Chapter 25 - The Attack (2)

Several hours earlier, Gaf and Yohan lay atop a high cliff, watching the ground below.

As expected, a long procession entered the valley below. It was the pilgrimage party.

Even in the dark of night, brilliant light surrounded them. Pure white holy power protected the procession. A radiance that eradicated evil. Lesser Demons would go blind the moment they laid eyes on the pilgrimage party.

Gaf glanced at Yohan.

"Doesn't that bother you? It's holy power."

"Nothing but a cheap glow in the dark."

The accursed object, Kazan's ring, was blocking the holy power.

'Good thing I corrupted it first.'

It was proving useful in all sorts of ways, just as he had expected. Without the ring, even Yohan would have struggled to endure it.

Gaf clicked his tongue in amazement.

"I've never met a Demon who dismisses holy power before."

"Stop being surprised by everything. You'll see plenty more that defies common sense."

As they spoke, the procession began to split. A drab band broke away from the white-clad group and took the fork in the road. It was Kril and his men.

There were a little over ten of them. They turned toward their base in the south, while the pilgrimage party continued north toward the royal capital.

Gaf spoke.

"Common sense held up this time."

There were no surprises. Just as Yohan had said, Kril and the pilgrimage party parted at the far end of the valley.

Anyone could have predicted their route. If Kril did not turn his horse here, he would waste a considerable amount of time circling a large mountain.

Yohan nodded.

"We can forget about the pilgrimage party now. Let's just follow Kril."

He intended to wait until they made camp. If they attacked while the men were resting, there was a good chance they would fail to respond in time.

Gaf climbed down from the cliff and mounted his horse.

"Kril is a seasoned warrior. He'll notice if we follow him openly. Stay a little way behind. I'll take the lead this time."

Naturally, a mercenary was accustomed to tailing people. Gaf could follow Kril without any risk of being caught.

"Fine. Get going."

Gaf and Reil kicked their horses' flanks in unison. A short while later, Yohan spread his enormous wings.

* * *

Late that night, on a mountainside, a soldier standing guard died without even a final scream. Gaf's iron sword had pierced his heart in an instant.

Gaf immediately scanned his surroundings. The other guard was nowhere to be seen. Sentries usually worked in pairs, but there was no sign of anyone nearby.

'I need to find him quickly.'

The moment the man discovered the body, all of Kril's guards would go on alert. That would make the job much harder.

'Where are you?'

As Gaf whipped his head from side to side, a sharp whistle cut through the air.

WHOOSH.

An arrow was flying at him from above.

"Damn it!"

Gaf swiftly twisted aside. The arrow buried itself in the ground.

His gaze shifted up a huge tree. Among its thick leaves, a soldier in leather armor stared at him in shock.

How had he dodged an arrow from his blind spot? His target's reflexes were beyond human.

Realizing he could not win, the soldier immediately pulled out a whistle. Just as he was about to sound the alarm, Gaf threw a dagger. The flying blade pierced the back of the soldier's hand. He dropped the whistle and fell.

Gaf sprinted forward. He intended to finish the man off at once, but that was impossible. The soldier was tumbling down a slope.

'If I chase him, I won't make it in time.'

The plan was for Reil and Gaf to split up, kill every sentry in the area, then meet at Kril's camp. Going down the slope might delay their rendezvous.

Gaf immediately looked up at the night sky. Fortunately, Yohan was sitting on a cloud, looking bored.

"He's yours."

Gaf pointed down the slope, then ran toward the camp.

Yohan was dumbfounded.

'Did he just dump his work on me?'

Passing off his own job like that. Military bastards were the same in every world, it seemed.

Clicking his tongue, Yohan descended. There would be time to complain once he had dealt with the matter at hand.

He landed and surveyed his surroundings. A narrow forest path. A soldier lay face down amid the dense undergrowth. Their eyes met.

"A D-Demon!"

The soldier sprang to his feet. He cradled his left arm, which seemed to be dislocated. His eyes were full of fear and wariness.

The being before him was no common petty spirit. It was a single-horned monstrosity. Judging by its size, it was still only a subadult Demon, but it was undoubtedly dangerous.

The soldier drew his sword.

"The Great Saint watches over me! Begone, evil creature!"

Yohan advanced one step at a time without answering. With each step closer, the soldier's face twisted further in terror.

"W-What do you want from me?!"

The soldier backed away. His fear gave Yohan a small thrill of pleasure.

"I'm sorry. This is nothing personal."

As he spoke, Yohan kicked off the ground, spreading his wings to either side. The distance between them vanished in an instant. He swung his arm, sending his long red claws hurtling toward the soldier.

CLANG!

Metal clashed. The soldier barely managed to block, but his sword shattered. The force knocked him onto his back. He did not get up again. He seemed to have lost the will to fight.

The gap in their strength was overwhelming. Yohan looked down at the soldier, utterly bewildered. The human before him was far too weak. Surely this man was one of Kril's elite soldiers, yet he was not even a match for Yohan.

To subdue a trained human so easily, while still only a subadult Demon... Yohan could only grow more curious about the bloodline of the body he had possessed.

"S-Spare me!"

While Yohan was lost in thought, the soldier began to wail. His eyes pleaded for his life.

'I have to kill him.'

Mercy would leave trouble for later. There could be no witnesses.

Yohan bit his lip. This was not his first murder, but it was decidedly different from what had happened with Betra. This time, he would have to end a life with his own hands. Tear through human flesh and stain his hands with its blood.

The weight of murder bore down on him. He clenched his fist tightly.

'Even if not today, I'll have to face this eventually.'

Since he had resolved to survive, he had to get used to killing. Survival in this world meant someone else's death.

Yohan raised his arm.

"P-Please!"

SQUELCH.

Blood spurted up. His long claws were buried in the soldier's throat. The man died instantly, his eyes still open.

At the same moment, a terrible exhilaration swept over Yohan. A sense of accomplishment born of instinct. As always, he began to thrash wildly.

He laughed as he cried. His body twisted this way and that, as though he might pass out at any moment. He wanted to resist the pleasure. He wanted to be tormented by guilt, like a human.

Convulsing, Yohan took to the sky.

* * *

Kril could not believe his eyes. The soldier who had gone to relieve himself had returned with his head severed, and an unexpected figure had emerged from the bushes.

"... Reil? Is that you?"

Blood and scraps of flesh clung thickly to the knight's sword.

Kril's last remaining subordinate shouted.

"Sir Reil! Surely you didn't do this?!"

No answer came. Reil merely stared at Kril with empty eyes.

Kril spoke.

"What in the world happened to you? You disappear without a trace, then suddenly turn up and commit this treachery?"

Reil strode toward him in silence.

Sensing something was wrong, the soldier immediately blew his whistle. No one answered.

"I-I think they've all been taken out."

They were all dead.

Kril shouted.

"Draw your sword!"

The soldier never even reached the hilt. An iron sword flew at him from behind and pierced his spine.

"Ghurk!"

He collapsed, spewing a mouthful of blood.

Kril whipped his head around. An enormous man in a black mask was trudging toward him.

"And who the hell are you?!"

When the man removed his mask, Kril's brow furrowed sharply.

"You're the man from the castle—"

"Linus of the Kandeya Mercenary Company."

Linus was the name Gaf used in his mercenary work, a formidable name any knight or warrior would have heard at least once.

Kril gave a disbelieving laugh.

"You're the Lion of the East?"

"I've been called that, too."

Kril's gaze swept over Gaf, sizing him up. He fit the description. Hair jutting out in all directions like a lion's mane, an imposing stature, a well-proportioned physique. Appearance alone could not confirm that the man before him was Linus, but it left no doubt that he was a powerful warrior.

"Why would a man like you serve my brother? Come work for me. I promise you proper rewards and treatment."

"I come with not just a Demon, but a witch as well. Can you handle that?"

"What?"

"I doubt you can."

Gaf pulled the iron sword from the soldier's body.

"Killing me would put you in a difficult position, wouldn't it?"

"I have no intention of killing you."

At the same instant, Gaf lunged at Kril. His enormous iron sword traced a semicircle toward Kril's neck. Kril leaned backward to evade it, but failed to block the follow-up.

THWACK!

Gaf drove a thrusting kick into Kril's solar plexus.

"Damn it!"

Kril staggered back, clutching his abdomen.

Before he could catch his breath, something flew toward him and coiled around his neck.

"Gaaagh!"

It was a rope thrown from behind.

Reil's surprise attack. Unable to hold his ground, Kril fell backward. He struggled desperately to escape, but it was impossible. Each time he thrashed, the rope dug deeper into his throat.

Groaning, Kril glared at the traitor. His bloodshot eyes spoke of his fury. Reil paid no heed to that reproachful stare. He simply performed his assigned task like a machine.

"... Y-You bastard!"

Kril could not begin to understand Reil's behavior. He wanted an explanation, at least. Cruelly, Reil dragged him away without a word and began tying him to a tree.

Kril's entire body was bound fast. Only then did Gaf loosen the rope around his neck.

"Why?!"

The moment he could speak, Kril roared. Reil did not answer. A chilling voice answered in his place.

"Because a Demon stole his soul."

Everyone looked up. A Demon with a white horn was slowly descending. Horror spread across Kril's face. His eyes trembled.

"A h-horned spirit!"

A horned spirit was a Demon with horns. Such beings appeared occasionally in the north, but were never seen in the south.

When the creature landed, pitch-black demonic energy rose in place of dust. The Demon spoke.

"Do you remember our conversation a few days ago?"

Never mind a conversation; Kril had never encountered a horned spirit in his life.

"I warned you. Unless you gave up the barony, you would die the moment you set foot in your base."

At those words, Yohan's threat flashed through Kril's mind.

["The moment you leave the Miyatro domain and arrive at your base, Uncle, you will be a corpse."]

His nephew had indeed said that.

"I've come to keep my word."

Kril could not make sense of what was happening. Just as an impossible suspicion began to dawn on him, Yohan flicked his index finger. The demonic energy in the air began to surge.

"Don't resent me too much. I didn't want things to come to this, either."

As a reader, Yohan had liked Kril quite a lot. He did not want to kill him. But feelings and reality were separate matters. Kril had to disappear for Yohan to survive.

"I'll take your soul."

The demonic energy stiffened all at once. The solidified strands of smoke caught the moonlight, gleaming sharply. Kril swallowed hard. He could not even imagine what was about to happen.

"Farewell."

An instant later, the demonic energy clawed at Kril's heart. Like a scythe harvesting grain, the razor-sharp smoke cut away his soul.

Soul Slaying. A power that annihilated its target's soul.

The light vanished from Kril's eyes. Like Reil, he had been reduced to an empty puppet.

Gaf averted his eyes from the horrific act. Yohan spoke dispassionately.

"There's a way to kill Kril without taking the blame."

"... What are you planning to do?"

"Use someone else's hands."

Yohan looked at Kril.

"Kill yourself."

Reduced to a mindless shell, Kril had no choice but to obey Yohan's command. Just as he was about to bite through his own tongue, Yohan shook his head.

"No. In front of your men."

Kril would return to his base and take his own life. Once everyone had witnessed it, no one would be able to hold the baronial house responsible.