The Hero is an existence where strength is everything. When I, Eugene, first encountered the Hero, I strongly felt that.

I was weak, unable to resist and on the verge of losing everything as my family was attacked by demons.

In a moment of trembling rage and resignation, that person appeared.

“…”

The person who appeared without saying a word mocked the threat and swiftly dispatched it. A man wearing an iron mask, with a single slash, cut the seven-meter tall monster cleanly in two.

Blood rained down, dripping from the man’s mask.

“…”

The man defeated the demon and immediately attempted to leave.

“Wait…”

I couldn’t even utter those words. His strength left me dumbfounded and rooted to the spot. But that scene was etched into my mind.

His overwhelming power, like the brilliance of the sun, illuminating everything. And his charisma, so madly captivating that even the rain of blood appeared beautiful before him.

I was captivated.

Who on earth was this man? I investigated and quickly found the answer. He was said to be a legendary being known as the “Hero.”

But he was no ordinary hero. He possessed the most formidable power in history, a new legend. As the son of a mere noble, I couldn’t help but feel inadequate for even daring to reach out to him, if only for a fleeting moment.

However, I was fascinated by his power. That incredible strength.

So, I desperately reached out to him.

At that moment, completely unexpectedly, something happened. The hero, Dan, suddenly appeared before me.

“I’m looking for a successor…”

“A successor…”

I wanted power. Always considered the weakest among my clan, looked down upon by everyone around me. That’s why I wanted to become strong.

I reached out for that power…

+-+

The speech at the Knight Training School was over. It was a rather dull one, talking about our past achievements. The party consisted of the Fairy Sorceress Linlin, the Noble Swordsman Sakura, the Innocent Martial Artist Kaguya, and myself, the Hero.

Well, it’s true that we were once called legends, so we are quite a distinguished group. However, I can’t help but wonder how many times we have to give this speech.

The Knight Training School wants to inspire the students, but doing it too many times might become tiresome for everyone involved.

After it was over, the three of us had lunch together. There was no reason to decline, but it was a peaceful meal, except for Kaguya, the martial artist, who kept trying to take off my iron mask for some reason.

Kaguya has always been like that, trying to remove the iron mask… I don’t really know why.

“Hey, Hero.”

Lost in my thoughts of the past events, I was startled by a sharp voice directed at me. It was Eugene, one of the seven candidates for the new hero, someone I had taken an interest in, giving me a piercing glare.

He is the son of a certain prestigious noble family and is 15 years old this year. He used to be called a dropout, but I didn’t see him that way. It wasn’t that he lacked talent; it was just that the talents of those around him were too overwhelming.

Because of that, he was constantly compared to others. Moreover, he was bullied by other noble children, so he wasn’t well-liked by them.

In other words, he was a loner. It was the opposite of what I had imagined a hero to be, surrounded by friends. However, talent remained talent, so I decided to talk to him. From my perspective, as long as someone inherits the role of a hero, it doesn’t matter who they are, and their personality isn’t a significant concern.

And the main reason I chose Eugene is not because of that.

Well, I mean, it would be troublesome if he had a villainous personality and ended up becoming a Demon Lord or something.

But in that regard, it’s fine. Eugene has some quirks, but he’s not a bad person or anything.

And the biggest reason I considered him as a candidate is…

“Hey, Hero, train me already!”

“Yeah.”

“Someday, I’ll be the man who takes the Holy Sword from you.”

He’s a bit like me in that regard. To be precise, it’s the part of me that’s arrogant and overconfident… but I don’t mind that side of him.

It would be troublesome if he wavered. I don’t want to be bothered with requests like, “Please come out of retirement and make a comeback.” At least with him, I can rest assured that won’t happen.

“Now, it’s been a week since then. Have you gotten any stronger?”

“Of course, I always move forward.”

Looks like there are two of us with an arrogant attitude. It feels a bit tiring, but… I’ll do my best. It’s all for the sake of retiring…

+-+

Once a week, I, Eugene, can have a match with the hero. Why is it only once a week? I don’t know. No matter how many times I ask for more training, he doesn’t increase it.

“Aaargh!”

I roar and swing my wooden sword at that guy, hero Dan. However, he easily blocks it, and this time, his left hand comes flying at me.

I get blown away and fall to the ground. However, I quickly get back up and face him again.

“It’s monotonous.”

Before I can swing my sword, the hero’s palm is already on my stomach, lightly pushing. In the next moment, all the air in my body vanishes.

“Ugh…”

He must have pushed lightly. If he were serious, he could kill me with just his index finger. The hand that lightly pushed against me delivered a tremendous impact to my abdomen.

It felt as if my stomach had been stabbed with a knife, searing with heat.

Even though I could tell he held back, I still found myself coughing.

“Take a break.”

“I-I’m… not… done yet…”

It’s so distant, beyond words. It’s so powerful that words can’t describe it. My family, my peers, none of them are this strong. Literally, it’s on a different level.

Is this what a hero is…?

The strongest in history, a living legend that surpasses all others. I will surpass him and become even stronger than anyone else. I won’t back down, not to my family, not to my peers, and certainly not to anyone who dares to underestimate me. I will surpass him.

“I see. Come at me!”

“I know!!”

After that, I couldn’t even land a single blow as he held back and made me acutely aware of the overwhelming difference between us. Perhaps, that’s his intention.

He wants to make me realize just how far apart we are, to feel the disparity with my own skin, and if I break under that pressure, then that’s all I’m worth, I suppose.

However, I won’t yield. I won’t give up.

“Here, drink.”

The Hero hands me water. I hastily gulp it down, my throat feeling parched as if I were in a desert.

“Heh, heh… hey, Hero…”

“What’s wrong?”

“Increase the frequency of our training to more than once a week.”

“That’s not something I can discuss.”

“Why not? You should have plenty of free time. The world is at peace now, and there’s no Demon Lord. You should be able to spare time for me.”

“I have other things to attend to.”

“Put them off. Give me more of your time.”

“I can only spare time for you once every seven days. Make the most of it.”

I’m sure I could be stronger if I spent more time with the brave man. …… The hero doesn’t seem to be willing to bend and doesn’t say anything more.

I close my eyes and cross my arms. It’s break time now. The Hero is probably taking a break too. This might be my chance to land a hit…

“Swish!” 

I swing my sword. It felt like I hit something, but it was just an afterimage.

“…” 

The Hero says nothing. My surprise attack seems to have no effect on him. It’s probably as insignificant as an ant crawling on his shoulder.

Meanwhile, I couldn’t even distinguish between the afterimage and the real him… Not yet, from here on, I will…!

“Hero! Train with me again!!”

“Okay.”

+-+

After giving a speech at the Knight Training School, I, Linlin, and the others stopped by a certain restaurant—a luxurious place with private rooms.

Back in the old days, when we were traveling, we used to eat at much cheaper places. It’s quite a change now that we’re referred to as the legendary party and dine at upscale establishments.

“What will you have, Hero?”

“Well… I think I’ll go for the hamburger.”

“Then, for me…”

Sakura and the Hero were having a lively conversation.

“Hero, what have you been up to lately?”

“Oh, a little bit of everything.”

“What do you mean by ‘a little bit of everything’?”

“It’s just a variety of things.”

“…”

“Hey, don’t try to take off the mask.”

Kaguya was attempting to remove the Hero’s iron mask. Well, I can understand her curiosity since he hasn’t revealed his face yet. It’s natural to be intrigued and want to take it off, even though it’s quite impossible.

Indeed, Kaguya has changed a lot… In the past, she had a rough appearance, with messy black hair and a careless style. But now, she has bobbed black hair, and her beautiful blue eyes are accentuated with well-maintained eyelashes. She wears a white dress that shows off her bodyline and makes her look even more stylish.

Kaguya’s tall height gives her an elegant and slender appearance… Unlike me, she has a large bust too… Well, she looks adorable.

Sakura, too, has a significant chest even though she only wraps it with bandages… And I’m the only one with a flat chest. Most men prefer bigger sizes, but I wonder how the Hero feels about that. I want to ask, but there’s no way I could do that.

I don’t think I have the courage to ask about such preferences, and if he were to hear that bigger is better, he might not recover from the blow.

“Lin, what about you?”

“Huh? As for me…” 

He calls me Lin instead of Linlin; it might be just for convenience. Though in the past, I found that name a bit strange, somehow now being called Lin feels more comforting.

The food was brought to the table. The first one to receive their dish was the Hero.

“Hero, you can go ahead and start eating,” said Sakura.

“Go ahead and eat, Hero,” added Kaguya.

“You can start eating, Hero,” Lin chimed in.

With those words from Sakura, Kaguya, and me, the Hero sliced the hamburger with a knife, picked up a bite-sized bun with a fork, and brought it to his mouth.

Maybe, we were curious and focused on him, thinking that we might catch a glimpse of his face while he was eating. However, in the next moment, the buns were gone.

The hamburgers disappeared one after another like a mirage. We couldn’t even see his eating movements.

Before we knew it, the Hero had finished eating. It seems that we still couldn’t see his face after all.

“Muu…”

“Do not try to remove the mask.”

Furious, Kaguya forcefully tries to peel off the mask, but once again, the Hero easily blocks her attempt. There’s no way she can win; the Hero’s speed is far beyond ours.

It’s a shame that we can’t see his face, but even so, it’s okay. Because it reminded me of the past. Someday, this bond might completely disappear.

But I want to be with the Hero forever.

I hope we can spend more time together, even if it’s just a little bit.