The Demon King said to call him Papa

Chapter Thirty-one: Hero

"You can do better than that."

Cruel words cut into my head as I panted into the ground, every bone in my body exhausted.

"Get up."

My arms shake as I force myself up and grab my sword before getting into position.

"The hero needs to be enduring and steadfast." Duke Laita doesn't look up from his book as I continue the fight against three armored knights. "He must never give up and kill every last one of the accursed demons who stole our ancestral home from us."

"Yes." I groaned a little as I tried to make sure the wooden sword did not break, causing the knight's iron sword to slide against it before spinning around to smack him on the head with the blade's flat.

"You should have been able to beat him sooner." The duke remarks as the knight falls to one knee. "Why have you barely improved in the three years you have resided here?"

Ever since I was taken away from the mines, I have been training hard in swordsmanship, magic, politics and more. I still remember feeling the awe as I watched this place come into view from the carriage window, but it was all an illusion. 

This place was worse than the mines. 

The others that had come with me were dragged off as the Duke stood before me. After looking me up and down, I was dragged and thrown into a cold pond to wash off 'filth unbecoming of a hero' before being shoved into a tub with warm water and scrubbed until my skin was pink.

"You want to make a deal with me, boy?" The Duke's voice was cold as I trembled in clothes I knew I was never supposed to wear before him. "What do you have that I want?"

"I-I am the hero, right?" I forced my voice to be steady. "If you save the other kids back at the mine-I'll do whatever you want."

"Hmm." He sets down his pen after writing for a few moments. "Interesting proposition. A hero under my employment."  

I straighten up under his stare.

"I'll give you a chance, boy." He thumps his cane, causing the stone to glow as a scroll pops up out of nowhere. "I will help your slave friends and the ones who came with you for as long as you follow my orders without question." 

"I-I will." I watch as words appear on the brown paper, and a jet-black pen appears and floats in front of me. 

"Sign it."

"I don't know how to write." I grab the pen and then flinch at its sudden pain, the pen turning out to be a knife.

"You do not need to."

The paper quickly moves beneath my hand, collecting my blood as a strange reddish black mark appears over the letters before closing itself and returning to the stone it came from.

"We have a deal."

~~~~~~

"Can you afford to be distracted?" 

Duke Laita's voice brings me back to the present, where a sword aimed at my neck.

"Do you not want to avenge your friends?"

"I will!" I kicked the knight after ducking and aimed for his arm, hitting it hard and causing him to drop the sword before rushing towards the last one. I barrel into him, using my momentum to knock the knight off balance before trapping his fist under my foot and pointing the sword's tip at his throat. 

After making a deal with the Duke, I started training hard until a messenger from the mine came a few months later and informed us that it had been attacked.

"What about the kid slaves?!?!" I could barely keep myself still. 

"Only a few survived, great hero." The messenger bows. "There were too many demons." 

"Bring them here." Duke Laita waves off the messenger. "Then return to your post."

~~~~

"Two! Eight! Nine!" I later saw them working at the stables, the first time since they had arrived. "How are you feeling?"

"We are fine, great hero." They bow.

"You don't have to do that when it's just us." I sighed.  "Have you seen the others?"

They shook their heads. 

"Is Seven here?" I looked around, eager to see how they really looked. I wasn't sure why, but I felt drawn to them ever since I met them.

I was met with silence again as they looked at each other. 

"They... didn't get here." 

~~~~

"Five!!" Nine pants as he runs up behind me. "W-wait!"

"What is it?" I pause, swallowing the lump in my throat that was choking me.

Nine hunches over a moment before looking around and coming in close. 

"We weren't sure if tell you." He whispers. "If they knew -we be punished."

"What?"

"Seven thrown off the wagon, trying to help." His eyes trembled at the memory. "They cut their legs."

"Who?"

"The guards." He clasped his hands together. "We couldn't do nothing. Monsters stopped following after that."

I clenched my teeth, not trusting myself to speak.

"But Two saw."

"Saw what?"

"Monsters take Seven."

"They might be alive?"

"Don know" He shakes his head. "Seven gave us food. Were smaller than you gone."

"But there's still a chance." I patted Nine on the shoulder. "Thanks."

"Wish could of helped." he sighs before heading back to the stables.

I watched him leave, not realizing blood dripped from my clenched hand. 

"I'll find you, Seven."

Hey everyone! I ended up bringing back five a bit earlier since I had the inspiration from our Q&A session! I'm not sure when the next chapter will be posted but there should be another one for the month is out at least!

Thank you for Reading and Love all of you!!🥰😘🎃