I Killed the Demon King. It was a mistake.
Chapter 139
The next day around lunchtime.
Holy knights arrived at the Eagle valley.
Among the holy knights, the largest man with more scars on his armor approached Caesar and shook his hand.
“Nice to meet you. I’m Michael, the devil hunter for the 66th Regiment. I’ll be in charge of devil elimination.”
“Nice to meet you. I’m Caesar El Lindger.”
In fact, it was strange that there wasn’t a holy knight platoon under a single regiment.
The holy knights’ job on the battlefield was to handle those who had mentally collapsed and transformed into devils.
It was terrible to point a gun or knife at a comrade you were fighting alongside, and devil hunting was a specialist’s job, so they typically operated separate units.
Normally, a single regiment would have one platoon of holy knights, a division would have one company of holy knights, and a city or strategic point would have a battalion of holy knights.
But why hadn’t holy knights been present until now?
He would ask about this later.
“How should you be addressed? Is it better to call you Captain Michael? Or would you prefer Sir Michael?”
“Please call me Sir Michael. It’s more comfortable for me.”
“Understood.”
Caesar looked at Michael’s face.
Unlike Joseph, who kept his beard neatly trimmed, Michael’s beard was extremely messy.
Just because someone who believes in the goddess doesn’t manage their beard doesn’t mean one should frown.
This is a battlefield, and it’s normal for more people to have unmanaged beards here.
Those who apply oil to their beards in this dusty battlefield are the abnormal ones.
From Caesar’s perspective of physiognomy, it wasn’t bad, but the timing of arrival was not quite appropriate.
“By the way, you seem to have arrived late. I heard the request for holy knights was made a week ago.”
“I apologize for being late. I came as quickly as possible… But there were unavoidable circumstances.”
Ah, really?
Coming the day after I precisely killed the Twin-Headed Ogre seems a bit lacking in conscience.
Caesar used psychometry.
-The commanders kept stopping me these past few days while passing near Luxhope.
-They probably wanted El Lindger to suffer.
-These rotten bastards.
…They’re more upright than I thought.
It seems he wasn’t intentionally delayed.
These damn military bureaucrats.
Not handing over the mage’s command rights and blocking the holy knights’ path?
Just thinking about how much easier it would have been to catch the ogre with holy oil makes my stomach boil, and these guys…
This is why the rebel army is gaining ground.
Caesar smiled brightly and said,
“Let’s go inside the barracks. Colonel Timber is waiting.”
“Oh, yes. Understood.”
Caesar entered the commander’s barracks.
Inside, the colonel and his staff were moving markers around, planning the occupation of the Eagle valley.
The holy knight bowed and greeted them.
“Nice to meet you, Colonel Timber. I’m Michael, the devil hunter.”
“Welcome, Sir Michael. I’ve heard much about Sir Michael’s military achievements.”
If Timber reacts like that, it seems a proper person has arrived.
“I’m here to be responsible for devil elimination in the 66th Regiment.”
The staff and Timber’s expressions weren’t pleasant at the mention of devil elimination.
They had witnessed countless comrades suddenly transforming into devils.
Although it’s understood that holy knights should do this because it’s difficult for a comrade to kill another comrade right next to them, it’s unavoidably uncomfortable for humans.
These are the people who will be the first to rush in and slit the throat if they or a close comrade becomes a devil.
“Please assign us a separate barracks for our living quarters.”
“Oh, yes. I understand. Please resolve that through my aide.”
“Thank you. May I have a conversation with Viscount El Lindger beforehand? I have something specific I want to discuss.”
“Yes. Understood. Come at a convenient time.”
“Thank you.”
Caesar and Michael left the barracks.
Raven naturally followed them out.
“I wanted to meet Viscount El Lindger separately…”
“This is about this, isn’t it?”
Caesar opened his pocket and showed the devil horn.
Michael nodded.
“Yes. That’s correct.”
Raven’s eyes sparkled.
Seems like she has a mountain of questions.
But wait a moment, cat.
My request comes first.
Caesar put the devil horn back in his pocket.
“Have you heard anything about what the Dre Order might offer in exchange for this devil horn?”
I can’t hand over something I worked hard to obtain for free.
Michael’s expression hardened.
“This is the work of the Dre Goddess. Wouldn’t you consider just serving her?”
This isn’t even the basic groundwork for negotiation.
If it comes out like this, I might feel disappointed.
“Didn’t the Goddess say to cherish effort? That statement surely wasn’t meant to exclude the church.”
“She also said the heart of service to the Goddess is important. The horn will be analyzed by priests in the Demon Realm diocese and serve as a compass for how holy knights will hunt devils in the future. It will naturally be tremendously helpful to Viscount El Lindger as well.”
“I understand that. So the Dre Order wants to offer it under conditions that aren’t burdensome, right?”
Michael swallowed his inner frustration.
“…May I hear the conditions?”
“Do you know what reputation I have on the continent?”
“…The King of Homigraph?”
“You know quite a recent one. That’s true, but I personally prefer the nickname ‘devil Slayer’.”
“So exactly what do you want?”
“What I want isn’t very large.”
Caesar pointed at Michael’s necklace.
“I want one of the Dre Goddess’s tokens for tracking devils and periodic supply of holy oil.”
Caesar used psychometry.
-At least he’s making a request within reasonable bounds.
-But while holy oil might be possible, the Goddess’s token is a holy knight’s symbol, and issuing it to someone who doesn’t follow the Goddess goes against doctrine…
-Is he asking for my token?
Michael pondered deeply and then spoke.
“First, I’ll provide the holy oil we have. Technically, providing holy oil isn’t allowed, but this is a battlefield.”
The Dre Goddess’s doctrine states that all who bear a sword on the battlefield are qualified to be her knights.
Of course, this doesn’t mean becoming a real holy knight, but means that in urgent situations like war, when encountering devils, one should courageously fight without retreating…
From their perspective, having a reliable knight like Caesar step forward to hunt devils can’t be seen as bad.
“Instead, I’ll write to the Demon Realm diocese to inquire about the Goddess’s token. Is that acceptable?”
Caesar nodded.
Well, I have that much flexibility too.
“Understood. Here it is.”
“Thank you.”
Michael opened his pocket and re-examined the horn.
Looking at the horn, he tilted his head.
“Yes. But I heard there were four horns… Why is there only one?”
“One was given to Raven for separate verification, another for other wizards’ research, and another for my personal collection.”
“It’s preferable for devil horns to be managed by the Dre Order. Inauspicious energy flows from them.”
“I know and understand that. But I couldn’t just take it back from the wizards.”
-…I want to take one from the Viscountâs personal collection.
Yes, I understand.
But I think it would be good for me to keep one too.
This is the first time I’ve seen an ogre become a devil.
I’ll give you another one if I get a similar one later.
Michael nodded, seemingly understanding.
“Understood.”
“Is there anything else you need?”
“I’d like to know about the devil’s abilities…”
“I’ve written a separate report about that, so you can review it.”
Caesar glanced at Raven, who was staring at Michael like a dog needing to relieve itself.
Alright. Now it’s your turn.
“Oh, by the way, Raven has something she’s curious about.”
“Oh, I’m very sorry for the late introduction. I am–“
Raven cut off Michael’s words.
“I already know you’re Sir Michael. No need to worry. I have a question, if I may?”
Michael nodded.
“Yes, please ask.”
“Has the frequency of soldiers transforming into devils increased recently?”
Michael thought for a moment before speaking.
“No. That’s not the case.”
Raven looked puzzled.
“Not increased?”
“No. It’s almost the same as when we were in the midst of war. The statistics also show this.”
“Does this include statistics from workers in magic stone mines?”
“Yes, that’s correct.”
“That’s very strange.”
“What seems strange?”
“The actual number of battles in the demon realm has decreased. But with new workers being deployed to magic stone mines, the number of people in the demon realm is almost the same as during active warfare. In other words, one factor causing devil transformationâ‘combat’âhas clearly decreased, yet the numbers remain similar. Why are the statistics the same?”
Michael scratched his beard.
“Hmm… Well, battlefield life is so busy that I’ve never thought about why. But now that you mention it, it does seem strange.”
“Where can we see these statistics?”
“We receive statistical reports monthly. This helps us understand what types and abilities of devils are emerging.”
“Do you have those statistics?”
“Oh, yes. I have last month’s.”
Michael rummaged through his gear and handed over a crumpled statistical report.
Raven looked at the report and her expression hardened.
“…There are too many devils whose precise locations are unknown.”
“Yes. Holy knights aren’t present in all areas. The demon realm is vast. It’s unfortunate.”
“That could mean devils might be hiding among the rebel armies.”
Michael’s expression stiffened.
“…There are actually such cases.”
“Then the statistics for the rebel army haven’t been compiled, right?”
“Yes. That’s correct.”
Raven handed the statistical report to Michael.
“This isn’t something only the Orcs should be worried about.”
Raven pinpointed the most significant problem in the current demon realm with just one report.
“Devils are hiding all over the demon realm.”
***
Mitchell and Yan headed toward the Demon King’s Castle without wiping off their blood-stained armor.
Blood-made footprints were left on the path they stepped on.
The White Knights and Red Wing Knights advanced without hesitation, following their footsteps.
As they passed, a bloody path was created, like a red carpet being laid out.
“Welcome, Hero!”
Yan did not even display his usual friendly smile.
He did not acknowledge people’s greetings and simply moved forward.
The entrance to the Demon King’s Castle was quite bustling.
Some people had heard the news that the Hero was coming, and the Demon King’s Castle was currently being used as a major base for the demon realm’s front lines.
The White Knights and Red Wing Knights pushed aside people entering and leaving the main gate, allowing Yan and Mitchell to quickly enter the Demon King’s Castle.
As soon as they entered the castle gates, a massive flag caught their eyes.
It was a flag with a laurel leaf drawn in a large circle, with a golden eagle – the symbol of the Eileen Empire drawn inside.
It was the symbol of the allied forces.
Several soldiers rushed over.
With stars on their shoulders, they were clearly staff officers of the allied forces.
“Welcome, Hero! We must quickly summon the military band…”
Mitchell spoke instead of Yan.
“We don’t need such things. Where is Lord Friedrich, the Margrave?”
“His Lordship is in the central garden. I will escort you!”
“We obviously know our way around. We don’t need guidance.”
“His Lordship is not yet prepared to receive guests. Please wait a moment in the reception room…”
Mitchell and Yan ignored the officers’ words and boldly strode into the Demon King’s Castle.
The central garden was not far from the main gate.
After passing through a long corridor and descending one staircase, the garden was revealed.
The garden seemed well-maintained and neatly organized.
However, incongruously with the beautiful garden, nearly 20 men were kneeling, bound.
Standing before them was a middle-aged man wearing a silver armor full of scars, holding a great sword.
The man was exuding a grim atmosphere as if he would decapitate them at any moment, looking down at the men.
“Sir!”
At Mitchell’s call, the man holding the great sword looked at Mitchell.
The man had darting eyes, and his beard and hair were dark brown, with his beard unkempt and spread out like a lion’s mane.
He was the man known by the nickname ‘Steel Lion’.
The lord of the Friedrich Border and the current supreme commander of the allied forces.
Margrave Elijah Friedrich.
Elijah glanced briefly at the Hero and Mitchell before bringing down his great sword.
Splooosh!
Blood spurting from the neck stained Elijah’s armor.
“Uuuuugh!”
The bound men twisted their entire bodies and screamed while gagged.
“Welcome. Sir Mitchell and…”
Elijah met Yan’s eyes.
“It’s good to meet you too, Hero.”
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