The situation was bad.
It had already been an hour since the attack started.
Everything should have ended quickly for us.
We should have already returned and rubbed the evidence we have in Jake and Oscar's faces, but...
"Razel, give me a hand!"
A group of bastards was shooting at us from a distance, and we were hiding.
"Aaaaah!"
Shouted Duke Luinberg while covering his ears.
I was also shouting.
"I don't want to stand out!"
I was also shooting with a stolen rifle. If I showed my skills here, it would be really bad for my peace and tranquility.
◇◇◇
The battle against Grendel should have been easy for these guys.
"Puah!"
Unfortunately, the enemy was stronger than expected.
"Hang in there!"
Jake was on the ground coughing up blood while Oscar defended him.
They both thought that defeating an enemy far away would be an easy opponent for their long-range attacks.
They were totally wrong.
Grendel was stronger than they thought.
Jake launched his missiles, and when they hit their target, they were destroyed because they were repelled by his attacks.
The same for Oscar.
Grendel easily dodged the attacks or destroyed them.
Once they understood that this opponent was going to be difficult, they decided to work together.
Even in the game, none of the targets other than Lambert or Regulux had a good relationship with each other.
Without Lily around, they had no reason to work together or get along.
Or at least, not the right one.
Covered in blood on the ground, they remembered a certain day.
The day they dueled with Razel.
(Jake was the first to stand up.)
(This really is the worst.)
(I... how did I end up like this?)
His legs trembled.
(My father is very angry with me, and my mother won't speak to me. Even though until that day, my mother doted on me as her only son.)
(He was always serious, but what he said to me after that duel was truly painful. I don't want this. I want to go back to how it was before that day.)
(Oscar began to move.)
(My family and my grandfather always praised me ever since I learned to use magic.)
(They always said things like "Oscar will be the new pride of the Pleven Household." And, "As expected of Oscar, a genius child in magical formulas.")
A smile appeared on his face.
(I, since that day, have been rejected by my family. My brothers and my parents don't talk to me.)
(My grandfather is deeply disappointed in me; he even sent me with the duke so I wouldn't visit him during work as I always did on vacations.)
(What wrong did I do to deserve this?)
(That's right, since the day I fought that guy.)
Both were getting up.
The thought was the same.
(I'm annoyed with that guy, but... I'm more annoyed with my own weakness. If I had been strong from the beginning, I would have beaten him.)
Standing up, they both shouted as they looked at Grendel.
"I don't want to show my pathetic face to that guy! I want a rematch and to beat him! I don't want to lose here!"
Oscar's hands shone with an intense green color.
Jake took out all his bombs and, using a magical formula, merged them into one.
"I'll give it my all in this attack, even if it costs me my life!"
The boys were determined to win.
Grendel laughed at them.
"Gyahaha! You idiots won't be able to beat me! Jerks, you're jerks, gyahaha!"
Grendel did a breakdance spin in the air, and his legs began to shine.
Jake placed the bomb in his gauntlet.
A red light shone.
"This will be the strongest attack of all! Get ready to receive the power of the Fitzclarence magical formulas!"
Oscar's hands turned into small green typhoons, and he crossed his arms in an X-shape.
"With this attack, you won't be able to block it or flee anywhere. The magical power I imbue in them is everything my body can generate. You're finished!"
The three were ready for the attack.
"Give me your best, jerks!"
"Eat this. Meteora!" Shouted Jake as small red lights made of small missiles came out of his gauntlet.
"Wind magic: Cutting Leaf!"
A rain of different intense colors fell from the sky while bursts of combined attacks were sent from the ground.
"AAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHH!"
It was the shouts of both sides as Grendel's attacks impacted against the missiles and cutting leaves.
Only a few attacks hit the boys or Grendel, but neither retreated.
A dust cloud was generated in that place, creating tremors throughout the entire facility.
◇◇◇
Fahren was on top of the ship watching everything from his position.
He made a call via communicator.
"Randy, respond. Are you there?"
"Fahren, there's a problem! The brats aren't here!"
"No, you're the one who isn't with them; you got lost again."
"Eh! Really?"
"More importantly, did you get anything?"
"Yes. I found some documents that seem to detail a type of drug."
"Good, return to the ship immediately. You're in charge; I need to go somewhere."
"Really? To the bathroom?"
"Yes..."
"Ok."
The call ended, but the duke had a serious face.
"Let's go."
He said to a mysterious figure standing behind him.
◇◇◇
A large dust cloud was slowly dispersing.
In it, figures were on the ground.
They were Jake and Oscar, who were bleeding.
Their clothes were burnt, and their wounds looked serious.
Grendel descended.
He was injured, but unlike the two boys, his injuries were light.
"Jerks. You took the full hit; I just had to spin and form a shield to reduce the damage, but you were so confident you would win that's why you're like this."
His foot stepped on Jake's head.
As if he were a cockroach, he twisted his foot to squeeze all the liquid out of his body.
A strong kick came accompanied by a mocking laugh.
"Gyahaha! This is what you get for messing with us. You worms will never be able to surpass us; I hope you learn a lesson in hell."
"You're right about learning a lesson."
Grendel turned around to look for that mysterious voice.
Before he realized it, a shadow appeared in front of him and disappeared at the same time.
"Where is he?"
He looked for the boys' bodies, but couldn't find them.
Footsteps were heard approaching from the open door.
"You're absolutely right. They were foolish and confident, believing they could beat you."
Slow footsteps, but ones that generated great tension in the atmosphere, echoed.
"They thought it would be easy to beat you because you were on the ground and a flying target. They were undoubtedly stupid."
A foot was placed in the room, then another; an elegant man entered.
It was Jake's father.
His gaze was cold and dark.
Grendel boasted, even without understanding what happened to the boys who lay on the ground.
"Gyahaha, it doesn't really matter who my enemy is; I'll kill him, I'll grind him up, and I'll make him experience hell."
"I agree that an enemy should suffer, but there's something we don't agree on, and that is..."
A wicked smile manifested on his face.
"That I am the one who must make you suffer that, and no one will touch me or mine. I'm going to make you suffer for touching my boy."
"Gyaha. So that bastard was your son? Good, like father, like idiot son."
Grendel went straight for Fahren.
"Both father and son are going to hell!"
Fahren sighed.
"You don't understand anything."
He looked at Grendel with pity.
"From the moment I entered, it was my victory."
Before the crescent moon of magical power touched him, a shadow came out from some boxes and blocked the attack.
The attack was repelled against the wall.
Grendel saw that, and his mouth opened as he said words he himself couldn't believe.
"... U-u-u... A woman?"
As Grendel said, a beautiful woman dressed in a high-class maid uniform was standing in front of Fahren.
Her hair was black and tied in a ponytail; her amethyst-colored eyes showed no sign of life, like her frozen expression.
"Are you alright, master?"
"Umu. Nirvana, and those two?"
"Yes. Young Master Jake and his friend are safe."
Grendel didn't understand how a maid deflected his attack, but he did it again.
This time it was two crescent moons.
They headed straight for the maid.
But without turning to look, she deflected the attacks after dislocating her arms.
Like a robot, her joints made a sound to return to normal.
Fahren looked at Grendel, who was sweating a lot from what happened.
"Surprised? Let me answer your curiosity."
Fahren's hand moved to introduce his maid.
"She is the first prototype for the future of the empire. A mechanical doll, or Doll. Nirvana of the Pleiades."
"A pleasure to meet you."
Nirvana greeted him politely, bowing slightly and lifting her skirt a little.
Grendel had a blue vein on his forehead.
"Don't mock me, you fucking son of a bitch!"
Once again, Grendel's attack would begin, but Fahren didn't allow it.
"Nirvana."
"Yes. Pleiades Squadron, come out."
From different places, six shadows came out and surrounded Grendel in the air.
They were all beautiful women.
Nirvana slowly approached Grendel and looked up at him from the ground.
"The master said to take care of you, slowly and painfully. We will follow his orders."
"Minerva, bring the tools. And Pollux, make sure he doesn't die until the master says so."
"Understood, onee-sama."
Grendel felt fear.
The "women" dressed as maids said terrifying things without changing their facial expressions as they prepared to torment Grendel.
Watching as one of them brought a toolbox, he began to beg for his life.
"Wait, time out! It was a game! I didn't mean to do anything to you! It was a—!"
His voice distorted as he felt his fingernails being torn off in the slowest and strongest way possible.
"Ugyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyaaaaaaaaaaaaaah!!"
He screamed as tears ran down his cheeks.
"Artemis nee-sama, it's my turn."
"Understood."
It was the youngest sister's turn.
She looked like an innocent girl; she had a syringe with nothing inside.
She placed the needle on the exposed flesh of Grendel's finger, and it inflated.
"Sorry! I'm sorry! I won't do it again! Forgive me!"
"It's time for the boom."
The youngest hit the finger inflated like a balloon, and it exploded like one.
Little flesh and bone were exposed.
Grendel screamed in pain.
Foam came from his mouth.
Fahren watched all of this.
◇◇◇
Jake opened his eyes after a couple of hours.
He was on the ship, looking at the ceiling.
Sitting up a little, he observed a large cleavage near his face.
He got scared seeing it.
The cleavage was removed, and a beautiful face appeared.
"It's you, Nirvana. Don't scare me like that."
"Good morning, Young Master Jake."
Near Jake were six other maids looking at him worriedly.
"We're glad to see you safe." Said a maid with two pigtails.
"We thought we wouldn't hear your cute voice again." Mentioned one with short hair and a headband in the shape of bunny ears.
Jake seemed embarrassed.
"Don't exaggerate. If you're here, it means my father..."
"No."
"Huh?"
Nirvana looked at Jake with a motherly, affectionate face.
"You fought bravely with your friend and ended up winning. We are proud of you."
The Pleiades squadron was not only the duke's best creation, nor were they the reason he became the second seat of the holy mages.
The reason they were special...
"Be proud of your growth."
Was that despite being dolls, they showed emotions.
They never appeared in the game, but Jake mentioned that he had nannies.
These girls have been with Jake since he was a child.
He averted his gaze from them, and they all shouted in unison.
"Kyahh! The young master is blushing!"
"It reminds me of when he was a little boy and was embarrassed to bathe with us."
"I'll never forget the time he proposed to Nirvana onee-sama and said he would make her his wife one day."
His face contorted with shame remembering the past; he curled up in a fetal position while Nirvana stroked his head.
"The young master worked very hard. Sleep in Nirvana's lap until we get home."
"Ahh, onee-sama, that's unfair!"
"I want to dote on the young master too!"
The sisters started fighting over Jake.
Oscar, who had woken up a while ago, watched that scene in confusion.
Someone approached him; it was Duke Wimlet.
He handed him some coffee with milk.
After drinking it, he asked.
"How was everything?"
"It was perfect; it took a long time, but now we have the evidence to take to the palace."
"I see. Ah..."
Oscar remembered something.
"How did the other group do?"
The duke pointed to a nearby location, and turning his head, Oscar found three ghostly figures in a corner.
Razel and the others were looking at the floor, trembling for some reason.
"Did they not succeed?"
The duke denied it by shaking his head from side to side.
"Apparently something happened; they returned with the samples. They just got on and sat there without saying anything."
Oscar didn't understand why the three were trembling so much.
Razel heard that and replied in his heart.
(You didn't see what we saw!)
◇
We managed to defeat our enemies somehow.
We obtained the samples; some strange red pills were being created.
We had to get out of here quickly to show off to those guys, but we didn't know which way to go.
We wandered around here and there. Before we knew it, we arrived at a hallway leading to an open room.
We didn't know if it was the exit or some entrance with more enemies.
But this time, I wasn't going to let Cid almost get killed.
I was going to fight; I told them to stay behind me.
We approached slowly, and when I opened the door to launch an electric attack...
"... Huh?"
I was stupefied by what I saw.
◇◇◇
Minutes before Razel arrived at that room.
A group of researchers was in a panic.
"How did they discover us?"
"All our work is lost!"
"We need to leave as soon as possible! Hey, you, protect us!"
A sweating researcher shouted at a man in a corner.
His body was muscular despite wearing armor.
The color was gray like his hair.
His eyes were brown, and he had a strange mark on his face as if it were a disease.
He was a soldier from the Ideal Empire, one of the four dark knights, and a villain from the game.
He was Curtis van Ganne, the Ash Knight.
He laughed as he watched them all in an uproar.
"Kakaka, poor idiots. You paid my country a large sum of money to hire a bodyguard. Don't worry so much; I'll protect you since that was the deal. In fact, you should be grateful it was me and not that little girl Estarossa."
The researchers were calmed by the man's relaxed attitude.
"Are you sure?"
"Kakaka, of course. I can handle everyone; I'm just looking after you."
Their relaxation didn't last long, as they heard slow footsteps approaching.
Some were uneasy, others nervous, and others scared.
Curtis stood up.
"Don't cry, idiots; I'll take care of the intruder as soon as he sets foot inside."
He walked to the door, which was slowly opening.
He unsheathed his sword.
"Behold the power of the Ideal Empire's magical research!"
His beautiful white sword turned to dust from the tip almost to the hilt.
"Ash Magic: Killer Dust."
A large cloud of ash dust rose.
As soon as a foot was placed inside the room, the cloud, which moved as if alive, lunged at the intruder.
The smell was just like sulfur.
The touch of the ash was like small blades.
Curtis's body was modified to be able to do this.
Every time he killed someone, his power and ash grew.
That's why he was one of the strongest enemies; he could eliminate an army without problems.
A true threat.
"Kakaka, fools, you are no match for me."
"It smells bad."
A voice was heard from inside the ash.
"What?"
Curtis thought he had misheard.
"I came smelling something that seemed delicious."
But that wasn't the case.
"I was really mistaken; it smells terrible."
The voice inside the ash storm moved its hand, and the cloud was completely destroyed.
Curtis didn't seem to understand what happened.
But a tall, muscular man wearing a beige fur coat was visible to everyone.
His face was still covered by the ash, but it was slowly disappearing.
His gray hair combed back seemed to indicate he was an elderly man, but his young, mature-aged face indicated otherwise.
Curtis was trembling; it wasn't because his magic was easily destroyed.
He was scared by the red eyes like hellfire of the man who looked at him coldly.
"What smelled good, but turned out to be fatal, came from you. No, it came from this thing."
The man approached slowly.
"I don't like it when food smells bad or tastes horrible... get lost."
"Sorry?"
Those were the last words Curtis uttered because of the man who placed his hand on his head and, as if it were a doorknob, gave it a light turn without using force.
The researchers didn't know how to react upon seeing that the one who was supposed to protect them had his neck twisted and blood dripping from his nose.
Curtis's body fell to the floor, and a scream sounded.
While the red-eyed man laughed.
"It still smells bad here."
◇
Upon entering the room, we found a scene straight out of a disemboweling movie.
Intestines, viscera, and brains were scattered everywhere.
And, in a corner, I watched as the corpse of the Ash Knight lay there.
(Who did this?)
That was the question we all asked.
(Who could have done this? And moreover, defeat the Ash Knight?)
(That bastard was super strong.)
"I don't know what happened here, but we need to—"
My words were cut off by resonant footsteps in this place.
They came from the back.
Cid and I got into combat positions to face the threat.
The moment his body was visible... I froze.
A terrifying-faced man covered in blood came out of his hiding place; what scared me wasn't the bloodstains.
It was the horns growing from his head.
Arch-shaped horns, black with red tips, made a unique contrast on this man.
I recognized him instantly; I knew who he was, but there was one question.
(What is he doing here?)
(Why is the Demon King Desmond here?!)
(It's still too early to meet him. He shouldn't appear until after the four-year time skip!)
He approached us.
Cid spoke to me.
"Razel... can you feel it? This guy's magical power distorts the atmosphere around him; is that possible? I never heard of that in class."
I watched him tremble like a scared child; sweat marked his forehead, and drops fell all over his face.
The duke was the same; in my case, it was worse.
I was soiling my pants.
I can't say which one it was, A or B, but definitely, something was wet down there.
Before I realized it, he arrived near us. Our eyes met, and his red eyes, like hell itself, looked at me.
(Am I going to die?)
(Was everything I did in vain?)
(Eli... Lily... I'm sorry. The world won't be saved after all.)
"You... smell of potential."
With those strange words, the demon king left the place.
When he left, we remained frozen until we no longer heard his footsteps.
At that moment... we screamed in panic.
We fell to our knees, and I almost cried like the day I discovered where I reincarnated.
(I never want to see him again!)