CHAPTER 41

The Last General

Desperate to get Seiya away from Valkyrie, I rush him to leave for Gaeabrande by mentioning crazy things like “The survival of this world is being threatened!” I’m feeling guilty about exaggerating until I suddenly hear a loud voice declare:

“The survival of Roseguard is being threatened as we speak!”

When we appear near the imperial capital’s gate, I see a soldier wearing armor with the Roseguard imperial crest on it—multiple soldiers, countless soldiers…! What’s going on?! There are way too many soldiers here!

There are easily over a thousand solders in a single line, holding weapons while their faces are racked with fear. I follow their gazes to find something even more startling. A mouth split all the way to its ears, black wings on its back—a bizarre creature reminiscent of Chaos Machina’s Greater Demon form—stands a few meters up ahead with a line of soldiers as well. The army facing the thousands of imperial soldiers is a swarm of demons of equal size.

“I-it’s like a war zone!”

The ghastly situation immediately erases my sorrow. Mash draws his sword and prepares for battle while Elulu hides behind me. While paying careful attention to the demon hordes, we are suddenly surrounded by the imperial army.

“Who are you? Where did you even come from?”

“They’re suspicious!”

“You think they’re demons?”

“N-no, we’re—”

The moment I try to clear the air…

“They are no enemy of ours! That is the goddess and the Hero!”

I turn around in the direction of the well-projected voice to find an elderly soldier with a beard. Noticing me looking, his stern expression relaxes, and he lowers his head to me.

“It is an honor to see you again! Thanks again for your help back in Seimul!”

Uh… Who’s this guy again? Oh, wait! This is the soldier that we met when we ran into the undead monster at the church in Seimul!

Seiya curtly asks:

“What’s the situation?”

“General Eraser Kaiser’s elite unit, Demon’s Sword, has come to attack the imperial capital! We had the numbers advantage, but our army is no match for their devastating power! We were pushed back until we crossed Urugus Highway and had to continue to retreat until we found ourselves before the capital, Orphée!”

“Th-that means you have nowhere left to run!”

The soldier nods with an expression stricken with anguish.

“However…they have ceased their attack ever since we got here, and we have no idea what they are plotting…”

Just like he said, the demons are doing little more than watching us. It’s as if they’re waiting for something.

After some time passes, the enemy side finally makes a move. A demon remarkably larger than the rest suddenly appears, breaking through their line. Curved horns sprout from his head like a goat and armor-like black, glimmering muscles cover his body. But what startles me the most are his arms. He has three arms on each side, each holding a battle-ax or sword. Seiya sharpens his eyes.

“His aura is nothing like that of the other demons. That must be the final general.”

“So that’s Eraser Kaiser…!”

The six-armed demon leaps out before his troops, then speaks the language of the humans in a deep voice.

“Humans! Bring me your strongest warrior!”

“Hmph.” Seiya grunts. “Looks like he’s trying to put on a show of strength. He’s probably planning on killing the strongest warrior in the imperial army to lower their morale before attacking the capital.”

O-oh, I get it! So I’m guessing that means he’s really strong…

I use Scan on Eraser Kaiser.

ERASER KAISER
LV: 88
HP: 245,842	MP: 98,564
ATK: 218,333	DEF: 207,465	SPD: 140,251	MAG: 87,654
Resistance: Fire, Wind, Water, Lightning, Ice, Earth, Poison, Paralysis, Sleep, Instant Death
Special Abilities: Full MAG ATK Conversion (LV: MAX), Flight (LV: MAX), Evil Eye (LV: 15)
Skills: Mode: Evil Six
Personality: Savage

Ack! It’s just like Kilkapul said! His attack and defense really do exceed two hundred thousand! His other attributes are high as well… His stats are really balanced! Other than Thanatos, he might be the strongest enemy we’ve faced so far stat-wise!

With his bloodred demon eyes, Eraser glares at the imperial army.

“What’s wrong?! Why will no one step forward?! Is the imperial army nothing more than a bunch of cowards?!”

Before I even realize it, there are crowds of ally soldiers surrounding Seiya.

“Hero! Please help us!”

“Please defeat him!”

One after another, soldiers start begging Seiya for help after figuring out he’s the Hero.

We just got here a few seconds ago, and we already have to fight the last general?! Is Seiya going to be okay?! Is he ready?!

As always, Seiya doesn’t even blink. He draws his sword from its sheath, and the soldiers softly let out a cheer. Seiya starts to take a step forward…but he immediately pauses. Up ahead, there is already a soldier heading straight for Eraser Kaiser. Despite him being far away, I can see him clearly with my goddess vision. With white hair and wearing golden armor just like Rosalie, the soldier fearlessly pushes his way toward Eraser.

Someone near us murmurs:

“Is that…the emperor…?”

Before long, the voices of over one thousand imperial soldiers join together.

“The emperor…! It’s the emperor!”

“He left the castle just to save us!”

Mash strains his eyes.

“Th-that’s the emperor…? That’s Roseguard’s…strongest warrior?”

This is the Warmaster, whose sword can apparently cut through the heavens and slice open the planet. He has white hair that has lost its sheen and a face carved with wrinkles. The emperor is much further into his twilight years than I ever imagined.

“H-he’s so old…”

Even Elulu seems to be surprised. I figured he’d be in his forties or fifties since he’s Rosalie’s father, but he looks like he’s over seventy at least…

The emperor approaches the demon until he is only a few meters away before stopping. Eraser scoffs:

“Hey, what’s with the geezer?”

The other demons behind him roar with laughter as well.

“Gwa-ha-ha-ha! I don’t remember telling you humans to bring me a sacrifice!”

Listening to the demons’ laughter, I tug at Seiya’s arm.

“They’re calling him a sacrifice! Seiya, come on! We have to save him!”

But Seiya doesn’t even budge.

“Don’t let his appearance fool you. Look at that old man’s stats.”

“Huh?”

Seiya solemnly mutters:

“I can’t believe a human like this exists…”

I use Scan and take a glance at the emperor’s stats…

WARMASTER WOHLKS ROSEGUARD
LV: 90
HP: 259,985	MP: 0
ATK: 189,633	DEF: 176,358	SPD: 148,796	MAG: 0	GRW: 777
Resistance: Fire, Water, Lightning, Ice, Dark, Poison, Paralysis, Instant Death, Status Ailments
Special Abilities: Light’s Blessing (LV: MAX), Evolve Attack (LV: MAX)
Skills: Holy Strike, Holy Blast Sword, Holy Great Sword
Personality: Valiant

“I—I can’t believe what I’m seeing!”

The instant I finish checking the Warmaster’s attributes…

“Die, feeble old man!”

One of Eraser’s right arms—the one brandishing a claymore—swings down at the emperor’s head, but the Warmaster blocks it with his golden shield. The heavy, dull sound of metal echoes.

“Oh…? I’m impressed. That was supposed to crush you and your shield along with it. It doesn’t look like you came all the way here just to die, after all. I’ve changed my mind about you, old man.”

Eraser continues with a sneer.

“Then let’s see how you like…Mode: Evil Six!”

A pitch-black aura emitting from his body, Eraser gets into an attack stance while pointing all six of his weapons at the Warmaster.

“Seiya! I know the emperor’s attributes are extraordinary for a human, but even then, his attack and defense are worse than Eraser’s! We have to help him!”

“All right.”

Even Seiya can no longer stand back and watch.

“There will be no need for that.”

I hear an indifferent voice from behind. Out of nowhere appears a slim man of an uncertain age, dressed in a white robe with golden embroidery.

“It is a pleasure to meet you, Hero, Goddess. I am Flashika, the imperial mage of lightning.”

Even during a time like this, he elegantly drops to one knee and greets us.

“What do you mean we don’t have to help him?! I get that the emperor’s strong, but he’s up against one of the Demon Lord’s generals!”

“There is no need to worry.”

I know from personal experience just how frightening the four generals of Gaeabrande’s Demon Lord are. They possess powers that rival the Demon Lords of B-ranked to D-ranked worlds. And as we speak, Eraser is swinging all six of his weapons at the emperor. The Warmaster is managing to block the attacks with his massive shield, but it’s clear he’s struggling just to defend himself.

I—I can’t watch this! The difference in power is obvious! We have to do something, or he’ll be chopped into pieces!

However, that moment comes far too soon. The six-armed demon’s relentless blows knock the emperor’s shield into the air!

“Heh-heh-heh!”

The demon thrusts his longsword while he laughs. Unable to completely dodge the attack, the sword nicks the emperor’s cheek, drawing blood. But the ferocious attacks do not stop. The emperor’s arms, legs—every part of his body not protected by armor is faintly but steadily sliced open.

“I—I can’t watch this any longer! He’s going to get himself killed!”

But Flashika remains calm, quite my opposite.

“It’s okay. This is how the emperor fights.”

Flashika looks at Eraser like one would a fool.

“Only an egotistical dolt would try to invade the capital, Orphée, itself.”

I watch in mute amazement. Can he not see the emperor’s the one losing?! How can Flashika and the other soldiers watch the battle with such confidence?

Without a shield and only a sword, there is no longer any way for him to defend himself from Mode: Evil Six! All that’s left is for him to be slowly sliced up to bits. However, that’s when the Warmaster finally breaks his silence.

“Your swordsmanship is remarkable. I can see why you were made into a general. However…”

There is a deep note of enjoyment in his husky voice.

“I have seen all you have to offer.”

Immediately, I hear the repeated metallic clang of one sword knocking away another.

“What…?”

Despite dominating most of the battle, Eraser’s face clouds over. While holding his sword with only one hand, the Warmaster deflects each of the attacks so swiftly that not even Eraser can see his blade. Seeing a human single-handedly outperforming a demon attacking with six arms is a miraculous sight. Then…

“Holy Strike…!”

The emperor’s sword begins to glow before a light instantly shoots in Eraser’s direction.

Thump.

One of Eraser’s arms—the arm holding the battle-ax—falls to the ground as black blood gushes from the wound.

“Wh-what?!”

Thereupon, trails of light resembling geometric patterns illuminate the area. The next moment, each of the demon’s remaining arms drops to the ground!

“Th-this can’t be…! This is impossible! Y-you’re not even the Hero—”

“Sorry for not being the Hero.”

The emperor raises his radiating sword into the air.

“Crush Saint’s Light!”

Then he buries the blade in Eraser’s head! The sword continues slicing through the demon’s body until exiting through his crotch, splitting him in two! Without even slowing down, the blade proceeds to hit the ground, creating a crater with an explosion! The earthquake is so powerful that I lose balance and fall on my rear.

“N-no way…! H-he defeated the fourth general?!”

As I stare in blank amazement, the surrounding soldiers break into loud cheers. In the midst of the shouts of joy, I cling to Seiya’s leg and pull myself up.

“S-Seiya! How? How did the emperor defeat Eraser? I mean, wasn’t Eraser’s attack higher than his? Plus, he had six arms!”

“Use Scan on the Warmaster one more time.”

I gaze at the emperor once more as he sheathes his sword.

WARMASTER WOHLKS ROSEGUARD
ATK: 221,512

“What…?! His attack power increased?!”

“It appears his attributes grew in battle until they surpassed Eraser’s.”

“I-is that even possible?!”

I’m at a loss for words. The soldiers are still brimming with excitement, but the enemies start to make a move.

“Y-you’ll pay for what you did!”

“Lowly humans…!”

Losing control, the demons rush forth in droves as the Warmaster unsheathes his sword once more and raises it high into the air.

“Massive Saint’s Light!”

The illuminating sword extends in a flash as if it were cutting through the heavens. The emperor slowly turns the massive blade of light sideways, then gives it a mighty horizontal swing. The dozens of demons that lunge for the Warmaster are split in half at the waist.

“Eek…!”

The demons in the back panic, shrinking in fear until…

“Ha-ha-ha-ha!”

The Warmaster himself becomes the aggressor and attacks! Countless demons perish with every strike. Furthermore, after seeing their emperor take the offensive, the imperial army soldiers raise their swords into the air in unison and charge toward the demons as well. After that, Flashika holds out his magic staff by my side and chants:

“I call upon the divine power of Orand, God of Lightning…and bring judgment upon your evil souls!”

The instant he finishes chanting, a bolt of lightning shoots down from the heavens before branching off and targeting numerous enemies. Charred bodies litter the battleground.

“R-retreat! Retreaaaaaat!”

Their scheme had the complete opposite effect. Instead of killing our general, they lost theirs, resulting in the total breakdown of Demon’s Sword. As the enemies retreat, the emperor turns on his heel and slowly approaches us. He relaxes his majestic expression, sending us a smile.

“Oh, dear me. It appears this old man accidentally robbed you of your duty, Hero.”

Even without introductions, the emperor already knew that I was a goddess and Seiya was the Hero. I lower my head to the Warmaster.

“Please don’t worry about it! In fact, we’re extremely grateful you defeated such a powerful enemy for us!”

Mash and Elulu are bouncing with excitement.

“You were freaking amazing!”

“I can’t believe you defeated the last general so easily!”

The Warmaster smiles even more.

“I’ve gotten old. In the past, it would have never taken me that much time to defeat my opponent.”

What?! He was even stronger when he was younger?! What kind of human is he?!

As I am unable to control my astonishment, the Warmaster reverently lowers his head to me.

“Goddess, it is an honor to meet you.”

“Huh…?! Oh…! Th-thanks…”

His gentlemanly behavior makes me blush slightly. Ack! Th-there’s no reason for me to act all shy! This is how people normally act before goddesses! Seiya’s been treating me like garbage for so long that I almost forgot!

“Please come to our castle later if you can. There is something I wish to show you, Goddess.”

“Something you want to show me? Like what?”

“That is just something you will have to come and see for yourself.”

The emperor invites me to the castle with a gentle expression… Of course, I don’t mind going with him, but there’s something really bothering me about all this.

“H-hey, uh… By the way, why aren’t you going after the Demon Lord and his men yourself? I mean, you’re extremely strong…”

Thereupon, a faint hint of agony clouds the Warmaster’s expression.

“I…”

“You…?”

Just as I urge him to continue…

“Gwah…!”

The emperor clutches his chest and crouches down. Noticing something unusual, Flashika rushes over.

“Th-this isn’t good! The emperor’s…! G-get everyone out of here! Now! Hurry!”

“Gwaaaaaaaaah!”

The Warmaster groans as Flashika yells.

I-is this some kind of incurable disease?! Is that why the emperor can’t leave the capital?!

“The emperor… The emperor’s…”

Mage Flashika’s composure has transformed into dismay. In a booming voice, he yells out:

“The emperor is going to turn into an infant!”

…I’m sorry, what?

Psss…sss…ssssssh…

I hear something utterly bizarre and turn around to find liquid endlessly trickling down his leg. His once majestic expression is no longer to be found. Tears well up in his beady eyes while he sucks on his thumb like a child and confesses:

“Mm… I went potty…”