The Hero Who Returned From The War Has Changed.

In the heart of the Herssian Kingdom's capital, a grand celebration hosted by the high aristocracy unfolded within the walls of the royal palace at the stroke of midnight.

Amidst the joyful chatter of the guests, a hush fell over the crowd as Crown Prince Maximilian Von Herssian made his way to the podium, signaling the beginning of a speech.

While many attendees were already aware of the purpose of the gathering, a sense of anticipation filled the air.

Standing at the center of the stage, the 18-year-old crown prince, with his piercing blue eyes, blond hair, and fair complexion, extended his arms wide and wore an affable expression.

"Ladies and gentlemen, thank you for joining us tonight. As you're well aware, our presence here marks a celebration of an event both unprecedented in our history and one that has haunted our ancestors since the founding of our kingdom. I am pleased to announce that the arduous four-year war against the demons is finally drawing to a close!" declared the crown prince.

The audience erupted in cheers and applause, prompting the crown prince to wait for the excitement to subside before continuing.

"While this moment brings joy to us all, let us not forget that the swift conclusion of this conflict owes much to the efforts of a singular individual! I speak, of course, of our Hero! Thanks to their exceptional feats over the past four years, our forces have reached the outskirts of the demon capital!"

The three great kingdoms—Herssian, Jacinto, and Ramantha—had joined forces four years prior to wage war against the demons, a conflict that shook the continents.

Despite widespread panic and the enormity of the impending war, an oracle from the Goddess enabled the summoning of three heroes from another world, one for each kingdom. Among these heroes, the one from Herssian distinguished themselves with unparalleled growth and prowess, swiftly becoming the mightiest warrior on the continent.

Now, as the crown prince revealed plans for the hero to lead the final assault on the demon capital, the festivities resumed. However, the merriment was short-lived as an unexpected interruption occurred.

Ascending the stage, the one who dared interrupt the crown prince was none other than the hero's fiancée and younger sister, Princess Isabella Von Herssian.

"Dearest brother, your speech has moved me deeply. May I propose a toast in celebration of our imminent victory? I've brought the latest fashionable wine for the occasion," she announced, stunning the audience not only with her proposal but also her stunning appearance.

Princess Isabella, with her straight blonde hair, bright blue eyes, and fair skin—typical of the Herssian Royal Family—was renowned for her beauty worldwide. With a charming smile and a cheerful personality, she was adored by citizens far and wide.

The crown prince, initially taken aback, quickly embraced his sister's suggestion. Within minutes, the celebration resumed, and the mood soared.

However, just as the dance was about to commence, the music abruptly ceased, and an unexpected voice echoed through the room.

"Hello, everyone! How have you been?"

The entrance of a lone figure left the entire assembly in stunned silence.

"Wh-what are you doing here?" managed to escape the crown prince's lips.

***

To elucidate the current circumstances, we must rewind five days.

Beyond the sea, outside the demon capital:

"Situation report! All forces are deployed and ready for the operation!" A soldier bellowed, executing the standard military salute.

"Excellent," General Damian responded with an impassive expression.

Damian, a middle-aged general, led the unified army of the alliance. Competent but not outstanding, the question lingered: why him for such a crucial mission? The answer was evident – he wasn't alone.

The entire army stood poised, awaiting orders to invade the demon capital.

"With our numerical advantage, seizing the capital will be a straightforward task. The satisfaction of obliterating those abominable creatures uplifts my spirits," Damian exclaimed, visibly jubilant.

Abruptly, he turned around, his expression shifting to one of admiration. "All thanks to you, Hero."

Before the general stood a man in his mid-twenties – Franz Alexander, the Herssian Hero. Straight black hair, deep blue eyes, and pale skin accentuated his ordinary appearance, but it was the four weapons adorning him that drew attention.

Two swords, long and short, hung on each side of his hip, accompanied by a bow and a spear on his back.

"You overestimate me, General Damian. This victory is the result of the Alliance's combined effort. I've merely played my part," Franz said, sporting a gentle smile.

"Hahaha, always so humble, Hero! Your strategy of a surprise night attack through the forest brought us close to the demon capital unseen," Damian praised.

However, their camaraderie was interrupted by a desperate cry from a soldier approaching.

An urgent report followed: "General, while checking our army's condition, I noticed a significant discrepancy in the number of soldiers. Initially, I attributed it to disorganization, but upon detailed examination, it appears not to be a mistake!"

The general and Franz exchanged glances, the crucial question hanging in the air. The soldier nervously revealed, "Approximately thirty percent of our forces are missing..."

Silence engulfed them.

"Investigate immediately and determine what happened to the missing soldiers! How did we overlook this?" Damian furiously ordered.

He appeared visibly angry, but beneath the anger, confusion dominated his emotions.

'How did this happen? Did the soldiers get lost in the middle of the journey? No. That's impossible. They were too many to just get lost! Were they attacked by enemies? That's even more difficult. An attack of that magnitude wouldn't have gone unnoticed!' he thought.

"Ahg-!"

Before our eyes, the soldier who had just reported to the general suddenly collapsed to the ground. With no visible injuries, he lay lifeless on the ground. However, if you look closely, you can see that blood is coming out of his nose and mouth. Of course, the General's eyes widened in surprise.

Unfortunately, without giving him time to understand the unexpected turn of events, we began to hear several screams around us.

"General, it's raining arrows from the sky!"

Other soldiers rushed to the scene.

"We also received reports that they are attacking us from the East!"

"General, they are attacking us from the South!"

"From the West, they are attacking us!"

"From the North too!"

The general couldn't follow the situation that was getting out of control.

"It's an ambush!"

It was all he could say.

***

Back at the Royal Palace.

"...And this is how the great army of the alliance was exterminated in the ambush."

The looks of the crowned prince and the other guests were of absolute disbelief after I just finished explaining what happened just a few days ago.

The crown prince, in particular, couldn't comprehend the situation.

"What do you mean, hero?" he asked skeptically.

Right.

The man who suddenly appeared was none other than me.

Franz, the Hero of this Kingdom.

"As you said before, the army troops faced an ambush, but considering the size and power of the troops, they should be enough to win. Much less complete annihilation!" The crown prince yelled.

As it was natural that they were so confused, I continued my explanation.

"Well, It's actually due to a variety of factors," I coughed a little before speaking.

"First of all, because we were in a forest, our troops were separated from each other, so the communication in the chain of command was delayed a lot. Furthermore, we were in the middle of the dark continent after avoiding several strongholds, so it was quite easy for the enemy forces to surround us and finally... to make matters worse, the enemy was extremely adept at fighting in the forest since it was their homeland territory. So it was quite easy for them to defeat us there."

The faces of those present quickly turned pale at my ominous comments. Of course, the crown prince couldn't easily accept my words so easily.

"That makes no sense at all. I mean, in that place wasn't only you, the strongest hero, but also a lot of the elites of the Alliance!"

Holy Knights, The Great Sage, The Paladins of the Church. And even the Great Archmage.

They were indeed the most powerful warriors in the army coalition after the heroes. So, it was normal that he didn't understand how these great figures couldn't resist and just perish.

After pondering for a moment, I finally answered the prince's question as if I just remembered something.

"Ah, those guys?"

I scratched the back of my neck while answering this question in the most straightforward way.

"Well, unfortunately, they died before the ambush even started."

!!!

"If you remember my story, a soldier collapsed on the floor out of nowhere before the general. Well, this didn't just happen to him. In fact, a large number of soldiers died even before being hit by enemy arrows," I explained.

"It can't be! Were they poisoned?! How could something like that have happened to the elites and so many soldiers at once!?" The crown prince replied.

"Well, that's because of the wine they previously drank, of course," I said while nodding as if stating an obvious fact.

???!

"What do you mean with- !!!"

At that moment, the crown prince realized it before ending his sentence.

Why did the hero understand this situation so perfectly and be so calm in explaining it?

What's more...

Wasn't he the one who suggested this plan in the first place?

While watching the crown prince put on a gloomy expression, I couldn't avoid saying: "Haven't figured it all out yet?"

It was actually quite surprising that it took so long.

At my words, the crowned prince looked at me with a face of surprise and anger.

"No way... You!!! It was you!! Why??!! How dare you-!"

Unfortunately, the crowned prince couldn't finish the sentence because blood was suddenly coming out of his mouth and nose. He coughed blood in large quantities, staining the entire white floor crimson red.

The crown prince's eyes widened as he realized what had happened.

"It can't be... The wine?... Isabella..." The crown prince murmurs agitated.

The crowned prince, with a devastated expression, looked around. All the aristocrats lay lifeless on the cold ground. Even the members of the Royal Family weren't spared. The King and Queen, who were sitting on their thrones, lay asleep. His brothers and sisters were on the cold ground.

All but his sister; The Third Princess, Isabella Von Herssian, who was silently standing alone with the same cheerful smile on her face.

With a great feeling of betrayal, the crowned prince, Maximilian Von Herssian, fell to his knees with a blank expression.

In front of the crown prince, after looking at his expression, I couldn't help but be surprised for a moment.

"...Ah? Hold on a minute... Don't tell me you didn't expect a coup, do you?"

Oh my god.

Are you serious?

You really hoped that I, a kidnapped person from 21st-century Earth, would help you in your grand plan to save humanity from 'demons'.

Is he mentally ill or something?

In case no one has noticed, this Medieval Fantasy World, although it has things such as magic, divine powers, and stuff like that, is not actually that different from Earth.

What I'm trying to say here is that there are actually no beings like the demons of the typical tales of fantasy novels.

Imagine my surprise when I found out that the demons, persecuted and hated for hundreds and hundreds of years are simply...

HUMANS OF ANOTHER ETHNICITY.

YEAH.

YOU ARE LISTENING WELL.

THE GREAT WAR TO GET RID OF EVIL...

IT WAS JUST A WAR OF DISCRIMINATION ALL THIS TIME!

And the Herssian kingdom is one of the main promoters of the 'humanity's purification project'.

Call me crazy but I've already read about this pattern in my life on Earth and it didn't end well!

So even if with my strength I can win this war, the problems that would have to be faced after the war are unimaginable.

Slavery or even total annihilation for all the inhabitants of the other continent just because they are 'demons' in the eyes of these crazy bastards.

I'm not a psychopath, so there is no way I would allow that!

And before you tell me anything about the deaths I've done here.

Did I kill innocent people who were only following orders from their relatives or people of higher rank?

You're too naive.

All these people have been indoctrinated from birth to have a deep hatred for those different from them. If I left someone with power alive, it could all start over in just a couple of years.

Are the citizens of the empire going to be upset by what I just did?

Well, just some of them.

Although I didn't mention it before, thirty percent of the missing forces are actually soldiers of this kingdom who committed treason by joining me in the coup.

While wealthy aristocrats throw extravagant parties in the royal palace, the kingdom's citizens face harsh living conditions due to the mismanagement of public resources in continuing a pointless war.

So, to achieve a truly happy ending I have no choice but to take drastic measures!

"You can rest in peace, Prince Maximilian. I swear on my name as a hero, that I will save humanity!"

Yeah. I will save humanity from psychopaths like you. And unfortunately, there is a lot of work to be done...

***

Author's Note: I have edited this and other chapters several times so a lot of comments were deleted. Sorry for that situation but I am still improving and learning as a writer. I appreciate any corrections and comments about the story!