CH 37

Outside the city walls of the royal capital, Fall Flat, in the vast grasslands, there was currently a crowd of over a thousand monsters – a battalion of the Demon King’s army summoned by Lionetta.

In addition to lower-grade subhuman monsters such as lizardmen and ghouls, there were also a number of nasty monsters such as the winged demon beast, Pazuzu, and the giant viper, basilisk, and you could tell at first glance that they were serious about conquering the capital.

However, the demons that were supposed to have received Lionetta’s signal earlier and started marching towards the royal capital had stopped in their tracks.

(Who the hell are these?)

The leader of the battalion, Vieira, a half-human, half-snake monster with the upper body of a beautiful woman and the lower body of a snake, was now puzzled. 

This was because a strange duo suddenly showed up in front of them and blocked their path.

“No way… so a battalion was actually on its way here. So these guys have been hiding out in the woods. I don’t know how much you can see, Brad von Pistel…… but even I couldn’t see the monsters lurking in the forest.”

One, the elf boy who seemed to be a magician floating in the air with natural magic manipulation technique as easily breathing, was muttering in disbelief.

“Feeling sleepy…✧”

And the other was a swordsman who was drowsy and yawning while holding a sword that was taller than him in one hand.

“…”

There are only two opponents.

For this army of 1000 they seemed insignificant. They would normally have ignored them and marched on.

In spite of this, the moment they appeared in front of them, the monsters surprisingly stopped their march at once and stood still.

It wasn’t Vieira who had ordered it.

(Why …… are my legs not moving?)

The monsters including Vieira stopped by their own will… No, rather it was their instinct.

They must have sensed it.

The strange presence of the duo in front of them. A monster-like magic pressure that makes one think it was comparable to that of the highest executives of the Demon King’s Army, the “Four Demon Generals”

(How could I think that… that can’t be the case.)

It’s impossible, Vieira shakes her head.

In the Demon king’s army, the “Four Demon Generals” are overwhelming beings whose powers are on a different dimension entirely. There can be no human who is equivalent to their existence.

Moreover…

“Glace who is that Prince really? Is he truly a son of man?”

“……”

“That overwhelming fighting prowess he showed when the Cyclops was subdued and then in the arena. That insight that seems to see through everything… I don’t think he’s a child of a human. I just can’t believe it. I don’t think one can achieve that with natural talent alone.”

“…………”

“I’ve lived for quite some time now and I’ve never seen such a non-standard person. Hey Glace, what do you think?”

“Feeling Sleepy”✧

“Don’t just naturally ignore me!”

The two of them, as if they had forgotten that Vieira and the others were right in front of them, were engaged in a carefree, comic dialogue.

There wasn’t even a hint of tension.

The elf boy was mumbling something incomprehensible, and the swordsman was yawning. With such a large group of demons in front of them, they looked like they were having tea in the afternoon.

There’s no way that these people are comparable to the “Four Demon Generals”

(But did he just call the sword guy Glace?)

The elf boy certainly called the swordman that.

It’s the same name as the Demon Slayer.

And I’ve heard rumors that that man often stays in Pistel.

(That can’t be true…)

But Vieira shook her head.

“Even if the Demon Slayer is here, I’ll make sure he’s restrained. I’ll make the kingdom fall into chaos with magic, so you guys trample down the people during that time. It’s an easy job.”

That’s what Lionetta had said when she approached me.

The woman may be unpredictable, but there was no doubting her abilities. I’m sure she’s doing what she said she would do and she would definitely hold them back.

“Sorry, sorry, I didn’t notice you at all, you’re so small✧.”

“Who are you calling small? Whether my body is small or not, ignoring my voice is another matter.”

” Nn? When I said small I meant your voice obviously? It’s a fact that you’re so small I can pick you up with my fingers though✧.”

“…… Oh, you mean my voice?”

“Yes, please stop being paranoid and taking it out on me. You’re not just small in body, but also in capacity✧.”

“Gunununu, maybe you’re right… but, that doesn’t change the fact that you’re making fun of me, you’re ready for the payback right!?!”

The two of them continued to engage in the same dull, comic dialogue.

(There’s no way that these idiots are the “Seven Heroes,” the ones whose stories are used to silence a crying child.)

The children of wise demons grow up with the horror of the Seven Heroes instilled in them by their parents, who threaten them from an early age that they’ll be eaten by the Seven Heroes if they don’t go to bed early, or that the Seven Heroes will kidnap bad children. There’s no way that such mythical monsters are this stupid.

Perhaps this duo are either drunk or pitiful ones who have come to the battlefield without being able to make rational judgements because of Lionetta’s illusion magic. That has to be the case.

“I’m not sure if it matters, but I’m sleepy, so can I go back to sleep?”✧

“Argh! Show a little motivation! When the prince asked you to do something, you confidently said something like, “I won’t let any of them into the capital, so leave it to me!” Don’t you ever do what you say you’re going to do?”

“I know I said that, but to be honest you’re probably enough on your own. I’m not interested in small fry, to begin with✧.”

Vieira frowns at the interaction between the two of them.

(Did he just call us small fry?)

I had no choice but to listen to them.

I’m still a demon leader.

The Demon Commander is a position that an incompetent person would never be able to attain in the Demon King’s army of the weak and the strong. It’s a position where the leader is entrusted with a battalion of a thousand monsters and the demons she brought with her were all bloodthirsty and elite.

There was no reason to be fooled by the two men in front of her who couldn’t even tell the situation.

(Hmm… It was stupid of me to read too much meaning from this encounter. We’ll see who the small fries are) 

I’m not sure why I was so afraid of these two punks.

Vieira, annoyed with herself, concluded that the duo were reckless idiots and shouted to the demons that stopped advancing.

“Don’t panic, it’s just a couple of idiots! All troops, advance!”

As soon as Vieira gave the order, the monsters, as if they had remembered their task, took up their weapons and with a battle cry resumed their vigorous march towards the capital.

On the other hand, when the elf boy noticed this…

“Oops, I’ve got some work to do– ‘Summon Servant’.”

He chanted it briefly.

It was chanted as casually as if it were first-level life magic, but it had power to interfere with the atmosphere like I had never seen before.

Just after the overwhelming magic vibration that made me tremble. A huge magic circle appeared on the ground right below the elf.

And from that huge magic circle, which looked like ritual magic performed by a hundred magicians, a single monster soon appeared.

As if tearing the space apart, what appeared was a god-like giant.

It was different from the trolls and ogres whose giant blood was said to be diluted by the other bloodlines. It boasted a massive physique that rivaled that of the Cyclops, a single-eyed giant that ranked high even among demon leaders, and its body was clad in an overwhelmingly blue and divine magic that surpassed that of the single-eyed giant.

“Frost Giant?”

Vieira recognized it at a glance.

It’s the upper spirit of ice that the giants of the Icicle Mountains revere as their guardian god.

“I’m sorry to call you out here in such a noisy place, but I need you to neutralize them for a moment. Can you do that for me?”

“As the Lord commands.”

When the elf sits on the giant’s shoulder and orders it. The giant grins and smiles turning to the hordes of monsters that were advancing.  

And then–

“…”

For starters, the giant dropped to its haunches and swung with a speed that was unthinkable for its huge body. Then, with a single swing, dozens of monsters were cleaved off and slammed into the ground in an interesting swoop.

The giant then swung his arm two or three times, and as he swept through the frontline monsters, the monsters in the rear began to flinch away from advancing.

Then the giant took a deep breath.

“Icicle Breath.”

He exhaled an icy breath of air.

As soon as the monsters get hit by the breath, they become frozen and even if they weren’t frozen, they get robbed of their physical freedom and fall down one after another.

(I can’t believe he summoned and used a Frost Giant so easily! I thought they were just idiots!)

Vieira was upset, but the situation would not wait. I’m the head of this squad.

“Don’t be frightened! Ignore the giant and push on to the capital!”

She tried to motivate the monsters who were beginning to run left and right because of the giant.

It’s too much of a hassle to deal with the giant now even if they took extra measures with special equipment, including cold-resistant armor.

The royal capital should be in turmoil now. Once they enter the capital, the giant won’t be able to bypass them because of the large number of people there. Since that was the case, they had no choice but to ignore the giant as much as possible and go in.

However, when Vieira, along with some of the monsters, passed through the onslaught of the Frost Giant and arrived at the gates of the royal capital.

“Fwaaaaah! You’re missing out a few of them. This is annoying.”✧

The swordsman was waiting for them holding a stick, standing while yawning.

(hmph… just like summer insects that fly into the fire.)

Vieira grins fearlessly and rushes to the gate with the monsters.

Aside from the giant, there’s no need to stop or get nervous because of the swordsman. The monsters running in front of her showed no signs of fear, and they attacked the swordsman while shouting vigorously.

But right after that…

“Absolute Territory.”

The swordsman muttered a single word.

At that moment, a large blood-colored magic line was drawn around the swordsman.

“It’s better for you to turn back, monsters. Or it’ll be too late…”

The elf on the giant shoulder starts to say but shrugs as the monsters on the frontline have already flooded towards the swordsman.

A group of monsters invaded the swordsman’s territory and then…

“…”

The moment they stepped over the magic line, countless flashes of sword slashes ran through Vieira’s vision. It came at such a speed that her eyes couldn’t follow.

The elite monsters who had raised their voices while dashing forward a while ago were cut up to the extent that there was no trace of them as they got reduced to a pile of meat.

All of the higher monsters such as Pazuzu and Basilisk that are said to be able to destroy a village in one go were also destroyed.

“What!?”

Viera who managed to stop before crossing the line after witnessing the massacre, collapsed to the ground

“You managed to stop at the last minute✧.”

The swordsman smiled at her while licking the blood with his tongue.

It should have been the same smile as she had seen before, but now after witnessing the devastation he caused, it could only be seen as the smile of the death god.

If she had taken even a step further and crossed that line, she would have become a shredded mass of meat just like the monsters in front of her. Just thinking about it made her whole body tremble from the core.

(Or… it wasn’t a misunderstanding.)

Her whole body trembling when she saw the duo earlier, it didn’t seem to be a mistake at all.

These two men are—

“You are the Demon Slayer… aren’t you?”

“Hmm… that’s right.”✧

“Then that elf over there… is the Great Sage?”

The swordsman, “Demon Slayer” Glace Strassman nodded.

“More than that, I’m greatly annoyed. It’s because of you guys that my fun time with Brad-kun is hindered. Thinking about it now, I wonder if I should kill all of you.”✧

Glace said with a frivolous smile, but his eyes weren’t smiling at all.

He’s serious.

Those are the eyes of a predator looking down from an overwhelming height. The eyes of one who is determined to kill all 1000 monsters in the battalion.

“I… surrender!”

When Vieira stood up quickly and said this, Glace frowned.

“Surrender✧?”

“You just said something quite amusing to hear. Think about it. For example, let’s say you come across a pest that makes you uncomfortable on the roadside and when you try to get rid of it, the pest starts begging for its life. Will you listen to it✧?”

Viera gulped down her spit..

A spiky and outrageous murderous intent emanates from Glace’s entire body and instantly spreads to the entire battalion, including Vieira.

Death! Death! Death!

Like Vieira, all the monsters in the battalion probably sensed it instinctively. The overwhelming difference between them and the man in front of them. They also knew the unwavering fact that they were going to be killed by the man.

However—

The expected tragedy did not occur.

“Glace-san! Please wait!”

A voice came which controlled the actions of the mad warrior.

Glace stopped moving and brought out the magic stone from his pocket.

“Brad-kun… why are you stopping me? As far as monsters and humans go, it’s kill or be killed. Eat or be eaten.”✧

“They’re worth using. Can you keep them alive as much as possible?”

From the magic stone, Brad’s voice says so. Glace stops moving for a while and then takes a deep breath as if to calm his mind and then with a bit of frustration he says.

“I understand. I’m not interested in hunting down small fry anyway. But If I may ask, Brad kun. What are you going to do with them?”✧

“Thank you. I’ll explain everything as soon as this crisis is taken care of.”

Glace shrugs and looks at Vieira “It seems as though your lives have been spared✧.”

While Merlin laughed, Vieira was finally freed from the tension and collapsed on the spot.

Even the hundreds of monsters who still had energy at the time also caved in.

(It was a close one…)

It’s unclear what kind of treatment they will receive from now on, but as long as the man in front of them does not change his mind, they won’t be killed in this place.

In addition to being relieved, Vieira begins to wonder who the Lord that spoke through the magic stone was.

Brad von Pistal… just who the hell is he?

At the time of the meeting at the Dream Castle, I had obtained the minimum information that he was the prince of Pistel who subdued the Cyclops, but honestly I was wondering whether he was a threat great enough for them to send out one of the “Four Demon Generals” I thought it was no big deal and I thought Lionetta would easily kill him.

However, if he was to bring the “Seven Heroic monsters” in front of her to his side and become a presence that can call them anytime he wants, then they must have greatly underestimated him.

“That’s what I want to know too☆.”

“Hey… I don’t know too much about him, but I think it’s more personally convincing to say he’s a God or something close to it.”

The “Demon Slayer” and “Great Sage” say such things In such a way that you can’t tell if it’s a joke or something serious.

The man named Brad was able to make these monsters who emit the same intimidating feeling as the Demon Generals say such things. If he’s an existence greater than the “Seven Heroes”, it’s safe to say he’s comparable to the “Demon King” himself who is now dormant. But he’s still a boy.

(I want to meet this Brad… he may be the true one who we should give everything.)

While instructing the monsters to surrender, Vieira was in deep awe of Brad, whom she had never met.