The NTR Hero Knelt Before the Demon King – Chapter 150

Suddenly, the Supreme Commander Helene demanded a duel… no, a spar.

I couldn’t help but feel a deep confusion for various reasons.

It was funny to talk about having a match right before a battle, but more importantly, I was currently playing the role of the Demon King.

There was no need to mention how insane it was to challenge a ruler, let alone the king of a nation, to a duel, even as a joke.

As I considered that the person before me might not be entirely normal, I cautiously asked Helene, “A duel… why do you suddenly want to do that? Even though you’re the Supreme Commander, you know how rude it is to say that to a king, right?”

“Yes, I am aware. Asking His Majesty the Demon King for such a thing could be an affront to the Demon Kingdom itself…”

Helene replied surprisingly seriously, despite my discomfort.

She then looked at me as if she had made up her mind about something and said, “But Your Majesty, I absolutely… have a good reason for this. It’s a very important matter related to my life, not just something trivial.”

“Important matter… what do you mean?”

Seeing her speak with unexpected sincerity made me feel a bit bewildered and suddenly curious.

They said she was the strongest warrior of the empire, but that was just the setting. Frankly, in the original story, she was hardly more than a background character.

For her to have a serious reason to request a duel with a temporarily allied Demon King was definitely intriguing.

‘Could it be that her family was killed by the Demon King… or something like that? But it feels different from revenge. What in the world…’

While I pondered over her true intentions, Helene answered in a voice full of fervent desire.

“I’m looking for a partner for my life.”

“…what?”

An even more ridiculous story than I had imagined.

I couldn’t help but stare blankly for a moment, and Helene continued firmly.

“Your Majesty the Demon King. Over my 28 years of life, I have received countless marriage proposals from numerous men. And to them, I said the following: I will not marry anyone who cannot defeat me. As a result, many men have challenged me, but not a single one has ever made me taste defeat.”

Helene’s story sounded vaguely familiar.

Automatically recognizing where this was heading, I began to sweat slightly, and then she spoke to me with sincerity in her voice.

“And then, I heard a rumor. About you, Your Majesty… about the world’s strongest man who defeated even that hero! Since that moment, I have been thinking, perhaps Your Majesty might be the one who could be my partner!”

Her intense desire was palpable.

At this moment, I wanted to challenge the idea that the Demon King could be a woman, and I also thought it was troublesome that she had clung to me more than just simple resentment. I spoke to her in as calm a tone as possible, “So… that means if you duel me and lose, you will come to marry me… is that what you mean?”

“Yes, that’s right, Your Majesty! As you can see, I am renowned as the strongest warrior of the empire and also celebrated for my beauty. If you defeat me, I will dedicate everything about myself to you.”

Indeed, if we were to talk about beauty, Helene possessed the most stunning looks of all the ‘humans’ I had seen, and she had every reason to be proud of that.

If I were my past self, despite the insane situation, I might have swung my sword with all my might for a beauty like her.

However, aside from that.

I could say with absolute certainty, without a hint of hesitation, towards the woman in front of me.

“I refuse.”

“What?”

“Regrettably, I already have a woman I’ve promised my future to. No matter how magnificent a beauty you are, I have no intention of breaking my vow with her to do this.”

“Th-That!…”

Seeing her genuinely disappointed… no, more than that, she looked incredibly shocked by my words.

Her expression told me she had expected to be accepted, yet here she was, rejected. I couldn’t help but feel a strange sensation.

‘Her pride in herself seems greater than I thought? Like she’s never been turned down by any man. Well, it makes sense. A beauty like her would probably feel that way…’

While I felt slightly uncomfortable realizing I had inadvertently turned down a woman who had never been rejected, I kept my calm emotions as I tried to exit this situation.

“Well, since it seems there’s nothing more to discuss, I’ll be on my way…”

“Y-Your Majesty!”

“Huh?”

“….?”

In that moment, a familiar voice caught my attention from the side.

I turned around naturally to see who it was.

And there was Eliza, just as I had predicted from her voice.

“What on earth are you doing here? Did I not tell you there was a meeting today!”

Though she spoke politely, Eliza was genuinely upset.

Even though I was pretending to be the Demon King, she was expressing her true feelings at that moment since we held equal positions.

“Ah, I… I’m sorry. I completely forgot. I was just talking with the Supreme Commander…”

“Even so, there are several people waiting because you arranged an appointment! Hurry up! There are urgent matters that need to be addressed!”

With that, Eliza naturally pulled me along.

I could only give a brief nod to the still dazed Helene and let myself be led to the conference room by Eliza.

*

The Demon King outright rejected the request to give herself upon winning the duel without a hint of hesitation.

As a result, Helene was engulfed in a deep shock she had never experienced before.

‘N-No way… I… I got rejected by a man?!’

Even though my opponent was the Demon King, Helene had never entertained the thought of such an outcome.

The countless men who had challenged her up to now were truly countless, including unfaithful husbands with wives and even men with loves.

But at this moment, despite knowing a bit about her opponent’s strength, Helene made the bold declaration to give a chance, only to have the Demon King firmly reject her.

She was told that he already had a partner.

In an unexpected turn of events, Helene found herself momentarily unable to think anything further due to the shock of being turned down by a man.

But just then, her eyes were drawn to a figure approaching her, dressed in armor yet without a helmet, revealing her silver hair.

The woman, hailed as one of the beauties of the century, possessed a lovely appearance that even Helene deemed quite charming, and she began to approach the Demon King who had just rejected her without any reservations.

It felt as if she was treating him not as a king of a nation, but as a peer standing on equal ground.

And in that moment, Helene instinctively realized.

That woman was the one the Demon King spoke of…

The one he had promised a future with.

‘There’s no doubt… the Demon King’s lover must be that woman, who can speak so naturally to him as the king of a nation.’

With skills evident even to the eye of a warrior, plus a beauty that was impossible to deny as a woman, Helene couldn’t help but feel that she suited the role of the Demon King’s partner perfectly, solidifying her suspicions.

Consequently, a thought began to emerge in Helene’s mind.

‘If I could eliminate that woman… perhaps it would open up an opportunity for me? Quietly… without anyone knowing…’

Objectively speaking, it was an incredibly reckless plan, and if things went wrong, it could lead to serious crises not just for her, but also for the empire.

However, despite knowing that fact.

She had never been too patriotic, and ultimately, the pain of her first heartbreak combined with her desires pushed Helene to the point where she disregarded any such concerns.

‘They say a man who loses their partner falls into extreme loneliness; if I take her out, then a heartbroken Demon King would be easier for me to approach… Though the method may be dirty, it’s better than living and dying as a virgin…’