Volume 18 - CH 15

In a small inn town two days by carriage east of the Holy Kingdom.

We were in a tavern, all of us with dark expressions on our faces.

None of us had touched our drinks. No, only one person, Edgar, is on his third drink.

「But still, it's hard to believe that the demon king will be resurrected in this world. ......」

Elisa, a Templar Knight, said.

She has been formally exonerated by the Pope of the Holy Kingdom, and her position remains unchanged.

Many people in the Holy Kingdom had witnessed the great magic 【Terraforming】that Christina had unleashed.

The amount of magic power and the rotten smell. The damage was only minor, but that was to be expected.

For this reason, the Pope quickly declared the Temple Knight's innocence in the name of the Pope.

The leaders of the Holy Kingdom also seemed to be quite upset about this incident.

「In the Holy Kingdom, were such stories treated as fairy tales?」

I wondered and asked Elisa.

「No, it was not. The Bible and the forbidden books contain detailed information about the Demon King, and the Templar Knight is originally responsible for fighting the Demon King.」

「Then――」

As I was about to say something, Frederick leaned forward vigorously and interrupted me.

「But! It's been a thousand years since then, Alec! When I was a kid, I thought it was a true story too, but I thought it was more metaphorical, a legend. I had no idea it was real. ......!」

Frederick slammed the table in frustration, so it was a thousand years ago.

It's no wonder it doesn't feel real when it's that long ago.

「But you know what? If he came out a thousand years ago, and the humans of this world are still alive, it means that we defeated the previous Demon Lord, right? The humans, you know?」

Kaede said lightly, perhaps trying to blow away the gloomy atmosphere.

「It's true that the Bible says that humanity triumphed in the end. However, the hundred years between the victory...... and the defeat is a tragic story of hell. The human race was also reduced to a third of its original population.」

Elisa said without losing her difficult expression.

「It took a hundred years to defeat it, and more than half of humanity was sacrificed. ...... It must have been very, very difficult. ......」

When Serina heard this, she clasped her hands in pain.

The air in the room became grim and still.

「Hey, can't we just, you know, take shelter somewhere far away?」

Lily suggested, but I shook my head.

「No, she said she's going to turns all the countries and lands into a demon world. It's a technique that can corrupt anything. I think it's possible. There's also the matter of food. Running away isn't going to solve anything.」

「Right, it is said that when the Demon Lord was in his prime, many powerful demons roamed the earth. If the wheat fields are attacked, we won't even be able to eat bread.」

Fianna affirmed my words based on her own knowledge.

As a serious priestess, Fianna must have studied the lore of the temple about the demon king.

「That's right. And according to Alec's eyewitness reports, they seem to be able to travel anywhere. According to the lore of the temple, the entire continent was covered with demons, so there would be nowhere to run.」

Olivia, also a priest, said.

「Theen, what do you want me to do!?」

「Easy, Lily. You're gonna be okay. No, I'll take care of it.」

「Really?」

「Yeah. In case you forgot, I'm a hero. And I've been summoned from another world for this.」

I smiled and said.

「Oohh ......, Alec is looking even c-cooler than ever!」

To be honest, even Christina, the servant of the demon king, was in a state where she was not sure if she had a chance to win, and her words were not based on the odds.

But I have to calm down the panicking Lily first.

「That's right, I don't care if it's the Demon Lord or not, there's no way my brother will lose.」

Jouga proudly puts up his chest. He's a simple-minded guy, but in an atmosphere like this, it's best not to think too hard.

「Right. We're adventurers risking our lives, even if we have to. If we're scared, we'll never get anywhere. Right, Hannah?」

Luka also has a lot of guts. She's an amazoness who wears sexy bikini armor.

「That's true.」

Smiling, Hanna is a cautious, calm woman, so despite her expression, she's probably thinking about a lot of pessimistic factors.

「I have written to my father to inform him of this,......, and I wonder if there is anything we can do about it now.」

Ione doesn't seem to think that swordsmanship is the way to go. That's the right answer.

The opponent is the opponent. The human race will probably have to fight with all its might.

They will have to do everything in their power to finally win.

I nodded.

「I'm a Welburd swordsmanship expert, and I'm sure the stronger guys will get the message. In this kind of situation, it's better to think together. And then there's the magic guys. ......」

「If it is the movements of the white mages and priests, the Holy Kingdom will definitely move, so there is nothing to worry about. I'm sure the king of each country will soon be informed of this matter in the name of the Pope.」

Howell, who was now Elisa's loyal subordinate, nodded, well, I guess so.

「The head of the academy should be able to grasp the situation immediately, even the black magic system. No, she might have known that this would happen.」

I say.

I wonder if Varius's death was factored in, but the loli woman seems to have foreseen my fate as well.

I'm also letting Saki send out a fast horse, and I'm sure she'll think of a way to help us. As the human side.

「You're saying she knew, but she still let us go!?」

Serina seemed to take it a little differently and said angrily, but I told her to calm down and shook her hand.

「What is the purpose of our coming here? To rescue Elisa, right? What about the Demon Lord? If he's coming out, I'm coming out.」

「You're right. ...... Yeah, that's the kind of guy Alec was. He's so easy to misunderstood」

Fufu, I know you'd like to think that I'm actually a good guy and people around me just misunderstand me as a bad guy, but ...... too bad! I am――

「「 I'm just a pervert old man who goes anywhere for a woman 」」

The twins, Misha and Sasha, say some very unsubtle things.

Well, it's true.

「N-no, Alec-san is not just a pervert old man――Well, pervert is still pervert!」

Thalia, the cute loli elf, tried to defend me, but that was no defense.

「Still, he saved my life! He's a good pervert.」

Says former "Mad King" Stella, too. Mm-hmm.

「Hawawa, there may be a lot of problems, but Alec-san is just pervert.」

「That's right. Master is the most pervert king of mankind!」

Nene nodded her head and said that, and Meena proudly declared, but wait a minute, are you guys following me based on that?

「I'm starting to wonder if I've really helped these girls. ......」

Serina says, holding her finger between her eyebrows.

「What do you say, Serina? Would you rather have known me or not known me?」

I asked her.

「Of course I would have preferred not to get to know you. I could have stayed pure of heart, me.」

「Don't lie to me about your purity. Your roots are in the ground. Don't tell me you didn't masturbate and have a single erotic fantasy before you met me.」

「H-hey, don't say that in front of other guys.」

「Now, now, you're worrying about it too much, Serina. We all know about Alec, right?」

Saki smiled and looked around at the people here.

「R-right, we haven't heard anything about it, so don't worry about it, Serina-san.」

「Same to me.」

Nicole and Frederick are concerned, but it seems that the blushing Serina has been damaged even more.

Aaah! and sank down prostrate, hiding her face in the table, but let's leave her alone.

She's the kind of guy who sucks herself off in bed anyway.

「Khh, If only I had the ability, Captain Elisa would be able to take care of this guy.」

The other earnest young man, the knight Abel, is frustrated, but you still had a thing for Elisa?

I thought you were after Marin because of our relationship.

Unlike before, Marin looks at me and smiles, probably thanks to my rescue of Elisa.

The light blue haired loli knight, can I invite you tonight?

「That's not it, Abel. *hic*. We'll have to survive from here on out anyway. It doesn't matter if we're better or worse. If we don't all work together, we'll all end up dead. Think carefully about which is better, a living captain or a dead captain, wee―.」

Edgar says with a red face.

「You're drinking too much, Edgar.」

Elisa also cautions.

「It's okay, captain, I don't know if I'll be able to drink well in the future. I think we should drink a lot while we can.」

「Don't worry, Edgar. There is alcohol in the heavenly Valhalla. There is also a divine wine that tastes better than anything on earth.」

「Oh, that's right. Well, I'm about to drink this one. According to the gods, don't leave it behind because it will bring out the ghosts of waste.」

But he still drinks.

「Abel, make sure he doesn't order any more.」

「Yes, ma'am!」

「Oh, excuse meee, four more chicken wings over here!」

Marilyn, who had been eating quietly, raised her hand.