Ch.191 Extraordinary Measures Are Needed
The Hero Party watched over Hans and Selena, who lay motionless with eyes closed.
Ten days had already passed, yet neither showed any sign of awakening.
At least the God of Death hadn’t resurrected—that was fortunate.
But the Demon King likely had, and that was terrifying.
Gathered around the campfire, the Hero Party remained silent.
Cecilia finally spoke cautiously:
“When will Leah return?”
Leah was their most effective fighter against large groups.
Without Nephert, Scarlet alone would struggle to hold off the Demon King.
“Soon, I hope?”
Scarlet replied flatly.
Worried, Cecilia trembled as she murmured:
“Nothing bad happened to them, right?”
The camp fell silent.
Leah could teleport using Vallien’s Staff—
she should’ve already met the Emperor and Auros.
Yet she hadn’t returned…
Unspoken, they all feared something terrible had happened to Leah and Nephert.
Mia stared into the fire, her expression grim.
“If… the Demon King appears, I’ll summon the Spirit King.
I can’t hold him long—but it’ll buy you time to escape as far as possible.”
Without Leah and Nephert, facing the Demon King was impossible.
Even strengthened, they couldn’t overcome Hell’s Demon King—a being beyond reason.
“Mia…”
“Mia?”
They looked at her with fearful eyes, but Mia kept her gaze on the flames.
“I’m the only one who can be the sacrifice to buy time.
With the Spirit King’s power, I can stall him…”
The Spirit King wielded nature’s might—
even the Demon King couldn’t defeat such primal force.
But summoning him required immense magic—
Mia’s reserves would drain quickly.
Forcing the summon would likely kill her.
Cecilia and Scarlet bowed their heads, hearts heavy.
They’d lost dear friends in past wars—
too often, comrades died protecting them.
And those protected were left with wounds of powerlessness that never healed.
Scarlet gripped her pants tightly.
“I’ll… do it. I’ll dodge and weave—
the Demon King will chase me first.”
She couldn’t bear watching another die for her sake.
She’d believed defeating the Demon King once meant never facing this again.
Mia was too precious to lose.
She knew it was foolish—
in war, sacrifices for victory were inevitable.
Scarlet’s offer was irrational—
as the Hero, her symbolic value to all races far outweighed Mia’s.
Yet…
she couldn’t abandon Mia.
She couldn’t endure losing someone who’d guarded her back for so long.
“You’re… not thinking clearly.”
Mia fixed Scarlet with a cold stare.
“You’re the Hero. Your existence symbolizes hope for humanity—and all races…”
“I disagree with Mia’s reasoning.”
Cecilia cut in sharply.
“You’re both… too emotional.”
This was about cold logic—
Heroes couldn’t afford sentimentality.
“Don’t you know? We…”
“No, I don’t!” Scarlet snapped fiercely.
“Do I even deserve to live if it means sending you to your deaths?”
“If you’re going to sacrifice yourselves, I’ll sacrifice myself instead.”
“You don’t understand your worth.
What would the world feel if the Hero—the slayer of the Demon King—died by his hand?”
News of the Hero’s death would plunge the world into despair—
the Demon King, emerging from Hell after crushing humanity’s hope.
But Scarlet shook her head firmly.
“If the Demon King and his army leave Hell now, it’s over.
You’ve fought them—you know how much stronger they’ve become.”
She’d assessed the enemy—
this Demon King and his forces were nothing like before.
Even the King of the Dead’s once-formidable army paled in comparison.
Mia frowned, displeased.
A Hero shouldn’t speak like this.
“But we still have hope.”
“Yes! Scarlet, you’re being too negative.
When Father Hans wakes, there’ll be a way.”
Cecilia believed in Hans—
the Adversary chosen by the gods.
Though she hadn’t foreseen the Gates of Hell opening, prophecy declared Hans would stop the God of Death.
Subduing the King of the Dead had already fulfilled half that prophecy.
True, the empowered Demon King was dangerous—
yet even he hadn’t dared act recklessly against Hans,
likely due to Equality.
Cecilia placed her hope in Hans—the warrior strong enough to make the Demon King uneasy.
Edward watched the three somber women and spoke softly:
“If you’re so worried… why not contact Master through his notebook?”
Their eyes widened instantly.
“Oh! Right—the notebook!”
Scarlet scrambled to Hans’s bag, pulling out four notebooks.
She opened the one labeled ‘Leah.’
“Quick—write something!”
“Okay… wait.”
Scarlet grabbed a pen and ink from Hans’ bag:
—Leah! Where are you? Are you okay?
Beneath her anxious scrawl appeared neat, small handwriting:
—Huh? Scarlet? I’m fine.
Relief washed over them all.
“Thank goodness—Leah’s safe.”
—Then why haven’t you returned?
Scarlet wrote furiously:
—It’s… Aria’s in deep shock… Is it urgent?
—The Demon King resurrected. We need your help.
Leah’s reply was delayed—
then came hastily, unlike her usual tidy script:
—I’ll return immediately!
***
Selena had spent days binge-watching melodramas in her room.
“That bastard! How dare he cheat when he has a wife?!”
She munched snacks with one hand, sipped cola with the other—
wearing dolphin shorts, a tank top, her hair tied up.
She looked utterly modern.
Who’d believe she was from a medieval world?
After finishing her snacks, she hit the spacebar and asked:
“Hans, what should we eat for dinner?”
I was growing tired of this modern life…
but she didn’t seem bored at all.
If this were a real world, fresh content would exist—but here,
only what I remembered existed.
Every movie and drama was something I’d already seen.
Boring to me—but not to Selena.
“Hans, I asked what we’re eating!”
The woman who once cooked for me during our travels
was now hooked on delivery food, refusing to cook.
“What do you want?”
Selena fell into happy contemplation.
“Hmm… how about tteokbokki today?”
“Sure.”
As I ordered on my phone, I asked:
“How spicy?”
“Milder than last time.”
Her eyes stayed glued to the monitor.
‘Sigh… my fate.’
I glanced around—
delivery trash piled high in the corner.
She’d been tidy on our travels, but here?
Modern life had turned her utterly lazy.
‘Is this why people say to cohabitate before marriage?’
I recalled inter posts about wives changing after marriage.
‘Definitely shouldn’t date Selena.’
All day, she sat watching trashy dramas, subsisting on delivery and snacks.
At least her bank account never emptied—
likely Selena’s doing.
Thankfully, I avoided the horror of needing a part-time job in her mindscape.
But her behavior clashed with my expectations.
‘Maybe… her attempt to kill me saved my life?’
Back then, I’d been deeply infatuated—
perhaps my ancestors intervened.
I hadn’t died or been injured—
just… jolted into clarity.
“Gah! Finished another one.”
Selena stretched and stood up.
“Done watching?”
“Yeah. I’ll nap after eating—I’m sleepy.”
Watching her laze around, I pinched my brow.
“Selena… shouldn’t we start thinking about it?”
She blinked wide-eyed.
“Huh? About what?”
“Whether to expel Roy… or stay like this.”
Her face fell—
‘Did she forget?!’
Under my suspicious gaze, she gave an awkward laugh.
“Yeah! We need to choose! Choose!”
She nodded vigorously, then frowned in thought.
“But… if we’re choosing anyway…
can we eat tteokbokki first?”
‘Sigh… Fine. It’s your mindscape.’
After eating tteokbokki together,
she crawled into bed, rubbing her eyes—
forgetting our promise to decide.
“Hey! Didn’t we agree to discuss our future?”
“Yaaawn… We did… but I’m so sleepy. Let’s discuss it tomorrow.”
She flopped onto the bed.
Internally, I screamed:
‘You weren’t like this on our travels!’
The Selena who rose early, tidied camp, and cooked breakfast
had devolved into this…
I felt I’d ruined a perfectly good person with modern comforts.
At least she showered twice daily—
so her hair wasn’t greasy.
But she was the epitome of a NEET now.
I’d been a Destiny addict too—
but before that, I attended school and tried my best.
‘This won’t do… Extraordinary measures are needed.’
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