The NTR Hero Knelt Before the Demon King – Chapter 29

As soon as Amelda entered the Interrogation Room, her gaze fell upon a middle-aged Elf man.

The moment she recognized his face, the anxiety she felt upon entering intensified.

“B… Bishop Brutus?”

“It’s been a while, Amelda.”

He was her mentor, the one who had paved the way for her to join the Hero Party by establishing connections with the Empire and the Racial Alliance, all while serving as a Paladin.

Given that, he was the last person Amelda wanted to see after failing her mission.

With an even heavier sense of guilt weighing on her regarding her failure, Amelda took a seat right in front of Bishop Brutus.

“I’ve heard the gist. It seems this Hero also failed to defeat the Demon King…”

“Yes… th… that’s right…”

The bishop spoke in a grave tone. Watching him, Amelda felt a deep tension gripping her as she struggled to respond in a voice that was almost a whisper.

Bishop Brutus, who had always been strict and valued principles above all, was someone Amelda both respected deeply and feared due to his sternness.

The fact that she was now expected to lie in front of her mentor only added an even heavier burden on her heart.

However, amid this situation, Amelda put in all her effort to compose herself, trying to calm her racing emotions.

‘L… let’s keep it together. No matter how much he is my mentor, the futures of Torare and my comrades are at stake. I just need to speak calmly… and tell him what I’ve prepared…’

With the face of her beloved flashing in her mind, Amelda finally succeeded in steeling her resolve.

She then looked at her mentor and carefully tried to form her lie.

But then…

“Amelda…”

“Y-yes?”

Bishop Brutus spoke to her in a surprisingly softened voice, and his face began to reflect not the usual coldness, but an earnest concern.

“B… Bishop?”

Seeing this unusual behavior from her typically strict mentor, especially towards her after her failure, Amelda felt an unexpected sense of bewilderment.

Then, in a voice filled with that earnestness, Bishop Brutus began to speak.

“I hope you can tell me the truth… the whole truth.”

“W-what? A… I will… of course! How could I dare to lie in front of you, my mentor?”

Despite her words, Amelda’s mind was still firmly set on revealing the story that would sell out the Hero.

But right after that…

He firmly grasped her hands and started to speak even more intensely.

“You *must* do it! If you don’t tell the truth, if you don’t explain the undeniable reason why that Hero failed, our Elf Church Country will fall into great peril!”

“Y-yes?”

Bishop Brutus was now unveiling thoughts Amelda never thought he would share. Her face reflected pure shock from his unexpected words.

“W-what do you mean, mentor? The Elf Church Country is in danger?”

It was shocking beyond comprehension for her, a revelation that struck her hard.

Bishop Brutus, with a face full of fear he had never shown in front of his student, began to explain the current situation regarding the Hero’s defeat foretold by the oracle and the peril the Elf Church and the Pope faced.

And then…

“T… this… this kind of…”

As a result, Amelda now began to realize that she was standing at an extremely crucial and heavy turning point in her life.

“Please… tell me the truth! What is the reason that the Pope’s oracle did not come to pass? Why is the prophecy of the divine being, Neltoraon, wrong?”

Bishop Brutus, who had completely lost his usual calm, was almost pleading with her in desperation.

Seeing such a desperate side of him, Amelda found herself unable to bring forth the ‘lie’ she had prepared.

If she spoke the prepared story now, it might not cause any immediate issues for her.

But after hearing Bishop Brutus’s words, Amelda had unmistakably grasped that by revealing the truth, she would cause immense harm to her homeland, the Elf Church Country, and her kin.

On one side lay the safety of her comrades and herself…

On the other side lay the safety of her homeland and countless fellow Elves.

Amelda had to make a choice.

And after countless worries, she ultimately found herself making a decision.

“T-t-t-the truth is…”

Sudden waves of guilt and sadness washed over her.

Yet, she forced herself to bury those feelings deep inside.

Amelda gazed at Bishop Brutus and began to speak with difficulty.

“E-everything was because of that man… T-Torare. He… he seduced us, the female warriors of the Hero Party, to betray the Hero…”

In the end, Amelda chose her homeland and her kin over her comrades.

However… it wasn’t solely due to patriotism.

While that certainly played a significant role, the decisive moment that turned her heart lay elsewhere.

In her final moments, the face of Terra flickered before her eyes.

Terra, who had been summarily sacrificed for the survival of her comrades, now seemed eerily similar to what Amelda was facing.

And naturally, this pushed Amelda to abandon her comrades even amidst her guilt.

‘Right… in this situation, the other two besides Torare would abandon me without thought. Rather than that…’

*

After a long time, Eileen was currently being ‘interrogated’ by her junior.

However, given their relationship, the conversation that began under the pretext of interrogation had slowly morphed into a more casual chat, like meeting a friend at a tea house.

“I’m telling you! That Hero… no, that Elen guy. He looked good on the outside, but in reality, he was a complete mess. He talked about oracles and whatnot, but when he faced the Demon King, he absolutely crumbled and didn’t even manage to swing his sword!”

“Is that so… I heard the rumors about his defeat, but I didn’t think it was that severe…”

Listening to the explanation, Raphael nodded slowly.

Seeing him, Eileen spoke in an irate tone.

“Damn it! If only that pathetic idiot had held out a bit longer, we could have wiped out the Demon King’s minions and even taken the Demon King’s neck ourselves with our strength. No matter how strong you are, what good is it if your mind fails when it counts?”

“That’s indeed unfortunate. To think they would miss out on a chance to end the war right in front of them because of the Hero’s antics…”

“Who wouldn’t agree! My entire life feels shameful for being childhood friends with that loser! But still, I wished to see some closure, yet it ended in failure due to overwhelming power. Luckily, a lucky porter used a scroll to help us escape just in time.”

Eileen was well aware that the Demon King’s power was far beyond what they could handle.

But aside from that harsh truth, Eileen had to carefully spin the narrative as previously discussed with her party members and paint Torare in a favorable light while mercilessly discrediting the Hero.

And so, after finishing her tirade against the Hero, Eileen leaned back in her chair with a feigned expression of dissatisfaction.

Watching her, Raphael smiled and began to recount the information he had taken note of.

“To summarize, the Hero crumbled in fear upon facing the Demon King, leading to a defeat. As a result, the warriors of the Hero Party only barely managed to retreat with the help of the porter. Roughly that’s it, correct?”

“Yeah, that’s right. If anything seems lacking, feel free to bring in someone else to corroborate. Everyone who was there witnessed that Hero’s disgraceful end.”

“No, that won’t be necessary. This aligns exactly with what we and His Majesty hoped for.”

“What?”

Raphael’s unexpected words made Eileen’s expression shift from suspicion to confusion as she began to piece together the oddness of the situation.

‘Now that I think about it, this whole incident, starting from the detailed interrogation to using a solitary room, has felt extremely odd. Which means…’

As she birthed doubts about the peculiar situation, Eileen coolly asked Raphael.

“Indeed… there’s something going on here regarding the Hero Party’s failure.”

“Yes, there is. And it was my role to convey this to you and execute the plan… but frankly, you could just tell the truth without any manipulation.”

Raphael responded with a seriousness unmatched from before the interrogation.

Then, not long after, he cautiously checked around to confirm that no one else could hear.

He then leaned closer to Eileen and began to whisper an astonishing revelation.

“Is… is that really true?”

“Yes, since I was appointed as the Vice Minister, you must already be aware, right? His Majesty intends to proceed with ‘that plan’ now.”

“Ah…”

Eileen’s face momentarily reflected the acknowledgment of an inevitable conclusion.

However, shortly after, she urgently questioned him about a sudden realization.

“W-wait a minute! What will happen to the others who were captured? I can understand Shude, but what about Amelda?”

Eileen’s bewilderment colored her voice as she posed the question.

In response, Raphael’s expression bore a hint of bitterness as he replied.

“The Elf Paladin… will probably struggle to survive.”

“!…”

Eileen’s expression stiffened at Raphael’s words.

Stunned by the unfortunate fate of her comrade, she could only look on in shock.

Seeing her reaction, Raphael displayed a genuinely regretful expression as he spoke to her.

“The Elves are not fools; they’ve taken some measures. That Bishop Brutus currently in the Interrogation Room is the outcome of that. However, it won’t amount to much… After all, we’ve already taken action regarding him.”

“…”

Eileen could easily grasp what Raphael meant by ‘taking action.’

Along with that realization came the grim expectation of what would happen to Amelda.

And as these facts settled in her mind, a single thought automatically surfaced in Eileen’s head.

‘Great! I didn’t expect that another competitor would be eliminated like this!’