*

“I’m the one who killed the 71st Demon King.”

Stella, sitting next to me, was even more shocked by those words.

She turned her gaze toward me with a flinch.

Being a Saint-level Hero, she must have heard about the 71st Demon King’s death in some way.

However, she had no means to connect it with me.

“You killed the 71st Demon King… you?”

The High Priest behind the veil scanned me as well.

“While I can’t gauge your abilities, if you’ve killed two Demon Kings, it should be enough to kill the 71st.”

Her words implied doubt still lingered in her eyes.

Had I not reported capturing two Demon Kings, they would have suspected me without reason.

“Putting skill aside, the matter of the 71st Demon King was treated as a secret within the Church. Either way, it means you’re at least not an ordinary Pathfinder.”

That was a hint for me to reveal my identity.

Not just the superficial identity of ‘Pathfinder Allen Pleuk,’ but my true identity.

‘But I don’t mind.’

I was going to reveal it anyway to persuade her.

It was just a bit earlier than planned.

“Yes, I am not an ordinary Pathfinder.”

I pulled out Night’s Shadow from my Inventory.

I didn’t intend to show Night’s Shadow.

My goal was to show her that I could use the inventory.

“I have a Divine Seat.”

The mere existence of a Divine Seat carried a considerable degree of persuasion.

After all, there are no ordinary humans who have a Divine Seat, except for me, that is.

That’s why in the past, I had assumed that a Divine Seat attaches itself to special humans.

But now my thoughts had changed a bit.

It was true that Divine Seats attach to special humans, but their existence was sufficient to change a human.

I was the best proof of that now.

I had broken free from normalcy.

Leaving aside the fact that I held the memories of the Divine Seat, I was no longer ordinary as a person.

Of course, I didn’t know how it would look from the perspective of the Saint-level Hero beside me.

“Indeed…”

The High Priest seemed to have anticipated this to some degree.

“Then tell me. Share the story from when you captured the 71st Demon King to when you defeated the 13th and 67th.”

That was where it all began.

But before that…

“I have one condition before I start the story.”

I turned toward Stella.

She was glancing at me from the corner of her eye.

“I would like this Hero to leave the room. I only want the High Priest to hear what I am about to discuss.”

The High Priest paused in thought for a moment before speaking.

“Hero Stella, please leave the room.”

“But High Priest, this person is a complete outsider. I can’t leave you two alone…”

However, the High Priest shook her head.

“He is a chosen human of the Divine Seat. That means the Gods also trust him.”

Stella reluctantly nodded.

“If that is the High Priest’s wish, then I will comply.”

She left the room without protest, looking a bit disappointed for not getting to hear the story.

Now alone with the High Priest, she asked, “Are we ready?”

“Thank you for your understanding.”

You might think it was an overreaction to send Stella away.

But the story I was going to tell, especially regarding the future, couldn’t be heard by her.

Her influence was massive, as indicated by her rank of 4th in the Hero Ranking.

“Then I shall begin.”

I started unraveling the events leading up to now.

From meeting Gwen to passing trials, and defeating the 71st Demon King.

I didn’t go into every detail, but it was quite a lengthy story.

Next came my story of going to Sakh and meeting Libero.

I mentioned that he was a Demon King without any filters.

To my surprise, the High Priest made an unexpected comment.

“The 13th Demon King was the last knight of the Leim Kingdom…”

“The last knight of the Leim Kingdom?”

In the memories of the Divine Seat, Libero was just treated as one of the Demon Kings.

The only past I knew about him was that he made a promise with the previous king of the Leim Kingdom.

I had never heard of him being called the last knight of the Leim Kingdom.

“You know about the promise he made with the previous king, but not this?”

I fell silent.

It was true that I didn’t know about his past.

That was the limitation of the memories of the Divine Seat. I was sharp on the present and near future but had little knowledge about the past 500 years.

“500 years ago, during the Age of Chaos, he was a knight who fought fiercely for the Leim Kingdom against the Chaos Beasts before he vanished. His name was Libero.”

The High Priest began to tell a short story about him.

It was definitely in line with his past.

“Even though he became a Demon King, he still wanted to protect people until the end.”

Of course, I wasn’t defending the evil acts he displayed during his twisted time.

But when that distortion returned, he surely wanted to protect people.

That must have been his true self.

“Yeah, that might have been the case. However, it would be best not to reveal the identity of the 13th Demon King. It wouldn’t have a good influence on people.”

“Understood.”

The fact that a hero from 500 years ago turned into a Demon King and slaughtered heroes… I thought keeping it hidden was for the best.

I continued my story, leading up to when I captured the 67th Demon King.

“So I captured the 67th Demon King.”

It was quite a long story.

But throughout the narration, I didn’t feel tired.

I was almost amazed at the path I had walked.

‘It would have been impossible without the memories of the Divine Seat.’

I understood why the God of Chains had tricked me into thinking of myself as the Divine Seat.

Because I thought of myself that way, I could act with such conviction.

Of course, that didn’t mean his actions weren’t twisted.

“So, you’ve killed three Demon Kings?”

“Yes.”

“However, it’s strange.”

The High Priest tilted her head.

“There’s no lie in what you say. But there’s something missing.”

It seemed she had caught on.

She realized that I was deliberately avoiding mentioning one particular aspect.

That being the memories of the Divine Seat.

‘Damn, is she trying to dig everything out of me?’

Just when I was tense…

The High Priest stated, “Respecting your wishes is important, especially if there’s something you wish to keep hidden.”

That was a relief.

My honesty until now had paid off.

“Thank you.”

Now, there was only one thing left.

I waited for the High Priest to speak first.

“If I believe that you have killed three Demon Kings, then the important question now is about your future treatment.”

Finally, we reached the main point.

The reason I had come here and shared my information with the High Priest was for this.

The decision I make from now on could determine my future.

“There are two major options. You can either have your accomplishments recognized and quickly become a High-ranking Hero, or you can forfeit your accomplishments and choose to live quietly.”

The two choices were laid before me.

The first one seemed more appealing.

After all, becoming a High-ranking Hero wasn’t an easy accomplishment.

While it may appear that one could overturn their status anytime with the right skills, that wasn’t entirely true.

Over 500 years, the system had gradually become rigid.

And at the center of it all was the Hero Academy.

The institution directly under the Church, focusing on the specialized training of Heroes, the Hero Academy.

It grants the title of Hero Candidate upon admission and the title of Hero with a relic upon graduation.

Most of the training is conducted in lower institutions, and because classes focus heavily on practical training, the education period is very short at just one year.

In contrast, the conventional route from Hero Candidate to Hero typically takes at least a year, often 3 to 5 years, even with remarkable skills.

And even after officially becoming a Hero, it’s the same. Graduates of the Hero Academy quickly build their records using their unique connections and relics granted upon graduation.

However, that didn’t mean they would easily reach the level of High-ranking Heroes.

From that point on, it was genuinely an area of skill. Most talented Hero Candidates go through the Hero Academy, that’s the problem.

For this reason, most of the 100 High-ranking Heroes also come from the Hero Academy.

‘So if I want to become a High-ranking Hero without passing through the Hero Academy, this is a great opportunity.’

But what mattered most was whether that was really my goal.

‘It was like that only when I first held a sword.’

Yet my ambitions had continually changed.

Initially, it was just about becoming a Hero.

Then it became about reaching either High-ranking Hero or Saint-level Hero, as far as my strength would allow.

And now…

‘Becoming a High-ranking Hero isn’t what’s important.’

Just because I became a High-ranking Hero doesn’t mean I would become stronger.

Sure, if I became a High-ranking Hero, the Church would support me with suitable relics, so I would gain strength.

But still, the drawbacks were too many.

‘First of all, admitting to killing the Demon Kings is dangerous.’

Sure, I could rise to the rank of High-ranking Hero, but from that moment on, control would begin.

I was not referring merely to the Demon Kings.

I meant other Heroes around me, and even more so, the encounters with future Divine Seats, aside from Gwen and Elsie.

If they began to monitor me, my actions would face significant restrictions.

So far, I had used them as I pleased without so much as a thought about it.

But I couldn’t optimistically assume that I wouldn’t encounter what one might call ‘old-timers’ among the other Divine Seats I would meet.

No matter how much I had the memories of the Divine Seat, I didn’t want to allow even the slightest interruption.

And I also doubted whether I truly had the strength befitting a High-ranking Hero.

In terms of swordsmanship alone, I might meet the criteria, but that alone wouldn’t be enough to face Demon Kings.

The 71st Demon King, Libero, and Gineus were all defeated due to favorable circumstances; my skills didn’t overwhelm them.

Thus, there’s no reason to be obsessed with a position like that of a High-ranking Hero.

Right now, what mattered most was preventing the destruction of the Leim Kingdom.

Attempting to do so while facing external constraints was virtually impossible.

Therefore, I made this decision.

In fact, it was a decision based on calculations I had already completed in my mind.

“I, Allen Pleuk, will fully acknowledge the merits of having killed three Demon Kings. And…”

You might think that’s different from what you expected, right?

Why acknowledge it?

‘[Royal Emblem］ will provide me the skill [Optical Modulation (C)］.’

It was just as I had experienced when I first inherited [Swordsmanship (B)］.

I felt the knowledge and senses related to [Optical Modulation (C)] seeping into my body.

And I was now capable of mimicking the techniques that Princess Ershiarah would learn.

“What do you think?”

I was no longer that boy with dull blonde hair and blue eyes.

Instead, I had transformed into a slightly more mature-looking, black-haired young man.

Seeing my appearance, the High Priest smiled as if satisfied.

And she said, “Not a bad look at all.”

That was probably because both people I based my image on had decent looks.

My current appearance was the result of combining the images of Libero and Sung Yoo-rang in my mind.

“I will be known as Sung Yoo-rang from Sakh and will enroll in the Hero Academy.”

I wondered if that Divine Seat would be aware that I chose to use the name Sung Yoo-rang.

Even if he did find out, he wouldn’t have a leg to stand on.

After all, the account name was given by him in the first place.

*