The Rescued and the Shadow of the Demon King
Crane, the necromancer they had rescued along with the others, finished saying everything he wanted to say and then crumbled into black ash. "What on earth did he mean by that?" "I don't know either." Yet the words Crane had spoken just before vanishing still bothered him. There were more than one or two suspicious points that couldn't simply be dismissed as the ravings of a madman.
"If it's an existence that even a necromancer would refer to with honorifics as 'that person' and call great, there aren't many candidates." Bernard, too, wore a serious expression as he began to reason it out. "One is Abel, known as the first necromancer... the man who laid hands on forbidden arts to resurrect his lover, only to receive eternal punishment from the god of death."
Elsid knew of him. He was a figure as famous as Cain, the first spear-thrower, and someone the Pios Temple had long taught was a great sinner who committed a grave crime thousands of years ago. "The other is the most vicious existence said to have been defeated by the hero's party a hundred years ago..." "The Demon King." Elsid finished the sentence before Bernard could. That story was also extremely well-known.
On the continent of Carnea, there was one massive empire and five kingdoms, each with its own distinct characteristics. In every nation, though the methods differed, the tale of the hero's party defeating the Demon King had been passed down through temple murals, famous books, and the songs of bards. It was the story of how, back when the empire was still just another kingdom, one chosen hero and five peerless champions selected from each kingdom had joined forces to slay the Demon King.
Judging from what the necromancer Crane had said, it seemed he was referring to the latter rather than the former. While both possibilities were close to impossible, an existence of demonic power slain by mortal heroes seemed far more likely to have returned than a human who had personally received eternal punishment from a god.
But that wasn't the only question. While they had been dealing with the bandits, countless gunshots and the sound of air being sliced had echoed through the cave. Each time, the bandits caught in the light had collapsed one by one, their eyes rolling back. Just who was it? The killing intent that felt like it would pierce their necks had been threatening, but in the end, it had been a tremendous help. Even with only torches for light in the rear where their eyes couldn't reach, and visibility far worse than under the bright sun, the shots had struck only the enemies.
While countless thoughts chased one another, a voice called out from behind. "My lord!" Turning around, Elsid saw five soldiers running toward them with urgent expressions. "How could you go off alone! Do you have any idea how worried we were?" "Haha, sorry. As you know, I'm not the type to sit still and wait." Bernard laughed heartily at the lead soldier's words, showing that he was unharmed.
"Whew, at least your arm didn't get torn apart and turn purple like last time. That's a relief." The soldier sighed in relief at the sight of Bernard. "More importantly, it looks like we won't have anything to do now." "That's not true. If you've come this far, you should already know. As you can see, quite a few of the people trapped in the cages are injured." Bernard shook his head at the soldier's words. "Use whatever medicine, bandages, or anything else you have and help the wounded."
"Yes, sir!" Bernard gave orders to the soldiers who had just arrived. Upon hearing them, the soldiers saluted and immediately set about treating the injured, heading back the way they had come. Watching the scene, Elsid sat down on the ground. He wanted to rest, even if only for a moment, until everything was sorted out.
The next day dawned. "What will happen to the villagers now?" Before returning to Ragna Castle, Elsid asked Bernard, who was tending to the wounded and looking after the villagers who had lost their homes. "For now, I'm planning to move the injured to Ragna Castle so they can receive proper treatment." Bernard answered while helping those too wounded to walk onto horses.
"And I'll be taking care of the other villagers for the time being as well." Elsid nodded, thinking it was a reasonable course of action. Most of the people from Lime Village had been starved and exhausted by the bandits' inhumane treatment. In their current state, it would be extremely difficult for the rescued villagers to rebuild their village themselves. Even if they succeeded, there was no guarantee something like this wouldn't happen again. With insufficient fighting forces, they would surely fall helplessly if any other ruffians attacked.
"Then how long will you protect them?" "About a month should be enough." "That sounds fine." As Elsid nodded in agreement, Bernard continued. "Honestly, we recovered a massive amount of food and goods stockpiled at the bandits' hideout, so we could manage even longer. But our territory isn't exactly a pleasant place for ordinary children to run around in."
"..." The words Does that mean I'm not ordinary? rose to Elsid's throat, but he swallowed them quietly. "As soon as we return, I'll send a messenger to the lord of Nao requesting cooperation. That way, we can secure manpower to rebuild Lime Village and soldiers to protect it once the reconstruction is complete." "The lord of Nao, you say. I hope she'll help."
Elsid spoke while recalling his previous conversation with Marienne, the lord of Nao. It had been a request to deliver a certain item to the temple in Agatram, with the reward being support for Ragna Castle. He thought it had worked out well. The two continued their conversation as they began walking toward Ragna Castle, followed by dozens of villagers. For reference, a similar number of bandits had all been left locked behind the bars inside the cave. In time, they would be transferred to proper prisons in a proper large territory. Some lord who had spent a great deal of money to subjugate the bandit group would surely be delighted.
Around the time Elsid and Bernard were discussing what to do next after defeating the necromancer Crane and the bandits inside the cave, there was a dark space decorated with countless stone tablets—thousands, tens of thousands, their numbers beyond counting. Only three torches in the center illuminated the darkness.
"I'll make use of your worthless life as a precious resource, Crane." A soft voice murmured to itself in the dark space. Long purple hair reaching her waist, matching violet eyes, a navy dress that clung tightly to her glamorous figure, and dark skin reminiscent of a black panther under the moonlight. Her appearance was so beautiful that ninety-nine out of a hundred people would turn to look. For some reason, her gaze was fixed on a stone tablet engraved with the image of a standing wolf.
"We've taken another step closer to 'that person's' resurrection, Lady Lucina." Just then, from one of the six passages arranged at each corner of the torch-lit dark space, someone entered and spoke. "Yes. The time when we can meet that person is drawing nearer." Indeed, she was no mere beautiful woman. She was Lucina, the woman once called the Demon King's lover a hundred years ago.
"More importantly, what happened to the other Six Demon Generals besides you?" "'Pleasure' and 'Desire' said they were going on a hobby trip and headed to whichever of the five kingdoms they wanted. The other three are diligently working at their respective headquarters." "For members of the Six Demon Generals, they're quite pathetic. I wish Pleasure and Desire were even half as diligent as you."
The Six Demon Generals. That was the title given to the strongest forces of the Demon King's army a hundred years ago. Pleasure. Desire. Gluttony. Sloth. Inferiority. Hatred. Those bearing these six titles were called the Six Demon Generals. And Lucina held the position of Chief of Staff, the supreme commander of the Six Demon Generals. The owner of the deep voice conversing with her was Ramoses of Hatred, the strongest among the Six Demon Generals. He wore jet-black armor that covered his entire body.
"All for the sake of the great 'that person.'" "All to meet the great that person." With those words, the two parted ways. Lucina stroked and admired the stone tablet covered in countless human figures by the torchlight, while Ramoses returned through the passage he had entered from. Just how were the Six Demon Generals, supposedly annihilated a hundred years ago, and Lucina, the Demon King's lover who was said to have taken her own life, still alive and well here? Perhaps the answer would only become clear after far more time had passed.