We Go For It First! (8)

Demon King Jin So-hee, looking at the sight of five million lined up, felt a particularly deep emotion.

“I never imagined that so many humans would unite just to catch me alone.”

At those calm words, Kaldrian, who was beside her, spoke with concern mixed in.

“Even if you have received power, would it not be dangerous?”

“You should know as well, since I shared a portion with you. A clumsy human offensive is something we can simply break through and pass by.”

The power received from the Demon God contained a strength that made even the great army before their eyes seem laughable, and Kaldrian, who had accepted a portion of it, also agreed with the Demon King’s words.

That was because he was certain that, right now, he could tear apart a human Master without much difficulty.

Furthermore, Geforce, who had followed her single-mindedly from the beginning until now, had also been able to accept the power, though faintly, and seeing that he now possessed power at the level of an ordinary Demon Duke, Kaldrian wondered whether following Demon King Jin So-hee might be the best choice for them.

But separately from that, the human army before their eyes was indeed large.

“The Demonic Tribe’s casualties will be great.”

That was because although it was obvious that the Demon King would handle most of the Heroes and many powerful individuals prepared by the humans, he knew that they would have to take charge of the other parts.

The Demon King’s current army numbered a little under one million. It could be said that there was a difference of at least five times, and it was the moment he became curious about the Demon King’s power, as she was looking at the enemy and still thinking nothing much of them.

“Shall we have them advance?”

At Kaldrian’s question, the Demon King, who had thought for a moment, shook her head and spoke.

“There is no need to accept unnecessary damage. I shall go and return.”

Kaldrian realized what she was moving to do, and he respectfully bowed his head and saw off that Demon King’s charisma and decision.

Meanwhile, when a woman suddenly walked out from the Demonic Tribe’s camp, several of the leaders who knew the Demon King’s face began to make a commotion.

“That woman is the Demon King! She may have come out to fight a duel of generals!”

“Does she think we will not be able to swarm out all at once?”

Everyone was frowning at the fuss made by the noble of the Mirkas Federation, but Duke Asilbar, who could be called the supreme commander here, looked around at those standing in a row at the conference seats and spoke.

“All of us must step forward and strike off the Demon King’s head. You surely know that the Three Heroes, called the strongest Heroes, met their deaths at that Demon King’s hands. The Three Heroes were the oldest Heroes, and they were brave generals who fought against several Masters and led the battle to victory without retreating a single step. This is the Demon King whom those three people attacked together and lost to. Even if all nine Heroes, the Masters, and the Archmages here step forward, there will be no one who curses us.”

Looking at the result, if they could only kill the Demon King, they would be treated as heroes, far from being cursed. How many records had there been of humanity taking the Demon King’s head with their own hands?

Across the long war, it had not even happened three times.

Duke Asilbar felt bitter at the thought that reaching even the Demon God still felt endlessly far away, but now was not the time to retreat, and he thought it would be fine to stubbornly insist only on victory.

And right when he thought that they absolutely had to win for the sake of humanity…

“I think His Highness Duke Asilbar’s words are correct.”

Among the Heroes, he was currently the oldest one, a Hero with the name Liberto. He knew that Liberto’s nationality was different from the Heroes who had been summoned most recently, and he was a Hero who had at least somewhat interacted with Duke Asilbar.

That was probably why he spoke up as if siding with him.

With one Hero agreeing like that, the Masters and Archmages of each country also nodded as if they agreed, but one Hero raised his hand, pointed at the five Heroes summoned recently, and spoke.

“These five are still weak. Since they possess skills inferior even to Masters, I judge that they should be given more time. And since we also have to keep in mind the possibility that we may fail, I would like them not to participate this time for the sake of the future.”

Those were the words of a Hero who was Liberto’s comrade and had the talent of an Archmage, and several Masters also nodded as if they agreed with those words.

It was likely because of the concern that if the weak were mixed in among them, they would only get in the way.

“We can do it too!”

The young Heroes shouted in anger, but Duke Asilbar agreed with the Hero’s words and spoke.

“I would like the five Heroes to devote yourselves a little more to training, and the Demon King is not only that one person. Since your lives have not yet been completed… I hope that, this time, you will yield to us.”

At Duke Asilbar’s respectful words, Kim Sangjin and the four Heroes had no choice but to nod. Thus, the five of them ended up in a position where they had to stand on the emergency escape teleportation magic circle and watch the duel in preparation for any unexpected situation.

After that, the one who stepped forward at the very front was Duke Asilbar, and ten Masters followed behind him. And when the Heroes and Archmages also stepped onto the battlefield one after another, the human camp began to stir.

It seemed they thought it was cowardly.

But all the humans standing face-to-face with the Demon King were surprised by the fact that they had no choice but to feel intimidated.

‘I can feel power strong enough to surpass imagination… This is not a good day.’

That was Duke Asilbar’s thought, and just as most of them were thinking similar thoughts and lining up as though surrounding the Demon King…

“There are few of you. It seems not all of you will come out?”

His pride was hurt by the words that flowed out as the Demon King opened her mouth, but Duke Asilbar proudly straightened his chest and spoke.

“They are pillars of the future who are not yet ready. To execute the Demon God’s hound, the strength of young pillars is excessive.”

“Kuk, even as lowly as you are… you intend to do something laughable. Look, army of humans!!”

The Demon King’s voice rang thunderously across the battlefield, and every powerful person who had to hear it up close could not help but be shocked. That was because the enormous demonic energy contained in that voice made fear raise its head rapidly.

But then the Demon King’s words continued again.

“I command in the name of the Demon King, and I shall give you despair!!”

At that moment, the ground around the Demon King’s body was crushed down and began to crack. As the Demon King showed signs of using her power in earnest, Duke Asilbar also hurriedly stirred up mana and shouted.

“Respond!!”

The power of the Masters burst out from all sides, and on top of that, the Archmages could be seen activating the magic they had memorized beforehand and driving their staffs into the ground.

Pillars of light surged up, and mana and magic power rose like a torrent and began mixing with the black demonic energy, then soon tore apart the earth.

At the moment when a hair-trigger situation continued in an atmosphere where the end of the world seemed to have approached before their eyes…

With a tremendous roar, the demonic energy began to expand, and everyone on the human side, pushed away by that power and vomiting blood thickly from their mouths, began to despair at the unbelievable reality.

“Behold! This is the limit of you humans!!”

Was the Demon King intending to use her power in earnest?

She shouted while releasing even stronger power. At the fact that she still had more strength remaining, everyone on the human side despaired, and right when they were becoming terrified by the approaching death and the fear given by its weight…

“K…ugh?!”

A groan suddenly flowed out from the Demon King. And while feeling the demonic energy beginning to disappear as if washed away, Duke Asilbar, with an expression of incomprehension, looked down at the blood soaking the front of his clothes and laboriously raised his sword.

And when he looked around, he could not believe the fact that there was not a single person unharmed except himself, but the problem was that the Demon King’s condition looked strange.

Her calm face was nowhere to be seen, she was in tremendous pain, and she was trembling as if barely managing to stand while vomiting dark-red blood thickly from her mouth.

He could not understand this situation, but it was clear that it was a once-in-a-thousand-years chance. He judged that if not now, there would be no way to deal with the Demon King, and at the moment he literally squeezed out even the strength he had used while nursing and ran to the Demon King’s side, he saw the Demon King take something out from her breast and throw it onto the ground.

And as he saw the Demon King wrapped in light and disappear in an instant, he was so dumbfounded that he could not say anything, but the problem started from now.

“The D-Demon King has been struck down!! Charge!! Open the path!! Bloody revenge upon the humans!!”

At the shout that rang out from the Demonic Tribe’s camp, and then at the sight of the five Heroes running out from the human camp, Duke Asilbar simply sank down onto the ground.

‘What… in the world is happening…?’

It was a crucible of chaos.

Meanwhile, because of the maintenance of Soil City, I had been renting out the inn in Dagaz for several days, and today as well, a complaint burst out.

“Is it not too hot?!”

Was it because of the wall?

If not that, was it because the elevation was high?

Because not even a single breeze was blowing, I had been spending difficult days.

To put it bluntly, in the case of the lord’s castle, temperature-control magic tools existed, so it always boasted pleasant indoor conditions, and when doing other activities, thanks to the brooch gifted by the Hameureun Baron siblings, I had been living a peaceful life unaffected by the weather.

But while coming here to Soil City, I had forgotten to bring the brooch, and as a result, I was suffering in the sweltering heat.

“Ms. Hare, can’t you cast some magic on me?”

“Hehe, magic is not omnipotent. And everyone who will live in Soil City will be affected by this weather, so do you intend to be comfortable alone?”

“…Then let us do this. We have a lot of money anyway, do we not? Let us take this chance to manipulate Soil City’s weather on a large scale. For example, we could fix the average temperature to around spring. What do you think?”

“An enormous amount of funds would have to be invested, and there would be no waste like that waste. On top of that, who would have to do that work?”

“That would be…”

I stopped in the middle of speaking. Yes, the person who would have to do the work was right before my eyes. So right when I was considering another choice, Hare spoke.

“At this time of year, all of Ingrad has this weather. It is not Soil City’s fault. At least when the sun sets, the sea breeze will blow all the way here, so the heat will lessen.”

In terms of timing, it was around May.

It was the time right when spring was just about to pass into summer, but the fact that it was as hot as summer was simply absurd. However, I could not complain at Hare’s words that it was always like this.

Those words meant that this was weather familiar to the people here. Even if I grumbled, I would only be tiring my own mouth, so I said to Hare.

“Then, can you not at least let me spend a few hours coolly?”

“I can do it, but you will get used to it.”

“Uaaah… It is because it is too hot. You said I am king, did you not? A king wishes it, and you cannot even do that for him?”

“Kukuk, did you not say you do not want to be king?”

I had been living with those words on my lips. But thinking that it was realistically too hot, I sighed, looked out the window, and grumbled.

“If it is spring, I wish spring rain would just pour down…”

As I said that, I could see the sky I was looking at rapidly turning dark.

“Huh… Is it going to rain? A shower?”

At my words, Hare also turned her head, and soon, Hare, whose expression had become deeply furrowed, said to me.

“Call Demina and… run to Ing City. It is magic. High-level large-scale magic at that…”

Just as I thought that something serious seemed about to happen, I said to Hare.

“No matter how much I do not want to be king, right now I am this place’s lord. I do not want to do something like run away. If it is not dangerous… let us confirm it. Demina!! Please gather the army!”

After hearing my words, Demina quickly ran out, and Hare also looked at me with an unexpected expression. I spoke.

“It is nice that it suddenly feels chilly… damn it.”