Around the high, thick stone walls of a certain facility, there were five figures hidden by robes.
There was no moonlight because of the clouds, and the guards on the outer wall were unaware of the threats lurking in the darkness.
“……”
-A huge figure approacheed the outer wall.
Then, he gently puts his left hand on the wall…
A mysterious light illuminated the engravings on each of his fingernails, and this person’s secret technique, which could only be performed by using all five of them at a time, was unleashed.
“…What!?“
A guard shouted as the outer wall suddenly began shaking.
A curse was struck in response.
The effects of each curse were mixed together in perfect balance to form a spell that accumulated the impact and released it out of the body at any time required.
The outer wall in front of the person who exercised the spell was blown away, leaving a large hole.
“””……”””
Three shadowy figures jumped into the hole.
A man of small frame ran with a thin sword in each hand, a man of medium height wielded a curved sword that was rippling, and a huge unarmed man, who was stronger than wizards, followed them.
These were elite men, who were over-trained.
“It’s almost scary that you’ve followed the plan so well. Well then, let me return the favor.“
The whipman, who was using the curved sword, lead the curse caster into the interior.
Inside, the screams of the facility’s residents echoed as they were slaughtered by the three men who had turned into killing machines.
“According to our information… they are in the basement of that central building.”
The goal these men had was to replenish the forces necessary for the final mission.
♢♢♢♢
Just as dawn was about to break, a message arrived to the king.
It was reported to Celestia right at the same time when Alto returned to the royal castle from the scene of the incident.
Celestia and her two subordinates trembled slightly in the heavy silence.
The dark room became even darker, and a chill was felt in the air.
The reason for this was the Black Demon King who sat by the window and looked up at the night sky.
“……”
Despite his usual gentle atmosphere, his expression was serious.
Although there was no pressure from Chrono’s mana, which was sometimes the case at meetings, Celestia and the others were having a tenser time than when his mana did pressure them.
Chrono, who wielded his power with unwavering conviction, exuded a unique power and dignity at times.
No color was to be mixed, no influence was allowed, and he wanted the image of his evil to be completely painted ‘black’, untainted and unaffected.
The jet-black eyes that looked up at the empty sky seemed to erode it’s darkness into a dusky black… to an extent that even they, the observers, could see.
Celestia was irresistibly drawn to the sight, but at the same time, she was also fearful.
“……”
When Celestia heard Crono open his mouth, she flinched like a weak maiden and showed her fright.
“…We don’t know where they (・・) were taken, do we?“
“Yes, yes… It was very deliberate, and we don’t know where they escaped to. We are currently… investigating, and this is all we know….”
“I see.”
Crono’s gaze sharpened, and a hint of anger seeped through.
“This is a disaster.”
“I’m sorry, I’m sorry…”
Celestia apologized in response to Chrono’s words, feeling a fear she had never felt before.
Although she believed it was impossible, the fear that she might be abandoned arised.
“”……””
Marie, whose face was tense, and Mob, who was dressed as a butler, were also afraid of the new aspect of the Demon Lord that they had never seen before.
“Oh no, it was me who gave you permission to examine them. This is my mistake. Besides, the important thing is what’s coming next.“
“Chrono-sama…”
He flashed a smile that conveyed the thought, ‘Don’t worry about it.’
It was obvious to everyone that he was cared about them.
An experimental orc who was implanted with a ‘Dragon Crystal’ by Cassius Kujaro, a former guest of the Kingdom of Light.
Chrono, who was about to go defeat the orcs, let the orcs who had gone on a rampage at Cassius’s party be taken in by the kingdom’s army at Celestia’s suggestion.
Tonight’s attack was on—– a facility that had been studying the roots of the orcs’ regenerative powers.
They broke into the facility after breaking down the outer wall, slaughtered the guards and researchers, and took the orcs away.
Moreover, this time it was an attack carried out in midnight by more than one person. It was completed very quickly.
“I wanted to know if I could do something to help them, but if I knew they were going to be used again, I would have… made sure I sent them off with my own hands back then.”
The orcs, whose parents and siblings had been killed, had been embedded with dragon-like features.
Even though it was a completely different species, I was reminded back to the tears of the orc on that day. A single drop of tear, filled with hatred and sorrow.
Filled with resentment towards the one who did this to them.
“…Yeah. Can you tell me if you get to know where they are?“
“Yes, sir. The search for the orcs will be our priority.“
“Please do. I know you’re busy, so don’t overdo it.”
With a cool-headed look of firm determination in her eyes, she responded with a formal bow filled with the etiquette of a princess.
“…Well, I have a lot of things I want to do, so I don’t want to go and investigate locations based on mere rumors this time.”
The demon king turned his eyes away from Celestia, and looked towards the lightening night sky.
Even Celestia and the others shuddered at the faint anger directed at the culprit.
“Unless it’s flickering in my reach. If he’s within my reach, I can’t miss… that devil.”
The Demon Lord monologued over the unknown culprit.
The words that spilled out into the quiet room frightened his subordinates to their very souls.
The fact that the Demon Lord would intervene had been decided, and the target of his transcendent power had been set.
“……”
But that was all only if he could recognize his target in the first place.
For now, he had to remain quiet and let Celestia, who was his trustworthy friend, take care of it.
“We will identify the target before tomorrow ends.”
Celestia, the goddess-like woman who understood this, knelt in her black dress and swore an oath.
“If it’s you, Celestia… you could definitely do it, wouldn’t you? …Oh, and just in case, I’ve thought of a technique in case such a creature appeared again. We can’t risk causing too much damage in a place like the royal city, so we’ll use our mana to defeat it with the least amount of damage.“
Chrono remembered, and spoke softly to Celestia.
“Is it a technique?”
For Chrono, it would be faster to just punch it, but that would certainly cause a lot of damage to the surroundings around him.
“It’s not really all that much of a technique, but can you give me your opinion?”
Well, it was indeed a technique suitable for burying creatures like the orcs.
However, he knew that only Celestia would be so extremely happy to learn a technique from him that she would snuggle in close and praise it as a wonderful technique.
Marie and Mob were both shown this technique that was performed with Chrono’s mana right in the room itself, and even if they were told that it was nothing more than child’s play, from the standpoint of their own power, they couldn’t do anything but fear for their lives.
♢♢♢♢
In front of the Scarlet Chamber Of Commerce in the early morning, several luxurious carriages were parked.
The pleasant morning sun shined brightly on them, and it was a perfect start to the day.
Last night, both Hildegard and Sasha were busy preparing for the trip to Kujaro and giving instructions on the work that was to be done during their absence.
“What’s the report?”
“Here, Hildegard-sama. I’ve gone through it already on behalf of Cain.“
She handed Hildegard a document summarizing the incident at the castle the other day and the attack on the research institute last night.
Hildegard took it, and looked through it immediately after getting into the carriage.
“……”
“…I really didn’t expect you to decide on the trip one day before you would be embarking it.”
“Looks like you were going out and about yesterday.”
“It was very busy…”
“Oh, well… Stop talking now.“
Hildegard, whose voice was like that of a songbird’s, strictly reprimanded her. Even Sasha, who was used to it, almost sighed.
“……”
“…pass by the church where this priest is.”
“Well, that’d be quite the detour….“
“That’d not be a problem. I’ll just take a glance. We have enough time, so it’s okay to take at least a few liberties, is it not?”
“…yes, Hildegard-sama.”
At Hildegard’s order, the group passed by the church near the entertainment district.
They were taking a trip to a town in Kujaro, but no matter when they arrived, they would probably be treated well and be begged to join their side.
It was not an urgent task to complete.
“We’ve arrived. I’ll open the window.“
“……”
Sasha, sitting diagonally opposite to Hildegard, opened the window in the door next to Hildegard.
They were in front of the church, where a few children and a giantlike priest were playing some kind of game in the courtyard.
“Kyaah!“
“Wait!”
“I’ve got you!”
The children were playing tag with the priest.
“……”
Hildegard stared at them.
Her eyes first passed the priest, and then wandered towards the girl at the edge of the courtyard who was reading a book to a few children.
To Sasha, it seemed like Hildegard was looking longer at the girl in the dealer outfit and the children near her, rather than the priest.
“Let’s go….”
“Ah, understood…”
She didn’t understand what the reason was, but there was no one who would dare to question Hildegard’s decisions. The carriage left.
………
……
…
Translator’s Note:
By god, this chapter has around 5000 words. I’ll probably have to split it to three parts!