The NTR Hero Knelt Before the Demon King – Chapter 15

In front of her eyes stood a creature baring sharp teeth.

As soon as she recognized who that person was, Eliza, who had been relatively calm just moments ago, was suddenly gripped by a deep tension.

An unforgettable, distinctive appearance…

A beastman fighter with red hair and bronzed skin.

Through this, Eliza realized that the beastman in front of her was one of the warriors who had once been a member of the Hero Party and had successfully reached the Demon King’s Castle for the first time.

‘I never thought I’d encounter a member of the Hero Party in a place like this… Does that mean there are others besides that girl lurking here as well?’

The probability of that being true was quite high given they were fellow comrades.

And with that thought, Eliza began to feel a chill run down her spine, the first time since she had started this mission.

As a member of the Demon King’s Elite Guard, Eliza possessed exceptional skills, second only to the Demon King himself.

However, she was well aware that the warriors belonging to the Hero Party were not to be underestimated, either.

In fact, when they had met before, the Hero had fallen before a proper fight could begin, but the past records had already proven that the warriors of the Hero Party were anything but ordinary.

Of course, the Hero played a significant role, but it was presumed that the other warriors also had skills on par with her, the four top aides of the Demon King’s Elite Guard, or perhaps even beyond.

And that meant that at this very moment, the power of the beastman female warrior before her was likely on the same level as her own.

The beastman female warrior, now with a green-colored collar around her neck that Eliza had never seen before, gazed at her with a blurry, unfocused gaze.

Watching this, Eliza clenched her weapon tightly and began calculating in her head as quickly as possible.

‘This opponent is a formidable foe that cannot be taken lightly… Moreover, there’s a high possibility that her comrades are nearby. That means… fleeing is the best course of action after all.’

Since she had already accomplished her purpose of coming here, there was no need to take unnecessary risks.

Furthermore, there was a Hero who had directly declared they were on par with her, regardless of the results of previous battles.

If she absolutely had to fight, it would be wiser to do so after joining forces with that person.

After making that judgment, Eliza decided to hide in the shadows and escape from this place.

However…

“I won’t let you go that easily!”

“!”

In the next moment, a bright light suddenly illuminated from behind her.

Simultaneously, the magic Eliza was trying to blend into the shadows was nullified, and a look of deep confusion began to fill her face.

‘To forcefully cancel my magic… Could it be that another member of the Hero Party has arrived?’

Casting a wary glance behind her, Eliza felt a chill.

But in the next instant, what appeared before her eyes was a new sight unrelated to the previous Hero Party—a female general wearing armor that glimmered with a blue hue.

She held a sword and shield, radiating a bright light along with her subordinates.

Realizing that while this wasn’t the Hero Party, an equally strong adversary had shown up, Eliza instinctively furrowed her brow.

‘I’ve never seen this human before, but she looks quite formidable… Could that woman be the Cassandra I’ve heard of?’

The strong person who had swept through the guards earlier.

While not as dire as the arrival of the other members of the Hero Party, Eliza recognized the situation was turning very unfavorable and made a conscious effort to remain calm.

‘In front of me is a beastman with at least equal strength, and behind is another human likely to be equally strong… A direct confrontation here is absolutely impossible. If so…’

Ultimately, her remaining options pointed only towards fleeing, though Eliza believed that even that wouldn’t be easy in such circumstances.

Her magic was partially sealed, and the light from Cassandra’s weapon was driving away the darkness in which she had hoped to hide.

On top of that, the area was already surrounded by human soldiers armed with bows and spears, closing in around her.

It was a situation that perfectly matched the term ‘surrounded on all sides.’

With that realization, Eliza began to understand she had only one choice left.

“Ha…”

Letting out a deep sigh, Eliza quickly pulled something from her pocket.

‘It’s a last resort that’s quite difficult to craft… but I have no choice now.’

Without giving Cassandra and the others a chance to react, she hurled the object she held with all her might to the ground.

Then…

– Boom!

“What… what was that?”

“Ugh! W-What the hell!?”

A strong explosion filled the air with a blinding light.

In that instant, Cassandra and the others had their vision instantly obscured, and taking advantage of that moment, Eliza dashed toward the soldiers encircled.

A flash grenade.

It was a device that condensed high-level magic that trapped light, and upon release, emitted an excessively bright light that obstructed sight in the surroundings.

Given that her opponent bore the ability to emit light, this was nearly a countermeasure, and indeed, in this moment, Cassandra and the soldiers were rendered completely unable to respond.

In the time she had bought, Eliza’s target was naturally not the powerful Cassandra or that beastman warrior, but rather the location held by the regular soldiers.

Against two powerful foes, it was easy for her to overpower the general soldiers whose sight was obstructed by the flash grenade, and Eliza swiftly began to cut down the soldiers and make her escape.

But then…

“Ugh!?”

The next moment, a peculiar sense of danger surged over her.

As if her instincts pierced through her in that very moment, Eliza desperately twisted her body, raising the sword she held high.

At the same time…

– Clang!

In the instant that followed, she felt a heavy strike filled with force.

Eliza nearly dropped her sword from the shock, beginning to lose her balance and stagger.

“Damn it!”

Struggling to regain her footing in her disrupted stance, Eliza tried to steady herself, but just as she was about to fall…

“Cough!”

– Thud!

With a sudden impact, Eliza crashed onto the ground.

Feeling one of her arms break from the force, she sensed something flying towards her from where she had just fallen.

With the last bit of strength in her still-working arm, she struggled to escape.

And then…

– Boom!

The sound of an explosion rang in her ears, and she felt debris flying toward her.

Recognizing that this was the site where she had just been standing, Eliza was suddenly gripped by a chilling sensation.

‘That was close… If I hadn’t forced my body to dodge just now…’

As the effect of the flash grenade began to wear off, she could vaguely make out the aftermath of the explosion.

Where Eliza had crashed down was now a crater with a diameter of 50 cm…

In the center stood the beastman female warrior, the very person she had been wary of from the start.

The beastman warrior lifted her fist, now draped in debris, gazing at Eliza.

The sight blocked by the flash grenade, and the confusion it caused, had not deterred the beastman warrior from relying solely on her instincts to attack Eliza, successfully thwarting her escape and breaking her arm in the process.

The last resort she had prepared for emergencies had utterly failed.

Thus, Eliza recognized that the capabilities of the beastman warrior before her were far greater than she had anticipated, causing her to involuntarily scowl.

‘I knew the beastman’s sensing abilities were extraordinary, but I didn’t expect her to pinpoint me with such precision in that situation…’

The ability of an opponent far superior to what she had expected.

As despair began to cast a shadow over Eliza’s face.

The soldiers surrounding her and Cassandra began to recover their vision, quickly reforming their encirclement.

Simultaneously, the beastman warrior, still gazing at Eliza with an unfocused expression, prepared to strike again.

Seeing Eliza cornered, Cassandra shouted with a triumphant voice.

” Truly… The legendary Hero Party does not bear its name in vain. Honestly, I didn’t expect you to handle that situation so well just now.”

“…”

The beastman warrior nodded slightly at Cassandra’s words, which contained the tone of praise.

While she had moved quickly just moments ago, she now appeared sluggish as if weighing her next action, yet Eliza felt no room to ponder.

‘My last resort has failed… It seems the only choice left for me now is…’

With the flash grenade, her emergency means was now gone, and she possessed no other way to confuse this number of enemies.

No…

Even if there were, against a beastman warrior with such keen senses, it would be utterly useless.

There was no more escape route, and given this situation, her future consisted only of being killed by the enemy or captured as a prisoner.

Either way, she would face a humiliating ending, forced to submit to the enemy’s might.

With that conclusion, Eliza steeled herself as she looked down at the sword in her hand.

‘I cannot allow myself to be captured and bring shame to everyone… I’ve already completed my significant mission, so there is no more regret.’

Steeling her resolve, Eliza began to steady her grip on the sword.

Then she slowly aimed the tip of the sword at her own heart.

‘Your Majesty… May you live on in good health…’

As she prepared to say her goodbyes to her master…

At that moment…

– Boom!!!!!

“!?”

“Uh?”

Suddenly, a massive explosion reverberated through the air.

Eliza’s hand, which was about to take her own life, froze in place…

At the same time, the faces of Cassandra, the soldiers, and even the beastman warrior all went stiff.

Through the thick dust, someone began to emerge slowly.

Clad in black armor and wielding a large sword emanating an unusual energy, he spoke in a voice that was clear yet cold enough for all to hear.

“Well… who might this be? I truly didn’t expect to find such a fine individual in a place like this.”