Chapter 4: Makoto Takatsuki Heads for the Demon Continent
We rode atop a black dragon through endless dark clouds. This dragon just so happened to be Mel, who’d disguised herself with Transform. After all, a white dragon would’ve been far too visible. It’s always reassuring to know just how much she’s capable of.
“Elementalist, are you sure we’re going in the right direction?” Mel asked. “It’s quite the detour.”
“Yeah. Some of the demon lords’ armies are blocking the other way, and we need to avoid them.”
Momo tilted her head, looking doubtful. “How can you tell that the demons are there, Sir Makoto?”
“Not even I can see that far with Clairvoyance and my elven sight...” Johnnie muttered.
“I saw the future,” I told them. “It’s a really useful skill.”
Their expressions grew pinched. It wasn’t like I was lying, so why were they looking at me like that?
They all think you’re getting more inhuman, Ira told me.
And how was that my fault? Future Sight kept triggering on its own, without any input from me. I wasn’t the one doing anything weird.
It will take a few days to reach Iblis’s castle. Don’t waste too much anima.
Well, I didn’t want to use the skill, but I couldn’t exactly control when it activated.
A-ny-way! Just don’t use up all your strength, okay?!
Sure thing.
Ira was getting chatty, just like Noah always was. I wonder how my goddess is doing...
“What are you thinking about?” Anna asked, peering at my face.
“Uh, someone from my home,” I deflected. It wasn’t like I could talk much about Noah.
“Ooh, one of those four lovers?” she asked with a pout.
I thought you didn’t believe me about that?
“Not quite,” I replied. “Someone else.”
“There’s a fifth?!” she and Momo cried in unison.
“Makoto has another imaginary girlfriend,” Anna whispered to Momo.
“I wonder what the story is this time. You ask.”
“Wha?! No way. You do it.”
“It’ll just be so awkward. I can’t bear it.”
“Guys, I can hear you.” I interrupted. Listen had helped me eavesdrop once again.
That topic of conversation soon fizzled out, and we chatted more generally for the remainder of our journey.
Once we landed, Johnnie scouted around for somewhere suitable to camp.
“Let’s rest here,” he said. He used wood magic to create a table and chairs, and even several simple beds.
Those are some useful spells. He’s really good with them too.
Mel set up a barrier, and the other two started preparing food.
I looked around for something I could do to help, but...I couldn’t find anything. So, with no tasks to complete, I decided to kill time by training with Dia. I used water magic to conjure all kinds of creatures, making them fly, run around, and even talk. It was really fun.
“What in the world...? Why would you want to make your spells talk?” Mel asked, looking uncomfortably at them.
“Well, saint rank spells can talk,” I said somewhat proudly, remembering the spell Lucy’s mom had shown off in Springrogue. That spell had been based on a fire angel. I had finally reached that kind of level—albeit only with water magic.
“Having a ‘conversation’ with your own spells is for strengthening them and exerting control. I hardly think you need to allow them to speak freely...”
“I can use those spells as well, but I don’t use them like you,” Johnnie added.
U-Uh?
Bluntly, the way you use magic is bizarre, you know that, right?
What?! No way! Ira, you’re agreeing with them?! Noah praised me for that!
Noah...why can’t you teach your apostles how to do things efficiently?
My goddess had told me that there weren’t really any rules to magic, so I should just do what I wanted. Were my spells inefficient? Now that I thought about it, had I stopped growing recently? I pulled out my Soul Book to look for proof.
“Say, Dia.” I showed her my Soul Book. “My water magic mastery hasn’t gone up from 999 at all. Why do you think that is?”
“Hm...one of their magic tools. I don’t know much about those numbers, but you are certainly getting stronger, my liege.”
“I am?”
I couldn’t personally tell, but according to Dia, my water magic was getting better. I wondered when the number would go up...
A voice suddenly came from behind me, breaking me out of my staring contest with my Soul Book.
“Makoto♡, dinner will be done soon,” Anna announced. She put her arms over my shoulders and leaned on me. Lately, she’d been a lot more touchy-feely.
“You’ve been working hard today,” she said. “Take a look at my magic once we’ve eaten.”
Then, she pulled me toward the food. She’d been tense when the journey had first started, but she seemed to have calmed down a lot now. I was glad for it.
Of course she has. Any girl would be happy to spend time with the guy they have feelings for, said Ira.
Ahead, the battle with Iblis was waiting for us.
Be good to her, Ira added. It’ll make the Hero of Light skill stronger.
I sighed mentally. Stringing her along for such calculating reasons made the feelings seem so hollow. Still, her Hero of Light skill was the only thing we could use to attack Iblis. Apparently, the skill was strongly linked to its user’s emotions. So because of that, I couldn’t hurt her feelings.
Throughout the meal, she was smiling as she talked with me. Our dinner consisted of grilled meat from the animals they’d hunted, fruits they’d gathered, and bread we’d brought with us from Labyrinthos. Everything was delicious.
After dinner, Momo and Anna joined me for training. Mel—having carried us all this way—lay resting off to the side, while Johnnie sipped at the alcohol he’d brought with him.
Before long, the two girls’ concentration ran out and they took a break. I kept practicing my water magic. Lately, it seemed like I could keep training forever without getting tired—using my water magic no longer caused me any fatigue. As such, I was a little worried about whether my practice even counted as training.
I cast my eyes around and happened to catch sight of Johnnie peering upward.
“What are you looking at?” I asked him.
“Well...these are cherry trees.”
“They are?”
That prompted me to look around too. Though they didn’t have any flowers at the moment, the trunks and branches certainly looked like cherry trees. That was odd, though—this was another world, not Earth.
Long ago, someone who was transported to this world spread them, Ira explained. They are by no means rare here.
Huh... I hadn’t spent much time looking at the cherry trees in my old world, but it felt almost nostalgic to see them now. Of course, they had no flowers or leaves, so it also felt a little sad.
“Well then, let’s take the time to add some flowers,” Johnnie remarked.
“Huh?”
He casually muttered some incantation. Suddenly, the cherry trees grew buds, and those buds unfurled into light pink blossoms. This was just what I wanted to see...
“Woooow...”
“So pretty...”
Anna and Momo’s eyes were shining with wonder.
“Oh, that was wonderful,” I heard Mel say. So his spell was impressive, even to an ancient dragon.
In minutes, the trees were all in full bloom. They’d stick out like a sore thumb, but I figured that Mel’s barrier should keep the monsters from finding us. A gust of wind sent pink blossoms fluttering through the air.
“Beautiful, no?”
I nodded. “It’s great—a real blizzard of blossoms.”
“Let’s have a flower viewing,” Johnnie suggested. “Drink up, Sir Makoto.”
“Thank you.”
I was supposed to be training, but I still gratefully took the drink. There was an elegance to this whole atmosphere.
“Do you like these flowers, Teacher?” Momo asked me.
“I do. They grow near my hometown.”
I wanted to show them to Sasa. I was sure she’d love them.
“Then we’ll plant loads of these when we get back to the dungeon town.”
“Good plan, Momo. I’ll help.”
Momo and Anna seemed excited about the prospect. I was all for adding more cherry trees to this world. I gazed up at the blossoms. It’s been so long since I’ve seen a sight like this.
With that, the day ended peacefully.
The next two days were spent crossing the continent. Finally, we arrived at the Dark Seas, which was the ocean separating the western and northern continents. Just as we were getting tired of the expanse of water beneath us, we finally spotted some gray land.
“I see it.”
“Mel, is that...?”
“It is—the domain of the demons. It is the place you humans call the northern continent.”
Conversation lessened significantly after that. Even Johnnie seemed tense.
The northern continent was also known as the demon continent.
Now that I think about it...this is the first time I’ve been here...
In the future, I’d fought against demons and demon lords from the northern continent, but I’d never set foot there. This was our first step onto the continent that was home to Iblis.
In a word, the continent was “gray.” The ground, the trees, the rivers, and the sky—all of them were desaturated and dark.
“The land didn’t use to look like this...” Mel said mournfully.
“It didn’t?” I asked.
“Since that thing calling itself Iblis arrived, the whole continent has been without light.”
“Huh...”
So the land looked this way because of Iblis...
Johnnie suddenly turned and glared into the distance.
“We’ve been spotted.”
Anna shivered. “I can feel someone watching us.”
If Momo’s expression was anything to go by, she seemed to feel the same tension.
My Scout skill hadn’t even pinged... I looked around with Clairvoyance, but I couldn’t spot anything—not even a single set of eyes staring at us through the gloom.
I was fretting about it, but then Mel wiped those worries away. “You need not be concerned. We ancient dragons ruled this region for a long time. If you are with me, you will not be attacked by the demons.”
That was great. “Nice one, Mel.”
“So, what is our next move, Elementalist? Iblis’s castle, Eden, is a floating construction with no fixed location. Searching for it randomly is going to be no help.”
“Um...wait a minute.” Rushing around without a plan would just waste our energy.
Iraaaa, can you hear me? I kinda want you to tell me where Iblis’s castle is.
I leaned wholeheartedly into relying on the goddess, but...
Ma... Ta... You...nee...there...
Huh? I could barely understand that. Ira? You there? She said something after that, but I couldn’t make out even a single word.
“Elementalist, what’s wrong?”
“It’s harder to hear Ira now that we’re here,” I told Mel.
“What?!” Momo looked panicked. “That’s awful!”
I’d expected this, though. The demon continent was Iblis’s domain.
Ira had warned me about the barrier that spanned across the whole continent—one that blocked out the Sacred Deities. Ira was probably in the middle of tuning the frequency (or something along those lines) to get the connection back.
“Let’s just land somewhere. There are some things I want to check out.”
“Very well.”
With that, Mel landed in a nearby open area. We climbed down from Mel’s back and stepped onto the gray land.
“So here we are...”
This was the demon continent—a world of gray as far as the eye could see. It felt like I’d suddenly gone colorblind. But the most important thing was...
“Dia,” I called.
“Yes, my liege?”
“How does the area...feel?”
This was the potential biggest problem—I needed to know whether my elemental magic skill was affected.
“It isn’t bad. The elementals seem lively.”
“I see.” I let out a sigh of relief. Apparently, this wasn’t like the Seafloor Temple with its ridiculous barrier that blocked all elementals. My magic wasn’t going to cause me any issues on the continent.
Time to see about the others.
“The wind, ground, and fire elementals all seem fine too,” Johnnie proclaimed as he flipped his long hair out of the way.
He could use four types of elementals. I was jealous.
“I feel even stronger than normal!” Momo exclaimed.
Well, she was a half-vampire, so I could see how this place would suit her. Mel used to live here, so she wouldn’t have any problems either. That only left...
“I don’t particularly like it here.”
Right. Of course Anna wouldn’t cope well with this place. Her face was pallid.
“Let’s make camp nearby and rest,” I suggested. “We should get used to this environment before we do anything else.” Anna needed to be at full power since she was our main combatant.
“So, where to camp...” Johnnie looked around the area with a seasoned eye.
Suddenly, we heard a yell in the distance.
“Lady Helemmelk!”
We all frantically looked around for its source. Then, we saw...
A ghost?
It was a completely translucent boy.
We’d all tensed for a fight, but judging from the boy’s expression, we didn’t need to worry.
“Have I...met you before?” Mel asked.
The ghost boy deflated a little, looking sad.
“Hah... Well, it has been about two hundred years. You saved my sister and me back when I was alive. My family were cambions, so we had nowhere to live—we also had no one there to help us fend off monster attacks. Except you, Lady Helemmelk! You helped us! I haven’t forgotten the debt I owe you!”
“I-I see...” she replied awkwardly. Apparently, she didn’t remember at all.
“Would you stay in my village? Since the Great One began to rule the world, this continent has been at peace. Even weak ghosts like us can exist in safety. We’ll be glad to welcome you.”
“My...”
Mel cast a look my way—her eyes were asking what I wanted to do.
Then, an RPG Player screen appeared in the air.
Will you stay in the village?
Yes
No
Hmm, what to do...?
There was a definite possibility that this was a trap. After all, it was a village of demons. Ghosts were known to be weak, but a large number of them could still be dangerous. Even so...
“Let’s go, Mel.”
“If you say so.” She turned back to the ghost. “We will join you.”
Johnnie, Anna, and Momo looked unsure, but they all ended up agreeing with me. If it came to it, we could all just climb on Mel’s back and fly away.
“So those are your companions,” the boy said. “This way.”
He turned and began guiding us deeper into the gloomy forest.
“We’re there, Lady Helemmelk.”
The village was surrounded by a simple fence. I’d been expecting a settlement of ghosts, but all sorts of races were living here—orcs, goblins, skeletons, and other monsters. They all had rather odd features.
“These are noncombatants,” Johnnie murmured.
I nodded in agreement. They were all either young, old, or women. None of them looked overly strong, so this probably wasn’t a trap.
Just as I was heading out for a walk around the village...
“M-Makoto,” Anna stuttered, grabbing my sleeve.
“What’s wrong?” I asked.
“‘What’s wrong...?’ This is a village of demons!” she whisper-yelled at me. “We need to be careful!”
Momo looked uneasily at me as well. They seemed to be the only two nervous about us being here. Mel was talking to a demon who looked to be the village chief. The villagers looked at Mel with terrified expressions, which just showed how exceptional they all thought ancient dragons were. Johnnie had already decided that the village was safe—he’d wandered off somewhere.
This was my first time on the demon continent, so I wanted to explore. After all, this was a whole new continent—how could I not be excited?!
To!!! G...t!!! came a burst of noise in my mind. It was probably Ira, but her voice wasn’t clear. Apparently, she hadn’t managed to find the right channel yet. Keep at it, Ira!
Why...y—!!! ...ought!!!
I had a feeling that she might’ve been angry with me, but oh well. I couldn’t hear her. And if I had understood what she was saying, what could I have done?
“Anna, Momo, if we stay tense, we’ll just exhaust ourselves. You should relax your bodies and minds.”
Anna let out a sigh. “You are far too carefree.”
“What are your nerves even made of?” Momo asked.
I was trying to be as careful as possible, but they were looking at me in exasperation. That hurts, guys.
Slowly, I made my way around the village. Since we were with Mel, the villagers seemed to welcome us. Ancient dragons were really respected here. I looked for food, weapons, armor, and other things, but they didn’t have any shops that catered to outsiders. This was a poor village, and the people here had been relegated to a subsistence lifestyle.
The only real thing I could do was gather information, so I chatted with some of the younger demons. This was just a little village tucked away in a corner of the continent—I doubted that there would be any consequences if I just asked some questions.
I inquired about anything that had happened recently, but since they didn’t have much contact with other settlements, all I heard about were countless identical days.
The only uncomfortable aspect of these conversations came when the demons would attribute their peace to Iblis. Apparently, before he’d appeared, there had been conflict between the strong demons and the demon lords. Weaker beings had suffered on this continent. Then, around a hundred years ago, Iblis had appeared and unified the demon lords, seizing control of the world. His reign was a peaceful one for demons.
I glanced to my side and saw Anna and Momo both looking awkward. After all, we were here to defeat their symbol of peace. As far as these demons were concerned, we were embodiments of pure evil, here to plunge the world into chaos. The two of them were earnest to their core, so this fact was bothering them.
I had another problem on my mind, though.
During all my conversations with the villagers, I’d sensed that something was off. It was a faint feeling, so I didn’t notice at first. Eventually, when I got to examine the villagers closer I realized what the problem was.
They were charmed.
I could only detect this thanks to the Charm skill I’d been granted as Furiae’s guardian knight.
In my old world, Charm would’ve been considered a form of brainwashing. As such, these charmed people weren’t necessarily telling us the truth—I doubted that the village was really peaceful.
I’d wanted to stay for a night, but now, I knew it’d be dangerous to rest here. The villagers were just like the citizens of Laphroaig.
Speaking of Laphroaig, I wondered what their queen was doing. I found it hard to believe that she’d charmed the people living in this backwater village. Still, Charm was practically her signature spell—was there some kind of link? I’d need to ask Mel about it later.
Either way, we shouldn’t stay long, I decided. I wanted to get us out of here. However, before we left, I wanted to ask one last question.
“By the way, I noticed that there aren’t many young men in the village, but that there are a lot of children and the elderly. Is there some kind of reason for that?”
Because of how poor the village was, I expected there to be some kind of arrangement—perhaps the young men were working away from home and sending money back.
“There is,” replied one of the demons. “It’s an awful reason. Apparently, some hero defeated Demon Lord Bifrons...”
Whoops, that answer hits a bit close... A bead of sweat ran down my cheek. News of Bifrons’s death had spread all the way out here, to some little village in the middle of nowhere? I needed to make sure they didn’t realize Anna was a hero.
The next words out of the demon’s mouth only exacerbated those worries.
“Demon warriors from across the continent have been summoned by the Dragon Lord. They are going to take a million men and root out the humans responsible.”
“What?!” Anna and Momo yelped in unison.
As they stiffened in shock, part of the picture book passed through my mind.
An army a million soldiers strong invaded from the demon continent, and the savior defeated them. The location of that victory became Symphonia, the capital of Highland.
This was a popular segment of the legend, even considering how well-known the legend was as a whole.
It’s one thing after another...
I wanted to just rest my head in my hands, but we couldn’t laze around. The next stage of history had already begun.
We had left the village and were on Mel’s back. I’d just told Johnnie about the invading army.
“A million of the demon lords’ troops are marching on our continent?” Johnnie asked in shock.
“Where are we going?” Anna asked.
Momo looked terrified. “What do we do now?!”
They were both tugging at my clothes. Of course, I didn’t have a concrete plan yet. An army of a million soldiers was not something you could leave alone, so we’d rushed out of the village as soon as possible.
I wanted to get Ira’s advice, but I still couldn’t hear her. What should we do?
Mel’s voice pulled me out of my confusion. “Elementalist, if they are gathering so many fighters, they’ll likely be in Zagan’s domain.”
“How do you know?” I asked.
“There are only so many locations suitable for gathering such forces. The ancient dragons rule the continent, but they live at high altitudes. Those places are not convenient for amassing a large army.”
“I see...”
Mel was familiar with the geography, so she was almost certainly right.
“Are we going there, Sir Makoto?” Johnnie asked.
“What?!” Anna cried. “Johnnie, what are you thinking?!”
Momo just shook her head. “S-Sir Makoto, shouldn’t we go back to Labyrinthos and get everyone to evacuate?”
“There is nowhere left for them to go,” Johnnie replied calmly. “Labyrinthos is the safest place for them.”
Momo whimpered.
Labyrinthos was like a natural fort—the people staying there would be the safest.
However, we certainly weren’t out of the woods just yet. Our party consisted of a mere five people, and we were just wandering around the demon continent, where a million-strong army was forming. If we were found, we’d be crushed in moments.
“Mel, can we recon the place from a distance?” I asked.
“We can...but are you sure?”
Even Mel seemed hesitant. Still, we had to do something about this.
And so, we headed for the gathering of the armies.
“Wh-What is that...?”
“We can’t do anything...”
“There are so many...”
Anna and Momo’s voices were shaking.
Scouting was one of the basics of war according to Johnnie, but even he seemed disheartened by what he saw.
Zagan’s territory consisted of wide open plains. We had climbed a small mountain range adjacent to these plains, and we were looking down upon them.
As far as our eyes could see, the ground was covered by the army.
The stampede I’d once seen, as well as Zagan’s own forces, paled in comparison. The sheer scope was too much for a human to really understand—I could feel my brain refusing to accept it as reality.
It was...for lack of a better word...hopeless.
“This is bad... They have combined their forces, Elementalist,” Mel fretted.
She was, of course, in her human form again.
“Combined?” I asked.
At a glance, there were all sorts of demons and monsters in the area. The same could have been said of Bifrons’s forces though, so what was so bad about this? I asked Mel to explain.
“Originally, there were three demon lords who ruled this continent. Astaroth, Zagan, and Forneus. You know that, correct?”
“Of course I do.”
That hadn’t changed, even a thousand years in the future. I’d heard a lot about how they ruled the demon continent.
“However, I can see subordinates of Goliath, Valac, Erinyes, and Barbatos here. Even some of the survivors of Bifrons’s forces are present.”
“Which means...”
I finally understood exactly what she’d meant by “combined forces.” This was not a good situation.
“There is a chance that the demon lords have gathered from around the world.”
“And their goal is to avenge Bifrons,” Johnnie said.
“I’m not sure about that...” I murmured. I then decided to pass along the information from Ira. “The demon lords are not particularly cooperative with each other. They aren’t generally that close.”
I wouldn’t expect them to immediately jump to vengeance over a fellow demon lord’s death...
“L-Let’s get away, Makoto...” Anna murmured.
“Sir Makoto...they’ll find us...” Momo added.
Both of them reached out to me.
Johnnie turned to me. “Sir Makoto, our target is the snake’s head, Iblis. We need to find his castle, so let us depart from here.”
Even Johnnie, who seemed to know no fear, was recommending that we retreat.
“Come on. Let’s go, Elementalist.”
Mel called out to me, and both Momo and Anna were sending pleading looks my way.
Our best move was obviously to leave. Even I knew that. I did. But still...
Will you fight the demon lords’ armies?
Yes
No
If it wasn’t for that...
Floating in front of me were sparkling letters.
RPG Player.
Time after time, the skill had given me valuable advice at major points in my adventures. Now it was asking me if I was really willing to just leave things as they were.
I could feel my party members’ gazes on me as I fretted about my decision.
...uki! Makoto Takatsuki!
Suddenly, a bell-like voice had just echoed in my mind.
Ira?
Apparently, she’d finally tuned to the correct station. Phew.
Wha?! What a—! You...?!
Ira?
Oh...maybe she hadn’t quite finished up.
What were you thinking, purposefully getting close to the army?!!!!
My (figurative) ears were ringing.
“Owww.” I couldn’t help but frown.
Momo gazed at my expression and spoke, concern in her voice. “Sir Makoto, what is it?”
“Ira finally got through to me.”
“That is all we could ask for. Ask her where Iblis is and we can travel there immediately,” Mel pressed.
“Let’s do that, Makoto,” Anna added.
Johnnie nodded. “Indeed. Their forces are focused here, so now is our best chance to strike.”
Before we set out though, I needed to ask the goddess something. I spoke out loud so everyone could hear.
“Ira, I need to know...”
I get it. You want to know where Iblis is. Leave it to me. I was looking into it while I was tuning the telepathy, so I know exactly where he is! Head nor—
“No, I didn’t want to ask where Iblis is.”
All five of them—physically present or not—exclaimed in shock. I continued the question.
“Will the army here find the town in Labyrinthos?”
My four companions grew wide-eyed in shock. I thought that the army probably would find the town—that was exactly why RPG Player was giving me the choice. The dungeon town was huge, and it had only grown after Bifrons’s defeat. With a million demons tearing through the area, they could hardly hide. Then, when they were finally found...no one would survive. This was the demon lords’ main fighting force. The citizens would be crushed like ants.
There was no response from Ira. That in itself is an answer, I suppose.
“Sir Makoto, what did she—?” Johnnie half-voiced the question. He was the person most invested in the town.
“Ira, they’ll find it, won’t they?” I asked again, but it was more of a statement. I spoke the words with a sense of certainty.
Johnnie grunted, his expression darkening.
“But...Sir Makoto,” Momo whimpered.
“Makoto!” exclaimed Anna. “We need to head back and warn them!”
“Where will they hide?” Johnnie countered. “There are too many people.”
“We ancient dragons will help...but there are too many citizens. We cannot hide everyone.”
“We could move farther in,” Anna suggested.
“The environment gets more treacherous the farther you go,” said Johnnie, “and the citizens won’t be able to carry on with their lives.”
“I...see...”
“We have no time,” Mel said gravely, “We need to go back.”
Johnnie nodded. “We do.”
“Makoto!”
“Sir Makoto!”
Their voices all echoed through my ears. As they did, I once again remembered a line from the book.
A million-strong army invaded from the demon continent and the savior defeated them.
I sighed. It seemed like it was fate. Now, it was just a matter of when and where we would strike.
Ira immediately read my mind.
Hold it right there! exclaimed Ira. What are you...? You can’t seriously be thinking that?!
That’s right, Goddess.
Wait, wait, wait! Listen to me! You can’t do that! You can’t!
Even though it was in my head, it sounded like her voice was echoing. Her guidance was almost certainly correct. In terms of safety, it made logical sense to abandon the town. But still...
Come on. Makoto Takatsuki, change your mind.
Her voice sounded pained. But surely there was some way we could help.
She gave a long pause.
I cannot believe how much of an idiot you are. When this is over, you’re getting a full day of lecturing.
Thank you, Ira.
The goddess had agreed...albeit with strings attached.
Idiot...
I turned to the rest of my party.
“Everyone, listen to me, would you?”
◇ Anna’s Perspective ◇
“Wha?”
I couldn’t believe my ears. Had he really just said that?
“Let’s defeat those million demons right here.”
“M-Makoto,” I stuttered.
“What’s wrong, Anna?” he asked. My voice was trembling, but he sounded as calm as ever.
“Y-You really want to fight? You’re...not scared?”
My legs were shaking. I was terrified. The people in the dungeon town had taken me in and had helped me to survive, so thinking about the danger they were in made my stomach turn. However, this army was a million soldiers strong... Taking them on couldn’t be considered anything but suicide.
Before I could plead with him to reconsider, Makoto responded to my question.
“Of course I’m scared.”
“Then...!”
I couldn’t bring myself to say that we should abandon the town.
“One of the hardest parts of being a hero,” said Makoto, “is not being able to step away from a fight like this.”
I was startled. There was no hint of fear or nerves on his face—his tone sounded more resigned than anything.
“However strong their opponent, a hero must fight.” This was something my mentor had once said.
I wanted to be like her. How had Makoto managed to say the same thing? And...how had his voice calmed my trembling?
“Ira?” he muttered. “Well, I wanted to look at least a little cool... Ah, yeah, yeah, okay.”
He looked slightly conflicted.
“Um...what did she say?” I asked.
“She’s just a little pissed at me.”
He smiled mischievously. I couldn’t put a name to the odd feeling unfolding in my chest.
I took his hand firmly. “I want...”
I trailed off. That’s all I can possibly say.
“Let’s do our best together,” he murmured. He gently squeezed my hand back.
Arrayed in front of us was an army of a million fighters. There were so many bodies that they obscured the ground beneath them.
But as long as Makoto was at my side, I could forget some of my fear.
The other three, however, were panicked by his decision.
“Elementalist?! What are you saying?!”
“Sir Makoto, that’s absurd! We’ll die a pointless death.”
“Sir Makoto... Please don’t!”
Our other party members were obviously trying to stop him.
But then it happened.
“Calm Mind,” I heard him whisper.
“Mako—”
As I called out to him, I realized the air was...cold. It felt almost like we’d plunged into the depths of winter, and my breath misted in front of my face. The other three stopped in their tracks, mouths agape. I did the same.
There’d been a definite change in him. It was just like when he’d fought Bifrons. He’d become something else.
“Okay, Anna. Would you come with me?” he asked, turning to smile at me. The smile didn’t reach his eyes, though.
As I looked dazedly into his eyes, I spotted a glimmer of prismatic light in their depths. I was so overwhelmed that I couldn’t even manage a response.
Suddenly, many beautiful blue-skinned women appeared and surrounded him.
“My liege, are we to march to battle?”
“Finally.”
“I’ve been waiting for this.”
Undyne.
So many of them.
Dia was there, but there were many more besides her—over a dozen stood around him. The mana surrounding them was enough to put the demon lord to shame, so even someone as strong as Lady Helemmelk felt insignificant in their presence.
“Anna?” Makoto asked.
“R-Right! I’m ready...Makoto.”
Despite feeling overwhelmed by the pressure of their mana, I managed to nod and take his hand properly.
“M-Me too!” Momo insisted.
“Sorry, Momo, but the spell I’m going to use would hurt you all, so you can’t come with me.”
“B-But!” I immediately noticed a problem with what he’d said.
“Then what of Lady Anna?” Johnnie asked. “Isn’t she going with you?”
If what Makoto had said was true, then surely his spell would affect me too...
“Anna, you need to protect yourself with your Hero of Light skill. If you do, my elemental magic won’t harm you.”
“G-Got it...”
He readily admitted that his spell was dangerous. Usually, he would never say anything like that. His demeanor right now...was a little frightening.
“Elementalist, you’ve been spotted,” Lady Helemmelk said, pointing to the army.
A scouting force or something similar seemed to be heading our way. Though, it was hardly surprising that they’d spotted us—the amount of mana coming off the Undyne was absurd. They would’ve noticed us no matter how far away they were.
“Mel, take Momo and Johnnie—get as far away as you can.”
Lady Helemmelk was silent for a moment. She gazed at him intently. “Don’t die, Elementalist.”
With that, she took off. The army was currently moving to surround us, and some of the monsters broke off to chase her.
I was a little worried, but sure that Lady Helemmelk would be fine.
“Anna, take us over there with flight magic,” Makoto said.
I gaped. Makoto was pointing at a spot in the center of the entire army. He wanted to put us right in the middle of a million enemies! And yet...he sounded so casual about it.
Our little hill would soon be surrounded, but the bulk of the army wasn’t getting any closer. Maybe they were afraid of the mana from the Undyne.
However, we couldn’t know when the army would decide to strike.
“Anna?”
Makoto had a blank look of confusion on his face. It was like he didn’t understand what was causing me to delay. His attitude really annoyed me.
Damn it all! He’s way too chaotic!
He generally seemed cautious, but during moments like this, he was always ready to plunge right into the fray. We were also constantly worried that he would die! I couldn’t bear to watch him flirt with his demise, so I’d have to go with him.
“Makoto, I can’t use the skill without sunlight, and I can’t part the clouds on my own. Can you sort that out?”
“Oh, right.”
He said something to Dia.
“Leave it to me, my liege!”
One of the Undyne vanished, flying into the sky. There was a soundless explosion, and then, the Clouds of Darkness broke apart, revealing an open blue sky.
He shattered Iblis’s spell so easily...
Makoto was a truly astonishing person. Bathed in the sunlight, I could feel my body filling with strength. The light turned into aura, and I could feel myself calming down. This was another part of the Hero of Light skill.
Though, I’m still pretty much a mess compared to Makoto.
I could still hear my heart pounding in my ears, but my body had stopped shaking.
The army looked to be having a difficult time. It must’ve come as a real shock when the Clouds of Darkness suddenly broke apart. Formations splintered, and I could actually hear the demons’ uproar. They must have realized that we had caused it, but even so, they didn’t move to attack.
Apparently, the Undynes’ mana was just that scary.
“Let’s go, Anna.”
“Okay.”
I gripped his hand and let my wings unfurl. We floated gently into the air, slowly making our way to the center of their forces.
“Who are you?!” some general yelled.
“Stop! If you come any closer, we’ll bring you down!” someone screamed before attacking.
At this point, the monsters began charging en masse, and the army sent wave after wave to strike us. There seemed to be no end to them—a dizzying number of enemies attacked, and yet, not one of them reached us.
Water Magic (Saint Rank): Ice Frontier.
The Undyne that Makoto was controlling conjured a barrier of ice. It started as a small circular barrier but gradually grew until it was the size of a small village. Everyone who crossed the barrier found themselves frozen and covered in snow. I was the only exception—my Hero of Light skill was protecting me.
So this was the indiscriminate spell he’d been talking about...
“Die, Hero!”
A demonic soldier covered in thick miasma yelled, charging. This was likely a demon of some renown. I readied my sword to defend. I calculated that the demon’s blade would reach us in two seconds. My sword was clad in aura, and all I needed to do was swing it to remove the demon’s head from his body.
Yet, even this powerful demon froze solid a few dozen steps away.
I let out a sigh, and my breath glittered in the air.
The world around us felt like a region of extreme cold. Even the air itself seemed to sting. If it weren’t for my skill, I wouldn’t have been able to keep standing. I wanted to move around and do something because I could feel myself slowing from the frigid temperature.
“Makoto, there isn’t anything for me to do,” I protested.
“It’ll be your turn soon,” he said.
“Aren’t you going to defeat them all?”
I’d relaxed enough to ask that question, but his expression remained serious.
None of the army could even get within sword’s reach. His barrier had colored the entire area white, as far as I could see. It was like a world of glittering frost—beautiful, but also deadly. Anything that set foot in this world would freeze to death.
Did he just want to keep the barrier up and stop them all in their tracks?
Amazing...
Suddenly, Makoto broke my reverie.
“You’re up, Anna.”
I jumped slightly. When I looked around, I spotted something nearby—something that was clearly different from the demons that had attacked so far.
A thick layer of miasma filled the air. Makoto looked up, and I followed his gaze.
Several figures gazed down at us.
“Are you the little Abel that the Great One was talking about?”
The woman’s voice was bright and out of place. Though she was inside Makoto’s barrier, she was still smiling cheerily. She was frightfully beautiful. Her eyes were crimson, and jet-black wings sprouted from her back. At a glance, I thought she was an avian, like me, but she was radiating waves of unpleasantness that told me she was different.
“Look closer, Erinyes—that is an avian woman. The Hero of Light is a man.”
The man who answered was no less good-looking than the woman, who was apparently named Erinyes. He wore fine clothing, like those a noble would wear, and his demeanor seemed rather refined.
However, looking at him made me feel disgusted. I scowled.
“I can feel Althena’s blessing on her,” argued the woman. “She’s definitely the Hero of Light.”
“But... That would mean that His foresight was wrong.”
At this point, a much older voice interjected.
“It matters not. We can find out the truth once she’s dead. Hurry up. It’s far too cold here.”
It was hard to make out what that voice was saying. Every word was accompanied by what sounded like wingbeats. Despite the apparent age of this third figure, their miasma and general air of bloodthirstiness was the most intense.
The woman, Erinyes, scoffed. “You’re supposed to be Valac, and yet you shiver because of some human’s spell.”
“Silence, devil brat. Look, there are Undyne. I haven’t seen any in millennia. Why are they following some mere human?”
“That doesn’t make sense,” the handsome man remarked. “In this era, the elementals’ god has Cain as her apostle.”
“Ah, yes, I haven’t seen Cain in a while,” the woman trilled. “I wonder where he’s run off to.”
They were talking like we weren’t even here—it was all but impossible to interrupt them. Though there were only three of them, each felt just as imposing—or even more so—as Bifrons.
One of them had been called Erinyes, and another, Valac. Were they...?
Thud! The impact was massive. I looked in the direction it had come from, and...
Wh-When did he get here?!
I saw an enormous humanoid even bigger than Lady Helemmelk, and beside it was an even bigger quadrupedal monster.
No, it wasn’t a monster... The beast exuded miasma, even more so than the three in the sky.
The giant humanoid and the animal spoke, but I couldn’t understand what they said.
“Zagan, Goliath, yoohoo!” waved the black-winged woman. I felt my body stiffen at her words.
There was no way I’d mishear the names of the world’s rulers.
I heard Makoto sigh. “Five demon lords at once...” he muttered.
Those words made me feel dizzy. I wanted him to be wrong, but my mind wouldn’t let me refute the facts before me.
Erinyes, King of Fallen Heaven
Valac, King of the Flies
Barbatos, King of Devils
Goliath, the King of Giants
Zagan, the King of Beasts
Nine demon lords ruled the planet, and the majority of them were right in front of us.
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