1066: Demon Knight

The day after we delivered the refugees from Dars to Rokkars, we left the town at sunrise.

Our destination was Metelmam, a village that the guild had lost contact with.

They said its at the end of that mountain path. Should be there in about an hour with Urus.h.i.+.

Nn.

When the guildmaster proposed the reconnaissance mission yesterday, Fran decided to accept after some consideration.

Metelmam was a village located near the border with the neighboring country of Phyllius, so losing Metelmam would mean also losing contact with Phyllius. That was one reason for her decision.

But the main reason was Charlottes safety. She was about to be sacrificed in some sort of ritual, and one that was supposed to take place in Metelmam. We might be able to learn more if we head there.

Thats why we decided to accept the request.

Urus.h.i.+ flew through the sky at such an alt.i.tude that his shadow was no longer visible, and we spotted something up ahead.

Woof!

Huh? Theres something flying over there

There was a black ent.i.ty hovering in the air ahead of us, though not quite as high as us. It had bat-like wings, so maybe it was a demon or some similar monster?

Metelmam was faintly visible in the distance, right below the flying ent.i.ty.

Just like when we scouted out Dars, our appearance had been masked with illusion magic and light magic. They had yet to notice us.

But what now? Attacking out of the blue seems like a bad idea. While its incredibly likely the flying ent.i.ty is related to Raydoss, we cant say for sure.

On the other hand, giving up the element of surprise in front of a potential enemy is just idiotic.

Launch a surprise attack? Reveal ourselves? Something else entirely?

However, we immediately lost the ability to choose. Upon getting closer, the ent.i.ty quickly displayed signs of noticing us.

It began scanning the surroundings before pointing its face directly at us. While maintaining a piercing stare, it rose up to the same alt.i.tude as Urus.h.i.+. I guess this ent.i.ty had perceptive abilities exceeding our expectations.

It found us?

I think so.

What now? Attack?

No, hold on. Since its come down to this, wed better find out who were dealing with first.

Okay.

Woof.

I know someones hiding there from the disturbance in the air currents! Show yourself!

Oh, that makes sense. So he had an ability for detecting changes in the air and wind. If you see the air currents curving around in the completely open sky, its pretty obvious that theres something hidden there.

We had no choice but to disable our concealment.

A child? Identify yourself.

An adventurer from Kranzel.

!

As soon as Fran replied, the mans face distorted into a violent scowl. Well, it was a bit hard to recognize his facial expressions due to the pitch-black skin.

Despite speaking with the voice of an adult man, his appearance was far from human. Honestly speaking, he was the splitting image of a demon.

Just look at his jet-black skin, bat wings, and slim but muscular figure. His armor was also jet-black, with a very sophisticated design. This was clearly the equipment of a knight or someone of a similar occupation.

Though his appearance was that of a demon equipped with black armor, his race was still somehow Human. Maybe it has something to do with his Demon Possession skill. This knight had somehow fused himself with a demon.

Leave at once. You are not allowed here.

I only want to check on Metelmam. Ill leave as soon as Im done.

!

The moment Fran mentioned Metelmam, the man unleashed a deadly fury. Then, he suddenly slashed at us out of nowhere.

Shah!

Mrgh!

Fran easily jumped back to avoid the slash, one clearly aimed to kill.

You managed to dodge me?

Are you from Raydoss?

Raydoss? You ask if Im from Raydoss?!

Someone cowardly enough to attack without naming themselves must be from Raydoss.

O-Of course not!

Okay, then tell me your name and affiliation.

Die!

It seems provoking him wasnt sufficient to draw any info out. Despite seemingly not working for Raydoss, the man wanted to stop us from reaching Metelmam.

The Kingdom of Phyllius comes to mind since hes using the power of demons, but then Id have to ask what hes even doing here?

My first guess would be that Phyllius was attempting to take advantage of the war by occupying Metelmam. However, Ive heard Phyllius wasnt interested in expanding its territory, right?

Worst case scenario, maybe Phyllius has already been taken over by Raydoss, like Seedran, and is now invading Kranzel alongside them.

Master, lets capture this guy.

Roger.

Thus began a fierce aerial clash between the two.

Our opponent seemed experienced in aerial combat due to his wings, but such wasnt enough to overcome the vast difference in abilities. Fran parried all of the demon knights strikes and severed a limb with each counterattack.

Its only been a few minutes since the start, and the guys limb regeneration was the only thing keeping him in the fight.

W-Whats with this kid?! Im one of the best swordsmen in my troop

The mans Holy Sword Mastery was at level 3, which explains his confidence. Moreover, he expected to have the advantage in an aerial clash. Getting pushed back so easily must have been astonis.h.i.+ng to him.

If we only wanted to take him down, doing so wouldnt be so hard. After all, Urus.h.i.+ had yet to join the fray. However, capturing an opponent with such potent regeneration is a different story.

That said, it seems our enemy also has yet to get serious.

You leave me no choice I offer my mana as your sustenance and my body as your vessel! Manifest now, Wind Demon!

Immediately afterward, the knights entire body was enveloped by a huge eruption of mana.