The first condition for reclaiming the Sacred Land.
The destruction of the Artifact polluting the Sacred Land.
The Sacred Land is a massive territory, accounting for twenty percent of all human lands.
Considering that the cities of the Holy Kingdom are less than a quarter of that size, one can estimate just how vast it truly is.
One characteristic of the Sacred Land is that the earth itself constantly emits divine power.
Because of this, the Priests, Paladins, and Inquisitors of the Holy Kingdom could exhibit nearly twice their usual prowess within its borders.
There was no need to think long about what was required to continuously flip such a Sacred Land into a Realm of Demons through Demonic Transformation.
The second condition for reclaiming the Sacred Land.
The defeat of the Calamity-class Demonic Beasts that would be guarding the Artifacts.
If there were Artifacts turning the Sacred Land into a Realm of Demons, there would naturally be guards protecting them.
Usually, in such situations, those guards were Calamity-class Demonic Beasts.
They were creatures that caused phenomena akin to literal natural disasters, to the point that even the Demons would not approach them once an order had been given.
“Based on the scale and size of the Sacred Land, there are at least twenty Calamity-class individuals.”
And it was highly likely that all twenty were guarding the Artifacts.
One might think it would be easier to simply use them to sweep away Humanity, but doing so would result in the Heroes currently fighting on the Frontline being summoned back.
Since a Hero’s power, bolstered by God’s Grace, could easily match the stats of a Sword Master and make defeating Calamity-class Demonic Beasts simple, the Demon Army was actually using their heads to minimize their loss of strength.
“Laila, you find the Artifacts causing the Demonic Transformation.”
“How am I supposed to find them when I don’t even know what they are?”
“Just spread your Mana out wide. Even if I don’t explain it, someone like you will notice something strange immediately. Just lead us in that direction.”
Thrall wore a worried expression.
“There is still a problem. Even if we defeat the Calamity-class Demonic Beasts guarding them, how will you handle the Artifacts in a land where Demonic Transformation has already progressed?”
“We’ll have to choose one of two options.”
Purify them, or destroy them.
“That’s why there’s a place we need to stop by first. Whether we can receive support there or not will determine how we dispose of the Artifacts.”
As I moved forward without hesitation, the members of the Special Task Force all followed behind me.
Before long, a barracks surrounded by a golden barrier appeared near the Sacred Land reclamation operation headquarters.
As I walked toward the front of the enclosure, the guards raised their hands.
“Halt. These are faces I don’t recognize. Who are you?”
“I am Owen, Captain of the Kingdom of Lumin’s Special Task Force. I’ve come to inform the commander here of something. May we enter?”
The man on guard tilted his head.
“Special Task Force Captain? I’ve never heard of such a thing. Hey, have you heard anything?”
“No… but a friend working over there mentioned recently that a new department was created directly under the Royal Family.”
“Hmm, I understand your business, but those without permission cannot enter. You must bring a permit from the supreme commander or have an appointment scheduled in advance.”
The gatekeeper was more polite than I expected. I thought I might be ignored since I look like a kid in my mid-teens.
“Then could you at least deliver a message inside? It’s regarding the disposal of the Artifacts turning the Sacred Land into a Realm of Demons. Tell them that if we cannot receive support from the Holy Kingdom, I plan to destroy every single one of them.”
“Hmm.”
The guard looked contemplative for a moment, then signaled to the man watching from the side.
“You, go and report this to the squad leader right now. Then, explain the situation to the Paladin Captain and the Inquisitor.”
“M-Me, sir?”
“Then should I, the one who has to guard this post, leave you here alone? Do you think you can handle it if an enemy appears the moment I leave?”
“N-No, of course not.”
“Get it together, kid. This is a battlefield.”
“Yes, sir!”
“Move it! How many seconds have you wasted just standing there dazed?”
At the guard’s shout, the pale-faced man quickly ran past the barracks.
A few minutes passed. Beside the man who had rushed inside, a man with a large build and a white-haired woman with short hair approached.
“Are you the one who mentioned the Artifacts turning the Holy Sanctuary into a Realm of Demons?”
I nodded at the white-haired woman’s words.
“That’s right.”
“Do you even know what kind of Artifacts they are that you talk of destroying them?”
“I at least know they are nuisances turning the Sacred Land into a Realm of Demons.”
“To speak like that when you barely know anything…”
“I don’t care what you think. If I can’t get support, I destroy them. If I can get support, we can purify them.”
The woman looked angry at my words.
“You say that even after seeing the situation here? Do you have any idea what is inside there?”
“I know well enough, and I’m saying this after taking it into consideration. So don’t waste your energy; if you don’t want to do it, just say so. I only came here to see if I could get support, not to drain each other’s strength. If you have no intention of supporting us, we will simply destroy the Artifacts.”
“Mary. Calm down.”
The large man beside her spoke.
“I apologize. Mary is on edge because she lost most of the squad she led. My apologies.”
“Is there anyone here who isn’t on edge? Well, I’ve taken that into account, so don’t worry too much. As I’ve said several times now, I only came to find out if support was possible.”
“Are you… really planning to go in there?”
I nodded.
“Our Special Task Force is a force deployed independently by the Kingdom of Lumin. We can move individually without being under the command of the supreme commander. Looking at the state of the Sacred Land, I estimate there are about twenty Artifacts. If the Priests of Holy Nation Luminous help us, we can completely purify several of them. Since the Demonic Beasts will be drastically weakened in the purified Sacred Land, we could sufficiently cover it with minimal force.”
Of course, purifying all of them was greedy.
The Sacred Land was vast, and the Demon Army wasn’t stupid; the moment they saw Artifacts being purified, they would likely change their movements.
If that happened… from a certain point, we would have to destroy them rather than purify them.
“Jill. We don’t have the luxury to send support. You know this. We are at a point where we can’t even maintain a minimum force.”
“But the higher-ups gave the order to reclaim the Sacred Land no matter what. Even if we all die here, the mission must be completed.”
“Sigh.”
As Mary let out a sigh, Jill spoke with a bitter smile.
“I’ve been late with introductions. I am Jill. I am, albeit feebly, the Captain of the Order of Paladins. And this person…”
“Seeing the Sun emblem on her chest, she must be an Inquisitor. Are you at the Captain level?”
“That’s right. It seems you know more about us than I thought.”
“I know more than you expect.”
However, the support I wanted was lacking.
“If you can provide support, are there any spare Saints? If an Inquisitor is attached to them as a supervisor, your side could feel at ease as well.”
“Unfortunately, support from a Saint is currently impossible. Even now, they are exerting all their strength to maintain the defensive lines because of the Demonic Beasts that swarm in occasionally.”
I shrugged as soon as I heard Jill’s explanation. The Saints most needed to purify the Artifacts were unable to move.
“Then it can’t be helped. Support is impossible—”
“I’ll go.”
Mary, who had been scowling, cut me off.
“Before I became an Inquisitor, I took Saint lessons. If it’s purification, I can do it too.”
“Mary…”
“Don’t misunderstand. I’m not going there to become a martyr.”
Mary glared at me with burning eyes.
“You said you were going into the Sacred Land? Then show me that skill of yours. If you can’t show it…”
“Feel free to turn back on your own. If you think you can trust us, follow. I won’t force you to stake your life on me either.”
“…”
With those words, I turned my head back to Jill.
“Excuse me, then. Time is too precious to waste on further arguments. I’m a busy man.”
There was nothing more to hear. As I turned to move out immediately, Mary shouted.
“Wait five minutes. I need to get my equipment.”
“Then come out to the outskirts as soon as you’re ready. If you don’t show up by the time I’ve cleared that area, I’m leaving without you.”
I would have to cause a ruckus at the outskirts of the Sacred Land anyway, so there would be more than enough time for her to come out. Just as I boldly turned my steps toward the outskirts once more.
Rumble!
Suddenly, the ground began to vibrate. Wondering what was happening, I focused, and something was rapidly approaching from inside the Sacred Land.
“Everyone, watch the ground. Something is coming.”
The source of the vibration was underground. And for the ground to shake this much, something massive was approaching. It felt as if the earth was being excavated as it drew near.
“No way…”
As Murfin muttered in a pale voice, the members of the Special Task Force took on tense expressions.
Dong. Dong. Dong. Dong.
At that moment, a bell rang from the Luminous barracks. When I looked back, the guard who had blocked us earlier was sounding the alarm.
“An Earth Worm is approaching! To battle stations immediately!”
The alarm seemed logical at first glance, but my instinctive senses were sending a completely different warning.
“It’s not an Earth Worm. The feeling of the vibration is completely different.”
“What? Then what is approaching—”
Rumble! Boom!
Before long, a massive body appeared not far from the barracks. Dozens of legs and a hideous, giant trunk that could hardly be called a worm. It looked like a centipede, but distorted human faces were clinging to various parts of its body. There were… three of them in total.
“Oh.”
I let out a dry laugh as I realized the identity of these monsters.
“Distorted Face Centipedes.”
“Are you kidding me?”
Murfin’s face turned white.
“Three… Calamity-class Demonic Beasts?”
I quietly gripped the Holy Sword in my hand.
“The Demon King really worries too much.”
One of the Demon Race members who had played a part in the Demonic Transformation of the Sacred Land muttered with a twitching lip.
“No matter how much they fly or crawl, in the end, they’re just mere humans.”
Humans are utterly helpless in the face of natural disasters.
Just like the ones currently making a fuss and panicking right before his eyes.
Those at the very front were either in despair or frozen in terror.
Feeling a sense of omnipotence at the sight of the humans looking like insects, the Demon, riding atop a Calamity-class Demonic Beast, manipulated the magic circle engraved on the back of the Distorted Face Centipede.
“Now, my children. Sweep away those foolish humans. We cannot let them interfere with the Demon King’s grand plan.”
The Distorted Face Centipedes began to charge toward the human barracks with ferocious momentum, as if they had heard the Demon’s command.
He could see the faces of the tiny humans being dyed with terror.
They looked so much like bugs that the Demon King’s order to ‘not touch the human outposts’ felt meaningless.
“Hmm?”
The anomaly occurred immediately after. Suddenly, the Distorted Face Centipede staggered and abruptly stopped moving.
“What? What’s wrong with this thing all of a sudden?”
The moment the flustered Demon tried to manipulate the magic circle again, the glowing red circle turned black and scattered away like ash.
In that instant, the Demon realized something had gone wrong.
There is only one time a magic circle used to control a Demonic Beast disappears: when the beast dies.
Thud!
“W-What in the world?!”
And before long, he saw the head of the centipede he had been riding cut off, rolling on the ground.
As he quickly turned his head to check the status of the other centipedes.
“I wondered who brought three of these things here…”
Was he in his mid-teens? A young boy was looking down at him while holding a sword burning red.
“So there was a Monster Tamer.”
‘Wait…’
With those words, the Demon felt his vision flip upside down.
Amidst his spinning vision, he realized the neck that should have been above his torso was gone.
‘Do not touch the human outposts.’
Only then did the Demon, who finally understood the order the Demon King had given, wear an expression of horror.
Within that fading sight, the heads of the remaining two centipedes were being severed effortlessly.