I stay stunned for a moment after hearing these words.

"A new King, so soon?"

The Qzenir explains, their voice constantly shifting as their face melts and reforms behind the mask:

"I've been pretending to be a barkeep in a large human city for the past few years, allowing me to hear plenty of rumors and to keep my fingers on the pulse of that part of the world. The Church is greatly angered by the death of the Hero, and despite their attempts to make it seem like everything is fine, people picked up that they're scrambling. They're weak, it is thus the perfect time to strike."

The Half-Giant continues:

"My people suffered great losses during the last war, with many of our villages now laying in ruins and abandoned. The dwarves are making use of this opportunity to expand into our territory again, and we believe the renewed backing of a Monster King will dissuade them from continuing further."

I bring a hand to my chin as I think about the situation.

"The dwarves are being awfully bold considering the Hero is dead and the Church lost one of their most important ways to fight. There's something strange about this."

The Daemor continues:

"Whatever the situation may be, a new King will be needed to resolve it. After seeing you fight, Lady Mirei insisted that you be sent as this village's representative. Your Elder agreed."

So that's what she meant when she said I had her vote...

"What does me being a representative entail, exactly?"

"You must travel to the capital, where a grand democratic congress will be held. The representatives of all recognized regions of the monster territories will discuss and choose a new King, as well as participate in the selection of the next Four Generals. The full process will be explained to you once you're there. Small official groups like ours are traveling across all territories right now to ensure all are aware of the upcoming congress, but we still have much ground to cover. As such, you still have a few months before you need to depart, if you accept the task."

This is sudden, but it could be an opportunity to learn a lot more about what's going on, not just here among the monsters but also on the other side of the mountains. However, something still bothers me...

"Why me, though? Shouldn't someone older and more experienced take care of it?"

Mirei shakes her head before answering:

"I think this is a great opportunity for you, and I believe you have the instincts to be able to tell who's strong and reliable and who isn't among the contenders. You're still young, but I have a feeling you'll become extremely important in the future, so it's good to get you to see the broader world and participate in our society now."

"I see... In that case, I accept. In a few months, I'll head to the capital and participate in the selection process for the next Monster King."

Everyone in the room nods approvingly, and the Elder concludes:

"Very well! I am glad to hear it. Now that this is settled, will your delegation be leaving soon?"

"Yes, we plan on leaving today. We would like to make it to the next village by nightfall."

This confirms that they're using some kind of transportation system, as the nearest village is a three days walk from here.

"Very well, then this meeting is adjourned."

As I let myself drop down from the ladder and land on the ground, Xarem asks me:

"So, anything new?"

"I'm leaving in a few months to go to the capital."

"The capital? That's so far!"

"Yeah, it's going to be a long journey, so I need to prepare while I still have time. I might have to hunt on my way there, so I'll need to focus on improving my archery, and I'll need some travel clothes before I can leave."

"What are you even going to do all the way over there?"

"I'll participate in the selection process to pick a new Monster King."

His eyes grow wide in surprise.

"How... What? They're already picking one? And you're going to choose who it is?"

"I don't know what the process entails exactly yet, but I'll see when I get there."

"I see... If you leave in a few months, then I should..."

"... Should what?"

"Ah! Don't worry about it, I was thinking out loud. For now, just let me know if you need anything."

I smile brightly before saying:

"Thanks! I will."

Once I'm back home, I tell my parents, which causes pretty strong reactions. My dad is seized with emotion and says that I bring great honor to the family and that he's proud of me, while my mom is worried that I'm too young to travel that far and fears that I'll get killed on the way by some wild creature. I traveled a lot farther as a human, but I can't exactly tell her that to make her feel better.

Once the initial wave of emotions has passed, I get my dad to agree to teach me to hunt by myself, and my mom takes the initiative to begin working on proper travel clothes that will keep me warm and dry while out on the road.

The more I prepare for it, the more I'm looking forward to the journey. I realize that I missed traveling and seeing the world. It was one of the good points of being the Hero, and I might have become an adventurer anyway if the Holy Sword hadn't picked me so I could still experience it.

However, this time, I won't have a party with me. I'm allowed to bring more people with me, even if they can't participate as representatives in the congress, but the only one I'd want at my side is Xarem and he needs to stay here to complete his training. I'm not close to any of the older warriors who might be able to keep up with me, so I'll simply travel alone.

During our next training class, I effortlessly defeat all of my sparring partners. I knew that my battle against Mirei awakened some greater control over my magical powers, but I didn't expect it to make such a difference when it comes to sword fighting. I guess that, since she was far stronger than me, it skewed my perception of my own strength while we were exchanging blows.

As my current partner tries to attack me with her spear, I push it aside, then strike her hands with the flat of my blade to make her drop the weapon. She looks at me, frustrated, and says:

"What's the point of training with you if you're just going to instantly disarm us? You were able to pretend to be weak just fine before, what changed?"

"Pretend to be weak? I promise I was trying my best!"

"Yeah, yeah, we all saw the crazy strength you suddenly found yourself with when you fought that stranger. Don't pretend it wasn't already in you, there's no way you just grew that much from a single battle."

Well, she's not wrong that the strength was already there since it relies on the magical power I obtained from becoming a Rai'ire, but she might have the ability to go through an "awakening" process like that too. However, I have no idea how I would go about convincing her of that, it does sound rather absurd as an idea.

Seeing that I don't respond, she picks her spear back up and says:

"I'm going to spar with someone else. You'll grow faster with someone at your level too."

I let out a sigh, then go sit at my usual resting spot. I'm not tired this time, but she does have a point: I'm not improving by fighting my classmates anymore.

The teacher comes sit next to me.

"Ai'erina, I should have told you sooner, but I wasn't sure I could believe my eyes when I saw you fight the Arigia. As a Rai'ire, you're a mage-type monster, aren't you?"

"I think so, yes."

"Then there's no point in you training here anymore. You're now officially graduated! You already learned the basics of how to fight with a sword, you know how to move it in battle, and your physical strength and reflexes will improve as you become a more powerful spellcaster much more than they will through practical combat training."

"Already? But I thought we were supposed to receive this kind of training for at least a few years."

"The Rai'enu and Rai'ila are physical-type monsters, which means they need to build up their strength and stamina in a more traditional way. Of course, they still rely on the magic within themselves to grow stronger, like all living creatures, but they have to hone their body to be able to exploit more power at once. Normally, it's much harder for a mage-type to unlock such a fine control over their power that they can physically keep up, but... I guess you're special. It's almost like you're carrying the soul of a great past warrior who's sharing their knowledge with you and helping you progress further."

I laugh nervously as I hear that. I know the Rai'in have some beliefs about reincarnation, the main one being that the souls of great figures from the past are sometimes brought back from the afterlife by Skull Ravens in times of great need, but I know for a fact that I don't have the soul of a Rai'in at all to begin with.

"Maybe, wouldn't that be fortunate! Still, I'll miss sparring with the others."

"Feel free to come back anytime you want, I'm sure some of them will enjoy being able to compare their progress to you. Oh, but you're leaving the village soon, aren't you? Make sure to come visit when you get back."

"I will. Thanks a lot, for everything. I never got to properly express my gratitude for the efforts you put towards me when I was still a child."

"Ah, that was the least I could do. I figured there was a reason you were taking longer, and it was all worth it to see you become a strong Rai'ire. I'm sure you'll make the village proud out there."

I hope I can live up to their expectations.

I'm hiding behind a tree, holding a powerful hunting bow against my body. I peek my head out and see my prey, a large Pinorii calmly eating the leaves from a bush. It has a large and very round body mounted on short legs, covered in a thick brown fur that's known to catch arrows and spear blades. It has a very small head in proportion to its body, but on it are mounted two very large horns perfectly capable of piercing a Rai'in.

Due to how resistant their body is, they're considered hard to hunt, but their short legs make them unsuited for running quickly. As such, they're the perfect prey for a hunter capable of mortally wounding them, as they won't be able to run away and bleed out in hiding. I would pick something easier to injure, but... I'm just not accurate enough with my bow yet to reliably hit a grazeir's heart or brain. Pinorii rations also tend to last longer, and I want to make sure the emergency food I bring with me on my trip lasts the whole way.

Behind a different tree, I see my dad move in position. We're going to shoot from two directions at once, in the hope that it'll make our target run away in a third, planned direction, where we set a trap.

We signal to each other that we're ready, then silently move out of hiding and draw our bows. With a timing we practiced at home, we both let our arrow fly and hit the target. We made sure to bring weapons strong enough to handle that fur, so it lets out a shriek and starts rushing towards our trap as fast as its small legs will allow it. We run after it, maintaining a certain distance to avoid causing it to suddenly change direction. After a few seconds, the Pinorii screams in surprise as it falls in the large hole we dug up.

We catch up, and my dad says:

"Hurry up, we don't want it to suffer needlessly."

I nod, grab my hunting knife, and plant it at the back of the creature's neck. After a few convulsions, it falls dead.

My dad nods approvingly, before continuing:

"I don't expect you to be hunting animals that large while traveling by yourself, you just wouldn't be able to handle that much food before it goes bad, but trying to make them run towards traps you set up ahead of time can be a viable strategy, even when alone."

"Why don't I just jump at them and decapitate them with my sword?"

"That's... quite a brutal strategy. I guess it can work, but it won't minimize damage to the fur and hide, and some animals run much faster than us. That being said, you specifically might be able to pull it off reliably."

I could also cast Rot on my prey, but from the sounds the Wyrm made when it got hit by it, that would probably be a needlessly cruel way to hunt. It would also reduce how much meat I get since part of it would rot away. I wonder if I, as an emissary of death, can expect to be able to use other powerful or instant-death magics eventually. I remember being terrified of spells that simply cause death as the Hero, but I was always able to resist the ones used on me. They require such a strong control over one's own magical power that very few can cast them at a high enough level to be useful against anything more than ordinary untrained civilians. That being said, even at such a low intensity, they would be useful for hunting.

We carefully bring the carcass to the handcart we left nearby and load it on, then make our way back to the village. On the way, my dad says:

"Oh, your mom said we would need some teroots for tonight's dinner. There should be some nearby, would you mind going to collect them?"

"I'll take care of it."

I drop my bow on the cart and grab one of the few bags attached to it. Teroot is the wild vegetable that looks a bit like a carrot, so I should be able to find some around the trees here.

As I'm walking around, keeping my eyes on the ground to spot the right leaves and grabbing the ones I find, I hear a groan, seemingly from someone in pain. I stop and remain silent, trying to see if I hear it again or if my ears are playing tricks on me. After a few seconds, I hear a second groan. I follow it, and quickly find myself in front of a human. He's wearing somewhat heavy armor, and in front of him is a snake with a sword going through its skull. He seems to be unconscious, but I still very carefully approach.

As I get closer, I notice bite marks on an unarmored part of his left arm. The asymmetry in protection between his two arms leads me to believe that he's normally supposed to hold a shield, but I can't see any around. He must have lost his at some point. But what is a human doing this deep in  monster territories, and why did he get beaten by a snake of all things?

The poison seems to have knocked him out, but he's clearly in a lot of pain. I recognize that snake as being one that can cause mild discomfort if we get bitten by it, but I guess humans are less resistant to their venom than us. He looks rather strong, so he must have been bitten by surprise or something similar, but those snakes don't attack people unprovoked... An all-around strange situation. Should I just leave him here, or bring him back to the village?

I take a few moments to think about it. If I bring him back, there's no telling what the villagers will think. We're generally fairly hostile to humans, what with being constantly at war for thousands of years, so they might want to just kill him there and then. However, he might have some information as to what's happening on the other side of the mountains, and he might be able to explain what he's doing here if we treat the poison. If I leave him here, he'll recover sooner or later, or get killed and eaten by a more vicious creature. If he recovers, there's no telling what kind of chaos he could bring...

I grab him and lift him on my back, then grab his sword. It's too dangerous to leave him here. I'll just have to convince the villagers to keep him alive so I can extract some information.

As I catch up to my dad, he asks:

"What is that thing you're carrying? It looks like its made of polished metal..."

"A human, in armor. Don't worry, he's unconscious."

"A human!? This is too dangerous, you should leave him here."

"It'll be even more dangerous to leave him be. He looks like he can fight, if he comes across some of the villagers who happen to be out in the forest, he could cause some serious damage. It's safer to bring him and restrain him in some way. Plus, he might have information about whatever the humans, or maybe even the dwarves, are doing."

"Mmmmh... I see your point, but I don't think there's anyone in the village who speaks their tongue. We'll bring him back for safety reasons, but I doubt we can get anything more out of him."

Right. Language. I completely forgot about that. Since my rebirth, I learned the Rai'in's language, then the universal one all monsters are expected to know, but I never touched any of those spoken by non-monsters. As the Hero, I had to learn some Elvish and Dwarvish, and I knew the human language of course, but... do I even remember them? I guess I'll see when the person I'm carrying on my back wakes up.

Slowed down by the items we're carrying, we make it back to the village as the sun is setting.

"Erina, I'll bring the meat home for now, go see the Elder to know what to do with the stranger."

"Okay, on my way."

I walk through the village, attracting the attention of the few people still outside. I assume this is the first time most of them see a human, so I can't fault them for being curious.

Once I reach the Elder's office, I ring the bell and wait for a response. After a few seconds, I hear a voice high up in the tree:

"Yes, what is it?"

"Elder, I found a human in the forest. He appears to have been knocked unconscious by a snake, but I thought it would be too dangerous to simply let him recover by himself."

"A human, you say? Give me a moment."

I place my cargo against the tree, then wait. A minute later, the Elder comes down the ladder, as fast as his old bones allow him. Once he reaches the ground, he takes a look at him, then says:

"Yes, he does look strong. It could have been catastrophic if he had stumbled on a villager and became violent. There's an old storehouse we can lock from the outside, it should be sufficient to contain him in this diminished state."

"What are we going to do about the poison?"

"Did you see the snake that bit him?"

"Yes, it was dark yellow, with a black stripe on its head. The one that causes discomfort when we get bitten by it but isn't otherwise dangerous."

"Then there isn't much we can do. We'll provide him with water if he gets so sick that he needs it, but I doubt it'll be lethal, even for a human. Since that snake's venom isn't dangerous to us, we don't keep any antidote on hand. It would take about as long to make it as it will take for him to recover naturally, so there is no point."

"Very well. I'll bring him to the storehouse then."

"Please do so. I'll make sure to have people who will keep an eye on him for now."

"Could I be notified when he wakes up?"

"Mmh? Do you have something in mind?"

"I want to see if there's some way I can communicate with him despite the language barrier. He might know some things of interest to us."

"Very well, I'll make sure to alert you as soon as he wakes up."

I smile gratefully and grab the unconscious man before making my way to the storehouse.