Geldorf greeted them in his study with an expression like none they had ever before seen on his face. The air was electric. He almost seemed like a different person.
“I’ll make this quick,” he said, his voice gruffer than usual. “War has broken out.”
The sound of the bell seemed to blare in Homura’s ear. That uneasy feeling that had been hanging over her had finally taken shape in the worst way imaginable.
“A war…? You don’t mean against the Dark Lord, do you?”
“No, not necessarily. But someone on the Dark Lord’s side is clearly lending them a hand,” Geldorf explained, his voice heavy. “There is a town named Wodtrim far to the east. It is responsible for keeping an eye on the neighboring country of Zhorguan. We’ve received word that a stone wall has suddenly appeared around Wodtrim. No one knows what is happening inside the wall.”
To the east…beyond School Village.
“There was someone among the last Dark Lord’s army, a survivor who was capable of using such magic.”
Homura remembered that Torreque, the captain of the Aurerich garrison, had mentioned there were demons on the Dark Lord’s side skilled at fortification magic.
“Based on that alone, we might have assumed the Dark Lord’s army was attacking, but according to those who managed to flee the town, most of the attacking demons were warriors from Zhorguan.”
“What is Zhorguan? Why would they attack us?”
Homura already knew that Galdorssia was surrounded by countries that were either hostile or mutually noninterfering, but she hadn’t been told any more than that.
“Come to think of it, I’ve never discussed Galdorssia’s history or borders with you in detail, have I?” Geldorf said. “First of all, you should know that Galdorssia has been fighting demonkind since the days of yore. But demons were not always united, and there were many demonic races that were not originally hostile toward Galdorssia.”
“But then the Dark Lord appeared a hundred years ago, right?”
“Correct. The Dark Lord united the demon races that were not yet hostile to Galdorssia. Nearly all of them. The Dark Lord’s army then waged a war, focusing its attacks on Galdorssia. We humans have yet to take back most of the countries and settlements that were lost during that war.”
“So far, I knew most of that…”
Homura remembered what Ares had told them, back in Aurerich. But she didn’t know any more than that.
“After we managed to beat back the Dark Lord, Galdorssia focused on beefing up its defenses and built several satellite settlements around the Holy City. That is why there are so many towns and villages surrounding us now. The settlements along the roads that extend outward from Galdorssia serve both as routes of communication with neighboring countries and as a network for keeping an eye out for demon activity.”
“So that is why so many of the surrounding villages are considered a part of Galdorssia.”
“The town of Aurerich, which you girls visited the other day, belongs to the Schelles Sea Alliance, to the south. It was not built by Galdorssia, but we ally with Aurerich for the same purposes.”
“I see…” Homura nodded.
“And while we have built a friendly relationship with the Alliance, that is not true for every country around us. Some are staunch noninterventionists, while others would attack us given half a chance.”
“You mean like Zhorguan…!”
“Yes, like Zhorguan.” Geldorf nodded. “A handful of demons rule over the humans of Zhorguan, which has long been hostile to Galdorssia. Despite this, Zhorguan is not associated with the Dark Lord. Although they were causing trouble for Galdorssia even before the last Dark Lord appeared, Zhorguan never joined the Dark Lord’s army in the end. Likely they wanted to take Galdorssia for their own, rather than to fall under the Dark Lord’s dominion.”
“Back to the original question: What is Zhorguan after?”
“That we don’t know. The Dark Lord’s army clearly despises humans, as well as the benevolent creator of this world, who has sided with us. But in Zhorguan’s case, their motives are less clear.”
“How so…?”
“Maybe they just want more territory. Maybe they hate the Goddess and humans, like the demons do. But if that were all, it doesn’t seem like there would be any reason for them not to work with the Dark Lord in the first place.”
“I guess that makes sense.”
If demon tribes had different ways of thinking, then obviously their interests wouldn’t always align. That must be why not all demonkind had united in the end, even after the Dark Lord appeared.
“Moving on, Zhorguan ceased pestering Galdorssia once we drove back the previous Dark Lord. This is due to the fact that, in order to bolster the city’s defenses, we began to train the powerful warriors known as Holy Protectorates, who remain permanently stationed within the city. We also built the fortress settlement of Wodtrim in order to keep a better eye on Zhorguan.”
“But Zhorguan has attacked Wodtrim now, correct?”
“It seems safe to assume so, since the attack on Wodtrim was carried out by Zhorguan’s beast-man soldiers. They must have taken Wodtrim so quickly that they didn’t have time to raise smoke signals.”
“Of course, of course… Wait a second.” While she listened to Geldorf’s explanation, a question suddenly occurred to Homura. “Weren’t there soldiers in Wodtrim? It’s an important settlement, isn’t it?”
“There were. Highly seasoned gold-badge Aegis Guard soldiers, in fact. Zhorguan’s forces should not have been able to defeat them. If they were capable of that, Zhorguan would have attacked Wodtrim long ago.”
“Which means they must be working with the Dark Lord’s army…”
“Quite possibly. At the very least, we know for certain that there is a survivor from the previous Dark Lord’s army among them. Last time they held back, but this time it seems as if Zhorguan is scheming to topple Galdorssia.”
The shadow of the Dark Lord loomed once again.
“Now then, Lady Falmeyr is calling for you. Head toward the ramparts, above the eastern gate.”
“I thought we were going to be marched off to war, but I guess we’re just here to watch and learn again,” said Homura.
Falmeyr had put them on standby, just like when Seigrat had slain the dragon. But this time, the soldiers on the wall-walk did not seem to be in such a festive mood.
“You saw how that playboy fought,” said Psycho. “In this world, the mightiest of the mightiest carry the fight themselves. Small-time players like us would just get in the way.”
“I guess it’s gold badge and up only this time, then. What did we get ready for, though?”
“I told you, that’s only for if the worst happens.”
“Well, I sure hope it doesn’t…”