Ch.114Chapter 114. All-Out War Against the Demon Army (5)

The battle in the jungle was definitely disadvantageous for Salermey.

Even when she wanted to use the reach of her long spear, her path was obstructed by trees and bushes with just a slight thrust.

Moreover, her opponents were a rogue specialized in backstepping and an archer skilled in sniping.

Their skills were even top-tier.

The killing intent that remained completely hidden until the moment of attack.

And arrows that could fly from any direction made Salermey’s situation extremely difficult.

“Huff… Kuh… Damn it.”

But the spear wielder wasn’t going down easily.

Ravin had taken a hit to his shoulder from the spear shaft, and Naidrian had nearly had his brow pierced when he failed to block Salermey’s charge.

Unable to even tend to his throbbing shoulder, Ravin glared at Salermey with heightened vigilance.

“We need to end this, Naidrian. Buy me some time.”

“Leave it to me.”

Despite having irritated him earlier, the archer’s confident response felt reassuring at this moment.

Should I use a potion? But I only have one left.

Ravin decided to hold off.

So far, they still had the advantage with two against one.

However, the moment Naidrian reached for his quiver, an ominous feeling swept over them.

Grrrrrrrr.

Eyes of monsters began to appear one after another from the darkness.

The concealment of monsters filling the jungle had been dispelled.

“Adora…?”

Knowing what the dispelled concealment meant, Salermey froze.

The broken illusion spell meant that Adora had been pushed to her limits, unable to maintain it any longer.

“Adora!”

“Where do you think you’re going!”

This was no strategic retreat.

Salermey tried to leave the jungle, leading the monsters away with her.

Rather than pursuing, Ravin and Naidrian focused on protecting the soldiers behind them from the monsters.

In an instant, their enemies had vanished, leaving the Southern Front party stranded.

“This is the situation Lin predicted.”

“I’m using the teleport scroll now! Get ready, everyone. From now on, it’s an all-out battle!”

There was no time to waste.

Ravin activated the scroll immediately after his warning.

As the area-of-effect teleport created a bright light that illuminated the surroundings before dispersing, Ravin could see countless monsters before him and the Demon Knight party at their forefront.

Adora, wrapped in bandages from head to toe, was being weakly held by the dual swordsman.

Salermey and Denarua looking at her with concern.

Tssssssssss

As the pain in his throbbing shoulder subsided, Ravin turned his head to see the entire Hero party gathered, facing forward.

“Are you okay, Ravin?”

“Thanks, Arsil.”

The saint showed no wounds, but she looked quite exhausted.

The mage was deliberately displaying multiple magic circles in the air to intimidate the enemy.

Lucy was ready to strike at any moment with Abyss in hand, and Lin’s Cosmos was shining on both arms.

And then there was his own group.

Finally, the elite forces of both the Demon Army and the Empire were facing off at the central front.

“You idiot, I told you not to overdo it.”

“It was… calculated…”

“Lying again.”

Denarua growled, but Adora smiled faintly.

From that expression, Denarua was reminded once again how much the relationship between the Demon Knights had changed since the beginning.

‘You’re the dual swordsman, right? Looking forward to working with you.’

Adora had approached him with friendliness when they first met.

Denarua had responded curtly.

‘I hate lies.’

‘…That’s unfortunate.’

After that, the two barely spoke to each other.

‘What are you doing?’

‘Spear practice… need to train. If I don’t… I’ll be scolded…’

‘You stink of sweat. Unless you want to practice until you die, go lie down over there.’

‘……’

There was friction with the spear wielder too.

‘Lying must be convenient~’

‘Do you really think so?’

Moreover, the relationship between the spear wielder and the illusionist wasn’t smooth either.

Looking back now, three people with such deep wounds could hardly have communicated properly.

Additionally, Denarua had developed a strange habit of skipping several necessary sentences when speaking, causing major misunderstandings with the other Demon Knights.

When he told the illusionist he hated lies, he had wanted to say she could be honest with him.

When he told the spear wielder to go lie down elsewhere, he had meant she didn’t need to practice spear techniques as if being chased by something, since no one was forcing her anymore.

‘Don’t show off!’

‘But I was just sleeping~?’

‘Would you please stop showing off?’

Unable to clear up these misunderstandings, hostility continued to build between them, leading to arguments whenever they faced each other.

Sometimes they even drew weapons against each other, giving the Demon Lord headaches—it was that serious.

Fortunately or unfortunately, this conflict was only resolved after they were trapped in the goddess’s infinite regression route, when their own venom had drained away, and after the Demon Lord had completely died.

Moving together forced them to communicate despite their dislike for each other, and when one would angrily ask why the other had acted a certain way, the other would be surprised and explain the hidden meaning behind their words.

After days of blushing and avoiding each other’s gazes out of embarrassment, the Demon Knights finally acknowledged that they were a gathering of wounded and fallen individuals.

It was a natural progression after the Demon Lord, who had accepted their sorrows, disappeared.

Now there was tenderness between them.

I feel sorry for myself, and I feel sorry for you.

Yet all we can do is lick each other’s wounds.

But,

Could Lin save us?

“I can still fight.”

“In that condition? No way.”

Adora gripped the dual swordsman’s shoulder tightly.

“I can fight, Denarua.”

“……”

But Denarua wouldn’t allow it.

“I’m worried about you.”

“That’s not like you.”

“Then I’ll put it this way. When one of us is in trouble, the other rescues them. You need to prepare our escape route in case we get into trouble.”

“You? In trouble?”

“Salermey already saved us once.”

With this reasoning, even Adora couldn’t insist further.

“Alright.”

The Hero party was also watching the enemy and formulating their strategy.

They couldn’t afford to lose ground here.

Although this was just a detachment of Lowellina’s forces, Deputy Commander Viscon and several generals were present.

Losing them in this battle would leave the City of Romance in a precarious situation until Airan or Garin arrived.

“Lin, what should we do?”

Ravin asked on behalf of everyone.

Lin had somehow become the core of the Hero party.

Everyone, even Naidrian, was listening attentively to Lin’s words.

Under the pressure, Lin explained her plan.

She raised her index finger with a snap.

Then she pointed at Lucy.

Next, she spread two fingers, then clenched her fist tightly.

It was their secret language communicated through gestures.

This secret language, devised with Ravin to prevent the keen-eared demons from overhearing, had been diligently memorized by Arsil for days, ensuring there would be no miscommunication.

“Everyone understand?”

Ravin asked.

“Of course!”

“I understand.”

“Confirmed.”

“I’ll execute immediately.”

Everyone except the Hero answered in turn.

What was the plan? Simple.

[It’s been a while since you’ve done a full charge, huh? Can you manage it?]

‘I have no choice but to believe.’

[Haha! You trust those who cut off your limbs?]

‘I’m trusting Lin’s command!’

Brushing off Abyss’s taunts, Lucy took a stance for a decisive strike.

“Sacred Skill: Power of Parma!”

Arsil applied a holy power buff to the party members’ weapons to enable them to damage the demons.

Ravin clashed his daggers together, and Naidrian nocked multiple arrows to his bowstring.

The mage, instead of staying airborne, descended to the ground and infused more magical power into his scroll of knowledge.

And Lin,

She stood at the vanguard of them all.

It couldn’t be helped.

Without a shield knight, only Lin, the item master, could take on the defensive role.

“The Hero party is moving! Everyone, deploy the defensive formation!”

Viscon, seasoned in battlefield command, quickly directed his soldiers.

The regular troops would hold the line while the Hero party eliminated the enemy commanders.

That was the basic operational plan established by Airan.

“Those guys are starting to move.”

“Hmph, for all the good it will do them.”

“Denarua~. What’s the plan?”

When the spear wielder asked with a yawn, the dual swordsman snorted again.

“The lower demons and monsters will attack Lowellina’s main force in the rear. Salermey, you stay here and protect Adora.”

“And you?”

The vampire snorted once more.

“I’ll handle the Hero party.”

“By yourself? Don’t you need my help?”

“Who do you think I am?”

Denarua smiled grimly as he drew his twin swords.

“I am Denarua, the strongest dual swordsman of the Demon Knights.”

[Ultimate Skill]

“Dark Fang Sanctuary!”

A dark red magic circle formed on the ground around him.

“Sacred Skill: Pilgrimage Path!”

Not to be outdone, Arsil cast an area buff to counter Denarua’s debuff.

SWOOOOSH!

The arrows shot by Naidrian created a thunderous sound as they flew into the monster horde and exploded.

From the thick smoke caused by the explosion, the dual swordsman leaped high, revealing himself in the moonlight.

“Soldiers of the Demon Lord! Today we shall settle the score with humanity here and now!”

“Do not fear! I, Viscon, am here! I will protect you from the front lines!”

The deputy commander shouted to his allies while holding a large shield.

“Behold! This is the duty of nobility!!”

Denarua and the Hero party.

The Demon Army and Lowellina’s elite soldiers.

The large-scale battle had begun.