Can Someone (Anyone!) Please Turn Off the Auto-Skill Setting?! - Chapter 8
She flailed her arms, trying to regain her balance, but eventually, she tumbled to the ground. Then, an excited voice came from near her rear.
“Got her!”
“We caught the human!”
【 Nancy’s luck decreases. 】
The voices belonged to the little demons.
Startled, Nancy looked at the customer, who also began to shrink. Before she knew it, the customer had become just as small as the little demons.
Only then did Nancy realize what was happening.
“You tricked me!”
Nancy appreciated the sarcastic congratulation. Cursing the system, she tried to get up, but the little demons quickly tied her up with ropes.
Bound and struggling, Nancy shouted loudly,
“I won’t give the money back!”
She threatened that even if they put a knife to her throat, she wouldn’t return the money. The customer—now revealed as Chuck, one of the little demons—approached her and spoke near her head.
“You don’t have to give it back. It’s the rightful payment for the food you sold us.”
Hearing that they wouldn’t take the money back, Nancy’s furious breathing gradually calmed. She rolled her eyes, trying to assess the situation.
If they weren’t trying to take the money back, why had they captured her? Could it be that with the Hero’s Festival approaching, the dormant demons were starting a war against humans?
“W-What do you want from me?”
She might be in a life-threatening situation. Nancy’s lips trembled with fear. The little demons, seeing the terrified human, laughed among themselves before shouting in unison.
“Become a hero for us!”
“To be exact, become a hero and punish those Ferron scum who keep tormenting us!”
“They make our lives unbearable!”
“Take them down right away!”
The little demons, who seemed to have a deep grudge against the Ferrons, stomped their feet and clamored excitedly. Nancy’s eyes darted here and there as she thought for a moment before speaking.
“Are you asking a hero to defeat your own kind? Are you out of your mind?”
“They’re not our kind! They’re bad guys who exploit us!”
“Even so… why ask a hero to deal with that? Can’t you demons handle demon problems yourselves?”
Nancy, bewildered, tried to draw a line. Suddenly, the little demons started coughing and pretended to be in pain.
“We don’t… cough, cough… have the strength to fight them.”
“You’re saying you don’t have strength while you’re tying me up?”
“We would prefer to ask a powerful demon, but the only one who cares about weak demons like us is the Demon King.”
“Then ask the Demon King to…”
Nancy trailed off, realizing what she was saying. How could the Demon King, who was sealed away by a hero, help them when she couldn’t even help herself?
“It’s a pitiful situation, but it’s impossible. I can’t become a hero.”
“Why not?”
“Why not? I’m just an ordinary shopkeeper. I don’t even know how to use a sword.”
If she knew how to fight, she wouldn’t have been captured so easily. Nancy gestured to her immobilized body with her eyes.
“I’ll give you this ring.”
Chuck grinned and held out a ring to her. Nancy looked back and forth between Chuck’s face and the ring he offered. The large, transparent gem emitted a dazzling light that seemed almost blinding.
“This is the hero’s ring. If you have something that belonged to a hero, you can become one, right?”
“That’s right. So if you carry this and take the challenge, you might be able to draw the sword!”
The little demons spoke with confidence.
There were indeed rumors in the market that carrying something that belonged to a former hero increased your chances of becoming one.
But whether it was true or not, Nancy wasn’t sure. She had always thought it was just a cheap trick used by swindlers. Pens, potions—they sold all sorts of items claiming they had belonged to the previous hero, who was long dead, so no one could verify their authenticity.
“I have a lot of questions, but first, did you buy that from the market?”
Nancy, skeptical, asked. The elder among the little demons proudly exclaimed,
“I stole it 30 years ago from the hero’s belongings! It was the most valuable-looking item!”
He was incredibly smug about it.
Even if it really was a cherished item, what were the chances it would actually work? A hero tasked with such a significant mission wouldn’t be chosen so carelessly.
Anyone with half a brain would realize that, but these little demons didn’t seem particularly bright. Nancy felt a bit sorry for them.
“I’m sorry, but even if that ring is real, the odds of me becoming a hero are…”
“If you refuse our proposal, we’ll report you to the temple. You know that striking deals with demons is a serious crime, right?”
Chuck cut her off with a threat just as she was about to kindly reject their dream.
Nancy immediately withdrew her pity for them.
No matter how small, a demon was still a demon—cunning and wicked.
Or maybe not so cunning. If they were truly smart, they wouldn’t have chosen a shopkeeper who couldn’t fight as their hero.
“There’s a reason we chose you,” Chuck said, as if reading Nancy’s thoughts.
He puffed out his chest proudly.
