The Greatest Demon Lord Is Reborn as a Typical Nobody - Volume 1 - Chapter 17

CHAPTER 17

The Ex–Demon Lord, a Battle Event, and Absolute Mayhem

During the seven days leading up to the battle event, I tried my hand at any and all forms of sabotage, but fate was a cruel mistress. Every single plan somehow managed to fail in ways that went far beyond any reasonable possibility, and the day of the battle event arrived without a hitch.

Why do things turn out like this?

It was staged at the largest multipurpose stadium in the royal castle, which was a coliseum from ancient times that’d been renovated and expanded to comfortably house twenty thousand people. And since the Laville National Academy of Magic was praised across the entire continent, its annual battle event was hugely popular…and resulted in a packed stadium.

As sunlight filled the open arena and the guests roared with earsplitting cheers at the flashy one-on-one battles, the energy of the spectators was reaching a fever pitch. One of the primary causes was our students engaging in hardcore fights, and the other was…the fact that Ireena’s father and my parents—in other words, the Heroic Baron and the Great Mages—were acting as special guest MCs for the event.

I’m sorry. Were you expecting to hear some high-level commentary from true heroes?

“These one-on-ones between the girls aren’t really doing it for me. Throw in a gal who looks like a gorilla or something, and that’s sure to shake things up.”

“It might not be enough for you, but we’ve definitely got some lookers here! Their boobs are just the perfect size, and they have the cutest tushies. I think I’ll go say hi when this is all over. Slurp.”

Well, my parents stopped being decent humans a long time ago, and I hate to tell you that your hopes are wasted.

“There are a few attack spells by Lemming that have come as complete surprises, but Lizzie is wonderfully perceptive. You can’t forget that common sense is just as important as magical prowess on the battlefield, which means we still can’t tell how this battle will play out,” announced Weiss, who was actually giving commentary that was concise and easy for the masses to understand, unlike my stupid parents.

As expected of Weiss. After all, he ranked number one on my list of People Who I Wish Were My Father.

I was right behind our special guests, perched in a front row box seat to watch over the proceedings. There was someone right next to me.

“This is some match. Don’t you think they’re both talented?”

“I agree,” I said to Olivia, who was sitting one seat over from me with a fantastic smile plastered across her face.

I refused to let mine fade, either, which was why some weird rumors were floating around.

“They have serious chemistry…”

“I guess they really are an item.”

Most of them were a huge misunderstanding.

There was no way in hell we had any kind of chemistry. This was far from a pleasant conversation between opposite sexes: It was a high-stakes battle of mental fortitude.

“Wow, some top-notch students. I’d be willing to bet even Alvarto would make the two of them his apprentices. Don’t you agree?”

“Well, I’ve never had the pleasure of meeting Sir Alvarto, so I’m afraid I cannot say.”

Olivia had been spouting nonsense for a while now and sizing up my reactions. I’d be done for if I slipped up by assuming even a fraction of a micro-expression like nah, no way. She had the ability to perceive her opponent’s thoughts through the smallest facial changes, which meant I had to maintain a cool smile and frantically suppress the urge to make any snarky comments.

But wow. That’d been a close one. There was no way that the most war-crazed of the Four Heavenly Kings would ever take any apprentices. I mean, he was the type of guy to actively hound talent and leave them in a condition beyond all recovery. Alvarto killed anyone the moment he realized their potential.

…I wonder what he’s up to these days, I pondered, continuing to observe the event without dropping my guard against Olivia. But I honestly couldn’t see why everyone was going crazy over this. This magical battle of modern times was to the ancient times as slime is to a dragon. All these matches weren’t the least bit interesting—except for any fights involving my beloved daughter, Ireena, and my lone apprentice, Ginny, of course.

I knew that as their guardian and master, I should be praying for their victories, but I was hoping for the diametric opposite to prevent Operation: Instructor Ard from progressing any further.

I was praying that they lost—as quickly as possible and without injury. But the two continued to excel and tear through the ranks.

“Whew! Ireena is displaying great potential! Despite the grueling mental conditions, the other students can’t get anywhere near her!”

The MCs were reviewing the most recent match during a short break, their voices amplified with a revolver-shaped sorcery device.

Weiss smiled brightly in response. “She was born with talent, but…I have to admit that Ard’s teachings were a major influence.”

Huh? W-wait. What is he—?

“You see, Ard acted as her mentor for a few years after they met. I always heard her talk about his lessons and principles…which were all remarkable. I was honestly a bit frightened by his ability to teach her, especially for his young age,” Weiss continued, glancing at me…and winking.

Thanks for nothing! Stop looking like you’re doing me a big favor by preaching about me to the world! And quit oversharing or else!

“…Oh yeah. Now that I think about it, wasn’t my stupid brother a great teacher, too? (Smile.)”

I knew this would happen! See what you did to me, you idiot?! Back in my day, I would have had your head!

I knew that if Ginny and Ireena won, they would yap on and on about me during their postgame interview…which meant that their obnoxious operation would come to fruition.

That said, I couldn’t think of a single good plan…and the final round was upon us before I knew it.

Ireena and Ginny were set to clash onstage.

In a circular field at the center of the stadium, the two glared at each other in a face-off.

“Hmph. Looks like this might be a battle to remember.”

“…I agree.”

Their match didn’t just catch my attention but that of everyone else in the stadium. I would be relieved if they could just wrap this up without anyone getting too hurt.

As for Operation: Instructor Ard…I wasn’t going to think about that anymore. I was just gonna turn a blind eye to reality.

The curtain was about to rise on the main event of the day—the last and greatest battle.

“Aaaaaaaaaaaah?!”

A shrill scream pierced the air, sudden and without warning, as booming sounds of destruction and angry bellows echoed from every corner, near and far.

What’s going on? I thought to myself, shocked by the surprise attack.

I surveyed the area to find hordes of demons committing nothing less than atrocities in the stadium seats. The arena was in complete pandemonium, but I could see that this wasn’t the only place in total chaos. When I looked far off in the distance, I spotted black smoke rising in the sky.

“Looks like we weren’t their only target,” noted a sonorous voice. It was Jessica.

I hadn’t realized she’d been standing there scowling in the same direction as I was.

“…I’m guessing you’re going to act, right, Ard? I can help out. You’re coming, too, right, Lady Olivia?”

“Of course.” Olivia nodded grimly and said no more.

Weiss and my parents were looking down on us, apparently having overheard our entire conversation.

“We’re comin’, too!”

“Hee-hee-hee, maybe I could go all out—for the first time in, like, forever!”

“Please don’t. You’ll blow away the capital.”

Amid the screams, howls, and repulsive sounds of annihilation, the three remained blasé as ever. As expected of great heroes. They were brimming with courage.

“Carla, Weiss, and I will take care of the punks in the stadium here!” my father announced.

“Which leaves us to take care of the outside,” Olivia finished.

“In that case, Olivia and Ard, handle that solo. I’m bringing Ireena and Ginny along with me for backup. I’m guessing the other students are too exhausted to help, and I’m sure the instructors will move of their own accord,” Jessica suggested.

I had no objections: Jessica’s plan seemed the most efficient.

But if I could have it my way…I wouldn’t want Ireena to be in this fight. That said, I knew that even if I demanded that she stay, she’d jump into action whether I liked it or not.

If they were going to participate, I wanted the two of them to be close to me, especially because it seemed they were being targeted by the demons… But I assumed that Ginny wouldn’t be easily swayed, much less Ireena.

On top of that, I knew we would be more efficient and save more people by splitting up. And Ireena was the kind to disregard danger to herself for the sake of helping others. This was something that I’d never be able to change in her mind.

Jessica must have noticed my somber mood, because she firmly patted my shoulder with a smile. “Relax. I may not be like you, but I’m from the household of a famous marquis, remember? I’ll bring Ireena and Ginny back without a scratch on them.”

“…I entrust them to your care, Jessica,” I said with a single nod before issuing everyone instructions. “Are we ready to go?”

We silently got to work, and I invoked a floating spell, soaring above the stadium. With the capital spread out before me, I could see that calamity had erupted all over, just as I’d feared.

“Seriously…?! Why’d things turn out this way…?!” I clicked my tongue and headed toward a nearby area to start exterminating the enemy en masse.

Though their forces were large in number, they were pitifully weak for demons and looked virtually indistinguishable from one another. It was almost as if someone had made multiple clones of one original. Well, at any rate, it was unbelievably easy to annihilate them.

I sped through the center of the capital, indeterminately tossing attack spells at any enemy in sight for a total of thirty boring minutes—and I could see that I was starting to quell the chaos.

I guess our unit of mages was away on business or something, but whatever. If I could continue on at this rate, I knew I’d have order restored in an hour.

“This seems like a good time to check up on Ireena and the others,” I mumbled, invoking Search, a spell to probe the surrounding area.

“Ard!” called out a familiar voice. It was my father, Jack.

When I spun around to look him in the eye, I saw that his face was colored with anxiety, which made my heart beat out of my chest.

“H-hurry! This way! Or else…,” he started before signaling worse things yet to come.

“Or else that person will die!”