Chapter 48 – I Saw the Demon

The first hint of something amiss came two hours after leaving Neferti.

“…?”

Sensing a strange energy, Deus immediately rose from his seat.

At once, the scouting party, in the midst of preparing camp, reflexively rose to their feet.

The giant of a youth had moved, and the action had drawn from them without conscious thought.

“Hmm.”

Deus’s eyes, which had been darting this way and that, suddenly stopped.

Then, he turned his head towards the dazed faces before him.

“Gentlemen. I am truly sorry to ask this before you have had a chance to rest, but would it be possible to move just a little further?”

“Eh? Uh. You mean, right now?”

“Yes. Right now.”

The scouting party from the Duchy wore troubled expressions at Deus’s words.

Ordinarily, it would be a difficult request to accept. And there was no real need to.

First of all, he was not from the Duchy. He was merely a guest.

Even if the one who had invited him was the Princess, this was a unique circumstance, wasn’t it?

Besides, they had already been moving for several hours, and their stamina was beginning to wane.

From any angle, it was an unreasonable request.

They could refuse without any issue. Rather, he should be the one to understand.

“Understood.”

“We’ll prepare immediately.”

But as if all the members of the scouting party had agreed beforehand, they rose from their places.

Then, they re-equipped their saddles onto the horses, distributing something to chew on to fight off the drowsiness.

This, well, that is to say… yes. It was because it was an emergency situation.

They were doing this because he was a student from the Cradle and they believed he had sensed something.

Absolutely. Absolutely not because they were afraid of that youth, Deus!

An hour after Deus and the scouting party had begun moving again.

“Halt! Stop! Something is approaching from the side!”

“…Isn’t that Patrick? Where is he going with all the soldiers?”

“Why can’t we see the others? Where’s the Princess too!”

The youngest of the knights who had been in Nefertiti’s scouting party.

He was leading all of the soldiers who should have been with the Princess.

“Patrick!”

As their side called his name, the knight named Patrick approached.

Then, as soon as he saw the knight at the very front, he tumbled off his horse.

“We must! We must join the ability users sent from the Ability Department immediately!”

“What are you babbling about? Where did you leave the Princess! Where are the other knights!”

“The situation, the situation is not good! Quickly!”

Patrick’s short, blunt explanation followed.

An encounter with two unidentified men and women. And the Princess’s urgent order to retreat.

The soldiers had hastily retreated, and the other knights had stayed behind to cover their withdrawal.

“This is….”

The knights knew Nefertiti’s capabilities well.

If she, in such a state of tension, had even issued an order to retreat, then the situation must truly be grave.

“Hurry and contact the Espers sent from Espers’ Agency! If they run at full speed, they can join us in under an hour! Patrick! Lead the way to their location immediately! Even if we have to abandon the soldiers, we absolutely must rendezvous with the Lady!”

The lord’s daughter. The Duchess of the estate. She must be protected at all costs.

Whether the enemy is a mage, an Esper, or a monster. Even if it is a much greater evil.

‘Come to think of it.’

There’s a student among our group who apparently showed exceptional prowess back at Cradle.

We’ve all heard of him. Something about defeating a new enemy, a demon?

The title ‘Hero of Cradle’ is reserved only for the most brilliant of geniuses.

Though he is a student, in this situation, he is worth a thousand men.

So, he called out Deus’s name, intending to ask for his help…

“…What? Where did that young man go?”

Just a moment ago, Deus had been standing right there. Now, there was nothing.

*

‘Just as I thought.’

Something bigger should have happened at the menagerie, but it didn’t.

Originally, another demon, a new boss, should have emerged from there.

The monsters should have been filled with a previously unseen frenzy.

And flames, far from ordinary, should have been pouring out of the gate.

But none of that happened. The menagerie event ended there.

The rampage of monsters and the gate’s grade increasing. There was no demon.

‘What if all of that was a smokescreen to conceal that intrusion?’

A plausible hypothesis, Deus considered, increasing his speed.

He covered the distance that would have taken an hour on horseback in just ten minutes.

And soon, he spotted two figures, a man and a woman, standing before Neferti.

He had to be more careful. Had to pay more attention.

He’d received a plea to help their daughter from parents who had lost a child.

If things had gone awry, it would already have been too late.

‘I’ve seen enough damned sad endings. I’m sick to death of losing important characters.’

Even the deaths of characters he’d only encountered in text were a horrifying nightmare.

How much worse would it be for real people he’d spoken to, face to face?

He had been treating this too lightly, thinking of it as just a comedy genre.

He’d unconsciously underestimated things, assuming that nobody would be lost.

‘Idiot. I was short-sighted.’

Deus’s body, hurtling forward at a terrifying speed, suddenly leaped into the air.

The dive became a massive bullet aimed squarely at the demon standing ahead.

‘Stop killing off important characters, goddamn it!’

Something he had always wanted to say to the author of *Gate Opens on Mercenary Company’s First Day.*

Stop killing off well-developed characters! Why are you so eager to murder them all?!

I want to unleash a Jet Kick of absolute fury on you for killing everything you create!!

—KWaaaNG!!

The woman who had been standing with the whip was sent hurtling into the ground with a cloud of dust.

The man reacted instantly, rushing to the edge to help her.

Deus, meanwhile, approached Neferti, sighing heavily.

“I went to the trouble of asking the Duke for a favor, and you do this?”

“S-Senior?!”

“I almost got PTSD there.”

It’s something only those who’ve experienced it can truly understand. Just letters, just text, and yet.

Still, it was a new world he’d invested his time, money, and passion in, absorbing himself completely.

To lose a character there – imagine the impact!

And this isn’t a novel, this is the real world.

Vows or no vows, facing situations like this is a hard pass.

—Crack! Crunch!

Each light stretch of his limbs unleashed unsettling sounds.

Neferti shuddered almost imperceptibly.

No exaggeration, this was more terrifying than facing that demon just now!

“Chairman.”

“Y-Yes! Senior!”

“Go sit down over there, and be quiet.”

The moment the words left his lips, Deus’ elbow slammed downwards.

—Thwack!!

A man had approached Deus from below, attempting a surprise attack.

But he was met with what felt like a cudgel in the form of Deus’ elbow.

The man was struck squarely and crashed to the floor.

“Ugh…”

Oh. A genuine note of admiration escaped Deus’ lips.

An elbow attack landed precisely on the center of the temple.

Not a human, but a monster. Even a demon would be stunned.

He must be experiencing the rare sensation of having his vision and brain rattled simultaneously.

And yet, this seemingly demonic man was clutching at Deus’ arm.

“Good job! That’s why I like you!”

A streak of red flame, no, a whip, lashed out from the swirling dust.

Astaroth appeared, wearing a sinister grin.

“Hee hee hee! So it was you! It was you all along! The trumpet that echoes through the dawn, or whatever it is! The inferior creature who tangled with Zagan! Ahahaha!!”

It hurts. It hurts like hell, but it’s fun. It’s very fun! Intriguing!!

He hadn’t felt a thing until that human kicked him.

Perhaps because he was distracted by the insect buzzing before him.

Or perhaps that trumpet thing was more formidable than he’d thought.

Whatever the reason, it was all good. He couldn’t help but laugh with glee.

As if cursed. As if it had become the very reason for his existence.

Because this was the thing that could shatter the sloth that both imprisoned and defined him.

It had been so long since he’d been so excited that he couldn’t bear to keep his body still!

― *Crackle!!*

A crimson whip, like a viperous vine, coiled around Deus’ forearm.

Following in its wake, ravenous flames lashed out and clung.

An ordinary soul would have buckled under the agony of the whip alone, let alone the fire.

This wasn’t just any whip, mind you, but one studded with shards as keen as any blade.

A mere graze would have ripped flesh, yet he endured it against his bare arm.

“Heh heh heh! Now I understand why Zagan struggled so. You, truly, possess remarkable strength, don’t you?”

“….”

“Yes. I’ll admit it. For an insect. For a lower life form, you’re quite something. It’s rare to find one so resilient, even amongst my own. Most are too busy fleeing at the mere sight of me!”

Another whip materialized in Astaroth’s left hand, wreathed in fire.

Simultaneously, the man, who I’d believed unconscious, clung tenaciously to Deus’ forearm.

“Deus!”

Nefertiti, retreating, halted in alarm at the sight, attempting to aid him.

But she stopped dead at Deus’ following words.

“I told you to stand back.”

With a single, forceful sweep of his hand, the man was slammed into the ground.

So brutally embedded that only his head and shoulders remained visible.

Then, Deus yanked his arm, still encircled by the whip, sharply backward.

“Ugh?”

Astaroth, who had seemed so effortlessly composed, staggered violently.

‘Huh? What do we have here?’

I’d assumed, naturally, that the other was the one bearing the strain. It was the obvious assumption.

But now it seemed otherwise. It was *he* who was struggling to maintain the hold.

Even now, a single misstep could see him ensnared by that dreadful grasp.

To be seized by that hand, even for one such as himself, would be… troublesome.

Reaching a swift conclusion, Astaroth released the whip.

At once, he roughly yanked the man from the earth and placed him before himself.

“…It hurts, greatly.”

“Does it? That’s why… I think it’s time to do this properly, for a change.”

“Are you serious? You won’t just suddenly cancel it because you’re bored, will you?”

“No. And even if I did, would you have any say in the matter?”

“That is… true.” The man murmured, grasping Astaroth’s hand.

In an instant, a vast inferno seemed to engulf his body, devouring him. Then, his form began to shift.

A moment later. The man was gone, vanished without a trace.

All that remained was a massive axe clutched in Astaroth’s hand.

“Now. Let’s do this properly, shall we? Mr. Club-feet.”

The measure had already been taken. Outside of brute strength, this one didn’t have much.

If that were the case then he could play around as much as he wanted, since he would win no matter what!!