Chapter 221: Frillite
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 221: Frillite
“Wow, they really made a spectacular mess.”
Angelica marveled at the monster corpses strewn before the portal.
“It’s Frillite, after all. Monsters like these wouldn’t have stood a chance.”
The most noticeable were low-level monsters like lizardmen and kobolds. Occasionally, I spotted a high-level monster like a cyclops, but even those were dead, their eyeballs gouged out.
“Hey, even I can do this much,” Angelica said, waving her hand as if it were nothing.
It was absurd to see one of the so-called Four Heavenly Kings bragging about being able to kill a few low-level monsters.
“If you couldn’t, you’d have to quit being one of the Four Heavenly Kings.”
“Hey! That’s harsh.”
“Whatever. Where are we? And which way to the Demon King?”
“Just a moment.”
Angelica spread her wings, flew into the sky, and surveyed the area. A moment later, she descended, having figured something out.
“This is a Feeding Den,” she announced.
“A Feeding Den?”
“Yes. As you can see, the Demon Realm is barren, unlike the outside world. There are almost no crops we can cultivate, so we’re always short on food.”
My gaze shifted from the corpses to our surroundings. We were at the bottom of a canyon, surrounded by the dead. The canyon walls were dotted with caves that appeared to be monster dwellings.
“So… you’re saying this is a place where you pen up and raise monsters for food?”
“That’s right. It’s where the pathetically weak monsters who can’t even eat properly live. The only ones who know how to fight are probably the guards.”
“So, what’s your point?”
“A place where you have to be strong to survive. That’s the Demon Realm. It’s crawling with high-level monsters, and there are plenty of things even stronger than that. They might have gotten lucky and slaughtered some weak monsters here, but it’ll be different on the outside. If they run into real monsters, those humans will be too busy running for their lives.”
Angelica giggled.
I smacked her on the head for her ominous words.
“Ow!”
“Cut the crap and just lead the way.”
“Tch. Fine. Follow me.”
Angelica took to the sky and started heading east. Hailey spread her wings and followed.
As the only one without wings, all I could do was sigh.
“Inconsiderate bitches.”
Did she say Frillite’s party would have a hard time outside the Feeding Den?
In conclusion, she was wrong.
“Jeez… they wrecked everything.”
After leaving the Feeding Den and heading east, we arrived at a forest of red trees.
As the name suggested, it was a forest where not only the leaves but also the trunks and branches were reddish. I was told they’d turned that color after long exposure to dense demonic energy, and that the monsters here were just as numerous and fierce as the energy was thick.
Heeding Angelica’s warning, I entered the forest prepared for an ambush, but…
What we witnessed weren’t monsters drooling and charging mindlessly, but monsters that were already dead.
I glanced at Angelica.
“I thought you said they’d be too busy running for their lives?”
“Uh, huh…? That’s strange. Did the demonic energy in the forest weaken while I was gone…?”
Angelica scratched her cheek, embarrassed. She cleared her throat to change the subject and corrected herself.
“W-well, the next place will be different. You know Creas, one of the Four Heavenly Kings? The Red Sea, where he used to reign as king, is quite tricky. Even flying monsters get snatched up and eaten if they’re not careful, thanks to the ridiculously huge sea creatures there. For wingless humans, it goes without saying!”
The Red Sea was filled with floating sea creatures.
“Wh-what is this…”
“What are you so surprised about? It’s obvious they zapped everything with electricity. Hurry up and lead us to the next place.”
“Th-the next one will be different, I swear!”
Angelica’s words never came true. Every place she confidently led us to was filled with the cold corpses of monsters, there to greet us.
Thanks to that, she, who had been hoping to show off the might of the Demon Realm, instead lost all her confidence, her shoulders slumping.
I don’t think I’ll ever forget the look of utter defeat on her face, especially when a giant monster we happened upon saw me and fled.
To be honest, I was quite surprised myself.
What in the world had they done to make a monster run away from a human?
I didn’t think they’d handle it this well.
I suppose I had to admit it.
Though not to the same extent as Angelica, I had also underestimated their capabilities.
“Let’s go.”
Angelica and Hailey flew, while I crossed the Red Sea by stepping on the magical beasts.
“We’re almost there. The Demon King’s castle is just past the temple.”
“A temple? Do demons believe in gods?”
“Yes. Though not Iries. That goddess only blesses the beings of the continent, right? So we believe in Lord Lebeus. At least he doesn’t discriminate.”
“He’s probably just the same as the rest…”
“Pardon?”
“Nothing.”
Arguing with a believer is a pain. If I tried to persuade her, she’d just insist her god was different, showing a faith without basis.
I quickened my pace to avoid any trouble, and two days later, we arrived at the so-called temple.
“Angelica, does the temple normally have such a strong barrier?”
The temple was covered in a translucent, purple barrier. The energy radiating from it was so powerful that I could tell the barrier was formidable even from a distance.
“Of course not. Who would go to the temple if it was covered in a barrier like that?”
“So this isn’t normal.”
I had planned to pass by the temple as soon as we saw it, but things were starting to get strange.
“Master, I can feel the presence of humans over there. Aren’t those the humans you were looking for?”
Angelica pointed to a cluster of ant-like dots in front of the massive barrier. I squinted and saw rows of barracks.
And knights in platinum armor moving between them.
“Looks like it.”
Frillite.
Thankfully, I found them before entering the Demon King’s castle.
“You two wait here. It’ll be a pain if you follow me and cause a misunderstanding.”
Leaving Angelica and Hailey behind, I headed for the Platinum Knight Order’s barracks. I picked up my pace slightly, and the distance closed in an instant.
Seeing me approach, the knights’ expressions hardened as they drew their swords. It seemed they didn’t recognize me since I’d run up so quickly.
I stopped running and straightened my messy hair.
“Red hair…? Could you be Sir Cloud, the Hero?” one of the platinum knights asked.
I nodded, and the hostile expressions on the knights’ faces brightened.
“We apologize for our rudeness in not recognizing you, Sir Hero. We will escort you to the commander’s tent immediately.”
I narrowed my eyes.
They were going to drag a guest who had just crossed the Demon Realm straight to their commander without even letting him rest?
Reading the fatigue and fear on the knights’ faces, I realized.
“Something must have happened.”
The knight who offered to take me to the commander flinched, then bowed his head deeply as if ashamed. He looked so pathetic that I patted his shoulder.
“Dealing with ‘something’ is what a hero is for. Chin up. Is Frillite inside?”
“…”
The knight’s complexion grew even darker.
At that, my own expression couldn’t help but harden.
“Answer me. Is Frillite inside?”
“…The commander will explain everything. Please, follow me.”
“…Commander, I’m going to summarize what I think I heard to make sure I understood correctly. Please tell me if I’m wrong.”
“First, the expeditionary force was searching for the Demon King’s castle when they discovered this temple a short while ago.”
“Because it was marked with the symbol of the evil god Lebeus, you determined that remnants of the heresy were hiding here. You entered to eliminate them and encountered another knight order.”
“The enemy was strong, but you managed to defeat them without major casualties.”
“The problem occurred after that. A strange phenomenon caused several knights to collapse. Frillite also began to suffer, then suddenly screamed for everyone to get out of the temple. Not long after she screamed, your fallen comrades rose and began to attack.”
“Thinking it was the evil power of the evil god’s servants, you poured the priests’ holy power on them, but the brainwashing wasn’t broken. Unable to harm your own comrades, you had no choice but to withdraw from the temple.”
“As soon as every knight was out, a barrier formed around the temple, and circumstantial evidence suggests Frillite created it.”
“Is that correct?”
“…It is.”
Watching the Knight Commander nod, I let out a heavy sigh.
“This is fucking insane.”
Then, I stood up.
“Have the entire knight order prepare for deployment. We move in as soon as you’re ready.”
“Do you have a plan?”
“I have a hunch.”
“…I will prepare for deployment immediately.”
The Knight Commander left the tent with a look of resolve. After he was gone, I took out the ring I had in my pocket.
A magnificent, golden ring that shone brilliantly.
It was the Knight King’s Ring, obtained by sacrificing the nameless knight’s black, white, red, and blue rings.
“I was hoping to give this to you in one piece.”
Swallowing a bitter smile, I put the ring back in my pocket.