Chapter 93: A Hopelessly Stupid Man

“This is the final battle! Follow Karl!!”

With Aldebaran’s roar, we launched a full-on charge toward Ilyu and the others.

“Exploit their thinned-out front line!!”

“While Hero Karl is holding Ilyu down, crush them—!”

We sprinted like mad toward Karl’s position.

It was a performance worth its weight in gold. That man was holding back Ilyu’s terrifying support magic all by himself.

“It’s now or never! If we miss this moment, humanity will lose its chance to win!”

We couldn’t let Karl’s life-risking gamble go to waste.

I stacked layer after layer of strength-enhancement magic on myself and bolted forward like an arrow.

“...Who the hell is that noble lady, Irine!? That’s not human-level speed!”

“Fufufufu! Amazing, isn’t she? My dear sister runs like a gorilla!”

“Don’t gorillas run anyway...?”

At the head of humanity’s charge was me.

I, the greatest mage of mankind, was using all my power to buff the greatest muscles of mankind—also me.

There was no way any human could catch up to me now.

“Fine, I approve! Just this once, charge ahead all you like, Irine!”

“Karl... no, carry our future—humanity’s future—forward!!”

“Leave it to me, darlings!”

Even a second, even a heartbeat faster—we had to reach them.

We had to seize this chance before Karl was killed by the demons.

“Karl’s amazing. Look at him, he’s holding his own so easily. Even if Irine didn’t break formation and we proceeded carefully...”

“Don’t be stupid! I don’t care how good he is with a sword—Karl’s still human! One clean hit and he’s done for!”

I used to get scolded for rushing ahead—but this time was different.

Right now, how quickly we could reach him would determine the fate of humanity.

“Ahhh... all that training finally paid off.”

What spilled from my mouth was a sigh of relief.

If I had cut corners in building these muscles...
If I had never taken up training and stayed just a refined, brilliant, and beautiful noble lady...

Then I wouldn’t be the one leading the charge to reach my friend Karl first.

“Irine, the enemy is coming in!”

“Hmph!”

I crossed my arms in front of my face.

To protect Ilyu, I plowed through the goblins that had flanked us with a full-body muscle tackle.

Weak. Without Ilyu’s blessing, goblins were barely more than hairy humans in a fight!

“This is the Muscle-Charged Mass-Tackle Express!!”

“Would you quit with the brute force already!?”

Behind me, where I’d sent the goblins flying, the national army had begun clashing with the demon forces.

It seemed the others had gotten bogged down by the goblins.

“Keep going, Irine! Even if it’s just you—run on ahead! We’ll catch up soon!”

A huge pillar of fire erupted behind me, goblins sent soaring. Judging by that, Aldebaran and the others should be right behind me soon.

Good. Then I’ll push ahead alone and regroup with Karl.

“Go get ’em, sis!!”

A shrill scream from my little sister pushed me onward.

Encased in muscle armor, I charged headlong like a runaway beast toward Karl and Ilyu.

---

“Why—why are you stopping me?! Why are you getting in my way?!”

“Obviously I’m getting in your way!”

Eventually, I could hear their voices.

──Atop the open hill. Surrounded by a horde of demons who hesitated to interfere, the Hero and the Demon Lord were locked in a duel.

Ilyu, shouting with tears in her eyes, was struck down.

Karl, eyes brimming with sorrow, struck her down.

The two of them were fighting through their tears.

“────Please, stop already! Just stop, for gods’ sake—!!”

“This is the path you chose, Ilyu!!”

A crimson spray burst across the battlefield with a slash.

Karl stood in the middle of the stunned demons, breathing heavily through his shoulders.

“This is war. This is what killing looks like. You knew it would come to this, didn’t you, Ilyu?!”

“You’re wrong! It shouldn’t have come to this!”

“You stubborn idiot! A guaranteed demon victory, you said?! As long as I exist, that was never going to happen!”

Just ten days ago, the two of them had shared a meal together.

Everyone had gathered around the always-lively Ilyu, laughing and drinking the night away.

“This is what going to war means, Ilyu!!”

“────No, it’s not!!”

Seeing those two—who had seemed so close—clashing like that, I couldn’t stop the sting rising in my eyes.

Why are we fighting?

Why do I have to defeat Ilyu?

“Karl-san, that’s enough—!”

“Uwoooooooooh!!”

Once again, blood scattered across the battlefield.

Karl, face twisted into a demonic expression, beheaded a nun.

“────You bastard!!”

“No matter how many times you regenerate, it’s the same every time!”

Taking advantage of the opening, the demons finally lunged at Karl.

But it was a reckless charge. Without even twitching an eyebrow, Karl carved through their charging bodies—

“Who the hell do you think can beat meeeeeee!!”

And once again, he thrust his greatsword toward Ilyu, whose head had just finished regenerating.

The battlefield froze again.

“Just give it up already, Ilyu. No matter how many times we do this, it always ends the same.”

“……Why is it like this?”

He’s strong. Too strong.

This is Karl—a man chosen as Hero not for his magic or physical might, but for sheer swordsmanship alone.

“Say it right here—‘We’ve lost.’ Declare your surrender to humanity, Ilyu!”

“I’d never say that! We haven’t lost yet!!”

“Just surrender, please! I don’t want to keep fighting anymore!”

“Shut up!! You’re the one who started—!”

“Then I have no choice but to keep this war going, don’t I?!”

This fight between the two of them had to be stopped.

I had to reach Karl, show him he wasn’t alone, and force the demons to face defeat.

So I ran. I pushed off the ground, aiming to break into the space between the two—!

“────But before you kill me, I’ve been asking you to give my panties back!!”

“And that’s why wars never end!!”

……With a loud THUD, I tripped and fell face-first into the dirt.

“This has nothing to do with war!! If this goes on, I’ll go down in history as the Panty Hero!!”

“It’s sad, but this is war.”

“That’s absolutely not trueeeeeee!!”

So this was what they were shouting about all this time?

They were fighting over a pair of panties?

“Let’s start by releasing those panties. Then we can talk. Come on now, Karl-san?”

“……Why can’t you understand me, Ilyu…”

“No, that’s my line, thank you very much!?”

………

“Dosssei!!”

“Bubera!?”

“Hoehhhhh!?”

“Ha! How’s that, Ilyu!! My allies have finally arrived!”

“Didn’t one of those allies just kick you across the field?”

What is this guy doing? I thought he was having a serious talk just moments ago.

If she asked for them back, just give them back already—the panties.

“……Karl-san, thank you for holding out this long. But could you take this a little more seriously?”

“Ehh. I was taking the war seriously.”

“You’ve got some nerve saying that—with my panties spinning in your hand!”

I ran here full of resolve, ready for a final battle… and this is what I get. Ruined.

Why does this man become such an idiot the moment panties are involved? …Was I like this back when I was still a guy?

“……Irine, take a good look at this.”

“I told you not to touch the panties!”

“Here we go, here we go—”

“Ah! Ah—!”

Karl, as if trying to justify himself, picked up the panties and waved them side to side. Ilyu, involuntarily, started swaying along with them.

It looked like a cat being teased by a feather toy.

“And now—gotcha.”

“Gyaaaaah!!”

While Ilyu was swaying, Karl took the opportunity to slash her down again.

Blood sprayed across the ground once more.

……

Ilyu’s body twitched as it began regenerating again.

“See? Tactically effective.”

“You damn depraved hero!!”

This was absurd. I’d wondered why Karl seemed to be holding the upper hand—it turns out it was because of panties.

At this rate, history really will remember him as the Panty Hero. For Ilyu’s sake, someone might need to rewrite the record books.

“Irine, this is war. We’re outmatched—so we don’t have the luxury of choosing clean tactics.”

“…That’s true. That’s absolutely true, but still.”

“Fu… Fuehhhhhhhn!! Just give me back my panties already!!”

In truth, our only hope of victory now was to seal Ilyu away—cheap, cowardly, but it’s all we had left.

Even so, this was awful. This wasn’t something humans should be doing.

“Also… I don’t know what it is, but these panties have an irresistible allure.”

“Well then! For the sake of humanity’s victory, Ilyu-san, it’s time for you to fall!”

“The moist, delicate texture…”

Karl started muttering something weird—probably trying to defend himself—so I ignored him and turned to face Ilyu.

He’s probably just cracked under stress. After all, Karl was the one who hated this war the most.

“When I wear them, I feel filled with courage and determination.”

“Like I’d ever lose to humanity!”

“You spread your forces too wide, fearing Aldebaran-san’s Hellfire Magic. But our allies will be here soon.”

Behind me, columns of flame were already rising into the sky.

It was Aldebaran’s fire magic. As long as Ilyu’s buffs weren’t active, it looked like her spells could actually land.

“We won’t lose! We can’t afford to lose!!”

“Then come at me—I’ll take you on! We can’t afford to lose either!!”

Our convictions collided—and so did our fists, as I faced the demons head-on.

To protect Ilyu… to bring victory to the demons… a small-statured goblin charged at me with death-defying resolve.

“────Strike first, win first.”

“Giiiii!?”

My Shintō Palm shattered the goblin’s face. Another demon corpse was added to the field.

“Yo, ha, toh! Desu wa!”

“Gigii-gigii!”

Just as Master Rey taught me, I faithfully executed every movement, crushing demon after demon.

All to support Hero Karl, who stood beside me with his sword drawn.

“Gevvooooohhh!!”

Then came a particularly massive, ape-faced demon charging in. If I recall, they were called Kongs.

It was the same kind of monster I’d once encountered—my very first kill. The very first, undeniable beast I ever faced.

“I’m not the weakling I used to be!”

That leap, that strike—it haunted my dreams for weeks afterward.

I had trained all this time, carrying the weight of my helplessness in the face of overwhelming violence.

“Deiyaa!!”

I dodged its killing blow using my master’s footwork.

“To your skull—I offer a little rattle, desu wa!”

I gently placed my hand on the ape-demon’s cranium and unleashed the Shintō Palm Muscle Bomber.

“Guohh…?”

Its brain shaken, the demon groaned in confusion.

I didn’t let the moment slip. Without pause, I drove a kick into its leg, toppling its balance.

Slammed headfirst into the earth, the demon soon stopped moving entirely.

“……No, no way! There’s no way we could lose────”

“Is now really the time to look away?”

Seeing me overwhelm the demons alone, Ilyu’s expression shifted.

She hadn’t expected me to pull this off.

Karl’s sword was now at her throat. Ilyu stood frozen, dazed.

“All that preparation… all that effort…”

“…Time’s up, Ilyu.”

Far off in the distance, demons were still rushing toward us, desperate to help.

But it was too late.

We had bought all the time we needed.

“We… we’ve lo—────”

“Well fought, all of you.”

From behind me, I heard a voice I could rely on.

“……Flawless movement, Irine.”

“……From here on, it’s our turn.”

It was the voices of my cool-headed master and my senior disciple-sister.

“Well then, is it time to settle the score?”

“Heh. Time to pay what’s due.”

Voices of my best friend and her loyal attendant.

“Let’s seal her up already. Hey Hero, go finish it.”

“Why’re you bossing me around…?”

The cat-eyed demon pushed Karl toward the sealing ritual.

“Hah… haha. I’m glad you’re safe.”

“What did I tell you? My sister is surprisingly powerful, isn’t she?”

Then came the relieved voices of my father—and my little sister.

"The other demons won't make it in time. We won’t give you a chance to sing."

"Ah... aaaaaah!"

"Humanity wins, Demon King."

And with that—

The red-haired Hero declared victory over the Demon King.

---

"Why... why would we lose? There's no reason for that—"

"You're right. You were strong. But there was one thing humanity had that you didn't."

Aldebaran pointed her staff at Ilyu, and she collapsed where she stood.

No demon was left to protect her. Even if she tried to cast a spell, Karl was close enough to cut her down instantly.

The battle between humanity and the demons was decided here.

"How ironic. Do you understand why you lost?"

"Is it—"

Aldebaran, triumphant, gathered immense magical power and spoke gently to Ilyu.

"You're going to say something cliché like ‘the power of unity,’ aren’t you?"

"Exactly. In other words—love."

Ilyu glared at Aldebaran with eyes like daggers.

And Aldebaran looked down at Demon King Yury with eyes full of pity.

"Love? What even is that? Are you mocking me?"

"I'm not. …I just wished, even a little, that you could have believed in us."

"Wait, wasn’t the demons’ downfall actually panties?"

Karl’s unnecessary remark earned him a cratered face, courtesy of my Muscle Punch.

"There really was a chance for reconciliation. I understood why you couldn't believe in us, but still—I wished you would."

"Huh? Wait, now that you mention it, it does feel like panties were the downfall…"

"I can’t see…"

While Aldebaran gave her heartfelt speech, Yury was just getting more and more confused.

"We trusted each other. Lord Garius believed in me, and the king believed in Lord Garius."

"Wait wait, let’s calm down, me. We can’t seriously let 'panties' be our downfall…"

"Everyone’s strength came together—and we surpassed the demons. We surpassed you."

"At this point, it’s probably better to go with 'we lost to love.'"

"Your downfall was love, Demon King Yury!!"

"…I-I see!! I have no choice but to accept that as our downfall!!!"

Persuaded by Hero Aldebaran, Ilyu admitted her failure.

The demons had lost to humanity’s power of love. It was definitely not because of panties.

"Heh… I’ll admit defeat for now. So, what will you do with me? …I don’t intend to let myself be sealed so easily."

"I see."

"Maybe while I buy time, the others will arrive from afar. …I won’t give up until the very end."

Even surrounded, even with swords and staves pointed at her, Ilyu’s eyes remained unbroken.

She wore a look that said she’d endure whatever torment came her way.

"Kichou, let’s do it."

"Yeah… Let me apologize in advance, Demon King. I’m sorry."

"W-What are you planning to do?"

All Kichou could do was gaze at her with pity.

In his eyes, there was no hatred, no anger—only sorrow.

"End of the dimension. Fracture in time and space, thy darkness—"

"…Another time spell? No, this one is…"

"Open—Box Garden of the Rift. Dimensional Seal: Trance."

With that cold, mechanical incantation—

The space before Ilyu twisted, cracked open, and from the fissures emerged a jet-black void.

What... is this?

"You thought the only ability I was given was 'Time Leap'? I was granted 'Space-Time Magic' by the goddess."

"...What?"

"What I opened here is the gap between dimensions. Beyond this lies a void—a space with no concept of time."

"Eh... what?"

"Beyond this rift, there’s no light, no air. A world formed of nothing but emptiness. It’s like the reverse side of our world."

Peering into that space, my soul froze.

Terrifying. Horrific.

What lies there is far crueler, far more grotesque than death—a 'void' that devours everything.

"I'm going to seal you in here. A normal seal wouldn’t work—you’d resist."

"What is this? I’ve never heard of such magic—"

"Without affinity for space-time magic, there’s no way out of this space. Which means… you’ll spend the rest of your life inside it."

The light vanished from Ilyu’s eyes as she heard those words.

"I’m… going to be thrown in there?"

"There’s no air, no water, nothing inside. A normal human would die instantly from suffocation."

"Eh, but I—"

"And someone like you, who can't die... will likely suffocate over and over, for eternity."

The Demon King Ilyu’s face turned pale.

She seemed to finally understand just what kind of nightmare awaited her.

"You made your choice—refusing to make peace with humanity."

"N-No... No, anything but that—"

"You said you wouldn’t give up on the demons’ victory, didn’t you? Then this is where you go."

From now on, she would die forever.

She would suffer one of the most agonizing deaths imaginable—suffocation—countless times, without end.

"This is your final warning, Demon King Yury."

"H-Hii…"

"Bow your head to humanity! Or suffer eternal torment!"

"N-No...!! I—I…!"

Aldebaran forced that terrible choice upon Ilyu.

Of course, Aldebaran didn’t want to do something so cruel.

Surely she would surrender. Deep down, Aldebaran wished for it.

"...Ah… ah…"

"Swear it now. Swear loyalty to humanity! Accept your defeat as a demon!"

"I... I────"

If she refused, she would be cast into an eternal hell.

No rescue would ever come. Not in all eternity.

"Say it! Say you surrender to humanity!!"

There was no way anyone could endure such a situation.

Realistically, she had no choice but to surrender────

“Do you even know how much suffering we demons have endured?”

Ilyu murmured softly.

“We all share the same feeling. We want revenge on humanity—we have to make those bastards pay.”

“...”

“Even the ones coming here now feel the same way.”

Tears slipped slowly from her eyes.

Her lips pale blue, Ilyu didn’t stop speaking.

“There’s no option for surrender when things get tough for those kids. They’d choose death over bowing to you—that’s the consensus.”

“I-Ilyu.”

“There are still those who haven’t given up, so I can’t give up. Even if I’m the last one left, I swear I’ll show you humans hell.”

That was Ilyu’s answer.

No— it was the demons’ collective will.

“I’m scared. I don’t want to be sealed in a place like that. But, but—”

“Stop. Don’t say any more, Ilyu.”

“To protect me, their leader, the goblins who died. The Kongs who were slaughtered. I can’t betray the wishes of those comrades and surrender alone.”

The Demon King Ilyu was endlessly kind.

She could never choose to betray the companions who followed and believed in her.

“Ah, ah… I’m scared. Scared, scared.”

“Then surrender and give up.”

“But—”

So Ilyu glared at Hero Kichou with eyes swollen from crying and said,

“Who the hell would surrender to you, humanity?”

“...”

She said it boldly.

“...I accept that resolve.”

“I’ll let you resist until the end, though...”

“Kichou... let’s do this.”

I could only stare in stunned silence.

Ilyu charged at Aldebaran, risking her life.

Immediately after, she was blown away by a strike from the blonde Inon and grabbed by the torso.

“Open, dimension────”

“This ends here.”

By Inon’s hand, Ilyu was thrown into the gap between dimensions.

“Ugh! I’m not done yet...!”

“Persistent, aren’t you?”

Just barely managing to regenerate, Ilyu wedged herself between the cracks and stubbornly clung to life.

She gripped the fissures firmly with both arms, struggling not to fall.

“No, no! I don’t want to fall! I haven’t made the demons happy yet!!”

But a strong force was pulling her toward the dimensional rift.

One more push, and she’d surely never return.

“Inon. I’ll handle the rest. Step back.”

“I won’t let Aldebaran do such a dirty job.”

“I started this. Just watch quietly.”

Aldebaran raised her staff at the desperate Ilyu.

She intended to deliver the final blow.

“Flame spirit, scatter to dust.”

“I won’t give up. There’s no way I’ll give up!”

Ilyu shook her head frantically, tears in her eyes, shouting.

Gazing into the distance, she screamed curses.

“Cover her with your scorching breath.”

“As long as there are those who believe in me, I—”

Aldebaran stared coldly and expressionlessly at the Demon King.

Gone were the pity and sympathy from before.

Only ruthless eyes fixed on their enemy.

“Perish, demons.”

And then, a blazing inferno engulfed Ilyu.

Slowly, the strength in Ilyu’s right arm, which gripped the fissure, began to loosen.

“…H-hel… p…”

Eventually, her hand released the dimensional crack.

The Demon King, scorched black,

“H-Help… kar—”

Was pulled into the dimensional rift and swallowed whole.

—

—

“You’re asking for help too late!!”

“Eh, wait—!?”

—

—

Before I could even react,

Karl didn’t hesitate and jumped into the rift after Irine.

Right before my eyes, Karl disappeared into the void.

“Hey!? That idiot just jumped in!?”

“...Muscle Submarine Dive!! Here I gooooo!!!”

“Sis!?”

Without hesitation, I shoved my face into the crack and grabbed Karl’s leg with my muscles.

Is this guy an idiot? What the hell is wrong with him!?

Didn’t he hear the explanation earlier? That place is like outer space! If you jump in, you’ll suffocate!

“Irine’s upper body’s inside too!! She’s struggling!”

“───”

“Huh? I can’t hear anything! Is she saying something, Irine!?”

Damn it, she’s screaming but no sound’s coming out. Of course, it’s a vacuum here.

I managed to grab Karl’s leg somehow. But if I don’t pull him out fast, we’re both going to get dragged in. Someone pull me!

I can’t breathe and I’m losing strength!!

“Alright, let’s pull Irine out! Everyone, lend me your strength!”

“Sis, you idiot!! Ughhh!!”

“This is insanely heavy. Is some kind of special gravity pulling us in?”

I can’t breathe, it’s suffocating! If this keeps up, I’ll seriously pass out!

And we’re being sucked in with incredible force. At this rate, we’ll really fall!

Faster, faster!

“…Leave it to me! Hah!!”

Suddenly, I felt immense muscle power between my legs.

“…Puhah!! Haah, haah.”

“Oh, Irine. So you were holding onto Karl’s leg.”

“Yes. Now, let’s haul this idiot out quickly.”

Seconds later, I was yanked out with incredible force back to solid ground.

Master Rey grabbed both my legs and pulled me out. That’s the power of a master’s muscle.

“...Cough, cough! Thanks, you saved me.”

“You idiot Karl!! What the hell are you doing!?”

“B-but, I—!”

In the same way, Rey pulled Karl out.

I’m really glad we have Rey on our side. Without that muscle, we would have died.

I really have to keep training my muscles.

“…Hic, hic…”

“We can’t just abandon this one.”

And finally—

Karl himself pulled Ilyu, whom he had cradled in his arms, out from the rift.

“Hey, you fool. That woman chose to be sealed by her own will.”

“Maybe so.”

Ilyu sat slumped there, crying badly.

She must have been terribly scared.

“Move aside. Throw her back into the rift again. Next time, don’t do something stupid like jumping in.”

“I won’t move.”

“Hey Karl, you—”

Protecting Ilyu, Karl gripped his sword and faced Aldebaran.

“Don’t throw a childish tantrum. Let’s finish this quickly.”

“No way. If she calls for help, I’ll go save her. That’s the promise I made.”

“Huh?”

“I’m not going back on my word.”

Ah. This guy really—

I have no idea what he wants or what he’s thinking.

No, probably he’s not thinking at all.

“I’m going to save Ilyu.”

“That woman is humanity’s enemy.”

“Yeah, she’s neither my ally nor my friend anymore. She’s an enemy.”

“Ilyu refused to surrender to humanity. That means we have no choice but to destroy her.”

“Shut up!!”

Ilyu looked up at Karl through tears.

Her eyes showed confusion, agitation, and some kind of hope.

“Enemy of humanity or not! Ally or not! If someone asks for help, I’ll lend a hand, no doubt.”

That was the man who was chosen as the first Hero because he was too kind-hearted.

“If you want to seal Ilyu, then I’m the one you’ll have to face.”

The foolish Hero Karl declared firmly.