TWEM Vol. 6 Chapter 8 Part 2
“…So, does this mean that I will be Damnatio’s opponent?”
Oskar nodded at my words.
“Can you do it?”
“Honestly, I’d like to say it’s troublesome, but… there’s nothing I can do about it. Leave it to me. I’ll defeat him.”
“Then I’ll trust you and leave you in charge. After all this is over, I’d like to be able to arrange for a match.”
“That sounds good. I also want to see the emperor’s ability.”
Who wouldn’t want to see the strength of the strongest in the empire? There’s no way one wouldn’t. Everyone would want to see it.
Oskar laughed.
“If that’s the case, then let’s defeat him quickly and then we can go for a bout, using hand-to-hand combat. I’ll take one dragon. What about the rest?”
I thought about Oskar’s question for a moment and called Finne and the others.
“Everyone, gather around Finne!”
At my command, Finne, Iris, and Kuzel gathered. Followed by Zero, Ephyr, and Suzuno, who leapt over the audience to join me.
“Are these your friends?”
“That’s right.”
“They’re all strong. And it’s been a while, Princess Iris.”
Iris greeted Oskar when he called her name.
“It has been a long time, Your Majesty Emperor Galzio.”
“Hm. You have grown stronger. You are as good as the Seven Royal Guards, aren’t you?”
“Thank you very much. It is also due to Haruto’s help.”
“I see. Did Haruto train you? I’m looking forward to seeing how this goes.”
I would like people who were battle fanatics to give me a break…
Aside from that, the dragons’ opponents were Finne and the others, along with the participants in the group competition, and four members of “Seventh Royal Guard” including Reid.
“Iris, Finne, and Kuzel will take a dragon.”
After Iris and the others nodded at my words, I turned my gaze to Zero.
“Zero, I’m sorry, but can you get two?”
“That many… it’s no big deal.”
Oskar looked at Zero with a surprised expression as he accepted the arrangement rather easily, but he immediately turned to Reid and the others and instructed them.
“Reid, Ash, and Gaiz, you will deal with a dragon. Sentes, you go and guide the spectators to safety, and we need someone strong over there too… I’ll take care of that.”
Oskar’s words brought Reid and the others to their knees.
Not one of them was worried about Oskar. That’s probably because he was the emperor.
As we readied our weapons, Damnatio looked down at us with his arms folded and announced with ease.
“Well, I’ve waited this long. You’re going to entertain me, aren’t you?”
“Ah, I’ll invite you and your beloved lizards to hell. Well then, let’s start a fun and enjoyable party.”
With my words as a cue, our battle began.
～
Oskar was the first to make a move.
The crimson sword he pulled out swiftly, looked like a magic sword.
Oskar raised his sword and immediately closed the gap between himself and the dragon, that had landed on the ground.
At the same time, Oskar’s sword erupted into a blaze.
“You have invaded my country. Do not resist, or you will die!”
Oskar swung his sword down with a strong shout, but the dragon counterattacked and swung its sharp claws at him.
The sword and claw collided, scattering sparks.
“Ggh!”
Oskar’s voice sounded distressed.
The pressure of the swinging claw must have been considerable, and the ground at Oskar’s feet cracked.
However, the pained expression on Oskar’s face only lasted for a moment, and he relaxed as he regained his stance.
After confirming that, I looked at Damnatio.
Damnatio also looked straight at me.
“Are you my opponent?”
“That’s right.”
Damnatio asked me with an interested look.
“Did you deploy the magic that prevented the Breath?”
“What about it?”
“I was just asking. You’re that good, so don’t die too soon, okay?”
“As for me, I’d like you to just go home.”
“Huh, there’s no way I’m going home.”
“I see!”
I approached Damnatio, but the dragon claws at his feet blocked my path.
Using Sky Walk, the skill to walk in the air, I retreated backwards and avoided the claw attack.
I had expected Damnatio to take advantage of this opening to make some kind of move, but it seemed that he was watching quietly, letting the dragons do the fighting for now.
For my part, I didn’t like Damnatio’s complacent attitude. I wanted to give him a good blow.
The arena was filled with the sound of heavy fighting between us and the dragons.
I glanced over to see Finne and the others taking on the other dragons.
It appeared that they were fighting well, without being at a visible disadvantage.
In fact, Zero seemed to have plenty of room to spare.
Damnatio, perhaps because the battle situation was unexpected, seemed to be in a flustered state, although it couldn’t be seen clearly due to his helm.
“A dragon that once overpowered an army of tens of thousands is now struggling against just a few humans!? That’s impossible!”
At the same time Damnatio said this, the dragon carrying him fired its breath at me.
I calmly sheathed my sword and took a deep stance to draw my sword.
Just as the breath was about to hit me— there was a flash of light.
The next moment, the breath was cut in two by my sword.
Damnatio was so surprised at the sight that he opened his mouth.
“You cut Breath!? Wait, where is he—”
I had moved out of the way immediately after drawing my sword, but Damnatio did not seem to be able to follow my movements.
Damnatio looked around for me, but could not find me at all.
Immediately after the sound of the sword clinking, the head of the dragon carrying Damnatio on its back, fell to the ground.
“—What!? When did you attack…”
Damnatio was surprised that the dragon was defeated in an instant.
Then, I reappeared in front of him.
“Didn’t you see me just now?”
“…Who are you? Are you the hero who was summoned?”
You also concluded that a strong person is a hero when you saw him, huh? You say the same things as Gheel of the Four Heavenly Kings.
Did demons think that ‘strong humans = heroes’?
“I’m not a hero.”
“But if you’re not a hero, you probably won’t have that much power. Then who the hell are you?”
“I guess so. I’m just an ordinary adventurer who has a little confidence in his abilities.”
“…I don’t think so, but are you the adventurer named Haruto who defeated Gheel?”
Apparently, only my name was known to the demon tribe.
I thought the enemy had been annihilated when I defeated Gheel, but someone must have brought back information.
I answered Damnatio’s question.
“Ah, I’m that Haruto. Come to think of it, Gheel of the Four Heavenly Kings begged for his life at the end, but is he still one of the Four Heavenly Kings?”
I said that and stirred him up a little…
“Oh, so you’re Haruto. I’m telling you, that Gheel, he’s a disgrace to the Four Heavenly Kings.”
“Don’t you resent me for killing your friends?”
“Don’t make me laugh. He lost. It was just because he was weak.”
Apparently, he didn’t think anything of it. I’m glad. I had thought that he had some kind of grudge against me.
But I still don’t know why Damnatio showed up here.
“I want to ask you a question.”
“Well, fine, I’ll answer.”
I’m not comfortable with his superciliousness, but since he’s going to answer, let’s put up with it.
“Then tell me. Why are you attacking the empire?”
“There is something hidden in this country. I have come to look for it. And since humans are springing up like garbage, I thought I would kill a few of them. Then I found a place where they were gathering in large numbers, and that’s why I decided to attack them.”
The fact that they didn’t care about humans was probably because the demons had been fighting with humans for many years.
But that’s not what I wanted to hear.
“What is that thing you’re looking for?”
When I asked that, Damnatio answered more honestly than I expected.
“I have no reason to tell you anything, but that’s fine, since you’re going to die after all. What I came looking for is something called the ‘Conqueror’s Jewel’.”