Monsters and demons suddenly attacked the Thunder Fortress. However, a question arose. Right now, this place is guarded by numerous dragons, Royal Knights, and the envoy’s escort forces.
There’s no way the demons wouldn’t know that. Just the fact that they attacked the Thunder Fortress suggests they had some understanding of our forces and deemed it the right time to proceed with the assault.
If that’s not the case, then they must be following someone’s orders fanatically. Hans thought about the queen that Revel mentioned. In the original game, Revel had become the Demon Lord instead of the queen.
Given Revel’s nature of caring deeply for his kind, the reason he took the Demon Lord’s position was likely to save his kind. Although, it’s purely a theory.
If we assume this hypothesis is true, then Revel killed the queen for his kind and took the Demon Lord’s position. Yet, for some reason, he fell into darkness and became the Demon Lord from the original game.
“Is there something in the Demon Lord’s position?”
“Hey, Hans. The guys outside have arrived.”
“Yeah, it’s best to go out and meet them.”
Hans quickly made a decision without hesitation. Since dragons and Royal Knights are here, there’s really no disadvantage. The only concern is protecting the envoy while sending them back.
“We’ll need to split our forces.”
“Is that to protect them?”
“Yeah. Can I leave that to you guys?”
“Hmm, it seems a bit too easy to leave it to us.”
Now that we’ve invited the Anti-Demon Alliance for a face-to-face, suddenly monsters burst in. It’s a situation where we can’t help but suspect the Anti-Demon Alliance. In fact, some are even trying to shift the blame onto them.
“Those guys! They betrayed us!”
“That’s typical of folks from their area.”
What a mess.
“But you’re still planning to leave it to us?”
So I’m leaving it to you.
Revel understood Hans’s words right away. He had lost trust, meaning it was time to prove it through action. Revel chuckled. How foolish is this? To trust so easily?
If I betray you, what then? I’d lose significant trust from the other racial alliances, right? But that’s exactly why I chose this person. Revel smiled and charged forward.
The other members showed no dissent towards Hans’s decision. They had such absolute trust in him. The Royal Knights headed towards the enemies to intercept the demons.
“The dragons should be holding them back just fine.”
“Pushing through that ironclad defense would be tough.”
“…No, what if that guy is here?”
Before they even finished that thought, a tremendous explosion echoed. It was the sound of a dragon collapsing. When Hans and the members arrived, they saw the demons facing off against the dragons.
“One of them went down.”
The dragon fell? No way!
[Watch out! Those guys, using evil methods…!!]
You can’t just blabber about others’ secrets recklessly.
[Ugh, you pathetic __!]
Suddenly, someone rushed from the void, striking the Dragon Lord and sending him flying back. Hans scowled. It was Zaiha, ranked second among the Blood Demons and the real strongest.
Well, he’s the kind that can push back the Dragon Lord with just strength. Plus, he is completely out of control now, just as Hans himself had been during his last ambush.
In that state, no one knows what the demons will suddenly do. Therefore, we have to deal swiftly. It can’t be helped; Hans decided to use Time Stop. Then, the world came to a halt.
“I’ll finish this as quickly as possible.”
The Divine Sword, enhanced with Dragon Heart, combined with Time Stop, was something no one could block. Thus, Hans easily beheaded him.
And then, time resumed its course. Zaiha’s head fell, detached by the Divine Sword. In less than a second, everyone witnessed it. The members erupted in cheers.
Our commander is really the best. He can easily deal with such pathetic demons. But the dragons’ reactions were different. Especially, the Dragon Lord, who was knocked back, shouted at Hans.
[Don’t let your guard down!! It’s not over yet!!]
“What?!”
“You’ve let your guard down, commander of the Royal Knights.”
“…Ugh?!”
In that fleeting moment, a precise strike aimed at both the heart and head came. One was a great sword, and the other was a demon’s hand that could crush steel. If Hans hadn’t twisted away in time…
He would surely have died right there. But he wasn’t completely unscathed. Instead, he had received a deadly injury. Hans stared blankly at the gaping hole in his abdomen.
It wasn’t directly in the center, but rather a large gouge on the side. At the same time, blood oozed from his mouth. Having received such a severe blow, consciousness was slowly fading.
“What the hell was that?!”
[Those fellows respawn after dying. That’s why one of our kind fell earlier.]
“Wha-what?! Resurrection?! That’s impossible!!”
[Of course. It must be some trick.]
That was the conclusion reached by the Lord through experience. And it wasn’t a wrong statement. In this world, no one can deny death. If it exists, it must be an extraordinary power.
Or it’s a trick. If so, what was the commander doing with Clara? Cluna, momentarily distracted by such thoughts, knew she had to rescue the commander over getting lost in those thoughts.
And everyone felt the same. Without caring who went first, as if they had rehearsed the plan, all moved simultaneously. The first to move, Helia, reached out to create chains.
“This is quite a unique power.”
“Don’t move, you filthy trash.”
“Impressive. You managed to bind me for over 5 seconds.”
“?!”
“In reward for that, I’ll kill you.”
Five seconds. It may have seemed like an insignificant time. But at least to Cluna and Yuren, it wasn’t so. They successfully pulled the commander back from Zaiha.
Zaiha’s judgment was cold. No matter how much he had transcended death, it was not infinite. After all, it was just a trick. Facing Yuren and Cluna in such circumstances?
That would not be easy. So, let’s quickly eliminate the next most significant threat. Zaiha deemed Helia as the next target. The hero who saved the human kingdom from the demons.
“Crimson Knight. I’ve heard much of your reputation.”
“Ugh.”
“Let’s see how long you can hold out.”
The clash of swords and greatswords destroyed everything around them. It was a battle of strength and skill, yet Helia was the one being pushed back. In a typical battle, defense is as critical as offense.
If you only attack and leave a vital weakness, you’d very well die from one blow. But Zaiha was different. He completely relinquished defense in favor of offense. Reaping bones while sacrificing flesh.
As a result, Helia had no choice but to increase her focus on defense. Thus, his attacks began to grow fiercer. For now, she was holding on, but in time, she’d undoubtedly be pierced if she were alone.
However, just then, a blue flash arrow flew from behind, piercing Zaiha’s shoulder. With that moment of vulnerability, Helia and Lua attacked him simultaneously.
“Even if I break your neck and lower body, it’ll only buy time.”
“Tch, I almost let you die.”
“What did you just say?”
“Hey, you crazy girls! Is this really the time to fight with each other?!”
In the middle of that, Clara quickly assessed the situation while trying to stop Lua and Helia from fighting. Although they’d allowed three deadly blows, he was still alive.
Rather, he was quickly recovering from his injuries. Seeing it, Clara clicked her tongue. This wasn’t some undead from a record. What in the world turned him into such a monster?
But now, she had no choice but to do what she had to. To rescue the two safely, Clara had to provide direct covering fire. Zaiha frowned. The situation wasn’t looking good.
While it was near immortality, it wasn’t utterly unkillable perfection. One day, a limit might emerge. If that happens, it means the previous methods won’t work.
“This is why I wanted to eliminate them before getting noticed.”
That method was half successful. Many dragons were killed. Having been lulled into a false sense of security from the first massacre, the other Blood Demons had quickly revived and attacked. Their power was overwhelming.
On the other hand, Hans, barely keeping his life, was receiving emergency treatment from Cluna. He was thinking in his mind. Time Stop didn’t activate? It must be because of cooldown.
Even though the cooldown for Time Stop had dramatically shortened, it still wasn’t gone entirely. But in that brief moment, counterattacking like that? Using a method completely unexpected to them?
“Commander! Are you okay? Commander!!”
“Commander!! Stay conscious!!!”
“Enough, this is nothing.”
Hans staggered but rose to his feet. Cluna tried to stop him, but he refused. To retreat without casualties, they needed someone to mark that monster directly.
‘Time Reversal… I can’t use it…?’
He had been trying since earlier, but it had no effect. That meant something was being hidden from him by time. Or perhaps, he couldn’t revert the cost he paid in time.
In any case, he had to fight now.
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