Nibelheim Landing Operation (2)
I'd thought half of it went over their heads, but in fact, Commander Nemesis's points aligned perfectly with what Sisilia had intended.
Not charging into all-out war to kill the Demon King... the only way is assassination.
And for an assassination, she needed altitude—no ifs, ands, or buts about it. She'd seen it in dramas. That's why the sniper spot was set for the Roki Mountains. They'd swept the nearby demons first, and since the allies needed intel, an infiltration op was planned alongside.
Drop the Windsor Knights midway via the Roki Mountains, head to the summit, assassinate the Demon King with an Extreme Art. Once the Windsor Knights get word of the Demon King's death, return to the capital.
That was the outline of Sisilia's plan. It had only changed from "How to Assassinate the Demon King" to "Nibelheim Landing Operation" thanks to that weird mage Nemesis.
"But why a landing operation? Are we jumping off the summit or something?"
"Well..."
Sisilia flashed a cheeky grin at the innocent Beatrice and said nothing more.
"Lady Sisilia?"
The Windsor Knights had now entered the foothills of the Roki Mountains. A rugged terrain teeming with powerful magical beasts. Even the Windsor Knights were on uncharacteristically high alert.
"Um... are you listening?"
"Yeah."
"..."
Beatrice gave up asking why the operation was called a "landing" one.
"Halt. Magical beast."
"Damn, that one's got some real power."
Not ideal terrain for formation deployment.
Fighting in barren mountains was tough. Especially against the infamous yetis.
"Whoa, a yeti."
Sisilia couldn't hide her awe at the yeti's fluffy fur. She almost wanted to take one home as a pet.
"Lady Sisilia. Your orders."
"Kroooar!"
The yeti barreled forward, smashing trees in its path with its massive bulk. The Windsor Knights stared steadily at Sisilia, unflinching. She wore a faint smile.
"I'll explain the detailed operation now."
In this situation?! Beatrice was horrified. But the Windsor Knights didn't budge even as the yeti charged. One even casually picked his nose with a relaxed look. Sisilia closed her eyes briefly in disgust, then opened them.
Shhhh—.
"—!"
Sisilia's silver-blue eyes gleamed. Cold mana dispersed into the air, and a heavy wind aura slowly rose. Tiny snowflakes danced upward.
"Grraa?"
The yeti lumbered toward the clustered humans. It clenched its enormous fist and raised it high. But it couldn't slam it down.
Wind.
Just fierce wind holding its fist back.
Sisilia, still smiling faintly, enunciated clearly.
Wind Shear
Twist—.
The yeti's body wobbled. Surrounding trees thrashed wildly. One ripped out by the roots and flew off. The yeti howled as it too launched skyward.
A storm.
A massive storm engulfed them. Yet the Windsor Knights within the domain stood unmoved, capes unruffled.
"A powerful storm is approaching today. This typhoon, clocking 150 km/h, will sweep toward Nibelheim before dissipating."
"?"
"??"
Weathercaster Sisilia turned away, a bit embarrassed.
But I always wanted to try that.
Ignoring the baffled knights, Sisilia walked on. The Roki Mountains were turning into chaos under the Wind Shear storm. But she'd manipulated the wind currents to spare the Windsor Knights.
"S-so, you're planning to herd the Roki Mountains' beasts with this typhoon and hurl them at Nibelheim?"
"Yep. That's right."
That's evil!
Way too much!
For the first time, the Windsor Knights worried about the demons.
"B-but can't the demons control the beasts?"
"The Roki Mountains' beasts are different," Lude explained to the flustered Beatrice. He had a fresh bruise on his jaw.
"It's where they stash beasts even they can't control."
"...I see."
"That's why Lady Sisilia's tactic is destructive. Not sure if you can even call it a tactic, though."
The knights swallowed hard, watching Sisilia maintain her stoic expression amid the chaos.
"The owner of a domain-type Extreme Art—."
Domain deployment. Few could wield it, and those who could got VIP treatment in any knight order. But beyond its rarity, few knew why domain-types were superior Extreme Arts.
Now they did.
The true value of a domain-type Extreme Art lay in its versatility.
"Who knew it could be used like this."
"If even the Sword Princess Sisilia's is this level, then the captain's at the cusp of Sword Sovereign..."
The knights were speechless at the high knights' power. But they were wrong.
No domain-type Extreme Art user could do this. Domains only affected the "inside." Extending influence "outside" like this meant one thing only.
Sisilia's true Extreme Art wasn't Wind Shear.
Someday, me too...
Envy burned in the knights' hearts. Strength beyond human limits, witnessed firsthand, only fueled their drive. Beatrice especially gazed at Sisilia with pure admiration.
Her object of admiration was munching grass.
"...?"
Crunch.
"Wanna try some?"
Sisilia offered, chewing mana grass. Beatrice awkwardly shook her head with a smile.
"...Eat up."
It's good, though.
Mana grass tasted like slightly bitter chocolate.
**
"That's the demon city, Nibelheim."
The Windsor Knights halted upon finally spotting Nibelheim with the naked eye.
"Lady Sisilia. Do we descend here? We know the way now—just head down."
"Yeah. But walking's too slow."
Sisilia's cheeks bulged with mana grass.
How much mana does she burn through...? That stuff's 10 gold a stalk.
She's eaten over 50 on the way here, easy.
And it was top-grade, premium stuff—the kind Sisilia picked for taste. Thanks to that...
She's already scarfed down a mansion's worth. Heh.
Practically tossing gold to the wind! Sisilia was high-maintenance in every way.
"Any other way?"
"First, something to explain."
Sisilia gulped down her mana grass. Her body glowed faintly. She pulled out another and chewed.
"I can't go with you. Used too much mana. Best I can do is one more Wind Shear to open your retreat."
The entire Windsor Knights nodded solemnly. It was obvious. No—being able to pull off one more after all this was the real surprise.
"And don't forget the mission. We're not here to smash the Demon King's army. Especially not in the heart of enemy territory—we'd get surrounded fast. Got it? Absolutely no engaging. Just intel from civilian demons. That's an order."
Some grumbled, but no choice.
"Good. Stay sharp, be careful. Come back hurt, and I'll be mad."
"Yes, ma'am!"
"Alright, time to send you to Nibelheim. Gather in a nice huddle."
"Yes! Uh, yes?"
"Hurry. Mana grass ain't cheap."
Sisilia was already chewing three at once. The knights gathered per orders. She drew her sword.
"Land safely."
"W-wait a sec!"
The knights panicked, but Sisilia gave no time for protests and called out clearly.
Tempest
The Windsor Knights vanished over the mountains, streaking like shooting stars. Watching them go, Sisilia prayed quietly.
"Please send lots of newbies. Like, 8 hundred million or so."
**
Sisilia climbed the Roki Mountains with light steps. Most demons had landed in Nibelheim via Wind Shear, leaving the mountains refreshingly clear.
"Hah... huff."
But Sisilia was panting. Thin air, and even for her, scaling near-stratospheric heights without mana was grueling.
Will the remaining mana grass be enough? Should've held back earlier.
Top-grade mana grass made a perfect snack, so she'd overindulged. Now only 3 dozen left. *1 dozen = 20 stalks.
The reason she'd packed so much—and still fretted over mana—was simple.
Sisilia's "true Extreme Art" had prerequisites, one being "deplete all current mana." The more depleted, the stronger it got.
Honestly, no need to stock this much if I'm weaker than Cain.
But "what ifs" existed. Like if this Demon King's Authority was immortality. If she left it with 10,000 HP and failed to finish it, the plan crumbled. Cursed to never kill the Demon King, even Cain couldn't clean up a one-hit-kill boss.
Plus distance means evasion risk. Gotta max the range to prevent dodging—full power it is.
Drawback of the Wind Blessing. Far range meant less power and accuracy. Wind was fast, but not "unavoidable" like light.
Weighing all that, Sisilia reached the summit, fully prepped.
Wonder if Everest is this high.
The dizzyingly tall Roki peak. Nibelheim, visible midway up, was gone. Northern fortress too. Height beyond sense—but above the clouds, for sure.
Sisilia cupped her hands to her mouth, savoring the crisp air.
"Yoo-hoo."
No echo, but good enough. From here, even an Extreme Art would go undetected, let alone cause damage.
But one thing couldn't be skipped. Sisilia sat on a rock, legs crossed.
"...Hey."
Serious-faced, she called out.
"Whoever's there, got any mana grass? Spare one."
A pink-haired demon peeked out cautiously.
"Y-you're here? Earlier than expected..."
Sisilia crooked a finger, scowling. Fern blinked dumbly, bug-eyed. Sisilia sighed, grabbing her own mana grass to chew.
"Before killing the Demon King, one mana grass won't hurt, right?"
Fern tilted her head like a chicken. Sisilia resisted smacking her forehead, pondering the next line.
...But her past life's movies were too old; memory fuzzy.
Ask a newbie later.
One line stuck crystal clear, though.
"Nice weather."
"Th-there's a blizzard. Didn't you see on the way?"
Perfect weather for Demon King slaying.