I discover a horde of monsters, and the words “night raid” come to mind.

“Is there a meaning to them attacking just as we’re about to head to the stronghold?”

I mutter, receiving further reports from the familiar. It seems the horde of monsters is definitely approaching us.

“This is bad.”

I interrupt my sleep, get dressed, and go outside the house. Then I call out to one of the nearby knights and ask for Balzard’s whereabouts.

And in the target house, he, Eina, and Sofia were there.

“…Is this a Strategy Meeting?”

“No, I just came to check on them.”

Balzard said with a wry smile.

“Then, if you’ll excuse me… Is Lord Ruon also here for the two of them?”

“It’s an emergency.”

At those words, everyone in the house became serious.

“Actually, I’ve been sending out my Familiar to check the surroundings, but… a horde of Monsters is approaching from the direction of the Demon Lord’s Castle.”

“…Oh, a horde?”

“How large is it?”

Sofia asked. I looked back at her and replied.

“I can’t say for sure because it’s night, but… at the very least, they have enough power to defeat this Village’s Knights in a surprise attack, don’t they?”

“Are they truly heading this way?”

This time, Eina asked.

“We are also on alert at the Stronghold, but…”

“There’s no doubt that they’re approaching, according to my Familiar. The possibility of them heading this way by chance isn’t zero, but considering that the horde is organized and coming from the direction of the Stronghold—”

“They’re Assassins sent by the Demon Race at the Stronghold to target us.”

“That’s what I think… What should we do? It would be best if it’s just unnecessary worry.”

“Let’s take action immediately.”

Balzard said.

“If we don’t have a counter-Strategy, there will be considerable damage. Lord Ruon, please continue scouting with your Familiar and contact us if anything happens.”

“Understood.”

Balzard immediately went outside and notified the Knights. That quickly spread—throughout the entire Village. I went outside and met up with Alto and the others, explaining the situation.

As I observed with my Familiar, the Monsters were steadily approaching. At this point, I asked Balzard,

“They’re definitely getting closer. How should we respond?”

“Thanks to Lord Ruon, we no longer have to worry about a surprise attack. At this point, we can assume the enemy has lost their advantage. If we properly organize the Knights, responding shouldn’t be difficult.”

“There isn’t much time left, you know?”

“It’s fine, they’re already moving.”

Eina says. When I shift my gaze, I see the Knights beginning their battle preparations with orderly movements.

“Then what should we do?”

“Lord Ruon, please guard the Princess.”

I frown at Balzard’s words.

“Guard?”

“The Knights will handle the response. Lord Ruon, please wait with Alto and the others in the house we were in and guard the Princess. You must be tired from your journey, Leader?”

He seems to be showing consideration for me. I’m fine, and looking at Sofia’s face nearby, I can see she’s brimming with the will to fight herself, but—

“Ruon, let’s leave this to them.”

Alto speaks up here.

I look back at him—I understand what he means. It would be easy to deal with the Monsters if our skills were added. But shouldn’t we show respect to the Knights?

“…Understood. Be careful.”

“Yes.”

Balzard responds to me and heads to the Village Entrance with Eina.

After seeing them off, Alto speaks again.

“So we’re on standby. Well, let’s relax.”

“You’re quite relaxed, Leader.”

Muttering, I enter the house where Sofia and the others were.

“I’m not that worried, but…”

Sofia says. I nod in agreement, and seeing the empty spot next to her, I sit down there.

“It’s not that I doubt Balzard’s abilities, but—”

Now, as for this Night Raid, is it within the scope of the game…? However, since I’ve omitted events related to Gudis, I have no idea how the Monsters were moving.

If it’s just a battle that occurred as part of an event, it’s not particularly scary. But if it’s not—

“…Just in case, I’ll observe the area around the Village.”

I instruct my Familiar to observe the Village and its surroundings from above. From above, it’s clear that the Knights are preparing briskly for the Monsters that will surely come.

There don’t seem to be any Monsters in the forest around the Village. Even if the Monster I found was a diversion, it doesn’t seem like they’ll attack one after another.

“Is anything strange?”

Sofia asks. I shake my head slightly as I reply.

“No, it’s fine. If we can just defeat the approaching Monsters—”

Just as I said that, I noticed something odd.

“…Huh?”

“What’s wrong?”

Alto asks. Without answering him, I instruct my Familiar to observe that strange spot.

It was at the edge of the Village. The Knights are, of course, moving to confront the Monsters, but they aren’t committing all their forces there. A fair number of Knights are watching the Village’s surroundings as lookouts.

But one person—it’s a level of oddity that you wouldn’t notice unless you were observing from above—is moving differently from the other Knights. They aren’t fixated on the outside of the Village, but are looking quite a bit at the inside of the Village and at the Guard Knights. There are no other Knights around making similar movements. This is—

“…No way.”

“Is there a problem? If so, we should resolve it immediately—”

At Alto’s words, I look back at him. The person whose gaze met mine peers at my face suspiciously.

Next, I turn my face to Sofia. Although she was questioning why I wasn’t saying anything, she seemed to sense something ominous from my demeanor.

“…Alto.”

“Oh, what is it?”

I’m going to check outside. Stay with Sofia.

…Lord Ruon?

Sofia called my name, wondering what was wrong. But I shook my head from side to side and said,

I’m just going to check.

I stood up and started walking quickly without waiting for anyone’s reply. Alto and the others seemed a bit confused, but I left the Private House and began to move at a fast pace.

“What happened?”

Garuku asked. The duplicate Garuku inside my body couldn’t check the situation of the Familiar I had sent out, so he must have asked.

There’s one Knight who’s moving very strangely.

“A traitor?”

It’s not certain yet… but Garuku, could you keep an eye out as well?

“Very well.”

Immediately after hearing Garuku’s reply, I found the person in question. From their appearance, they were no different from any other Knight. But,

“–Hmm.”

Garuku muttered in my mind.

“Lord Ruon, I got close and immediately understood. He himself is not a Demon. It seems his equipped sword is imbued with Demonic Power.”

…It must be an inconspicuous weapon, since Garuku only noticed it when he got close.

“Um, is something wrong?”

The Knight asked. Since they were wearing full armor and a helmet, I could barely make out their appearance.

I pondered what to do… After a short pause, I spoke.

I have a question for you.

“Huh? Oh, yes. Please.”

Where did you get that sword?

I spoke, my eyes narrowing slightly—the Knight stiffened, as if understanding what I was getting at.

How will he move? As I remained silent, he took a step back.

It seems you understand the meaning of my question… If you tell me the circumstances, at the very least, I won’t take your life.

I said. But the Knight remained frozen.

Just to confirm… are you perhaps the one who led the Monsters here?

—At that moment, the Knight drew his sword and lunged at me.