Chapter 544: The Tactic

To the northwest, the huge demon was accompanied by a horde of magical beasts.

After taking Fort Suzif, the northernmost point of the Gharast Kingdom, the Bastion Beast Zebrililith continued his slow yet steady march south.

His target was the royal capital of the Gharast Kingdom.

It wasn’t because of Altia’s guidance. An instinct at its core was remembered.

It remembered what? That a hated enemy had once lived there. Crushing the remnants of humanity’s unified empire was the last will left in this Bastion Beast.

To that end, Zebrililith continued its invasion, devouring the earth, people, and livestock on its path. The sight of sky-high structures walking the earth was truly breathtaking. They could kill anything with their mass alone.

But that wasn’t the only strange thing.

A horde of magical beasts followed Zebrililith, wriggling around him. Their numbers were continuing to grow. By the hands of none other than the Great Demon.

…Zebrililith devoured the earth through holes in the tattered buildings, using them as nourishment to conceive and give birth to demonic powers.

If the Giant King Flimslat was the one who destroyed, and the Heavenly Dragon Vrilligant was the one who took and stole, then conceiving and giving birth was the true nature of the Bastion Beast Zebrililith.

It blessed all living creatures when they were born into the world. The way it devoured others and continued to give birth to demonic powers was wonderfully demonic.

There was one who stood out among this horde of demonic beasts.

Brown skin. Pale hair. Its small yet well-proportioned body resembled that of a petite human woman.

What set her apart from humans was the strange pair of horns on her head. Even as she moved forward, the heavy cloth that covered her eyes was still thick.

It could also be said that the fact that she was wearing light clothing that revealed her skin in the death snow, while dragging chains with her limbs, made her look inhuman.

Her name was Baronuis.

Four massive demons were dragging the chains attached to her limbs. One of them spoke to her.

「Baronuis. A horde of humans has arrived. It’s your turn. Go get them. 」

「…That’s troublesome. Why don’t you do it yourself? You’re a demon, aren’t you? 」

Baronuis responded, unable to hide her displeasure.

It seemed she had almost lost the will to walk because of those heavy chains. She was an extremely unusual specimen even among demons.

「Shut up. You defied the Great Demon! Don’t you dare talk back! 」

「I didn’t defy anyone. Don’t say weird things. I just wanted to kill it. 」

The surrounding demons turned and flinched in fear at every casual word Baronuis professed.

All the demons in the room looked down on Baronuis after she defied the Great Demon. Some even laughed at her, occasionally rubbing her forehead against the ground as she was pulled by the chains.

But no one could get used to her previous actions.

Demons obeyed those who were their superiors. One could even call it instinct.

But Baronuis behaved in a way which ignored instinct and reason.

This fact remained her true nature no matter how many times her body and mind were tormented.

「…The Great Demon promised you. If you fulfill your duty, then he’ll revive your filthy race. So all you have to do is work. Am I right? 」

「You’re right. But it’s a pain…really a pain. Why can’t I have what I want without doing anything? You want me to do your dirty work without much thinking. That’s how demonic nature should be. But why? Why do I have to pile those humans one by one like tiny insects? I’m sick of it. Come on, this is work, isn’t it? So hurry up and do it yourself. 」

「Shut up! Stop talking nonsense! 」

The gigantic, one-eyed demon slammed Baronuis’ cheek hard.

Baronuis’ cheek was barely bruised despite the overwhelming difference in their physiques.

She didn’t even resist. Her whole body was telling her that such things didn’t matter.

She probably wouldn’t change her attitude even if this further angered the other demons.

Beyond the beasts’ line of sight was a group of human soldiers.

Their armament was poor compared to that of the national army or of the Cathedral knights. They were likely self-defense forces or mercenaries protecting the surrounding villages.

Naturally, they were aware that Zebrililith was approaching them. They had no intention of fighting back to the end. They were merely buying time for the villagers to evacuate.

They had been fleeing from the northwest to the south, but they were finally caught up. Even if they fled as fast as they could…they had ran out of time.

With no other options, their suicidal resistance was the last resort. Casualties were certain.

In fact…the Great Demon Altius had issued an imperial decree that they must arrive at the royal capital without missing a single unit.

That’s why they were using Baronuis.

「This is troublesome. 」

Baronuis, who had been brought to the front, simply muttered to herself.

Her limbs were still chained. The only difference from before was that the cloth covering her eyes had been torn off, revealing her closed eyes.

In short, that was enough for Baronuis.

The human soldiers came running, shouting and yelling.

They were literally desperate. They were risking their lives to save as many people as possible.

But unfortunately for Baronuis, they, and the people they were trying to save, were beyond salvation.

She slowly opened her eyes.

…Unlocking the Original Text… “The Demonic Eye’s Awakening”.

For Baronuis, opening her eyes meant unlocking her Original Text. That alone was enough to send a sure-kill arrow through her veins. One movement and the creature before her would die.

Everything happened simultaneously. She didn’t even have time to blink.

Soldiers, civilians, birds flying in the sky, insects crawling on the ground.

All of them were killed equally and in an instant. Everyone died within her field of vision. The magical power of the Demon Eye pierced everything.

This was Baronuis’ daily life.

…Once upon a time. There was a demon whom the hero Valerie Brightness almost managed kill.

Twelve times, she had chased and defeated the onslaught of demonic beasts led by the Great Demon and successfully defended Fort Suzif.

The thirteenth time was a glorious one-on-one battle with a demon. The demon’s name was the Demon Eyed Baronuis.

—

Medraut Fortress, north of the royal capital, in the New Gharast Kingdom.

The 28,000 soldiers who departed the royal capital were going to stay at this fortress for a while, since others would head to the Olyn Plains for the final battle against the Great Demon Zebrililith. That was the plan. It could be said that the journey so far has gone very smoothly.

At least, that was the case until they received reports of enemy forces.

My voice echoed throughout the fort’s war council room as I spread out a map of the surrounding area. Unconsciously, my lips became distorted.

「…Vestaline. The information you just gave me, are you sure it’s true? 」

Inside the war council room, Caria, Filaret, Eldith, and the other key members, including the old man Richard, were looking at each other.

Everyone’s expressions were stern. Vestaline’s words, as the leader of the mercenaries, only made their expressions tighten even more.

「Yes. Multiple scouts have returned with the same information. Your Excellency, I believe it’s highly accurate. 60,000 enemy troops are approaching from the north. They’ve apparently used up most of their remaining forces. The enemy commander is Valerie Brightness, with Giluel Harno as her second-in-command. 」

…That was ridiculous.

I nodded silently, furrowing my eyebrows.

The former King Ameritz led a national army of more than 50,000. It was the former kingdom’s forces alongside the Cathedral Knights and its militia.

If they were to spend 60,000, then, as Vestaline said, they were using up most of their remaining forces. That showed they were bold enough to do so.

But if that was the case, then it would be pointless to not also call the other generals, including the Protector. They showed no signs of making any moves. It didn’t make sense to hold back on the generals when they were trying to put in all their efforts.

No, that wasn’t the case. Then, I finally calmed down.

These 60,000 people probably weren’t just volunteers; some demons had infiltrated those numbers. After all, at this point, one could say that the Holy Church’s army was practically under Altia’s direct command.

In that case, it would be easy to sneak in demons and their associates.

I let out a deep sigh. So, I had no idea how many troops they had added to their original strength.

「…So, Zebrililith, who’s invading the Olyn Plains, has also gathered a horde of demonic beasts. I wonder how big it is? 」

Eldith spoke out loud, unable to bear the silence any longer.

Vestaline answered, prefaced by saying that they didn’t know for sure.

「There’s some fluctuation, but that march is continuing to absorb more demons, so I think their numbers easily exceed 10,000. 」

In other words, the enemy army was equipped with a total of 70,000 to 80,000 troops.

This was very unfortunate. The enemy truly wanted to crush us with incredible force.

We were already vastly outnumbered even with a total army of 28,000, and now we had to split our forces between the fort and the plains.

We were already half dead before the battle even began.

But we knew we were at a disadvantage from the start. We had miscalculated… the Great Holy Church’s army moved far too quickly.

No matter how one looked at it, they didn’t wait until they saw us move. They had clearly read our movements before acting. We had lost that read.

I narrowed my eyes as I looked at the map. I considered what to do.

We had taken the strategic initiative. Even so, until now, we had somehow managed to find a line of victory, no matter how slim it was, and somehow managed to pull it in.

…This time, I couldn’t see it at all. I didn’t even know what the best move was.

The enemy commander of the Great Holy Church’s army was Valerie. Even the old man couldn’t hold her back. Her vice-commander, Giluel, was an unknown entity, but she had been appointed Guardian, so she was surely not incompetent.

In addition, the Great Demon Zebrililith must also have its own demons. Even with the bronze dragon Shadraput, it was unclear how much of a resistance she could provide. It would be far too reckless to not allocate any troops to hold back the demon beasts.

I couldn’t think straight. There was always a flaw somewhere no matter what move I made.

「…Your Excellency, the plan’s a bit off. Let’s try that other tactic we were discussing. 」

Everyone was silent when, suddenly, Richard spoke up.

As usual, he looked up with a humorous smile on his cheeks. The silent group looked at the old man, then at me.

Naturally, the people who were here knew our situation very well. They had heard the situation up until now and must have felt the same way I did.

…In other words, we couldn’t win.

I was sure the old man thought the same.

I met the old man’s gaze directly. His eyes twitched slightly.

I understood in an instant. That was it.

I forced a facial expression. I let out a small sigh and said.

「It seems I have no choice. I didn’t really want to do this, but at this point, I have no choice but to take any means necessary. Can I ask for your help, old man? 」

「That’s a stupid question. Let’s get started right away. 」

And with that, the old man turned on his heels and left the war council room. He cast a final glance at me.

…A long time ago. It was a tactic the old man often used when I was still under him. It was the one I least wanted to take.

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