There could be many reasons for defeat. It might be due to a simple lack of firepower, or a shortage of members in the Hero's party.
Or perhaps they used too much stamina and holy power on their way to Valkan's room, or they caused too much commotion, attracting numerous monsters.
But if one had to pick the biggest cause of their defeat, the answer was obvious. The Insect King Valkan was simply too powerful.
The Hero's sword strikes barely grazed Valkan's clothes, and the Saintess's holy power could only burn small insects at best. Even if several party members hadn't been eliminated along the way, the result would have been similar.
The first of the Four Heavenly Kings that the Hero's party encountered demonstrated the difference in power decisively, as if flaunting his might.
"How disappointing."
Crash!
"Hero!"
The giant scorpion's pincer slammed down fiercely onto the Hero's stomach. Already in a knocked-down state, Luke could do nothing but take the hit. Bright red blood burst from his mouth.
"I had quite high expectations for a Hero who appeared after hundreds of years... but is this all you amount to? What use is all the time I've spent preparing, and the excessive power that He bestowed upon me?"
Crunch!
"Though my admiration was directed elsewhere, I too once felt my heart race when hearing stories of Heroes. As a child, I heard tales of the mighty Four Heavenly Kings who stopped the mighty enemy known as the Hero. The Demon King's army's strategies that gave the Hero a hard time. And finally, the story of how the Demon King ultimately stopped the Hero."
Crack!
"I cultivated my talents listening to such stories, and eventually claimed a position among the Four Heavenly Kings. I've been honing my skills in anticipation of a Hero who would someday arrive... but what is this?"
Crash! Crash! Crash!
"To think that the one who finally arrived would be such a weakling."
Again and again.
The massive pincer came down on the Hero's body.
The steel pincer, though slow, methodically crushed Luke's body. Yulice, the Saintess and the only team member who hadn't been eliminated, could only watch.
"Hero!"
Her body was far from normal as well.
Paralytic and neurotoxins had already stiffened her body, leaving only her eyes, nose, and mouth functioning normally. She found the situation utterly desperate and confusing.
How did this happen?
Surely our compatibility should have given us the advantage, so why are we the ones who were defeated?
How many of Valkan's insects must be dealt with before they reach their limit?
Why is the Hero, whom I was certain was a traitor, lying on the cold floor reduced to a piece of meat?
The answer was simple.
The Hero wasn't a traitor at all—he truly was the Hero.
It was they who had needlessly doubted him.
Of course, considering the Fragment of Sin she had sensed from the Hero's body, there was some confusion... but none of that mattered now.
It was all over anyway.
The Hero had been defeated due to his carelessness, and all that remained was to pay the price in full.
That fact was so terrifying that Yulice cried out once more.
"Hero, please get up!"
All she could do was shout. Though it felt powerless and pathetic, she didn't stop.
"Please get up, I beg you!"
She felt like she was desperately grasping for a lifeline.
She didn't want to die like this. If they were defeated here, the continent would be plunged into grief. Many people would weep and despair.
And above all... she would die slowly, surrounded by the insects she so despised. From her perspective, that was something she would refuse even in death.
Fear slowly consumed her heart.
Though she felt somewhat disgusted with herself for suddenly begging for her life from someone she had hated for half a year... she couldn't stop herself.
Could it be that her wish was granted?
"...I offer ten years of my lifespan for complete bodily healing."
The Hero finally rose from his position.
Along with a somewhat incomprehensible yet unsettling murmur.
The Hero's shattered body gradually began to heal. Bones that had been pulverized reconnected, and flesh that had burst apart returned to its original state. It was a healing speed comparable to a divine miracle, but Yulice wasn't particularly surprised.
She had witnessed a similar scene before. Rather than being amazed by the sight, she was more interested in the sentence he had just muttered.
"What?"
As if questioning whether she had heard correctly, she unconsciously muttered under her breath.
"Ten years of lifespan...?"
Then the number she had vaguely heard before was also...
But such thoughts didn't continue for long. The Hero spoke before she could finish her train of thought.
"Damn it..."
"Oh?"
A short murmur filled with irritation.
The Insect King Valkan tilted his head with interest at that murmur.
"You use an interesting ability, Hero. Was the Hero of this generation born with such a power?"
"...Yes, you battle-crazed bastard. I was trying to save it as much as possible, but you've forced me to use it."
The Hero raised his sword.
"You've completely ruined my plans. Don't worry. I'll make it fun for you now."
Then he muttered once more. Very quietly, as if conveying something to someone.
-...I offer twenty years of my lifespan to strengthen my body.
But the content reached her ears clearly.
She hadn't misheard. He had clearly said "lifespan."
If that lifespan meant what she thought it did... he had literally sacrificed his own life force to heal his body.
Immediately after, a formidable power erupted from the Hero's body. Blue mana leaked from the Hero's flesh, and the blade of the holy sword gleamed sharply.
The pressure emanating from him was comparable to that of one of the Four Heavenly Kings.
Seeing this, Valkan burst into laughter.
"Hahaha! Yes, that's more like what a Hero should be!!"
The fierce clash resumed.
This time, it was more intense than before.
Luke's sword cut through the giant scorpion. The mana emanating from his body burned the surrounding insects.
He cleared away the spreading poison mist with wind, and peeled off the chitin armor of beetles that even Camilla's Sword Aura couldn't penetrate with his holy sword.
After rampaging like that for a while, Luke's sword briefly made contact with Valkan's body.
"Haha! How fun!! Yes, entertain me more!!!"
Each time, Valkan summoned massive numbers of insects to face the Hero. The battle continued for quite some time.
Unfortunately, the Hero was bound to be at a disadvantage in terms of endurance.
Unlike Valkan, who had been gathering insects for hundreds of years, Luke had only temporarily increased his strength by using his lifespan.
As a result, Luke inevitably grew weaker as time passed.
Whenever this happened, he would grind his teeth and mutter.
"I offer ten years."
"...I offer ten years."
"...I offer ten years."
With each eerie murmur, the radiance of the holy sword grew more intense.
The light burning away his life force was painfully dazzling.
Even Yulice, who had been denying him until now, momentarily lost herself as she watched.
"..."
She could no longer even cheer him on, only watch.
Because someone was fighting so desperately, while she could only lie there and watch, feeling pathetic and wretched.
Because she doubted whether she had the right to cheer for him after denying him all this time.
"You use a strange power, Hero."
After fighting for who knows how long, the Insect King Valkan spoke again.
His voice, like metal being scraped, gnawed at the inside of the cavern.
His body was no longer in normal condition either.
The cloak and bandages covering his body had been cut in various places by the Hero's sword, and his entire body was covered in dust.
Anyone could tell that his flesh had sustained many injuries.
But he was still smiling as if he found the situation amusing.
"You're using your life force as if it were an empty promise."
Sticky blood flowed from between Valkan's severed bandages.
"Do you think your life force is infinite?"
At the same time, insects within the blood fell to the floor.
Centipedes, maggots, grubs, and other insects wriggled in all directions with the blood.
"Do you think you become invincible by burning away your lifespan?"
Suddenly, Yulice noticed a terrible stench. An unparalleled odor of rotting corpses emanated from the cut pieces of his flesh.
Even in this situation, the Insect King continued speaking.
"No, you're merely postponing the cruel reality that awaits. Your future is already determined to end in defeat."
At that moment.
"Cough-!"
The Hero coughed up a handful of blood. Bright red blood splattered onto the floor. This time, Yulice couldn't hold back.
"Hero!!"
"The poison is finally taking effect."
The Hero asked.
"...When?"
He had cleared away all the poison mist. He had cut down all approaching poisonous insects. When could poison have possibly entered his system?
"Poison doesn't necessarily have to be in the insects alone."
The Insect King walked slowly, pointing to his arm. It was the forearm that the Hero had cut earlier. Sticky, dark red blood and insects were still dripping from it.
"My blood is nothing short of deadly poison. Even a single drop on the skin is enough to kill most creatures. Do you think you didn't get splashed with a single drop of my blood during our fight?"
"Damn it all..."
"It should have taken effect long ago... but your life force was so strong that there had been no effect until now. But seeing that it's working now..."
The Insect King smiled chillingly.
"It seems you've reached your limit as well?"
The Hero bit his lip.
Even in that state, he tried to open his mouth to offer another sacrifice. With blood-filled lips, he attempted to make another contract related to his lifespan.
That's when it happened.
"Enough."
Crash!
"Kuhek..."
Suddenly, a massive spike shot up from the floor and pierced the Hero's abdomen.
The Hero was silenced, and in that state, Valkan continued speaking.
"I've seen enough of that ability to be sick of it. I'm getting tired as well. Let's end this now."
Valkan flicked his finger.
Squelch! Squelch!!
Then spikes identical to the previous one pierced the Hero's body again.
Yulice watched the scene with a face full of despair. Even in this situation, her body remained stiff, unable to move even a finger.
Luke groaned briefly, struggled a bit more, and then went limp, as if his life force had been depleted.
That was the end.
The Hero could no longer move or breathe.
He was dead.
The intense battle ended so anticlimactically.
All that remained was one Saintess whose body was paralyzed and unable to move... and one of the Four Heavenly Kings still standing proudly.
"Now then..."
Valkan turned his head. Insects crawled closer to Yulice.
"Only the two of us remain?"
Yulice wore an expression mixed with despair.