Side Story Chapter 142

‘I can’t get married on my own, you know. It takes two to get married,’

Lilith scoffed.

-I can give you a list of bachelors if you want. They’ll be lining up to propose to you.

‘Forget it. Anyhow, what does the Martial God think the odds of his son’s victory are?’

Lilith asked. The battle between Selim and Squalo the Pain Demon had started in earnest after Valmont stopped screaming.

Aura and demonic power fragments showered the battlefield. Although he was going up against one of the most powerful demons alive, Selim fought Squalo on equal terms, proving he was every bit as much of a genius as people said.

-Ugh... Damned human!

“So this is all a demon of your rank amounts to, huh,” Selim mumbled.

Paah!

Selim’s attack brushed past Squalo’s cheek. The demon gritted his teeth. He had used more power than he had originally intended in making the doll. His ability required drastically more power the stronger his target was. The human who was lying unconscious over there was stronger than Squalo had expected.

-There’s nothing more to see now. Let’s go.

“A-Already?” Lilith asked out loud.

‘The fight has just begun; shouldn’t you watch him a little longer before we leave? He’s your son.’

-I have other, more urgent fires to put out first, which I can do

because

he’s my son. Selim is much stronger than you think.

‘But...’

-And you seem to be forgetting that there’s one more person here.

Lilith sensed an intense gaze prickling her skin and flinched. She turned to look.

An elderly man was quietly looking down the battlefield from on top of a small mountain of undead. Lilith had met him before, of course.

“The Sword Emperor...” Lilith muttered.

Duke Tremblin’s reputation was known across the entire continent.

Lilith blinked and Tremblin was right in front of her.

“Is that you, Your Majesty?”

-Can you deliver exactly what I say, please?

Lilith nodded in reply to Joshua, but Tremblin’s expression subtly changed.

“What in the world happened?” Tremblin asked.

“‘There’s no time to explain. Please take care of Selim.’”

Although Lilith was the one saying the words, Tremblin knew beyond doubt that the message indubitably came from Joshua.

“Where are you going next?” the duke begrudgingly asked.

“‘The demons have only one goal: claim the dying Demon Spirit’s power and use it to rule the Human Realm. Avalon is only the first stage of their plan.’”

“The D-Demon Spirit?”

“‘Don’t worry. Without the help of the Evil Sins' powers, it’s impossible to even approach the Demon Spirit.’”

Tremblin heaved a slow sigh of relief. “Then have you been away to stop demons from approaching...?”

“‘As I told you earlier, we’re out of time. Can I leave you in charge?’”

Tremblin felt bad for Joshua. Everyone in the world praised and respected him, but there couldn’t be a more pitiful and tragic life than Joshua’s. To protect his other family, he had fought a battle to the death with his own father, and then he’d had to turn his sword on his own emperor. For the sake of the continent, he had fought against the Demon Spirit on his own for over a decade, and the fight was still ongoing.

“...Is there anything else I can do to help?” Tremblin asked.

Lilith’s expression was grim like Tremblin’s, but she shook her head. “He says that there isn’t.”

“...I understand. Please take care of His Majesty.”

“Really, I should be the one asking him to take care of me, since he’s the strongest person on the continent,” Lilith mused.

Tremblin smiled brightly. “As one of his citizens, I’m always proud of His Majesty for that.”

* * *

Lilith’s feet produced a loud

bang

with each step as she bounded across the plains. Each leap sent her soaring dozens of meters into the air, making the army of undead near the castle gates look like ants.

‘Where are we going now?’

Lilith asked.

-To the Palace.

‘Why would... Ah, is that because of your other son?’

-Yes, you’re right. I have a bad feeling about this.

The connection to Kireua had been severed at some point, hence the hurry. However, the world was, as always, not so accommodating.

-Where are you off to in such a hurry?

Lilith's eyes widened. She was still high up, but the voice seemed to be echoing around her ears in the same way as Squalo had spoken. When she looked forward, she could see another demon with his arms crossed and wings spread wide. Although the demon had the body of a human, his head was that of a crow.

‘What do I do?’

Lilith asked Joshua.

She couldn’t land on the ground again because thousands of crows swept across the sky. They were red crows, monsters of the Demonic Realm with scarlet eyes, so it was clear that the moment she tried to make for the ground, the enormous murder of crows would strike.

-Focus on staying in the sky and concentrating mana in your feet. I’ll do the rest.

‘What are you going to do? Fighting in the sky isn’t my specialty. In fact, I haven’t even done it before.’

-Animals tend to scatter once their leader is dead.

Lilith calmly started her mana hall, allowing her to remain suspended in the air for a longer time as if gravity no longer existed in defiance of all reason.

She shook her head in resignation.

‘It’s not even surprising anymore.’

The demon in front of her flapped his wings once again.

-I knew it. You are no ordinary human. A bipedal creature who can stay in the sky...

“Who are you?” Lilith asked.

-You’re going to die , so why do you want to know?

“It’s actually the opposite. I just happen to be polite enough that I remember the names of the opponents I slay.”

The demon uncrossed his arms.

-I see that you’re an interesting bitch. I’m Crowes, the Lightning Speed Demon, and also the forty-eighth strongest demon.

“Do demons always have such grandiose names?”

The murder of crows squawked loudly as if answering for the demon.

-I don’t get it. Where does your confidence come from?

“It’s not that weird. I’m so confident right now that I feel like I can bring anyone in the world to their knees.” Lilith shrugged.

The strongest man in the world was helping her, so Lilith was certain that she could beat the Demon Spirit itself.

-...It’s faint, but I can feel traces of the power of Lust. Seems I’ll have to crush you first and get answers later.

“That’s a neat conclusion. I like you the most among the demons I’ve met until now. Yeah, you should talk only after you win.”

Crowes’ black wings flapped once again. While Lilith was distracted by the flurry of motion, the demon disappeared from view.

“What...?” Lilith blankly mumbled. She tilted her head, confused.

-Behind you.

Lilith jerked her head around, but gasped when she found her jaw caught by Crowes, who turned it this way and that like she was a curious specimen.

“Eeek!” Lilith immediately swung her sword, but only managed to cut air. Crowes lived up to his title—he really was a demon as fast as lightning. Lilith could barely even see him when he was in motion.

-You lost all chances of winning when you chose the sky as our battlefield.

Lilith could understand where Crowes’s confidence was coming from. His ability would shine in the vast open expanses of the sky, naturally granting him a tremendous advantage in an aerial battle.

‘What should we do? I already have enough trouble following his movements,’

Lilith asked.

-...We have no other choice. Well, it’s my first time using a sword like this, though.

Lilith's eyes widened when she realized what Joshua meant.

‘Are you going to fight him yourself?’

-You don’t have much of a choice in the sky.

‘You said that you already overworked yourself.’

-I have enough strength left to deal with a guy like him.

‘“A g-guy like him”...?’

Crowes was too formidable an opponent to be treated that casually.

-Fight fire with fire, right? So I should use speed against a fast opponent.

‘Speed...?’

-You don’t need to move.

‘What in the world are you planning?’

Instead of answering, Joshua took action. Lilith’s body suddenly moved against her will.

-...Did you give up?

Crowes stared, baffled, as Lilith sheathed her sword in the middle of their intense battle.

‘Wh-Wh-What are you doing?’

Lilith, asked, equally bewildered.

-Trust me with this like you did before.

‘B-But...!’

-This is one of the few sword techniques that I learned by observation. It’s simple, but quite fast and strong. I guarantee you that this fight will be over in less than a second.

While Lilith was still busy being surprised, Crowes flapped his wings again and curled his fingers, readying his lethally sharp nails.

-If you have a death wish, I’ll be happy to start by tearing out your heart. I can still get answers from your corpse.

The world around Lilith turned dark. For a moment, she thought that Crowes had struck so fast that she hadn’t even noticed that she had died.

‘D-Did you close my eyes?’

-Use this opportunity to learn that you don’t have to try catching up with a faster opponent. You can use their speed to your advantage.

‘Are you seriously giving me a lesson right now...?’

-He’s coming.

Joshua’s words immediately shut Lilith up. She heard Crowes’s wings flap, and then not a sound, as if the sounds themselves had disappeared.

‘My hand... is moving,’

she realized, feeling her muscles flex and bend.

Then came the visceral sound of metal cutting through flesh.

‘...Wait. Cutting? Not stabbing?’

Lilith warily cracked her eyelids open, and her jaw dumbly fell open.

Her sword was drawn, and the half-animal demon was plummeting to the ground, headless.

“...Wh-What in the world happened?”