It was an ordinary day when "that" happened

I was just preparing breakfast at that time when a neighbor (from the village) came to me with a worried look.

"John, have you heard of the news?!" He shouted.

He was really panting heavily. It's as if he was very excited to tell what he had in mind.

"Of what?"

Honestly, I don't bother to know every news story in the village from time to time.

That was because my place was very far from the main village.

Then it must mean that something serious happened in the town.

"The priest from our capital came and baptized the children"

What? Why is he telling such a simple event like that?

"Here, come inside first. Then we'll talk" In this world, even if you are not religious, you are forced to be baptized in order for you to be a part of the continent.

To be precise, there's only one religion in this world and there is only one god, Orsus the God of Creation.

I don't know the exact details but I heard that the continent worshiped him as far as the start of the Carlisle empire's growth.

Which would mean that the religion was mainly spread from them.

But it wasn't really true in that case since people wouldn't believe that if it weren't for the existence of the demons.

Yes, like any fantasy cliched stories, Demons do exist in this world. And their cause wasn't for good either.

It was really prominent on those that Demons were only protecting their territories from humans and they weren't as bad as humans thought them to be in those stories.

But in this case, It was the opposite.

The Demons were a ruthless race who valued power over anything else in this world.

And they were situated near a large island from the East of the continent.

They were situated in land made for demons and only for demons.

And their strength was something that humans feared the most.

Even the lowest ranking demon can shred 100 humans without effort.

That was how terrifying their strength was.

But then again, that wasn't the only thing that made Demons the worst race in existence.

They were naturally ruthless to any race in the world and they sought for our lands which meant that their threat to humanity increased.

They won't think twice before killing them and even laugh as they said that we were their "food stock"

But the origins of the demons are unknown. Even the Great Library of Carlisle that was said to house any information or details in the whole continent didn't have the information on their origins aside from their characteristics.

Horns protruding their heads and the color of their skin was the most identifiable feature of them.

But even so, How can they invade the land you ask?

It's true that the demons are very strong. But their knowledge is... primitive.

They didn't live like humans nor other races. They acted on their instincts alone. Well, save for some individuals.

Take the Demon King for example.

It was said that once in every 100 years and so, A demon with the ability to control other demons was born.

And they weren't just stronger than most demons, They were the strongest demon of that era.

And their intelligence surpasses that of a Human.

With that strength and knowledge, They are worthy of the title of the "Demon King"

Back on the topic of invasion, Demons can't invade the human realm because they didn't know how to.

Yes they could swim, But of course the humans would come up with an effective plan to block them when that happens.

That's why the Demon King is needed. To be exact, the only way for them to cross the waters was the "bridge".

The Demon King uses his immense amount of mana to activate an ancient mechanism that allowed them to project a large bridge connecting the Demon Island to the continent.

This allowed them to cross the waters safely.

And the humans weren't able to use this to their advantage either.

The bridge they used was "Indestructible"

It cannot be destroyed even if it was bombarded with many high-tier magic such as [Explosion]

The only way for it to be destroyed was to kill the current Demon King.

In that way, the bridge will disappear and along with it, the invasion of the demons.

The only problem was that the bridge was like a fortress of the demons.

And the place where the bridge connects to the land is called the "Frontier"

This is where humans defend the borders of demons from the continent.

The demons would naturally attack relentlessly. But with the existence of the Demon King and his Four Heavenly Kings that are considered the sides of it, then their tactics would be merciless.

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And the Demon King was situated in a castle in the Demon Island.

Even if the humans unite to kill them all, They would fail miserably because of the apparent gap between them.

And of course comes the easy question, How do they exactly defeat the Demon King?

Simple, The concept of "Heroes" exists in this world. How original.

It is said that when a Demon King is born, The world also gives them a Hero so that they can fight back.

The heroes were chosen by God to defeat them.

And to be exact, A hero is pretty much a job too. They would lead humanity to win the war against demons.

It was pretty much random according to the history of the church. They don't choose them but they do know who will become one.

It was because they can know someone's calling by baptizing them. The concept of holy powers also exists in this world.

I heard that the priest who does this prays to their god, Orsus and asks him what is the fate of the lamb they wish to baptize.

Then they get a brief preview of their calling.

This is especially the reason why there weren't many criminals in this continent.

Because the priests would know if they are destined to be bad and they would naturally guide them to the right path.

Too convenient if you ask me.

And just to be clear, The church in this world is not bad.

I always read a troupe back on earth that the church influences over the masses.

But I haven't really heard any bad rumors about them from all around the continent.

Of course the "fate reading" isn't accurate so the existence of evil isn't completely erased.

Because humans are naturally like that.

"John! Are you listening!"

And before I realized it, I was already pondering these things deeply.

But based on what he was saying earlier, Then it would mean that there is either...

"I wasn't but let me guess, One of those brats got a nice job?"

To be exact, the church is kind of a recruitment agency?

They would read a child's fate and they would assess them from the reading.

Then they could encourage the child and their parents about their calling.

Guess that’s also one thing huh? If you connect these dots then you’ll be left with the conclusion that the reason on why the church is so powerful is because they control pretty much everything

By the way, I wasn't really baptized or anything.

Baptizing usually occurs when you are 7 years old.

But me and my parents at that time were traveling city to city. Plus, my parents were super busy so they kept apologizing that they didn't have any time for me to get baptized.

Did I care? Not really.

I always thought my calling was a "Merchant" or something.

Anyways, back to what I was saying, Whenever that happens, they tell the children their fate and on some rare occasions, They would get a child with an incredible calling.

Sages, Saints, Heroes etc.

They would immediately shout that their calling was such.

It was because their job was one of the most highly sought in the world.

But politics are another thing. I don't like talking about that.

But of course, the decision is up to the family and the child itself.

Taking them forcibly is out of question as it is prohibited by the church.

But they can persuade them.

In cases such as heroes, they would persuade the family that they need the hero to defeat the demon king and that they would also need to train the hero early.

Most of them would agree but some of them won't.

But that is probably the darker side of things.

"Here, have some water"

I ended up giving him a glass of water since he look tired

"Thank you..."

He quickly gulped the water inside the glass.

"So what kind of job is it?" I said nonchalantly

"Our god Orsus has blessed our village a hero..."

I was really expecting this.

The prospect of a hero coming from the countryside is cliched from my point of view but it wasn't unnatural in this world.

A hero is a hero and the world can't be greedy about it.

"May I ask the reason why you came then?" I asked him while I was preparing my breakfast over the counter.

"That is..."

He looked really gloomy.

I don't care that much really. It's true that it's a hero but why should I care? And why should I be involved in it?

I only wanted to live quietly here.

But it looks like he was going to say something serious.

"The truth is that the one who was said to be the hero in this village was none other than my daughter."

Now that was the surprise I was waiting for..

If I recall... this man's name was Gildot.

Ah, right! That quiet child in the village.

Her name was Aria.

She often clung to me in the village.

It was because she was very shy in front of other kids.

One day when I was visiting the village, I found her sitting on a rock watching other children play.

Of course, I found it sad since back then on earth, I’ve always liked children.

Not like a pedophile or anything, But I just really liked to play with them.

Back on earth, I had a little step-brother when my father remarried

I spent a lot of time taking care of him since my parents were often out working.

I found it fun playing with him and other children when I had time.

That's why even when I reincarnated here, I would always be close with children whenever I go.

That's why when I saw her alone, I approached her with a smile.

I sat near her and asked her what's wrong.

At first she was reluctant so I tried to ease her up.

Then she softened up to me and said that she was too anxious to tell them that she also wanted to play with them.

So I kind of patted her head reflexively and told her that it was fine to be anxious at first.

And I kind of realized that it was wrong for me to pat a child unknowingly.

So I apologized immediately.

But instead, She smiled and said:

"It's okay Big brother. I know that you're aren't a bad person"

What a weird kid.

After that, Every time I came to the village, she would always greet me and I would always talk to her during that time.

After some time, I noticed that she began playing with other kids and she seemed happy.

But whenever she's with me, that kid would smile more and it made me adore her.

That's why I kind of treat her like my own daughter. I would often invite her into my home to eat and play.

And that's why I also grew attached to her.

"So, what's the problem then?"

"After being told that she was a hero by the priest, She ran home and locked herself up. We tried talking to her but she wouldn't say anything to us."

"And why am I exactly involved?"

And before I noticed it, He was already crying and knelt down in front of me.

"I beg you! Please save my daughter! If it's you John, then she would probably listen!"

Hah… Now what should I do?