Chapter 154: Participation of the Devil ③

The demon race’s sudden march on the Kingdom’s capital.

While the Kingdom’s hero, Otonashi Hibiki, felt a surge of agitation and unease, she still maintained her composure.

Facing the demon race’s advance, Hibiki proposed relocating the Limia capital, given their disadvantageous position.

But the nobles strongly opposed the suggestion, citing historical precedent. The proposal fell on deaf ears, and they were now facing this day.

At the Stella Fort capture operation, the capital was on the brink of war, yet they still acted this way.

Their lack of foresight irritated her.

(We are at war, you know? If we lose, this town, this castle will be destroyed. The historical value itself will be meaningless.) (Hibiki)

Speaking of Hibiki’s knowledge of war, she doesn’t have much experience.

She was just summoned from peaceful Japan as a hero. And in terms of war experience, the soldiers and nobles of this world vastly outnumber her.

But after enduring so many close battles, their tendency to view the demon race as inferior beings persists.

Especially the high-ranking nobles and the country’s upper echelons; they viewed the demon race’s threat with a somewhat positive outlook.

Groundless. It’s just optimism born from their perception of demons as an inferior race.

That infuriated Hibiki.

The King and some nobles have begun criticizing this optimistic view of the demon threat, but it hasn’t reached a point where it can change the country’s course.

No matter how the country’s perspective shifts towards Hibiki’s, it will be futile if it doesn’t happen in time.

“Hibiki! The castle gates are under siege! Those demons, with these numbers, are seriously trying to take the castle!” (Bredda)

Her party companion, the knight Bredda, pointed out the deteriorating situation.

Right now, the King, who could issue absolute orders, was not in the capital.

Because he was attending the Academy Town festival, Rotsgard.

The annual school festival.

At a time when they were planning a renewed assault on Stella Fort, the King’s participation wasn’t usual.

In past years, the King rarely attended.

However, this year, information indicated that Princess Lily, the person with the most influence over the Empire’s hero, would be attending the festival.

As allied countries fighting the demon race on the front lines, the Kingdom and the Empire were also rivals.

Unable to understand why the other party had taken an action they hadn’t in previous years, the King had gone himself.

It would have been fine for Hibiki to go, but she was also a direct fighting force in the Stella attack, so it was deemed unnecessary for her to attend.

Besides, they were the ones attacking Stella Fortress.

Humans were attacking the heavily defended fortress held by the demon race, aiming for recapture.

The timing of the attack was decided by the humans, meaning it was thought the Kingdom and the Empire would decide.

That’s why it was decided to attack after the festival.

(And this is the result. A demon race march. I didn’t expect it either, but the sequence of events is disastrous. This happened because the humans were pulling each other’s legs, after all.) (Hibiki)

Just how did the demon race bypass the Limia Kingdom’s frontline troops and appear near Seiko so suddenly?

What an absurd thing.

Seiko, a lake recently created by the mysterious being called Devil, is not far from the capital.

It was an incident that mercilessly drew a large number of human and demon troops, but because of this, they were able to prevent a surprise attack on the capital.

It’s also a harsh reminder.

Depending on the speed of the march, it would take several hours to reach the capital from Seiko.

If it’s mostly foot soldiers, it would take even longer. In normal circumstances, the defense forces would deal with it immediately.

However, it’s close.

One could even call it point-blank range.

This kind of surprise attack wasn’t on a town near the border, but on the capital, which shocked Hibiki.

At least, it was unthinkable that this was due to the laxity of the Kingdom’s current army.

They were ready to attack Stella Fort within these few days, meaning they were close to full battle readiness.

They should have been more vigilant.

Yet, they easily allowed their forces to invade.

In the past, they were surprised by their advanced thought transmission techniques, but with this incident, Hibiki wondered if the demon race’s techniques might surpass humans’.

Indeed, there have been orders to improve thought transmission, but there has been no real progress.

(Even if we surpass them in numbers and individual talent, if there’s this much difference in technique…) (Hibiki)

“The adventurer unit is securing the retreat path. Hibiki-sama, Bredda-dono, and Chiya, please head there with haste.”

As Hibiki’s thoughts raced with the gravity of the war, a voice other than Bredda’s reached her ears.

Wudi.

A royal court magician, and among Limia’s magicians, there is no one more capable.

In ability, knowledge, and as a researcher, his name is known throughout the world.

“Escape? We are going to escape… in this situation?” (Hibiki)

“Hibiki-sama, please understand. The enemy’s movement is far too fast. We should retreat from the capital, gather troops from surrounding towns and Stella, and then besiege the capital again. I believe this is the ideal course of action to recover.” (Wudi)

“…Heh~. Wudi, are you saying we should let the demon race temporarily occupy the history-filled capital?” (Hibiki)

“…Hibiki-sama, please stop the sarcasm. Right now, the King is absent, and the idiots who cry about history and tradition have already fled. We currently hold the highest authority in this castle. In this situation, I think it would be beneficial to show them results and silence them. A defensive battle here is already reckless.” (Wudi)

“That’s why I suggested moving the capital’s functions to somewhere near the Hopelace household. There’s even infighting among the high nobles. How unbearable.” (Hibiki)

“Ilumgand-dono was quite supportive of that proposal, though.” (Wudi)

“Ilum huh. Something is happening at the Academy Town he’s in as well. It seems the King has been informed, but the information relay is distressingly slow. In times like these, I truly feel the inconvenience of thought transmission. Cell phones were quite impressive, huh.” (Hibiki)

“Portable phones, were they? Our technology hasn’t developed as far as Hibiki-sama’s country, so something like that is just… We have no choice but to pray for their safety.” (Bredda)

The information sharing between Academy Town and the Kingdom is quite deficient.

‘If there were cell phones,’ Hibiki lamented. Based on her own customs, it couldn’t be helped.

Hearing the magician’s words, Hibiki pondered.

The man himself likely still hasn’t revealed it, but Hibiki already knows Bredda is the prince of this country.

It’s something that can’t be hidden anyway, so it’s obvious.

But she didn’t really allude to it.

Bredda is a capable companion, and more importantly, because he is with them, their discretion increases.

She easily judged that there was no point in pursuing the subject.

“Right, sorry. And then, Wudi, what are the chances of success?” (Hibiki)

“Plenty enough. I don’t know if it’s because it’s a surprise attack, or if they’ve already reached their maximum concealed troop numbers, but they don’t have the numbers to take the capital. Furthermore, the capital is our stronghold. We are familiar with the hidden passages and infiltration methods. I think we can definitely wipe them out.” (Wudi)

“That’s true. It looks like they’re rushing the castle as if impatient. Evading and surrounding them would have fewer casualties, huh. To bother with playing along would be foolish.” (Bredda)

“That’s how it is, Bredda-dono. Those guys shouldn’t be able to maintain that speed against the castle. In this situation, it’s actually convenient that the King is absent. Now, if we and Hibiki-sama manage to escape—” (Wudi)

“Hey, hey~”

In the conversation between Bredda and Wudi, the youngest girl in the group interrupts with reserve.

Lorel Union’s Priestess, Chiya.

Adoring Hibiki, she accompanies her.

Her travel with the hero party is causing diplomatic problems between Limia and the Lorel Union, but her priestess abilities are high.

Her healing and support, and depending on the situation, her cooperation in adding firepower, have made her indispensable to the group.

“Chiya-chan, what happened?” (Hibiki)

Hibiki prompts Chiya to continue.

“Yeah. If we run, what will happen to the people here?” (Chiya)

“…”

“…”

“…”

No one could immediately answer Chiya’s question.

No, they couldn’t say it, is more accurate.

What would happen?

The fate of those who couldn’t escape in time… there was no need to think about it.

“Chiya-chan, listen carefully.” (Hibiki)

“Y-Yeah.” (Chiya)

“This town, and this country, I will not let the demon race have it. For that, many lives have been lost. We must shoulder the feelings of those people, and we cannot escape it.” (Hibiki)

“…”

“We will win this war. We will stop the demon race’s march and achieve peace. We will survive. We must accomplish this. No matter how painful it is, we must endure.” (Hibiki)

“… Are you talking about Naval-oneechan?” (Chiya)

“…Yeah, that’s also… part of it. That’s why…” (Hibiki)

(The rest of the chapter continues in a similar format, with dialogue and descriptions of the unfolding events.)