'Ha, really? You're really just going to get eaten like this? Are you kidding me?'

「... Because of me, you really went through a lot.」

'Dammit! If you do this, your soul will be eaten by that bastard too!'

「I'm really... really sorr—」

'Are you even listening to me, you damn human!'

「Shut up, trash. I'm apologizing to this person. Don't interrupt.」

'You greenhorn...!'

* * *

'Will I be okay?'

To whoever was asking that, she wanted to answer. That if she died fighting, it would be a good death.

But...

"I know, that no death can ever be a good death."

In the end, that was the answer that came out first. It was the same even knowing that Norda warriors considered dying in battle to be a point of pride.

The death revered by the Norda warriors and the death she had come to realize were different, and that gap was destined to never narrow for the rest of her life.

Even if she lived as a Norda warrior and died as a Norda warrior.

"A blessed death, there's no way such a thing exists in the world."

Death is just a fancy word wrapping up the act of being forgotten.

And being forgotten is to be erased from the world, as if you had never existed from the start.

Her eyelids trembled as she murmured bitterly. CRASH! Her body was leaping up, stepping on the bursting currents of water and the falling debris following them.

FLUTTER.

The thick piece of cloth wrapped around her waist spread out heavily.

SCREECH!

THUD!

Standing at the edge of the collapsing castle wall, she ruthlessly kicked a Merman trying to slash her. The Merman's head was slightly crushed, and the recoil sent her body soaring.

The next thing the soles of her feet touched was the nape of the monster that was advancing while smashing through obstacles.

The body of the snake constricting the turtle's neck in a spiral was slippery.

SCREECH!

She moved her arms the moment she felt the slipping sensation beneath her thin shoe soles.

Instantly twisting her grip, wrist, and forearm angle, her hands swung the spear vertically.

SLASH.

The spear swung back almost simultaneously with her landing, sweeping across the snake's hide. Unfortunately, it was impossible to even confirm whether it had scratched it or not.

Although if the flesh wasn't ripped wide open, it was meaningless whether there was a scratch or not anyway.

"Phew."

On top of that, it was a situation where she had to step back for a moment.

["Where are you going."]

["I am right here."]

["My little sister."]

Starting with the Sirens flying around her, that was the case. If those things attacked simultaneously, even she would have no choice but to struggle.

Therefore, while she felt disgust toward the things adding a word each, she prioritized stepping on the snake and running. The snake's body was thick enough that she alone could easily run on it.

'... So are you going to die today?'

Around that point, someone asked again. Her lips parted.

"Maybe so."

The stubborn response was something she had been repeating like a parrot since earlier.

She let out a breath, trying to drive the spearhead into the gap between the scales.

["It's cold, it's cold. It's so cold..."]

["Save me. Please save me..."]

Although the spearhead failed to inflict a major wound on the snake, her body used the spear shaft as a support to lift her legs into the air for a moment. SMACK! The tips of her feet continuously struck the wing joints of a Siren.

TAP.

Then, when her legs stepped onto the surface again, she quickly pulled out her spear and swung it.

The things struck by the spearhead and the end of the shaft bled as they retreated backward.

BOOM!

"...!"

Right then, with a violent tremor, the giant monster properly broke through the castle wall.

Its carapace had been caught across two castle walls, and it had ignorantly marched forward, completely demolishing the sections it was wedged into.

Her hand, which was almost thrown off, quickly tried to grab the snake's body. However, it was too slippery, so she opted to use a Siren that was trying to attack instead.

Striking the approaching creature's Adam's apple and stepping on its torso to jump, her hand grabbed onto the turtle's hide.

On the hide that the snake was wrapping around, seaweed, coral, and all sorts of seashells were growing, so there were plenty of things she could use as handles.

SPLASH!

Suddenly, she saw the seawater rushing in refreshingly beneath her. Because it was a structure where water came in every time the waves crashed, the volume wasn't massive.

GURGLE.

However, its real problem wasn't the amount of water, but what was coming in with the water.

The Legless-type Mermen—who were forcibly brought in after being swept up in the initial current—floundered as they tried to return to the sea, while the ones with legs trudged forward covered in mud.

THUD, THUD, THUD.

In the midst of this, the monster had no intention of stopping either. It was slow, but its sheer size made it faster than a human's basic walking pace, which was truly troubling.

At this rate, the fleeing soldiers might get caught.

She glanced downward while thrusting at an additionally approaching Siren. For now, there was some distance, but the soldiers were still within her field of vision.

This was because there were those who were slow to flee, as well as groups who had received orders to help with the citizens' evacuation.

"... I'll have to aim for the head."

Was it unavoidable then? She decided to aim for the head, which was a weakness for most living creatures.

Since the reality was that blades wouldn't even pierce the main body connected to the other body, it would be better to attack the mouth where there was at least some tender flesh. It was a judgment not entirely devoid of such an underlying aim.

And to do that, she had to climb up.

Feeling thankful that the snake provided a spiral path, she dashed upward.

SCREECH!

Then, the snake let out a long cry. It seemed to have also noticed the presence of the uninvited guest climbing up its body.

The snake's body began to writhe and sway.

CLACK!

"—!"

She somehow managed to avoid falling by gripping the moss and seaweed... but the spear she had been holding fell instead.

Her brow furrowed.

Now, the only things she could use were her two bare hands.

* * *

'I'm the one who should have asked that?! I asked if you didn't care if your soul was never saved forever!'

「Ha, are you the one asking me that right now? You? Of all people, you—!!!」

'Hand over control, you greenhorn!'

「Piss off! Since my life can't be saved anyway, if I can drag you down to the abyss, what wouldn't I do! I'll never, never let you return alive—!」

* * *

"Evacuate first!"

"Dammit, we'll follow you soon, so please stay alive!"

After leaving those words, the Inquisitor rode off on the Demon Knight's horse. Was it because she had asked it to go to its master?

The creature, which normally turned its head away whenever she sneaked up on it, was unusually cooperative today. Wind poured over her tightly lowered body, and the streets, slowly emptying as people evacuated, whipped past her.

"Aaaaaargh!!"

"Hyuuuung!!"

SCREECH!

And, from a certain point onward, demons began to appear.

The first to appear had the head of a lion, the paws of a bear, and the body of a bull wearing a shell. It was a Tarrasque. As a subspecies of dragons, it was a high-ranking demon that you would normally only expect to see on the Northern Front.

"Stop right there!!"

What was the reason for a Tarrasque suddenly appearing? She wondered if it was related to the surging demonic energy, but her thoughts were cut off by the ensuing screams.

What she needed to focus on right now were the people being attacked by the Tarrasque. Seeing the countless corpses crushed beneath the Tarrasque's feet, her hand raised her mace.

ROAR!

"Hah!"

The demon attempting to attack the people was blocked right then and there by her golden barrier, and the Inquisitor charged forward at full speed without stopping.

It would have been a disaster if the horse had stopped in fear, but perhaps because it took after its master, the Demon Knight's horse was completely fearless. It was a relief.

SKID!

It even turned its ankles at the perfect timing to make it easier for her to strike the Tarrasque.

The Inquisitor glared fiercely and swung her mace. As soon as the golden barrier deactivated, her mace smashed into the Tarrasque's lion head that had been rubbing against the shield.

CRUNCH!

Struck by the immense force, the Tarrasque went flying with a caved-in head. Of course, because she had infused a little less divine power to conserve her strength, it didn't die in one hit.

Like someone suffering from a concussion, the Tarrasque staggered as it picked itself up.

"Let's go!"

SNORT.

She couldn't miss this opportunity. She urged the horse forward to approach the creature, then leaped off the horse as it veered to the side at the perfect timing.

CRASH!

The mace gripped in both hands slammed down on the Tarrasque's head, completely crushing it. SNORT. The horse, which had stopped a little to the side, cried out haughtily.

"H-Haaah..."

"Are you hurt?!"

Just how many people had been killed by this Tarrasque? She paid a silent tribute and offered condolences to those who were already dead while hurriedly approaching the survivors.

Young brothers and a mother and daughter who appeared to be a different party. These four were it.

"I will heal you, so flee immediately! If you run while sticking close to the buildings, you will be less likely to be spotted by the demons."

After adequately healing only their urgent wounds, she even added the advice, 'I recommend throwing away your luggage to lighten your bodies,' before getting on the horse.

Realizing that this place was dangerous, the smart horse didn't stray away from her for a single moment—except during combat situations.

"Let's go!"

The Demon Knight would be sad if a horse like this ended up getting hurt.

She made the decision to send the horse back once they reached a certain location. Although she was quite worried about it returning on its own, it would be much better than going into that fiery pit with her.

She would have to place a blessing on it just in case, though.

GROWL.

NEIGH.

"A demon— Gasp!"

... However, maybe a blessing wouldn't even be needed.

She stopped dealing with the Skeletons that had suddenly popped out, unable to hold back her admiration as she watched the horse smash a demon to pieces with a back kick.

She didn't want to be distracted by idle thoughts at a time like this, but she thought that the Demon Knight had truly brought along a horse just like him.

However, even those thoughts didn't last long.

"Uwaaah!"

"I'm coming!"

Screams could be heard from every other block. No. They decreased as she went further. There was just a massive pile of corpses instead.

"A Dullahan!"

But what was this? After discovering a Dullahan following the Tarrasque, an incredibly unsettling thought crossed her mind.

After all, both the Tarrasque and the Dullahan were demons that you could never easily encounter.

This was because a Tarrasque required hundreds of sacrifices to summon, and a Dullahan required the corpse of a knight who had been decapitated in battle—the cause of death strictly had to be that—for its creation.

Thus, no matter how much preparation the demon contractors who orchestrated this act had made, unleashing both of them at the same time would have been an arduous task...

CLANG!

She blocked the Dullahan's swordsmanship, which was exceptionally skilled since it was created from a knight's corpse, entirely with her shield. And then, when the Dullahan's combo ended, she ruthlessly crushed it down with divine power.

Although she needed to conserve her strength, the Dullahan was an enemy that would take too long if she fought it while holding back. Since time was as precious as gold in this situation, she had to judge wisely.

CRACK!

The Inquisitor's mace shattered the Dullahan's frozen heart.

SHRIEK, SHRIEK!

In the midst of this, even Gremlins made an appearance.

She ground her teeth at the lower-ranking demons that were similar to Goblins. Right now, a high-ranking demon would actually be better. That would just be one monster, so it would be fine as long as she handled it alone.

However, lower-ranking ones that were just strong enough for ordinary people to be unable to handle them, and came in large numbers...

"Th-Thank you."

"Go!"

If even a single one slipped past, not only that man, but the horse would be in danger too.

Following the appearance of two high-ranking demons, the Inquisitor set aside her doubts about where all these demons were swarming from and shouted.

"Take this horse with you! It belongs to a knight, so you just need to hand it over to someone working at the Temple or the castle! You must hand it over to them!"

"U-U-Understood!"

Would the citizen actually try to return such a majestic and precious-looking horse? She was conflicted, but quickly memorized the citizen's face.

Gray hair, blue eyes. It was unknown if she would be able to retain this memory amidst all the events to come.

"You run away with that person too. Thank you for bringing me this far."

SNORT.

Still, it was a bit of a relief that the creature was smart.

Facing the horse, which only disobeyed her normally but communicated astonishingly well in times like this, she unleashed her divine power. A golden barrier blocked the Gremlins.

"Uwaaaaaah!"

In the meantime, the horse began to run with the citizen on its back. Uwaaaaah. The scream of the pitiful person, who had to start off at a gallop without ever having learned horseback riding, echoed through the alley.

Doing that would attract the demons' attention. She couldn't bring herself to give that piece of advice.

Putting her mace away, she steadily pushed forward, smashing the Gremlins' heads by swinging her shield.

Perhaps there were no more survivors, as screams could no longer be heard.

"...!"

Instead, the air began to change. It was the kind of air where hot breath dug into her respiratory system and scorching heat gently scratched at her skin.

The fire giant that had seemed so far away was now right before her eyes.

"Demon Knight..."

Where was the man who had gone to stop that thing right now? Could he possibly be laying his body down there, somewhere in that place, like the other people...

GROWL!

CLANG!

She reflexively swung her shield at the bizarre monster that poured out from a narrow gap. It was because the reflexes she had developed through long training had judged the opponent to be something amorphous.

And something amorphous often dug into the side of a shield. She absolutely shouldn't have blocked it.

SPLAT!

"A Mimic!"

She urgently drew her mace and prepared to counterattack.

This was because a Mimic—which settled down in containers capable of holding things or in narrow crevices, only to swallow up whatever came near—was one of the fairly tricky demons to deal with.

Indeed, a Mimic was a subspecies of a Slime. If she didn't want to experience having everything except metal objects melt away the moment she touched it, she had to completely avoid contact and destroy its core.

Though sometimes, the absolute worst ones would even melt metal.

"Phew."

Then should she push through this with divine power too? But she had used too much strength while coming here. Even though the demonic energy over there hadn't diminished in the slightest!

She gritted her teeth at her body, which was heating up again.

Should she go, or should she stand her ground here and only kill the demons that came out? In the first place, could she handle that place on her own?

A weight that was too heavy to decide on alone, yet one that she had to decide entirely on her own, crushed down on her shoulders.

She wished she had the Archmage, or at least the Demon Knight who would eliminate her options by charging ahead, or even the slacker who could ease her burden by discussing things with her.

The Inquisitor's lips pressed tightly together.

["Why are you standing still over there?"]

And then, the demon called out to her. The Mimic stopped right after that question, no longer showing any intention to attack.

["You should hurry up and come kill the Great Demon, Hero."]

It truly was a demon's whisper.

* * *

'... Is someone there?'

「...!」

...!