338 Therefore, I understand.

When we received a report of a giant demon, we took the Dal'Agestia and headed for the location immediately.

What we found there was a giant snake. Or perhaps I should say a snake-shaped monster. Its body was so huge that it rivaled the Dal'Agestia, and it had numerous snake heads growing out of it.

Its movement speed seems slow, but that is only because it is so huge. In reality, it is much faster than a horse.

The soldiers are trying to keep their distance from what they perceive to be an obvious danger. There was no damage, but from the air, the formation was noticeably broken.

Ao, a giant against a giant, chose to hit the Daluagestir without hesitation.

I'm not sure what to say.

"...... No way. What the hell is that snake thing?

You'll be able to find a lot more than just a few of these in the market. It's a great way to make sure you're getting the most out of your money.

Despite the fact that Dal'Agestia is attacking with all its might, the snake monster does not stop its movements.

Dal'Agestia's claws slice off the snake's head, and her fangs bite down on its head. But the wounds are quickly repaired and it is fighting back against Dal'Agestia.

You can't expect a giant body like that to have the regenerative abilities of a demon.

You can't even use purification magic on it. The head will regenerate into dust, and it's unlikely to reach deep into the body.

Maja descended nearby, blowing off one of the snake's heads. Maja's fighting style was to use her enhanced fists to destroy the opponent's parts and then strike them with purification magic. Her fighting style is not as flashy or fast as Wolfe's, but it is more sophisticated and could rival that of Gladna.

It's also a good idea to blow his head off with your bare hands. ....... Is he the strongest of the Archbishops by any chance?

It's not something to brag about, even if you're a good fighter.

You don't deny it. Only the protector of the Iliad can do that. ......

While Dar'agestia was holding the behemoth back, we tried a variety of attacks. But none of them worked.

The snake's head would catch even a small target like us and counterattack. Thanks to the large size of the attack, we can avoid it, but if we take even a single blow, we won't be safe.

"Yox, what's going on around you? The snake is one of their trump cards. I don't think they're just going to unleash a monster and do nothing.

I'm not sure if this is a good idea or not, but it's a good idea.

It's a good idea to have a good idea of what you're looking for. Seeing the magic circle that expanded the detection range, he must have tried to detect everything in sight.

After receiving the report, Maya took out her communication crystal and made a brief report.

I'm not sure what to make of this. I'm not sure what to make of that.

I'm sure you'll be happy to hear that.

I'm not sure what to make of this. If each of the demons are leading their own armies of demons, they should also be in the Mejis demon world. But there are none around here.

So that snake is a decoy?

Yes. It's not a pretty sight to see the formation of the army fighting the demons while avoiding the snake.

If the demons intend to use the snake as a decoy to hit our army, they will make a surprise attack to the flank or rear.

If you want to defeat the snake, which excels in regeneration, you will need the Daluagestir to block its movement and the Ao to control it. If you're looking for a way to defeat it from multiple angles, it's better if I stay behind too.

I understand. I'll take care of it. I'll take care of the demons.

Just stopping them is enough. We have the Wise King on our side. We'll have plenty of ideas.

Duvraeori flies away with Yox and Maya. Now, we have to find a way to defeat the snake demon in earnest.

Ao, how long will the Daluagestia last?

"It's my prize, so don't underestimate it. The difference in strength is greater than mine, and my magic can heal wounds as well, if not better than that snake. If there's a problem, it's the weight of .......

I'm not sure what to make of that. In terms of weight, the snake is far superior. Because of this, Dal'Agestia is unable to control the snake's progress.

It would be nice if the chains could entangle its legs. ......

"Snakes don't have legs. Even if they did, they would be superfluous.

...... No, I don't think so.

Huh?

Deploy the chain around the snake and let it dive into the ground. Then he invokes earth magic, turning the snake's feet into a sandbox one after another. Losing its foothold, the snake's momentum slowed down, and it was completely stopped by Dal'Agestia's body.

"You can swim in water, so you don't have to lose your posture.

"Feet, you mean footholds. But it's not bad. That should be enough to buy us some time.

The snake, which had been attacking with only the part of its head extending from the body, is now using its entire body to entangle Daluagestia. The snake, which had been attacking with only its head extending from its body, was now using its entire body to try to entangle Daluagestir. Having been stopped in its movement, it probably prioritized eliminating the obstacle over advancing.

Dal'Agestia's power tore off the heads of the entangled snakes one after another, but their bodies were gradually being filled up before their super-fast regeneration ability. Even the torn parts do not return to dust, but begin to fuse with nearby parts and increase their volume.

The earth shakes with the impact of Dar'agestia's posture collapsing and her huge body falling to the ground together.

"That's not good. That's no different than scratching algae in water. That's no better than scratching algae in the water.

"You don't have to be so analytical to know that! Oh my God! What are you doing clinging to my little girl?

It's a dangerous situation, but the fact that it's stopped is an achievement. Now we need to figure out a new way to make it possible.

The snake is on the rampage, but it's only aiming for Dar'agestia. The soldiers have sensed the danger and are retreating, so there hasn't been that much damage. The demon's movements are not as vigorous as they should be, probably because there is no chain of command.

In order to help its movement, it used a giant chain to destroy the snake that was tightening the joints of the Daluagestir. But this is just stalling for time, and it won't be long before Dal'Agestia is completely engulfed.

Ao, beside me, is concentrating, closing his eyes and sending his thoughts to Dal'Agestia. He seems to be strengthening Dal'Agestia's magic by sharing his senses with her.

Can you unshake her?

"It's possible. But that would consume a lot of her magic power. If you're trying to buy time, it might be better to keep her in place. ......

"Okay. Keep ...... going. I'll try some things here.

It deploys a chain and attacks with different magic. You can try various kinds of poison and curse, but none of them are effective before the snake's regenerative ability.

The snake's body is not that tough. It can be necrotic with poison and corrosive with curses. However, if you inflict a certain amount of damage, the area around that part of the body will disintegrate at once, limiting the expansion of the damage. By the time the next attack is made, a new body is regenerated, and the attacker is forced to engage in a barren battle.

Once back to Ao. Her expression and magic power still give her a sense of comfort, but we both know that the situation is not favorable.

"It doesn't look good.

If we don't get rid of that regeneration ability, we'll never get anywhere.

Maybe we should contact Blue and borrow some dragons that can burn down large areas. That should buy us enough time.

It's true that their regeneration ability is extraordinary, but their magic power is limited. As long as you can stop them...

"Ecdysium! Can you hear me?

I heard Marito's voice from the communication crystal I kept in my pocket. If Marito is contacting you directly, it means that an emergency has occurred. I took out the crystal and readjusted it so that I could reply.

"I can hear you. What's happening?

In the virtual world of the Golden Demon King, it was confirmed that a village near the Mejis demon world had been burned down. I've been trying to contact Archbishop Ucka, who is supposed to be in that village, but he hasn't responded at all.

"Oh, demons!

The virtual world of the Golden Demon King is originally a power for observing the results of policies conceived. It can see into the future to a certain extent. The only exception to this is the interference of demon lords and demon tribes, which cannot be reflected in the future.

If it is confirmed to have been burned down, it means that it has already been burned down in the real world. The fact that it could not be observed is a result of the demon's interference.

I can feel a nasty sweat running down my spine. A village in the vicinity of the Mejis demon world is a village where the army is preparing to retreat and take position.

I'm not sure what to say. There's Natra-san.

The non-combatants have already been evacuated before the battle began. I've already confirmed that they're on the move in the virtual world.

I'm not sure what to make of that.

I'm not sure if I'll be able to do it, but I'm sure I'll be able to do it. But this is not the time to be relieved. If the demon tribe appears and destroys the village, the army will have lost one place to retreat to.

The formation would be more broken and morale would be greatly reduced. And most importantly, where would the demons move to next after the village was destroyed?

"Do you know where the demons will move to?

"I've sent word to Maja in the sky, but she says there's no change in the rear of the Mejis army. Either they're still in the village, or they've retreated, or they've gone further inland.

"...... Understood. We'll deal with them as quickly as we can.

Maja told me about the situation. I'll keep my wits about me. Try as many methods as you can to get information first.

Yeah.

The best course of action was to capture the demons first and defeat them before they could get out of control. I'm going to try again.

They're coming for us again. I'm going to approach them again. Blue, you stay here and cover Dar'agestia.

Whether we break through or retreat, we need to get results as soon as possible!

Fly and move above the snake. I'm not sure if all the heads are focused on the Daluagestir, but there's no change in their movements when I enter the attack range.

"There's something strange about this demon. What is it? Something is definitely different from other demons. ......

When I saw this demon for the first time, I had a strange feeling of discomfort. Apart from the threat it poses as an enemy, there is something about this snake that other demons don't have.

I want to know as much as I can about it now. I need to observe it, consider it, and find out what I can about it.

How did our people discern the essence of the demon? By simply observing a demon, my compatriot was able to decipher the emotions contained in that demon. Even if we don't go that far, we may be able to decipher something by observing it carefully like this.

"Why is this particular demon special, was it created by the Kuro Demon Lord with a different emotion? No, wait. Emotions? Right, that's it.

Yes, this snake is now attacking Daluagestia with a clear hostility. The other demons are attacking the human as if they are simply dealing with him, but this snake has a murderous intent.

It is similar to the way a beast preys on its prey, but it still has emotions. This is a big difference, but ...... I can't think of a way to make use of it at the moment. It may be possible to move the hostile Daluagestia and guide the snake, but it is not a decisive factor.

But it's worth digging a little deeper.

He lands on one of the snake's heads and stabs the chain. In the midst of attacking Dar'agestia, the stimulus of the needle's sting is not even enough to make her react.

He gradually slides the chain deeper and deeper, focusing his nerves on the chain. From the chain, you can feel the texture and temperature of the snake's body, and the feeling of the magic power flowing through it.

He focuses his attention on the magic and reads the quality of the magic. Harkdok could get a lot of information just by detecting the magic power with his detection magic. So if I continue to feel this magic power, I might be able to see something.

Aah!

The shock of Dar'agestia tearing off the body of the snake she was entangled with caused my body to shake. I use multiple chains to secure my body to the snake's head. I need more, I need to concentrate more.

From the magic, I can sense the frustration with Daruagestia. Deep within it is a kind of anger towards all humans. No, is this just anger? It's like...

A sense of duty ......? Is this snake convinced that it must kill humans?

This serpent is now foolishly moving forward, foolishly trying to eliminate obstacles. There can be no reason in it.

Can such a monster have such human thoughts? No. What we need to do is assume that it did and expand our thinking from there.

Understand the snake's emotions through the wavelength of its magic. That's what our people who can't handle magic could do. If I am skilled in handling magic, even if I am inexperienced, I can use ......!

What? That was .......

For a moment, I saw something. A strange sight, many beings in the form of humans ...... were kneeling.

At the end of it, there is a woman standing. Kuro hair, black eyes. The woman's hair was black, her eyes were black, and she had black hair and black eyes. The thoughts that came out of the scene made me intuitively understand that the woman was the Kuro Demon King.

Could the current scene be a memory of this snake's past? If so, then .......

I'm not sure what to say.