We live at the foothills of Dragon Peak.
Assault: Giant Sandworm
The summers of the land where we were born and raised may not have truly been summers. In the desert, where the scorching sunlight beat down, making us feel this way, we waited for Cadis, who had gone out on reconnaissance, to return.
“Between the stretches of desert, there are rather significant rock formations and small boulders scattered around. Looking at it that way, there might actually be solid ground beneath this sand.”
Srain, who said this, parted the desert sand with the sword he wore at his waist.
“It’s not as hot as I thought if you get under the shade of the rocks. Is it because there’s no humidity?”
Ruilala, mimicking Srain, dug holes in the desert sand at her feet.
But the two of them gave up immediately.
“It’s just a waste of energy.”
“Unless the water boils, I don’t want to waste energy just to check the ground.”
With a grunt, Srain and Ruilala sat down together in the shade of the rocks.
What was I doing while they were moving out of curiosity?
I had been sitting there from the start!
“Here, some water. Since Ares-chan is here, I won’t say ‘water is precious in the desert,’ but drink it carefully, okay?”
“Elru, bring me some sake.”
“As if I have any!”
No, actually, I brought a lot.
I received it as souvenirs when I returned to the Armēdo Kingdom.
And originally, Yufilia and Nina were supposed to accompany me, so they had Ares-chan carry it.
But that’s a secret.
“According to His Majesty the Giant Demon Lord, this area became a desert because of the weapon of one of the Nine Demon Generals, right?”
“That giant scythe that devours any life it finds around, right?”
It’s a legendary weapon for demons, possessed by Istericia, who was a companion of Baltnowar.
A cursed great scythe that devours all manner of life, not just animals and spirits, and converts it into terrifying power.
The original owner unleashed power here greater than when Istericia used it.
And the result is the great desert that has spread widely across the Eastern Continent.
“I don’t feel any living breath. I can’t imagine people living in a place like this.”
Although it’s a barren desert, it seems there are scattered springs of various sizes here and there. People build settlements and towns around these springs and live there.
And one of those towns is the Holy Knight Academy City that we are heading towards.
“Both of you, conserve your energy because we don’t know what will happen from now on.”
“If the experienced Elnea-kun says so, then there’s nothing we can do.”
“I wonder if it would be interesting if some challenging monsters or yōma appeared.”
“That wouldn’t be interesting!”
This battle fanatic always has nothing but fighting on their mind. While giving a bitter smile, I straightened my posture on the sand in the shade.
“Cadis is out scouting, but let’s not let our guard down either. Like Srain said, monsters and yōma can appear at any time.”
I entered a state of meditation.
When I do, my calmed mind can perceive the world in detail and provide me with various information.
By resting, I can also recover the energy that is being unnecessarily consumed by the heat.
As I thought this and let my mind dissolve into the world, I immediately sensed something was wrong.
The dragon vein is dry…?
No, that’s not it.
The dragon vein flows faintly beneath the earth, but it’s as weak as the streaks of water pooled in a riverbed just before it dries up.
That’s not all.
There is almost no flow of dragon veins in the wind that whips up the sand, nor in the scorching sky and earth.
“I see. Only this desert region is the world dying…”
One of the Nine Demon Generals, who once stood shoulder to shoulder with the Giant Demon Lord. The great scythe wielded by that great demon devoured even the life of the world and turned this land into a desert of death.
“Is it the remnant of magic used by a demon from long ago to turn a vast land into a desert? I wish I could have fought that guy.”
“Srain, you really like sparring with the strong, don’t you?”
“Of course. I live for battle and die in battle.”
“That’s either noble or troublesome… I feel like complaining to the Bewitching Eyes Demon Lord who raised you into such a demon.”
“Good. Stop by on our way back. I’ll send out a signal for you.”
“I’ll pass!”
Srain and Ruilala, perhaps to fill their idle hands, began to maintain their swords.
Ruilala, in particular, who has a hobby of collecting swords, meticulously checked the condition of her magic sword.
“Even if it’s to provide as little information as possible to those living in the desert, your sword is quite dull, isn’t it?”
“It sounds good to say it’s made by the Cat Duke, but it’s ultimately a low-performance magic sword.”
Speaking of which, the magic swords that Srain, Ruilala, and Cadis brought were created by Astel before we headed here.
Of course, we can’t infiltrate the Holy Knight Academy with top-tier magic swords that high-ranking demons possess, or with the Soul Spirit Seat that represents a Demon Lord.
So, the three of them have very average magic swords.
I wonder.
Would Astel honestly create ordinary magic swords…?
“By the way, our weapons are pretty much standard, but what about yours? This time it’s not your usual twin swords, is it?”
Saying this, Srain stared intently at the “swords” I wore at both my waists.
“Hmph. Srain, if you see these two wooden swords as mere branches, you still have a long way to go.”
Srain, who said “You’re not wrong,” with a smile, didn’t seem to see through the true nature of my new weapon.
Only Ruilala, who knows me well from before, snorted curiously, “Hmm.”
“Well then, Cadis should be back by now.”
“I wonder how far he went?”
It was while Srain and Ruilala were having this conversation.
A hot wind suddenly swept through.
“I’m back.”
And then, Cadis, the subject of our conversation, suddenly appeared before us, as if he had teleported.
“How was it?”
In response to Srain’s question, Cadis pointed to the east.
“It’s far, but there’s a small spring and a settlement over there. From here, it would be best to head there first.”
As expected of Cadis!
He’s incredibly competent and reliable when he’s on our side.
“Cadis, you must be tired. Here, have some water. Well then, shall we start moving after the sun sets?”
Cadis drank the water I handed him, seeming to enjoy it.
Then, he sat down in the shade of the rocks, just like us.
Uh, if the destination is decided, why aren’t we leaving immediately?
Fufufu.
I’ve done my homework!
It’s better to move at night when the temperature has dropped rather than force ourselves to be active during the day in deserts and hot lands.
This is what the great teacher Listea said!
Without me needing to explain, the demon group seemed to already possess that much knowledge.
No one voiced any doubts, and they obediently rested in the shade while the sun blazed.
And so, as the sun set, we started walking east as planned.
The sandy land was harder to walk on than I expected, and it was difficult for the four of us to keep the same pace.
Still, we couldn’t afford to stray.
In unfamiliar places, we have to act together as a group more than usual.
If we don’t prepare ourselves mentally for that, we won’t be able to coordinate well when problems arise. And if a loophole appears, everything will quickly spiral in a bad direction.
Therefore, everyone matched their pace and proceeded east.
Then, quite some time after the sun had set on the western desert horizon, we sensed something was wrong.
“I sense a group of people over there?”
The desert is a continuous expanse of undulating slopes like hills and valleys, making it impossible to see far.
Even so, all of us have the ability to sense presences from afar.
In response to my observation, Srain reached for the magic sword at his waist.
“Hey, hey! No resorting to combat immediately, okay?”
“You’re the only one who orders me, the Demon Lord, around.”
“No, no, here your race and status don’t matter, and I’m just stating common sense!?”
Ruilala and Cadis laughed as I tried to calm Srain down.
“In any case, let’s try to make friendly contact first. If they’re a traveling merchant caravan, we might be able to get some information.”
“Elnea-kun, you got caught in Srain’s scheme by contacting a caravan like that, didn’t you?”
“Ruilala, you don’t have to worry about me!”
Before sunset, we had talked a lot to deepen our bonds.
Of course, I also talked about how I stopped Cadis’s rebellion and traveled to Srain’s country.
“From now on, to avoid suspicion, let’s also ban words like ‘Demon Lord,’ okay?”
The East Continent has multi-ethnic city-states and towns where various races are mixed. We don’t know how the existence of a “Demon Lord” is treated in such regions.
So, it’s better not to use dangerous words.
“What about Elru’s Dragon Archduke?”
“What about Elnea-kun’s Messenger of the Dragon God?”
“What should we do about Elnea’s Dragon King?”
“All of it — KIN — SHI — !”
Our setting is “ordinary travelers” who came from the west!
It feels like we’re always disguising our identities when we travel to other regions.
Putting that question aside.
The four of us adjusted our course towards the direction where we sensed the presence.
Crossing small sandy hills, sliding down steep sandy valleys, we moved through the desert night.
“Over there! They went underground over there!”
“Watch your footing. There’s more than one!”
Amidst the starlit desert night, roars echoed.
About ten people, scattered across the desert, were searching the ground cautiously while shouting to each other.
“What happened!?”
“Elru, be careful of what’s under the sand. Something is lurking there.”
At first, we were moving slowly due to the unfamiliar desert terrain, but it seemed the people ahead of us were being attacked by something, so we hurried to the scene.
“A monster that burrows in the sand? If it’s not a bother, we’ll cooperate.”
“Hahaha, I wonder what will appear?”
Drawing their magic swords, Cadis took the lead. Srain followed, kicking up the desert sand.
“Thanks. Be careful, it’s a Giant Sandworm!”
“Multiple are lurking under the sand!”
“Scatter! You’ll be targeted if you stay bunched up.”
“I see,” Srain said, moving away from me.
It was at that moment!
“Kts. Below me!?”
Before I could even ask what a Giant Sandworm was, I felt something strange in the desert sand I was standing on and jumped high.
From the spot where I had been, a giant creature suddenly burst forth!
“A giant worm!?”
It was a terrifyingly giant worm-like monster.
The worm monster, which emerged from the ground, spewing sand like a waterspout, let out a strange cry.
The tip of its long, cylindrical body split in two, lined with an array of sharp fangs.
I narrowly dodged the assault of the monster called the Giant Sandworm, a sight that evoked disgust just by looking at it.
“Good reaction, Elru.”
Unlike me, who had maintained distance from the Giant Sandworm with a large leap, Srain charged in to attack!
With a *zan*, he swung his magic sword, slicing through the cylindrical body that had appeared on the ground.
“Tch.”
But Srain immediately retreated, clicking his tongue.
“It’s too massive. Just slashing at it with a sword won’t get me anywhere?”
As Srain said, the Giant Sandworm, which had now exposed a cylindrical body several times the size of a person above ground, was unaffected by sword cuts of a single-handed sword.
Srain’s slash seemed to have only cut through its thick hide, and no blood even came out.
“Tch, it’s an act of desperation to defeat these with just swords!”
“Hahaha, there are unbelievable monsters lurking in the desert.”
Not only Srain and I, but also Cadis, Ruilala, and the people had several Giant Sandworms appear, writhing their massive bodies and rampaging.
Kts…!
In the face of this sudden crisis, I was forced to make a decision.
Since we are infiltrating the Holy Knight Academy, we want to hide the fact that we are also skilled in Dragon Arts and magic, not just swordsmanship.
But this situation…
“Ridiculous! Monsters like this are no match for us siblings. ‘Sand shall turn to blade, and wind shall bind it!!'”
At that moment, “powerful words” echoed in the desert night.
By clicking the heart, you can easily convey your support. (Login required)
Support
Login if you have an account.
Learn more about the reading experience possible on Kakuyomu.
