209

Chapter 209 — Life Is Cruel (4)

“No……!”

I could see every detail of the faces on the opposite side.

But……

Tap!

As long as I had one thing to push off from, well.

There was no reason to fall.

THOOM!

I stepped on a collapsing section of the bridge and jumped.

Perhaps because the distance wasn’t that great, a single leap was enough to reach the battlement.

The people who had each been shouting for me in their own way froze with their mouths still hanging open.

Was my safe return really that disappointing?

“Mermen are climbing!”

“Focus. This is a battlefield.”

Besides, the fighting wasn’t over yet.

I looked across the city wall, safer than the turrets but far more fiercely contested, then shifted my gaze below.

The unknown gigantic thing was still approaching from beyond the sea in real time, and the mermen’s attacks were becoming increasingly vicious.

“Damn it!”

The more soldiers killed, the worse it became.

The bodies of dead mermen became impaled on the spikes or filled the spaces between them, creating paths for the next mermen to advance.

And naturally, those “next mermen” were elite troops, stronger than the creatures that had rushed us at the beginning.

Using both the fleshy platforms and the steadily rising waves, the mermen continued clinging to the wall.

Whenever things looked dangerous, the mages unleashed magic.

If I hadn’t been racking up thirty kills every ten seconds with Mana Spears farther ahead, and if the Inquisitor hadn’t been blessing the wall, they would have broken through long ago.

Ah.

That included the occasional times when the Inquisitor swept them away with a golden barrier as though cleaning a window.

That knockback skill couldn’t reduce the number of enemies, but the fact that it created so much distance was surprisingly reassuring.

“A hole’s opening!”

Then, for a moment—

perhaps because they wanted to preserve her strength for the gigantic thing approaching, the Inquisitor withdrew the blessing after consulting with the Lord.

The moment she did, a hole appeared in the wall.

The endlessly bubbling acid the mermen spat had finally caused an accident.

“Knights! Knights!!”

Fortunately, it happened in a section other than mine.

My own section was comparatively peaceful because I had killed so many mermen.

That left me wondering whether I should go help or remain where I was.

“Go over there! I’ll cover the fact that you left your assigned position under my authority!”

Then the soldier who had gone back to speaking casually after what happened earlier shouted at me.

It was only a single sentence, but it was the perfect assist.

Tap!

I jumped all the way to the breached section in a single leap.

“Giant spear!”

“It’s a Warrior Chief……! Maintain formation!”

Kyaaak!

But the creature that had come through the opening stood out even among the rest.

Legged-type mermen were more robust than legless ones to begin with, but this one was exceptionally huge and even a different color.

“Move.”

“Wait! If you interfere—!”

Probably some kind of elite monster.

Looking at the creature, unable to move freely because spears were pressing in from every direction, I drew my sword.

Kyaaak!

The merman bared its teeth at me when I suddenly cut in.

Slash!

And what exactly are you going to do by showing me your teeth?

You’re not a dog or cat.

You’re not even someone’s pet turtle or snake.

You’re a harmful demon that wrecks the ecosystem.

Why would I go easy on you?

Ignoring the head rolling across the ground, I pointed my sword toward another creature that had entered.

A Mana Spear formed at the smoothly moving tip of the blade and shot forward.

Kyaaak!

Good.

Penetration.

That made two kills.

“Damn, this is reassuring…….”

“More are coming!”

“Prepare to block the hole!”

I continued kicking back and cutting down the creatures crawling through the breach.

The soldiers hurriedly brought something over, scattered it near the opening, and drove several iron bars into place.

It wasn’t perfect, but it looked quite useful as a temporary patch.

Well, if things truly became impossible, we could always abandon this wall and retreat to the inner one.

“Demon Knight! Do you require assistance?!”

Then the Inquisitor, running toward us, shouted at the top of her lungs.

“Get lost.”

“Yes! I’ll go assist elsewhere!”

At my curt response, the ever-positive Inquisitor immediately dashed away to support somewhere else.

Fweeeee! Pop-pop!

At that moment, a signal flare rose from the city behind me.

Everyone except those too focused on the immediate battle to hear it reflexively turned their heads.

“A demon has appeared……?!”

The Lord, who had been personally stabbing mermen with a spear while encouraging the soldiers, released a breath like a scream.

“That unidentified thing approaching is already more than enough of a variable. What a disaster!”

The face saying it was attempting to look bold.

Inside, the Lord must have been anything but calm.

“Demonic Energy…….”

The Inquisitor reacted immediately as well.

Judging by how terrifying her expression became, whatever had appeared inside the city wasn’t ordinary either.

“I must provide support immediately. That presence is comparable to a Great Demon……!”

“What the fuck? How did it get through inspection?!”

Deathbringer said exactly what I had been thinking for once.

Seriously.

How did it get through inspection?

Though it would be pretty funny if a Great Demon actually got stopped at a checkpoint.

“As for the thing approaching from the sea, it does not appear to be a demon, so perhaps I should handle the one in the city—”

BOOM!

“Requesting support!”

“Damn it!”

Unfortunately, this side wasn’t exactly in a condition where anyone could casually leave either—though I had only just learned the approaching thing wasn’t a demon.

The Inquisitor, who had been trying to offer a suggestion to the Lord, was forced to send Divine Power toward the section calling for help.

I also found it awkward to move because another wave of enemies was rushing toward the second breach.

“My Lord, what do we do?!”

“Damn it! Dietrich! Max! Franz! Go reinforce—!”

But…

Even then, pulling three knights away from here?

Wouldn’t that be a bad move?

It seemed better to leave the three knights and send me alone.

From here on, I expected there would be multiple breaches in the wall rather than fewer.

After all, they were capable of killing elite mermen too.

They were simply slower than me.

In other words, each knight could cover one breach alone.

There were three of them.

One breach each meant they could hold three simultaneously.

So in a situation like this, sending me instead might actually be better.

No matter how strong I was, I still couldn’t defend three separate holes at once.

“Send me.”

“You…….”

After killing another orange merman, I stared at the Lord.

The Lord gave me a look that plainly said, What is this now?

I hate to say it, but apparently the Lord hadn’t watched me fighting.

If they knew my kill count, they wouldn’t be reacting like that.

“I know you are confident in your ability, but in any case—”

“No, my Lord. That Adventurer will be enough on his own!”

Dietrich, who stood nearby, backed me up.

Lucky.

“I am confident that sending him alone would be better than sending three knights. Please trust my judgment!”

“…Dietrich?”

She kicked an advancing merman in the head, brought her sword down through its skull, then stared resolutely at the Lord.

“My Lord, I… agree with that judgment. I cannot be certain what demon has appeared in the city, but if it is the Demon Knight, he will undoubtedly produce the best possible outcome. He has nearly hunted a Great Demon entirely by himself before.”

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The Inquisitor also stepped forward to guarantee me, her face showing some guilt.

“And… I recommend issuing an evacuation order as a precaution. The Demonic Energy I feel from behind us is extraordinarily intense.”

“…Damn it. Is it that severe?”

“It may even be a Great Demon. And if it is… no matter how strong the Demon Knight is, it would be impossible for him to account for every piece of collateral damage that might occur during the battle.”

And she even suggested evacuating the civilians as a precaution.

For me, since I’d already been thinking of somehow shifting the battlefield elsewhere to prevent people getting caught up in the fight, it was the best possible consideration.

The Lord looked conflicted for a moment before the screams coming from several different directions finally forced a decision.

“Can you do it?! Even without any support from us?!”

There was only one answer I could give.

“Do not ask the obvious.”

My persona never retreated before a demon.

“Fine! Then I’ll evacuate the civilians through the western or southern gates. Keep the battlefield fixed as close to the northern gate as possible! As long as you do not move too far from where that flare came from, that will suffice!”

The Lord smiled as though on the verge of either laughing or crying and tossed something to me.

It was a signal flare that fired upward when the bottom was struck.

“You know how to use this as well, I assume? The Adventurers’ Guild and Magic Tower will send support too, but if by any chance you believe you also need assistance from our side—”

So that was why I’d been given this.

Insurance against the worst-case scenario.

As expected of a Lord.

Very thorough.

“I need no support. The same applies to the Adventurers’ Guild and Magic Tower. Those who would only die pointlessly if they came should stay away instead of becoming an obstacle.”

Still, it didn’t seem especially necessary.

The Magic Tower might actually be capable of helping somewhat, but the Adventurers’ Guild was full of close-range fighters.

And unless a close-range fighter was capable of producing sword energy at my level, they weren’t particularly useful here.

They would either become spectators or get caught in the fight and die pointlessly.

One of the two.

And honestly, even the Magic Tower’s mages……

Their movements were far too sluggish.

I didn’t have some skill that forced the enemy’s aggro onto me.

Nor could I use such a thing to prevent attacks from switching toward the mages.

And if the demon unleashed even one wide-area attack, it looked like the mages could easily be wiped out in one shot.

Rather than fight while constantly worrying about them, I’d rather fight alone.

“But……”

“Tell them. If they truly wish to help, then helping with the evacuation will help me.”

“…I will convey your opinion. But take the signal flare regardless. Do not let pride stop you. The lives of every person evacuating may depend on you.”

Well.

Taking a signal flare as insurance was fine.

I was already somewhat uneasy about attempting a solo raid without any substitute standing by.

I took the signal flare I doubted I’d ever use and left the wall.

“Demon Knight! Please be careful!”

“Sir, you really must be careful!”

Their worried voices echoed behind me two or three times.

* * *

* * *

Wave-Cresting Blue Coral calmly wiped at his split forehead.

His hand came away soaked in blood, but he felt little about it.

The extent of his thoughts was simply, I should visit a Priest later.

“Still alive?”

“…Still alive.”

Truly terrible luck.

A Demon Contractor’s strength could vary dramatically depending on the demon they had contracted with—or the amount of sacrifice they had offered.

And of all the possibilities, he had ended up fighting one of the stronger examples.

“Good thing I wrote my will in advance.”

“Don’t talk like someone who’s already scheduled his own death. You’re making me feel like I’m about to die too.”

Blue Coral summarized his feelings about the situation in one sentence.

His escort immediately objected.

“Look at this realistically. What are the odds that we survive?”

“You’re a Great Sage. Surely you won’t lose so pointlessly.”

“Unfortunately for you, among the Great Sages currently alive, I am the least accomplished in combat.”

So there would be nothing strange about him dying pathetically here.

Blue Coral made a joke that did not sound remotely like a joke.

BOOM!

The secretary’s enormous hand slammed toward them.

“Please dodge!”

“If I could dodge something like that, I would have become a swordsman, not a mage.”

“Then at least shut your mouth! You’re pissing me off!”

“That is a poor way to speak to your employer. I’ll dock your pay when we get back.”

“I don’t care if you dock it, just make sure we do get back.”

At the final possible moment, the escort snatched him up and retreated.

BOOM!

Blue Coral helped their escape by hurling an explosive item directly at the secretary.

Whatever they said, the two worked surprisingly well together.

“At least it was worth all the money I spent. Wouldn’t you agree, Great Sage?”

Unfortunately, their opponent was one of Blue Coral’s best customers.

And as a result, she possessed extremely durable clothing……

Which meant none of their attacks were getting through.

“Who do you think made it? Obviously.”

“Is this really the time to feel proud……?”

“One should acknowledge quality where it exists.”

The elegant frilled shirt and long skirt tailored to the lines of her legs were among his masterpieces.

Even if the work now belonged to an enemy, Blue Coral did not doubt its quality for a moment.

Even if its quality was currently causing him an enormous amount of trouble.

“Unless we bombard that with large-scale magic, it won’t tear.”

“…Could you please start checking who you sell things like that to?”

“If I did, our Magic Tower would go bankrupt. We wouldn’t even be able to pay your salary.”

“Ha. Guess there’s no helping it.”

While they exchanged banter to laugh off their hopeless situation, the secretary charged through a building toward them.

Fortunately, this area wasn’t residential, and the people who had been here on business had already evacuated after hearing the commotion.

So there were no civilian casualties.

BOOM!

Of course, there would be casualties if they died.

“……!”

An item Blue Coral used bound the enemy’s feet, and a spell unfolded from his hand.

A frost storm slammed through the street.

“You could’ve used that earlier!”

“Urgh.”

“Aaagh!”

He had skipped several stages of the casting process, causing the Mana backlash to churn his organs.

Wasn’t skipping those parts supposed to merely reduce the spell’s power without harming the caster?

Blue Coral wiped blood from the corner of his mouth.

“At least we may be able to stop the ritual.”

It was nearly complete……

Blue Coral was about to say so when the ice formed by the frost storm shattered spectacularly.

Like a beast hiding in the brush until its prey drew close before suddenly leaping out, the enemy charged.

“Great Sage!”

I can’t dodge this.

Blue Coral’s calm mind reached its conclusion.

Apparently his life was going to end here.

He had no particular regrets.

“I’ll ruin this city starting with your blood……!”

No.

Perhaps he did have a little regret about his research and his grandson.

“I wanted to see that child finish his research……”

His consciousness cut out before the enormous hand even struck him.

It was the recoil from the frost storm.

BOOM!

But at the edge of his fading vision, a pair of pitch-black leather trousers suddenly appeared between them.