Will I End Up As a Hero or a Demon King (WN)

Chapter 86

TN: Please read my translations only on my website since I never give my permission to any site to host my translations. And if you like my translations, please support this site on Ko-fi and Patreon to read several chapters ahead!

Enjoy~

Chapter 86 – Large Family

The fifth day of my life as a shut-in in the Lulub Forest dawned overnight without anyone’s split entity coming down.

Although I was scared last night after the Divine Communication, I made it to the morning without incident.

The fact that nothing happened probably means that Ria explained the situation well.

She is not a very good talker and sometimes misses the point of a conversation…

There’s no point in worrying about it now, and I’ll just keep working hard to defeat the monsters.

I was a little worried about where to attack today.

At the end of the fourth day, I could say that I had almost completely cleared out about 500 meters east of the Sail River, from the forest entrance to the base where I am now.

So, should I go deeper or start on the west side of the river?

There are advantages and disadvantages to both attacks.

If I continue to attack the east side of the river, the first thing I can say is that it will be easier for me to move around.

That would be the biggest advantage.

I want to defeat the monsters in this area as soon as possible to make the baths, so if I continue to destroy the east side and the area around the base, it will be easier to prepare for the baths before Ferill-sama arrives.

Then what are the disadvantages? That would mean that it is not me but Alba-san and the others.

The deeper I go, the farther it is from the safe grassland, and there is a possibility that monsters will cross the river and enter the eastern side of the camp.

In that case, the longer I leave the west side of the Sail River unattended, the more likely it is that there will be a large number of monsters roaming around, even though I thought I had eliminated them.

Even if I clean up the entrance to Rocker Plain, some monsters will move in from somewhere else the next day, so it is better to assume that the monsters have a fairly wide area of activity.

How many people are gathering materials right now?

I have not seen them since then, so I am not sure if Alba-san and the others can defend themselves, which is a disadvantage of attacking the east side as it is.

And if I attack the west side, the disadvantages I just mentioned will turn directly into advantages.

If the west side of the Sail River is also eliminated, the number of monsters crossing the river will be drastically reduced, so Alba-san and the others will be able to collect materials in a more stable way, and they will be able to collect materials in a position closer to the safe zone.

However, it is too far from the base for me.

Still, it is only about 1 km from the base, so it does not count as far, but still, in terms of efficiency, it is undeniable that there will be a slight drop, and most importantly, the safety measures for the baths will be delayed.

The other thing is that I am worried about my lack of knowledge about the “territory.”

Amanda-san once told me that the Sail River divides the territory.

In other words, my current base is actually built on a mud wall across the river, so it is a separate territory from Bezart.

Now, I can rest easy because I know that in a place like this, where there are no people at all, there is no possibility of any problems, but I am not sure if there will be any problems if I go around hunting monsters from other territories.

That’s what I don’t understand.

To be honest, everyone, including me, Alba-san, and the others, are hunters.

I believe that since hunters do not belong to a country, there will be no problems most of the time when we are in a territory that belongs to a country.

On the contrary, if the number of monsters is greatly reduced, they might even be grateful.

However, if there is trouble, it will be annoying and may cause trouble not only for me but also for Alba-san and the others.

This is the disadvantage of hunting the west side of the river from the forest entrance.

“(Hmm, maybe it’s time to have a meeting and discuss this with them…)”

I’m the one who made the plan to get people involved.

Then I have to decide on future plans with everyone.

So, I decided to go to the forest entrance around 11:00 and start today’s hunt.

▽ ▼ ▽ ▼ ▽

“(Hmm? I’ve never seen these people before… There are 9 people, huh?)”

As I ran toward the exit of the forest in the area where the extermination had already been completed, I immediately saw a group of people I did not know dismantling in the distance.

Seeing that they were all carrying baskets on their backs, it was obvious that they were a party that Alba-san, Mizuru-san, and the others must have recruited.

It couldn’t be more obvious, and I couldn’t help but laugh.

“(Although it doesn’t look like there are any other people around… oh well…)”

So, I approached them and called out to them.

“Excuse me. Are you the ones invited by Alba-san and Mizuru-san?”

The group was startled for a moment, but their expressions softened as soon as they saw me.

“Oh, yes. Are you Loki?”

“Yes, I am. I came here today to see how things are going in the areas that have already been eradicated… Are Alba-san and Mizuru-san here?”

“We’re divided into four units now. Alba and Mizuru should go north on the easternmost side to get the materials.”

“Four units?”

I’m the one who told them to invite more people, but I think the scope is getting much bigger.

Maybe the people in front of me now are one unit. So that means―is it more than 30 people?

Hey, hey, hey… is the material I’ve taken down enough?

“By the way, are you making a decent profit?”

“Oh, it’s great! When they first asked me, I thought they were joking, but… I really appreciate it.”

It kind of tickles me when adults bow to me in front of me when they say that.

Well, it would be a problem if they were complaining that they weren’t making as much money as they thought they were, and when they seem to be making money, I’m relieved.

“That’s good to hear. I’m going to consult with Alba-san and the others, so be sure to check in with them later about the results of our discussion!”

After saying that, I left the place and headed east along the river.

I used Explore to check the monster situation as I moved along.

“(Hmm, I think I hit a few monsters in a 30-meter radius around me. Obviously, there are fewer than the first time, but there are still monsters coming from the west, north, and east. And I’m sure it’s because of the large number of monster corpses lying around…)”

I’ll kill the monsters and leave them there, and the corpses will also be left there after the materials are collected.

I’ve seen the sight of poison mice cannibalizing each other, so it could be that the monsters come for the monster meat.

Otherwise, what are all those monsters eating? The question arises.

However, this does not mean that it is practical to remove the corpses of the monsters.

One or two bodies might be enough, but the scattered corpses number in the hundreds, so the only way to proceed with gathering materials is to take this situation into account.

As I continued east, with another unit gathering materials along the way, I saw a group of 10 people engaged in a battle with monsters.

There are several familiar faces among them――

It seems clear that this is the unit in charge of the easternmost side.

“Hello~ Are you okay?”

Without even turning around, Alba-san and Mizuru-san, who are in the middle of a battle, reply, perhaps recognizing me from my voice.

“Mm? Loki, huh?”

“It’s a hassle, but it’s okay. Ah, it would be great if you could cover for us…!”

What is it? I poked my head inward, but when I looked at the monsters they were fighting, I saw an orc and four small wolves.

In addition, a rig spider was floating in the air, and a hunter was wrapped in a caterpillar-like coil on the ground, perhaps having fallen prey to the sticky thread.

“(Wow! Is this what it looks like when you get caught by a rig spider? But… I wouldn’t want to see a sticky man.)”

I shake my head as my true feelings come out as quickly as they come in.

Nine hunters fighting, huh?

I’m sure they could defeat the monsters, but I guess it’s just as annoying as the word implies.

If that’s the case, I’ll just cover them for now.

If not, then I cannot consult with them as much as possible.

As I ran towards the monsters engaged in battle, I suddenly remembered that I had a skill for times like this.

“(I’m sure I’ve acquired it, right? Let’s see, let’s see…)”

Provocation!

I still don’t know why, but somehow, I learned this skill on the Rocker Plains.

It should still be level 1, but I thought it would be easier if I could attract monsters with it, so I cast my first Provocation skill with the orc in mind.

Then, for some reason.

“(Boo!! The small wolves are following me too!)”

I thought I was only calling the orc, but three small wolves that were next to it followed me as a set.

Also, the orc’s eyes seem more bloodshot and deadly than usual…? What? Is it angry?

Is it furious?

Is provocation an area skill? Does it have the ability to not only narrow the field of vision but also make the target angry?

I don’t really know the answer to this question because I’ve been slacking off.

I had never even seen a detailed explanation until now, which was that if I worked alone, all the monsters would come to me regardless of provocation, so I would never use it.

“(Well, okay…)”

Whether it’s one or four, it doesn’t make much difference now.

I immediately switch to a style that emphasizes the number of hands, with a short sword in my right hand and a knife in my left, and intercept the small wolves that reach me first.

“(Hoi, hoi, hoi!)”

Engaging the small wolves near the river would result in a wave of unparalleled attacks.

I cut down about three of them like it was a piece of cake, and finally, while dodging the club of a slowly running orc, I jumped on the orc’s knees and flashed my sword at his neck.

Slash…

“(Hmm… since yesterday, I’ve finally been able to cut off the heads of the orcs in a stable manner.)”

While thinking this, I checked the rest of the monsters, and it seemed that they had finished this one as well, and everyone was staring at me with dumbfounded looks on their faces.

“This is the first time I’ve seen Loki in battle, and you’re… amazing…”

“Yeah… all I can say is awesome.”

“I wonder what’s going on there, that you can handle four of them all by yourself and be so relaxed?”

“That’s impressive, but is it some kind of skill that made the monsters go towards Loki-kun?”

“There’s no point in worrying about the details. The world he lives in is different from ours.”

“As I thought, Loki is a god.”

“”””…..””””

“(…A-awkward…)”

I don’t want to show off, but if I was asked to cover and monsters came by, the right thing to do would be to take them out as soon as possible.

It’s not my fault! It’s not my fault!

“A-ahahahaha… but wouldn’t it be better to help the person being wrapped in the threads as soon as possible?”

“””””””””Ah.”””””””””

“…How terribly awful that they forgot!”

I muttered to myself as I looked at the man who was having the tangled threads cut by all hands while keeping a wary eye on the surroundings.