[Omake 3] We're off to slay the Demon King! [Temporarily Locked]

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The Stone that Holds the Legendary Sword:

In the middle of a great clearing, it stood. Jutting out of a great stone embedded within the earth was the Legendary Sword of the Hero. It had been only three days since the King's message had been sent out, but hundreds of people had already attempted to remove the stone, and hundreds of people had failed.

Some had left in despair, tears trailing down their face, others refused to give up despite their failure and had to be forcibly removed by the knights who were supervising the ritual, and still more tried to turn their frustration on others and were promptly arrested. A few had even left the line partway, having been defeated by the long wait.

But even though so many had tried, the line still stretched out for miles, and there was no end in sight. It was filled with all sorts; men and women, children and the elderly, honest men and conniving thieves.  But at the front of the line was someone obviously different from all the rest.

He had shining silver hair which glowed in the light of the sun, making it look like he had a halo floating above his head. His eyes were the pure blue of an angel's, and he had a stoic expression of resolute determination. He'd waited patiently for three days and three nights, and it was finally his turn. He stood before the sword, facing the sun, and to those behind him it looked as if he was being illuminated by the lights of the heavens themselves.

He reached out, and...

The angel in shining grey hair, however, was nothing more than a peasant boy. Rather, a thief and gambler in his reputation. He often stole from the rich since the nobles rather fill their fat stomachs then help the common folk, but that was just his excuse to obtain his 'income' in a sense. While somewhat good at heart, his is notorious for his rough attitude toward everything, and doesn't believe in such things, as destiny, faith, hope and ect. A realist in a way. Damion Koyoko never wished to see danger, let alone kill said danger by risking his own life. Hence why when the announcement of the Legendary sword came to the inn he resided, he turned a blind eye.

"The Legendary Sword..." He muttered as took slow steps toward the circle of crowding peasants and knights, all staring at the center.

While the sword is priceless and can be sold to the highest bidder to bring him to nobility, he knew it would never happen. While the possibility of him being able to take the sword out was extremely low, he didn't want to take the responsibility of becoming the savior of the kingdom, down to the lowest decimal. However, curiosity clawed at his mind. What kind of sword was it? What metal? Is is magical? These questions forced him to see the sword in person, pushing against the crowd in his brown robe, with a hood over his head.

"It's not going to work anyway..." Koyoko continued to mutter to himself, as the crowd stared at him in anticipation, while the other contenders either scoffed or smirked at the boy. He had no significant strength, nor did he have any special armor or clothing, giving a sense that he is low skilled. Yet those of the religious faith, looked at him as described: An descended Angel, bringing light to these dark times.

The crystal blue eyed boy stared at the handle of the blade, his arm begging to reach out to it. He felt a slight sweat come on in it's direct presence. This was a holy blade after all, and he was a mere mortal in it's eyes. Did he have any authority or value to be in the presence of such item. According to her majesty, everyone who's willing to try and pull it is.

"I wonder how a little girl like her became ruler of the kingdom...Was it because she was cute and everyone wanted to see her in a crown?" He says a random comment to keep himself from showing signs of anxiety as his clammy hand slowly reached out and grabbed the handle. Instinctively, the angel grabbed it with his other arm as well. He took a shaky breath, as he pulled up.

SHIIIING

The sound of metal scrapping against stone, before the blade is released from the stone, to be able to touch the air again. For brief seconds, it shined fantastically around, blinding even the angel as he held it up in the air. Even in this moment, he wanted to drop the blade, but for some reason his hand held firm and when the luminescence ceased, he opened his eyes.

"...Aaah...Wha..." Koyoko should never have grabbed the blade if he never wanted to be the hero, and due to his curiosity, he accidentally claimed his title, as the audience watched awestruck at this turn of events.

It was a wonderful sleep, there was ponies and butterflies... even women. Lot's and lot of women that she couldn't help but think about all the time. All types of women, small, large, lumpy and not. She thought about them all in her endless wonderful dream until.

SHIIIING

"...Aaah...Wha..." Was the first thing she heard as she felt a cold shiver down below which was once covered and kept warm by a friendly stone. That is right the stone was friendly, it had feelings and the sword loved it for keeping it company for so long. Not any longer as like a tyrant ripping apart friendships and families she was torn from this lovely stone in the most cruel way imaginable ... and the one who did it had sweaty hands.

"I will Devo..." The sword stopped realizing she was among a massive crowd of people then started to glow with a heavenly feel which inspired goodness in all. "Idiots" the sword thought to it self. The sword was glowing to emphases the fact this young lad was chosen for whatever reason they pulled her out for and since because she was never told. "It's been so long since someone has laid their... clean hands on my hilt" the sword said who spoke only into the mind of the young hero. It then chuckled like an old women  I'm the legendary sword Martha, who shall provide you strength for what ever dire quest you shall undertake my lovable chu... Hero. May I ask thy of your name oh sweaty one? I mean sweetie?" the Legendary sword spoke in the mind of the hero.

In his awestruck expression, he didn't realize someone was speaking to him for a moment, feeling like his head turned into a cave, as a voice seemed to give an eerie chill over his body as he quickly looked around. No one had approached him yet, in fact most of the spectators were downright silent or muttering to each other, not sure how to properly react to this. Some wanted to cheer, but no one started, some wanted to scowl, but it wasn't right. Then who spoke to him?

"The fu...who...?" He kept looking all around him but no one was in ten meters of him. Though he did notice the guards seemed to be anxious about something. They were grabbing the hilts of their swords and appeared to have created an effective circle around him without grabbing suspicion from the audience, whether to keep them back or keep him in. Perhaps both. "Who said that? Where are you?!" He almost yelled out for a proper answer to the many questions in his head. 'Why me' was the biggest one.

"The fu...who...?" The Legendary sword seemed unamused with it's missing facial expressions as the hero doesn't realise she was talking and  once again observed its surroundings as knights surrounded her sweaty young chosen one. Speaking to itself the sword was clearly not amused by this interruption. "How dare they threaten my ride. Looks like I better take control..." Martha though as she heard the hero spoke once more.  "Who said that? Where are you?!"

The Legendary sword was going to answer the question in a manner which would surely get the young heroes attention. With a sudden explosion of raw magic the sword blazed into white flames in the palm of the heroes hand. The white flames didn't feel hot or harm the young hero in any manner whatsoever and the only thing it did was to ensure the hero couldn't let go. And from sheer will alone the sword took control of the heroes arm to swing itself around while taking the hero with it and causing them both to spin in a 360 degrees angle. Which resulted in a white magical slash being unleashed from the sword aimed at all the knights. No one seemed hurt and only the hero seemed slightly dizzy as everybody else looked confused.

Only when the white blaze started to disappear when something actually happened.

Clash...clatter..

The bottoms of all the knights suddenly fell down as they begun to show a full moon in the afternoon to the entire human crowd. Seeing the knights suddenly but naked a rather old female chuckling can be heard inside the heroes mind.. "HAAHAHA They're all butt naked!!!! AND JUST SO YOU KNOW YOUNG LAD! I'm the sword whos talking! I'm talking in your mind! If you want to respond just to me then just think your words! Well if I now got your attention!"

Alas, our great Hero would have no chance to ponder the mysterious voices in his head, for before he could, a great miracle occurred! Those dastardly knights who dared to do something so dishonorable as attempt to draw a sword in the presence of the Hero received what must have been divine punishment for their sins!

He felt a tug on his arm, and following the divine inspiration he'd received, he spun just once and a white glow of awesome power enveloped the dastardly knights! Their swords, their armor, and even their clothes were gone, having been utterly annihilated by the Hero's power. Truthfully, their punishment was far lighter than they deserved, but through the Hero's magnanimity, they were spared. Yes, all hail the Hero!

Oh, look! Upon hearing the commotion, another knight who had left to obey nature's call rushed back into the field from the woods. Oh, what a sight he must have seen. The Hero's majestic figure, and the sinful knights collapsed before him. But alas, the knight could not afford to bask in the Hero's presence much longer. The King had given them a mission, after all.

"Knights! You have three orders! First, guard the Legendary Sword, allow no demons or monsters to come close. Second, keep the peace as the people come to try their hand at drawing the Legendary Sword. Third, when the Hero appears, escort him here to the castle!"

The time for the Knight of the 3rd Legion, Murakami Takashi, to complete his mission has arrived.

A few hours ago, Takashi was just getting prepared for his mission. As he put on his rather light armor, tightened his scarf, and prepared his knives, more importantly, his sword, he thought about the mission's details. The three parameters seemed relatively simple: guard the Legendary Sword, keep the peace as the people try to pull out the sword, and lastly, if a Hero is actually chosen, escort the Hero to the castle. As he attached the sheath of his longsword to his belt, he sighed deeply. "Time to begin the mission, I suppose." Shortly after, he was called out and, with the rest of the soldiers at his side, made his march to the altar.

Now, he was rushing to the altar, sword drawn,  after seeing a bright light emanate from the altar. What he a saw was...unexpected, to say the very least. All of his fellow soldiers were unconscious and their pants were...gone. No not gone, more like obliterated. Nothing but a few scraps were left. He looked up from the sight of his fallen comrades to see a silver haired boy holding the sacred relic in his hands. "THIS was the Chosen Hero?" Takashi thought to himself. He vigorously shook his head and, while sheathing his sword to show that he means no harm, called out to the supposed Hero. "Chosen One! I am here to escort you to the castle! Her Majesty requests your presence at once!" He started to approach the Hero, showing no fear but was still being very cautious, even keeping his left hand on the mouth of his sword's sheath, in case he needed to draw. He had no idea what the boy would attempt to do or what the sword he was wielding was capable of.

Koyoko looked toward the sword as he did hear rumors about a powerful spirit lurking inside it's blade. He wasn't sure who or what exactly was inside, but considering there was no one in his immediate area, there was only the sword itself to contemplate over. His hand felt a bit overwhelmed, not by the weight of the blade nor the anxiety that rushed through his body, but the immense power that came from it. It was as if his body couldn't handle such intensity, yet couldn't get rid of it at the same time. He didn't no magic in the least bit, only CQC and use with a dagger.

In little time, his armed moved independently from his own control, or rather the sword did. As much as he would wish to let go of it's handle, his arm at this moment was attached to it as if a special adhesive had been applied to his hand. "Whoa whoa, holy f-!" To the best of his abilities, he tried to stop the sword, as it forced him to spin 360 degrees, while giving off high intensities of heat and flames toward the surrounding populace. The audience quickly backed away while the knight fell victim to the holy punishment. Their clothes ruined and their armor torn off by their own burned hands. The hell did she just do?!

Koyoko was no way at fault for this, he didn't even know how to use magic after all. He backed away slowly, as a new knight approached with several knives at his disposal, with a nice long sword. He seemed quite elite compared to the generic knights that were now victims of the smite of the blade. "Whoa whoa whoa! Hold on a second!" He shook his hands, the blade being shaken with it. Going to the King's castle? He also has his hand on the blade, meaning he is suspicious of him as well. "I-I didn't do any of this crap, the sword did!" The grey haired angel pointed at the blade in his hand like a child. However, two new knights of the same Legion as Murakami, came behind him. Koyoko could no longer read the situation, but it seemed clear that he had no choice in the matter. He could try and say he would rather give the sword to someone who actually cares, but that probably wasn't the best idea. "....Haaaaa." He sighed as the knights kept a small distance away since he still held the sword as they nodded to Murakami to lead the escort.

"Once again I'm being ignored. Hey my sweaty hero, why don't you introduce yourself?" The legendary sword spoke as it mumbled into the heroes mind, waiting for a response. Only to see a new batch of knights with even more shiny Armour. The sword was annoyed and it started to shake in the heroes hand. It felt like the sword was going to create control once more... but it suddenly stopped remaining motionless in the heroes hand as the Knights kept their distance.

"I'll deal with them the moment they even attempt something." The Sword said in the mind of the hero, then it mumbled to it self for a moment before in a slow voice, speaking no longer in the heroes mind the sword spoke softly to it self.

"Bottom rash... Bottom rash.. all the knights in the kingdom shall now have bottom rash..." The sword spoke quietly as suddenly one of the knights which had begun surrounding them had begun to scratch their bottom.

"Success!" the Legendary sword said once again speaking in the heroes mind. "You're going to introduce yourself yet?

Displaying his awesome benevolence once more, the Hero refrained from smiting the second wave of the disrespectful knights, and graciously obeyed their entreaties to follow them to the castle. After all, he was the Hero! Even if those foolish knights hadn't asked him to do so, he would have gone to grace the king with his presence anyway. Nonetheless, their lack of respect marked them as in need of punishment. So with its divine powers, the Legendary Sword casted retribution upon them in proxy of the generous Hero! A rash on their backside, while irritating, would not give them cause to doubt the Hero's great mercy. Yes, it was perfect.

After roughly half a day of carriage riding, they arrived at the castle. As they walked through the streets, the people stood in awe of the Hero, unable to even utter a single cheer. As a result, it seemed as if a great silence had fallen upon the city, like the angels themselves were shushed by the Hero's mere presence.

The gate to castle opened wide, and they walked upon a grand red carpet up to the foot of a throne covered in lavish decorations of red, violet, and gold. Upon it sat the king of A Certain Human Country, Vita Vesta Caesar, first of the new dynasty. She earned the right of kingship by raising a great rebellion and dethroning the last of the previous lineage, the Lich King, who had used the Dark Arts gained from a contract with Ghastly Spirits to cast aside his morality and plunge the land into an era of darkness. As they stood before Her Majesty, the trumpet bearer standing to the side of the throne trumpeted his trumpetous trumpet, and all the knights in the hall shouted in tandem.

"HERO, HAIL! BOW BEFORE YOUR MAJESTY!"

The foolish peasant who stood beside the throne had the gall to to not ask, but order the great Hero to bow?! Even if they were before a king, such impudence cannot go unpunished! O Hero, grant your judgement to that poor misguided soul. His pride has already stained his soul, death is the only purification left that may cleanse it!

It was a wonderful time to see the sights, the fact the sword was now taken from the stone the legendary sword was enjoying being away. What it felt being tucked away for so long had long gone and now it's interest was within the hero. As the Hero along with it's rather tamed escort had arrived at the hall of the king.

The sword felt a familiar power which lingered within the building's foundations. "They could use all the cleaning herbs they like, but they can never remove the linger of undead magic."the sword said in the mind of the hero as suddenly it was interrupted by a loud beckoning from the one who stood next to the king. Which the sword had a good look at the small blonde girl, which hadn't surprise it much.

"HERO, HAIL! BOW BEFORE YOUR MAJESTY!"

"... I'll show you how to bow you little shit. " The legendary sword said in the heroes mind as suddenly with its power, forced the hero to point itself at the loud man and shot an invisible force which shot like a rocket into the man's stomach. Forcing him to cough up blood as he leans forward in what resembled a bow... the man then suddenly collapsed from being knocked out by the force.

"Now... thats a proper bow... Well... Lets call it that..." The legendary sword said in the heroes mind with a slight chuckle.

My name is....Damion Koyoko... The hero finally introduced himself in his thoughts as they were escorted away. Does no one else really hear her? Do any of them know what lurks in this sharp weapon of holy proportions? He bit his lip a bit as he held his tongue to keep from speaking allowed by accident.

Koyoko continued to walk toward the behemoth that is the stone fortress, guarded by multiple knightly legions, each increasing in skill, armor and weaponry as they go closer to the throne room where the young and fair King, or Queen rather, would be waiting on her throne. ...She is pretty young to be leading a kingdom, let alone a rebellion. Koyoko thought to himself as he came toward the the very steps that raised the throne to an elevated position so she could see everything in the room as a ruler should.

Just her...I'm surprised no suitors have been selected...unless she is nitpicky. A cute girl like her is bound to grab a lot of att.... Koyoko stopped his internal thoughts forgetting that there is a woman always listening to his thoughts. He is just setting himself to be mocked at this point.

"Hero, Hail! Bow before your Majesty!"

A loyal yet weak looking diciple stood beside the throne as the blonde Queen continued to eye at her new guests. Before Koyoko could follow polite procedure when addressing the Ruler of the land, his sword moved his arm again. "What are y-" He could feel it cut off his own voice, a strong invisible force made full impact with the young man as he crumbled to the ground almost immediately, coughing blood.

Are you a moron?! The fuck are you doing?! Koyoko did not want to take responsibility for the actions of some rogue spirit who was too impulsive for their own hood. Koyoko felt a nervous atmosphere around himself as he lowered the blade himself and glared down at it instinctively. Your Majesty...I can explain... He spoke with a slightly choked voice. He was speaking to the Queen afterall and has the power to literally take every human right from his peasant hands. Koyoko felt she might mistake these incidents as acts of God. Which was far from the truth and wished to clear the air.

A great silence descended upon the throne room. The Hero, savior-of-the-land-to-be, had perpetrated an act of blatant violence in the presence of the King, and upon one of her closest retainers. Every knight in the castle stood stock still, unsure of how to react to this startling new development.

After a few moments of this, someone spoke up in a loud, clear voice, without emotion.

"Hero. Out of respect for the services which will perform for this kingdom in the future, I shall overlook this. However, I must ask to leave the castle. I will not allow anymore harm to befall my men."

An icy silence descended upon the hall at her words.

"However, despite that, I shall not allow you to simply leave empty-handed after my knights went through the trouble of bringing you here. I will have two of my men accompany you on your travels."

She scanned the crowds of knights, looking for the two she had in mind. It didn't take long for her to find them.

"Murakami Takashi. You have shown great loyalty in the past, and you were one of those who guided the Hero here. Follow him on his journey, and assist him as you deem necessary."

"Yamaguchi Hiromi. You have great skill with the sword and have shown an aptitude for teaching those skills to others, as well. You shall accompany the Hero as well. If necessary, you shall impart your skills with the sword unto the Hero, and beyond that, you shall follow the orders as I have already imparted to Sir Takashi."

"The three of you. Leave here at once!"

Throughout the entire speech, her face was stone-cold and utterly unreadable. No indication of her true thoughts on the matter could be found. As the Hero and his two new party mates left the castle, word was already spreading throughout the lands. Maids who had been listening in from the hallways spread the word to other maids, who spread the word to deliverymen, who spread the word to those living in the capital outside the castle.

Within an hour, everyone within the city knew of the events that had occurred, and it would not likely take more than two days for the news to spread throughout all the land. For now, though, the information had already reached all the most important people...

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A Church within the capital:

A young girl was sitting upon the altar of a church, praying to the God of Light, Spiritus. This scene was natural, she was the caretaker of this church. Every day like clockwork, she came here to pray as was her duty as a devout worshiper. But on this day, something was off.

The church was a holy place, yes, but it existed solely for the worship of a deity, to pay respects and for his followers to hear his teachings, inscribed upon stone many generations ago. But even so, a presence could be felt.

And the girl, Yanagi Miiru, despite appearing to be praying as she did every day, was in fact doing something completely different. Something that she only heard of happening to great saints in legend was happening to her, right now.

The God of Light, Spiritus, was speaking to her.

She could not comprehend the words of the deity in the language of man, but nonetheless, she understood on some deep level what it was he was asking of her. The Hero. The Hero, blessed with holy power to subjugate the demons, cannot succeed in his quest on his own.

He needs powerful allies to assist him.

And along with those words, she was imparted with a great power. She knew not what was it was, but it was doubtless a gift with which for her to assist the Hero in his quest.

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In a tavern within the capital:

She was not known throughout the land, her name was not sung by the bards, and she was not revered as a hero. She was not feared throughout the land, her name was not cursed by the bards, and she was not despised as a villain.

But despite that, people throughout the country, both good and evil, had met with misfortune by her hand. Without being seen, she had taken gold, silver, and all manner of valuables from all sorts of people. That was how a thief made a living, after all.

With the goods from her latest mark (who was sitting two tables over and had yet to realize what he had lost) Yanagi Mila was enjoying a fine meal when a waitress, returning from her break, rushed into the room.

"The Hero has pulled the Legendary Sword from the stone! He is beginning his journey!"

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The Demon King's Castle:

Heavy footsteps resounded through the halls as a huge creature that appeared to be some strange amalgam of man and cuttlefish raced towards the throne. If the Hero had been there, he would have found it strangely familiar, almost as if he had seen the exact same room, only with less spikes and black flames, not even an hour ago.

Alas, none of the demons had ever witnessed that throne room, so no one would make the connection. And so, ignorant of such details, the creature fell to his knees. The impact created a great noise reminiscent of a great tree finally being felled by a lumberjack after over a century's worth of growth. Before him stood the Demon King, Kira Kohaku, and her personal attendant, Kumokawa Maria.

It was time to deliver the message he had rushed to the castle upon hearing back from the spies they had around the capital.

"The Hero has pulled the Legendary Sword from the stone! He is beginning his journey!"

"The Hero has pulled the Legendary Sword from the stone! He is beginning his journey!"

Those words echoed throughout the throne room as the cuttlefish-man closed up his report. The Demon King patiently (or at least pretending to patiently) listened to the subordinate kneeling before her. The Demon King's body was completely obscured by a large cloak yet she still gave off an air of regality.

"Make preparations to inform the Four Heavenly Kings. It's best to have them aware that they will soon be approached. Meanwhile, have the other members of the guard perform maintenance on the barrier." The woman given the title of Demon King gave a single firm report.

"Understood, your Highness." The subordinate said before getting up, giving a bow, walking out of the throne room, and shutting the door, leaving only Kohaku and Maria inside.

With that, Kohaku clicked at the clasp on her cloak, letting it drop, and picking it up leave it on a small hanger behind the throne. Underneath the cloak was a barefoot teenage girl in regular pajamas. "Do you think that was good, Maria?" Kohaku sighed as she looked to her maid.

"It was very Demon King-esque, milady," replied the human maid in ringlet curls and a black and yellow maid outfit.

"That's good." Kohaku yawned as she began to make her way to the door on the side of the throne room.

"Are you really going to bed, milady?" Maria questioned Kohaku as she followed her through the hall to her sleeping quarters.

"Yeah. I just don't feel motivated enough to bark orders."

"What about your paperwork?"

"I finished that." She waved her hand in Maria's sight. "I finally approved new infrastructure budget. All of the other minor laws have either been signed of vetoed. Everything is done…but thanks to the hero there's probably going to be more paperwork in the mix. Not to mention all of the property damage and larceny claims that will start to pile up as a result of the hero using his loot rights…seriously, who's bright idea was it to give breaking and entering rights to the hero?…The whole hero's quest is going to be a huge pain in the ass."

She sighed as she opened the door to her bedroom. It was quite a large room decorated by multiple bookshelves filled with books on one wall and another set of cases filled with multiple dolls and figurines.

"You seem more worried about the paperwork than the fact that a hero is trying to come and kill you."

"Paperwork is unavoidable. With the hero…I'm sure I'll figure something out." Kohaku said as she fell back into her bed. "I could try to fake my death or something."

"What about Amber World?"

"A few more test runs to work out the kinks in my calculations and it should finally be complete." Kohaku lifted her arm up and closed her hand as if she was grabbing at the light above and let her the ends of her mouth melt into her cheeks as the smile of a villain began to form. "Very soon, the new grand apex of demonic artes shall be complete and the world finally be in my hands."

"I'm glad to see you're improving at this whole Demon King job, milady."

The muscles on Kohaku's face relaxed at the voice of her maid revealing a much softer but warmer smile. "I have the role of the villain, after all. I might as well learn how to play the part until I can finally escape it."

---

Letter to Heavenly King Iori

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Hey Iori,

So, it seems like the Hero has pulled the legendary sword and is on his way here for…obvious reasons. I am a hundred percent sure you lost the key at this point so it's unlikely that the hero would be able to find it in the mess that is your residence.

Still, I would rather be safe than sorry so do what you can to prevent the hero from entering your place. Give him a false lead or something. I really don't care about the method that much. Just make sure nobody finds your key.

Also, do please watch out for any collateral damage and breaking-and-entering that the hero may cause in his quest. I am already up to my neck in paper work. I don't want to deal with more for having to be the person who approves all of the home-owner's and business-owner's insurance claims.

Lastly…Maria has noticed that some of my bras and pajamas are missing from the laundry at times. I know it's you, Iori. Stop stealing or getting one of your subordinates to steal my clothes.

Kohaku

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Letter to Heavenly King Jack

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Jack,

If there's anything I'm grateful for, it's the fact that I have this device that teleports this letter directly to you. Seriously, I have to wonder how I would be able to contact you without this thing.

But that's beside the point. I don't know how quickly news gets to you so I'll just lay it out right here. Seems like a hero has pulled the legendary sword and is starting to make his way to here for obvious reasons. I'm not going to ask you to worry about collateral damage since you have been completely nomadic recently but do keep your guard up.

That being said, if you ever need a place to stay, I welcome you with open arms to come to my castle. We can even discuss plans for rebuilding your fortress and actually get you some food or clothes. So, seriously…come back here. I worry about you.

Kohaku

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Letter to Heavenly King Kazuko

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Kazuko,

As you have likely heard, the hero has pulled the legendary sword and is beginning to make his way towards our Kingdom for to kill us. As you can probably expect they will likely end up heading to your tavern at some point should they get proper intelligence about your location.

I do hope you can keep whatever collateral damage that may occur to a minimum as the paperwork that follows that kind of thing is tedious and annoying.

That and there is also the fact that I do quite enjoy your food there. I'll drop by some time later for a meal.

Until then, I wish you luck.

Kohaku

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Letter to Heavenly King Omamori

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Omamori,

I've notified the other Heavenly Kings at this point so you are last on the list. It seems the hero has pulled the legendary sword. Just be on the lookout for them and please make sure there is as little collateral damage as possible if they end up coming to you.

Honestly, I have the most confidence in your keeping the key given the nature of the key you're protecting. But, do be careful.

Until then, I wish you luck…but you likely don't need it.

Kohaku

"The Hero has pulled the Legendary Sword from the stone! He is beginning his journey!"

"What?!" said Mila thinking aloud, her face full of grease and crumbs from a dinner of roast beef and baked bread.
She shoved herself out from the table where she sat, plowing through stunned waiters and waitresses and diners, who now clustered themselves all around the eatery's exit.

"Where? Where is he?!" shouted Mila to the frightened wide-eyed waitress.

Upon receiving an answer, Mila burst out the tavern's double doors, not even bothering to remove the muck that clung for dear life to her cheeks.

The castle outskirts...
Mila's image of the Legendary Sword glistened with her every breath and huff. She grinned.
Where would she begin? What would she do first? The first thing, the easiest thing, Mila assumed, would be to make some friends. Allies. Hands from which she could easily steal the Legendary Sword.

And I know just who to ask... Mila snickered in between her panting.
Why bother to steal the sword from the Hero when you could remove it from his willing, unsuspecting paws? She would join the Hero on his quest and sap all of his power for her own.

The Hero didn’t have any impressive traits. He didn’t inspire confidence, nor did he radiate with bravery as one would expect of a Hero. Hiromi kept eying him up and down, trying to figure out what could have made him the Chosen One. She found none, at least from his physical characteristics.

It was then that she understood. A Hero wasn’t just about his physical traits and attitude after all.

‘I wonder what kind of person he is like?’

"HERO, HAIL! BOW BEFORE YOUR MAJESTY!"

'Couldn’t that knight be any more loud?', she thought ironically, annoyed by the unnecessarily loud voice. 'It's not like the Hero couldn't hear him clearly from that distance if he talked normally. What pretentious people... only wanting to show off in front of the Queen.'

At that moment, something unexpected happened. The Hero attacked that knight.

‘What is he doing? Does he want to get killed? Well... I can't blame him, that knight was annoying. I guess even a Hero would be bothered by that, huh? However, I didn't imagine the Sword would have so much power. It would be troublesome to deal with.’

While Hiromi was still lost in her thoughts, an emotionless strict voice said:
"Yamaguchi Hiromi. You have great skill with the sword and have shown an aptitude for teaching those skills to others, as well. You shall accompany the Hero as well. If necessary, you shall impart your skills with the sword unto the Hero, and beyond that, you shall follow the orders as I have already imparted to Sir Takashi."

It startled her a little, but she recovered quickly:
“Yes, your Highness. I shall do my best to achieve my duty.”, Hiromi replied bowing down with all due respect.

'I wonder if the Queen is aware of the real reason the other knights chose me for this quest?', she wondered honestly.

She could feel the mocking stares of her fellow swordsmen. This was their doing after all. They saw this as the best opportunity to get rid of her. It was nearly impossible that one would come back alive from this mission, and so they had put this responsibility upon her. Hiromi knew this all too well. But… she also saw this as the best opportunity to achieve her goal. This was the best chance to prove her worth and improve her family’s image. She didn’t need the trust of the other swordsmen, she was really doing this just for the Queen who was kind enough to accept her in as part of her knights.

"The three of you. Leave here at once!"
The Queen ordered firmly, and the three of them left.


****


“Greetings Hero”, Hiromi started talking to the Hero when they were walking in the hall, "I am Yamaguchi Hiromi, a swordsman working currently as a knight in the Royal Palace. I was chosen to be your tutor and teach you sword skills.”

‘And you really need them if you want to tame that Sword of yours.’, she continued her idea in her mind. She intended it to be just a note on how he must improve his sword skills, but the oblivious Hiromi had no idea that those words indeed would describe perfectly and literally what the poor Hero was going through right now.

“I hope I will be a worthy teacher for a Hero such as yourself and a precious ally to have on your quest. I will gladly guide your way and enlighten your mind in moments of confusion.”, she added putting her closed fist confidently on her heart.

She then turned her head to look at the other knight. She knew his name was Murakami Takashi, but she never really talked to him before.

“Also greetings to you, Sir Murakami. It is my honour to work with someone of such high status in the Royal Army as yourself. I promise that I will make you proud to have me as the knight assisting you in your duty.”

She didn’t know what the orders the Queen was talking about were, but she guessed this wasn’t the right time to ask about them. She would do it when Sir Murakami and herself were in private.

She then advanced quickly by a few steps, turned around and bowed while smiling slightly:
“I look forward to working with both of you.”

"Wait wait wait! Hold on! I still have a lot of questions! This sword has some...spirit inside and I can't even con-" The poor hero was unable to explain his case to the cute yet ice cold queen of the Kingdom. She just wanted him to do his job and not kill all the guards that yell just a bit too loudly. He sighed as he turned around with his new companion, Murakami, and soon exited the throne room.

After stepping out, they found themselves in the royal hall that lead them to the throne. Walking with knights patrolling the area by groups of three. It is undoubtedly the safest place in the world right now, but sadly our heroes will be stepping toward the most dangerous one.

"Greetings hero." A fairly dressed and armored girl approached the two as they were walking toward the exit. They would all stop in order to introduce themselves. She gave her name and her role in a warmly manner, Koyoko able to at least crack a small smile.

"Hmph. I see. It's nice to meet you at least. Can't say much for the queen and her puking lackey sadly...fucking sword..." Koyoko quickly realized that he was bad mouthing the queen and looking a bit crazy by scolding his own sword, so he shook his head and just bowed his head toward Hiromi. "A-anyway. I'm Damion Koyoko, I'll be in your care for this journey...uhhh...Hiromi-sensei?" He tried to see if the formal route was in her comfort zone since technically she was part of the royal family and he had no desire to make the Queen anymore furious. Plus she will be training him to weird this broken piece of crap sword that apparently had a mind of its own. He needed her more than ever.

There was never a good time but now, seeing the scope of the heroes current company the sword thought it was time in response to what a certain ill rashed Knight had said. Before it did the sword said to it self, good state of mind. Good state of mind.

"Listen. I do not blame you for what happened back there. I am not entirely sure what the sword you are carrying is capable of, but I am worried about how little you are able to control it. I ask that you learn to control its power and learn soon, otherwise our journey will be much more difficult. Do you understand me?"

The sword begun to glow with a bright warm light as it then soon faded followed by a female voice coming from the sword itself. "Greetings and Salutations everyone, this is the sword it self speaking. Right? Yes I'm pretty sure I'm the sword. Haven't really seen myself in a mirror yet, so if I look like a sword sorry for my state sweeties." The sword said as it spoke in the palm of the heroes hand. "I would like to concur with the knight here, that my powers and emotions are influenced by the heroes state of mind. And without controlling them he will accidentally unleash a portion of my powers. So in turn it's like I react to his subconscious. Hero! I can only help you if you learn to control your emotions my swea-- sweetie!"

"Greetings and Salutations everyone"

'Huh? Who's talking?', Hiromi was confused. There was no one here. Yet she could hear a distinct voice.

"This is the sword it self speaking. Right?"

'Eh? EEEEEEEEEEEH????!!!!!', she was shocked.

"W-w-w-wait what?! The sword is talking?!"

"Yes I'm pretty sure I'm the sword. Haven't really seen myself in a mirror yet, so if I look like a sword sorry for my state sweeties."

"......", the girl had a blank look, not knowing how to take this or even what to say. She did hear rumours about the sword having a soul and a mind of its own, she didn't totally disregard them, but she didn't think much of them either. However, it seems those rumours were true in the end.

"I would like to concur with the knight here", the sword started to talk again.

Noticing this, and realizing it may be about to explain something important, Hiromi calmed down herself. She took a deep breath and focused her attention on the sword. Right now she regained her full concentration. This was a serious matter afterall.

"that my powers and emotions are influenced by the heroes state of mind. And without controlling them he will accidentally unleash a portion of my powers. So in turn it's like I react to his subconscious. Hero! I can only help you if you learn to control your emotions my swea-- sweetie!"

'Hm... I somewhat understand now. So that was why the Hero attacked that soldier. It was the sword's doing, as a result for the frustration the hero might've been feeling back then.'

"Ok then", Hiromi told the Sword, "Thank you for explaining things for us. If you heard Sir Murakami's comment, I take it that you heard our previous discussion, so no need to re-introduce myself again I guess. You know that I will be the Hero's tutor in swordskills. So, I think we will be working with each other a lot. Nice to meet you, and I look forward to working with you too", Hiromi said while smiling, "It's a new experience for me, teaching someone to use a conscious sword, I admit, but I will try my best to help him as much as I can. And I will teach him to control his emotions. I agree with you that it would be the most effective way if you only take action based on what he is feeling. Feelings are dangerous. They can be a strong weapon, but if misused, they become a lethal threat. I think this applies to the current situation literally though, haha", she laughed a bit to ease the tension, then regained her seriousness, "I will use this advice you gave us to help the Hero to the very end. Thank you again for sharing this valuable information with us. I think trust is what a party needs the most to succeed its quest. I hope my training methods would be worthy of your trust, and I hope, with your help, to be able to make this Hero the best swordsman ever.", she bowed slightly.

Hiromi knew the others might find it weird she talked to the sword with so much respect as if it was an equal. It was a sword afterall. But, for Hiromi, it didn't matter if it didn't look like a human being. As long as it had a soul and a mind, and maybe even emotions, it was worthy of being considered like one.

"Um, by the way, just adressing you as 'The Sword' seems a bit rude to me, so, what should we call you?"

The larger knight made a polite introduction toward the hero's new master, who was frankly the best master he could ask for. Kind, dependable, strong, and somewhat beautiful, though she might lack in discipline by those standards, but surely she knows what she's doing, there was nothing to fear in his opinion.

"I'm glad that Her Majesty sent someone else to assist me on this journey, as everyone else is suffering from some strange rash or..." The knight turned to Koyoko with an awkward look, and the hero simply gave an annoyed look as if he already knew what he was about to say. "...Coughing blood on the floor."

"Oi..." The grey haired boy growled at the knight who seemed to be suspicious of him at first. He didn't like being blamed for things he has no control over, even if he had no idea what was going on. He gripped a tight fist as if to control his own anger.

"Listen. I do not blame you for what happened back there. I am not entirely sure what the sword you are carrying is capable of, but I am worried about how little you are able to control it. I ask that you learn to control its power and learn soon, otherwise our journey will be much more difficult. Do you understand me?"

"Greetings and Salutations everyone. This is the sword itself speaking. Right?" The familiar old feminine voice spoke loudly toward everyone, which took a minute for Koyoko to register since he only spoke to her through mental thoughts. Telepathy in other words.

"Oh boy..." He put a hand to the bridge of his nose, as surely everyone will be questioning their own sanity soon enough. He looked toward his master, Yamaguchi-sensei, who was utterly flabbergasted by the sudden display and looked toward him for confirmation.

"W-w-w-wait what?! The sword is talking?!" She stuttered out in pure awe. Koyoko just nodded with lack of energy, the sword beating him from saying anything verbally.

"Yes I'm pretty sure I'm the sword. Haven't really seen myself in a mirror yet, so if I look like a sword sorry for my state sweeties."

"At least give me some warning before you do something stupid, Martha-san..." He glared down at the sword in his hand as he raised it toward himself, letting the side of the blade reflect his face as it gleamed in the sun light. It appeared he was glaring at his own weapon since she was too unpredictable for him to take care of.

"I would like to concur with the knight here, that my powers and emotions are influenced by the heroes state of mind. And without controlling them he will accidentally unleash a portion of my powers. So in turn it's like I react to his subconscious. Hero! I can only help you if you learn to control your emotions my swea-- sweetie!"

"My emotions?" That didn't sound right with him. He wasn't so angry as to make the guy cough blood, or hell he wasn't even angry, only just slightly irritated with him. And the rashes all the knights had at one point, then the flames...This sword was either unstable, or has no control over it whatsoever. Acting on it's own free will. But either way, none of the theories he provided added up and can only take her word. "Even something as insignificant as annoyance can unleash your power...?" Koyoko shook slightly, that only the keen eye of the master and the sword's power could sense the anxiety and fear that came from his own pupils. If I got seriously angry...Or if I steep too far in a particular emotion...it can...

These heavy thoughts made him cut off his own hearing as Hiromi tried to get along with the sword itself. What he was carrying wasn't for him to control. This immense power and responsibility belonged to someone who could take the consequences of such things, yet why did God choose him? Why did the one who created all life entrust a low life like him? Koyoko, from the very start, never wanted to become the hero, but then again why did he take the sword by it's handle?

"-ank you again for sharing this valuable information with us. I think trust is what a party needs the most to succeed its quest. I hope my training methods would be worthy of your trust, and I hope, with your help, to be able to make this Hero the best swordsman ever."

"..." Koyoko still felt uncomfortable being called 'the hero' despite being chosen by the holy father above to take it's mighty blade. "...Don't call me hero, I hate formalities, just call me Koyoko, Sensei." Though it seemed that he was being a hypocrite despite saying his opinion on formalities. However this was the greatest human swordsman on earth, supposedly. He couldn't exactly get chummy with her, plus. She probably has an arranged marriage or something...wait...why do I care? He shook his head rapidly. Koyoko was weak around girls sadly, being that he never really made conversation with anyone, so being around someone as nice and beautiful, let alone powerful, as Yamaguchi-sensei, Koyoko unknowingly got a huge impression from her.

Huff puff huff puff

From the view of a hawk, one would see a massive room, or perhaps a hallway as there were only two grand entryways. A rather small speck of a large, fat man could be seen hurrying past giant mounds of N33T treasure, his heavy footsteps echoing off the walls. The massive monstrosity of a man was moving at his fastest pace, which happened to be a rather slow jog. Sheets of sweat were pouring off him as he passed other beings much like him, absorbed in front of bright screens or a sacred treasure from one of the mounds.

Huff huff puff puff

He passed through a curtain of beaded strings into what appeared to be a massive throne room, however the throne appeared to be missing. Instead, a leather sofa, which would dominate any living room, seemed rather miniature facing where the throne should be. What dominates the throne room was a massive, glowing screen that covered the back wall of the room. While the room didn't have as much treasure as the last room, it was incredibly messier. Clothing and undergarments littered the floor along with golden cups of ramen and golden pizza boxes.

As the massive man approached the couch in the center of the room, he feebly cried out, "Huff Iori.. Puff Senpai!!".

After a few moments, the head of a red-haired girl slowly rose from the couch. She blearily looked towards the man slowly jogging towards her, hair sticking up one side of her head. As the man approached, she said with the voice of an angel, "......Haaah?"

With the Heavenly Knight's heavenly response, the man stopped, dropping his hands to clasp his knees as he heaved for breath. He spluttered and gasped, before falling to his knees as if he were worshipping a Goddess.

"Oh wheeze grrreat Iori-Senpai, Sakuya Izayoi has graced us with a letter--for you!"

The girl in the couch, still bleary-eyed stared at the man. With the same angelic tone, she replied, "....just bring it over..."

The man, who was on his knees, struggled to get up. Upon succeeding that arduous task, he passed the sealed envelope to his beloved ruler, and quickly waddled out of the room. The Heavenly Knight unsealed the envelope and her eyes skimmed over the letter.

Shortly after, she let out a content sigh; hugging the envelope as she collapsed back into the couch.

She made a mental note to order her Otaku-Kohais to keep watch for the Hero.

"Um, by the way, just addressing you as 'The Sword' seems a bit rude to me, so, what should we call you?"

If the sword had cheeks they were blushing red right about now, in fact since it didn't have any it oddly felt the sword was indeed blushing. "Oh my, aren't you such a cutie little sweetie to show respect to little old me I would give you a kiss for that one. Though I don't have lips and only a blade, so I'm going to only have to dream about that one. Though as you probably heard I'm called by Martha. "  The sword responds directly to the master of the hero and listened to the response the hero had towards his master. Though the hero seemed to have forgotten she can hear his thoughts which was mentioned earlier.  She probably has an arranged marriage or something...wait...why do I care? upon hearing this from the hero, the sword shock with excitement and a strange feeling of romance overwhelmed the sword's senses. And out loud the sword spoke out. "Oh my, go on hero. Shes a good match for you, just think about it.. Student and teacher... then lovers... you couldn't write such better romance then that! Better then twilight at least.  Ohoho Sweeties I'd love to see this happening, my number one ship. The Hero and his master...Yes... If I had it the my chin would be nodding up and down in excitement. I'm rooting for you hero!" Martha the sword had said out loud and only realize after that she didn't say it only in the heros mind. "Oh.. my.. well it's not in the open.... Teehee" Martha the sword responded to her own mistake.

After Takashi had said his piece, he saw the sword the Hero was holding suddenly glow with a bright light. Surprised, Takashi's face became stern and he immediately took a step backwards while putting a hand on his sheath, as if he was preparing for the legendary relic to attack him like it had attacked his men. However, no such thing happened. Instead, the light faded and it...spoke.

"Greetings and Salutations, everyone. This is the sword itself speaking, right?" Takashi sighed and took his hand off, standing up straight as he did so. While the wielder simply put his hand on the bridge of his nose, seemingly embarrassed about something, Hiromi was completely and utterly shocked, but as she conversed with the sword, she composed herself once again, even bowing as she finished. The Hero, who introduced himself as Koyoko, joined in occasionally, but Takashi crossed his arms and stayed silent, simply wanting to take everything in. "Quite a day today, huh...met a new person, guarded a sword, watched one of my fellow knights get smacked so hard he coughed up blood and collapsed, and now I'm listening to a sword talk. Fun..." When the sword, who was strangely named Martha, finished what felt like a monologue, Takashi decided it was time to step in.

"Greetings, Martha. It's a pleasure to meet you. As you're well aware, both from listening in on our conversation and Hiromi tell you, my name is Murakami Takashi, or Sir Takashi as some like to call me. I'm glad to see that tensions are low again, but there is one concern that I have. After watching my men have to get treated for rashes and one crumple to the ground after being hit so hard he coughed up blood, both of which happened while you two were around." Takashi sighed. "I know. I already sound like I'm about to chastise you two about restraint, something I've already droned on and on about. I'm simply concerned about one of us getting hurt due to friendly fire and I need to be able to trust in this power that I don't even understand." Takashi crossed his arms and thought to himself. "I'm not sure if I got my point across or simply requested to be punched in the face. I guess we'll see."

"...Don't call me hero, I hate formalities, just call me Koyoko, Sensei."

"Ah, okay. Sorry if that bothered you", she apologized.

She found it a bit awkward to call someone she wasn't familiar with by his given name. But if calling him anything else made him uncomfortable, she would do what he wants.

"Is it alright if I call you Koyoko...-san?", she hesitated a bit, but she couldn't throw away all formalities in the end.

"Oh my, aren't you such a cutie little sweetie to show respect to little old me I would give you a kiss for that one. Though I don't have lips and only a blade, so I'm going to only have to dream about that one. Though as you probably heard I'm called by Martha. "

"Well, thank you... for your kindness, I suppose? hahaha...", Hiromi laughed awkwardly. She wasn't used at being complimented.

'But I would get past that kissing part', she finished her comment in her mind. She was a person who didn't like contact, let alone hugs and kisses. She was always awkward with such things. Even with close people such as family and friends, she wasn't especially keen on them.

All of a sudden, Martha added something that threw Hiromi off.

"Oh my, go on hero. Shes a good match for you, just think about it.. Student and teacher... then lovers... you couldn't write such better romance then that! Better then twilight at least.  Ohoho Sweeties I'd love to see this happening, my number one ship. The Hero and his master...Yes... If I had it the my chin would be nodding up and down in excitement. I'm rooting for you hero!"

"Hm?", Hiromi questioned innocently and titled her head, "What romance? What are you talking about?"

She didn't understand. The pure -and naïve, as people wanted to call her- girl didn't understand who this romance was about!

After some seconds, and after thinking about the words she heard again...

'Student and teacher...? The Hero...? A good match...?'

She finally realized what this was about.

"HUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUH??????????!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!", she shouted in utter shock, not believing what she just heard.

She blushed deeply. Her face felt too hot. She was starting to feel dizzy and her eyes were spinning. She could swear smoke was getting out of her ears.

"W-w-w-wha-he-I-y-you mean-wait-w-we-r-rom-Marth-i-is-he", she chattered uncomprehensible words. She was too confused and embarrassed she couldn't even formulate a full sentence.

'What's wrong with meeeee?! This isn't how a swordsman should behave! I'm only embarrassing myself further! Calm down, Hiromi! Calm down!', she grounded herself mentally.

"Oh.. my.. well it's not in the open.... Teehee"

She could hear Matha was still speaking, but she wasn't focusing enough to pay it any heed.
She wanted to see Koyoko's reaction, to look at his face, to see if this was really true. However, she couldn't bring herself to look in his eyes. Not in the state she was in. She was too embarrassed already.

"S-sorry... Please give me a moment...", she said and turned around, both to hide her embarrassement and to be able to calm down and think rationally about what she just heard.

'If Martha-san can read Koyoko-san's mind, then that means he really thinks t-that way of me?'

This was the first time she received a love confession. Well, she wasn't sure this could count as one yet. But just the thought made her somewhat happy. She always believed that, aside from her family, everyone hated her because of her background. So this was something she never imagined she would ever hear in her life. Even if it was a wrong assumption of Matha, even if this was only a momentary illusion, it made her feel better.

'But... if he learns about my background, he would hate me too...', Hiromi realized a saddening possibility that broke her illusion.

'I don't know what I should tell him. Giving a hasty answer can only lead to bad results for both of us', Hiromi came to her conclusion, 'I think... It's better we know each other more before deciding whether we should go on this path or not... There is a high chance he will hate me too after learning who I really am, but maybe... maybe if he comes to know me as a person and look past my background... maybe he won't hate me...'