The Hero Becomes the Duke’s Eldest Son

Chapter 116

‘A human….’

Krotal was startled by the sudden appearance of a human and quickly became wary.

However, when he saw the tangible blue aura on the black sword the human was holding, he was shocked.

“Oh, an Aura Blade! Could it be a Master?”

It was surprising enough to see a human in Stoneheim, but to think that human was a Sword Master.

Moreover, he couldn’t believe that such a young-looking human could wield an Aura Blade.

The human, Aden, looked at Krotal with a disgusted expression.

“Hey. Step back a bit, will you? I won’t be responsible if you get hurt.”

“What, what on earth are you…?”

-Kuooooo!

-Uooooo!

The surrounding stone golems charged at Aden all at once.

Swish! Swish! Swish! Slash!

Aden swung Baalzebul in the air a few times…

Slaaash!

Thud, thud! Thud!

The blue aura of the sword slashed in all directions, and the golems within its range were shattered into pieces following the trajectory of the sword.

In an instant, twenty golems were dealt with.

“Could you tell me what the hell is going on, Dwarf warrior?”

“……”

Krotal was left speechless, his mouth agape.

Meanwhile, Aden’s companions also began dealing with the stone golems.

“Kahahahaha! These stone blocks are pretty tough! Kahah!”

-Dragon Slayer, why is that ogre-like priest fighting with his shirt off?

“I don’t know. How should I know?”

“Kahahahat!”

Bali the priest flexed his impressive pectoral muscles, biceps, and abs as he swung a mace—borrowed from Hetos’ workshop.

Bang! Boom! Bang!

The stone golems hit by the mace had their chests caved in, and their cores were destroyed.

“Kahah! This is the first time a mace feels this good!”

With his holy powers fully activated, Bali the priest, who possessed extraordinary physical abilities, could exert near-superhuman strength.

To him, the stone golems were nothing more than sandbags.

“Sir Guard, I’ll cover you from behind, so lure the golems.”

“Understood, Miss Cassie!”

In one area, Lowe took the lead and attracted the golems’ attention, using the ‘Ring of Swiftness’ Aden had lent him to dodge their attacks with agile movements.

The golems gathered around him, and…

Splash!

Cassie threw the ‘Ultra-strong Sticky Potion’ she had used before towards the golems.

The potion shattered and instantly spread sticky substance like spider webs everywhere.

-Kuoooo!

-Uoooo!

The golems covered in sticky substance struggled to get free, entangling with the nearby golems even more.

“Nice, Sir Knight. Lure one more over here.”

“Got it!”

Hearing Cassie’s lazy voice, Lowe gave a wry smile.

‘If things were normal, I’d be guarding Lord Aden…’

But in crucial combat situations, he found himself pairing up with Cassie instead.

But it couldn’t be helped.

The one he was supposed to guard, Aden, was a Sword Master, the pinnacle of swordsmen.

Even now, he could see Aden slaughtering golems with a few swings of his sword.

There was no concept of needing a guard.

‘Perhaps I should be grateful I have something to do…’

Among the group, the one with the weakest combat ability was Cassie, which meant someone needed to protect her while fighting.

Moreover, their synergy was excellent.

‘I just need to do my best!’

So, in one area, Lowe and Cassie steadily dealt with the golems.

In truth, the physically weakest among them was Elise.

But that wasn’t much of an issue.

“Choco! Go bite them!”

-Rooooar!

The golden wolf Choco, enlarged to its full form, rampaged among the golems.

At its maximum size of over 10 meters, the 3-meter-tall golems were nothing more than clay toys to Choco.

“My goodness…”

“The golems we feared so much are falling so easily…”

“Who are they…?”

“Why are humans…?”

The Dwarf warriors were in awe as they watched Aden’s party decimate the stone golems.

Meanwhile, Elise moved swiftly among the Dwarves, treating the injured.

Thanks to her, the Dwarves realized they were not enemies.

Sararara.

Elise infused golden holy power into Krotal’s wound.

“Done! Treatment complete! Grandpa Dwarf, are you feeling better now?”

“Th-thank you.”

Krotal examined his body in amazement, the fatigue and injuries accumulated over the past month of fierce battles were completely healed.

At that moment, Hetos came running from afar.

“Krotal! Is that you, Krotal?”

“…Hetos? Is it really Blacksmith Hetos?”

Recognizing Hetos, Krotal was surprised and then nodded in understanding.

“So these humans were brought by Hetos.”

“Well, yes…”

Seemingly embarrassed to admit he broke tradition by bringing humans into the kingdom, Hetos cleared his throat.

‘Why did I even give them permission?’

Despite reasons like wine, wine, or maybe wine…

Though those reasons existed, it wasn’t significant enough to permit entry to the kingdom.

There was just an inexplicable trust that made him allow it.

‘Is it because he’s Balkans’ disciple?’

Without knowing the effect of Aden’s title on the Fairy Tribe’s affinity, Hetos could only think that way.

Watching Aden and his party deal with the stone golems in real-time, especially Aden who single-handedly slashed through dozens of golems, Krotal asked.

“Hetos, who exactly are these people?”

“Well. I’m not sure myself.”

Hetos wore a puzzled expression, truly curious himself.

‘I thought Balkan’s disciple was a monster…’

But it turned out his companions were just as extraordinary.

While Hetos and Krotal were talking, Aden and his party swiftly cleared the golems…

Boom!

The last remaining golem was sliced in half by Aden’s sword and fell.

The kingdom of Dwarves, Stoneheim, which was on the brink of destruction, had a miraculous moment of reprieve.

* * *

The golems from the dungeon were endless, but they appeared in cycles, giving Stoneheim its first moment of rest in a month.

Krotal stepped forward as the representative warrior and bowed to Aden.

“I am Krotal, the Grand Warrior of Stoneheim. Thank you sincerely for saving me and my comrades.”

“I am Aden Remes. I came with Hetos’ permission to speak with the Dwarf King. But when I arrived, I found this mess. What happened?”

“…It’s embarrassing to show outsiders such a state. I will explain as I guide you to the fortress.”

Aden and his party followed the Dwarves through the wide cavern and headed towards the Dwarf fortress, Heirota.

They were guided by the Dwarves, and along the way, Krotal explained the situation.

The discovery of a sealed ancient dungeon.

The endless onslaught of stone golem armies.

The brink of Stoneheim’s destruction.

Aden, who listened to the entire story, fell into deep thought.

‘Did something like this happen in my previous life?’

Then he soon found the answer.

‘Even if it did, I wouldn’t have known.’

The Dwarves of Stoneheim didn’t communicate with the outside world at all, and most of their trade was handled through the Fairy Trade Guild.

Only a few eccentric Dwarves like Hetos interacted with humans.

And the only Dwarf Aden knew in his previous life was Hetos.

‘Hetos probably didn’t know about this incident in the previous life either.’

Without Aden, Hetos would have remained holed up in his workshop for another ten years.

So he would have had no news about Stoneheim.

‘The golems probably appeared in the previous life too.’

And the underground kingdom of Dwarves, Stoneheim, would have quietly walked the path of destruction without anyone on the surface knowing.

While Aden was organizing his thoughts, they arrived at the only remaining stronghold of the Dwarves, the fortress city Heirota.

“Wow! It’s huge!”

-Woof woof!

“Oh my, I can’t believe such a structure exists in the world…”

Aden’s party couldn’t help but marvel at the grand and geometric fortress city created by the Dwarves.

“Oh, Krotal! You’re safe!”

“Gasp! Are those humans behind him?”

“Wait, Hetos is with them too!”

“What’s that recluse old man doing here?”

The Dwarves of the fortress were glad to see Krotal and his comrades safe, then they were surprised by the humans and even more shocked to see Hetos.

Hetos seemed to be quite famous as a master craftsman with the Blacksmith title.

Aden chuckled and spoke to Hetos.

“Looks like even among your people, you’re known as a recluse old man?”

“Shut up! You damn brats, keep quiet!”

Hetos yelled angrily, though he had a complex expression seeing his hometown in such disarray.

Krotal said.

“Just a bit further, and we’ll reach where His Highness Hephaito is.”

Aden was about to face the Dwarf King he had longed to meet.

Though it wasn’t the situation he had hoped for.

* * *

The party was left outside to rest for a while, and Aden, along with Hetos, faced the Dwarf King.

“I am Hephaito, the king of Stoneheim.”

Seeing the Dwarf King Hephaito, Curse was amazed.

-Hoho, Dragon Slayer. This is the first time I’ve seen such

a large Dwarf.

‘Indeed.’

Hephaito had the typical features of a Dwarf, with his piercing eyes, long beard, and short pointed ears.

Yet, he was around 1.6 meters tall, similar to a human, much larger than the usual short Dwarves who barely reached 1 meter.

The Dwarf King Hephaito bowed his head to Aden.

“Human Aden Remes, you are a guest invited by my elder brother Hetos. Thank you sincerely for saving Krotal and the others. They are warriors who cannot die in vain.”

Hephaito referred to Hetos as his elder brother.

‘Because he’s actually Hetos’ brother.’

Surprisingly, Hetos was the elder brother of the Dwarf King Hephaito.

But this didn’t mean Hetos was of royal blood.

Among Dwarves, the next king was chosen as the one with the most exceptional skills within the tribe.

‘The concept of kingship is a bit different for Dwarves compared to humans.’

Important matters within the kingdom were discussed and resolved by the Dwarf elders, and the king was merely a representative figure.

Hephaito gave a bitter smile as he looked at Hetos.

“It’s been a while, elder brother. About ten years.”

Hetos responded bluntly.

“You seem to have had a hard time. You look thinner.”

“Who wouldn’t, with you dumping the kingship on me and locking yourself in the workshop.”

This was one reason Hetos rarely left his workshop once he was inside.

Hetos, who was the most skilled blacksmith in the kingdom, should have been king, but he refused out of laziness, leaving the throne to his younger brother, Hephaito.

Hetos, hit where it hurt, changed the subject.

“Ah, well! Even so, you should have told me if something this big was happening in the kingdom!”

Hephaito glared at Hetos.

“How could we contact you when you locked the workshop without leaving a single key, saying you didn’t want any interruptions?”

The workshop of a Dwarf was off-limits to anyone, even other Dwarves, without an exception or a key.

“Uh, uh…”

With no words left, Hetos shrank back quietly.

“Hetos, step outside for a moment while I speak with your brother.”

“Alright…”

Seeing that the brothers had finished their conversation to some extent, Aden sent Hetos out and had a private audience with the Dwarf King.

Aden spoke to Hephaito.

“I originally came to make a deal with you, but it seems there’s a difficult situation.”

“As you can see… Human Aden Remes, I have a request for you.”

Hephaito looked at Aden with serious eyes.

Aden Remes.

A superhuman level warrior brought by his elder brother Hetos.

His strength was evident at a glance, almost unbelievable for a human.

‘And according to Krotal, his companions are also exceptional.’

His eyes gleamed.

His reclusive elder brother had returned to Stoneheim and brought a strong warrior at the critical moment when the kingdom was on the verge of destruction.

This couldn’t just be a coincidence.

‘This must be fate!’

In his eyes, Aden appeared like a rope from the gods sent to save Stoneheim.

Filled with earnest hope and courage, he shouted.

“Please! Save our kingdom from the stone golems…!”

“No.”

Aden firmly refused.