The knights piled in front of the masters turned out to be volunteers who begged the masters to teach them a lesson, unlike yesterday.
　Apparently they had seen my morning training, and their attitude towards the masters, no matter how many times they were knocked down, struck them in the chest.

　When they returned to the large training ground, they confirmed that I was not among the masters, they challenged their masters and Lionel to a mock battle.
'I had more spirit than yesterday, so I had fun!
　The Master said happily.
　Lionel also looked to be in a very good mood, having had a full training session in the morning.

　After treating the fallen knights, they thanked him and went back to the knights.
　Seeing this scene, the master calls out to the knights' backs.
'With regret and a heart that won't give up, you guys will be strong.
　Then the knights who had fought with their masters stopped and bowed their heads before disappearing into the knightly group.

'Luciel, you don't have to go to Meratni. I'd like to say that I'm going to follow you to the empire but this time I'll return to Meratni. Fortunately I was able to borrow a horse from the church, so I'll be fine on my own.
　The Master, with a look of real disappointment on his face, said he was going back to Meratoni alone.
'An amphibian wouldn't take half a day, would it?
'You're going to use magic and magic stones for that, right?　That's unnecessary attrition before a fight. I'd like to go to the Empire too, but as expected, Galba bowed so desperately this time, I had no choice but to leave.
　It's not normal for a master not to go to a place that might be a battlefield, but you had to weigh yourself because of what happened to Garba-san and you didn't come here with Gruger-san's approval.
　He looks like a combat maniac now, but he's a more thoughtful person by nature.
　Well, he's still a battle fanatic........

''Master, please be careful on your way back. I want Master to be able to help me again once we stop the demon race riots in the Empire.
Instead of worrying about this, don't screw it up.
Yes, sir.
　When he hears my reply, he looks at Lionel.
'War demon, I asked you to take care of Luciel.
Yeah. I swear to defend it with my life.
　Master and Lionel shook hands stiffly.

'Then I'm going to go,'
　The master didn't see us off, but went to the knights.
''Well, it's not the same as being sent off... Lionel, we'll have a strategy meeting first in the airship. After that, we'll leave for the Empire.
Yes, sir.
　Lionel looked the same as usual, but he had a slightly piquant air about him.


　In the amphibian's mess hall I gathered everyone together and began a strategy meeting.
　Keeping the contents all simple (simple), we formulated a strategy for the amphibian's path and countermeasures against the pterodactyl, what actions the Imperial soldiers would take, etc.

''Would it be possible to fly the amphibians over the Imperial Capital?''
''It seems possible. The pterodactyl forces are on the front lines with the Kingdom of Rubruk, and some of them are guarding the Imperial City, but pterodactyls are not always on the prowl.
Do you have any weapons to shoot down the flying object?
'When I was in the empire, we used a ballista, a crossbow and magic, as a defense. Of course, the targets were not people, but demons and demonkind.
　Lionel's information showed that the amphibian's flight route was fine. But there's another problem........
　Ballista.........I've never actually seen one, but I'm sure it's at a level that would kill you if even one shot hit the center of your body.
　If I can get as high as I can and get as far as the bow can't reach, can I manage it?　But then there's the problem of descent.
　If you descend with a conspicuous parachute, you will be sure to be hit, and there is no parachute to begin with.

"Do we still have to go on foot? Or do we have no choice but to descend to the imperial capital under cover of darkness?
If you're worried about the arrows, don't think about it.
　It was Dolan who raised his voice there.

'No, if you hit it, you could be shot down.
It's no problem at all. It's impossible for this guy to sink with just a strong crossbow. If the pterodactyl persistently bites the amphibian or continues to shower it with breath, there is a chance that its armor will peel off, but if it's only a bow, there's no problem.
　Believe the look in Doran's eyes, the amphibian he made out of clay dragons. I had a feeling he was saying that.

'I'll believe what the Chief of Engineering says.
'Hmm. Magic attacks from a distance are protected by a magical barrier, so unless it's forbidden art, there's nothing to worry about.
　Dolan flagged me up with additional information, but I decided not to bother.

''Good. Then the route is a straight route over the mountains from the Holy City, and we'll descend into the Imperial City from the sky. The problem is where to descend, but I'm not sure if we should descend straight into the castle or below it...
There are many ways into the castle. There are many ways into the castle.
　Maybe Keti has had experience of hiding in the castle of the Imperial City, too.
　Or could it be that she knew about it because it was a dark place?　Either way, the most important thing is safety.
　But in order to take control of the people, I think we need a face, Lionel, to take control of the people.
　If this is the way to impose oppression, then that's exactly what Lionel needs to be, a billboard to correct the empire.

''........As I've said before, if I can, I'd like to attack with impunity while exposing Lionel's face.
''Then let's walk from the center of the imperial city to the castle in an imposing manner. If there's something attacking us there, it could be the demon race, or it could be a fake me sending you, so we might be able to get some information.
　Lionel already had the resolve to do so.
　The fact that Ketty had the same determined look in her eyes made the fake Lionel's life seem like a windfall.

　In the midst of all this, Estia, who wished to go to the Empire, had an unflattering look on her face.
'Estia, what do you have?'
''There are many child slaves in the imperial city. Most of those children were brought here forcibly, and I want to save all those children.
　First of all, I'll appeal for the protection of child slaves.......
　I want Estia to slow down and stop relying on the spirit of darkness. I somehow thought so.
After we destroy the Institute of Demonization, then we'll free the slaves.
Thank you.
　Nodding at Esther's thanks, he looked over at everyone and asked one last question.
'If you have anything nice left to say, let me know.
　Then Lionel raises his hand and tells everyone he's ready.
''Imperial soldiers are strong. It is quite possible that a moment's hesitation could be fatal. If you face them, I hope you won't let your guard down at all until you've rendered them incapable of fighting.
　Lionel's words seemed to say to himself, Lionel.
　After all, he could well think of facing the troops he had raised and the faces he knew.

　The words made me think about how far I could be extremely if I were in the same position.
　When everyone's eyes were on me again, I decided to close the meeting.

''Well I'll say it one last time. The purpose of this time is to destroy the laboratory and research of demonization. It's the undoing of the Demonization and False Lionel. We will definitely all return home alive.
""Yes."
　This is how we finished our strategy meeting and launched the amphibian for the Imperial Capital.


　This is the second time I've been at the helm of an amphibian, but after all, flying is full of romance.
　As I was thinking this, an unfamiliar voice came into the cockpit.
The fact that you can barely feel any shaking while flying at such a high speed in the sky means that the control system is very solid. And the reason you don't feel any G's is because the outer magic barrier is dispersing the pressure on the aircraft.......
The Holy City is already so far away.
　It was Lyna who was mumbling and mumbling, and Nanya who was frolicking like a child.

''Huh?　I didn't get down there yesterday...
Good morning, Master Luciel.
Good morning, owner.
　Puzzled, I asked them, and they greeted each other, then looked at each other, and Lyna said something unexpected.
''Well, I was talking with the masters until dawn, and I borrowed the guest room.
　Dolan must have been a sure thing.
　But still, talking to Dolan until the dawn of.........eternity?　Then Paula and Lisian got mixed up in the mix, too.
　Then it might not be a good idea.
　But then, I wanted you to tell me sooner.

''.......You don't understand the situation right now.......do you?
'What's the situation?　Is there something else going on here besides flying in the sky?
Where we're going to go and...
Isn't this a test run?
..........
　Nanya saw that they were already not engaging, and the blood slowly drained from her face.

''This amphibian is already launching towards the imperial capital of the Illumasia Empire.
I'd like to make a U-turn immediately.
I don't want to die yet.
　The two men seemed to understand the position they were in and offered to return to the Holy City.
　However, the amphibian is not something that can be stopped that easily.
　It's only been about 30 minutes since it started flying, but the amphibian uses an enormous amount of magic power when it starts up.
　That's nearly half the amount of my magic power sneaked out of the airplane.
　Well, as long as it flies, it hardly consumes anything, so there's no problem, but if we stop it now, we'll have no choice but to call off the war against the empire today.

　Since I've put so much energy into it, I want to go to the imperial capital like this.......but as expected, I didn't feel comfortable taking them there without making them ready for anything.
　After letting out a sigh, I changed my mind and decided to land the amphibian inside the St. Schuler Cooperative and head to the Imperial Capital first thing tomorrow morning.
　However, I couldn't bring myself to make a U-turn, so I looked for the nearest town, but I couldn't find anything that looked like a town anywhere.
''Does anyone know anything about the geography of this area?''
I can see that.
　Then Estia raised her hand.

'Estia, do you know the terrain around here?'
'Yes, sir. If you follow the path a little further to the left, you will see the town of Ebiza, the second closest town from the Imperial territory.
Ebiza I think I've heard that somewhere.
The town I was in.
　That would mean a town that was enslaved.
　Wouldn't that make for an unsafe town?
As long as you stay with the Healers' Guild, I think you'll be fine.
　Maybe she read my thoughts, Estia told me that first, so I decided to believe her words and steer to Ebiza's town.

　If it wasn't for Estia, I would have made a U-turn to the Holy City.
　This might be the first time in a long time that my luck has turned.
　I decided to positively think so and took the helm of the amphibian.