Swosh!
The legendary animal, the Griffin, flew in the sky.
And on it was Airn Pareira, Lulu, Kirill, Lance, and Brat, along with his father.1
All their faces were serious.
It was because of Airn’s words. He said that he could feel magi from the forest nearest to their territory.
‘I wouldn’t believe it if it was said by another man…’
Bratt looked at his friend. He was someone who had the sharp sense of a Sword Master.
He had no choice but to trust Airn, who also had the sorcerer’s mysterious intuition as well.
‘But the atmosphere is too heavy.’
He looked around to see not just Airn, but even Kirill, Lulu, and Lance looking dark.
Even his father, who had been through 3 demon subjugations, was the same. Bratt couldn’t understand it.
Of course, it wasn't good for a demon to appear near their estate. They were more vicious, dangerous, and cunning than monsters.
But, what about the power we have currently?
Someone from the Sword Masters who only numbered 100 on the continent.
One of the leading cat sorcerers on the continent. And although her true ability was unknown, a promising sorcerer of the Cesar Duchy was also here.
And even he was someone who was at the peak of Experts.
‘Even Lance isn’t lacking in power. I haven’t seen his full strength since graduation, but he can definitely be called an Expert.’
Bratt thought of all of it. There was no need to worry. Even when he thought of the worst demon, he thought they could handle it.
He thought he could subdue it by himself or finish it off with everyone.
He wanted to ease his father of his worries. And when he was thinking about it.
“Son.”
“Yes, father.”
“From now on, don’t speak of it.”
“…”
“Promise me that you won’t.”
Everyone nodded at Philip Lloyd’s request, and he continued.
“A few months ago, a devil appeared on the continent again.”
“…!”
“…!”
“They say that he was very powerful. As much as the Demon Dragon King from 400 years back…. The problem is, there are countless devils all around… and it has been confirmed that they were hiding in our world without returning back to the Devildom.”
Lord Lloyd sighed.
It was for that reason that he went to the royal palace a week back. The devils and their demon subordinates were so widespread that Avilius couldn’t handle it themselves.
In the end, the Paladins of the Holy Kingdom chose to release the information to the highest nobles of each country and asked them to keep it a secret.
Along with a request for maximum cooperation. Having said that, he took out a glass bottle from his pocket.
A sparkling blue liquid.
It was holy water. It contained the higher power from the highest priest.
Philip Lloyd continued after he showed it to everyone.
“An item which can tell how thick the magi of the devil was. Red is fine, but it means that the devil is powerful, but it is not to the extent that it can overpower a Master.”
“…”
“But if the liquid changes to dark red or black… we must turn this over to the Holy Kingdom. It isn’t something we can handle on our own.”
Silence continued.
Lance seemed to have gone mad at the sudden topic of devils, and even Bratt was frowning.
But the rest of them were the same as before. All of them had dark expressions. But that was all; there were no questions.
Lord Lloyd, who thought it was strange, felt a bit confused.
'…they are strangely calm.'
After 160 years, a devil had appeared. It was normal for any courageous knight to shed sweat.
However, Airn, Kirill, and Lulu were strangely calm.
‘Maybe they haven’t realized it.’
After watching that, Lord Lloyd sighed.
He couldn’t afford to think about the others.
It was embarrassing, but he himself couldn't calm down. In the midst of it, Kirill's Griffin eventually arrived at the point Airn spoke of.
It was a bit farther from where they had landed.
It would be a big deal if they jumped right inside the place. And there was no actual need to enter it.
The liquid in the glass bottle had turned dark red.
The moment Philip Lloyd was about to speak, the holy water, which had turned black, turned back into a bit of red.
“I will go and be back soon.”
“Airn, what did I just say now?”
“I want to kill it.”
“…haven’t you heard what I said till now?”
Lord Lloyd looked at Airn with a puzzled expression. However, the young Sword Master was confident.
Even the dark expression on the face and the nervousness was barely felt.
Calm enough to put his own mind at ease…
No, he was full of confidence.
“I am not good at speaking, so I am not confident in explaining things.”
Airn stared at Philip Lloyd.
His eyes were blue and deep like the lake. And above all else, his calm and clear eyes held such strong will.
He continued to speak.
“But, the confidence I have in defeating the demons that lurk here is overflowing within me.”
It wasn’t empty words. At first, it was true that Airn was nervous.
The malice that was slowly being revealed. It was an energy similar to the one he had felt before. And he inferred that the clown might have come to regain his powers and take revenge on him.
But that wasn’t it.
The closer he got, the more confident he became.
It wasn’t the clown, and even if it was something influenced by him, the energy was so weak that it couldn’t be compared with the clown.
‘Of course, it’s true that even a weak demon is strong…’
Airn clenched his fist.
In addition, he inspected his own body to see the control he had, and he even checked the aura he now had.
The moment he finally looked back, his confidence surged once more.
He knew that he could win.
That was the reason he was proud in front of Lord Lloyd.
“It won't be strange if something happens while we contact the Holy Kingdom.”
“…”
“Of course, nothing could happen too. But I don’t think it is necessary for….”
“Get yourself together!”
Lord Lloyd spoke in a low voice.
The expression on his face wasn’t too bad, and he said.
"Airn, I know that you are one of the few geniuses on the continent. But the devil isn't someone shabby. Trust my judgment after reading all the records I read from the kingdom. Now is the time to step back."
Philip Lloyd refused to allow it. Although it sounded like he was pressuring him, it was closer to a plea.
Airn didn’t interrupt his words. However, even after he spoke, his intentions didn’t change.
“I will go and be back.”
“Airn, you…”
“The clown mask.”
“…!”
“It is a characteristic of the devil which appeared a few months ago. How would I have known about this?
“…”
Lord Lloyd had a blank expression like he didn’t understand it and tried to speak, but as he realized something, his eyes widened.
“That, uh, so…”
“Yes, right.”
Swosh!
Woong!
Airn summoned his great sword.
Golden sword.
A golden aura on it. He opened his mouth at the gentle flow of energy.
“I, too, contributed to the extermination of the great evil then.”
Wooong!
Immediately after, Airn’s aura shone even more brilliantly. No one could take their eyes off it.
Lulu, Kirill, Bratt, Lance, and Philip Lloyd.
The hero, who finally looked at the sword, spoke slowly.
“I will come back unharmed.”
“…”
“I swear.”
Swosh!
Kirill's Griffin was heading to the Holy Kingdom, and only Lance and Lord Lloyd were on it.
Because Bratt, Kirill, and Lulu followed Airn into the devil's base.
‘If I transform into my other form, I will be of help too!’
'During the magic barrier, during the subjugation of demons, and in Alcantra, I left my brother alone. Not this time. This time… I will follow him.’
‘So will I. As Lloyd Family’s heir, I don’t want to leave everything in his hands.’
‘But…’
‘Airn, you think that I… and if you think that Miss Kirill will be in trouble or be a burden, do not be afraid to tell us not to come.’
‘…’
‘But if you don’t think so, then we will come along.’
‘Airn. Let’s go together. You may run into situations that are difficult to attack alone.’
Hearing those words from Lulu, Airn nodded, and the four stepped in.
And until they left, Lance couldn’t even say anything.
‘Lance. Please escort my father.’
That was Bratt’s final words before he left with Airn. He knew better than anyone that it wasn’t a request.
Who would attack Philip Lloyd on top of the Griffin? Even without his escort, the lord would be able to deliver the news to the Holy Kingdom safely.
Clench!
Lance clenched his fist.
His fingernails which pierced into his skin, made his blood drip. A disappointment so great that he couldn’t feel the pain, along with bitterness, came over him.
“…”
Lord Lloyd looked at Lance without saying a word.
And he looked for a very, very long time.
“It’s tiring.”
The innermost part of the cave.
A month after waking up, the devil mumbled.
I don’t know why I am here. Maybe I could know what existence I was?
The memory of being teased by someone was there, but it was fuzzy, but now, even that didn’t really matter.
The devil with a body as hard as stone mumbled again.
“I can’t stand it.”
It had been a week since the cave was turned into a labyrinth. So far, only three people have been caught.
And not even a single cub had come. For the stone devil, this was more serious than anything.
He wanted to taste human fear. He wanted to see more and more people who were lost, wandering, crying, and trembling in fear and hunger in the darkness!
To do that, he had to go out.
Instead of just waiting like now, he had to be more active. Whether by kidnapping or threatening, he had to make them come in.
When he was in the middle of it. Three humans and a cat set foot into his cave.
At the appearance of humans coming in like rain, the stone devil rejoiced.
“Good! Good!”
Kung!
He stomped his feet as if he wanted to kill them and sat down in front of the Demonic Mirror so that he could observe the appearance of the strangers in more detail.
Who were these people?
What do they look like?
What were their fears?
What kind of death should I give them?
A black energy filled the stone devil’s eyes. There was a lot of anticipation in that stiff face. It didn’t take long for that expression to break.
Kwang!
“Hmm?”
At first, he was dumbfounded.
He couldn’t think of anything when he saw the blonde man breaking down the wall without getting lost.
Kwang!
And the same thing kept happening again and again!
Kwang!
And again!
Kwaaang!
Bang!
Over and over again. Constantly.
So, when the people arrived in an instant to where he was, the stone devil couldn’t stay calm.
“Akkkkk!”
Kukukuku!
With a deafening scream, his body grew. There were cracks on his skin. And from these cracks, Hell’s lava flowed.
How should he kill them?
How should he break them down and release his anger?
Those feelings raged the moment he made eye contact with the blonde.
Wooong!
He felt an energy stronger than the magi which he exuded.
Flustered by it, the stone demon had a blank expression.
And at that moment, Airn swung the sword as hard as he could.
Kwaaaang!
The stones were smashed, and the stone shards that came as a result of that attack shot in all directions like flesh.
A few drops of lava brushed against his skin.
But Airn didn’t care, and he swung his sword again.
Airn Pareira’s second sword came down on the demon.
Bang!
At this point, it’s a whole bus.↩
