Chapter 213.3
Mubrial started inhaling heavily again. Welner, who was standing in the pit of his stomach, could see it. At this rate, new demons might be created again, he thought. When he looked at the Dark Knight in front of him with a hint of impatience, something else appeared in his vision.
Without even a moment to think, Welner started running. With all his might, he thrust his spear through the Dark Knight’s shoulder, and then let go of it, he then grabbed a ballista arrow that had fallen to the ground, heated and red from the inside.
The sound and smell of burning flesh rose from Welner’s palm.
“Gghhhh…!”
It was like clutching a burning iron rod. Although Welner had a leather glove on his hand, that too was soon worn out due to the high temperature, and it was burning Welner’s palm as it was. But Welner ran further, enduring the pain. He ran up to Mubrial’s hind legs.
Welner thrust his arrow into Mubrial’s leg, which was as thick as a tree several hundred years old, or more precisely, at the gap between the claw and the flesh of the hind leg. The burning metal rod was forced into the inside of Mubrial’s claw, which was as big as a child.
Mubrial, a demon whose sense of pain differed from that of humans, was indeed startled. He had never experienced such an attack.
Unable to bear the discomfort any longer, Mubrial stopped “inhaling” and opened his eyes. Seeing Welner nearby, he immediately swung his hind legs around and stomped on the ground.
Welner rolled around to get away, unable to stand up as his whole body was hit by the vibrations and the kicked-up dirt.
Welner’s foe, Dark Knight, was caught in the attack instead and was sent flying to the ramparts, where he was slammed down and stopped moving.
Everyone on the battlefield understood that Mubrial had suddenly changed his move, even though they did not know what was going on. Those who were able to attack from a distance focused on targeting Mubrial, while those who could fight at close quarters rushed in to cut down demons surrounding him.
The demons, whose leader Mubrial was upset, were slow to respond. They were pushed in at once. The battlefield quickly moved to Mubrial’s periphery, and sword fights, screams, and blood sprays began to cover the area.
Mubrial let out a scream and soared into the air. Mubrial circled once in the sky and started to fly away from the royal capital. Both friends and foes looked at it for a moment, then the Kingdom Army cheered.
The demons remaining on the outskirts of the royal capital were slaughtered and crushed. The demons were so shaken that they were running around, but there was no escape. One after another, they were hit by countless blades and pierced by arrows, and their corpses started to pile up.
As the sun was setting, the only people moving outside the city were the knights and soldiers of the Kingdom Army and the mercenaries. Once again, the Kingdom Army cheered, and the city’s inhabitants responded.
It was then that Welner was discovered, battered in the literal sense of the word. He had not been mortally wounded, but had lost consciousness at some point. When he was pulled out from among the motionless armor and the carcass of Bicorns, he was covered in blood, tallow, and dust, and looked like a muddy madman.
He was quickly brought back to the city and given medical treatment, and after being wiped with a wet cloth all over his body, Welner finally regained his human form. One of the knights, looking sincerely sorry, called out to Welner in the treatment room.
“Viscount Zeavert, I’m sorry about this but…”
“Yeah, reports, right? Got it, I’ll be there in a bit…”
Welner looked depressed as he downed a mug of water, but this was because he was indeed exhausted.
Still, Welner felt obligated to do his duty and went to Marquis Nolpoth’s main camp near the gates, but the marquis looked surprised and allowed him to return the next day to report to him.
When Welner returned to the Zeavert residence, he was greeted by a surprised-looking Claudia and Lily, who had returned earlier. When Claudia and Norbert asked him if he was okay, Welner told them that he was fine, but that he was tired anyway, and went to his room.
Lily followed him in a panic and opened the door to his room. Lily hesitantly called out to Welner as he staggered into the room. “Welner-sama, um, at least your jacket.”
“Lily.”
“Yes?”
“Are you all right?”
Lily looked surprised for a moment, but immediately nodded.
“Yes, I’m fine, thanks to Welner-sama.”
“I see… that’s good…”
“Welner-sama!”
Lily rushed over and tried to support Welner just before he fell, but it was impossible for her, who didn’t have the strength to support a man who was already on the verge of falling down. So Welner ended up falling down on top of Lily.
“Eh, um, Welner-sama? Um, you know.”
Even if Lily moved around, she could not get Welner off her. Welner was of a different size, so she was unable to push him away. In a mild panic, Lily called out to Welner for now, but he did not respond to her call.
Lily could not even move until another maid, concerned about her late return, came to check on her and saw her on the floor in a cuddly position.
The maid, startled, went to call Claudia and the others, and by the time Claudia saw the scene, she had a look of dismay on her face. This longest day in the royal capital was over, and soon the date had changed to the next day.