A despondent silence hung over Garland, the country of demons. Men and women of all ages conversed in hushed whispers, discussing the predicament their nation was in. The future of Garland looked bleak. It was to the point where people frequently shot worried glances at the castle, praying that those living within had a plan to save them.
The source of their despair was, of course, the results of the demon army's latest operation. The assault on Heiligh and the Divine Mountain had been the most important battle of the war. And it had ended in failure.
No, failure was too soft a word to describe what had happened. It had been a complete and utter rout. Their army, composed of over a hundred thousand monsters and the demon's finest elites, had been decimated. Barely ten percent of the demon army's original force had managed to return.
When Garland's citizens had seen the massive demon army arrayed on the plains outside their capital, they had been sure. Sure that the humans wouldn't stand a chance against such overwhelming might. But now they were forced to reconsider everything they'd been certain of.
Had the humans always been so strong? Were demons not actually the chosen race? Now that they'd been weakened, would they be the ones facing an invasion? And if so, did Garland have any hope of surviving? Garland's citizens discussed these questions at every opportunity they got, in a futile attempt to calm their unease. So far, neither the demon lord nor General Freid had made any public statements.
In truth, the atmosphere within the castle was even more despondent than out on the streets. Every soldier had lost someone they cared about, all in the blink of an eye. Had they lost in a proper battle, they could have at least blamed their general for not commanding well. Even if he wasn't at fault, they could have felt justified in pushing their anger and resentment onto him.
But not a single soldier could bring themselves to blame Freid. No one could have predicted that a giant pillar of light would rain down and annihilate their army in a few seconds. They could hardly denounce their general for not anticipating an attack like that. The soldiers were too numb with despair to feel any anger, anyway. None of them had the willpower to search for someone to take responsibility.
Freid Bagwa sat in his office and buried his head in his hands.
"Ngh." It felt as though his heart had been ripped from his chest. He grit his teeth, and deep wrinkles formed on his forehead, which made his beautiful features scrunch up in worry and sorrow.
After all, he was the commander of the demon lord's forces, the general responsible for their defeat.
"I can't believe I'm so powerless!" He lamented his own incompetence. Having his old wounds reopened over and over again by that blonde girl hadn't been nearly enough punishment for his sins. Freid had already given his report to the demon lord. However, the demon lord he respected so much, God's very own chosen one, had deigned not to punish him.
Freid had been prepared to be executed on the spot. Of course, he knew that as Garland's only wielder of ancient magic, the demon lord wouldn't dispose of him so easily. But still, he felt responsible. He had wanted to be punished with death. Even now, the shame he felt at failing to fulfill his responsibilities to his sovereign, and to his god, was eating away at him.
Suddenly, he heard a knock at his door. The moment he gave his permission to enter, one of his men rushed into the room and yelled.
"U-Urgent report, sir! We have just learned the details of how the operations in the empire and the sea of trees concluded!"
"Davros and Divoff's units were in charge of those! Tell me how they fared!"
The Heiligh operation may have failed, but I pray those two at least succeeded. However, when he saw the expression on the messenger's face, Freid's heart sank.
"Yes, sir. Divoff succeeded in crippling the capital's defenses. However, his unit... failed to assassinate the emperor. He and his men died in the attempt."
"I see. So they gave their lives for His Majesty, and God."
Freid breathed a heavy sigh. He had ordered Divoff to retreat if he failed to assassinate the emperor. However, Divoff knew retreating from the capital would have been a difficult task, so he had probably decided to bet everything in an all-or-nothing duel. Freid couldn't decide whether he was proud of Divoff for fighting with honor, or angry at him for throwing away even a slim chance at survival.
In the end, he just shook his head and bade the messenger to continue.
"The conquest of the sea of trees... ended in complete failure. While Verbergen suffered numerous casualties, the city still stands. Davros' unit was... completely wiped out."
"What!? Not a single person from Davros' unit survived? Shouldn't at least a few them have been able to retreat!? No wait, Verbergen still stands? You mean to say that they weren't even able to reach the true labyrinth? Impossible..."
"According to the report, the scouts that went to investigate the situation were nearly wiped out as well. The few that survived... claimed that the beasts wearing the skins of rabbitmen haunted the woods."
Chills ran down Freid's spine. Beasts wearing the skin of rabbitmen? Freid thought back to the white-haired boy who was always giving him so much grief. One of his companions was definitely a rabbitman. And so, he was certain that boy had been behind Davros' defeat.
"That bastard!"
"F-Freid-sama?"
Freid was too incensed to take note of his subordinate's confusion. Even when he wasn't there himself, that boy was able to block Freid at every turn. Freid's blood was boiling.
Just then, he heard another knock at his door. It appeared he had another visitor. Freid squeezed his eyes shut and forced himself to calm down. Once he was in control of himself, he permitted the newcomer to enter.
"My apologies for the sudden visit, General. But His Majesty requests your presence."
"Ah. Understood, I'll head over at once." After a brief pause, Freid nodded. The messenger saluted and stepped down.
For the past ten days, Freid had been on standby. Both he and the people of Garland were nearing their limits. But now, the demon lord had finally summoned him. Freid hurried over to the throne room.
The guards saluted and pushed open the double doors when they saw Freid. As he stepped in the room, the first thing he saw was the demon lord. He had his back to Freid, and was gazing up at the portrait of God hanging behind the throne.
"Freid Bagwa at your service, Your Majesty."
Freid bent to one knee and bowed his head, but the demon lord continued staring at the portrait, and didn't reply.
Freid felt as though darkness was closing in all around him. Had he finally been abandoned by his lord? But then, without turning away from the portrait, the demon lord finally spoke.
"Did you hear what happened to the teams we sent to the empire and the sea of trees?"
"Yes, Your Majesty. I only just heard the report. This all happened because I misjudged our foe. I have no excuse for my failures."
The demon lord chuckled.
"No, there was no faults in your planning. This is all because that irregular showed up."
"Yet—"
The demon lord continued, overriding Freid's objection.
"More importantly, Freid. I would like to hear the report of your battle once more."
"Y-Your Majesty? You want the details again?"
"Indeed. Specifically, I want to hear more about that blonde-haired, crimson-eyed girl that you fought. You claimed that she "restored" all of the injuries you'd suffered in the past?"
"Restored... yes, that is correct. As you say, Your Majesty. That magic felt more as if she were "restoring" something than some variant of healing magic."
"And you said that she cast her spells without incantations or magic circles. Furthermore, she appeared to be little more than a child. Correct?"
"Yes, my lord. It is as you say."
The demon lord chuckled again. However, this chuckle felt somehow different to Freid. It was as if there was a deeper meaning behind it.
"Your Majesty?"
Bewildered, Freid called out to him. The demon lord hurriedly coughed and switched back to his dignified tone.
"Freid. Most of our plans have ended in failure. Our invasion force has suffered a crippling blow. Though Garland is still safe so long as you and your monsters are here, the citizens grow uneasy."
"My deepest apologies, Your Majesty. I take full responsibility for this failure."
"I care nothing for assigning blame. The reason I called you here isn't for that."
Freid was practically prostrating himself before the demon lord at this point.
"I received an oracle."
"You mean—"
Just once, Freid had heard their god Alv's voice directly. Freid's consciousness dimmed as he thought back to that meeting. However, he managed to keep himself from fainting in awe again.
Whatever the demon lord had to say, it was something he needed to hear. Freid braced himself. If the demon lord had been visited by Alv, then his next words would be the words of their exalted god.
The demon lord spoke in a slow yet majestic voice.
"I will grant you my apostles. Use them as you see fit. All I ask is that you bring the irregular and his comrades to me. Those were the words Lord Alv gifted to me."
"Wha— H-He wants us to bring those monsters here!? But—"
Even if this was Alv's will, Freid couldn't do something like that. His anger toward Hajime and his companions was too great, so he refused to capture them alive. Freid opened his mouth to object, but fortunately trailed off before he could say something he would regret.
The reason he stopped was because a giant pillar of light suddenly appeared in front of him.
"I-Impossible!? Your Majesty, get back!" Worried that Hajime might be trying to assassinate them, Freid urged the demon lord to leave. However, the demon lord held out his hand to stop Freid.
The dazzling, mystical pillar of light pierced through the throne room's ceiling, then expanded until it enveloped the room. Freid caught a glimpse of a kneeling figure at the center of the light before it grew so bright he had to cover his eyes.
As the light faded, Freid opened his eyes and saw a silver-haired beauty dressed in Valkyrie armor. Her figure was so perfect it left him captivated. However, her cold blue eyes were devoid of human warmth. The girl mechanically rose to her feet and spoke.
"I am Hearst, one of God's Apostles. As my lord desires, I pledge my services to you, O demon lord. Allow me to sweep away all that stands in your path."
"Well met. I look forward to seeing what you can do."
Freid watched, dumbfounded, as the demon lord casually conversed with an Apostle of God. The demon lord took little note of Freid's shock and continued speaking with the angel.
"Hearst. I was told that the irregular defeated your comrade, Noint... Are you sure you can handle this?"
"I am. Noint was but one of many."
What's that supposed to mean? Freid thought to himself. A second later, his unspoken question was answered.
Pillars of light sprouted up one after another within the massive throne room. There were easily over a hundred of them. And from each pillar of light, another Valkyrie emerged. That wasn't all of them, either.
"Y-Your Majesty, General Freid! There's hundreds of women with the exact same face standing outside the castle!"
As the messenger gave his report, Freid finally snapped back to his senses. He used spatial magic to open a gate and examined the situation outside. Apostles of God were lined up in orderly rows outside the castle's front gates. At a glance, there appeared to be around 400 of them. And there were another 100 or so within the throne room as well.
Each and everyone of them had the exact same face and body type as Hearst. They all possessed the same mechanical, emotionless voice as well.
"You have 500 Apostles to aid you. Defeat is unthinkable."
Freid began to tremble. As did all the other soldiers, and even the citizens of Garland. Everyone's gazes were glued to the divine host standing outside. They were all thinking the same thing.
Aaah. We really are the chosen race after all.
"Freid, I have new orders for you. Use these apostles to carry them out."
"As you wish, my lord!" Freid was unbelievably moved by how composed his lord had remained throughout the arrival of the apostles. I knew it, this is a man I can respect. As he listened to his orders, a stray thought crossed his mind.
Come to think of it, His Majesty has blonde hair and crimson eyes too... just like that girl.