Chapter 1: Hero? You’re Not Worthy!
“Dear, it’s time for your medicine!”
Wearing a pure white dress, with a sacred and beautiful face, she was a stunning beauty. Loseweisse, the holy maiden of the Sacred Church!
With her small hands carrying a bowl of medicine as thick as ink, she squatted in front of Qin Chu’s bed. The damage caused by the Dark Witch Shub-Niggurath couldn’t be healed even by the strongest recovery spells of the Sacred Church. After drinking the medicine for over a month, his injuries showed no signs of improvement.
Perhaps he might never recover.
Seeming to sense Qin Chu’s thoughts, a blush appeared on Loseweisse’s fair face. “I’ll feed you.”
“Our hero needs to recover soon. This world can’t be without a hero!”
Loseweisse brought the medicine to her lips, gently sipping it. To Qin Chu’s surprise, she leaned down, and a waft of fragrance enveloped him as her rosy lips pressed against his mouth. Qin Chu felt as if something was weighing on his chest.
Sip by sip, he drank all the bitter medicine, which now tasted extraordinarily sweet.
She was such an innocent and shy girl. To make him drink the medicine and recover, she boldly did something she would never normally do.
Qin Chu felt a burning sensation in his chest and wanted to seize this opportunity to confess his feelings to Loseweisse again.
During the war, Qin Chu had developed affections for Loseweisse. He had expressed his feelings before, but at that time, Loseweisse only blushed deeply. Her small hand caressed his face, and she gently rejected him, saying it wasn’t the right time to discuss such things during the war, but they could talk about it after the world was at peace.
Although rejected, Qin Chu felt that Loseweisse must like him too.
Now that the war was over and the world was at peace, if he confessed now, surely Loseweisse wouldn’t reject him, right?
But as the words reached his lips, Qin Chu hesitated.
In his current state, was he worthy of Loseweisse? With his incurable injuries, even if he miraculously survived, he would likely be bedridden for life, a burden to Loseweisse.
He abandoned the thought of confessing and showed a gentle expression instead. As long as Loseweisse could live happily, nothing else mattered.
But at that moment, Loseweisse suddenly retreated, distancing herself from Qin Chu, her once gentle face contorted with disgust.
Her fair hands forcefully wiped her lips, her slender neck continuously squirming as if she might vomit at any moment.
“Damn it, disgusting!”
This demeanor was completely opposite to her previous gentleness. Was this really the same person?
With a creak, the door opened, and two figures entered.
Brave Squad members, the Crimson War Goddess Ekaterina, and a short elderly man.
Their gazes fixed on Qin Chu with mockery and arrogance.
They had once celebrated with him, but now their eyes held only scorn and disdain. Were they being controlled by some force? Why were they looking at him like that?
Qin Chu wanted to speak, but found he had been deprived of his voice, unable to make a sound. His body felt as heavy as if crushed by millions of tons, making it difficult to breathe.
“Loseweisse, thank you for your hard work.” Ekaterina’s soothing voice consoled her, “Kissing someone you don’t love must have been very difficult.”
Loseweisse carefully wiped her mouth with a handkerchief, then tossed it away. “It’s alright, it’s all for Lord Jie Luo.”
Jie Luo? The original hero?
Qin Chu’s eyes widened.
Staring at the shocked man lying on the bed, the arrogant Loseweisse let out a cold, mocking laugh. “You seem very surprised? Compared to Lord Jie Luo, you’re just a pig. But cheer up, at least this pig is somewhat useful – your blood will open the door to Lord Jie Luo’s revival.”
“Consider it your final contribution to this world.”
Did this man still not understand the situation? Or was he unable to accept reality?
Did he really think she had fallen in love with him?
Ten years ago, the Celestial Continent suddenly spawned a large number of monsters, and human power was unable to resist, resulting in countless deaths.
The Thirteen Sages summoned the original hero, a man so charming that Loseweisse fell hopelessly in love with him at first sight.
So many times Loseweisse wanted to offer her pure, sacred body to the hero, but the hero always said, “Don’t rush, we’ll get married after the war ends.”
Then, Lord Jie Luo died.
Qin Chu became the second hero, and Loseweisse and the others remained part of the Brave Squad.
But they never truly accepted Qin Chu. In their hearts, the only one worthy of being called a hero was Jie Luo. They were utterly disgusted that Qin Chu dared to become the hero, feeling that the title had been desecrated.
If the Celestial Continent didn’t need the hero’s power, they wouldn’t even bother pretending. Staying around Qin Chu was torturous, yet they had to maintain smiles, creating an atmosphere of being the best comrades – it was sheer punishment.
They wanted to point at Qin Chu’s nose and say, “Hero? You’re not worthy!”
Qin Chu slew the Eternal Monarch, sealed the Dark Witch, and drove all the monsters back into the abyss. His fame among humans reached its peak. This made Loseweisse even more enraged – only Lord Jie Luo deserved to be the hero; this guy was completely unworthy.
Fortunately, Loseweisse knew how to revive the hero. The blood of a successor could open the door to reviving the hero. If not for needing Qin Chu to fight the remaining monsters, she wouldn’t have allowed him to live this long.
When Loseweisse contacted the other members of the Brave Squad, no one hesitated or refused. They joined forces to eliminate this despicable man who had stolen the glory that belonged to Lord Jie Luo.
Those in power didn’t want anyone rising above them either. As long as the hero lived, their authority remained fragile.
Now that peace had returned to the Celestial Continent, the hero was no longer needed.
They arranged for people to unseal the Dark Witch Shub-Niggurath and even gave her a frenzy potion, hoping she would eliminate Qin Chu.
But Qin Chu was too strong, re-sealing Shub-Niggurath and returning with grave injuries.
The soup he drank daily contained the most insidious poisons, slowly corrupting his steel-like muscles and skin, rendering healing spells ineffective.
This pitiful man never suspected a thing, believing his injuries were caused by the Dark Witch.
Now, it was finally time to reap the rewards.
“Lord Lex, how are the preparations on your side?” Loseweisse asked coldly.
The short elderly man stroked his bearded chin, his face wearing a sinister smile. “Rest assured, Miss Loseweisse.”
“My subordinates from CBB are experts in this field. They’re very skilled at spreading rumors.”
“The hero probably has no idea that during his absence to suppress Shub-Niggurath, his reputation had already hit rock bottom.”
“A public trial for the hero will be no problem at all.”
Indeed, a public trial.
Although they could directly kill the hero here and pin the blame on Shub-Niggurath, claiming the hero sustained fatal injuries in battle against her, that would allow Qin Chu to forever bask in the highest glory, revered as a savior.
In their eyes, such glory rightfully belonged to Lord Jie Luo. This despicable man could not be allowed to steal it.
They not only wanted to kill Qin Chu but also ensure his utter disgrace, leaving an eternal stench!
…
“Extra! Extra! The Supreme Council has released new information – the witch Shub-Niggurath was released by Qin Chu himself. After multiple verifications, it appears that after the Eternal Calamity and the return of peace, the hero felt his status declining day by day. To prove his worth, he released the witch.”
“Ugh, how disgusting. For his selfish desires, he caused the deaths of fifty thousand people. Fifty thousand lives! Doesn’t his conscience hurt at all?”
“I don’t believe the hero would do such a thing…”
“There’s evidence and proof, and you still don’t believe it? Are you a paid fan? Count me in if you need the money.”
“Even if the images could be faked, what about the magic recordings? It’s well known that magic recordings can’t be faked.”
“You’d stoop so low for money? Aren’t you afraid of having your ancestors’ graves dug up?”
“Without the hero, you’d have become monster droppings long ago.”
“Cut the ‘hero’ crap. I was just born a few years later. If I’d been born in that era, what’s so special about this outsider? Besides, were the monsters really that powerful? Monsters have appeared recently, and the Guardian Alliance easily dealt with them. Seems the monsters aren’t that big a deal after all; I could probably handle them too.”
“I think this old fossil was just hyped up too much, always thinking he was some kind of savior. But when peace returned, and he wasn’t as important, he couldn’t accept the decline in status. Didn’t he recently get exposed for beating someone into a vegetative state just for not recognizing him?”
“He also got drunk at a tavern and killed several people in the streets…”
“And he murdered entire families for no reason… The evidence is clear.”
“One person calling you guilty could be slander, but a hundred people calling you guilty means the problem is yours.”
“Damn these otherworldly mutts, not a single good one. We never should have summoned any hero in the first place.”
Repetition is a form of power. A lie repeated a hundred times becomes the truth.
On one hand, they diminished people’s fear of monsters, portraying them as insignificant, and by extension, the hero as unimportant too. On the other hand, they heavily promoted the other Brave Squad members, dividing the glory originally belonging solely to the hero.
With the aid of certain vested interests, the hero’s reputation plummeted in a short time.
When Qin Chu opened his eyes again, he found himself suspended face-up in mid-air.
Two silver-white chains bound his arms, connecting to the sky above – the Sacred Church’s strongest binding spell, the Heaven’s Cage Shackles, capable of sealing his magic power.
Two amber-colored chains restrained his legs, sinking into the ground – the Earth Mother’s Embrace, capable of sealing his martial power.
A sharp, dazzling golden longsword hovered above his neck.
Damocritus’ Blade, known as the sword that could sever anything.
Added to the poisons accumulated within, slowly softening his skin and muscles, rendering healing spells ineffective.
Tsk, Loseweisse and the others had prepared quite thoroughly.
The trial grounds were surrounded by crowds of spectators, creating a clamorous din.
On the highest platform of the courthouse, Qin Chu saw countless familiar faces – former teammates, imperial royals, nobles, high-ranking members of the Earth Mother Church and the Sacred Church…
Loseweisse stood at the very front, her fair cheeks flushed.
“Qin Chu, you are accused of premeditated murder, responsible for fifty-three thousand, six hundred and thirty-two lives. The evidence is conclusive. Do you have anything to say for yourself?” Loseweisse’s cold voice came from above.
Qin Chu opened his mouth, but no sound emerged. His throat had been poisoned, rendering him mute.
“It seems you have nothing to say, as a former hero who once saved the Celestial Continent. As your former teammates, we truly didn’t wish to treat you this way, but your crimes are too numerous to recount – unforgivable and deserving of death as the only way to appease the people!”
“Kill him…”
“Kill him…”
“Kill him…”
The surrounding spectators roared loudly, their faces flushed, eyes bulging with rage.
Their voices merged into a thunderous roar, shaking the entire execution grounds.
Twisted faces filled with excitement, cast in a crimson hue by the setting sun.
Perhaps some intelligent humans could see how the hero’s existence was such an eyesore to those in power and how the so-called evidence was tainted.
They might not truly believe the hero deserved to die.
But in this peaceful world, with monsters driven into the abyss and the Celestial Continent no longer needing a hero, why provoke those in actual power for the sake of an insignificant individual?
Seeing those distorted faces and hearing the roars like a crashing sea, Qin Chu wondered – were these really the people he had fought bloody battles to protect?
Some faces even seemed vaguely familiar – people he had personally saved from the clutches of monsters?
What had happened to make them so hideous?
Rotten eggs, spoiled vegetables, and scraps rained down from above.
Loseweisse became even more smug, eager to see the hero disgraced and leaving an eternal stench.
“Execute him!”
At her command, the four chains simultaneously tightened, and the Damocritus’ Blade fell from the sky at the same moment.
Squelch…
The hero’s body was torn into six pieces – head, torso, and four limbs, blood splattering across the sky.
The hero who had once saved the world was now ripped apart before countless spectators, their cheers echoing like a crashing sea.
In that instant of being torn asunder, Qin Chu suddenly recalled the words the strongest witch Shub-Niggurath had said to him when he sealed her:
“You will witness betrayal with your own eyes…”
“You will experience despair with your soul…”
“You will rage, you will despair, you will go insane…”
Truly tragic