DKFTI 44

“Ugh.”

He felt as though something had cut him, but before he even had time to feel pain he searched for the taken Ruru.

“Ruru!”

“Aaah, I’m fine, Lord Demon King!”

Ruru was a high-ranked demon, so he could handle this kind of attack himself. It was only because things had been chaotic and he was worrying about Sibel that he had been caught so easily.

“What is going on!?”

At that moment, Kairin came stomping down the corridor.

“Kairin, it’s dangerous, you should get out of here too!”

Sibel called out to Kairin. Kairin looked around at the situation, then snorted and walked toward the gaping hole in the wall.

“Who the hell dared to wake me uuuup!”

Kairin looked furious at having his sleep disturbed. He threw his body outside and at the same time expanded his size, which he had been keeping reduced.

It had been a long time since Sibel saw his massive dragon form.

“Ah, right.”

He was a Red Dragon, wasn’t he? Who was he to be worrying about who?

Watching Kairin’s imposing back, Sibel ran again in the direction Ruru had been dragged. As he ran, he looked outside and saw a massive black dragon flying in the sky.

‘Shanti.’

Shanti was mercilessly tearing through the swarms that filled the air.

‘That side is going smoothly.’

So it looked like all he had to do was save the airheaded Ruru who had gotten caught….

Just then, as Sibel was running with all his might,

Crash-!

Another window shattered.

‘Not a single window is going to survive intact….’

As he worried about the castle, someone appeared before him.

‘A woman….’

She had the outward form of a beautiful human, but her skin was entirely blue. She calmly walked up to Sibel in tall heels, her steps clicking.

“W-what are you?”

Sibel was a little intimidated but he still asked her.

“Hm.”

The woman smiled seductively. She wore a tight, all-black outfit, but it was full of holes, as if thr cloth had been spared here and there.

‘Tsk, she obviously looks strong.’

Armor that light was not a good sign. As she sized Sibel up, Sibel also sized her up.

At that moment, a black whip appeared in her hand.

‘See, see!’

Crack-!

The whip lashed against the floor. The sticky friction sound pierced his eardrums.

Since the woman was coming out like this, Sibel felt he had to put on some kind of performance too.

But he had no proper weapon.

And suddenly summoning something here out of nowhere would just look silly.

“Why are you doing this?”

Sibel asked, but the woman only smiled. It seemed she had no intention of answering.

So stalling with talk wasn’t going to work either. He couldn’t know whether she recognized who he was or not, but either way, the situation was clearly bad.

Crack-! Snap!

“Uwah!”

The whip struck at his feet. Fortunately, Sibel narrowly avoided having it coil around his ankle.

‘Shit.’

Realizing how dire things were, Sibel decided to run.

‘Sorry, Ruru. But you’ll come back safe, right?’

More urgent than Ruru was his own situation. Sibel turned his back on the woman and ran with all his strength.

At that moment, her whip moved. The lash snapped straight toward Sibel’s back.

Snap!

But just before the black whip struck him, the attack was caught and entangled in someone else’s hand.

“Gah!”

Glancing back, Sibel tripped on his own feet and fell right there.

And looking down at him….

“What are you doing? You can’t even run away properly.”

It was Aizen.

He had the whip the woman had thrown wound around his arm, and he looked down at the fallen Sibel.

“Uuuh, Hero.”

Sibel was in tears from the shock of falling and the shards stuck in his knees.

“Unbelievable.”

Aizen felt heavy-hearted. What kind of Demon King tripped and cried over a mere demon opponent.

“Ow, my leg.”

Sibel rolled on the ground clutching his knee. It was a sight.

“What the hell are these things, barging in here and causing chaos?”

Aizen’s mood was foul. Naturally so. Anyone would feel twisted inside at the sight of Sibel sniffling, blood running from his knee. This was abuse of the weak.

“Stay right there.”

Aizen forcefully pulled the whip and the black cord snapped. But the whip in the woman’s hand regenerated again.

He shook off his stiff arm that had been bound and summoned his holy sword.

In contrast to its holy aura, the face of its summoner was that of a fiend.

“It won’t take long.”

Aizen was confident. He had faced too many demons to count, and from a glance alone he could judge their level.

At Aizen’s boldness, Sibel felt a kind of awe. Most amazing of all was how he had known where to find him?

Coincidence?

Could such coincidences of running into trouble again and again really happen in succession?

More than finding it strange, Sibel was puzzled, when suddenly he felt something cold enveloping him.

“Ice Golem?”

Crack, thud.

As the Ice Golem covered Sibel, small bat-shaped beasts crashed against its back.

“Thanks.”

Sibel realized the Ice Golem had protected him.

At that moment, he understood one thing.

Ruru, the Ice Golem, and even Aizen, none of it was coincidence. In this chaos, they had thought, searched, and stepped in to help.

‘What the….’

Outside, in the sky, Shanti and Kairin fought the beasts, while below, Gomdori, the meerkats, the hedgehog, and the skunk ran through the castle. All of them were protecting Sibel, and the Demon King’s castle.

‘Come to think of it, Kairin isn’t even a demon, so why is he doing that?’

Either way, he was grateful to them all. For the Demon King to be crying at a time like this was absurd.

Sibel straightened his back. Then, looking out the window, he shouted,

“Everyone, wipe them all out!”

Now that he thought about it, Sibel didn’t feel weak. Because he had seen with his own eyes the strength of the summons he had called forth with his own power.

If they were strong, then he was strong. Cowering was an insult to his own people. As Sibel regained his confidence, Aizen was pressing the demon woman hard.

Boom–crash!

The woman flew back from Aizen’s strike and slammed into the wall. Aizen dusted off his hand lightly.

She was never at his level to begin with.

“Why the hell are these things making a mess here?”

Aizen moved forward without hesitation to finish her. In a fight between humans, there was no need to be so merciless to an opponent who was already incapacitated. But fighting demons was different. If you didn’t cut off their life when the chance came, it would only bring trouble later.

Apostles grew up under the Holy Kingdom’s teachings of revering mercy, but they learned the most ruthless ways of combat. It was a vicious contradiction.

Aizen swung his sword without hesitation.

Clang-!

But his sword did not cut the demon, only scraped the wall.

“Ghh.”

The demon woman barely regained her senses and teleported away. She reappeared not far off, and once more Aizen’s sword energy flew at her.

“Hup!”

But the demon woman glared at Aizen with red eyes, then vanished entirely. As she disappeared, the swarm of bats around her slowly weakened and died off.

The same was happening outside. Wyverns and harpies, struck down by the castle’s fierce defense, were now far fewer in number than before.

Ice Golem froze and destroyed the few remaining bats. The surroundings gradually came under control.

“Haa….”

Sibel let out a breath of relief.

“We managed to get through it, right?”

“Lord Demon Kiiiing!”

At that moment, Ruru, who had been taken, came hopping back to him.

“Ugh, that harpie dropped me in some random place, it took me a while to get back!”

Ruru was covered in dust, but otherwise unhurt.

“Ah, what, how did you get hurt so much!”

Ruru jumped up and down as he saw the blood on Sibel’s knees and arms. Meanwhile, Aizen approached.

He grabbed Ruru by the scruff of the neck, who was clinging tightly to Sibel.

“Uwah, what are you doing, Hero! Let go! I said let go!”

Ruru kicked in the air, dangling.

“Enough. Why is the castle in this state?”

Aizen asked Sibel.

“I’m wondering that myself.”

“Looked like other demons were the ones attacking the castle.”

“Exactly.”

Sibel recalled the post from the Demon King community.

“Who could you have possibly made enemies with when you stay holed up in the castle?”

“I’m wondering that myself…. This feels more like a natural disaster than a grudge…. Or maybe a senseless crime.”

“So you don’t know anything?”

“Yes, sir.”

At Sibel’s answer, Aizen sighed.

“Ha!”

Taking advantage of his lapse, Ruru slipped free from his grasp.

“It was a filthy aura. Completely mismatched with the noble aura of our castle, a vile stench!”

Ruru said.

“What do you mean, vile?”

Sibel didn’t understand Ruru’s words, but Aizen understood immediately.