161
I Killed the Demon King. It Was a Mistake.
Episode 161
Elijah had been continuously sending thoughts to Caesar.
-Of course, there's a possibility that Agatha could control the Black Horn tribe.
-However, according to my investigation, Geotech is an Orc devil, and based on his overflowing greed, it's highly likely he won't recognize Agatha as the Demon King.
-Agatha and Geotech will fight until one of them dies.
-Then Agatha's forces will definitely weaken, and even if her rage towards me pierces the sky, she won't have the ability to do anything about it.
Caesar's fist was trembling involuntarily.
His scheme was cruel, but more importantly, its feasibility was too high.
-Leave just enough of the Black Horn tribe so that Agatha can barely survive in the demon realm.
-Of course, if you declare that you will succeed in my position, I will put all efforts into eradicating the Black Horn tribe.
-But there's not much time, so I hope you can answer quickly.
-The Emperor's decree will arrive here in just 3-4 weeks.
Elijah opened his firmly closed mouth.
"I will proceed with the delaying tactics as Caesar wishes. However, when objectively evaluating our side's capabilities, it seems utterly impossible to completely annihilate the Black Horn tribe."
All the staff officers nodded at Elijah's words.
Elijah made a sinister smile internally, where only Caesar could detect it.
"Therefore, the main operational goal of our allied forces will be to stop Geotech's offensive and reduce troop numbers as much as possible."
Caesar couldn't hold back and spoke up.
He couldn't just accept this.
"Reducing the number of the Black Horn tribe is meaningless! Don't you know how quickly the Orcs can create soldiers? If we simply weaken the enemy's offensive, next time we'll have to face 200,000, and the time after that, we might face 1 million!"
"Do you know a way to completely exterminate the Black Horn tribe?"
Caesar was silenced by Elijah's question.
From the beginning, Elijah's goal and Caesar's goal were different.
Elijah wanted to reduce Agatha's force expansion, while Caesar hoped Agatha would definitely conquer the demon realm.
Of course, Caesar has one card he could play against Elijah.
Elijah had asked Agatha to use hypnosis magic to prevent looting until the rebels led by Sith passes through the Friedrich region.
But using that as a blackmail card could result in countless innocent citizens dying.
That was absolutely not what Caesar wanted.
'...Damn it.'
Caesar recalled the irrefutable proposal he had made to Elijah just two days ago.
Just as Elijah had no choice but to accept Caesar's mediation with Mitchell, Elijah was now forcing Caesar to trim down his ambitions.
'I was too complacent.'
As long as Elijah remains the allied commander, Caesar can't do anything.
Elijah had all the wisdom, capabilities, and environment to completely counter Caesar's plans.
In other words, the demon realm was essentially Elijah's playground from the start.
"Your goal is closer to an unrealistic ideal. If you have an operational plan to exterminate the Black Horn tribe, bring it to me. Then I'll carefully review it."
Elijah, who had laid out an escape-proof logic, stood up with those words.
"Staff officers, determine whether Caesar's delaying tactics have definitely taken effect, and then report to me. We will proceed with the operation plan thereafter."
Should he just let this go?
Isn't there at least one way he could do something?
But no matter how much he racked his brain, no answer came.
The reason no answer emerged was clear.
Lack of information and capabilities.
He still doesn't know Geotech's remaining two abilities, nor his critical weakness.
Even if he knew, the combat forces Caesar could deploy were only 300 wizards and around 100 knights.
Absolutely not enough to completely destroy 150,000 orcs.
'How am I supposed to handle this...'
At that moment, a chair was pushed back, and someone stood up.
"I have a way to exterminate the Black Horn tribe."
A clear, bright voice that instantly organized the chaotic command post.
The owner of that voice was Raven.
***
Raven found it difficult to come to her senses amid the magic waves of two men stirring inside the command post.
The protagonists were, of course, Caesar and Elijah.
The magic wave emerging from Elijah's body mercilessly sliced Caesar like a butcher's cruel laugh.
The emotion was so sharp, acute, and meticulous that even Raven watching felt her flesh trembling.
Caesar's magic wave was writhing desperately to resist that precise magic wave but was wounded, frustrated, and collapsing.
What on earth happened between them?
Raven had only known until now that Caesar and Elijah were on good terms.
Elijah had been supporting Caesar, and Caesar had sufficiently repaid Elijah who supported him.
Hadn't they even successfully mediated Mitchell's conspiracy?
They seemed to be in a relationship that couldn't get any better, so why was Elijah attacking Caesar so aggressively?
No, was Elijah actually attacking Caesar right now?
Elijah had even assigned Caesar a reconnaissance mission and promised to firmly push forward the delaying tactics.
They only had a slight difference in perspective, with Caesar wanting to definitively exterminate the Black Horn tribe, while Elijah was satisfied with just stopping the offensive, calling it unrealistic.
What significant meaning was hidden in that small difference of opinion that they were clashing like this?
Raven looked at Caesar.
Could he have some secret about the Black Horn tribe?
If such a thing existed, why wasn't he revealing it now?
The more Raven focused on Caesar, the more she became infected with Caesar's emotions, feeling desperate and as if her heart was shrinking.
Eventually, the vague emotion transmitted by Caesar began to take shape and create a clear goal.
Somehow, she must do something.
No, somehow she must exterminate the Black Horn tribe.
No, somehow she must kill Geotech.
That's not it either.
More precisely...
'Somehow, I must stop Elijah.'
Raven couldn't hide her bewilderment at the inexplicable goal that had burrowed into her heart.
Why must she stop Elijah?
And is stopping Elijah the same as killing Geotech and exterminating the Black Horn tribe?
But was this because she had focused too much on Caesar?
The desperate and clear goal infected from Caesar had become Raven's, and the goal found its answer.
Elijah was about to walk out after lifting the tent but stopped.
"Would you care to explain what that is? Wizard Raven?"
"Sealing."
At the word 'sealing magic', one man exclaimed.
It was Yan.
"You can't possibly...!"
Raven looked directly at Elijah and said:
"If we use the sealing magic of the beast people who sealed Yan in the past, we might be able to kill off the Black Horn tribe. Since even Yan couldn't escape for two months, the stability and effectiveness of that magic is practically proven."
Raven looked at Caesar.
"So take me to the beast people. Commander El Lindger. I will learn their sealing magic and block them."
Elijah's expression changed subtly.
"Impossible."
"Please tell me the reason."
"Firstly, the beast people will never be hospitable to humans." Elijah slowly approached Raven. "Secondly, even if you gain the cooperation of the beast people, they can refuse to reveal their secret techniques to a human wizard."
Elijah stood in front of Raven.
He was so tall that Raven had to raise her head stiffly just to look at Elijah's face.
"Thirdly, even if one were to learn it, the possibility of successfully performing the sealing magic would be extremely slim. This is an absurd plan."
Raven knew why Elijah was looking down at her.
Elijah knew how to exploit the fear and terror residing within human minds.
Elijah was using his massive body and height to oppress Raven.
However, Raven did not succumb to Elijah's intimidating gaze and gestures.
"If Sir Caesar's delaying tactics work, we can buy at least a week's time. During that period, I have nothing else to do, so it would be possible to learn the beast people’s magic."
"The beast people have strong hostility towards the Hero. You were the Hero's companion, so who knows how the beast people might react to you."
"If the beast people refuse, I can simply return. Isn't it worth making the proposal?"
Elijah's magic flow became irregular.
Was it perplexity?
No, it was different from that.
To be precise, it was closer to displeasure.
Despite proposing a good method, was Elijah displeased?
Was it related to stepping down from the position of Allied Commander and returning to the Friedrich region?
Or did he have another plan?
In any case, Elijah clearly found Raven very troublesome.
"Raven wants to try it, so is there a reason to stop her? Allied Commander?"
Raven and Elijah looked towards the source of the voice.
It was Mitchell.
Mitchell rose with his characteristic annoying smile.
"Even if it doesn't work, there's nothing to lose. On the contrary, if Raven learns the sealing magic, she'll not only grasp one of the beast people weaknesses but could also potentially completely annihilate the Black Horn tribe."
Raven thought that today, this annoying smile was quite to his liking.
Yan also stood up and spoke.
"I am well aware of the power of the beast people sealing magic. If that magic works, it could deal a significant blow to the Black Horn tribe."
Elijah pretended to think deeply.
He appeared to be 'pretending' because his magic flow was stable and he had already made a decision.
"Do as you wish. Wizard Raven. However, the Allied forces cannot protect you. Only Viscount El Lindger's troops will escort Raven."
Caesar, who had been silently observing, responded immediately.
"Leave Wizard Raven's safety to me."
Caesar wore a smile as if he had gained the upper hand.
"I will ensure not a single hair is harmed."
Elijah looked at Raven and Caesar alternately before leaving the command post.
Raven looked at Caesar, feeling like she had won something, yet with an ambiguous mood.
She would probably need to have a conversation with Caesar.
Of course, she would need to stop the lightning first.
***
Caesar looked at the 67 wizards, including Raven.
66 wizards were standing in a large circle, with Raven in the center.
Their robes became heavy and fluttered in the wind and rain, but they did not stop their magic.
The white troops stationed with Caesar whispered softly.
"How on earth do they plan to stop the lightning?"
"I don't know. How can one understand wizards?"
Caesar had roughly heard the principle from Raven but found it difficult to understand precisely.
It was not as definitive as science and seemed very vague.
-Lightning has a tendency to break free and extend beyond a certain point.
-It doesn't just head anywhere, but tends to move towards areas full of moisture, with sharp or steel-like materials that conduct electricity well.
-I'll use that tendency to guide the thunder to always strike above the clouds using magic.
It felt like someone from a science background explaining something to a humanities student, which was somewhat ambiguous.
However, Caesar was a modern person educated in science and a doppelganger who could use psychometry.
Scientifically explaining Raven's words meant creating lightning rods with magic above the clouds to guide the thunder to always strike upward.
Of course, this was the result of magic manifestation, and the process was beyond Caesar's comprehension.
If he could understand it, he would have been a wizard himself.
'Maybe I can see something using the Moon Flower.'
Caesar suddenly became curious and pulled out the Moon Flower, shining it towards Raven and the wizards.
Incredibly complex magical circles began rotating like clockwork around Raven.
And every time Raven raised her wand, a yellow magical circle would appear and disappear at the wand's tip.
He couldn't understand the exact principle, but it seemed she was erecting lightning rods at each magical coordinate Caesar provided.
'...She is certainly impressive.'
Though it might be strange to bring up game settings at this moment, Raven was a character that no one could surpass in magical abilities unless the game character's origin was a wizard.
If truly outstanding wizards were S-class, Raven would be SSS-class.
She was so great that, like scientists preserving pieces of Einstein's brain in different countries after his death, they might dissect Raven's brain for research and manage it in a magic tower if she were to die.
'Of course, in the game, there were no opportunities for Raven to be active after the Demon Realm War.'
Raven's future had changed significantly.
Originally, after completely occupying the Demon Realm, Raven would research to open the 'Unopenable Library' beneath the Demon King's Castle.
After the Demon Realm was occupied by Niflheim, when players would enter the Demon King's Castle looking for Raven, they would only find traces of her research, with Raven herself having disappeared.
No one would know where she went or if she had died...
'Come to think of it, I wonder why Raven isn't researching the Demon King's Castle library.'
It would be awkward to ask carelessly. If Raven were to become absorbed in researching the underground library, Caesar would essentially lose a reliable ally.
For Caesar's needs, it was better if Raven remained actively engaged.
So he couldn't recklessly stimulate Raven's curiosity right now.
At that moment, Raven staggered.
The other wizards weren't in good condition either.
Some wizards had even sat down on the muddy ground.
The magic had ended.