Chapter 192 - Move forward

Ghoul demonic creatures came flying toward the expedition.

The sheer numbers swarming across the open land were enough to inspire fear, but one man walked forward.

It was Jonathan Sina.

"Come on, then!"

Jonathan Sina swung the axe in his hands in a great arc.

That axe had been used by his ancestor, one of the 12 heroes, and was an heirloom carrying on the northern legacy.

The runes carved into the axe shone, and he brought it down onto the earth.

BOOOOM!

A vibration spread outward in the shape of a cone.

The ghouls charging in had no choice but to take that vibration with their bodies.

CRACK!

The ghoul demonic creatures at the very front collapsed as their limbs shattered, and the farther away they were, the more visibly the damage decreased.

It did not matter.

What they had done just now was only to buy time anyway.

They had only been waiting for the ghouls to slow down and bunch together at the same time.

"Mana Bomb!"

A demonic creature's greatest weakness was pure mana.

The Mana Bombs thrown by mages of the 4th Circle or higher were dense and swept over a wide area.

SCREECH!

The ghoul demonic creatures convulsed with sharp cries and collapsed.

Pure mana became poison and cut off their tenacious lives.

The people who played the greatest role in the Land of Demons were mages.

There were three of them: the Platinum adventurer Eri, Regent Ferda Valdrova, and a Gold-rank mid-ranking adventurer mage.

'They're all incredible!'

Since Eri was originally a Platinum adventurer, it was only natural that she could produce that much power.

Ferda, on the other hand, was different, because expectations for him had been low.

To begin with, anyone who saw the sphere he formed could not help but marvel.

As the saying went, there was no royal road to magic, and even if one achieved advancement easily, it could collapse if the fundamentals were a mess.

But the sphere Ferda was showing them was precise and clean enough that it could only come from someone who had honed magic day and night.

That clean magic aimed accurately at its targets and poisoned all the demonic creatures in the area.

'So he wasn't just talking when he said he wouldn't hold us back.'

It was enough to change the impression that he was an arrogant brat.

Ferda was performing that well, but inwardly, he was on the verge of being overwhelmed.

'This definitely isn't an environment where mages can properly shine.'

The demonic energy kept clinging to Ferda's body, making it difficult to maintain his concentration.

He found himself wondering how Erica or Erdes had managed to beat the Demon King to death in a place like this.

The advance that had been halted at the front line began again.

Erica grasped the situation and shouted.

"Rear attack complete! Mr. Rize!"

"Yes!"

Rize quickly drew a rune and brought both hands together.

Then a golden tree rose from his body with lush leaves, enveloping the expedition in a hemispherical shape.

SCREECH!

SKREEE!

The demonic creatures could not pierce through those leaves.

The golden magic made the adventurers' eyes go wide.

"This is!"

"It's the Sacred Area I've only heard about!"

Though its form was different, the magic's function was similar.

In the Order of Altes, it was a high-level magic that required attaining the fifth enlightenment, so unless it was for an order commission, one could hardly ever see it.

"One minute, everyone!"

"Rear line, reorganize! Front line, middle line! Eliminate as many as you can!"

Under Rize's protection, the expedition began a one-sided slaughter of demonic creatures.

Every time the adventurers swung their swords, the ghouls were cleaved in two.

Among them, the one who stood out most was, without question, Jonathan.

"Raaaaaah!"

When Jonathan swung his axe in a great arc, the demonic creatures clinging to the barrier were sent flying backward.

Contrary to the thought that their frail bodies would be dealt with quickly, that was not the case.

"What kind of regeneration is that fast!?"

Even when their bodies were split in half, sticky demonic energy clung to them and regenerated them.

Erica continued feeding them knowledge suited to the situation so they would not panic.

"If you're going to split them, aim for the heart and split that! It's the hardest place for them to recover!"

Whether Jonathan heard Erica's advice or not, he focused only on smashing the demonic creatures at the front.

"It's almost over!"

A moment after Rize's shout was heard, the golden branches shrank and returned into Rize's grasp.

The thing blocking the ghoul demonic creatures that had been charging recklessly disappeared.

The demonic creatures approached.

Even after they had killed so many, many still remained.

They had to buy time.

Erica deployed a special measure.

"Front line! Deploy!"

Jonathan and the armor knight had to move forward and become a human wall.

"Look at me!"

Jonathan's voice was like a lion's roar.

True to the nature of a northerner, he could not suppress his boiling blood and stepped forward.

The demonic creatures all leaped at Jonathan at once.

A new rune was drawn from Rize's hand and flew toward Jonathan.

Golden light wrapped around Jonathan's body, then became something like a glass membrane and covered him.

The attacks of the ghoul demonic creatures aiming for Jonathan's body were blocked by that membrane.

Meanwhile, there were no protective measures on the armor knight's side.

But it did not matter.

Erica already knew how sturdy that armor was.

No matter how much the ghoul demonic creatures attacked, it would be impossible for them to break through.

Besides, there was no need for any major countermeasure.

The armor knight, Valdrova, looked at the ghouls swarming in and recalled her role.

'Clench my fist.'

She set it slightly forward.

BOOM!

A shockwave burst out, and the ghoul demonic creatures became lumps of flesh.

Their bone fragments became bullets and stopped the ghoul demonic creatures approaching them.

It was comparable to the 4th-tier magic Force Rush, no, even more powerful than that.

'Amazing.'

'Was that person a monk from somewhere?'

Every time she thrust out her fist, the air burst and the demonic creatures were pushed back, so there was no sturdier wall.

Even so, it was not enough.

Everyone was performing their own role, but there was no way a human wall made of only two people could fulfill its role completely.

The small ghouls that the front line failed to filter out were stopped by those standing in the middle line.

They, too, were skilled people who could hold their own, but even so, it could not be helped that it was not enough.

"Danger!"

"Virgil! It's heading your way!"

A demonic creature that had slipped through shot toward blond-haired Virgil, leaving him exposed to the ghoul demonic creature's attack.

"Uwaah!"

It was already too late to prepare another attack.

Virgil instinctively squeezed his eyes shut.

SPLURT!

The sound of something being pierced through defenselessly.

But there was no pain.

It had not happened to his body.

"Guh, guh, guh, guh..."

What had pierced the nimble body was the armor knight's gauntlet.

Clutched in her hand was a purple heart.

The armor knight threw the demonic creature's body as it was toward the place where other demonic creatures were rushing in.

RUMBLE!

The ghoul's body became a heavy cannonball and swept away everything in a straight line.

All sorts of thoughts filled Virgil's head.

How could she have run over before even the middle line and saved him?

And how could she break those demonic creatures so easily?

From his tangled mind and mouth, a dazed sound slipped out.

"U-um."

"?"

"Th-thank..."

The words of thanks did not easily fall from Virgil's mouth.

Before they could, Erica's shout snapped them back to their senses.

"Front line, return! Middle line, don't lose focus! Everyone will die!"

"Yes!"

The armor knight only nodded once, then returned to her role.

She was much slower than when she had rushed toward Virgil, but she was still agile.

Inside the armor, Valdrova thought.

'Someone almost died.'

That sentence kept circling in Valdrova's heart.

Reacting to a brief scream, she had even forgotten her own role for a moment and run backward.

'What I must do is protect everyone.'

What she had to do for that was simple.

It was what she had always done.

'Advance.'

So that every enemy's eyes would fall upon her.

Leaving behind Jonathan, whom they could not easily break through, she advanced.

Even if she was wearing armor that nothing could pierce, it was a reckless act before the demonic creatures.

Even so, the armor knight kicked off the ground and charged forward.

Her powerful leap swept through the hundreds of demonic creatures still remaining.

All she had was that body.

But even that alone was enough.

When the armor knight swung her fist, the ghouls died instantly one by one, and even that speed surpassed the ghouls' movements.

"Isn't she seriously going to beat them all to death by herself?"

"She really looks like she's about to..."

The party could not help but be amazed.

Even Jonathan, who had thought he had suffered humiliation in strength, was left staring blankly at how dazzling it was.

'What's even more surprising is that that isn't that person's limit.'

Erica still believed that strength was not the limit.

Encouraged by the armor knight's overwhelming momentum, they pushed through the ghoul demonic creatures.

Unlike what they had expected, thinking there would be no end in sight, thanks to the armor knight's performance, they were able to save half of the combat power they had expected to expend.

"Please check for remnants!"

"West, south, all clear!"

"East, north, all clear!"

"There are no more life signs either."

"Everyone, good work."

One round like a violent storm had passed.

Some lowered their weapons and caught their breath.

Unlike them, the armor knight still stood still with her fists clenched.

"Sir Knight?"

"..."

Erica called out, but there was no response.

Erica carefully approached her and said.

"Armor Knight, the operation is over. Now you can rest—"

WHOOSH!

The armor knight's form vanished for an instant.

When that figure appeared again, a harsh gust struck Erica's cheek.

The gauntlet had stopped right in front of Erica.

The two looked at each other for a long moment before Erica asked.

"Are you all right?"

... Nod, nod.

"That is a relief. You worked hard on the front line."

Erica encouraged the armor knight and turned away.

She turned her back to everyone, pretending to survey the surroundings.

'This is bad.'

Her emotions were leaking out.

The emotions she had failed to compose were showing plainly on her face.

That emotion was fear.

'What... is that thing?'

Though she had the appearance of a human, her eyes were eyes that had received a dragon's grace.

She had been through all sorts of hardships and was confident in her reaction speed, yet she had not been able to respond in the slightest.

The moment she perceived it, everything had already been over.

It had ended as an attempted attack, but Erica felt it clearly.

'If that attack had hit me, I would definitely have died.'

Even with luck, Erica would not have been able to say she was the same as before.

Even in such a situation, she could not reprimand the armor knight.

Because the armor knight herself was even more flustered.

It was certain.

Because Erica could not see through inside, she did not know her expression, but her body's gestures said it.

She could see the hesitation that came when one had made a grave mistake.

As the leader, Erica pushed aside the fear her instincts raised, and had to let it pass as though nothing had happened.

Valdrova, who had returned to her senses, raised her head and looked behind her.

She saw that everyone was safe.

After disposing of more than three hundred ghoul demonic creatures like that, the path opened.

Even when they reached the entrance of Gyeonghui Palace, no one rejoiced or easily stepped inside.

"Do you think there are even more things than that inside?"

"Who knows?"

"I really hope that was the biggest trial..."

Even with fear in their hearts, they steadfastly advanced.

When they stepped inside, the first thing they saw was a place like the entrance hall of a grand mansion.

It was a structure perfectly suited for someone to hide in advance and ambush them, so this was the most tense moment.

"There are no demonic creatures detected."

Hearing the mage's detection result, they breathed a sigh of relief.

"For now, let's use the entrance hall as our base and do some light mapping. Since there are three branching paths, we'll split into three groups and first find the rough layout."

There were three main places where paths branched off from the entrance hall.

The longest path straight ahead, and two relatively short side paths.

The most dangerous area was assigned to four people in total: Erica, Virgil, Jonathan Sina, and one unnamed swordsman.

They were people who had worked with Erica on operations during a demonic creature subjugation battle.

"Mr. Rize, please take the left side with these people. And the rest will take the right."

The remaining group formed that way consisted of Ferda, two unnamed adventurers, and the armor knight.

"I'll be counting on you."

"We should be the ones saying that."

With their assigned group, they began exploring the right path of Gyeonghui Palace.

They had thirty minutes.

The purpose of this mapping was to take in as much as possible with their eyes within that short time and report what was there.

Since this was their first time entering an unknown place, they only had to report the rough number of rooms and any notable details that caught their eye.

Because of that, the two seasoned adventurers said this to the armor knight and Ferda.

"Please just follow behind us."

"And please do not touch anything."

Since it was dangerous work, the veteran adventurers decided to trust purely in their own abilities.

Ferda and the armor knight were forced to walk side by side, three steps behind them.

They had never been close to begin with, but Ferda was already uncomfortable.

"Is there a problem?"

Shake, shake!

The armor knight could not hide her nervousness.

She had seemed fine until they entered, but once she stood beside Ferda, all of her movements felt stiff.

The way she kept glancing at him made him wonder if she was waiting to strike the back of his head.

'It would probably be better to go over to Rize's side.'

He thought he should at least mention it to Erica.

The two veterans examined the traps and the shape of the passage while drawing the map.

As Ferda followed behind along the path they were opening up, one space caught his eye.

It was a room like a study, filled with many books.

Ferda had an intuition.

That perhaps the answer might be there.