Because of the Hero Summoned from Another World, I Got Replaced and Made the Backup—And My Childhood Friend the Saintess… - Chapter 26: The Day Everything Changes Isn’t Far Off Now

Chapter 26: The Day Everything Changes Isn’t Far Off Now

“You did well.”

On the road back to the castle, His Highness turned to me and spoke.

“You’re my proud Hero.”

His voice, carried from atop his horse, was calm… but filled with emotion.

I closed my eyes for a moment, trying to hold back the warmth rising behind them.

“It’s an honor to be of service to Your Highness.”

I kept my voice steady—

Even though it wanted to shake.

A quiet sense of realization bloomed inside me.

Everything I’d been through—everything I’d done—

None of it had been for nothing.

It had all led to this moment.

“Don’t worry. I’m sure there’ll be plenty more chances for you to be of service!”

His Highness laughed, light and carefree,

His voice echoing through the forest—now free from the Demon King.

Once we made it back to the castle, things moved in a flash.

And that’s when I finally understood what Arianna meant when she said, “I hope we can relax a little.”

On the way back through the forest, she’d explained so much.

About the Crown Prince’s plans.

Why she had come rushing to my side.

So I thought I had a pretty good idea of what was coming.

That His Highness, Arianna, my teacher, the Commander—

Even Kanda…

They had all believed in me.

She also told me about the Demon King’s plan.

His true goals.

And what His Highness intended to do next.

Arianna had shared all of it—

Smiling the whole time.

It made me happy—knowing that everyone had trusted me.

Because it meant everything I’d worked so hard for hadn’t been for nothing.

It meant I’d been seen. Recognized.

Had I become the kind of Hero everyone had hoped for?

If even one person thought so…

I don’t think anything could’ve made me happier than that.

As soon as we got back to the castle, His Highness made his move.

He’d already set things in motion beforehand—so when the time came, he stormed into the celebration hall with a whole crowd of nobles and castle officials in tow.

They marched straight up to where the king was lounging, enjoying the party like nothing had happened.

And just like that, he dropped it—as the Crown Prince.

“I have something to say, Your Majesty.”

“My Hero has defeated the true Demon King. The man you summoned—Sir Kanda—is not the real Hero. And the ‘Demon King’ he defeated? That wasn’t the real one either.”

The room erupted into chaos.

The king snapped back, “Don’t be ridiculous!” trying to shut him down.

But His Highness stood firm—

Calmly laying out the truth, backed by Arianna’s written reports and his own investigation.

Bit by bit… the king started to lose ground.

And then—one by one—

The people who had actually been there, on the Demon King subjugation journey, began siding with the Crown Prince.

Kanda.

Arianna.

Everyone who’d seen the truth with their own eyes.

That was the final blow.

And with that, the tide turned.

The reason His Highness dropped all that right in the middle of the party?

I think… it was for my sake.

He could’ve handled it quietly behind the scenes.

Taken it slow, played it safe.

That way, it wouldn’t have turned into a royal scandal—and the whole situation could’ve been smoothed over with way less drama.

But doing that would’ve made it so much harder to get the truth out.

That I was the real Hero.

That our Demon King was the real threat.

The longer the fake story stuck around, the harder it’d be to change public opinion.

That’s why he acted when he did—

Right there in the spotlight, while the castle was still buzzing from the supposed Demon King’s defeat.

He made sure the nobles, the invited merchants, the master craftsmen, and all the influential people from across the country would hear the truth, loud and clear.

Of course, things didn’t just wrap up with a single bold declaration at the party.

Even after that, Arianna and I were constantly on the move, following His Highness’s instructions.

As the “Hero who defeated the Demon King”

And as “the Crown Prince’s personal knight,”

I made the rounds—greeting important people, forming ties, and laying the groundwork for new relationships.

And wherever I went, Arianna was always with me.

Because in this kingdom’s history, “Hero” and “Saintess” always came as a pair.

Being seen together wasn’t just symbolic—

It was proof.

Proof that I really was the Hero.

While Arianna and I were out there making our names known,

His Highness stayed busy too—working tirelessly behind the scenes to reform the royal court.

Calling out the king in front of that many people?

Yeah, of course it caused a massive rift between His Majesty and the Crown Prince.

Honestly, I think His Highness wanted that fallout to happen.

His Highness has a vision.

He wants to create the kind of kingdom he believes in.

And after everything that happened, he understood one thing perfectly—

If he’s going to make it real, he needs to stand at the very top.

Right now, the king still sits on the throne.

But even that fortress of power is slowly crumbling—

Piece by piece, thanks to His Highness, the Crown Prince.

Who’ll be sitting on that throne once the dust settles?

Yeah…

That change probably isn’t too far off.

“Lord Kanda, is everything alright?”

“Teach, I told you—enough with the formal talk already.”

“…Ah. Right. My bad.”

It was early afternoon—just past lunchtime.

Kanda and I were sitting across from each other in my room, finally taking a rare moment to relax.

Unlike me—constantly running around meeting people, building connections—

Kanda had been enjoying a quiet, peaceful time within the castle walls.

He wasn’t the Hero who defeated the Demon King—

But he had helped bring down a powerful monster.

And even though he was dragged into this world out of nowhere,

He still chose to fight in the middle of a national crisis.

Because of that, His Highness praised him as a “Hero”—loudly and without hesitation.

Sure, part of it was probably political.

A way to shut down anyone trying to stir up scandal about “the fake Hero.”

But… I think His Highness genuinely meant it.

Thanks to that, Kanda was never branded a fraud.

And unlike Arianna and me, he didn’t have to go around putting on public appearances either.

Which meant—

He got to enjoy a calm, quiet life inside the castle.

“All set to head back to your world?”

“Yeah. I came here with basically just the clothes on my back, so… not like I’ve got anything to pack.”

“I see.”

Kanda was officially going home.

Apparently, His Highness had promised from the very beginning that he’d find a way to send him back.

So right after the party, he summoned the court mages and started pressing them for information about the return spell.

Originally, Kanda had been told that no such spell existed.

But that turned out to be a lie—thanks to the Demon King’s mental contamination.

Now that the Demon King was dead, that influence had finally vanished.

And wouldn’t you know it—the court mages suddenly got very chatty about that so-called “nonexistent” spell.

Not because they cared about Kanda, of course.

More like they saw an opportunity to win points with the next king.

…Not that I made it easy for them.

I stood right there, hand on my sword, keeping a close eye on every move they made.

Still—shady motives or not—

Having a way home was better than not having one at all.

And when Kanda found out he could really go back—

He looked honestly happy.

Of course, the spell wasn’t something they could fire off on the spot.

There were preparations to be made.

They had to gather detailed information about Kanda’s original world—

And collect items from that world to use as catalysts.

If they were just gonna toss him through a portal and hope for the best, that’d be easy.

But if the goal was to send him exactly back to where he came from—

Yeah, that took time. And precision.

So while Kanda had been living a quiet life in the castle,

He’d also been doing his part to help get everything ready for the journey hom

“Thanks to you, Teach… I get to go home alive. Really—thank you so much.”

“That’s not true. It was your own hard work that got you this far. I just gave you a little push now and then.”

“…You were the only one in this world who ever truly looked out for me. That’s why I made up my mind to soak in every last bit of your lessons. I survived because of what you taught me.”

“What about Arianna?”

“Anna? Well… yeah, she helped. But honestly, all she ever thought about was you, Teach.”

Kanda chuckled as he said that.

I thought back on everything Arianna had done up until now, and quietly muttered,

“…I don’t know. I don’t think that’s entirely true.”

“You’re probably the only one who’d think that, Teach.”

Just the two of us, sharing a quiet laugh together.

And with that, the lazy afternoon drifted by in peace.