Chapter 71

"Fuu... n...?"

"It's good, Elka, you're awake."

Elka, who had just woken up, immediately realized she was under a large tree and that the battle with Merah was over.

"Your body should be fully healed. You can get up now."

"Blood... Is that so? You came to reinforce us, didn't you?"

"I think you were the ones who needed reinforcement... Well, that's how it is."

Supported by Tia, Elka sat up and then saw Arize lying next to her.

"Arize is...?"

"Already normal. However, there might still be some damage to her brain due to that monster tamer."

After defeating Merah, Blood immediately began treating the two of them. His recovery magic, which provided perfect support, was excellent, and he successfully healed Elka, whose manipulation magic's erosion was relatively shallow. However, Arize's brain had suffered significant damage. Even if her wounds were healed, it was possible that she had sustained brain damage during that time.

"Grain is now finishing off that giant creature."

In the direction Blood pointed, a huge monster stood. It was a Chimera, which had lost its brain, Merah, and could no longer move. Now, its body was being split in two and fell to the ground.

"Phew... Ah, Elka, you're awake. That's good, that's good."

"I caused a lot of trouble."

Grain, who had just finished off the Chimera, returned. On his back was a man.

"Hmm, who is that person?"

"He's the contents of the puppet near Arize. They didn't seem to want to separate, so maybe he's Arize's acquaintance?"

The man, Lamer, was unconscious. His only noticeable injury was a broken rib, but his body was discolored in various places, and he had numerous lines on his arms and legs. Although he was seriously injured, his breathing was stable, and his life was not in danger.

(That discoloration... I've seen it somewhere...)

After a while, Blood remembered.

(The man who proposed to Desastor... Taran, I think. He was with the robed people that guy brought... So, the contents of those puppets are modified humans... What a despicable thing to do.)

Blood clenched his fist involuntarily. After a while, he remembered what he needed to do.

"Ah... Let's treat that man too. Lay him down there."

"Got it."

Grain laid Lamer on the grass under the tree, which was not too damp.

"What should we do now?"

"Well... My wounds are already healed, so it's up to Elka whether we look for Setsu."

"I'm fine now. I'm a bit dizzy from anemia, but that's all."

Saying this, Elka stood up. Her words seemed to be true, as she firmly planted her feet on the ground.

"I'll go too."

"But if you leave, what will happen to those two?"

"I'll ask some of the demon soldiers to collect them on the way. They are also demons and your comrades, so they will be taken to the Demon King's castle for now."

After treating Lamer, Blood stood up.

"Then... let's go."

The four of them ran off. Although they were worried that they couldn't sense Setsu's magic, they relied on Elka's mysterious sense of smell to find her and raced through the battlefield.

(By the way... What happened to that woman, Yuzu?)

"Phew... Haa... Haa..."

Yuzu took some time to return to her human form. As soon as she did, she fell to her knees and panted heavily. This was not due to the injuries she had sustained from Luna, but because she had once transformed her entire body into flames and reconstructed it.

"Still... It's a bit tiring."

Her 'Limit Break' was powerful, but it consumed a lot of energy. If she lost concentration, her body would scatter, and the mental strain was more than she imagined. Elka had forbidden her from using it for long periods.

"Can't show weakness..."

After a short rest, Yuzu stood up. Although her magic and physical strength were at about 30%, she had to return to Setsu.

"Yuki-kun must have finished by now... I have to catch up quickly."

Using her magic to lightly enhance her body, Yuzu ran to where Setsu had been.

"Desastor, what will you do now?"

"Well... I think we should go to the front lines."

Desastor said this while heading towards the terrace in the king's room.

"Why are you going to a dangerous place?"

"Of course... I want to see Setsu."

"...You're really honest."

A little envious...

"Huh? Did you say something?"

"No... Nothing."

Leviath's face turned slightly red, but she shook her head.

"Fine, if you're going, I'll go too. Besides... I think this war will end soon."

"? Why do you think so?"

"How many years do you think I've lived? It's the intuition of an elder, intuition."

"Hmm, that sounds reliable."

Desastor smiled and jumped off the terrace. Leviath followed and flew out as well.

"Umm..."

Toshima was in a dilemma. He couldn't do anything to Setsu, who was now enclosed in a sphere of light. Killing Kagerou had driven him to the brink of madness, but he hadn't expected such a defensive measure.

Incidentally, he had tried every method, and all of them had been repelled. Even his 'Curse Magic' was ineffective.

"This is troublesome... I might have to draw the holy sword."

Toshima scratched his head, but couldn't think of a good plan. Just as he was about to draw the holy sword, something happened.

"You, you!"

"Hmm? Oh, aren't you the Five Great Demon Generals? I heard you were killed by Kagerou."

"We're not that easy to die."

There, Lily and Ides appeared, supported by other soldiers.

"Well, if you're not dead, there's no choice. I'll kill you then."

(...This is bad...)

Cold sweat ran down Lily's cheek. They were barely standing. If the soldiers heading to Yuzu, as Blood had instructed, hadn't found them in a near-death state, they would probably be dead by now. They had been given emergency treatment, but they were in no condition to fight.

"...Everyone, retreat."

In the tense atmosphere, Ides muttered.

"What... Ides-sama! What are you saying!"

"We will fight! We will!"

The soldiers showed their dissatisfaction with his words. However, Lily stopped them.

"Even if you all fight, it won't hinder him at all. I can't allow futile deaths."

"That's right. We might be able to buy some time."

"Such... Such a thing..."

"It's an order."

Ides glared. The soldiers, who had been trembling, reluctantly retreated to the rear. But...

"Do you think I'll let you escape?"

Everyone's feet stopped. Some of the soldiers fainted from the killing intent emitted by the man, and the scene was instantly dominated by fear. Many of them didn't know who Toshima was, which made them even more hesitant to retreat.

"Run!"

Lily jumped out, standing in front of the soldiers as a shield.

"Immediately inform Desastor-sama about this man! That's your duty!"

A life-or-death barrier. Even so, it might buy them a second against Toshima.

"It's useless... Then... Die."

Toshima's hand was aimed at Ides and Lily. Despite the casual gesture, the magic gathered in his hand had enough power to easily erase them.

"! ...Monster!"

"Bye-bye."

Ides and Lily closed their eyes, determined. The soldiers, seeing this, finally realized their mission and started to flee with all their might. But it was too late. Before they could escape, magic was released from Toshima's hand...

"Haah! 'Heavy Foot'!"

A foot came down from above, aimed at Toshima. He pulled back his hand, which was about to release the magic, and jumped back to avoid it.

"I won't let you escape."

A shadow followed up. The person, who had closed the distance in an instant, launched a torrent of attacks with long, extended claws.

"Be careful... Don't be so reckless!"

"! ...Damn..."

The attacks missed, and Toshima dodged while reaching out to the person. She sensed the danger and barely jumped back in time.

"You were almost there... Stop it, Shiraneko, Mineko."

"Shut up."

"We won't let you do as you please anymore!"

Mineko and Shiraneko stood side by side. Ides and Lily watched them in astonishment.

"You...?"

"We came as reinforcements."

"You both seem injured. Leave it to us and retreat."

"! Sorry!"

The two of them retreated as instructed. They were skilled, and if they realized their abilities were ineffective, they could consider retreating.

"What do you want, you traitors? I don't want you to interfere."

"You're the one who betrayed us. You said you'd give Mineko the medicine, so we cooperated. But you...!"

"Being deceived is the fault of the one who was deceived."

Toshima smiled lewdly. Mineko clenched her fists so hard that blood dripped.

"How could you... How could you make my sister... Cooperate with you...!"

"I don't care. I don't have any particular interest in you. I just saw value in your power. My interest... is all in Setsu!"

As he said this, Toshima hugged the sphere containing Setsu. The sphere remained motionless, and he looked a little lonely.

"Ha... I pour so much love into her, but Setsu doesn't respond. I wish she would become mine sooner..."

Toshima licked the sphere. The two of them shuddered at the sight.

"Setsu is... in there...?"

"You can't be... You can't be...!"

"Oops, don't misunderstand, Shiraneko. This isn't my fault. It's all what Setsu did herself."

His words were true, but they still seemed suspicious, and Shiraneko and Mineko couldn't trust him.

"Well, never mind. How did you find this place? I was hiding my magic, and Setsu hasn't emitted any magic since she was enclosed in the sphere."

For someone of Toshima's caliber, hiding his magic from others was no problem. Setsu could do it too, but she wouldn't go to such lengths to hide it. Yet, the magic was completely hidden, so there should have been no way to detect this place.

"We have a good sense of smell."

"Ah, I see. That makes sense."

Even if the magic was washed away by the rain, their enhanced sense of smell, which they could freely enhance with magic, made it easy for them to find Setsu. This meant... she was also a beast person.

"Found you!"

"! You're here too, of course!"

Suddenly, Roa appeared from above and threw a punch. Toshima caught it and threw her back. Just before she hit the ground, she was caught by a man who slid in.

"Phew... Oh! It's Grain!"

"Indeed... You never change, Roa."

Grain let Roa go. Next to him were Elka and Tia.

"Ides! Lily!"

Blood, who had just arrived, went to treat the two who were resting behind. Toshima didn't interfere, watching Elka and the others with a thin smile.

"Everyone's here. It looks like my companions are all dead."

"You're not