We live in the foothills of Dragon Peak.
Grivast’s Naginata
Light blue long hair. Deep blue, gem-like eyes. Purple lips. And ivory-like, white and smooth skin.
A mysterious woman appeared before us, parting the bushes with beautiful movements.
“Who…?”
We were perplexed by the appearance of a person we had never seen before.
However, there was one item in the woman’s hand that we recognized.
“That’s Grivast’s Naginata! Why do you have it!?”
Grivast’s many masterpieces were hidden in the Great Shrine of the Demon Capital ruled by the Giant Demon Lord. The naginata, which should have been his finest work, was stolen by the Puppet King.
The Puppet King had told us that if we wanted it back, we should come and retrieve it.
However, by the time we visited, that Puppet King had already been slain by Cadis, the legitimate son of the Verdant Demon Lord, who had usurped the throne.
Then, who is this woman holding Grivast’s Naginata…!
“You!”
Astel let out a feline hiss and radiated killing intent.
“Oh? Are you a she-cat? Your magic presence is so weak for a Primogenitor Race, I didn’t notice you until now.”
“Hey, shut up! Die!”
“Ah.”
Faster than I could stop her, Astel unleashed a spell.
A dazzling blast of thunder struck from Astel’s outstretched hand, attacking the woman without question.
The woman couldn’t react to the surprise magic attack. As a result, she was hit by the bomb thunder all over her body.
The power of the bomb thunder mercilessly enveloped not only the woman but also her surroundings, discharging intensely.
“Astel! We haven’t even gotten any information yet!”
The fact that she possessed Grivast’s Naginata meant she was undoubtedly Cadis’s subordinate.
We had visited the Puppet King’s castle. Cadis, having noticed the connection between the naginata the Puppet King possessed and us, might have deliberately had his pursuer carry the naginata.
Then, why was Cadis pursuing us so relentlessly?
We needed to extract some information from the woman.
And yet, Astel went berserk and launched a preemptive strike!
Lyra and I rushed to restrain Astel.
But it was already too late.
The bomb thunder Astel unleashed mercilessly swallowed everything…
“Fufufu. As usual, low-level magic. Do you really think this much can harm me?”
“Tsk.”
Astel clicked her tongue noticeably, and the woman appeared unharmed, blowing away the lingering effects of the bomb thunder.
“No way!?”
I was speechless.
“That was such an intense bomb thunder spell… and surprisingly, the surrounding bushes didn’t even suffer much damage! Astel, is your normal magic really that weak?”
“Shut up, idiot Dragon King! You die too!”
“No no, I don’t want to die, you know?”
It’s good that Astel’s magic is extremely weak… Or rather, no matter how weak it is, attacking someone without question is wrong, isn’t it?
I would be angry too if I were attacked out of the blue.
So, the woman too…
“Fufufu. Fufufu.”
However, the woman, who had been suddenly attacked by Astel, still wore a smile on her stoic expression and quietly observed us without any sign of anger.
Instead, she spoke to us with a mature demeanor.
“Well then, Grand Duke. Won’t you kill that she-cat now and join us?”
“What are you saying? Astel is our ally, and you are our enemy, right?”
At the very least, the woman who had been pursuing us was Cadis’s subordinate, and Cadis had tried to kill us. Compared to an enemy like that, I would undoubtedly choose Astel!
The woman sighed as if troubled by my response.
But her heart wasn’t in it.
It looked like she was merely putting on a show of disappointment because I didn’t obey her. In fact, after sighing, the woman spoke to me in a tone that showed no disappointment.
“Grand Duke, please reconsider. That she-cat is not of benefit to you. Rather, she should be eliminated as a pest. No, a pest cat. Now, hurry and kill the she-cat and come with me. Or shall I assist you?”
“Moo. Moo! Mumumoo!!”
Astel, whom Lyra and I were restraining, was shouting something. However, since I had her mouth covered, only muffled sounds escaped.
This is dangerous.
If I let Astel go now, she’d leap at the woman like a cat, and it would turn into an uncontrollable commotion.
The woman is an enemy, but I don’t want to fight here and now.
This is already a country ruled by the Sage Demon Lord, and causing a disturbance here would only trouble him. Not only that, if the Sage Demon Lord himself got involved, it would escalate into a truly unmanageable uproar.
Therefore, I wanted to resolve this as peacefully as possible.
However, some demons seem to revel in creating inconveniences for others and savoring the resulting pleasure.
And the woman was precisely one of those demons.
“Fufufu. I don’t know what circumstances lead you to act with such a dirty she-cat. However, your objective, Grand Duke, is this naginata, is it not?”
“Ugh!”
As expected, our objective had been seen through!
The woman ostentatiously brandished the naginata, as if to boast to us.
Grivast’s naginata was not made for demons.
As Grivast was a follower of the Temple Religion, the naginata was made for Battle Priestesses.
And ordinary demons, not being followers of the Temple Religion, did not receive it.
The woman stood there, holding that naginata.
“Lord Elnea, leave this to me, a Battle Priestess.”
Meijina stepped forward.
“I’ve heard the circumstances from Isabel and the others. That naginata is a precious treasure for both demons and the Temple Religion. Therefore, I cannot stand by.”
Lyra and I were holding Astel down together. If we didn’t, Astel would likely go on a rampage.
In that case, only Meijina could face the woman who provocatively held the naginata.
The woman watched Meijina, who had stepped forward before us, with interest.
Then, she smirked.
“A Battle Priestess, you said? Fufufu. Is that so? Then, how about this. If you win against me, I will return this naginata. However, if I win…”
“Lord Elnea will be given to you willingly!”
“Meijina!?”
Now, now, now. Don’t decide my fate without my consent!
As expected, this person rushes ahead driven by impulse and momentum!
“Hahahaha. Lord Elnea?”
“Ugh. Lyra, this is troublesome, isn’t it? But let’s leave this to Meijina for now.”
I don’t overestimate Meijina’s abilities, nor do I underestimate the woman’s abilities.
However, there’s something that’s bothering me.
So, until I can identify the source of this unsettling feeling, I’ll have Meijina do her best for a little while.
“Meijina, please be careful, okay?”
“Yes. As a Special Rank Battle Priestess, I cannot overlook someone who treats a naginata with such disrespect!”
Meijina also drew her beloved naginata.
And so, the battle between Meijina and the woman began!
Meijina was the first to attack!
She held her naginata low in front of her and charged towards the woman.
The woman met her with a counterattack. She swung Grivast’s naginata carelessly and unleashed magic!
Wind magic in the form of sharp blades attacked Meijina. However, Meijina accelerated sideways with the magic “Star Crossing,” which she had prepared while charging, thus dodging the wind magic. While doing so, she had already prepared her next spell.
A crescent moon’s radiance and shadow appeared at the woman’s feet.
Meijina restrained the woman with the binding spell “Crescent Moon Formation.”
However, magic doesn’t work well against high-ranking demons.
The woman, who thought she was bound, quickly moved. As if to counter Meijina approaching from the side, she swung Grivast’s naginata.
A sound like shattering pottery echoed in the night, and the crescent moon’s radiance and shadow vanished.
Naginata against naginata clashed.
Without pause, the woman fired off magic.
Meijina, without missing a beat, unleashed Moonbeam Arrows.
“Am-amazing!”
“Hahahaha. Her spell speed is even faster than Madrine’s!”
Yes.
Meijina’s consecutive use of spells showed a speed rivaling or even surpassing Madrine, who excelled in dual dedications.
This was Meijina’s true ability as a Special Rank Priestess. And many individuals with such strength were now staying at the mansion in the forbidden territory as shooting stars.
I wonder how much training and practical experience Meijina and the Shooting Stars have accumulated to gain such strength.
However, no matter how expertly wielded the naginata or how fast the spells, they are ineffective against an Upper Demon.
Meijina unleashed binding and attacking spells with a speed that seemed like a dual dedication.
But the woman easily deflected them and unleashed counter-magic.
It seemed the woman lacked the skill to handle Grivast’s naginata, yet she overwhelmed Meijina with magic alone.
“Kgh. This is an Upper Demon! But I won’t lose! We can’t stay weak if we want to fight alongside Him!!”
Meijina’s speed increased further.
She unleashed spells relentlessly and swung her naginata freely.
By employing a variety of spells, she aimed to slow the woman’s reactions even slightly. Then, she closed in on her, exploiting any opening, and performed elegant naginata techniques.
Most magic had little effect on the woman. Nevertheless, the woman began to be pushed back by her varied spells, forcing her to constantly react.
If Meijina continued to press her advantage, even if she couldn’t defeat the woman, we might see the outcome of the match!
Just as Lyra and I thought that.
The woman, after deflecting Meijina’s successive blows, smirked with a wicked grin.
“Meijina!”
I shouted instinctively.
Meijina also seemed to sense the woman’s suspicious movements.
She stopped her consecutive attacks and tried to create distance.
But the woman wouldn’t wait for Meijina’s movements!
The woman raised Grivast’s naginata high.
The long reach of the weapon still had Meijina, who was trying to create distance, within its range.
“Fufu. Fufu.”
And with a smile, the woman swung down Grivast’s naginata with all her might!
“Aaaah!”
I screamed!
Grivast’s naginata flew far into the night sky!
“…Huh?”
What is going on?
We were stunned.
Meijina also stopped moving and watched the Grivast’s Naginata fly into the distance in bewilderment.
“Wh-what in the world…?”
We were confused by the woman’s inexplicable actions.
Suddenly, Astel, who had finally broken free from my restraint, bit me and shouted.
“You fool Dragon King! That doll is an aide to the Puppet King!”
“Wh-What did you say!?”
“Hey, you idiot Dragon King. You airhead Dragon King. I was trying to kindly tell you, but you silenced me!”
“Wh-wh-wh-wh-wh-!”
What on earth!
I finally realized the truth behind the strange feeling I had from the beginning.
“So that’s it. Since I met Cadis earlier, Astel’s presence must have been revealed too. The woman… or rather, the doll, spoke as if she had only just learned of Astel’s existence upon seeing her here, right? And she called me Grand Duke. Most importantly, she’s been on bad terms with Astel from the start!”
“The ‘bad terms’ part is unnecessary!”
“Ouch, ouch, ouch. Don’t bite my finger!”
I finally understood.
Since the woman was a doll of the Puppet King, she was telling me to abandon Astel and join the Puppet King’s side, right?
Yet, I had mistakenly believed the woman to be Cadis’s subordinate. In other words, I had misinterpreted her words as telling me to become Cadis’s subordinate.
Astel had known the woman’s true identity from the beginning. But Lyra and I had restrained her movements and voice, so she couldn’t tell me.
“I’m sorry, Astel?”
“I won’t forgive you!”
“Fufu. Fufufu.”
Lyra and I desperately apologized to Astel.
Seeing this, the woman smiled with amusement.
“This has been another delightful puppet show.”
“Mumu?”
The woman’s voice suddenly changed, and a familiar childish voice spoke instead. Lyra and I turned around.
This childish voice and laugh…
The woman took a step back.
Conversely, a girl emerged from the depths of the night.
“Young Lady Elin!?”
“Fufufu. Please do not call me ‘Young Lady,’ sir?”
That’s right. The one who appeared before us was undeniably Erin Beryl, the Puppet King herself!
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