Chapter 33 - Direct Hit

GULP. GULP.

The man clearly had no intention of hiding it. Looking around, Robert could tell that everyone had more or less caught on.

Everyone except Adrianna, who was hopelessly oblivious to begin with. That was simply her nature: nothing interested her except Demons.

Still—

'He's drinking it openly right behind her. Isn't it a bit much not to notice?'

Robert turned out of habit and met Galahad's eyes.

"I hear there's a tradition of drinking Demon blood in the North. When in the North, shouldn't one follow Northern traditions?"

Galahad spoke as he casually wiped his mouth. Strangely, his lips were redder than before.

A tradition of drinking Demon blood. That wasn't entirely untrue.

The story had originated with the Grand Duke. Though he had ceased his activities when Adrianna was born, he was considered the strongest person in Northern history. Tales of him tearing off Demons' heads through physical strength alone, without using aura, had been passed down like legends.

There were all sorts of theories about the Grand Duke's strength, which was closer to a demon-beast's than a human's. The most famous was Demon-eating.

The story went that the Grand Duke filled his belly with the flesh of Demons and demon-beasts and quenched his thirst with their blood, growing stronger as a result. This had given rise to the notion that to become the greatest warrior, one had to turn the tables and devour Demons.

The North's First Battalion was an elite force. Its members were the closest anyone came to being the greatest warriors.

The First Battalion had an initiation ritual in which newcomers were made to drink Demon blood. Robert had therefore tried it himself.

Demon blood tasted fucking awful. It was something beyond merely tasting bad. Even Robert, who had grown up eating raw meat, hadn't been able to eat anything for days afterward.

And taste wasn't the only problem. Drinking Demon blood brought on pain that felt as though your insides were burning. It wasn't something a person could endure.

For that reason, the tradition had died out.

Occasionally, someone still drank Demon blood to prove himself a true Northern warrior. Even those men only took a mouthful or two.

But...

GULP. GULP.

Robert shivered slightly at the chilling sound continuing relentlessly beside him.

"It's meant to make you the greatest warrior, I hear? What an admirable tradition."

At the amusement in Galahad's voice, Robert turned away.

Yes, there had been such a tradition. A tradition that you had to drink Demon blood to become a true warrior of the North.

But—

'You're not even from the North.'

No, he wasn't even a warrior. Robert forced down the words hovering on the tip of his tongue.

As long as he was good at killing Demons, nothing else mattered.

'His Highness the Grand Duke would like him.'

Somehow, Robert thought he could even see a little of His Highness in the man.

They headed in the direction Galahad indicated and found a group of Demons.

"There's an intermediate-ranking Demon. Stay alert, everyone."

Demons grew stronger in Demon territory. Even an intermediate-ranking Demon was therefore no easy opponent. Tension mounted, and sweat gathered inside Robert's gauntlets.

"Oh, intermediate rank."

Robert did his best to pretend he hadn't heard the sound of lips smacking.

Despite the presence of an intermediate-ranking Demon, the battle was strangely easy. Once again, Galahad was the reason.

With the haze swept away by Galahad, the Demons couldn't ambush them. In a head-on fight with clear visibility, the intermediate-ranking Demon was no match for Adrianna.

The battle ended so easily that all their tension seemed pointless.

"Didn't you fill those earlier?"

Adrianna asked as she watched Galahad filling his canteens. She really hadn't noticed him drinking the blood.

"Ah, I used it for magic."

"I'll help."

Watching Galahad and Adrianna crouch side by side collecting Demon blood made Robert question whether they were really out here fighting Demons.

"I'm getting hungry. Why don't we eat before moving on?"

"Very well."

They even stopped for a meal.

Normally, a suggestion of lunch in Demon territory would have met with protests of, "Are you insane? Do you think we're here for fun?"

Now, however, everyone stayed quiet. They had already killed more Demons than usual, yet not a single person was injured.

If they told anyone back home, they were certain to be sworn at and told to stop spouting bullshit.

The reason was obvious. Galahad. That one man had changed everything.

Instead of tensely fending off ambushes, they were tracking down prey. That was no small difference.

If Galahad wanted to rest, who could object?

"This is delicious."

"Isn't it? Our Tom is quite the cook. Sir Gilberton, go sit elsewhere. Can't you see we're enjoying a cozy little date?"

"This isn't a date."

"Very well. Still, Sir Gilberton, do move along. You can't take a hint."

"I'm hungry too."

"Earlier you were giving me grief for packing food at all. Have you no shame?"

This was a first—taking a break in Demon territory.

Everyone sat awkwardly, exchanging glances.

'Should we really be doing this?'

They rested with a peculiar sense of unease.

* * *

'It just keeps eating.'

Galahad murmured to himself, pressing around the heavy sensation in his chest. Curious how much it could take, he had kept pouring in Demon blood, but the Egg of agony ate without end. It even clamored for more.

The mana it released was steadily improving in quality as well. It seemed to be growing as it drank the Demon blood.

There was a limit to how much mana a Mage could store. To make room for the more concentrated mana provided by the Egg of agony, Galahad had been continually releasing his own.

The amount of mana the body could hold was limited, and replenishing it took considerable time. That was one reason Mages favored staves. Simply replacing the attached mana stone allowed them to cast again immediately, though the astronomical cost was a drawback.

Ever since taking up magic, Galahad had exhausted his mana every day, so his recovery was fast. Even so, it still took time.

Thanks to the Egg of agony, that process had been all but eliminated.

"Hmm, the flavor is richer."

"... Pardon?"

"Ah, I mean the Demons seem stronger than they are outside."

"Yes. Demons and demon-beasts become a level stronger in Demon territory."

"Because of the mana concentration?"

"Concentration? I've never heard that term before."

Galahad clicked his tongue at Gilberton. He started to explain, then shook his head.

"It's a thing."

"... Why are you giving up?"

Ignoring him, Galahad returned to his thoughts.

Demons grew stronger when the mana concentration increased.

It was probably similar to the principle that made magic difficult to cast in such high concentrations, but more powerful if one managed it.

In a sense, it was only natural, yet something about it deeply unsettled him.

'Is that why the Demons couldn't win the Imperial-Demon War?'

The mana concentration in the central region was truly abysmal compared to here. If there really was a correlation between mana concentration and the Demons' strength, they would certainly be incomparably weaker there.

It was a fairly reasonable hypothesis.

'Then does the Demon King have the power to overturn that?'

An ability to raise mana concentration, for instance.

Considering Adrianna's mana-burning nature, it wasn't impossible.

"I know what it means."

Adrianna made the unexpected remark when their eyes met. Her expression was as blank as ever, but she somehow radiated confidence.

"What means what?"

"Concentration. When fog is thick, its concentration is high, and when it's thin, its concentration is low. Isn't that right?"

At her confident answer, Galahad deliberated briefly before nodding.

The surrounding knights immediately clapped and praised Adrianna's brilliance, extolling her mastery of both scholarly and martial arts.

Adrianna shook her head as though it were nothing. Her eyebrows had risen slightly.

'It really is nothing.'

Galahad made himself shake his head and sent out threads of mana.

This spell was an adaptation of Mana Arrow. He dispersed the arrows in threads as fine as silk, exploiting the principle by which low-concentration mana disappeared on contact with Demons or demon-beasts.

Though hastily devised, the spell was surprisingly effective. It only worked because the targets were Demons, against whom low-concentration magic was useless.

Then a signal came back. Several, in fact. More than before.

"Hmm."

Galahad let out a low murmur.

"What is it?"

"There's a group of Demons. Quite a few."

The largest group of Demons they had encountered on the way had numbered six, with only a few demon-beasts accompanying them. But the group he had just found numbered over ten at the very least.

"How many?"

"At least ten. Have we frightened them by killing so many?"

Adrianna shook her head at his question.

"Demons cannot feel fear."

"I see. In any case, there are more than we've encountered so far."

The atmosphere around him grew heated. The knights adjusted their grips on their swords and exhaled hot breaths, visibly fired up.

"Isn't it a good thing if those filthy Demons are all together?"

"We can deal with them in one go."

Strangely, they seemed pleased.

'Idiots.'

Galahad clicked his tongue at the eager Northerners.

They set their course and advanced.

Since he needed to expend mana deliberately anyway, Galahad kept stirring up fierce winds with one hand. He was gradually getting the hang of it.

Then the gathered Demons came into view in the distance.

"There are many enemies. Stay alert."

Adrianna charged forward, raising her familiar white aura.

Then an unusual-looking Demon emerged from among the overlapping figures. Their numbers swelled in an instant. Next, the ground beneath Adrianna split open, revealing an enormous demon-beast.

'A trap, was it?'

They had been stirring up trouble everywhere since entering Demon territory. It would have been stranger if the Demons hadn't noticed.

It wasn't that he hadn't anticipated such a response. He simply hadn't worried about it. They had Adrianna, the Demons' natural enemy.

"I'll go in first. Everyone, hold position."

Without hesitation, Adrianna dropped into the midst of the demon-beasts. White aura blazed, and the enormous beast turned to ash and scattered.

The Demons rushed her with fierce hostility. Ash sprayed once more, hiding Adrianna from view.

The other knights spread out with remarkably fluid movements. They seemed quite accustomed to this situation.

All the Demons and demon-beasts appeared to be converging on Adrianna. She burned mana itself; Demons of this caliber were unlikely to pose a danger to her.

But at this rate, she would turn them all to ash.

In other words, nothing would be left.

"This is dangerous."

Galahad hurriedly compressed his mana. He had to salvage at least a few before Adrianna turned everything to ash.

White aura rose, turning another demon-beast to ash. Through it, Adrianna came into view. Along with his impatience, his heart began pounding violently.

It was the Egg of agony. Perhaps because he had fed it so much Demon blood, its presence asserted itself forcefully.

Its urging was more intense than before, enough to shake his mind for an instant. His heart pounded harder still.

'So there's a side effect like this.'

It felt as though feeding it too much Demon blood had made the Egg of agony too strong. Something had seemed off ever since its mana concentration began rising.

As though it had been hiding until now, the Egg of agony unleashed its full presence.

'Cunning little bastard.'

It was all he could do to desperately hold on to his senses.

The Egg of agony even regurgitated what it had consumed as it demanded Adrianna's death. It was becoming almost impossible to resist.

Then Adrianna entered his field of vision. At the sight of her fighting surrounded by Demons and demon-beasts, the Egg shook him even harder.

Kill her. Right now.

'No, how could I possibly kill Adrianna—'

Biting his lip, Galahad suddenly had a good idea.

There was a limit to how much he could suppress the Egg of agony now that it had asserted itself. What if, instead of suppressing it, he used it?

'Fine. I'll kill her.'

At his brief answer, the Egg of agony abruptly stopped. His dizzy mind cleared in an instant. Galahad calculated again and reached the same conclusion.

The Egg of agony, Adrianna, and the Demons.

It was a brilliant way to deal with all three at once.

'Excellent.'

The corners of Galahad's mouth rose as he moved his mana.

Thanks to his constant feeding, he was brimming with highly concentrated mana. The mana spat out by the Egg of agony moved even more easily than his own, as though it had been passed through a water purifier.

He compressed that already concentrated mana once more.

His heart began aching in an instant. His body trembled as though overloaded.

He endured it and squeezed the mana tighter. A horrible crunch sounded, as though a bone had slipped out of place.

That was fine. Bones could be set again.

Without giving up, he compressed the mana once more. Sparks snapped from his fingers.

"She'll be fine."

Gilberton spoke, pointing at Adrianna. Galahad looked over, wondering what bullshit he was talking about, and Gilberton nodded reassuringly.

"She isn't someone who would be endangered by something like this. You needn't worry."

Gilberton had suddenly offered some earnest advice.

After a moment's consideration, Galahad smiled.

"I agree."

* * *

'I'm telling you, there's no need to worry.'

Gilberton murmured to himself as he watched Galahad, whose small blood vessels had burst.

Surrounded by Demons and demon-beasts, Adrianna might look endangered, but this was nothing compared to the crises she had overcome. Knowing that, neither her personal unit nor Gilberton was acting with any urgency.

Yet Galahad, who was normally so unruffled, looked anxious instead.

His eyes were bloodshot, his body shaking as he chanted a spell. Gilberton had told him there was no need, but true to form, Galahad hadn't listened at all.

It was a rather unfamiliar sight. To think Galahad could look so anxious.

'Could it be...?'

A possibility occurred to Gilberton.

The moment he saw Adrianna in danger, Galahad had begun desperately chanting. With the veins in his neck bulging and his bloodshot eyes focused, he looked positively frantic.

Which meant—

'Does he really have feelings for Lady Adrianna?'

Well, this was Adrianna, after all. Not liking her would be stranger.

'But still, Galahad, of all people? The circumstances make it obvious. No, but still, that Galahad?'

While Gilberton wrestled with this, Galahad opened his mouth.

"Chain Lightning."

A small spark shot from Galahad's finger and rose into the sky. It resembled the spell he had used on Hermun, but the oppressive weight of it was different.

Then the sky, dark and lightless beneath its thick storm clouds, was violently torn apart. An intense bolt of lightning revealed itself through the rift.

It was thicker than before.

'That's—'

Sensing something ominous, Gilberton swallowed.

"Adrianna! Watch out!"

Galahad shouted.

'Is that something you can just watch out for?'

Before Galahad had even finished speaking, the lightning shot down.

But its destination was somewhat odd.

No—very odd.

'Why is it aimed at Adrianna—?'

With unerring precision, the lightning struck Adrianna.

BOOM!

Lightning hammered the area around Adrianna in rapid succession.

Naturally, Adrianna herself was unaffected. The lightning falling on her was disrupted by her white aura.

Fragments sprayed from the thick bolt as though ricocheting off it, devastating everything nearby. Demons and demon-beasts caught in the direct hits burst apart, swept away by the force.

Gilberton knew Adrianna burned mana. Of course magic wouldn't affect her.

But even knowing that—

'Still, his own fiancée...?'

Silence settled over the battlefield.

Everyone stared at Galahad rather than the Demons. Amid those gazes, now filled with even deeper horror—

"Whew. A direct hit."

Galahad swept back his disheveled hair.

He looked utterly refreshed.