TWEM Vol. 5 Chapter 10 Part 1
Chapter 10 – The Decisive Battle Against the Highest-Ranking Devil
I, Haruto, carrying Ilmina, decided to leave the building where she was being held captive and head for the cathedral.
Of course, I had to carry her in my arms.
But she was so embarrassed that her face turned bright red and she was in a frenzy.
“P-Please put, put me down!”
“H-Hey, quit struggling! Or you’re going to fall off!”
“Just put me down! I-I can’t be seen, like this…”
“J-Just bear with it! We need to hurry!”
“I know! I know that, but still! U-Ughh~”
Ilmina covered her bright red face with her hands again.
I felt a little sorry for her and almost stopped, but I shook off the thought when I heard the sound of an explosion behind me.
This explosion was caused by the battle between Zero and the devil, as far as I could tell from the map.
But still, how could that devil be evenly matched with Zero…or rather, it’s looking like the devil has the upper hand?
I was honestly surprised.
Zero should be stronger than back when he fought me in the labyrinth. And yet he’s on his back foot…
I glanced back and appraised the devil.
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NAME: |
None |
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LEVEL: |
297 |
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AGE: |
Unknown |
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SPECIES: |
Highest-Ranking Devil |
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UNIQUE SKILLS: |
The Fool’s Precept |
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SKILLS: |
Fire Magic Lv10 Wind Magic Lv10 Dark Magic Lv10 Physical Boost Lv10 Barehanded Arts Lv10 Intimidation Lv10 No Chant Lv10 Detect Presence Detect Danger Detect Mana Magic Power Manipulation Status Effect Immunity Appraisal |
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TITLES: |
Highest-Ranking Devil Demon Lord, Destroyer of Nations |
I’ll be damned, he’s way too OP…
And what’s up with that unique skill?
The name alone is giving me the chills.
.
<The Fool’s Precept>
The user can construct barriers at will and absorb the souls of those who have died within them.
Basic physical abilities and the strength of magic attacks increase according to souls absorbed.
Also, the user can weaken other people at will within the barrier.
Only within the barrier, the user can perform magic at will, unrestricted by attributes.
.
This skill is even more powerful than I thought.
A barrier that weakens the enemy with just a thought is as overpowered as it gets.
I did confirm that the barrier has been activated and also felt the strength in my body drop a bit.
Besides that, every skill level is at 10, which is the maximum.
Also, the ‘Destroyer of Nations’ bit in his title. I don’t know what the requirements are to earn this title, but if he has literally destroyed a country, whenever that may be, it shows that he has that much capability.
Looks like even I may have a hard time against him…
With that on my mind, I picked up the pace all of a sudden.
“Kyaaaaaaaaaah!? T-That’s too fast! A-Also, are we flying through the air right now? We’re actually flying!”
I didn’t think she was going to overreact in this manner from just flying for a bit.
“Just bear with it. The holy city is in crisis right now.”
“I know that! But I can’t help being scared!”
After running for a while with Ilmina’s screams as background music, the cathedral came into view.
In the large garden of the cathedral, we could see people who had apparently taken refuge there.
Well, with such a loud battle racket that’s been going on for so long, it’s probably the right decision.
When we landed in the garden of the cathedral, we were met with many stares.
First, they looked at my face, which suddenly appeared out of nowhere, and then at Ilmina, who was being carried like a princess in my arms.
She was so embarrassed that her face became so flushed and she looked up at me and said, “Please put me down quickly…”.
This situation is even more embarrassing than I thought it would be…
I thought, but since Ilmina’s reaction was kinda amusing, I went straight to the entrance of the cathedral.
The holy knights standing guard by the door pointed their swords at me.
“Who are you! Why is the saint with you? When she’s supposed to be missing!”
“Hold on——”
“Call for backup! We found the culprit who abducted the saint!”
As he said that, the holy knights who were in the back of the cathedral and in the garden rushed over and surrounded me and Ilmina.
Hey fuckface, how do you figure…
The people who had taken refuge were also gathering around to see what was going on.
Somehow, this situation feels like deja vu…
“Oh right! It’s just like that time with Iris.”
“Huh? What about Iris——”
Ilmina tilted her head in confusion at the sudden mention of Iris’s name.
Her flushed face was now back to normal.
I wonder if her embarrassment was blown away by the sudden turn of events.
Then, perhaps irritated by my carefree attitude, the holy knight shouted.
“Let go of the saint at once! What a ludicrous manner of carrying someone!”
Oops, I was still holding her in my arms like a princess.
Perhaps remembering this, Ilmina’s face became flushed again.
“P-Please put me down! I, I can’t continue to be seen like this!”
“Hate to say it, but you’ve already been seen plenty——”
“Just put me down already!”
“Hey quit struggling! I’ll put you down! I’ll put you down!”
“You mongrel! How dare you do that to the saint!”
The holy knights were raising their voices, but will you all please just shut up for fuck’s sake?!
I finally lowered the rampaging Ilmina to the ground after being hit and slapped in the face.
“You could have just done this sooner…”
“Do it now! Rescue the saint!”
“Wait a min——”
“Engage—!!”
The holy knights came running toward us with weapons in their hands.
And since I’m not exactly keen on offering my head due to a misunderstanding.
I jumped back from the spot, holding Ilmina in my arms again so she wouldn’t get hurt, because even if the holy knights didn’t intend to, one never knows what might happen.
However, Ilmina, who found herself in my arms again, began to scream.
“Hey, kyaaaah!? W-What are you doing?”
“What do you mean! Can’t you see these guys are totally lost in their misunderstanding, if I had just left you there, there’s a very big chance you might get hurt.”
“Oh, um…you’re right. Thank you…”
At any rate, I landed and put Ilmina down.
“You mongreeeel! Don’t you dare run away!”
As the red-faced holy knight shouted that, the door behind them opened.
The one who came out of the door was Liebert.
“What’s with all the ruckus?”
“Your Holiness! We are about to arrest the culprit who abducted the saint! It could get dangerous, so please stand back!”
“The culprit…?”
Liebert looked at me and then at Ilmina next to me.
“——Ilmina!”
“Father!!”
Ilmina rushed over and hugged Liebert, who was equally happy to see her again and hugged her back.
Then came one dumb holy knight who doesn’t know how to read the mood.
“Now is our chance! Seize him!”
Liebert then shouted in haste to stop the holy knights who had begun moving to capture me.
“Hold it right there!!”
At the sound of his voice, the holy knights stopped moving.
“Why are you stopping us, Your Holiness! This man is——”
“Please calm down and examine the situation very carefully. Besides, it’s not good to be judgmental and turn deaf ears to what the other person has to say.”
With these words, the holy knights became silent.
After making sure that the holy knights have calmed down, Liebert introduced me to them.
“This gentleman is Haruto, an adventurer. I personally enlisted his help to rescue Ilmina.”
“It’s exactly as father said. That man is the benefactor who saved me.”
“So that’s how it is…?”
Liebert and Ilmina nodded in affirmation to the holy knight’s words.
When they affirmed so and I said, “That’s right”, the holy knights quickly put their swords away and bowed deeply.
“Our sincerest apologies! All because of my hasty judgment! When I heard that lady saint was kidnapped, I just…”
The holy knight, whose face was bright red until a moment ago, bowed deeply as a representative of the group.
I thought of this at the time with Iris as well, that knights and soldiers in this world are very loyal.
…Or maybe, it just shows how much these people are adored.
If you ask me if it would be the same in the former Glicente Kingdom, I highly doubt it.
“Don’t worry about it. It just shows how much you care for both Ilmina and Liebert’s well-being. I forgive you, so please raise your head.”
“…Oh, just like that? Even though we attacked you with our swords.”
Well, I could easily avoid attacks of that level so it’s no problem.
Besides, these people were just trying to accomplish their mission, so it can’t be helped.
“It’s all good, really, so you all should raise your heads up since I get where y’all coming from. With the situation being what it is.”
After saying that much, the holy knights finally raised their heads.
The people who had gathered were at first surprised that the saint had been kidnapped, but they were overjoyed to see her return safe and sound.
“Thank you for letting the holy knights off the hook.”
“Please accept my thanks too.”
Liebert and Ilmina bowed to me.
“Sure thing. That aside…”
I looked at the barrier that had been deployed throughout the holy city.
The others around us also looked up at the sky anxiously.
“You’re right.”
And the occasional sound of battle.
“I heard it too on our way coming here, but what is that exactly…?”
I answered Ilmina’s question.
“It sounds like Zero and the devil are fighting.”
“Zero…?”
“Yeah, my butler who came with me. He seems to have weakened quite a bit because of this barrier, but I somehow feel like he’s stalling for time.”
If he had transformed into a dragon which is his original form, he should be able to regain some of his strength and gain an advantage, but it appears that he’s refraining from doing so in order not to escalate the confusion.
That being said, he can’t win the battle in his human form, so it looks like he’s trying to buy time.
He’s probably waiting for me to come back after getting Ilmina to safety.
However, I can’t just go back without explaining the situation.
I, Ilmina, and Liebert went to a room in the cathedral and shared information——about the true masterminds, as well as the current situation.
“Oh my god, Cardinal Alben, and those cultists…”
Liebert was quite shocked.
I have no idea who he was, but he must have trusted him very much, I bet?
“What kind of person was he?”
“He was a kind-hearted man who served me for a long time, and after losing his wife and children, he treated orphans and the poor without discrimination.”
“Is that so?”
The atmosphere became awkward, and Ilmina tried to change the subject.
“By the way, where is the Captain of the Holy Knights?”
“Oh, I checked with my skills and it seems that he is currently evacuating the people from the city. At first he wanted to try fighting the devil, but he was no match for him, so he left him to Zero and headed that way.”
“Is this devil really that powerful?”
Liebert’s eyes widened when he heard that even the most powerful holy knight in the country was no match for it.
As I was about to explain about the devil, there was a loud sound, booom! Something came crashing into the building, breaking down the walls.