The Hero Becomes the Duke’s Eldest Son

Translator: Marctempest
Editor: Rynfinity

Chapter 25

Demon Lord.

Aden’s most hated, no, most detested existence.

Although, now, he was overshadowed by his old comrades.

Aden asked him.

“Can’t you reveal yourself?”

“How could I without a body? Even now, I’m speaking through the magic sword. I can’t talk for long either.”

He said that by absorbing the spirit contained in the sword, it was temporarily possible to converse using the sword as a medium.

“The devouring power contained in the sword remains intact, so don’t worry.”

“Then how did you speak before?”

“It was because your mental barriers temporarily weakened while your body was being restructured. It’s impossible now.”

Since the day Aden first heard Demon Lord’s voice, he had wondered how he would feel if he ever confronted him.

Would murderous intent and hatred boil over?

Or would he be overwhelmed by his strength and unable to do anything?

He had imagined various scenarios.

But facing him like this, he surprisingly felt calm.

Rather, he even felt a sense of relief when he heard his name, Aden ‘Albireo’, spoken by Demon Lord.

He was the only existence other than himself who remembered his past life.

Even if that existence was his mortal enemy.

“Well, it would be different if you became my body.”

Of course, that didn’t mean he was pleased with this damn bastard.

Aden frowned and glared at the sword at Demon Lord’s insidious voice.

“What should I call you now?”

The real Demon Lord?

Or his consciousness?

Or perhaps something entirely different?

“It depends on the perspective. I am a curse left by Demon Lord, a fragment of his soul. I am not him but an existence very close to him.”

In other words, he was a curse with Demon Lord’s ego.

Aden could instinctively feel it.

The control over his body belonged to him.

Unless he deliberately gave him an opening, Demon Lord could not take over his body.

Thanks to that, he could talk so leisurely like this.

“Is this situation your doing?”

“What do you mean?”

“Everything.”

Going back 15 years in the past.

Possessing the body of a spoiled noble.

And even the curse of Demon Lord existing within him.

“Well, if you look at the results, yes.”

Aden frowned at the ambiguous expression.

“Results? What do you mean?”

“I did it, but it wasn’t intentional.”

Demon Lord continued.

“As you know, I originally had one ability. The ability to implant a fragment of my soul into the one who killed me, making a new Demon Lord.”

Demon Lord used that ability as insurance.

Even if he died, his will of destruction would be passed on.

Originally, he would have taken over Aden’s body and resurrected as the new Demon Lord.

“And then I would have done something fun with your dragon mana. Hmph.”

“…Crazy bastard.”

Aden imagined him wielding dragon mana and leading the army of Talos.

It was the worst in many ways, even in thought.

“But somehow, your comrades, who you called friends, noticed my power.”

They moved as soon as Demon Lord possessed Aden.

Using a pre-prepared magic, they sealed Aden in the void, a world between worlds.

It was an unexpected variable for him.

Aden clenched his fists upon hearing that.

He tried to maintain his composure.

Demon Lord continued.

“By being trapped in the void, the link between me and the Demon God was severed.”

Aden frowned at the unfamiliar term.

“Demon god? And link? What do you mean?”

“Demon god. A collection of malice also called original sin. An existence that even the transcendent beings, the ‘gods’, revered by your race, are wary of.”

The underworld was the demon god’s domain.

Demon Lord was an avatar of the demon god.

An existence that spread madness, chaos, and destruction with the will of the demon god.

The madness and malice Demon Lord possessed were the will of the demon god due to the link with the demon god.

“But that link was severed, and I regained my independent consciousness. Thanks to that, I am free from madness now.”

“I see.”

No wonder Demon Lord felt quite different from his original self.

The Demon Lord Aden knew wasn’t like this.

“A human who killed a dragon, your soul is truly desirable.”

“The reason for attacking the surface? Haha! What reason is needed to kill insects?”

“Can’t you hear it? The beautiful sound of those wretches dying?”

Madness and chaos.

Demon Lord spewed madness just by conversing briefly, making one mentally exhausted.

But now, the voice he heard was calm and rational in comparison.

“Having regained independent consciousness, I decided to take over your body.”

“Hey.”

Aden protested, but he ignored it.

“I decided to take over your body and use the dragon mana to turn back time.”

“Is that really possible?”

Aden was startled.

He couldn’t help but be surprised even though he asked.

Could Demon Lord really manipulate time, a domain supposedly belonging to the gods?

However, Demon Lord denied this.

Even he couldn’t manipulate time.

What he used was a kind of trick.

“Dragons are beings created by gods to regulate the world. Their mana can interfere with the laws of the world.”

Although called a demon god, a god is still a god. As an avatar of the god, Demon Lord’s soul had partial authority to wield that power.

Demon Lord decided to turn back time with his authority and Aden’s dragon mana.

That was his thought.

But Demon Lord’s voice suddenly became gloomy.

“But you self-destructed.”

“…….”

“I never expected you to commit suicide by overloading your mana in the void. It was an unexpected move.”

“Shut up.”

Anyway, according to Demon Lord, he was able to turn back time even though he couldn’t fully possess the body due to that incident.

“But it seems there was a problem in the process. Only the soul transferred without the body.”

A soul that returned to the past wandered.

Then, it was drawn to the body of a person who had just lost his soul and shared the same name.

Demon Lord guessed that it settled in the body of the spoiled noble Aden Remes.

“Then what about the me of this era?”

“That, I don’t know. The time reversal itself was a gamble. There are many things even I don’t know.”

“Damn it…….”

Aden felt both hollow and furious.

Since coming back to life in the body of a spoiled noble, how much had he agonized and worried?

But it all felt meaningless, making him annoyed.

As Aden sorted out Demon Lord’s words, something caught his attention.

He stared into the void and spoke.

“Why did you want to go back to the past?”

“…….”

If he had the power to turn back time, he could have simply escaped the void.

So why did Demon Lord choose to go back to the past?

Aden’s face gradually became stern.

“What do you truly want, Demon Lord?”

“That is…….”

Aden waited for Demon Lord’s answer.

But even as time passed, he remained silent.

“Why are you hesitating?”

Aden shook the sword.

It was too quiet.

A foreboding feeling arose.

Suddenly, Demon Lord’s words came to mind.

“I am speaking through the magic sword even now. I can’t talk for long either.”

Could it be that the conversation time ended at this moment?

Really, at this moment?

Aden’s face twisted, and he unknowingly shouted.

“Hey, hey! Speak now, you damn bastard!”

* * *

In the end, Aden couldn’t hear the crucial part from Demon Lord and had to spend a sleepless night.

Two days passed since the orc and troll incident.

Aden and his party, along with the belated Remes knights, prepared to return in the morning.

The soldiers came out early to see them off.

“All salute, attention!”

Swish, swish!

Under Viscount Timon’s command, all the soldiers lined up in unison on both sides.

It was a ceremonial parade prepared solely for Aden at the Attila Fortress.

The carriage carrying Aden passed through.

The Remes knights followed behind.

They were dragging the corpse of the high troll shaman on a wagon connected to a horse.

The Remes knights, including Sir Spele, were inwardly impressed by the parade.

“So quiet.”

It was solemn, as if not allowing a hint of disorder.

Reverence shown through silence.

Their expressions and atmosphere indicated that this was not something done reluctantly by order from above.

On the surface, it was a salute to everyone.

But Sir Spele could tell that the true object of their salute was young master Aden, who was likely sleeping soundly inside the carriage.

He could guess the reason.

Sir Spele glanced at the numerous troll corpses loaded on the wagon and smiled wryly.

“You’ve done something ridiculous again.”

* * *

“This is driving me crazy…….”

Aden groaned.

As soon as they arrived in the small city of Marillen, where the duke’s family resided, the reaction of the people was intense.

Cheers erupted from everywhere.

“Wow!”

“Hooray for Prince Aden Remes!”

“Look here! Prince!”

The citizens of Marillen came out to welcome Aden and the knights.

Clap clap clap clap clap clap!

They applauded, waved their hands, and even set off fireworks with a bang!

“The hero who saved the territory!”

“Troll Slayer Aden Remes! Thank you!”

They say that news travels fast.

Although little time had passed, stories of Aden had spread throughout the territory.

Injured soldiers who were granted leave after being wounded at the Attila Fortress returned to their hometowns.

Some boasted that they fought eighteen to one against orcs.

Others even claimed they cut off a troll’s head and spun a tale of heroism.

However, everyone, without exception, excitedly talked about one thing.

Aden’s exploits.

“So, when the Prince swung his sword once, the troll leader was instantly taken down!”

“If it weren’t for the Prince’s strategy, we wouldn’t be alive!”

“Ah, you wouldn’t believe it. A phoenix, a phoenix emerged!”

“The phoenix circled around the Prince, spreading light!”

“He shouted, ‘Protect! And endure!'”

“The sight of him cutting off the troll’s head alone was truly amazing!”

First, a troll controlling goblins, then a horde of trolls bringing orcs.

People shuddered just thinking about it.

At the same time, the residents of the territory felt gratitude towards Aden.

If not for him, they would have suffered a horrible fate at the hands of the gray undead legion.

Aden had become a hero.

The noble who defeated a high troll.

The hero chosen by the legendary phoenix.

Troll Slayer, Aden Remes.

His name spread far and wide.

Of course, he felt that this reaction was somewhat excessive, but he could understand the cause.

“Must be because of the title.”

The hero title from the Attila Fortress had the feature of increasing favor among the residents of Remes territory who heard his story.

The favor given by the title itself was minor.

However, sincere gratitude and joy, combined with the collective excitement, created this scene.

Thus, Aden returned to the duke’s family, receiving a grand welcome from the residents.