The Devil Does Not Need to Be Defeated

Chapter 564: The Most Beloved Hero

Because the festival had just ended, the Elven Homeland still retained some of its lively atmosphere.

The Light Tree’s radiance was far more dazzling than usual, adorning the entire Elven Homeland like a utopia, making people feel as if they had fallen into a dreamland.

This caused many people to be reluctant to sleep, as if wanting to take one last look at the Elven Homeland. Some strolled the streets in groups, while others paced back and forth by the windows of the treehouses, seemingly lost in thought.

Like these people, Shien Buztout also seemed reluctant to sleep, and he went up to the roof.

“Sigh…”

Shien lay on the treehouse roof, gazing at the night sky, sighing for no apparent reason.

Clearly, he was still reluctant to part with Airi and Lucy.

This was probably because he had become too accustomed to their presence.

“Before, I was the one leaving, but now it’s others, and I’m not used to it.”

Lucy was fine. Shien had already experienced a bittersweet parting with her when he went to Duke Strimm’s(Strimt) territory. And after finishing his business in the Empire, he would immediately return to see her, so it wasn’t too heartbreaking.

But with Airi, Shien hadn’t expected to feel so melancholic.

As the saying goes, you don’t know what you have until it’s gone.

Although using the word “gone” to describe the current situation seemed strange, when someone who had always been by your side suddenly left, it was natural to feel a lot of emotions.

Shien was experiencing this now.

At this moment, even Shien himself was surprised.

Surprised that he actually cared so much about that dragon girl leaving.

“Has she become so important in my heart…?”

This was Shien’s feeling at this moment.

“Looks like I won’t be able to sleep tonight…”

Shien could only murmur.

Just then, a figure descended from the sky and landed beside him.

Shien sensed the familiar magic power and aura, instantly recognizing who it was.

“Why are you here instead of cuddling with your fiancée in your room?”

As the familiar voice reached his ears, Shien slightly lifted his eyelids.

He saw a girl holding a pillow, her dragon wings just retracting as she landed beside him.

Who else could it be but Airi?

“Why are you here?”

Shien couldn’t help but sit up.

“Nothing.” Airi looked at Shien and said softly, “I just couldn’t sleep.”

This was rare.

“There are times when you can’t sleep?”

Shien was truly surprised.

Hearing the words “can’t sleep” from this Dragon Demon, who was often sleepy-eyed and could fall asleep anywhere, was that difficult.

Airi naturally knew that she wasn’t acting normal.

But there was nothing she could do.

“Even I feel like this occasionally.” Airi said, for some reason, “That night, when the Demon King, who was like a mother to me, passed away, I couldn’t sleep either.”

What was the deeper meaning behind these words?

Shien felt like he understood, yet he didn’t.

Forget it.

Anyway, he should do what he should do.

“Come here.”

Shien beckoned Airi.

“What?”

Airi asked subconsciously.

“Give me a hug.”

Shien said honestly.

“You…”

Airi was immediately exasperated.

But she didn’t refuse, nor did she want to refuse.

So, Airi obediently walked towards Shien and stood before him.

Shien didn’t hold back, directly picking up this life-sized doll and holding her in his arms.

Airi sat in Shien’s lap, embraced by him, as they sat together on the roof.

Looking out at the Elven Homeland at night, the anxiety, reluctance, and slight unease about the upcoming separation that had been swirling in their hearts vanished at this moment.

After a while, Airi spoke.

“It’s truly unbelievable.”

Airi gazed ahead, saying this without turning her head.

“What is?”

Shien also didn’t look at Airi, but focused all his attention on her.

In this situation, Airi began to speak.

“I never thought that one day, I would be held in a Hero’s arms, gazing at the night sky like this.” Airi’s voice was somewhat ethereal, “Heroes are our natural enemies, the ones we should be hostile towards, the murderers of the Demon King, who was like a mother to us. Yet, I’m so close to you, a Hero. Isn’t that unbelievable?”

Indeed, it was unbelievable.

At least, for demons, it was.

But Shien didn’t think so.

“If you’re talking about unbelievable, then all my experiences are unbelievable, okay?” Shien shrugged, “I clearly died once, but was suddenly given a second life for no reason, and summoned to a completely unfamiliar world as a Hero. I’ve met people like the princess and am always hanging out with a big shot like you. It all feels unreal, doesn’t it?”

Many novels in his previous life depicted transmigration as something wonderful and exciting, as if it were a great opportunity, guaranteeing a protagonist’s destiny, a destiny of dominance, destined for greatness, completely overturning the mediocrity of their past life in the real world and reaching the pinnacle of life.

But from Shien’s perspective, as someone who had experienced it, being thrown into a completely unfamiliar world and having to survive and struggle there, wouldn’t that make one feel uneasy?

It definitely would, right?

Moreover, having to transform from an ordinary person who had never fought before into someone decisive, capable of fighting monsters and enemies, was that really an easy thing?

Nonsense.

Anyway, Shien felt that those protagonists who transmigrated and suddenly became powerful, transforming from someone who had never even killed a chicken into someone decisive enough to kill, with a strong mentality, were probably just wishful thinking.

Take Shien himself, for example. If it weren’t for [Divine Grace] allowing him to learn so many combat skills, his first thought upon encountering a monster would definitely be to run, as far away as possible.

And after actually killing a monster, he had vomited all over the place.

Thinking back now, he had been incredibly pathetic.

So, if someone told his past self, before coming to this world, that he would become like this, would he be happy?

It was hard to say.

Therefore, for Shien, all his experiences in this world were unbelievable.

Airi seemed to understand.

That’s why she said,

“We never seem to have considered the Hero’s situation.” Airi said softly, “For us, Heroes have always been hateful enemies. We never thought about how difficult it would be for them, as people from another world, to fight us.”

Although Heroes were formidable, Demon Lords weren’t simple characters either.

They were born at the peak of the world, possessing innate power, which was like a nightmare for Heroes who had just arrived in this world.

Knowing they had to fight, even defeat, such beings, the pressure on past Heroes was unimaginable.

And only a small number of them eventually gained the power to threaten Demon Lords. The rest died at the hands of demons before even surpassing the limits of life. If one really thought about it, they were the ones who had it the hardest.

The love-hate relationship between Heroes and demons had continued like this for countless years.

It wasn’t until the war ended a thousand years ago that Shien, a Hero, could snuggle up with Airi, a Demon Lord, like this, gazing at the starry sky.

Airi couldn’t help but think,

“If you had been summoned to this world before the war ended, then…”

Could we have become like this?

Airi wanted to say this, and as she thought about it, a sharp pain stabbed her heart.

Because she knew that if that were the case, the outcome would be obvious. They couldn’t possibly have become like this.

This suddenly made Airi feel suffocated.

Unexpectedly…

“Then I would just throw away the Holy Sword and surrender.”

Shien said this seriously and earnestly.

“Huh?”

Airi was stunned.

Shien, however, became agitated.

“Come on, if I knew that I would have to fight to the death with so many big shots who could destroy continents and worlds at any moment, I would definitely quit, okay?”

Shien rolled his eyes.

“I’m not from this world, and I have no relatives or friends here. Just giving me the title of Hero and expecting me to save the world, those guys in the God Race must be dreaming.”

That’s how realistic he was.

Such a Shien might have forgotten that he had accepted Nien’s summoning knowing he would have to fight the Demon King.

But even then, Shien wouldn’t be blinded by the so-called righteousness of saving the world, rushing into battle with the demons on impulse.

At that time, his first thought was how to develop cautiously, even thinking of hiding and becoming stronger first, then sneaking around as an assassin and killing the Demon King.

That was him, a different kind of firework.

“Pfft.”

After being stunned for a moment, Airi suddenly chuckled.

That smile was different from any of her previous smiles.

It wasn’t a forced, mature smile, but a genuine, innocent, and pure smile from the bottom of her heart.

“As expected, you’re completely different from other Heroes.”

It was as if a thorn had been pulled from Airi’s heart.

Because she understood.

As long as Shien remained Shien, even if he had been summoned to this world before the war ended, he would still have caught her attention, attracted her, and eventually formed the relationship they had now.

This was the Hero that she, the Dragon Demon Airi, favored, liked, and loved the most.