Orudia was observing the army from within the bushes, being careful not to be spotted by Monsters. I managed to move closer to him. I was maintaining my Presence Concealment Magic, but he had noticed my Magic before. This time too—

“It’s you again.”

Orudia mutters.

“Now that I think about it, I never introduced myself before.”

“Ah, now that you mention it…”

Here, I introduced myself, and Orudia replied—though I already knew his name.

Afterward, Orudia asks me,

“It seems like you found me and came here… Was our previous encounter not a coincidence either?”

“…Well, there are various circumstances, but let’s talk about it later.”

Moving sideways while maintaining my Magic, I open my mouth.

“What is your purpose for coming here?”

“To destroy a certain Demon Race. It can create weapons that its own kind can use… However, its ability is so low that it’s among the lowest-ranked Demon Races, so normally, its ability wouldn’t be useful… But it’s different for opponents whose Magic Power is easy to analyze, like Dragons.”

“I knew it.”

“…What?”

“I’m moving to defeat it. But I had no information, so I couldn’t do anything.”

“So, you came to me to cooperate in defeating it?”

“That’s correct.”

Orudia turns his head towards my location. There must be many questions as to why I came here—but perhaps he thought he didn’t have time to talk leisurely, and he returned his gaze to the Enemy Army.

“Alright… it’s better to have more allies.”

“Yeah.”

From there, Orudia squinted and began searching for the Demon Race.

I thought it would be difficult to confirm them visually among the Army forces… but no, if he’s sensing their presence through his eyes, then it might not be so difficult after all.

“…It seems the Demon King has also started to move.”

Suddenly, Orudia spoke.

“The Demon Race that was in the Stronghold is also moving. It would be better to escape from the Northern Region if possible.”

“Aren’t you going to run away?”

“…I have unfinished business.”

Is he planning to challenge the Demon King alone? If so, I think that would be quite reckless—

Here, I recall the game’s settings. The Five Great Demons pour magic power into the Stronghold, and the Demon King activates the Continent-Destroying Magic. That strategy is only known to high-ranking executives. The Demon King himself might have been wary of information leaking.

Orudia also doesn’t know this information, and he will only learn the reason when he first defeats the Five Great Demons in the Stronghold—meaning, since he hasn’t defeated the Five Great Demons yet, he doesn’t possess such information. If that’s the case,

“Are you planning to defeat the Demon Race that was in the Stronghold and reduce the burden on the Human Side, even if only a little?”

Orudia’s shoulder reacted slightly to my comment.

He possesses two longswords. One of them is a sword with enough power to instantly destroy an executive-class Demon Race. However, its effect can only be used once, after which it becomes just an ordinary sword.

If Orudia is the protagonist, he uses that power in an event, so it has almost no meaning in the story. That power is unleashed when each of the five protagonists defeats the Five Great Demons.

In the game, after the Southern Invasion, the remaining Five Great Demons move with the Demon King. The protagonists confront them, and an event occurs where Orudia uses the power of his sword to defeat the last remaining Five Great Demons and obtain the Sage’s Power.

Currently, although there are some deviations in the story, it follows this flow. Orudia is probably ready to fight because he hasn’t used the power of his sword yet.

“But if you challenge him alone, you might get killed by the Demon King.”

“I know.”

“Are you planning to die?”

“I apologize, but sacrificing my life isn’t my principle. That’s precisely why I’m acting like this to increase my survival rate, even if only a little.”

…Ah, I see. He’s going to use the Dragons.

That’s why Orudia is moving to defeat the Demon Race that is implementing a strategy against the Dragons.

“…So that’s it.”

I let out a small sigh, then shifted my gaze to Orudia.

“I understand… well, I’ll tell you what I’m going to do after the battle is over.”

“What?”

Orudia was about to ask again—but suddenly, he narrowed his eyes and stared intently at a spot in the Army.

“There it is!”

“Really?”

“Yes. No doubt about it. If we can destroy it, the magical weapon it generated will naturally collapse.”

Oh, that’s good news. In that case—

“Garuku.”

“Yes, I’ve made arrangements. Do as you please.”

I spoke to Garuku in a low voice—and gave a small nod.

Orudia drew his sword. I was about to call out to him, but he started speaking first.

“I’ll lead the charge. You provide support—”

“No, leave it to me.”

I said, interrupting him. Orudia looked at me with a suspicious expression.

“Leave it to me?”

“Even if I wanted to, there’s no time for explanations… Where is that Demon Race?”

Orudia pointed. It was near the center of the forming army.

“It’s protected by monsters with high durability and a barrier. Breaking through will be quite difficult.”

“I see. So the Demon Race also recognizes it as key in the battle against the Dragons.”

I drew my sword as well, entering battle readiness.

“I’m ready anytime.”

“Then, match my timing.”

I nodded at Orudia’s words… He regulated his breathing.

I began my incantation, carefully, so as not to be noticed by the monsters until the last possible moment—

And then,

“—Here we go!”

With a shout, Orudia ran. Almost simultaneously, I also rushed forward, attacking the monsters.

The monsters were slow to react—Orudia must have intended to forcefully break through by blowing away enemies with his two swords. However,

“—Ice Shard!”

I cast magic first. With Ice Attribute Advanced Magic ‘Queen of Blizzard’, countless ice blades exploded, instantly obliterating the monsters.

A roar echoed, and the advancing army was greatly disrupted. We couldn’t miss this timing.

“Hey, where’s the Demon Race?!”

I called out to Orudia. He seemed a little wide-eyed, perhaps surprised by my magic, but—

“Straight ahead! The one maintaining the barrier is it!”

Hearing his words, I charged in. Orudia followed, and monsters swarmed us.

But then, a continuous volley of ice blades. I adjusted them slightly to spread around Orudia and me as the center. As a result, the monsters were once again blown away.

“Resveil!”

I called forth more Spirits. In an instant, monsters that were trying to approach were blown away by a greatsword.

“Defeat the surrounding monsters!”

Immediately after giving that order—I spotted the Demon Race forming the barrier. Seeing me, they must have guessed my objective, as they immediately gave orders to the surrounding monsters and tried to escape.

In an instant, a dragon’s roar came from the sky. Under Garuku’s command, the Dragons attacked.

“So, I just need to defeat that Demon Race with this momentum…!”

As I spoke, I applied Body Enhancement to my legs and approached the fleeing Demon Race. They seemed flustered but couldn’t react. The guard monsters—sturdy demons—stood in my way to block me, but I created ‘Durandal’.

The demons met my attack. In response, I swung my light sword horizontally and unleashed a flash.

The slash effortlessly cut through the demons—and also effortlessly cut through the barrier that was protecting the Demon Race. The target Demon Race also touched the blade, and its existence turned to dust.

“Alright…!”

As I shouted, the surrounding monsters attacked. I quickly began my incantation, gripped my sword, and, together with the dragons in the sky, began a chaotic battle.