123 What's next?

With the assumption that the balance will be broken in the near future, we are making preparations to locate the Blue Demon King, but there is something else that we have been waiting for.

Incidentally, the person in question came to visit me here in Rilbe today.

"Hello, it's been a while. Are you looking a little better?

"Hey, you're looking good, Gilista.

Gilista, one of the assassins sent to Rahayt with Exoik.

After she escaped from Taze, we kept in touch with each other through Exoik.

At the beginning of their encounter, they lightly bumped their fists up and down and high-fived each other with their right hands.

Ilias is taken aback by this action.

What the hell was that?

"It's a popular reunion greeting among adventurers, Lord Ratzel.

Yes, it is.

It's a greeting I learned from Mikus, but Gillista just did it naturally, so I went along with it.

I was expecting to see you again, but you seem quite friendly, don't you?

"Oh, you're jealous?　It's okay, he's a great client, but he's not my type of guy.

I'm not sure if you're jealous of me or not, but I am jealous of you.

I don't have that kind of greeting with Ilias, he's not a gymnast who wakes up in the morning and communicates through body language like that.

When I was in Garnet, I made a request through Ecdique. "It's bad enough that I'm constantly getting help from the Tarzians via Marito.

"We've killed each other before, but you're not afraid to ask me for help... so I took you up on it. This is the one you were talking about, isn't it?

Gilista gave me a bundle of parchment and I checked inside.

Yes, this is what I wanted.

If you don't have this information, the rate at which you can make use of your specs will change drastically.

"This will help us a lot.

I'm not sure what to do.　By the way, do I get paid?

Yeah, we've got money, of course, but we've got another one.

And I'm going to give Gillista something I brought from Taze.

"Ah, that's a familiar feeling.

It's the magical sword that I was able to retrieve when I defeated Gillista.

It was much heavier than the usual Iliad sword, and we had to use a carriage to carry it.

Gilista wielded the sword lightly, checking its feel.

According to the Gold, each of the demons under the Kuro Demon Lord had a special weapon that was given to them by the Kuro Demon Lord.

If you think that this is one of them, it is a very rare and valuable item.

I'm sure that no knight would like to use such a heavy and unattractive weapon, and Marito gave it to me so that I could put it to good use instead of letting it rot in the treasury.

I'm sure you'll agree.　I'm not sure what to make of it.

I'm not sure if I'm going to be able to do that.

I'm sure you'll be happy to know that I'm not the only one who has a problem with this.

But a few seconds later, he's flipped to the ground and a stunned-looking Gillista rolls over.

"...... Oh?　Aren't you getting pretty strong?

I've learned my moves from a good teacher.

Hmm, it's nice to have a strong opponent, though.　But it's not the same when they treat you like this, is it?

Just stop your pathetic behavior.

I'm going to wake up Gillista, who is still upside down.

It's a good thing that the Iliad has almost no external injuries, even though it was mocked.

"I'd like to go up against a reasonably strong opponent. I'd like to fight with a reasonably strong opponent. There's a reasonably strong opponent in this group.

Then, after challenging Wolfe, he woke up Gillista, who was lying on the ground again, and they gave each other a status report.

I'm glad to see that Wolfe is getting stronger, as a master.

"Well, you're crazy to team up with the Demon Lord, aren't you?

I don't want to hear it from a battle freak.

I don't want to hear it from a battle freak. - A battle freak is much saner than me.　But it sounds interesting, can I join you?

Well, I was going to ask you.

Oh, that's nice of you, isn't it?　But will you be able to control me?

Don't worry, you've already figured it out. If you don't, I'll cut you loose.

That's scary, but it's better for me to have that kind of relationship so I can do whatever I want.

It goes without saying that Gilista has great fighting skills, but what is more reliable is her experience as an adventurer who has lived in the underworld.

It's great to know that he can handle things differently than Mix, who was known as an adventurer on the outside.

Exoik is also an adventurer who lived in the underworld, but it seems he had little experience with people.

I'm sure you'll be glad to know that I'm not the only one.

I'm sure you're right, but you've changed a lot, haven't you?

Yeah, I've been through a lot.

Do you think Parr would have joined them if he were alive?

I don't know. As a murderer, I don't think I'd think much of him.

Parshero, a former disciple of Gradna.

It's a good idea to have a good idea of what you're going to be doing and how you're going to do it.

I'd rather not have someone with a high rate of betrayal anywhere near me.

On the other hand, Gillista will not betray you if you provide him with a good fighting environment.

You won't have any trouble fighting him for the time being.

So let's resume our preparations. I'll be working on Gillista's souvenirs for a while, so Gillista can help with the Exarch.

"Okay.

I know.

I followed him to see what he was doing.

He was looking at the information that Gillista had brought and muttering something with a thoughtful expression.

"Are you planning to use it on the Blue Demon King?

"No, I'm not going to use it on the Blue Demon King. I have enough information.

His weapon of choice is the act of understanding his opponent, and what I abhor is the act of him abandoning his own value in the process.

He did that with the Purple Demon Lord, but he used it to face the Purple Demon Lord.

In other words, he didn't give up his value and faced the Purple Demon Lord fairly and honestly.

His appearance at that time had been rather brave, but this time it was closer to the disgust he had felt before.

Now his eyes are slightly cloudy.

Even if he doesn't act in an overly understanding manner, there is still some change that can be seen.

The frequency is much higher than when he was playing with the Purple Demon King.

In short, he is now frequently moving back and forth to the position of 'evil'.

I feel that this time you are taking a position that is closer to ...... evil than to straightforward means.

I guess. You can't help but see the similarities between the two.

The Purple Demon King genuinely wanted him.

I think there was no right or wrong in that, so what he showed was his true form.

I'm not sure what to make of that.

"...... I'm honestly worried. It's natural that he's thinking bad thoughts, but I can't help but feel that there's more to it than that.

It's quicker to tell him how you feel, and he will change his response in response to the actions you show him.

Then I want to keep things straight between him and me.

He puts the parchment down on the desk and turns to me.

You don't mind if I talk to the Iliad?

"Tell you what?

My current situation. I'm feeling overly nervous, to be honest.

......, please elaborate.

All of the factors involved in the Blue Demon King's actions are not good, and I can't let my guard down in any direction. It's not only the Blue Demon Lord, but also Archbishop Serraes, Kuama, the Scarlet Demon Lord, and even the Colorless Demon Lord.

"Are you even wary of the Colorless Demon Lord?　It's not as if he's on the move right now.

I'm not sure what to make of it, but I think it's a good idea. His will is very strong.

Are you saying that the Colorless Demon Lord is behind all of this?

No, not exactly. I'm not sure what you're talking about. I'm not sure what the purpose of this is, but it's a problem.

It's not just that he's dropping useful information, but he's also trying to create a disaster.

It's true that I have no idea what that thing is thinking.

But I have a vague idea of what it's worried about.

In the past, he had only faced the Purple Demon King, but now he was acting with multiple sides in mind.

That's why he has been so vigilant, standing around as if he were mirroring multiple opponents at the same time.

Perhaps this is why he seems more distorted than usual.

He doesn't have an iron will, he's always afraid of the threat of foreign enemies.

But I don't think that's miserable or stupid.

He knows his weakness and has the courage to resist.

Then all I can do is stand by his side and create a safe direction for him.

...... You look pretty convinced.

I've come to understand you much better now.

It would be a lot easier if you understood what I'm thinking.

I'm not sure if you've seen this before, but I'm sure you've. You are thinking of some kind of trick, aren't you?　I'm going to have to ask you about that.

You have good instincts, don't you? Well, yeah, I've got a little trick up my sleeve. It's a secret I'm keeping from the others.

Is that something you'd like to keep from me?

You can tell the Iliad, but you're not very good at hiding things, are you?

I'm not going to tell you that I'm good at hiding things, because I'm a knight who has lived an honest life.

But when you say it like that, it bothers me a lot.

"Okay, talk. I'll do my best to keep it to myself.

Okay, okay, listen to me.

It's not as if anyone is listening in.

However, I agree with you that such secret schemes should only be told in secret.

I lend my ears to him, thrilled inside.

My ears tickle delicately as he explains his devious plan in whispers.

After listening to the whole story, I nodded my head.

I knew he hadn't been thinking straight.

"You'll soon be distrusted by your peers.

"I don't think the Iliad trusts me anymore.

It's true that every time he does something, we always assume that he has an ulterior motive.

"It's your own fault, you'll have to give it up. But I trust you.

"Sir?

I don't trust his actions, but I trust his will.

It's a really weird relationship, and I'd trust him if I could. ...... No, you can't.

He seems to take pleasure in seeing me surprised or troubled.

That's something I need to work on.

You are really meddlesome.

Leave me alone, I've been in the dark before.

Yeah, and this time I'm going to be the one doing the dirty work.

You don't like it?

It's not very nice. But it's not bad. I see I've been a bad influence on you.

Maja is going to be very upset with me.

He smiled a little.

...... Not bad.

I'm not sure what to say.

A good number of days have passed since Juglar's star people stayed in Rilbe.

I've been getting occasional reports from Lord Toxad about what they're doing, but it's unclear what exactly they're doing.

He seems to be gathering carpenters and giving them some sort of orders, but his intentions are unknown to Lord Toxad.

I don't know, either, what he's doing in this tense situation.

But he's not completely incompetent.

The shortage of supplies at the defensive wall was becoming more and more noticeable, and when I ordered the transport of relief supplies from the cities, Rilbe was ready to send out the supplies we wanted immediately.

From Lord Toxad's report, it seems that the people of the planet Yugra had them ready.

At the very least, they seemed to have a better understanding of the current situation than the nobles who were just standing by.

With the arrival of the clerics from Medis, there was now more room to build a wall.

With the increase in the number of people who can handle highly skilled purification magic, it won't be too difficult to deal with the undead.

Of course, we can't be too careful, as we don't know when we'll have to switch to an invasion from many directions.

However, there are no new reports from the scouts that have been released.

The Blue Demon King continues to attack the unbreachable wall.

Is he planning to continue to wage an enduring war?

It's hard to say. But there must be some kind of plan.

In the event you're not sure what you're looking for, you'll be able to find a lot more information on the web.

Shouldn't we take into account finding out the location of the Blue Demon King in earnest and reversing the situation?

While I was thinking about this, a message arrived.

It seems that he has received a letter from the people of Yugra via Lord Toxad.

It was addressed to Archbishop Serraes, not to me, even though it was delivered to Quama Castle.

...... The people of Yggra must understand my relationship with Archbishop Ceraes, and that's why they're responding like this.

I'm not sure if I'm going to be able to do that.

When Archbishop Serraes read the letter, he looked at it suspiciously.

"What was written in it?

"It is better to see it than to speak of it.

He takes the letter from Archbishop Serraes.

It contains a simple greeting and a .......

"The day after tomorrow the wall will be breached ......?

It contains information on what to do in the event of an emergency.