Chapter 517 Movements of the Demon Lord Army

By the time Hulim Heyerar returned to the Central Castle of Windrock City,

night had fully fallen.

Miko had long since arrived back.

“I thought you’d be back before me! Did something happen?”

“Mm.”

Hulim Heyerar nodded gently.

“I ran into some people—my family, whom I haven’t seen in a long time.”

“Oh, I see…… Huh?! Your family—?!!”

Miko’s eyes widened in shock.

“Really?! Your family is here?!”

“Yes, calm down. I’ll tell you about it later…… First, tell me what’s going on here.”

Hulim Heyerar glanced into the castle.

Though night had fallen,

the halls were still crowded with people—busier than they had been in daylight.

“Ah—!”

Prompted by Hulim Heyerar’s question, Miko slapped her forehead and suddenly remembered.

“I almost forgot! Irus said the Demon Army has made another move, and we’re all called to an emergency meeting at the Windrock City Temple.”

“……”

“Something like this……”

Hulim Heyerar took a deep breath.

“Tell me sooner next time!”

……

Woooom——!

The blast of long horns echoed through the mountains.

Fully armed and armored, the Dwarf Legion marched into the city in formation.

“You’ve finally arrived…… cough.” Firuvin stepped forth to greet them.

“Sorry to keep you waiting…… uh, what’s wrong with you?” Fulmir frowned at Firuvin’s pale face.

“It’s nothing…… cough. Come with me. The others are waiting for you.”

Fulmir and Aralond exchanged a glance,

then followed.

……

The Windrock City Temple, serving as the wartime command center.

“Cough…… At last, our main forces have all assembled.”

Firuvin spoke weakly to the gathered high commanders of the Allied Forces.

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“Over these days, the Demon Lord Army has launched many probing attacks. It won’t be long before…… cough.”

“They will launch a full-scale offensive.”

“But we now have the strength to face them in a decisive battle…… cough.

Everyone, prepare for battle……”

……

Beyond the mountain ranges surrounding Windrock City once stood a city built within a narrow valley in the hills.

It had long since fallen, now serving as the main base of the Demon Vanguard.

“……Lord Goruzaan, has Lord Jaca still not caught those rats?”

A voice rose from the dim, shadowed hall.

Shush! Swish!

Goruzaan, the Demon General stationed here, turned all six of his eyes toward the speaker in unison.

In the next instant,

the demon let out a scream.

“Aaah! Lord Goruzaan! Spare me! I meant no disrespect to Lord Jaca!”

“Hmph!”

Goruzaan snorted, and the red light in his eyes faded slowly.

“Consider this a warning. If Lord Jaca had heard that, you would not have even begged for mercy.”

“Y-yes……”

The demon did not dare argue, shrinking into the corner in pain, trying to vanish from sight.

“And you all——”

His six scarlet eyes swept slowly over the hall. Everyone who met his gaze bowed their heads in terror.

“Put aside your petty schemes. Do not think you can act as you please in this world.”

“……”

Once no one dared speak,

Goruzaan ended his intimidation and turned to the real matter at hand.

“We’ve just received intelligence: the enemy has welcomed another group of powerful reinforcements……”

As he spoke,

Goruzaan’s eyes flickered rapidly, taking in every reaction.

Most demons showed no response at all, barely registering the news.

This was the common attitude among demons:

they held the humans of the World of Himril in utter contempt.

But to Goruzaan, this mindset was extremely dangerous!

If this world was truly so weak, why had their master launched so many invasions, sacrificing countless Demon Lords and high-ranking demons, yet failed to conquer it?

“Cast aside your foolish arrogance——!”

The sudden rebuke left the demons in the hall stunned.

“Since our vanguard landed, two High-Rank Demons have been ambushed and killed by those meddlers—so badly that Lord Jaca himself had to hunt them down! Do you still not understand?!”

“……”

“If the humans of this world were all worthless weaklings, why would Lord Jaca need to act personally? Why are we stuck here?! Are all of you just for show?!”

The demons fell silent, their arrogant expressions fading. Even those who still looked down on humans dared not show it.

“……”

Seeing this, the displeasure in Goruzaan’s eyes eased slightly.

“Listen to my orders——

We will attack the Allied Forces’ defensive lines tomorrow!”

……

Within a mountain shrouded in thick mist.

“This is truly astonishing…… Firuvin, you held off the demons with this?”

Laki Kadar stared at the massive, active ancient device in awe.

“Cough…… It was part of the reason.”

Firuvin replied, his face still pale.

“This is Dorothy’s Hill. Legend says it holds the tomb of Dorothy, the great witch from ages past. When I was young, I came here out of curiosity and found this underground……”

He stepped before the enormous structure, his fingers brushing its metallic, glowing surface.

“A Nation-Level Hyper-Arcane Tool.”

“……I see. That’s why you set up the defensive line here.”

“Cough…… Even so, it can only hold off ordinary High-Rank Demons. Against that Archdemon Commander, it would be useless.”

“Fortunately, he seems distracted by other matters and has left the front lines for now. Otherwise, I might not have lived to see your arrival……”

At the same time,

somewhere far to the east.

“Master, weren’t we heading west? Why the sudden change of direction?”

“Quiet! Stop asking questions—I have my reasons…… Oh no——”

Arant the Sword Saint’s expression shifted sharply.

“Hide, now!”

At his order, the Sword Saint’s disciples hid at top speed, holding their breath to not leak a single wisp of aura.

About half a minute later,

they felt an unimaginably terrifying aura pass right beside them.

The aura stretched over an enormous area,

lingering for a long while before finally fading eastward.

“Phew……”

The group let out a collective sigh of relief.

“That was close. We almost got caught.”

“Enough! Stay alert!”

Arant said sternly.

“We must move quickly. The intervals between his searches grow shorter and shorter……”

Arant did not finish his sentence.

His intuition told him clearly that if this continued,

it was only a matter of time before they had nowhere left to run.

Yet he had no other choice.

The moment he first sensed that demon, he understood why he had been lost, unable to find the main Allied army……

“Sigh. Let’s hope we’ve bought enough time…… Hurry up and move! What are you waiting for? Arman, you’re the slowest one!”