191-Episode 189: The Devil War Part 5




 --The Order of the Sun, inside the base tent.

 I'm participating in the regular daily meetings that use communication magic.
 I'm sure you'll be able to find a way to make it work.

'It's Ort. Can I ask you to repeat that?
 Behind the screen, President Ewain is holding his temples as if he has a headache.

'Ha! One of the Beast King's confidants has defeated the Ten Clawed Hayate!
I'm afraid I didn't mishear you.
 President Ewain's reluctant face is up in communication magic.
 Looking at the expressions on the other faces.

(((.....................again?)))

 I can hear the voice in my mind saying, "You know what?
 This time, though, it's not me.


 --The 'King of Beasts' Zagan's executive officer, Hayate of Ten Claws.


 Apparently, he was a famous senior demon race that specializes in surprise attacks.
 In fact, they were able to slip through my sense of danger and Friae's prediction of the future and attack me.
 If Frierrierrier-san hadn't saved me on the spur of the moment, I think I would have been in danger. 

 He's after the brave men of the Water Country (Roses).
 He clearly wanted to kill me.
 For me, with my near-zero close-quarter combat power, getting in the way of the enemy would mean death.
 I avoided the first attack, but the next attack could have been fatal.

 The biggest misfortune for the demon tribe would be the presence of the 'Fire Nation's State Certified Brave' who was sleeping in the tent.
 He made too much noise near the tent, so Sa-san woke up.
 Sa-san, who was in a bad mood in his sleep, said, "Shut up! He used the 'Invincible Time' skill and hit it with a counter.
 The poor demon tribe was forced to plunge its head into the ground.

 But, as expected of the Demon King's army leaders.
 He was still alive at that point, but he was completely silenced by Lucy's chase 'Meteorite Drop (Meteor)'.
 The rest of the process was left to the Knights of the Sun.
(I heard that strong demons sometimes revive even when they think they're dead.

 --", Commander Ort explains the story to the people on the other side of the communication magic.

''Hmm, our nation's state certified hero, Lord Aya. You have done well to defeat us. That demon tribe specializes in surprise attacks and assassinations, and we were wondering what to do about it in this operation as well.
Okay, yeah, you're welcome.
 At General Talisker's words, Sa-san scratches her head as if she is embarrassed.
 Olga-san next to her looks unamused.

'Lucy, you did it! But don't be too reckless. You can't go into the Demon King's army alone like Rosalie Stepmother (Kaa-sama), right?
I wouldn't do that, sister Flona.
I'm worried about you. Lucy has a personality just like Rosalie's stepmother.
I'm not that crazy.
 The conversation between the tree goddess priestess Flona-san and Lucy is no longer a conversation with a relative's sister.
 In case you're wondering, this is a military council here........

''Hey! How long are we going to be on hold? These guys are doing too much of the same thing!
 It's Mr. Gerald who yells at me in a cutting manner.
 Yeah, you're on call all day long and you look stressed out.

"Waiting like this makes your body slow down.
 It's Olga-san, the brave goddess of fire, who is quietly, but also blurts out, looking stressed out as well.
 Sa-san seems to have been inspired by the story of the demon king's cadre being beaten up.
 The meeting began to buzz a bit, as if the others had been infected as well.
 At that time.



''Tomorrow is the decisive battle.''



 The words of Esther, the Goddess of Destiny's priestess, caused everyone to shush.

''Tomorrow, the 'King of Beasts' Zagan will invade the western continent. ''That's right, Esther-sama.''
 President Ewain's words were a confirmation, not a question.
 Esther, the priestess, nodded quietly.
 Finally, the Demon King himself attacked.

''Then let me tell you the plan. However, this strategy is mainly based on the priestess Esther-sama's prediction. Could you please explain, Esther-sama?
I understand.
 The Goddess of Destiny (Ila), the Goddess of Destiny's priestess Esther - who has descended to the Goddess of Destiny - opens her mouth.

The demon king's army led by Zagan the King of Beasts lands on the coast of the land of commerce (Cameron) tomorrow morning. The demon king's army is trying to destroy the cities in the land of commerce (Cameron). If the commercial flow of the Merchant's Land (Cameron) is stopped, there will be a great influence on the Six Nations Union. Therefore, we need to intercept it. But their real aim is to defeat the 'Brave Men of Light'.
 The clear voice of Esther, the miko, echoes from the communication magic.
 Everyone listens quietly.

''The Demon King's army will be slow in their progress. Because their strategy is to exhaust us and buy time. They make it look like a decisive battle, but they never really hit us during the day. The Demon King's army will stall the battle as long as possible and repeat the small offensive until the sun goes down. Then, at sunset, together with the army of Forneus, the 'King of the Sea Demons', they launch an all-out attack. Then, exhausted, we will not be able to overcome their momentum and will be defeated. This is the fate I see.
".............................
 Oh come on, you're losing.
 Of course, there's a Goddess of Destiny (Ila) to prevent that from happening.
 Everyone is waiting for the priestess Esther's next words.

''That's why we're going to turn the tables. If they drag out the war until sunset, this is a short battle. The Hero of Light, Ryosuke Sakurai.
Yes!
 The priestess Esther called out to him and Sakurai-kun replied.

''You will lead an elite few and directly strike the Demon King who is camped deep within the Demon King's army.
Oh, wait! Isn't that too dangerous!
 The one who spoke up was Princess Noel.
 It's true that it's too violent to be called a strategy.

It's not a problem. The timing of the challenge to the Demon King is noon. When the sun rises highest, there is no one who can hurt the 'Brave Man of Light'. Besides, there are users of spatial transitions in the Land of the Sun. We won't have to worry about being worn out before the battle with the Demon King.
"The brave boy of light, I will be your chaperone.
 The Great Sage replied coolly.
 His voice is as calm as usual.
 Dependable.

(But is it okay for the vampire Great Sage-sama to come out in the daytime...?)
 I'm a little worried.
 Perhaps sensing my gaze, the Great Sage laughed, as if to say, "Don't worry about it.
 It was none of my business.
 He is a hero who saved the world a thousand years ago.

''I'll have a few Commander Class and State Certified heroes from the Order of the Sun as well. However, can the location of the crucial Demon King be ascertained in the midst of the chaos of war?''
 President Ewain asked the question.
 The enemy is a large army of over 200,000.
 It won't be easy to find them.
 But Esther, the miko, showed a confident face.

''No problem. They also seem to be afraid that the general, the Demon King, will be defeated and are changing the formation of their army, but I can always tell you the location of the Demon King. I know the position of the Demon King.
''I understand, Esther-sama. However, we will decide when to fight the Demon King on the field. Depending on the war situation, there is a risk that the Lord of Light's heroes may be left behind in the enemy's camp. After securing our retreat, we will aim for the Demon King's head.
 President Ewain returns a cautious opinion to the priestess Esther's confident words.

''Yes, that's fine. It's not always the case that things will go well on the first day. I'll leave it up to President Ewain to decide when to make the move.
''I understand. Then I trust Esther-sama's prediction about the Demon King's location.
 It's going to wrap things up.
 Finally, tomorrow, the battle with the Demon King will take place.
 It's a bit of a shame I won't be able to be there, but....


"Sounds boring, doesn't it, Brave Man of the Water Country (Roses)?
''!''
 Suddenly, the priestess Esther turned to me and spoke up.

''Yes, no, no. I'm listening to you properly.''
Of course.
 Huh, Esther sighed.

''The brave men of the Water Country (Roses) and the Knights of the Sun, First Division. After tomorrow, the Demon King's Army will not appear over there.''
"What?
 My voice and Commander Ortt's overlapped.

''It should come as no surprise. Defeating ten thousand under the command of Forneus, the King of Sea Demons, destroying five thousand of Zagan, the King of Beasts' air force, as well as defeating one of Ten Claws, an executive of the King of Beasts, that's why the human race suffered zero damage. As expected, they must have realized that it's not worth it to mess with you guys.
Oh, I see.
 Today Esther-sama--is the Goddess of Destiny (Ila) kind?
 Maybe it's because the Water Goddess (Eil) has talked me into it.

''But,''
 Priestess Esther looks over the participants of the military council with serious eyes.

''Tomorrow's decisive battle will intensify the attacks of the Demon King's army in various parts of the continent, outside the land of the moon.
" " " "!
 Tension builds in the participants.

'It's to prevent them from joining our main army, isn't it?
''That's right, the Demon King's Army doesn't want to gather their forces as close to the Brave Men of Light as possible. They don't want to gather their forces as close to the Brave Man of Light as possible because their goal is to take the life of the Brave Man of Light who can destroy the Great Demon King Eveleth.
....
 When I glanced at Sakurai-kun, I saw his nervous face.
 I don't want to scare my friend too much, but....
 But if they're aiming for Sakurai-kun, it's important to give them a heads-up.
 Good luck, Sakurai-kun.

''In other words, the Demon King's Army is going to attack us too, right?
Hmm, finally.
"No one will ever lay a finger on my people.
"...and...
 You can see that Gerald Ballantyne, brave of the lightning bolt, Olga Saul Talisker, brave of the burning heat, and Maximilian Lagavulin, brave of the wind tree, are all fired up.
 You can also see the vague face of Highland's National Certified Heroic Alec, though I'm not sure what he's thinking about.
 Isn't that guy with Sakurai-kun?
 I'm also worried about the nervous face of Prince Leonard, the brave prince of the ice and snow, but I'm sure he'll be fine with Maximilian-san there to help him out. 

 After that, several confirmation items were discussed and the meeting before the decisive battle ended.

 I glanced at the face of my childhood friend, the 'Hero of Light'.
 His profile was filled with nervousness and he was having some kind of conversation with President Ewain.
 Sakurai-kun didn't notice my gaze.

(Be careful. Don't get hurt.)
 I yelled in my mind and I continued to watch the screen until the communication magic wore off.


 I returned to the tent where I was sleeping and shared the contents of the meeting with Friere-san, who was staying at home.
 Friere-san listened to the conversation quietly, "Well........
 I was wondering what kind of mind Sakurai-kun is in when he fights against the Demon King's army tomorrow.

 On the way, "My knight, are you worried? The opposite was true.
 Did I have that insecure look on my face?
'Well,' he replied vaguely, 'I suppose.

'I'm restless, so I'm going to go train.
 With that, I left the tent.

"The demon tribe will be after you again. Takatsuki-kun.
Yes, Makoto. I told you to be quiet.
 Lucy and Sasan stopped me.

''It's okay. Esther-san said that the Demon King's army won't be coming anymore.
 It's practically a drumstick for the Goddess of Destiny (Ila).
 I'm sure she's not coming back.

 And then I trained until nearly dawn.
 The next day was a peaceful day, just like the priestess Esther said.

 I spent the rest of the day restless.

 And then it was night.


 ◇


 The meeting was buzzing before it began that day.
 The meeting hadn't started yet.
 Poppily, the communication magic connection screen started up.
 However, some of today's participants seemed uncomfortable, as if they knew 'something'. 

(......What happened?

 If there was anything, it would be about the battle between the Six Nations Union Army and the Demon King's Army.
 I used my 'listening ear' skill to listen to people's conversations.

 ........Is that story true?
 ...Isn't it too soon to be doing anything about it?
 ...I can't believe it worked out so well.

 That's the kind of conversation I'm having.
 And then someone's mumbling words reached my ears.


 --It seems that the brave man of light has defeated the Demon King Zagan.