After walking for a short while, we caught sight of a huge, stone wall far off in the distance. It had to be over a dozen meters tall.
So, this was Sylfes, the royal capital.
We could have made the journey faster by carriage, if we had been in a position to use one. But dang, had the way here been a long one.
“There it is!” exclaimed Yui.
“Yup, that’s the royal capital of Sylfes. Pretty impressive, huh?” said Daggers, looking at the stone wall.
“Ugh, that took forever! Still, I had fun, so I guess that doesn’t matter!”
“Yeah, it’d have been fun if not for that last bit,” said Cross.
I agreed. It would have been a pleasant journey, save for that surprise attack by the demons. But this was a quest, and we had been entrusted with guarding Claira. I had been prepared for that to be the case.
It seemed like Claira had enjoyed the journey too. “We’re finally here!”
“Yeah, we are.”
Apparently, two Heroes had already gathered in the royal capital, and with the addition of Therion, that meant all the Heroes would soon be in one place. The Three Great Nations had stripped Allen of his title, so he didn’t count.
“Three Heroes all in the royal capital, huh?” With that much might gathered in Sylfes, the demons were in no position to try anything. If they did, it’d mean a full-blown war, and I was pretty sure that wasn’t something they wanted either.
“Hmph! The other Heroes are nothing, y’know.”
“Therion! Don’t fight with the others. Please?”
“Right, fine. I’ll do my best.”
It’d been a long time since I last heard someone so obviously and falsely make that claim. Master Merlin used to do it all the time. I’d tell her to clean, and she’d just say, “Yeah, I’ll do my best.” It was almost nostalgic.
Those were the thoughts on my mind as we approached the capital. We were almost there, which meant...
“We’ve got business, so can we say our goodbyes here?” asked Yui.
It was time we bid farewell to the townspeople. If possible, I had wanted to see them the entire way. But they could only enter through the main gate, and there was a chance that Claira’s secret would slip if we traveled together any farther.
“O-Of course. Thank you so much for everything.”
“Don’t mention it! Oh, and we’ll talk things over, so you’ve got no need to worry! Just bide your time and wait a bit!”
“Y-You have my deepest gratitude, and apologies. You really have done so much for us...”
After saying our goodbyes, we headed for the agreed-upon meeting spot. A few knights had already gathered there. This was a top secret mission, so there weren’t many of them, but they all looked much stronger than the average knight. These guys had to be elites, even among the Royal Knights. Plus, there were two Heroes waiting at the castle as well. We clearly had nothing to worry about.
Once we drew close, the one dressed in the most brilliant armor—he had to be the captain—caught sight of us and approached. Then, he bowed before us. “Welcome to the royal capital of Sylfes. I am Elizario, captain of the Royal Knights. It is a pleasure to make your acquaintances.”
✦ ✦ ✦
Just as Lloyd and the others arrived in the capital, a certain demon ran through the distant woods. It was Grist, exhausted, in tatters, and desperately trying to escape the kingdom’s territories. At times, he’d take his anger out on the monsters he’d encounter, ripping them to shreds before resuming his lightning-fast escape.
He ran as quickly as he could, like a fleeing hare. However, the green-haired demon Mischel was nowhere to be seen. But why?
Plainly, Grist no longer needed him. He no longer cared whether Mischel lived or died. He had failed his quest, which meant he’d receive no reward.
“Damn it! That useless idiot! Following me around so shamelessly despite failing my quest! What a damn...!” Grist’s anger was written all over his face. He was greatly disappointed in Mischel. “Damn it all to hell! That ‘savior’ is still fit as can be! The former Demon King’s right-hand man?! Like hell he is! Sure, he’s a little strong and knows some stuff, but he’s just your average demon! There’s millions just like him!”
Grist had employed Mischel in preparation for that big shot, whom he was expecting to be with Claira. But apparently, the right-hand man had grown rusty. He completely failed to meet Grist’s expectations.
“Tch! The new Demon King was right! Sure, maybe he’s famous, but he’s just a damn relic of the past!” Words shared by the Demon King flitted through his head. “No wonder His Majesty took him out of the running in the new order,” muttered Grist.
Yes, the Demon King was preparing a new order, which was exactly why Grist was so desperate to prove himself, even if it meant long, drawn-out plots. He hoped to claim the single title that paled only to the Demon Kings.
“Well, I didn’t stand a damn chance in the first place, with that monster and abnormality with them...” While Grist couldn’t accept this outcome, he also began to think this plan was doomed from the start. For one, Therion—who he did have intel on—was a self-centered egoist, which made him unpredictable. But as he rarely acted heroic, Grist wasn’t expecting him to jump into action. He just didn’t know how desperate Therion could be when it came to Claira, even after sneaking his way into the empire’s Five Commanders. Or rather, infiltrating was his job, so he had only judged the others based on the level of threat they had posed. That’s why he had failed to notice Therion’s affections.
But if Therion had fought alone, things wouldn’t have turned out like this, even if Grist still wouldn’t have proven victorious. It was the additional appearance of Lloyd—the abnormality the demons had no intel on—that marked his fate. His origins and true strength remained mysteries. Naturally, Grist had no way of predicting this outcome.
“I better report this...”
The Phantom Alchemist lived. While his skills had rusted, he remained a threat.
Messing with Claira meant messing with Therion, the Hero of Crystal.
And that mysterious white mage.
Grist had to report all of it. So, he ran.