Chapter 118 - Demons in Action

A/N: Shorter than usual by a few hundred words... gorier though. 

On an unrelated note.. Do you guys want Velgrynd to still be in the harem for the revise? I'm contemplating if I should keep her as the main one. No request on who, just wanted to ask if I keep her or not. 

....

High above, Carrera and Ultima flew. The camp stretched for several hundred meters, located at the border between the forest and Falmuth, in the former croplands of a border city that had now become their temporary base.

"Rimuru-sama said we can do whatever we want with the soldiers, aside from the high-ranking officers and nobles," Carrera said, cracking her knuckles and grinning mischievously.

Ultima paused for a moment, "Wasn't it the other way around? We're supposed to kill the soldiers, and we can do whatever we want with the high-ranking officers and nobles, as long as they remain alive and not brain-dead?"

Carrera, realizing her mistake. "Ah, that's right. We have to make sure they see how terrifying we are, and that it was a mistake they'll never forget, as long as they're alive."

Ultima's face lit up with a bright, innocent smile. "Shall we start then?" she asked, her voice dripping with excitement. "This is going to be so much fun."

As the two primordial demonesses began to descend upon them, inside the tent where the leaders of the army were confidently planning their next moves and discussing the spoils of war, everything halted when a soldier rushed in.

"What is all thi—" Edmaris, who was about to reprimand the soldier, suddenly noticed his appearance.

The soldier was drenched in sweat, his eyes shaking as he looked at each of the generals and high-ranking officers, disregarding formalities or respect. "E-enemy attack!"

Then, his eyes went bloodshot, and a hand emerged from his chest, holding his slowly beating heart, which was losing its strength. "So, that's where you were," a female voice echoed from behind the soldier.

As the arm was pulled back from his chest, the soldier crumpled to the ground, a gaping hole in his chest. A blonde-haired girl stepped forward, casually tossing the heart to the ground as her arm dripped with blood. "Shall we start the show?"

"I'll let you hear the music," she added, snapping her fingers.

In an instant, the tent was blown away. The officers shielded their eyes from the sudden brightness outside, but then screams of agony and pain filled their ears.

The generals and officers looked on in horror, their eyes wide with fear. In front of them lay the bodies of dead soldiers, blood pouring from every orifice of their heads. The rest of the soldiers were running wildly, completely out of order and discipline.

"General..." one of the soldiers who hadn't died yet rushed forward, his voice trembling. "Where are you... help me..."

But his eyes were gone, just empty sockets where they once were. In his hand, he clutched his own eyeballs. He stumbled, tripping over a body, and crawled on the ground, desperate for someone to help him.

Seeing his state, the generals realized that some of the dead soldiers nearby had the same eyeless faces, and some even had their ears missing.

"Ahh... aahhh...HH!!" The experienced generals from the western nations began to lose their composure, slowly unraveling from the sheer horror of what they were witnessing.

More soldiers continued to flood toward them, their voices amplified by magic, as if the first soldier's scream had become a beacon for them.

"As promised," a young girl, even younger than the blonde, suddenly dropped from above and landed in a pile of corpses. "Whoever presents me with a general or any high-ranking officer alive will be spared from the pain."

Hearing her voice, like a divine revelation and a promise of safety, the soldiers who still had their sight raised their bloodied swords. Not long ago, they had been forced into battle with each other, their survival depending on what was given to them. Those who refused to fight had their eyes poisoned, the only cure being to remove them completely.

The game had changed. Those who could offer her a pair of ears would escape the agony of the poison that caused blood to spill from every orifice.

But the worst part was that no matter how much they fought, the fallen never truly died, even when mortally wounded. It was as though they had not been granted permission to die until they had fully paid for their failures. Only after enduring their punishment could they be freed by death.

What stood before the generals, high-ranking officers, and Edmaris were hardened soldiers who had faced two trials of primordials. Despite their injuries, their will to survive, and the fear of a gruesome death, kept them fighting, determined to follow every word of the demoness before them.

The generals, hearing her sinister words, quickly drew their weapons. At her soft giggle, a mocking sound that filled the air, the soldiers surged toward them.

"Ahh!!"

"Get them!"

"They're mine!"

The soldiers rushed forward, eager to capture one of the less than twenty people in the tent. Of those twenty, only about five were seasoned warriors who had climbed the ranks through strength.

Meanwhile...

"Ah, let go of me!" A pathetic scream echoed as a noble officer was pulled in several directions by his assailants.

Swordsmen tried to pull at his arms while stabbing anyone who got too close. Mages cursed as they tugged at his legs, casting spells to force them to let go.

Bowsmen and mercenaries fought each other for the chance to present the soldier to Ultima, hoping for the promised relief.

As the battle raged on, another scream echoed. "Stop, it hurts!" a nobleman yelled, his extravagant, impractical armor doing little to protect him. His skin stretched and twisted in unnatural ways as he was pulled in every direction. "Ahh... stop! Someone!"

A similar scene unfolded near the generals' tent. Some soldiers continued to scream in pain as their bodies were dragged, pushed, and pulled, all in the hope of being sacrificed to end their suffering.

The seasoned generals, too, were not having an easy time. Their army, which once numbered nearly a hundred thousand, was now breaking apart in waves, some of the soldiers turning into nothing more than mindless husks, eager to be offered to the demons.

"King Edmaris, get behind me! I'll use transport magic!" Razen, the only one who had managed to keep some semblance of order, began to activate his spell.

"Ah, can't have that." Carrera's voice rang out as she appeared in front of him, kicking him aside with a force that sent him flying several feet away from the group.

"Ra... Razen!" The King screamed in panic. His one chance at escape had just been destroyed. "If... if you can help me escape, I'll offer you a great reward!" he shouted, pleading with the remaining four generals.

They continued to hack away at the relentless wave of soldiers, but even when they killed one, another would quickly take its place. Worse still, the fallen soldiers didn't die. Instead, they writhed in pain, their bodies marked with purple symbols.

This only drove the remaining soldiers to fight harder, desperate to survive, to avoid becoming like those they were slaughtering.

As Edmaris begged for his life, the generals scrambled for a way to escape without falling into the hands of the two demonesses who watched from the shadows.

Meanwhile, Razen, still recovering from Carrera's kick, didn't even have time to catch his breath. Like starved animals, the soldiers saw his vulnerability and pounced, determined to be the ones to deliver him to the demons.

Clicking his tongue, Razen shouted, "Enough! Nuclear Cannon!"

With a quick activation, a beam of intense heat shot from his hand, incinerating everything in its path. The soldiers caught in its range were reduced to nothing but ash, leaving only the parts of their bodies untouched by the blast.

The soldiers who saw this quickly rushed toward the beam's path, realizing it was a quick and painless escape from the gruesome deaths that awaited them.

"Those idiots," Ultima laughed loudly, her voice echoing across the battlefield for the soldiers to hear. "Do you think I'll allow that?"

In her hand, several glowing souls floated above her palm.

"Those who refuse to accept my punishment will never know the relief of death."

As she spoke, the souls in her hand flickered, turning purple, their movements erratic. Then, with a sudden motion, they were drawn back into her palm, a cruel reminder that they were under her control and could never escape her grasp.

As hell descended upon them, Benimaru and a handful of Onis launched a surprise attack at the rear of the camp and army.

Carrera and Ultima were tasked with taking out the center and front of the camp, where the allied soldiers, mages, and mercenaries were stationed.

Meanwhile, at the back of the camp, the Holy Knights of the Church had established their position. Under Hinata's orders, they were to set up their camp at the farthest point from the border, to ensure they wouldn't be caught off guard by a surprise attack from the monsters.

Hinata's warnings were heeded by the Holy Knights, but when she advised Edmaris to be cautious, she was reassured with mockery behind her back, branded a coward by those who believed their strength would protect them from any threat.

"This should be enough, right?" Benimaru said, resting his hand on the hilt of his sword, which was slung across his back. He surveyed the damage around him with a satisfied smirk. "Or do you want to keep fighting?"

Before him lay a sight that could only be described as devastation. The camp was ablaze, the flames consuming tents and supplies, sending up thick plumes of smoke into the air. Half of the Holy Knights were either unconscious from their injuries or lying lifeless on the ground, their bodies scattered amidst the destruction.

The remaining forces standing before him were the three battle sages and a few of the Crusader captains. Despite their strength, even combined, they were no match for Onis who had lived for a thousand years.

Benimaru, though the youngest, possessed an extraordinary body, one that had been further enhanced by Rimuru's blessing. With his words and his actions, he had made quick work of the Holy Knights, overwhelming them with ease.

The surviving soldiers could only lower their gazes in frustration. Their bodies, battered and bloodied, refused to fight, and the more pragmatic side of them knew that rushing into certain death was something Hinata would never approve of.

Saare, the leader left in charge of the remaining Holy Knights, gritted his teeth. "If... if we accept your offer, will you really let us go?"

Benimaru locked eyes with him, his smirk widening with amusement. "Have you learned your lesson about invading us?"

A/N: I think I overdid it with the Carrera and Ultima scene just because it has been a long time since I made a massacre chapter.

Anyways, Happy Father's day!