The NTR Hero Knelt Before the Demon King – Chapter 76

A presence cloaked in a dark red robe, wielding a sword.

As she looked at him, Samuel instantly realized that he was not a demon but a human.

‘The way he holds the sword, the material of the weapon, and crucially, the magic that conceals his true form… This guy’s definitely human.’

By quickly combining all these minute details, Samuel reached a conclusion in an instant.

However, in that moment, she did not immediately reveal the identity of the man before her. Instead, she slowly clenched her fist, now wearing a gauntlet, and prepared her stance.

At that moment, Samuel couldn’t fathom why a human would participate in such a tournament, but one thing was for sure: it wasn’t for a good reason.

Moreover, depending on how things went, her causing a scene could potentially ignite their conspiracy instead.

Like a cornered rat could bite, it was better to just go with the flow in a situation like this.

And the flow meant…

Of course, Samuel would naturally engage in combat with the human right in front of her.

‘Fight. Take him down. That’s all that matters.’

Right after coming to such a simple conclusion, Samuel summoned her magic power into her gauntlet, focusing all her attention on the ‘enemy’ in front of her.

Dressed in shimmering silver-white armor, Samuel gripped the gauntlet wrapped in magic.

Meanwhile…

Observing her, the figure in the dark red robe…

Hector, the human warrior bearing that name, glared at the demon in front of him with a cold gaze, sword in hand.

‘Is this guy a Demon General? Indeed, he’s not an ordinary fighter. Just the presence of his power feels worlds apart from regular demons.’

Hector had fought countless demons, having taken down not only ordinary soldiers but also generals and commanders.

However…

Even so, in this moment, Hector could sense that his instincts were sending him a subtle warning.

‘Just like that Black Hero earlier, and now this general, it seems there are more monsters among the demon ranks than we thought. Yet here I am, the Emperor of the Falcon Empire is worrying only about the war with the Elf Church Country…’

Watching the strength of his opponent, Hector lamented his country’s sorry state.

At the same time, this made him more determined about what he had to do in this moment.

‘For the smooth progress of the plan, I must win this match decisively. No matter how early it is in the tournament, to grab the crowd’s attention, I need to reach at least the semifinals.’

Thus, without even considering losing to a general, Hector began to charge with all his might toward the enemy in front of him.

“Haah!!!”

-Klang!

The next moment, a sharp metallic sound rang out.

It was the figure of the general, who easily blocked Hector’s strike with the gauntlet.

The general’s actions easily countered Hector’s strike, filled with significant magical power.

Hector automatically frowned, but nonetheless, he immediately unleashed an unrelenting barrage of attacks toward the general.

Then came the loud sound of an explosion.

With a speed that cut through the air like the wind, Hector’s sword struck the general’s gauntlet with a sharp sound.

Not just swinging the sword but attacking with an intensity like a skilled chef chopping vegetables, Hector continued to unleash his strikes.

At that moment…

“!”

-Whoosh!

Suddenly, the gauntlet launched toward him at an unimaginable speed while simultaneously defending.

Caught off guard from unleashing his attacks, Hector barely raised his sword in time to block the incoming assault.

No…

To be precise,

He thought he had blocked it.

-KABOOM!!!

The immediate sensation of overwhelming impact.

Hector felt as if his consciousness was about to fly away and rolled on the ground.

‘Urgh! What… What was that? Even for a general, isn’t this a bit much?’

Even though he had slightly lost his balance, the general managed to precisely fit through the storm of strikes and deliver a monumental blow.

Realizing that his opponent possessed strength beyond his expectations, Hector involuntarily frowned.

But right after that, Hector realized he didn’t have the luxury to lie around and dither.

“Damn it!”

The gauntlet was flying toward Hector’s position!

He released his magic power to forcefully get back up.

Just as a strike came crashing down precisely where he had been standing.

An attack filled with tremendous force split the ground and sent debris flying; he knew that if he had just been standing there, he surely would have ended up unconscious.

‘Damn… what’s up with this little frame being so strong? Is this how a Demon General directly under the Demon King is?’

Thinking that, he narrowly dodged the incoming blow aimed at his face.

That his superior speed granted him some hope; if he had been slower, he would have been in deep trouble.

However, this was a situation Hector had not expected at all while anticipating a somewhat unique fight.

As he continued to fight in this unfavorable situation, focusing purely on avoidance, Hector began to seek a way to turn the tide.

‘Damn it… I can’t crumble like this… For my comrades… I can’t get caught by a general, or I’ll ruin everything!’

*

Hector.

Since he was young, there was always something he had aspired to.

A Hero.

A powerful being who upholds divine will by eliminating wickedness, bringing justice and peace to the world.

That noble and proud name had long been his dream, ideal, and goal, and he had trained himself and accumulated knowledge with all his might for it.

And as a result…

The very ‘opportunity’ he had been yearning for appeared right before Hector’s eyes.

The defeat of Hero Ellen, who was said to have received divine oracle.

Immediately following this, Hector, who had shown extraordinary prowess as a warrior, was elected as the next hero, and naturally, his comrades formed the Hero Party tasked with the mission to defeat the Demon King.

However,

Amidst all this excitement, just when they were preparing to depart, Hector and his comrades faced an unexpected, disastrous reality.

The catalyst was the deteriorating relationship between the Falcon Empire and the Elf Church Country due to Hero Ellen’s failure, which delayed the Hero Party’s departure.

And shortly after, the ambush in Rob and the disastrous news of the racial alliance’s defeat due to the massive counterattack from the demon races followed.

As a result of these consecutive events, the Racial Alliance fell apart, scattering and deciding to retreat, leaving Hector and his comrades, who were reliant on the support of the Alliance Army, in a precarious situation.

While each of them possessed outstanding combat prowess worthy of being selected for the Hero Party, they would certainly hold their own as warriors should they return home.

However, in this moment, Hector and his comrades had no desire for such a future.

Despite their diverse races, Hector and his comrades had formed bonds over their time together, eventually becoming like family.

The thought of parting from each other and, in worst-case scenarios, potentially facing each other in combat was something Hector and his comrades could never accept.

‘I will definitely behead the Demon King. I must strive for victory for my comrades!’

Thus…

In this moment,

He recalled the unwavering reason he could not lose.

Though it was only in name, he bore the title of ‘Hero’…

Hector began to strain with all his might to find a gap in his opponent in front of him.

Thankfully, the weapons of his opponent were the somewhat flawed gauntlet.

With just one massive punch swung above, he could catch a glimpse of a crack, but a single misstep could spell disaster in an instant.

Nonetheless, for Hector, who had already steeled his resolve, such a fact was bearable.

So, he observed the wicked, powerful strike of the general as it flew toward him in a deadly arc.

And then…

“!”

“Haah!”

-Smack!

Just as he narrowly avoided the approaching attack, Hector unleashed his counter.

The sharp sword strike shot toward the general, precisely hitting the helmed head and knocking it off.

‘Alright! Now, to take his head…’

Thinking that, Hector prepared to strike at the face of the opponent.

In that moment, he believed no one could halt him, pouring all his energy to seize the victory.

But then…

“!!…..What?”

The next moment, Hector was gripped by a sudden sense of paralysis.

In that moment as he swung to strike the enemy’s head, he found himself unable to swing his sword toward the face before him.

‘A… a woman?… And that face… what the hell?’

In an instant, a strange feeling wrapped around his heart.

Overwhelmed by the shock that blew away his animosity, Hector found himself gaping with a flushed face, staring at her.

And as a result of the resultant gap…

-SMACK!