Chapter 345 Shaping a Hero

For a country, there's no such thing as spending too much to shape a hero, especially when that hero is genuine. Compared to the contributions they make and the boost to morale they provide, any price is worth paying. As king, Moron clearly considered this. Upon learning that Becky was staying in Holleta, he immediately made a series of follow-up plans, starting with giving Becky an exceptionally generous reward.

Becky finally got the manor she dreamed of, not far from the royal capital in the noble district. Everything was ready. After the king's decree, the manor was sent to Becky in perfect condition. The mercenary girl happily invited Hao Ren and his gang to her new home, accompanied by Ofra, who came in person as a "comrade-in-arms" to congratulate Becky on moving.

In front of the magnificent Holletta-style pastoral mansion, Becky pointed excitedly at the surrounding fountains and gardens: "Look at this, look at this… I always dreamed of living in a house with a garden! Now it's all mine!"

Hao Ren knew it was impossible to calm Becky down in this situation, so he could only smile and watch the girl's antics like everyone else, nodding and congratulating her: "Congratulations, congratulations, you've finally made a name for yourself—any plans?"

"Didn't His Majesty say so? I'm a legendary mercenary now!" Becky raised her head proudly. "Eat, sleep, eat, then put on good clothes and boast in public, that's my specialty—when I used to boast in the tavern, I could boast all night with half a barrel of ale! And even if it's a tall tale, I can make it sound consistent…"

Hao Ren was stunned, while Nangong Wuyue sighed, slapping her forehead: "I have a feeling Becky's going to be useless soon…"

Hao Ren thought for a moment, feeling that the setting of "legendary mercenary indulging in enjoyment after making a name for herself, spending her days in revelry and eventually becoming a complete good-for-nothing" couldn't be more absurd, so he quickly reminded Becky: "Take it easy, don't turn yourself into a complete waste of space. And don't let people sell you out: the royal family is using you as a propaganda tool, you need to understand your own weight and position, remember to tell me if you're really getting bullied."

Ofra raised her eyes and glanced at Hao Ren: "Is it appropriate for you to say that in front of me? I'm here to be your guide on behalf of the king."

"Precisely because you represent the king," Hao Ren chuckled twice, "We're acquaintances to some extent, and you probably know Becky's personality, and you know our situation pretty well, so I hope you can help take care of her. This silly girl only knows how to make money, her intelligence in other areas is basically the same as the husky next to me, if she…"

Hao Ren was interrupted by Lily's sudden attack, the husky girl biting Hao Ren's arm with all her might, sparks flying from the force field. Becky wanted to join in, but after looking around and seeing no room for her, she could only give up. Vivian watched the situation, shrugging and muttering to herself: "With that mouth of his, it wouldn't be a loss if someone beat him to death."

Lily finally let go after gnawing for half a minute, covering her mouth and wincing in pain, pretending to be dominant while baring her teeth: "Landlord, I'll get angry if you do that again… ow, that hurts…"

Vivian rolled her eyes: "You bite someone and end up looking like a grandson, can't you be a bit more promising, dog?"

"Honestly, I was really scared when I first heard that we were being promoted as martyrs," Becky said happily, looking at the manicured garden and the three-story mansion in the distance. "At the time, I was afraid His Majesty would do the whole thing, and conveniently replace my manor with a north-facing scenic tomb… thankfully, the reward hasn't been finalized yet, otherwise I'd have to go to the cemetery to get my property certificate."

Ofra was confused by Becky's pile of terms from another world, but she still understood the general idea and immediately explained enthusiastically: "Because there are no 'remains', the royal family is building cenotaphs for you, oh, it's just north of your manor, people have been coming to offer flowers every day for the past two months."

Becky's face turned green in an instant, and the expressions of Hao Ren and the others weren't much better…

"Of course, Becky, you can 'revive' soon," Ofra didn't notice the expressions of the others, and just continued, "The next propaganda baseline has been set: you survived the Beinz Great Explosion, and have been recuperating in a small monastery near the Dragon Spine Mountains for the past two months, and returned to the royal capital three days ago and were summoned by the king. You will be awarded the official title of Legendary Mercenary, jointly recognized by the royal family and the church. In addition, considering that your title of 'Martyr' will be revoked, the church will add a new religious saint name for you, probably God-blessed Warrior or Protector Knight or something… according to past practice, you should choose one of these two titles."

It was obvious what would happen next: using a heroic image to appease the people whose hearts were shaken by the "eldest son" (publicly announced as an evil god invasion) incident. Becky nodded thoughtfully: "So my grave can be leveled soon, right?"

Hao Ren covered his forehead: "Our graves are set in stone…"

"Who told you not to show your faces," Becky patted Hao Ren's shoulder with a grin. "It's okay, we're all good buddies, I'll remember to visit your graves often—speaking of which, do you prefer ale or mead? Ordinary people here use mead for grave visits, but mercenaries are used to using ale to commemorate their comrades…"

Hao Ren and the others rolled their eyes at Becky, while Nangong Sanba, who had witnessed the whole thing, finally couldn't help but sigh: "How come my values have collapsed so much after only a few days of acting with you… is this how you guys usually live?"

"These days, which transmigrator follows normal values, especially since I'm a certified transmigrator," Hao Ren hugged his shoulders and chuckled. "I was called the Sun King on another planet, and they made a statue of me that looked like I was going to die heroically. I'm still better off, Lily was treated as a guardian sacred beast over there, and the form it took was that every household pasted her dog head photo on their doors to ward off evil spirits."

Lily: "Woof?"

Nangong Sanba was sweating profusely. He had already been overwhelmed by seeing the world with Hao Ren these past few days, and hearing more truths at this time finally made him deeply suspect whether his decision to join was a mistake. But he didn't have a chance to express his opinion, because his sister was already excitedly dragging everyone to see the graves that the Holletta royal family had built for their group…

Few people in this world have the opportunity to visit their own graves—well, it's impossible for that to happen at all, but Hao Ren did it, and a group of his friends did it.

The new cemetery built to commemorate the martyrs of Beinz was just north of the royal capital, solemn and majestic. Heavy obsidian monuments were neatly arranged in the cemetery, inscribed with the lives and greatest achievements of the fallen—fighting against evil gods. And just as Ofra had promised, the memorials and statues of Hao Ren and the others were really placed in the front row… these unlucky guys came to the cemetery in a carriage and the first thing they saw was those things, and everyone was filled with mixed feelings…

Becky stepped forward and found her memorial, happily patting the heavy and solid obsidian stele: "Look, facing south, scenic grave!"

Hao Ren covered his face, unable to look directly: "You can still be happy… oh, right, your grave will be leveled soon. Damn it, why do I only experience such bizarre things."

Vivian was very open-minded: "Actually, you'll feel that it's nothing after living for a long time, I often sleep in coffins, and I've slept in tombs before."

Lily circled her memorial, grunting a few times in her throat, then bent down and started digging a hole in the ground. Nangong Wuyue looked at her curiously: "What are you doing?"

"Digging a hole, burning some paper money for myself, to prevent me from running out of money."

Vivian whispered in Hao Ren's ear: "That's why I never try to understand what's going on in this big dog's head."

But before a few seconds had passed, Vivian suddenly remembered something and called out to Lily: "Hey, burn some for me too! It might work!"

Everyone: "…"

Hao Ren sighed: "That's why I never try to understand what's going on in anyone's head around me."

(It's time to ask for monthly tickets! Everyone, check if you still have any monthly tickets, throw a few to support me! I haven't forgotten to ask for tickets this month!)