Chapter 8: The Dragoon Knight and the Demon General Exchange Words

—The Following Day. Merida's POV—

"The Dragoon Knight has appeared!!" a guard cried out.

"Wh-Whaaat?!" Merida gasped.

Startled awake by the commotion at the break of dawn, Merida rushed out of her command tent.

Standing just outside the encampment they had established in the abandoned village... was a radiant knight clad in shimmering gold.

With a slow raise of his hand, golden soldiers materialized behind him in silent, orderly formation.

They were the Phantom Pawns—the magical constructs serving beneath the Dragoon Knight.

Stunned by this utterly unexpected turn of events, everyone froze in place. Neither Princess Ingrid, nor the men of the 'Soul of Flash' squad, nor Marks, nor even Julia could utter a single word.

While the camp remained paralyzed in awe, one of the Phantom Pawns strode directly toward Merida.

"A-A Phantom Pawn..." Merida stammered, stepping back slightly. "Why are you here?"

"I bring a message from the Dragoon Knight," the construct announced in a hollow, echoing tone.

"A-Ah, yes! Please speak," she responded, catching her breath.

"The Dragoon Knight shall locate the enemy forces."

The Phantom Pawn fixed its golden gaze upon Merida as it delivered its next words.

"Your cooperation is required. We request that Vargas Kaito and his subordinates accompany the Dragoon Knight."

—Julia's POV—

"Lord Vargas Kaito!" Julia called out urgently.

"Hmm?" he hummed drowsily.

Discarding all sense of propriety, Julia barged straight into his private tent.

Lord Vargas Kaito was still resting in his bed.

Just as she had seen him before, he was wrapped snugly in his blanket, rubbing his eyes with a sleepy grimace.

"Has something happened?" Kaito asked, rubbing his temples.

"N-No, well... the Dragoon Knight has..." Julia hesitated, trailing off as she observed him closely.

She caught herself, unable to form a coherent sentence.

Lord Vargas Kaito and the Dragoon Knight were existing simultaneously right outside. Were they truly two different people after all?

"Is someone... calling for me?" Kaito murmured quietly.

"You can tell?" Julia asked in surprise.

"Because I am the Sword Saint," he replied flatly.

"I... I see," she stammered, unsure how to take his response.

"Understood. I will go."

"Wait! Shouldn't you assess the situation first before rushing out...?"

"I must fulfill my duty as the Sword Saint," he insisted calmly.

"...I understand," Julia sighed quietly.

Yet suspicion lingered in her mind. She still could not bring herself to believe that this man and the Dragoon Knight were entirely separate entities.

It was a nagging sensation rooted deep in Julia's sharp intuition.

Her grandmother had possessed an extraordinary gift for foresight, serving her people as a shrine maiden.

The Earl Household of Ashgate had long relied on her grandmother's uncanny insights to govern their domains smoothly.

Inheriting that very bloodline, Julia held immense pride in her own instincts.

Lord Vargas Kaito was standing right in front of her eyes.

And yet, her intuition screamed that the presence radiating from the golden Dragoon Knight was identical to the man sitting in this bed.

It was utterly inexplicable.

"Julia Ashgate! What on earth are you doing inside Lord Kaito's tent?!"

Merida burst into the tent without warning, her eyes wide with outrage.

"Intruding into his private quarters without permission is the height of disrespect!" Merida scolded furiously.

"I am Lord Vargas Kaito's appointed bodyguard," Julia countered smoothly, folding her arms.

"Even so, that doesn't grant you free rein to—"

"Besides, I had to report the Dragoon Knight's arrival immediately," Julia added, cutting her off.

"That is my duty, not yours!" Merida snapped back.

"...My apologies," Julia conceded gracefully.

Realizing she held the weaker position for now, Julia decided to step back.

Offering a polite bow to Lord Vargas Kaito, she retreated to the corner of the tent.

Though Merida glared at her with intense hostility, Julia had no intention of leaving.

Her instincts whispered that this was a golden opportunity to unmask the Dragoon Knight's true identity.

Now, of all times, she could not afford to leave Lord Vargas Kaito's side.

...Supposing Lord Vargas Kaito really is the Dragoon Knight...

Julia tilted her head slightly in deep thought.

...What do I actually hope to accomplish with this knowledge?

Her original motive for investigating the Dragoon Knight was to ensure the Mithrafil Kingdom did not amassing power far beyond its bounds.

If that mythical warrior proved to be Vargas Kaito, the Kingdom would possess overwhelming military supremacy. That would distort the balance of power among neighboring nations, creating a direct threat to the Holy Kingdom.

That was precisely why Julia had sought to stay close to Vargas Kaito—to uncover the truth behind the Dragoon Knight.

And yet...

...Lord Vargas Kaito is such a baffling individual. He resolved the Kingdom's critical accounting discrepancies without flinching, yet never boasted of his brilliance. He didn't spare a single glance for my fine attire, simply carrying out his administrative duties with quiet efficiency. Even now, stripped of his sword technique, he steps up to face battle without hesitation. It's almost as if...

It was almost as if he were a true Hero, bound by a sacred mission bestowed from the heavens.

Julia reached down to rest her hand against the Sword of Selection hanging from her waist.

The Sword of Selection was a sleek, silver dagger.

Forged with ancient sorcery, it could only be unsheathed under strictly defined conditions.

Namely, during the sacred Ceremony of Selection for the True Hero.

Once every year, the neighboring nations convened to hold the ritual destined to determine the True Hero.

All Seven Swords would gather before the Hero candidates, drawing their respective blades in unison.

The divine light radiating from the steel would point toward the individual acknowledged by the weapon's wielder as the True Hero.

Whosoever gathered the light of at least half the Seven Swords would be crowned the True Hero, earning the divine right to lead all nations.

As of yet, no candidate had ever been chosen as the True Hero.

...Though there is technically a far simpler method to identify the True Hero...

That method was to unsheathe the Sword of Selection upon the explicit command of the True Hero.

The Sword of Selection doubled as an ultimate armament crafted specifically to protect the True Hero.

If commanded by the genuine article, the blade would slide effortlessly from its scabbard.

Conversely, the moment a member of the Seven Swords unsheathed their blade at someone's order, they effectively recognized that person as the True Hero.

...There are only two officially recognized candidates for the True Hero—Princess Ingrid of the Mithrafil Kingdom, and one other. There shouldn't possibly be any other candidates...

Yet, for reasons she could not fathom, Julia found her fingers brushing against the hilt of the Sword of Selection.

...If only Lord Vargas Kaito were a candidate for the Hero. My duty would certainly be far more fascinating with a man like him, whose next move is utterly impossible to predict...

Julia mused to herself, a faint, wistful smile touching her lips in secret.

"Allow me to report, Lord Kaito," Merida continued, ignoring Julia completely. "The Phantom Pawn has expressed a desire for a joint operation with you."

"I see," Kaito replied softly.

Merida pressed forward with her brief, standing upright before Kaito.

"The Dragoon Knight intends to use his unique abilities to locate Demon General Gaizes. He requests that you accompany him on this search."

"I understand," Kaito nodded slowly.

"Princess Ingrid stated that she defers entirely to your judgment in this matter," Merida added.

Glancing down at the documents held in her hands, Merida continued her explanation.

"However... Her Highness has already drafted a strategic plan."

"What are the details of this plan?" Kaito inquired.

"You and the 'Soul of Flash' squad will accompany the Dragoon Knight to locate Demon General Gaizes. Princess Ingrid's main force will move in a supporting vanguard position. Once the Demon General's coordinates are confirmed, the main force will encircle and eliminate the enemy entirely."

"Understood," Kaito agreed without hesitation.

"Are you certain you agree to these terms?" Merida asked, confirming his intent.

"Yes. I will move together with the Dragoon Knight."

"Very well. Myself and the 'Soul of Flash' squad shall mount our horses and follow the Dragoon Knight."

"Sounds like a plan," Kaito approved.

"However, Lord Kaito, your wounds have not yet healed, meaning you cannot ride a horse, correct?"

"That is true," Kaito admitted.

"Therefore, the Phantom Pawn proposes to carry you on its back while sprinting alongside us."

"Ah, no problem at all," Kaito agreed casually.

"Hold on right there!!" Julia shrieked, losing her composure entirely.

She simply couldn't keep quiet any longer.

Why did this man constantly do the unexpected? Why did he accept such utterly absurd arrangements without a second thought?

It was precisely because of this unbothered attitude that she couldn't take her eyes off him. He commanded her attention whether she wanted to give it or not.

"Why on earth is a minion of the Dragoon Knight tasked with carrying Lord Vargas Kaito?!" Julia demanded loudly.

"I just explained why, did I not?" Merida replied with a cool, unbothered expression.

She answered as though stating the most obvious fact in the world.

Julia glared at her secretary competitor with burning indignation.

"Entrusting the precious body of the Sword Saint to a mysterious, uncanny construct is utterly unthinkable!!" Julia protested passionately.

"And what is your verdict, Lord Kaito?" Merida asked, completely bypassing Julia's protest.

"I have no objections," Kaito reiterated calmly.

"There is your answer," Merida concluded smugly.

"And what does Her Highness Princess Ingrid have to say about this madness?!" Julia demanded, glaring fiercely at Merida.

She raised her voice, refusing to back down.

"As I stated earlier, Her Highness respects Lord Kaito's wishes entirely," Merida replied firmly.

Merida's voice was crisp and unwavering as she delivered the Princess's exact words.

"'My noble brother burns with a resolve to uphold justice. As his sister, I cannot throw cold water on his determination. I consider it a blessing to have such a brother by my side.' That was Princess Ingrid's message."

"N-Nnngh..." Julia gritted her teeth in defeat.

The Sword Saint dedicated his very body to justice, while the Hero Princess praised her brother's unwavering resolve.

There was literally zero room left for Julia to object.

...What on earth am I so dissatisfied about anyway?

Lord Vargas Kaito and the Dragoon Knight were joining forces to defeat the Demon General.

As a representative of the Seven Swords, she should have been thrilled by this turn of events.

Yet an annoying, murky frustration weighed heavily on Julia's chest.

Finding it utterly perplexing, she closed her eyes, peering deep into the recesses of her heart.

And the answer she arrived at was...

...Am I frustrated simply because this man... never actually looks at me?

It was a surprisingly vague, fragile realization, but it struck her core nonetheless.

"Let us depart, Merida," Kaito said, stepping out of the tent.

"Right behind you, Lord Kaito," Merida responded dutifully.

"I shall be accompanying you as well!" Julia declared, striding after them.

She projected her voice clearly toward Vargas Kaito and Merida as they moved forward.

"As Julia Ashgate, I hold the right to witness this battle to the end! As one of the Seven Swords, I shall march alongside you!"

—Kaito's POV—

"Hey, hey! Master~!" Holly chimed in cheerfully.

"What is it, Holly?" Kaito asked internally.

"I'm so amazed! You really are a hopeless champion of justice, Master!" she teased.

"Me? A champion of justice? How so?"

"I mean, look at you! You transformed into the Dragoon Knight all over again!"

"Well... yeah, I suppose I did," Kaito grumbled back.

"Not only did you show yourself in broad daylight, but you sent a Phantom Pawn to the camp while controlling a duplicate of yourself at the same time! That's super intense! You're risking your secret identity being exposed!"

"Can't argue with that," he admitted in his thoughts.

Inside Kaito's mind, two distinct visual feeds were currently being transmitted from his pair of Phantom Pawns.

One was the perspective of the Phantom Pawn sprinting directly behind the Dragoon Knight.

The other was the perspective of his own duplicate, currently piggybacking on the second Phantom Pawn.

Right now, transformed into the Dragoon Knight, I was dashing across the vast grassy plain.

It was all for the sake of locating Demon General Gaizes.

The Dragoon Knight form possessed the passive ability to detect black mana.

By running that sensory tracking power at full capacity, I could pinpoint the exact hiding spot of Demon General Gaizes.

Focusing my mind, I could sense the general direction of the Demon General.

It was a simple enough job: inform Holly in her golden dragon form and have her gallop in that direction.

All I had to do was ride on her back.

Because of that, I could easily manage controlling two Phantom Pawns simultaneously.

Glancing back over my shoulder... yep, everyone was right behind us.

The Phantom Pawn, Merida, and the soldiers of the Souls of Brilliance were all keeping pace.

Julia of the Seven Swords was riding right near the front, her gaze fixed intently on me.

Is she trying to figure out who the Dragoon Knight really is? Man, I hate this...

Princess Ingrid's main force was also on the move.

Given their large numbers, they seemed to have split their troops into several detachments.

Their plan was apparently to pincer the location targeted by the Dragoon Knight from the left and right flanks.

"Doesn't look like I'll need to do any actual fighting," I remarked casually.

"Disappointed, Master?" Holly asked from below.

"Why would I be?"

"Because you're such a valiant champion of justice!"

"Since when?" I deadpanned.

"Wait, weren't you planning to slay Demon General Gaizes in the name of justice?"

"Not in the slightest."

"Huh?"

"Huh?" I echoed.

"Then why on earth did you transform?!" Holly screeched in disbelief.

"Because as long as this battle drags on, Julia Ashgate is going to keep staring holes right through me."

"...Wait, what?"

"It makes me absurdly nervous. I can't relax for even a single second."

"............H-Huh?" Holly stammered, utterly bewildered.

"Once the battle is over, I'll finally be set free," I explained.

"You can't be serious... Did you really transform into the Dragoon Knight and charge onto the front lines just because you felt uncomfortable under Julia Ashgate's eyes?! You came out here just for that?!"

"Pretty much, yeah."

"Just to escape that woman's glare?!"

"Exactly. I just want to hurry back to the library."

"You were given a proper room, weren't you?! The library isn't your house!!"

"That place is just so comforting..." I murmured wistfully.

"At least consider my living environment!!" Holly whined. "If we stay in the library, I have to sleep with a book as a pillow! My neck hurts every morning!!"

"Treat books with proper respect."

"Treat Holly with proper respect too!!"

"I need a good excuse to request a pillow for you..." I mused.

"That is not the point at all!"

The golden dragon Holly shook her head in sheer exasperation.

My search for the Demon General wasn't solely because Julia Ashgate's gaze was unsettling me, though.

Supposedly, defeating a Demon General would allow Holly to power up.

If she gained that power, we could reach the Great Sage's Manor—a place where no one else lived and monsters never strayed.

Apparently, ancient grimoires written by the Great Sage were preserved there as well.

Honestly, living out my days as a total shut-in there sounded pretty appealing.

Who knows, there might even be magic to return me to my original world.

After all, I was just a body double for Vargas Kaito, not the actual man himself.

I wanted to secure an emergency escape route just in case things went south.

That way, even after vanishing from the kingdom, I could quietly support Merida and the Souls of Flash from behind the scenes.

"I will be the one to locate the Demon General," I declared gravely.

"On the surface, that sounded ridiculously heroic!" Holly piped up.

"Thank you, Holly."

"I wasn't complimenting you, but you're very welcome!!"

While chatting with Holly, I focused my mind, honing in on the presence of dark mana.

Before long—

"A dense surge of dark mana is billowing high into the sky like smoke," I reported. "Nearby, there are several dozen moderately strong signatures. On top of that, there's a fainter trail of dark mana over in the forest."

"The smokelike one must be the Demon General," Holly analyzed. "The fairly strong ones are his personal guard, and the weaker ones in the woods are probably an ambush squad!"

"I heard the Demon General only brought a small force, but there are surprisingly many of them," I noted.

"He must have subjugated local wild monsters to swell his ranks," Holly deduced.

The golden dragon Holly nodded gravely in agreement.

"Monsters naturally submit to those stronger than themselves. The Demon General must have bent every wild beast he encountered to his will, which is why his army grew so large."

"If we hadn't picked up on this, things could have turned nasty," I admitted.

"Well, we spotted them, so no problem at all!" Holly chirped happily.

"I'll pass the word along to Merida and the others."

Focusing my mind once more, I shifted my awareness to the Phantom Pawn.

Carrying my body double on its back, the Phantom Pawn trotted closer to Merida's warhorse.

"...I have information to pass along," I spoke through the construct.

"Understood! Allow me to cast amplification magic so we may converse with ease while moving!" Merida replied promptly.

To facilitate our dialogue while riding at full speed, Merida deployed a voice-magnifying spell.

As expected of Merida—always so attentive and quick-witted.

"I have located the Demon General's presence," I transmitted. "He lies to the northwest, roughly twenty minutes away on horseback, situated in a clearing surrounded by woods. The Demon General and his close aides are stationed there, while an ambush force lurks in the nearby forest—likely wild monsters he subjugated. Furthermore—"

"You may speak a little more slowly, Lord Kaito," Merida interjected gently.

"Is that so?"

"Please do not push yourself, Lord Kaito," she urged with heartfelt concern.

"Underst..."

...Wait, what?

"No, I am not Kaito," the Phantom Pawn stated flatly.

"...My apologies," Merida clarified with a refined smile. "I was addressing Lord Kaito, who rides upon your back."

"I see. My mistake."

"Please think nothing of it," she reassured.

"Very well."

"Indeed. I like to think I understand Lord Kaito quite well," Merida added with conviction.

"...What was that just now?"

"A-Ah, I was speaking to Lord Kaito on your back once again!" she stammered, flustered.

"I see. Good."

"More importantly, is Lord Kaito not feeling exhausted?" Merida inquired.

"'I am fine,' is what Vargas Kaito conveys," I replied via the Pawn.

"Is that so?" she murmured softly.

"Once we draw closer to the battlefield, I will evacuate him to a safe location."

"As Lord Kaito is serving as military inspector, he should be positioned somewhere with a view of the battle," Merida suggested.

"A distance roughly equal to that between the Dragoon Knight and the Phantom Pawn would be ideal," I answered.

"So that distance is just right?"

"That is about the absolute limit."

"Understood perfectly!"

"No, when I say 'limit,' I mean Vargas Kaito's physical stamina, not my own..."

"I understand! I understand completely! Now then... Merida Caintos shall relay the orders to the Souls of Brilliance and the royal troops!"

Merida intensified her sound-amplification magic.

Her voice rang out clearly, relaying tactical instructions to the Souls of Flash and the royal soldiers trailing behind.

In addition, mounted messengers broke away from the vanguard, riding at full speed to report the intel back to the main army.

"Those assigned to 'Lord Kaito Duty,' please prepare to assist Lord Kaito!!" Merida commanded over the magic speaker.

"Understood!!" came the synchronized roar from the ranks.

Emil and two other soldiers surged forward from the ranks of the Souls of Brilliance.

They were today's 'Vargas Kaito Detail,' tasked with escorting me to the rear and guarding my command tent.

It seemed they were going to ensure my body double was safely evacuated.

Leaving my body double to Merida and the rest would keep everything secure.

All that was left now was...

"............"

Julia Ashgate rode in dead silence, her intense gaze burning holes into the Dragoon Knight's back.

...She's driving me crazy, but dealing with the Demon General comes first.

"The Demon General's forces will come into view shortly," I transmitted.

Having relayed that final warning to Merida, I shifted my primary focus back to my body as the Dragoon Knight.

Ahead, I saw the ambushing horde of monsters bursting forth from the forest.

Just as Holly had noted, they were wild monsters subjugated by the Demon General.

"What types are we dealing with?" I asked.

"Orcs, goblins, dark bears, and great serpents!" Holly answered.

"Sounds like a pretty slow-moving bunch."

"I bet they intended to sneak out under cover of darkness to strike our camp," Holly guessed.

"They look pretty panicked right now, though."

"They never imagined we'd discover them so soon, so they're in total disarray!"

"Princess Ingrid and Marks should have no trouble taking them down."

"Yep! Looks like they've just arrived on cue!" Holly cheered.

Cavalry formations surged in from both our left and right flanks.

Leading the force on the right was Marks Leibniz, vice-captain of the Souls of Brilliance.

Leading the force on the left was the Hero Princess herself, Ingrid Mithrafil.

Both wings slammed hard into the monsters pouring out of the woods.

Meanwhile, I—the Dragoon Knight—along with the main body of the Souls of Flash, pressed straight ahead, charging directly toward the Demon General's position.

Our role was to hound and pin down the Demon General until Ingrid and Marks finished off the wild monster horde.

Now that we had locked onto his location, we couldn't let him slip away.

—Meanwhile, Demon General Gaizes—

"How on earth were we discovered?!" Demon General Gaizes roared.

Reflected in Demon General Gaizes's eyes were a golden knight and a host of royal soldiers galloping across the grassy plains.

They were riding straight toward his position—unmistakable proof that his hideout had been pinpointed.

Demon General Gaizes was a werewolf, and every warrior under his command was a beastman.

Concealing their presence was second nature to them.

And yet, they had been exposed.

The golden knight and the kingdom's strike force were already closing in, practically upon them.

"Even the beasts I set in ambush in the forest are being intercepted... What is the meaning of this?!"

"To see your grand strategy dismantled so thoroughly... even I am taken aback," a dark voice rasped.

"It seems the enemy commands a strategist whose intellect rivals my own," Gaizes spat bitterly.

Within the Demon Lord's army, there existed four master strategists.

First among them was the Lord Chancellor, and directly behind him stood Demon General Gaizes.

Gaizes's strategy had initially proven a glowing success, laying waste to the territory of the Mithrafil Kingdom.

He had intended to continue raiding human settlements and spreading terror throughout the realm, but...

"We have no choice but to meet them in battle," Gaizes declared coldly.

Demon General Gaizes reached down and drew his single-edged greatsword.

Swung with a werewolf's monstrous might, a single blow could shatter solid bedrock, moving at speeds far too swift for human eyes to track.

With that overwhelming ferocity, he prepared to slaughter the approaching army.

"Hear me, Daros, familiar of the Lord Chancellor," Gaizes addressed the black creature.

Gaizes turned his gaze toward the ominous black avian perched nearby.

"I may very well lose my life here today. You are to observe everything that transpires—every sight and every word—and relay it to the Lord Chancellor."

"Understood," Daros replied. "However... why do you fixate so stubbornly on that golden knight?"

The monstrous black bird Daros clattered its beak inquisitively.

"If you sound a retreat this instant, you might still escape with your skin intact. Why insist on staying to fight?"

"Did I not tell you?" Demon General Gaizes sneered, his fangs glinting viciously. "I am deeply fascinated by that golden knight."

Demon General Gaizes bared his sharp fangs in a dark, cruel laugh.

"You appear to be ignorant of the ancient legends surrounding the first Demon Lord... specifically, the foe known as the 'Sacred Calamity.'"

"The 'Sacred Calamity'?" Daros echoed.

"During the age of the first Demon Lord, a formidable Great Sage fought on the side of humanity. That entity dealt catastrophic losses to the Demon Lord's army and ultimately took the first Demon Lord's life."

"Such a legend exists?!"

"It is a secret whispered only among the highest command of our forces," Gaizes explained.

"And what was the name of this Great Sage?"

"It was lost to history. So terrifying was that sage's power that warriors back then feared to even utter the name aloud. Thus, within our ranks, that existence came to be known as the 'Sacred Calamity.' Aside from His Majesty the Demon Lord and the Lord Chancellor, only a select few are even aware of the term."

"And what connection does this 'Sacred Calamity' bear to the golden knight?"

"According to the lore, the Sacred Calamity was accompanied by two familiars," Demon General Gaizes stated solemnly.

Demon General Gaizes spoke in a measured, ominous quiet.

"One was a white beast. The other... a golden dragon."

"A golden dragon?!" Daros gasped. "Which means..."

"That golden knight's true identity may be the Sacred Calamity itself—or its legitimate successor!"

Demon General Gaizes's booming voice resounded across the clearing.

"Whether that golden knight truly is the Sacred Calamity, I must verify with my own two eyes!"

"What do you intend to do, Gaizes?!"

"I will close the distance and exchange words with him."

"Are you mad?!" Daros shrieked. "If that golden knight truly bears a connection to the Sacred Calamity..."

"My mind is made up. I shall put questions to the golden knight and observe his response. Whatever intelligence you glean from that encounter, you will convey to the Lord Chancellor. It will prove invaluable beyond measure."

"You would throw away your life for such a purpose, Gaizes?"

"Death is hardly guaranteed! On the contrary, I, Gaizes, may very well strike down the golden knight right then and there!"

Demon General Gaizes raised his greatsword high into the sky.

"I salute your courage," Daros intoned solemnly.

Spreading its wings of pitch black, the familiar Daros bowed its head in deep reverence.

"So, what do you intend to ask this Golden Knight?" the familiar Daros inquired.

"First, I shall ask him: 'Are you the Sacred Threat, or merely an impostor?'" Demon General Gaizes replied.

"Ah, demanding to know whether he is the genuine article or a fake."

"Second: 'Just how much power do you truly possess?'"

"Testing the true extent of his strength, then."

"And third: should he prove not to be the Sacred Threat, I will demand, 'Where is the real one?' Observe his reaction closely and report back to His Excellency the Prime Minister."

"Demanding the true threat's whereabouts... A sharp maneuver, General."

The familiar, Daros, alighted gracefully before Demon General Gaizes.

Bowing his head with deep reverence, he spoke.

"Demon General Gaizes... I take great pride in a warrior like you, who lays down his life for the Demon King's army."

Spreading his wings, Daros launched himself into the sky above.

Left behind were Demon General Gaizes and his regiment of beastfolk warriors.

Around the fringes of the forest, the battle between wild monsters and the Kingdom's forces was already underway.

There was no escape for the Demon General's unit. Not that they had any intention of running in the first place.

"Charging straight into the enemy is the true way of the beastfolk!!" General Gaizes roared proudly.

"AWOOOOOOOOOOOO!!"

Inspired by Gaizes's rallying cry, the beastfolk raised a ferocious war cry.

In unison, they unsheathed their weapons and sprinted forward.

"I shall put you to the test, Golden Knight! Whether you are real or fake, how powerful you are, where the real one hides—I will drag every last truth behind the Sacred Threat into the light!"

And with that, Demon General Gaizes began his relentless march.

—Kaito POV—

"AWOOOOOOOOOOOO!!"

A deep, echoing howl resounded across the grassy plain.

The creature that emerged wasn't just some jet-black wolf...

It had the body of a man and the head of a wolf—a classic werewolf, in other words.

Could that be Demon General Gaizes?

"...Looks like Merida and the others have noticed the enemy too," I muttered.

I could tell by shifting part of my awareness to my Phantom Pawns.

Merida and the soldiers of the 'Soul of Flash' Squad were already preparing for battle against the Demon General's unit.

Thanks to the Dragoon Knight's ability to sense dark mana, I could pinpoint the exact number of enemy combatants.

The beastfolk led by Demon General Gaizes numbered between twenty and thirty.

Our forces, counting the 'Soul of Flash' Squad and the Royal Guards, exceeded a hundred. In a head-on clash, victory was guaranteed.

"Well, my main job is done," I said to Holly.

"Master's job was just to locate the enemy, after all!" Holly piped up cheerily.

"Right, so for now, we'll just loiter around the enemy unit."

"To jump in and help if things go sideways?" she asked.

"And to gather intel. Think you can circle around without getting caught?"

"Of course I can!" she declared proudly.

"Count on you, then," I smiled.

Incidentally, my Phantom Pawn and my Body Double had already begun evacuating the area.

They were maintaining a safe distance while officially observing the battlefield in their capacity as military inspectors. Perfect cover.

"Alright, time to move," I said.

"Roger that!" Holly chimed in.

Just as Holly and I were about to veer off the direct collision course with the Demon General—

"A question for the Golden Knight! Are you a fake, or are you the real deal!?"

A booming voice echoed across the open plain.

"Amplification magic?" I blinked.

"It's coming from up ahead! That's definitely Demon General Gaizes!!" Holly called out.

"Answer me, Golden Knight! Are you the true 'Sacred Threat'!?"

"...The 'Sacred Threat'?" I repeated, bewildered.

It was a phrase I had never heard before.

None of the books I had read in the archives ever mentioned anything like it.

"Do you know what that means, Holly?" I asked.

"Never heard of it in my life!" she replied.

"Maybe it's a term used exclusively within the Demon King's army," I mused.

If it's a threat to the Demon King's army... that means it's something they fear.

And 'Sacred' probably refers to someone possessing purifying power, right?

If so, does 'Sacred Threat' refer to the Dragoon Knight?

...No, that doesn't add up.

If it meant the Dragoon Knight, it would be weird for Holly not to know about it.

Then does it refer to some other 'Sacred' figure... like someone carrying a holy title?

For instance, a 'Sword Saint'?

A Sword Saint stands alongside the Hero as a dire threat to the Demon King's forces.

If so, could the 'Sacred Threat' actually be referring to Sword Saint Vargas Kaito?

"Golden Knight!! You cannot escape my inquiry!! Or are you not the Sacred Threat after all!? Answer me, are you real or fake!!"

Demon General Gaizes's loud bellows kept ringing out across the plain.

If the 'Sacred Threat' he spoke of truly referred to the Sword Saint—

"Does General Gaizes think the person inside the Dragoon Knight armor is Sword Saint Vargas Kaito?" I asked.

"That might be it!" Holly agreed.

"Yeah, no one fits the description of a 'Sacred Threat' better than a Sword Saint," I noted.

"Now that I think about it, the Dragoon Knight appeared right after the Sword Saint stopped fighting!" Holly pointed out.

"So the Demon King's army started getting suspicious," I murmured.

"So, Master... what Demon General Gaizes is really asking is..."

"Yeah. He's basically asking, 'Is the Golden Knight actually Sword Saint Vargas Kaito?'"

"That makes so much sense!" Holly nodded.

"I can't just ignore this..." I muttered with a frown.

The Demon General's thunderous voice was reaching the Kingdom's soldiers too.

If I stayed quiet and ran off now, they might suspect that the Dragoon Knight really was Vargas Kaito all along. I had to prevent that misconception at all costs.

...Guess I have no choice.

"Holly, use amplification magic for me," I requested.

"You got it, Master!" she replied instantly.

Still astride the golden dragon, I took a deep breath.

Actually, this worked out pretty well.

I wanted intel on the Demon King's army anyway, so answering Demon General Gaizes's query was a good opportunity.

Besides, even with my terrible social anxiety around humans, talking to a monster might actually be easier.

Let's see... General Gaizes is asking whether the Golden Knight is the real Vargas Kaito or an impostor.

The proper response to that would be...

"I am not the real one. I am... different from what you call the 'Sacred Threat.'"

I shouted back, answering the Demon General's question.

"However, calling me a fake is incorrect! I am myself, nothing more and nothing less! I am the Dragoon Knight, and no one else. The Demon King's army has no business telling me who I am. That is all!"

That should be a clear enough answer. Now, how will the Demon General react...?

"Then where is the real one!?" Gaizes roared instantly.

Oof, touching a nerve there...

If 'Sacred Threat' meant Sword Saint Vargas Kaito, the honest answer would be—

"He is in another location."

My Body Double was currently evacuating alongside the Phantom Pawns.

Since he was wearing the guise of the Sword Saint, that one was technically the 'real' Vargas Kaito. No lie there.

"That concludes my answer. Our conversation is over—"

"In another location, you say!? Inconceivable!!" Gaizes barked, cutting me off.

"Huh?" I blinked in confusion.

"Then who are you, standing there alongside a golden dragon!?"

"An enemy of the Demon King's army," I answered simply.

"Yet you claim you are not the Sacred Threat!?"

"As I said, that one is elsewhere."

"That makes no sense!"

"And why is that?"

"If the Sacred Threat has returned, it defies reason that he would not step onto the battlefield himself!!" Demon General Gaizes bellowed fiercely.

The Demon General shouted with growing anger.

"The Sacred Threat possesses immense power! Why does he refrain from demonstrating it!?"

I see.

So this is what Demon General Gaizes was trying to say:

—Sword Saint Vargas Kaito is strong.

—If he recovered from the poisoned arrow and returned to the front lines, he would surely display his legendary power.

—Yet the Sword Saint isn't displaying any power, which makes no sense.

—Therefore, the Dragoon Knight standing right before him must be the Sacred Threat—meaning, the Sword Saint himself.

Man, he's really pressing on the sore spots...

In that case, the most logical excuse would be—

"Because he isn't back at full strength yet," I called back after a moment's thought.

I paused briefly to formulate my answer before responding.

"He has recovered, but he has not yet regained his peak condition. That is why he is monitoring the battle from a safe location."

"That makes no sense whatsoever!!"

"Why wouldn't it!?" I shot back.

"If you are not the Sacred Threat, then who in the blazes are you!?"

"I've told you already. I am the Dragoon Knight."

"You ride a golden dragon, yet you claim not to be the Sacred Threat!?"

"The golden dragon and your so-called 'Sacred Threat' have nothing to do with each other."

"Do not play games with me! I am asking whether you are the genuine article or an impostor!!"

"I understand what you are asking."

"Then where is the real one!?"

"In another location."

"Then what are you!?"

"An enemy of the Demon King's army."

"An enemy of our army, yet not the real threat!? Does that mean you are an impostor!?"

"It's not quite like that either. Look, it's a long story..."

"Ughaaaaaaaaaaaah!!"

Demon General Gaizes let out an infuriated roar.

"You bastard!! Do you intend to bewilder us with your convoluted double-talk!?"

That was the very first time in my life anyone had ever accused me of having 'clever silver-tongued speech.'

"If you refuse even to converse plainly, then I shall beat the answers out of you by force!!" Gaizes barked.

"AWOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!"

Demon General Gaizes and his beastfolk troops howled in unison.

Kicking off the earth, they charged directly toward us.

"Crush the enemy before us! All units, advance in the 'Wolf-Breaker Formation'!!" Gaizes commanded.

"Master! The monsters are banding together and charging as one!!" Holly warned urgently.

Suddenly, Holly the golden dragon raised her voice.

"By connecting with each other, they're condensing their dark mana! It acts as both a barrier and a spear—if a human touches it, they'll take heavy damage!!" she explained.

"That's bad," I gritted my teeth. "I'd like to warn everyone if possible..."

My messenger Phantom Pawns were currently unavailable.

The Phantom Pawn had gone off to escort my Body Double to the rear. After that, it remained away from the battlefield.

That was to vanish out of sight in a place where no one was watching.

If a soldier suddenly appeared or vanished right in front of people, everyone would freak out.

Because of that, I had no messengers on hand right now.

I could use amplification magic, but then the enemy would hear my warnings too.

Giving detailed tactical instructions was out of the question. Which meant—

"As the Dragoon Knight... can I break their 'Wolf-Breaker Formation'?" I asked.

"You can!" Holly assured me. "All you have to do is sever the dark mana tether linking the beastfolk together!"

By linking up, the Demon General and his subordinates created a giant mass of dark mana.

If we cut that tether, the 'Wolf-Breaker Formation' would crumble.

Once their connection was severed and they were scattered, our forces could pick off the beastfolk individually.

"So... we don't need to clash with them head-on?" I clarified.

"Nope! We just need to weave right through the gaps in their ranks!" she cheered.

"Got it. Lead the way, Holly," I nodded.

"Roger that!" Holly chimed back eagerly.

"Just to be safe, I'd better recall the Phantom Pawns," I decided.

“Set them on auto?” I asked.

“Can you really do something like that?”

“They can handle the basics—returning to us and automatically fighting any monsters they run into!” Holly chirped brightly.

“Let’s go with that, then.”

“Yay! This is Master and Holly’s very first joint operation!” she declared happily.

“I didn’t realize this world had an expression like that...” I mumbled under my breath.

Lowering my stance, I readied my spear.

Holly, the Golden Dragon, pumped herself up and broke into a full sprint.

With that, I charged straight into the enemy lines overflowing with black mana.

—Outside the Battlefield—

“To think he used such slick rhetoric to completely bamboozle Demon General Gaizes... What a cowardly human!”

The familiar Daros kept sprinting as fast as his legs could carry him, keeping his back turned to the battlefield.

His wings remained tightly folded against his back.

As a monstrous bird standing over two meters tall, taking flight now would instantly draw unwanted attention.

If he accidentally caught the Golden Knight’s eye, his life would be as good as forfeit.

I need to wait until that bastard is fully locked in combat with Demon General Gaizes before I take to the sky, he reasoned.

“Is the Golden Knight truly unrelated to the Sacred Threat? And yet, he acted as if he knew their exact whereabouts. Or was even that a lie? Regardless... I must report this to Lord Chancellor at once.”

Muttering those anxious thoughts under his breath, Daros desperately pressed onward.

“I will survive this. I must survive... and deliver this intelligence to Lord Chancellor...”

Gaizes had questioned whether the Dragoon Knight was the ancient Great Sage—the Sacred Threat—or someone associated with them.

Yet the answer he had received was that the threat was somewhere else entirely.

That was impossible.

After all, the Golden Dragon was a direct subordinate of the Sacred Threat.

If he was commanding that very dragon... was he really trying to claim he was a completely different person from the Sacred Threat?

What’s more, when Gaizes asked if the real deal had been resurrected, he had gotten that absurdly feigned, evasive response about not being at full strength yet.

It had been impossible to glean any real information from the exchange between the Dragoon Knight and Gaizes.

The knight had expertly deflected Gaizes’s questions with sheer silver-tongued rhetoric.

“The Dragoon Knight must have fed us false information specifically to throw our forces into disarray!” Daros hissed through gritted teeth.

He could have easily ignored Gaizes’s inquiries altogether.

Instead, the Dragoon Knight had likely seen right through all of their intentions from the start.

Armed with that foresight, he had deliberately wielded cunning words to sow chaos within the Demon Lord’s army.

That monster was, without a shadow of a doubt, the natural enemy of the Demon Lord’s army.

“He has to be a master orator... A strategist whose intellect might even rival Lord Chancellor’s own!”

Gasping for air, the familiar Daros continued his frantic retreat.

“However... I am the one who survived! That is all that matters! In the end, only the wise deserve to live!” he cackled self-importantly.

Shouting his triumph aloud, Daros unfurled his massive wings.

I should be safe enough at this distance, he thought.

All that remained was to launch himself into the vast blue sky.

Once airborne, he would cross beyond the realm of the Mithrafil Kingdom in the blink of an eye.

“Demon General Gaizes! I shall make sure the valuable intelligence you provided reaches Lord Chancellor without fail!!”

Just as the familiar Daros uttered those words and prepared to leap skyward—

Pitter-patter-pitter-patter.

The sudden sound of approaching footsteps caused Daros to freeze in his tracks.

Glancing toward the noise, he spotted a soldier clad head-to-toe in gleaming golden armor.

By all appearances, it was undeniably an ally of the Dragoon Knight.

“W-Why is one of his minions here!?” Daros squawked in sheer panic. “Don’t tell me... Did the Dragoon Knight foresee that soldiers from the Demon Lord’s army would try to flee!? To possess such terrifying foresight... even Lord Chancellor couldn’t—Eek!?”

The familiar desperately scrambled to take flight.

Alas, he was a second too late.

Or rather, he was completely exhausted from sprinting at full speed earlier.

Before Daros could even lift his feet off the ground, the golden soldier darted over, and—

“…………”

“Ghyaaaaaaaaah!!”

And with a swift slice from the Phantom Pawn’s blade, the familiar Daros breathed his last.

—Kaito’s Perspective—

“Ah, looks like one of the Phantom Pawns just took down a monster,” I noted.

“Don’t worry about it, Master! The Phantom Pawns are running on auto mode anyway!” Holly piped up.

“Right.”

“Just ignore small fry like that and stay focused!”

“Got it.”

“Here we go! Woooahhhhhhhh!” she roared enthusiastically.

“Hup!”

Together, Holly and I charged headlong into the enemy ranks.

Glancing over my shoulder... I noticed Merida and the Soul of Flash were surprisingly close behind us. Julia of the Seven Swords was practically riding on my tail. Even though I’d used amplification magic to tell them to back off, none of them showed any signs of retreating.

They were probably all prepared to lay down their lives to save the world.

Still, I really didn’t want Merida and the others to die.

I didn't have many acquaintances in this world, after all.

I wanted the people I could trust to stay alive and healthy by my side... Or rather, at a comfortable distance where they wouldn't make me nervous.

That’s why I had to shatter the Wolf-Breaker Formation myself, no matter what.

“Master, match Holly’s movements!” she called back.

“Roger that,” I replied.

“Charge! Seiyaaaaaaahhhhh!!”

“Seiyaah!”

Purifying the black mana as we went, we smashed right through the enemy lines.

“Gau!?”

“Gao-gau-gau-gahhhhh!?”

“Wooooah!? What is this?! What the hell is this!?”

The Dragoon Knight’s spear severed the magical links binding the enemy soldiers together.

Their coordination instantly crumbled. Throwing off their balance, werewolf soldiers stumbled, pitched backward, and tumbled head over heels onto the dirt.

Every single one of the Demon General’s subordinates had been connected through that black mana.

By plunging straight between them, I tore wide gaps through their magical network.

On top of that, blasting them with the Dragoon Knight’s mana thoroughly purified the black magic.

The sheer shock of the impact left the enemy soldiers tripping over their own feet and rolling across the ground.

“To break the Wolf-Breaker Formation, all we have to do is unravel their connection of black mana and scatter them to the winds... right?” I muttered to myself.

Holly and I forced our way into the narrow gaps between enemy rank-and-file, plowing right past them.

With every pass, enemies recoiled in shock and collapsed onto the ground.

The Wolf-Breaker Formation was unraveling before our very eyes.

The sinister black mana dissipated into thin air, fading away into nothingness.

That was when the Soul of Flash swept in—

“The Dragoon Knight has shattered their formation!!” someone shouted.

“Disorganized werewolves are no match for us!!” another bellowed.

“Leave the rest to us!! We shall dedicate this victory to our lord!!”

“A-Ah, by 'our lord', of course I mean Lord Vargas Kaito, not the Dragoon Knight...”

Even while chatting away, they efficiently finished off the fallen werewolves one after another.

The enemy formation was rapidly falling apart.

If viewed from above, it probably looked like a crumbling rice ball scattering into individual grains.

Having successfully broken through the enemy lines, Demon General Gaizes was now right within my sight.

“To think my Wolf-Breaker Formation could be broken! But hear me!! I, Gaizes, shall bring the Sacred Threat to—”

“Hup!”

“Wait! I’m not finished speaking—Ghyaaaaah!!”

The Dragoon Knight’s spear blew Demon General Gaizes’s arm clean off.

“Refusing even basic dialogue... Humans truly are barbaric savages!” Gaizes howled in agony. “For the sake of His Majesty the Demon Lord, your kind must be eradicated!!”

“Master! This guy is surprisingly stubborn!” Holly noted.

“Got it. One more pass,” I replied.

Sailing past Gaizes, we pulled a sharp U-turn.

Lowering my spear once more, we charged right back at him.

“No more doubts, no more hesitations, no more thinking!! Die!! Demonic Wolf Massacre Slash!!”

As Demon General Gaizes wildly swung his massive broadsword in every direction, destructive shockwaves flew out all around him.

Directly in the path of those flying blades stood the mounted knight—Julia Ashgate.

“That’s why I told you to stay back...” I groaned. “Holly, full speed!!”

“You got it, Master!”

Spreading her wings, the Golden Dragon accelerated to incredible speed.

We positioned ourselves right in front of Julia Ashgate.

“Seiyaah!”

Fswish!

The Dragoon Knight’s spear deflected the shockwaves of the Demonic Wolf Massacre Slash into nothingness.

“…………Ah.”

Julia Ashgate’s face was deathly pale. Well, considering she’d just brushed shoulders with death, that was only natural.

“I told you... to stay back,” I said, deepening my voice.

“I-I am so sorry... I simply wanted to watch you up close... But I am truly sorry,” she stammered out, her cheeks flushing.

“As long as you understand.”

“I should have kept a proper distance, just like Merida Caintos and Randolph Dailos did.”

“Please do so next time, Julia Ashgate.”

“Y-You know my name?” she gasped in surprise.

“...Ah.”

...Crap.

She had just mentioned Merida’s and Randolph’s full names, so I’d accidentally slipped up without thinking.

“I heard it from Vargas Kaito! Earlier when his subordinate carried him he gathered intelligence and passed it along to me through a certain channel which is why I happened to know your name—Hup!!”

“Eek!?” she squeaked.

There was no time to keep making excuses.

Demon General Gaizes was still endlessly firing off his Demonic Wolf Massacre Slashes.

I knocked them aside with my spear one by one.

“Draw that blade and protect yourself, Julia Ashgate!” I shouted.

“Y-Yes, sir!”

Julia Ashgate drew the dagger she wore at her waist.

It was an ornate weapon adorned with jewels and intricate crests—it clearly possessed some magical effect.

“Good. Use that dagger to ward off any monsters.”

“Y-Yes... Wait, what?! Eeeeeeeeh!!” she shrieked in disbelief.

“Don’t worry. I’ll make sure no powerful monsters get near you.”

Julia Ashgate was one of the Seven Swords, after all. She could certainly handle defending herself.

I could understand being scared, but she really didn't need to scream so loudly.

“Well then, I’ll be taking my leave... Hup!”

“Deryaaaaah! Golden Dragon Charge!!”

Holly the Golden Dragon made a furious dash, slamming headfirst straight into Demon General Gaizes.

“G-Gugaaaaah!?”

The Demon General was sent flying, tumbling violently across the dirt.

Spear in hand, the Dragoon Knight closed the distance to his sprawling form.

“Any last words?” I asked.

I inquired calmly.

“If you have any remaining questions, information on the Demon Lord, or anything at all, leaving it behind would be very helpful for future reference... I mean, I’m not forcing you, but if possible. Actually, could you also explain in detail what you meant by your earlier question—”

“Shut up! As if I’d fall for your slick tongue again!!” Gaizes roared furiously.

Demon General Gaizes raised his remaining arm.

Claws magically enlarged into massive talons came crashing down toward Holly and me.

However, Holly and I were faster.

“Hup!”

“Deryaaaaaaah!” she shouted.

And with that, the Dragoon Knight’s spear pierced straight through Demon General Gaizes’s torso.

 —-

Toc