Reincarnated as the Baron's son: My Infinite Card Upgrade System-Chapter 109: A thousand demons.

Bang! Bang! Bang!

"Woooo! This is so unreal; holding this thing is such a craft, my dude, you have to try this."

The man said with an excited smile, while shooting at the sandbag.

Beside him were other knights, standing close to him and holding different guns in their hands.

From how excited they were, it was obvious they couldn’t wait to test it out on the battlefield.

It had been two days since Dergen made his deal with Alaric Montclair. And to his surprise, the very morning of the second day, carts coming from the east flooded his hiding spot.

Each one had guns stacked in them, of all sizes—guns big enough to stand close to horses. It was unlike anything they had ever seen before.

Still, it wasn’t only that that left Dergen’s army jaw-dropped.

Along with the thousands of war weapons were one thousand demons with Argon leading them.

At first, the soldiers were scared; seeing so many demons come into the gathering was nothing short of a nightmare.

Fact is, humans and demons never liked each other, and humans were stronger, which was the only reason why demons went into hiding.

But now, thanks to Alaric’s influence and upgrade, each one of them was strong enough to battle on their own.

"I thought he was bluffing. But he really did bring a thousand demons to my doorstep," Dergen muttered, standing on top of the hill where he could get a good view of his men.

Behind him was Argon himself, and two other demons, red devils with dark horns and long black wings.

"Are you satisfied?" Argon asked.

For a brief moment, Dergen took a second to look at the guns his men were moving to the front line.

"Yes... yes, I am. Your lord has done well; I’m quite impressed," he responded as he turned around.

Dergen didn’t bother to ask why someone who was under Duchess Meren’s rule is suddenly ruling over an army of demons.

He didn’t care.

So long as he won the war and had the power to take over the capital.

It didn’t matter to him.

"That’s good to hear. My men are hungry for a fight, so it’s best we start moving."

"True, the war is supposed to have begun by now. No doubt that bitch Meren is already on her way here," Dergen sighed, "Very well, we move by sunrise."

"I shall inform my master." Argon turned around and began to walk away.

Seamlessly, a smile formed on Dergen’s face, one that showed the devious thoughts running through his mind.

"This... this is by far the best thing that could ever happen to me. And I... for one love it."

...

(Meren’s army.)

Hundreds of soldiers were lined up at the border, each one of them there to fight to the death if Dergen marched over to where they were.

Meren had individually positioned them in strategic places that she knew would benefit her.

It’s no secret that her soldiers were stronger; as such, she didn’t feel any need to worry about the war. In her head, she had already won.

Especially considering she had two diamond-ranked knights with her, Ava Isenberg and Lay Everton.

Initially, she didn’t expect to bring Ava with her, especially after everything that had happened. She felt she’d be better needed at the barony, to protect it.

Or at least that was what she thought, until Ava insisted she wanted to fight.

Now, she was part of the incoming war, not at 100% but there to fulfill her duty, something she was certain Alaric would want her to do.

"It’s fine if you need to go back to the barony now. No one would blame you," said Meren while seated on her horse, her gaze fixed in front of her.

The rising sun had begun to show, and her army had spread all around the battlefield, some asleep, and others keeping watch.

"I’m fine, Lady Meren," Ava replied.

"Is that so? I guess you’ve always been stubborn since you were a kid. That never changed."

"I think what didn’t change is the fact you haven’t aged a single day; we look the same age even though you are older," Ava whispered to herself, not daring to say that part out loud.

"Once this war is over, and this idiot has been stripped of his nobility, I’ll focus on bringing Alaric back to his senses. I promise," Meren added.

"Hmm... t-thank you." Ava looked to the ground, clearly a bit embarrassed and hopeful.

Suddenly, a soldier yelled,

"The enemy has arrived!!! All soldiers prepare for battle!!! I repeat, prepare for battle!!!"

Both Meren and Ava immediately made their way closer to the battlefield.

Too soon, but not too late to fight back.

As they approached the front lines, they could already see Dergen’s forces at the other side of the terrain, two times her army’s number.

It wasn’t just that.

Flying demons took to the air, and they all seemed to be holding some kind of weird equipment. Hell, it seemed as if everyone had one of those in their possession.

Everyone was confused.

"I’m not surprised; Dergen always finds a way to pull some dirty trick. Well, it doesn’t matter; this war is ours to win," said Meren while riding her horse forward.

Lay Everton and Ava Isenberg stood at the second line, where they could get a better look at Dergen’s forces and the strange machines they had with them.

As Meren moved forward, so did Dergen, a smug expression on his face.

"Meren, I see you’ve done well with yourself, the lady who never ages; you truly live up to your name," Dergen voiced out, stopping a few distances away from Meren.

"The fool who thirsts for power. You don’t look so bad yourself."

Dergen frowned at her response.

"A fool, huh? All this started because you wouldn’t let me claim this land, all for some bunch of idiots!" he yelled.

"Those idiots happen to be messengers from the spirit. They did their part to save our world from calamity. You have no right to kill them," Meren clapped back.

"Hmp! You say that because you know I had no power to stop you back then. Every fight we’ve had, you always came out on top; I commend that. But this time, it’s not going to be the outcome you expect."

Meren took a quick look behind him, watching the legions of demons standing close to his men.

"See, a servant of yours recently offered me help, quite the young man he is, having tamed over a thousand demons for me to use as I please. I guess even your own people can tell you are a rotten bitch! Behold, the demons I command!"

Meren slightly parted her lips, about to say something, but her conviction wavered.

She gripped the horse’s leash, almost as if holding it for some kind of comfort.

Then she finally found the courage to speak, ready to accept whatever answer she would get from her question.

"His name... What is his name?" she asked.

With a devilish grin, Dergen replied, "What was it again? I could have sworn I remembered it; oh right, Alaric Montclair."

Just at the mention of his name, most of the soldiers were frozen in shock, including Meren and Ava.

It was hard to believe Alaric ever helping someone like Dergen. The same man who had once tried to take the barony from him using another baron under Meren.

Ava’s eyes began to scan the crowd of demons and humans, trying to see if she could somehow spot Alaric amongst their midst.

Meanwhile, Meren had already accepted the fact that Alaric was no longer with them.

"I see, so he chose to side with you. Quite a shame," she said out loud.

"Yes, a shame indeed. That man has talent; haha, with his help, I can conquer the kingdom. Not that I need to prove anything to you, as you will soon face the power I command in a second."

Dergen’s confidence was through the roof.

With a sigh, Meren drew her blade.

"Let’s end this war once and for all."

Her soldiers were ready.

"I’ll gladly do so."

Silence took over.

And then—

"Attack!!!"

They both yelled in unison.

Ava sprung into action; her target should have been Dergen himself since the enemy forces would be aiming at Meren too.

But since she heard Alaric was somehow involved in the war, her entire focus was directed somewhere else. She needed to find Alaric.

The two factions were about to collide, completely overshadowing their leaders in order to protect them.

It seemed like a heavy clash was going to happen, with both sides going all out to kill each other.

At least that was what they expected.

Boom!

A huge explosion erupted.

And it was from where Meren could have never expected it to be.

Every soldier that was behind her had somehow gotten engulfed in flames.

...