The council members still couldn't believe what had just happened.
They were still wondering whether this was a dream or reality.
However, seeing the massive bottomless hole with glowing red edges and smoke rising from it—no, this couldn't be just a dream. A giant hole had truly formed in their city, and the cause of it now lay still, receiving healing magic from the elves, along with a spell to expel the dark mana.
And the one responsible for all of this now stood still, watching them with folded arms, looking so relaxed as if what had just happened wasn't a life-or-death experience. Maybe, for him, it really wasn't.
For him, this was just another ordinary event.
After all, not only had he survived, but he had emerged from the heroes' strongest attack without a single scratch—and still left them unconscious.
Which raised another question.
Was he stronger than the Demon King?
Or perhaps...
Was he the Demon King?
All this time, they had only heard about him through stories and records left by their predecessors. The last Demon King was defeated five hundred years ago, back when they were still young. They had no idea what the Demon King looked like or what his power was like, as every Demon King was different.
There was only one sure way to identify the Demon King.
Dark mana.
Mana that only the demon race possessed, and when inside the Demon King, it would multiply many times over, making it impossible to hide due to its sheer volume. It was a miracle that they had managed to survive all this time, defeating Demon Kings that emerged thanks to the heroes of the past.
But what really happened back then? No one knew.
Even in every record, no one wrote what actually transpired on the battlefield during the fight against the Demon King.
All it ever said was that they won. And that was it.
"So, you mean to say, you have no actual proof that the Demon King was truly defeated?" he asked in disbelief, looking at the captain, who was overseeing her men as they treated the heroes, ensuring no dark mana was attempting to take control of them again.
"No. We only read what was written by our predecessors and accepted it. We've also searched every corner of the continent, but there has been no sign of his presence. In other words, the Demon King truly is gone—just as the records state."
How could they assume he was gone when there was no actual evidence?
Did these people simply not care, or had something caused them to be this way?
"Actually, it's not that we don't have proof. We do," the captain continued, as if she had read his thoughts. "The proof is in a special hall in the human kingdom's capital, inside a room that has existed since ancient times. It was created by combining every forbidden magic from all the races, forming an instrument that can detect the arrival or death of Demon Kings."
"And you trust this instrument?" he asked again.
The captain nodded, issuing orders for hier men to stabilize the magic circle beneath the heroes, who were working to expel the dark mana, before turning back to him. "This instrument has been in use since ancient times. Why would it have been created if we weren't meant to trust it? Besides, no one can tamper with it. The magic used to create it has been lost—no one knows how it was made, so trying to damage or manipulate it is impossible."
It wasn't that he didn't want to believe it, but all of this felt like a setup for something far worse than the Demon King. Or perhaps, it was for the Demon King himself.
"Wait, you said that the Demon King's dark mana was detected. Why didn't the heroes receive any word from the capital? Isn't this instrument supposed to immediately detect the Demon King's presence?" he asked, confused.
"That's what puzzles us. There has been no news from there, yet the heroes were sent to the same village where several elves had gone missing. It's too much of a coincidence, don't you think?"
It seemed the captain had also realized that something was off.
Now, they just needed to investigate further, as they were severely lacking information.
Wait, why did he suddenly care?
Wasn't he free to do whatever he wanted?
He could kill everyone here and then slay the Demon King with his own hands.
Problem solved.
But his instincts told him that something much bigger was happening—and that might be the reason he had become this way. Something unbound by any world, forever existing outside the system.
If not to protect the world from something within, could it be to protect the world from something outside?
Something beyond this world...
But what could possibly exist outside this world that would force him to become like this?
"In other words, you suspect that someone or something has tampered with the instrument," he continued, causing the captain to tense up before reluctantly nodding.
"Besides, why would you leave something so important in human hands? Especially in the capital of their kingdom, where security is obviously tight. Were your predecessors really just a bunch of brainless fools?"
"You say that as if you're not human yourself," the captain retorted.
"Is there any human like me?" he replied, making the captain sigh heavily.
"We had no other choice. According to ancient records, the purest mana source lies there, and that is what powers the instrument. Without it, the instrument wouldn't function at all."
He crossed his arms. "And you simply accepted that? You do realize humans are cunning creatures who always have hidden agendas. How could you entrust them with something so crucial? Pretty foolish, if you ask me."
Another deep sigh escaped the captain's lips. "What else could we do? The humans had already built a city right above it. The other races, including us, tried to negotiate, but the humans refused. Instead, they formed a group with one chosen representative from each race who holds the key to the entrance. Without them—without every single one of them present—no one can enter. That was the humans' proposal, and in the end, we accepted it."
It was far more complicated than it seemed.
Humans… Always making things more complicated, a sign that they were definitely hiding something.
"I hate to say this, but you may have no choice but to attack the human capital and destroy the instrument," he stated, shocking the captain.
"Why? The instrument isn't the problem!" the captain protested.
"Think about it. The Demon King's presence and death can only be detected by that instrument. Now, you've detected his dark mana, but there's been no word from the capital. If you didn't rely on that instrument and acted faster without using it, do you think this situation would have happened? Besides, why was the instrument needed in the first place? What made the ancient heroes create it?"
The captain fell silent for a moment.
Her brow furrowed as she pondered the question.
"Because they believed that, by doing so, they could seal the Demon Kings away for good."