This World Needs a Hero

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[Translator – Night]

[Proofreader – Gun]

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A sword created directly by a legendary blacksmith.

Naturally, each child had an image in their minds that they had drawn for themselves.

Shining brilliantly, emitting a cool aura, adorned with decorations symbolizing courage and glory…

It could be described as a classical treasure, exuding a dignified presence.

However, the reality they faced was quite different from such a splendid fantasy.

Weapons that seemed fit for a local blacksmith… no, even a local blacksmith might not display them on the shelf and would probably hide these weapons with an appearance that seemed unworthy.

Rough and devoid of decorations.

Only the handle and blade, or the tip and minimal safety features.

The sword was composed only of essential parts, and even the color was as dull as charcoal.

“…Haha, I like it.”

“Uh, wouldn’t it go well with spider webs?”

But despite their teasing reactions, Noubelmag’s expression showed no change.

He waited until the children each picked up their supplementary weapons and then spoke.

“You probably know, but supplementary weapons have two main roles.”

First, a substitute when the main weapon malfunctions.

Second, an auxiliary weapon that adds functions not present in the main weapon.

For example, let’s take Gerald.

He originally owned a basic form of spear made up of a blade and a shaft.

For him, a suitable supplementary weapon would maintain the shape of the spear but have additional functions such as cutting or pulling with a halberd.

“And considering individual physical conditions and temperaments, I made subtle adjustments.”

Noubelmag observed the children closely during the “Day of Exhibition” and was able to create custom weapons to complement their shortcomings.

It was similar to the process of a skilled designer understanding the fabric, colors, and length suitable for a customer and making clothes.

Despite looking similar to the clothes in the market, there was an overwhelming difference in performance.

But instead of explaining it in detail, Noubelmag hoped that the children would realize it themselves.

“Oh, our tastes and aesthetic sense are similar.”

“….”

Moreover, the appearance they were dissatisfied with was just a prototype.

The weapons they would wield on the battlefield would be different.

“No need for long words. Just take a look for now. I’ll explain the detailed functions later.”

The children began to swing their supplementary weapons into the air without much expectation.

Even Gerald looked at the halberd in front of him with suspicion.

“…Is this a suitable supplementary weapon for me?”

It had an axe blade, spearhead, and a small tassel at the end of the long shaft.

Of course, he knew that the halberd had more diverse uses than a basic spear – it could be swung to cut, thrust with the spearhead, or pull the enemy with the attached beak.

But!

The fact that it looked no different from what the household guards used, at least in appearance, didn’t please the boy.

“Hmm.”

In appearance, it was almost embarrassing to compare it with the Bryce family’s crest, the Dragon Spear.

Gerald held a spear in his left hand and a halberd in his right, testing them in various ways.

And like a child receiving a new toy knife, he casually clashed his left and right hands.

Clang!

A small dent appeared on the spearhead of the Dragon Spear, colliding with the halberd’s blade simultaneously.

“W-What!?”

Gerald looked at the result with a puzzled expression.

“To my dearest disciple Gerald. With love and support.”

On this proud inscription.

“To my dearest disciple ■■■. With love and support.”

An irreparable dent had occurred.

Coincidentally, it was on the part where the name was engraved.

Gerald slumped down.

“N-No, no, no!”

On the other hand.

Without going through such a foolish process, other children were gradually realizing the value of their supplementary weapons.

‘It’s different.’

The length of the handle.

The thickness of the blade.

Overall weight distribution.

Subtle details were different from the weapons they used to.

But those small differences seemed to work entirely to their advantage.

Like a long-tamed pet.

It moved as if it were an extension of their hands.

Especially for commoners or those from humble noble families, the difference from their original weapons was clearly felt.

The expressions of the children, who had been indifferent, became serious in no time.

“….”

However, in a corner of the training ground, where the enthusiasm was beginning to rise.

One child stood without moving, just staring at his given supplementary weapon with an expression of incomprehension.

…It was Luke.

‘What’s this?’

He was the only one among the children who received something entirely different from his usual main weapon.

Sputter-

Noubelmag stood in front of the boy.

“Luke Selsood? Would you like me to take a closer look at that friend?”

“Sure.”

“Wait a moment. If it’s Selsood, then surely….”

Selsood.

At the familiar surname, Noubelmag narrowed his eyebrows.

The Hero nodded.

“Yes, he’s Ravias’s successor.”

“I see. That makes sense. That giant who swung that huge thing, right? He even uses the same weapon as his father.”

“Not only the weapon but also the martial arts are the same.”

“What?”

Noubelmag fell silent.

“He’s crazy. Is he planning to pass on his madness directly to the successor? He’s out of his mind.”

Noubelmag had been active as a frontline blacksmith for many years.

Of course, he had a face-to-face encounter with the mercenary king who roamed all over the battlefield, driven by the gleam of gold.

…They had a bad relationship because Noubelmag never took any requests from him.

The Hero nodded.

“Of course, Ravias is also an outstanding martial artist. It’s difficult to reach that level starting as a mere mercenary. However…”

He asserted.

“The limitations of his approach are clear. Thanks to that, Luke is unable to fully utilize that talent of his.”

“Hmm… it must not be pleasant from the leader’s perspective.”

“So, it’s better to fix it before it’s too late.”

Since the moment I first saw Luke, this was a planned action.

Starting with the flawed martial arts, influenced by the Mercenary King, to the weapons.

To become a Hero in the future, improvements were necessary.

“First, let’s change the weapon. Something like a halberd doesn’t suit him.”

“Are you saying to create a different type as a supplementary weapon? I was thinking of that already.”

“Yeah, there should be a more suitable weapon, right?”

As Noubelmag nodded in agreement, the Hero smiled lightly.

“Maybe… he’ll like it.”

“Seriously? He’ll suddenly like changing weapons?”

That was the end of the Hero’s advice.

Noubelmag carefully examined Luke.

“Hmm, Ravias’s successor.”

The boy looked quite bewildered.

“It seems there was a mistake. My main weapon is a halberd…”

“I know. Still, he said it would be good for you to practice with this supplementary weapon.”

“…Really? Professor?”

Luke’s confused expression became a bit more composed.

Noubelmag nodded slowly.

“In my opinion, this might suit you better than that crude weapon.”

You think it might suit me better?

Luke looked at the giant greatsword in front of him.

It had a size and material more specialized for crushing than slashing.

A straightforward structure that might seem rough and clunky at first glance.

After seeing a similar shape for the past few months, it felt very familiar.

Squish-

Luke slowly reached out and gripped the hilt of the greatsword.

The same weapon as the Hero.

…It was a very strange feeling.

* * *

▼

The craftsman’s hand finely polished the kindling.

▲

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[Translator – Night]

[Proofreader – Gun]

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As the sunset approached, such a comment came to mind.

It seemed that the reinforcements in Rosenstark were progressing smoothly.

‘I should start preparing as well.’

I had spent quite some time explaining various things to Larze, but now it seemed that the time had come.

Although it was early summer and the days were long, we were in the forest.

It would be dark in less than thirty minutes.

I set down the communication bead and stood up slowly, leaning against a tree.

Larze, who had been leaning against another tree, spoke as if throwing it at me.

“You there.”

“What.”

“You’re not receiving as much disdain as I thought.”

The reason Larze said that was probably because of Euphemia.

Until just an hour ago, the Emperor’s continuous communication had continued.

“Is there any problem on-site?”

“You asked the same question twenty minutes ago.”

“….”

“You say you trust me, but you have a lot of worries.”

My nonchalant words seemed to leave Euphemia momentarily speechless.

Her eyebrows trembled.

“If you’re going to treat me like a naive fool who you can easily ignore, stop it. If you leave without properly explaining how to capture the factory, it might make me quite angry.”

Unable to bear it any longer, feeling that she just might send additional reinforcements, I added a brief explanation of the situation.

“Don’t worry too much. There’s a competent ally with me.”

“A competent ally?”

Larze suddenly thrust her face into the communication bead, and at that moment, the Emperor’s expression subtly changed.

“Greetings, Your Majesty.”

“…Huh.”

“Since there’s me by the side of the Hero, you don’t have to worry.”

Even with the sudden appearance of the Grand Mage who had left for a mission, the Emperor maintained an almost expressionless face.

I, who had been watching her for several months, was able to capture her emotions as they emerged in a moment.

…Anxiety.

The emperor seemed to have noticed something from the fact that I communicated with her without hesitation in front of Larze.

“…Larze decided to help?”

“There was a ‘deal’. I’ll explain later.”

“Communicate immediately after the operation is over.”

Euphemia looked at me intently, and then she ended her communication with a short sigh.

The emperor’s next few hours would probably be filled with worry and worry.

I’ll have to reassure her with a detailed explanation soon, but now is not the time.

Because suppressing the factory was an urgent priority right now.

I stood looking at the gray-white building in the distance.

… Actually, there was a bit of a problem with the plan.

“Mr. Doppelganger. You look a little embarrassed?”

“…I won’t deny it.”

Just 3 minutes ago.

Suddenly, a huge dome-shaped barrier rose up and surrounded the factory.

It was a type that was not identified during reconnaissance.

The composition is very detailed and powerful.

The magic that was the main axis of the barrier was spread everywhere, so it was impossible to go and dispel each one.

The problem was that they were not even trying to hide the sign of their ominous magic power and were just spewing it out.

The intention was obvious.

‘They are thinking of offering all the offerings at once and then leaving.’

The Demons seemed to have noticed that the situation was not going well.

Larze continued calmly, as if he knew what I was thinking.

“As I said before, I’ll only provide minimal assistance.”

“Good.”

It was a valid judgment.

Zero Requiem’s memories were given as a reward for progress.

Receiving full firepower support from Larze would make the factory suppression much easier, but there would be no increase in progress.

So, I only asked Larze for protection of hostages and intervention in situations where her life would be at risk.

After hearing the explanation, she readily agreed.

“Whatever. Work hard and quickly secure Zero’s memories.”

The magical power was tightly condensed, impervious even to significant attacks.

‘I have to break it in one go.’

If those guys outside sensed the intrusion, suppressing them would become much more difficult.

…Therefore, the options were limited.

‘I have to release Halo at maximum output to break the barrier and immediately enter Nova.’

Originally, the plan was to conserve magical power to confront the necromancer and the undead army, but the situation left no choice.

Satisfyingly protecting the demi-human hostages with Larze was the only thing that could be done.

‘Here I go.’

Wooooooong-

The moment I pushed half of the mana in my body into the Black Hope.

Larze spoke with her usual leisurely tone.

“You’re here. You mentioned duplicating Ted’s abilities to some extent.”

“…So?”

“You haven’t reached Third Form yet?”

“What?”

“I mean, if you had reached it, you wouldn’t be hesitating in front of such a messy and sloppy barrier.”

Unable to argue with that, I had to withdraw my gaze from the direction of the factory.

Larze’s field of vision, tinged with the setting sun in the background, shimmered faintly.

“Mr. Doppelganger. Your growth undoubtedly affects the progress, as you said, right?”

Dark shadows slowly covered the ground.

…It was just before sunset.

The Grand Mage did not wait for my response.

A hand that was raised without any warning.

A white staff soared into the sky as if piercing the spider-web-patterned heavens.

“Watch closely. I’ll explain how the Third Form works.”

I couldn’t say anything more.

Wooooooong-

With a fierce vibration, ‘something’ moved.

For a few seconds, I couldn’t believe that it was mana.

Wooooooong-

The mana that had been flowing calmly in the atmosphere just moments ago scattered so intensely that it felt ferocious… under Larze’s control, it condensed and condensed again.

‘The density of mana…’

It was truly abnormal.

The mana waves endlessly swirled around her, and soon, the immeasurable amount of mana condensed into a mere fist-sized lump.

Larze whispered quietly.

“If First Form Halo is a strong mana eruption, and Second Form Nova is rapid transmission…”

A dazzling sphere that had been lingering at the tip of the staff floated down, gently settling onto her hand.

It looked like the sun reappearing behind the mountain range that had just disappeared.

“The principle of Third Form ‘Flare’ is condensation. Overwhelming concentration.”

“….”

“If you get used to it and apply it, you can use other salvation forms more powerfully.”

After finishing speaking, Larze sighed, blowing wind from her hand.

It was a light movement.

The floating sphere, like a dandelion seed, stopped near the dome-shaped barrier and-

.

.

.

Kwaaaaang-

It exploded.

I instinctively covered my ears.

The noise was so huge that it felt like all sounds were engulfed and annihilated.

With a tremendous mana wave, the barrier tore apart in an instant, crumpled, and melted away.

Thud, thud, thud, thud-

The shockwave vibrated through the forest.

A cluster of white light pierced through the dark background, spreading in all directions.

“There you go.”

Larze, who remained as calm as if she had nothing to do with the chaos she created, turned to me.

“This is a stage for you.”

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[Translator – Night]

[Proofreader – Gun]

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