We live at the foothills of Dragon Peak.
Cursed land.
The Ancient Dragon Species, Sleigsta (Old Man), was furious, his eyes shining golden as the Dragon Forest was targeted.
However, as he headed towards the tower, he wouldn’t launch a reckless attack. Was it because his opponents were the Giant Demon Lord and Charlotte (Female), a Great Demon Race member?
No, that wasn’t it.
“You also vaguely understand, don’t you? The true identity of the one descending upon this tower.”
At the Giant Demon Lord’s words, Sleigsta (Old Man) let out a low growl from his throat. That alone was enough to make the Wyverns gathered at the Hiryu Hunting Ground flee with their tails between their legs, and the Earth Dragons dug holes in the ground to hide their heads. But even Sleigsta’s (Old Man) anger and dissatisfaction were merely a source of amusement for this Extremely Evil Demon Race.
“Fufufu. As I thought, it seems the Guardian Dragon has some thoughts about the girl’s true identity. And since you understand this tower is for that child, you cannot lay a hand on me.”
“Whoa, you’re calculating everything and toying with Grandpa…”
They are truly too wicked.
“Hey, you mere demon, what makes you speak as if you know everything? I am merely waiting to see what develops, as you are holding Elnea hostage.”
“Grandpa, help me!”
“Oh dear. You are a fool. To be toyed with so easily by these old women.”
“You too, Grandpa!”
At my retort, Sleigsta (Old Man) let out a great sigh in the sky. Nevertheless, as Charlotte (Female) said, Sleigsta (Old Man) showed no sign of attacking us. Instead, he glared at the Giant Demon Lord and Charlotte (Female) and slowly descended. Sleigsta (Old Man) then landed with a tremor that shook the ground.
Crushing a section of the fortress…
Well, that’s to be expected. For Sleigsta (Old Man), with his mountain-sized body, to land near the tower, a considerable amount of space would be needed. But, I hope everything is alright? I hope he didn’t crush any of the visitors inside the fortress?
“Naturally, I did not do such a thing.”
Even when he landed on the ground, Sleigsta’s (Old Man) enormous size was overwhelming. We are on the top floor of the tallest tower in the fortress. Sleigsta (Old Man) looked down at us.
“Elder!”
Just then, Mistral (Male) flew over in a hurry. It seemed he saw Sleigsta (Old Man) teleport and mistakenly thought it was an emergency.
“What in the world is going on?!”
Mistral (Male) frowned in confusion, but upon confirming the gathered individuals, he sighed in relief.
“You know, Mistral (Male), Grandpa is going to help us!”
“Though it is a hateful thing, I have fallen right into the trap of these old women.”
“Elder, are you truly alright?”
Mistral (Male) looked up at Sleigsta (Old Man) with concern. I was worried too, you know? Even though he was threatened by the Giant Demon Lord, I wondered if it was okay for him to leave his guardianship of the Dragon Forest to come to our aid.
“Hmm, there is no need to worry. The guardianship of the Dragon Forest has actually been entrusted to others.”
“Eh? Who could that be!?”
I couldn’t imagine Sleigsta (Old Man) easily entrusting his duty to someone else. The successor to the Guardian Dragon would be Lily, but she was resting at the Hiryu Hunting Ground after giving us a ride. I could see her lazily sleeping outside the fortress from the top of the tower. So, who was really guarding the Moss Garden in Sleigsta’s (Old Man) place? Another possibility that came to mind was Asher (Male), who had frequented the Dragon Forest for a long time, but unfortunately, it was unlikely. That’s because Asher (Male) hadn’t arrived yet. Nimia (Female) had returned to her hometown, the Ancient Capital, to ask Asher (Male) for his cooperation. But she still showed no signs of returning. Perhaps the land where Nimia (Female) lives is too far, or maybe the negotiations are taking time. In any case, it seems the one taking over the guardianship of the Dragon Forest is not one of the Ancient Dragon Species we know.
“Grandpa, may I go to the Moss Garden for a bit?”
“Kukukku, that cannot be. Surely, they too wish to spend some quiet, intimate time together at times.”
“Judging by your tone, Grandpa, it seems a couple is taking over as guardians? Mumumu, I wonder who it could be?”
Even as I wracked my brain, I couldn’t come up with anyone. Seeing me struggling to think, Sleigsta (Old Man) narrowed his golden eyes as if satisfied that he had been toyed with by the Extremely Evil Demon Race.
“Well then, now that the Guardian Dragon’s participation is decided, let us proceed to the next stage.”
“Next stage?”
Hmm, did we have any plans beyond this?
“Oh my, Elnea-kun. If you continue like this, you won’t be able to welcome the girl safely, you know?”
“Charlotte (Female), you mean?”
Seeing me tilt my head, the Giant Demon Lord grinned.
“Ah, I have a bad feeling about this!”
Well, it’s the usual thing, really… And my premonition proved to be exactly right.
“It’s good that many have gathered here, but wouldn’t it be boring until the ones we’re aiming for appear?”
“No, it won’t be boring!”
“In that case, I’ll prepare some entertainment.”
“No, thank you!”
“Don’t be shy.”
“I will be extremely shy!”
My objections were in vain as the Giant Demon Lord blithely continued. Someone, please stop this demon’s outrage! My instincts are screaming in rejection. This is definitely a sign that something terrible is about to happen.
“Grandpa!”
I sought help from the most reliable person present, Sleigsta (Old Man). But he closed his eyes, choosing to remain uninvolved.
Charlotte’s (Female) laugh was full of amusement.
“Wh-what is going to happen now!?”
Helpless, Mistral (Male) and I looked at the Giant Demon Lord. As he met our despairing gazes, the Giant Demon Lord’s eyes shone a deep blue. A chill ran down my spine. It was the same terrifying feeling that shook my soul when I first saw the Giant Demon Lord at Dragon Peak. The overwhelming and despair-inducing aura and killing intent emanating from the Giant Demon Lord acted as a catalyst, and miasma began to form. Mistral (Male) and I trembled, embracing each other in terror. The only solace was that the killing intent and miasma emanating from the Giant Demon Lord weren’t directed at us. However, the Giant Demon Lord hadn’t unleashed his power without reason.
“I shall cast a curse upon the Hiryu Hunting Ground.”
“Eh!?”
Did I mishear? Cast a curse? Meaning, the Hiryu Hunting Ground will be cursed? Come to think of it, the reason why many monsters appear in the Great Forest spreading across the eastern part of the Yorttenitos Kingdom is because the Giant Demon Lord cast a curse there ages ago. In that case, the Hiryu Hunting Ground will also, from now on…
“N-Noooooooo!!”
My scream echoed across the Hiryu Hunting Ground, gleaming in the dawn.
“Ah, Goddess. Please forgive this sinner who could not stop the Demon Lord…”
The Hiryu Hunting Ground has been cursed. Because of the Giant Demon Lord, this vast grassland will be overrun with monsters, animals will flee, and the Wyverns will no longer be drawn to the hunting grounds that have lost their prey.
“Kukuku. Even before monsters, with such a massive fortress existing, no beasts would be drawn here.”
“That’s also because of the Demon Lord!”
*Sniffle. The bond we’ve built with the Dragon Race is ruined. How will I be able to face the Dragon Race from now on…*
Seeing me depressed, the Giant Demon Lord, Charlotte (Female), and even Sleigsta (Old Man) laughed.
“Even you, Grandpa, that’s cruel!”
“Watching you mope is amusing.”
“Oh, come on… Only Mistral (Male) is worried about me.”
Mistral (Male) gently petted my head. But if I only rely on comfort, I’ll never grow as a man. Still, what should I do in this situation? At first glance, there’s no sign of anything wrong happening at the Hiryu Hunting Ground yet. However, as the Yorttenitos Kingdom’s Great Forest tells us, an unmanageable number of monsters should appear here from now on.
“Perhaps… ask Revalia or Lily to burn it all down while we still can…?”
If it’s going to become a hellscape overrun by monsters, it might be better to just turn it into a wasteland!
“Your student, Elnea-kun, sometimes becomes quite foolish. Is it due to the influence of his teacher?”
“What are you saying? It’s the ill influence of those old women.”
“Elnea-kun, whose influence do you think he is most under?”
If my mind is breaking, it’s all of your fault! It’s not the time to be leisurely dealing with these Extremely Evil Demon Race members and my master. I have to somehow minimize the damage! I gripped the hilt of my White Sword and began to gather strength to leap out of the tower. The Giant Demon Lord placed his hand over mine.
“It’s not good to torment him too much. The Dragon Princess has been glaring at us for a while now. Well then, let’s reveal the truth.”
Reveal the truth? Hmm, what is he talking about? Looking at me with a puzzled expression, the Giant Demon Lord spoke.
“You chose this place as the location to confront the Demon King, didn’t you?”
“Yes. If it were just for the girl to visit, my family’s home in the Capital City or the mansion in the Forbidden Territory would have been fine.”
However, considering the Demon King and the many Yōma that might be attracted, there would be problems. If it were the Capital City, not only would it cause great trouble for the people living there, but there would also be many victims. In the Forbidden Territory, on the other hand, it would be difficult to call for reinforcements if we were short on strength. Considering these circumstances, I chose the Hiryu Hunting Ground as the battlefield. However, I couldn’t estimate the extent of the damage, so I had put the Beast race of the Northern Land and the Armēdo Kingdom on high alert.
The Giant Demon Lord nodded, saying my plan was generally correct.
“However, it is naive.”
“Are there still flaws in our preparations?”
We had gathered more than enough forces. I don’t think the choice of battlefield was wrong either. Most importantly, preparations were completed before the girl’s arrival. So where does the naivety lie? Mistral (Male) and I looked at each other, tilting our heads in the same way. Then, Charlotte (Female) pointed out a blind spot.
“Elnea-kun’s way of thinking is passive.”
“Passive?”
“Yes. Your entire plan is based on the premise that the girl and the Demon King will appear.”
“But, if the girl comes and the Demon King doesn’t appear, we can’t do anything, right?”
“Then, when do you think those individuals will appear?”
“That’s…”
According to Micheila (Female), the girl would come on an auspicious day in spring, using Spirit Tree (child) as a guide. However, unfortunately, I don’t know the exact date either.
“Elnea-kun. When leading an army, there is something a commander must pay attention to. That is morale.”
Charlotte (Female) says that no matter how powerful an army is, if its morale is low, it can lose to a weaker force. “And one of the factors that lowers morale is an ambiguous schedule.”
“…In other words, if we don’t know when the girl will come or when the Demon King will appear, everyone’s motivation will wane?”
“You’ve understood very well.”
Indeed, Charlotte’s (Female) reasoning might be correct. We had been rushing to prepare to meet the girl’s arrival. But now that preparations are complete, I hadn’t considered how to maintain the motivation of those gathered until the decisive battle.
“So then, to prepare for the coming time, we’ll maintain morale by hunting monsters? Even so, isn’t that going a bit too far…?”
“Elnea-kun. You’re close, but that’s incorrect.”
“You have gained some knowledge about Yōma and monsters, haven’t you?”
“Uh, the higher existence of monsters is Yōma… Ah!!”
Finally, I understood the Giant Demon Lord’s intention.
“By cursing, we lure monsters. If we do that, higher-ranking Yōma will also be drawn out. And then…”
When Yōma begin to run rampant, even more troublesome monsters might appear. Yes. The Demon King!
“Instead of a passive plan, it’s an active strategy. In other words, instead of waiting for the girl to come and the Demon King to appear, we’ll use the curse as a starting point to lure out the Demon King ourselves!”
Mistral (Male) and I stood with our eyes and mouths wide open in surprise at this unprecedented plan.
