Chương 185: Chapter 184: Heroes

The Wall of Weapons' public section is a museum that can be explored in its entirety within an hour, assuming you don't pause to read the stories behind the weapon. The secret section that Christie only lets friends into (Which means just me and Mel) is this part, where the wall is endless and filled to the brim with weapons wielded by Christie's customers. Swords blunt from constant use, staffs broken in half, and all sorts of weapons that can no longer be used. 

There are also more secret parts of the Wall of Weapons that Christie has made for organisations that contact her. I've never been in them, but I know they exist since Christie and I talked a lot back when I was in Hamblin. The True Wall for the RO, the War Armoury for the two ducal families of Bellum, the Holy Sanctum for The Holy Land, and much, much more. 

Where am I going with this? I know the existence of nearly every room in the Wall of Weapons, but Christie always said there was only one room that she would never tell another soul about. No, not her bedroom. I've had sleepovers with her before. I think I've found that secret room. I walked through an unassuming wooden door to the sound of metal banging and found myself in a forge.

"Not a forge, Maddy. The Forge." Christie was at the centre of the small room, hitting a molten weapon with a hammer on an anvil, as a blacksmith would. "Did you think the sister of the Lord of the Blacksmiths wouldn't have a forge herself?"

"You're the sister of the Lord of the Blacksmiths?" I feel like she's told me that before… I don't think she has.

"Girl, that's the only thing people used to remember." She put the hammer down. "Before I made the Wall of Weapons, of course."

"You know, I think I've met your brother, and I remember him being a dwarf. You're not, so…"

"I'm a half-dwarf. I'm more like mama, and big bro was more like papa!" Her friendly face suddenly turned solemn. "I miss them all."

Oh yeah, now I remember. The day Mila and I visited the Lord so I could see his Side Note also happened to be the day he died… oh shit, Myka did it. I think I'll stay quiet for once. I don't even know what to say anyways.

"That cruel bunny… she gloated." Christie grabbed the hammer. "She just went on," Bang "and on," Bang "AND ON!!!" BANG!!! Her outburst was followed by a lull of silence.

"Before he died, he was working on this sword. It was meant to be for the Hero, but that piece of shit got pissy and buggered off, but big bro still worked on it since the material he was using for it was something he and I got on an adventure." She took the sword with her gloved hand and dipped it in a nearby cauldron of water before throwing it at me. I caught it, wondering why she gave it to me. "It's unfinished, but it sure as hell is better than anything in my museum. It's my big bro's unfinished magnum opus."

"Are you sure you want to give me this?" I wield the sword, noticing how unbalanced its weight is, the lack of grip on the handle, and just how plain ugly it is. "Couldn't you just use your Sacred Power to make a better one?"

"I want you to stab both the Hero and that bunny girl with that sword. I don't care whether if they die or not. I just want the Hero to know what he missed out and for that bunny to know what she took from me." She said, with a serious expression I've never seen from her, which quickly turned back to her joyful smile. "Okay, girlfriend?"

"Got it." I nodded. I'll do that, even with how unwieldy this unfinished sword is. I turned, about to walk away, remembering that's not how that works. "Hey Christie… got a key?"

"Oh hell yeah, girl!" She took off a pendant that I recognised. It's a gift I stole for her… look, it's Hamblin. You're required by law to steal something every month, okay. She handed it over, and the usual floor transition thing started. "Kick that hero's ass since that loser is next!"

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"I sure will!" Haha… wait, what?

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The Hero is such a weird title, at least here in Mendass. I've read a couple books from the worlds of Otherworlders, and the title of Hero is quite consistent among their stories. Tales of heroism, bravery, absolute good, Chosen of the Gods, and other cliches. However, here in Mendass, the title of Hero depends on which country is in charge of determining the Hero for that part of the Hero Cycle. What's the Hero Cycle? A stupid rule some random God made centuries ago, that's all.

The dumbest part is that the Hero is chosen via different methods in every country. The Holy Land chooses the Hero by getting every high-ranking individual in the Church to bless a random orphan, Hula Island chooses through a sailing competition, and Tokkiman chooses whichever beastkin has the longest ears. Most of the time, the Hero tends to be more of a figurehead, although there are exceptions, like heroes from Bellum, Pansir, The Dome… or Trogen, like Wulfric Break… who is also trying to punch me.

Look, I'm a combat genius, that much I'll say. I beat my classmates, I beat my teachers, I beat my headmi… no wait, I didn't, but you get the idea, right? I reckon that with Shadow Cloning, only roughly five people in Mendass could beat me in a fight: The Man In The Pinstripe Suit, Myka, Marigold, the headmistress, and… Wulfric Break. 

The only reason I have yet to be beaten is because of this sword Christie gave me. I apologise in my heart for calling it stupid before unsheathing it against the Hero. So far, it has successfully blocked each and every punch the Hero has sent my way without bending, although I fear it won't be before long when he becomes too fast for me. 

Not only that, but even though every other floor was just one person, there are four on this one! Wulfric is already here, which is unfair! He's literally Limitless! Damn you, Myka! You were only supposed to cheat in Go Fish! 

So who are the others? It's a weird trio of a priest (Typical adventurer group member), a ninja (Not typical adventurer group member), and a farmer (Not an adventurer group member). Aside from blocking punches from the Hero, I also have to dodge holy strikes from above, shadow strikes from below, and hoe strikes from behind the Hero… why is the farmer fighting?

So yeah, as you can see, I have a lot on my plate. Huh? How can I afford to think right now? Oh, I managed to let out some ice magic to freeze the Hero's feet, giving me some time. Unfortunately, I tried attacking him, but he easily deflected my attack. The other three aren't trying to attack me while the Hero is busy punching my Eternal Ice (Which is showing cracks… I didn't even know that was possible), giving me some space to think.

So, the biggest problem is obviously the Hero. My only option is to stab him with this unfinished sword and hope it keeps him down… or maybe I could drop him into my Shadowrealm… will that work? The priest and farmer should be easy to take down since I can just headbutt them and they'll immediately go down for the count. The ninja is sort of hard, but I should manage if I catch her mid-ambush. 

Actually, wait, I'm an idiot. I've just remembered the easiest way to make someone drop their guard. Man… oh! The Hero is about to free himself. It's now or never. I stabbed the sword into the ground, created a dozen daggers in my hands, and then threw every single one. 

The ninja reflexively exited the shadows, tackling the priest down, but they weren't my targets. With one final punch, the Hero freed himself, then dashed right in front of the farmer, who was the target of every dagger. Monstrous move, I know, but I've been worse things. Unfortunately for the Hero, he doesn't know that I'm right behind the daggers, sword in hand, and about to stab this thing through hi- whoops, my thoughts were too slow. The sword is already in his stomach.

"Huh?" The Hero looks down at the sword lodged inside him and… oh shit! "NO NO NO NOOOOOO!!!!!"

He punched down at the blade with such force that he sent it downwards, knocking it out of my hands… while also making the blade inside him fly upwards, killing him. Yeesh, talk about gruesome… oh, the trio seem to be quivering with fear. That's good, since that means no more fighting. I started checking the body of the Hero and found an arrow with dried blood at its tip, which started the floor change process.

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Chapter namesake: Heroes by David Bowie