The hero is someone whom people look up to as a saviour who brings peace to the world but I never saw it that way. Being a hero for me is just a title that I just accidentally obtained, In this world there are 3 major races and those are elves, humans and demons. In all actuality, both elves and demons are just humans but unlike regular humans, their souls have been aligned to either nature or darkness. Elves were humans who had been blessed by nature, as a sign of this blessing they received pointy ears and a longer lifespan than regular humans. Demons on the other hand were humans that had been touched by the darkness where they had been granted power but it also gave them desires to wreak havoc as a sign of this, they have been given horns and tails. Demons are destructive by nature while Elves are Passive by nature. As times go by the humans, elves and demons slowly stop seeing eye to eye. Elves received a lot of knowledge therefore they became arrogant but they preferred peace so they did not mess with others. Demons grew greedy and wanted to exercise more power leading them to just want war. The elves with their wisdom managed to avoid direct confrontation with the demons and offered a neutral position while the demons changed their sights to the humans.

It is important to note that just because a race is of nature to be of a certain behaviour that does not mean that everyone will have the same mindset and no other race show this more than humans. Humans are supposed to be the 'good guys' in this humans vs demons fiasco but in more ways than one, the humans can be more cruel. As a hero, my job is supposed to be to protect the humans and kill demons but I have decided that I will not do it blindly. I will still do my best to protect humans from demons but unlike those who are before me, I will decide for myself if it is worth it to do so or not. Since I became a hero when I was still ten years old. instead of being bubbled inside the kingdom, I followed my late parent's footprints and travelled around the world not only to train myself but also to learn more about who is it that I am assigned to protect. Throughout my journey, I met a lot of humans who are the most kindest people on the planet while I also met the most despicable people who would rival demon generals when it comes to cruelty. It is not just the human lands that I travelled, I also reached the land of the elves and while at first they sound so condescending and unbearable, you soon figure out that they just talk like that out of attitude but not of malice. They are a race that just says whatever is on their mind and does not mince their word. A lot of humans hate them because they find them rude but they really are just being truthful.

"Hero Branton! Hero Branton!"

"Just call me Branton, we are still engaged even if its just by papers."

Princess Maya came barging into my room full of energy so early in the morning, but it did look like she had a piece of urgent news to tell me.

"Okay then I would do that but that is not what is important right now. The demon queen's army has been reported to be on the move in the Inanis region."

"Did they report anything else?"

" Other than that they also said they noticed the demon queen being furious about something."

"That is... concerning."

Inanis region is a large piece of land that separates the land of the demons and the land of the humans. The inanis region is owned by no one as part of the neutral agreement with the demons and the humans also do not dare to occupy it as advised by the elves. Inanis region right now is a piece of land that while full of materials and wildlife is also the neutral battlefield between the demons and the humans.

"Looks like I will have to go to deal with this but other than that, are you alright now?"

"Oh yes, the medicine that you gave me last night works wonders."

"It better be because I brewed it myself."

" Wow, you can brew such high-quality medicine potions."

"My father used to be an expert in making medicine potions so I just followed his steps. But anyway since you are good now, it is time I head off."

"Take care."

Last night I had to fight those two lovebirds in order to ascertain if it is worth it to help both of them. My plan was to reject the engagement but the king is just persistent that it would be an uphill battle denying him. With those two actually liking each other at least makes this situation interesting and a little more happened after the encounter last night. The sword of hero in other words the sword that I am using right now has reacted and told me that Marcel is a hero candidate meaning if I train him then I can pass to him the responsibility of a hero with no problem. Multiple humans are born that are considered a hero candidate but not all of them get discovered and not all of them become or even want to be a hero. I for one did not know that I was a hero candidate until I became a hero myself by accident. Anyone can use the hero sword normally slashing stabbing and blocking but only the current hero the previous hero and the sword accepted can use its power which is the ability to nullify demon curses, give you affinity to all elements and the most important of them all, the ability to make the sword light up as some sort of portable light source. The hero's sword is not that important in most practicality that pretty much all the heroes including me do not even use the sword primarily. While I do still use the sword a lot it's mostly just for looks because I actually prefer hand-to-hand combat instead. The sword right now acts more as a status symbol instead of a weapon but of course we still need it to be in our possession to get the benefit that it gives.

Since I am in the center of the kingdom right now, I need to teleport in order to get in position on time. While I was heading on my way to the teleport center I came across Marcel.

"Hello there Marcel, do you feel better now?"

"Yes sir, thanks to your medicine."

"No need to call me sir, we are pretty much the same age."

"Okay then. Are you on your way to the battlefield?"

"Yeah, I am heading for the center right now."

"I am actually also going to the battlefield as well, we can use my teleporter instead."

"You have a personal teleporter and aren't you still a student, why are you going to the battlefield already."

" I may be a student but I am still the nobility of the land near the border just outside of the Inaris region so I have the duty to defend my family's land from potential attacks."

"So as a nobility of that land, you also have a teleporter of your own in order to be able to assist there when needed."

"yes."

I just went along with Marcel because the teleport center will be full of soldiers trying to get teleported. While teleporting is convenient it has limitations such as being only able to teleport a limited amount of people or objects at one time. I followed Marcel back to his house and I do not know why I expected it but it was just full of weights around the rooms. I kind of expected this because he is like a tank when absorbing damage but he does not look bulky when you look at him, at least when looking at him with clothes on.

"So you like lifting weights?"

"I guess so, it's just what I do on my off time."

"So you already train at the academy but you also train more at home? When did you last time have a complete rest from training."

"I don't think I ever stopped ever since I moved to the new land."

"Okay as my first task for you. After this battle with the demon queen, you are not allowed to train at all, no weights, no sword training, nothing for a whole week."

"What? But won't I get weaker If I stop?"

Back on the journey to the elves' territory, I had the same mindset as Marcel. All I did was just build up my strength every single day with next to no rest. The elves there were making fun of me and at the time I just chucked it off to them being rude again to humans. I kept on training for 4 months straight until one day I collapsed, when I woke up I was greeted by an elderly elf man tending to me and he also expressed that he had expected this to happen at some point but he is surprised that it lasted 4 months before I collapsed so for that he at least gave me kudos. He proceeded to lecture me with condescending and rude words as how most elves speak but his face showed a different tune. His facial expression is as of those concerned father in contrast to his belittling words was a comforting look. He explained to me that I was an idiot for not letting my body heal itself from all the damage from training.

***

"I heal myself using potions though."

"You dumbass, magic and physical prowess are 2 separate things."

"What do you mean?"

"Your pathetic body needs to heal itself naturally in order to get stronger. What a stupid healing potion does is close wound and ease pain, nowhere does it say that it aids on muscle growth."

I do not understand what he is saying, The healing potion should be healing every wound, even the wounds that came from training.

"In order for your disgusting muscle to grow, your own body needs to rebuild it. Magic is a powerful thing but as of right now no magic can replace or replicate a human's body. The closest that was achieved in that sense was when a whacko tried recreating the body of his beloved wife who had passed away. He was almost successful at replicating a human but in the end, all he made was a homunculus. Only the outside looked like flesh for the inside is nothing but an empty shell."

"Homonculus body parts were used a lot to replace amputated limbs though."

"Yes, it is useful if you want to regain your motor skills but that at the end that thing is still not a flesh that can grow stronger. A living creature's body is one of the most complex things in our world even we the genius race that is the elves still haven't figured it out completely but this is all I can say to you. Your measly body needs to grow by itself not with magic but with its own effort.

"But if I stop training won't I get weaker."

"Have you been listening to me you potion head, I'm telling you that resting will make you stronger if you do it regularly after some training, maybe like once or twice a week."

"That is a lot of days per week."

"Young man aside from your body, you also need to excel in other stuff. Do not think that just because you can punch the strongest that you are already the strongest person in the room."

"But you just said I am the strongest."

"Strength comes in many forms you numbskull. A physically strong man who fights blindly will lose to someone alone who can see. Do not confuse power with being strong because that will be your downfall."

"Okay okay old man, I just need to rest right?"

"Yes and do not call me old man, I am only 140 years old."

" That is basically 50 years old on human age, you are still old."

"Just sleep for now you little twerp."

***

"Resting will make it so that your muscles get enough time to heal itself and be stronger."

"Okay then, I will rest after this battle."

"Wait, Just like that?"

"What's wrong? I trust you so I am going to at least try it."

I expected more retaliation from him regarding stopping training for a week but I guess he is more reasonable than I thought but being friends with that overly energetic princess might've some role playing into this. I heard that that girl can be a handful sometimes with her outrageous requests so if this guy is actually in love with the princess then he might've already been conditioned to be reasonable enough to accept any absurdity.

"Okay, I have all my gear now."

"Is that your sword? I expected your sword to be bigger."

"I tried bigger swords before but while it did make me hit harder, it made my blocks slower so I opted for a smaller sword instead."

"What about a shield then for your other arms?"

"I do not like how bulky a shield is."

"Okay then, I am ready now too so we can teleport whenever."

"Okay then, we are getting teleported into my house and from there we go to the camp."

We proceeded and used the teleportation circle and we arrived almost instantly at the border of the kingdom. When using teleportation everything just turns to dark until we arrive at our destination when our vision slowly returns greeting us with new scenery. The house that we arrived in while still looking luxurious is still more modest than the mansions in the major towns. Marcel's family have been relocated here as a punishment but from what it looks like the people here at least grew to respect them because they have at least fulfilled their duty to improve and defend this land however, they still remain to have bad reputations to the major townspeople.

After some time, we arrived at the campsite. A lot of soldiers are waiting for orders to be given. As a hero, I technically have the authority to give orders to pretty much anyone in the army but I do not exercise this power because If I am being honest I do not know a lot when it comes to warfare. It looks like the commander has arrived, he looks like those typical bulky men in the army but he has an eyepatch and a beard. No one knows how he lost his right eye but it would be an understatement to only say that he looks scary but deep inside he is actually kind with a soft spot for his 2 daughters.

"Hello there Commander Pladis."

"Hello there Hero Branton."

"Are everything going well here?"

"Yes sir so far we have enough supplies and the soldiers are ready to fight."

There are two separate types of soldiers at least in this country, they are the weapon wielders and the magic weavers. Weapon wielders are people who are more adept at using a weapon just like Marcel. While they can still use magic they normally are not as good at both offensive or defensive magic to aid enough effectively without weapons. Weapon wielders are usually the ones that are on the frontline, there are melee weapon wielders and ranged melee wielders. Magic weavers are people who are more focused on using magic for defensive or offensive purposes. There are dedicated units for applying defensive buffs to the frontline, a dedicated unit for firing long-range offensive spells and there is a dedicated unit for healing people.

Preparations have finished and the time has come, we marched our way to the middle of the Inanis region and as we reached near the center of the land we just saw the demon queen's army also marching. The moment both factions saw each other, we both stopped anticipating the battle ahead. The loud roars of the marches suddenly just turned into dead silence, only the wind of the trees could be heard. I as the hero is on the very front being followed by the rest of the army while the demon queen herself is also at the front of her subjects. From my position the reports were right, the demon queen looks furious so that really is concerning. I have a vague idea of why she could be super angry right now.

With both sides just standing frozen I decided to step forward, the demon queen followed through and also stepped forward. I grabbed my sword and pointed it forward and as a response, the demon queen manifested her axe. As a demon they have the ability to manifest weapons using their blood and the weapons they manifest are no joke. With both our weapons ready and pointing at each other both of us just rushed forward and started the fight. With both of us going at it both sides also cannot go forward, our battle is so intense that with each blow of our weapons, the wind just becomes so strong that it can blow away some people. As the hero I became adept with all the elements of magic so in terms of magic fights, I can hold my own but it is not so easy against the demon queen. The demon queen can use advanced dark and fire magic that even I have no access to, our fight has been so intense that the ground below us has been deformed. With both of us seemingly being equal in fighting power the demon queen decided to use her magic. The sky turned dark then hundreds of flaming rocks appeared, the area of this attack is big so a direct hit of this attack to the soldiers would do a lot of damage so as a way to prevent that I used my natural magic [Locked Space] and locked me and the demon queen inside it to continue the battle in the other plane and to cancel the large magic she casted.

Both of us disappeared into nothingness but in reality, I just locked ourselves to a plane that is a carbon copy of the place we were originally from. The rest of the army from both side now can continue forward making them finally fight while the demon queen and I have a face-to-face.

"Rosalie."

"What!?"

"I can explain."

"Explain what? How you are engaged after a month of you confessing to me?"

Believe it or not but I am actually going out with the demon queen.

"Blame the king not me, I didn't want this."

"Of course, you did not want to be engaged to someone as beautiful as that princess."

"Look I really don't I promise."

"Then why did you not deny the engagement?"

"The king was just so persistent and something came up."

"Your thing came up?"

"No, look listen to me real quick."

"Okay."

"The princess confessed to me that she already likes someone so she is at least not interested in me."

"Go on."

"Then I met the guy that she is in love it and he also confessed that he is in love with her."

"Why are they not the one engaged with each other then?"

"Well when they were kids they already made a promise to marry each other but circumstances happened that led team to be apart."

"Oh, that is kinda sad."

" Yeah, so that is why I promised to help both of them separately to be together."

"Why do you need to be engaged for that to happen though?"

"It is mostly just to make the king shut up and also because I think it would be more interesting this way."

Honestly, this is scary, I am gonna be honest here and admit that I actually love her angry look but I can honestly die here any minute now because what I did really was dangerous, she is still the one I love though. Rosalie slowly walked towards me and grabbed me by my collar and she then began to shake me.

"Still doesn't this mean that you are two-timing me."

"Nooo, I don't like her and she doesn't like me so this is all just on paper and in the long term this might be good for us."

"Why is that?" - still while shaking me."

"The guy she likes is a hero candidate, meaning if he gets trained enough by me I can stop being the hero and just pass it to him."

"So this is not just about you wanting to be with a beautiful princess?"

"Of course not, trust me."

"I trust you, you already proven to me that I can trust you. But still, I do still feel some jealousy."

"It's alright I understand."

This is the truth about the two of us right now, on the outside both sides see us as mortal enemies out to kill each other but we really are a couple and have been for a month now. Right now we just need to play the part of the hero and demon queen in this war to at least not make people suspicious. This is a secret between the two of us but it is about to be expanded for a certain Marcel is looking to enter this domain. Normally no one else would be able to enter this plane by themselves without my permission but because of Marcel's natural magic to unlock any locked things, it lets him enter this place. I can see what is happening outside thanks to my other Natural magic [See Through Eyes] which lets me able to see through anything that I can think off like I can see what is on the other side of the wall, what is inside of a box and yes I can even see through clothes If I want to. I want to see how this turns out so I am just going to let him enter this domain and discover the situation.

"I think someone else is in here."

Rosalie noticed him, now what will happen?

The demon queen and Marcel crossed gaze and without a second thought the demon queen rushed forward with intent to kill. To my surprise, Marcel managed to block the first hit of the demon queen. The demon queen then continued to slash with her axe but Marcel managed to dodge most of it while the other ones were blocked by his sword. While he is able to defend it looks like that he is exhausted already, this is not a surprise because blocking an attack still puts a strain on a person's body. The demon queen saw that he is exhausted and went for the finishing move however I stopped her just before she hit it by hugging her from behind. She got flustered and began to talk to me.

"Wait bran, not now someone else is in here. We need to silence him."

"It's alright, he is the guy that is in love with the princess."

"He is the guy? How did he enter."

"He has a natural magic that lets him enter into any locked places."

Marcel is flabbergasted, he just fought the demon queen into exhaustion but now he is being greeted by the hero and the demon queen flirting with each other.

"What is happening here, Hero Branton?"

" Uhmm, the demon queen and me are together." - I said this with a smile.

"Huh?"

Marcel passed out from the surprise but I can not blame him because this is an absurd situation. I just thought that he would've been ready for this absurdity but I guess not. He only passed out for 10 minutes and after that, he woke up again but I think he was hoping it was just a dream but as reality hit him, it was true but he just accepted it.

"So how are you?"

"I am just confused right now, aren't you supposed to be enemies."

"I decide who my enemy is.

Now that Rosalie turned off her defensive demon queen aura around him when she realized she could relax a little she turned into her timid self like the first time I met her and started hiding behind me.

"Wait so does that mean that you are two timing with Princess Maya?"

"That is what I said!" -Rosalie said it while still hiding behind me.

"No, I am not"

"But the princess loves you right?"

"Maybe."

"What is this, you told me she does not like you." -Rosalie whispered to me.

"She does not like me but I need to keep the fact that both of them love each other as a secret." - I whispered back

"Why?"

"Because they need to have the guts to actually say it to each other face to face, I am not going to be the messenger in this love story."

"What are you two whispering about?"

"Nothing."

Marcel is calmer now and probably already got adjusted to the situation. His confusion now got replaced with curiosity so he asked us a question.

"How did the two of you meet."

Rosalie who was hiding timidly behind me suddenly got excited and began using my back as some sort of a platform as she talked.

"You really want to know how we met?"

"Rose you are getting excited."

"I mean how could I not, I thought we would not be able to talk about us for a long time."

"You are really okay with sharing it?"

"Yeah. Cmon Bran tell the story"

"Rose? Bran?"

"Yeah, that is just what we call each other."

"Isn't Bran a cute name? Hehe."

"Okay, then I will tell the story."

Stolen story; please report.

I began telling the story of how Rosalie and I met each other while Marcel sat a little bit in front of me and Rosalie hugged over my shoulder from behind.

***

This happened a little over a month ago. I just returned from the journey I embarked on 7 years ago it has been reported that the demon queen is finally ready to attack after 7 years of silence. I do not have a permanent residence on this part of the country so I just stay on an Inn. Since people here haven't seen me ever since I was 10 years old almost everyone does not recognize me. I just proceed to roam around the city trying to see how is it doing now. Everything looked normal until I saw one girl getting fixated at staring on a window. She was a girl with a mix of black and red hair wearing a dress that was colored red and white. Curiosity getting the better of me, I approached her.

"Are you buying that gown?"

"Oh, no. It just looks so pretty so I wanted to look at it."

"Is it your first time in this town?"

"Yeah, It is actually my first time to be in this country entirely."

"Want me to show you around?"

"Really you would? Oh, but I do not want to impose on you."

"It's alright I am not going to be busy until next week anyway. I can show you around freely this week."

"Okay then, my name is Rosalie by the way."

"Oh, I am sorry about that I should have introduced myself first. My name is Branton."

It was getting late already by the time I agreed to show her around so we decided to just meet up again the next day. We agreed to meet up at the nearby park tomorrow morning and then we can decide what to do. When I met her earlier I was still in my adventuring gear so I did look kind of rough so I prepared to wear a more casual outfit for tomorrow's activities. I have decided what to wear tomorrow and so I just went to bed and then tomorrow came.

"Hello there Miss Rosalie. You are wearing lighter dress today."

"Well I figured we would be moving a lot today so I thought this would better suit me today. You are also dressing lighter than yesterday too and before I forget, good morning to you too Mr.Branton."

"That is a fair assessment, have you eaten breakfast yet?"

"No, not yet."

"Okay, then how about we deal with that first."

"Sure."

It was almost lunchtime but both of us still hadn't eaten yet so we decided to go to a restaurant to relieve our hunger. Me and my parents used to eat at this restaurant whenever we went to this part of the kingdom so I am kind of familiar with it. To my surprise though when we get there, the owner of the restaurant is different from when I was still a kid. The restaurant is now owned by a different family entirely and I have no news about where the previous family is in now.

"So Miss Rosalie, what would you like to ea- why are you hiding behind me?"

As soon as we entered the restaurant Rosalie just started hiding behind me, is she actually shy? I found this as a surprise because she was talking to me just fine.

"I am sorry, I am just not used to restaurants in this country."

"That's alight, let us take a seat first."

I was afraid we wouldn't get a seat because I hadn't made a reservation but to my surprise, there are not a lot of people in this restaurant. Maybe the food here is not as good anymore because of the change in ownership. Have I made the wrong decision to bring her here?

"Hello our dear guest, thank you for dining at our establishment. Today we have an eggplant dish as our special."

"Hello there, I am sorry I do not really like eating eggplants. Do you want anything Rosalie?"

"Uhm... Spicy. Spicy food are there any?"

"Oh yes Ma'am we offer spicy food but we have to warn you though, our food is really spicy."

Rosalie stared at me intensely and from what it looked like she really wanted that spicy food.

"Okay then, we will take the spiciest dish that you have to offer."

"Okay then, thank you for your patronage. The food will come here shortly."

When I ordered the spicy food, Rosalie's eyes were just on fire waiting intensely for the food to arrive. If I am going to be honest though I am not a fan of spicy food but might as well try it now. It took 40 minutes for the food to arrive a far cry from how long it took to prepare food when I was still a kid but still, at least the food looked fine. Rosalie picked up her spoon enthusiastically but as soon as she took a bite her excitement just plummeted.

"Is the food bad?"

"No, it actually tastes good but this is not spicy at all."

"It's not?"

She said the food tasted good which is what is important to me and if it actually is not spicy then maybe this is a blessing in disguise. Wanting to know what it tasted like for myself I also took a bite but.

"AAAAAA! You lied to me. This IS spicy."

Fire is in my mouth, this hurts so much. How can people enjoy spicy food, it is basically a self torture where you just try to burn your tongue as much as possible. While I was enduring the spiciness, Rosalie in front of me was just laughing so hard at my suffering.

"Ahahahahaha. Mr. Branton don't tell me you do not handle spice well."

"Well, I don't. Both my parents actually love spicy food so I do not know why I did not inherit that."

"I did not lie that this food is not spicy at least for me, I am used to spicier food. If you cant handle your food, I can just finish it for you."

"No no, I can finish this food just give me time."

Come on, I trained for 7 years surely I can handle a food. Rosalie already finished her meal while here I am barely at the halfway point. Maybe because she is already finished eating she started a conversation.

"So all the food in this country tastes this good?"

"Well If I am going, to be honest, this is not one of the best tasting food in this country at least."

"It's not?"

"If you look around you there are a lot of empty tables so it is apparent that people are at least not going out of their way to eat here."

"I think it tasted amazing, back where I am from they do not actually care about the taste much. There are some dishes that have some flavour but most of the time they just care about quantity and spiciness."

"Is that so."

The time I spent traveling around the world none of the places I went to had that kind of mentality when it comes to preparing food but I did hear somewhere that there is a realm that is similar to this description. The place that could fit this situation would be the land of the demons and to confirm it I used my eyes to try to reveal something hidden. Natural magic [See Through Eyes] lets me see through anything to let me see whatever I want to look at and this time I used it to find two things, pair of horns and a tail. I expected this but still, I had some room for doubts before this but with now it is confirmed, she has a pair of horns and a demon tail covered with invisibility magic of some sort. This does not change anything, I still plan to show her around but I will have some of my guard up just in case.

"Wooo, It took some time but I did it."

"Congratulations hehe."

"Stop laughing."

"Okay, okay."

"I am just going to go pay for our food and let's go to our next destination."

"Oh here is the money for the food I ordered."

"It's fine I will pay for both."

"But I can't just let you pay for my food."

" Next time we eat, you pay then."

" Next time?"

Wait no. Why did I say that? I just made it sound like I want to meet her over lunch again. I want to die this is so embarrassing but still I tried to keep my cool so on the outside I just looked like I was looking for my money.

***

"Wait wait wait, let me just interrupt the story real quick, Just so you know from my POV you were sweating bullets, Honestly it was kind of cute hahaha."

"Rose please."

"Your face was pretty red too that time just like now haha."

Rosalie just kept on shaking my body while she is laughing at my embarrassment while Marcel at the front was just smiling. I returned to the story after Rosalie interrupted me.

***

"Okay, then I will pay for next time."

Wait there is actually going to be a next time?

After I paid for the food walked around the town. This town is actually a lot different than I remember, it became more lively. There are a lot more stores opened here now like a street food stall or a jewelry store. We just got out of a restaurant but I can see that Rosalie is already eyeing the food stalls so I just went ahead and bought one of the food she was staring at.

"Here, it's supposed to be spicy so maybe you will like this."

"Oh no, we just finished eating so I am full now."

"You know I can tell that you really want to eat this right."

"Hehe, yeah I am sorry. I am used to eating in larger portions so the food before was actually a little lacking in the quantity section."

"I figured."

We walked around and I just showed her each part of the town and she even bought some stuff but one part caught her attention, the slums. The people here call this place the forsaken district, this is where those that are considered poor and unruly gather. This place is considered dangerous because this is where a lot of illegal and dangerous activities happen. The government does not do anything to tend this place because they find it not worth it to do so and it made this place basically a land where rules are broken. The soldiers still have jurisdiction over this area but unless there is a direct report that needs their attention they usually just turn a blind eye to what happens in this place.

"This place seems different from all the other places that we have visited today."

"Yes, this is the forsaken district the dangerous part of this kingdom."

"Everything here looks so bleak."

"Yeah, this is the dark side of all the bright stuff you have seen on the other side of the town."

"The king does not do anything about this?"

"The king is not as powerful as you think because as a king he needs to appease the people and as of right now the people in this district does not matter in the grand scale of things."

"So the people here are just getting disregarded."

"I am afraid so. In order for things to move forward here the people who have the wealth and power need to be convinced that it is worth it to do so but most rich people just wants more money and those who have power enjoy that there are people like them that are powerless."

"Are all humans like that?"

"As I travelled around the world I managed to see a lot of people and I can confidently say at least that the majority are not like that."

"I guess that is why it's important to be able to decide who your enemy is and who is not huh."

The words she uttered sounded familiar so I bought myself frozen staring at her in awe. Despite being frozen in awe though I did not fail to notice a looming shadow in the corner and just like right on cue as soon as we stopped walking a man suddenly cam out rushing and stole the stuff Rosalie bought. I wanted to observe what would happen in this situation so I looked back to Rosalie to see his reaction and her eyes at that moment looked like it is full of rage and resentment. This is the first time that she showed a face that you would be akin to a demon. This is getting dangerous I need to step in or something bad might happen and a demon wreak havoc inside the town but right before I took a step someone else made an action. The guy blocked the path of the thief like a brick wall and took back what he had stolen. At the time the person who stepped in was stranger but the person who actually stopped the thief was Marcel.

***

"Wait, It was me?"

"Yes."

"Well I did remember helping what looked like a couple over a month ago, but If I am going to be honest I try to help out there whenever I can so all the thief incidents kida get mismashed on my memory.

"I figured that since you actually had some reputation in those parts as 'The Wall'."

" I just wanted to lend a hand to improve that place."

"Well, thanks to you though the demon queen did not wreak havoc at the time."

"Hey, I have self control. I was not going to set that place into flames before." -She said while making a pouting face.

"Sure sure." -with a kind of sarcastic tone.

***

Marcel returned the bag to Rosalie and then proceeded to lecture the thief but it is clear as day that his words was just going out of the other ear. Marcel being done with the lectured just said goodbye to as but he can not really do anything to the thief directly so all he can do is lecture him and hope he learned his lesson, after that, he left. The thief looked back at us looking ready for a part 2 but before he moved gave him a sinister look with a mix of showing the hilt of my sword. What he received from me was not a lecture but a threat and he recognize that the sword is not an ordinary sword so he just ran away.

"I was not able to help him."

"A lot of people who help usually do not do it for thanks so maybe he is one of those people."

"Humans are not as unified as I thought."

" Never were, that is why you need to be able to decide who to trust."

We made our way out of the forsaken district but it is about to get dark so we decided to call it a day. Before we parted ways we received a pamphlet showing that there will be a play about the current hero and how he slayed the demon king. A play about me, that is pretty concerning because I have not even told anyone about how I killed the demon king at the time. I am also worried about what the demon beside me thinks but to my surprise, she gave me an invitation.

"Hey Mr.Branton, can we watch this tomorrow?"

"Are you interested in plays?"

"Yes. but I am also interested about who the hero is."

He is right in front of you. I say that in my brain but I do not want to reveal it just yet so I accepted her invitation and we will meet in front of the theatre around noon. I am going to be lying if I say that I am not interested in how they are going to portray me without even having any factual knowledge about me. I came back to my inn still thinking about the play about me because for some reason this makes me feel so uneasy. I tried to sleep away my thoughts but instead, my dream that night was the recollection of my past. I woke up the next day sweating a lot but this scenario is not new to me, I've been experiencing this for 7 years now so I just shrugged it off and continued with my day.

Since we are going to a play I decided to wear something formal. I wore a blue suit with a red necktie and I also wore very nice black shoes that one of the people I met on my journey gave me. On my way to the theatre, I came across a jewellery shop and a bracelet managed to catch my eye. The clerk told me that this bracelet belonged to a woman who waited for her love to return from battle, but when the man she loved returned to see her he was followed by thieves who in turn killed both of them the night the two of them reunited. The couple were found dead on their room where all of its treasures had already been stolen except for the bracelet that was on the woman's wrist. The man and the woman were holding each other's hands so tight that it made it hard for the thief to steal the bracelet quickly leading to them just leaving it behind. I do not know why the clerk is telling suck dark story, is this supposed to help in selling these things? In the end, I still bought it though so maybe it does work.

I just hid the bracelet I bought in my pocket and just went on my way to the theatre. I got to the meeting point 10 minutes early while Rosalie appeared almost on point to the second of the time of our meeting. Rosalie is wearing a more extravagant dress in a combination of red and black than the one I saw when I first met her with some sort of hair ornament that resembles a white flower. I already have the ticket with me so all we need to do is enter and get to our seats.

"Hello there Mr. Branton. Ooh, you look handsome in that suit." -She complimented me in a teasing voice.

"Oh hello there Rosalie. You also look beautiful in that dress." -I replied with a serious tone.

"Huh" -Her face is red for some reason.

"What is wrong?"

"Nothing, let's go to our seat haha."

This place is packed with a lot of people and this play is not cheap so people really wanted to see this show. In terms of set production at least, it looks wonderful and high quality. The props they are using look realistic and the clothes they are wearing look believable. They made an announcement that the play would start shortly and everyone went silent and started focusing on the stage including Rosalie. The lights turned off and the curtains opened, the play began.

***

The country of Lytron is a place in the land of the Humans that is closest to the land of the demons and because of this, we have been under constant threats on attacks from the demons. We have been in a constant war with the demons in order for us to survive and not be obliterated. Humans are fragile creatures and we are naturally weaker than demons but that does not mean that we can not fight back. We work hard and train in order to get stronger for us to be strong enough to battle against demons but we also have a trump card, the Hero. Everyone knows now that the current Hero has given us 7 years of peace when he killed the demon king but who is he? That is the question.

This is the hero, ever since he was a kid he has been gifted at everything. When it comes to swordsmanship he is second to none. This is a surprise to everyone around him because his parents are a couple of commoners who are considered failures. Both of his parents can not support him so a very generous noble offered financial aid and that very generous noble is Count Kedron. Before the hero became the hero that he is now, the sword of the hero had been vacant for 5 years and one day Count Kedron brought it to the hero to be at the time to determine if he is indeed worthy.

"Son-ny, what I have here is the sword of the hero do you think you are someone capable enough to obtain it's power?" -The count asked the kid hero to be at the time.

"Of course, I am the perfect person to do so." - He answered with arrogance.

"Here just hold the sword and tell us how you feel."

The kid hero to be held the sword and it began to glow bright and the sword spoke.

"You have the capability to use me but you must complete a task."

"What is it?"

"Prove your strength."

"How?"

"Use me and feed me with the blood of those who brought you to this world?"

"You mean?"

"Your parents."

The hero to be did not hesitate even for a second and took the sword. Both his parents have been informed of the situation and they just accepted it. The two of them came to the room and lined up while pushing their chests forward.

"If this is the only way that we can be useful to you."

"Then we will gladly let you take our life."

While both the parents accepted the situation it did not mean that they wanted this to happen, All they could do was shed tears because their own son was going to kill them but despite that, the face that the supposed son was making was just a full ear to ear smile. Both parents closed their eyes and with that, the hero to be finished his task. With the sword now fed with the blood of his parent he is granted its powers. This moment in history marked the existence of the youngest hero to ever exist at the age of 10 years old.

In the short time that he became a hero, he has demonstrated his powers a lot. In order to prepare for the assault to the demon king the Hero captured hundreds of demons in order to interrogate them about the demon king's weakness. Those demon's mouths were not as loose as he would like so he had to pry them open himself. Loud screams can be heard from the hero's interrogation room every single day but no one dares see where the screams originated from.

The day has arrived when the hero finally starts his move in order to defeat the demon king. The hero ordered everyone to stay behind for they would only be a hindrance to him. On the land of the demons, the path that he walked on was full of blood and corpses of all the demons that tried to fight him. No one was spared if he saw them they were gone. Kids, Women or the elderly, none of them received mercy for all of them are just demons to him. The hero soon faced the demon king and both of them fought but In the end, the demon king begged for mercy but the hero just stabs him with a smile for he does not care for the life of a demon.

The demon king has been slain and peace has been attained but this will not last forever for the demon king's daughter will someday rise in power but it gave us 7 years of peace that granted us enough time to prepare the people for battle. The hero travelled around the world in order to expand his horizons and will return when it is time to face off the demons again. Let us celebrate the hero who saved us from those wretched demons. With that, the story of how the hero gave us peace is now finished.

***

What is this!? practically nothing of truth has been spoken in this play at all, they did not even bother to name me. My parents are not pathetic people and I do not know of this Count Kedron. On the outside look calm but I am fuming on the inside, they have made a mockery out of me. Everyone around me right now is chanting 'Hero, Hero' and with each chant they do is just the angrier I get but as I look beside me, it looks like someone is raging more than me. Rosalie's eyes right now look like she can kill, for someone who has the ability to become invisible she sure do show her real emotion a lot. Seeing her angry made me calmer for some reason as for I do not want things to go wrong here I just tried to distract her.

"Hey Rosalie. Want to go to a hill near here?"

"A hill?"

"Yeah, it will let you see the whole city at night."

"Oh, that would look beautiful."

"Yeah."

I managed to convince Rosalie to get some fresh air in the hillside but really I just want to get out of this place. We have arrived to the hill and the breeze here just feels so good to the skin. The atmosphere here is calming unlike the air inside the theatre which felt like it was suffocating me. From here you can see the whole city and the lights from the buildings and houses make it beautiful to look at when it is nighttime.

"Woah Branton, this looks so beautiful and It's so breezy."

"It really is."

"Too bad this beauty is only on the outside, huh."

"What do you mean."

"I was hoping to learn why the humans and demons need to fight."

"Did you find the reason why?"

"No, but I also did not find a reason for why not."

"So you decided to attack the humans then?"

"I gues-- Wait."

I think this is the time to confront the elephant in the room. The demons have already announced that they will attack tomorrow so I doubt that I would have any other chance to speak to her if not now.

"I know. I know that you are a demon."

Rosalie's relaxed posture has been changed into a more guarded posture. Her eyes which were full of joy from the beauty of the scenery turned into sharp glares of suspicion towards me.

"How?" - she replied in a very serious tone.

"My eyes, I have the ability to see through anything and I just happen to be able to see your horns and tails despite being coated in invisibility."

"When have you known."

"Ever since we ate at that restaurant."

"So there is no use to hiding huh."

Rosalie began removing her invisibility and her horns and tails slowly started showing up. In order to not attract attention and to keep the surroundings safe I locked the space around us and trapped us on the other plane.

"The area around is got darker, what are you doing."

"Relax I just locked the space around us to not involve the other people."

"You are no ordinary person aren't you."

"I think looking at this would make you understand the situation better."

I showed her the hilt of my sword, she just watched the play where the replica of this sword had been used so it should be easy for her to understand what this mean.

"So why is the hero hanging out with a demon? Oh, I know you are going to kidnap me when I get comfortable."

"Wait no."

" Just so you know, I am no ordinary demon so you better not think this will be an easy fight."

Blood began flowing around her arms and formed a big axe. Amongst the demons, only the Royal Demons have an Axe as their blood weapon so this can only mean one thing. She is the demon queen.

"Wait no I don-." - I was going to refute her but I was interrupted by her attack instead.

"I thought I found a human that I can finally trust. -She has an angry tone in her voice but it also gets muffled by her tears.

"I did not do all of that to kidnap you." - I am trying hard to say my piece while blocking her attacks.

" Then why interact with a demon?"

" I can ask the same question to you. Why talk to a human?"

" Because I wanted to see if it really is possible to trust a human."

Is she serious? Is the demon queen really trying to connect to humans?

"Who gave you the idea that it is even a possibility." - I questioned her in order to just get more information.

" I do not know their names but over seven years ago I met a couple of adventurers."

"What about them?"

***

I liked exploring around but one time I went to the Inanis region by mistake. I got lost but I saw smoke coming from the forest assuming it was a campfire I thought maybe another demon was camping on that site but I was greeted by humans instead. Normally humans are too scared to camp in the Inanis region so that was a surprise to me. I tried to sneak out as soon as I saw them the the man and the woman noticed me immediately and captured me. At first, I was scared but they let me go after some time and they even apologized for capturing me. They told me that they were only interested in the boars around that area and that I would be let go if I just don't mess around with them. They gave me food and then I made my way back home.

That was a scary experience but I wanted to explore again so I found myself back in the Inanis region a week later and I saw smoke again from the forest. When I tried to look at who created the campfire was, I got greeted with the same couple again. This time they did not knock me off but instead invited me to eat. Despite being humans I took their offer but I got lectured instead.

"Hey kid, I know you are a demon and all with ultra strength but you should not trust people easily especially humans like us." - The man gave the kid Rosalie a lesson.

" Yeah, I know my cooking is all good and all but it is still risky to just trust people with food." - The woman also chimed in.

" But the two of you look nice though."

"Look, humans and demons are still enemies and this region is also a battlefield so if any other humans besides us saw you, you would've been attacked already."

"What is such a young demon doing here though?"

" I just wanted to explore."

"So you also have the brain of an explorer, huh? That will not be easy with a demon's reputation."

Both of them kept my company and I got to open up about stuff that I was not able to talk about with other demons.

"I have a question."

"Okay, ask away."

"Do humans and demons really have to fight?"

Both of them looked at each other thinking of an answer to the question.

"I would say yes, humans and demons will fight." - The man answered seriously.

"So even the two of you will fight me at some point."

" High chance yes, The only reason we spare you really is because you are a kid." -The woman then responded to her question seriously.

"I see."

"Did us saying that we would be fighting you not scare you?"

"Not really, I have always known that humans will attack me so I am honestly more scared that you two are not."

"While we did say that humans and demons are destined to fight, that does not mean that you cannot defy it."

"I do not understand."

"What he is trying to say is that you can always try and find a human that you can trust yourself."

"What about you two then, can I trust you two?"

"We do not recommend it, adult's are tricky people so it is better to just find someone you can trust within your age."

"I really doubt I would be able to find someone the same age as me in the Inanis region."

"Then just do it when you are older, no need to rush on it now because you need to make sure you can trust the right person, not just human but also demons and elves alike."

"I can just do it later."

"Bottom line though, you should not trust the both of us ever and you should probably avoid meeting other humans until you are strong enough to actually protect yourself."

" But you two are so kind though."

"Humans can be so deceitful, there are those who act nice but are bad. There are those who act bad but are nice. There are those that act the way they look and there are also those that you cannot read at all."

"Just do not forget that Humans are your enemies first so always be ready to fight back and only when they gave you a reason to trust them is when you should consider maybe trusting them."

The three of us are having a nice conversation until the two of them notice something, two demons have shown up and one of them has shot an arrow towards them. In that instant they made me realize what they meant, they killed those two demons in an instant.

"Hey kid, this is the reality of the situation. We did not give you any reason to trust us so you shouldn't we can do this to you anytime so if you really want to be able to gain the trust of someone someday you should be able to fight them off in case it does not turn out well, okay?"

Looking back at it, what I did was very reckless. In the end, everything went fine but they were right they did not do anything to gain my trust aside from not killing me. The hero killed my father but I do not resent the humans for that, they only did what they had to. I still believe that maybe someday I can fully trust a human. I have natural magic [ Invisible coating] It lets me coat anything I touch with invisibility magic. In order to get close to a human I would pretend that I am also a human and then maybe if we get close enough maybe just maybe I can have someone trust me as a demon from a human.

***

"So a couple of humans told that to you, and you trusted their words?"

"The reason I am trying to confirm if their words are true is because I do not know if I can trust it."

How can I get across her that I really do not mean any harm to her?

"Look I am telling the truth, I am not here to kidnap you or anything. The first time I saw you I did not know you were a demon, I only began suspecting after you talked about your spicy food preferences."

"Then why did you stay pretending to not know."

"It's because I want to hang out more."

"Why?"

"Because I like you."

There I go, I actually said it will she believe me?

"Are you messing with me? A human falling in love with a demon?"

"I am serious."

"You are someone who kidnapped a lot of demons, I can not trust you."

"That play was a sham. Almost nothing about it is true. My parents are not like the one they portrayed, I am not gifted since birth and I do not know the count that they kept on mentioning"

"Let me ask you a question then."

"What is it?"

"Did you kill your parents?"

"I.... Cannot answer that question specifically."

"A simple yes or no and you can not even answer it and you expect me to trust what you are saying? Did you just say that you like me in order to get spared?"

"I am serious with my confession with all my heart."

"Humans are a deceitful creature they can hide their desire easily making them hard to believe."

"I am being truthful, I wouldn't be going through all the trouble that I did yesterday and today If I didn't like you."

"You are so persistent but still I have no reason to trust you in this situation."

"I have a question for you then."

"Okay, what is it?"

"Based on the time that we spent together, if you are sure that you can trust me would I have a chance?"

" I will have to admit, you have good looks and in terms of personality based on what you have shown me, you are easy to talk to."

"I want you to be honest with me If I can assure your trust, will you give me a chance?"

" I guess so." - she said this with one eye closed.

So that is what I need to do here, I need to do something in order to gain her trust. Watching the mockery that is the play is making things harder right now I wish that we hadn't seen that instead. I have to put everything that I have right now in my next move in order for her to trust me. I pointed the sword that I am holding towards me and I aimed it just a little higher than my heart.

"Wait what are you doing?"

" Rosalie! I love you and that is the truth. I can not talk about my parents but in here I tell you that I did not kidnap any demon. I killed your father that is the truth but I had to do that at the time. My name is Branton and I am not born gifted with strenth, I had to work my way up myself and I took no shortcut. In order to gain your trust I will lay everything including my life right here right now."

After saying my piece I stabbed myself above my heart. Rosalie's face right now is of shock.

"Here Rosalie, my sword right now has impaled me just above my heart and one push of the sword downward is enough to end my life right here."

"You don't mean."

" If you trust me you can pull out the sword yourself and then heal with the potion in my bag then if you don't trust me still then you can push down the sword and kill me. This why you can fulfill your duty as the demon queen and have the glory of killing the hero.

"What if I choose to do nothing?"

"I will push down the sword on my own and kill myself."

"You will not do it."

" I am giving you 10 seconds to make your decision."

"You can't fool me."

"7 seconds."

"This will not work"

"4 seconds."

" You are lying"

"2 seconds."

As the last second comes Rosalie in front of me is just standing frozen. She couldn't answer which is a shame but it's fine I could not give her enough reason to trust me.

"Zero."

Just as I promised if she does not choose anything then I will end it here myself. With the use of both of my hands, I grabbed the sword that is stuck on my chest and then with one move, I pushed the sword downward all the way causing my heart to get slashed. After the Initial pain what followed that was just darkness as I died. On my death, I see the same dream again from last night about when I became the hero but at least this time I will not wake up sweating at least that is what I thought. I can suddenly see light again but how? I feel something hot at the front of my face. I opened my eyes and I was greeted by Rosalie kissing me.

"What is happening, how am I alive."

"You idiot, of course you are alive because I kept you alive."

"How?."

"Demons have the ability to control blood, normally we can only control our own blood but we can also channel that power by connecting with a kiss. Slashed heart is usually unhealable by potions because potions can not replace blood but I managed to recirculate your blood before you lost it using my kiss and I managed to heal your heart with your potions."

"Why even do that, you already decided that u don't trust me with your silence" - I say this while being slightly embarrassed.

"You confessed your love just like that and you were just going to leave me hanging?"

"You literally did not even believe I was telling the truth."

"Okay okay, I trust you now and you also better take responsibility."

"Responsibility to what?"

"The kiss that I just gave you, you better marry me."

"Huh, okay sure."

" Just like that?"

"Yeah, that's what I wanted from the start anyway. We can't do it in the near future though since we still need to figure out this demon queen and hero situation."

With all the stuff that happened, we lost track of time and the day has already changed to tomorrow. I decided to give her the bracelet that I had bought earlier.

"Here have this."

"Is this a bracelet?"

"Yeah, I bought it earlier but I did not know how to give it to you."

"Thank you, I will treasure it. Speaking of the demon queen and hero fiasco though, just because we are together that does not mean that I will not attack later okay?"

"That is fine, I already imagined that we would still need to fight publicly."

"Starting today I need to attack this kingdom at least one time a month, so you better be prepared for that."

"I will be."

***

"So that is how we became together." -I said this to Marcel with a cheerful tone.

Marcel just sat there with a flabbergasted face.

"Well look at the time we need to end this 'battle' soon."

"Oh that is true, it is getting late."

"Marcel already looks beaten up because of what you did to him earlier, we just need to rough up each other now to make it believable. Marcel I should not have to say this out loud but you will keep what happened here a secret right?"

"I know that what you said was not even a request, Do not worry my lips are sealed."

"Okay cool."

With it getting late we decided to end this meetup. Everyone that is inside this space needs to look roughed up in order to make people think outside that a battle actually happened. When we got out surprisingly there were no casualties there were those who were injured but so far no one died and that is a win for me. This day is a long one but at least I get to meet her and Rosalie is also happy that we get to share the story with someone. Today is a good day but It can't last forever so I just went ahead and slept to greet another day.

***

Today is a peaceful day at least that's what I thought so until an energetic princess once again barged into my room.

"Branton! I need your help."

"What now?"