"Alright, but who are you?" Hero Eligion, sitting across from Agetha, jumped straight into the main topic and posed the question. By the way, we had already cleared the area while having breakfast, so only the four of us—me, Agetha, Hero Eligion, and Sage Nyau—were present to hear this important conversation.
"I'm the real hero," Agetha replied in a blunt manner. I was anxious, wondering if her disrespectful attitude would be considered rude to Hero Eligion.
"I thought I was the hero," he said.
"You're a fake hero created by an organization called Chaosism." Agetha explained. She went on to describe her own sealing with the Holy Sword Hagentia and how Hero Eligion, possessing that sword, gained the qualifications of a hero.
"Do you have any proof that you're the real hero?"
"I defeated the Demon Lord. I don't think I need any more reasons."
Agetha said this, and Hero Eligion pondered for a moment. After a few seconds, he spoke.
"Indeed, it seems I'm a fake hero."
"Do you believe our story?"
I never expected to be trusted so easily and blurted out that question instinctively.
"Well, yeah. When you think about it objectively, it seems I'm not a hero," Hero Eligion said while displaying his status screen.
"Look at what happened this morning."
The screen Hero Eligion showed us displayed his rank: Platinum. I recalled that Hero Eligion was ranked seventh among the Masters.
"Could it be that Agetha-san became a Master?"
"Yes, that's right. I'm currently at Master rank."
"I held the rank of Master because Agetha-san was sealed within the sword. Losing it means I've likely lost the qualifications of being a Master."
I see, so such things can be deduced from rank changes.
"Hero Agetha, I acknowledge that you are the true hero. However, there's one thing I can't understand. Why did you kill the Holy Knight Canaria?"
Hero Eligion's expression as he said this was stern. It was a question that had to be asked. Canaria was, after all, a favorite loyal subject to Hero Eligion, and the fact that she had been killed was likely something he couldn't accept.
"She was a traitor. She was scheming to revive the dead Demon Lord. That's why we couldn't afford to let her live."
"Do you have any evidence that she was a traitor?"
To Hero Eligion's question, Agetha looked at me while saying "Kiska."
"Let me show you that."
What she meant immediately became clear.
"This is a ring used to resurrect the dead Demon Lord, and Holy Knight Canaria had it."
Saying that, I took out the ring from my pocket.
"Indeed, it looks like a special ring at first glance, but there's also a possibility that the ring is just junk you guys prepared, right?"
Well, what Hero Eligion said is reasonable.
But I have one more piece of evidence to convince him that Holy Knight Canaria was a traitor.
"Hero Eligion-sama."
"Kiska-kun, I'm no longer a hero."
Certainly, that's true.
"Eligion-sama."
And so, I corrected myself. Since he is the first prince, this address should be the most appropriate.
"Do you know the term 'Luna Village'?"
As soon as I said that, Lord Eligion's body twitched.
"Holy Knight Canaria seems to be a survivor of Luna Village. Therefore, she harbored strong revenge against you, my lord."
"That's ridiculous…"
Lord Eligion stood up and slammed the table. Sage Nyau, who was sitting next to him, murmured worriedly, "Are you okay…?"
"Holy Knight Canaria, being an illegitimate child, was entrusted to Luna Village's parents at a young age. If we interrogate Canaria's parents, we might be able to corroborate this."
"In other words, she had a motive to betray me…"
Eligion sat back in his chair in a daze.
"I'll look into Holy Knight Canaria in my own way… Thank you for sharing your story with me."
"No, thank you for believing in our story."
"Oh, right. Hero Agetha, you defeated the Demon Lord, so you will receive a reward from His Majesty the King. Also, I would like you to participate in the triumphal ceremony held in the capital. After all, the main character of the triumphal ceremony is you, the hero. So, would you come to the capital?"
Come to think of it, after defeating the Demon Lord, the hero's group was supposed to go to the capital and participate in the triumphal ceremony.
"No way. Too much trouble."
Agetha refused with those words.
"I don't like standing out too much. I even hate calling myself a hero. If you want, you can say that you defeated the Demon Lord."
"Indeed, it's not that simple…"
Eligion had a troubled expression.
"At the very least, you don't have to participate in the triumphal ceremony, but could you please come to the capital? I'd like to entertain you."
"I don't want to."
Well, it's quite something to casually refuse the request of the Crown Prince.
"Hey, Agetha. Wouldn't it be okay to go to the capital? If you go there, you might find various interesting things."
This morning, Agetha expressed a desire to go out and have fun. In that case, going to the capital for sightseeing might not be a bad idea.
"If Kiska says so, I'll do it."
"I'm glad you're in the mood for it. Well then, I'll arrange for a carriage again, so shall we go to the capital together?"
Saying that, Lord Eligion seemed ready to head somewhere. He had already finished his breakfast. It seemed like he intended to conclude the conversation.
"Eligion-sama, there's one more thing I'd like to tell you."
"Hmm? What is it?"
"In fact, our battle is not over yet."
The world is not yet saved from the threat of destruction. However, the specifics of what will happen are still unknown. All I could do was convey a sense of caution. Even so, Eligion nodded and said, "I'll keep that in mind."