-Pull yourselves together, and don't you dare forget the gift for our Princess!
-As you command!
Before heading to the throne room, the goods were unloaded in the palace's vast courtyard. In the very center of the courtyard sat a large decorative fountain adorned with dolphin statues. At the center of the fountain, dull-looking dolphin figures stood back-to-back. As they passed through the arched gate of the palace — breathtaking in its marble craftsmanship — Yusha didn't expect the path leading to the main structure to look the way it did.
The stone blocks underfoot seemed to have been neglected for a long time. Soil had filled the cracks between the marble blocks, and in some places, thin green weeds pushed up through the gaps. As if that weren't enough, hundreds of flowers in different colors and heights lined both sides of the road, creating a natural harmony. As strange and unexpected as this path was, it was still not the kind one would associate with a palace. And yet, there was something exciting about it.
At the end of the road, the palace finally stood before them in all its weight.
They entered. As they moved through the corridors, the sound of their footsteps echoed off the walls. After a while, they stopped before the throne room. Three soldiers waited on each side of the door — the guards at the front were more heavily armored than those behind them. The old man said something to the guards, and the door opened.
Yusha saw the Emperor sitting on his throne — his face hidden behind a metal mask, his hands covered in black leather gloves. To the Emperor's immediate right stood the Princess. She had long silver hair and ice-blue eyes, and her beauty was as striking as that of an elf.
Upon seeing the Hero of the Sword before him, the Emperor fixed his gaze on Yusha and looked him over carefully.
The old man stepped forward, gave the Emperor a formal salute, and spoke.
"Your Majesty, I have completed the war preparations according to your command. On the road to the palace, we encountered the Hero of the Sword. He has graced us with his presence all the way to the palace."
Yusha took a step forward. He tried to give a salute similar to the one the old man had given. Then, with a steady voice, he spoke.
"I am pleased to meet you, Your Majesty. I am the Hero of the Sword — Mitsuki Yusha."
The Princess lunged forward in a rage. Fire was burning in those ice-blue eyes.
"Who do you think you are, speaking to His Majesty in such a manner!!"
Her voice grew even sharper.
"You arrogant, disrespectful brat — rudeness has its limits!! Did they teach you no manners in that village of yours, you monkey?!"
"Mariana!"
That single cold, harsh word rising from behind the metal mask was enough to silence her. After a brief pause, Princess Mariana had no choice but to step back to where she had been standing. She couldn't even bring herself to open her mouth again. The Emperor's presence was so heavy and oppressive that Yusha felt a chill run down his spine in a way he never had before.
(The Emperor slowly rose from his throne.)
(The Emperor spoke in a calm and friendly voice.)
—I am very grateful to you for coming into my presence.
—We need your help…
(Yusha interrupted the Emperor.)
—What kind of help could I possibly give you?
Mariana must have been so angry at this rudeness that the sound of her clenching her fist echoed briefly against the walls of the room.
(The Emperor kept talking without losing his calmness.)
—You carry six essences that were specially made by God. If you choose to do so, you can stop the ancient beasts that are waking up right now. Maybe you can even destroy what your great-ancestors could only stop. You can keep the people of this empire safe.
—I see, I see… So you want us to make a sacrifice — just a small sacrifice.
(Yusha knew exactly what the Emperor meant. He was saying: sacrifice your lives for my sake.)
(No matter the situation, Yusha wanted to help, but he could not give his life for an Emperor — a man he did not even know.)
—That is right. For this reason, I will give you a few days to think carefully. — Arakawa, take the Hero of the Sword to his room. — After that, come back to me. We have something to talk about.
[The old man bowed and said, "As you wish, Your Majesty."]
He told Yusha to follow him, and they left the Emperor's room. As they walked through the hallways, Yusha felt the place slowly change around him. Among the paintings, vases, wall carvings, and tall ceilings, Yusha felt quite small. After a few turns, they finally reached the part of the building where the guest rooms were.
(Arakawa pointed to the room at the very start of the hallway and spoke in a calm and friendly voice.)
—That room at the front is yours.
(Arakawa reached into his pocket, took out a small card, and held it out to Yusha.)
—You can use this card to get into your room. Here you go.
Yusha opened the door to his room. Right next to the entrance, there was a small bathroom. Inside, there was a small kitchen area, a fireplace, a folding table, and a wide bed that was the first thing you noticed when you walked in. He felt relaxed as soon as he stepped inside. Finally, he was alone with his thoughts.
—I hope I never cross paths with that grumpy girl again.
When Yusha thought about it, it wasn't very likely they would meet again anyway. He would change his path the moment he saw that annoying girl. Today had worn him out. With the tiredness of the day weighing on him, he threw himself onto the bed without a second thought. At that exact moment, a rustling sound and a yawn came from the bed, as if someone were already there. Yusha pulled back instantly. There really was someone in the bed. His heart started racing. Who was lying in his bed? The person moved again…
As the person in the bed — a girl — sat up, Yusha and the girl locked eyes.
—Aaaaaaaaaaa!!!!
—Aaaaaaaaaaa!!!!!
As soon as the girl saw Yusha, she scrambled to the other end of the bed in fear. Yusha, seeing the girl in front of him, ran straight toward the door.
—Who are you, and what are you doing in my room?
—I was going to ask you the same thing!
The screams in the room must have reached the hallway, as several voices could be heard outside the door. Then, Princess Mariana's angry voice rang out.
—What are you waiting for? Open this door!
(The door flew open with a sudden, violent kick.)
BAAAAMM!!
Upon seeing the girl huddled in fear on the bed, Princess Mariana threw a heavy punch at Yusha without any warning. As soon as the blow landed, Yusha collapsed where he stood. When he lost consciousness, a strange silence filled the room. No one had expected the Princess to go that far.
Ten minutes had passed since he fainted, and his consciousness was slowly coming back.
—He's waking up… I think he's waking up.
(Yusha's eyes were slowly opening.)
Yusha saw two faces hovering over him. One was that damn beautiful princess with her silver hair — just seeing her was enough to make him angry. The other was a girl with red hair and green eyes. Unlike the Princess, she seemed warmer and more sincere. She was still casting a healing spell on him. Yusha sat up. He shrugged his shoulders as if shaking off the grogginess, then leaned forward slightly.
—I apologize.
His voice was flat. There was neither regret nor anger in his tone. It was an apology made simply because it had to be said.
(Yusha walked right past Princess Mariana. He didn't even make eye contact. He didn't listen. He simply headed toward Arakawa, who stood behind the Princess.)
—Where is my room?
—Forgive me for mixing up the rooms. Your room must be the one right next door. I am truly sorry, please forgive me.
(Without saying a word, Yusha opened the door to the next room and stepped inside.)
Mariana could no longer stand this disrespect. She felt she had to speak with him, but Aide Arakawa stopped her.
—Don't go after him, my Princess. Perhaps we should leave him alone for today. Everything is still fresh. Wait for things to calm down. I am sure he will listen to you later.
Yusha finally made it to the room that had been assigned to him. As soon as he closed the door, he threw himself onto the bed — checking first, of course, to make sure no one else was already there. He lay on his back and stared at the ceiling. Just stared. His only thought was how things had managed to reach this point.
He couldn't make sense of it. Getting out of the dungeon, traveling to a different world, the way the people in the palace treated him… Everything he had gone through in a single day felt strange — completely absurd, even. He wrestled with his thoughts for a while longer, his tired eyes fixed on the ceiling. Eventually, he drifted off to sleep without even realizing it.
However, his sleep didn't last long. He woke up a while later feeling absolutely starving. His stomach was growling.
If I don't eat something soon, I'm going to die of hunger, he thought to himself.
Just as he was about to get out of bed, there was a knock at the door. He had a visitor.
(A gentle voice came from the other side of the door.)
—May I come in?
—Please, come in.
(The door opened.)
A strikingly beautiful girl with long red hair falling over her shoulders and bright green eyes stepped inside. [Yusha was angry at himself for not looking at this girl more carefully when he had walked into her room earlier.] Yusha sat up quickly. He recognized her face right away; to him, she was the true victim of today's events. He started to apologize for what had happened, but the red-haired girl simply shook her head. She said it didn't matter and that it was clearly just an accident. She had learned the truth — Aide Arakawa was an elderly man, and it was only natural for him to mix up the rooms, wasn't it? She spoke with a warm smile on her face.
(Seeing her smile, Yusha found himself grinning like an idiot as well.)
Yusha's eyes flickered for a moment to the food container in her hand.
(The girl politely held out the container.)
—I made a bit too much food and didn't want it to go to waste. So I set this portion aside for you.
A wide, silly grin spread across Yusha's face. He took the container from her hand and started eating without wasting a single second. The food was absolutely delicious. He ate quickly so it wouldn't get cold, taking bite after bite.
(He looked like a brown bear eating everything in sight before going into hibernation.)
The girl sat cross-legged in front of him, silently watching him eat.
[Her eyes were fixed on Yusha's face. She thought he was incredibly sweet — so handsome, so kind, so cute. Even the way he ate reminded her of a panda.]
(In reality, he was a total BROWN BEAR. I'm not kidding. A literal BROWN BEAR.)
She watched him eat with such eagerness, thinking he looked just like a child. After a while, the girl took a deep breath. She wanted to bring up what had really been on her mind about today's incident.
—I'm sorry. It was my fault. I shouldn't have reacted so suddenly.
Yusha stopped eating abruptly.
(Surprisingly, he actually can stop eating when he wants to.)
He chewed and swallowed the last bite, then looked her straight in the eyes.
—Didn't you just tell me that Aide Arakawa mixed up the rooms? So why are you blaming yourself now?
(The girl paused for a moment. Then a small, shy smile appeared on her lips.)
—Ah… that's right.
—Well… I suppose I shouldn't bother you any longer. If you'll excuse me.
She stood up gracefully and walked toward the door. Right at that moment, Yusha jumped up from where he was sitting and caught her by the wrist. His cheeks turned deep red. His heart was pounding as if it were about to leap out of his chest.
(He spoke with a trembling voice.)
—Wait… Please, wait.
The girl slowly turned back toward Yusha. Her cheeks were turning red too. (Because this idiot is already making his move on her.) On top of that, she couldn't say a single word and kept looking away. Yusha took a deep breath, gathered his courage, and spoke:
—Could you tell me your name? I'd like to call you by it.
His heart was already beating fast, and now it beat even faster — but he wasn't the only one going through this.
(The girl answered in a shy tone.)
—Yui Miya.
Then she spoke in a soft, quiet voice.
—A… And what is your name…
(Before Miya could even finish asking, Yusha answered.)
Yusha laughed lightly without meaning to, a small smirk settling on his face. While Miya was so nervous she could barely get the words out, Yusha was teasing her.
—Mitsuki Yusha, he said, still smiling.
—Oh, I see. Nice to meet you, Mitsuki.
The moment Yusha heard that, his smile disappeared. He wanted to be called by his name, Yusha — not Mitsuki!
Finally, Miya quickly pulled her hand away and hurried out of the room. Yusha thought he might have gone a bit too far, but he didn't dare go after her.
As for Miya, she barely made it back to her room, her heart still racing wildly. He was incredibly attractive. Even his laugh made her heart beat like crazy. Thank God she had hidden her face at the last second and managed to escape to her room with an excuse. If he had seen her face, she would have died of embarrassment — she had turned as red as a tomato. Thank goodness she had escaped.
Time felt like it had stopped. He was completely bored. He walked back and forth in the room, occasionally stopping just to stand there. No matter how hard he tried to distract himself, he always came back to the same conclusion: "DAMN IT, THE ROOM WAS EMPTY; THERE WASN'T A SINGLE THING TO DO." Yusha stopped for a moment, his brows pulling together in frustration. How could he have possibly forgotten to thank Miya?!
(He was a total ox.)
Going to her door now just to say thank you would seem both stupid and fake, especially since two hours had already passed.
(Anyway, I'll do it the next time we meet, he thought to himself.)
(Yusha was dying to talk to Miya again, but he really needed to choose the right moment; otherwise, everything would be misunderstood.)
To clear his head and test the sword he had found in the dungeon, he decided to leave the palace. Grabbing his blade, he stepped out of his room. Walking through the long corridors, he came across demi-human servants. They couldn't take their eyes off him — he was incredibly handsome — but these stares made Yusha feel deeply uncomfortable. He quickened his pace. Eventually, he made it outside and headed for the forest stretching behind the palace. He tried different movements and said different words to wake the sword's powers, but nothing worked. However, this stubborn man had no intention of giving up. So he kept repeating the same movements over and over again until the sun began to set. He didn't want to feel like a worthless piece of shit. He was a hero, after all, and he needed a secret weapon.
As the sun neared the horizon, a desperate cry for help came from deep within the forest. The moment Yusha heard it, he ran into the woods without a second thought, sprinting toward the sound. He pushed branches out of his way while carefully watching his steps to avoid tripping over the roots on the ground. The forest grew thicker and thicker, yet Yusha kept going at full speed without slowing down.
A few minutes later, a clearing appeared through the trees. When Yusha reached it, he saw that slave traders were attacking a family caravan. The father of the family lay still on the ground in a pool of blood — he had already taken his last breath. The mother, backed against the wagon with her two children, was desperately swinging an old pitchfork. Every now and then, she would grab whatever she could find from the wagon and throw it at the men. Her throws weren't perfectly accurate, but they managed to keep the men back for a moment. The outcome, however, was certain; the men were closing in. The family's eldest son, perhaps ten or eleven years old, was trying to calm his younger sister, who was crying uncontrollably behind him. As the woman swung the pitchfork once more, a tall, big, bald slave trader grabbed it. He yanked it toward himself with a violent pull. To keep her balance, the woman had no choice but to let go of her only weapon. It was over.
The woman stepped back in despair, putting her body between the men and her children.
The man responded with nothing but a smirk and moved closer. Nearer and nearer. With a dirty look in his eyes, he reached out toward the woman — but his hand stopped in mid-air as it was cut off at the wrist and fell to the ground. The man screamed in pain. He grabbed his wrist and stumbled back toward his companions, desperately trying to stop the bleeding. If he couldn't, he would be dead within minutes.
Two slave traders rushed at Yusha, but he took two steps back as they came in close. With a sharp flick, he cleaned the blood from his blade. Then he charged. He swung his sword in a blur; after a split second of silence, their arms were cut from their bodies. Yusha didn't stop; his rage was getting out of control, as if the sword itself were pushing him forward. Out of breath, with blood dripping from his blade, he turned to the remaining men.
—NEXT, he said in an ice-cold voice.
The survivors were frozen with fear and began to run. They believed him to be the Great Meian Tenkan, a powerful being who wakes once every 2,000 years, feared even by the Great Heroes.
[Meian Tenkan: A sword-wielding demon known for legendary speed and cruelty. You cannot see him; he appears before you without warning, usually hunting his prey at sunset. He has blonde hair and large green eyes. He never leaves a wounded victim alive; for 2,000 years, he has fed on four humans every day, eating only human flesh before entering a two-year sleep.]
They ran for their lives. Some crashed through branches, while others tripped over roots, desperately trying to get away. Even the slave trader with the missing hand tried to run despite the pain, but his fear was so great that he passed out after a few steps — falling where he stood, having lost control of himself in terror. Once Yusha was sure the danger had passed, he lowered his sword. He glanced at the family one last time and prepared to go back the way he came. Unlike the people at the palace, they weren't looking at him as a hero; they were staring at him as if he were a monster waiting to eat them.
He took a few steps, ready to leave.
(At that moment, the woman thanked him, though her voice shook with fear.)
(She had every right to be afraid; in this world, blonde hair did not exist — not even among demons. It was so rare that, combined with those green eyes, it was said to belong only to Meian Tenkan.)
(Of course, these were just old legends; such foolish beliefs weren't taken seriously within the palace walls.)
—I am truly, truly grateful to you for saving us from this nightmare.
Yusha didn't know what to say; he stayed silent. To him, words spoken after a "thank you" often felt fake or like unnecessary obligations. It was better to say nothing. After a short pause, the woman spoke again:
—Could you… could you perhaps walk us to a safe place?
To be honest, Yusha didn't feel like helping. He didn't know why, yet something inside him stopped him from simply walking away.
In the end, even unwillingly, he helped.
First, they buried the fallen man — the children's father — beneath a nearby tree. They gathered the things that had been scattered around, and Yusha tied the goods down so they wouldn't fall again. Then the children went to their father's side one last time to say goodbye.
—Aren't you going to visit your husband one last time?
—No, I don't want to see him… it would only make the pain worse… (But before she could finish, she burst into tears and couldn't stop herself from going to see her husband — the love of her life — one last time.)
(Shortly after, they returned from the grave and climbed onto the wagon.)
—Giddy-up!