7th Demon Prince Jilbagias' Chronicle of Demon Kingdom Toppling-Chapter 173: Hell’s Cauldron
BGM: Against The Tide
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――I ran at full speed, charging toward the defenses of the 4th Fortress.
It was about 300 steps from the temporary position to the fortress. Around the midpoint, there was a barrier created by【Mitologia Replica[Myth Reenactment]】, a curtain of light like a descending aurora.
「I’ve seen that before, long ago. It’s a troublesome barrier that blocks hexes and arrows.」
Kvirtal explained in a composed voice while running.
「We demons, dark elves, and others like us experience considerable resistance when passing through that barrier, which slows our movements. This creates openings, so we need to be cautious of sniping from our blind spots.」
And then, Kvirtal gave me a double take, seemingly wanting to say something.
「【Forbid Pierce】」
I cast a constraint spell, preparing for the incoming arrows.
「Perfect. Now let's go.」
The veil of light was now right before us. On the other side, beastfolk warriors clung to the ramparts, trying to climb or throw ropes, while large armored devil soldiers floated lightly in the air, cutting straight into the defenses.
Inside the glowing veil――
I touched it.
I felt a strong resistance that rejected my very existence. It was an unpleasant sensation, as if pushing through firm jelly—or like countless tiny hands grabbing and pulling at the joints of my body.
So this is what it feels like to touch this veil of light as a darkling. If I took human form, could I slip through like the beastfolk? No—I’d probably die before that.
At that moment, I heard the sound of something slicing through the air.
Arrows were fired from the top of the fortress.
An arrow infused with powerful magic—but once caught by the binding spell, it rapidly lost its momentum.
Then it struck directly against the chainmail of Seyrey Night who was walking ahead of me, making a dull splat as it hit flesh. “Guh!” Seyrey let out a cry.
「It's a forest elf’s archer. Thank you, Your Highness. That arrow might have pierced my heart if not for your hex.」
“You should pay more attention to what’s above you,” Kvirtal said teasingly, as Seyrey let out a pitiful “Eek!” and nervously advanced, spear at the ready.
I, too, brushed off the clinging veil of light and succeeded in breaking through.
「OOOOOOOOOOOH!」
「DIEEEEEEEEEEE!」
「DEATH TO THE DARKLING!」
All at once, the roar of the battlefield surged around me. From atop the fortress walls, which stood easily three times the height of an adult, came the clashing of blades and the fierce sounds of flesh colliding with flesh. It seemed the vanguard of beastfolk warriors had already breached the walls.
When I looked up again, my eyes met those of a forest elf aiming a bow from the watchtower of the fortress.
They were so beautiful that I couldn’t tell their gender. With a stern expression, they were chanting some kind of spell, and then an arrow imbued with wind magic was loosed straight at me.
It was the specialty of the forest elves—an arrow guided by the wind that never misses its mark. But the greater the piercing force, the stronger the resistance from the【Constraint】 magic. The arrow quickly reduced to a pitifully slow speed and was easily slashed aside by me.
Despite the presence of the forest elf archers, the beastfolk soldiers seemed to be unharmed—most likely because the elves had been conserving their strength. Actually, now that I took a closer look, a few night elf hunters lay on the ground… All of them shot clean through the forehead.
…But with this power, it seems the armor could handle the impact just fine.
Or can it still exert more power?
The forest elf archer bit their lip in frustration and withdrew from sight. Had they realized the arrow was wasted and gone to find another target—or were they trying to lull me into a false sense of security before delivering a killing blow?
Either way, now was the chance to climb the fortress walls.
「How should we climb this wall?」
The devil soldiers ignored gravity, and the beastfolk hooked their claws into the wall’s crevices and climbed with ease, but we definitely weren’t that agile.
「Normally, the beastfolk warriors would hang rope ladders or something similar, so we use those to climb――」
Kvirtal pointed to several ropes hanging down from the fortress wall.
「――If someone of the Corvut bloodline is involved, that’s a different story.」
With a heavy thud, he stomped the ground, channeling his magical power into it. 【Concreta(Stone Manipulation Curse)】――with a rumble, multiple stone pillars burst from the earth, supporting one another to form something between a bridge and a staircase.
「…Splendid.」
I unintentionally praised him from the bottom of my heart.
「Thank you. However, since it’s mixed with the magical power of darkness, it won’t last long within this barrier.」
As Kvirtal spoke, small sprouts of grass and flowers began to bud here and there on the makeshift stairs. They grew rapidly, blossomed, withered, and sprouted again through successive generations, gradually eroding the stone.
「You lots, lead the way.」
「It's fine. I'll lead the way.」
I stopped Kvirtal, who ordered the three idiots, and stepped onto the stairs first.
「――This is my first campaign. Let me get firsthand experience.」
Ignoring Kvirtal’s troubled response, I dashed up the stairs. The alliance was up there, still fighting beastfolk warriors and devil soldiers.
There was no way I was giving that chance to the three idiots.
If someone was going to kill, I’d rather do it myself—to make their deaths more meaningful.
After skipping two steps at a time, I reached the top of the stairs to find human soldiers arranged in formation, battling beastfolk and devil soldiers everywhere. The castle wall was narrow, no wider than five steps, but the bodies of humans and beastfolk alike lay scattered, slick with blood. Even now, new beastfolk and devil soldiers were breaching the defenses, leaping down from the wall to join the chaotic fight below.
This smell――the raw, metallic scent of the battlefield.
And the moment I appeared, it felt as if the air itself froze.
「…The demons have arrived!」
Someone shouted, and hundreds of eyes focused on me. The beastfolk soldiers looked as if to say, “Finally!” In stark contrast, the alliance soldiers’ faces were filled with hatred and resentment――
「DIEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE――!」
「DEATH TO THE DARKLING!」
「【MAY WE BE PROTECTED FROM EVIL CURSE!】」
Far from being discouraged, the soldiers’ fighting spirit and killing intent ignited. They pressed their shoulders together, raised their shields, and steadied their swords.
Although the beastfolk soldiers individually possessed greater strength, they stood no chance against the coordinated defense of the front-line shield bearers and the swords thrust through the gaps, and were gradually being cut down――
Impressive. Wonderful soldiers. Their training and morale were impeccable.
It was only a brief moment—less than a blink of an eye—but even so, I allowed myself the luxury of admiring them.
And then.
I began kneading my magical power. 𝙛𝓻𝒆𝓮𝒘𝙚𝙗𝒏𝙤𝙫𝓮𝒍.𝓬𝒐𝙢
A new world governed by laws centred around me――
「――【Forbid Coordination】」
And I finalised it.
At that moment, the soldiers’ movements, which had until then acted like a single organism, visibly slowed down at once.
「…EH!」
「What's happening?」
「The shields are…!」
Their steps fell out of sync. Gaps opened between the shields. Offense and defense failed to mesh. They bumped shoulders and stepped on each other’s feet. When trying to retreat, they were pushed from behind; when trying to advance, their neighbors got in the way.
The movements of the human soldiers, once smooth like well-oiled gears, had become erratic and disjointed, as if multiple stakes had been jammed into the mechanism and left it rusted.
They must have also had protective wards against evil.
They must have also been receiving the priests’ protection.
But my overwhelming magical power pierced through their magic resistance with ease.
「No way!」
「Opening!」
「DIEEEE!」
「GUGAAA」
The beastfolk warrior wasn’t one to miss such a perfect opportunity. Several soldiers were struck down, their throats torn open by blows slipping through the gaps in their shields, collapsing as blood sprayed from their bodies. As others tried and failed to fill the opening, a devil soldier with a massive cleaver charged in, thrashing wildly and tearing the opening in their formation even wider――
――As if I'm gonna let you do that.
「That's…」
I too leapt and rushed into the fray.
「――THEY'RE MINEEE!」
Shoving aside the beastfolk warriors, I leapt to the front lines――
I looked at the soldiers' faces from up close.
Stained with spattered blood and sweat, eyes wide open, teeth clenched, brows furrowed――
Even as their well-drilled coordination, hard-earned through training, was trampled by a vile hex――
They instantly sensed it and tried to counter the enemy with their individual strength――
They were truly brave heroes.
――I would apologize to them later.
――If needed, I’d apologize even after I die.
That's why, now――
Wearing a savage grin on my face, I raised my spear-sword—my slumbering holy sword—high into the air.
「【ARM, WITHER!】」
Scattering dark magic, I swept away the shields raised by the soldiers.
Unable to withstand it, the soldiers began dropping their shields one after another.
And then, with the returning slash――
「――BE MY NUTRITION!」
I unleashed a strike.
The indescribably unpleasant sensation of flesh and bone being cut repeatedly crawled up my hand.
Soldiers whose torsos and necks were slashed fell over one after another—and died.
The remnants of their life, blood spurting from wounds on their bodies, splattered onto my face.
「…HAHAHAHAHAHAHA!」
I was laughing maniacally, befitting a prince of the demon race.
Wiping the blood that had splattered near my eyes and trickled down like tears――
I swung my sword recklessly with all my might.
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