The supervisor said there was a way to help Amelia by pacifying the Demon Lord’s soul sealed within her.
This was Amelia’s soul awakening due to the depletion of her magic power.
Afterward, he taught me how to deal with the situation in case the Demon Lord’s soul went berserk if the pacification failed.
“This is purely a precaution to minimize damage to us and the soldiers on the battlefield.”
He told me the details in secret because they were classified, and the words he used at that time made me doubt my ears.
“Summon the Demon Lord’s Castle and have the Demon Lord suppress it on the spot.”
Anyone would be surprised to hear that the leader of an organization would mobilize with the castle of a fantasy final boss.
Even if I knew the Demon Lord’s Castle would appear later, I probably would have been surprised to see this scene.
As the saying goes, “Seeing is believing.”
The sight was so overwhelming that I almost took off my hat, and I could only give a wry smile at my own lack of imagination.
The magic tool I was given was solely for summoning this castle.
The magic tool, equipped with special magic stones, a special summoning circle, and various special treatments, activated properly and materialized the being that could be called the Demon Lord’s representative in this place.
A spotlight fired by magic from the Demon Lord’s Castle illuminated the previously dark valley clearly, allowing us to see our surroundings as if they were blindingly bright.
The Demon Lord’s Castle, performing this feat, floated majestically in the air, fitting its title of an aerial fortress.
“This is the Demon Lord’s Castle.”
As the supervisor claimed it was a secret plan, I was instantly captivated by the Demon Lord’s Castle that appeared, completely stealing the atmosphere of the place.
It was as if the appearance of the hero, Carter, was mere prelude; I thought, “Was it really this grand?”
Without minding the dazzling light, I burned the appearance of the one I summoned into my eyes.
Despite appearing in the sky, quite distant even from here, its form was that of a huge black castle, which I recognized as magnificent.
Its size was comparable to a small mountain, and I couldn’t see its entirety from my position, but I could see the surrounding rings that served to keep such a colossal substance afloat.
The rings, like an outer wall protecting the castle, were in triple layers. The outermost and innermost rings rotated in the same direction, while the middle ring rotated in the opposite direction.
Slowly, beings capable of flight began to take off in an orderly formation from the black castle. In the center of this formation, a familiar figure joined them.
“The president, mobilizing himself, huh?”
This was probably the president’s true battle attire, not the ceremonial one I had seen before.
“What a fitting outfit for the Demon Lord.”
I expressed my honest impression of his appearance.
While not completely dropping their battle-ready stance, the tension from moments ago had entirely dissipated.
There were still some lingering concerns, but the first thing was that Amelia had regained her senses.
More reassuringly, with the Demon Lord himself mobilized and the elite forces deployed, this was no longer a dangerous area.
This place had transformed into the safest spot on the battlefield.
The very reason for that, the Demon Lord, had now descended to a distance where he could be clearly seen with the naked eye.
Demon Race members, likely aerial combat forces, stopped descending beyond a certain line, as if proclaiming this was the Demon Lord’s battlefield, and remained on standby in the air.
The Demon Lord was clad in black, unadorned armor, a black mantle fluttering behind him, an ancient sword at his waist, and a crimson staff in his right hand.
“Yo, Hero. Kept you waiting?”
“…”
The Demon Lord landed on the ground and addressed Carter in a casual tone, as if meeting a friend at a coffee shop.
His tone was not directed at someone he was about to fight.
Because of this, it could be effective against Carter, who had been wearing a confident expression until moments ago.
Carter, maintaining his silence, remained expressionless, as if trying to conceal his thoughts.
The battle between the Demon Lord and the Hero.
It was a result born from a series of coincidences, but we were able to rescue Amelia and engage Carter with the best possible military strength we could muster.
“Amelia, let’s fall back.”
“Yeah.”
The battle was about to begin.
Knowing this, I slowly retreated with Amelia, careful not to disturb the atmosphere of the place.
In the meantime, I organized what the supervisor had told me.
The supervisor had imposed several restrictions, or rather, conditions, for us to be able to act in Amelia’s rescue during our operation.
These conditions were broadly divided into three parts.
“First, Amelia must not reach the battlefield.
This is a measure to suppress the damage caused by the Demon Lord’s soul, driven mad, intruding onto the battlefield.
Second, we must lure the Hero.
This is to use Amelia as bait to capture the main culprit of this incident.
Third, if we make contact with the Hero, we must immediately summon the Demon Lord’s Castle.
This is to ensure we do not miss the opportunity to defeat the Hero.”
The supervisor had also given me detailed instructions.
However, this was essentially a pass for us, who were not soldiers, to infiltrate the battlefield, provided we adhered to these conditions.
Normally, they could have used their reserve forces of the Demon Lord’s Army to hold Amelia back.
That would have been a more reliable plan to lure Carter.
The supervisor had bent those rules and created an opportunity to rescue Amelia, despite the risks, simply because the conditions for success were met.
The supervisor had gambled on a slim possibility between the first and second conditions, telling me to try and rescue Amelia.
The time that was given to us as a chance.
And it was up to us whether to make use of that time or let it slip away.
In such a situation, Carter’s appearance marked the end of our time.
The moment we triggered the third condition, our role would be over.
They created an opportunity to save Amelia under conditions that could be called reckless.
The environment did not allow for anything else.
This was how desperate the Demon Lord’s Army was.
For the Demon Lord’s Army, Amelia, and the soul of the first Demon Lord were not necessarily beings that had to be saved.
In fact, some within the current regime viewed them as a nuisance.
Summoning the Demon Lord’s Castle and capturing, or defeating, Carter.
Rescuing Amelia and pacifying the berserk Demon Lord’s soul would only be an unnecessary hassle.
The most efficient way to suppress the current rebellion was to eliminate the Demon Lord’s soul along with the Hero. It was no longer possible to keep the bait, used to lure the Hero, around indefinitely when it could turn against them at any moment.
If Amelia had not been rescued by the deadline, she would have been annihilated in the battle between the Hero and the Demon Lord.
To avoid that, everyone had resolved to buy a little time at the very last moment when the Hero appeared.
But, that resolve was no longer necessary.
“…I see. You’ve prepared quite a lavish decoy, Demon Lord. Even I didn’t expect there to be two Demon Lords.”
“Oh? If that’s the case, I’m satisfied. It seems it was worth the risk to bring you in.”
Amelia had regained consciousness without me knowing, and was now retreating with me to the rear.
And Carter was now facing the worst possible opponent he could imagine.
The atmosphere clearly indicated that the two were about to fight.
After the sarcastic exchange between the two, Amelia, Himik, and I quickly put distance between ourselves, about a hundred meters away, and reached a small hill.
No one was there, which meant we had arrived first.
Minami, Kitamiya, and Kaido were supposed to come here.
“Huh? What’s all the commotion?”
Upon seeing the three of them climbing the hill, Kitamiya started making noise.
Or rather, he seemed to be making noise towards Kaido.
“Hey! It’s an emergency right now! Why are you helping the enemy!?”
“Well, I thought it would be bad to just leave them there as they were.”
“Even if it’s Kaido-senpai, I can’t agree with this action. Even I can’t defend Kaido-senpai’s actions, gozaru.”
Kitamiya’s demeanor was close to hostility, but I could detect from his words that he was speaking out of concern for Kaido’s actions. Minami’s words were mixed with exasperation, but I didn’t sense any strong opposition to Kaido’s actions.
“Helping the enemy, huh? If my eyes are correct, I recognize what Kaido is carrying on his back. What do you think, Himik?”
“Master’s eyes are never wrong. They are my sisters.”
It was likely that Kaido’s inherent kindness as a Japanese person had kicked in. Kaido, feeling a sense of conscience that he couldn’t just leave the two unconscious angels there, had strapped his sword to his waist and forcibly carried the twin angels, who were small in stature, up the hill on his back.
I understood that his actions were based on his conscience, as he probably thought they would get caught up in the battle between the Hero and the Demon Lord if left there.
However, even if they were unconscious from the fight with Himik, it could be called a reckless act.
I almost said, “What were you planning to do when they woke up?” but instead, I said,
“Haa, Himik, please restrain them so they don’t go berserk when they wake up.”
“Is that okay?”
“If they are your sisters, then they are also my sisters-in-law. I’ll do what I can. So don’t make that face, Himik.”
I spoke words that affirmed Kaido’s actions.
I didn’t like seeing a woman suppressing her emotions. Especially if she was someone I had fallen for and felt kindly towards.
As I pondered what excuses I would give the supervisor, Himik, whose expression brightened even through her helmet, said,
“Umu! Leave it to me! I’ll restrain them so tightly they won’t even be able to blink, let alone move a finger!”
Saying something that made me feel uneasy, she headed towards Kaido. Himik, who occasionally showed her incompetent side, made me worry about what she would do next, but that worry was also…
“A little longer now.”
Alright, I thought, and slowly reached into my pouch, took out the usual packaged box, and lit a cigarette from it. I took a deep drag and exhaled.
The nicotine permeated my body, slightly cooling my heated thoughts.
Then, the cooled thoughts warned me to pay attention to the lingering problems.
I had to resolve my own anxieties.
I turned back to Amelia, who had been strangely quiet and had followed me obediently.
“So? How about showing your true colors soon, Demon Lord?”
As I slowly turned, I faced Amelia, her expression shifting from the familiar one I knew to a smirk. It was the Demon Lord’s soul I was confronting.
“YOU NOTICED, HUMAN.”
My faint hope that it wouldn’t be true was met with a direct reply, as if mirroring the straightforward words I had spoken.
Ah, just as I suspected. A bad feeling, and then, a foul magic overflowed again, confirming the basis of that bad feeling.
With my reason, I thought she had thankfully regained consciousness, but with my instincts, I had chosen to play along with their time-buying. I smiled, looking at the purple smoke emanating from her mouth, illuminated by the light of the Demon Lord’s Castle.
Ah, it’s truly disheartening. I never expected my work to go smoothly.
I don’t want to become suspicious of my own work or the actions of others.
But deep down, there’s a part of me that says wish-fulfillment is impossible.
Amelia’s actions, as if to support me, had felt off from the start. I could only give a wry smile.
I thought Amelia had achieved a miracle by gaining control of the Demon Lord’s soul and its magic power.
However, my twisted personality insisted that it wasn’t the case.
That’s why I sought the last chance.
“It’s partly intuition. But my intuition has been sharpened recently, and it’s surprisingly accurate.”
The act of deliberately distancing Himik and luring out her true nature, making her think I was easy to handle alone, was successful.
The president probably noticed my actions based on intuition.
Even so, he let it slide. Perhaps he thought it was harmless if left alone, or perhaps he understood my intentions.
If I survive, he will surely tell me.
“Well, overtime begins. Ah, this is the first time overtime has been this enjoyable.”
This was genuinely the last chance to save Amelia.
I smiled wryly and gripped the ore tree, walking leisurely, ready to face the overtime, which would end either when I fell or when the president defeated the Hero.
A word for today:
I apologize for deceiving my reliable superior, but I will show results, so please forgive me.
And wake up quickly, you lazy girl.
This is all for now.
If you found it interesting, please leave your impressions, ratings, bookmarks, etc.
*The first volume of the print version has been decided to be published by Hayakawa Bunko JA.
It was released on October 18, 2018.
The e-book version was also released on October 31 of the same year.
The second volume will be released on December 19.
The content has been revised and expanded from the content posted on “Shōsetsuka ni Narō,” and includes an unreleased interlude added.
Please also check out the new book!!
Additionally, a comic adaptation has been decided for Kodansha’s “Young Magazine The Third.”
