"This is ...... so big .......


　That's what Wisteria said when she saw the dragon pit in the Titis Forest for the first time, and she was stunned for a while. She was holding her body in her arms, her right hand gripping her left elbow and her left hand gripping her right elbow. It was as if he was trying to protect himself from something unseen.

　One of the reasons I took Wisteria to the Dragon Pit was to train her. It was to train Wisteria to be in tune with her anima.

　Now that Wisteria's body is about to be taken over by the Anima, she is like a fireball that could explode at any moment. We need to get rid of this situation as soon as possible.

　And one more thing. The reason I showed Wisteria the dragon pit was to confirm that the abyss and the dragon pit in Andorra are the same thing.

　Based on the information I've obtained so far, I think it's highly likely that they have the same properties, but seeing is believing. He wanted to confirm this by showing the dragon pit to Wisteria, who knew about the abyss. The result.


It's the same as the horrific mana and the mutated plant ...... that was affected by the mana. But this one is much bigger and has much more mana than the abyss. The spirits have been completely transformed. This is not a spirit anymore. ......


　Wisteria groaned and put her hand over her mouth. It seems that she has been subjected to an excessive amount of mana. Or maybe she just couldn't stand to see the spirits around here.

　I left the dragon pit as soon as possible because it was quite hard for me. There is no need to train right next to the dragon pit. All you need is an environment where the anima can be easily activated. Even a place on the border between the deepest and the deepest regions will be effective enough.

　Anyway, we have confirmed that the dragon pit and the abyss are the same thing. And it also proved that Laskaris was right in part.

　According to the Immortal King, the Priesthood would move to secure the Dragon Pit of Andorra after this. That's why he wanted me to eliminate the Behemoth threat.


Well, let's see what happens.


　Andorra has a ward that prevents outside enemies, and it also has an elite force called the Swordsmen. If they wanted to conquer it by force, they would have to mobilize a considerable number of people.

　However, it is easy to imagine how difficult it would be to move a large army in the Catalan desert. Even though the behemoths are gone, it doesn't mean that the desert monsters have been wiped out. And the harsh climate, including the "wall of sand" - the sandstorms that frequently occur in untraversed areas - has not changed at all.

　Above all, there was no way that the Canary Kingdom would stand idly by. Both Belka and the Catalan Desert were the territory of the Canary Kingdom. There was no way that the Hokage would allow them to move their troops around the country as they pleased.

　--In order to make such an impossibility possible, it is possible that Pope Noah himself built a ward in Titis and cooperated fully with the marriage ceremony with the Empire, thereby ingratiating himself with the Canary Kingdom.

　I remembered the face of the Pope I had talked to in the capital, and I shook my head lightly. No matter how much I twist my head at this point, I can't do more than speculate. We will have to watch the situation closely and act accordingly.

　Hopefully, the story of Laskaris is a lie, the Hokage religion has no ulterior motive, the Arrows of the Silver Star were only killed by desert monsters, and Katia's heartbreak is healed by Lars.

　Especially for Katia, I was really hoping for Lars.

　Originally, the reason I accepted Katia's request to search for the Silver Star was to soothe the girl's obviously overwhelmed feelings. To put it another way, I didn't expect the Silver Star to survive from the start.

　But Lars is different.

　Unlike me, Lars believes in the survival of the Silver Star and will cooperate with Katia, and when the Silver Star's death is confirmed, he will grieve with Katia. What Katia needs now is not just a strong man like me, but someone like Lars who can help her with her broken heart.

　Katia's family and the people of Merthe Village who sold her out when she was a child are very much against her, and I'm sure they'll resent me for telling Lars about the situation, but there's nothing I can do about that.

　However, now that we've left Belka, Lars' help as a sixth level adventurer will be necessary for Katia. There is a good chance that she will accept Lars, even if reluctantly. And Lars may be able to loosen up the girl's stiff mind - that's the role I was hoping for from Lars.

　You could say that I threw Lars a problem that I couldn't solve myself, but since Lars himself was willing to do so, there was no problem. I've also left Ilaria behind, so she won't be so reckless, and I've told her to contact me if she needs my help.

　Just as I was thinking about this, I felt a jing swelling in my vicinity, and I focused my attention on it. The source of the power was Wisteria, and the dark elf's sallow face was contorted in agony. The dark elf's sallow face twisted in agony. The anima, Pazuzu, was about to emerge.

　The fact that the amount of energy released is not stable is evidence that both Wisteria and Pazuzu are fighting for control of the body. So far, Wisteria has lost all the battles. When the victorious Pazuzu takes over the body, I slash her with my mind armor to make her calm down--this has been repeated many times.

　Naturally, Wisteria's burden in this training was great, but the former first swordsman (Gladius) never wanted to stop. In fact, he has challenged Pazuzu so many times that I have had to stop him.

　I should say that this is the result. At least, Wisteria's suffering time has been prolonged since the beginning of the training. In other words, she has become able to resist Pazuzu for that much longer.

　I continued to stare at the suffering Wisteria, hoping that this was the right path to a heart-dressing. Hoping and praying that Wisteria will be the winner today.


◆◆◆


　A high-pitched laughing voice echoed in the background. The voice that stirs the eardrums is the mockery of a demon god aimed at a host that continues to resist in vain.

　Wisteria clenched her teeth to withstand Pazuzu's pressure and searched for a way to break the situation.

　The time she could endure Pazuzu's pressure was definitely getting longer. If the time I was able to endure when I was in Andorra was one, now I can endure at least five or six. This can be said to be a great growth, but on the other hand, even if I extend this time to ten or twenty in the future, if you ask me if that will be enough to bring Pazuzu to his knees, the answer is no. Wisteria understood this.

　To put it another way, Wisteria was currently on the defensive, withstanding the enemy's attacks. It was obvious that no matter how much she persisted in this state, she would not be able to overcome the enemy.

　It was necessary to launch a counterattack at some point.

　However, in a situation where she was constantly being attacked by demons, there was no way she could afford to devote her energy to anything else. In fact, the number of times Wisteria had tried to fight back, she had ended up having her body taken over by Pazuzu.

　Unlike before, now that she has Sora, even if the demon gods take over her body, it won't be a serious problem, but until this situation is resolved, Wisteria will continue to be a fetter on Sora. That was not what the former first swordsman (Gladius) wanted.



　It's not enough to endure. But you can't fight back either.

　The cul-de-sac situation was ultimately due to the difference in power between the two. Pazuzu--an anima--is such a powerful being.

　The idea of subduing such an opponent head-on and acquiring a mind-dress might be reckless. Thinking this, Wisteria decided to change her assumption.

　At present, Wisteria's body could be taken over by Pazuzu at any moment, which meant that Sora would have to be by Wisteria's side constantly. When Sora and the Pope confronted each other in King's Landing, Wisteria was not there, but she was waiting in a nearby room.

　The first thing to do is to break out of this situation. To be more specific, we will not focus on "acquiring the mind armor", but rather on "preventing Pazuzu from entering the world".

　In other words, do not think about counterattacks at all, just endure and endure and endure. As mentioned above, this will not allow you to acquire the mind-dressing, but it will prevent Pazuzu from entering the world.

　The deepest part of Titis is filled with dense mana, and Pazuzu's power is stronger than usual, making it easier to activate. If she can withstand Pazuzu's rampage here, she will be able to cope with Pazuzu's future attempts at Ishka and Belka. This would allow Sora to move more freely. Wisteria would no longer be a stumbling block for Sora.

　--At that moment, Pazuzu's laughing voice became louder. Pazuzu's laughter grew louder, as if he sensed Wisteria's thoughts and mocked them.

　It sounded like a provocation, and at the same time, Pazuzu's pressure intensified. Wisteria clenched her teeth and held on to the Demon God's growing strength. This continued until she reached the end of her strength and lost consciousness.

　Eventually, on this day, Wisteria was carried by Sora to the Lord of the Flies' lair.

　Naturally, she was not able to reach the heart suit, but on the other hand, she was not taken over by Pazuzu. This was the first time that Wisteria was able to withstand Pazuzu's pressure on her own, without relying on the soul-eaters.

　When she woke up, Wisteria bit her lip, thinking that she had once again caused trouble for Sora. She thought that it was only because Sora had taken her out of the deepest depths that she had been able to maintain herself, and she could not understand the significance of the step she had taken.


◆◆◆


　The royal city of Horus was abuzz with the cheers of the people.

　The crown prince's bride-to-be, Sakuya, the third princess of the Ad Astera Empire, had arrived, protected by a large bodyguard.

　Protecting the princess were the Canary Kingdom's Dragon Knights, the pride of the Kingdom, and the King's personal bodyguards. At the head of the group were Lord Dragunaut, who had recently been appointed as the protector of Pope Noah, and his eldest daughter, Astrid, and the crowd cheered loudly again when they saw them.

　The two, who are also popular in Japan, were riding horses. This is because wyverns are unsuitable for walking on the ground, but even if the wyverns are replaced by warhorses, the appearance of the two does not fade.

　The Canary army, led by the two of them, with their long spears that seemed to pierce the heavens, and clad in glittering armor, moved majestically through the streets while protecting the princess.

　The spectators cheered three times at the splendor of his performance.

　I would like to say that it was a solemn procession befitting a wedding ceremony that united two nations, the Empire of Ad Astera and the Kingdom of Canaria, but in reality, the number of soldiers guarding the princess at this time was less than half of what was originally planned.

　Originally, the princess was supposed to enter Horus with an army of the Ad Astera Empire, but that army was missing entirely.

　It wasn't that the Imperial forces had miscalculated their schedule. From the imperial capital of Ad Astera to the border of the two countries, the princess was followed by an army of over ten thousand.

　Of course, the Canarian side had agreed to this escort force, and there would have been no problem even if the Imperial Army had raided into Canary.

　However, the Imperial Princess kept most of the imperial troops at the border, and entered the Kingdom of Canaria with only a small number of her entourage, leaving them in the custody of Lord Dragnoth who came to meet her.

　This was the result of the Imperial Princess's consideration for the anti-imperial sentiment of the Canary side.

　Originally, the Kingdom of Canaria was a nation formed by a coalition of cities in the western part of the continent in order to oppose the invading Ad Astera Empire. Because of its origins, there is a deep-rooted anti-imperial sentiment among the people. The Imperial Princess avoided antagonizing the Canarian people by leading a large number of Imperial troops.

　When he first learned of this, Lord Dragunaut was very surprised.

　The Duke had also heard how the Crown Princess had behaved when the Crown Prince Azar and the Crown Princess had met in the Imperial Capital of Adoastera.

　While he was expecting to see a princess who had borrowed the dignity of the empire, the princess greeted him politely when she met Lord Dragunaut, asking him to escort her to the royal capital. She spoke to not only the Duke, but also to Astrid in a friendly manner, and showed no signs of disrespecting the Canary Kingdom by strictly disciplining herself and her subordinates.

　The duke and his daughter puzzled over what was going on, and their confusion continued even after the princess entered the palace.

　The princess treated every courtier she met with perfect courtesy and affection, never boasting of her origins.

　On the contrary, from now on, I would like to do my best for this country, not as the Third Princess of Ad Astera, but as the Crown Princess of the Canary Kingdom. Please lend me your strength," she said, calling out the names of her courtiers in a friendly manner and asking for their help.

　No one would feel uncomfortable being relied on by a beautiful princess. Moreover, the fact that the princess's determination was not just a matter of words was proven by her action of keeping the guards at the border.

　In Canary, there were many nobles who feared that the Imperial Princess's acceptance would strengthen their control over the Empire, but even among those nobles, the Imperial Princess's character was regarded favorably.

　Lord Draugnaught was one of them.

　Of course, he did not yet have full faith in her, but it would be a blessing for both the Duke and the Kingdom if the Imperial Princess, who was prepared to be a source of trouble in the future, wished to serve the Canary Kingdom. That's what he was thinking.

　One day, perhaps sensing the Duke's unspoken favor, the princess invited Lord Dragunaut to her room and asked him for a favor.

　--I would like you to bring me to the Dragonslayer, who is very close to your daughter.

　This was the request that the princess made to him.