Because of the Hero Summoned from Another World, I Got Replaced and Made the Backup—And My Childhood Friend the Saintess… - Chapter 25: "Must Be Nice… Being the Hero."

Chapter 25: “Must Be Nice… Being the Hero.”

I didn’t recognize this place.

It was a deserted village—abandoned houses stood crumbling and hollow, lining the empty streets.

There wasn’t a soul in sight. Not even the faintest sign of life.

Just stillness… and an eerie silence.

From the looks of it, the villagers had left a long time ago.

There were no traces of daily life left behind.

The sky above was clear and blue, yet the air?

Heavy. Murky. Like the atmosphere itself had been steeped in gloom over time.

I wandered through the ruins, taking slow steps through the lifeless village.

I didn’t have a reason to walk—I just felt like I had to.

No idea why I was even here to begin with… so it’s not like I had a purpose or anything.

The road beneath my feet had probably once been hardened by the daily footsteps of villagers.

But now?

No one had passed through in ages.

The ground had gone soft again—soggy and uneven from the rain.

It felt like I’d forgotten something.

Something really, really important.

Like… a turning point in my life.

Something I had given everything for.

Something that shaped who I am.

And yet, whatever that “something” was had slipped completely from my mind—

Leaving behind nothing but an aching, hollow emptiness.

Suddenly, I heard a sound in the distance.

Crying.

A child’s cry.

Faint—frail—and soaked in loneliness.

Like the kind of cry someone lets out after they’ve given up on everything.

Hopeless. Fragile.

I turned and began walking toward it.

Helping children… that’s what adults are supposed to do, right?

Just that one thought was enough to make me move.

So I put everything else aside—

And focused only on saving that child.

As I kept walking toward the sound of the child crying, I spotted a rundown house in the distance.

Calling it a house was generous—it was practically a pile of rubble.

The roof had collapsed, the walls were falling apart, and busted-up furniture was scattered everywhere.

Definitely not the kind of place anyone could live in.

And yet…

Inside that wreck, curled up and hugging their knees, was a single child.

All alone, crying in an abandoned village—

Something about that scene felt strangely familiar.

Like I’d seen it before.

Like it was burned into my memory.

I was just about to rush in to help—

When suddenly, a massive beast came crashing out from behind the ruined house.

It looked like a bear—if bears were nightmare fuel and ten times too big.

The thing tore through the shack like it was made of paper, sending broken wood flying in every direction—

And along with it, the child was flung out, tumbling across the ground and landing right in front of the monster.

“—!”

I tried to scream—but nothing came out.

It was like my throat had closed up.

Even breathing hurt.

The beast looked down at the child, opened its massive jaws—

And just like that… swallowed them whole.

Satisfied, the monster let out a deep, guttural roar.

Then, like it was trying to show off, it began smashing up the nearby ruins, tearing everything to pieces.

Its head slowly turned—

And then its eyes locked onto me.

Looks like I was next on the menu.

I placed a hand on my sword and braced myself—ready for the beast to charge.

I locked eyes with it, refusing to back down.

The moment it bent its legs, poised to lunge straight at me—

It suddenly froze… then began clawing wildly at its own neck.

What…?

Even from a distance, I could tell something was seriously wrong.

It thrashed around in pain, frothing at the mouth like it couldn’t breathe.

And then—

Its body crumbled into black dust.

Gone.

Like it had never even existed.

—What the hell was that?

I barely had time to process what happened before the black dust, which should’ve scattered completely, started drifting back together.

Slowly, it gathered… and began forming a shape.

It grew bigger and bigger, until it became a pitch-black sphere—roughly the size of a person.

Right in the center, a slit appeared—like something had sliced it open.

Then, that slit slowly spread wide…

And staring back at me was a single, massive, jet-black eyeball.

That shape—

I’d seen it before. I knew it meant something.

Something important.

Something I should’ve remembered.

Something I had to remember.

I searched my memory, struggling to pull that thought to the surface…

And then—without even realizing it, the word slipped out of my mouth.

“…The Demon King?”

The instant I said it—everything went dark.

When I came to, the first thing I saw was the Demon King, with my sword buried deep in his body.

It was driven in all the way to the hilt.

Hard to say for sure, since his body wasn’t exactly human—

But with a wound like that, there’s no way a normal creature would still be alive.

It had to be fatal.

Looks like I blacked out for a moment right after plunging my sword into him.

As for what I saw earlier…

I still wasn’t sure.

Maybe it was some kind of illusion the Demon King forced on me.

A memory he planted straight into my mind.

But even without any proof—somehow, I just knew.

I couldn’t explain it. But I felt it, deep in my core.

“…Demon King.”

That child I saw—

All alone in a ruined village, quietly waiting for death…

That had to be the Demon King’s past.

And it reminded me of myself.

Before the Crown Prince reached out to save me, I was just like him.

Alone. Hopeless. Forgotten.

But I got lucky.

His Highness saved me.

I was given a chance—and that brought me here.

That kid?

There was no one to save him.

Left behind, devoured by a monster…

And that path turned him into the Demon King.

I was chosen to be the Hero.

He was chosen to be the Demon King.

That was the only difference.

But even that small difference—

Meant everything.

“Must be nice… being the Hero.”

I didn’t have any hard evidence.

But I didn’t need it.

I knew.

Because I was the Hero.

And he was the Demon King.

That was all I needed to understand.

“I just… wanted to live a little longer—”

And with those final words,

The Demon King died.

The black mist that made up his body slowly dispersed into the air and faded away.

And with it, all the monsters he had summoned vanished too.

I thought I’d feel happy once he was defeated.

That I’d cheer with my friends, raise our voices in victory, and celebrate together.

That’s how I always pictured it.

But right now…

I didn’t feel like celebrating at all.

“…Shall we go home? Back to where we belong.”

At some point, Arianna had quietly come to stand beside me.

She gently leaned in close, sensing how I felt—and softly encouraged me to move forward.

“…Yeah. Thanks, Arianna. Let’s go home. I think… I just want to rest.”

“Fufu… Sounds good. I hope we get to relax a little.”

She smiled as she said that.

She was my childhood friend.

And in that moment, she looked more beautiful than ever.

Something warm began to fill my chest.

I slid my sword back into its sheath.

And without a word, we reached out and held hands.

Her left, my right.

My hand was rough—hardened with calluses from years of training.

But hers was soft and smooth. Delicate.

“…When you say ‘relax a little,’ what exactly do you mean by that?”

“You’ll have to ask His Highness over there about that, won’t you?”

With that, Arianna and I began walking.

Back toward the Crown Prince and the others—

Who were waiting for us to return.