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Dungeon Defense (Korean Novel) - Volume 4 Chapter 2 - Thou Come to Me Part 2
Volume 4 Chapter 2 – Thou Come to Me Part 2
▯King’s Beloved Sword, Human, Laura De Farnese
Empire Calendar: Year 1506, Month 4, Day 7
Bruno Plains, The Center of the Army of the Crescent Alliance
The battle had entered into its final stage. Everything was flowing smoothly.
Our side was able to encircle the enemy troops on three fronts. Although the enemy soldiers did their best to breach our center, it was pointless. There was a time where we were almost pushed back, but my troops were elites. We regained our formation in a matter of moments and retaliated. It was safe to say that half the progress of battle was now over.
“Mm.”
Demon Lord Barbatos and Demon Lord Paimon. The commanders of both respective wings have just now finished the crane wing formation. With this, our forces’ superiority has been placed on an unshakeable foundation.
If the enemy still had their entire cavalry, then they could have been able to aim for a turnabout. However, the majority of the enemy cavalries were used up during the initial phase of the battle. Not only that but a massive wall of mud had formed behind them, so even the enemy infantries’ escape route had been sealed. Now the enemy forces were unable to move forward, left, right, or backward. This situation was what it meant to be surrounded on all sides.
⎯⎯ Wooooosh······.
The heavy rain continued to pour while not showing any signs of it stopping anytime soon. The visibility of the battlefield was becoming enshrouded. This young lady’s line of vision was unable to stretch out far and was forced to stop by the obstruction of the rain. At each and every location this young lady’s vision stopped, an enemy’s corpse was sprawled there. It was a spasm-like death, and it was a life that felt as if someone were shaking off their disgust.
The witches giggled while taking in the rain.
“A masterpiece. This is a masterpiece. Look. Humans are dying off while swimming in waters of sh*t. A scenery like this is hard to find!”
“Yup, ever since we started to follow Lord Dantalian around, every single day has been so enjoyable that it’s troubling to live. There are many occasions of witches lamenting because of the fact that it’s difficult for them to die, but an occasion where they lament because it’s difficult for them to live is rare. In that regard, Lord Dantalian is quite the big shot.”
“His lower tool is a big shot, too.”
“Waaait a second. Everyone stop. How do you know thaaat? If I’m not misunderstanding, then that tone almost sounds as if you’ve seen master’s naked body before.”
“No no, big sis Humbaba. That’s a misunderstanding. No matter how much we latch onto His Greater Being and beg of him to let us have a taste, he never bestows upon us his royal grace. However, in terms of observation and not watching directly, we were able to look at it a couple of times before. Fortunately, we were more or less able to observe master’s tool.”
“That means you stole a look!”
“Is there a problem with that?”
“Pillage the things we can’t have and peek at the things we can’t see. That’s the honorable pride of us witches.”
“If I recall correctly, then we’re master’s Royal Guard, and if I haven’t gone insane, then the duty of the Royal Guard is to safely protect master’s royal body, right? But when you bitches are near master, far from his royal body being safe, is this feeling that his royal body falls even further into danger just my imagination?”
“That’s your imagination.”
“An outrageous misunderstanding.”
“That’s a blazing groundless rumor.”
“You terribly insane bitches! I love you, my sisters!”
Ahahah, the Captain of the Royal Guard turned this way while laughing.
“Your Excellency, Acting Generaaal, please give us the final order. We are, at all times, ready to rush out and slaughter those people. This will be easier than, well, just hunting a bunch of turkeys.”
A command to charge, is it?
Those words mean that the captain wishes to annihilate the enemy forces. That was not strange. As long as you have stepped out into battle, it was obvious to long for victory, and as long as you were achieving victory, it was reasonable to desire a complete victory or a great victory. However, battle meant something else for this young lady. It was art and music.
The flower of battle did not come from obtaining victory or defeat. The cries of the soldiers when victory approached, and the anguish of the soldiers when defeat was right at their doorsteps. It was those voices that sublimated war into music.
In order for life to become a single melody, it must cross over a countless number of gaps. However, in a battleground, each and every life became a melody and a tune. Whether one could understand this or not, that was the decisive difference between the witches and this young lady.
“Your Excellency?”
This young lady did not respond to the Captain of the Royal Guard’s prodding. Instead, this young lady shut her eyes further and listened to the surroundings a bit more carefully.
Now then, listen well.
To the tune in the center of the clamor of raindrops falling down onto the muddy water, the melody that distinctly flows between that sound of water⎯⎯⎯⎯.
"Damn it Move! I said move aside!"
"You son of a bitch, there's no
place to move so what do you expect me to—."
"Save me!"
"Do not yield! You fools, the way out is not back but forward! We'll live if we can breach that point, and well die if we ca n't!""Charge! Charge forward! Follow m—."
"Mother."
"One, two. One, two. One, two."
"Nevertheless, the Gods will not throw us away. My comrades, do not be afraid. Do farewells last forever? Do partings last forever?"
"Fuck."
"General!Where's the general!?"
"I can't see."
"Hurrah for the great nation of Francia! Hurrah for His Majesty the Emperor!"
"That's a fucker's great Francia and His Majesty the Emperor."
"My sword."
"Oi."
"One, two. One, two. One, two."
"This guy is already dead, though?"
"Didn't things become like this because of those country bumpkins from Brittany!?"
"Good. That is it Push with all of your might while keeping with the rhythm. Breaking through is possible. We can breakthrough!"
"Look here. I'll be going first"
"I'm dying. Fuck..."
"I surrender! Spare me! I, surrender! I, know how to speak, your language! give up!"
"What's he doing?"
"Like I said, those words."
"It means submission."
"I submit"
"Save me!"
"My eyes can't see."
"That fucking son of a bitch baron. The fact that I believed that bastard's words and followed him here, it must have been an epileptic—."
"Puha!"
"Just move aside!"
"Move as much as you want after I croak, you fucking trash."
"I am a slave. I am not your enemy! A friend of slaves! Hurrah for, Miss General Farneser 'We got throughr'They say that they got through over there!"
"Not there! That is not right! Be still. Do not push! Do not pu—."
"For Her Majesty the Queen!"
"Our king is honestly not that great of a person to cheer for him before death..."
"One, two. One, two..."
"With more strengthr"Everyone has died. Brother, this is it"
"I heard you can't pass on to the afterlife gracefully if you die by the hands of demons. Let us go honorably."
"I can't see."
"Friend of slave! I, slaver 'Wow. Fuck. Sh*t Damn it How am I still hungry even though there's a hole in my stomach? What am I supposed to do if I'm hungry even after I die? Fuck. Seriously, what am I supposed to......"
"One."
"Two."
"Just what do you know about the king?" "Yeah. What could he possibly know?"
"Puha, I did write my will when they told me to, but there's no one to give it to."
"That wretch."
"That dog-like bitch...!"
"Fuck, I'll take that bitch's head before I die!"
"Kill!"
"Kill her!"
"What will change if we kill her?"
"Regardless, we still have to kill her."
"But we'll be the ones to die."
"One, two..."
"Mother,"
"I heard they would spare your life if you surrender, but" "I told you to kill them,you mother fuckers!"
"Wow, look at the rain fall. It's nice."
"Ah."
"Mother."
"I, am a slave."
Aah.
Aah, aaaah.
How beautiful.
How incredibly beautiful.
“·········.”
Shudder.
This young lady hugged her own shoulders and trembled slightly. With the heart inherited from His Lordship and with the head given to this young lady by His Lordship, this young lady was narrowly able to recognize that beauty.
Although this young lady was cold all the way to her inner bones due to the icy rain, since the inner flesh of this young lady’s body was already filled to the brim with a pleasant feeling, the cold shivering had no way to replace this young lady’s shivering and there were no other gaps for it to fill, either. By shuddering, this young lady was complete.
Ah.
This young lady did not open her eyes, she could not bear to do so since she did not wish to escape from this dark joy. This young lady wished to remain here a little while longer before departing.
Victory and defeat had no meaning whatsoever to this young lady. Solely the screams of death, the screams to live, and the moans of the people who were unable to live or die, these things were what gave meaning to this young lady. Within this world of achromatic colors, solely those vibrations were life, death, and music, all at the same time. During the days this young lady spent reading only history books within a dust-covered library of a small room, this young lady was incapable of knowing this pleasure. The delight of performing with the life and death of tens of thousands by herself. If His Lordship had not informed this young lady of it, then she would have most likely been forever oblivious.
“Uhm, Your Excellency? You have to give the order to charge in order for······.”
“Our troops shall not move.”
“Paaardon?”
How noisy. Do not make a retort needlessly, witch. Does unnecessary noise not get mixed in while this young lady is trying to appreciate this long-awaited moment of tens of thousands of melodies?
There is only a single reason why your head is still attached to your neck. It is because His Lordship had welcomed you as his family. This young lady was not unaware of His Lordship’s image of Miss Lapis as the mother, himself as the father, and his desire for this young lady to lead her sisters, the witches, as the eldest sister of the family. That was why this young lady was taking care of you troublemakers, who were unknowledgeable of military discipline, with sisterly affection.
This young lady narrowly opened her eyes.
“I said that we shall not move our forces. Advancing lightly right now is not advisable. Captain, can you not hear it?”
This young lady raised her finger and pointed towards the enemy soldiers who were encircled and being slaughtered up ahead. The captain followed this young lady’s gesture and turned her head. Although the two of us were looking at the same place, it was evident that we were not seeing the same thing.
“This young lady can hear Franconian. This young lady can hear the language of Batavia. As this young lady can hear the dialect of Sardinia, the sound of Teutonic can be heard as well. The thing that gets mixed in occasionally is most likely Polish-Lithuanian. ⎯⎯⎯⎯However, there is no language of Habsburg. The words that are spoken by the people of Habsburg, the nation that is led by the Imperial Princess known as Elizabeth, solely that cannot be heard.”
“······.”
The Captain of the Royal Guard, Humbaba, tilted her head.
“······All this one can hear with her ears is the clutter of screaming. My God. Is Your Excellency able to hear all of that? You can understand every single language that exists on the continent? That’s amazing.”
This young lady clicked her tongue. This was why words did not get through.
Mastering every primary language was a study that people must do rudimentally as they live. It was obvious. If you did not, then you would be unable to read books. This was something His Lordship agreed to, as well.
“Captain, although this young lady is grateful for your kind words, there is no need for you to once again remind this young lady of her prominence. This young lady being smart and you being foolish is not the issue. There is a necessity to pay attention to another fact right now.”
“······Master and servant really do resemble one another. There’s a reason behind everything master does. He didn’t put aside the other races and appoint a human into his acting general without reason.”
The captain muttered. Judging from the atmosphere, it seems she had just wrapped this young lady and His Lordship into one and insulted us together, but it was not something that this young lady was unable to understand. Essentially, geniuses were bound to receive the envy and jealousy from the mediocrity. This young lady magnanimously accepted the captain’s overgrown personality.
“And sooo? Oh, prominent Your Excellency Acting General. Why should the likes of us not execute a charge just because the language of Habsburg isn’t mixed with the rambling of those low people?”
“I will say it again. This young lady is a genius. In regards to language, music, and military affairs, this young lady boasts her unrivaled capabilities. This fact is evident if you look at how this young lady had controlled this battlefield of 200,000 soldiers, adding the enemy and ally troops together, with merely 7,000 officers and men.”
“Yes, yes. Even this one, before becoming ignoble, was once held in high expectation as a mage that was going to shoulder the next generation. So what?”
“Sincerely, it seems you are unable to make any sense of what this young lady says. Think about it. Did His Lordship not warn this young lady, who was like that, to never fight against the Imperial Princess Elizabeth?”
“······.”
Captain Humbaba frowned. Surely. It seems she was still unable to understand. At this point, since it had leaped over the degree of disturbing one’s music appreciation, and had entered the level of having completely ruined the concert, this young lady was displeased. However, this young lady kindly divulged her foolish younger sister with the self-evident truth.
“Captain. You have been with His Lordship ever since this young lady had been held as a slave, is that not so?”
“Yes. That’s right.”
“Before His Lordship had discovered and appointed this young lady, no one in the world was aware that this young lady had military talent. Including this young lady herself. Is that not so?”
“Yes. That’s also true.”
“If that is the case, then thinking logically, regardless of whether His Lordship’s preference in women is rotten, his ability to discern capable personnel, would it not be correct to assume that his ability to recognize talented people is peerless?”
“······That’s right, isn’t it?”
“Therefore, under the premise that His Lordship’s judgment is correct, that means that the Imperial Princess is a type of being that is either as smart as this young lady or someone who comes close to it. The imperial army of Habsburg, which is led by that sort of outstanding individual, is coincidentally not within that encirclement. What could that mean? Do you think that the Imperial Princess suddenly felt bored and decided to take her entire army to go on a walk?”
“······.”
“Do not only believe in the things you can see, Captain. A battlefield is a place where you fight utilizing the things which you cannot see as much as you do with the things you can. During this time of all times where everyone’s fields of vision are narrowed by wet fog⎯⎯⎯⎯.”
This young lady turned her gaze.
Past the earth and the sky where rain streaks fell, this young lady predicted that something was approaching. It was not similar to that of a mere prophetic feeling. This young lady had an intuition that was capable of jumping to a conclusion immediately if provided with properly established grounds.
“⎯⎯⎯⎯It is impossible for an individual with a talent that is as impressive as this young lady’s, to miss this opportunity.”
The Imperial Princess Elizabeth had been waiting.
While making the rain into a natural curtain.
For this moment where she could ascend as a hero by herself in this battleground where defeat seemed certain.
Shortly after, this young lady’s intuition had hit the mark. They appeared like ghosts riding on warhorses, breaching through the streaks of rain, and struck at the left and right wings of our friendly forces. The cavalry that charged with fluttering purple mantles were, without a doubt, the imperial army of Habsburg. The forces of the Crescent Alliance on both wings did not expect that the enemy armies would still have cavalry troops left, resulting in them being assaulted from the rear without being able to show much of a resistance.
“Ah.”
A gasp flowed out from the captain’s lips. A scenery that could only be described by the sporadic utterance of ‘Ah’, but barely at that, unfolded before us. The outer area of the Crescent Alliance, that had achieved a perfect encirclement annihilation formation, had collapsed. The enemy soldiers, who were merely waiting to be slaughtered within the encirclement, cheered for the reinforcements that had appeared abruptly and squeezed out what remaining strength they had left.
The ranks of both the enemy forces and the friendly forces were chaotically mixed together. By nature, it was difficult to re-establish a line of command that had fallen once. Would it even be possible during this current situation where rain was falling noisily in all directions? Although Barbatos and Paimon desperately tried to rebuild the blockade, unfortunately, they had already missed the prime opportunity. The majority of the enemy soldiers were escaping with their lives. Past the streaks of rain, across the wet fog.
“Mhm.”
With vague eyes, this young lady watched the things that were running away. The ongoing tune of the enemy forces’ escape, which slowly grew fainter and fainter, was pitiful and beautiful. Captain Humbaba blankly stared at the face of this young lady who was in that state.
“······Your Excellency Acting General.”
“This young lady apologizes, Captain. This instant is just the right moment, after all. Please keep your mouth shut for exactly 2 minutes. If you do not stay quiet, then there is a chance that this young lady will kill you.”
“······.”
2 minute had passed.
This young lady was satisfied.
“Okay. What were you curious about this time?”
“Yes. Your Excellency Acting General said so before today’s battle. That our unit will not win, but we will not lose, either. That we will only spread confusion throughout the battlefield. By those words, did you perhaps mean······.”
“Mm. That is correct.”
This young lady nodded her head.
“Although bringing forth the encirclement battle of annihilation was this young lady’s achievement and meritorious deed, it was Barbatos and Paimon’s mistake and wrongdoing for it being ruined. This young lady did not obtain victory, but she did not experience defeat, either.”
“······.”
“Barbatos and Paimon both must be embarrassed. Barbatos, who had called this young lady a criminal of high treason and tried to punish her, must especially feel ashamed. If she tries to punish His Lordship in a military trial now, then Barbatos’ honor will be the only thing to fall down a bottomless pit. She will be unable to avoid the criticism that she had disgracefully shifted the blame of her own loss to another Demon Lord, after all.”
“······uh. Wait a moment, Your Excellency. For starters, despite being fully aware that the Crescent Alliance’s encirclement was going to fail, did Your Excellency still keep us here playing around in the center army?”
“That is the case.”
“That’s a bit troubling. I’m not saying this because I particularly cherish our allies, but wouldn’t it have been better to just go in and change the defeat to a victory?”
This young lady tilted her head.
“Why is that?”
“That’s obvious. This is a war that has already occurred so, while we’re at it, it would be more satisfying if our forces win.”
This young lady could only tilt her head once more. It was difficult to understand what exactly the captain was trying to say. This young lady, while redacting an incredibly obvious truth and a tremendously proper common sense, pointed out.
“Captain. Just how are Barbatos and Paimon this young lady’s allies?”
“Pardon?”
“Barbatos tried to frame and get rid of His Lordship. Likewise, Paimon tried to use His Lordship as a mere political tool. Therefore, the two Demon Lords are obviously this young lady’s enemies. Even if we do not act, the Imperial Princess of the Empire is willingly offering to defeat those two people, so why should this young lady intervene needlessly there? Taking control of a group by using another group. In any case, if the Imperial Princess wishes to breach the encirclement, then she has no other choice but to attack either or both wings of our formation, instead of this young lady’s center army, which is quite the distance away. So it is fine for this young lady to leisurely spectate as they exchange blows on their own.”
There was no one who would criticize this young lady for being passive just because she had stood by idly as the encirclement fell apart. The one who had decided upon herself to become the vanguard and stand at the forefront, since the initial phase of the battle, was none other than this young lady.
Went forward as the spearhead, put the majority of the enemy cavalry in a deadlock, and adding to that, this young lady had contributed the decisive service which allowed the completion of the encirclement. No matter what anyone says now, the individual to have done the greatest distinguished service for our forces was this young lady. If you wish to criticize this young lady, then try.
“Furthermore.”
And this young lady continued.
“It would be boring to win quickly. In any case, it has already been determined that between the enemy and this young lady, the side to obtain victory will be this young lady. However, would it not be less of a waste if we were to consume them as moderately as possible?”
“······.”
The Captain of the Royal Guard, Humbaba’s face became vacant again. As she adjusted her cone hat, that was completely drenched by the rain, she muttered to herself.
“······Now I know for certain. There’s only a bunch of lunatics around our master. Miss Lapis and even Her Excellency Acting General, they’re all in a category that’s a thousand steps away from being normal. It seems I’m the only sane person near master. Certainly, I have to be the one to take care of him.”
“Haah?”
“Yess?”
The time on the battlefield continued to flow even while we were discussing.
Both Paimon and Barbatos’ armies had restored their once collapsed formation. However, it was already too late for them to pursue after the enemy. Time that has already flowed by cannot be taken back. Similar to that, the time of the battlefield, that has already passed by, cannot be grasped once more.
Every war was a conflict that flowed hour by hour and was also a war of time. It was not strange for certain points within everyday time to be erased. On the contrary, that was a common occurrence. Similar to stepping stones that were sparsely connected, everyday time was sparsely separated. Therefore, time to a person who was living while buried under everyday life was similar to that of a person who was trying to cross stepping stones, which was an act where they must let something flow and be erased between each stone in order for them to finally cross. For those people, they slowly forget themselves as time continues to proceed, until finally, they merely end up falling completely into oblivion.
On the other hand, the time of the battlefield flowed in a way where even a single step could not be erased. People who forget themselves when they have already stepped out into war were unforgivable. The movement of the enemy soldiers, the direction of the wind that the flags fluttered accordingly to, and even the smell, fragrance, and pulsation of the heart that rose up from somewhere, one must piece together every bit of information possible and precisely snatch the flow of time. A person who rules over time also rules over the battlefield. Today, Barbatos and Paimon conclusively missed that time. The chance of victory will never return to them now.
Captain Humbaba clicked her tongue.
“That’s a bit pitiable. Doesn’t that mean they were just used by us in the end?”
“The owner of this war is His Lordship, the owner of this battle is this young lady. Today’s conclusion was a natural result since they had imprisoned His Lordship, despite not knowing who the owner was, and had tried to persecute this young lady. It would be good if they have realized their place now.”
“Really, master and the general are the only people in the world who’d tell both the rank 8th and rank 9th Demon Lords off by telling them to know their place······.”
It was at that moment. A portion of the enemy military strength, which we originally assumed to have retreated completely, appeared through the thick heavy rain and wet fog. Drenched in moisture, there was only a sparse number of enemy figures. Although this young lady narrowed her eyes, wondering if they perhaps intended to execute a surprise attack, that did not seem to be the case. The enemies merely stood still like statues.
“······.”
No, rather than a surprise attack, that was.
This young lady lightly tapped the waist of the black horse and went forward. Although the sound of the Captain of the Royal Guard, Humbaba’s panicking voice could be heard from behind, this young lady ignored it. This young lady headed towards the place where the enemies were waiting while being struck by the rain.
In that same moment, someone from the enemies’ side came out as well while riding on a white horse, matching this young lady’s pace. The opposition was black, and yet, they were also white. Even during this current weather, where dark clouds were spread throughout the sky, the other person’s silver hair boundlessly shone its own color vividly. It felt as if the raindrops were making way for her.
Before this young lady could even see their outline, this young lady already knew who that person was.
Elizabeth Atanaxia Evatriae von Habsburg.
The only person that His Lordship had acknowledged as his formidable enemy. This young lady was nurtured by His Lordship with the sole purpose of taking that person’s life.
That girl and this young lady arrived close to one another. As she gazed vacantly at this young lady while on top of a white horse, this young lady as well, stared at her while on top of a black horse.
It seems she had a lot of thoughts going through her head. Her face was void of emotions, but those eyes of hers contained a deeply laid plan. However, this young lady had nothing in her mind. This young lady met people all the time. It is good that this young lady was able to at least see this person with her own eyes, merely this thought went through her head.
“······.”
“······.”
Rain fell.
This young lady liked rain.
Whenever it rained, the sound of raindrops falling washed away the nuisances of the world. When rain splashed and stained this young lady’s cheek, this young lady felt bleakly relieved since it felt as if there was still an outside in that place.
There was a time when this young lady thought that the various miscellaneous things of the world were tormenting her, and there was also a time when only those torturous things were laid on her mind, but the sound of rain washed those days and that time away. Since the streaks of rain were busy knocking away everything in the world, it appeared as if it did not have enough strength to obstruct this young lady. Whenever the rain fell, this young lady felt as if she were something in the world that had the least value in obstructing. This young lady breathed for a moment during this indifference of the rain.
If it disappeared without a trace.
If the trace of this body’s existence disappeared, and if even the trace that it had disappeared also vanished.
“You.”
She opened her lips. A drop of rain flowed down the side of her lips, following the line of her chin. Those lips were most likely lips that His Lordship would want to kiss.
“I see that you are dead.”
“······.”
“That is not the face of a person who is alive, and those are not the eyes of a person who is alive. Did Dantalian make a doll into his general? Or did he perhaps intend to bear, not a doll, but a corpse and take care of it? What a troubling man. It seems each and every thing that man decides to take in are nothing but obstructions.”
“······.”
“I see you have little words. Since you are only glaring at myself silently, I cannot see a path to converse. In truth, it is a question whether you are even looking at me or not. What thoughts are contained in that head of yours for you to be so composed?”
This young lady gazed at the streaks of rain.
And spoke.
“The thought of wanting to kill you is going through this young lady’s head.”
She closed her mouth and showed a slightly troubled face. She then narrowed her eyes and shook her head.
“I am sorry. You cannot kill me. Not only do you lack the ability to do so, but, regardless of whether you do indeed have the ability to do so or not, fighting against me right now would be an act that would go against Dantalian’s order. Since you are a puppet, you will not defy Dantalian. Is that not so?”
“······.”
“I wished to see up close the girl that man had made into the face of his army. I see that Dantalian is proud. I can see a man who, at any cost, tries to shoulder the things which he cannot shoulder and take in the things that he does not have to take in. How does one possibly intend to save a child who has already died in the past, and likewise, how does one intend to kill that child? Is Dantalian planning to turn back time? Was a person’s time something that was reversed just because someone wished for it to happen?”
She looked up towards the raining sky.
“Pass a message on to your lord, if you will. That, after meeting your doll, I, Elizabeth von Habsburg, think she is somewhat pretty.”
She must have finished saying everything that she wanted to say since she had then turned the head of her horse. Soon after, she disappeared into the wet fog and the military personnel, which she had brought with her, vanished along with her like shadows. This young lady watched the shadow fading away within the wet fog for as long as possible.
Only a single apprehension came to this young lady’s mind.
The next time we meet, this young lady will kill her.
25x25
That day’s battle concluded as so.
No one was able to obtain victory and no one had been defeated. However, one hero appeared from the Crescent Alliance and the Crusaders respectively.
This young lady, Laura De Farnese.
And the Imperial Princess, Elizabeth von Habsburg.
▯Demon Lord of Immortality, Rank 8th, Barbatos
Empire Calendar: Year 1506, Month 4, Day 7
Bruno Plains, The Right Wing of the Army of the Crescent Alliance
“······.”
Vacantly.
And in vain.
I watched the enemy soldiers disappear past the streaks of rain.
The encirclement had been breached. I had judged that it was perfect. When the thought, ‘I see that bitch Paimon’s wit hasn’t died yet’, had crossed my mind, I was already certain of our victory, but.
I was not able to predict nor was I able to block the cavalry unit of a single army that had appeared out of nowhere and stabbed into our troops like a fang. By the time I was able to narrowly disentangle the chaos and organize our ranks once more, the enemy cavalry, and adding to that, the enemy infantrymen were already running away with leisure······.
Snap.
“······Damn it.”
Again.
Again, a decisive victory slipped through my fingers right before my eyes.
I had done quite a lot of preparations in order to start this war. I burned down a mountain range, I manipulated the press, and I was just barely able to set straight the expedition that was about to become a failure due to old man Marbas’ mistake. All the fruition, the moment where all of my sweat and blood, that I had shed until now, was going to be rewarded, was right under our noses and······ I missed it. I ended up missing the chance.
“Damn it!”
Only anger burst out of my throat.
“A little bit more, if we had pushed a little bit more······. We would have been able to acquire the earth, the farmland, and the rich plains where our kind could cultivate and survive in. Just a little bit more⎯⎯⎯⎯.”
Because it was regretful and remorseful.
Because of the fact that I was ridiculed by a bastard who treated war as if it were a toy like that, I was hateful.
“······Your Excellency Barbatos.”
When my knees were about to buckle, there was a sound that grabbed me by the nape. The moment I looked around my surroundings, my subordinates, my children who I dragged all the way here until now, were watching over me. Their gazes became ropes and were just barely able to wrap around my body and pull it up.
⎯⎯⎯⎯That’s right.
I’m the pillar of the Plains Faction.
The one to have led the continuous desire of the entire demon race for 500 years.
I was our race’s shadow that indiscriminately used even dirty methods if it meant that our kind could pass down a warmer land and a more fertile earth to our children. Not a commoner who laments because the world is remorseful, but a Demon Lord who merely acts as a proxy while bearing that resentment.
It was too soon to fall.
We have only failed in a single battle.
Swallowing down the clot of blood that was rising from my throat, grabbing the will that was trying to escape from my joints and nailing them down, adding steel to my apprehension and throwing away the blade from my will, I stood up as the Demon Lord of Immortality.
“⎯⎯⎯⎯Hm. Yeah, well. I missed it. Fuck. Whatever. That can happen. If there’s a day where we fuck someone over, then there’s also a day where someone else fucks us over. Although the Gods don’t show equality in terms of loving all beings, they’re incredibly fair when it comes to bestowing fucking misery to all people.”
I grinned.
People smile when they become cruel to someone. Since I’m constantly hard on myself, I can display laughter whenever I pleased.
“Zepar, my left atrium.”
“Yes, Your Excellency. I, Major General Zepar, am here.”
“I heard the cheers when the enemy cavalry rushed in. It was the language of Habsburg. That Elizabeth bitch must have played out some stratagem. I’ll bestow upon you my Remorseful Wolves. Chase after her until the ends of Hell and rip her to shreds.”
“······.”
Zepar bowed his head.
“As you command.”
“Yeah. Follow it well. If you fail, then just die there.”
I snapped my fingers. My shadow throbbed before spitting out 7 black maws, the maw of black beasts.
Capture pregnant mothers alive and pour curses onto them. Make them into living corpses that can neither live nor die. After gathering 100 lemures of the children born by those living corpses, the monster you get from earnestly infusing those lemures together is my exclusive familiar, the Remorseful Wolf.
There is only one way to destroy them. Only mothers, who have performed a stillbirth, can escape the fangs of the Remorseful Wolves. The reason why those annoying witches were able to protect Dantalian was because of that. It’s obvious since if it’s a witch, then they must have had experienced something like a stillbirth several times. However, if it’s the noble Imperial Princess of the Habsburg Empire, then she wouldn’t have even experienced pregnancy.
“Beleth, my right atrium.”
“Awaiting your command, Corps Commander.”
“There’s a lowly succubus woman who always follows behind Dantalian. She should be managing the supplies in the rear. Catch that bitch and bring her before me.”
“It is not really my preference to threaten women and children. Moreover, I recall that little one being referred to as an outcast. If a luxurious gentleman, such as myself, were to touch such a lowly person, then my dignity······.”
“Do you want me to fuck up that lofty dignity of yours along with your entire body?”
“Since I was very little, I wished to capture a succubus at least once. Leave it to me.”
Rank 16th, Demon Lord Zepar, and Rank 13th, Demon Lord Beleth, the two high ranking Demon Lords that supported the Plains Faction received their respective orders and dispersed.
Zepar will most likely crush the Imperial Princess Elizabeth on his own discretion and come back. I wasn’t worried even if it took several days. The problem wasn’t the Imperial Princess, but rather, it was Dantalian.
I was absolutely certain that that human child didn’t operate her unit on her own. She most likely received proper instructions from Dantalian, and pulled off that sh*t, in order to screw us over. Even if there was no evidence, it didn’t matter. My old intuition, my instincts that were trained while leaping over life and death situations tens of hundreds of times on the battlefield, was telling me this. That Dantalian and the girl, that the two of them were plotting something.
Dantalian. You were adorable since you were playing cute tricks. However, I’m constantly ready to slit your throat if you bare your teeth at me. I’ll show that to you now.
Shortly after, Beleth returned with a pink haired succubus. I wonder if he had already hit her a couple of times in order to set an example since her right cheek was bruised.
“······.”
If I remembered correctly, then her name was certainly Lapis Lazuli. Even as blood dripped down the side of the mouth of this lowly outcast, she continued to glare towards my direction. She looked at me with an emotionless face as if she were admonishing me. Although we’ve met face to face several times whenever I came in and out of Dantalian’s dwelling, no matter how many times I looked at her, I didn’t like her fierce gaze.
“I have brought her, Corps Commander. This, since she wasn’t a spiteful bitch by nature, I struck her a bit beforehand. Tsk. Really, it feels dirty to hit weak things.”
“Good job. Put her down here.”
“Yes. As you command.”
Thud.
Beleth put down the outcast as if he were tossing her. Since her upper body fell down first, the outcast injured her face. With a face scratched by the ground and covered in muddy water, the one who’s Dantalian’s lover, and also a half-breed peasant, gazed up at me.
“······This one apologizes, Your Greater Being, but this one does not think that this is an appropriate reception. No matter how lowly this one may be, this body is one that had received His Highness Dantalian’s royal grace and is also the body that is in charge of managing the rear of a single unit. Why is Your Greater Being infringing upon strict military law on Your Greater Being’s own volition?”
“I have no grudge against you personally, child.”
I grabbed the outcast’s hair and raised her head. Annoyingly, this peasant hasn’t displayed a single pained expression or let out a single anguished moan even once. She simply stared right into my eyes with an unwavering gaze.
“However, frustration keeps piling up towards that kid who you received your royal grace from. What to do? Even during the speech, he betrayed my trust, and he used some cheap method just so he could avoid some tiny punishment. What do you think I should do about that kid, who made that acting general of his ridicule my entire faction?”
“······.”
The outcast shut her lips. That’s right. You can’t answer that. You don’t know the answer, either. I raised the corners of my lips.
“Yeah. I’m the same. I’m not really sure what I should do from now on. That’s why, right now, I plan to visit Dantalian with you and ask him personally. Follow me, you peasant bitch.”
Dantalian. It’ll be a good idea to give me a proper explanation. Not for only your own safety, but if you cherish the life of this sweetheart of yours who you love so much.
“For now, should we do some warm ups before we go visit Dantalian?”
I grinned broadly.
▯Demon Lord of Benevolence, Rank 9th, Paimon
Empire Calendar: Year 1506, Month 4, Day 7
Bruno Plains, The Left Wing of the Army of the Crescent Alliance
“······.”
Within the falling rain.
This lady gripped her wet feather fan tightly.
“······Once more, this lady will go see Dantalian.”
This was not it.
Although this lady is unsure whether she has the right to say this, despite being unable to stop the war, regardless this lady has no other choice but to say it. In the first place, since this was a war that was started after making Dantalian into a pretext, it was possible for it to not be strange if Dantalian was the one to lead it. However, even if there were a separate person to have started the war and a separate person to end it, the ones who have to cope with the war in the middle were the soldiers alone.
Within that human girl’s command, consideration towards the lives of the soldiers was absent. There is a chance that her actions may be her own way of complaining towards the fact that we had imprisoned Dantalian. There is a chance that it may purely be the childish antics of a young girl and her arrogance. Whichever side it was, she was an individual that made people boundlessly apprehensive if a single army was placed in her hands. Since she was Dantalian’s acting general, it was sensible to discuss this with him.
“Sitri, manage the military camp in this lady’s stead tonight.”
“Is it fine to go alone, sis?”
Sitri examined this lady with worried eyes. Since she appeared like a pet that was trying to comfort its own companion, a smile drifted onto this lady’s lips unintentionally. Being able to show a single smile even in this sort of situation was purely thanks to Sitri.
“It is fine. This lady will simply meet him and have a conversation.”
“That’s not it. Mm. In the battle just now, Barbatos participated on the other side, right? So I figured she’d be upset as well right now. Even though it’s only appropriate for Barbatos to die, you wouldn’t really like that, right?”
“······.”
“If sis goes to meet Dantalian right now, then won’t you end up running into Barbatos? You’ll end up needlessly quarreling with her again.”
“If that is the case, then more so.”
This lady spoke while putting more strength into her voice.
“Then more so, this lady must go this very instant. The declaration this lady made to accept Dantalian into the Mountain Faction was not a lie. This lady had openly declared in front of everybody that she will liaise the man that Barbatos had made into her lover. This lady had no other choice but to utilize a political intrigue last time, but⎯⎯⎯⎯.”
This time, it will be fair and square.
While looking straight at Barbatos, this lady will definitely bring in the individual that this lady believes is necessary to us.
“······.”
After seeing this lady harden her resolve, Sitri nodded her head. This child, who had always silently supported this lady, put a trust, that did not change even to this day, into her voice and pushed this lady forward.
“Okay. Have a safe trip, sis. I’ll take care of things here.”
Yes. This lady shall trust you and leave it in your hands, Sitri. My gentle acting general.
Leaving behind the captains who were depressed because they had let victory slip through their fingers, this lady left. Each step this lady took, there was mud, so muddy water smeared onto her shoes and seeped into her skirt, dirtying her mantle, but it was fine. If this lady believed that there were several drops of blood from the soldiers, who had died under this lady’s command, mixed into each and every muddy pool on today’s battlefield, then the thought that it was dirty did not even remotely appear in this lady’s mind.
The rain slowly stopped. From the sky, which the dark clouds could not possibly cover entirely, several rays of yellow light from the setting sun fell onto the earth. Among those rays of the setting sun, one of them seeped into the forehead of a corpse that was sprawled out randomly on the ground. Not a demon, but the corpse of a human. The lamb, the soldier that did whatever he could to look upwards in order to see the sunlight, which he most likely could not see even until the moment of his death, was staring at the sky with inflamed eyes.
“······.”
This lady stopped momentarily and bent her back forward. This lady’s mantle touched the earth and became drenched in muddy water. While stroking down the eyelids of the nameless subject, this lady thought that the duty of the lord, where they must douse their cloaks in order for them to do the simple task of closing the eyes of their subject, was quite dreadful.
Regardless of the fact that this lady was unsure how sullied she must become.
Would it not at least be possible to make the resolution to allow oneself to become that dirty?
This lady sat vacantly on the field where the glow of the setting sun had become pale.
▯The King of Peasants, Rank 71st, Dantalian
Empire Calendar: Year 1506, Month 4, Day 7
Bruno Plains, Army of the Crescent Alliance, Simple Prison
Has today’s rain finally ceased?
I took out the tobacco that I had stuffed into one of my coat pockets. Because there was no cover, this was a cell where rain kept flowing in. Although I don’t plan to either say that I quite enjoy getting hit by the rain or complain about it, the fact that I couldn’t smoke properly, that one thing made it boring and inconvenient. This year’s spring rain was tenacious and long lasting.
Clack, I sparked a flame with flint. Clack, clack······ While glancing down at the flickering embers that sparked shortly, similar to electricity, I slowly reviewed the battle that must have occurred today. I muttered words that weren’t really necessary while doing so.
“Ah, this is difficult to kindle.”
Do not win decisively and do not lose decisively. That was the order I gave Farnese. If this were still a long time ago, then Farnese would have most likely been unable to understand what that meant and she would have questioned it. However, her current state, which was educated by both Lapis and myself, was different. She should have been able to figure out the underlying meaning with ease.
The single part that was troubling me was the Imperial Princess Elizabeth’s behavior. I made my response to her move through Farnese. Whether the Imperial Princess will behave according to that or not. If she does so, then what would be different······. In accordance to this, the direction of the war will be decided.
“Badum tat badum tat what shall it be: this or that? Badum tatat tat burn the temples and slaughter the people – shall it be this?······.”
I hummed the military song that I had composed myself.
In short, the ones commanding this war were Elizabeth and myself. By no manner of means could it be Barbatos or Paimon. The purpose of the battle that must have unfolded today, was none other than to inform the two Demon Lords of this cold truth.
Sit still.
If you wish to win the war, then free me from this prison and pass the leadership to me.
If you do not, then you will all one day die to the Imperial Princess.
A frank and explicit message.
Even though you all were out there, you were unable to grasp the war. Despite being confined in this narrow prison here, I dominated the battleground. That is because I am overwhelmingly more competent than you. There was no irrationality, illogicality, or injustice here. It was simply the truth.
It was solely the truth.
“When they die and die again a hundred times······ Ah.”
The embers finally lit the tobacco. I stopped singing for a moment in order to blow some air onto the tobacco. The ember flickered and just barely managed to start burning away the tobacco with a radiant red color.
“Mhm.”
Perfect.
Ten to one, Barbatos must have realized my intention. The chances that Paimon was able to take the hint were around 50 percent. If the two of them were sensible, then they will realize that nothing good will come from purging me and that victory will become distant if they kill Farnese. The two of them have no other choice but to not make any accusations and simply accept it unconditionally.
Because the humans have a monster known as Elizabeth Atanaxia Evatriae von Habsburg.
Because, the only people who can stop her are myself, Dantalian, and Laura De Farnese who Dantalian had taken in.
I will survive due to Elizabeth’s competence, and in reverse, I was certain that Elizabeth will be able to breathe thanks to my, and Farnese’s, competence. Elizabeth and I were a pair of alpinists who were climbing together while hanging onto the lifeline of the other.
“Now then.”
How will Barbatos and Paimon react? Will they rage? They will probably rage. Will they despair? They will probably despair. I am curious as to what will happen next. A person’s true value has always been proven after the term ‘next’ had arrived.
With a mental attitude that was waiting for everything new that was approaching, I looked at the horizon past the iron bars. The tobacco was sweet and made my mind feel numb. I sang the rest of the song while blowing smoke towards the just setting sun.
“Or if we die and die together nonetheless – shall it be that······?”
I was here in this prison.
"Did you see it?"
"I saw it without a doubt."
"Are you sure you saw it correctlyr
"Try telling us what she looks like."
"She had black hair. It was beautiful."
"Her red hair looked as if it were on fire. It was disgusting."
"If that bitch has only one head, then shall have only one set of hair and I'm certain she'll only have one color of hair as well, and yet, we already have two colors of hair and two sets of hair. In other words, it seems that bitch has two heads. Since we've obtained two demon heads, it'd be great if someone gave me a noble title right about now."
"She was tall! Really tall!"
"From what I could see, she was really short."
"One thing is certain now. The fact that both of your eyes are retarded. If you consider the fact that every truth is difficult to obtain, it is a relief that I was able to at least obtain this huge of a revelation."
"Too much rain was falling. Rain. That bastard rain. This damn rain doesn't have any intention of stopping Did early spring rain always come down this much? Or is it this place that's weird? It's my first time coming to a backcountry like this, so I have no idea."
"Rain falls when it falls. That can't be helped. ltd be a bit embarrassing if you point towards the falling rain and tell it to stop. It's as pointless as pointing towards the rain that isn't falling and commanding it to descend."
"Your words are as empty as your head. Albeit that's not particularly anything new."
"So? Did you see her or not?"
"What will you do if we did see her, and what will you do if we didn't? If we saw her, then we'd have also described the things which we hadn't seen, and if we didn't see her, then we'd have just described the things which we did see. Whether we saw her or not, that bitch will still be a bad bitch, a crazy bitch, and a completely insane bitch, anyway. This is what we determined, so seeing her and not seeing her is quite the secondary question."
"If it doesn't matter whether I see her or not, then I'd rather not see her if possible. I'd die if I do. I heard that girl's subordinates pick up all the heads of our comrades."
"But I heard she's really fucking pretty."
"I heard her voice is quite smooth, as well."
"I want to live."
"Even if I die, I want to at least die after seeing the flowers bloom. Although I'd probably want to live more, rather than no longer wanting to live, if I do see the flowers bloom. I just think its a bit too much that there wont be at least a single flower beside me when I die."
"Really. I dont want to die."
"I hear you."
"I promised my younger sibling that wed go somewhere together
when the cherry blossoms bloomed this year."
"Didn't you say your sibling died?"
"That's why I said it Wasn't that a good joke?"
"Why do they keep trying to kill us?"
"Why do our generals keep sending us in front of that girl even though they clearly know we'll die?"
"That's because everybody is a bastard."
"Those words are correct. Everyone is a villain."
"We aren't really good-natured people, either."
"They're a bunch of retards and we're a bunch of retards, but why are the retards that die have to solely be us?"
....
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