Makai Hongi

Chapter 234

○ Lesser Demon King Melvis’s Country – Farneze

Lesser Demon King Kyuka.

If the reports were correct, he had defeated six countries, including Lesser Demon King Fara’s.

Farneze considered this.

While she had been told to defeat Kyuka, they could not win if they relied on military strength alone. And he also had powerful followers.

(And it seems that unlike Fara or Leninoth, he didn’t subjugate them by just showing off his power.)

He didn’t have room for more servants, and so he killed them.

It was better than the risk of rebellion.

“I will have to discuss it with Felicia…but surely the chances of us winning will not be high.”

Even before he fell into his long slumber, Melvis had shown very little interest in the outside world.

There were times when his Generals had to visit him many times before he finally acted, with great reluctance.

(However, he moved like thunder when angry.)

They had suffered greatly because of this.

Farneze reminisced with a chuckle. She then visited Felicia.

“This is a very dangerous problem. May I organize our current information?”

“Aye, to your heart’s content. This is all very much beyond me.”

Adjutant Felicia.

She was also Farneze’s tactician.

Felicia was able to think of long term strategies, and not just tactics for a battle.

This made her very valuable.

“So the army is still staying close to the northern border.”

“Yes. After the castle was attacked, and I heard about Melvis, I hurriedly returned alone.”

“And General Dardaroth and General Tulart are in the south.”

“As the four country alliance has disbanded, Tulart will likely be the only one to remain there. Dardaroth should lead his men and return to the castle.”

“I see… I understand the situation now. Currently, there is an overwhelming lack of soldiers if we want to defeat Kyuka.”

“I know that. Obviously, we’ll have to draft. And there are also the soldiers returning from Tralzard’s country. But the problem isn’t just our number. I can think of no plan that would help us defeat Kyuka.”

After learning everything, Felicia was troubled.

In fact, the reason that the corps they had borrowed from Tralzard was able to crush Lesser Demon King Leninoth recently, was because of a plan that Felicia had devised.

Farneze’s army had dealt with all of Leninoth’s soldiers and attendants, which had allowed them, luckily, to face Leninoth alone.

And so they felt nothing but gratitude towards General Miralda, who had so readily provided them with such powerful subordinates.

In fact, Felicia believed that they were not only very close to General Miralda, but were Lesser Demon Kings, whose names were on the Tablet of Control.

So, what about now?

She knew that Farneze was expecting her to think of a plan.

However, the situation was completely different now.

Even if she could create a situation where they would be free to face Kyuka, they would still lose. Yes, there was no doubt about it.

They would have to be more… If perhaps ten of them surrounded Kyuka, then they could defeat him.

However, no matter how much she tried, she could not devise a plan that would create such a convenient situation.

“It is difficult.”

She could think of several ways that would allow their army to reach Kyuka, but none of them resulted in a high chance of beating him.

“Here’s something that might interest you. Golan, who I sent to Tralzard’s country, has undergone a special evolution.”

“Special evolution…you say?”

Evolution was simpler for Ogres, but they usually went the normal route. So this was very irregular.

Instead of turning into a High Ogre, he had evolved into something else.

“Everything about him has been strengthened to a ridiculous degree. Even when fighting King Melvis’s Adjutants, he was not inferior.”

“…Wait a minute. Tell me more about… No, first, what race did he evolve into? If he is an Ogre, could it be a Shuten? Or perhaps a Shura?”

“No, not those. He’s an Origin. He called it Susanoo-no-Mikoto.”

“Susanoo-no-Mikoto… I have never heard of it.”

When it came to Origins, you could not make any guesses as to how strong they were.

And so you had to base it off their accomplishments in battle. Even then, it was hard to believe that he was as strong as Melvis’s Adjutants.

It was normal to assume that no matter how an Ogre might evolve, they would remain in that category.

They could not use magic, and they had low magic defense.

Sometimes evolving did increase their magic defense, but no one had ever heard of an Ogre type who could unleash powerful magic attacks.

(And so the increased mana is likely being used to strengthen his body…)

Felicia knew that Jikae and Manny had defeated Lesser Demon King Rous and Lesser Demon King Lubanga.

If you could not see them, it would be a very one-sided battle.

That was a huge advantage.

On top of that, they had powerful methods of attack. Even a Lesser Demon King would be helpless.

And so she was very curious as to how Golan was able to fight them.

(If they are invisible, perhaps their defense ability is quite low… If I were Golan, I would not expect anything more than a draw. So, how did he fight?)

Felicia thought hard on this.

How could she use the entirety of Farneze’s fighting force in order to defeat Kyuka? She ran simulations in her mind, over and over again.

After quite some time had passed, Felicia’s eyes opened.

“I’ve decided on a strategy. Gather all of your men to the place. You will bring Golan, of course?”

“Yes. King Melvis ordered that he should participate.”

“That is good. While we still don’t know much about the Susanoo-no-Mikoto, we will use him.”

“Atrasushia is in charge of preparing the soldiers, so gathering them to the place shouldn’t be a problem. …More importantly, how do you mean to use Golan?”

“We will make use of Lesser Demon King Kyuka’s personality. I see two elements in his successes so far. If this works…if he falls for it, then we will gain the advantage all at once.”

“I, I see. I will send someone to fetch Golan then.”

“Kyuka will be a Demon King soon. There are still two Lesser Demon Kings to the north. And so we must move before he attacks them.”

“Indeed. We must hurry.”

They had decided on their direction.

And so Farneze moved at once.

○ Ogre Village – Golan

Reeds grew in the depths of the river.

I pulled them out and softened them by hitting them with a wooden hammer. And then I carefully weaved them.

I was making a straw hat.

“Kiss me…”

I hummed the opening song from an old movie as I made the straw hat.

“Looks good. Maybe I’ll stitch some beast hide next.”

I had tried to swim while I washed myself in the river, but I sank.

Perhaps it was because my muscle was like steel now. I would not float.

Regardless, I could still swim. But it was easier to just walk on the river floor.

Still, it was rather inconvenient that I couldn’t float now.

And so I decided to stitch some beast hide together and make a float.

After sewing it together, I would use some old tree sap to fill in the gaps so that the air would not escape.

“I want something to catch river fish and shrimps too.”

I had to make a net. It would be simple, as it didn’t need to be as fine as the nets used to catch bugs.

And so I used vines and weaved a net.

The rest was made with bamboo.

“…Alright, it’s complete.”

While it had taken me three whole days, my vacation set was finally finished.

“A straw hat, a float, and with a fishing net in my hand… It’s perfect.”

Now, I could play to my heart’s content.

“Would you happen to be Sir Golan?”

“I am. What is it?”

It was a messenger from the castle. What could it be?

Perhaps it was about my men.

“It’s been decided that you are to participate in the hunt of Lesser Demon King Kyuka. You are to prepare your men and head for the northern town of Gluka.”

“What!?”

Hunt Lesser Demon King Kyuka?

Now? I have to lead my men and participate?

Before I knew it, I had dropped the fishing net, and my float had fallen to my feet.

Hey, what about my vacation?