The NTR Hero Knelt Before the Demon King – Chapter 43

After the treatment and examination of the Hero concluded, Rebecca and the soldiers who had come out of the tent where he lay began to listen to the tale of the military’s story with expressions mixed with concern.

“The examination results show that the wound from the spear is not that serious. However, the reason he remains unconscious is likely because he used too much magic power all at once. He should wake up shortly, so please do not worry.”

“Is… is that so?”

“Huuh…”

Rebecca and her companions expressed their relief at the diagnosis, which suggested he would recover soon with a bit of rest.

However, aside from this fact, a heavy feeling of guilt for the Hero had already settled deep within their hearts at that moment.

‘He went through that much strain just for us…’

‘Many commanders have existed until now, but none have thrown themselves into danger to protect their subordinates as thoroughly as he did.’

‘I’ve heard that a person eventually meets someone worthy of serving as their master… could it really be this Hero?’

Thus, the Demon Race soldiers began to reassess the Hero, feeling a mix of concern and grudging respect, rather than animosity.

Of course, since it was their first battle, it was still too early to jump to conclusions, but it was undeniably true that their bias against him as a Human had significantly diminished.

*

Finally, after everyone who had been guarding me had left, I slowly opened my eyes and looked around.

‘Fortunately, it seems I didn’t suddenly wake up and make things awkward.’

Of course, in strict terms, such awkwardness could easily be brushed off, but the urgency of my subordinate demons had swept me up in the mood without me even realizing it.

However, aside from this awkward predicament, I began to feel a profound sense of accomplishment as I recalled that I had successfully completed all the objectives I had set for myself.

‘Thanks to the unexpected way they recognize me as the Demon King, the situation is flowing more smoothly. Now they’ll surely become increasingly enthusiastic about capturing this Majesty, the Demon King.’

To be honest, I could have easily conquered Antioch through the earlier assault.

Among the over 7,000 troops stationed in Antioch, only a few hundred were present at that spot earlier, but with my particularly outstanding combat power, I could tell that the one who threw the spear was the leader of the defenders here.

If I eliminated him along with his head officers, the communication system of the defending troops would surely collapse, and they would be left in utter disarray.

‘If that happens, it wouldn’t be surprising if the likes of Samson and other hardline generals raised the flag of the Demon Race over the walls of Antioch today…’

What was estimated to take around two to three days of fighting could realistically finish in just one day… or perhaps even half a day.

However, I was very aware that such an overly refreshing outcome was something I needed to avoid in my current position.

‘It would be problematic if Antioch fell already. While dragging it out too long would be an issue as well, at least for today… they must hold out at least until tomorrow for me to solidly achieve my goals.’

At first glance, it seemed the Demon Race soldiers were working hard to seize Antioch.

Indeed, Samson and his subordinate generals who were actually present here shared that sentiment, and it had been the conclusion reached in the previous meeting.

However…

In this moment, among all the individuals belonging to the Demon King’s Army present here, only I knew the underlying agenda behind it.

No matter how you look at it, the role of the forces stationed here was merely to serve as bait, while my role was to instill the ‘hope’… and also, the emotion of ‘desire’ into the enemies.

After all, the ‘real’ work would not be done by me but rather by Elias and our ‘true’ lord.

‘Now let’s hurry and invite them over, since this Majesty, the Demon King, is lying here injured. I want an all-in from everyone, to the very last one!’

*

In the territory of the Demon Race occupied by the Racial Alliance – Dimode, the temporary lord, General Memnon, was unable to hide his intense excitement as he listened to the report from the Antioch messenger who had rushed to him.

“What… what did you say? The Demon King really appeared in Antioch?”

“Yes! General, and according to the news I heard just before I left, that Demon King has reportedly suffered serious injuries from General Parisect’s spear.”

“Oooh… General Parisect, you say?”

Memnon could hardly contain his intense excitement at the words of the messenger.

On the other hand, his subordinate standing next to him spoke with urgency infused in his voice.

“General Memnon, then we can’t just stay here any longer, can we? If that news is true, now is the perfect opportunity to end this unbearable war!”

“Hmm! I feel the same way. With our supply situation worsening day by day, I never expected an opportunity would arise like this.”

Memnon’s troops had been barely scraping by with rations obtained from Antioch since Rob’s ambush.

To them, the news of the Demon King’s emergence and injury was like a golden lifeline dropped amidst a perilous situation.

“Isn’t it a war that will end once we take down the enemy’s head?”

“If we expend all our strength to hunt down the Demon King, we’ll never have to worry about food again.”

“General, please give the order! I’ll go and take the Demon King’s neck!”

Amidst the already sharpened nerves due to hunger and the strained circumstances, those present began to shout with a frantic fervor as this golden opportunity arose.

And Memnon, who bore the responsibility of leading them, felt the same.

“No need for that! I shall lead the charge myself. Given these circumstances, there’s no reason to send only a portion of the troops to delay… I will lead all our forces from Dimode to Antioch!”

“Yes! General!”

“We’ll follow your command, General!”

General Memnon declared with a firm will and the desire lurking beneath, and the soldiers present also burned with greed as they obeyed his orders.

“From here to Antioch, it’s just a day’s journey if we hurry. If we ride hard through the night, we can reach it by tomorrow.”

“Let’s first mobilize the cavalry, as we cannot let Antioch fall while we move, right?”

“Good idea. Since the Demon King has directly entered the battle, they won’t be able to focus on places other than Antioch. We’ll make haste and concentrate on taking the Demon King’s head!”

And so, with all available forces, Memnon and his subordinates immediately set off.

Although they had been overly hasty in their movement, leading to a less-than-ideal defense of the castle, they had no time to concern themselves with that fact.

After all, the war would end as soon as they captured the Demon King.

For now, their thoughts were entirely focused on pouring their strength into the visible target.

And in this moment…

Many lords across the captured territories of the Demon Kingdom began to act in a similar manner to Memnon’s legion, leading their own forces to move out.

The greed to slay the wounded Demon King and become the heroes of the continent.

Also, the urgency of not missing this excellent opportunity due to the worsening supply situation trapped many hearts…

Consequently, an overwhelming grand army numbering over 40,000 troops, a scale that could practically be described as the main force of the Racial Alliance, left their strongholds behind and set off toward Antioch.

Of course, there were also some who carefully kept an eye on the situation and chose to stay while silently guarding their territories.

However, the reality was that, given the dire supply situation, the number of those making such an uncertain choice was not very high.

And in this moment.

Watching all these events unfold from the darkness with an eagle’s eye was she.

Eliza, one of the Four Heavenly Kings of the Demon King’s Elite Guard,

began to feel a deep excitement over how everything was proceeding according to plan…

No, more than that, it was inexplicably unfolding even more spectacularly than they had anticipated.

‘Though I thought it would succeed since the Hero came up with the idea and Mama fleshed it out… but really, aren’t they pulling the aggro way too effectively?’

If the situation continued like this, it made her worry that Samson and the Hero might become the ones in danger.

However, the fact that everything was going smoothly according to plan was undeniably a good thing from the perspective of the Demon Kingdom.

Having grasped the situation, Eliza quickly returned to her ‘main force’ and began to report on the current status.

“Really? So the Racial Alliance Army has begun to move as planned?”

“Yes! That’s correct!”

“It seems our scheme is working well. Then let’s get to work immediately.”

Elias, wearing a cold smile, spoke.

In response, Eliza, with an even tone that couldn’t hide her anticipation, addressed her subordinates.

“Alright… indeed, it’s time. The fruits must be ripe… let’s begin the harvest in earnest.”

With those words, she drew her sword, gazing at the deep purple blade that emanated an ominous aura.

As she stood ready,

the ‘real’ Demon King who had departed, hoping everyone would take their necks,

began to unveil a beautiful yet terrifying smile, laced with a chilling intensity.