The game difficulty has gone crazy.
“……It looks like it’s started.”
Ridenhall, who had been quietly pressing one hand to the ground, rose to his feet.
Romina, who had been sitting beside him, rolled a spark of demonic energy around in her palm as she spoke.
“We need to move.”
“Don’t make a mistake.”
“……You’ve got some nerve for someone who just rolled in.”
Romina’s amber eyes and the pure white glow flickering within Ridenhall’s empty eye sockets stared at each other.
But soon, the two withdrew their gazes and turned their heads forward.
They were looking down at the village from a hill outside Lublin Village.
It was a suitable place to carry out their respective roles without causing a major disturbance, since it was far from the village.
“Did you send off the slaves properly?”
“I’ll take care of it myself… And don’t call them slaves. They’re the remains of people who helped me when they were alive.”
Romina let out a snort of laughter.
“You’re already full of hypocrisy, treating such precious remains so casually.”
“Haa, I won’t argue. Just make sure you don’t accidentally hit Brother Glen.”
“Do you really think I’d make such a ridiculous mistake?”
Of course, Ridenhall’s distrust was understandable.
They were trying to hit an enemy underground from a hill several kilometers away from the village.
“Just shut your mouth and handle your precious skeleton knights properly. Watch what I do.”
Romina curled the corner of her lips and withdrew the demonic energy from her hand.
Before they knew it, a pair of horns and wings had sprouted from her head and waist.
The next moment, pitch-black demonic energy burst out from her core, deepening and growing denser.
Gooooooo—
The thickened particles of demonic energy slowly moved and gathered at Romina’s fingertips.
The Call of Caligo.
Due to a skill granted by the seventh demonic ring, Romina’s demonic energy had become far stronger than before.
Black killing intent flowed in her now-serious amber eyes, and Ridenhall fell silent at the sight.
—No matter how exceptional someone is, they shouldn’t be able to sense an enemy’s position and hit it accurately from this distance.
“……”
With eyes stripped of her usual playfulness and wicked charm, Romina looked at Lublin Village—more precisely, at the blue-roofed house that Glen had entered.
Soon, she sensed faint but numerous forces moving beneath it.
Many holy powers were moving busily.
And at their center, an enormous, ominous power of unknown nature slowly bloomed.
However, Romina’s target was not that massive force, but the holy power clinging to it as if they were part of the same group.
‘…Got you.’
She raised her index finger and aimed at that spot.
At its tip, abyss-like demonic energy, densely compressed, swirled menacingly.
Romina had to fire this demonic energy, pierce through the ground, and accurately skewer the enemy below.
‘Will it work?’
Even she had doubted herself.
But the power of the seventh realm she had obtained by clearing dungeons together with Glen filled her with confidence.
‘Right now…’
It was more than possible.
Sparks crackled within the black killing intent flickering around Romina’s eyes.
At the same time, the demonic energy gathered at her fingertip was fired.
Piiiiing—
The thick, highly compressed particle of demonic energy tore through the air like a bullet.
What Romina fired flew straight toward the enemy hidden beneath the residential house.
Kugugugugugu—
As if to settle the chaos caused by the attempted assassination of the Saint during the secret gathering, the ground shook violently.
“Protect the Saint first!”
Roderick, one of the Saint’s close aides, shouted.
The participants of the gathering and the knights, who had been moving in perfect coordination, quickly formed a formation around the Saint.
“Sir Glen!”
“Please, come this way!”
However, Glen alone stood several steps ahead of the formation, staring at Claudia and Ducan, Bastien’s spies.
Meanwhile, the ominous purple light leaking from the cracked ground only grew stronger.
Crack—crack—
Kwarrrrrng—!
Soon, the floor shattered, and a massive hand burst out from below.
One hand with black skin and claws dug into the ground, pulling itself up and dragging the body beneath it into view.
What emerged from the purple beams of light was a giant with black skin.
Its head was covered in so many horns that its face was completely unrecognizable, and its body was covered with countless eyes.
“W-What is that thing?!”
“A monster… no, a demon?!”
“God… can such a thing truly be a creation of the divine?”
At the appearance of a creature that seemed like it should never exist in this world, everyone present froze.
“Th-That’s disgusting! Sir Ducan! Is this really what he prepared?!”
“H… hahahahaha…….”
Claudia and Ducan, who had known of the fixed monster’s appearance, looked just as flustered.
That was only natural. To be honest, none of them had ever seen a demon in person.
Ive bin diu.
En sorrexir. Pinorido.
Strange, incomprehensible sounds.
Tearing cloth, Ducan wrapped his severed wrist and laughed as if he had lost his mind.
“Kuhahahaha… So this really has gone past the point of no return.”
“Sir D-Ducan! No matter what, this is crossing the line— Hiek!”
“Shut up, you useless woman! Since we’ve come this far, we have to see it through!”
Ducan grabbed Claudia and shouted.
Unlike Claudia, who had panicked after seeing the demon with her own eyes, he seemed to have quickly accepted reality.
“He said there wouldn’t be any problems as long as we quietly did our job.”
Drawing his sword from his waist, Ducan took a stance.
“Saint. You must retreat for now.”
“That’s right. We don’t know what that monster is, so you must withdraw!”
Roderick and the guardian knights urgently spoke to Luceria.
“I refuse.”
Unlike their panic-stricken eyes, Luceria’s violet eyes were fixed squarely on the demon.
“Saint! Can’t you feel the ominous aura that thing is emitting?!”
Roderick shouted.
He looked ready to throw the Saint over his shoulder and flee at any moment.
“Yes. I can feel it too. I’ve never felt such negative and vile energy in my life.”
“Then why…?!”
“If I run away from here, I don’t know what that thing will do.”
Roderick’s pupils shook.
“We’re in the middle of the village. To prevent such a horrific creature from roaming outside, we must eliminate it here.”
Strength filled Luceria’s eyes as she looked back at Bishop Roderick.
In the end, Roderick let out a groan and shouted toward the guardian knights.
“…Draw your swords and protect your bodies with holy power! From this moment on, we eliminate that monster!”
The gathering participants and knights let out battle cries, drawing their weapons and raising holy power to protect themselves.
Surrounded by them, Luceria stepped forward and unleashed an immense amount of holy power.
Sordida.
Dego ne cominus adim.
As if responding, the demon pointed at the Saint and spoke in an agitated voice.
Though still incomprehensible, judging by the nuance, it was surely a curse.
“Kuh… hehehehe. Yes… That is the right choice. As the Saint of the Papal Holy Nation, shouldn’t you act like that?”
From behind the demon, Ducan watched the Saint’s group and laughed darkly.
Then he raised his sword and pointed it at Glen, who was standing alone at the front of the formation.
