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Finally, the day had come. I no longer remembered how long it had been since the war began, but I had killed, killed, and killed so many of the Demons. I had come so close to finally being praised as a true hero.

I had destroyed countless villages, towns, and cities. Only one place remained. The Nigel Kingdom’s royal capital. All of my stats had now gone over 300. Some were even close to reaching 400. The fact that the former heroes’ stats were only at 250 meant I had already surpassed them in strength.

Strength. That was the only thing I had left. But it could also be said that strength was everything in this world. If you were strong, your word became law, and you would be treated well.

Since the start of the war, we had never been treated poorly. We had to fight on the front lines, yes, but once we returned to the main camp, we were treated with respect. Many soldiers admired us.

By now, I could say that strength defined me. I no longer cared about my classmates who were now avoiding me due to how strong I’d become. They could die weak for all I cared.

I had to admit that Tsukihara was the only one who came close to matching me, but even she couldn’t defeat me.

And the fact that she now avoided me meant there was no one left to blame me. No one would deny that I had been the one to kill Toriyama. And while I wouldn’t go out of my way to exploit it, if I were to ask a favor of them, not one would dare refuse.

I had gained such tremendous power that it gave me a sense of omnipotence. No one would ever defeat me again, not even Toriyama. I would make him regret ignoring my plea back then.

But that was a story for another time. Right now, I had to end this war. If I won, I would become a hero, and the royal family would no longer be able to ignore me. No matter how tightly I was bound as a slave, if they treated me harshly, the soldiers and the people would turn against the royal family.

I understood this well from how we had been treated during the war.

Come to think of it, Princess Topersion came here not too long ago. I believed it was to boost the soldiers’ morale, and it had certainly worked. Since her arrival, morale has gone up. She had even spoken words of thanks to us at that time.

But honestly, it gave me chills. That kind of gesture never happened back at the castle. I had expected at least one sarcastic remark, yet there had been none. And while it was only for show, she had thanked us.

This also reaffirmed that this was the turning point in my life. I decided to begin by breaking through this tightly sealed gate in front of me.

(Should I even bother with the gate? Why not just destroy the whole wall?)

“Hyaaaa!”

With all my strength, I punched the wall surrounding the royal city. Effortlessly, I tore a hole through it, and the corner of the wall collapsed with a rattling sound. A cloud of dust and smoke billowed into the air. When the smoke began to clear, it marked the beginning of the battle.

First, my classmates charged through the collapsed wall into the royal city of Nigel, followed by the soldiers. The Demons had been focused on guarding the gate, so our entry caught them off guard.

In this battle, we heroes were supposed to head straight for the royal castle while laying as much waste as we could on the way. It seemed that Princess Topersion was planning to follow us, with a group assigned to escort her. If we managed to defeat the Demon Lord, we would claim victory. After that, we were supposed to move on to an extermination campaign to wipe out the remaining Demons in the capital. But above all, as long as we defeated the Demon Lord, my life would change drastically. I would become a true hero.

I would finally be able to live in Fraus without anyone complaining, and I’d be recognized as someone essential.

At this point, I didn’t even register the Demons as a threat. With a single swing of my sword, several of them would be blown away. When I used magic, they vanished without a trace. Even so, they kept coming in waves. It was a hassle, but I pushed forward, determined to take credit for the victory.

The closer I got to the castle, the tougher the Demons’ armor became, and the stranger their weapons looked. But it still wasn’t enough to stop me. Even if I failed to take one down, I could leave it to the ones behind me.

I kept pressing toward the castle, and just as I was in front of it, a powerful-looking figure finally appeared. She looked determined to protect the castle at any cost. She had bright red eyes and dark skin. Her dress displayed the distinct traits of the demon tribe. She may have looked beautiful, but as a member of the demon tribe, she was an enemy I had to kill.

“I am surprised you came so soon.”

The woman said in a tone that didn’t sound surprised at all. Still, what a strange world it was—to meet a woman who spoke like this in real life. But that didn’t matter. All I needed to know was whether this woman was the Demon Lord or not.

“Are you the Demon Lord?”
“I can’t possibly be the Demon Lord, can I?”
“Then where is he?”
“I, too, wonder. But I do know that he’s getting closer to us.”
“Why isn’t he in the castle? We’re at war!”
“Oh, I see.”

She clapped her hands as if something had just occurred to her.

“The being you’re looking for is Nigel Kingdom’s ruler, is it not? In that case, she’s standing right before you.”
“And yet you’re alone?”
“I’m quite strong, you know. I usually go solo. I don’t want anyone holding me back, you see.”
“I agree with that.”

There was no doubt; this woman was the strongest one here. I didn’t know what her stats were like, but that was the impression I got. Probably no one but me could defeat her.

She was exactly the kind of opponent I had been waiting for. If possible, I would have preferred to meet her in a more dramatic setting.