173. He cared about him (4)
With their combat characteristics, it would be possible to not be caught easily and inflict massive amounts of damage, and if that much damage accumulates, the stigma would have to go down to take responsibility for one’s own karma.
In other words, it is entirely possible for stigma to move south.
Instead of returning to the Demon World, Deon stopped by Paras Territory, received a surprising welcome from the waiting Demon King’s army, and took the best room. He then called Dan, who was nearby to see the inside of the room.
“Find a group of Barbai survivors and try to encourage them.”
“yes?”
“The reason they are like that is because of stigma.”
“…aha.”
Understanding was quick. Dan, who was rubbing the somewhat empty window sill with his fingertips, grinned.
“We will also provide appropriate support to prevent easy capture until the second hero arrives.”
“You know that not getting caught is the most important thing, right?”
“Of course.”
Approximately two weeks later, the Barbai clan began to rampage in the Primiro territory.
This was the result of Dan personally going there wearing a robe and inciting it.
[How long are you going to live like this with bated breath?]
[Even if you have to go, wouldn’t it be less unfair if you take revenge?]
[Stigma sees you as worse than insects. I don’t think it’s worth worrying about. Aren’t you angry? The person who trampled on your tribe is concentrating on other things without even paying attention to you.]
Dan knew how to sway his opponent with his tongue.
It touches and incites emotions appropriately and instills actions that should be done subtly. Even though he raised his voice and fueled his anger, at some point he lowered his voice like a snake whispering, drawing attention again.
As the remarks continued, the wariness towards the stranger whose face I could not even see eased in an instant. Because other emotions pushed out my vigilance and the other person had a greater purpose in mind.
[I’m taking revenge on Stigma. This clearly shows the price of messing with the Barbai people. Let’s set a precedent that will be engraved in the history books of the empire.]
[I will support you. No money? No need. I also have bad feelings toward him, so it’s enough for him to go on a rampage.]
It’s a shame to have bad feelings toward Stigma. How many times would one have bad feelings towards someone like the Master, who is not a public figure in the human world and has never even seen their face?
But it’s because they have no way of knowing.
Dan smiled secretly, looking at the burning eyes of the Barbai tribe.
In the end, they fell for Dan’s instigation and moved. They fought a quick hit-and-run guerrilla war and were not easily caught, but they accumulated considerable damage to Primiro territory and eventually caused Stigma to move according to Deon and Dan’s goals.
Since it is not anyone else’s fault but only one’s own karma, it must be resolved as a top priority in order to prevent as much damage to one’s reputation as possible.
Stigma smiled as he picked up his sword.
“You junior, you have a good memory.”
I expected that they would find a way to avoid fighting.
“I never thought I could use the bugs I had forgotten about.”
Do you think this is called recycling? A word that is not in the dictionary of nobles.
No matter how quickly you react, it is inevitable that your reputation will be tarnished by this incident. Stigma should have been in a bad mood, but he gave the command in a cheerful mood, admiring Deon Hardt’s wide range of applications that did not miss even the smallest details.
“2/3 of the knights remain here.”
I wasn’t offended, but since my junior has tarnished my reputation, wouldn’t it be right for me to be this mean?
Brutes like the Barbai can be easily eliminated with just 1/3 of my knights’ troops. This is especially true since they are a group of survivors and not even a complete tribe.
Stigma headed south with the remaining troops, leaving behind troops that could send support anywhere nearby.
As a result, the possibility of Stigma Primiro moving ‘directly’ has disappeared.
***
The ‘baby’ is dying.
His complexion turned bluish and then red repeatedly, and his already hot little body became even more heated. There were times when I cried so loudly that it seemed like it would never stop, and now I kept my mouth shut, but I could clearly see that it was not a good sign.
‘What do we do?’
Oel was restless and kept looking at the baby in the basket.
He is wheezing and making faint whining noises in a hoarse voice as if he is exhausted. I couldn’t take my anxious gaze away because I felt like I would run out of breath at any moment if I let my guard down.
‘It would be nice if I could at least use magic.’
Since the ban on magic is still in effect, you will be questioned by the Demon King as soon as you use it. If that happens, the existence of a human baby will most likely be revealed.
There is no way the Demon King would spare a human baby. Rather, you will be punished for hiding a human baby.
As his nervousness grew, Oel called out a familiar name out of habit.
“…Dernivan.”
“Yes, Oel.”
“My ‘blessing’… is dying. “Please do something.”
“….”
An earnest gaze reaches me. Dernivan made eye contact with Oel and was silent for a moment.
According to the principle, they should be killed. Even now, if you close your eyes and ears, close your mouth, and pretend not to notice, the matter will be resolved quietly.
But he never once defeated his superiors.
“…Give it to me.”
It was the same this time too.
….
“Uh… So….”
Milan, a member of the Knights under the direct command of Commander 0 Corps, pointed to the baby in Dernivan’s arms with a shocked expression.
“Ask me to save you?”
“okay.”
Dernivan, who gave the answer, also seemed very untrustworthy.
But there was no other way. In the Demon King’s Castle, the only beings who knew about the existence of a human baby and could remain silent would be ‘humans’, and those who knew ‘humans’ well would also be ‘humans’, but Deon and his attendant named ‘Dan’ were absent from the human world.
If the baby in my arms hadn’t been acting like it was going to die right now, I would have taken some time to contact them.
“If you save my life, I will definitely repay you.”
“Well… let’s take a look first.”
I don’t know much, but it would be better for a smart guy to look at it. Milan scratched his head and winked at Kletter.
Cleter, who muttered, ‘It’s my first time with a baby too,’ but obediently took over, checked the baby’s condition and moaned.
‘Almost everyone is dying.’
I’m too tired to even pretend to cry. Moreover, the skin and bones were close together.
Without having to search my mind and remember the information I heard on the street, the question came straight out.
“Hey… have you fed him?”
“He didn’t eat anything.”
“That can’t be possible…”
If it was this dry, it would definitely have tried to eat anything.
“What on earth did you give me?”
“I ate meat, fruit, bread, and whatever food I could find in the human world.”
“…What was the result?”
“I vomited everything.”
Of course it is.
It’s brave that he didn’t die. If I had vomited everything, I wouldn’t have been able to drink enough water. I sighed and motioned to a nearby colleague to bring the barley tea first.
“Oh, what do we drink when we train?”
“Okay, don’t just bring it with you, bring it lukewarm. “And you bring a towel and a bowl of warm water to help the child’s fever.”
Since we can’t get powdered milk right away, we have to come up with a temporary solution.
Cleter, who had roughly ordered everything, turned his head. I made eye contact with a demon with wolf ears who had been watching the situation the whole time.
It may be a bit insensitive, but I still have to say what I have to say.
“Babies eat breast milk or formula. “If you feed it anything other than that, you’ll be in big trouble.”
“Right.”
A dry voice returned, as if clearly showing that he was not interested. Cleter’s eyes narrowed.
It seems that this demon is not interested in the baby…
“Can you save it?”
Considering that he is only interested in ‘life and death’, it seems that the opponent he cannot defeat emotionally or in terms of status wants to save the baby.
Could it be that he was interested in the baby but didn’t know what the baby was eating?
‘Well, they are demons.’
There are humans who are so intoxicated by the cuteness of animals that they bring them in at will and don’t know anything about how to raise them, so why are they called demons any different? He probably picked it up out of curiosity.
…You’re sure they weren’t kidnapped, right?
‘Oh no way.’
It is a time when there are many orphans. Since the streets were littered with children who had lost their parents, it must have been picked up from among them.
Cleter hurriedly shook off his random thoughts and spoke.
“…I can’t guarantee because the condition is so bad, but I’ll try.”
“I’ll say it again, if you save my life, I’ll definitely repay you.”
“It has been repaid, and please take good care of our captain.”
“that’s right. “Maybe because he’s been through a lot of different things, our captain’s eyes look a little dead.”
“Aren’t you being territorial here?”
“As expected, they are evil demons…!”
Here, the lieutenant of the executive of the ‘evil demons’ den is listening.
They suddenly joined in here and there to say a word, and then Cletor, who was holding his forehead as they trembled among themselves, shook his head and then glanced at the demon who had brought the baby.
Although he must have been watching and listening to this entire conversation from the beginning, he did not show any signs of being upset, just blinked once and turned his head as if he was not interested. At first glance, it seemed like he was ignoring everything he said.
‘But since you mentioned repayment in such a serious manner, I’m sure you remembered it.’
Captain 0 Assist the corps commander well.
So, even if he is not a helper, he will help at least once in an important moment.
Instead of worrying about whether the other person might have ignored or overlooked it, Cleter focused on taking care of the baby.
***
Deon Hart did not return to the Demon World.
Rather than receiving reports on paper from the Demon World and drawing orders in his head, he chose to remain in the Human World with Dan and lead the Demon King’s army by seeing it with his own eyes.
In the former case, not only were there more procedures and less accuracy, but more than anything, I wanted to kill the emperor with my own hands.
‘Actually, Dan followed along on his own.’
anyway.
If you break through Miller territory, you can reach the capital in no time. In addition to various fiefdoms in the middle, there was a fiefdom where the current Hart family head was staying, but they were all insignificant fiefdoms and I had no worries because I had vivid memories of directly witnessing the incompetence of the collateral who had previously become the head of the family.
In short, it means that the Miller Estate is the final barrier to the capital.
‘…So that’s why.’
The resistance is very strong.
Red eyes scan the slow progress. Even though they had not yet arrived in front of the castle walls, the troops were already exhausted.
There wasn’t even a proper battle.
‘It comes out of nowhere, attacks, and then retreats before you can respond.’
If it had been a head-on battle, I wouldn’t have been so exhausted. They were waging desperate guerrilla warfare as if they were trying to somehow slow down the advance.
A battle that makes full use of the forest as a geographical feature.
He’s probably still hiding somewhere in that forest, waiting for the right moment. If this continues, the ominous thought that a proper battle will be impossible by the time we reach the castle walls keeps rising.
‘Because physical strength and mental strength are separate things.’
The body is important, but in the current situation, the mind must have been greatly eroded. Even considering the limitations of the human world, demons have good physical strength, but because of this, they cannot utilize that good physical strength properly.
Deon, who was glaring angrily at the forest with his arms crossed and flicking an unlit cigarette in his mouth, gave an order as if chewing.
“Retreat to the outside of the forest.”
“yes?”
“Beware of surprise attacks from the rear.”
You’ve come this far, taking the damage, but you’re leaving without gaining anything.
We cannot even guarantee that the enemy will not launch a surprise attack during our retreat. For now, doesn’t the retreat order include the words ‘beware of surprise attacks from the rear’?
Since it is an order from the general commander, it is right to follow it… but
the generals hesitate, concerned that the soldiers’ morale will fall. Deon immediately reacted sharply.
“It seems like my words don’t even sound like words. “You know what happens if you disobey your superiors’ orders in war.”
“no!”
“Change direction! Retreat to the outside of the forest!”
