Humanity's Hero Of Despair

The soft morning sunlight streams through the grand arched windows of my guest room in the royal palace, its warmth a stark contrast to the weight on my shoulders.

I sit up, the events of yesterday flooding back as I rub the sleep from my eyes. The new title of Viscount, the King's request for a united Glozaria, and the need to assemble a team for an enormous mission.

There is no time to waste.

I quickly dress in formal but practical attire befitting my new rank and make my way to the royal dining hall. A long table stretches nearly the length of the room, its surface gleaming with polished silverware and platters piled high with an assortment of food.

The air is thick with the fragrant smells of bread baking and spiced meats. King Grey occupies the head of the table, his commanding presence never fading. Zephyr, munching on pastries, sits beside him, while Quillen calmly sips tea.

But it isn't just the King and my friends who are there to greet me.

"Matteo! Leena!" I shout, a grin spreading across my face as I see them seated further down the table.

Leena shoots up from her seat and embraces me with a tight hug, her laughter echoing as she squeezes me. Matteo walks behind at a slower pace, but his warm expression is obvious.

"Well, it's about time you got here," Matteo says with a clap on my shoulder. "We feared you might have gotten lost in the palace's many hallways."

Leena draws back, her eyes sparkling with excitement. "I'm so happy to see you again, Nico! When Father told us you were back from your mission at Muedar, we couldn't believe it."

I sit between them, chuckling softly. "It's been a long time. I was surprised to see you both, too. Did your father pull you out of Hero Academy for this?"

Matteo answers as Leena is busy stuffing her face with food.

"Yeah! We were getting ready to head to Hero Academy when our father here told us he wanted us to stay home for a special reason. He explained nothing despite our best efforts. So we just enjoyed a nice breakfast when suddenly we saw Zephyr and Quillen at the breakfast table.

"We thought you were busy on another assignment, but I'm glad it was just you sleeping in."

Leena giggles as I raise my eyebrow at Matteo's remark. It's hard to tell with the guy what's a teasing insult or just his actual opinion on what happened. I look at King Grey, but all he does is gesture for me to eat. It looks like the discussion will come up after breakfast.

The royal breakfast is unlike anything I have ever imagined before in my life. Platters of endless eggs, ham, bread, fruits, sausages, and pastries are displayed on the tables as the servants keep bringing more and more food. I also have an endless supply of water, orange juice, and really anything I want to have. Even though I am now a Viscount, I still feel like this breakfast is beyond my league.

The breakfast goes by like a blur.

Leena and Matteo catch Zephyr and me up on the latest news happening at the academy. They describe how our other friends are doing and how they are acing their tests. In exchange, Zephyr and I recount our travels throughout Tarondar to Muedar. Quillen stays mostly quiet while sipping tea and reading a book.

Once breakfast is mostly done, King Grey stands up from his chair at the head of the table.

"I hope you all had a satisfying breakfast. Here is the plan for today. Nico, I would like you to lead your friends to gather that travel group we discussed a while back. My guess is you would like to recruit some of your friends from Hero Academy. Because of this prediction, I have already communicated with Avalon Festus about you taking people out of their classes if need be. Since the future of humanity could be at stake again."

"You and your sister are the only known humans and beings on the planet who know how to use origin magic, which will be an invaluable asset in protecting humanity. We know you did not choose this path yourself and neither did your sister. So if you want to back out of this, you may. You have done more than enough for us."

King Grey's words shock me slightly, as I do not expect to have the option to get out of this if I want to. Even though I have the option, I will not take it.

"Thank you for giving me the option to decline. However, your majesty, I would like to lead this effort in establishing this temporary alliance in case the dragons and goblins attack any human settlements again. I have seen with my own eyes the devastation they cause, and if I can prevent them from doing that with my power to others, I will. If not for them, I will do it for myself. Greed created the Eradicators."

I want to add in the personal fact that I want to defeat the dragons and goblins since they are showing greed. Greed ended up killing my parents. Greed robbed me of my memories for several months in the past.

Leena, Matteo, Zephyr, and even Quillen look happy with my reply. We all get up from the table and head out the door to go recruit our friends. We want to make it back in time to the throne room before it gets too dark. When it is dark outside, it makes magical beasts stronger.

Before we know it, we arrive at Hero Academy. The process of collecting our friends is easier than expected. We all split up and explore various parts of campus and predict where they would be located. After finding everyone and explaining to them what is happening, we head back to the Tarondar Palace well within the time we are allotted.

King Grey looks shocked as we take less than a couple of hours to assemble the team. He smiles as he recognizes the familiar faces I bring in. There is a squadron of magical knights who are going to join us on the journey. King Grey tells us he wants the group to be extra safe and look more official.

Just like that, we are off to the capital of the Veltharian Republic in several carriages. We are going to explore uncharted territory beyond the safe zone of Tarondar.

Let's see what lies in store for us.