The Heroes Who Executed Me Are Obsessed With Me

Clay wandered aimlessly, walking and walking with no destination in mind.

“Damn it…”

He couldn’t stay near the ruins the soldiers had visited, so he left without thinking. But deciding where to go next wasn’t easy either.

I can’t go anywhere near people…

He couldn’t approach anyone he had once known. There wasn’t a single soul he could turn to for help now. Realizing that, Clay let out a hollow laugh.

“What a waste…”

Who had he worked so hard for all this time? As he asked himself that question, he spotted smoke rising not too far off.

What’s that?

It was just past dawn. The sun had barely started to rise, and the faint trail of smoke climbing into the light suggested someone had built a campfire nearby.

Soldiers, maybe?

He was still in the wastelands. Aside from a few ruined buildings, this place was barren. Unless someone had a real reason to camp here, it was far too dangerous.

That meant the smoke was likely from either a merchant caravan—or soldiers.

Sigh…

He had quenched his thirst a bit the night before with rainwater, but hunger gnawed at him relentlessly now.

Might as well check…

If the people over there had come from far away, maybe they wouldn’t recognize his face. Just in case, Clay picked up a tattered sheet nearby and draped it over himself, hiding his face.

Whoooosh…

Wind, laced with sand, pelted him as he trudged slowly toward the smoke. Eventually, he reached the base of a sandy hill where the smoke seemed to originate.

A simple dune.

If he climbed over the curved ridge, he’d be able to see who was on the other side.

“…Quiet.”

Didn’t sound like a crowd. Clay cautiously climbed to the top of the dune. Lying flat, he peeked over the edge.

“!”

The moment he saw who was there, Clay’s eyes widened. He immediately ducked back behind the dune.

No way…

He hadn’t looked long enough to be sure, but…

Slide…

He peeked again.

There was a large bonfire blazing.

But it wasn’t the only flame. The entire area on the other side of the dune was bathed in fire—like someone had set multiple blazes.

And amidst those flames stood a single figure. The person stared silently into the fire.

As the heat danced in the air, the figure became clearer.

White hair, several horns rising from the head, long pointed ears like an elf’s, and red eyes locked onto the flames.

A Dragonoid.

A humanoid race said to possess the power of dragons—legendary beings simply by their existence.

And Clay… had met this legend once before. More specifically, the woman standing before him.

The woman suddenly turned her head.

Her eyes met Clay’s.

Flames flickered between them as their gazes locked in midair.

“You…”

Clay was the first to speak.

“How are you here…?”

He should’ve kept his identity hidden. But the shock of seeing her threw him into disarray.

Because she was—

“Clay.”

—One of the Four Heavenly Kings who had vanished with the fall of the Demon King.

“You rose again before your body could turn to ash.”

Despite the sudden encounter, she remained calm.

“It’s good to see you again.”

A faint smile crossed her lips.

As if they were no longer enemies.

The Four Heavenly Kings.

The four calamity-level beings who had once led the Demon King's army, plunging the world into a hell of destruction.

Among them was a being so ancient she appeared in national mythologies.

Beatrice, the progenitor of the Dragonoids.

Rumors surrounded her decision to join the Demon King’s side.

Some claimed she fell in love with the Demon King. Others said she simply enjoyed destruction. But one theory carried weight:

The extinction of all Dragonoids—except for her.

They had died helping the world, only to be killed by humans. That loss may have pushed her to switch sides.

It was a convincing reason. Without something like that, her allegiance wouldn’t have made sense.

“How about warming up by the fire now that we’ve exchanged greetings?”

Now, after vanishing from the Demon Realm, she stood before Clay, offering no hostility, only words.

“It’s warm—almost hot. Should be helpful on a cold dawn like this.”

“What are you doing here?” Clay frowned instinctively, “Where have you been until now? Did you come to attack me?”

“No need for that ego.” Beatrice, the Dragonoid progenitor, gazed at him gently, “I’ve just been warming myself. Burning everything around me in the process.”

“You expect me to believe that?”

“You’re free to think what you like. As always.”

Clay suddenly found himself speechless. He swallowed hard before forcing his voice out again.

“You can’t possibly have no feelings about me. If you’re planning something, say it now.”

“You always did like being aggressive. Then again, it feels like just yesterday we were fighting to the death. Was I in dragon form back then?”

Her indifference was maddening, but Clay didn’t let his guard down.

“Yeah, it does feel like just yesterday. Honestly, it wasn’t long ago. The war only just ended.”

“And before you could even be honored, you were executed. How pitiful.”

Clay went silent at that.

Beatrice took a step toward him. He immediately backed away.

“Don’t come any closer. I’ll summon the Holy Sword.”

“In your current state, that would be suicide.”

Despite the threat, she remained unfazed.

“None of your companions trusted you, did they?”

“…”

“Even now, starving as you are, you’re baring your teeth at me. Did your comrades show the same loyalty to you?”

Clay’s stomach growled, obnoxiously loud. He tried to ignore it, but Beatrice simply reached into the fire and pulled out a skewer with roasted marshmallows, holding it out to him.

“No real nutrients, but it should ease the hunger for now. I’ll find something better soon.”

“Don’t come any closer.”

“Here.”

“Don’t—”

Before he knew it, she was already beside him, placing the skewer in his hand. He tried to pull away, but she was quicker.

“A Hero reduced to this. You’ve really gotten weak.”

She handed over the marshmallows, then casually walked over to a bag lying nearby and began rummaging through it.

“Just wait a little longer. I’ll get you something a human can actually eat.”

Her hands busied themselves in the bag, then suddenly paused.

She had sensed something behind her and turned.

There she saw Clay, still holding the skewer, grinding his teeth in silence—his head lowered, trembling.

“…What do you know?”

His voice shook.

“What do you know about humans?”

He had always fought for them—struggling to survive amid chaos and destruction.

As a human himself, he had believed in them, shared in their pain, and found the courage to fight on.

And yet…

“I said I’m not hungry.”

His voice cracked.

A warm, sticky emotion slid down his cheeks.

Tears.

Clay lowered his head further as drops, vaporized by the fire’s heat, fell quietly to the ground.

Even though he had defied the natural order to return to life, his heart still remained shackled by it. That’s why he couldn’t understand—

Why he had ended up alone.

“…Looks like we have a lot to talk about.”

With only the sound of firewood crackling between them, Beatrice quietly resumed rummaging through her bag.

“No trace left…”

Somewhere in the wastelands…

The Royal Guard Captain, who should’ve been by the Empress’s side, was instead out searching with a few knights.

“The rain must’ve washed everything away.”

“Can we really track anything like this?”

“It’s just a corpse. Why is Her Majesty so obsessed with finding it…?”

Hearing their muttering, the captain scowled.

“Watch your tongues.”

A gust of sandy wind swept across the wasteland, blowing the captain’s long ponytail like a tattered banner.

You don’t understand…

Lilien, the captain, muttered silently.

Her Majesty has already done something she can never take back.

Remembering the path Tia had chosen—the one she could no longer turn back from—Lilien bit down hard on the sand that had blown into her mouth.

(End of Chapter)