I was feeling gloomy right now. The goddess's selfish acts turned out to be a big help to us.
Seriously…Some people have all the luck…
"Something the matter? Hero-sama?"
"Umm… No. Please continue."
The butler who had named himself Mr. Smith was explaining to me details about the demon king and the world as a whole.
The world of Kiva was once ruled by kings and queens in various kingdoms. Life wasn't always peaceful but it wasn't a hellish existence.
That all changed 650 years ago when the demon king arrived. His origins are shrouded in mystery.
There are rumors that the goddess had sent him. Others claim that he arrived from a lost world. There are even some rumors that he was the creation of a mad king who lived at that time.
Rumors about the demon king are always treated as facts in this world, but it seems that some key information is still withheld.
Maybe his origins hold a clue on how to defeat him. If that was the case then he would no doubt hide such information.
It took him 50 years to conquer everything. Many people have since rebelled against him but none have survived to tell the tale. The white crusaders are just a name on a long list of rebels. However, Mr. Smith voiced his optimism at their chances with my arrival.
Apparently, past heroes sent by the goddess refused to work with past rebels.
Thy most have felt overconfident in their cheat skill and ended up getting killed. Fools.
The white crusaders' origins come from the last kingdom to fall. Its king bravely fought the demon king in a one-on-one duel.
With his final breath, he cried out, 'This black stain you have brought will one day be wiped clean, and turned white."
The white crusaders aim to be the ones who turn the black to white. Their leader is the last surviving member of that kings royal family.
Mr. Smith was unwilling to tell me his name or how he looked.
That is understandable. The last thing you need is the identity of your leader leaking out. It would probably mean checkmate for the white crusaders.
The next bit of information I got turned to be very important.
The demon king was going to host a festival soon but no one knew the exact date. I had a feeling that this festival was important.
I could feel it in my bones. The demon king had to be stopped before or during the festival. Any later and it will probably be too late.
"The festival will be held in 3 months and seventeen days from now." Mr. Smith informed me.
"Do you know the reason?"
"We have yet to uncover the reason, however, the demon army is being summoned to the capital in large numbers."
"The army is? But I thought he has conquered everything already."
"That is what is puzzling us. We have no idea who the target is. Perhaps he has finally decided to bear his fangs on the citizens."
Hmm…The demon king has been ruling the world with a hands off approach. People were still going about their daily lives like nothing had changed, Of course, you cannot escape the black-crested flags of the demon king that were everywhere, but apart from that, life was pretty normal.
Perhaps he was exhausted from conquering the world that he didn't do things that would spark revolutions everywhere. It would be easy to crush rebel groups if they appeared one at a time but very difficult if they all appeared at the same time.
The white crusaders were the only group opposing him this time around, it is safe to say that a majority of people were simply content with surviving.
Mr. Smith must have realized that came to the same conclusion that the white crusaders must have come to.
"Should that army be set out to kill civilians? It will be a massacre on a scale never seen before." he uttered
The sad truth was that he was right. The demon army will practically move from town to town killing anything in their path without resistance.
The majority of people will probably accept it as fate and not fight back. Those that do will be outnumbered and overwhelmed.
It was a disaster waiting to happen.
I sighed inwards. What were those useless goddess doing? How could they have let it get this far?
I know that heroes and goddesses had come before, but from Mr. Smith's information, they came with a high and mighty attitude and made no effort in understanding the situation.
I sighed again. Wait a minute?
"Is it true that he has a captured hero?" I asked
"Yes. Another hero along with a captured goddess is being held in the capital. The security is super tight. The best we could do is confirm their existence."
"Did you ever make contact with them?"
"No. It happened some ten years ago. Our organization was still young back then. By the time we heard about them, they were already captured. From the information, we gathered they launched an all-out attack on the capital."
"Eh? With an army?"
"No…Just the two of them…"
Okay…Looks like I can scrap rescuing those dummies from my, to-do list.
We continued our discussion. I learned that the demon army was ruled by four demon lords.
I also learned of the legend of a holy sword and a royal sword. The white crusaders are looking for them both as they believe that defeating the demon king will require one or both swords.
I also got wind of a master skill maker. The white crusaders have been unable to uncover his identity but have since found clues here and there.
I have to find this person.
Perhaps reading my mind, Mr. Smith spoke, "Hero-sama. The white crusaders wish to entrust you with the task of finding the swords and the master skill maker."
"Hmm…Alright…I give it a try."
"I am grateful…" he replied before handing me something. "Should you ever need assistance or wish to communicate with us, show this amulet to a barman and one of our agents will come into contact with you."
Barman!? I knew it…
"Sure."
"Now then, allow me to escort you to your room."
As we walked back to my room a question came to my mind. John must have informed them about me but what about the goddess. How did they know she was with me?
Hmm…I guess it doesn't matter. In the end, their network of information must have told them that strangers had arrived… Hmm… Does that mean that Hearth is also part of the white crusaders?
"Tell me something. Did you know that the goddess was with me when she first arrived here?"
"No."
"Eh? Then why did you offer her such an expensive room?"
"I assumed the young lady was from a wealthy family based on the gems she was wearing."
Does he mean those ugly blue gems she wears? "How much are those things worth?"
He answered as he opened the door to my room, "I estimate you could get 80 million credits for all of them."
"Eh?" I uttered before hearing the goddess's voice
"You are finally back, huh? You have some nerve leaving me alone for such a long time. You better have a good explanation for this…not that I am complaining or anything. My life here is heavenly. This place is a good place to spend my time. I have decided to stay here until you finish the mission…hello…are you listening to me?"
I don't believe it…
THE GODDESS WAS RICH ALL THIS TIME AND I DIDN'T KNOW! WTF