Honor. Fame. Money. The epitome of a hero was having women gasp at your appearance, money to buy whatever the world had to offer, and an unchallenged aura. That was the meaning of a hero Rykui believed in. As he and his party members fought to defeat the demon king, all he ever thought of was the reward from the king afterward. Saving the world came second to gold. Though Rykui never had enough money a week after receiving his reward, it didn't bother him since his next reward would be a bit more than the last. From gambling all of it away to buying ridiculous items, the money rarely ever stayed with him. Now, face to face with the demon king, the thought of the enormous amount of money he would receive brought a smile to his face.
"I wonder if I should get a golden statue of myself," Rykui said, unaware his thoughts were pouring out through his mouth.
"How dare you think you can challenge me, puny human!" shouted the demon king in his direction, his right hand primed on his battle axe.
"Or maybe amethyst?" Rykui continued, ignoring the demon king's intimidation attempt.
The demon king gritted his teeth. His right arm lifted up, his hand clenching onto his battle axe. Then it came crashing down toward Rykui.
Just before it could impact him, a spell shield appeared around Rykui. The impact of the axe against it caused the demon king to recoil. Then, from the entrance of the throne room, came the rest of the party members. A U formation began to form around the demon king, with Rykui in the middle.
"Are you okay, Rykui?" Senya said, holding a long staff. At its top was a mana ball with two bells on each side. She stood slightly behind him.
She seemed to be the support of the party.
Rykui paused.
His face turned toward her, then his body. His face grew serious, his eyes narrowing. Senya flinched a little as his hands attached onto her arms.
"Senya, this is serious. I need your help with something very important," he said, his eyes locking onto hers.
"What happened? Are you hurt?" she replied, her brows raised. Worry began to grow on her face.
A moment passed. Both stood still, saying nothing.
Then Rykui began to speak once again, eyes still staring into hers.
"Gold or amethyst?" he asked.
She stood there in silence for a bit, her cheeks glowing a faint red.
"What?" she replied.
Just before Rykui could clarify, a loud, deep voice interrupted him.
"Where did my high subordinates go!?"
"You won't be hearing from them again," a voice said from the right side of the U-shaped formation. It came from Ame.
The demon king began to step back, his body wavering. Regaining his posture, his hands clenched his weapon.
"Fine, I'll finish you all myself."
"What should we do, Rykui?" came from Yusuna, who stood on the left side of the U formation.
Rykui now faced forward, hand on his sword.
"Wait, I need to talk to him. He has something important," Rykui said as he began to walk toward him.
"It's too dangerous for you to be close to him," a new voice said. It came from Natsuya, who stood to the left of him.
"You can't," said Senya in a worried voice.
"I need to. If I don't, then this world as we know it may cease to exist. That's how important this is," he replied.
They stood still, unable to stop him now.
"Besides, I don't plan to die," he reassured them.
Finally, he was face to face once more with the demon king.
"Put up a sound barrier, Senya. This matter is not for you all to hear," he said, turning toward her.
Senya hesitated for a moment.
Then a bright spherical glow illuminated around them. They could not hear what was being said, and the two of them couldn't hear the outside -- a perfect seal.
"What do you want to discuss, puny human?"
"Or should I just kill you right here in front of your minions!?" he roared toward Rykui.
Rykui kept staring at him. Then he began speaking.
"Out there, they want you dead. Every single one of them."
His eyes shifted toward the ground.
"The moment I gathered them up, all they wanted was the chance to see you dead."
"So passionate about seeing a fire of life become extinguished."
"What are you trying to say, human?" replied the demon king, confused yet willing to listen.
"I'm saying that everyone, no matter what, deserves a chance to reintroduce themselves to this world as someone better," Rykui answered as he lifted his head toward the demon king.
"What could you possibly know about second chances when you slaughter my men?" replied the demon king, brows together.
"From the words they say right before I do," replied Rykui.
The demon king flinched back a bit. Their eyes locked onto each other.
"I don't hate you enough to want you dead." His eyes narrowed. "I'll let you live…"
Rykui waved him closer.
The demon king gulped, the sound quiet yet audible, and leaned in, offering his right ear.
Rykui lifted a hand to the side of his mouth, as if sharing a sacred secret.
"…if you tell me where you hide the treasure," he whispered. The demon king froze.
"What!?" he roared, gripping his axe so tightly the handle cracked.
"Calm down," Rykui said, frantically waving his hands.
Outside the sphere, the members grew confused.
As they looked into the sphere, they saw Rykui giving them a thumbs up, his eyes closed nervously while the demon king roared at him, stomping the ground.
"Is he okay in there?" said Celest, the party's mage.
"I hope so," replied Senya.
Back in the bubble--
"Insolent human, I shall kill you now!"
He began to lift his arm to release a swing at Rykui.
"And what about your family? Your daughter? Do you not care about them?" Rykui replied calmly.
His arm paused.
"How do you know about them?" the demon king questioned.
"I promise you I won't harm them. But what about others who have a motive to?" Rykui continued, choosing not to answer his question.
"You need to protect them. I'm offering you a way to do that."
The demon king's arm began to shake, unable to come up with an answer.
"We don't have time. If you choose to accept, then swing your sword to the right of me."
"And when you do, I'll crash the floor beneath you, allowing you to escape through it."
The demon king's arm remained raised above him, still trembling in indecision.
"Choose now!" shouted Rykui.
A shaky, raspy roar came out.
The axe came down toward Rykui's head. The demon king watched as Rykui stood calmly.
Right before it could hit him, the axe changed trajectory, striking the right side of the floor -- confirming his answer.
"Rykui!" the crowd outside screamed. The bubble came down.
"Good," Rykui said as he took his sword and smashed it against the ground, causing the floor to collapse. Debris covered the room, halting vision for a moment.
As the dust began to fade, Rykui stood there looking at the hole in the ground. The demon king was not there.
"What happened?" asked Ame.
"I had to kill him with my own hands," he replied.
"Should we retrieve his body?" Senya asked.
"No need. He won't be bothering us anymore."
He then inserted his sword into its sheath and began to walk toward the exit of the throne room.
Just before he reached the exit, he froze. Sweat rolled down his forehead.
Wait… I didn't get any information about the treasure.
He began to panic, realizing he did all of it for nothing.
"Are you actually fine, Rykui?" Senya said from behind him.
As Rykui turned, visible worry gleamed from each of their faces.
Rykui cleared his throat and stood up straight.
"I'm fine. It's time to leave this mess."
I'll just ask him next time.
He thought to himself as he continued toward the exit, and the rest of the members followed.