An Irresistible Offer
An irresistible offer.
"How?"
Chierre couldn't believe it. The opponent she had handled with ease during their last meeting was unmistakably the same person. Boom—! This was on an entirely different level. Of course, even Chierre acknowledged the strength of a Sword Master—only five such warriors existed in the entire world, now six—but when she had crossed blades with Emilia before, the fight had been manageable. Back then she had been so relaxed that she was certain she held the initiative the entire time.
Thud!Boom!!
This time was different. Now she was desperately scrambling just to block. Even with this sword, I'm being pushed back?
The weapon Lucifer had specially forged for Chierre was no ordinary greatsword. It was a demonic blade that absorbed the opponent's sword qi and converted it into nourishment. And because that power flowed straight into Chierre, the denser the sword qi, the easier it should have been for her to handle. It was quite literally a Sword Master counter-weapon.
"What's wrong? Something feel different?"
"Why are you so—?! ...You were hiding your strength last time? Chwiik!"
"You could say it's similar."
To be exact, she had grown stronger in the meantime. Thanks to Sieg's constant encouragement, she had felt it in her bones—every training session with Akasha made her stronger. On top of that, Sieg healed her completely with recovery magic after every session, so there was never any lingering burden. At some point during her relentless training, Emilia had realized something. The next realm could not be crossed with sword qi alone. What was needed was technique that transcended pure physical strength and speed. With that realization, she had been confident she could face even Corps Commander Chierre. And in actual combat, the fight proved far easier than before.
"Damn wench! Chwiik!"
After spitting out the curse with gusto, Chierre quickly assessed the battlefield. Her magic-specialist adjutants were fighting hard, but...
"Ugh..."
"Exterminate the Demon King's Army. Massacre them. Slaughter them all!"
The tide had already turned. Groans from her subordinates echoed everywhere. Damn it. At this rate, retreat was the only answer. Lucifer had told her that Chierre herself was the linchpin of this operation. After the trust she'd placed in her, running away now?
"Ugh...!"
"Commander Chierre...!"
If it meant saving her subordinates' lives, she had to leave. Their lives mattered more. Opportunities could come again, but a life was only given once. Having made her decision, Chierre asked a question to buy time.
"How did you become this strong? Chwiik."
"How did I get stronger, you ask? Heh."
What an obvious question.
At Chierre's query, Emilia gave a small, mocking laugh. Then she answered.
"It's all thanks to Young Master."
"Sieg? Who's that? A man, isn't he? Is that man your master? Chwiik!"
Sieg? Chierre tilted her head. The name sounded strangely familiar, as if she'd heard it somewhere before. But it wouldn't come to mind right now.
This isn't the time to be thinking about that...!
Under Emilia's relentless assault, Chierre, who had been slowly giving ground, shouted.
"Use the magic tools! Chwiik!"
"Understood!"
At Chierre's order, everyone tore the return scrolls they carried. One by one they vanished. Single-use magic tools that transported the user to a preset coordinate.
"I won't let you escape like this!"
The moment Chierre pulled out her own scroll, Emilia cleverly targeted her vital points.
"Ugh, chwiik!"
Chierre blocked with everything she had. To protect her vitals, when the greatsword wasn't enough she used her forearms, and when even those failed she used her hands—anything to survive.
"Ugh... chwiik!"
Her wounds multiplied, but it looked like she would still manage a safe retreat. Until—
"I said I won't let you go!"
Emilia seized the opening and slashed Chierre's shoulder. Shiiiing—! Blood sprayed like a fountain, leaving a massive gash across Chierre's shoulder.
"Damn wench! Chwiik!"
Chierre glared at Emilia with burning humiliation. And she made a vow.
"Next time, I'll kill you no matter what it takes. Chwiik."
They returned to the Demon King's castle.
"Captain, we're sorry."
The mercenary company that could only watch helplessly as the Demon King's forces disappeared approached Emilia and bowed their heads. Seeing their dejected faces, Emilia smiled bitterly and shook her head.
"The important thing is that we won. Don't worry too much."
"Yes! Everything for Young Master...!"
They all praised their god in unison and began cleanup—examining the Demon King's Army's traces and gathering information.
"I even turned down the banquet to come here. What a shame."
She had comforted her subordinates, but Emilia was always harshest with herself. The formal banquet invitation she had received in preparation for tomorrow's main tournament finals. Since the Young Master she served would also be attending, she had wanted to be there no matter what. If only they hadn't discovered those remnants of the Demon King's Army.
The mercenary company she now traveled with had formed a bond back in the Merhen territory. They had been secretly exterminating the Demon King's forces for Sieg ever since. No one knew of their efforts, but the fact remained: the world was growing healthier. They were doing exactly what Sieg wanted.
"Captain, take a look at this."
One of the mercenaries handed her a document. It appeared to be a map marking the locations of the Demon King's Army's primary strongholds.
"Corps Commander, Blood."
Emilia's eyes gleamed. Their next destination was decided.
"Everything for Young Master—."
"For Young Master!"
"So that's what happened..."
After hearing the full explanation about the Demon King's Army, Nero nodded. She then fell silent for a long while, lost in thought. After repelling the demon attack, I had regrouped with Daeho and Soho and filled them in on what had occurred.
"You handled it well."
Daeho spoke with an excited expression. She was clearly delighted that Nero could join them.
Telling Nero about the Demon King's Army hadn't been difficult. The real question was whether she would actively involve herself. That had been the part I hesitated over. But now things were different. Nero had responded proactively and was seriously analyzing the situation. It looked like she would help us.
"Then... we'll need to locate the other demons."
Those were Nero's first words after learning about Lucifer's scheme. Seeing her take the initiative like this was something I had never expected. Nero, when did you grow up so much? Watching her development from a reader's perspective all this time made this moment truly moving.
"Here's the list of Demon King's Army spies we've identified so far."
Daeho handed over a list filled with names of various nobles. Nero accepted it, scanned the page, and her eyes began to tremble.
"T-this many?"
Her expression was one of pure disbelief. It seemed Lucifer had been preparing this plan for a long time—openly or otherwise—as a considerable number of nobles had aligned themselves with her. We could no longer remain silent.
We went to Saintess Freyja and shared the information with her.
"What?"
Freyja couldn't believe it.
"The Demon King's Army has infiltrated the imperial palace? That can't be..."
Was it her faith in the Church's capabilities? Or had the sudden news simply shocked her?
"This is quite the shock. But if Nero-nim saw it with her own eyes... Ha, why is this happening..."
Freyja clutched her forehead. It was understandable. If I suddenly heard that an entire North Korean unit had stormed the presidential office, I'd probably have the same reaction. The claim was that absurd.
"For now, I'll speak with the high priests attending the banquet."
Freyja decided to assess the situation herself. She vanished from sight after saying she would check the condition of the barrier enveloping the imperial palace.
"Nero-nim, could you help me with something?"
What Daeho requested was assistance in locating the hidden demons. The nobles who had sided with the Demon King's Army were visible to her naked eye, so she could handle those alone. However, she couldn't detect things like the shadow-space magic from earlier. With Nero's eyes, they should be able to find any concealed demons. Once identified, Daeho would seal them using the White Night family's special magic.
"I'll make sure they can't escape. Hehehe..."
While the banquet continued, Nero and Daeho split up and observed the nobles. As they had planned beforehand, they identified and dealt with them in the blink of an eye.
Time passed, and eventually—
"Excuse me, could I ask Sieg-nim for healing?"
Daeho approached me alone with the request. She had already used a great deal of magic during the banquet, and this was the price she paid.
"A curse has appeared here..."
The White Night family's magic consumed the caster's lifespan and eroded their body. As a result, curse marks had formed all over Daeho. Even the magic tool displaying her remaining lifespan showed it had decreased.
"Of course."
It was a welcome request. Using healing magic was one of my few pleasures. Even though I hadn't contributed much in this incident, I gladly welcomed the chance.
"Sieg-nim, this spot hurts the most, so please be extra careful."
Daeho pressed her chest forward as she spoke. She parted her dress to reveal her cleavage, where a curse mark had risen from beneath her breast. Protruding veins spread out in green lines like twisting branches. She was smiling and speaking playfully now, but it must have been incredibly painful in reality.
"Please... I'm begging you."
Since it was her chest, my eyes couldn't help but be drawn to it as a man.
"Heal—!"
"Hngh..."
When the magic light reached her, Daeho let out a soft moan. The green radiance enveloped her body, and it quickly became clean. The prominently raised veins calmed down as well. Seeing this, Daeho gave a bright smile.
"As expected of Sieg-nim. You're incredible. Thanks to you, I can use magic without any burden. It's wonderful."
"If you need it again, just say the word."
As I always said, requests for healing magic were always welcome.
"Then I'd like to keep you by my side forever. You may not realize it, Sieg-nim, but you've been an enormous help."
Daeho's eyes sparkled.
"By any chance... is there anything I can do to repay you?"
A way to repay me... Nothing immediately came to mind. As I fell into thought, Daeho pointed toward the nobles.
"Did you know? Every noble here has been staring only at Sieg-nim."
At her explanation I looked around, and only then did I feel the gazes again. Since Daeho had kept her back turned to hide the healing magic, the attention wasn't because of the spell. But why, then?
"It's because Sieg-nim is so handsome that they're curious. They want to know what kind of person you are. If Her Highness the Princess and I weren't beside you, they probably would have approached. Even earlier when you were alone, several young ladies were hovering around you."
It was an embarrassing compliment. But why bring it up so suddenly?
"That's why I'm worried. Worried that someone else might take Sieg-nim away... So..."
Daeho blushed shyly, leaned in close, and whispered.
"This time, would you like to truly touch my breasts?"
With that irresistible offer, she added,
"Mine are the biggest here, you know."