TN: Sorry to everyone who buy the advanced chapter. I accidentally skip 1 chapter in RAW and number it wrong :’). The「Vampire Princess and Former Hero Unveiling」are v3c3, not v3c2.
Un, I’m used to this feeling now.
「Good evening, Lean-san…Please wait a moment, the macaron tower will be ready soon…」
What are you doing?
I hear you’re not busy, but if that’s the case, at least make a card tower or something. Why are you making a macaron tower?
「I gave up on the idea of making a card tower because it was too hard. I thought a macaron tower would work…」
What kind of idea?
…Well, it looks like we can eat macarons, which is fine, let’s stop and eat them anyway.
「Right. Oh, here are a few extra macaroons. Would you like a Darjeeling for your drink?」
Yes, please.
And the customary tea party began.
Finished.
…Yeah, to be honest, we only talked about things that didn’t matter. I’ll spare you the details.
◆◇◆◇◆
「Now…once again. Lean, the former hero… Thank you so much for what you did to save Yomi. It really helped.」
No, nothing like that. I was also concerned about Yomi.
「My, I’m curious. What does that mean in detail?」
Of course, it’s that poor hero girl, what’s with that smirk! What else is there to say!
「What would you say to someone who has been staring at her naked body for five minutes straight in the bathroom… Well, so much for the ridicule. As for Yomi, she should be fine now. Because the humans seem to have decided she’s dead.」
……? The humans seem to have accepted the death of the hero rather easily, don’t they?
The humans must have recognized that the girl was a monster who didn’t seem to die even if she was killed.
「Well, even Yomi at that time was inferior to the three strongest candidates in the demon army. Judging by the fact that the marks of the transfer magic around her had been neatly erased, the humans must have thought it was Sakura’s doing, based on her magical prowess.」
Ah…Indeed, Sakura-kun could defeat even Yomi at that time.
Sakura Forrester is the most powerful member of the Demon King’s army. He’s a super-class magician who is known as a『breathing disaster』among humans, and even Feria-san said that she and Tiana were no match for him.
Moreover, he is a genius who has not even reached the level limiter yet and is still growing.
「It’s convenient for us. You are a candidate for the next executive of the Demon King’s army, and we were able to hide your existence… And here comes the main issue.」
Oh, I thought this time you were called to labor?
「Previously…It was three years ago. I think I told you about the heroes. Three people with the qualities of heroes were born at the same time.」
Yes, I remember. Only Yomi was born within the rules of this world, and the other two were born in the same…reincarnated…No way!
「It’s that no way. When Yomi lost her『hero』pccupational, her power was transferred to the reincarnated person. No more than two heroes can be born at the same time… This seems to have convinced the human higher-ups that the previous generation, or Yomi, is dead. Well, she is alive.」
…Reincarnation.
Like me, former classmates who died in a gas explosion in that high school science lab.
…And a bunch of jerks who bullied me, and a bunch of people who stood by and didn’t help me.
I don’t feel any sympathy or affection for them, just because of the memories of each other’s previous lives.
On the contrary. I have more than enough anger and vengeance. Especially when it comes to the perpetrators of my bullying.
…By the way, how strong is this guy and what was his name in a previous life?
「As far as strength and talent, he is not as strong as Yomi. I mean, Yomi was just an anomaly, and you, Full Moon, can usually defeat a hero of the same level with ease… And here is the name in your previous life…」
「…Shinichi Kuroda. He is the main culprit of those who used to bully you.」
……IT COMES!!
「Huh!? …Um, why are you happy? Isn’t that something you normally don’t like?」
Huh? Why?
A man who had tortured me a lot in my previous life was reborn in this world, weaker than me. And we are enemies. More specifically, except for Yomi, he was originally a hero, the greatest enemy of the demon tribe.
This is my chance to rip his body to shreds, tear his heart to shreds, and repay him hundreds of times over for the treatment he received in his previous life.
If he is chosen as a『hero,』he must be on a roll, so I will tear his pride to shreds, bring him to his knees, and then stomp on his head.
「I would make one correction, though: he didn’t become weaker than you, you became overwhelmingly stronger than him… Well, that is one way to look at it. The other person with the qualities is still unknown. But compared to Yomi, it’s nothing.」
So now, he has the『qualities of a hero』…So, the entity that is the most disturbing to trample humans will disappear?
「Yes, but be on your guard. Ten of the Twelve Holy Apostles are still alive and well. And there will be new ones coming in later… And, loathsome as it may seem, Misery has given new powers to the Twelve Apostles.」
New power? Why?
「I think she was impatient with the loss of Yomi, the unintentionally born divine genius. It was the cost of tacitly allowing her to be weaponized for her benefit… And the new power, which is the most important thing, is a further boost in status, as well as『unaging』,『maintaining the body in its prime』,『raising the level limiter』, and other moderately troublesome things. It will be more difficult than ever to crack the game.」
Damn, for real?
There are only about 20 or so in the Demon King’s Army that can compete with the Twelve Holy Apostles properly. Will they be further strengthened from there?
「It’s not as good as Yomi in her prime, or you on a full moon night, and there’s Gray, Rain, and Sakura. We should be wary, but not overly so.」
What, I see.
「Do you have any other questions? If not, I’ll send you back.」
Oh, just one.
The next generation of heroes…Is Kuroda’s reincarnated body also going to be used as a weapon?
「Oh, no. After this incident, the human side seems to have decided that weaponization would not have much effect, and they are being educated normally.」
Oh, thank goodness.
If their hearts were broken, it wouldn’t be worth torturing them.
「You say terrible things sometimes, don’t you? Well, I’m going to send you back. I will see you soon.」
◆◇◆◇◆
「……an, wake up. Lean, wake up.」
I opened my eyes and saw an angel.
……. Oh, wrong, there was Yomi.
Damn, she was so beautiful that I mistook her for an angel for a moment.
「Oh, Yomi…good morning.」
「Good morning. I just got a reminder from the Demon King-sama.」
Oh, really?
I didn’t notice it at all, probably because I was asleep and Isuzu-sama was interfering with me.
「Okay, I’ll be right there. What’s the Demon King-sama say?」
「Let’s see… She said to come to the conference room dressed as nicely as possible so that she can inform everyone in the demon army of my presence. It looks like the spatial linkage has been completed.」
Wow, that was fast, wasn’t it? They’re announcing it already?
AN: A little unimportant backstory.
Actually, we were going to end the prologue with Isuzu-sama. However, I was struck by the idea that he would be a great resource as a commentator and information provider, so I decided to make him a semi-regular character. I personally like her.