Book 10: Chapter 5

「Dammit……Ein! The Alva are……!」

「Don’t say every little thing that I know!」

「But, at this rate, the people of the town will!」

Even Kain and Ein, who were heading towards the royal castle, watched the scene of countless Alva flying about from below.

The chaos on the ground accelerated with the appearance of the Alva, and whether it be the buildings that evacuees were hiding in or not, the Alva indiscriminately fired fireballs at them to create fires or destroy them.

Resounding screams and bellows, voices seeking help. The chivalric orders on Princess Celis’ side were unable to ignore them, and without overlooking that opening, Princess Narika’s chivalric orders emotionlessly attacked and reaped their lives.

──And then. Seeing the scenes that stretched out before his eyes, Kain grit his teeth.

「At the very least……At the very least, if the Alva in the sky were decreased even a little bit!」

Although Kain fired with magic from the ground, they didn’t really hit the Alva that could freely fly through the skies.

In this situation, it would be fatal to waste magical power. It was because Kain also understood that fact that he couldn’t help any more than that.

Even if he could shoot down a few of them, that would cause the other Alva being sniped at to put up Magic Guards, which would then cause a slow down to his own movement speed and waste his magical power.

Kain found things to be hopeless from that fact, and was vexed by it.

Seeing Kain gritting his teeth to the point that it looked like he would break his molars, Ein, who was running beside him, grabbed Kain’s collar while breathing a sigh.

「Gueh!? Hey, Ein!」

「Shut up, and just watch.」

After Ein said that, she sheathed her dagger into its scabbard and crossed her arms.

It had been a while since she did this but……well, it shouldn’t be a problem. She had recovered more than enough stamina and magical power.

Sending magical power into her entire body, she circulated it throughout her body and amplified it.

From a human body, to a body that wasn’t human.

「You’re a man that really makes work for others. If you had endured it for a little bit longer, Demon King-sama would have taken care of it somehow.」

「Eh, Ein? Just what’re you saying……」

Ein didn’t answer Kain’s question.

What was needed wasn’t words, but an answer made with action.

Therefore, Ein shouted like this.

「Valdart (Demon Bird Transformation)」

Making a *mekiri* sound, Ein’s appearance changed.

Black wings that grew from her back.

After that, her entire body changed, from a human figure to a bird figure. While making *mekiri, mekiri* sounds, she transformed into a gigantic black bird in an instant.

Returning to her original form as a Mazoku, Ein grabbed Kain with her beak and threw him onto her own back, then simply told him 「Hang on tight」.

「Eh, uaaah!?」

Understanding that Kain was grabbing onto her feathers with the sensation of her back, Ein kicked the ground, and just like that, she spread her wings flew to the sky.

Naturally, the Alva were flying there, but Ein cut them up with blades of wind that she chantlessly fired, and they changed into black particles.

「I brought you up as far as the sky, Kain. We’ll break through to the vicinity of the royal castle like this……I won’t listen to anymore complaints.」

「……! Ah, yeah! Thanks, Ein……Take this, Geo Light!」

The magic that Kain fired pierced through several Alva, and the blades of wind that Ein fired scattered the Alva that obstructed their path.

The amount defeated was nothing more than an insignificant amount, but flying fighting power that appeared all of a sudden was enough of a threat to the Alva, and was something they were unable to ignore. Naturally, their attacks on the ground were weakened.

There was a great number of Alva flying, enough to blanket the sky.

In this situation, even if they were to try to attack Ein’s group, there was a high risk of hitting their fellow Alva.

Actually, the fireballs that the Alva fired shot down the other Alva.

On the other hand, it would be fine if Ein and Kain just made it so that they wouldn’t get hit.

The overwhelming disadvantage in numbers would invite friendly fire on the Alva’s side in this situation, and furthermore, it would turn into an advantage where they could make a hit if they fired at them.

Naturally, it goes without saying that Ein’s evasive abilities were essential to execute that.

「Magic Guard, Aqua!」

The Magic Guard that Kain deployed to defend against any chance of being shot.

Even if the Alva were to attempt to make close range attacks to avoid that, Kain’s sword wouldn’t allow that as he rode on Ein’s back.

「GIIAAAAAA!」

「UOOOOOOOOH!」

Kain’s sword cut the Alva who tried to knock Kain down right in half.

The cut down Alva turned into black particles and vanished, and even the other Alva that aimed for that opening were torn up by the blades of wind that Ein fired and vanished.

「Yosh, if we keep going like this……!」

「What “if we keep going like this”! We’re rushing to the royal castle!」

「Eh, but……!」

Kain was about to say something to Ein who changed course and flew towards the royal castle, but he stopped himself saying “Guh”.

It was because he understood that Ein turning into a black bird and letting the Alva get defeated by Kain was due to Ein’s kindness.

Besides, by stopping here, he could see that they would be stopped here permanently by the Alva that were endlessly appearing.

In that case, it would be logical reasoning to be fine with defeating a certain amount of them.

Although he understood that in his head, Kain fired magic at the approaching Alva with unclear feelings.

「……That’s true. Let’s go, Ein.」

Even so, coming to a clean decision that doing that would be the right thing to do, Kain turned his gaze towards the royal capital.

Placing things on a scale of relative priority within himself, he could only tell himself that it was the best thing to do.

While flying with Kain, who had erased his hesitation with that, on her back, Ein talked to him.

「Put your head down. Just in case.」

「Eh?」

Far above Kain as he put his head down while expressing a question mark, something passed by.

No, it wasn’t a thing that could simply be called 「something」.

If he had to equate it to something, it was ruin. Or, destruction. Or maybe……Nihility?

That, which had a color that seemed like it was the bottom of pitch black darkness, passed by over Kain and Ein, and swallowed the Alva that flew chasing after Kain’s group──as well as all of the Alva behind them in an instant.

Like that, there was nothing left behind where that black thing passed through.

Making a gaping wide space of nothing among that swarm of Alva, there wasn’t even the black particles that the Alva would leave behind the moment they died.

Neither screams, nor death throes. Countless Alva vanished without leaving anything behind.

Before long, a large pitch black body passed by over the heads of Kain’s group.

What had flown through the sky while scattering about the Alva, it was──

「A d, dragon……It’s black……Eh, a Black Dragon!?」

「Wrong. That is a Bale Dragon……The true appearance of our Southern General, Raktor-sama.」

「By Bale Dragon……you mean the one in the Hero legend?」

「That’s right. The world’s strongest dragon that knocked down the Holy Dragon……That is who that person is.」

Even while they were having that sort of conversation, the Bale Dragon──Raktor was scattering about the Alva one after another.

That was only natural. Against Mazoku that mere people would have a hard time dealing with, there was no way that they would be able to be a match against a Bale Dragon who was called the one closest to the Demon King in strength.

His claws would tear through mountains, and the Breath he breathed would cause any and all things to end in nothingness.

In terms of fighting power, he was the ultimate weapon that Vermudol, the Demon King, could place his trust in the most──That was the one who reigned over the South which gathered the ruffians of the Zadark Kingdom, who the Southern General Raktor was.

「B, but. Why is that sort of person here.」

「It’s simple. It’s because a common enemy, the Alva, came out.」

That’s right, Mazenda made a mistake.

To the bitter end, in the point of mankind’s politics, Mazenda’s methods were correct.

Supposing that the Alva attacked only the Celis Army, the Zadark Kingdom would have been unable to interfere with the Alva. It was because they feared being criticized for interfering with domestic affairs of another information that they couldn’t send out flying fighting power.

But, to begin with, the Zadark Kingdom was helping Elarc in the form of humanitarian support.

This had a stronger point of view of protecting the masses rather than a relationship between fellow nations, and therefore it was a stance where they were not participating in political movements.

That is why, even if the Narika Army invaded Elarc, the Zadark Kingdom was unable to publicly touch them.

However, the Alva were different. The Alva were enemies of mankind, and they were not affiliated with anyone. Even if they actually were on Narika’s side, the Alva were publicly known as 「mankind’s enemy」.

Therefore, the Zadark Kingdom could not ignore the Alva, which were mankind’s enemy, that appeared in Elarc. From the point of view of protecting the masses, the fighting power that could swiftly intercept them……yet keep it to the lowest necessary amount, that is who they had to sortie.

The answer to that was the strongest dragon, the Bale Dragon, Raktor.

But, with Raktor alone, there was the danger of him acting a bit recklessly. He was a genuine battle junkie after all. There would be no meaning to all of this if he were to rampage too much and become a symbol of fear to mankind.

That is why, there needed to be a symbol of hope on his back. Someone that could be easy to understand and appreciate, yet be able to fight while on Raktor’s back.

「Here we go……Voltenix!」

Together with that resounding voice, a gigantic pillar of lighting pierced the sky.

The black swarm of Alva was torn to pieces, and burned away.

Even while on Raktor’s back as he made intense movements, there was not a single wobble in her standing figure.

Fascinated by that figure that had her long blond hair flutter about, Kain leaked out a “Hou”……and the cold voice that said 「So your disease came out again」 that he heard from Ein made his body tremble.

「C, calling it a disease! It’s simply because a pretty person was there.」

「That is what they call a disease. Enough, here we go.」

「Uwaah!?」

Making a sidelong glance at Ein’s group as they flew towards the royal castle with wild movements, the Eastern General, Fainell, who was riding on Raktor’s back, nodded with a 「Fumu」.

「So that is the Human called Kain that was in the report. What do you think, Raktor.」

「Dunno. I feel like there was an unpleasant smell but……rather than that, we’ve got this right now.」

Even while talking, Raktor was scattering the Alva, and even Fainell who was riding on his back was sending the approaching Alva flying with a punch.

「Oi oi, don’t make such tepid actions.」

「Hmph, this much is fine. Just watch.」

With something on the level of a punch, it wouldn’t give a lethal amount of damage to the Alva. If it was power on Raktor’s level, that would send their heads flying with just a punch, but Fainell didn’t have that much arm strength.

With that being the case, even the Alva judged that the woman riding on the dragon’s back would be easier to take down, and ended up swarming around Fainell. The calculation that Raktor would naturally dull his movements from trying to protect the weak Fainell if they aimed for her was at work.

……But, there were several problems with that calculation.

First, Raktor didn’t make any actions like trying to protect Fainell. Dying if you were weak was the common sense for Southern Mazoku of the Dark Continent, and that had hardly changed even now under Vermudol’s rule. Therefore, it could be said that Raktor’s movements would absolutely not grow dull. 

And then, the other mistake was the fact that Fainell was by no means weaker than Raktor. The one who had the potential to give Raktor the hardest time in a fight amongst the Cardinal Generals was Fainell, and that was also the reason why Fainell was chosen this time. 

「Hmph, so they’ve come……More, more of you come!」

The Alva swarmed the provoking Fainell as if to crush her under the weight……and before long, at the moment their numbers had gathered to the point they had filled up Raktor’s back, Fainell’s clear voice resounded.

「Voltride!」

A large *zudon* sound, loud enough to drown out the grating voices of the Alva, resounded, and at the same time, lightning attacks spread out in all directions.

It didn’t even touch Raktor. It was a cluster of lightning attacks that chose only the Alva, pierced through them, and spread out.

It looked as if it were a sparkling flower, and the voices of the masses praying to the Gods could be heard from the ground.

Since this was a country that worshipped the God of Light Raidolg, there might have been a connection to that but……overlapping with Raidolg who was known to be a male diety, Fainell was also out of this world.

「……It’s kind of unpleasant.」

「Hahaha! Ain’t that fine! Did ya go past bein’ monster and become a God!?」

The laughing Raktor resolutely fired a Bale Breath and annihilated the Alva one after another.

No matter how many Alva limitlessly came surging out, there wasn’t much of a meaning to it before the tag team of these two.

Mazenda’s scheme of trying to move the progress of the battle through the Alva fell apart, but on the other hand, Raktor’s group also had no intention of intervening with the strife on the ground. 

Like this, the fight once again……returned to being done by the leadership of mankind on the ground.