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Translated By Arcane Translations
Translator: FusionX
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Facing all four members of the Hero’s party at once.
I had sparred with them before to assess their abilities, but this time was different.
‘A wish.’
A wish to get anything they desired. This raised the stakes considerably.
I observed them from a distance.
‘I’ve inadvertently become the Demon Lord they need to defeat to get their wish.’
To them, I was the Demon Lord.
A Demon Lord who dropped a wish upon defeat.
However, their goal wasn’t to defeat me, but to be the best performer and claim the wish. It was a competition disguised as cooperation.
“Are you ready?”
“Yes! We’re ready!”
“Ready.”
Then…
“I’ll let you have the first move. Come at me.”
Let’s see how much you’ve grown.
The Hero’s party, except for Estia, looked at me with serious expressions.
“Hehe, a butterfly…”
Estia, her eyes glazed over, was staring at a yellow butterfly in the sky.
‘I don’t need to assess Estia’s abilities.’
Fixing her mind was the priority.
I would postpone evaluating her growth and focus on Luna, Hare, and Saten’s teamwork.
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The three huddled together, sharing the same thought.
‘The wish is mine.’
I won’t give it up!
From their previous wishes, Luna and Hare knew how powerful a wish could be.
‘A whole day of training with Mister!’
‘A chance to get closer to Mister…!’
Mister rarely spent time with them unless something happened.
A wish granted them a whole day with him, a chance to talk and interact.
‘I can’t miss this!’
To these children, starved for affection, it was as precious as gold.
Luna asked Saten, the most reliable of the group,
“Saten! How can we defeat Mister!?”
“Winning isn’t important.”
“Huh?”
“What matters is who performs the best.”
Saten declared in a cold tone,
“I don’t need to cooperate with you.”
“!!”
“We’re competitors now. I’ll get the wish by myself.”
A declaration of solo play.
Like a student claiming they’ll ace a group project by themselves.
Hare exclaimed,
“T-That’s selfish, Saten…!”
“It’s called individualism.”
“M-Mister won’t approve…!”
“He’ll approve if I demonstrate overwhelming skill.”
“Ugh…!!”
She’s impossible to reason with…! It’s like talking to a wall…!
Hare gave up on persuading Saten and turned to Luna.
‘I-I can’t do anything alone…!’
I need someone to distract him…
And someone to attack while he’s distracted…
“Luna…!”
“Hmm?”
“Let’s team up…! Let’s be the best together…!”
Hare extended her hand towards Luna. Normally, her pride wouldn’t allow it, but she desperately wanted the wish.
“Luna, let’s team up…!”
“Team up! I’m in! But what’s the plan?”
“That is…”
Hare racked her brain, searching for the most effective strategy. The one with the highest chance of success.
‘This is the only way…!’
Nod~
“Luna, you charge at Mister…! Then I’ll attack him while he’s distracted…!”
“So you’re asking me to be bait?”
“…”
“Hey! Why aren’t you answering?! You were really going to use me as bait! You thief!”
“…Tsk.”
That didn’t work…
Hare quickly retreated, leaving Luna fuming.
“H-How dare you!! You think I’m stupid!! I-I’m so smart!!”
Luna was more upset about being called stupid than being used as bait. She was clearly not smart.
Lee Jun-woo sighed, watching the three of them separated.
‘…So they’re all going solo to compete.’
Since the best performer would get the wish, it wasn’t a bad strategy.
However…
“To think you could defeat me alone.”
How audacious.
“I won’t let you get away with that.”
Lee Jun-woo decided to teach them the importance of cooperation.
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The first attack came from Luna.
‘I can’t take this anymore!’
Frustrated by the others’ inaction, she charged forward, her wooden sword gripped tightly.
She swung with a shout.
“The wish is mine! Haaa!”
Swish-!
Her sword was faster than before. Lee Jun-woo dodged, focusing slightly.
“You’ve definitely improved.”
“I’m the Hero, Mister!”
Swish, swish-!
Luna continued her relentless assault, pushing Lee Jun-woo back.
There was no hesitation in her movements.
Lee Jun-woo was impressed, but also slightly disappointed.
“Your swordsmanship has improved, but… it’s a shame you’re alone, Luna.”
“Huh?”
“You can’t do this alone.”
Smack-!
Lee Jun-woo caught Luna’s wooden sword.
“Huh?”
He snatched it from her hand and threw it at Saten, who was in the middle of casting a spell.
It was like a bolt from the blue.
“As expected of Mister. This isn’t easy.”
Saten ducked, avoiding the sword.
Annoyed at having her spell interrupted, she heard Luna shout,
“Saten! Throw me the sword!”
“…”
“Hurry! Throw me the sword!”
“…”
Saten hesitated.
‘If I don’t throw the sword, Luna is out. That’s good for me.’
But without Luna, I’ll be vulnerable. The benefits and drawbacks were clear.
Saten chose the most beneficial option.
“I hate to admit it, but… I have no choice. Catch it or don’t.”
“Thanks, Saten!”
I don’t like that I need Luna’s help, but… I have no choice.
Luna, having retrieved her sword with Saten’s help, charged at Lee Jun-woo again, despite her previous defeat.
“Mister! Here I come!”
Luna swung her sword. But this time, she wasn’t alone.
Lee Jun-woo, sensing a presence behind him, turned around.
‘…A coordinated attack this time.’
Hare, seizing the opportunity, had joined the fray.
It seemed she was better at adapting to situations than creating them. And unlike before, her attack was sharp.
‘How badly does she want that wish…?’
She wasn’t just trying to defeat me…
She was trying to kill me.
Hare’s red eyes gleamed with a cold, serious light.
“Mister…! Please die…!”
“Hare, are you trying to kill me?”
“N-No…! T-That’s not it…! I-I’ll just hurt you a little…!”
Despite her clumsy words, her attack was sharp and well-executed.
She was coordinating her attacks with Luna, making it difficult to defend.
‘…Luna and Hare work well together. They know how to cooperate.’
As long as they got along, they would display this same teamwork when fighting the Demon Lord.
However…
“Move.”
“Huh?”
“S-Saten…! M-Move, Mister…! Saten is using magic…!!”
Hare shouted a warning.
This was dangerous.
‘Two close-range attackers and one long-range support. This is tough.’
An ordinary person would have been overwhelmed. But Lee Jun-woo wasn’t ordinary.
He easily countered their attacks, dispelling Saten’s blood magic and pushing Luna and Hare away. He approached Saten.
Luna and Hare tried to catch up, but it was too late.
“Your skills have improved, but it’s a shame.”
They wanted to shine individually, but they still displayed some teamwork.
Lee Jun-woo flicked Saten on the forehead.
“Ow…”
“Good cooperation and magic, Saten. But next time, don’t use magic when your allies are close to the target. You could hurt them.”
“…That hurt. But the magic itself was within my calculations, so it was fine.”
“Real battles are full of variables. Your calculations can be wrong, so don’t do it.”
“…Yes, Mister.”
As he was lecturing Saten, Luna and Hare came running back.
“Mister! Release the hostage! Release Saten! That’s cheating!”
“T-That’s right…! C-Cheating…!”
“The training ended the moment Saten was caught. Come here.”
“Huh? It’s over already?”
Luna and Hare dropped their wooden swords and ran towards him.
Their eyes sparkled with anticipation.
“So who won!? Me? Hero Luna!?”
“I-I think I did well too…! H-Hare attacked Mister well…!”
Like puppies waiting for treats, they waited for Lee Jun-woo’s answer.
Saten, after her last attack, knew she was last.
Lee Jun-woo’s answer was short and simple.
“One idiot’s unintentional actions made things easier for the others. That idiot is today’s winner.”
“Oh, it’s not me… Hare, congratulations! You’re first!”
“No, Luna. You’re first.”
“Huh?”
Luna’s mindless charge had inadvertently helped Hare and Saten.
I didn’t need to explicitly teach them about cooperation.
‘The other children can just take advantage of Luna’s reckless charges.’
Giving Luna free rein made things easier for the others.
Of course, I would have to rein her in eventually.
“You weren’t bad today, Luna.”
“R-Really? Hehe… but I’m not an idiot! I did it on purpose!”
“…”
Lee Jun-woo ignored Luna’s protest and asked,
“When are you going to use your wish?”
“Oh, right! My wish! I want to use it now!”
Now? What for?
Luna declared confidently,
“For today’s hellish training!”
“Hellish training?”
“I want Estia to be excluded!”
“…You want to exclude Estia, not yourself?”
“Yes! I want to do the hellish training with you, Mister!”
…She was definitely crazy.
Crazy about training.
Lee Jun-woo chuckled.
“…Do as you wish, Luna.”
“Yay!”
Heroes were truly a strange breed.
And so, that evening, Luna and Lee Jun-woo embarked on their hellish training session together.
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