The Regressed Son of a Duke is an Assassin

Episode 279. The Harbinger of Disaster (2)

“Aaaah!”

A chilling scream echoed from the streets.

The three ladies intuitively knew that the scream was accompanied by pain.

They immediately rushed toward the direction of the noise.

“What on earth is this?”

The unbelievable scene that unfolded before their eyes made all three of them widen their eyes.

“If I had to define it, it would be a massacre.”

That was indeed the case.

The situation before the ladies was a literal massacre.

Mysterious robed figures were indiscriminately slashing their swords at the demon folk.

The victims of the slaughter were the powerless demons.

“Why is this happening all of a sudden…!”

Confused and unable to comprehend the situation, Arin focused her gaze on the swords wielded by the strange attackers.

“That sword?”

It was a sword she recognized all too well.

“It’s the sword used by the soldiers at the front!”

The pure white longswords used by the high-ranking knights who served under the command of Duke Vert to guard the front.

The fact that these swords were being used here meant,

“It means that the knights from the frontline are committing a massacre in the Demon World.”

This was an utterly unacceptable worst-case scenario.

“We must stop them!”

Without hesitation, Arin ran towards the knights.

Lunab and Nana also followed her lead.

“Move! Get out of the way!”

“Run for your life!”

Caught off guard by the sudden turn of events, the demons could not react and desperately ran screaming.

They were unable to deal with these top-tier knights renowned in the Human World.

In a critical situation, their instinct to prioritize their own lives was no different from that of humans.

“Please help me!!”

An innocent demon child who couldn’t escape in time was pitifully begging for help in the middle of the street.

However, behind the child loomed a blade ready to usher in death.

The child clenched their eyes, unable to even scream.

-Clang!

“……?”

Realizing that she wasn’t dead, the child cautiously opened her eyes.

“Are you okay?”

Instead of answering, the child just nodded.

Having confirmed the child’s safety, Arin refocused her attention on the knight without a moment’s relief.

-Squeak!

But Arin could not withstand the superior might of the high-ranking knight.

The balance was quickly lost, and she desperately struggled to prevent herself from falling.

“Blow! Cold gales of water!”

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The fusion magic ‘Aqua Blast’ that combines water and wind.

Lunab’s supportive attack added to the critical situation.

-Thump!

Caught off guard, the knight was sent flying backward by the magic.

“Now, run!”

“Thank you!”

The child was able to safely escape, guided by Lunab, who had followed.

The knights then immediately surrounded Arin.

“Even though you hide your faces, I know your identity. Don’t even try to hide it!”

Arin defiantly shouted, refusing to be cowed.

“Why are you committing such an intolerable massacre?”

The knights did not answer.

There was no sign of volition on their hidden faces.

They seemed like puppets.

“It doesn’t look like they intend to respond.”

“Do you have any guesses, Lunab?”

“Unfortunately, no. This is my first time encountering these knights in the Demon World, too.”

As the women’s questions deepened,

-Swish

Suddenly, the standoffish knights began to step back one by one.

After a brief moment, a familiar figure revealed themselves in the created space.

“……!”

Recognizing his identity, Arin bit her lip hard and gripped her sword’s hilt tightly.

“So you have pursued me here, Princess Arin.”

“Duke Vert!”

* * *

Power.

This was the absolute element required to maintain the chaotic order of the Demon World.

Only the being known as the Demon King must control everything.

Reason? Peace?

Such trivial, fragile things were not needed.

This was the Demon World, not the Human World,

where everything must be controlled by the absolute element called power.

“Belcarion?”

“……”

“Belcarion!”

“Huh? Did you call me, Besti?”

Only after being called a couple of times did Belcarion respond by lifting his head.

“Are you listening to me?”

“What were you saying?”

“I said I would explain everything that happened with my father, or rather, Ascalon…”

“Well, I already heard everything from Rogers. I told you, there’s no need to talk about it anymore. It’s okay, you don’t have to say it again.”

Belcarion dismissed it as a matter of the past and told her not to worry, but Besti’s heart became even more uneasy.

“Is everything… okay?”

“Why? Do I not seem okay to you?”

Despite her heart’s turmoil, Besti couldn’t bring herself to nod.

Belcarion was smiling as if nothing was wrong.

“Don’t worry about me, just take good care of yourself. You know I can’t do without you.”

Suddenly, Besti felt chills running down her spine.

In any other situation, those words would’ve been touching, but for some reason, they sounded exceptionally unsettling today.

“Belcarion, I was thinking about it and I think…”

-Thud

Besti, who had been about to continue her words while holding his hand, suddenly collapsed into the Demon King’s arms.

“Besti?”

For a second, Belcarion was stunned and did not understand the situation.

“What’s this? Why all of a sudden…?”

But then he quickly realized something was wrong and hurriedly moved her away.

“Besti, wake up! Besti!”

He shook her, trying to rouse her, but Besti had already lost consciousness and did not open her eyes.

Even while unconscious, she still clutched the pendant tightly in her hand.

“Somebody help! Besti has collapsed!”

Soon, the castle’s healers rushed to transport her.

Fortunately, she was still alive, but her condition had become much more critical than when she first collapsed.

“It seems all of her life force has been exhausted.”

Rogers explained the reason for her collapse after assessing Besti’s condition.

Until now, Lunab had been continuously replenishing her life force, allowing her to stay conscious.

However, since Lunab had left the castle to find Sean, there was no means to restore Besti’s vitality.

The pendant she wore was emitting a light much stronger than before.

“The enhanced power of the pendant is draining Miss Besti’s life force even more rapidly.”

“So what exactly are you saying I should do?”

“It would be best to bring back Miss Lunab who left the castle, at least as an emergency measure.”

But that was merely a stopgap measure.

It was not a direct solution to save Besti.

“My, my Demon King!”

Amidst this, another demon rushed in urgently from outside the door.

“There’s a serious incident happening in Arem!”

“A serious incident?”

“Yes! Unidentified monstrous people are massacring the residents…!”

-Crack!

Before the demon could finish speaking, the Demon King suddenly grabbed him by the collar.

“Massacre? What nonsense are you spouting?”

The demon could not continue and only let out agonizing groans.

“Calm down, my Demon King!”

Rogers quickly intervened.

Gasping for air, the demon finally managed to speak.

“Unidentified humans appeared in Arem and started swinging swords at the residents!”

“……!”

Shocked and unable to speak, Belcarion let Rogers ask instead.

“Humans? You’re saying humans attacked our demon folk?”

“Yes, that seems to be the case! From what I’ve heard, fortunately, other humans showed up and saved the demons…!”

-Clang!

Before the demon could finish, Belcarion spread his wings and flew out through the window.

“My Demon King!”

Rogers’ desperate cry was completely ignored.

With a fierce expression, Belcarion flew towards Arem, but suddenly he turned his body and changed direction.

It was towards Lemea Gorge.

-Thunk

At the exact same spot as before,

Belcarion landed on the ground with his wings folded and with sharp eyes, followed the stream of the Blood River.

Soon, the owner of the golden Holy Sword appeared.

“It’s nice to see you again, oh Demon King.”

Facing the one he had been seeking, magic energy exploded from Belcarion’s body.

“It sounds like you knew I would come?”

“I thought you would be very anxious around this time. I’ve been waiting for you. It seems you have been desperately looking for me.”

Echel’s smile was even more peculiar, irritating Belcarion.

Belcarion’s face turned murderous.

“You’ve already crossed the line. Your future is decided. Even if this Demon World falls to ruin under your hands, I will tear you to shreds myself!”

Even if Echel would save Besti now, it didn’t matter.

Belcarion proclaimed in front of him that he would certainly kill Echel with his own hands.

“You will kill me, but shouldn’t you save those who need to be saved?”

However, as if expecting this, Echel maintained his smile and continued.

“Do you intend to let Miss Besti die?”

-Whoosh!

Unable to contain himself, the Demon King lunged at Echel with his fist leading,

-Sha-sha-sha

but several pure white blades suddenly fell from above his head.

Belcarion disdainfully received the blades with his whole body.

Despite being pierced by dozens of blades, he was unscathed.

“If you kill me, you can’t save Miss Besti.”

“That’s for me to decide after I’ve seen it!”

Belcarion reached out again to grasp his body, but as soon as his hand touched him, Echel’s body rippled like water and then vanished in an instant.

It had been just an illusion.

“You need to do one thing.”

Though his body disappeared, his voice lingered, continuing to echo in Belcarion’s ears.

“Please kill Sean.”

“……!”

“Then you can save Miss Besti. After that, whether you come after me in the Human World or leave me alone is entirely up to you.”

With those words, Echel’s voice vanished completely.

Left alone, Belcarion looked up at the sky, suddenly chuckled, and finally roared loudly.

“Fine! I’ll do what you want! Afterwards, I’ll destroy everything! I will lead you, your existence, and the world you live in, to ruin!”

The Demon King, having declared his intent, stretched out one hand to focus his magic energy.

-Whoosh

A black flame arose from his hand, and as it reached down, it gradually morphed into the shape of a red sword.

The Demon King’s ruthless nature had finally awakened.

Laughter that belonged to an unknown spirit ominously spread throughout the gorge.

(To be continued in the next episode)