Yuri Hero and Loli Demon King - Chapter 03

This is the world of the Role-Playing Game, or simply put, an RPG.

My name is Tapfer, the Hero of this world, but… I’ve been stuck with a crafty Mage!

“Hey…”

Tapfer glanced helplessly at Rei, who had been following her since earlier. “Why are you following me around?”

The Shrine Maiden behind her tilted her head slightly, showing confusion. “Isn’t it common knowledge that the Hero encounters a Mage who joins the party?”

“What kind of world is that common in? This is clearly just stalking…”

“Besides, since you’re so useless, it can’t be that bad to let me join your party, right?” she said with her trademark sweet smile.

Such harsh words, especially with that expression, felt even harsher.

Even if I can’t defeat a Slime, you can’t just call me useless! Although it does seem like I kind of am useless… Ah, why am I insulting myself!?

“So then, to avoid becoming the first-ever useless Hero in history, let’s work hard to complete tasks and level up!”

Being a gofer, right? I don’t know how running errands can help me level up. Could it be that the highest-level people in this world are delivery workers or mail carriers?

While Tapfer was being sarcastic, Rei suddenly squealed and bent down.

“I found an antidote potion!”

“Shouldn’t you look for the owner?” Tapfer suggested. “Whoever lost it must be worried.”

“Huh? Shouldn’t I just put it in my backpack?” With that, she put the antidote in her backpack.

“That’s illegal appropriation!”

Crime—could she actually be a bad person!?

Moreover, she went on to say something extremely against moral values—

“Isn’t this what most people do?”

Do most people think illegal appropriation is just normal behavior!?

She stared at me with a look that suggested she was watching an idiot, making me start to wonder if the issue was with me or the world.

No, it’s definitely this society that’s sick if illegal appropriation is considered normal. Though a society where you can bribe judges, pretend to behave on parole, and get off scot-free with a lenient judge isn’t great either.

Tapfer mused about this and criticized some unknown world’s society.

Then suddenly, another important question came to mind: “Are you sure that stuff is safe?”

She found it on the ground, can we really drink it?It might not only fail to detoxify but could actually be poisonous.

“It’s completely safe! I’ve never heard of a Hero being poisoned by an antidote,” Rei confidently patted her chest.

“…”

I might end up being the first case, but no, let’s not entertain dangerous thoughts like that…

“Speaking of which, why don’t we check the village to see if there’s anything we can take from the houses?” she suggested with a grin. “What do you think, useless Hero?”

“Isn’t that definitely stealing!? And stop calling me a useless Hero!”

“Great, since there are no objections, let’s head out!” she declared with her signature sweet smile.

Didn’t what I just say count as an objection…?

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Here, on a cliff several miles away from the Demon King Castle.

A young man leaning on a giant sword and a girl holding a long staff stood there, gazing at the pitch-black castle before them.

“Altor,” the girl asked with some concern, “can we really defeat the Demon King?”

“Aren’t we both masters at Level 60 and above?” He raised the sword, which had been resting on the ground, and pointed it toward the Demon Castle. “We can definitely win!”

“But…”

The girl still felt uneasy, some nagging premonition troubling her.

For humans, being Level 60 was indeed at a master level, but there’s no guarantee that the Demon King’s army won’t have creatures above Level 100.

Even though the great war five hundred years ago nearly wiped out those at Level 100 and above, there’s always a chance, what if a creature above Level 100 from the Demon King’s side has survived until now…

“Don’t worry so much, haven’t you heard that justice always prevails?” the young man said confidently. “We can absolutely defeat that demon!”

We can definitely defeat the Demon King, in the name of justice…

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“A huge haul!”

Look at her so pleased, we’ve gone from couriers to thieves! This is definitely, definitely a crime!

“We’ve got 13 HP Potions, 15 MP Potions, 9 Antidotes, and 3,000 yen.”

Rei began listing the items they’d just looted from people’s homes.”Is this really okay?” Tapfer asked helplessly.

“Daijoubu da, mondai nai (It’s all right, no problem)!”

“…Is this guy Enoch?”

Rei added, “Whether it’s breaking into houses, stealing, robbing, or even murder and arson, as long as the Hero acts under the banner of justice, it will be forgiven.”

What’s with this twisted value system? How can doing such things have anything to do with justice?

“The Hero is justice, and the Demon King is evil,” she said. “It’s ironic, but that’s the value system of this world.”

“But I’m not justice. I’ve never thought of myself as justice.” Especially since we just started stealing things!

“But without a doubt, you are the Hero, right? That alone proves you’re on the side of justice!”

What kind of logic is that?

Come to think of it, aside from my name, how am I like a Hero… I still haven’t figured it out myself.

“By the way, did you hear?” Suddenly changing the topic, “A swordsman and a mage are going to challenge the Demon King!”

“Huh? Why are they challenging the Demon King?”

“Why?”

Rei looked at Tapfer, puzzled, as if she had just been asked, “Why is one plus one two?” by a primary school student—such a self-evident question.

Sometimes, things that are too simple and normal are harder to explain! Because no matter how you explain it, you only end up complicating the simple question.

“Did the Demon King do something bad?” Tapfer pressed further.

“No, it doesn’t seem so at the moment, but she’ll probably do something sooner or later!” She said, “Like trying to conquer the world or something.”

“I think that sounds more like something you would do…” Tapfer remarked sarcastically.

But isn’t it strange that she’s being attacked even though she hasn’t done anything yet?

“It’s the rules!” Rei explained, as if reading Tapfer’s thoughts, “Heroes will inevitably go to subdue the Demon King. Isn’t that just how it is?”

“What’s so inevitable about that!” Tapfer clenched her fists, glaring at Rei. “Isn’t that just too much!!”

“It doesn’t help to tell me that…”

Rei, putting away her usual smile, lowered her head somewhat innocently.

Fighting with no reason, having happiness taken away for no reason… Rei could also imagine being in the Demon King’s shoes.A group of people driven by fame, profit, and personal desires, merely having some achievements, act recklessly under the guise of being “Heroes.” Yes, just like “he” did back then.

Originally, I was supposed to resent all of this, resent this value system. Yet at some point, did I gradually start accepting it?

No, it’s not acceptance.

I can’t resist—whether it was back then or even now, I can only endure silently under this value system.

But she…

“Let’s go stop them!”

—That’s what she said.

If back then, if I could have met her sooner, would she have stood up for me and stopped that man too?

It’s too late to say anything now.

“…Yeah, it’s already too late.”

Rei raised her bowed head and spoke in a gloomy tone, “They set out months ago; by now, they’re likely already around the Demon King Castle. It’s impossible to catch up.”

“But…!”

Seeing Tapfer’s pained, frustrated expression, for some reason, Rei felt like smiling.

—A smile tinged with the taste of tears.

Nothing can be changed.

Everything is already too late.

This powerlessness, despair, and loneliness—it is just like Rei was back then.

Perhaps it’s time to give up?

To give up on this unchangeable fate?

“Is there… really no way to stop them?”

Tapfer asked again, for the sake of the Demon King of the Demon Race.

“You…”

Rei’s voice quivered.The suppressed emotion suddenly erupted completely, and she screamed hysterically, “What can a failure change? Stop dreaming!”

She grabbed Tapfer by the collar with an indiscernible emotion glaring at her.

It looked like anger, but it wasn’t just that, was it? It wasn’t anger; rather…

“Even if you catch up, what can you do? What can a worthless person like you do?”

“…”

Tapfer took a deep breath, calming herself down.

Then she quietly accepted the truth about herself, “I can’t do anything.”

Even if she caught up, with Tapfer’s current ability, she truly couldn’t change anything.

“Like you said, I am indeed still just a failure.”

“…”

Rei’s grip on Tapfer’s collar gradually loosened. Staring at her, tears welled up in Rei’s eyes—why was she crying? Even Rei couldn’t understand…

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In the Demon King Castle, shrouded in dense magical power…

A young man eliminated thousands of demons along the way, reaching the Main Hall where the Demon King resided with ease. It was a vast hall that wouldn’t feel cramped even with a hundred people inside, with a red carpet embedded with gold trim on the floor.

Despite the spaciousness of the hall, there were no demons present; the Demon King sat alone at the end of the red carpet on a dark golden throne.

She appeared to be a young girl, with the most striking feature being her silky silver hair. If she weren’t the Demon King, she would undoubtedly be an endearing child, but alas, she was the Demon King—the ruler of the Demons, the enemy of humanity.

Seeing her, the young man felt somewhat moved.

Sensing this emotion, he shook his head, trying to clear his mind.

“Demon King! In the name of justice, I have come to defeat you!”

Altor shouted, gripping his sword tightly.

Even with a formidable foe before her, the Demon King remained unmoved on her throne, questioning the “why” with an unnaturally calm voice.

“Is there any need for words?” the young man scolded angrily. “Because you are the Demon King! You are evil!!”

Compared to Yui, the Demon King’s calm demeanor, Altor seemed extremely agitated.The Demon King observed the blood of monsters splattered across his body, yet she showed no signs of disturbance.

Is it appropriate to describe her as cold and unfeeling? This trait certainly seemed to suit the image of a Demon King.

“You just said that I am evil?”

Although she appeared in the form of a child, she didn’t display any reactions typical of a child in this situation. No, to be precise, she didn’t show any reactions one might expect from a normal person.

Even without fear, shouldn’t there at least be anger or sorrow?

But there was none of that.

There was only a calm question: “Then you, who killed my companions, aren’t you evil?”

Companions? How laughable, given that she seemed completely unbothered by the sight of all this blood.

What’s even more laughable is how she, the epitome of evil—the Demon King—was calling others evil?

The young man mocked her internally.

As for the question just posed, “Is killing the Demon King’s army considered evil?” the answer…

“This is justice!”

He couldn’t allow himself to be swayed by her. This child is evil, and I am justice—this conviction must remain unshaken!

Justice defeating evil is undoubtedly still justice!

“Yui hasn’t done anything wrong, yet you claim you’re being just by wanting to kill Yui?”

Hasn’t done anything wrong? Does she think she can get away with such deceit?

The young man thought, then spoke: “Hmph, spreading lies to confuse people! Who knows what heinous acts you’ve done in secret!?”

With that, he swung his sword at the Demon King.

The Demon King quickly leaped away from the throne, and it split in two with a sound. Perhaps if she had been a moment slower, she would have been the one to be cut in half.

“Yui really hasn’t done anything!”

“You think I’ll be fooled by such lies?”

One strike after another, but not a single blow landed on the Demon King, who seemed to be waiting for something, as she did not counterattack but only kept evading.It didn’t matter; he was also waiting for the right opening at the next moment!

“Altor!”

The mage girl arrived at the Main Hall. After calling out the man’s name, she unleashed a powerful magic spell.

This is it!

Upon hearing her call, the young man skillfully dodged back, allowing the magic to slam heavily onto the Demon King.

Even if the Demon King had magic resistance and wouldn’t suffer much damage, wouldn’t there still be an opening in that instant?

Betting everything on this one strike, he swung his sword at the Demon King.

Finally, the Demon King was injured, a blood streak appearing on her left shoulder.

“Ha, hahaha…!”

As she was struck, the Demon King laughed.

Was she mocking the challenger’s weakness? Mocking how that all-out attack failed to kill her?

“Hahahahahaha—!”

A laugh truly befitting a Demon King.

“This one… has finally revealed her true nature, hasn’t she? Demon King!” the girl shouted, releasing another high-level light magic spell.

As the girl chanted, the Demon King revealed her entire Magic Crest, each line at least twenty centimeters long.

Upon completing her chant, the girl released the strongest light magic spell she could muster, but before it even reached the Demon King, it was repelled by a strong magical force. Unable to withstand the clash of these intense magical powers, Altor’s internal organs burst instantly.

“Uwaaaaaaaaaaaahhh—!”

With this cry, his shattered organs mixed with blood sprayed from his mouth and scattered all over.

“Altor!!”

Seeing this, the girl rushed forward to support him.

With his last breaths, the young man reached out a hand to gently touch the girl’s tear-stained face. “Koro, you must escape…”

It was impossible to win; the young man finally realized this.Only the girl might have a chance; at least she should escape.

“How could I possibly leave you and run away alone!”

The girl denied his plea.

Even if she had to die, she wanted to die with Altor.

“This one is too powerful… you must go!”

He recognized the determination in Koro’s eyes and tried to persuade her again.

They had given it their all, yet the only injury on the Demon King was the thin blood streak on her shoulder.

The difference in strength was too great, and continuing like this would only lead to Koro’s death.

“There’s no saving me now, but at least you… hurry and escape!”

“What a joke…”

The girl gently laid him down and stood to face the Demon King.

Though she couldn’t avoid death, at the very least, she wanted to drag the Demon King to hell with her!

“I will definitely avenge you!”

“Vengeance…?”

The Demon King lowered her head, letting out a cold chuckle.

“Don’t get arrogantly overconfident, human!”

With mocking laughter, she unleashed a torrent of magic that utterly dismembered the girl. Accompanied by her piercing screams, her limbs were torn from her body, leaving her torn apart.

After but a few minutes of fierce battle, all that was left of the challengers were two unrecognizable corpses.

The Demon King tilted her head back; perhaps due to the angle, her eyes were shielded by her hair.

The only visible feature—a faintly upturned corner of her mouth.