The NTR Hero Knelt Before the Demon King – Chapter 163

“…”

“Gold… Dreamland…”

An icy atmosphere lingered in the room after Beelzebub finished recounting her tale.

Faced with the reality of an impending apocalypse, the faces of those present were clouded with a heavy sense of dread.

“The only silver lining is that our Demon Kingdom is not within the magic’s range. It’s likely because the shape of the magic circle couldn’t be completed. However… if the Magic Kingdom were to swallow the continent like this, it’s obvious where that sword would end up.”

“That makes sense. Of course, after unifying the continent, they would definitely act that way.”

“So, the conclusion is, how do we stop this… Is there any way?”

“Yes, there is. However, it’s not going to be easy.”

Beelzebub replied seriously to Eliza’s question.

In that moment, Eliza felt a mixture of joy from finding a possible solution and anxiety at Beelzebub’s seemingly understated warning about its difficulty.

‘If she’s expressing herself like that, it must mean the challenge is stacked to hell…’

However, it goes without saying that resolving a world-ending crisis wouldn’t be an easy task.

In this atmosphere thick with intense tension,

Beelzebub spoke in a calm voice to those gathered there.

“For now, it’s meaningless to meddle with other places of the magic circle. There’s only one thing we can do to prevent the spell’s activation: attack the source where the magic begins.”

“The source… you mean…”

“Don’t tell me?”

Beelzebub was discussing something they didn’t want to think about.

Eliza, Nyadan, and the others instinctively frowned.

Then, the unwelcome topic they had been predicting slipped from Beelzebub’s lips.

“Yes, our destination is the Capital Rehi of the Magic Kingdom. We must thwart the ritual they are conducting there.”

“…Umm…”

“…Phew…”

What Beelzebub proposed was an absurdly difficult task.

Invading the enemy’s capital and attacking a stronghold that would surely be tightly guarded to prevent the ritual from occurring—that’s what they needed to accomplish.

Not only was the success itself nearly impossible, but even if they somehow pierced the pinhole of probability and succeeded, they would likely return to certain death immediately afterward.

It was a situation that brought nothing to mind but the word despair.

The plan to achieve success was already a long shot, and even if they succeeded, death was the only outcome that awaited them afterward. They found themselves deeply troubled by this mission.

‘I’ve always held onto the thought of dying for my country…’

‘But still, to be sent on a mission with a blatant expectation of dying…’

‘Just when I’ve finally met good people and found happiness, I don’t want to die like this.’

Though they had to execute this for the world… and even more so for the Demon Kingdom, they couldn’t help but hesitate in the current situation.

At that moment,

Observing them in silence until now was…

Hero Ellen, who spoke in a calm voice.

“Um, there’s one personal proposal I’d like to make related to this. It might greatly lower the difficulty of this situation.”

“Really?”

“What is it?”

The others, including Beelzebub, looked on with heightened anticipation at Hero Ellen’s words.

Toward them, Ellen began recounting a story from his time in the Falcon Empire…

Specifically, he spoke about the ‘contract’ he had made with Amun.

*

During a discussion with the deity Amun, who strongly detests NTR,

He had been promised that if he removed the sealing stones scattered across the continent, Amun would descend upon that region and deliver punishment.

Upon hearing this, Beelzebub and the others began to nod slowly.

“Indeed… it would definitely be much easier than directly disrupting the ritual occurring in the enemy’s heart.”

“And if the ritual is in progress, those guys will surely concentrate all their interest there. That means their attention toward those sealing stones will naturally wane.”

Beelzebub and Nyadan expressed their agreement with my words.

Watching them, Eliza still wore an expression tinged with unease and voiced her concern.

“The problem is, we don’t know where exactly these sealing stones are located. Unless they’re out in the open like the World Tree of the Elf Church, if they’re hidden away like in the Falcon Empire, we wouldn’t have a clue how to find them.”

“Yes, that is indeed a concern. Thus… I’ve brought someone who can guide us regarding this.”

“Huh? A guide?”

Eliza tilted her head at my statement.

Immediately after, I called in the person I had asked to wait outside after finishing our earlier conversation.

“Huh? Aren’t you Achil… um… Pyra?”

“It’s been a while, Eliza.”

*

Once a girl who turned into a man through Eliza’s hands, now residing in the Magic Kingdom, Pyra was also the one who summoned Amun to this world.

She had taken the initiative to gather Amun’s devotees across various locations throughout the continent to destroy the sealing stones.

Among them, there were several who had been strategically placed regarding the sealing stone located in the Magic Kingdom.

“Originally, I planned to smash the sealing stone in the Magic Kingdom after failing to destroy the World Tree… Fortunately, the situation aligned well, allowing us to take action toward our final target first.”

“Umm…”

“So that’s the background…”

Though the direction might be different, the revelation prompted thoughts about the dark forces conspiring on a continent-wide scale, not entirely unlike the Magic Kingdom itself.

In that light, they felt a significant unease.

But ultimately, they found solace in the fact that this would help them, deciding to alter their original target from disrupting the ritual to destroying the sealing stones.

“Alright. Then, with this, our chances of success should be raised to a feasible level. We’re good to depart right away, yes?”

“Not yet. There are still things we must do first. We need to move with some leeway to time it correctly.”

“Huh? What do you mean by that?”

Eliza questioned, perplexed by Beelzebub’s statement.

With a gravity heavier than before, Beelzebub responded with something that felt considerably more personal than her previous resolve.

“Although we’ve decided to proceed with this taking into account the aftermath it may bring to us, it doesn’t mean we should bear all the losses ourselves. In this regard…”

As Beelzebub continued, they felt a mix of fear and respect for her cunning in maneuvering gains for the Demon Kingdom even in this situation—and they nodded to her proposal.

‘Indeed… We can’t be the ones risking our lives while others sit back and enjoy.’

‘After all, the ones who’ll get hit first are them. It makes sense to give them a taste of it.’

Shortly after all decisions were made, they began preparations for execution.

Simultaneously, Beelzebub returned to her office and started dispatching the letters she had prepared in advance.

*

Standing by the window in the royal castle, a girl gazed at the bright full moon.

At that moment, she spoke in a calm voice, her face adorned with a smile filled with deep expectation.

“Has it only been a month?”

“Yes, it has, Your Majesty, the Magic King.”

“The preparations for the magic circle have been completed; all that remains is to fill it with magic power and execute the ritual.”

“Good, let’s give it our all until the end. Not a single mistake. Make sure everything is executed perfectly.”

“Yes, Your Majesty.”

After bowing her head several times toward her lord, the witch Niala stood up.

Although it was late, she hurried to move as much needed to be done at night due to the nature of magic.

However…

“Your… Your Majesty!”

“Huh?”

“What’s the matter?”

The next moment, York rushed into the room in a fluster.

Questioning the abnormal urgency from her usual demeanor, both Niala and the Magic King shared puzzled expressions, and York, panting breathlessly, spoke with urgency.

“Th-This is big! They… The Falcon Empire has allied with the Elf Church and the Beastman Kingdom and has begun to invade us!”

“…What?”

“That’s… what kind of nonsense is that? How on earth? They should be in tatters after the last war! How is this possible?”

“I… don’t know the details. But according to the information I just received, their grand army has already crossed the border.”

Only a few months had passed since the war had ended, and now an unexpected event occurred.

It was clear this was a time when their national power was already stretched to its limits, and the thought of uniting with enemies they had faced swords against not long ago was utterly inconceivable.

However,

In their position, they also understood that this situation wasn’t entirely impossible.

“It seems they’ve caught on to something…”

“That appears to be the case. They aren’t completely foolish after all.”

“First, you must mobilize our troops to fend them off. In any case, they’ll kneel before us in a month, so focusing on defense means we will ultimately win.”

“Yes, Your Majesty.”

Following the command of the Magic King, the subordinates immediately sprang into action.

Watching them, the Magic King wore a cold smile as he turned his gaze quietly back out the window.

‘No matter how much you rampage, it’s already too late. This world is already in my grasp.’