Chapter 71
“Eric… Eric Ather.”
After finishing the battle at Castrum Fortress, the Demon King returned to the cave he called home.
“No way… That brat and some female knight actually defeated Squalor?”
The old man, sitting on a throne made of piled-up trash deep inside the cave, recalled the young hero he saw on the battlefield that day and let out a sly smile.
“Heh heh… Truly tempting!”
An incompetent fool who had once defeated Latenfinger, the child he had cherished in his old parish.
When the envoy sent by the Monkey King spoke about the new hero of the order, he had been indifferent. Even when a little rat delivered news of Latenfinger’s death, it had only piqued his interest mildly.
But seeing the boy in person exceeded all expectations.
It was the first time his heart had raced like this since he had encountered a frenzied boy hidden in the old parish’s underground chapel.
No, perhaps even more than that…
-Click!
-Click click click!
Lost in these memories for a moment, he was soon drawn back to the bustle outside.
“Ugh! The smell… How do these rats live in such filth?”
Through the dark, narrow entrance, someone approached, their footsteps clicking sharply.
The Demon King frowned at the unwelcome guest, who carried an aura so alluring it could ignite even the heart of an old man.
“…Well, well, looks like a precious guest has arrived from afar.”
Underneath her curled horns, a woman with snow-white hair twisted around her fingers cast a dissatisfied glance around the filthy surroundings.
The Uncursed Demon King (Mima-wang).
“If you knew a precious guest was coming, couldn’t you have at least pretended to clean up? Really… I didn’t want to come here in the first place. Everything’s filthy!”
She complained as she looked at the dirty walls, the puddles of water on the floor, and the corners with no proper place to sit. The old man merely looked up at her silently.
Sigh. “Our Lizard Uncle seems to be quite angry. That creepy snake’s plan must have pleased him… said it would help achieve the grand scheme? And now some stupid little rat has ruined everything! Guess I’m the one suffering for it.”
The news that the Monkey King’s plan was thwarted because the Demon King had gathered his army reached the Earthen Dragon King quickly.
Soon, they could have removed Gregorius, who had troubled them during the previous great war, and placed someone more suitable in his stead. But they couldn’t understand why anyone would interfere.
“…Why did you do it? We were so close to replacing that pitiful goddess’s dog as we wished. Surely our rat grandpa isn’t that foolish?”
The woman asked, shifting her gaze, and the old man burst into laughter, clearly amused.
“Heh heh heh! Looks like the Earthen Dragon King, too, earned quite a bit of resentment.”
“Huh? What? There’s something going on, right?”
The Monkey King, that sly old man… not only did he deceive the Monkey King, who would have been blindsided by the army he gathered, but he even kept it secret from the Mima-wang and the Earthen Dragon King during their meeting?
“Regrettably, I can’t tell you now. If you’re curious, you’ll hear it later yourself.”
“…Hmph. Boring.”
It would be revealed soon enough anyway. No need to diminish his own pleasure by explaining prematurely.
“Ah, by the way…”
Seeing the Demon King about to leave disappointedly, he called out as if he had something more to say.
“…No, it’s nothing.”
“Geez, such a tease.”
For a moment, the old man seemed about to say something, but then shook his head and lowered his hand.
There was no need to mention the order’s new hero. If someone else claimed the boy first, it would have been troublesome.
The Next Day
“Huff… whoa…”
After returning safely to the mansion from the fortress, Eric arrived at the training ground early in the morning. Completely exhausted, he leaned against the wall and looked up at Leona, who had helped him spar.
“You’ve improved remarkably. Your movements are far better than before.”
Leona murmured her admiration quietly as she recalled their sparring earlier.
In reality, the sparring results hadn’t changed much. Eric endured her measured attacks repeatedly while she pushed him at a controlled pace.
But that was only the pattern of the sparring. Eric’s physical abilities were now vastly different.
He could no longer be considered incompetent.
“Of course I’ve improved. I’ve pushed myself to the limit from the old parish to Castrum Fortress. Look, even Lady Lilian has improved that much, hasn’t she?”
“…Nehe?”
Eric gave a small laugh at the praise and glanced sideways. After weeks of traveling across the border, it was only natural he had grown stronger. The same applied to Lilian, Malefica (not present now), and even Leona herself.
Lilian Ashford
Level: 27 → 31
Strength [12]
Agility [16]
Stamina [15] → [18]
Magic [244] → [284]
Trait:
Leona Everlock
Level: 28 → 32
Strength [70] → [80]
Agility [112] → [135]
Stamina [83] → [93]
Magic [28] → [30]
Trait:
Malefica Beatrix
Level: 23 → 27
Strength [5]
Agility [8] → [10]
Stamina [47] → [58]
Magic [180] → [210]
Traits: ,
All of them had significantly improved stats compared to before.
Though Eric had gained traits from Latenfinger and Squalor, the numbers alone didn’t fully reflect his growth.
“Good morning, Master!”
“Good morning!”
“If it’s alright, may I ask about your battle with the Named the other day?”
Through this battle, Eric had gained more than just physical improvement. Since defeating Ivan, knights who had previously ignored him as a successor began to show interest, impressed that he could defeat a Named.
“Sorry, I’m in training now. I’ll have some time later to discuss it properly.”
“Really?”
“You promised!”
After sending them off with a smile, Eric took a brief rest and resumed training.
With the border situation resolved and Gregorius’ trial halted due to the Demon King threat, there was nothing urgent for now. He did worry about Impietas, who might later take Gregorius’ position, but there was little he could investigate without proper information.
“…Master!”
“Hmm?”
“Let’s stop here for today. It’s already dark outside.”
“Ah… has it really gotten that late?”
Lost in thought and swinging his sword at the training dummy, he paused as someone called him. Realizing night had fallen while he was practicing, he finally put down his sword.
“But Master, what did you discuss with the Duke?”
“Hmm?”
As he was leaving the training ground, recalling yesterday, he answered Lilian with a calm expression.
“Nothing special. He just said we’d worked hard.”
“What? That’s it? But Master, you and I caught a Named together!”
Though the victory was largely due to Gregorius’ holy magic purifying the , it was still an accomplishment.
“By the way, Father seems to plan to reward all three of us, including Malefica…”
“R-Really?”
Recalling this just before leaving the office, Eric was startled as Leona eagerly approached, eyes sparkling.
“Ah… ahem! Sorry.”
“No worries. If I had known you’d be this happy, I would’ve told you yesterday.”
Has been ignited? Considering the Duke himself would give the reward, it was understandable.
‘Well, the accomplishments from this battle aren’t entirely just that.’
“Master! Master! Something’s wrong!”
While watching the delighted Leona, Eric noticed Malefica running urgently from afar, panting.
“What is it, Malefica?”
“Huff… huff… th-that…”
Catching her breath, Eric waited silently for her to speak.
“The Eastern Fortress… has fallen.”
“…What?”
Eric blinked in disbelief.
The Eastern Fortress? Not another northern fortress, but the East?
“Whaaaat? Th-the East… huh!”
Lilian, shocked, gasped loudly, and Eric quickly covered her mouth to prevent alarm.
“What… happened? How could the Eastern Fortress fall?”
Glancing around to ensure no one else was nearby, Eric lowered his voice.
The idea that a major battle could occur there before the great war, especially in the East, was astounding.
Unlike the North or West, which shared borders with the Demon King’s forces, the East bordered only a small kingdom.
‘Could the kingdom have started a war? No… that can’t be. I don’t remember that happening in the game.’
The game ‘Protect Humanity’ depicted battles between humans and monsters, not wars with other nations.
“…While we were holding back the Demon King’s forces at Castrum Fortress, monsters apparently attacked there as well.”
“Wait, monsters?”
“Monkeys.”
Frowning at the unexpected explanation, Eric’s confusion deepened.
“The Monkey King’s army attacked.”
After the Demon King, now the Monkey King, was moving armies before the great war… Something had clearly gone very wrong.
