The situation of the demon race was not one they could simply brush off as mere words.
While four of the seven great demons had been vanquished, the most alarming threat was none other than Ian Volkanov’s rapid growth.
‘There’s no stopping him. He was strong to begin with, but I never expected him to grow this much.’
If one were to ask which enemy the demon race feared most, the obvious answer would be the Hero wielding the Holy Sword.
However, their thoughts had shifted slightly. The person they watched most closely was none other than Ian Volkanov himself.
‘They believed Ian was the core of the party, thinking that eliminating him was the best strategy.’
The bonds between the Hero and her companions revolved around Ian, so they thought that if they could take him down, they could secure a positive outcome.
‘That’s why they primarily targeted Ian.’
While the hero was a concern, the demons had focused more on Ian due to intelligence suggesting he could not use swordsmanship.
They figured that if he were stripped of his greatest weapon, even a formidable foe would crumble.
‘In the end, all that remains is a string of failures.’
In the wake of the disastrous results, Destonen, a subordinate of the Demon King of Wrath, hung his head low.
Was there any greater disgrace than this?
It would be easy to blame others in such a frustrating situation, but Destonen did not believe that would provide a fundamental solution.
Now was not the time to seek external causes for their problems.
‘Ian was stronger than expected. I didn’t anticipate he would bring martial arts as a new weapon. Enough of that nonsense. The very idea of eliminating the strongest enemy first, then dealing with the hero, was the problem.’
From the start, their plan had been fundamentally flawed.
After putting so much effort into Ian, what had they received in return? Only losses.
Even in this dire situation, the obsession with killing Ian only complicated a simple issue into a daunting challenge.
‘In this case, it would be better to return to square one.’
While other demons might have faltered, Destonen gained clarity. Thanks to this, he realized.
‘There was no need to target Ian from the beginning… If we simply kill the hero, they would have nothing they could do. Why had they gone about it in such a convoluted manner?’
The one they truly needed to eliminate was Ariel Volkanov.
For the demon race now, the greatest threat was the Holy Sword that Ariel possessed. If they could deal with that, they wouldn’t face major problems.
“Yes. If we take care of Ariel, everything will be over.”
As Destonen’s lips curled into a smirk, his gaze shifted to the map on the wall.
Thump!
“Hey, Destonen, are you still holed up in here?”
“Delon?”
The demon named Delon approached, shivering under Destonen’s fierce gaze.
“Those eyes… so vicious. So, have you thought of something? Haven’t you been cooped up ever since that Fletta was killed? For two whole days?”
“Has it already been that long? It doesn’t matter. I’ve found a way.”
“Oh? Can I hear it?”
With anticipation shining in Delon’s eyes, he leaned in, but Destonen remained silent, merely pointing with his finger.
“That place. It’s definitely—”
His finger indicated a location marked in red on the map that covered one wall.
Delon recognized where it was.
“That’s the enemy’s Magic Tower, right? It used to be in the southern part of the Empire?”
A building that had been disused since it was judged unrecoverable due to an explosion a long time ago and relocated.
After an explosion long ago rendered it unrepairable, it had been abandoned and rarely visited, making it a suitable hideout.
“So you’re thinking of using that?”
“Exactly. We’ll lure them there and take care of them.”
“Hmm. Luring them in.”
It wasn’t a bad strategy. Defending was obviously much easier than attacking.
If they could draw in their enemies, it could work.
However, knowing Ian’s recent actions, doubts arose.
“Destonen… it’s not that I don’t trust you, but given that Ian dismantled Fletta’s fortress-like dungeons so easily, I honestly wonder if that method will work.”
Ian had a knack for tackling dungeons with outrageous strategies.
No matter how he figured it out, his ability to neutralize traps was still fresh in Destonen’s mind.
‘If the traps become useless, then honestly, there’s no point in defending.’
Back when there were plenty of opportunities, it might not have mattered, but now a single failure could be catastrophic.
While Destonen wasn’t untrustworthy, there was no choice but to be concerned.
“Are you worried? Afraid my plan will fail?”
“Yes? No, it’s just that I’m worried.”
“No, it’s something I’ve been thinking about all along. Delon, it seems like you can’t stand lying. It shows on your face.”
Of course, Destonen was not unaware of that.
“You must be doubting whether we can actually capture Ian by luring him to the ruins of the old enemy’s magic tower. Isn’t that right?”
“I can’t lie in front of you. Yeah. Honestly, I don’t have faith. I don’t even think that luring him would allow us to capture Ian.”
“I know. Because I understand how much of a thorn Ian is. But… what if the target I’m aiming for isn’t him?”
“You mean it’s not Ian?”
Destonen’s eyebrows shot up at Delon’s wide-eyed expression.
“That’s right. What I’m targeting isn’t Ian, but Ariel. If we spread intelligence that demons have hidden in the ruins, they will come on their own. Then, we will target the Hero.”
If they targeted Ariel instead, handling things would be much simpler than dealing with Ian. However, problems still remained.
“It’s definitely a good plan. But can we actually lure them to the ruins? Even if we spread the information, if Ariel doesn’t come, won’t it just be silent?”
“We don’t need to worry about that. We’ll make them have no choice but to come.”
“Make them have no choice to come?”
Is that even possible? As Delon tilted his head in confusion, Destonen stood up and approached the map.
His fingertip pointed to the dungeon surrounding the enemy’s Magic Tower that he had marked.
“Around the enemy’s Magic Tower that we’ll use as the operation site this time, there are several hideouts we use. Of course, these places haven’t been detected by the Empire’s people yet.”
“Why are you concerned about those? Didn’t you say we’re going to use the enemy’s magic tower anyway?”
“Of course. We’re planning to reveal all these places.”
“What? You’re going to reveal them? What are you talking about?”
Revealing the hideouts? Is he out of his mind?
Delon couldn’t understand why Destonen was saying such a thing when he had prepared a method to lure Ariel.
“Hey Destonen, explain it in detail. If you reveal the hideouts, isn’t that a disadvantage for us? What makes you so sure that revealing them will lure Ariel?”
“Delon, what you’re worried about is whether we can lure them to the enemy’s magic tower. I think it’s a fair criticism. If we recklessly spread the information that we’ve infiltrated the enemy’s magic tower, we won’t be able to lure them.”
Even though Ariel has strengths against the demons, from the Empire’s position, there’s no reason to send the hero to destroy the demons’ hideouts.
The Imperial Knights weren’t just decorations; they were created for such purposes.
“But what if suddenly the enemies’ main forces become exposed?”
However, if the problems escalate beyond the available manpower, things will change.
The imperial family would send the Knights to the most important dungeons and would likely call upon the Ark to compensate for the insufficient forces.
In reality, the Ark is a training institution, but also serves as a candidate pool for the Knights, making it a feasible option.
There have been actual cases, too.
“If all the important strongholds are revealed, the enemies will send their main forces there. For the enemy’s magic towers, which are relatively less of a concern, we’ll conduct surveillance and simple searches. Then, we can target Ariel.”
“Are you saying we should ‘give flesh and take bones’?”
Delon pondered deeply, whereas Destonen was confident.
He could capture Ariel, if not Ian.
‘According to the information obtained as Leviathan died, Ariel doesn’t get along well with her current comrades. Discord leads to a decline in skills… Can she survive in such a situation?’
The trap hidden in the enemy’s Magic Tower was the portal connecting Astelgia and here.
While the portal was active, monsters would violently emerge and threaten her, trapping her without a way out.
‘You can never survive, Hero.’
Destonen showed a face of conviction, and Delon nodded simultaneously.
“It’s definitely a good plan… Let’s proceed with the preparations.”
It was the moment when a true threat to Ariel emerged.
***
After meeting Glendia, Ian immediately moved to the Empire.
According to her words, Ariel went to meet Hexar, but he didn’t feel the need to go find her.
‘She must have gone because she was troubled. But even if I went to find her, what could I do? I can’t even bring her back.’
She fought with her friends and was hurt. In such cases, he would go and subtly comfort her, but wasn’t the root of the problem himself.
‘It’s a relief that she didn’t tell me to leave after I went.’
Going blindly could have twisted the situation even more.
Instead, it would have been better to give her some time. There’s a saying that time heals all wounds, right? Such words didn’t come without reason.
‘Yes, no news is good news.’
Disengaging from concern, Ian moved to the smoking area. Since he decided not to pay attention to Ariel, it would be better to think positively.
‘Yes, let’s be glad that the vacation was fulfilling.’
He had gained as much as he had struggled; there was no reason to be troubled by negative thoughts when even happy thoughts were in abundance.
At that moment, Ian’s gaze turned downward.
It was specifically directed at Neltalion, who was trailing behind him, holding his left hand.
– Hmm? Ian, what’s wrong?
‘It’s nothing. I was just wondering if you’re feeling better now.’
– Yes! I’m okay now! I got better while playing! The swimming pool is nice!
‘That’s great to hear. Do you want a hug?’
– Yes! But could you take off the ring? It stings when I touch it.
‘Right. You have the Dark attribute, so it clashes with the Holy attribute.’
As Neltalion pouted at the sight of the Guardian’s Silver Ring on Ian’s finger, he slipped the ring into his pocket and embraced Neltalion.
Although she had reverted to her slime form after expending a lot of divine power to deal with Leviathan, she had now fully regained her previous appearance.
‘I used the Ether at the Flareon mansion on purpose, and during my conversation with Raymond, I told Igor to stick with him… it seems that helped.’
After taking enough time to rest, it seemed the divine power she had expended was now replenished.
As he stroked Neltalion’s head, who was smiling brightly in his embrace, Ian couldn’t help but smile awkwardly.
Even though she was an ancient god, she was just like a child, and he realized how much pain he had caused her.
In situations where she could have played the part of a brat, she must have pushed herself to use her divine power to uphold their contract to help him.
‘It’s entirely my fault. I should apologize. I’ll have to make sure nothing like that happens again.’
Of course, given the considerable level of the remaining enemies, he couldn’t promise not to push things, but… at the very least, he could reduce the burden placed on her.
‘I also used the Key of God I obtained from the mansion to break the seal of Rebrion.’
Ian typically used Neltalion in two situations.
When an overwhelming number of enemies were approaching or when the level of the enemies was too high.
In the latter case, it was worth using divine power, but the former seemed unnecessary.
‘If it’s one-on-one, they’re not much to worry about, but when they come in groups, I have to use divine power… but that shouldn’t be the case anymore.’
In that regard, Rebrion would serve as a good solution.
If he infused mana into it, he could create a divine strike, just like Elysion.
When facing multiple enemies, he could use the Guardian’s Silver Ring to unleash a holy strike.
In a one-on-one situation, adding Neltalion’s divine power to Rebrion would be ideal.
‘I’ve reduced a lot of weaknesses… so it’s not a bad vacation.’
While he smiled at how much he had grown, a notification suddenly appeared.
[Detected a threat to Ariel Volkanov!]
[Emergency Quest ‘Lure’ has occurred! To uncover the secrets, you must prevent the death of Ariel Volkanov. Will you accept?]
[Rewards upon success: Special Mock Battle / Failure: Eternal Death]
‘There’s a threat detected against Ariel? What is she doing…?’
The moment had arrived for him to experience his growth.
What could possibly be happening that put her in danger?
As he tilted his head in confusion, he felt the vibration of the device he had kept in his pocket.
His curiosity piqued, he pulled it out to check the screen.
‘Platoon Commander?’
[If you’re reading this message, head to the smoking area immediately.]
It was the moment he realized that something unusual was happening.
