The Hero Returns

Chapter 170: Chapter 170

Act 8

The dragons discussed what do to for Karne's punishment.

His actions had definitely insulted the red dragons who had sacrificed themselves for their kin. But that didn't mean he hadn't devoted himself to the well being of his race, either, so not many opinions favored his execution.

Of course, that also didn't mean he could be let off the hook.

"Fifty thousand years." Once Karne's judgment had been decided, Blanc came to visit Su-hyeun and informed the latter of the punishment. "Karne will pay for his crimes with fifty thousand years of imprisonment in the punishment room."

"Fifty thousand years, is it…"

"I'm sure such a length of time feels alien to a human being like yourself. The average lifespan of orange dragons is around one hundred thousand years, which means… It'll be no different than him spending the remainder of his life in the punishment room."

No matter how long one could live, fifty thousand years was just too long to feel real. For one, it was half of the incredible lifespan of a dragon.

When viewed from a human's perspective, then it'd be like spending fifty years in jail.

Most importantly…

"The new generation of your kin to be born in the future won't know about Karne, won't they?" Su-hyeun asked.

"Correct. Even if they learn about him in the distant future, they'll all think of him as nothing more than a convict emerging from the punishment room after committing a crime a long time ago."

Such a thing would be the worst possible punishment for Karne, who sought to elevate his own status by turning the red dragons from heroes into traitors.

In the blink of an eye, the dragon race's leader and most respected elder had fallen to the level of a convict.

Blanc asked, "Are you satisfied with this?"

"What do you mean?"

"Don't be like that. Didn't you warn us that if we don't properly punish Karne, you'd personally take his life?"

"Ah, that. Well…"

"You weren't bluffing, were you?"

Su-hyeun nodded his head. Sure, he did say something a bit over the top out of sheer anger, but, regardless of that, he was being serious back then.

"In that case, it's fine. Initially, I wondered why a human was claiming to be a dragon's parent, but now I know for sure. You are certainly qualified."

Indeed, no dragons looked down on Su-hyeun anymore because he was 'merely' a human. No, they praised him and saw him as an extraordinary being, instead. They acknowledged the strength he possessed and no longer found it strange that a red dragon was following a mere human around.

Su-hyeun was a man who possessed both the worth and qualifications for the role.

He asked Blanc, "What will happen to Miru from now on?"

What part would Miru play in the dragon race in the future—that was the most important question for Su-hyeun.

<< I can't stay with Miru for the rest of his life, after all. >>

He'd like nothing more than to stay by his red dragon's side for the rest of their lives, but that was simply not possible. Su-hyeun was a human, while Miru was a dragon. A human's lifespan was short enough to be nothing more than a passing moment for a dragon like Miru.

That was why he needed to think about the future after he said goodbye to Miru. He needed to find a 'real' family for the red dragon—to find another who could spend the rest of Miru's life with him.

For that purpose, Miru's position within the dragons would play a critical role.

"What do you mean, what? Of course, he'll lead our race after a few thousand years," said Blanc, as he shifted his gaze over to Miru, snoring loudly near a window with sunlight pouring in. "He's no longer the descendant of a traitor, but a hero, after all."

"The descendant of a hero…."

The 'hero'.

Su-hyeun wasn't a fan of that label.

Even then, being the descendant of a hero was much preferable to that of a traitor. Also, he felt rather satisfied when thinking about how the one he cared so much about, Miru, would be referred to with such a title.

<< At the very least, Miru won't feel lonely anymore. >>

The red dragon was capable of entering and leaving different dimensions. Miru returning to the embrace of his kind shouldn't pose any problems.

<< Of course, that's only if this world is actually the real thing. >>

Even now, he hadn't figured out whether the worlds found within the trials actually existed or were something illusory created by the trial's system. He just had plenty of hypotheses, that's all.

Meaning, he wasn't confident Miru would be able to return to its kin again.

<< Even then, if it's at all possible…I hope this world is real. >>

It'd be better for Miru to live with his kin rather than living with him and get too used to the ways of the human world.

"What will you do now?" Blanc asked, and Su-hyeun nodded his head without a shred of hesitation.

"Continue with what I was doing, of course."

"Are you talking about helping us fight the demonic beasts?"

"Yes."

"I see. That's why you were making such big claims back when you arrived. Honestly, I was really surprised. I never imagined that there would be a human capable of beating up Karne with his bare hands, you see."

Blanc must've recalled the scene from back then, because he was clearly suppressing his laughter. Su-hyeun too grinned, somewhat awkwardly, inwardly thinking that maybe he went a bit too far when he fought with Karne.

Somehow, it felt like the gazes of the dragons looking at him had changed from that point onward.

<< It feels like they're avoiding me a little, too… >>

Then again, he did beat up the biggest dude in the dragon race, Karne, with his bare hands, so it made sense that they would refrain from getting too close to him.

<< Still, the gazes looking at Miru have changed a lot. >>

After the 'misunderstanding' was undone, the way the other dragons looked at Miru had changed so much that it now bordered on being a bit uncomfortable at times.

Some lowered their heads as if they were praying whenever Miru went by, while others approached with great difficulty, only to start sobbing uncontrollably to say how sorry they were.

Sure, it was better than before, but Miru was, unsurprisingly, not a fan of such reactions. So, whenever other dragons approached them, Miru would duck behind Su-hyeun's back.

"Well, I feel reassured with your cooperation, but, more than anything, I believe this war will soon come to an end now that we have recovered the Cintamani."

Blanc smiled happily, thinking that they could finally regain their homeworld once and for all.

Su-hyeun, still making an awkward expression, asked a question, hoping to change the topic. "Do the demonic beasts attack this city regularly?"

Blanc nodded at the question and replied, "With irregular timing, yes they do."

"Where do they appear from?"

"….Wait, are you thinking of making a move by yourself again?"

Su-hyeun shrugged his shoulders and asked something else, "Can I ask you for a map?"

"A map?"

Blanc tilted his head this way and that at the meaningful question. And, when he brought out a map, Su-hyeun began explaining several things.

<hr />

After Karne was imprisoned in the punishment room, Blanc was discussed as a potential candidate to lead the dragon race. His bloodline might not have been the highest grade, but he was the oldest among their kind.

And so, Blanc became the elder who would lead their race until the next most suitable candidate was ready. Meaning, until Miru was old enough.

There was just one thing Blanc had to do first and foremost.

"We will start subjugating the demonic beasts."

Gya-ong-!

Dragons had gathered in a big plaza. Blanc and Miru were in the center.

The latter was biting into the Cintamani. The power of the dragons would double just by having that item near a red dragon.

"We shall regain our world. This land, occupied by the demonic beasts for the longest time…."

Blanc's speech rambled on.

Miru next to him split open its maw wide and yawned. Even at a casual glance, one could tell the red dragon was pretty bored right about now.

Blanc studied Miru's mood, and had no choice but to cut his speech by some margin.

"….And that's why, our first destination will be the Cintamani Forest."

"Is the Titan Turtle really dead?"

"According to the human, yes, it is."

"I can't believe it…."

"No, wait. If it's that human…."

"Is it for real?"

"That human's a swordsman, right? He's certainly different from us who pretty much rely on magic."

"Which means, it must be the truth…."

The plaza became noisy rather quickly.

The Titan Turtle was dead. Such a thing was hard for them to believe. Especially so for those dragons who had personally encountered the gigantic monster in the forest at least once before.

The Titan Turtle's shell was completely impenetrable, regardless of what magic they used. Not only was its magic resistance ridiculously high, the monster was also agile enough to bite and rip apart dragons flying in the sky, as well.

<< I too had the same reaction as them. >>

Blanc sighed, shook his head and at the same time, opened his mouth. "I have personally confirmed it. The beast's corpse was lying cold in the middle of the forest, its back shell shattered wide open."

"T-then, for real we can…!"

"Silence! In any case, now that the Titan Turtle is dead, we have nothing more to fear. We shall start with subjugating the demonic beasts in the forest and, gradually, regain our land."

After Blanc was finished, one of the dragons suddenly asked him. "By the way, sir. Where is that human?"

Blanc pondered for a bit at the question, before making his reply. "He said that going solo is more convenient for him."

"Eh?"

"He asked me where he can find monsters as dangerous as the Titan Turtle, and then…." Blanc spat out a long, long sigh. "And then, he dashed out in sheer excitement."

It was as he said. Su-hyeun really did dash out of the city in unbridled excitement.

<hr />

[Acquired 128 achievement points.]

[Acquired 88 achievement points.]

[Acquired 160…]

Messages popped up seemingly without end. Su-hyeun ignored them all and continued on his 'hunting' spree.

<< Almost there. >>

Kiiii-eeeeehk-!

Ki-rik, Ki-ri-rik-

Thousands of giant ant corpses littered the ground. And Su-hyeun's eyes, fixed on the super-massive ant currently being protected by the still-living ant soldiers, were sparkling brightly.

<< That's the ant queen. >>

The demonic beast that birthed eggs that these ants hatched from. He had run into this type of monster as the boss of a blue-colored dungeon in the past, but it now appeared as a field boss of this forest.

Even the 'regular' ant soldiers were considered rather tough monsters to fight, as not only were their bodies easily twice as large as a mature tiger, they even had wings, too.

But Su-hyeun welcomed this situation.

Ants that numbered in the thousands. Although small, he could acquire some amount of achievement points by hunting down every single one of the monsters.

<< I already know where I'll spend them. >>

He was in need of a lot of achievement points, anyway. So, this trial was definitely the best stage for Su-hyeun right now.

[Leap.] [Leap.] [Leap.]

Paht, pah-paht-

Su-hyeun activated 'Leap' several times in a row and reached high up in the air.

Most of the ants had been taken care of by now. The remaining creatures had bunched up in a single spot in order to protect their queen.

<< One strike. >>

Gi-gigik-

Su-hyeun took out the spear tied to his back.

[The Dragon Slaying Spear.]

His body arched in the air like a pulled bow. He counted in his head, before his body pounced forward, his arm swinging out, fast.

Chwa-rururururuk-

Ruuuumble-!

[Flame.]

The divine Flame permeated the spear, splitting apart into thousands, tens of thousands of separate strands.

The spears blazing with massive flames engraved the heavens in an instant like the endless rain of fire.

The moment those things touched the ground….

Kyah-aaaaah-!

The ants gathered in one spot, around the wounded ant queen, were all ripped to shreds while being scorched black.

[Acquired 55 achievement points.]

[Acquired 145 achievement points.]

[Acquired 105…]

[…]

[Acquired 20,000 achievement points.]

More messages rained down in the blink of an eye. Su-hyeun confirmed the total achievement points acquired so far, and a grin spread on his lips.

<< Nice. >>

With that, most of the monsters hiding in the forest had been taken care of.

He was solidly marching towards the trial's completion, and couldn't help but feel somewhat rueful about that. This trial's stage was perfectfor him to acquire a ton of achievement points.

[The effect of a divine beast's buff has been applied.]

[Acquired 15 achievement points.]

[The effect of a divine beast's buff has been applied.]

[Acquired 12 achievement points.]

[…]

More messages popped up belatedly.

On the other side, dragons were taking care of the monsters along with Miru. Su-hyeun had been wondering about that for a while, so he couldn't help but start cheering in elation inwardly.

<< As I thought, the Cintamani is counted as one of the effects of Miru's buffs, it seems. >>

Miru was a divine beast currently under Su-hyeun. Obviously, when the red dragon hunted a monster down, the achievement points would go to him.

The contributions made under the buff effect were also recognized and he even got to acquire some achievement points, albeit quite small in total, from everything the dragons killed.

Not to forget, Miru was currently buffing hundreds of other dragons through the Cintamani at the moment.

The acquired points were small, ten points here, twenty there, but, regardless of that, there was no doubt that Miru and the dragons were hunting down a massive number of monsters at the moment.

<< Looks like my tally will soon exceed five million points, at least. >>

Of course, that still wasn't enough. It was always better to have more points, after all.

<< First of all, I'll raise my physical strength this time. >>

It wasn't enough to only raise one's magic level and the count. He couldn't hunt Fafnir down with those two stats alone.

In that case, all he had to do was to find a solution in a different direction.