Chapter 170: Start of The Siege
BGM: 24hrs with Camellya – A Secret Record
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The village of my homeland is burning down――
Keep wandering on and on.
――I felt like I had that kind of dream.
As I opened my eyes, the fabric of the tent's canopy came into view.
It was dim. The faint glow of the setting sun slipped in from the gap in the entrance.
『It seems thou hast awakened.』
Ante's voice resounded in my head.
Yeah… The dream was terrible, but my body got a good rest.After rising from the bed and stepping outside, I saw rows of demon race tents lined up before me.
The demon king’s black flag and the Reiju clan's black flag, adorned with silver pattern,s fluttered with the wind.
We camped on the hill overlooking Evaloti, the capital of the Defteros kingdom.
I was at the frontline base of the Demon King army.
†††
The several days’ journey with the carriage felt tedious, yet it ended in the blink of an eye.
After a brief rest in the conquered frontier city in the western part of the Defteros Kingdom, we rode the skeleton carriage further and arrived at this frontline base just yesterday.
Liliana was left behind in the frontier city along with Garounya and Lyla.
Everyone actually wanted to come with me.
My refusal caused Liliana to worry about me, and Garounya, who has recently become Liliana’s caretaker, wore a grim expression too; she was supposed to be my caretaker after all. As for Lyla, it went without saying; her face seemed to say, “If danger approaches you, I can come to your aid in my dragon form”.
――But I also feel a bit relieved knowing they’re at least somewhat away from the flames of war.
「Have you just woken up, Your Highness?」
Then, Verossa, in his Sword Saint mode, who was standing guard at my tent, casually peeked inside.
During last year’s assault on the Defteros kingdom, it seems that the camp of the Izanis clan, led by Emergias, was caught off guard by a surprise attack from heroes and sword saints.
To avoid repeating the same mistake, strict daytime patrols were now enforced in this battle.
「I'll fetch water for you immediately.」
「Ah.」
I nodded without speaking too much.
I'm aware that I… Am really nervous right now.
My body felt sluggish and my mind lacked it's usual wits. But Verossa didn’t seem to care about that; he bowed politely and withdrew his face.
「… Huff.」
I cracked my neck and loosened my body with some light stretching.
Currently, the Demon King army's war potential consists of 400 demon warriors from the Reiju clan and their allied clans, 800 night elf rangers, and a daytime combat corps of 20,000 beastfolk and ogres.
In addition, there are numerous devil soldiers brought by the demon warriors(And a few hundred of them?), as well as messengers from the Izanis clan, engineers from the Corvut clan, and personnel from the Vernas clan who were responsible for food supplies and refrigeration.
The opposing Alliance forces were estimated to have about 3,000 reinforcements from the Holy Religion, which included the heroes, priests, and sword saints, and roughly 10,000 mixed army of human and beastfolk troops defending the royal capital.
The royal capital’s defence force was a mixed assembly of, not only of the Defteros Kingdom’s army but also troops from neighbouring countries and warlords, as well as soldiers from fallen nations destroyed by the Demon Kingdom. Including vigilantes, their numbers might swell to around 20,000.
Additionally, there were also the warriors from the Dwarf Union and forest elves from the Great Sacred Tree Union…
「―― Your Highness, your light meal and water.」
Sophia entered the tent.
「Thanks.」
I took the tray, quenched my thirst, and filled my stomach a bit.
Then I tidied myself up with Sofia's assistance.
I put on boots imbued with protective magic, donned thick cloth armour, and slipped into the scale armor, 【Sindikaios】. Fasten my belt, hang Adamas on my waist, slip on gauntlets made from the soldiers' bones, and strap on my greaves.
Lastly, I wore my helmet.
I had it made during the winter by a dwarf blacksmith. Its structure features a frame made of alloy, covered with leftover scales of Faravugi, achieving both lightness and durability. Of course, it was also enchanted with magic resistance derived from the White Dragon’s scales.
Its distinctive feature was the slit near the temples to avoid interfering with my horns. It was similar to the hats or helmets of beastfolk that have holes at the top to accommodate their ears. Because the position of demons’ horns varies individually, headgear tends to be custom-made. Compared to humans who could just slip on bucket-shaped helmets if the size fits, the demon race's helmet situation was definitely less convenient.
――I slipped my horns into the slit to put on my helmet while thinking about such random thoughts. As expected from a dwarf’s craftsmanship, it fits perfectly. Then, I wore the menpo, a face guard covering my brow and cheeks like a mask, and we were done.
I jumped lightly on the spot.
Yup… It's perfect.
Still, it was hilarious that a darkling was armed to the teeth with gleaming silvery armour from head to toe. It was downright tacky. That said, its resistance to light-based attacks was undoubtedly top-notch…
After finishing my preparations, I stepped outside the tent.
The sun had almost set, leaving only the sky tinged with a wistful, crimson hue.
But even that was slowly being swallowed, turning ever deeper―― Into the darkness.
「Okay, time for battle!」
「My arms are itching for a fight!」
「This time, I’m going to make a name for myself!」
Like me, other demons emerged one after another from their tents.
Both men and women were in high spirits, as if heading out for a picnic.
Reiju clan's warriors, along with those from allied tribes, gathered around. It felt like there were more younger fighters among them than usual.
「YOUR HIGHNESS!」
「The time has come!」
「I'm getting all fired up!」
Then, the three idiots showed up from behind. All of them look pretty serious.
「As expected, it's nerve-wracking.」
When I cracked a joke, Seyrey Night let out a shocked voice, saying, "Even Your Highness gets nervous!?".
「Of course I do. I’m only 5 years old, you know.」
「If even you say that, it’s game over, Your Highness.」
「What do you mean by that, you bastard?」
I walk on, tossing off lighthearted remarks as I go.
At the centre of the field camp lies a large open space that also serves as a training ground, a place where soldiers and warriors gather once preparations are complete.
The Night Elf rangers lined up in formations, meticulously inspecting their bows and knives. The demon warriors gathered in friendly groups, chatting and relaxing as they pleased. My four retainers, led by Qvirtal, were naturally among them. A messenger from the Izanis clan appeared to be giving orders to the front lines. Meanwhile, devil soldiers lounged in the air or played card games with nearby comrades, enjoying even more freedom than the demons.
「The time has come.」
「Ah.」
Qvirtal spoke to me earnestly, but I realised I’d only been having similar conversations for a while now.
Well… At this point, there was really nothing left to talk about.
「―― Jilbagias-dono.」
Heavy, deliberate footsteps approached, and when I turned around, I saw an old demon with a stout build. Deep wrinkles carved on his face, a single reddish eye glaring back, and a scar from a holy attribute wound that couldn't be healed, even the transpose curse couldn’t fully heal the wound that ran across his left eye. He had the unmistakable aura of a seasoned warrior――
Marquis Veteranos Reiju.
Currently, in this battlefront, he holds the highest rank both in status and honor— In other words, he was the de facto commander.
「I hear this is your first battlefield… Are you ready?」
Veteranos asked with a powerful voice.
「Yes. Not exactly my usual self, but I'm surprisingly calm.」
I also respond in a steady and composed tone. I am a prince, but my peerage was only that of a viscount. And in the Demon Kingdom, rank directly affects command authority on the battlefield. Here, I’m treated as just an ordinary soldier, with a slightly special status.
…If this were the alliance army, I, as a prince, would probably be pulled back to the rear to give orders, at least in name only.
The fact that it was only natural for me to lead my own forces and charge into battle myself, that’s what exactly defines us as demons.
「Well then, folks. The scheduled attack time is approaching.」
Veteranos looked up to the sky.
Ah―― The night had come.
Looking down from the high ground, the human camp lit brightly by blazing signal fires, seems to be holding its breath, closely watching our movements.
They knew we were attacking tonight. The daytime assault unit already gave them a taste earlier today, and more importantly, a few days ago, the dragons scattered written warnings from the sky.
In an ordinary war, that would probably count as a call for surrender.
However, the same couldn't be said for the Demon Kingdom.
Wash your neck… We're going to raid you today. That was the content of the letter.
If the dragons had scattered jars of oil from the sky and set the city ablaze, the damage would’ve been catastrophic.
The Demon Kingdom wouldn’t do something like that. The reason being there would be too few military merits to claim If the enemy were all killed that way.
I nearly clenched my fist, while the Alliance forces were fighting for their lives, these demons are acting like it’s some kind of thrilling hunt. Don't screw with me!!
「… Huff.」
But getting angry here wouldn’t accomplish anything.
I really―― Had no choice but to laugh.
「Well then, gentleman!」
When Veteranos raised his voice, the noisy camping grounds fell completely silent.
「… The time has come. The battle to capture Evaloti is about to begin. But before that, let us hear a few words from our very own prince, Jilbagias. Attention!」
Since we had already coordinated beforehand, I stepped forward without getting flustered.
In the darkness of night, hundreds, even thousands of eyes glowed softly, floating into view――
Their gaze focused on me.
The 7th Demon Prince, Jilbagias.
「At last, the day has come. The Battle of Evaloti… Surely, many of you have been eagerly awaiting this moment, right?」
With a fearless smile, I carefully gauged the audience's reactions.
「――I myself am one of those eagerly waiting.」
When I added that with a joking tone, the demons’ laughter echoed around us.
「In fact, I'll tell you what my father, His Majesty The Demon King, said.」
However, during my next words, silence descended again.
「――"Unleash your full might. I have high expectations for you." That's what he said.」
To be precise, those words were actually directed at me.
But I felt a ripple of excitement spreading through the crowd, a tangible response.
「Then—— As proud warriors of the Demon Kingdom, there can only be one thing for us to do.」
Drawing my sword, I raised my spear high toward the sky.
「Evaloti shall be ours! Let the might of the Demon Kingdom be known throughout the entire continent!」
――“Ooooh!” the demon warriors responded, raising their spears into the air.
The familiar night elf hunters nodded in agreement, while the devil soldiers grew excited and started dancing with joy.
Ahahahaha.
Who would’ve thought that I’d end up boosting the morale of the Demon King army?
『'Tis a cruel irony, indeed.』
Now―― You're the only one who stays by my side, Ante.
…Enjoy your fleeting joy while it lasts, Demon King army.
Run blindly into the battlefield, if you must.
「――DEPART!」
Thousands of voices roared in unison upon hearing my signal for marching to the battlefield.
The victory of the Demon King army and the defeat of the Defteros Kingdom was all but certain.
But still.
I’ll do things my own way.
I’ll carve out my own victories.
「Go」
I led my subordinate toward the battlefield――
――Glory for the Alliance.
DEATH TO THE DARKLING!
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