The nation he now represented found itself at peace

the happy hero had become the castle’s centrepiece

but when he started worrying he’d die of boredom soon

the peaceful nation’s king began to sing a different tune

He’d make the hero more proactive in upcoming wars

free from all the politics that kept him stuck indoors

the king declared himself the rightful emperor that day

and any king who challenged his authority would pay

“What our kingdom faces now is not a common threat

though we’ve tasted victory, we haven’t won just yet

still our native lands are under enemy control

as if giant monsters came and ate our empire whole

This will be the year our empire finally bites back

on this day, by my decree, we’re launching our attack

we won’t wait for them to come and take our homes and land

now we’ll bring the fight to them and truly make our stand”

Everyone who heard their leader’s declaration cheered

all except the hero’s wife of course, for as she feared

once again her husband would be bound to fight alone

winning battles far away in service of the throne

All the same, she wished him safe adventures as he went

knowing that his quest was not a fate she could prevent

she only told him that if he should ever face despair

he could come back any time and she’d be waiting there

He wished his wife and children well and left without delay

off to lead an army to a battle far away

stories of the hero brought morale back like a wave

and now he was inspired by the support his nation gave

He didn’t care for details but from what he had been told

his kingdom’s nearest neighbours had been growing rather bold

their armies were allegedly preparing to attack

the hero’s job would be to lead a charge and force them back

He didn’t talk to many of his soldiers on the way

the prince with whom he marched however, had a lot to say

“please don’t run ahead this time, we need you at the front

if we meet much resistance, we’ll need you to take the brunt”

The hero didn’t care for all his warnings and his pleas

he had strength enough to slay his enemies with ease

still he promised he would lead the army from nearby

he didn’t say the reason, but nobody asked him why

The battle started quickly when they came upon a hill

and came upon the camping foes with overbearing will

the hero barely had a chance to swing his sword or fight

the enemy had fallen long before the fall of night

Prisoners accounted for, the war was quickly done

the hero sighed, a little bored with how the fight was won

his generals surprised him though when later they declared

“we’ll continue this attack while they are unprepared!”

The hero was excited to continue his campaign

singing with his comrades of the monsters to be slain

they marched across one kingdom to the border of the next

no quicker war was ever written of in any text

Morale was soaring higher every step the army took

he hadn’t seen so great a force in any picture book

the hero watched his army carry on with glee and pride

carrying their banners through the empire’s countryside

They passed through several villages where there were none to fight

and broke through several forts and towns in just a single night

but when they found the capital and started to invade

even he was forced to see that this was just a raid

There were no assailants, no resistance there at all

the hero was confronted only by that kingdom’s fall

the air was full of smoke and screams, the roads were dyed in red

city after city, those who couldn’t run were dead

The war had been decided long before it had begun

Their enemies had barely any strength or time to run

the hero didn’t celebrate but had his share of drink

retreating into parties where he wouldn’t have to think

There he filled his world with songs of pride and victory

drinking to success and to his king’s prosperity

in weeks, the army had expanded their empire tenfold

the emperor was pleased to hear the rumours he was told

Though its former glory hadn’t fully been restored

the emperor put all his faith in his new hero’s sword

the hero and his army soon became so widely feared

that nations would surrender when the hero’s army neared

Sometimes kingdoms sent a challenger to hold him back

but he would make a show of winning with one quick attack

countless brave contenders came before him one by one

but they all lost their kingdoms when the tournament was done

Only one had made a real impression on the knight

a princess with an army much too weak to even fight

she challenged him in desperation with a rusty blade

the girl’s attacks were ruthless but too easy to evade

He froze the ground beneath her and he quickly moved along

there’d be no verse for princess within his hero’s song

the army dropped their swords as if they welcomed their defeat

the princess swore revenge and made a cowardly retreat

After that pathetic battle, though he knew not why

he started feeling restless as he stared up at the sky

his army’s strength was growing, and he had much less to do

the epic battles that excited him were much too few

Every now and then the hero took a holiday

tiring more of parties than of fighting night and day

the drunken prince would never let the awkward hero be

the more he drank the more he spoke of fire and piracy

Fortunately, most had long forgotten his debut

the hero’s reputation in the empire quickly grew

though he felt exhausted he was sure that he was fine

he had gold in store and only drank the finest wine