The moon dominated the night sky, and the campfires lit up in the dark forest to give light to the surroundings. The knights and adventurers took their rest; however, they remained vigilant and prepared for anything, especially given the battles they fought earlier.

Killian joined his adventurer comrades, a white towel on his shoulder, drying his wet hair. He sat on the log and extended his hands to the fire, feeling the heat it gave.

"What took you so long, Killian? You really took your time taking a bath in the river, huh?" One of the adventurers said, laughing.

"The water is refreshing, and it is quite enjoyable to dip in, so I decided to relish in it until I have my fill," Killian answered, his puzzling words suggesting he was not talking about the water on the actual river.

"I see. But you should be careful, Killian; monsters are more frequent these days; always keep an eye on your surroundings," the other adventurer said and handed a stick with boar meat to Killian. "Don't forget that you are a vital unit in this mission."

Killian nodded and grabbed the stick with the boar meat being handed to him. "I will," he replied, and he put the meat on fire on the campfire.

The attention of the five adventurers on that campfire was taken when another adventurer rushed towards them. The adventurer sat with them with an excited smile on his face, looking at everyone with a meaningful gaze.

"Do you hear about the rumor circling around?" The adventurer said, ready to reveal what he heard.

"Rumor, huh? Let us hear it," one of the adventurers said, intrigued in his voice.

Killian, on the other hand, didn't even look in the newly arrived adventurer's direction. He silently cooked his boar meat, but his ears were listening very closely.

"There's a leak of information from the knights about our mission— especially what the mission of the two princesses is," the adventurer said, chuckling.

"Now that you mentioned it, it feels odd that we still don't know what the reason is why the two princesses decided to come to our town," one of the adventurers said, furrowing his eyebrows.

The adventurer who heard the rumor leaned into the campfire, prompting others to do the same, then whispered. "They can't just reveal it because it is a huge thing, and I mean so huge that it made my jaw drop when I heard it. It is unbelievable!"

"Stop teasing us and tell us already, you idiot!" Screamed the others. 

Leaves and small stones flew as they threw it to their comrade, their curiosity visible in their eyes.

"I was about to; you people are so impatient," the adventurer said and leaned again, taking the full attention of everyone. "The person they are looking for, which they believe is hiding in our town, is none other than..." His eyes glowed in anticipation. "The legendary mage, Zero."

The entire campfire turned silent, with only the sound of grilled boar meat sounding in their small space. Killian's eyes darted to the speaker, and his demeanor turned darker, as shown by the moonlight above.

"I'll call that rumor a lie," one of the adventurers immediately said, shrugging.

"I agree; that doesn't make sense at all," said the other.

"What? I am sure of it. I also hear that they plan to convince him to take on the role of the new hero in this incoming war. After all, he is quite strong—legendary strong," the adventurer said, convincing the others about the rumor he heard.

"But that doesn't make sense. How would the legendary mage fight in this war? He may have been strong back then, but I don't think that's the case now. I mean, he is probably around 70 years old by now. An old man using a cane to walk—" the bald adventurer's word stopped as the other slapped his head.

"You ignorant fool, that was not what we meant when we said it doesn't make any sense. Age is not the problem here," the one who was the most muscular said. "Besides, I think Zero is still more than capable of fighting in this war.

The red-haired adventurer raised his index finger. "Oh, I remember now that age is not a problem. Unlike us humans, Zero will remain young." He nodded as he remembered what he knew. "Zero is not a human. He is a part of a now extinct species of demon; he belongs in a very rare and dangerous type of Incubus Demon, one that can turn a strong-willed stoic queen into an extremely submissive sex slave. I believe he is the only one left of their kind because a certain human kingdom annihilated their entire tribe in fear of their terrifying potential."

"That's why it doesn't make any sense that he is in our town. And even if he is somehow here, I doubt he would step in to help this time. Zero hates humans more than anything. The only reason he helped 50 years ago was because of the hero. And also, he was not a person with the personality of a savior; he is a ruthless, sadistic, egocentric maniac—he was called Ruthless Calamity for a very good reason."

"I bet if he hadn't met the hero and changed his heart even a little, he would have been the next in line to do what the demon lord Aygibhed failed to do," the rumor-spreading adventurer said, nodding.

"The fact that someone as dangerous as him is hiding in our town is already a dreadful thing to hear—seeing him in person must be very scary," one of the adventurers said, his eyes showing concern. "After all, he was the most feared member of the hero's party, by both our side and the demon army. He was the only one who managed to gain such a reputation."

Killian dropped the stick of boar meat in his hand, burning it in the fire. He slowly exhaled and stood up. Without saying a word, he walked away.

"Killian, where are you going?" The muscular adventurer asked.

Killian didn't reply and just continued walking away, leaving the other adventurers looking at each other in confusion.

"I bet he got so scared in our stories that he dropped the meat he was cooking and fled, in fear of hearing more," one of the adventurers said, laughing.

"That guy, stories about Zero are more than enough to make him walk away. I think he would scream in fear if he met Zero in person—I mean, I would scream too, but not as loud as him," said the red hair, which the other laughed at.

On the other hand, when Killian walked into the dark forest, his eyes had no emotion. Looking up at the moon. Slowly, a meaningful smirk emerged from his lips. "I am glad to hear they still remember Zero the way I want them to."