The Hero

At 12:30 AM, Ore-sama aired on television.

The viewership ratings were very mediocre.

With the rise of online streaming, few anime producers pay attention to television ratings anymore, because very few viewers choose to sit in front of a TV late at night to watch anime.

Of course, this excludes anime aired during prime time in the daytime slots.

However, Misawa Hiroshi, a director who was only in his thirties but already had a dangerously receding hairline, was concerned. As the anime finished airing on TV, there was no movement on Twitter—not even praise or insults. He collapsed directly onto the floor and let out a wail of "It's all over."

No wonder he was going bald...

In fact, the number of people following the new anime Ore-sama.

Was slightly higher than everyone imagined, or at least higher than what Misawa Hiroshi had imagined.

After all, while this show was hard to describe in certain aspects, it was actually quite interesting.

For instance, the protagonist's verbal tic and his name...

And for an anime, the most feared things aren't brain-dead plots or broken animation, but rather a lack of interest, because that leaves viewers without even the desire to keep watching.

For a new anime like Ore-sama, or most new anime for that matter, the viewership for the first episode is the highest. Regardless of what mindset the viewers hold—whether they are testing the waters, attracted by the title, or were already fans of the original work.

As long as they feel the work suits their taste, they will always click in to watch one episode, or even just a few minutes...

If it suits them, they keep following.

If it doesn't, goodbye.

Then, the viewership for the second episode drops. Some viewers choose to drop the show due to reasons like—disliking the plot direction, disliking the protagonist's personality, poor animation, or thinking, "Was I stupid for wanting to watch this show?" and other similar thoughts.

By the third episode, the viewership count is roughly confirmed. Having been baptized by the first two episodes, the viewers already have a general idea of what kind of mess they are watching.

The subsequent number of followers won't fluctuate much; it will generally remain stable until the final episode, at which point there might be a slight increase, as some viewers who dropped it halfway or simply didn't have time to keep up might return to see how it ends.

This is the typical trajectory for the viewership of an average anime.

Shows with plot developments like a heroine getting decapitated, the protagonist getting cuckolded, or "Why did my pocket watch stop?" are exceptions...

Ore-sama did not have any such plot points; it was an ordinary anime that followed the three-episode rule. Except for the strong contrast between "shit and chocolate" in the sixth episode and the sense of anticipation it built, which attracted some new viewers, the seventh episode's "shit-tier" production scared quite a few people away. Overall, the number of followers didn't skyrocket, nor did it experience a cliff-like drop.

It maintained a roughly stable number.

And most of these followers were users of video websites, so it was still too early for Misawa Hiroshi to lament that "it's all over." The specific reception would depend on the situation after the anime went live on the video sites.

Half an hour after the TV broadcast ended.

Ore-sama went live on the video website.

In a certain university dormitory, Li Duoyu...

A boy whose name sounded quite funny and who was always chugging drinks, hadn't watched anime for a long time due to graduation-related matters.

So, the idea of never leaving the otaku life is truly a very naive statement.

Work, graduation projects, and parting ways.

For the past half month, he had been troubled by these things. He certainly had time to watch anime, but often, he wasn't in the mood.

Today, he finally remembered the things he liked, though he didn't buy cola because he heard that stuff kills sperm.

Making do with a sip of plain boiled water, he put on his headphones and clicked on the anime adaptation he had been most fond of this season, You Are My Hero.

While recalling the previous plot and watching the latest developments, slowly, that familiar feeling returned.

His heart was stirred by the characters in the anime, feeling either passionate or distressed.

Occasionally, a roommate would pass by, see his phone screen, and tease him with a "Watching anime again?", at which point he would pull himself out of that state of being moved by the characters, show a slightly awkward smile, say "Just watching whatever," punch his roommate, and mess around until the roommate left, only then putting his headphones back on.

Watching all the way to the latest episode, he took a fierce gulp of his plain water.

His mood, which had been a bit low due to graduation, finally improved a little, but the fact that he cared about others' opinions made him feel down again. The two canceled each other out, so his mood didn't really change; he just felt like having a cola.

Exiting the playback interface for You Are My Hero, Li Duoyu finally stopped thinking about lying in bed and scrolling through short videos. He wanted to take the opportunity to find more anime he liked to watch.

Opening the "following" interface for a pile of anime, he was inexplicably drawn to Ore-sama. It was simple: out of all those anime, its title was the longest.

Thinking about how he had sprayed cola while watching the sixth episode of this show, he smiled. He still remembered that sense of anticipation, and with that expectation, he clicked on the seventh episode.

After watching for a few minutes, Li Duoyu felt his eyes burning.

Wasn't the end of the sixth episode pretty good? How did it turn back into a PowerPoint presentation...

He cursed the production team a few times.

He forced himself to keep watching.

Fortunately, although the animation had collapsed into a disaster, the plot was interesting enough.

The male lead finally rescued the female lead, and after a PowerPoint-like fight, they barely escaped the demon's lair, returned to the kingdom, and after experiencing the expected plot developments like gathering a harem and the protagonist showing off by turning his toe into a holy sword, the protagonist was finally commissioned by the king to embark on a journey to defeat the Demon King.

Along the way, many things happened to the protagonist's party; they laughed and joked, making the crusade feel like a field trip.

Li Duoyu didn't know if the production team had done this on purpose...

Anyway, he had almost forgotten the fact that this anime was supposed to be a serious drama, albeit a chuunibyou one. He simply watched it as a brainless comedy, ready at any moment to leave the comment at the end of the episode: "I love this anime the most.jpg."

At the end of the eleventh episode, the protagonist finally arrived in front of the so-called demon's lair.

Li Duoyu checked the time; it was already one in the morning, and the final episode had just been released.

With the thought of "I'll go to sleep right after watching this episode," he clicked the play button.

The twelfth episode opened with a fade-in from black, the protagonist's face appearing on screen as he said, "It's an honor to meet you..."

Before he could finish, it cut off abruptly.

The opening theme started.

How bizarre.

Li Duoyu didn't seem to pay much mind to it, but a sense of anticipation—a desire to know who the protagonist was talking to and what he had done—was subtly stirred within him.

I have to admit, the director and the production team really know how to play with the audience...

Li Duoyu dragged the progress bar forward, skipping the opening.

The plot picked up right where the last episode left off. After watching for a while, Li Duoyu noticed the animation quality had improved significantly; at least there were no visible glitches.

Furthermore, when the protagonist's party fought the small-fry, it didn't look like a slideshow anymore. While still not exactly top-tier, it was at least watchable.

The first half of the finale maintained the same goofy style of slaughtering mobs, and they hadn't even seen the face of the Demon King yet. Li Duoyu glanced at the progress bar, harboring doubts about whether they could actually finish the story in time, and continued watching.

A massive wave of minions rushed in, scattering the party. The heroine and the protagonist fought together, wiping out the small-fry, and caught a glimpse of the Four Heavenly Kings under the Demon King, as well as the Demon King himself, not far away.

The protagonist locked eyes with them, then looked back at the heroine behind him.

"Please, don't go." The heroine grabbed the protagonist's sleeve.

The protagonist, who had been goofing around the entire journey, suddenly became incredibly serious, his face even looking significantly more handsome.

Seeing this, Li Duoyu suddenly had a premonition...

"Do you know? Actually, I'm not some hero." The protagonist's face, which had been off-model for at least eleven episodes, turned to face the camera directly.

His hair fluttered, his gaze was gentle, and he looked incredibly dashing, causing a flurry of question marks to appear in the comments.

Li Duoyu: "..."

The protagonist looked at the heroine with profound meaning, abandoning his previous persona, and said softly:

"I'm actually just a very ordinary human. I worked hard training and struggling in the countryside, and I came to the Royal City just to find a job as a guard to support myself."

"But because I liked to mess around, I enchanted my weapon onto my toe. When I got into a fight with someone, I started by yelling that Ore-sama's toe is a holy sword... and for some reason, people started saying I was the hero destined to save the world. But it wasn't a holy sword; it was just an ordinary weapon."

"But since everyone said so, and I wanted to make a living, I just went along with it. Later, my reputation grew so large that even I started to believe I was the hero. I even dared to accept the mission to go to the Demon's Lair alone to rescue you."

"You don't know how terrified I was when I faced the Demon King."

"But in the end, even the Demon King seemed to accept that I was the hero."

"I rescued you from the Demon's Lair and returned safely to the Royal City. Everyone believed even more firmly that I was the hero because I had saved you from the 'cruel and invincible' Demon King they spoke of. The citizens shouted my name, the King praised me highly, the noble ladies of the Royal City were fond of me, and even that guard captain I thought was so mighty would show me a look of respect."

"But in reality, the Demon King isn't that scary, is he?" The protagonist turned his head to look into the distance. "If even a country bumpkin like me could escape from his hands, how scary could he really be?"

"But why didn't the hero prophesied by the Goddess appear? Why does the King keep a group of high-level knights just to guard the walls? Why did I, someone who was beaten up by the guard captain at the start, become the hero in everyone's mouths?"

"I can't figure it out."

The protagonist turned around, his back to the heroine, and took a step forward. His arms, hanging at his sides, spread slightly, and a breeze ruffled the hem of his clothes.

"But, well."

"Since you all say I'm the hero, then I guess I am."

The protagonist finished his last sentence like a whisper. The camera suddenly cut to the protagonist's feet, capturing his entire body from a low angle. After a half-second pause, black and white frames alternated. It was only a dozen or so frames, but the sense of power buildup was absolutely explosive!

Boom.

After a half-second of buildup, the ground beneath the protagonist exploded. The firelight spread outward, obscuring the camera. The shot cut again, moving above the protagonist's head. Accompanied by stirring music, the protagonist broke through the thick smoke of the explosion at a speed that seemed like he was about to fly out of the atmosphere. He streaked past the camera, shot upward, and then, in a gliding posture, charged toward the location of the Demon King.

In mid-air, the protagonist accelerated again, breaking the sound barrier. As he neared the Demon King's position, he swung his legs and slammed down.

The protagonist landed successfully, the ground caving in as dirt flew everywhere.

As his clothes and hair, which had been whipped up by the strong wind, slowly settled, the protagonist straightened his back, looked at the Four Heavenly Kings and the Demon King before him, and smiled. "Hello there."