Chapter 117: Chapter 117: Demon King [1]
After walking around for a while, Hans began to feel hungry.
The protagonist looked around and discovered a bread cart not far away.
Although it wasn’t a restaurant, thus perhaps the hygiene wouldn’t be guaranteed, but for Hans, as long as it could be digested, it was fine.
With an eager mood, the protagonist approached the bread cart.
With a bright smile, Hans started talking to an old man in his 60s, who was probably the owner of this thing:
"Hello, have a good afternoon."
Hearing his voice, the old man stopped what he was doing, then smiled kindly in response.
"Have a good afternoon. Do you want something to eat..."
He was about to continue, but stopped when he saw the protagonist’s face.
The next moment, his eyes widened, his mouth opened wide, and his entire body began to tremble.
It was as if he was seeing some big shot.
Realizing this sudden change in the old man, Hans immediately asked:
"Are you okay?"
"Y-You are...?"
The old man trembled, struggling to get out each word.
How strange.
The protagonist could tell that this old man did not hate or fear him, if so, then why did he act like this when he saw him?
But, no matter what the reason was, Hans still had to respond.
Being polite to the elderly was a must.
"I am Hans Varun."
Hearing that name being uttered, the old man’s emotions immediately burst out.
Tears began to flow from the corners of his eyes, rolling down his cheeks, and falling to the ground.
He just stood there, looking straight at his face, crying, and... smiling.
"What’s wrong? Do you know me?"
Wiping away those tears of happiness, the old man shook his head.
"How could you know a small character like me? But, I think I know who you are."
Smiling, the old man continued:
"You’re... the one who purged those evil nobles, right? I saw you kill one."
"...!"
Hans’ pupils constricted, and the smile on his face froze.
What the hell was this?
He wanted to blackmail Hans?
"Haha... I think you must have seen wrongly. How could someone like me kill a noble?"
The corners of the protagonist’s lips twitched a few times.
However, the old man did not pay attention to these details.
Sincerely, he bowed deeply to Hans.
"Thank you very much, young man."
"Huh?"
Honestly, the protagonist’s mood at this moment was like a roller coaster.
Changing constantly.
"...If you hadn’t done that, then perhaps my family and I... would have really had no way to live in this world."
He even intended to kneel down, but was promptly stopped by Hans.
"Thank you very much, young man..."
Drip.
A tear from the old man fell onto the back of the protagonist’s hand.
It was hot, and... sincere.
It made him feel... indescribable.
Just a word of thanks wasn’t enough.
And the old man naturally understood this principle.
He then turned towards his bread cart, and handed Hans the best bread of the day.
"Take this, Hans Varun. Please accept my gratitude."
"..."
Then, before the protagonist could react, the bread was already in his palm, and the old man had disappeared along with his bread cart.
"..."
Standing there for a long time, Hans had absolutely no idea how to describe his current feelings.
Perhaps... he felt happy?
Receiving thanks from someone... was truly a wonderful feeling.
It was a feeling that Hans had rarely experienced in his previous life.
He took a bite of the bread.
"...Indeed, it was really delicious."
***
Just like that, during the following days on the 26th floor, Hans went to many places, and did many good deeds for society.
And of course, the protagonist received many thanks.
Making his mood these days better than ever.
It felt as if Hans was in heaven.
And then, on the last day, the protagonist returned to the castle.
He wanted to see Kael.
Hans wanted to share with Kael what he had done during this period of time.
Because to the protagonist, Kael was a very special person.
Bam!
The door to Kael’s room was kicked open.
"I’m back, Kael!"
And from outside, Hans, with a smile as bright as the sun, entered.
However, there was no one inside, causing the protagonist’s smile to suddenly freeze.
"It seems like he’s not in the bedroom."
With that thought in mind, Hans headed straight to Erza’s study.
Because for some reason, Kael often entered there, and what happened inside was only known to him and the prince.
Click.
"Hey Kael, are you in here?"
"..."
But, just like before, the protagonist was met with only cold silence.
"Oh..."
Honestly speaking, Hans really felt a little disappointed.
The person he wanted to see the most was nowhere to be seen.
Just like that, the protagonist turned around.
But then, he stopped.
It felt as if something was urging him to enter Erza’s study.
He knew it was wrong, but in the end, Hans still went inside.
The protagonist looked around the place for a long time, not understanding what the feeling was just now, then headed straight to the prince’s desk.
"Hmm, what is this?"
Raising an eyebrow, Hans picked up the only book that was placed in the middle of the desk.
"...!"
And then, when he saw its title, the protagonist felt as if all of his energy had been drained.
[How to revive the Demon King.]
With a trembling hand, he flipped to the following pages.
— Violet of the Abyss.
The flower in the book looked familiar.
Hans had seen Kael holding one before.
Flip.
— Tears of the Fallen.
The protagonist had seen the prince holding a glass vial containing a red liquid inside, always treating it as his life.
Flip.
— [Aether Core].
"Isn’t this... the thing Kael held when we returned from that theater?"
Flip.
— Vessel.
"Please... don’t..."
Flip.
— 2 million lives.
Coincidentally, 2 million was exactly the remaining population of the Dicathen Kingdom.
As he read that, Hans’s arms began to tremble.
Thud!
And then, he dropped the book.
The protagonist’s mind was spinning.
Hans felt a chill down his spine.