I Picked up the Demon King - Chapter 104

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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Chapter 104

 

“I guess I saw it wrong after all…”

 

Johnny muttered as if entranced after looking around the surroundings for a long time.

 

Unlike his companions who had been immersed in research for the past few months without getting even minimal sleep, Johnny, who had no knowledge of magic, spent relatively comfortable time.

 

Of course, that was only relatively speaking. He was maintaining a busy schedule incomparable to when he worked as a Guard in the old Belive Territory. Among all that, the most important thing was training.

 

Getting beaten up for several hours every day by the instructor that Trading Company Owner Dahan had recruited was routine. Even though he obtained the holy sword and tremendous Physical Ability, he could now barely follow the movements with his eyes.

 

Naturally he was tired, and could think he had seen things.

 

‘No.’

 

However, Johnny discarded that plausible assumption.

 

The holy sword filled with the Goddess’s Blessing grants its owner a powerful mental barrier. In fact, Johnny hadn’t even dreamed for the past few months.

 

But now to see things that weren’t there. That was absurd.

 

‘There’s no way I saw it wrong.’

 

Johnny recalled what he had heard from Shtidy. No matter how much it was concealment magic, it wouldn’t be impossible to detect.

 

When he placed his hand on the holy sword and concentrated his mind, Johnny’s senses became sharply honed. He wouldn’t miss even faint mana flows or small whispers coming from far away.

 

If someone was moving or trying to hastily leave the Trading Company, there was no way he wouldn’t sense it.

 

5 minutes, 10 minutes passed like that.

 

Johnny exhaled the breath he had been holding.

 

He couldn’t feel anything. It wasn’t that there were no people in the Trading Company, but there were no suspicious movements. Had it really been a mistake?

 

“…Johnny sir?”

“Branch Manager Miril.”

 

Miril walked out from the Inner Area with a furrowed brow. It wasn’t anything serious.

 

Miril, the small owner of Golden Star Trading Company, was famous for her ice-cold personality. He had heard that more than a few Nobles had approached her for money only to be turned away.

 

It would be hard to look favorably upon a man who came to the Trading Company late at night, standing there gripping a sword. That would be the same even if he was the Hero.

 

“What business brings you here at this hour? I understood that there was quite a distance from the Expedition Base. Don’t tell me you’re going to say the supplies have already run out…”

“This works out perfectly.”

 

Johnny asked urgently.

 

“Did you happen to see a person? A young man with ash-gray hair?”

“….”

 

Emotion disappeared from Miril’s face.

 

“Ash-gray hair. That matches the appearance of the Demon Lord who appeared in the Papal Underground.”

“…That’s right.”

“That statement just now. Are you suspecting that our Trading Company is in collusion with the Demon Lord?”

 

Johnny gasped at the unexpected reaction.

 

Anyone in this position would have been able to feel that Miril was displeased.

 

Miril was not an ordinary woman. She was the second-in-command of Golden Star Trading Company, which had become one of the leading trading companies on the Continent in a short time. She now stood in a position where even royalty of small kingdoms found it difficult to treat her carelessly.

 

Most importantly.

 

“I believe Golden Star Trading Company has been generous in supporting the Hero. You don’t think that your obtaining the holy sword when you were merely a Guard was entirely due to your own abilities, do you?”

“….”

 

The deception that began due to Golden Star Trading Company Owner Dahan came to an end recently when he was recognized as the Hero by the Goddess.

 

Even so, he couldn’t ignore Golden Star Trading Company’s opinion.

 

“Of course there was the influence of the capricious Goddess as well. But without us…”

“…I know. I owe a great debt to you all, Golden Star Trading Company and the Dawn Group.”

 

Johnny was still too soft a person to pretend not to know about all the support he had received.

 

Therefore, while lowering his posture, he didn’t back down as if he couldn’t compromise.

 

“I just wanted to confirm. Whether it was really him.”

 

A moment of silence followed. Only breathing sounds echoed through the dark Trading Company Branch.

 

With an expression that made it impossible to know what she was thinking, Miril looked at Johnny for a while then sighed.

 

“Follow me. I hope the reason you came at this late hour isn’t just because of that nonsense.”

 

Miril guided Johnny to the Reception Room.

 

The silence continued in the Reception Room as well. Trading Company Owner Dahan entered. Only then did Johnny exhale deeply.

 

“Unexpected guests coming one after another. Today is truly a good day.”

 

Just before Johnny could ask what he meant by coming one after another, Dahan asked.

 

“So, what business brings our Hero to this humble Trading Company? If you were going to come anyway, it would have been better to come during business hours.”

“I found him.”

“Yes?”

“A method to conquer the darkness that has covered the Holy Nation capital.”

 

The tapping finger paused its movement for a moment. Soon Dahan smiled again.

 

“You found a method to conquer the darkness. Faster than I thought.”

“Fast, you say?”

 

Johnny asked back as if he couldn’t understand.

 

Several months had already passed. The seasons had changed. What began in early summer was now approaching winter.

 

Johnny could never consider it fast. Having directly witnessed how much Shtidy, Albeng, and the others were suffering made it even more so.

 

“Even the Holy Nation gave up trying to handle it and sealed it away. That’s probably a Great Demon from the Mythical Age.”

“Great Demon…”

“Ah, it doesn’t mean the Demon Lord, so you don’t need to worry.”

 

Dahan added with a wink. Then he clapped his hands and laughed as if he thought it was an amusing joke.

 

Only Dahan was laughing.

 

Johnny couldn’t follow his joke, and Miril was looking at him as if he were pathetic.

 

“Without divinity, it would have been difficult to inflict damage. May I ask how you found a method?”

“Ah, that is…”

 

Johnny scratched his head with an awkward expression.

 

The story of how sleep-deprived Shtidy picked a fight with Albeng, leading to a major conflict, wasn’t something he could easily tell. The expedition was also keeping tight-lipped about it.

 

However, while he might hide it from others, he couldn’t conceal it from Dahan, their sponsor. After hearing the story, Dahan nodded thoughtfully.

 

“Hmm, something I never would have thought of. Perhaps a different combination would have been better.”

“Pardon?”

“No, it’s nothing. The moment holy power and mana collide, the darkness temporarily retreats. Interesting. Now we can save quite a bit of stamina.”

 

It had been quite some time since they discovered a method to damage the darkness itself. It was the Holy Sword.

 

The more accustomed Johnny became to wielding the Holy Sword’s power, the longer it took for the cut darkness to recover. The problem was that this was all there was to it.

 

If it had been when the darkness first went berserk, there might have been a way. But now the darkness covered a considerable area beyond the Holy Nation’s former capital.

 

Wielding the Holy Sword was still a great burden for Johnny. He would collapse from exhaustion before even reaching the main body. Meanwhile, the expedition had been waiting for Johnny to become familiar with the Holy Sword while searching for other ways to achieve the same effect.

 

“This is truly good news. But why did you come here alone in the middle of the night? You can speak honestly.”

 

Johnny repeatedly opened and closed his mouth.

 

The contents of the teacup had long since disappeared. When Dahan quietly poured more tea, Johnny drank it all at once and spoke.

 

“Pushing back the darkness will require a considerable number of Priests and Mages.”

“Don’t worry about that. I’ll request additional personnel from each Magic Tower. Then the Priests will move without needing to be told.”

 

Dahan shrugged his shoulders. He seemed nonchalant, as if stating something obvious.

 

“After reaching the center like that, I’ll have to destroy the core myself.”

“That’s very Hero-like of you.”

 

Though he answered in a light tone, Johnny couldn’t smile. Dahan sighed and said,

 

“Miril. Could you step out for a moment?”

“No. It’s fine if she stays.”

 

Johnny said, gripping the empty teacup.

 

“…I can’t be certain I’ll succeed.”

 

Though he had unexpectedly obtained the Holy Sword, he felt most keenly that his power was incomplete.

 

Power that fell infinitely short of even the Second Hero, who had completed his mission and lost most of his strength. Skills that couldn’t properly handle his enhanced body. Sometimes he felt like nothing more than a child holding a sword.

 

“Perhaps…”

 

Johnny swallowed his words along with a sigh.

 

“It’s fine. A Hero’s fate is to never fall until the Demon Lord is defeated. Not even a Great Demon from the Mythical Age, let alone a mere fragment of one, can dare to shatter that. …Of course, even saying this probably doesn’t help much.”

 

As Dahan said, the burden in Johnny’s heart didn’t diminish at all. Silence descended upon the reception room once again.

 

“There’s something I’d like to ask.”

 

As if making a great resolution, Johnny raised his head and met Dahan’s gaze.

 

“I heard that the Golden Star Trading Company started in the capital Balayh.”

“That’s correct. I inherited it from my father, the previous Trading Company Owner.”

“Among the deeds attributed to me… I understand there was a battle where I achieved victory against the corrupted Knight Order in Balaih Kingdom.”

 

Dahan burst into laughter.

 

“My. Are you confused about your own deeds? How truly indifferent. Should I say even that aspect is Hero-like?”

 

Unlike Dahan, who shrugged and joked around, Miril was glaring at Johnny with cold eyes.

 

Johnny looked straight at Dahan with firm eyes and asked,

 

“Jude. Right?”

“…What do you mean?”

 

Dahan tilted his head as if he didn’t understand, but Johnny didn’t miss the brief moment of hesitation.

 

“Saving Belive Territory, defeating the Holy Knights of the capital Balayh. Taking down a High-rank Dark Mage and weakening the power of the Holy Nation Priests who invaded the Kingdom. All of that was really Jude’s doing, wasn’t it?”

“….”

 

Taking the silence as confirmation, Johnny poured out the questions he had been harboring for the past few months.

 

“If that’s true, then isn’t Jude the real Hero? Why did the Goddess call that guy the Demon Lord? Back then, was that guy really the same one I knew?”

“Ha, haha!”

 

Dahan, who had been showing noticeably awkward signs, burst into laughter again.

 

The quiet reception room filled with Dahan’s laughter. Johnny quietly watched him until the laughter stopped. However.

 

“Our Hero seems very tired. Miril.”

 

Dahan merely deflected the conversation. It was a firm attitude that wouldn’t allow questions.

 

“Give the Hero a guest room. So he can rest well for the day.”

“…Right.”

 

Johnny tried to ask again, but he had already left. Only Miril remained, looking at him with eyes much colder than before.

 

Johnny sighed and stood up from his seat, following Miril.

 

“You can use this room.”

“….”

 

Johnny walked over weakly and sat down on the bed.

 

It was a clean room with no traces of anyone having used it before.

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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