Chapter 97: Olivia and the Demon Realm

The expedition force didn’t take long to set off.

The military had already been prepared since the invasion of Pector.

The Mage Corps was urged to expedite the harvest, and ample supplies were secured.

And then—

“Waaaahhh!”

Cheers echoed from outside, the voices of the soldiers.

“The priests from the Holy Nation have arrived! There are holy knights too!”

Peeking outside, I could see knights holding the banners of the Holy Nation.

Priests and holy knights from the Holy Nation had arrived.

“They got here quite quickly,” Syria remarked, her eyes gleaming as she looked at the holy knights.

Of course, they came quickly.

Even though the Holy Nation was quite far, a direct path connecting it to Eldakrad had been constructed.

While there were other noble territories along the way, they were all under Ashtar’s rule.

“The Holy Nation is always in a state of military readiness. Besides, once they enter the Empire, it’s a direct route to Ashtar.”

“That’s impressive. Did we have that much interaction with the Holy Nation?”

“It’s all thanks to my grandfather.”

The power of Eldakrad had fostered solid exchanges with the Holy Nation.

Soon after, supply materials from the Kingdom arrived as well.

That wasn’t all.

Even from the Imperial Capital, a significant amount of support had been sent.

The officials who delivered the support supplies visited the Duke’s tent.

“Was this sent by the Council?”

“His Majesty personally wishes for the expedition’s success and has sent magic-stone rifles from the armory.”

“Oh, firearms. That’s great.”

We should be able to deal with the gargoyles.

Certainly more effective than arrows.

“Tsk. They should be supporting us with more troops instead.”

The Hero muttered nonsense from behind.

“Are you brainless? If the Imperial Army marches in, they’ll get crushed to pieces.”

I snapped back at his ridiculous remark.

Showing kindness to this guy was far too generous.

It would be much better to stick to my usual approach and beat some sense into him.

“Uh… I’m sorry.”

Look at his face turning red.

‘This guy can’t be serious, right? If he gets weird ideas about me, I swear I’ll confiscate his holy sword and deliver justice myself.’

‘No, maybe I should just kill him outright.’

‘I could bury him along with Noelle somewhere in the Demon Realm.’

Then, I was sought out by someone else.

‘Wasn’t this one of the Emperor’s battle maids?’

“Grand Chancellor.”

“Hmm? What is it?”

One of the officials approached me, looking noticeably uneasy.

‘Why were they coming to me?’

‘If it were something for the Saintess, it would make sense,’ but…

A box bearing the Emperor’s seal was handed to me.

Inside was…

My mage uniform.

“Seriously, the Emperor went as far as to send me clothes?”

It was tailored perfectly.

“Wow, it’s custom-made. The Imperial Family really knows how to do things.”

Even the packaging was excessively ornate.

How annoying.

“Oh, there’s a letter too.”

A letter bearing the Imperial seal—used only for special occasions.

[You’ve endured much hardship because of my foolish son. As such, I bestow this gift upon you, Grand Chancellor. Since you’re participating in the expedition, as both the Saintess and the Emperor’s mentor, you must uphold your dignity. Along with wishing for your success, I present this to you.]

He was practically forcing me to go.

Just imagining the Emperor laughing as he wrote this letter infuriates me.

Well, it is what it is.

The robe, gifted by the Emperor, was optimized for mages.

It was reinforced with various defensive enchantments. While it looked like an ordinary uniform on the outside, it was likely sturdier than Ashtar’s armor.

This couldn’t have been made in just a day or two.

‘Had they anticipated this?’

‘Or had they prepared it beforehand just to toy with me?’

In the past, I would have dismissed it outright.

But after the battle with Pector, I’ve learned one thing—

Always be cautious of unexpected variables.

“Thinking about it is just making me more annoyed.”

‘Should I just settle in Ashtar for good this time?’

Honestly, staying here and taking down the Four Generals seems more manageable than returning to the Imperial Capital to deal with the Emperor every day.

Even the thought is dreadful.

Since my goal here is to fight the Four Generals anyway, it might be better to stay.

***

After dismissing the Council’s officials, the strategy meeting began.

The Duke pointed at the mountain range marked on the map.

It stretched across the Demon Realm, reaching the northeast of Crad Castle.

In short, advancing through the mountain range would allow us to ambush the Third Corps directly.

They likely wouldn’t expect such a move. Clever.

“We’ll traverse this mountain range.”

“The mountain range? The soldiers will suffer heavy casualties.”

“If we go straight ahead, we’ll be battered by Crad’s Berna. Or should we announce our arrival to them?”

Surprisingly, the Duke handled the situation with a cool head.

While taking the direct route and diverting later wasn’t a bad idea, advancing through the mountains would deal more damage to the Third Corps.

“Even so, wouldn’t the soldiers suffer significant losses in the mountains? Some might even desert.”

“That’s why the priests are here.”

‘This isn’t a bad idea.’

‘If it succeeds, the Third Corps could be destroyed even without me.’

“The Eldakrad fell to the combined assault of Seto and Berna, so precautions against Seto’s army must also be made.”

“The gargoyles led by Seto are no match for magic-stone rifles. We’ve also stocked enough potions, so Seto won’t pose an issue.”

The Duke had thought this through quite well.

I was curious how thousands of flying gargoyles would fare against these rifles.

Since the rifles lacked extensive field experience, this could test their effectiveness.

“That’s a good plan.”

I’ll just humor them for now and prepare to fight when the time comes.

“Rokton will not participate in this expedition. With me going, it would be unacceptable for the next family head, Rokton, to leave as well.”

‘So that’s why Rokton isn’t here.’

‘Not bad.’

‘The Duke has good judgment.’

‘If we circle the mountain range, we’ll arrive at the fortress of the Third Corps.’

It’s more vulnerable to bombardment than Crad Castle, so dealing with it after crossing the mountains should be easy.

“This expedition will remain hidden until we succeed. We must deceive the eyes of the demons.”

While they might not anticipate our attack, they’ll likely maintain some level of vigilance.

Keeping it hidden is indeed better.

“We’re moving tens of thousands of troops. How do you propose we keep this hidden?”

“If you’ve already raised an army, why not attack Seto and Berna head-on?”

The holy knight and priest representing the Holy Nation voiced their complaints.

It’s no surprise they’re annoyed by the mention of crossing a mountain range.

That kind of thing can be easily handled with a bit of misdirection.

“Hiding it is simple.”

“Does the Lady have a plan?”

‘A plan?’ Of course.

There’s an incredibly straightforward method we can use.

“Pector invaded, and Berna desecrated the mausoleum.

By now, Berna must have realized that both the Holy Nation and the Kingdom are aware of her true identity as Bernoa.”

It’s far too late for her to cover it up.

The term “Saintess” has always referred to someone from either the Kingdom or the Holy Nation.

But after Bernoa’s death, the Four General Berna appeared.

Even though she later earned the title of the Fallen Saintess, they should have suspected something earlier.

Bernoa’s similar appearance and attire…

It’s illogical to dismiss it as the new Four General simply taking her garments from a corpse.

Now that they’ve realized it, we should take advantage of it.

“And then?”

“Spread the word, with the Council’s permission, that Ashtar, the Kingdom, and the Holy Nation are conducting joint military training.”

Unlike humans, the Four Generals like Seto and Berna lack strategic thinking.

At this level, they won’t suspect anything.

Given Ashtar’s historically passive stance during conflicts between the Kingdom and the Demon Army—and the lull in the war with the Kingdom—they won’t expect an attack now.

“The Lady is said to be the Saintess of the Empire, but she possesses impressive military insight.”

The holy knight from the Holy Nation glared at me slightly.

He must have thought this would be a straightforward mission, only to have his expectations shattered.

‘Military insight? It’s nothing special.’

This strategy was frequently used by the Kingdom.

Being a smaller nation, the Kingdom often avoided direct clashes with the Demon Army by employing deceptive tactics under the command of the royal princess.

And each time, the princess would smirk slyly.

• “The ignorant demons can’t think strategically. That’s why they keep falling for the same tricks.”
• “Isn’t that deceitful?”
• “Demons have no brains. Their combat experience amounts to following the strong and fighting mindlessly. Maybe Noah is an exception, but even humans are said to be creatures of forgetfulness, and demons are far worse.”

The princess’s words proved effective.

The Kingdom’s forces, under her leadership, consistently succeeded in reducing the Demon Army through bait tactics.

Although direct confrontations with the Four Generals were challenging, her strategies were highly effective.

There’s no way the Empire using such tactics could cross their minds.

***

The march began in earnest after the rumors were spread.

And it started at night.

To avoid detection by the Demon Army’s Four Generals, we took a wide detour.

The sight of the Holy Nation’s holy knights groaning and complaining was amusing.

“Lady Olivia, let’s go.”

It was Kise.

She had brought several mages with her.

‘Hmm, so Kise is assisting me?’

Or so I thought—

Until Syria stepped in front of me.

“If it’s the Mage Corps, take the mages with you. Why involve Lady Olivia?”

“Why don’t the Tower mages mind their own business? Lady Olivia has joined the Mage Corps, so Tower mages should step back.”

‘Was there really a need to emphasize “Tower mage” like that?’

“Listen here, flat one. Are you trying to pick a fight?”

“All the mages here belong to the Mage Corps. What pride are you clinging to?”

Look at them, trying to overwhelm her with numbers.

“It’s called confidence. Besides, it’s funny how you need a group because you can’t handle things on your own.”

“What did you say?”

And now they’re fighting.

“Why don’t you all just go together?”

“Waaah! Lady Olivia, that flat one said horrible things to me!”

Syria clung to me, pretending to cry.

I glanced at Kise, then subtly shifted my gaze downward.

From her face to her chest—

Flat, indeed.

But still, that’s a low blow.

“You’re not blameless either. Just go together.”

“No way! I’m not going with these magic apprentices!”

‘Magic apprentices?’ That label probably includes me too.

“They’re part of the Mage Corps!”

“You just need your certification, that’s all.”

There’s no reasoning with them.

Maybe I should just ignore them and go alone.

“Saintess!”

“Oh, you’ve arrived.”

Right on time, the Empire’s proud Sister Corps from the Goddess Church appeared.

Each was armed with various weapons.

They looked more like…

A gang disguised as nuns.

I wonder how the slum kids are doing.

They were recently used to smuggle weapons into the church.

Still, they’re nuns.

That’s how I justified it to myself.

“Who are they?” Kise asked.

“They’re the nuns under my command.”

In other words—

I’m still not an official member of the Mage Corps.

Before that, I’m the Saintess.

Meaning I don’t need any of your protection.

“By the way, I haven’t seen Claire around.”

“I heard she’s assisting the next family head,” Syria explained.

I nodded in agreement.

That’s fine.

Claire isn’t necessary right now.

I turned my gaze to the Sister Corps.

As expected of the ones I trained—orderly and disciplined, unlike those from the Holy Nation.

Looking at the former assassin guild members among them made me proud.

Now that I think about it, I could leave the fighting to the nuns later and focus on taking down Berna.

Perhaps I should shake things up at Crad Castle a bit.