Chapter 425: Discord Within the Mercenary Corps

With that, Tanoklian put away his wand and raised both hands, signaling he meant no harm.

Then he bowed his head and turned to fly toward Hulim.

“I surrender, so......”

He suddenly snapped his head up, his eyes blazing with madness as the mana within his body erupted in a violent surge.

“Let’s die together——”

WHOOSH!

A beam of light pierced straight through his chest.

“......shall we?”

Tanoklian’s voice and movements came to an abrupt halt.

He slowly lowered his head, staring in disbelief at the gaping hole in his torso.

He couldn’t understand it.

How could her reaction have been so fast—as if she’d predicted exactly what he was going to do.

Seconds later,

Tanoklian’s body went limp and plummeted from the sky.

“......” Watching the falling corpse, Hulim murmured softly to herself, “Did you really think I’d believe the vice-captain of the Great Demon Mercenary Corps would surrender that easily?”

Afterward, she tore her gaze away and turned to look in the other direction.

There, the two dragons were still locked in ferocious combat—but the outcome was already crystal clear.

The Demonic Flame Dragon’s strength was roughly that of an ordinary A-Rank combatant, while Ignir, as the Fire Dragon King, was an A+ Rank powerhouse. The fight was nothing more than Ignir completely overpowering his opponent.

Sure enough, after a brief but brutal clash,

the Demonic Flame Dragon let out a shrill cry of agony and came crashing down from the sky—while Ignir hadn’t sustained even a scratch.

The duel between the two dragons was over.

As for the ground below,

without their leader to command them, the monster horde had descended into chaos. The remaining Gulos members were utterly unable to maintain control.

Under the leadership of Charkin and the other two dwarves, the dwarf legion quickly routed the remaining Gulos forces.

The greatest obstacle blocking the dwarf legion’s advance had been eliminated once and for all.

......

......

“Lord Darius.”

Arudok knelt on one knee in the middle of an empty hall.

“The dwarf legion has crossed the Somodo Mountains and is closing in on Ilz. Tanoklian and Narzis, who were tasked with defending the mountains, have lost contact. They are most likely dead.”

From the depths of the hall,

a lone figure sat silently atop a towering black throne.

“I see.”

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He murmured softly to himself,

“They’ve finally arrived. I thought this tedious waiting would drag on for much longer.”

“It seems our enemies have some formidable warriors among them.”

“......”

Arudok kept his head bowed, saying nothing.

Indeed, as the figure on the throne—Darius—had implied, everything Gulos had done so far had been nothing more than a smokescreen to hide their true objective.

Whether it was laying siege to Ilz, ambushing the orcs and dwarves, or even sacrificing their most trusted subordinates without hesitation.

All of it had been to keep their enemies trapped in a fog of confusion, unable to see through their schemes.

And then,

whether to destroy us completely or to uncover our true purpose, she would inevitably take that action—and that was exactly what we’ve been waiting for......

“Arudok.”

“Your servant is here.”

“The final stage is set. The hour when that elf rings the bell of destruction is fast approaching. Go. Before the world’s cries of despair ring out, sharpen your fangs and claws. The time has come to shed your blood.”

“Yes! Your servant shall obey your command without question!”

Arudok rose to his feet and turned to stride out of the hall.

Outside the hall,

“Ah, there’s the captain.”

Hunos, the Flame General, casually spat out the blade of grass he’d been chewing on and strode forward to greet Arudok.

“Captain, what did Lord Darius have to say?”

Arudok came to a halt, his gaze sweeping over the figures gathered around him.

He spoke in a cold, commanding tone.

“The following is Lord Darius’s order.”

“He commands us to sharpen our fangs and claws, and prepare to embrace the hour of bloodshed.”

Silence descended over the group the moment his words faded.

After a long pause,

“......Hah! Hahahaha!”

Hunos burst into wild laughter,

“This is exactly what I’ve been waiting for~!”

He cracked his knuckles, his eyes glinting with bloodlust.

“I can’t wait to burn every last one of those fools to ashes!”

“Captain.”

A cold, clear voice suddenly cut through the air. It belonged to a young girl with long purple hair.

The moment she spoke, Hunos’s laughter died abruptly. All eyes in the group turned to her.

“I demand to know—”

The girl asked, her face completely devoid of emotion,

“What was his lordship’s reaction to the deaths of Bodis, Tanoklian, and Narzis?”

“......”

Arudok fell silent.

An oppressive stillness hung over the courtyard.

“Freydia......”

Arudok stared at the purple-haired girl, his voice low and grave.

“You of all people should know that his lordship never stops for anyone—”

“They weren’t anyone! They were our comrades!”

Freydia cut him off sharply, her voice ringing with anger.

“......”

“And what about you, Captain? What do you think?”

Freydia’s gaze bore into Arudok’s eyes, as if trying to peer into the very depths of his soul.

“Do you feel nothing at all about their deaths?”

“Now now, little Freydia,” Hunos chuckled, stepping forward in a clumsy attempt to defuse the tension. “Calm down, take it easy......”

“Why can’t you all see it......”

Freydia whispered, her voice heavy with sorrow.

“U-Uh, see what exactly?”

“Them!”

Freydia shouted, her voice cracking with emotion.

“They weren’t sacrificed! They were abandoned by us! Abandoned by him——”

“FREYDIA!!!”

Arudok roared, his tone laced with a deadly warning.

His eyes had turned dark and menacing.

“Say one more word, and even I won’t be able to protect you.”

“......”

Freydia stared silently at Arudok.

After a long, tense moment,

“......Is this truly your answer?”

she asked quietly. Then she turned on her heel and walked away.

BOOM!

In the blink of an eye, her body transformed into a bolt of lightning and vanished into the distant horizon.

“Sigh...... She’s gone.”

Hunos watched the fading light in the sky, shaking his head in resignation.

“Little Freydia—she’s reliable, no doubt about that. But her personality’s always clashed with the rest of us. Then again, we are a villainous organization, aren’t we?”

“Hmph!”

Molbai, the Earth General, let out a sharp snort.

“Don’t lump everyone in with yourself. Some of us joined to achieve our own goals—not because we enjoy causing chaos like you. As for Freydia——”

Molbai glanced in the direction Freydia had disappeared.

“Her reason for joining was even simpler.”

“Ugh, you’re such a buzzkill. Fine, sure—I love causing trouble. But at least I’m honest about it! You lot have done just as many terrible things as me, so why act like you’re above it all?”

Molbai frowned deeply.

“......On that point, I cannot argue.”

“You’re right. We have done many terrible things. But we’ve always had the resolve to do whatever it takes—even the wrong things—to achieve our goals.”

With that, he turned and strode away without another word.

“Heh~.”

Hunos watched Molbai’s retreating back, grinning.

“That guy’s always been such a riot. Still...... Narzis was the only one who really got me, y’know? ......Huh. Guess it is a shame he’s dead.”

Then he turned to Arudok and waved casually.

“Well, Captain—I’m off to find some fun. Catch you later!”

Once Hunos had left, only the captain Arudok and the silent Kina, the Ice General, remained.

The dim, golden light of the setting sun slanted across the square.

Arudok finally began to move.

Behind him, Kina followed closely in his footsteps, never once straying from his side.