An attack that is invisible, unlimited in number and size, and impossible to block with a shield—what could it be?
It is fear.
Fear has the power to break the morale of thousands, even tens of thousands, weaken their combat strength, and even force them to surrender.
That is why I decided to put on an act.
“You insignificant creatures dare to think that gathering in numbers makes you worthy of challenging me as equals?”
I spoke while facing thousands of high-ranking demons.
At my arrogant yet composed tone, the Four Heavenly Kings—Lucrezia, Darkan, and Bellard—hesitated.
Even from their perspective, and honestly, even from mine, the situation was severely disadvantageous.
To be frank, I wasn’t confident I could last even five minutes if I fought at full strength.
But what if, instead of retreating, I spoke boldly?
Anyone would be forced to think: ‘That guy must be hiding something.’
Darkan burst into laughter.
“Hahahaha! Are you just bluffing at this point? If you think that’s going to work, you’re gravely mistaken.”
“You’re fundamentally wrong. Bluffing is something the weak do against the strong. The strong don’t bluff against the weak.”
“You lunatic. That’s exactly why it’s a bluff. No matter how you look at it, you’re the weak one here. Your strength and puppetry were impressive, but they’re meaningless before an army of thousands.”
“Is that so?”
I signaled to Elia with my eyes.
She realized my intent and was horrified, but, sensing there was no other choice, she soon nodded.
The demon corpses, which had been controlled by my puppetry, collapsed onto the ground.
I had released my control over them entirely.
“You assumed I was using puppetry to make up for my lack of power.”
“…Are you saying that’s not the case?”
“This was nothing more than a pastime. Watching you turn on each other was an entertaining spectacle. A truly dramatic one.”
“You bastard…!”
Darkan flared up in rage.
He was about to command the demons to attack, but I diverted attention again by pointing at Lucrezia.
“Doesn’t something seem strange to you, Lucrezia?”
At my raised voice, Lucrezia, who had remained silent, flinched.
Lowering my tone as if I were about to reveal something crucial, I continued.
“You must have seen it—the way Victoria is so friendly toward humans.”
“What of it?”
“Your king, the Demon Lord, a supposedly perfect and supreme being… Why would she feel any fondness toward lowly humans?”
“That’s because you tricked her.”
Lucrezia hesitated as she answered.
I let out a faint chuckle and shook my head.
“You’re wrong. Do you really think simple deception would work on someone as powerful as the Demon Lord? You know better than anyone that it wouldn’t.”
“The reason the Demon Lord obeys humanity is simple—she is under my control.”
“You’re saying the Demon Lord is under your control? Don’t spout nonsense.”
“In your hierarchy, ordinary demons serve the high-ranking demons, high-ranking demons serve the Four Heavenly Kings, and the Four Heavenly Kings serve the Demon Lord. And what upholds this structure? Strength.”
“You swear loyalty to the Demon Lord because she is overwhelmingly stronger than you. But what if there existed someone even stronger than the Demon Lord?”
“That’s impossible… There’s no one who could overpower the Demon Lord to such an extent.”
Lucrezia couldn’t hide her bewilderment.
Her unease spread to Darkan, Bellard, and the rest of the demons.
Eventually, faint traces of fear appeared on all their faces.
Spreading my arms dramatically, I spoke.
“Even after all this, you still don’t understand? To me, this is nothing more than amusement. Even your Demon Lord is merely a toy to relieve my boredom.”
“You damn fiend…! Why did you come from hell? Why torment us demons and the Demon Lord?!”
“For fun, of course. Khahaha.”
As I grinned so wide my mouth seemed to split open, thousands of demons instinctively recoiled.
Just when it seemed like my bluff was working, Darkan suddenly shouted.
“Everyone, get a hold of yourselves!”
He raised his voice even more as he looked around at the demons whose morale had begun to waver.
“No matter how strong that bastard is, no matter how wicked a demon he may be, we cannot retreat! No, that’s precisely why we must fight! We are the last line of defense for the demon race. Even if we die, we die fighting!”
Darkan unleashed a surge of mana.
His fierce determination reignited the spirits of the demons who had been consumed by fear.
Damn it.
If they regain their confidence, this will be bad.
If my bluff isn’t enough, I’ll just have to make an even bigger one.
“Hahaha! I see, that’s how you want to play it. Interesting. Since it’s a rare occasion, I’ll take you all on alone.”
I gestured for Kalian, Elia, and the other soldiers to retreat, as if to say that I alone was more than enough.
Then, I unleashed my full power.
My energy filled the surroundings, stretching up to the sky itself.
The demons felt the overwhelming pressure of my power, but soon, they began releasing their own mana to resist me.
There were just too many of them—mere intimidation wouldn’t be enough.
Darkan spoke.
“Do not be afraid! No matter how powerful a demon he is, he is not invincible. If we attack all at once, we have a chance at victory!”
He wasn’t wrong.
This is dangerous… My last bluff isn’t working as well as I’d hoped.
If we actually fight head-on, I’ll be crushed beyond recognition.
I can only stall for so long.
It’d be great if news from the main force came soon.
Darkan pointed his sword at me.
“All troops, atta—huh?”
But just as he was about to give the command for an all-out attack, he suddenly stopped speaking.
A demon came flying toward us in a panic.
The demon, who had been speeding toward us from the distance, shouted loudly before even reaching Darkan.
“Lord Darkan! We have a serious problem!”
“What is it at a time like this?”
“The—the fortress wall has been breached!”
“What?!”
At these words, not only Darkan but also Lucrezia and Bellard turned their heads sharply.
“The wall has been breached? Does that mean the main force has been pushed back? The difference in strength shouldn’t be that great.”
“No, it’s not that—the humans have created an alternate route!”
“An alternate route? But the ones who were trying to do that are right here. There’s no way they could have—”
BOOOOM!
A thunderous explosion echoed from somewhere.
A sound that filled the vast plains, shaking both the ground and the sky.
Everyone present immediately understood what it meant.
In the distance, the Imperial Army’s Sky Fortress and dragons were seen crossing over the outer walls.
Whew.
Looks like “that side” made it on time.
I turned to the stunned Four Heavenly Kings and spoke.
“Still haven’t figured it out?”
“What trickery have you pulled this time, you demon?!”
“You weren’t the only ones who deployed a large force. From the beginning, we moved as two separate units to create an alternate route.”
“There were two from the start?”
Evelyn had planned two diversionary forces from the very beginning.
The first was the unit with Kalian and me.
The second consisted of eight household heads and elite soldiers, excluding Baldric.
Since Kalian and I were two of the Empire’s greatest powerhouses, our force had exceptional breakthrough capability.
That’s why we moved as stealthily as possible, optimized for breaking through enemy lines.
At the same time, even if our maneuver was discovered, we had enough strength to hold out until the other team completed their task.
We had anticipated that the Four Heavenly Kings would be focused on us, given our previous battle at the barrier.
It was only natural that they would keep an eye on our movements and attempt to intercept us.
Even though this plan put our lives in danger and left our main force lacking in firepower, if we could just break through the alternate route, the advantages would more than make up for the risks.
“You’ve all been dancing in the palm of my hand from the very start.”
“Damn it!”
“You now have two gates to defend. The Imperial Army only needs to break through one of them to win this siege. So, what will you do? Will you keep thousands of troops here just to capture me?”
“Damn it… Damn it… DAAAAMN IT!!”
Realizing the gravity of the situation, Darkan shouted to his subordinates.
“Regroup with the main force! The humans have taken control of the siege. Escort the main force and retreat!”
Not only Bellard and Lucrecia but also the other demons immediately turned their backs and moved towards the main force.
However, I had no intention of letting them go so easily.
“Where do you think you’re going? Stay with me a little longer.”
“Tsk…! Get lost, you damn demon!”
I leaped over the fortress wall and charged at them.
The initiative was now mine.
The demons, who had switched to a retreat formation, could no longer respond actively to my attacks.
Even alone, I had no trouble dealing with them.
Slash, slash.
Just moments ago, these demons had morale high enough to pierce the sky—now, they were being slaughtered mercilessly.
“Arghhh!”
“A demon! A demon is here!”
“Death is coming?!”
The fear they had desperately tried to ignore resurfaced, and after witnessing their comrades fall, the demons chose to flee rather than resist.
Lucrecia shouted at Darkan.
“Darkan, if we just keep running, we’ll lose a massive number of troops to that bastard. We need to take him down first!”
“No! We don’t have time for that!”
“At the very least, we need to form a defensive line. If we keep running like this, we’ll suffer unnecessary casualties!”
“A flimsy defensive line won’t stop that demon. The best course is to retreat as quickly as possible, even if it means taking some losses!”
“You cowardly tin can! I’ll hold him off first. You and Bellard cover me! Just buy me some time, and then run!”
“Tsk, you persistent little—Fine, Blade Girl!”
Having finished their exchange, Lucrecia charged at me.
Her blades spread out in all directions, blocking my vision and the retreating demons behind her.
“You’re not going any further, demon.”
“Since when did I become a demon?”
“I won’t let you harm my people any longer. If the Four Heavenly Kings work together, we can hold you off for at least five minutes!”
“Five minutes? You underestimate me.”
I launched an onslaught against Lucrecia.
She barely managed to parry my attacks but made no real attempt to counter.
Rather than trying to defeat me, her goal was to stall for time and escape with support, leaving no unnecessary openings.
“You’re holding up well.”
“Kuhuhu! I am the Blade Empress. No matter how powerful a high-ranking demon you may be, if I focus solely on defense, I can block attacks of this level.”
“But defense alone won’t be enough.”
“I’m not the one who will attack you. That would be the other two. Darkan! Bellard! Now, attack!”
She shouted toward the other Heavenly Kings.
However, no attack came.
Finding this odd, Lucrecia shouted again.
“Darkan! Bellard! What are you doing? Attack already! If we miss this chance, we won’t get another shot at escaping!”
“What? Why aren’t you attacking?!”
“Hey, Blade Girl.”
I spoke to her as she stood there, bewildered.
“Your friends aren’t here.”
“Huh?”
“They ran away from the start. You’ve been abandoned.”
“W-What?”
Lucrecia finally glanced around.
The only demon left on the battlefield was her.