggesting we establish a connection with the imperial family?” Si-Hun asked.

“Yeah.” Kang-Woo nodded. “Of course, we won’t be able to form a connection with her just by tailing her. Our objective this time is to gather as much information about Princess Iris as possible, and then find a way to establish that connection.”

“I see.”

Si-Hun nodded. It was certainly not a bad idea. One needed reliable backings to become a hero, and there was no one more reliable than a member of the imperial family.

“And the imperial family is apparently blessed by the high elves as well, so it would be a good idea to form a good relationship with them,” Si-Hun mentioned, recalling what Douglas had said earlier.

Kang-Woo smiled and put his hand on Si-Hun’s shoulder.

“I’m counting on you, man. I know you can do it.”

“Hyung-nim...”

Si-Hun looked at Kang-Woo with trembling eyes; he could feel the deep trust in his voice.

‘Hyung-nim has put his trust in me.’

He could not think of anything besides needing to succeed, no matter what it took.

Kang-Woo patted Si-Hun’s shoulder and responded, “Don’t worry. We’ll support you as best we can.”

He already had experience making someone a hero. He was confident that he could do it even better this time.

“Have you heard when Princess Iris would be crossing through this area?” Kang-Woo asked.

“I heard it was about a week from now.”

“Alright.”

Kang-Woo nodded in satisfaction.

‘A week, huh?’

It was more than enough time to prepare.

***

A week flew by in an instant. Each party member spent that time getting accustomed to Aernor in their own way.

‘Well, it was more like enjoying leisure.’

Kang-Woo had taken his party members to various cities and towns to purchase clothes that didn’t make them stand out, and just walked around the streets to sightsee.

After a week’s time, they had come to find out that Velen had been one of the better cities in the Arnan Empire to live in. As for the other cities, eighty percent of its territory had been turned into slums. The streets were filled with women selling their bodies, and collapsed labor workers that were nothing but skin and bones.

‘It’s terrible.’

It was so bad to the point that Kang-Woo almost had no idea how the empire was still running.

“Hyung-nim.”

Si-Hun bit his lip from seeing the atrocity. Even Kang-Woo was frowning at the sight, so there was no question about how Si-Hun would be feeling about it.

“Don’t pay it much mind, Si-Hun,” Kang-Woo stated.

“But...”

Si-Hun stared at the slum pitifully. Kang-Woo clicked his tongue.

‘There\'s no way he’d listen to me even if I tell him that it’s none of his business.’

Considering Si-Hun’s personality, that would only make him more passionate.

“You’ll be able to change it once you become the hero.”

“Will I?”

“People will gain hope. So, don’t worry about them and focus on what you have to do.”

Kang-Woo’s words were not completely groundless. The process of making Si-Hun a hero also included changing the corrupt empire.

‘There’s a bit of a problem, though.’

Kang-Woo would only be able to come up with a detailed plan after meeting Princess Iris in person.

“Now, let’s get going.” Kang-Woo turned around, his back toward the slum.

He had found Princess Iris’s current location through Lilith; she was passing through a narrow canyon before arriving in this city.

‘And in that canyon...’

Princess Iris would be attacked by the Undead army prepared by Vernaak.

‘As for the setting, let’s go with a black mage having joined forces with the rebel army to cause a rebellion.’

The only thing that mattered was to put Princess Iris in danger, and for Si-Hun to come and save her.

Kang-Woo looked toward Vernaak and whispered, “Is everything ready?”

“Yes, my king. The Undead are in place and will attack the princess at your signal.”

“Good.”

The plan was perfect. All that was left was to give the signal at the right time.

“Let’s move.”

Kang-Woo and the party left the city in advance; to appear at the perfect timing, they needed to go toward the canyon early.

“But hyung-nim, is there really a need for us to go to the princess? It might cause problems if we’re discovered.”

Si-Hun, who had no idea about the plan to put Princess Iris in danger using an Undead horde, tilted his head in confusion.

“Well...”

While Kang-Woo was trying to think of a suitable excuse, Lilith’s voice suddenly echoed in his head.

- My king, Princess Iris is getting attacked.

- What? I haven’t given the signal yet. Did they happen to find one of the Undead in hiding?

- No, it’s not that... Lilith continued in slight bewilderment. - It’s not the Undead that we’ve hidden. Humans in masks... are attacking the princess.

“What?” Kang-Woo said out loud without realizing it.

- It seems to be an actual rebel army.

“...”

Kang-Woo chuckled at the absurdity.

‘An actual rebel army appeared?’

This hadn’t been in the Demon of Prophecy’s prophecy.