Beginning of the Demon World (11)

Around the time when the cries of monsters on the plains of the Demon World began to gradually decrease.

We moved away from the garrison and headed toward the center of the demon world.

On the way, I encountered the remnants of the Demon King’s army and a group of wandering monsters.

There was no one who was that much of a threat.

A plain so quiet that it feels strange.

Once it became clear that the Demon King’s army had completely withdrawn, the heavy atmosphere disappeared.

On the contrary, I almost thought it was boring.

“Let’s rest for a while.”

By chance, my foot touched a place where tree stumps were gathered.

After walking around non-stop for four hours, I decided to take a break.

With a chilly wind blowing, Celica sat down on a stump and wiped her sweat.

“Cerica. Are you okay?”

“Yes. “This is no problem.”

“If you ever find yourself having a hard time, tell me. Any time is fine.”

“Then can you give me a piggyback ride like last time?”

It was said as a joke. Then, Erina’s gaze stopped.

As I smiled and patted her head, a smile appeared on Celica’s face.

The gaze glaring at me became even stronger.

“…”

Meanwhile, Erina just watched quietly.

In the past, people would have made a fuss and said they would fall immediately, but is it a little better now?

However, since he didn’t say anything, I couldn’t tell what he was thinking.

Meanwhile, Tyria came up to me and sat next to me.

Colleagues naturally gathered around me.

Everyone was looking at me and watching quietly.

As if he wanted to say something.

“What’s wrong with you all of a sudden?”

“…”

No one answered my question.

However, the gaze shifted back and forth around me.

Meanwhile, Celica was standing there with a puzzled expression on her face.

Then, Kayla suddenly takes out water from her backpack and holds it out to me.

“My lord. Do you need water?”

“Ah. Thank you.”

As she took the water bottle and quenched her thirst, Kayla’s gaze changed strangely.

As I returned the water bottle and looked away, the atmosphere became strange.

“Let’s rest for a bit and then leave right away. “We have to finish scouting before the sun sets.”

“…Yes. I understand.”

Kayla’s voice strangely lowered.

When I approached her and stroked her head, I started and started shaking.

‘Is this what you wanted?’

Finally, as if she was satisfied, she returned to her place and sat down on the stump.

Tyria, who was watching that scene, quietly opened her mouth next to me.

“Seohyun. “The energy of life remains around here.”

As the car sat on the stump, Tyria took a deep breath.

“The energy of nature is faint, but I can feel it. “It probably used to be a forest area.”

“It looks like all the plants are dead now because of the red fog.

“Yes. I think everything has lost its vitality since the red fog covered the sky.”

Still, Tyria seemed to be able to feel the energy of nature, and her expression seemed brighter.

The conquest of the Demon World went more smoothly than planned.

Since the Demon King’s army didn’t even show up, all we had to do was deal with the remaining scoundrels.

‘Something is strange.’

Does the Demon King still not know that we have invaded the Demon World?

That said, I couldn’t have known since I was wandering around the entrance to the demon world.

In the first round, as soon as we entered the demon world, we fought against numerous monsters, but now the atmosphere was very different.

So does that mean that the Demon King’s army was pushed back on purpose?

Rather than being defeated individually, there was a possibility of having a defensive line even if it meant giving up the entrance to the Demon World.

“It’s so quiet. To a strange degree.”

Erina muttered as if she was talking to herself.

It seems like he was thinking the same thing as me.

‘Catalina is going to be an uproar.’

Wouldn’t he raise his voice and say he would go to the center of the demon world right away?

My head hurt thinking about having to argue with Arne again.

Meanwhile, the mountains in the distance caught my eye.

Andrei Snow Mountain. The only bridge connecting heaven and earth.

At the same time, it is the only way to save Yeriel.

‘It’s been a long time since I met Yeriel.’

Perhaps it was the last time I took a break in the capital.

My heart sank again when I thought that Yeriel was holding on alone.

“Ruler. Let’s start again.”

He stood up without saying anything to me and got ready to leave.

The short rest passed and we were about to resume our march.

Erina also noticed that she was looking at the Andrei snow mountain in the distance.

***

“Did anything happen to everyone?”

When we returned to the garrison around sunset, Max greeted us.

I realized that there had been a battle because there were monster corpses lying around.

“A monster attacked from behind the hill. It was over quickly.”

“Are they the remnants of the devil’s army?”

From the looks of it, they were separated from the main university and left behind.

It looks like they are targeting our supplies.

“How many monsters were wandering around?”

“Honestly, there wasn’t much. “The Demon King disappeared without even a trace of his nose.”

At least we found traces of the Demon King’s army retreating, but that’s it.

Rather, there is a greater possibility that the Demon King’s army has completely retreated.

“Anyway, good job. “Let everyone rest.”

“Catalina hasn’t arrived yet.”

“That’s right. The sun will set soon, so I’ll be back soon.”

It’s been a while since I’ve been on the battlefield, so I’m sure I’ll enjoy it to the fullest.

I just hoped to return before the sun sets.

While I was resting at the garrison, Arne came up to me.

Do you have something to say? He took a quick look and sat down next to me.

“Seohyun. Would you mind for a moment?”

“Okay. What’s going on?”

“It’s a little difficult to talk here. “Can we talk about it separately?”

“I think that might be a bit difficult.”

Before the words were finished, four pairs of eyes focused on Arne.

A look of warning and threat, warning and curiosity.

Only then did Arne realize his mistake and hastily corrected his words.

“Oh, no. I think it would be okay to say it here.”

“Okay. What’s going on?”

“…I wanted to ask you a little about Catalina.”

It looks like he’s getting on his nerves after arguing before.

Actually, if you turn around, Catalina will be forgotten.

“I think Catalina and Seohyun are close.”

“Well, I’m doing pretty well.”

“Have you ever run into Catalina?”

“Well, we didn’t really fight or anything.”

Arne shook his head as if he had no idea.

Perhaps, other than Malcolm, the closest people to Catalina are Julia and I.

Most other people disliked or avoided Catalina.

Everyone knew the reason. Arrogant and stubborn behavior.

Her powerlessness cannot be ignored, but I heard that most people left without saying anything.

“Aren’t you angry at Catalina’s actions, Seohyun?”

“Well. “I’ve never been angry.”

“Every time she does something assertive, I just can’t stand it. Honestly, I don’t even know why Seohyun stays still.”

I got nervous every time Catalina said something dangerous, but that’s it.

I just didn’t have time because I was busy taking care of my colleagues.

However, Arne seems to have misunderstood that I was condoning Catalina’s actions.

“Me too. “I get on my nerves every time Catalina gets annoyed.”

“Then why don’t you stop her?”

Arne expressed his resentment to me as if he felt unfair.

However, we cannot stop or ask Catalina to refrain from her actions.

I also hoped Arne would understand.

“Catalina didn’t do it with bad intentions.”

“Are you sincere?”

A sharp remark that came out in an instant. Arne was embarrassed and closed his mouth.

I smiled and responded to her rudeness.

“Okay. You may not believe it, but it’s because I have my own thoughts.”

“I just don’t understand. If she acts with normal thinking…”

“If you don’t understand, there’s nothing you can do, but at least don’t stop it.”

No matter how much you say or try to stop Catalina, she won’t budget.

It would have been wiser to walk with her or watch her along her path.

Arne looked at me with a sullen expression, as if he didn’t like it.

This is all I can say.

Catalina and Malcolm are coming up the hill after completing the reconnaissance.

We arrived in the nick of time, just before the sun went down.

“What. “He was already back.”

“Okay. Fortunately, I arrived in time.”

“Tsk. Thanks to someone who kept teaching me.”

It looks like Malcolm was able to force restraintfully Catalina and finally bring her back.

“There was nothing much to the east.”

“Same here. There were only small things. “I said it was boring.”

Even so, Catalina must have been quite wild, her armor was covered in dust and her hair had become scattered.

However, there was a feeling of relief in his brighter expression than before.

Malcolm, who was guarding next to me, looked very tired.