Chapter 211. The Only Hope

When Luri's axe slammed into the ground, the earth rippled violently.

The tremor was so powerful that even the bravest warhorses staggered and collapsed.

The mounts that had transformed into demonic beasts now had beast-like forelimbs instead of hooves, granting them enough balance to withstand such shaking.

Yet even so...

- Silverwind's whelp!

- Valdrova's dog!

- Traitor who abandoned her own father!

The demonized knights mocked Luri as they swung their swords.

But all they cut apart were the afterimages she had left behind. Their blades never even grazed her.

Even in a reckless melee against the Demon Race, the battle overwhelmingly favored Luri.

Watching the scene unfold, King Heinkel spoke as though he were merely watching a fire from across the river.

"So... that is what a Dragon Spawn truly is."

He reached into the air.

Something began taking shape above his palm before forming into a black book that settled into his hand.

King Heinkel then extended his other hand toward the knight standing beside him.

At once, black energy poured out from every opening on the knight's face—his eyes, nose, ears, and mouth—and gathered in the king's hand.

It was a grotesque radiance composed of both life force and Mana.

Holding the mass of energy, he pointed it toward Luri and chanted,

"Hindes Rule."

The spell struck Luri directly.

"Ugh."

Her body suddenly became unbearably heavy.

It felt as though some invisible force had wrapped itself around her entire body, restraining every movement.

- You can't run anymore!

- Accept your death!

The demons charged toward her without hesitation.

"Luri."

Calling her name, Ferda began constructing a Magic Circle.

It was an acceleration spell capable of partially negating the burden imposed by Hindes Rule.

However, Luri shot him a fierce glare.

She said nothing, yet he instantly understood what she meant.

This is my prey.

She had no intention of letting anyone interfere with this chance to repay even a fraction of the humiliation she had suffered at the hands of the Demon Race.

So Ferda quietly dismissed the spell.

"Hmph!"

Even while placed at a disadvantage, she proved herself worthy of Silverwind's bloodline.

She quickly adapted to her slowed body and resumed cutting down the demons, overwhelming them once more.

"Amazing... Truly amazing..."

King Heinkel smiled faintly as he admired her.

"She makes our entire army seem utterly meaningless."

His fingers traced several lines through the air.

The movements of the demon knights immediately changed.

They had realized there was no point focusing solely on Luri.

- Kill the humans!

If they were doomed to die, they would drag down as many others as possible.

The demon riders wheeled their mounts toward Yurei and Ferda.

There were only three of them.

But every one of them was a terrifying opponent.

"Prepare for battle!"

Ferda and the escort knights were no ordinary soldiers either.

While they might lag behind in tactics against humans and monsters, no one understood demonic beasts better than they did.

And Ferda had now become a Five-Circle Mage.

No matter how directly the sun shone overhead, shadows could never defy his will.

Calmly clasping both hands together as if creating a sight, he fixed his gaze upon the foremost demon rider.

A blue glow shone within his eyes.

The instant the rider entered range, Ferda brought his palms together.

RUMBLE!

A massive black shadow erupted beneath the rider like a giant Venus flytrap, swallowing both rider and mount whole.

The demon rider, who had charged so boldly, found himself completely trapped.

But only briefly.

No matter how exceptional Ferda's magic was, the power of a demon far surpassed that of humans.

The creature tore through the shadow prison and burst free.

Exactly as Ferda had expected.

All he had needed was that brief moment.

Just enough time to draw another Magic Circle.

Just enough time to keep the enemy fixed at the designated coordinates.

Ferda raised his staff and condensed Mana.

The spell he cast was a Fifth-Tier offensive spell.

"Lightning Pile."

A spell that summoned a bolt of lightning.

The only difference...was that the crimson lightning did not descend from the heavens.

BOOM!!

CRACK!!

The scarlet lightning erupted from the earth itself, piercing straight into the sky.

The demon rider and mount were struck head-on and launched upward.

When they came crashing back down, their limp bodies left no doubt.

They had both died in a single strike.

Only two demon riders remained.

"Attack!"

"Death to those damned demons!"

The escort guards charged with a thunderous battle cry.

After a fierce struggle, the remaining two demon riders also fell as corpses upon the battlefield.

The escorts suffered only three seriously wounded.

The battle was over.

"What a monster..."

"If things like that came at us in groups... we'd be completely helpless..."

"No kidding."

As they spoke, everyone's eyes shifted elsewhere.

There was someone even more monstrous.

That Dragon Spawn who had fought one of those demons alone...and won.

Though she possessed only a small frame, Luri stood alone atop the hill like a towering giant.

A blood-soaked axe rested in one hand.

In the other, she dragged King Heinkel across the ground by force.

"Lord Ferda. I've captured the enemy commander."

"Well done."

Luri forced King Heinkel onto his knees before Ferda and Duke Yurei, grabbing him by the hair and forcing him to look up.

Despite having lost every soldier under his command, his expression remained remarkably gentle.

"Sigmund..."

Duke Yurei murmured the name, still unable to believe what he was seeing.

"Perry. It truly saddens me that you chose not to stand beside me."

King Heinkel chuckled softly.

Duke Yurei's hands trembled violently with betrayal.

His gaze fixed upon the king's neck.

"Even if you cut off my head now, it would accomplish nothing."

"I have become the kingdom itself."

Yurei could scarcely comprehend such absurd words.

Ferda, however, immediately understood.

"You've turned the kingdom into a Legion?"

"Remarkably knowledgeable, Regent Ferda."

"Yes."

"I turned it into a Legion."

"What does that mean, Regent?" Duke Yurei asked.

"It means killing your old friend is meaningless."

"This being is both Sigmund Heinkel... and not Sigmund Heinkel."

"Exactly."

King Heinkel laughed again.

"But creating a Legion requires linking everyone's minds into one. How did you accomplish that?"

"They all willingly chose to become part of the Legion."

"To protect our homeland."

"To stop the greed of fools."

"Did Eli... and Sigmund II..."

"...Become the same as you?"

"Of course."

"They became part of the Legion as well."

Duke Yurei felt his mind go blank.

He could not believe the man before him referred to his beloved wife and proud son simply as they.

"It's not too late, Perry."

"You were more than a brother to me."

"We spent half our lives together."

"We can still become complete."

"Let us protect the Kingdom of Heinkel."

King Heinkel reached out toward Duke Yurei.

But the hand fell to the ground.

Yurei had severed it.

"You always said you were unfit to be king."

"And whenever you said that..."

"I promised I would become your eyes."

Yurei slowly raised his sword toward the heavens.

"The fact you've become this..."

"...Is my fault."

Tears streamed from his eyes as he looked upon the king who had become so horribly twisted.

"I will soon..."

"...Follow after you."

His sword descended.

It split Sigmund Heinkel's body in two.

The empty light faded from the king's eyes.

At the same time, King Heinkel's appearance transformed into that of an ordinary commoner whose name no one knew.

Duke Yurei silently stared down at the corpse.

"Regent Ferda."

"Yes."

"This Legion..."

"What exactly is it?"

"And what is this so-called ideal of Gamigin?"

"It is a spell that substitutes another member of the Legion's life in place of someone else's death."

"The requirements are extraordinarily strict."

"Even the Great Demon Gamigin failed to realize it."

"So, put simply..."

"...Until every single citizen of the kingdom dies..."

"...Sigmund cannot truly die?"

"That is correct."

Duke Yurei fell to his knees.

"Regent Ferda."

His voice was filled with despair.

"When I lost my son..."

"...I believed I had already lost everything."

"..."

"But it seems..."

"...There was still something left for me to lose."

"I have now lost my closest friend."

"My king."

"How many people have I lost because of my own foolish decisions?"

"This is a disgrace that can never be washed away."

He slowly raised his head toward the sky.

Then he twisted the sword in his hand and brought it to his own throat.

Watching him, Ferda spoke calmly.

"You'll regret it."

"How can you possibly know I'll regret this?"

"There are still people remaining in your duchy."

Only then did the overwhelming grief begin to subside.

Ferda was right.

His people remained.

His knights remained.

His territory still endured.

There was still hope that they had not yet fallen into the despair spread by King Heinkel.

Duke Yurei let the sword fall and rose to his feet.

He gazed across the plain littered with the corpses of knights who had become demons.

Something about the horrific sight inspired him.

He spoke again.

"Regent Ferda."

"Yes."

"It is shameless of me to ask this of the man who saved my life..."

"...But I have a favor to ask."

"Please, speak."

Duke Yurei explained his request.

After hearing it, Ferda realized...it was something he could never refuse.

***

Inside the castle of Duke Yurei's territory.

The fortress, which had long been tense and silent, suddenly erupted with excitement.

Duke Yurei had returned.

Upon hearing the news, the lords and knights gathered at the castle to welcome him home.

"His Grace, the Duke, has arrived!"

"Your Grace!"

"You've returned safely!"

"You must have suffered terribly..."

"...You've become so thin..."

Unable to contain their emotions, several lords burst into tears.

Though he accepted each of their greetings, Duke Yurei's expression remained bitter.

"Everyone."

When he finally took his seat, he spoke in a grave voice.

"Yesterday..."

"...I raised my sword against my oldest friend."

"The man who was once my king."

The festive atmosphere instantly turned into one of mourning.

"W-Why would you do such a thing?"

"Because he fell under the influence of the Demon Race."

"Deceived by the demons...?"

"Is... is that really true?"

Duke Yurei was not a man given to jokes.

Yet no one could believe it.

King Heinkel...had joined hands with the Demon Race.

Ignoring their stunned expressions, Yurei continued.

"He now appears to use the lives of everyone in the kingdom as his own magical power."

"He has become the same kind of creature as a Necromancer who formed a Contract with Gamigin."

Silence filled the hall.

"He claimed it was for the sake of protecting the kingdom."

"I do not believe that."

"And neither do you."

Everyone lowered their heads solemnly.

"The king has strayed onto the wrong path."

"And that..."

"...Is my responsibility."

Yurei clenched his fist tightly.

"I promised I would remain by Sigmund's side during his darkest hour."

"But I broke that promise."

"So I drew my sword against him."

"And now..."

He drew his sword once more.

"...I will raise it against my old friend again."

"You mean..."

"...You're going to attack the Kingdom of Heinkel?"

The lords and knights were horrified.

Just when they had finally grasped a sliver of hope amid the chaos...they were now being told to prepare for civil war.

"Forgive me for asking..."

"...But do we have any chance of victory?"

"No."

Duke Yurei left them with not even the slightest hope.

"None of us will return alive."

"The enemies awaiting us are monsters..."

"...And demons."

"Then why make such a decision?"

"Because..."

"...It is the only way we can continue living as human beings."

"And the only hope left to us."

He pointed out the window.

"What do you think will happen if we ask outsiders for help?"

"Greedy vultures, no better than goblins, will make toys of your wives and daughters."

"They will work your sons until they die in misery."

Silence filled the room.

"But if we are the first to draw our swords..."

"...If we are the first to oppose the evil demons who corrupted our king..."

"...If we perish first..."

"...Then we can preserve our pride as human beings."

"And we will have earned the right to protect our wives and children."

They would march knowingly toward certain death.

Yet through that sacrifice...they would create a new hope.

The knights and lords lowered their heads, each wearing conflicted expressions.

"Anyone unwilling may withdraw."

"I will not blame you."

"The loyalty between ruler and vassal is, in the end, merely an excuse."

"It is little different from rebellion."

One of the lords was the first to place a hand over his chest and kneel.

"If our lord is determined to uphold the loyalty between sovereign and subject..."

"...How could we possibly retreat?"

"If we cling to life without honor..."

"...There can be no greater disgrace."

"Our ancestors would surely laugh at us."

The knights knelt one after another.

"If our lord is prepared to die..."

"...How could his knights ever show him their backs?"

"Even if I fall..."

"...My son will one day avenge his father."

"What have I to fear?"

"Your Grace!"

"Your sword awaits your command!"

Every one of them knelt upon the floor, planting their swords upright before them.

"Please give the order!"

Duke Yurei gave his command.

"Prepare for deployment."

"At dawn tomorrow..."

"...We march for the Kingdom of Heinkel."