The heart of the Empire, known as Ainheart.
And in Ainheart lies a certain grand mansion.
It is a mansion bestowed by His Majesty, Emperor Valr of Magstitia, to commend the feats of a hero.
Today, a middle-aged man named Bordin visits his lord.
He carries news that might pique her interest.
Hoping that she wouldn’t lose interest in the world.
“Milady, it’s Bordin.”
“Come in.”
As he received permission and opened the door, he saw her sitting in a chair, looking rather bored.
In her hand, she held a jewel glowing with a brilliant blue light, resembling a sapphire.
“It seems you’ve caught a Blue Wyvern this time.”
She tossed the jewel in the air a few times before catching it, and then, seemingly bored, discarded it onto the desk.
“I thought the gem embedded in my forehead was pretty, but upon closer inspection, it’s not much.”
“Heh… I doubt anyone else in this world would catch a Blue Wyvern for such a reason, except for you, milady.”
She shifted her gaze from the jewel to Bordin.
“So, did you find any traces of the dragon?”
Dragons. Beings close to omnipotence, called the rulers of the skies.
Their wings are said to stir up hurricanes, and their breath can erase nations.
“Milady, dragons aren’t something you can just find on a whim.”
“Hmm. They say there are all kinds of gems hidden in a dragon’s nest.”
“That’s merely a rumor, my lady.”
At Bordin’s words, her interest rapidly faded.
Soon, she wore a smirk, almost mocking.
“Did you come to inform me of your own incompetence, Bordin?”
Seemingly unfazed by her sharp tone, he slowly approached and placed a metallic object on the desk.
“Of course not. I’ve brought news that you might find interesting.”
“A crystal magic tool? I wonder if there’s something amusing in it?”
“Milady, do you remember the city of Drax?”
As she fiddled with the magic tool like clay, she pondered Bordin’s words for a moment.
“Drax? I don’t recall.”
“It’s the region where you once subjugated the monster Argentina.”
“Oh, that giant lizard.”
“Yes. And it’s the area that His Majesty granted you as a reward for subduing the monster.”
“Reward? More like he threw it at me out of annoyance.”
“If you’re going to give something, you might as well give me gems.”
Bordin chuckled at her mumbling.
“I heard that about half a year ago, a girl with considerable power appeared in Drax.”
“Hmm.”
Seemingly uninterested, she half-listened to Bordin, activating the magic tool.
Suddenly, a bright light emanated from the magic tool.
“It wasn’t that important, so I brushed it off, but she turned out to be more impressive than expected.”
Receiving no reply, Bordin continued speaking to himself.
“She conquered the monsters around the city, dominating both the west and east of Drax. She possesses considerable magical power for her young age, so I looked into her.”
“….”
“But surprisingly, she showed no signs of ever learning mana application in the past.”
Now, as if it were the crux of the matter, he widened his eyes and said.
“Thus, Bordin believes she certainly possesses unique abilities.”
He raised his hand dramatically high.
“The third unique ability wielder of the Empire, following the Crown Prince and the Saintess! If this—”
“It’s as pretty as the gems. I want it.”
“Wait, what…?”
Bordin paused. Glancing at his lady, she seemed entranced by the light emitted from the magic tool.
Following her gaze, he saw a scene he had already witnessed once.
A black-haired woman capturing a monster with her bare hands.
“Bordin.”
The butler immediately bowed his head at her serious tone.
“Yes, milady.”
She pointed to the girl in the video and commanded.
“Where is she?”
As the lady spoke, the eyes he had never seen from her before appeared.
A greedy gaze that deeply desired something.
*
“The hero of the Empire, Lady Athena seeks you.”
Initially, I thought I misheard.
When I asked him to repeat himself, he said again.
“Lady Athena seeks you.”
It was as if to confirm that this wasn’t a misunderstanding, his words repeated the same.
“Come on… What kind of joke is this?”
“Y-yes…?”
Charlson’s face, filled with panic at my words, seemed to confirm the situation wasn’t a lie.
‘No. It can’t be true.’
What reason could Athena have to appear here?
Yet, no matter how many times I confirmed, Charlson’s reply remained the same.
“Really…?”
“Yes. She is waiting in the city.”
Really? Athena? Me? Why all of a sudden?
My mind was a jumble of questions, creating dissonance.
Athena. A character with overwhelming power, the very person I deduced to be the mastermind.
She had never shown interest in others.
There had been an incident in the past that caused her to lose interest in relationships, leading her to seek beautiful jewels instead.
‘So that’s why she was interested in Robin.’
The protagonist’s golden eyes that shone like gold captured her curiosity upon their first encounter.
Since then, she had watched the protagonist and helped him whenever he found himself in danger.
But that was the extent of it. She never showed greater interest.
Why would someone who had shown so little interest in a protagonist suddenly have a reason to come to a forsaken city?
‘Could it be a story not written in the novel?’
Just like Drax formed a covert alliance with the Empire to capture criminals.
Events can occur in reality that aren’t penned in the storyline.
Yet, despite it all, Athena escaping to Drax was solely due to her exclusionary nature.
A city she had carelessly discarded from the start. What interest could she suddenly have in it?
‘I can’t solve anything just by thinking.’
For whatever reason, now that she was seeking me, there was no means of escape.
I thought it would be best to go have a conversation.
“Please let this be an incident unrelated to the original work…”
I prayed to the goddess that might be somewhere in this world.
When I returned to the city with heavy steps, I came face to face with Dania, who was waiting at the entrance.
“Lily!! Hera!!”
“Sis.”
Her expression as she ran toward us was filled with deep concern.
“Hera… right now in the city… that person…”
“I heard it from Charlson.”
With Dania’s words, I could no longer think it was a lie.
“Why is she looking for you?”
Dania gazed at me with a worried expression.
“…I don’t know either. I think I’ll find out once I meet her.”
As I said this, Lily behind me tightly grasped my hand.
“Sis… I feel uneasy…”
I gently patted Lily’s head.
“It’s fine. You’re a hero. She won’t harm you.”
Reassuring Lily, we headed deeper into the city.
We could see a crowd gathered.
And among them, I spotted her.
Sitting elegantly, seemingly waiting for something.
With dazzling platinum hair and golden eyes that seemed to pierce through anything.
The strongest human in the novel “The Indomitable Hero.” At the same time, the mastermind.
It was Athena Kaladbolg.
‘What an atmosphere…’
There was an aura around her that seemed utterly inaccessible.
As I slowly approached her with heavy steps, she seemed to notice my approach, turning her head toward me.
In a blink, she vanished and appeared right before me.
“Ugh!”
Then, as if embracing me, she placed both hands on my cheeks and stared deeply into me.
“So beautiful…”
A primal fear crept up from below as she looked at me with her golden eyes, warm enough to ignite me.
“What in the world are you doing..!”
I instinctively pushed her hands away and stepped back.
Then Athena stared at her hands absentmindedly before shifting her gaze back to me, a small smile forming on her face.
“Oh, sorry! Did I surprise you? I zoned out for a moment. Nice to meet you, Hera.”
She called my name without even being told and extended her hand toward me.
But due to this inexplicable sense of dread emanating from her, I ignored her hand and spoke.
“…What’s the reason for you being here?”
At my words, her eyes widened.
“Your voice is pretty too…”
“Why are you here?”
Like a hedgehog bristling its spikes in front of a predator, a naturally sharp tone escaped my lips.
She smiled at my apparent displeasure as if I were cute, raising one hand toward the sky.
“Well… there are too many people here, right?”
From her hand, golden mana began to flow and gently enveloped both of us.
Then, with a snap of her fingers, the environment changed in an instant.
Before my eyes stood countless trees and plants.
It was a dense forest, akin to a great grove.
“Teleportation…?”
As I stared blankly at the sky, Athena chuckled and replied.
“No, this is a space I created. Think of it as a barrier.”
She slowly began to walk step by step toward me.
“Don’t come any closer.”
Ignoring my warning, she approached me.
“…You don’t know who I am? It’s been ages since I last heard someone speak so casually to me.”
“I speak casually only to those who speak casually to me first.”
“Heh… but hearing it from you doesn’t sound so bad.”
“…What do you want to say?”
“You asked why I came here, right?”
She pointed at me and said.
“You. Be my slave.”
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