At the demon king's shout, the knight fell silent. The demon king struggled to contain his growing rage.
Elder Margarita of the dark elves.
She wasn't just any member of the demon king's army. She was the one who had saved the demon king when he was on the brink of death, and she was also the only woman he had ever loved.
She had volunteered as an envoy, believing in a peaceful future, and left for the human kingdom. But not long after, the demon king received word that she had been killed by the humans. And it was then that he gave up on the possibility of coexistence with them.
"..."
The demon king's words left the group of heroes shaken, exchanging glances in disbelief.
They had all heard similar stories.
Even the knight leading the charge against the demon king had heard them.
"..."
The tale was from the knight's own kingdom, where the group had first gathered to begin their journey.
According to the story, a group of demons with dark skin had infiltrated a royal banquet and tried to enslave the attending nobles and royalty with their beauty.
But their plot was foiled by a single hero, a man from a prominent noble family with a reputation for being a philanderer.
The hero, drawn to the banquet by rumours of the kingdom's most beautiful women, had worn the family's prized sword at his waist. Upon seeing the demons, he decided to fight, leading them outside into the woods and ultimately defeating them.
Thanks to him, the nobles and royalty were freed from the demons' spell, and his deed became famous, earning him the title of hero.
"..."
Everyone turned their gaze to the man in the ornate armour at the centre of their group. Looking a bit sheepish, the man scratched his chin and muttered,
"Oh, right. That dark-skinned woman's name was Margarita, wasn't it? Tsk, she was a fine woman..."
"...?!"
The party's eyes widened in shock at the hero's words.
His reputation for being a womanizer was well known, but still... no matter how infamous he was...
"W-Wait. Hero, are you saying..."
"Tsk. Well, I guess there's no point in hiding it now, huh? I only asked her to sleep with me for once, but when I cornered her in the woods, I, uh, forced myself on her... Damn, she ended up choosing suicide. What a waste."
"..."
The truth spilt out, and the group's eyes began to waver.
"W-Wait, then what have we..."
Someone in the party muttered, and the knight snapped back to her senses, quickly trying to correct them.
"Get a grip! This is just the demon king's lies!"
But the atmosphere around them was already crumbling beyond control.
More than that, the knight herself, who had led the party and supported the hero all this time was falling apart.
"No, it can't be. It can't be true."
The knight murmured as she looked at the hero, hoping for him to deny the demon king's words. But the hero, scratching his head, looked away, a bit embarrassed.
At that moment, the knight felt as if the sky had fallen.
After all, wasn't this man supposed to be the legendary 'hero'?
The one who would defeat the demon king and bring peace to the world?
Because of that belief, she had endured everything, even when the hero had taken advantage of her body, she had borne it because he was the 'hero.'
She had suffered unspeakable humiliation, leading her subordinates and the party forward because she had seen him as the 'hope' that would save humanity.
But if everything she believed in turned out to be a lie if everything she had trusted was just a fabrication made by a royal family desperate to cover up a scandal, and if countless humans had been sacrificed to uphold that lie, then what was she supposed to believe in now?
---
"Um... Don't worry."
"...?"
The hero's voice echoed in her ears. At the sound of his voice, the female knight rolled her eyes, now unfocused, toward him. Scratching his chin with a sly smile, the hero spoke to her.
"Well, after all, it's just something in the past, right? Don't bother with such things. Oh, are you worried about me cheating on you before we got together? Come on... it was just a 'demon girl who bit her tongue and died,' right? Don't let a slut like that bother you. I'll make sure to show you plenty of affection tonight. With the others too. Hehehe."
"..."
Even in this situation, the hero's absurdly lecherous remarks continued.
The female knight and her subordinates were left speechless by his words. Then, they heard the voice of the Demon King.
"...Was it you?"
"...!"
A chilling voice, as if it came from the underworld.
The female knight snapped back, came to her senses and turned her head, startled. There stood the Demon King, his eyes glowing red, his entire body tensed as he let out a mighty roar.
"Ugh!"
The group, startled by the booming sound, recoiled. And at that moment, the Demon King's massive body lunged at them.
"...!"
In the blink of an eye, the female knight's subordinates were scattered by the Demon King's attack. Screams filled the air, blood and chunks of flesh flying everywhere.
"Uooooooh!"
The Demon King roared, launching an assault on their party. Only then did they regain their senses and begin to fight back. However, no one was able to match the raw strength of the Demon King, who had transformed into a beast.
"Hero, where are you, you bastard!"
As the Demon King searched for the gleaming armour of the hero, he shouted. But no matter where his red eyes looked, the hero was nowhere to be seen. It was then that the Demon King noticed a girl in the distance, her face pale as she formed hand signs.
Magic! The thought crossed his mind.
"-Hah!"
The hero, who had been hidden by magic, dispelled it with a shout and charged forward.
Hearing this cry, the Demon King turned his head urgently. But at that moment—
With a slicing sound, a cold blade plunged into the Demon King's abdomen.
"Keuh!"
Feeling the blade embedded in his stomach, the Demon King tried to swing his hand to finish off the hero, who was grinning smugly at him. But in that instant, the Demon King's body began to shrink rapidly.
"Krugh... Kyaaaah!"
His once-bulging muscles, sharp fangs, and large horns all shrank as the Demon King's body reverted to its human form. The sword's anti-magic field had drained the energy from the spell that had enhanced his body with magic.
Watching this, the hero whistled and muttered.
"Phew~ That scared me. You almost got me there."
"...Kugh, you... you bastard!"
"You're still struggling when you're half-dead... Just die quietly already. You're annoying."
The hero muttered as he gripped the handle of the sword lodged in the Demon King's stomach. With a squelching sound, the blade was pulled out, blood splattering around.
"..."
The Demon King staggered back.
Watching him, the hero whistled again as if to say, "You're still alive?"
"...Damn, you're as persistent as a cockroach."
"Ha ha ha!..."
"...?"
"Hahahaha! AHAHAHA!!!"
"What the hell? Did this guy go insane?"
The hero stepped back, startled by the Demon King's sudden laughter.
At that moment, the girl shouted as if realizing something.
"Everyone, get away!"
"...!"
At her warning, the female knight and the surviving party members quickly began to flee. Seeing this, the hero cursed and started to run after them.
Watching them retreat, the Demon King shouted.
"Yes, that's right, humans! Today, I am defeated!"
"...?"
"You said it yourselves earlier, didn't you? That this place would be my grave... But I will not be the only one buried here! You all will join me!"
"Damn it! Is he going to self-destruct?!"
One of the hero's party members shouted. And with that, beams of light began to explode from behind them.
"...!"
Terrified by the sheer power of the light, the hero's party raced toward the exit. As they fled, the Demon King shouted after them.
"Listen well, humans! And remember this! I am the Demon King, Alaric! I will return someday, no matter what it takes!
And the day I return will be the last day for you humans!"
"Dammit! What nonsense are you spewing?! If you're going to die, just die already!"
The hero's shout was drowned out by the roaring explosion. In an instant, a blast of light and sound spread from the Demon King's castle.
Shards of debris rained down, and the Demon King's fortress crumbled.
The explosion in the Demon King's castle wasn't confined to one area. Chain explosions began to erupt all over the fortress. The sudden chaos caused the demon army surrounding the castle to panic and flee in all directions.
*
In the year 1328 of the continental calendar,
The Demon King Lagnarite, who had plunged the world into darkness and fear, fell to the hero's sword.
Afterwards, the demon army that had terrorized humanity vanished like smoke.
Not only the demons who had gathered around the castle but also those on the western front disappeared.
This allowed humans to finally break free from the Demon King's terror, and they celebrated the hero's triumph.
The hero returned to his homeland, where he married the princess and ascended to the throne.
The surviving members of the hero's party went their separate ways.
The girl known as the Sage returned to the Magic Tower, choosing a life of seclusion, never to step outside again.
The female knight returned to her position with her surviving subordinates and quietly performed her duties. The rest of the party members also dispersed.
People praised them as heroes.
But they could not accept the praise wholeheartedly.
For they knew the truth behind this absurd tragedy.
Yet it was a truth that could not be shared with anyone.
To speak of it would surely plunge the world into chaos.
And so, they chose to bury the truth in darkness.
Thus, the invasion of the human world by the demons, led by the Demon King, was summarized in a few sentences about the hero's simple victory.
As time passed, those who knew the truth began to disappear one by one, and just as they had wished, the truth was buried in darkness.
But they did not realize—
Once history has been twisted, it can never be set straight. Until someone corrects that distortion, it will never return to its rightful path.
And so, the history of the surface world, burdened by this distortion, lost its way and began to march down a crooked path.
Five hundred years passed.