Chapter 18: Name

After Droniel left the village, the village chief focused on the villagers and the festival.

Hero!

Hero!

Hero!

Everyone who toasted to Lucius praised Lucius’s usual behavior.

The best hunter in the village.

A friend who would live faithfully until the end even if the world were to collapse.

A kind person who would tell the thief not to steal if a thief broke into his house.

The village chief, who knew the truth about Lucius, could neither confirm nor deny their words.

He had a bad relationship with Lucius, and he survived with the help of the witch.

‘I’ll have to speak properly when the people come later.’

The holy sword that had been stuck in the village of the holy sword was confirmed to be real.

Those who felt the powerful magic of the holy sword would soon come running here, and the village chief would have to explain to them how the holy sword had awakened.

Maybe that was why the witch, the magician of the red lotus, saved him.

The village chief thanked the witch again and raised a toast.

And.

Ding ding ding ding———

The sound of the alarm bell ringing from afar made the village chief and the villagers all panic.

“W-what?!”

“A monster attack…?”

“W-what on earth?!”

The villagers instantly fell into panic.

Even the oldest village chief had never been attacked by anyone in his entire life, but this was the first time they were attacked twice in such a short period of time.

“W-can’t it be the Demon King’s army due to the awakening of the Holy Sword…?”

“You idiot!

The hero is gone!

So why would you attack the village?!”

“T-Take off for now!

If you stay here…”

Hehe-ing.

The sound of horses galloping was heard from afar.

The eerie ghost horses charged and surrounded the villagers in an instant.

“Hee, heeeek…?!”

“Death knights…?!”

Death knights.

Those riding on the ghost horses were demons who could be described as ‘goblins.’

Among the knights, only those who learned Auror can become Death Knights after dying and becoming undead, so their power was such that even one of them could burn down a village.

However, 20 of those Death Knights came running.

They surrounded the villagers so that no one could escape, and were waiting for someone to come.

Thud, thud.

[Who is the representative of this village?]

A skeleton knight approached from afar.

Unlike other Death Knights, the skeleton knight did not even wear a helmet, and with his skull exposed, he stood in front of the village chief wearing a pitch-black robe, holding a sword and shield.

[It’s you.]

“Ah, ahh….”

The village chief’s lips went dry at the red energy flowing in the skeleton knight’s eyes.

It felt as if the skeleton knight would cut off his head with his sword at any moment, and the village chief fell flat on the ground.

“I, I am the village chief!”

[Where is the hero?]

“Hey, the hero….”

It’s foolish not to notice.

They came to kill the hero of the Holy Sword.

“Chief…”

The villagers were shaking their heads or glaring at the chief.

Don’t do that.

Don’t open your mouth.

Their gazes were intense, as if they wanted to protect Lucius.

“Hey, the hero has left!!”

But the chief opened his mouth.

“Oh, we don’t know where he went!

He just said he was going to seal the Demon King….”

[I see.]

The skeleton knight put his sword inside his shield.

[Then there’s nothing more to see.]

Ta-ang!

He pulled out his shotgun and pulled the trigger, aiming at the chief’s head.

Boom.

The chief’s head was gone.

The villagers screamed at the fountain of blood gushing from the chief’s neck…

But…

Doo doo doo doo doo.

Soon, they were all killed by the Death Knights’ rifle barrage.

[The only reason we didn’t attack this village was because of the small possibility that the Holy Sword would awaken.]

The skeleton knight wiped the chief’s blood off his robe and trampled on the chief’s body.

[Thanks to those stupid goblins, the Holy Sword has awakened, and now the continent’s map is going to be turned upside down.

Damn it.]

[Master Knight, you should retreat.]

[Why?]

[The Goddess Cult bastards are coming.]

[Always late.]

When the Skeleton Knight snapped his fingers, a red ghost horse, much larger than the others, appeared in front of the Skeleton Knight.

[I’ll go and report to the Demon King.

I killed all the humans in the Holy Sword Village.]

[Understood.

But Master.

What about the one human on the outskirts?]

[Hmm.]

The Skeleton Knight spotted a young man hiding in a hunter’s house in the corner of the village, trembling.

The Skeleton Knight twisted his jaw joint at the sight of the young man, who was as big as a mountain, but hiding in fear at the murder of the villagers.

[He’s not worth killing.]

[Isn’t that dangerous?]

[Dangerous?

He won’t be angry for letting a guy like that live.

And it’s too late now.

[Look.]

The skeleton knight pulled the reins.

Beyond the forest, there was a golden group rushing towards where the Death Knights were.

[It’s a cult.

If you kill that human now, you’ll be caught.]

[Sorry for finding out so late, Master.]

[No.

I should be thankful that I killed all of them except this one.

That’s all…]

Hehe.

[The warrior is going to get angry and go around killing all the other demons.

Let’s go!]

Our objective was achieved.

The Death Knights quickly left, and soon the people of the Goddess Church arrived at the village.

“…How could this be?”

“As if they had been waiting for this…ugh.”

“…Because of me.”

The saint, YanDierre, began to bite her hand.

“I, delayed the time…?”

“Saint!

There is one person alive here!!”

The village of the Holy Sword.

Unidentified demons attacked and wiped out everyone.

Only one person on the scene survived.

“Welcome to Normandy.

To the city of freedom, adventure, and romance.”

The guards of Normandy welcomed us as soon as I showed them the brooch.

Thanks to that, I no longer had to go through the bothersome procedures of where I came from, what the purpose of my trip was, and where I got the brooch.

“Master, that brooch…?”

“It’s a symbol of the sect and also a kind of pass.

I owe you Lilies.”

“…Mr. Lilies, the leader of the Holy Knights of the Church of the Goddess of the Moon….right?”

“Yes.”

There’s no way a female knight who escorts a saint isn’t the leader of the Holy Knights.

“Why?

Do you think I’ll lose?”

“…I still feel that my skills are lacking.

That person really underestimates me.”

“That’s true.

Those ‘unmanned’ people judge people by their swordsmanship skills first.”

What is Lucius like now?

He’s just a healthy village youth A, a hunter A.

“That’s why appearance is the most important thing in a person.

Look at him.

How does he look?”

“…He looks strong,”

I pointed at a man in full plate walking toward the Adventurer’s Guild.

With a deep wound in one eye, he was facing the Adventurer’s Guild with a fierce gaze, and the greatsword on his back seemed to be showing off his strength to all directions.

“Right?

Those guys are basically strong.”

“Does your master like muscular people?”

“I like someone with a well-built physique rather than a slender one.”

In the past, the Demon King’s army would only accept those who had a basic physique.

Those who were physically weak or lacking were accepted into the Demon King’s army after undergoing a certain period of physical training, and if they failed, they were given tasks such as supply support in the rear, not in the Demon King’s army.

“A healthy mind resides in a healthy body.

The healthier your body, the more correctly your thoughts will function.”

“I see…

I will try.”

“What?

You will try harder there?

Arthur, Arthur…..

Great.”

Arthur, Lucius.

I couldn’t help but laugh.

“Why?”

“It’s nothing.

By the way, Lucius, what is your name?”

“Your name…?”

“Yes.

Is Arthur your name, or is Lucius your name?”

Arthur Lucius.

It’s a bit ambiguous to say that either one is his last name.

His name is like two names put together.

“They’re both my names.

The person who took me in told me that one of my names was written on the basket I was in.”

“Which one?”

“…I’m not sure about that.

He didn’t tell me.”

“So you’re saying one of the two is the name I received from my biological father and the other from my adoptive father?

It’s nice to have two names.”

Arthur blinked blankly.

“Why?”

“…I’ve never thought of it that way.

Of course, I was abandoned…”

“If they really were just abandoned, they probably didn’t even give me a proper name.”

Arthur or Lucius, they weren’t ordinary names.

“Arthur Lucius’ is better than ‘Jean Vier Anides, right?”

“…Is there a name like that?”

“Yes.

500 years ago, it was the name of the warlock who summoned me.

The warlock who came after me, so I beat him to death with all my might and took his body.

“Names are really important.

How important is this?

Even the demons in the Demon World are summoned by name when they make contracts with humans in the Middle World.”

“Is it true?”

“Yes.

Do you know how important this is?

A demon can’t move if they’re summoned by their “true name.

For example…”

A name widely known in the Middle-earth….

“Succubus Queen, Queen of Nightmares, Demon Lord of Lust.

You know?”

“…Master is probably the only one who can so easily call the names of the Seven Great Demon Lords of the Demon World.”

“Because I’ll win even if we fight.”

I’ll definitely win.

I’ve never lost to a Succubus Queen.

“But calling them by those names is just a summoning.

What if you summon them by their true names?

Then all the demons will become slaves.”

“I see…

Then what if the Great Demon Lord is also…?”

“Bel Pe-”

Lucius covered my mouth with his hand like light.

“Master…!!”

“…Haa, hey.”

I kicked Lucius’s shin.

“Where on earth did this brat touch someone’s body so carelessly?”

“I’m sorry, ugh, I do…

But still, that name…!”

“Haa.

Why are you so afraid?

If you’re summoned by name anyway, you can’t move.”

“Uh…

Then what if the Great Demon Lord is summoned by his true name…?”

“It’s simple.”

I made a gesture of strangling his neck with my hands.

“Even the Demon King becomes the Summoner’s s*ave.”