99 – Invasion (3)
A day later,
“… Mercenaries have started to withdraw.”
“How many… is not worth asking. No need to ask.”
Without uttering more words, Kim Hyunwoo turned his gaze beyond the domain.
At that very spot, numerous mercenaries seemed to be leaving Lartania’s domain as if they had been waiting.
As if everyone in the domain was lining up to evacuate.
“… Having received all the benefits!”
Elena, who was also watching it with a betrayed expression, as if feeling a sense of betrayal, looked at the departing mercenaries. In contrast, Kim Hyunwoo spoke with a composed expression.
“Well, it can’t be helped. From the mercenaries’ perspective, Lartania might be a good workplace, but it’s not worth risking their lives.”
“Still…!”
“Of course, I’m not without regrets.”
Kim Hyunwoo responded with a calm expression to Elena’s seemingly unjust feelings.
That, too, was not without a tinge of regret as the mercenaries departed.
In fact, after concluding his discussion with River yesterday, he was willing to use money to temporarily employ the mercenaries as reinforcements.
However, unfortunately, at the point when rumors spread that the demons who had already occupied the Norba Kingdom were coming, the mercenaries did not receive any request from Lartania.
The mercenaries were aware of it.
In the current Lartania territory, there was no definite advantage that could stop the demons.
‘If only the Labyrinth City had been a bit more active, and the mercenary bands had come in large numbers, the situation might have been different.’
The reason the mercenaries could leave the Labyrinth City was simply because Lartania was a good workplace.
But what if Lartania went beyond being just a good workplace and essentially became a home? It would be a different story for the mercenaries.
However, that was only the most ideal scenario that Kim Hyunwoo had envisioned when the Labyrinth City had made some progress. Now, it had no relevance, so he was looking at the mercenaries.
“Lord. Wouldn’t it be better to prepare for an escape even now?”
Elena spoke, her voice containing a hint of frustration, as she observed Kim Hyunwoo, who seemed calmer than expected.
Of course, she knew Kim Hyunwoo, having been by his side and witnessed many things.
Therefore, she was aware that he was outstanding compared to other lords. He had single-handedly defended against the monstrous disaster that no one else believed was possible until he stopped it.
But, from the beginning, the current issue was on a completely different level than dealing with the monstrous disaster.
Right now, what targeted Lartania was the demons, and gradually, news came in that they had sent two legions to deal with Lartania.
In other words, for Lartania with only 400 soldiers, a proper siege was impossible.
But Kim Hyunwoo, who knew about this situation as well as Elena,
“No. We won’t leave the Lartania territory.”
That’s what he said.
“Are you going to face those two legions?”
In response to Elena’s frustrated question, Kim Hyun-woo hesitated for a moment before speaking.
“To be honest, it’s a bit awkward to say that we’re going to face them.”
“…Awkward?”
“Yes, once the demons arrive, and if the situation goes as I want it to, their reaction will be one of two.”
“What do you mean…?”
“Well, just trust me for now… Oh, and did I ask you to do everything?”
Kim Hyun-woo smiled as if reassuring Elena and threw the question.
“I did everything for the most part…”
“Alright then. Anyway, it’s become like this-“
In response to the continuation, Kim Hyun-woo laughed and looked at the trading window floating on one side.
[Red Stone: 15,770] [Blue Stone: 6,023] [Gold Coins: 45,422] [Magic Stones: 30,231]
He laughed while confirming the 15,000 red stones and the gradually decreasing number of magic stones.
“Let’s see if the demons can stop someone like the Little Boy.”
####
For Third Legion Commander Ageres, most of the beings in the human realm were nothing more than insignificant creatures.
If the demons were allowed to exist in the intermediate realm without consuming magic power, most of them would become nothing more than the demons’ pawns or livestock.
However, the reason he liked humans was purely because he enjoyed tormenting these insignificant creatures.
He enjoyed playing with humans—or rather, those who existed in the intermediate realm—and the emotions they displayed.
The overwhelming fear of insignificant creatures.
The emptiness felt when summoning the courage to launch a single attack, only to have one’s throat torn apart.
The despair that is revealed when disposing of the insignificant creatures one had mistakenly believed to be strong, with just a flick of a finger.
Ageres was delighted by it all.
That’s why Ageres was thoroughly enjoying the Intermediate Realm.
Every visible village and territory was destroyed without exception, and the insignificant creatures there were played with and killed one by one.
Even just a moment ago, Ageres was raiding a village, playing with and enjoying the insignificant creatures, until two women appeared before him.
“Are you planning to go to Lartania?”
“Do you think we’ll just sit back and watch?”
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The two women who suddenly appeared in front of Ageres openly displayed their hostility.
“Hmm, they seem quite strong, but do you think you can stop me?”
At first, Ageres ignored them. After all, to him, the insignificant creatures were just that, insignificant, even the Great Hero who was said to have been specially prepared in the Intermediate Realm was easily killed by him.
But just five minutes later.
“Kahak-!?”
Ageres vomited blood and could only make an astonished expression.
The two women who appeared to stop him were so powerful that he would never be able to see them again in the Intermediate Realm.
“What…”
Ageres frowned and looked at the two women facing him.
The white-haired succubus with a sword in her hand was wielding a power that Ageres had never felt in the Intermediate Realm.
…Truly, a power that cannot be described as that of the creatures in the Intermediate Realm.
“These brats…”
Unbeknownst to Agares, curses flowed out of his mouth, and he calmly assessed the current situation, drawing a conclusion.
‘If it’s one-on-one, I can win.’
However, the problem was—
“Kuk!”
Absolutely, it seemed like they had no intention of fighting alone.
“!”
In an instant, surpassing Agares’s reflexes, a Sui-in moved with a speed invisible to the eye, swinging a fist. In that moment of defense, the gap was seized, and Banmazok slashed through her leg.
Swoosh!
Purple blood splattered.
However, for Agares, regenerating a severed limb was a simple task. In the blink of an eye, he completed the regeneration and tried to attack with his blades.
“Tsk…!”
Agares’s blades didn’t touch either of them.
The endless attrition, where only one side suffered losses, continued monotonously.
10 minutes.
20 minutes.
30 minutes.
As time passed, wounds began to appear on Merilda and Rin’s bodies one by one.
However, Agares, who fought against these girls, had reached a situation where he could no longer regenerate the injuries.
“These brats…”
Due to the shock of realizing that he was being defeated by the insignificant force he had always ignored and mocked, Agares suddenly stopped caring about the consumption of mana and began launching attacks. However, his attacks never hit them even once.
In the final moment.
“Kuk-!”
Agares realized.
That he was about to lose.
In that moment of realization, he felt the humiliation and shame, and he let out a bitter smile.
Shwrrr-!
A shield appeared in front of Agares.
A shield made of a living being.
And as soon as the shield made of a living being appeared, they, who had stopped their attacks as if it were a lie, looked at him.
“Just as I thought, you showed up. It would have been a big problem if you were late.”
“Kelba!”
Kelba opened his mouth.
####
In the sudden appearance of Kelba, Merilda and Lynn couldn’t help but frown involuntarily.
Even though he seemed ordinary at first glance, Merilda and Lynn, who were already in a position of strength, could tell as soon as they properly saw him.
That man, he’s something.
As soon as they realized that, the two of them prepared for battle.
There was no option for them to retreat from here in the first place.
The presence before them right now was the demons advancing to target Lartania, and if they retreated from here, Kim Hyun-woo would be in danger.
So, even though they realized that the situation might turn against them the moment that man intervened, the women did not retreat.
“Let’s make a deal.”
“…What?”
In response to Kelba’s words, which unfolded completely differently from their expectations, Merilda unconsciously asked, “What is it?” He answered.
“I don’t know why you’re blocking us. I don’t particularly want to know the reason. But I know what you want.”
“What?”
“Aren’t you trying to erase your notoriety?”
Kelba paused.
“I’ll help you erase it. Not just help, but if you just send us quietly from here instead of fighting us, we can erase more notoriety than fighting us.”
As a demon, he presented a reasonable condition to them.
“We are going to the Larthania Territory from now on. We plan to destroy the territory and kill the lord there. After achieving that goal, we’ll hand over all the soldiers who massacred Larthania Territory to you.”
“Also, we’ll hand over the soldiers who beheaded the lord of Larthania. Killing him will probably add a lot to your notoriety, so if you handle it, you can significantly reduce your notoriety. If you want to reduce it even more, we’ll kill them more brutally for you.”
At least for Kelba, it could only be considered a reasonable condition.
If this condition were accepted, Kelba and Agares could easily finish the job after overcoming the troublesome interferers trying to eliminate notoriety by killing demons.
After finishing the task, they could eliminate the monsters and soldiers that accumulated notoriety as much as the evil deeds piled up.
However, Kelba’s mistake here was.
Thunk!!
“Now-“
From the women’s mouths, the story of ‘Larthania’ came out, and tens of minutes later, they arrived here.
“-What did you say?”
Kwad-deuk!
“Definitely, in this place—”
The reason they sought to erase their infamous reputation.
“—I’ll kill them all…!”
It was because they didn’t know it was because of the Lord of Lartania.