In the midst of the battlefield where humans and demons stood facing each other, a girl stood there.
Even though she was at the very front of the group, the girl was dressed as if she were out for a casual stroll.
Though immediate combat had not yet begun, with the uncertainty of when a blind arrow might come flying, the girl calmly looked towards the demon side without any concern.
There was one Intermediate Demon who seemed to be the commander figure, a few Lower Demons that appeared to be subordinates, and dozens, perhaps even hundreds, of demons and monsters forming the army.
Considering the scale of the war surrounding the continent, it wasn’t exactly a large force, but it was far from being a small number either.
On the other hand, behind the girl, there were barely a dozen people, only one of whom was clad in armor. The rest were merely attendants accompanying her.
“Demons really are causing trouble on our way back home, aren’t they, Sir Lupin?”
“It seems the demons have noticed the Young Lady’s return and were lying in wait to ambush us. Please be careful.”
Knight Lupin slightly stepped back at the same moment.
Unable to stop his daughter who had rushed to enlist in the army, her father had entrusted her safety to his most trusted knight, Lupin. However, Lupin, rather than stepping forward to protect her, stepped back to put distance between himself and the girl.
But no one criticized him for this; instead, everyone seemed to find it quite natural. They calmed the horses that might startle, with complete ease, as if not even caring about the impending battle.
From a not-so-distant distance, the demon side finally made their move.
The monsters and minions led the assault, followed by the Lower Demons, gradually closing the gap. Despite this, the girl remained calm, simply raising one hand.
Then another girl appeared beside her.
“There really is no need for me to intervene. Trio, please step forth!”
A girl with light sky-blue hair appeared out of thin air, lightly clapping her hands.
Thereafter, following her summons, three knights emerged.
Unlike the two elegantly attired girls, these three knights were fully armored.
Though sturdy in appearance, these three knights faced off against several hundred enemies—an almost embarrassing disparity. Nevertheless, the girl and the knights acted as if it were of no concern, charging forward on cue.
Yet, with each step the three knights took, ten soldiers appeared behind them.
With another firm step—accompanied by a deep, resonating sound—twenty soldiers emerged at their back.
Step by step, the charge initially led by the three knights transformed into an entire army.
The number totaled exactly 99, including the knights.
Though each soldier looked slightly different, they were all undoubtedly present.
Ultimately, the two forces collided.
Nevertheless, the knights and soldiers did not stop. Their swords, spears—even their bare hands—tore through the enemies’ ranks.
The demons’ counter-resistance was fierce. A Minion whose arm had been severed by the soldiers retaliated fiercely, stabbing a soldier through the heart with the sword in its remaining hand.
And then, in the next moment, the soldier disappeared with a light ‘pop’, as though a mere phantom.
Before the Minion could react, another soldier decapitated it.
Not much later, the previously vanished soldier reappeared, diving right back into the battlefield as if nothing had happened.
Such a sight was seen throughout the battlefield.
These soldiers would never fall. Unless their ethereal bodies were struck with overwhelming force or their connection to their mage broken, such attacks could do nothing more than temporarily dispel their materialized forms. What’s more, due to the mage’s exceptional skill, their forms were reformed almost instantaneously.
So did this army have no weaknesses?
Of course, it did. This army originated from a single mage; if the mage were to die, the entire army would vanish like an illusion.
The Intermediate Demon leading the demon army had soon realized this fact.
The armies clashed, yet far from the fray, the mage stood calmly, observing the battlefield. Her only guard, an elderly knight, stood a step behind her, with a frail-looking girl next to her.
The Intermediate Demon raised its spear atop its shoulder. All it needed was one strike. If it could only fell the mage, it would win this battle.
It gathered all of its demonic energy. With conscious control over every muscle, it planted its footing and began its advance, step by step.
The spear was raised high as the demon ran forward, and then with an optimal trajectory, it was hurled.
The spear was its specialty—faster than an arrow, stronger than magic.
The spear was already in front of the girl before the sound of its flight could be heard. During all this, the girl’s eyes were still fixed on her own army. The knight charged with guarding her, oblivious to the threat, still maintained a step behind her.
However, just as the spear infused with demonic energy was about to pierce the girl’s skull, the sky-blue haired girl standing beside her intervened.
Was she sacrificing herself? But the force of the spear was fierce enough that her body wouldn’t have slowed it down, and it seemed certain it would pierce through both.
It was certain that would happen.
But the spear that had cut through the air with such force abruptly stopped in an almost surreal manner. Rather than causing a massive shockwave with its contained power, only gentle breezes ruffled the girl’s hair.
Despite the great distance, the Intermediate Demon could feel their eyes meet. No, it wasn’t just eye contact.
“This—how dare you aim for me. Looks like you want to die, huh? Sure, you’d die even if I didn’t do this, but I’ll make it official.”
A chilling voice as if the speaker was right beside him.
“…Well, this object belongs to someone, so I’ll return the spear.”
The voice rang out clearly, despite the distance—no mere hallucination.
“Then catch it well.”
With that icy voice, the demon was spoken to.
Wham!
His death.
“Hm? What’s wrong, Linne?”
“No, nothing. Just trying to catch a flying bug.”
When Yuli asked, Linne calmly waved her hand and said it was nothing. From Linne’s perspective, her response wasn’t too far off. The ‘bug’ was just a little larger and more acrobatic than usual.
The battle had already concluded. What was called a battle was nothing more than a massacre. They possessed overwhelming power and couldn’t even die if they tried. A fight they couldn’t lose.
Once the massacre ended, the army returned to ether form, leaving just the three knights standing before Yuli.
“Everyone, thank you for all your hard work! I’ll protect Yuli, so you may now leave.”
To Linne’s words, the three knights moved their hands to their waists and then hoisted signs.
Three signs with circles drawn on them. Even though they could now verbally communicate as part of the formal contract, the Three Musketeers still favored expressing themselves through signs.
Satisfied with Yuli’s amused response, the three knights disappeared with a ‘pop.’
In their place, Linne lifted Yuli onto the horse’s saddle.
“Then, Uncle Lupin, let’s get going.”
Sitting behind Yuli on the saddle, Linne didn’t even wait for Lupin’s response and lightly slapped the horse’s flank.
Obedient as its owner, the horse started walking along the road without hesitation, with Lupin and the others trailing behind.
“Welcome back, both of you. How long has it been….”
As soon as they returned to their territory, Craig, who had come to greet them on hearing the news, hugged both Yuli and Linne with both arms and welcomed them with a smile. Craig had already recognized Linne as his own daughter, so treating her differently would be absurd.
The wounds caused to his daughter had been enough the last time.
“…Didn’t you even come to the last battle, overstepping your authority to inspect and then leave?”
Craig, one of the nine sword masters existing on the continent, was someone whose movements could not be stopped, even by the Imperial military’s command. Although the General who was also a Sword Master tried to embarrass Craig for bypassing his subordinate’s authority, it didn’t bother him.
In the end, his love for his daughter spread throughout the army, causing Yuli to avoid meeting her subordinates for some time.
“Oh! By the way, you have a visitor.”
Ignoring his daughter’s slight irritation, Craig calmly carried on.
“Eh? A visitor?”
Then Craig finally let go of Yuli and Linne, slightly lifting one hand and pointing to the side.
The short duration of her service before she retired was thanks to not just Craig’s influence but also the consideration of her direct superior, the General.
Of course, it was possible because of her contributions to the war as well.
Still, throughout this period, the General repeatedly encouraged Yuli to stay in the military, especially as a woman amidst mostly male ranks. She was a rare and valuable talent in the eyes of the General.
But Yuli had no attachment to the army. The ranks meant nothing to her. She had joined the army only to accumulate strength and experience. There was no better place to fully utilize the power of command than on the battlefield.
And since she had already gathered enough strength and experience to satisfy her, she had no lingering attachment to the military.
So when she heard that the visitor might be someone sent by the General to persuade her to stay, but turned around and saw an unexpected person.
“Selian…”
“I’m very sorry for being late. Now… let’s go find her.”
Unlike the General who valued her rank, Selian’s words were enough to pique Yuli’s interest.
