I Became a Raid Boss

I carefully examined the woman’s face again.

I thought it was similar before, but after hearing her response, I could see more clearly how she resembled Atysha.

Her eyes had a gentle, languid look, and her jawline was elegantly slender.

Her voice also seemed subtly reminiscent of Atysha…

I couldn’t help but think that if you stripped away the fatigue from Atysha’s face, it would look something like this.

“That appearance has a grown daughter…?! Totally unfair…!”

“That could happen.”

“What do you mean could happen?! She looks the same age as Atysha or even younger…”

“A mom who looks younger than her daughter. That’s the kind of thing you’d only see in cartoons,” Da-eun murmured.

She must know that demon races are long-lived, so what’s with the surprise?

Well, I could understand why Da-eun was saying such things.

If you were generous, you could say the chief looked like a minor.

“If these are the ones my daughter brought, then I suppose I can trust you. Justina. That is my name.”

“Your speech is strange.”

“Impudent child, who do you think you are to say such things?”

“Hmmm. That’s true.”

Just as I was trying to nitpick for no reason, I was immediately hit back.

How petty to face it with logic… As the leader of a clan, she was very wise.

“Canaria. Just call me Kana.”

With Justina breaking the ice, we all introduced ourselves — me, Da-eun, and Selin.

Da-eun timidly raised her hand.

“U-Um… How should we address you?”

The nervousness was clearly evident in Da-eun’s hesitating voice.

“Why are you so nervous?”

“…For the human race, meeting a king is the same as this, right? I’m surprised that Kana actually responds properly.”

“Hmm… Is that so?”

I heard Da-eun’s words but still couldn’t accept it.

After all, the people Da-eun had met so far were far from ordinary!

Just with me and Selin by her side, we were a former Commander of the Knights and an Apprentice Saint, plus she had even met a prince!

She hadn’t been nervous then, so why is she nervous now—

“Could it be that you were looking down on a kingdom that has already fallen?”

“No way!”

…Is that what she really thought?

As I shot her a disappointed glance, Da-eun shook her head frantically.

“Kana and Selin were already friends when we met, so there wasn’t time for a shock…. With Ashie, I honestly didn’t feel it either.”

“Huuuum….”

“Uh, but I was nervous when talking to Aaron! It felt like I was nervous for a different reason, though…!”

“A different reason?”

“…Ah, let’s pretend I didn’t say that.”

If you’re nervous, then you’re nervous. What do you mean by ‘nervous for a different reason’?

I kept poking, unable to understand, but Da-eun remained silent, closing her mouth tightly.

…Something was suspicious.

Even while I thought that, I had no choice but to stop the interrogation.

After all, it wasn’t just the four of us here, and we couldn’t keep talking among ourselves forever.

“Have you all finished playing? Can I speak now?”

Sure enough, no sooner had the conversation entered a lull than Justina interjected.

“Humans call me the Demon Lord, right? You may call me Demon Lord as usual, or you may call me Justina. It makes no difference to me.”

“Then, I’ll call you Justina.”

“Yes. Justina.”

“Why did you come without the ‘Lord’ title?”

“I came to the Ardina Continent.”

With an expression that seemed to have a lot to say, Justina stared at me for a while before ultimately looking away without saying anything.

Her attitude seemed to scream, ‘I’d rather suffer than deal with this.’

“…Well.”

A short word popped out of Justina’s mouth.

Struggling to continue, she finally seemed to make a firm decision as she squeezed her eyes shut.

“…If it’s not an urgent matter, could you tell me a bit more about Atysha?”

It seemed that a simple ‘she’s doing well’ couldn’t calm the heart of a mother worried for her daughter.

“Was it really that hard to ask?”

“…It’s asking about the well-being of a child I chased away, so how could it not be difficult? A person with decency would think so.”

“Ah. S-Sorry.”

…I didn’t know that.

Scratching my cheek awkwardly, Justina sighed deeply.

“I didn’t say it to hear an apology, so it’s alright. It’s my karma; who can I blame?”

“Atysha said she left of her own accord.”

“That is because that child is kind enough to cover for others’ faults… Well, seeing your expressions, it seems you’re curious about what happened.”

“To be honest… Yes, I’m curious.”

“It’s nothing all that great.”

Justina’s eyes were on us, but she wasn’t truly seeing us.

Lost in a faraway memory, she slowly began to unfold her tale.

The former leader of the demon race.

Justina’s husband and Atysha’s father was the only one who succeeded in a transcendence ritual, but at the same time, he was a failure.

If he had undergone one more transcendence, he could have resolved the rampant magical energy in Raxia.

Carrying that hope, he attempted the transcendence ritual again, only to vanish without a trace alongside a vast amount of magical energy.

The one to take his place as clan leader was Justina herself.

“Just as he did, I too challenged the transcendence ritual. It is the leader’s role to bear the responsibilities that come with their status.”

And Atysha was discontent with that decision of Justina’s, yet she did not oppose it.

After all, Atysha was also a demon.

She understood Justina’s feelings.

“The day I underwent the transcendence ritual, a creature known as a dimensional beast appeared.”

“…Huh?”

I tilted my head, having been listening to Justina’s story quietly.

“When did that happen?”

“I can’t remember well, but it must have been several decades ago. By the way, why do you ask?”

“Just curious.”

The first appearance of dimensional beasts in the Ardina Continent was only a little over a decade ago, so how could that have been several decades?

Does time flow differently on the Ardina Continent?

Just as I momentarily lost myself in thought, I couldn’t help but snicker.

‘That can’t be, can it?’

I had thought the dimensional beast that appeared in the world of Silia was the first one, but that couldn’t be the case.

Though I hadn’t heard specific details from Edel, perhaps it was more vulnerable because it was a location where corrupted mana gathers?

Justina paused for a moment before continuing her story.

“However, I was undergoing the transcendence ritual, and I only heard of that beast’s appearance later. If it had appeared a little earlier or later, I would have taken matters into my own hands….”

Normally, the strongest Justina would have confronted it directly, but it appeared with impeccable timing, as if it were waiting for Justina to perform the transcendence ritual. She couldn’t stop it in time.

Atysha took it upon herself to step in for Justina.

“Because of that fierce battle, Atysha lost one of her horns. To our kind, horns are as good as life itself. Despite that, Atysha wanted to stay here, but the environment of Raxia was too harsh to endure with just one horn.”

Thus, Justina made the decision to cast Atysha out to the Ardina Continent, disregarding Atysha’s will.

To save Atysha.

A choice made not just as the leader of the Purifier Clan, but as a mother.

“How could I just stand by and watch my daughter withering away? I could not bear to do that. All that remains for me is my daughter.”

“I see.”

“Don’t you think your reaction seems rather dry?”

“Do you want me to cry?”

“…That would suffice. You’re supposed to bow down and express your gratitude.”

It wasn’t just my sensitivity.

In the first place, it wasn’t a sad matter, so wasn’t it natural to react calmly?

“Atysha regretted losing her horn but said she was proud.”

“…What does that mean?”

“It means what it says.”

She fought against a formidable foe and managed to protect her clan.

Atysha said that her broken horn was a medal proving that.

“If she said she was proud, wouldn’t it be rude to be sad?”

“…I suppose I was short-sighted. You impudent child, you are right.”

“Was it really necessary to add ‘impudent child’?”

“I added that only because you left behind what needed to be taken care of.”

“…How petty.”

Really, she’s still holding onto the fact that I didn’t add ‘Lord’ to her name?

“Anyway, that’s the end of my story.”

She seemed to expect something in return.

Having finished her story, she likely wanted me to share mine now.

I tugged at Da-eun’s sleeve.

“Joanie. It’s your turn.”

“…Huh? What for?”

“They want to hear about Atysha. Hurry up.”

“Me?!”

Since elaborating isn’t my style, Da-eun was left awkwardly tasked with the job.

But feeling Justina’s urging gaze, she finally opened her mouth.

From the moment she first met Atysha to how she brought her to Raxia.

Except for the shadow of Krumo attacking, I didn’t think anything significant had happened, but Da-eun had a gift for embellishing even the mundane.

Even I, who was present at that time, listened with interest.

Could that be the talent of a broadcaster?

In that moment, my assessment that she would have thrived as a bard gained more credibility.

But…

‘Isn’t she glorifying it a bit too much?’

I scratched my hair, feeling a bit uncomfortable.

She called me the hero of the village and said I fought off the shadows without caring for my own body.

They showered me with praise, and I couldn’t find a way to respond.

“It didn’t seem like you had that much self-sacrifice; it’s surprising.”

“Of course. Our Kana is so kind.”

“No, you definitely saw it wrong.”

Look, even Justina is saying that.

I was overly straining myself, not sacrificing my body to save the demon race — that was really Da-eun’s doing.

“She fought against the breath to save a child.”

“Oh….”

“That was reckless….”

“Even if it was reckless, sacrificing your life for others is not something just anyone can do, so you should take pride in that.”

Following Da-eun’s actions, Selin’s round-the-clock care for the demon race also came to light.

As everything came to an end, Justina’s gaze became noticeably softer.

I was glad that my embarrassment was having the desired effect.

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