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HELHEIM SCANS
[Translator - Peptobismol]
[Proofreader - Demon God]
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Chapter 92 - Forced Summon
“Flying types, you say! Report in detail once more!”
“Yes, sir. We estimate approximately a thousand mutated flying monsters originating from wyverns. The leading creatures have already crossed the second perimeter and are currently making a low approach towards the walls.”
“Wyverns...!?”
The Northern Grand Duke quickly donned his helmet, his expression darkening.
Wyverns.
It should be impossible.
“Weren’t all the wyverns slaughtered during the last Great Demon Realm Expedition? We searched every inch of that wretched place, destroyed all their nests, and burned down the forests—completely eradicating them!”
Flying monsters are the most troublesome adversaries for Ester, the fortress city.
Not only do they render the towering walls useless, but if they wished, they could ignore Ester entirely and fly straight south.
Because of this, the Empire has maintained extreme vigilance against flying monsters.
They deployed expeditions numerous times, implementing a strategy to slaughter every flying creature in the Demon Realm.
It was a strategy that seemed absurd and hopeless at first glance.
However, after a dozen expeditions, the Northern Grand Duke succeeded in exterminating every winged creature and monster in the Demon Realm...
...Or so he believed.
“Damn it. Did some of them survive?”
“...”
Or had there been a nest that they missed?
That couldn’t be.
Even if there were some wyverns they missed...
They would have noticed before they had multiplied into a thousand fully-grown creatures.
They had dispatched scouts to the Demon Realm regularly, yet not once had there been any reports of wyverns.
“If that’s the case...”
Could this be as if someone had released a thousand wyverns into the Demon Realm and mutated them into monsters?
The Northern Grand Duke, now fully armored, turned sharply.
Seeing the fierce look in his eyes, the knights who were preparing their gear flinched, startled.
‘Any further and we’ll all descend into paranoia. I need to focus on the battle at hand.’
The Grand Duke closed his eyes tightly and let out a deep sigh.
There might very well be a traitor within the Empire, but...
Now that the situation had erupted, there was no time to be concerned with such matters.
Instead of rooting out a traitor, the immediate priority was the defense of the fortress.
“Raise the emergency beacons! Light torches throughout the area!”
“Yes, Your Grace!”
Wyverns, by their nature, would never pass by a brightly lit area in the dead of night.
There was no way they could be allowed to bypass Ester and head for the capital.
The Monster Wave had to be stopped here, at Ester.
That was the fortress city’s role.
“Send Merilda down to the bunker immediately!”
Though they had just managed to convince her, and it would have been best to send Merilda to the capital with her escort now that the Monster Wave had started...
Things were different with flying monsters.
Even if they lured the wyverns with bright lights, some might still slip through.
And without a carriage faster than the wyverns, trying to escape from Ester now was practically a death sentence.
“M-My Lord! The Lady is nowhere to be found!”
“...What?”
“We will begin searching for her at once!”
“Ah, argh! Aaah...!”
The Grand Duke felt his head go dizzy at the shocking news.
“Find Merilda immediately! If she even gets a scratch...!”
“I will lay down my life to find her!”
Before he could even finish his words, the knights rushed off in a frenzy.
.
.
.
“Hurry! The flying monsters are exceptionally fast! If we handle this like an ordinary Monster Wave, we’ll have a catastrophe on our hands!”
Ester descended into chaos in an instant.
Soldiers emerged seemingly out of nowhere and scrambled up the walls.
The bustling streets quickly emptied.
Thud, thud, thud—the sound of metal panels sealing off windows in homes echoed through the air.
It had been only three minutes since the Monster Wave alert had sounded.
Yet already, the city had transformed into a complete fortress.
“Count! You must evacuate! We’ve prepared a place for you in the bunker!”
“How much time do we have before the monsters arrive?”
“Under normal circumstances, it would take three hours, but since they’re flying types, it’s estimated to be about an hour.”
“An hour should be enough.”
“Wh-What? Count, where are you going!?”
The remaining defensive forces in Ester consisted of regular soldiers and knights.
There was no Sword Master—only Sword Experts as their greatest strength.
Their only means of aerial combat was the use of bows.
In this state, casualties were bound to be high.
Therefore, I should help as much as I can.
An hour? That’s plenty of time.
“Mister! Are we going to fight? Should I draw my Super Strong Sword?”
“No. Hold back. We’re not fighting directly. Flying monsters are challenging even for veteran knights, and it’s too dangerous. I’ll just help set up the defensive lines before the battle starts.”
“Hee...”
Charlotte, who had been full of excitement, reached for her Super Strong Sword, but reluctantly put it away again.
I understand the desire to be active, but it’s too dangerous right now.
Ground monsters like the ant creatures could be fought from a secured position, but flying monsters were a different story.
Above all else, the children’s safety always came first.
“More importantly, Julia. Is Earthy here?”
“Earthy should be at the estate, playing...”
“...”
So we wouldn’t be able to get Earthy’s help this time.
I clenched my teeth, feeling regret.
“Should I bring him here...?”
“What? How would you bring him here from the estate?”
“Heh. I haven’t just been sitting around, you know. Ever since Earthy ran out of the range of my control last time, I’ve been practicing hard with the books Aslan brought me. The skill I’ve developed is Long-Range Command!”
“Whoa!!!”
[The Evil God, ‘Kali,’ applauds in awe!]
Charlotte clapped her hands like a seal, and at the same time, I could hear an echo of Kali’s applause in the background.
“Alright then, I’ll begin!”
Julia took a deep breath and started preparing her spell.
Command is the common language of spirits.
When used by a Necromancer or Spirit Mage, lower-level spirits are compelled to obey.
However, due to the limitations of physical sound waves, Command can’t reach spirits that are too far away.
To solve this, a magic spell is needed to project the command over a longer distance.
But for this to work, a magical medium must already be set up at the target location, right?
“Julia, to transmit the command spell, there must already be an active medium installed at the target location.”
“I-I know...”
“What did you use as the medium?”
“Uh, you don’t need to know...”
Julia’s breathing became erratic, her nervousness evident.
What’s going on?
“Mister, mister! What’s a medium?”
“You could inscribe mana directly into a space, but the most common method is to use a magic circle. Essentially, it’s a drawing infused with mana, drawn on a flat surface.”
“So, it’s basically a picture? I think I saw something like that!?”
“C-Charlotte...!”
“Julia drew some complicated picture under the floor by her bed with crayons! That must be it!”
“Aah! The drawing was too big, so I didn’t have any paper! I’m sorry, Aslan...!”
[The Evil God, ‘Kali,’ glares, daring anyone to reprimand our young Necromancer!]
So she had scribbled on the flooring under her bed, huh...
Feeling the burning stares from behind, I sighed deeply.
I hadn’t planned on scolding her anyway.
It’s just flooring—how much could that cost?
“I-I’m sorry... hic... We had to leave soon, and I had to draw quickly... I didn’t have big enough paper, so in my haste, I just...”
“What if a maid saw the scribbles and tried to clean them up? Next time, tell me. I’ll make sure no one erases them.”
“You’re not mad...?”
“I don’t know about mad, but I am a little disappointed. Doing it secretly without telling me.”
“Okay. I’ll tell you next time...”
Pat.
I gently placed my hand on Julia’s head, tousling her hair roughly.
That should be enough of a punishment.
As Julia sniffled and began to cheer up, Charlotte looked up at me with an expression of betrayal.
“She did something wrong, but you’re patting her head... So if I don’t listen, will you pat my head too!?”
“No...”
“If someone who does something wrong gets a pat, then someone who does nothing should get one too! Please pat my head as well!”
“...”
Charlotte, full of dissatisfaction, slowly offered me her head.
She grabbed my hand and placed it on top of her head, rubbing her head against my palm.
A moment later, she stepped back, looking satisfied.
I was so dumbfounded that I stared at her blankly, and Charlotte tilted her head.
“Mister, do you want me to pat your head too?”
“...No, I’ll pass. More importantly, Julia, is the spell ready?”
“Uh! Yes! I just cast it, but... Since Earthy’s no longer bound by my command, I’m not sure if he’ll come or ignore it...”
Mumbling, Julia placed her fingers on her temples as she completed the spell, then exhaled heavily.
So we had to rely entirely on Earthy’s whims.
Just as I was thinking that—
[You little brat!!! How the hell did you even...!!!]
SCREEEEEECH!
A massive dirt-colored sphere shot through the sky at breakneck speed.
An all-too-familiar voice roared across the sky.
...No matter how you looked at it, it seemed like he was being dragged here against his will.
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HELHEIM SCANS
[Translator - Peptobismol]
[Proofreader - Demon God]
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