Chapter 1: Makoto Takatsuki Has a Reunion

“Um... Sir Makoto?” Momo tugged at my sleeve, sounding worried. “The demon lord’s castle is this way.”

Bifrons’s human farm was like a back garden for his pitch-black castle, so the structure itself was visible for miles. Demons from the army were constantly in the vicinity as well. They were strong—we’d be devoured in an instant if they saw us. That was why, so far, we’d kept our distance. But that boy’s news had changed everything.

An execution of heroes... If Abel is one of them, then I will have failed before even starting. As far as I could see, that outcome was a distinct possibility.

The picture book said that Abel had grown stronger as time passed. By the end of the war, he had flown through the skies on a holy dragon, fought demon lords all over the world, and become the savior. If the legends were true, then barely anyone could’ve beaten him after he’d come into his full strength. So, if you wanted to alter the past, it made the most sense to target him while he was inexperienced.

Bifrons was supposedly the first demon lord Abel defeated, and there was a group of heroes due to be executed right now... Things would’ve gone really sour if I hadn’t listened to that boy.

“Momo, I’m heading for the castle. I’m going to save the heroes.”

She must’ve expected that, but she still reared back and yelled in shock. “H-How?”

“I don’t know yet. I need to check out the situation first.”

“Do you have any comrades...?”

“Nope. It’s just me.”

“That’s imposs—” She cut herself off, looking down in silence. “I-I...”

Yeah, it makes sense that she’s hesitant. She wasn’t really skilled enough yet to join me in a party. She couldn’t cast without incanting, so she wouldn’t be much help in a fight. Still, the human farm was hardly a place where I could just leave her with instructions to hide and be safe. I could only protect her if she stayed by my side.

“Do you want to come with me?” I asked.

“Huh? I... I can?”

“Of course.” I nodded, outwardly composed. But on the inside, I was panicking. I desperately wanted to find out what was happening with the soon-to-be-killed heroes.

“Follow me, Momo.”

“R-Right!”

We held hands, and I used Stealth to rush toward the castle.

“Hmm. Guess we can’t go any farther...”

Momo shook her head. “It doesn’t like it’s possible to get through.”

We stood on a small hill near the castle. A castle’s fortifications were usually built with two functions in mind: to showcase the importance of the place and to keep people out. Bifrons’s castle was enclosed by a moat and high walls, so its defenses were rather strong.

Most of the castle’s inhabitants were demons, though here and there I spied some elves and dwarves that appeared to be slaves. Some enslaved humans too. Every single one of the slaves was attractive—their bodies were well-built, so each stood out clearly, even at a distance.

I saw no little children or commoners like Momo or me. Guess we can’t pretend to be slaves and sneak in...

I forced down my panic, then used Clairvoyance and Listen to gather information. The demons were loud, so the latter skill easily picked them up. I overheard three important things.

One—Bifrons wasn’t currently at the castle.

Two—the heroes would be executed when he returned.

Three—there were three heroes slated for death, though I hadn’t heard any names.

I guess Bifrons being away is the silver lining.

As I used Listen to eavesdrop on a conversation between two demons, I heard some rather interesting details.

“C’mon, we caught them in the courtyard. Why haven’t we killed them yet?”

“Don’t you know? When you kill a hero, another one is born. The goddesses just give the skill to someone else. That’s why it makes the most sense to capture them and not kill them.”

“But Lord Iblis personally ordered us to kill these heroes, didn’t he?”

“Yeah, well, there’s some hero he wants dead at all costs—I have no idea who. Lord Bifrons is discussing it with him now.”

“Couldn’t Lord Bifrons have taken them to the meeting with Lord Iblis?”

“You fool! Who would dare parade those lowly heroes in front of Lord Iblis? Do you know how angry that would make him?”

“I don’t even want to think about it... Though, we’ve never even seen Lord Iblis in person.”

“Just hearing his voice is enough to make us shake.”

“Okay, so we’re supposed to capture heroes rather than kill them, right?”

“Yeah... I just told you that.”

“Then why does Lord Cain kill them immediately?”

“You...” The demon sighed. “Look, Lord Cain doesn’t have the common sense to realize his folly.”

“I guess so. He’s pretty touched in the head.”

“Yeah... He’s just as scary as Lord Iblis, but in a different way.”

Oh, right... The Mad Hero Cain.

Well, at least now I knew why the heroes weren’t being killed immediately. I still hadn’t found out whether Hero Abel was one of them, though. Also, Noah’s former disciple definitely didn’t have a great reputation, huh? What kind of person is he? I kinda wanted to meet him, but also...not so much.

“Sir Makoto... What do we do now?” Momo was chewing on an apple-looking fruit we’d found while traveling. I felt bad that it was the only food I’d been able to give her.

“I guess sneak in tonight.”

“T-Tonight?!”

“Yeah. The demons seem to sleep at night.”

We’d arrived at Bifrons’s castle last night and had been scouting for all of today. I’d noticed that there was barely anyone coming or going after dark.

I can use magic to spread some mist. There were guards, but they didn’t seem particularly vigilant. And why would they be? Under most circumstances, no one would raid the castle. The heroes had tried, but they hadn’t even made it past the castle’s town. How could a small group of heroes hope to win against this demon army?

I waited for my chance, feeling uneasy. Then, late that night, I cast my spell.

“Water Magic: Spreading Mist.”

It was the dead of night—maybe two in the morning. My spell covered the whole area in a shroud of fog.

Using Stealth, we slowly approached the town. If Furiae were here, I would ask her to put them all to sleep... Well, no use dwelling on what-ifs.

If we’d tried to go through the front entrance, the gatekeeper would’ve surely seen us, so we instead went across the moat and over the wall. I used my magic to conjure a path of water in the air and used Walk on Water to traverse it.

Momo’s hand didn’t leave mine, and her expression was nervous. Maybe I should have had her learn Serenity first... Well, something to keep in mind for next time.

Soon enough, we were inside the castle town’s walls. Even through the mist, Bifrons’s massive castle visibly loomed over us. I’d overheard that the execution was supposed to happen in the courtyard in front of the castle.

We kept to the backstreets since the main thoroughfares were lit with magic. I activated Scout, but it picked up an uncomfortable number of enemies all around us, so I stopped. Instead, I relied on Sense Danger to avoid the demons. Slowly, we slipped toward the center of the town.

Is this what a terrorist feels like when infiltrating an enemy country?

Using the thick mist and Stealth, we managed to somehow make it to the courtyard. We scoped out the place while hiding in the shadow of a building.

“Are you okay, Momo?” I whispered.

“I-I am... I’m scared, but I know I’ll be fine as long as I’m with you.”

I gave Momo’s hand a squeeze, and she held on to me tightly.

There were around a dozen monsters on watch. Gargoyles. This would be annoying. I also spotted several cages in the middle of the courtyard—there were people inside them.

What should I do?

The gargoyles sat atop pillars that were scattered around the courtyard. They could readily observe the entire area, so a sneak attack wouldn’t be easy. Though I wanted to be cautious, I also didn’t want to spend too long here.

As I contemplated my next move, I used Listen, trying to hear the guards’ conversation.

“The mist’s pretty thick tonight.”

“Yeah, it’s been awful. My whole body’s aching.”

“Aye. If we had a campfire, we could at least warm up.”

“I’m with you. Wanna take a break?”

“The captain’ll have our heads for that.”

“We’ll just warm up around the fire for an hour or so. Once we’re in a better mood, we’ll be better guards.”

Gargoyles were monsters made of stone, right? I guess that meant they hated the humidity....