The First Victory of the Demon King
ㅡWHOOSH!
At my command, Serineu soared powerfully into the air. Only a few seconds had passed since she climbed above the cliffside.
"Grargh!"
"Grargh!"
The war cries of the imps erupted, and fireballs began to rain down toward the narrow path! The moment that violet, apocalyptic flame touched the grass, that place would turn into a living hell...
"Imps!"
My imps had grown significantly stronger. They could throw fireballs from that height and still land them accurately on the ground! We had experimented with this many times, so there was no room for failure.
"Kyaa...!"
"Please...!"
Sharan and Lumika, clinging to my side, held their breath as they watched the fireballs descend. The fire was about to fall. The continuously hurled fireballs struck the earth.
And then.
ㅡFwoosh.
The moment the violet fireballs hit the withered, grass-covered path.
The fire began to catch.
No, it wasn't just catching.
ㅡFWOOSH!
It was an inferno!
"Oh, oh, oh, oh!"
"Uwaaaagh!"
"Fire! It's fire!"
"Move! Get out of the way!"
"Aaaagh! Water! Wateeeer!"
The fire, spreading faster than I had imagined, began to swallow the grass and the soldiers alike. As it burst out, the soldiers' formation crumbled. And more fire—even more flames roared to life!
ㅡUwaaaaaaaaaaagh!
Once the fire jumped, it spread uncontrollably. Terrible screams erupted as soldiers, now turned into human torches, threw their bodies around in a frenzy.
"Sharan! You really drained the moisture out of that place!"
"I worked really hard on it!"
Good.
The first fire attack was a resounding success. At the very least, those who had entered the narrow path wouldn't escape without suffering heavy losses. I was certain this would neutralize at least 20 percent of their total force.
"Aaaaaaagh!"
"Graaaagh!"
"Aaaaaaagh!"
"Hey, hey!"
Regardless, the fire was spreading through the center of the formation. Whether they were in the middle or at the front, they all began to scream and sprint toward our position.
ㅡFwoosh!
Even from here, it was clear that a massive fire had broken out. Black smoke was rising alongside the flames.
"Burn, all of you...!"
The humans couldn't do anything about the imps perched on the cliffs. The imps were still hurling fireballs at this very moment, and with everything burning in every direction, what could the humans possibly do?
And even if the angels came to intercept the imps, the pixies were waiting in front of them. The angels would be shot down immediately!
"Goblins!!! Show yourselves!!! The humans are coming!!!"
"Keruuuugh! Come out!!"
ㅡRumble!
At my command, the goblins who had been lying in ambush behind the low earthen walls, and those crouching between the trees and bushes, sprang forward to form a defensive line.
"Huh?!"
"W-wait!"
"Stop!"
The human soldiers, who had been running indiscriminately, faltered and shouted in panic.
"Ugh!"
"Aaaagh!"
But their comrades, already ablaze, were charging from behind without a thought. As a result of their hesitation, the soldiers tripped as if they’d been hit by a truck, only to be trampled by their own allies.
"Lumika. Give the boys a shower."
"Got it."
ㅡPshhh!
Lumika immediately created a mist of water to protect the goblins from the fire.
"Uwaaaagh!"
"Aaaagh!"
And then, the incoming 'firemen'!
"Keruuugh! Stab them all to death!"
"Kill! Kill! Keruuugh!"
"Kill the humans and get stronger! Keruk!"
ㅡStab!
ㅡStab!
The goblin infantry skillfully stabbed them to death!
"Ugh...!"
"Kuh...!"
The sudden inferno had split their forces. The soldiers who had entered the narrow path were burned to death, and those gripped by fear sprinted toward the only path they could see.
And I was waiting on that path with my soldiers.
"Aaaagh!"
"Uwaaaaaaaaagh!"
It was nothing but chaos and pandemonium. Soldiers with their backs to the fire collided with the goblin phalanx and died, while those who fled to either side wandered blindly into the jungle, which was riddled with traps.
"Dark Elves! Take out the fleeing humans!"
"Yes!"
"Understood!"
The Dark Elves, swords and bows in hand, rushed out in squads to carry out the human hunt.
ㅡFwoosh!
The narrow path was still burning. The thick stench of burning meat filled the air. They wouldn't be able to send reinforcements until the fire was extinguished.
Starting from the center of the narrow path, all the humans on my side would die.
Now, what choice would the Baron's army make after losing such a large portion of their force? Abandon all operations and retreat? Or detour through another path? Or wait for the fire to die down before advancing again?
Whatever they chose, it was fine by me.
"We've shot down the fleeing angel!"
The pixies had reported the angel's takedown.
Now, they were blind. I could simply release the pixies to scout their location and wipe them out with surprise attacks.
"Hahahahahaha!"
No one could beat me in this jungle!
"Kerururung! We wiped them out, My King!"
"Keruk! Keruk!"
"Alright! Everyone, offer a dance to My King! Execute! Keruk!"
"Kerururugh!"
ㅡWiggle wiggle!
The excited goblin infantry shook their hips and performed a victory 'Buril-Buril' dance. Seeing their ridiculous antics made me burst into laughter.
"Kwahahaha! You crazy bastards!"
"We're battle-maniacs, My King! Keruk!"
"I swear, you're hilarious. Anyway! My soldiers! You were magnificent! We have achieved a landslide victory in our first battle!!!"
ㅡKeruuuugh!
We had zero casualties. Yet, we had secured about a hundred corpses. It was a shame that most of their equipment had burned in the fire, but we had effectively wiped out 20 percent of the enemy's combat power.
On top of that, all four angels had been captured.
"Inferior, trashy humans...!"
"We shouldn't have trusted them!"
"Fuck! Fuck! I didn't know these low-life species were this incompetent!"
The captured angels glared at us, spitting out hatred. Of course, I didn't care. What awaited them now was tentacle-anal training.
I left their management to Liliel and, after lightly ignoring them, continued the victory celebration party.
"Kerururugh! My King! Say a word to the imps!"
"Right! Imps! You played a huge part in this battle too! I didn't know you could produce such firepower...! You are the best arsonists!"
"Best arshonists! Kerururugh!"
"Kerururururugh!"
The excited imps did backflips and jumped around in joy. Honestly, the pixies did about 70 percent of the work in this operation, and the imps did the rest.
"We shall build a wealthy nation and a strong army with elite air forces and elite arsonists! Kwahahaha! We are the invincible Demon King's Army!"
"Keruuuugh!"
"Kerururururugh!"
An overwhelming difference in troop strength.
But with this operation, we had wiped out a massive chunk of their combat power. Now, only victory remained. As expected, there was no existence in this jungle that could defeat me.
"Whew."
Currently, the Baron's army was retreating after losing their angels and soldiers. According to the pixies' reconnaissance report, it seemed there was a base the humans had been using further back.
They would probably regroup there and decide whether to retreat entirely or advance again.
In my opinion, they would likely retreat.
Having lost four angels and a hundred soldiers, they would have to go back, saintess or not. Of course, it was easy to kill enemies who were retreating with their morale shattered.
"Hehehe, things are going very well, My King."
"Indeed. Ah, but the Lamias didn't have a chance to shine this time."
"If you give us the chance now, we'll take it."
"Of course I will. Aren't the humans retreating? Go and stir things up. I'll give the order in a moment."
"With pleasure."
We would take a short break to play and then go back to attack. Anyway, as I was eating while praising my soldiers:
"Honestly, it's pretty gruesome."
Reika said as much.
After clearing the corpses, there were dozens of soldiers who had burned to death, dozens who had been stabbed to death by spears, and dozens more who had been caught in the Dark Elves' traps or hunted down while fleeing.
"That is what war is. Honestly, what sin could these poor soldiers have committed? The only ones at fault are the foolish angels and the Baron."
"..."
"But in war, death occurs even if you are innocent. Especially if you are a soldier... That is why I must swallow the world as soon as possible."
"What kind of bullshit is that?"
"If I rule the world, such foolish wars will disappear."
"What the... You. You were thinking things like that?"
Reika spoke as if she were surprised.
But it was the truth.
If I ruled this land and created a power stronger than anything else, would wars like this happen? If I reigned absolutely, they would naturally vanish.
"Of course. Why would I dream of world domination without such a goal?"
"This bastard... Well, sure. I guess you'd have thoughts like that. Hmph."
"No. That's a very beautiful smile, isn't it? Do you smile just by looking at me now? Lady Reika?"
"Well, just because."
Reika turned away.
"I just think you're a decent guy, except for the part where you rape women."
"I've always been decent."
"Bullshit."
Reika walked away after saying that.
She really is a cute woman.
"Ahhh! My heart is truly refreshed! To see all those who tormented me so relentlessly die like this! I can't help but laugh!"
The Saintess was in high spirits. Well, come to think of it, she must have had a lot of pent-up resentment toward the angels and humans.
"But it is a little strange?"
"What is strange?"
"I, I didn't exactly want to look, but... looking at the corpses of the dead soldiers, for some reason, their genitals were abnormally small. And it wasn't just one or two, but every corpse I saw was like that... so it felt a bit bizarre."
"Ah."
Since we had to strip the captured corpses of their equipment, they were all naked. She must have glanced at them and thought that.
"Yours is... if I exaggerate a little, almost as big as a forearm, isn't it? I'm curious why there is such a difference."
Since she had never seen another man's penis in her life besides mine, she must have thought everyone was as big as I was.
"Um... Saintess? For normal humans, that size is the standard."
"W-what?"
"I'm the special one."
"E-eh?"