Suicide Before Defeating the Final Boss

Suicide Before Defeating the Final Boss – 59

EP.59 The Revealed Truth Part 2

Inside the luxurious carriage, which had been magically expanded to the size of a family home, he sat in a corner on a sofa, watching Charlotte, who was calmly sipping her tea. After a while of savoring the tea in silence, she eventually began to speak when her cup was about a quarter empty.

“How much do you know about the so-called ‘Hero’?”

A brief question. Jeong-hyeon couldn’t help but let out a short laugh. After all, the hero she was referring to was him.

‘I’m not sure how to answer this.’

Feeling unsure how to respond, he remained silent and just looked at her. She sighed softly and continued.

“Most likely, you don’t know much. The kingdom has been very tight-lipped about the Hero, preventing any information from leaking out.”

Her words made him recall an old article he had read. It was about people who, unaware of his existence as a hero, prayed to the goddess to send one. He nodded slightly, remembering that article.

“So, most people or those unrelated to this matter believe that heroes don’t exist, but the reality is different.”

“Are you saying heroes do exist?”

Charlotte corrected his words with a bitter smile.

“To be precise, the hero did exist.”

He was curious about Charlotte’s reaction if he revealed that the Hero she spoke of had been resurrected and was now sitting right in front of her. However, he held back and feigned ignorance, asking another question.

“So, why are you telling me this?”

Charlotte looked frustrated, grabbing her head and sighing deeply before slowly speaking again.

“It might sound foolish, but your face… it looks exactly like the hero’s. Not just similar, but identical.”

Of course, it would. His appearance hadn’t changed.

“Details are classified, so I can’t tell you much, but just the fact that you look exactly like the Hero means the kingdom will try to use you in any way they can.”

“……”

“To you, this might sound absurd, but that’s the reality… it’s really ridiculous, isn’t it?”

Charlotte shook her head in a gesture of frustration. Seeing this, he pondered for a moment on what her intentions might be.

As he was thinking, Charlotte pointed to her ring and spoke.

“By the way, you still have the magic stone ring I gave you a while ago, right?”

He nodded, recalling the ring that had been used to lower recognition. Charlotte sighed again and continued.

“While it might have worked at the Academy, the kingdom has a lot of highly skilled mages, so it won’t be easy to hide your true identity with just that.”

That was definitely a major concern. He pondered silently, considering the best way to avoid being discovered. Noticing his contemplation, Charlotte made a suggestion.

“If you don’t mind, how about using a double for the award ceremony?”

If he had heard this suggestion without knowing the context, he might have found it lacking in details and wondered whether it was even necessary. However, given the context, it was a proposal he had to consider.

‘A double, huh? I didn’t think of that.’

It seemed Charlotte had been working on this for a while and had finally come up with a solution. He nodded in agreement.

Charlotte sighed in relief and continued.

“In that case, all you need to do is sign as if you were participating and help with any preliminary preparations. I’ll handle the rest.”

“Alright.”

“Oh, and this goes without saying, but try not to stand out too much. As I mentioned earlier, your face—no, your life is at stake here. It’s best if you manage on your own, as there are limits to how much I can protect you.”

Seeming exhausted from the conversation, Charlotte let out a deep sigh before looking at him.

“I’ll take a break for a while, so you should rest too.”

With that, she retreated into the inner part of the carriage, disappearing from view. He was intrigued by the fact that there was a room inside the carriage and closed his eyes for a moment, lost in thought.

***

Upon arriving at the castle of the kingdom, he wrapped himself in a large robe provided by Charlotte, covering both his face and body, and followed her inside. Normally, he would have expected an identity check, but being accompanied by the first princess meant that he was only met with welcoming gestures and no further interference.

“The awardees will be staying in the guest rooms inside the castle.”

Once inside, an attendant asked who he was and guided him. Satisfied with the straightforward guidance, he headed toward the accommodation arranged by the kingdom, taking in his surroundings.

‘The atmosphere isn’t great, especially considering it’s just before a large-scale ceremony.’

Even during the carriage ride, he had felt a pervasive gloom. He found it amusing that the kingdom’s atmosphere resembled that of defeated soldiers after a battle.

‘It feels like a country on the brink of collapse.’

They had mentioned that the kingdom was on the brink of destruction because of the demons, and it seemed to be true. Although he felt like cheering and exploring, he held himself back, just smiling slightly.

‘Ah, this is satisfying.’

He looked around contentedly before heading into the room he had been shown.

‘Alright then, let’s get ready.’

Since a double would be participating in the award ceremony in his place, he planned to spend his time exploring the castle, looking for valuable items or important objects to store in his subspace pouch.

‘It would be difficult under normal circumstances.’

With the king, royal family, and high-ranking nobles attending the ceremony, most of the castle’s personnel would be occupied.

‘So, while the ceremony is underway…’

He decided to hide valuable items or important goods inside his subspace pouch. He decided to check areas where treasure vaults might be found.

‘Where could it be?’

He pondered possible locations for the treasure vault. During his previous imprisonment here, he had only seen the prison and the hallways, missing out on key areas.

‘It’s best to gather information first.’

Missing Miria’s presence, he donned his robe and decided to explore the palace, trying to avoid being noticed.

‘I just need to be careful not to get caught.’

Even if he did get caught, his high stats would make it easy to evade capture. He decided to avoid attention and started exploring, wearing the ring Charlotte had given me and the mask from Miria.

To his surprise, he soon encountered an unexpected figure.

‘…Second Princess Karina.’

Karina, one of the key members of the Hero Party alongside Lea. Seeing Karina’s face again after a long-time stirred anger within him, and he clenched his teeth.

***

Hearing about the grand awards ceremony, Sword Saint Neriah and Mertan were on their way back to the kingdom. Mertan looked at his tattered armor and let out a bitter laugh, sighing deeply.

‘The kingdom is still overly obsessed with pomp and ceremony.’

It made no sense to call a key force like Neriah back to the kingdom during a critical time, but the kingdom showed no regard for the urgency of the situation and summoned them, nonetheless.

‘I wish I could show them the situation on the front lines.’

He doubted that anyone in the kingdom would want to see it. While he was lost in these thoughts, he suddenly remembered a student who had shone brightly at the Academy.

‘Now that I think of it, Jeong-hyeon is supposed to attend this award ceremony too.’

Recalling this fact, he hoped he might have a chance to meet Jeong-hyeon again after a long time. Then, a realization struck him—he had forgotten something amid the war.

‘Come to think of it, Jeong-hyeon and Neriah had a mother-child relationship.’

Although it wasn’t certain, the circumstances seemed to align well, giving him about 90% confidence in his assumption.

Mertan decided to ask about the matter now that it had come to mind. He addressed Neriah, who was walking ahead with a stern expression, in a casual tone.

“By the way, Neriah, aren’t you hiding something from me?”

Neriah turned around, looking puzzled, and responded.

“What are you talking about, old man? What could I possibly be hiding?”

Mertan, not wanting others to overhear, spoke in a low voice and recounted everything that had happened at the Academy. Upon hearing this, Neriah looked at him in disbelief and briefly replied.

“Are you out of your mind?”

It seemed that his assumption was incorrect. Mertan laughed softly at Neriah’s reaction.

Neriah sighed and spoke to him.

“That’s always your problem, old man. You get stuck on strange things and let your imagination run wild. I won’t tell you to stop, but you should try to control yourself.”

“Sorry about that. Haha.”

“By the way, if it’s similar to my swordsmanship… that’s quite interesting. I should go see it for myself.”

At these words, Mertan smiled silently. While he wasn’t sure how much Jeong-hyeon had grown, he was certain that he hadn’t yet found a good mentor. He hoped that this opportunity to meet Neriah and receive proper instruction might bring hope for the kingdom’s future and nodded in agreement.

***