The Hero said he was already dead.
Mohe didn't take it to heart.
What this man said was not entirely unbelievable, given that in Mohe's memory, this man disdained lying. But then again, people change, just like when the Hero was eighteen, challenging him seemed to place the whole world in his hands.
At that time, just looking into his eyes, Mohe felt a sense of, "Losing to such a person wouldn't be disgraceful."
And now, Doro's eyes were so clouded; calling him worldly-wise was a compliment. Objectively speaking, he was wholly an intoxicated dream-chaser.
If someone had told him back then that this man was his opponent, Mohe wouldn't have felt anything but shame—that he lost to such a jerk. It would have been better to find a place to kill himself for a quicker end.
She was not unaware of what had happened to the Hero Doro.
The information she could gather under her current status was that after defeating the Demon King, the Hero became arrogant, attempting to forcibly possess the Priest from the original Hero team—the so-called "White Church" Saintess. When things fell apart, the Church cast a "Curse" on him. Well… they called it "Divine Punishment."
Following that, the princess of Central Kingdom trusted the Hero, only for him to betray that trust. Ultimately, the kingdom's "new Hero" challenged "A·Gedora," severing the tendons of the man's right hand, and he fled miserably, disappearing without a trace.
This information must be untrue, yet it was all the young Mohe could uncover. She knew matters were not so simple. From the perspective of the Demon King, this "Hero" was likely set up deliberately.
Nothing surprising here—if there's one flaw in Hero A·Gedora, it's trusting the people around him too much. Correspondingly, this might be his advantage as well, if not for his unconditional trust. His former subordinates wouldn't have defected to the Hero's side, like the Vampire guarding his left hand...
Now, remembering the scene where the vampire met the Hero and immediately defected, only to block a blade for him when Mohe acted herself, she felt her brain surge with anger.
She quickly took a deep breath to calm down, lest she dies of a cerebral hemorrhage, which would be too ridiculous—having to grow up again is a real hassle.
Looking at the man who seemed to be asleep in front of her, Mohe sighed. She struggled to carry him. His stubble was barely trimmed, scratching Mohe's face, which made her feel disgusted.
She couldn't just let him stay in the shop forever, or else the boss would dock her pay...
Mohe carried the man back to her home.
Back in the day, when she was being torn apart, she realized the Hero intended to annihilate her completely. Thus her soul fled, rebirth was not an easy feat. Even as a baby, the soul had to adapt to a brand-new body, and it took a long time to adjust.
Only until recently did she finally manage to completely control this body.
Truth be told, this body was entirely lacking in talent and ability. She thought perhaps it was the Church's curse; the circumstances of her reborn subject were so dreadful. Her parents had died by the time she was seven—if she weren't the former Demon King able to emit some power, she would have probably been sold into slavery already.
Now having recovered some usable power, she decides to reclaim her left hand.
But a month ago, the Hero arrived here.
Today, she finally had a deep conversation with him—
What to do?
Anyway, killing the Hero was not an option. Mohe considered the option of secretly disseminating information. After all, she knew many people were very "concerned" about the Hero's situation. If he is alive, some people surely wouldn't sleep well.
Yet this was indeed a bad option. After all, she couldn't kill the Hero, whereas the Hero could kill her, and whether her soul could escape this time was uncertain.
The ideal situation would be if the Hero was willing to help her out.
But he refused her proposal.
Maybe think of a way to drive him away? At least so he doesn't hinder her...
Mohe looked at the sleeping Hero, unsure whether he was genuinely asleep. She sighed.
She heated some water and slightly wiped him down. Otherwise, his alcohol scent was too overpowering, making her house reek of it.
Speaking of, where was his equipment?
Where was the Hero's Sword?
While stripping his clothes, Mohe found they were all cheap goods. Long ago, what cut her was the so-called "Divine Sword," the "Sword of the Sun and Light." The armor he wore then was the "Armor of Guardian and Eternity."
Did he not flee? Surely he didn't flee without his equipment, right?
…
Seeing the alcohol that permeated him, Mohe suddenly thought—could he have sold those items for drinking money?
Ah!
After reluctantly tidying him up, Mohe saw his clothes discarded on the ground, and simply washed them too. The Demon King did have some OCD. Her past Demon King City was always very neat and orderly. Now without servants to do these things for her, she had to do it herself.
Having washed and hung the clothes, she finally felt a bit better.
"I'm taking you in for one night. I don't know whether you're asleep or not, but if you consider this as some favor, then go find another place. How about that?"
After speaking, she didn't care whether Doro knew what she said or not, and she collapsed into bed and began sleeping.
As for Doro?
Sleep on the ground.
The next day, Doro slowly opened his eyes. He instinctively used his hand to block the sunlight shining in from the window, feeling that today's hangover was not as bad as before...
The sunlight was so glaring!
He propped up his body, and then...
Where are my clothes?
The Hero discovered he was not wearing a single thread... Was I robbed?
He hurriedly looked around and then saw the girl lying on the bed.
His head started to hurt.
Demon King... her?
Then he saw his clothes already washed and hung up to dry.
The man opened his mouth wide.
Surely, it can't be that the Demon King took off my clothes and washed them?
Why would I dream something like this? Am I still not sober? My alcohol tolerance has been getting worse recently.
He then lay back down on the ground and closed his eyes...
Three minutes later, Doro suddenly got up.
It's not a dream.
Wait, did I do something to the Demon King last night?
I probably didn't, right?
The commotion he caused made the girl slowly open her eyes, her blue eyes as clear as a serene pond, reflecting the Hero's image. She showed no signs of sleepiness, but looked at the Hero with disdain.
"Could you put that thing away first? I know you're quite proud of your asset. But it's quite an eyesore."
Doro struggled to cover himself with his hands,
"Do you have anything to cover me with?"
Mohe got out of bed and rummaged through the house, eventually finding a couple of pieces of men's clothing, which she tossed to the Hero: "These clothes are a bit small for you; they're my body's father's clothes, which I kept for disguise purposes. So-called father's relics."
"You're quite honest." Doro quickly began putting on the clothes.
Mohe casually sat on the edge of the bed: "Do you think I have any reason to lie to you? You know very well what kind of person I am. I don't know who you are now, but I have never changed."
Hearing Mohe's words, Doro couldn't help but fall into deep thought.
"Have you still not given up on your ambition?"
"Give up? Such a word is an insult to me." Mohe crossed her legs; though she was clearly petite, she seemed to be looking down at Doro, "I might retreat, might change methods, but I will never give up. I have a long time, Hero. If not fourteen years, then forty years, if not forty, then four hundred. I will reclaim the position of Demon King and once again dominate this world. I will never give up."
She sneered, "Will you stop me? In your lifetime, you might kill me a few times, but it doesn't matter. You won't live that long."
"If your left hand is absorbed by Lisidorwei, you might lose your eternal life."
"Then I'll just create another one. I plan to retrieve my left hand, but that doesn't mean I can't recreate it if it's lost; it was something I made myself originally, Hero. Retrieving it is just to save my time. Although I have a long time to waste, my inner ambition drives me to seize every moment."
Doro stared blankly at the girl in front of him, realizing he might have never truly understood this rival.
"Besides ruling the world, is there nothing else you care about?"
Mohe chuckled softly, a laugh Doro had recognized as mocking from the night before: "Things I care about? What are you talking about? Your so-called friendship, love, mercy for the weak, kindness, and justice?"
"Hahaha~"
Her laughter grew more unruly, shrill as it was now, sounding piercing and painful to Doro's ears.
She casually picked up a mirror from the dressing table: "Look at yourself, Hero. Disheveled hair, scruffy beard, full of desolation. Is this what you've been protecting? If your esteemed friendship, love, mercy, and justice are truly such wonderful things... you shouldn't have turned out like this. You have proven their emptiness with your existence."
The girl's eyes were filled with a certain intensity; although her power was still weak compared to Doro's, he couldn't muster a word of rebuttal.
"I made a mistake in the past, giving a portion of my power to my subordinates, and they ended up betraying me. This time, I only trust my own strength. I will be even stronger than before. Will you come to stop me?"
I will come to stop you...
No matter what, Doro couldn't say those words.
He didn't trust himself.