Chapter 42 - The Immortal Athanasia (2)
The one sent as a scout was a goblin.
It was one of the weaker members of the demon race in Barungenia, but there was a reason it was chosen for reconnaissance.
"Grrk."
The goblin was agile and skilled at stealth.
It was green, making it adept at camouflage in the forest, and it had developed its hiding abilities from the start to survive among larger, stronger beings.
Of course, such abilities didn't draw attention from everyone.
The demon race tended to judge everything solely by strength.
However, with the emergence of a new Demon King, the situation changed.
The Demon King, who had gathered goblins and taught them the basics of scouting even before his coronation, deployed the most capable individual for this mission.
The goblin was cunning.
And that implied a high level of intelligence.
The goblin was now using the abilities it had cultivated for its survival against other creatures, for scouting.
"Grrrlk."
This impressed the small creature.
Until now, other demons had only regarded goblins as cannon fodder, sent to the front lines of war.
So the goblin did its best.
It crossed a river, finding shallow spots, pushed through dense thickets, and eventually reached a rocky mountain.
WHOOSH.
There, the goblin detected an unusual tremor in the ground.
Hiding behind a rock and peering down, the goblin's eyes spotted a girl.
RUMBLE, RUMBLE.
The vibrations emanated from the girl.
The goblin cautiously moved closer to the girl.
Though a demon, the goblin, unable to manipulate magi at all, was unlikely to be easily detected by sensory abilities.
Therefore, it was confident.
It believed it could successfully carry out the mission given by the Demon King.
SWIFT!
However, it was mistaken.
The girl's gaze turned towards where the goblin was.
It was discovered.
The goblin hastily turned to flee.
"Gah!"
But by then, soldiers had surrounded it.
A unit composed of half-destroyed humans screaming grotesquely.
"Reconnaissance?"
In the brief moment of hesitation, the girl's voice was heard.
The goblin turned its head, face ashen.
The girl stood right behind it.
The girl, wearing a crown and exuding an innocent aura, paradoxically emanated a terrifying killing intent.
"You sent a weak one, didn't you?"
At her words, the goblin raised its club.
It was the only weapon the creature possessed.
"Huh? No, no."
The girl shook her head.
"You, you know."
The girl, who gently tapped the goblin's forehead with her finger, said.
"You're the bait, you see?"
SHIIIIMMER.
A diagonal mark appeared on the goblin's forehead.
No, to be precise, it was revealed.
It had already been etched there.
"Grrrlk?!"
"Do you understand now?"
The girl pressed her index finger even harder against its forehead.
"Your weak intelligence was cheaply exploited."
CRUNCH!
The goblin's head was pierced.
It collapsed to its knees, eyes rolling back, without even a moment to feel injustice.
The club it held fell to the ground.
"Utterly ruthless, aren't you~."
The girl, Athanasia, smiled faintly, as if showing it to someone who was watching her.
♧
"Detected. Northwest."
Golche, holding a telescope, said.
He had safely located Athanasia through a telescope with a guiding function, linked to the tracking mark that Rin had etched onto the goblin.
"It's a divine being in the form of a girl. She's clearly targeting us."
"Is that so?"
Beatrice, having heard something stating the obvious, tilted her head slightly.
"There's a village in between. Since she looks human, will she stop for now?"
But what followed next went beyond her expectations.
-ACK!
-Wh-Who are you, you—Gah!
-Help me!
It was a massacre.
The soldiers following the girl, barely distinguishable from corpses, tore and slashed at anyone they saw.
As if clearing away trash.
"I see."
Beatrice pondered for a moment.
"She kills everyone who isn't her worshipper."
"Oh, dear."
Golche chuckled.
"Is hitting us more urgent than increasing her worshippers?"
"It seems so."
Beatrice shrugged her shoulders.
"Now that she's released, she must have a lot of pent-up feelings. I don't know what they used to entice her this way."
"Whatever it is, she's clearly a cruel one."
"Neither you nor I are in a position to say that."
Beatrice's gaze swept over their surroundings.
Numerous goblins were positioned there.
Goblins who had no idea that the new Demon King was using them like chunks of meat.
'Indeed, Clay, your talent is...'
His talent was not that of a Hero.
'To become the most suitable being for the position.'
That was Clay's most terrifying aspect.
As soon as he became the Demon King, he categorized the demon race.
Based on utility.
His actions in deciding which demon to place where were without hesitation.
The goblins sent here were also classified in this way and dispatched as bait.
'Since we found her right away, there's no need to send other goblins...'
Beatrice sighed.
'At this rate, his intentions are too obvious.'
Athanasia showed no intention of hiding her presence.
She was likely advancing directly towards Barungenia.
'Did he send me because he knew this would happen?'
If he only intended to scout by sending a bait goblin, there would have been no need for her to accompany the scouting party.
But Clay had sent Beatrice with them.
'He must have meant for me to observe the situation and make a judgment.'
In her view, continuing secret reconnaissance was largely meaningless.
If the enemy was simply coming directly, observing from a distance was sufficient.
"Golche, observe Athanasia from here and send the goblins to report the situation."
"Are you returning?"
"No."
WOOSH!
Beatrice's body was enveloped in flames.
"I'll figure out her intentions."
♧
"You're going to fight even though they say it's Athanasia?"
The demonic sword, Shiltnaro, asked with a bewildered expression.
"Yes."
Clay replied as he prepared to leave.
"But Athanasia is a god."
"I know."
"Your Majesty, the Demon King...!"
As if having forgotten the confidence she had initially displayed, Shiltnaro merely pleaded with him.
"Even freshly released from the seal, she'll be incredibly strong."
"Her worshippers will have dwindled compared to before."
"But they still remain. Tribesmen who believe in the ancient god still exist."
"Shiltnaro."
Clay spoke to Shiltnaro, who was currently manifested in her girl form.
"Return to your sword form."
"What?"
"I need a sword now."
The command was given, but Shiltnaro hesitated.
"If you fight a god, I might break..."
"The battle hasn't even begun."
Clay sharply retorted, as if telling her not to predict the outcome in advance.
"Didn't you agree to fulfill your role?"
To Shiltnaro, who swallowed hard, Clay delivered the final blow.
"At least my holy sword never tried to sway its master like you."
"!"
Shiltnaro, whose eyes widened in surprise, pondered for a moment, then clenched her fists tightly.
"That's one thing I cannot lose to, then."
"Then that's fortunate."
"Your Majesty."
Shiltnaro made one request.
"Please, if you are in danger, avoid it."
"If I am in danger?"
"Yes."
From the perspective of Shiltnaro, who had already lost her previous master and wandered, the most terrifying thing was to lose the one who held her reins once more.
"I only have Your Majesty."
He was irreplaceable for her.
"Since I've decided to serve you, please promise me too, Your Majesty."
It was brazen, but Clay did not reprimand her; he simply nodded.
"I will."
It was not an act of pity or mercy towards her.
It was from the conviction born of a mindset that absolutely refused to die.
"Kardine."
Clay looked back.
Kardine, who had been hiding in the shadows, revealed himself.
"Yes, Your Majesty."
"Have you completed everything I asked for?"
"Yes. We successfully captured most of them and are currently bringing them this way."
Kardine, after answering, hesitated for a moment before adding.
"But was it really alright not to inform Beatrice separately?"
"If I had told her, she might have opposed it."
"Opposed, you mean?"
"She would have thought it would further provoke Athanasia and make the fight unavoidable."
Of course, from the moment Kardine acted on his words, the outcome had already become irreversible.
"Kardine, if you handled it well, there will be no problem. Since Athanasia was indeed the first to be released from the seal."
All preparations for her were complete.
"All that's left is for Beatrice, who knows nothing, to sincerely buy us time."
So that the opponent wouldn't realize what had truly happened.
'My apologies, Beatrice.'
Clay felt a not-insignificant sense of debt towards her alone.
But he believed she would understand.
'The most important thing here is you.'
Clay thought that she would perform well.
♧
"Clay!"
The scouting party should have returned first, but it was none other than Beatrice who shouted this.
"Athanasia negotiated with Emperor Kratia's confidant. She frankly said she intends to kill you."
Beatrice was gasping for breath.
"...Are you hurt?"
Clay, who had come out to the front of Barungenia to meet her, slowly walked forward.
And approached the staggering Beatrice.
"Your injuries aren't minor."
"It's not a major injury."
Beatrice's clothes were almost rags.
There were signs of explosion damage everywhere.
New skin was just beginning to grow on injured areas that even the demon race's unique regenerative abilities hadn't fully healed yet.
"Clay."
Beatrice spoke with a distraught expression.
"She is on a different level."
As if facing an unforeseen catastrophe, Beatrice pleaded with Clay.
"The demon race can become stronger under the Demon King's influence. You can become the demon god, after all. But we don't know how much stronger you can make us, having just ascended to the Demon King's throne."
"Are you saying I shouldn't even test it?"
"I'm saying there's no need to test it right now."
Beatrice sincerely advised him for his sake.
"You have many things to do in the future. So, be a little more cautious..."
"Your Majesty."
It was then.
Kardine approached and informed Clay.
"Everything is complete."
"Complete?"
Beatrice, who overheard, wore a bewildered expression.
"Clay?"
"Beatrice."
Clay said softly.
"Do you know why I brought Neville here?"
"That's, to obtain information about Kratia..."
"To be precise, to obtain information about those who would become my enemies."
And among that was information about the ancient gods.
Especially the locations where the source of their power was hidden.
"I am already moving cautiously."
From the moment he was betrayed by humans, no, the preparations had been made even before the betrayal.
While he was still the Hero, observing, hearing, and learning.
So now, it was merely the direction of his wielded blade that had changed.
With everything prepared.
"Barungenia will not fall from the very beginning."
Clay walked past Beatrice, who stood with a dazed expression.
The hem of his fluttering cloak remained like an afterimage in her vision.