§ Prologue: The Hero and the Human King

Two thousand years ago.

At the center of Azesion, the human continent, was the royal capital of Gairadite. The chosen one of the Holy Sword, Hero Kanon, resided here, alongside the headquarters of the Gairadite Demon King Subjugation Battalion with which he was affiliated.

As a military city fully equipped for withstanding demon attacks, Gairadite boasted the installation of demon-repelling magic items and circles throughout its locality. The average demon would face annihilation the moment they stepped foot inside, and those who survived would be promptly bombarded with spellfire.

However, there was one demon who dared to traverse the city brazenly.

This was none other than the Demon King of Tyranny, Anos Voldigoad. Completely unaffected as he advanced, he strolled through the powerful barriers as though he were trampling weeds, his gaze fixed on the two men before him.

One of those men was Hero Kanon. The other was Jerga, the king of the royal capital of Gairadite and commander of the Demon King Subjugation Battalion.

Jerga was around sixty years of age, but the vigor and magic he exuded were far greater than those of the average human. He was Kanon’s mentor and a former hero himself.

Before Kanon was born, Jerga had fought countless wars against demons in order to protect Azesion. Even now he had retired from the front lines, he continued to deal heavy blows to opposing forces in his command of the Subjugation Battalion.

“I shall go, Kanon,” said Jerga solemnly. “Not even the Demon King of Tyranny can evade Teo Triath from point-blank range. He will have to cease his advance. Use that opportunity to pierce us both with the Holy Sword.”

“But master...”

“Do not hesitate, Kanon. Be brave. In any case, I haven’t long left in this world. If one old man’s life can pave the way to a peaceful world, consider it a small price to pay.”

A magic circle of holy light appeared at Jerga’s feet. It was the circle for Aske, a greater magic spell said to be usable only by heroes. The spell was capable of uniting the hearts of men, converting their thoughts and emotions into magic. This spell was the only way for humans to stand a chance against the magical superiority of demonkind.

“Sir Jerga... Sir Kanon... We entrust everything to you.”

“Please... Please put an end to the Demon King of Tyranny.”

“More... We must give Sir Jerga more of our hope.”

“Let there be peace in this world.”

“Please protect our future!”

The thoughts of the people began to overflow, filling the city with holy light that gathered around Jerga to aid him. This was the royal capital of Gairadite, the last remaining stronghold of mankind. Here and now, their prayers were more widespread and intense than ever before.

“This is the end, Demon King! Today is the day I shall avenge the lives of all you have taken from us!”

Enveloped in Aske, Jerga charged towards the Demon King of Tyranny. Behind him, Kanon readied the Holy Sword.

Demon King Anos deployed fifty magic gates around himself, from which Jio Graze hailed like a cloudburst. The black suns struck Jerga one after another, whittling his life away by the instant. Even with the power of Aske shielding the former hero, the Demon King’s power was too great.

“This much is nothing compared to the pain my wife and child bore when you slew them!”

The former hero continued to advance, pushing his way through the black flames roaring around him.

“Raaaaaaaaargh!”

Jerga’s hand closed in on the Demon King of Tyranny. However...

“Guh... Ugh...”

Just as he was about to take one last step, the Demon King’s right arm pierced through Jerga’s abdomen. “Hmm. You fancy yourselves the only victims, king of humans, but you humans killed my mother as she bore me. Rising into being from a corpse was a rather terrible experience, if I do say so myself.”

Jerga laughed, spitting out a mouthful of blood. “You’ll be accompanying me to hell, Demon King of Tyranny.”

In his skewered state, Jerga reached for the Demon King. “Teo Triath.”

The thoughts and emotions gathered with Aske exploded into a blast of magic. Holy light engulfed the two of them.

“Now! Do it, Kano—”

Jerga’s words were cut short. His lungs had been crushed. The strength drained from his body.

“You... What did you do to our comrades...?”

Teo Triath had lacked force. The spell should have been strong enough to penetrate the Demon King’s defenses, but the will and hopes of the people were dwindling.

“Oh, nothing much. Just a little intimidation.”

In order to decrease Teo Triath’s strength, Anos had prioritized intimidating the battalion powering the spell, over eliminating Jerga. Humans had trivial resistance to magic, so he could have incapacitated every human in the city if he had wanted to—it would have been just as easy to kill them.

“You shall never be forgiven!”

“That’s enough. From what I can see, your source has reached its limit. You’ve fought with impressive longevity for a human, but you shall not revive again after your next death.”

With that, Anos crushed Jerga’s other lung, making Jerga let out a cry.

“Though it seems you don’t have long either way.”

His legs giving out beneath him, Jerga crumpled to the ground.

“Now, Kanon,” said the Demon King, turning to address the Hero, “don’t you think it’s about time for peace?”

Kanon glared at the Demon King without lowering his guard. “Who are you to talk, as the one behind all this chaos?”

“True, it may seem that way from your point of view, but I, too, wish for peace in Dilhade. As long as I can obtain that, I vow to spare Azesion.”

The Hero lifted his sword, pointing it in warning at the Demon King.

“If my proposal interests you, come to Delsgade,” Anos continued. “I have already extended invitations to the Great Spirit and the Goddess of Creation. If you don’t like what you hear, you can join forces with them to defeat me.”

Having completed his errand, the Demon King of Tyranny turned his back on Kanon. A magic circle for Gatom appeared at his feet, and he vanished without a trace.

“Master!” Kanon immediately rushed over to Jerga, casting Enchel to heal him. Fortunately, the wound left by the Demon King was somewhat shallow, so the human king recovered before Kanon’s eyes.

“Sorry for the trouble I’ve caused,” he said.

“Not at all.”

Accepting Kanon’s offered hand, Jerga rose to his feet. His wounds were healed, but his pained grimace remained.

“Master, should I return your source?”

Using the greater magic of the gods, Hero Kanon had acquired seven sources to stand up to the Demon King, which had been gathered by combining portions of sources from multiple people. Amongst them, Jerga had offered the majority of his source.

“That is no longer possible. Even using the Holy Sword, a source that has been severed can never be fully restored.”

“But it should recover it to some extent. Otherwise—”

“Kanon, this was a decision I made knowingly,” Jerga said, expressing his unshakable will. “I placed my faith in you. I believed and still do believe that you shall defeat the Demon King—and I’m not the only one. Everyone who entrusted their source to you shares that belief.”

Jerga continued weakly. “You are our only hope. You shall defeat the Demon King of Tyranny and save this world. You’re our shining sun in this world of darkness. Even if that destiny cannot be achieved today, the day will surely come for your holy sword to fulfill humanity’s greatest wish. I will not cast aside that hope for my own sake.”

Kanon looked down in silence. He contemplated something for several moments before eventually opening his mouth. “What do you think of all this, master?” he mumbled.

“Of what?”

“Of what the Demon King of Tyranny was saying just now.”

“His words hold no credibility. Demons kill humans by nature. Either we destroy them or they destroy us. There is no other way. Coexistence is unattainable.”

Kanon nodded, but there was something dark about his expression.

“You are kind, Kanon. But demons are not creatures that deserve your kindness. They are unholy beings that must be removed from this world. There is no need to feel guilt over killing them. Vanquishing them is their salvation. Have courage. You are the Hero, the one chosen by the Holy Sword.”

“Right,” Kanon replied, his expression bitter.

No sooner had he done so than Jerga staggered to his knees.

“Master?!”

“There’s no need to make a fuss. I’m tired, is all. Must be the age.”

Kanon watched him worriedly. “But—”

“I’m fine. What’s more important right now is for you to return and inform everyone of the Demon King’s escape. Go and ease their fears.”

“All right. I’ll return right away,” Kanon replied hesitantly...