Running Away From The Hero! (Remake)

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31. Originally, watching fights is the most entertaining way (12)

“Achoo!”

“What’s wrong?”

Iron Bat frowned in response to the sudden sneeze.

“You just sneezed on me!”

“Oh, sorry.”

Ahem, ahem!

He wiped the sneeze off with a handkerchief.

“What’s this? Who’s cursing at me?”

“There are… so many people cursing at you. Surprising, right?”

“Well, it’s not that bad.”

“Thousands, at least?”

“Why would there be that many?”

Even if I’ve done a lot, would there really be thousands cursing me? That’s crazy.

“First of all, there are those chasing after the owner.”

“But wouldn’t that be a small number?”

“Not just those known to you. What about all the subordinates?”

“Ah… true.”

“That alone could be a thousand.”

“Well… I concede to that.”

We’ve already counted a thousand, but there are thousands more.

Can Iron Bat really manage that many?

“And every time the King is active, the owner gets cursed.”

“What kind of logic is that?”

“The owner is a devil’s follower… umm!”

“What nonsense is this?”

Iron Bat quickly covered the speaker’s mouth and got up.

-What are you doing!

-This is what I should do, fool!

-A fool? Being called a fool by a goddess, am I cursed?

-If there’s a curse, it feels like I’ve already received it.

Just this guy’s existence was a curse.

Because of him, I can’t use magic, I’m hunted by dark students, separated from my family, and even after defeating the King, I still have to flee.

“Umm, umm, umm!”

-The last one is because of the owner! It’s unfair!

-I won’t deny the previous charges!

Yet, Iron Bat had become more conscientious than before.

-Isn’t it unreasonable for the owner to mention conscience first? And how long do you plan to keep silencing a goddess?

-Until you think and speak?

-I always think and speak!

-Is that what you call thinking and speaking?

Calling someone an apostle of evil in the middle of town is what you call thinking and speaking?

-I’ll have to shut this mouth forever!

-Hey! People of this town! There’s a bad apostle of evil kidnapping our cute goddess here!

An evil calling another evil an apostle of evil. Such nonsense didn’t even exist in nonsense.

“Help, help!”

Trying to block Iron Bat’s nonsense, someone’s voice was heard not too far away.

“The heroes are on the move! To defeat the wicked King!”

Usually, this statement would be followed by distributing detailed papers, but reality was different.

“For just one silver, you can confirm the details!”

Information is money. Everyone knows that.

And this information was on paper.

Even in past eras with advanced technology and mass-produced paper, it still cost money.

So, does spreading news by tossing papers around a fantasy world make any sense?

Selling it at a high price made sense.

“It seems things are starting to move.”

“Is the King dead?”

Both I and Iron Bat were interested in the news, so we approached the boy selling the papers.

“Partially.”

“That’ll be one silver!”

It was pricey, but reasonable when you considered the cost of paper, gathering information, and the boy’s commission.

Of course, given the flashy title, it might lack substantial information.

“It’s not completely lacking in content, right?”

“It wouldn’t be. This is a verified news source from Pecanes.”

I hadn’t heard of Pecanes before; it seemed like a prestigious source known only within this kingdom.

“Well, if it’s endorsed by Pecanes…”

For merchants, reputation and trust are crucial.

They wouldn’t risk their reputation for a quick profit.

“Here it is.”

“Thank you!”

After handing over one silver, the boy bowed and handed me the newspaper.

“Is there a nearby place to sit?”

“There’s a shop over there!”

The newspaper was half the size of a regular one, with more than ten pages.

It seemed like it would take some time to read, so I decided to find a comfortable place in the shop.

“Welcome!”

I smiled at the cheerful waitress and ordered a simple meal and water before sitting down.

“Let’s see…”

The cover of the monthly news, endorsed by Pecanes (urgent edition), caught my eye.

Though labeled as monthly, this edition seemed to be urgently published because of important news.

“Let’s see…”

As I flipped through the first page, a handsome man in black and white appeared.

“He looks impressive just from his face.”

Even with the flowing hair and black-and-white image, his eyes seemed to shine. With striking features, he looked like a perfect hero.

“The owner picks based on looks too.”

“Well… but it’s so different from his usual appearance, it feels unsettling.”

The photo source was labeled as Magic Origins.

It seemed they sent this picture to confirm a hero’s identity through magical means.

Even though he was considered a hero or a disciple of a god, there were still impostors.

“Your food is ready.”

“Thank you.”

The waitress blushed slightly as she saw the hero’s photo in the newspaper I was holding.

“Poor guy.”

Having a face that makes women happy just by looking at it is nice. But because of that face, he got caught up with the Ice Cream Princess, and it was clear he would be involved in more such incidents in the future.

“People shouldn’t stand out too much.”

“Indeed. It feels even more so when the owner says it.”

Even with a normal face, living that kind of life is tough; imagine being a hero.

“Have your meal.”

I handed Iron Bat a simple meal of bread and sausages and continued reading the newspaper.

The content was about heroes mobilizing on a large scale to defeat the King, just as the boy who sold the papers had said.

“This is propaganda, isn’t it?”

As I read further, I was slightly surprised by the bold tactics mentioned.

“We are aware of the sudden attacks by the wicked King and his followers, causing harm to several Kingdoms. But each Kingdom possesses great power. I believe in them. I believe in you, who are doing your best to protect your homeland. That’s why we trust in human strength and have thought long and hard about what is best as heroes.

And now, I am convinced that bringing down the King as soon as possible is not just for humanity, but for the sake of this world.”

“There’s a lot of rhetoric here.”

Although it used the term ‘believing,’ it was more like neglect.

‘Those entering the battlefield behind us, block them on your own, we will go on the offensive. So, make sure to hold your ground.’

It was just politely packaged nonsense.

“The heroes wouldn’t plan something like this… Is it Mir?”

As I took a sip of refreshing water, I grabbed a piece of bread.

“Let’s see…”

With one hand eating bread and the other flipping through the newspaper, I came across another picture of the hero.

This time, he had a serious expression.

“Is this a newspaper, or a hero’s photoshoot?”

Now that I thought about it, there seemed to be a higher number of women buying the newspaper. It wasn’t just my imagination.

Clearly, they knew how to make money at Pecanes.

“If I’m lucky, I might get a free meal.”

Since the waitress seemed quite interested in the hero’s face earlier, I considered trading the newspaper for my meal instead of paying.

“Wow…”

Despite the serious expression on the hero’s face, the page was filled with hopeful content.

“The Empire’s mages join the heroes in battle!”

“The Empire’s strongest mages gather to aid the heroes!”

“The greatest mages in human history support the heroes in their quest to defeat the King!”

“This page doesn’t have much information.”

The small text below the bold letters was filled with irrelevant details about the mages’ backgrounds, their performances in battles, and so on.

There was not a single line about specific scales or the extent of equipment they had.

“”Well, that’s obvious.”

Even if the Empire has no enemies, they wouldn’t expose military secrets in a newspaper for commoners.

No matter how skilled the writer was, they couldn’t breach the Empire’s security.

With that thought, I turned to the next page and found unexpected content.

“What? They’ve already fought?”

It was truly unexpected.

Normally, these newspapers end with, ‘The heroes have set out, and the King will fall, bringing salvation!’ But here, with several pages left, they were already detailing the clash with the King.

“Has the fight already ended?”

Unlike the Empire’s mages’ page, this one had accurate information stating that the heroes had already fought the King.

“The Apostle of Evil, the King! Proving the power of that name!”

“The overwhelming force of the King that brought down dozens of heroes in a short time!”

“Despite many sacrifices, they couldn’t bring down the King!”

“The defeated King, but the King who escaped!”

“Heroes victorious in battle. But a victory with only scars.”

“If it weren’t for the Empire’s army, could we have defeated the King?”

Every article was negative. Even the detailed information was the same.

They could defeat an overwhelming force of evil during the fight with the King, but the main King couldn’t be captured, according to the newspaper.

“Hmm… It was good they escaped.”

Underestimating the King’s power in a fight could lead to a premature death, as many heroes had experienced.

Thirty heroes had died, and it seemed the hero I saw earlier had also suffered significant injuries.

Though he managed to inflict substantial wounds, if the Empire’s army hadn’t defeated the overwhelming evil force in time, the hero would likely have perished.

“Was the King always this strong? Is everything in history a lie?”

History is often written by the victors.

They exaggerate the good and minimize or omit the bad.

I wondered if the information about the King was also manipulated in such a way.

“Well… the King is definitely stronger than recorded. Temples write the truth, but not the kingdoms.”

“True.”

For me, temples were even further away than other races.

While an ordinary person could visit a temple daily, I didn’t lead an ordinary life? Apart from visiting the Earth Temple and the Temple of Life to pray for my parents’ souls in my youth, I had never visited other temples.

So, I had no way of knowing the records written in temples.

“Anyway, the fact that this King is an unreasonable irregular doesn’t change.”

“Is that so?”

“Yeah. Usually, even if they’re strong, they fight to the end and die.”

Iron Bat’s words implied that if it were a normal King, the hero would have died.

“Well… that’s a shame.”

“People need to appreciate your character, right?”

For me, the hero and the King fighting to the end is the best scenario.

With those two knowing my information, their deaths would complete my peace.

“Sigh… what happens now?”

As I turned to the next page, there was more about the hero’s face and the events after the battle.

“The near-destruction of the overwhelming force of evil!”

“The experiences of many heroes. What about the remaining ones?”

“The rapid replacement of heroes. Heroes without basic skills.”

“Heroes being brought to the frontlines immediately upon selection. Is this okay?”

It felt like reading a commentary section.

It exposed the plight of heroes who were suddenly chosen, had no proper training, and had to fight against an overwhelming force of evil.

It was informative and important, but…

“Skipping.”

It had nothing to do with me, so I skipped it.

“Well… at least the important parts were covered.”

On the last page, I found information that the hero had recovered and was now chasing the King with the Empire’s army.

And more importantly,

“The crazy guy is still following till the end.”

The pursuit was blatantly directed toward me.

It meant the King was aiming to catch me as a last resort.

“Are we fleeing again?”

Iron Bat, having finished his meal, swung his legs cheerfully.

Well… fleeing would be a good idea.

There was a risk of getting caught by the King, and then by the Empire’s army following him.

But…

“As the saying goes, life is a tragedy up close and a comedy from afar.”

“Huh? What nonsense is that?”

“Anyway, if the King doesn’t die, my location will inevitably be revealed continuously, right? So, it’s better to wait at a suitable place and create a meeting ground.”

If I have to face the end, it’s better to do it while I’m still young.

So,

“Get some popcorn and get ready to watch the fight.”

After all, watching a fight is the most entertaining.