"Because the entire campaign is focused around the two heroes, I think it would be best if they were to remain with me at a temporary base initially while the two legions make their way into the Kingdom. Does anyone have any objections?"

Oscar looked to those around him at the table, and immediately the man beside him spoke up.

"What? We're not going to be fighting on the front until Kyle appears?"

Troy was the one who asked this, a look of confusion on his face. He clearly expected to be taking part in the battle, assisting wherever he could.

"Well, here are my thoughts on that matter. While it is true that having the heroes on the front line will reduce casualties and allow for a swifter initial attack, what will Kyle Ruthobold do if he hears that two heroes and myself have appeared in the country?"

Oscar tapped his hand to the table in thought.

"I myself am not quite sure as to how he will react. Perhaps he would rush to the scene in a display of madness, taking us on without reserve. Or perhaps he would instead lay a trap in order to ensnare us. Or perhaps he will instead flee for his life. I will be completely honest with everyone here…. Kyle Ruthobold is completely unpredictable in all matters but one."

Oscar looked up to see the responses of those around him. Darius and his men had tensed up, whereas Larios showed no such reservation. As a matter of fact, he seemed all the more interested when he heard about the irrationality of this opponent.

"What do you mean 'in all matters but one'?", Risa asked with a suspicious tone.

"Yes, well…. there is one thing that I can say about Kyle Ruthobold for certain. Even as mad as he is, he holds seven women in particular in excessively high regard. The women who raised him."

"Ahh? How interesting….. So even this madman holds people close to his heart?", Larios asked.

Oscar turned to the man and spoke quickly, correcting him.

"More than holding them close to his heart…. they are the very reason for his madness."

Standing up, Oscar placed a finger on the map where the Capital of the Ruthobold Kingdom was located.

"I was brought into this world at this location, where I soon found the hero. I have not yet told anyone of his background however."

Looking around at the people who were eagerly anticipating his words, Oscar let out a sigh.

"I won't beat around the bush. The hero of the Ruthobold Kingdom was a bastard who was raised in a brothel by a number of prostitutes."

The men looked around uncomfortably, however they didn't have as much reaction as Oscar expected.

"So what? He's the son of a bunch of whores, and he's a big mama's boy apparently. What does that have to do with this? It's not like we're gonna take them hostage or anything.", Risa stated with her arms crossed.

"Of course not. We wouldn't do something so rash.", Oscar replied.

"But could we not consider it as a backup plan… in case all else fails?", Larios suggested.

"Consider that as a backup plan and you might wanna get a backup head.", Risa stated without a second of hesitation, directing a large amount of hostility towards the man.

"I am not about to hold a bunch of people hostage and use them against him, even if he is nuts.", she declared.

"I am in agreement with her.", Troy added. "To take them hostage would merely be lowering ourselves to his level."

"No fun at all, you heroes. And I thought I might be able to come to an agreement with you.", Larios stated.

"An agreement? Larios, you've said a lot of crazy things, but did you really think that you could come to an agreement with the heroes on that!?"

Darius was now staring down Larios, clearly holding in a number of choice words.

"I've never once agreed with your method of warfare…. but this is a serious matter. This is not a place to play around. We have a duty here, Larios- and two heroes have been gathered to perform it. Can you at least try and take things a bit more seriously!?"

At these words the room became silent and all eyes fell upon the snakelike man.

"Alright alright. So many scary faces… you all will get older a lot faster if you strain yourself like that."

"Enough. There will be no such thoughts of taking hostages. More important is the information I wish to give you all…. the truth behind the killing of the Emperor, Percius IV."

All eyes fell upon Oscar as he brought the issue to attention.

"As I said, the hero of the Ruthobold Kingdom holds the women who raised him in great esteem. It is not only these women, but all women of similar situation and status. And it was something which the Emperor said… a harmless statement at that… which invoked the anger of Kyle Ruthobold, and led to his death."

Looking up with serious expression Oscar's voice became deep and grave.

"After being directly asked for his opinion, for merely implying that there was something wrong with the frequency at which women turn to prostitution, Kyle Ruthobold took personal offense and killed the Emperor on the spot. Before my very eyes."

"My goodness…"

"I…. What?"

"For something so trivial..... to be the death of the Emperor....."

Many of the men around were shocked at this fact, just now revealed to them.

It was absurd to even think, yet the one who stated it was the hero of the nations- the Indeterminant.

Without a doubt it must be true.

For Darius and the men who were so loyal to the Emperor, they wished that this was just a cruel joke.

Yet hearing the Indeterminant say these things, they knew that it was no joke.

"So why didn't you kill him then and there?", Risa asked with a raised eyebrow.

Bombed with the question, Oscar's eyes drooped.

"It was madness. I had no idea what to do. It was something so unexpected that I needed to gather my bearings. The only thing I had on my mind at the time was making it to the Empire."

Risa nodded, quickly understanding.

As distrusting as she was, she now at least understood that Oscar was not some omnipotent being who was all knowing and flawless.

He was a human, subject to emotions, and susceptible to bad judgement. Just like her. In such a situation, who would expect the hero to do something so insane? Furthermore, the man was a hero. Killing him on the spot would be far too rash, therefore perhaps Oscar's judgement had been correct.

Risa felt only a physical difference in being chosen as a hero. She could easily speed around, and she had an excessive amount of strength. She could even feel out the mana around her with ease, and she felt like she could instinctively use some sort of magic.

Yet her mind was unchanged.

She still held her weakness as a human. Her personality went unchanged, and with that unchanged personality, her hardships would not be automatically solved.

If you discover this tale on Amazon, be aware that it has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road. Please report it.

Just because she had power didn't mean she held the resolve to use it.

Therefore, she quickly accepted Oscar's explanation.

'It must… have been difficult ever since he came to this world. Everyone holds such high expectations of him… and yet he doesn't even know whether he is properly performing his duty himself.'

"Alright. So? What does this have to do with our battle with him?", Risa asked.

"Just make sure not to say anything to provoke him.", Oscar responded.

The two heroes nodded.

"There is no reason to take him on while he has lost all reason. Even if he has gone mad with power, perhaps some discussion will allow for a… less destructive battle.", Troy agreed.

"I'm glad you have realized that. Now then… as far as our strategy is concerned….."

Oscar then went on to discuss the path which the invading army would take, with Darius and Larios putting in their own feedback.

While there had never been a campaign on the scale of this one, if the hero was eliminated then the rest of the nation would fall easily.

It was under this premise that the path of small towns were chosen.

"Should we skip over these towns, or do you believe we should take on the small units present and occupy each town as we go?", Oscar asked.

"In order to attract the attention of the hero and keep our own supplies high, it would be better to take them. Of course, we will not be attacking any civilians.", Darius explained.

"I see. Very well. Then, what of these medium sized fortresses? Should we ignore them?"

"If the hero is truly trying to raise his own reputation among the people, then he will come out at the moment he hears of an attacker. On the other hand, If he is merely a coward then he will hide behind his throne until the last moment. If he doesn't show himself after the initial attacks, he will not show himself at all unless we are at his doorstep." Larios stated.

"So we should pass them by?", Oscar asked.

"Then again, if we simply pass them by… it is highly likely that the men stationed within will get the jump on us. After all, we do not plan on exposing the heroes to the field until Kyle has shown himself.", Larios added.

"Even if they get the jump on us, their numbers will not be great. They can be written off an insignificant.", Darius stated. "We don't have time to siege medium sized cities. We will head straight for the throat. And if that is not enough to draw out this hero, then surely he will have long fled. However, without revealing the presence of yourself and the heroes, that is highly unlikely. He should be overconfident if it is against a mere army of normal men."

The gathered people nodded, agreeing to the plan.

"What about you, bandaged subordinate of Troy? Do you have anything to add?", Risa questioned. "You're being awfully quiet."

"I am merely here to listen so that I may relay the orders properly to the men directly underneath Troy. Of course, they will be joining us on the Campaign.", the figure croaked.

With that, Oscar looked around, confirming that nobody had any further comments.

"Alright. Let's call it a wrap. Gather your men and have them ready to set out early tomorrow morning."

Standing up from his seat, Oscar looked into the distance with a resolved expression.

"It is time to put an end to this madness."

----

Risa, Oscar, and Troy found themselves following Larios through the streets of the capital.

"Is this truly necessary? Indeterminant, do you really believe we require weapons when we hold as much power as we do?"

The dark skinned woman questioned the blonde man who nodded as he walked alongside her.

"Yeah, based on what I have been told I'm pretty sure it's necessary. I don't know whether you'll understand this or not, but each hero has an assigned class. To put it simply… your fighting skills are associated with a specific style of fighting and a specific set of weapons and equipment. Kyle has already obtained a weapon and a set of armor, and I have reason to believe that the weapons and armor used by the hero are strengthened based on the one using them."

Oscar tried to explain in terms that the ignorant people of this world would understand.

The heroes were supposed to work as a party, uniting together and each performing their relative roles.

As a result of this, even if they were all completely overpowered compared to the average person, when fighting one another it would be an even fight, and the ones who were able to best tap into their strengths would win.

Why did Oscar not simply kill Kyle earlier using his commands?

Why did Oscar go through the pains and efforts of gathering the heroes and even armies underneath him, forming a plot in order to kill Kyle- when all it would take would be the sliding of his finger across a certain combination of keys?

It was because Oscar had no intention of letting the people of this world come to understand his abilities.

Oscar had reaped many benefits from his abilities, and allowing others to understand them would make it more difficult to do what he wanted. Instead, he showed people bits and pieces to impress others yet kept their inner workings hidden.

However, this doesn't explain why Oscar would not simply kill Kyle from afar, playing his death off as something unrelated.

This was because Oscar did not see Kyle as a threat nor as a sin to atone for, but rather as a pawn to use to drive the people around him to love him, while uniting nations of the world under a single banner.

It was a caucus belli.

Kyle's very existence was reason for Oscar and the other heroes to take part in the campaign into the Kingdom.

And that was just one step in Oscar's plan to take the world for himself.

"Without proper weapons and armor, you won't be able to utilize the full extent of your talents. For Troy, you are to become a swordsman. And for Risa, you are to become an archer."

"And it is in our barracks that we hold weapons of the highest quality.", Larios added.

"I doubt that.", Risa snorted.

"No no. It's true. We purchase our weapons from a vendor in the Eastern sector of the Empire.... a small town called Porta. The quality is unlike anything I've ever seen. Although… unfortunately, they went out of business recently. Even so, I'm being pretty generous here. I'll give you special access to the weapons that remain."

The four continued to follow the sly man whose black hair draped down his head as he walked forward almost giddily.

"If they went out of business then they can't be that good.", Risa whispered with the roll of her eyes.

"They went out of business due to an unprecedented monster attack which took the lives of almost a hundred people, including the man known as the world's strongest. He gave his very life to defeat this monster, and as a result prevented further damage to the Empire."

"I heard of that.", Troy added. "There truly are so many horrible things happening all around the world… things that we don't even catch word of until too late…."

The three known as the heroes of humanity were overcome by a serious mood, understanding well that the entire world was on their shoulders.

Or at least, two of these three came to this understanding.

Even Troy who had been made aware of the antiheroes and knew that he owed them a debt understood that he was still a hero, and he wondered to himself just where he should fall in this game of strategy.

'I will have to talk with Oraguth later concerning my own position…', he thought.

However, while all three held serious expressions- as if they had been dampened by the weight of their responsibilities, one held no such thoughts.

The man with blonde hair laughed from inside his mind, having played each and every person around him like instruments.

They truly believed that he held the resolve of a hero and the motives of a righteous savior.

When the truth was anything but.

Coming upon a large building, Larios opened the door and welcomed the three inside.

"Please, feel free to select whatever. After all, this is to take the Kingdom on without blunder, therefore I will comply."

The three walked in, to see an armory of weapons. Quite literally.

Axes, spears, bows, crossbows, swords, shields, heavy and light armor, maces, daggers, wands, and all sorts of other equipment was present.

Troy walked in, quickly scanning the area before settling his eyes on a particular weapon.

It was an enormous two handed sword.

As tall as his own body, Troy grabbed the handle of the massive weapon which one would normally assume that it was too large for him.

Yet despite it's massive size, he picked it up with ease.

It felt perfect.

The weapon had an inscription on the handle.

'Fera Industries'

However, in tiny and faded letters, encoded within this inscription, there was a message which Troy did not take notice of.

'Help us'

Troy felt as if he was born to wield such a weapon, and placed it on his back.

"I'm good with this.", he said as he walked back to the entrance.

"Not afraid to grab the biggest thing in the storehouse, eh?", Larios stated. "Well, maybe the 2nd biggest-"

"Enough of your vulgar jokes. I'll take this. Let's leave this man's side, Indeterminant."

Risa interrupted Larios, quickly grabbing a bronze bow and a set of flexible leather armor before walking out on her own.

"Haha…. Looks like I better go calm her down. Troy, just make sure to pick out some armor. I'll take my leave with the hero of the Sultinate. Remember, we meet early tomorrow morning before we set out."

Oscar apologized for Risa's behavior before heading off after her.

"I understand.", Troy replied.

Troy then stayed behind and eventually picked out a well crafted set of armor, before heading back to the barracks where his men were stationed.

----

"Quite a day, wasn't it?"

Oscar ran up to Risa, who was crossing her arms as she glared over to him with a single eye.

"I met a large number of completely vulgar men. I witnessed the debauchery of the man who calls himself the Emperor, I witnessed the incompetent and disrespectful men who are at the head of the legions, and I witnessed only a single man who seems to have his head on straight- the hero of this nation. And even that man seemed to be hiding something."

Oscar let out a sigh, listening to the girl as she vented.

"So basically, everything sucks?"

"Yes."

"We can't trust anyone?"

"I can't trust you, or anyone else."

"But you already trust me more than everyone else, right?"

No answer.

"So? You wanna get some dinner? I'm starving. Aren't you?"

"My people are starving as well."

"And because you're here, they won't be for much longer. The shipments should have already been sent."

The two bantered like a young couple. One couldn't tell if they were fighting or flirting, but if one were to guess they would lean toward the latter.

The girl merely puckered her lips, unsure how to respond.

"They… will receive it, right?"

"They will. If they don't.... then I'll kill the person who prevented it myself."

The soft expression of the girl quickly returned to her snobby persona as she heard this.

"Ah. I see. Tch. Looks like those arrogant Pashas will stay in power."

"They will."

The two paused for a moment, silent before Oscar spoke up once more.

"So? How about that dinner?"

The girl closed her eyes as she was pressed.

"Aghh…. fine."

And with that, the two walked through the streets of the Empire.

They were side by side in a new land, one which both of them were foreigners to.

One from this world, another from a different one.

Both challenged with the roles of heroes.

And both with motives that went above these roles.