The hero might come. That dreadful news has finally arrived.
But there’s no point in lamenting the current situation. Crying out here won’t change my fate.
The only thing I can do is find some way to repel the hero.
As for whether the current strength of this dungeon is enough to achieve that… it’s almost impossible.
“They’re probably just calling themselves a ‘hero,’ anyway. There are plenty of those kinds of people out there. In the end, it’s just a legend,”
Jeet said something like that, but… the hero coming here is undoubtedly the real deal—the protagonist, and strong.
Such words offer no comfort whatsoever.
“Evilham-sama! Reporting in! A boy wielding a sword is headed this way!”
“What!?”
So, the hero has finally come. There’s no time to strengthen our forces now. Is there any way to resolve this through negotiation?
“What should we do? Should we strike first and beat him to a pulp? After all, it’s just one kid.”
“Idiot! Littleham! Don’t lay a finger on him!”
“B-but… even if he’s a kid, he’s armed. Is it really okay to let someone like that into the depths of the dungeon?”
Littleham’s concern is understandable. However, if we attack first, there will be no chance for negotiation.
“We’ll only take him down if negotiations fail.”
And besides, while weak monsters may respawn after being defeated, I don’t want to waste lives needlessly.
“For now, gather only the strongest monsters here and have them stand by. Let the rest continue their usual duties.”
“Understood. I’ll give the instructions.”
Littleham followed my orders and got things moving. A few minutes later, the battle-hardened elites who had proven themselves in tournaments gathered around me.
“Listen up. Someone claiming to be a hero is coming. But don’t attack him.”
“Aw, come on. Again with the no-attacking rule? Evilham-sama, you’re way too soft on intruders.”
“We should just crush anyone who trespasses!”
The monsters began to grumble. I can’t say I don’t understand their feelings, but this time the opponent is different.
Thud. Thud. Footsteps drew closer. I swallowed hard and waited for the person behind them to appear.
At this point, I had no choice but to steel myself. If you’re coming, then come! I clenched my trembling fists and braced myself.
And then, the boy appeared before me.
A black-haired boy with a forehead protector and a sword in hand.
His sharp eyes were fixed on me. There’s no mistaking it—this appearance screams “hero.”
“Finally, a monster. And such a warm welcome with so many of you waiting.”
The hero readied his sword, taking a combat stance. This is bad. At this rate, the fight will break out.
“Wait! Hero! I have no intention of harming you!”
I tried to persuade the hero. But he didn’t lower his sword.
“You’re the one who’s harmed people—that’s why I’m here.”
He didn’t seem willing to listen at all. If he took that adventurer’s story at face value, then to him, we’re nothing more than evil monsters.
“Wait. We only fought back because our dungeon was invaded. It was they who attacked us first.”
“Lies! You’re just monsters. There’s no way I’ll let you deceive humans with your lies!”
It’s hopeless. He’s not going to understand. Does this mean I’ll have to fight him?
“Hey! What did you just say? Are you calling our Evilham-sama a liar, huh?”
A goblin glared at the hero and started approaching him.
“H-hey!”
I tried to stop the goblin, but before I could, the goblin swung his club and struck the hero on the head.
A loud thud echoed. The hero collapsed to the ground, struck by the club.
“Heh. See? We should’ve done this from the start, Evilham-sama.”
“You idiot… What have you done…”
The blood drained from my face. It’s over. We were the ones who attacked first.
As I stood frozen in fear, the hero twitched and then slowly got up, his fighting spirit burning even stronger.
“So, you never intended to talk it out. You just ambushed me.”
“Wha…?! He’s still standing after taking my hit…?”
The goblin’s face turned pale. This is bad. We’ve completely enraged the hero.
Should I have gone alone from the start? No, maybe talking things out was impossible from the beginning.
In that case, should I have decided to defeat the hero from the outset? These thoughts swirled in my mind.
“Take this!”
The hero slashed at the goblin with all his might. The goblin collapsed to his knees after taking the blow.
“Guh…!”
“Hey! Are you okay? You bastard! You’ll pay for this!”
The other monsters, enraged by the goblin’s defeat, started shouting.
Is a fight unavoidable now…? Should I give the order for everyone to attack the hero at once?
Before I could decide, the monsters charged at the hero on their own.
“You’ll pay for what you did to my comrade!”
Another goblin swung his club at the hero, but the hero effortlessly dodged the attack.
“Too slow!”
The hero countered with a slash of his sword, and the goblin fell to the ground.
“You’ll regret that!”
A killer beetle charged at the hero, but he leapt into the air and dodged.
“What?!”
“Take this!”
The hero landed a flying kick on the beetle’s back. The beetle writhed in pain after the blow.
It’s hopeless. He’s too strong. Apart from that first sneak attack, we can’t even touch him.
The carnivorous plant, slime, and sahagin also attacked the hero, but none of their attacks landed, and they were all defeated effortlessly.
“Time to finish this.”
The monsters, pushed to the brink of death, were at the mercy of the hero. He raised his sword, smiling cruelly.
This is bad. At this rate, my comrades will be killed. I have to do something…
“W-wait! Hero! I was wrong. I surrender.”
“What are you saying?”
The hero looked at me with a puzzled expression. Clearly, he couldn’t understand why someone like me—a boss—would concede before fighting.
“Aren’t you stronger than the weaklings here? You might even be able to beat me. So why are you giving up now?”
The hero’s logic was sound. But that’s a decision only a heartless monster would make.
“I’ll give you all the treasure and supplies in this dungeon. So please, spare their lives.”
I bowed my head to the hero. He seemed taken aback by my action.
“What? Why would a monster… and the boss, no less… bow for the sake of his comrades?”
“They’re my precious comrades. I can’t afford to lose them.”
The hero must have thought monsters were cold and ruthless. But my actions were clearly beyond what he expected.
The hero hesitated, his sword frozen in place.
“Do you really want to save these monsters that badly?”
“Yes. More than anything.”
“I see… However, I can’t just let this go after they attacked me. I need more than a simple plea.”
The hero pointed the tip of his sword at me.
“Your head. If you offer me your head, I’ll spare these monsters. After all, I can’t leave this dungeon without at least one monster’s head to show for it.”
The hero flashed a cold, cruel smile.
