Where Heroes Falter

The next day, they prepared to depart with the Captain, who had been ordered by the council to assist the heroes, as she was the only one with magic capable of purging the dark mana from within a person.

At first, she refused, not wanting to abandon her duties.

But after hearing the council's words and seeing Cerno's expression—clearly wishing she would come—the Captain gave in, a small smile appearing on her face as she tried to hide the heart that was beating wildly.

Cerno almost cheered in joy, but managed to restrain himself by slapping his own cheek, shocking the other heroes.

Aldean even asked if his head was really okay after the fight with that person, since he had never seen Cerno act like this.

Only the muscular one understood what was happening and smiled meaningfully at Cerno—especially when the Captain chose to walk beside him, just a little too close.

After a few hours of travel, they stopped to rest for a bit, mainly because that person suddenly appeared in their midst, wanting to talk about something.

"What did you find in the capital?" Aldean asked once everyone had settled down as instructed.

He grinned and said, "A great secret about the human race that I'm sure will shock you so much, you'll lose all will to continue your duties as heroes."

They all jolted, curiosity piqued. What could he have discovered that might cause the five of them—people who would never give up no matter the challenge—to feel hopeless?

"What is it?" Elyssa asked quietly, slightly afraid to hear the answer.

"There's no need for you to know yet. I don't want your fighting spirit to disappear. What you need to do now is go to the Dragonar race. I'm sure you know who they are and where they are, since you've been in this world far longer than I have. There, you must receive guidance from one of the elders to learn about history."

"Hah?" Aldean replied, confused. "You want us to study history instead of telling us what you found in the capital? Are you insane? Why should we go learn about history instead of preparing for the worst-case scenario based on your discovery?"

"I told you already—you'll never be ready to hear it. Another reason I'm sending you there is so you can uncover it gradually for yourselves, so you'll know what to do next without being burdened by the reality of the human race," he explained calmly, even though Aldean looked ready to punch him.

Cerno crossed his arms and asked, "I know something definitely happened in the capital—the library wall was wrecked."

All eyes turned to him, surprised.

"I don't know why you're asking us to do something this foolish, but I hope it's worth it."

"Don't worry, it will be worth it. Everything will go better than you think. All you need to do is learn the history of the human race on your own. I'm sure you'll understand why, eventually."

"So, are you going to take us there?" Alya asked, mustering the courage to speak.

He turned to her, and it instantly made her body tense—remembering what had happened the day before. "Do I look like your caretaker? Go there on your own. Besides, it's only five days from here, and from there, it's just a one-week walk to the capital."

He wasn't wrong.

But with his power, everything could be resolved much more quickly—especially after hearing that he'd discovered such a huge secret about the human race.

They were truly curious—desperate to know what he had found.

If that secret could change the world, if it could teach them something… wouldn't it be better if they knew it as soon as possible?

"I get that you want us to prepare before revealing that big secret. But given the current situation, where the Demon King could appear at any moment, wouldn't it be better if you accompanied us?" the muscular one asked.

"You're not wrong. But I also don't want you to rely on me too much. You're heroes—you can't keep being given a helping hand. You must reach out for it yourselves."

With that, he vanished again, back to the capital—leaving them alone with aching heads and uneasy hearts.

After hearing this, they only grew more determined to head to the capital to find out the truth for themselves. Especially Aldean, who was growing sick of always having to follow that man's directions as if he were their leader.

"And we have to listen to him!?" he shouted, frustrated. "Just because he defeated us, he wants us to obey him all the time!?"

Their heads hung low, fists clenched tightly—realizing they still didn't stand a chance against him, and yet feeling like they were losing their dignity as heroes.

Aldean stood up. "No! I'm not going to see the Dragonar! I'm going to the capital to find out what's really going on!" he shouted in anger.

The muscular one stood and approached him. "Aldean, I understand how you feel. But what he said also has some truth. If we hear something we're not ready for, we could go into shock. And what will the humans do if we collapse? Wait for us to recover while they suffer? No, right?"

Aldean clicked his tongue in frustration, glaring at the muscular one. "But if this keeps up, how are we any different from regular soldiers!? We're heroes! People who are supposed to lead humanity, not be ordered around like children!"

The spear wielder immediately stood upon hearing Aldean's words. "Wait—so you're angry about that? Not because you're worried about the capital's citizens?" he asked, incredulous.

"Of course I'm worried! But what he's doing is no different from treating us like kids!"

"And you think that's more important than the safety of the people in the capital?" The spear wielder looked at him in disappointment. "I thought you were going there to check if they were safe—not because you have an inferiority complex. Maybe he's right. We're still not ready and need more lessons—based on how you're acting."

Aldean lunged toward him, but was held back by the muscular one. "Let go of me!"

"I'm sorry, Aldean, but what he said is true. We're not ready. Just look at us—we're filled with anger even toward each other. Maybe the journey to the Dragonar will help fix that," he explained, catching Alya's attention as she now stared at the muscular one intently.

Aldean could only curse and storm off into the forest, walking in the opposite direction of the spear wielder to cool his head.

Elyssa quickly followed, worried something might happen to him, while Alya followed the spear wielder, who also looked shaken, leaving the remaining three sitting in silence—not knowing what to do other than wait for the two to calm down.

Cerno let out a long sigh and sat down under a tree with his eyes closed, trying to enjoy the gentle breeze to soothe the negative emotions rising inside him. "I really hope the capital's okay. Or I'll teach him a lesson myself… even though I know I'd lose."

The Captain, after standing silently for a while, finally sat not far from Cerno, also closing her eyes to enjoy the peaceful nature like an elf would. "I'm sure the capital is fine. Even if he's like that, there's no way he'd do something truly terrible."

The muscular one looked toward the direction of the capital and replied, "Let's hope you're right."