Chapter 229 - Chapter 25: The Demon Lord's Cave ⑥
Against the Demon Race member who remained seated in the chair, a sudden burst of Over-flow light was released.
It seemed as if he had been finished off, but...
"Directly behind you. It looks like he jumped instantaneously. But, he's taken damage."
Through Flora's explanation, I learned what had happened. To me, only the light of the Over-flow had been visible.
"Jeanne. Illuminate below!"
Matching Flora's voice, I increased the output of my right hand, and four spots at the bottom of the atrium lit up simultaneously, bringing light to Roberts-sama and the others.
The light from the illuminators also caught the Demon Race member, and Holy and silver arrows were fired all at once.
Flora on our side and Fiona on the opposite side had already found the Demon Race member's location and told everyone. Fiona was wearing Matilda's armor, which didn't fit her width, so she hadn't been able to move satisfactorily, but after coming out once, she had crawled into the armor that Lewis-san and his adjutant had placed face-down like an ornament and was peeking down below.
In front of Roberts-sama, who had descended into the center, was an empty chair; the Demon Race member was on the opposite side. Holy and silver arrows concentrated there.
From above, the distance was too great. Having easily dodged them, the Demon Race member ascended and hit a wall halfway up.
After the simultaneous attack, Wilson-san had lowered the temporary ceiling he had made with Wind Barrier. Since Bishop Catherine's Magic Reflection had been applied at the same time, he hadn't noticed it.
When I increased the output of my left hand, the four Fireflies thrown by Lewis-san and the Medioland diversionary group on the opposite side above the temporary ceiling cast their light downwards. With this, we could illuminate from both above and below. We should be able to secure sufficient light.
The Demon Race member was hacking at the temporary ceiling with his sword, but it was something Wilson-san had hardened with all his might. It wouldn't be broken so easily. Moreover, the holy magic Magic Reflection reacted to the Demon Race member's sword, sending sparks flying.
Matching Lewis-san and the others' illuminators, I pushed the Fireflies to their maximum all around.
Frowning at the brightness, the Demon Race member gave up on ascending and flew down, confronting Roberts-sama and the others.
The Demon Race member on the fourth floor looked just like a human and wore something like leather armor. If not for the wings, fangs, and horns, he would look like a giant human. In his right hand, he held a pitch-black sword.
"He's saying 'For humans, you're quite clever,' or something like that," Flora, with her good ears, gave a play-by-play in a loud voice so everyone could hear. Jennifer-sensei had cast a spell called Loud—the opposite of Mute, which amplifies the voice—on Flora, so it resonated excessively. Since there was a temporary ceiling, it probably wouldn't affect those below much, but hearing it up close was quite noisy.
Since I had Sight cast on me, I could see far once it became bright, but my hearing didn't improve. To inform everyone who was far away, it had to be at this level.
Even so, to be called clever... If anything, it's more like the 'sly' variety. It's nothing but surprise attacks. If the opponent were a human noble, they'd be furious, calling it utterly cowardly.
"Ah, they've started!"
Roberts-sama and Gladys-sama made their move.
The Demon Race member had also drawn his sword.
The Demon Race member leapt into the air and landed behind them. Harrison-san challenged him with his staff, and Hughes-sama with the daggers he held in both hands.
The magic the Demon Race member released was bounced back by Magic Reflection.
He leapt further back to put distance between them.
As expected of one who rules over demon beasts, he was agile. He hadn't been able to dodge the surprise Over-flow, but it didn't seem like he had taken much damage at all.
It was so fast that my eyes couldn't keep up, but thanks to Flora's loud play-by-play, I could grasp the general flow of the battle.
James-sama and Evans-sama blocked his path with magic, Roberts-sama and Gladys-sama attacked with spears, and when he jumped up, Harrison-san aimed at him with a Log Holy, while Hughes-sama moved to the landing point while throwing knives, attacking from below.
Unfortunately, he had wings. Because he could fly, he could change his trajectory in mid-air. Time passed without either side being able to land a decisive blow. In terms of physical strength, the monster was superior. If it became a war of attrition, we would be at a disadvantage.
As I watched anxiously, the Demon Race member hit his head when he jumped high.
I could tell he was surprised.
The temporary ceiling had been lowered.
After maximizing the Fireflies on the temporary ceiling I controlled with my left hand, I had been adjusting the light intensity while having Fiona check the depth of the shadows on Roberts-sama and the others.
When the Jaegers illuminated him with their devices, the Demon Race member fled in a panic.
Having lost the advantage of flight, the Demon Race member was gradually being cornered. This was because the height of the temporary ceiling was decreasing. Even if he released magic, it was bounced back by Magic Reflection. He couldn't break it with physical strikes. I could tell he was gradually becoming impatient.
When the Demon Race member was driven toward the wall, James-sama and Evans-sama released magic simultaneously.
It was likely Wind Barrier.
The range in which the Demon Race member could act within the atrium room was reduced to about the height of a two-story building and one-third of the area.
Harrison-san and Bishop Phillips released magic toward the walls and floor.
"It's complete. Now!"
At Flora's voice, everyone who could release Holy fired it at the Demon Race member all at once. The Wind Barrier had already changed shape, but the Magic Barrier maintained the same form.
At the same time, Harrison-san released Over-flow.
Light intersected in a shape like a third of a whole cake cut out.
It shone white for a longer time than I had expected.
When it finally subsided, the Demon Race member was still standing on both feet.
"He blocked it by releasing magic power. As expected, he seems quite exhausted. He's breathing heavily."
The Demon Race member pointed his own sword toward Roberts-sama. Roberts-sama stood in front, and the others kept their distance.
A duel.
He must have exhausted his magic power and become unable to use magic. Besides, if he took another concentrated Holy attack, there would be no way to defend against it.
On our side, there was no need to accept. However, as expected, it was Roberts-sama. He must have accepted.
That Roberts-sama took out a leather pouch and began to drink. Was it wine? When he finished drinking, he threw it toward the Demon Race member. The Demon Race member also took a sip or two. After drinking, he closed the lid and placed it on the chair he had been sitting on. It was as if to say the winner could drink again.
"As expected of our son."
"Umu. It reminds me of the previous battle."
Henry-sama and Eleanor-sama narrowed their eyes.
"Did you duel last time as well?"
When I asked, the answer came back that they had.
Last time, four people—mages and priests—had attacked from above with fire magic and Holy, while a scout and two vanguard warriors with Magic Reflection applied had rushed down the stairs and fought, but just like this time, it had become a war of attrition.
Both sides had grown tired of it, and finally, it had turned into a duel.
In other words, they had been evenly matched even in a war of attrition against a Demon Race member.
"No, the magic was all basic spells until the opponent came up, and below, three people took turns fighting. We weren't trying to settle it all at once like this time. People these days are impatient, you see."
Perhaps the times were different. At the very least, the way time flowed seemed different.
Still, even the Demon Race eventually chooses to fight with weapons.
"It's started."
The Demon Race member had a pitch-black sword. Roberts-sama had a silver spear.
Normally, one would think the spear is stronger, but according to Henry-sama, the Demon Race member's sword can extend.
"Whether you call it flexible or what, it would bend all wiggly-like, and it was like fighting an octopus leg. The reach was longer than a normal spear, so I remember having quite a lot of trouble."
In terms of sword skill alone, he was apparently superior to the Demon Lord.
"Roberts-sama will be alright, won't he?"
"Roberts was trained by Catherine. There should be no need for concern."
It was so fast I couldn't see it at all, but according to Flora, he was skillfully parrying the extending and contracting tip of the opponent's sword with the spearhead and the butt end.
"When he was nineteen, he said he wanted to go to the Eastern Plains Corps to train, so I told him if he could take three points in a row from Catherine, I'd allow it. He kept losing for over three months, but in the end, he really did take three points."
What the Headmistress used was a flail—a vicious version of a threshing tool where a short stick is connected to the end of a long pole by a chain—and furthermore, she was releasing Holy from the tip of it; it was a rule bordering on a foul where if either the stick or the magic hit the body, it counted as a point.
Was that even sword skill anymore?
"How did he manage to win?"
"Well, it was in preparation for this day. Roberts, like me, cannot use magic. That being the case, he faces the Demon Lord with nothing but his spear and his sword. A knight must be strong against the strong and kind to the weak. Rather than discussing fouls or aesthetics, it is first and foremost the simple strength to strike down the enemy."
Those were words that could only be said by a hero.
Even during Henry-sama's old stories, the heated battle continued below.
Against the Demon Race member who was launching an offensive, Roberts-sama was parrying the opponent's sword tip while gradually cornering him toward the wall. For the Demon Race member, he couldn't fly. Perhaps because his usual movements were restricted, his movements seemed awkward.
"Even if it transforms, the spear is still strong, it seems."
"Is that so?"
"Umu. The fastest attack is a thrust for both sword and spear, but the spear is longer. Even if it extends, it seems the spear is still faster to reach the hand."
Finally cornered, the Demon Race member parried the thrust spear to the left with his sword held vertically, then rushed forward as if pinning the spear down to the lower left with the blade, but he couldn't dodge Roberts-sama's spear, which had been quickly pulled back and thrust out again as he tried to slash upward to the right. Or so it seemed. The blade apparently grazed Roberts-sama's head.
"It's decided. It pierced his chest. He won! Amazing... A human beat a Demon Race member in a duel..."
Flora was moved. Even for a spirit, a one-on-one duel between a human and a Demon Race member seemed to be beyond the scope of imagination.
Henry-sama nodded with a 'Umu,' and Eleanor-sama and Jennifer-sensei breathed sighs of relief and offered prayers to the Goddess.
The Headmistress puffed out her chest as if it were only natural. It was as if she were saying that since he had beaten her, it would be troublesome if he lost.
Everyone who had been watching with bated breath while listening to Flora's loud play-by-play stood up and cheered.
We deactivated the temporary ceiling and descended below together on a large bowl.
"Roberts. Well done. You finished him."
"It's thanks to everyone's assistance. I was given quite a handicap. If not for that, if we had fought alone from the start, we might have lost."
He replied to Henry-sama's words with a generous laugh. With this, one additional medal for everyone was guaranteed.
No one said it aloud, but they were making eye contact and nudging each other with their elbows.
As Roberts-sama took the leather pouch from the Demon Race member's chair and drank the wine, Gladys-sama clung to him.
She looked like she was about to cry but was holding it back. The Demon Lord still remained. It was too early to rejoice. To avoid breaking the tension, she must have been enduring the urge to scream out.
Eleanor-sama went to Gladys-sama's side and they embraced.
James-sama and the others were also slapping each other's shoulders.
"Then, shall we go to the Demon Lord's place just like this?"
When Henry-sama asked, Roberts-sama called me before that.
"Jeanne. Offer a prayer for him. Even if he was of the Demon Race, he fought fairly and squarely without running away. Send him off."
At the end of his gaze lay the Demon Race member, his chest pierced by the silver spear, dead with his eyes wide open.
I knelt down, covered his eyes with my right hand, and closed them for him.
Bishop Phillips, smiling, lightly tapped Roberts-sama's shoulder and stood behind me. Then Harrison-san. The Headmistress, Jennifer-sensei, Harris-sama, the Archbishop of Nakanohara, Kevin-sama, and Priest Williams. All the priests stood behind me.
Was this alright?
"Now, Jeanne. Offer the prayer."
I was even told so by the Headmistress.
It was a daunting task, but I had been nominated. As I offered the funeral prayer while receiving the chanting of all these high-ranking individuals, the Demon Race member's body crumbled like ash and turned to dust.
Evans-sama sent a communication. It was the report of breaking through the fourth floor and the intrusion into the Demon Lord's Temple.
Currently, there were no casualties. And, the crucial point was that there was no depletion of magic power. It was reasonable.
"How about it, why don't we all go together? Why not watch James-dono, Bishop Harrison, Roberts, and the others fight the Demon Lord?"
Everyone looked down.
It was only natural. Watching meant entering the Demon Lord's Temple. Confronting the Demon Lord was the role of the main force.
"Can we go inside?"
The fearless mage was asking. Come to think of it, Beatrix had to draw a commemorative picture of the Demon Lord's subjugation. The reward was, if I recall, two hundred gold coins.
However, there should be such a thing as common sense.
Roberts-sama also had a dubious look on his face.
"Father. To suddenly barge in with a large crowd without even sending a herald, would that not be a discourtesy to the opponent?"
Honestly, this father and son...
Gladys-sama's eyes went wide, and Bishop Phillips tilted his head. James-sama was covering his mouth. He must have been about to burst out laughing.
"That's true. Then, shall we go and greet him first?"
Henry-sama took out the parchment for the full delegation of diplomatic negotiations.