I'm The Strongest Demon Lord but nobody is coming to slay me so I decided to infiltrate heroes

The red-haired young man was remembering the time with a drink he wasn't very good at.

The blue-haired boy listening to it - Theodore is listening seriously, unlike his usual lack of grasp.

If I had noticed, I would have kept talking about myself in front of him.

We should not let others listen to stories like this. Because it is nothing but the stains of the flourishing Count Lermit family.

With that in mind, Keith couldn't stop talking.

"My father suddenly lost the power of the Holy Flame on the battlefield."

"... Phew. Is that for any reason?

"I don't know. Only one user of the Sacred Flame had been chosen from among those who drew blood directly from the Count Lermit family for generations. That blessing never left the user until he died... ever."

We still don't know how this happened only when I was a father.

But my mother and Keith themselves at the time were more than happy to have someone to love back from the battlefield than that.

... But in front of the welcoming family Count Lermit gave a raucous look and walked into the mansion without saying anything. I felt as though I wasn't there about my mother or Keith.

Keith, who was young, felt lonely remembering the pluck of his hand that once stroked his head.

Then it didn't take much time for the Apoptosis of Count Lermit's family to begin.

He had just lost the power of the Holy Flame, and the wounds he sustained in the battle were hard to heal, and his father drowned in booze as if fleeing that humiliation, allowing him to curse whoever he was.

The spearhead soon extended to my mother and Keith herself.

"- I can't get tired of rumbling alone, and my father became drunk enough to hit things. I guess the frustration of not having the power to fight myself was making me do that. It was also immediately directed at humans, at first beating up servants who had only worked a little carelessness, and the older servants whose father had taken care of them from an early age were also kicked and kicked, inspired by trivial things. The servant was to leave the mansion because of the injuries he sustained at that time..."

Keith scratched his head as he sighed.

That's all driven by the thought of my chest being torn apart when I think of it at the time, but the words that go on still leak out on my own.

"My father finally got his hands on me, too. I was already a god angel with God's protection at that time, so I was fine trying to get kicked no matter how many times I was beaten. It hurts, but the wound heals quickly...

But my mother stood in front of my father to protect me like that and tried desperately to forgive me. No power. Just a lady, desperate to protect me from scratches and other things - but... "

"Did your mother get beaten up, too?

"Oh...... Even when I was beaten and kicked, my mother didn't give up while swelling her face and bleeding. And he laughed at his father, as he did in the days of his existence, and uttered words of encouragement. Even though he was no longer powerless and wounded, my father is a trained soldier. How painful that was... I couldn't even imagine."

"Lost his power and hit his wrath around him with no place to do it..."

Second, I felt that Theodore's tone had changed only slightly.

Seeing him put his arms around him, it seemed like he was thinking deeply about something.

"But words of encouragement may have been counterproductive now that I think about it. My father used to say," Don't look at me like that, "whenever he waved violence at my mother or me. But when you wake up drunk, the rage will heal, and you'll soon get the same unbearable look that you once gave." You abandoned me... "

"I wonder if the loss of the power of the Holy Flame meant more humiliation than anything else"

"The biggest cause of this is probably that. By the time I realized, the number of servants had decreased, there had been little conversation between the families, and the Lermit family, who were glorious and envious of the Counts, had become crippled.

That man at the time - oh, no, I couldn't stand to see his father. The shadow on my once admired broad, successful back is gone... "

The complex thoughts I had about my father varied.

I had sympathy, and pity. But at the same time, there was anger.

The young Keith reached the limit of his patience in the actions of his father, who named himself the proud Earl of Lermit family.

"I asked directly from the front, stopping my father's hand from waving violence at the servant again." What happened to the pride of Count Lermit's house? I inherited the sacred flame. Where did the blood muscle go? Is it the Lord of the Count Lermit's duty to kick the powerless? "

"What's going on?

"I no longer had ears to ask. He had already been beaten before I finished saying it. I was beaten many times, my consciousness nearly flew to the boulder, and I still ran out of words to the end - my mother covered me up again.

I immediately tried to rip my mother off and tell her it was okay, but still, my mother groaned 'cause it's okay' with a grin against me and instead she was beaten and kicked... even after the violence which lasted until my father was exhausted, I was immediately rushing over to my father and trying hard to comfort him... "

"So?"

"I finally realized my stupidity. I finally understood that I would no longer be able to speak to my current father. So at least I stopped defying my father's opinion so that my mother wouldn't get hurt any more, and all the servants were treating me like I didn't inspire him. That's what I thought those endless dark days would be resolved over time"

If you noticed, Keith was squeezing the cup with the barley.

I almost feel nauseated just remembering the sight that follows.

At the same time, I stole Theodore's expression as to how many colleagues it would be okay to tell him ahead.

Did he immediately notice his gaze, snort in stiffness?

Keith opened his mouth, thinking it would be easier if he had told him everything already.

"One day I happened to be out of the mansion in the middle of the night, trying to hit the night breeze. At that time, I was surprised to hear a woman sobbing from the outside of the door. I couldn't even predict at all who was crying in front of the mansion at this late hour.

Besides, I heard a voice that comforted the woman. It belonged to an elderly maid chief who had served the mansion for a long time. I softly opened the door so they wouldn't notice me, and I saw a woman crying in the moonlight, and I was struck as if my heart were bouncing. "

The Lord of Sobbing was my mother.

There was always a gentle smile on my face, and my mother was sobbing even after my father had violenced me.

Keith heard her mother cry for the first time in her life.

"My mother was a strong woman. Never cried in front of me before. The mother sobbed... eventually she cried. My mother, who managed to stand with the support of the maid chief, cried as if she were a young child when she said 'I don't know what to do' and 'I can't do it anymore'..."

I had this conversation with my mother that morning.

'Mother, are you sure you're okay...?

'It's okay. Even that guy believes he'll be back like he was before in a little while. So Keith, you don't have to worry about anything. It's okay. Right? And my mother is strong. That flaming emperor saw the woman. I'm not gonna lose this.'

'... really?

'Sure. Come on, Keith. Time to learn. That was a dance lesson today. You're good at studying and arching, but you're not good at dancing. I wonder if that guy did too...... hehe. I'll watch you, too, so let's make sure you learn.'

A conversation like no other on a daily basis.

But my mother finally came to the limit that night.

"Even in an unusual situation, I assumed it would be okay if my mother was laughing. But... my mother's heart was already broken. I was just smiling and forced to support myself, already..."

Remembering that memory, Keith's eyes filled with tears.

Thou shalt not show tears at any time, O man of the Count Lermit house. I should have made that strong decision.

My memory, which I had managed to forget by not daring to remember, came back colorful again, and tears conveyed a few muscles of cheek, not even to say in the place of my young self, who was once too stunned to even cry.

"I see. That's why you're afraid to hurt a woman."

"... oh, maybe so. I hated my father, and I hated my stupidity... but I hated him the most."

"I wonder if the Holy Flame has taken shelter from Count Lermit"

Keith nodded as he covered his face with one hand to suppress tears.

I say, shaking my lips.

"If the protection of the Holy Flame hadn't gone away, Father must have survived the battlefield as the fine man I should have aspired to be. Think so...... Imagine, hating Holy Flame, but still seeking the power of Holy Flame. Again, this is the kind of protection that will give light to Count Lermit's family... because I've decided to continue to receive protection until I'm absolutely dead."

But I can't feel the power of the Holy Flame from you right now.

Keith's heart is shaped by what he says.

But it was also a prepared word.

"Oh. I'm still not protected by the Holy Flame..."

"Isn't it because your father's still alive?

"No. My father is dead"

"What's going on?

"... my mother... my drunk father..."

I couldn't go on with the words.

I try to sort things out in my head, which is completely cloudy, but it doesn't work.

I couldn't regret being exposed to so much pity again.

Why did Holy Flame abandon his father?

Why did that happen?

No matter how much you think, you don't know the answer or anything.

I had fallen for that swamp of thought that I had thought about many times before, and I no longer had anything but pitiful tears to shed.

How long has it been - he said in front of me when the emotions that were daunting settled just a little.

"I don't know."

"... Huh?

They throw unexpected words at me and look up.

The blue-haired boy was faceless. I felt like I just ran a little scared on that face I didn't know what I was thinking.

"My own mother was hurt and I finally reached the limit of my patience. That's what caused your trauma."

"... ah, oh"

"I don't sneak to see my loved ones scratched. I know that, but how can that emotion be directed at other women? Even to give examples of Rocha and Chaura, it's only been a little while since I've even met them.

I'm not familiar with you in the first place leading up to Clarice, but I'm not even close to you. Other female students are just other people in red "

"That's right..."

"The privileged girls don't remember much pain where you hit them for real. On the contrary, if you do poorly, you lose better. Especially when it comes to Rocha, it's so hard to figure out how you can win as things stand."

"What do you want to say...?

"Your mother was a normal person. But they're not. You have a special power as an angel of God, or you are someone else. Why do you think I'm in the same line as my blood-connected mother?

To get here, Keith is losing track of the boy in front of him.

I was prepared to be ridiculed. It is also impossible because it is a scandal of the Count Lermit family, once called the famous house. Today, in Count Lermit territory, the slander of the Count House, which lost its sacred flame, continues unabated.

But, or not. Theodore doesn't see verses like he despises Keith.

I seriously listen to 'I just don't know'. There was such an atmosphere from the blue-haired boy.

If I'm not sympathetic, I'm not making fun of you. I remembered such a strange impression, as if I didn't fully understand people's minds.

Is it my mistake that the drunkenness has turned? That's what I think...

"You once said you would go for the Grand Marshal. Do you still feel that way?"

"... oh. That doesn't change."

"Then I guess that's an impossible story. Without the power of the Holy Flame, I wouldn't hesitate to attack a woman with more power than I do."

"That's... I know... but I want to hear the opposite"

"What?

"You have no mercy for the opposite sex, starting with Rocha. Normally I would hesitate. Many men in military schools now hesitate to deal with women at first"

Theodore tilts his neck.

"War...... no, where do you need to care about gender even if it's a practical exercise? The other person is in a hostile relationship with himself. What kind of reluctance do we have to take? Whatever it takes to keep him alive, cage him up, and take him prisoner."

"Hey, what are you talking about...!?

"I don't know. Here's what I'm trying to say. Don't let your appearance fool you."

"Ngu... well, that's not what I meant"

"What you're saying eventually leads there, too. And on the battlefield, women, as well as children, can be soldiers. If you're an enemy, you should kill them mercilessly and quickly."

"It's unethical......!

"You want to die concerned about ethics, you do."

Theodore's tone changed as if he had become someone else.

Confused without knowing why, he continued.

"What is the role of the Grand Marshal? Let me hear it."

"... and it will be your duty to stand up to your enemies and defend your country"

"Then nothing is different from a normal military man, but okay. Let's think in your current position. Keith, there are people behind you who need to be protected... whatever, mother or lover, whatever your country's name or a people you don't know.

And right in front of me is a poor girl from another country. It stands before you with its sword in its hand as an enemy. The purpose is simple and clear. Kill all the enemies. If you don't fight, the man behind you dies. Come on, what do we do? "

The red-haired young man answered, albeit under barometric pressure, to the overly chilling inquiry of a boy who was usually somewhere floating but seemingly serene.

"To fight, it is decided"

"Let's set the prerequisites. They're as strong as you. It's impossible to catch him alive. The only way to stop the girl is to kill her. Come on, what do you say? Even a man who wants to be the Grand Marshal can't even defeat one of the women in front of him, but he has to protect them."

"No! I would never do that! If necessary...... slash!!

Blue-haired boy and eyes fit.

I felt like those emerald eyes only looked red for a moment.

The boy speaks with his cheek cane on the table.

"Can't you even slay me if I can't hunt you down that far? If we find ourselves in that situation, the corpses of your countrymen may already be rolling in the mountains nearby."

……

"That's what I mean when I can't kill my enemies. Whether it's a man or a woman, it doesn't change."

"I know... I know"

"I can't fully understand how you feel. But I know that the thought of nesting in you doesn't heal quickly. And as it is, you can't live long on the battlefield. It would be a big deal if we could live for six months."

A man tells me he looks like something completely different than the usual boy.

"All those who stand at the apex of all existence need is to abandon their personal feelings. You can't keep standing on the battlefield without taking the flesh of enemy soldiers and sometimes at the expense of your allies. If you want to go for the Grand Marshal, you need to carve it into your chest and encourage it by risking all your might for those who must truly protect it."

……

"You're still immature, but you're bound to be strong. You will follow your heart without being yourself. I'm not telling you to throw away the past, but let it get through brilliantly. Keith, I expect you."

The blue-haired boy stood up arrogantly.

I rush after it and sit in a chair with no force in my leg.

"So, Theodore... you're really Theodore, are you?

"What's the sudden matter? I'm me. You had a little too much to drink, didn't you?

The blue-haired boy laughed all the time as the two sentences were not told so much as changed.

"You should be asleep just a little bit. I'll take care of it."

When he thought the boy's eyes glowed red again, the drunkenness he thought had completely woken up circled his whole body again, instantly dominating the consciousness that had been confused by past memories and the organization of events in front of him.

Keith stuck to his desk unable to withstand his general weakness and fell asleep less than a few seconds later.

A few hours later, the owner of the liquor store wakes me up.

When I looked around without knowing why, no one remained but myself.

While remembering a mild headache, Keith decided to head back to the military school dorm in a fluttering foothold, told he had already paid.

And when I got to my room, I tried to figure out what had happened, but I fell asleep again, struck by a muddy, sticky drowsiness.