Ch.313Chapter 313 – Palace Assault (2)

The palace was thrown into chaos in an instant.

“The resistance has appeared at the west gate!”

“Go and stop them!”

“What are the orders from above?! Why haven’t they come down yet…!”

The sounds of confused soldiers running could be heard.

I briefly hid my body at a corner as they began to pass in front of us.

Then I swung my fist and knocked them unconscious.

“My, you’re not killing them?”

“Unless absolutely necessary, I prefer to just subdue them.”

I said this while tying up the unconscious soldiers in a place where they wouldn’t be easily noticed.

“I don’t really like unnecessary bloodshed either, but isn’t it more dangerous to let them live?”

“It’s partly because the princess requested it. She asked us to merely subdue anyone except those she specifically designated.”

“And honestly, these low-ranking soldiers don’t really matter much to us anyway.”

I spoke while watching Sera place small scent pouches near the soldiers.

I’d heard they contained some kind of anesthetic fragrance.

“Are you finished?”

“Yes. They’ll remain asleep like this for about two hours.”

I nodded at Sera’s words.

Then we simply nodded to each other and ran toward the tower where the soul-absorbing formation was supposedly installed.

The voices of confused soldiers continued to be heard, and disorderly footsteps echoed all around us.

“It hasn’t been that long since we entered, but the chaos seems to be taking too long to settle down, doesn’t it?”

“It was a sudden ambush, but they’re certainly slow to respond. Perhaps there’s a problem with the chain of command?”

Gigas and Sia exchanged such words with each other.

But honestly, that didn’t matter to me right now.

“The longer the chaos, the better for us.”

The longer the confusion lasted, the more time we had to move freely inside.

In fact, all the soldiers we’d encountered so far had been in such disarray that we could easily knock them out or neutralize them.

Thanks to that, we were able to penetrate deeper inside without shedding unnecessary blood.

“Still, I think it’s about time they should be showing up.”

No matter what, this chaos couldn’t continue forever.

Just as I thought that some of them must have regained their senses and started patrolling by now…

“There, over there! Demon lords!”

“Yes, I see them, Viscount Comodino.”

I saw a man with a slightly unhealthy complexion pointing at us with his finger.

And behind him, men with pale faces were staring at us.

“Vampires.”

I recognized them immediately because they looked similar to the ones Sirius had brought.

There were three of them.

One had ash powder on his hands.

“How dare you come here!”

“There are women with delicious-looking blood too!”

The vampires saw us and tried to charge at us boldly.

They took one step forward.

And then they shouted.

“Wait, could that be…!”

“W-White Dragon!”

“The White Dragon has appeared!”

The vampires who had been charging forward with faces that somehow managed to turn even paler than their already pale complexions stopped in their tracks.

Then, without anyone taking the lead, they all turned around and started to flee.

“What’s going on, Mean! Sirius, that woman was wrong! You said she wouldn’t come!”

“Shut up and run!”

It seemed my notoriety had spread too widely among the demon race.

They were fleeing with all their might.

The man who had led them stood dumbfounded, staring at the vampires, unable to grasp the situation.

But of course, I had no reason to let him go.

“Where do you think you’re going?”

I changed my weapon to a halberd.

Then, stomping the ground hard with my foot, I twisted my waist and threw it.

-Woooong!!!

The halberd spun terrifyingly as it flew toward them.

The man who appeared to be allied with the demons threw himself down low, and the halberd flew over him with a frightening sound.

“A halberd is coming!”

“Turn into mist! Dodge!!”

The vampires saw it and immediately changed their bodies into blood mist.

They seemed to be planning to avoid the halberd by transforming into mist.

And the halberd sliced through the blood mist.

“Aaaaargh!!!!”

The vampires who had transformed into blood mist screamed as they returned to their original forms and began rolling on the ground.

As if the mist itself had been their bodies, large gashes appeared on their bodies.

And the wounds began to burn with holy light.

“Why, it’s not just an ordinary weapon…!”

“N-No, I’m disintegrating, I don’t want to die!!!”

The vampires turned to ash and disappeared, while the man who seemed to be their ally stared at the scene with blank eyes.

And somehow the halberd had returned to my hand, so I rested it on my shoulder and asked.

“What should we do with him? He seemed to be working with the vampires.”

“He was called Viscount Comodino earlier.”

Vanilla seemed to be thinking for a moment.

And the viscount in question approached us with a servile expression.

“Actually, my wife and children were taken by the demons…”

“I heard that you’re a sycophant who’s given everything to the king, and the princess’s faction people said there’s no need to spare you.”

“D-Damn it!!”

Judging by the fact that his name was known, he must have been thoroughly marked by the princess’s faction.

Seeing the man, who thought we wouldn’t know him, trying to escape from us with all his might, I changed my halberd into a staff and threw it.

-Crack!!

“Ugh!”

I saw the man tumble after being hit in the leg by the flying staff.

Still, not wanting to die here, the man began to exert strength in his arms, trying to get up somehow.

And suddenly, cracks began to form in the wall.

-Crash!!

As the side wall collapsed, part of the stone wall fell on top of the man.

And through the broken wall, a muscular arm appeared, followed by a large demon with a bull’s head standing before us.

“I-I’m saved…!”

Despite being partially buried under the stone wall, Viscount Comodino’s face brightened.

The bull-headed demon snorted for a moment while looking down at Viscount Comodino.

Then it trampled the viscount with its massive hoof.

The sound of something bursting echoed, and the expressions of Eve, Sera, and Chris turned pale.

“Isn’t it an ally?”

“Their motto is survival of the fittest. The weak have no value to them.”

Sia answered Chris, who had opened her eyes wide in surprise, as she stood beside me.

“I thought some strong ones would come since the White Dragon is here, but I didn’t expect Minotaurs.”

“Are they strong?”

“As far as physical strength goes, they’re as sturdy as the Baphomet clan.”

As soon as Sia finished her explanation, the Minotaur immediately began charging with its horns forward.

In response, I quickly stepped forward.

“Master Kei!”

“It’s fine.”

I answered softly to Chris’s voice as I looked ahead.

The ground in front began to crack, and the creature’s sharp horns were about to touch my body.

I raised my halberd and brought it against the creature’s horns.

-Kaaaack!!

A terrifying noise echoed.

Perhaps due to the opponent’s heavy body, my legs were pushed back slightly.

And that was the end of it.

The Minotaur’s heavy charge with its horns forward failed to inflict even the slightest damage on me.

“Buoh?!”

“You chose the wrong opponent.”

I said as I raised my fist.

“And compared to Baphomet, this is too light and slow.”

I struck the Minotaur’s forehead with my fist.

Its eyes bulged as if they would pop out, and its posture crumbled. Then I raised my halberd and cut it down.

The muscular body began to roll on the ground.

And I noticed that no holy flames arose from the cut surface.

‘Does holy power not work well on these creatures?’

I should warn Chris about this in advance.

And Vanilla, who had been watching from behind, opened her mouth.

“As expected of the White Dragon. These small fry are no match at all.”

“More importantly, we need to keep moving. How much further do we have to go?”

“We still have a ways to go before we reach the soul-absorbing formation.”

I nodded at Chris’s voice.

I roughly moved the Minotaur’s corpse out of the way.

And soon, footsteps began to be heard from all directions.

“It seems the higher-ups have finally come to their senses.”

Sia’s voice was heard quietly.

Indeed, unlike before, the atmosphere of confusion had disappeared.

“We must not let our guard down.”

I warned everyone as I held up my halberd.

“Let’s go.”

As soon as I finished speaking, urgent footsteps could be heard from all directions.

Soon, vampires, Minotaurs, and other demons appeared from the corridors and were rushing toward us.

+

A location slightly away from the capital.

Inside the second largest church in the Firenchena Kingdom, Idea was quietly listening to someone’s report with her sword planted in the ground.

“The resistance, you say.”

[Yes, Dragon Slayer.]

Idea was quietly listening to what he was saying through a long-distance communication spell.

A special magical tool using churches across the region as relay points was enabling their communication without any interruption.

However, only those with this magical tool could communicate.

And there were only two people in the entire order who possessed it.

“What do you think, Somnus?”

[From what I can see, as you said, that experiment subject seems to have joined hands with the resistance. For them to launch such a bold attack despite being tactically inferior, they would need powerful forces like that experiment subject and the false goddess. Without their cooperation, the resistance would never act so recklessly.]

Somnus’s words were briefly interrupted.

But it seemed he was just catching his breath, as his voice soon returned.

“They managed to cooperate well.”

[We already had suspicions that the ‘Mad Dog’ of the Magic Tower, the witch Beatrice at the Origin Festival of the Mikea Kingdom, was originally from the shadows of the Firenchena Kingdom. With the youngest princess being in the resistance, she probably served as a bridge between them.]

At Somnus’s words, Idea fell into thought for a moment.

“Then the resistance forces that rushed to the palace must be the princess faction’s troops. Nothing more than a diversion.”

[Why do you think so?]

“Because the princess faction is weak.”

Idea said quietly.

“There are many factions within the resistance, and the princess faction is the weakest among them. And that man Kei has no reason to join hands with any resistance other than the princess.”

Idea thought that the previous encounter happened because the princess faction’s soldiers were attacked, which is why he came to stop her. If it had been other soldiers, he would have just left them alone.

“Although the surprise attack seems to have worked and the palace appears to be helpless right now… once the confusion subsides, the princess faction will soon be pushed back.”

So the princess faction’s role was simply to buy time.

“Then there are only two possibilities to consider.”

[What do you think they are?]

To Somnus’s question, which seemed deliberately ignorant, Idea answered indifferently.

“The assassination of the Firenchena king, or the destruction of the soul-absorbing formation.”

Anything beyond that, like completely taking over the palace, would be impossible with just the princess faction.

[Correct.]

“It’s as you said, Somnus.”

Somnus gave no reply.

But Idea could tell that he was smiling.

[Well, in that sense.]

“It’s an opportunity.”

Idea answered indifferently.

“The princess faction is holding the attention of the palace forces, and Kei is either leading only his companions inside as a diversion or acting alone.”

[We should move to achieve at least one of our original objectives.]

Idea nodded at Somnus’s words.

“It’s time to move.”

Idea said this as she lifted the sword that had been planted in the ground.

And Somnus’s leisurely voice reached her.

[Oh, by the way, Hakan should have gone there. Be careful, as he might be plotting something after hearing from the regent.]

“When did he arrive?”

She hadn’t heard such a report.

Idea quietly thought that the regent must have omitted the report.

[I can’t tell what he’s planning. Considering the regent, he might harbor resentment toward you, and Hakan personally might hold a grudge against that experiment subject.]

Surprisingly, Somnus spoke as if warning her.

To such a warning, Idea responded indifferently.

“How much influence could he have on the battle?”

Hakan wasn’t weak.

In fact, he was several times stronger than ordinary holy knights.

But compared to herself or that man Kei, Hakan was too weak.

For him to interfere with her, he would certainly need to plot some scheme.

[But there’s always the possibility.]

“Since you say so, I’ll look forward to it.”

Idea said in an indifferent voice, as if not looking forward to it at all.

“If something happens because of him that causes me injury, it would mean I’m still an inadequate being.”

[Then you should strive to become a more complete being.]

A voice that sounded like Somnus was laughing came from the other side.

Idea listened to it indifferently and said:

“Well then.”

[Yes. Please remember all our objectives and act accordingly.]

Somnus’s voice cut off with the words “I expect victory.”

And as if timed perfectly, the door to the room where Idea was opened.

“Reporting, Dragon Slayer!”

A holy knight active in the Firenchena Kingdom immediately reported to Idea.

“The scouts have sent an urgent report! The resistance has taken control of the west gate of the palace…!”

‘Just as Somnus said.’

Idea nodded indifferently at the battle report, which matched exactly what she had just discussed with Somnus.

The holy knight who had been reporting enthusiastically seemed to notice something strange and raised his head.

“…Dragon Slayer?”

“Gather the troops.”

Cutting off the holy knight’s report, Idea immediately gave instructions.

“Mobilize all warp scrolls. We head to the palace immediately.”

“Y-Yes, sir!”

The holy knight hurriedly went outside.

Since they had prepared for such a situation in advance, preparations wouldn’t take long.

With that, a man came to his mind.

“Wait for me, Kei.”

Idea said quietly, looking in the direction of the palace.

“I’m coming to take your head.”

While thinking that even he himself was more obsessed with that man than he had thought.

While thinking that there was something about that man that he didn’t like.

Idea tightened his grip on his sword.