by J. J. Pavlov
"Huh?" Baffled by those words, Asoko blinks her eyes.
"It is shedding the cover now." Mithra states while pointing his staff at the window. The approaching cloud breaks apart, and from within, a floating island comes into view. It's nearly as big as Arkaim and soon casts its shadow across the city below it, as it slows down to a menacing crawl, accompanied by deep rumbling pressure on the air.
"What is that?" Asoko stares at the roughly diamond-shaped form of the island, with a small mountain rising upward at the center and what appears to be a counterweight pointing down on the other side of the central plane. On top of that mountain sits a castle, which resembles that of Arkaim but is painted in pure white.
It's clear now that the alarm was for the approach of this flying fortress. However, Asoko can't believe that humans would have the technology or magical capability to levitate an entire mountain like that.
"Orthum's sanctum." Pelomyx replies with a grim expression. Then she turns to her daughter, a reassuring smile on her face. "Run along now, my child. Go to your beloved Kamii."
"I want to stay with you and fight." Asoko replies without hesitation. While it may blow her cover not to worry about Kamii - since only her other half is the one infatuated with the dark elf - she deems it more important to stick with her mother. Even if her ulterior motive is to show that she isn't a rebellious child and won't need to be eaten.
"Now, now, we have plenty of combat personnel. There is no need for you to fight. Make sure your beloved girls are safe, alright?" Petting Asoko's hair, Pelomyx maintains a friendly but insistent attitude. "Listen to your mother."
At the last line, the Crawling Chaos suppresses the urge to flinch. It was delivered with no change in tone or expression, but it sounded like a hidden threat. Nodding wordlessly, she finally agrees, albeit reluctantly. If not for her knowledge that her mother is something of a dictator, who also happens to cannibalize her own children if they're rebellious, she would have resisted until the end.
"Good girl." Wearing a smile that can melt glaciers, Pelomyx squeezes her daughter to her bountiful chest.
Asoko may have imagined the muttered 'stay strong' that her mother gave her on the way when she separated from her and left the room. When she's about to round the corner, she looks back once more as if hoping that there's going to be a follow-up. But the queen is already looking out the window again.
Mithra lifts a bandaged finger to where his lips would be if they weren't covered by bandages as well, signaling Asoko that her secret is safe with him. At that sight, she turns away with an almost disgusted expression and begins to make her way to Daica's workshop in the cellar.
Daica is hurriedly filling small vials and sticking them into the loops on a belt while fretting at the sound of the alarm bell. A lanky maid with white hair in a bob cut and a large white wide-brimmed, mushroom-shaped hat is hastily mixing together flasks filled with all kinds of liquids. But her hands are hidden under oversized and layered frilly sleeves that grow from her forearms, which hamper her coordination.
"It's alright, Exitial. I have enough." The dark elf remarks when she sees the maid struggling with the vials. "You should evacuate to the inner sanctum now."
"No, I am coming with you." Even though the mushroom-looking girl called Exitial looks constantly drowsy, her words sound determined.
"But you're not a combat maid." Protesting that decision, Daica brings forth a sound argument. According to Exitial, the bell signals a state of emergency with the possibility of an enemy attack inside the castle.
As a myconid, the mushroom maid is physically quite weak despite her tall frame. While her spores are toxic enough that the dark elf has to wear a breathing mask - an invention by the gremlin maid Kleihn - when working with her, they don't affect victims instantly. An enemy would be able to get close to her and cut her down if they don't just shoot at her with arrows or magic from afar.
"I can still hold a place if it's indoors." Exitial pouts and doesn't let up. She may be almost a head taller than Daica, but she's apparently only eight winters old and does act the part sometimes.
"I can't let you get hurt." Shaking her head, the dark elf puts her foot down in this matter while reaching for her bodysuit. She created an outfit from materials that the demon maids naturally produce or shed, though it's predominantly made from Gilmirin's molts. The shiny black skin is resistant to every acidic concoction Daica has come up with so far, and can withstand extreme temperatures.
Slipping into the unexpectedly stretchy but nonetheless tight-fitting outfit, the dark elf prepares herself for battle. She's neither athletic, nor does she have experience with weapons, and her only saving grace is the surprise element of her curse. But it puts her in harm's way, which is why she turned out to be only a burden to Chloe at the academy. In the short exchange with Tamariki, she couldn't help either.
But with the concoctions created in her workshop and a set of miraculous delivery apparatuses also devised by Kleihn, Daica should now be able to fight alongside the others.
"Daica!" Suddenly, a familiar voice calls out to her from the door, and the dark elf spins around on the spot in the middle of dressing up. Since the bodysuit is tight-fitting, she has to be naked underneath it, so her upper body is on full display. "... what are you doing?"
"Kamii!" Dropping what she's doing, Daica runs forward but trips over her clothes. The little dark elf rushes forward and catches her with her left hand, propping her sister up with unexpected strength. "You are safe..."
"What are you doing here?" Helping her back to her feet, Kamii then asks as she looks about the cellar room. She takes in the sight of the shelves filled with all kinds of liquids and deduces that her little sister has been busy with alchemy again.
"You should put this on." Before responding to the question, Daica quickly hands her big sister a breathing mask to cover her nose and mouth with. Exitial is usually careful not to move too much, and her spores settle rather quickly. Still, it's best to be cautious rather than risk getting poisoned.
"We need to go." The myconid maid approaches them with several belts containing alchemical vials slung over one arm, and the parts that complete Daica's suit under the other. "The alarm has stopped."
It apparently means that all combat personnel has reached their designated positions. What comes after is a period of deafening silence, as everybody waits with bated breath for something to happen. It may be more nerve-wracking than hearing the bell ringing incessantly.
Daica quickly finishes putting on her suit. It covers every inch of her body except for her head, which is instead protected by a much more sophisticated gas mask than the one she usually wears. Looking through lenses made from those of a basilisk's eyes - remnants of the head that a maid bought at the market - the big dark elf appears ready for combat.
"So, why are you here?" Kamii asks again as she was interrupted earlier. They exit the cellar room and run toward the stairs, followed by Exitial, who only needs to step once for every two of the little dark elf.
"I should ask you that." Daica frowns under the gas mask. The last time she heard from her was three moons ago. That was when she and human party had been locked in the dungeon of the castle in Kongenssoevn for breaking into the academy's basement.
"We were transported from our cells to the Dominion." The little dark elf explains to her younger sister. She then proceeds to give a quick summary of the events in the past three moons since their separation before returning the topic to her earlier question. "What about you?"
"On the morning after your disappearance, Chloe came back to us with Mithra. You know, the court magician." Daica finally begins, the mention of Chloe eliciting a surprised look from Kamii.
As they round a corner, the little dark elf nearly runs into somebody but performs a nimble sidestep while raising her cursed arm, poised to attack and defend at the same time. A towering woman with red skin and a pair of horns growing from her forehead looks down at her in curiosity.
"O
h, the cursed one." The woman is Tamariki, whom Kamii met many times in the Demon Mages Society at the Royal Academy.
"What are you doing here?" Furrowing her brow at what she was referred to as just now, the little dark elf asks with a hint of hostility in her voice.
"I don't know. Kind of lost my way. The castle is too big." Scratching the back of her head, Tamariki looks around with an exasperated expression. She either deliberately ignored Kamii's question, or really didn't understand what she was asking.
"Non-combatants should head for the inner sanctum." Exitial remarks, although her expression instantly shifts to one of doubt when she regards the towering woman's build.
"Where do combatants go?" Cracking her neck, Tamariki asks with a grin.
"W-we're heading for the entrance hall." Daica falls back into her usual stutter when in front of somebody she's not too familiar with. It means that she's feeling completely relaxed around Exitial even though the latter continuously expels toxic spores.
"No, you should not head for danger!" But the myconid maid protests the dark elf's decision to fight.
"You should go to the inner sanctum. I don't want to see you get hurt." Daica gently puts her hand on Exitial's arm and smiles at her - though the gas mask hides everything except for her amethyst eyes. Making a complicated expression, the myconid maid finally lowers her head. She said earlier that she wanted to come with her, but if they go to the large entrance hall, her only ability suitable for combat would be rendered quite ineffective.
Finally, Exitial reluctantly nods before wishing them luck. She turns around several more times while heading down the corridor away from them until she rounds a corner and disappears out of sight.
"So, are we going?" Tamariki's voice penetrates the silence, and the two dark elves look up at her. She doesn't seem too concerned about the state of emergency in the castle and only looks eager for a battle.
"You need to learn to answer the questions people ask you." Kamii remarks with a sigh as she shifts her gaze from the horned demon to her sister.
"Huh?" Blinking in surprise behind her gas mask, the big dark elf doesn't seem to understand.
"Come on, let's go already." With these words, Tamariki runs off.
"W-wrong way." Daica calls out to her and points down the corridor the red-skinned demon just came from. Turning on her heel, the latter runs past them and ahead on her own.
Being underground so far, they had yet to see the flying fortress that has arrived above Arkaim.
Chapter 96 - Demon Genocide
Rolan stares up into the sky, his jaw opened at the sight of the floating mountain that casts its shadow over the city. An ominous pressure is weighing down on the people on the ground, manifesting as a deep rumbling sound that seems to reverberate inside everybody's ears.
He and the others made it to Arkaim around noon, entering the city unexpectedly easily despite looking clearly human. The Empire of Terminus had always used the word demon to refer to a homogenous people consisting of a few species with clearly inhuman attributes. But once inside, they found that many demons are almost indistinguishable from humans.
Then again, he should have known when he learned that Chloe Marcott is a demon. Even Sigurd was unable to tell despite having a seemingly supernatural sense for such things.
They have been walking the streets, waiting for a sign from the crone, or anything else that would tell them what they should be doing in Arkaim. But seeing the flying island, Rolan can only associate it with one thing.
"Is that Lord Creator Alkupera's sanctum?" He asks in wonder. The Stormcrow said that Runa would be here, facing the demon queen on her own, if he didn't come to help her. She's a champion under Alkupera, so the logical conclusion is that the island in the sky is his sanctum, and she's riding on it.
The massive form comes to a halt, and the demons standing in the streets look up in anxious anticipation. Nobody bears the hope that nothing will happen. The Dominion has been attacked by humans many times before, often with new inventions to give the latter an edge over the physically and magically more powerful, but numerically inferior demons. This could be just the latest human scheme.
Suddenly, countless figures spill from the edge of the flying island like water from an overflowing bowl. Hreidunn trains her eyes on them and gasps in surprise.
"They wear the armor of the gods!" The ranger exclaims with a sense of elation in her voice. The suits of armor engraved with the emblems of the gods are the trademark of the empire's Electi. This is their opportunity to get away from the Dominion and return to human lands.
"I see Alkupera's dot and orbit, Framtith's all-seeing eye... and Fatas!" Vigdis describes the emblems she sees before her eyes widen at the sight of pure white wings soaring above the Electi raining from the sky.
Everybody's eyes are glued on the several dozen Fatas, wielding spears of blinding light as they spread out from the flying island. The human soldiers float down toward the city in a controlled descent, various weapons at the ready.
"Champions!" Gram suddenly exclaims while pointing his hand. Unlike the uniform armors with only slight variations that the Electi wear, the champions of the gods have unique outfits matching their preferred fighting styles. There are several men and women who stand out among the rest.
"This is a full-scale invasion." As if only realizing now, Rolan exclaims. Even if the two nations are at war, Arkaim appears to only have a relatively small garrison despite being the capital of the Dominion.
The civilian population will be massacred with little in the way of opposition. Rolan's conviction won't allow him to stand idly by while it happens right before his eyes. In his view, demon children are as innocent as human ones, and those with no will to fight should not have to face the violence brought by indiscriminate warfare.
After they have lived among them for the past few moons, Rolan can say with confidence that demons aren't evil at their core. On their way to Arkaim, they were forced to rely on the goodwill of small villages and farming communes time and again. Their attitude toward strangers was on par with people from the Kingdom of Lares, even though they surely must have had their suspicions about them being humans.
Suddenly, a pillar of fire erupts above the city, followed by the sound of an explosion. It seems that the first champion has landed and is beginning their attack. Rolan turns to the others and exchanges a glance with them.
Gram's expression is filled with worry, and Sigurd looks troubled as well. Hreidunn averts her gaze, withholding her judgment of the situation. Her nephew and niece are torn between rooting for the human army and hoping that no innocent demons are killed - knowing that it's wishful thinking.
"We have to find Runa." The leader makes a decision. She's the reason they came all this way in the first place.
An army of humans is coming down on Arkaim.
Asoko went to the cellar to meet Kamii, only to learn that both she and Daica have left already. Thus, she ran back up the stairs just in time to see the Fatas and knights emerging from the flying fortress and descending on the lightly guarded city.
Since Arkaim is so far inland, a regular human invasion would have never been able to blindside the capital like this. The floating island camouflaged as a cloud is the reason the human army isn't facing a well-prepared city.
Fire is spreading as human knights can be seen fighting demons in the streets. Some among them seem capable of wielding powerful magic, as they throw spells left and right, devastating everything in range without discrimination. The civilian population is getting caught up in it as the soldiers are unable to respond everywhere.
A swarm of winged demons has taken to the skies to repel the Fatas, but it's clear that the white-feathered angels are incredibly powerful both in magic and close combat. Hestia is one of them, and she was the only one capable of damaging Kiamedras' scales after all.
"This is another fantasy trope ticked." Muttering to herself, Asoko makes her way back to the crisis conference room wh
ile resisting the urge to jump out of a window and fly down into the city to help. There's little she could do on her own when thousands of enemies are interspersed across the entire capital now.
Since she was reincarnated as a demon, she was bound to feel sympathy for her own kind over the humans either way. But seeing the despicable actions of the enemy soldiers, she can't help but think that they're the actual evil side. This always seems to be the case in fantasy novels where the protagonists are non-human.
And in all such cases, the evil humans make a move one would typically expect from the otherwise evil demons. This sneak attack on the defenseless civilian population is exactly one such move.
"Asoko!" Ninlil's voice suddenly calls out to her. As the former maid leader, the catgirl should know where to go when the alarm bells ring, but she seems to have been lounging around in the castle out of sight of most people.
However, gripped tightly in her right hand is a giant single-bit axe which she must have swiped from the armory in the confusion. It lacks any and all ornaments, the simple but heavy form looking like it was made purely for combat.
"O-oh, you want to go?" Taking a defensive stance, Asoko asks nervously.
"You dunce." Ninlil scolds her. "I came to find you. Rewera told me to stay by your side."
"Huh?" Blinking her eyes in bewilderment, the Crawling Chaos stares at the diminutive catgirl. "Why would you help me?"
"Stop flapping your mouth and come with me." Instead of answering the question, Ninlil gestures for her to follow. While she's wearing an outfit similar to the one in the academy, it sports a metallic sheen all over; maybe this is her equipment from when she was still the maid leader.
"Where are we going?" Not entirely convinced that the catgirl doesn't have any ulterior motives, Asoko stays on guard.
"To find Tamariki."
"Hey, I thought Rewera told you to stay with me."