My Disciples Think I’m Strong – Chapter 202

“Grrr! That bastard…! Immediately position the knights at the city gate!”

“Understood!”

A middle-aged knight, trembling atop the city wall, spoke to the knight beside him. He rushed off to carry out the command.

“Praus…! Do you dare to invoke my name like this!”

He pointed at me vehemently and assembled the knights towards the city gate.

“From now on, any beastmen entering will be killed on sight! Any beastmen that manage to get inside will be taken hostage! If demons come in, they will be sacrificed!”

Is that idiot out of his mind?

Demons lack rational judgment, attacking indiscriminately regardless of whether someone is human or beastman. You can’t use beastmen as hostages.

If anything, we needed to unite and unleash our full strength against them.

“W-What should we do, Lord Praus?”

The beastmen fidgeted anxiously, their safety in jeopardy causing them to become restless.

“Wait. They’ll be here soon.”

“Huh? Who’s coming?”

“A very high-ranking person.”

They shouldn’t be long now.

In a situation where every second counted, it was inefficient to wait, but what else could be done? If a knight started killing beastmen, it would indeed become problematic.

“Stand aside! Can’t you see that His Grace Duke Todiah is coming!!”

I raised my eyebrows at the clearly audible voice beyond the crumbling city gates. They arrived faster than expected. Well, I did send that message, so I guess it’s only natural.

“Ariel, I want you to send me back to the wall.”

“Got it.”

“You all keep those debris cleared so the beastmen can pass through.”

“Understood.”

After giving orders to the heroes, I leaned against the wind magic created by Ariel. I calmly ascended back to the wall.

“P-Praus, you…!”

As soon as I set foot on the wall, the knights aimed their swords at me. But perhaps out of surprise, they hesitated to approach.

“I didn’t come to see you so just stay still. And if you have the time, why not greet the head of the Todiah family, Glair Todiah?”

“What’s that tone? Why do you speak as if you called for him?”

“Because I did call for him.”

“What…?”

Seeing the middle-aged knight’s astonished expression made me stifle a laugh. I placed my foot on the wall railing and surveyed the situation below.

Leading the way was Glair, followed by his eldest son Benos, his second son Acker, and his youngest daughter Ella, along with the knights of the Todiah family. Oh, that’s quite the military force.

“Huh, huff! I-I bow before His Grace Duke Todiah!”

The knights below rushed to salute, but Glair didn’t even spare them a glance as he scanned the area. He was looking for me.

I raised my hand high.

“Right here, Glair.”

Upon spotting me, he immediately leaped up onto the city wall using magic. His children followed after him.

“I bow before His Grace Duke Todiah!”

The knights snapped to attention and saluted in unison, but Glair’s gaze was solely on me.

“Are you well, members of the Todiah family?”

“It’s been a while, Lord Praus.”

“Indeed. I apologize for summoning you so suddenly.”

“Really now! Praus, do you have any idea how busy I am?”

Whoa, look at him getting all worked up right after arriving.

I know, I know. I don’t want to see you either. But isn’t the point of building these connections to use them in times like this?

“I do know. However, I did give you a valid reason to drop everything and come.”

“…Are you a magician? How do you know how to break through the 8th rank?”

Months after I explained the method to break through the 7th rank, he really had become a 7th rank magician. Perhaps that’s why he takes my words seriously now. And as a result, I’ve found it easier to use him.

“I’m not a magician. I know how to raise one, but I can’t use magic myself.”

“…Is that so.”

He answered without much enthusiasm, acting as if it was of no consequence. He asked the question after all!

“So, what do you want from me instead of just asking me to teach you how to break through the 8th rank?”

“I need all other races coming here to be let inside the Empire, and if there are any demons that slip through, I’d appreciate if you could handle them for me. Unless their eyes are darkened, there’s no need to kill them even if they resonate with magic. They’re just infected with magic, so keep them by your side.”

I handed him three shards of the Purification Stone.

“These shards will extract the magic from their bodies. However, if their eyes have darkened, kill them without hesitation. There’s no way to revert them to their original state.”

Looking down at the purple-glowing shards, he stole a glance at Ella. They were precisely the same as the one hanging around her neck.

“The Purification Stone…”

“Be careful not to lose it. It’s not something you can buy even for tens of thousands of gold.”

“Then, Lord Praus, why did you sell this to me?”

Ella asked as she fiddled with the Purification Stone around her neck.

“I couldn’t just watch you, an S-Class, die so uselessly. Your powers will surely be needed against the demon tribe in the future.”

“Is that so?”

She responded more calmly than I expected. I worried she might be disappointed, but she didn’t seem to show it.

“However, I might take it back someday. When that time comes, I hope you won’t hesitate to give it back.”

To withstand the curse of Blas Weill, the Purification Stone was needed. As many as possible.

“Understood. I’m alive thanks to you, Lord Praus, so if it has to be given back, then I’ll return it.”

Ella responded willingly. I smiled at her and gave her shoulder a gentle pat.

“Thank you. I’ll head straight to the Beastmen’s Forest. Guard this place well. Oh, and that lunatic said he’d kill any beastmen trying to enter the Empire, right? Stop that.”

“…Understood. I’ll make sure of that.”

As I pointed at the middle-aged knight behind me with my thumb, Glair glared at the knight and nodded.

Good. If the Todiah family is guarding this place, then the other races should remain unharmed by the knights.

Taking a quick peek below the wall, I saw beastmen moving inside under the heroes’ guidance. It seemed they were managing that well too.

It looked like we wouldn’t have any issues stabilizing the situation.

*

“Maria, after asking Orient for the exact location of the demons, deploy a barrier centered around that location. We can’t let a single one slip through.”

Minimizing damage, no matter how long it takes, was critical.

Most of those visible near the wall were either young children or weak beastmen. The stronger ones were probably still fighting in the forest.

“But if we do that, the beastmen inside the forest won’t be able to come out.”

“That’s fine. We’ll be the ones going in from now on.”

We couldn’t afford to lose the strength of the beastmen here. After all, it was a connection I’d forged myself.

After Maria identified the locations of the demons through Orient, she began setting up the barrier. Meanwhile, Tina and Iris started summoning the Phoenix and Naiad, unleashing the power of the Spirit Kings.

“The barrier is set up. Unless we break it, we won’t be able to go out recklessly!”

A 9th rank barrier would give even Ecabel and Raghur trouble in breaking it.

“Three things to be cautious of. One is distinguishing the eyes I mentioned earlier, and another is the purple-haired girl, Ecabel; if you spot her, behead her immediately. It must be a clean kill; otherwise the situation will become more complicated. Lastly…”

I glanced at the summoned Spirit Kings and continued saying.

“If you can catch Raghur, do so; if not, kill him.”

I believed that if the heroes teamed up, they could easily subdue Raghur, but who knew what tactics they would employ.

“Let’s go!”

Thus, we charged into the Beastmen’s Forest.

As soon as we entered, the sounds of rustling and screams reached my ears.

I quickly realized battles were erupting all around us.

“Ahhh! Help me!!”

Even with an arm severed, a beastman stubbornly bit into the body of another beastman. Seeing a beastman thrashing in pain beneath the assault of a demon, I tightened my grip on my sword.

Swish!

I dashed and cleanly severed the demon’s neck. Its head toppled off, gushing blood from the severed neck.

I placed the Purification Stone on the injury of the beastman. Instantly, the collapsed beastman relaxed his expression as if freed from suffering.

“Th-Thank you.”

The beastman struggled to stand. I straightened him out and said,

“Go toward the Empire’s city walls. That’s where it’ll be safe.”

I pointed back in the direction I had come, but he shook his head vigorously.

“No, I’m fine. This is our homeland. I can’t just stand by and watch it be taken by demons.”

“…Is that so?”

High spirits, I respect that.

“Then do it decisively. Don’t hesitate because he’s your kin.”

“…Yes.”

I wasn’t sure if the magic had truly exited him, but judging by his good expression, he appeared to have been purified successfully. After retrieving the Purification Stone, I scanned the surroundings.

The heroes were dashing toward the source of the screams, rescuing beastmen that had been assaulted by demons while preventing their flesh from rotting using the Purification Stones.

The heroes were doing well. However,

“I’m sorry!”

Iris apologetically muttered as she decapitated a demonized beastman. Tina and Maria said nothing while killing demons, but their expressions revealed their guilt.

You might think they’re just kids barely fifteen, but they must overcome this.

This world always forces trials upon heroes.

Clang!

After parrying the demon’s sword aimed at me, I swiftly beheaded it. I tried to ensure they felt as little pain as possible.

Demons lack reason, and as such, their actions are simple. Therefore, they aren’t too tricky to handle.

However, each time I killed one after another, it easily instilled guilt and trauma. Especially if it were kin or someone they knew, it would be even more painful.

That’s why we needed to resolve this situation as quickly as possible.

“<High-Speed Movement>.”

I launched off the ground.

A few fallen beastmen surrounded me. I waved my hand to catch Tina’s attention. She immediately understood my gesture and rushed toward the injured beastman.

I had heard that Ecabel’s location according to Orient was a bit deeper in the forest. I was told she was in a village to the southwest, so as long as I pass through the forest surrounding the village, I should be able to find her easily.

After running for about five minutes, I began to spot the village through the trees.

I hid my body behind a tree and observed the village.

The village looked desolate, having already lost its function. There wasn’t a single intact building, and the ground and walls were heavily stained with blood, while corpses lay scattered mercilessly.

As I grimaced at the gruesome scene, Pasma spoke.

“Praus, I can hear voices coming from deeper within the village.”

“Survivors?”

“Seems so.”

“Let’s go right now.”

I dashed into the village.

*

“It’s you, isn’t it? The beastman who has personal ties with Praus.”

Ecabel’s tentacles were tightly entwined around Leoness’s limbs. Ecabel crouched down, admiring Leoness’s face, and smiled gleefully.

“She’s certainly gorgeous and appetizing. But I’m not interested in females, you see.”

“Uagh!”

With each tightening of the tentacles, Leoness screamed in agony as her bones crunched.

“What would Praus feel if he saw you become a demon? I’d love to see that.”

“W-What is your purpose…?”

Leoness asked, enduring the excruciating pain, on the verge of losing consciousness.

“Purpose? Hmm~ Though the Demon King did order me, I’m just doing this because it seems fun?”

Ecabel rested her chin on her finger, tilting her head. Just as she was about to ask something strange before death, she chuckled.

“But you’re boring. I was planning to play with you before meeting Praus. But you’re too weak. However, if I turn you into a demon, then maybe Praus would fight for real and show his true self?”

Ecabel held up her index finger. It was at that moment she aimed for her heart.

“That won’t happen.”

“!”

At the sudden voice, Ecabel’s head snapped to the side.

“<Phantom Wave Slash>!”

“Whoa there?”

The arc of my sword cleanly severed her arm and tentacles. Ecabel looked at her severed limbs with a beaming smile.

“Are you Praus?!”

“Ecabel…”

With a tremendous surge of mana pouring from my body, the killing intent began to radiate.

“I’ll end you.”