My knees began to quiver.
[You are the Commander]
Henry was the commander.
A boy without any sympathy or mercy was chosen to lead the hero's party and save humanity.
I couldn't believe it. I wiped to my eyes to check that I wasn't hallucinating, only to find the same words above Henry's head.
It was real.
I nearly fell to my knees in delirium, not caring what sort of attention that would bring. This was insanity. Complete insanity.
Fortunately, I was brought back to my senses as I heard bellowing laughter coming from the throne.
"How interesting!" The king exclaimed loudly. "To think that the Goddess chose such a bold boy to lead humanity against the Demon King! You fascinate me! What is your name, hero?"
"Henry." He answered proudly. "Henry Smith. I hope I can lead humanity to your satisfaction…my king."
A smile quivered upon the king's lips.
"Already calling me 'your king'?" The king asked before laughing once again. "Do you think yourself a master in court politics, Henry? Do you really think that you can sway my favor with your fanciful words?"
"Maybe. Maybe not." Henry responded immediately. "But it's always worth the try. After all, you never win the game unless you decide to play it…my king."
I visibly scowled hearing his analogy. He was playing with the king. And he was succeeding.
"You are clever, Henry. Very clever." The king's smile widened even further. "I shall call on you to speak with me tonight. In private. It seems that the Goddess made the correct decision to have you lead humanity."
My eyes nearly fell out of my sockets.
The king thought Henry was worthy to save humanity?! Even after he openly revealed his selfish intentions?
What?!
I couldn't accept it.
Something was off here.
The king liked Henry. He liked his boldness. He liked his selfishness.
Would he also like that Henry was heartless? I shivered. This king may not be as self-righteous as I thought.
"Is that the last hero to use the Role Crystal?" The king said, his tone flattening once again. The students nodded. "Splendid. With that, your initiation is complete. I will call upon all of you tomorrow to begin your training. For now, your servants ]show you to your quarters."
As soon as he said that, the enormous hall doors opened outward, revealing a line of servants standing upright.
"Pleased to make your acquaintance, heroes." The elderly man at the head of the line spoke up, a polite smile showing on his face. "I am Urlas. As the Captain of the Guard here at Buck Palace, I will be responsible with suiting whatever your needs may be."
"Please follow me." He said, gesturing towards to exit. The students silently obeyed, many of them still dazed by the series of unexplainable events that had just taken place. I nearly laughed aloud. Once their confusion settled, it would only be a matter of time until they realized that I was missing. Would they assume that I wasn't transported with the rest of them?
"Join the heroes, mages." The king commanded suddenly, cutting off my line of thought. "Your work will be commended later. For now, please protect them until they meet up with their bodyguards at their quarters."
The mages bowed in unison.
"Yes, my King."
Their circle immediately disbanded and they followed the Hero's Party out of the hall.
"The rest of you, stay here." The king continued, an unexpected tinge of frustration added to his voice. "There is an…issue…that we must discuss."
My eyes perked up in curiosity. Issue? Does this issue relate to the hero's party? I wanted to ask these questions out loud, but I knew that it was not place to do so. That might reveal myself, and I had no idea what consequences that would bring. Instead, I had to wait. The hall remained silent as the mages slowly exited the room. Whatever this issue was, the king was set on keeping it private.
"Close the doors." The king commanded, prompting a team of servants to close the large wooden doors.
SLAM!
The doors closed. Almost immediately, the king let out a long sigh and slumped back into his throne.
"Fuck me. I hate damn speeches." The king spat out. "I know that I have act 'kingly' in front of my subjects, but is it really necessary to speak like a damn poet to a bunch of sex-obsessed teenagers? 'Our kingdom was once a beacon of light and order for the entire worl-What a fucking lame line! Who the fuck wrote this script anyway?"
My eyes shot up in surprise. This man…was the king? He was actually this crude and laid-back the entire time?
"It is necessary to act kingly." I headed my head to the source of the voice to find a skinny old man standing directly to the left of the king.
Why had I not noticed him before?
"They are heroes chosen by the Goddess to save humanity." The elderly man added. "They are sure to act with more diligence if you treat them with due respect and politeness."
The king grunted in response.
"Heroes my ass Gaelin. Some of those boys were so young that'd I'd bet they'd never seen their own dick erect before. How the fuck does the Goddess expect us to defeat the Demon King with them?"
"I-"
"Is that the issue, father?" A voice suddenly interrupted, coming from right beside me. It was Darius Kalanthius, the Second Prince. "Don't tell me you held us back just to remind how hopeless our situation against the Demon King is right now?"
The king shook his head.
"No, Darius. I'm sure your time spent on the battlefield has already shown you how fucking hopeless our situation is. No. That's not it at all. Tell me Gaelin, how many heroes did you count in the summoning circle?"
"Nineteen."
"Happens that I counted nineteen too. But how many heroes did the prophecies tell us there would be?"
"Twenty. What are implying, Kalanthius?"
"Something is wrong." The king said, a grimace forming on his face. "20th hero isn't here."
My heart stopped beating for a moment. Those words had confirmed my suspicions. My transmigration wasn't planned by the king. But what did that mean?
Did my transmigration happen by pure chance?
Or was there a third party interfering?
"Can't it just be a mistake?" Darius blurted out. "Is it really necessary that we have one more hero?"
"It is more troublesome than you think Darius. Kalanthius, do you believe it was a mistake?" Gaelin asked in a way that was most definitely rhetorical. The king immediately shook his head.
"No. I doubt that the mages would make such a mistake." The king responded. "No. The 20th Hero is most definitely in this world."
A shiver ran down my body. They knew I was in this world.
"I agree. The question is where? Did another nation manage to fiddle with our summon and take him for themselves?"
"I don't know." The king burrowed his head into his palms, the frustration on his face showing. "But that doesn't matter. We need to find that hero, even it's the last thing we do."
"Yes. We must kill the hero as soon as possible."
Wait…
What the fuck?
Kill me?
Why would they kill a hero?
"We cannot allow the Betrayer to destroy the heroes' party."