The Knight’s movements were incredibly fast; any nearby Knight might not have been able to react… But I responded instantly. I drew my sword and met the Knight’s attack head-on.

It seems your body isn’t affected by the Miasma… Why are you cooperating with the Demon?

I asked, but the reply was another attack. The surrounding Guard Knights were flustered by the sudden battle. They would surely try to intervene soon, but the traitorous Knight would want to finish this quickly before that.

“—Die!”

A brief murmur escaped the Knight, and he pushed even harder. As expected, he was aiming for a quick final battle.

At the same time, a slash, imbued with momentum from his rebounding body, bore down on me. He attacked with the ferocity of a tiger trying to sink its fangs into a neck, but I calmly received it.

…That’s dangerous. But I suppose you thought you had no other choice once I saw through you?

I questioned him further, but it had no effect. He responded with a physical attack, just as before.

If this stalemate continued, the Knight would undoubtedly be at a disadvantage—but then, the traitorous Knight raised his sword. As the surrounding Knights murmured in confusion, he shouted,

“—Phantom Demon!”

Immediately after his cry, Miasma erupted from the Knight’s sword in an instant. The surrounding Knights immediately retreated, and I narrowed my eyes in caution.

The Monsters were a decoy, and you were the main target, it seems.

The treacherous Knight didn’t respond to my words—but then a report came from my Familiar.

The sight of another Knight tiptoeing around, wary of their surroundings. Upon receiving that report, I had a hunch.

“Are there multiple traitors?”

Immediately after I spoke with bitterness, the treacherous Knight I was facing moved. Their movements were sharper than before—there was no doubt they intended to finish me in one blow.

My response was to first powerfully deflect the unleashed sword. The opponent’s military vessel was a Demon Race item, but their physical abilities remained human. It must have been their full strength—but it couldn’t withstand my Sword Strike, which was augmented by Magic Enhancement, and their all-out technique was deflected, almost causing them to drop their sword.

The Knight was bewildered. I used that opening to sweep across their torso. Instead of a direct cut, I enveloped the blade in Wind, creating a blowing-away effect.

As a result, the Knight’s body easily lifted. Blown away by the Wind and Shockwave, the Knight fell to the ground. I felt the impact. They must have been knocked out.

Meanwhile, other Knights approached. As they alternately looked at me and the fallen Knight, wondering what was happening, I spoke.

“That person was carrying a sword imbued with Demonic Power. Please apprehend them.”

After saying that dismissively, I ran back the way I came—and in no time, I was in front of the Private House where Sofia and the others were.

There, I ran into the Knight that my Familiar had reported earlier. Facing me, gripping my unsheathed sword, the Knight looked bewildered.

“—Did you also receive a military vessel from the Demon Race, like the previous Knight?”

In response to my question, the Knight’s body trembled—their decision was quick, and they drew their sword to finish me.

“Too slow.”

However, I uttered a single word and unleashed a slash aimed at the Knight’s sword as they tried to draw it.

As a result, the Knight’s sword was largely deflected into the air. While they were frozen, I quickly closed the distance and unleashed a Wind slash, just like with the previous Knight—the Knight was blown away and fell at the same moment their deflected sword hit the ground.

“—Lord Ruon!?”

Sofia rushed out of the Private House. Alto and the others could be seen behind her,

“…There was a Knight carrying a military vessel that emitted Miasma.”

When I explained succinctly, Sofia seemed shocked and speechless. It was Alto who spoke instead.

“So, that means there’s a traitor among us, huh?”

“It seems so… Now, what to do?”

I muttered, gazing at the sword on the ground. At the same time, the roar of Monsters and the clang of metal began to be heard from the direction of the Village Entrance. It seemed the battle had started there too.

I checked the situation from above with my Familiar. For now, there were no others making suspicious movements.

“…Sofia.”

“Yes.”

“I’m going to check if there are any other traitors.”

Sofia nodded slightly at my words.

“Alto, I’m sorry, but please wait inside the house with Sofia.”

“Is that alright?”

“Yes. It’s easier for me to do this alone.”

As I spoke, I started walking. There were Knights other than those on guard duty. The ones I was most concerned about were the Knights fighting the Monsters.

“Garuku, if I get close, will you be able to tell if it’s a Demon Race military vessel?”

“It’s fine.”

“Even if Magic Power is chaotic during a battle?”

“No problem.”

I said, “Then I’m counting on you,” and ran towards the battlefield. Of course, I was checking the surroundings with my Familiar. Were there only two treacherous Knights, or were there no other movements?

I quickly reached the battlefield. First, I looked around,

“Garuku, how is it?”

“…There’s no such presence.”

“So, the Monsters were a Diversion, and the real target was something else?”

“They might have targeted her because she’s a Princess.”

“……That’s a possibility.”

While we talked, the Knights pushed back the Monsters. I considered joining the fight, but their coordination was excellent, and the Knights seemed to be handling it without any injuries. It looks like there’s no problem, so it would be better to investigate the Knights in other locations.

“There might still be traitors among the Knights on watch. Garuku, let’s investigate.”

“Alright.”

I left the Village Entrance and ran—and with the fighting, the night deepened.

In the end, there were only two initial traitors, and no one else was found possessing a weaponized vessel.

That said, we only confirmed the presence of Humans possessing weaponized vessels; there’s still a high possibility that other Humans are secretly collaborating with the Demon Race.

“……This has become quite a dire situation.”

After explaining to Eina and the others who had returned to Sofia’s Private House, Balzard voiced his concern. As if in agreement, Ririsha, who had also arrived at the Private House, wore a grim expression.

“The Knights are also in turmoil, having learned the truth. We had planned to infiltrate the Demon Lord’s Castle tomorrow and beyond, but… in this situation, it’s extremely dangerous.”

“We’ve also found out why we couldn’t detect the Monsters.”

Eina spoke next.

“We were using Magic Detection via a Magic Circle and visual inspection, but the Magic was obstructed by the two Knights, preventing us from detecting the Monsters. As for visual inspection, they couldn’t be seen due to Illusion Magic.”

…The fact that I was able to find them probably means I slipped through their Illusion Magic. I haven’t made any special modifications to my Familiar, but perhaps Illusion Magic didn’t work on it because it’s a magical creature.

While I was making my deductions, Eina continued.

“It’s likely that the traitorous Knights and the Demon Race planned somewhere and were looking for an opportunity to attack. In this situation, where we were attacking the Stronghold, they tried to launch a surprise attack.”

“Princess’s arrival must also be related.”

Balzard said, glancing at Sofia. I nodded and then asked him a question.

“What about the two Knights you captured?”

“They’re restrained and confined in one of the Private Houses. We will handle their disposition… but because such individuals existed, there’s a certain problem.”

“A problem?”

“Yes, there’s a troublesome problem.”

Next to speak was Ririsha.

“At this rate, there are undoubtedly traitors in the Headquarters as well.”

“That’s the biggest concern.”

Balzard showed a heavy expression.

“We must report to Headquarters… but that could cause traitors within Headquarters to act. Either way, confusion is inevitable. To resolve this quickly, we must act before the remaining traitors make their move… but there’s no way to identify who the traitors are.”

–In the game, this part was barely depicted, but they might have been fighting this kind of unseen battle.

I can’t think of a good counter-strategy either. To deal with this, what should we do–

“–I have a suggestion.”

A sudden voice. The speaker was Lefin, who had appeared.