I’m a Hero, but I Gave Up Saving the World

48 – Meeting of the Wise

“Thank you very much for responding to my call today. Even though the situation is hopeless, seeing your face gives me a little hope.”

The Great Sage thanked the five wizards who filled the [Sage’s Room].

“The gathering of all the five sages representing the continent of Pangea can already be said to be a historic event. In fact, what everyone gathered was about—”

“-70 years… Even if I say that, the members are a little different from back then.”

An old man with wrinkles on his skin, wearing a toga on only one shoulder, said looking at Helen Walker.

“It’s definitely the first time I see my seniors all at once. Especially to someone like Zach Ziggurat who has lived for more than 500 years, I would look like a kid. However, in this case, I will have more information than seniors with deep experience. After all, I have met Faust face-to-face.”

Zach Ziggurat, the oldest of the wise men, nodded in affirmation.

At that time, the middle-aged man who was crossing his arms across the great sage opened his mouth.

It was Adrian Pitt, a stern-looking man dressed neatly in a uniform.

“Most wise men are selfish beings. Even if we get together, it will only lead to an argument or a fight, so there’s nothing good about getting together often. However, this crisis is far more serious than the 「Absence of Heroes」 that brought us all together 70 years ago. I came because I needed to seriously discuss countermeasures, so it’s nothing to be thankful for.”

“You pecked a lot.”

“What did you say? Are you insulting me, now the commander-in-chief of the Imperial Army, Evererin?”

Adrian glared at the red-haired maiden.

Everin Dragonir, the main warlord of the Oh Sage, mocked the old soldier with an arrogant attitude with his legs on the round table.

“You said you were scared, Adrian. If you’re that scared, why don’t you lock yourself in the house and not come out?”

“Who said it was scary? I am pointing out the seriousness of the situation. Like a frivolous woman.”

“That’s what frightened you, man. seriousness of the situation? what’s serious If half a penny called Faust kills a demon, that’s it. just tell me the location. I will go and kill you.”

“To be stupid. This is also an issue with warriors. Faust was officially recognized by the goddess and was a warrior who wielded the holy sword. The fact that the hero betrayed us meant that the actual absence of the hero had occurred. Did you forget that darkness 70 years ago? The world is in chaos just because there are no heroes!”

“Feed. So why are you so worried about killing Faust and appointing a new hero? It’s a problem that can be solved in half a day, but I’m extremely nervous. Isn’t that right, Helen Walker?”

“As expected, you are bold. It is the confidence that deserves to be called the greatest masterpiece of the Dragnir clan that can face the dragon with bare body. But for now, you’d better refrain from acting alone. Even Arwen, whom you want to win so much, backed down after not being able to compete with them.”

“What?! uh, what does that mean! It sounds like I’m having a blast with Arwen?”

“If that sounds like it, you heard it right.”

“Hey Helen!! wanna die?! On the topic of a saengnim who only has a living mouth!”

“Everyone is quiet.”

The great sage’s voice rang loud and solemn, as though he had spoken into a loudspeaker.

Sages with strong self-respect and strong personalities did not give in to each other, so whenever they got together, they quickly got into an argument.

That was also the reason why the wise men did not gather well.

“Whoa… Everyone please calm down. Now is not the time to fight each other’s egos.”

The Great Sage let out a deep sigh and asked the opinion of one of the wise men who had been silent since before.

“You seem to be the only one who has experienced a situation similar to [The Hero Betrayed], but… Sia Diethardt. As the saintess of the former warriors’ party, weren’t you betrayed by Gerena?”

“… I’m sorry, but could you please refrain from mentioning that name in front of me by mistake? The wounds inflicted on him are throbbing.”

Sia Diethardt, with a gentle face, said, covering her eyes with her palms.

“I’m sorry, Sia. It must have been a painful memory for you, but it was too urgent.”

“Whoa… I understand. The meanness of demons is beyond imagination. I still remember it vividly. I thought I had finally defeated the Four Heavenly Kings, but suddenly I saw Gerena’s back as she was drinking spinal fluid from the dead Four Heavenly Kings.”

「Gerena! What the hell are you doing! If you do that, you’ll become a demon!”

“Humans have no hope. Of course, to you too… I’d rather be reborn as a demon and move on to the true future.”

“I was forever blinded by the sword that damn bastard wielded. Whoops… To think that the last scene he saw was Gerena’s disgusted face. It’s like a curse.”

As Shia twitched her lips, even the other wise men’s hair stood on end in fear.

“Well, if you lose something, you gain something. After losing his eyesight, his mana suddenly started to rise, isn’t it amazing? I, who had no skills other than praying, am now a wise man who stands shoulder to shoulder with everyone… Whoops.”

“So, what is your opinion? I have called you to hear it.”

“You have to kill it. have to kill All demons must be killed… ”

Shia Diethardt clenched her fists as she tore the round table apart.

“There could be no other way. Now is the time for the five wise men to stop fighting and join forces to exterminate the demons. First of all, we need to find out where Faust is.”

“I know the location. That guy should be in the lair of the Four Heavenly Kings by now. I sent it there on purpose.”

“Hoo… Why?”

“As you know, the Four Heavenly Kings do not get along well. The balance of power is on the edge, but it’s like a bomb that doesn’t know when it will explode. What would happen if Faust, who had the power of the Dragon King, appeared in such a place? It is the psychology of the demon tribe that they want to kill a new strong person who might be a threat to them. If they do well, they will kill Faust, if not, they will fight among themselves and suffer losses.”

“I see, that’s an appropriate decision… ”

“Appropriate is bullshit! Then, what if the four heavenly kings increase to five heavenly kings because they pair up with each other! no! What’s with the elf bitch? What if the power is strengthened by the Six Heavenly Kings? Wow~ fuck, there are only six of us including the great sage and you! Did you deliberately match the numbers so that you could have a rendezvous in pairs?”

Evelyn interrupted, sarcastically in a high-pitched voice.

The great sage furrowed his eyebrows in annoyance, and Everin grinned.

Feeling the unusual atmosphere, Helen Walker took the side of Minerva.

“That is just an assumption, not a reality. Faust, who absorbed the power of the Dragon King, must be one of the strongest in the Demon Continent. Somehow, Faust and the Four Heavenly Kings fought each other and were destroyed… route is also possible. Then we will put our hands on it and get peace for free.”

“That’s a home, you stupid bitch.”

“you’re right. We don’t have to talk about families. The clear reality is that at the time we were exhausted from fighting Meranir’s dragon army, and at that point, putting off the fight against Faust was the right thing to do. Above all, with the great sage’s quick judgment, we succeeded in preserving the holy sword. This is a huge achievement.”

“That holy sword. I heard strange rumors.”

Adrian Pitt raised his palm and took the floor.

“I heard that a strange guy who can’t be used as a hero in the dimensional summoning camp has become small. Indeed, he was a scum with inferior quality than Kwak Dong-soo… But the more unbelievable rumor is that the stone statue of Irene moved on its own and suddenly killed the candidate for the hero. That moment when the saintess was about to hand over the holy sword. If there is no hero, isn’t it useless even if you have a holy sword?”

“Not necessarily. For example, if Faust had continued to possess the holy sword, he would have unlocked all the blessings installed throughout the continent of Pangea. Even if we can’t use the Holy Sword, securing the Holy Sword is an important achievement just because it has the effect of preventing Faust from abusing the Holy Sword.”

“no no… Helen Walker. Don’t avoid the essence. What I want to ask is this. Why did the goddess kill the warrior candidate? Sharnik, who gave his life to draw the dimension summoning circle, was my apprentice. The disciple’s sacrifice became meaningless because of the whim of the goddess Irene. Why did the goddess do that?”

“… What do you want to say?”

“I can’t help but mention it when I’ve come this far. A hypothesis that was only discussed among some scholars. By any chance, don’t goddesses hate mankind?”

““… … … … … … … … … … … … ””

Suddenly everyone fell silent.

Goddess Irene is the most revered object of faith among the people of the Pangea continent.

The fact that such a goddess hated mankind was a dangerous statement that could be referred to the Inquisition as a sacred insult just by mentioning it.

Even Helen Walker, who had made similar hypotheses in the past, reacted cautiously.

“If Goddess Irene really hates us, what is the reason… ?’

“It doesn’t matter, Helen.”

Shia Diethard, a former saint, said abruptly.

“The important thing is that we have to keep fighting the demons. Even without a holy sword or hero, we are wise. It has magical powers.”

“Sia is right. Now is not the time to get hung up on unconfirmed hypotheses. In fact, the reason I gathered you all was because I wanted to tell you this story. Wise men, if you gather the strength of the five of you, who will you be unable to defeat? Even if it is the Four Heavenly Kings or the Dragon King.”

The great sage continued to speak, exuding a charisma that made the listener feel better.

“The Four Heavenly Kings and the Sage. Even though they were a group standing at the highest peak of humans and demons, they had something in common. It was that they couldn’t unite because they didn’t get along well with each other. So I would like to make this suggestion. Why don’t we use this crisis as an opportunity to unite as a blessing? I truly believe that if the six of us work together, we can defeat the greatest threat to humanity, Faust.”

“Minerva Old Book 1.5 million 5,632 hp.”

Shia Diethardt suddenly spoke a mysterious figure.

Following Minerva, the names of other sages began to be called.

“Helen Walker 872,437 hp.”

“Zach Ziggurat 764,124 hp.”

“Aveline Dragonir 1,082,425 hp.”

“Adrian Pitt 1,017,312 mana.”

The sages were able to roughly guess the identity of the numbers Shia Diethardt was talking about.

Shia Diethardt, after losing her sight in both eyes, opened up a mind’s eye that was more sophisticated than her physical eyes.

Her mind’s eye has a delicate and sophisticated ability that allows her to express the power of the other person in numbers.

However, this was the first time that Shia directly measured and told the wise men’s skills in this way.

“This is your approximate fighting strength. Well, there is no law that the actual battle will flow according to this number… Considering that the average magical power of a wizard is less than 5,000, it can be considered another class like a sage.”

“is it? I just don’t feel good when I hear the numbers. Even for average wizards, 50% of wizards are low-level wizards. How is it compared to the Four Heavenly Kings or Faust?”

“You won’t know unless you see it yourself. There is only one of the Four Heavenly Kings I have ever seen. It’s just Gerena right after she ate the spinal fluid and turned into a demon.”

All the wise men pricked their ears and waited for Shia’s next words.

Speaking of Gerena, it is a demon tribe that boasts the strength of the leader among the Four Heavenly Kings.

He wanted to compare his own strength with that Gerena.

“Guerena Duranthe’s mana at that point was 1,324,232. A lot of time has passed since then… Right now, you might have more magical power than the great sage.”

“is it… Even when she was human, Gerena had a strong inquisitive and friendly spirit, so it would be better not to expect that her skills have stagnated in the meantime.”

“Whoops… But don’t despair too much, great sage. If Gerena is that strong, isn’t it possible that she could kill Faust with that strong power? It’s better if the two fight and end up together… Whoops.”

“That’s right. So let’s assume that the wise men have decided to join forces and devise detailed countermeasures. First of all, listen to the room I thought of.”

—At the time when the sages began to argue over how to solve the crisis humanity was facing, a huge battle that shook heaven and earth was about to end in the Demon Continent.

From the ominous dark clouds that covered the sky, the silhouette of a wounded demon came out.

Guerena Duranthe fell among the Four Heavenly Kings watching the fight.

“Keugh… I-I never thought it would be this strong.”

“Oh, this chewy. You didn’t eat cheap rice in case someone wasn’t Serena’s brother? There are bastards who have to be beaten like this to know whether it’s poop or soybean paste.”

Soon after, Faust also escaped from the clouds, knelt down and fell vertically toward Gerena’s stomach.

Gerena, who was hit in the vitals, suffered from breathing difficulties.

“Ugh!! minute… Do… To think that I, Guerrena Duranthe, was pushed behind by someone who didn’t even know where the dog bone was rolled from.”

“I am playing. If you were holding the holy sword, you would really be dead man. Be grateful to the great sage.”

“… Keugh.”

Gerena passed out as her eyes rolled over.

Faust poisoned and provoked the rest of the Four Heavenly Kings, who were in shock as if they couldn’t believe it.

“There are two paths left for you. Either crawl on its own or get hit from behind like Gerena. Choose freely. Personally, I recommend the latter.”

The Four Heavenly Kings shuddered at the appearance of a new strong man who did not know where he came from.