Chapter 33 - Tail

Chapter 33 - Tail

"It's meaningless."

Commander Shimenna brushed his hair back.

"The defensive line is meaningless, Marcello."

He looked up at the sky.

"The Demon King's army will invade the same way again. It's obvious. I would do the same."

"Because it works."

"Yes, we have no way to counter their aerial advantage. As for Mago, Mago is…"

The second invasion.

He remembered Mago, who had brought down the demons with spears in the capital.

"He managed to strike them with his spear, but only when they were flying low. When they descended to shake off the demons stuck in their claws. It wasn't a fundamental solution."

"If they fly that low, even arrows or guns could take them down."

"Right. Mago just had a high hit rate. But if they fly higher and ignore us to go directly for the emperor?"

"We'd be surrounded after losing the inner regions…"

"And eventually wiped out."

Commander Shimenna shook his head.

"The time between the first and second invasions was spent preparing special armor and troops. It'll be the same this time. No, since they've done it once, it'll be even faster."

"What do you think, Commander Shimenna?"

"What do I think about what?"

"About how to stop the Demon King's aerial attacks."

"I know the method, but I have no means to execute it."

"What's the method?"

"We need to face them the same way. We need our own aerial forces."

"That's why…"

Marcello gestured forward.

A large iron cage.

Inside, a black-winged demon thrashed violently.

It was one of the flying demons that had escorted the green demons.

The cage shook every time the creature struggled.

Beside it were ten more iron cages, each holding the same type of demon.

"You're planning to use these things?"

"If possible."

Commander Shimenna raised his voice.

"Louis Murphy!"

"Yes!"

Louis came running.

On the way, Shimenna spoke to Marcello.

"Louis is a hunter from the outskirts of the capital."

"So what?"

"I heard she trained and hunted with birds of prey like hawks and eagles."

Louis quickly saluted as she arrived.

"Louis Murphy. What's the status of the demons?"

"Well, they don't understand commands, sir. My apologies."

"What do you mean, they don't understand commands?"

"When I trained hawks, I conditioned them so that my commands would correspond to specific actions. The same principle applies to dogs or cats. I tried to train these demons similarly, so that human language would translate into their actions… But they've already learned the language of demons first. As a result, they confuse my commands with the demon language, making communication impossible."

"Hm… Any other reports?"

"None, sir. My apologies."

"Report immediately if there are any changes."

"Yes, sir!"

Commander Shimenna returned the salute and turned away.

"We're trying to secure an aerial force, but as you can see, it's not going well."

"It might be better to seek cooperation from vampires."

"Vampires?"

"They can transform into bats. Or rather, something big resembling bats."

"They're useless during the day."

"Oh."

"If they could operate in daylight, we might consider asking for their help. But demons come first anyway…"

"This isn't the time to be picky."

"You're right about that. We're at the point where even a cat's help would be welcome. Not that it was intentional, but we're already looking into the vampires."

"Already?"

"Mago's on it."

"No wonder Mago's not here… So that's why."

"Oh? You noticed Mago was missing?"

"The men keep talking about it. They really miss him. Some are even looking forward to sparring with him."

"Now that, I'd like to see too."

"Why send Mago to investigate the vampires?"

"Mago volunteered. He wanted to uncover the truth about the death of the instructor at the First Training Camp. Claimed the vampires pose a threat to humanity and stormed off. But I can't imagine vampires who've been quietly staying out of trouble suddenly siding with the Demon King."

"Wouldn't that make it even more reasonable to ask for their cooperation?"

"They're useless in daylight, I said."

"Oh."

"You really don't listen, do you?"

"That's not true."

"Unless Mago finds a mutated type that can operate during the day, all we can do is hope he learns to trust his comrades better."

***

"I've heard about the capital," the man said, his eyes darting nervously.

It looked like he was about to cry.

"They say demons fell from the sky. The imperial army has no way to counter aerial attacks…"

There was nothing to refute.

I knew the imperial army's situation better than anyone.

"And if they invade the same way again? What then?"

The man answered his own question.

"Everyone will die again. Retreat. Lose more territory again."

"The imperial army isn't that weak…"

"There's only one superhuman like Marcello Arnis. The rest will just die powerless…"

The man's voice began to shake.

"I don't want to die. Damn it…"

"So you chose to become a vampire?"

"Yes…! What's so wrong with that? Is fighting demons the only kind of courage? No, choosing to become a vampire despite the risks is also courage…!"

"Enough…"

"If you can't fly away, you're just trapped in a cage."

The man fell silent after that.

At first, I was furious.

His cowardice filled me with rage.

Succumbing to fear and choosing to become a demon himself—it disgusted me.

But I couldn't find the right words.

To tell him he was wrong.

To confidently declare that humanity could win this war.

I couldn't say it.

Not when I had witnessed the war dragging on for eight more years.

It left a bitter taste in my mouth.

The bitterness overshadowed the anger.

And then—

"Who are you?"

A low, cold voice.

Madame Anne.

A voice that shouldn't be here, especially from behind me.

I quickly pulled my hood lower.

"What business do you have with my guest?"

Her footsteps drew closer.

Each sharp click on the floor felt like a blow to my heart.

My pulse pounded in my temples, my heart racing wildly.

"Stop right there."

Before she could grab me, I reversed my grip on my sword.

"Move and he dies."

She was right behind me now.

Close enough to reach out and touch me.

The moment the thought crossed my mind, her left hand moved close to the hood.

Just before my hidden identity was about to be exposed.

I gritted my teeth and quickly turned around.

Using the sword I had reversed to hold,i covered my face.

At the same time.

"Ugh…"

Madam Ann narrowed her brows and lowered her head.

She had confirmed the shape of the cross-like sword.

She couldn't bear to look directly at the sword.

Her furrowed brows, turning her head, and the cold sweat dripping from her face.

Somehow, it resembled me.

She tightly shut her eyes.

I knew that feeling better than anyone.

She must have felt utterly powerless.

The weapon I received from El had a definite effect.

Thanks to it, I bought some time.

I climbed the wall of the alley and made my way to the roof of a nearby one-story building.

Before Madam Ann could pursue, I ran at full speed, creating some distance.

"If it wasn't for this sword…"

I might have had my skull pierced by lightning right there.

But it wasn't over yet.

I hid the sword and raincoat, then went back.k.

"Madam? What's wrong?"

"Mago… I trusted you with this, and you went off somewhere, leaving the customer?"

Madam Ann, as expected, got angry first.

"I'm sorry. But I was on my way back after safely seeing the guest off… I've done everything I was supposed to do."

"This isn't the time for excuses, Mago."

"I'm sorry."

"So, where did you go after leaving the carriage?"

What should I say?

I thought it through.

When the team members asked such questions, there was always one common excuse.

The same excuse to the point of being boring.

"D…."

"D?"

"I just went to have a cigarette."

The cigarette excuse was the most common one.

"You smoked too?"

"Sometimes. Especially in the early mornings. It helps me wake up."

Maybe because I'd heard this so many times, the lie came out smoothly.

"Come here for a second."

As instructed, I approached her.

She grabbed me by the collar and brought her face closer.

Naturally, there would have been the smell of cigarette smoke.

Though I hadn't smoked, the Anaconda building was filled with a thick haze of cigarette smoke.

It had been quite a while since I got used to it while working at Anaconda.

"Hmm…"

She tapped my shoulder as she got closer, then stepped back.

Fortunately, I avoided raising her suspicions.

"Mago, follow me."

"Yes, understood."

"The guest you just saw off…"

By the time she finished speaking, I saw the man.

He would remember my voice, so I had to be careful with what I said from here on.

But, despite that thought,

"Ugh…?"

The man rolled his eyes over and collapsed to the ground.

"Ugh…!"

He covered his mouth with one hand.

"Guest?"

Madam Anne also paid attention.

The man quickly vomited blood.

Dark red blood.

There were no foreign objects in it.

He collapsed to the floor, groaning.

"Guest!"

Madam Anne rushed over.

Just as she was about to pat his back,

Something protruded from his back, piercing through his clothes.

Ash-gray wings.

The shape, at a glance, resembled a bat's.

There was only one wing, not a pair.

Only one wing spread out.

The man squirmed, his body crashing against the narrow alley walls, repeatedly falling.

He couldn't adapt to his transformed body.

I was now looking at a man with wings.

An outsider like me.

"Madam Anne."

Now, what will you say?

"Disgusting."

"What did you say…?"

It was an unexpected response.

'Disgusting.'

Who made him like that?

"P… Please… help…"

The man muttered, wiping the blood from his mouth with the back of his hand.

"Mago, step back."

Madam Anne extended her left arm, blocking me.

"Wait a second, Madam."

I instinctively knew what she was about to do.

But I had no chance to stop her.

She lifted the arm she used to block me, raising it high.

She raised it, moving it to her back.

A flash of blue light blazed.

Then, a glowing arrow appeared in her hand.

A thick shaft, slender branches.

The lightning stretched out unpredictably.

On the other side, her right arm.

She held the blue bow that appeared at her call.

Thunder boomed in succession.

"Madam… save… me…"

The man begged with a trembling voice.

Madam Anne ignored him and prepared an arrow made of lightning.

"Madam!"

Even as I called out, it was no use.

Madam held her breath.

It felt like an unusually long silence.

Though it lasted less than a second, the booming thunder that had been continuous stopped, and it felt prolonged.

Perhaps it was because I knew that after the silence came the man's death.

Maybe she too wanted to feel the last moment for just a little longer.

I too, and the man.

As soon as Madam Anne released the arrow, the thunder that had stopped echoed once more.

A flash of light.

Again, just like before.

When I squeezed my eyes shut and opened them again, the man was dead.

His head had been pierced, or rather,

It had vanished entirely. He had clearly died instantly.

"Thankfully."

Madam Anne spoke.

"Phew… If it weren't for me, that would have been dangerous, Mago. That… was a monster, wasn't it?"

"Yes… a monster."

I glared at her unchanging expression.

"Our enemy."

She was about to be caught by the tail.

The Anaconda, like a lizard, cut off its own tail.

She showed no sign of emotion.