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The Devil attacks had spread through the entire northern region.

Naturally, that meant that the Devil groups also reached the United Three Nations’ capital, Tryad.

Rather, due to the number of citizens, far more Devils gathered there, so the battle forced practically all the knights to head out to the frontline.

“Your Highness, the northern gate defenses are already at the limit. There are many casualties among the guards!”
“The southern gate guards should have some leeway in numbers. Send them there along with the rear guard knights.”
“The second western gate is somehow holding back the Devil attacks!”
“What?! How did they do it?”

Even a single Devil was a powerful threat. Tryad was being attacked by eight of them now.

It was a small mercy that they were able to hold them back so far thanks to the fact that they didn’t cooperate and didn’t focus on breaking through from one point.

However, they were nonetheless in an inferior position. And yet, the second western gate managed to hold its own, a fact that Elliot found hard to believe.

“Sir, Count Raglan and Her Highness are in charge of the second gate.”
“Priscilla?! I wondered where she went, but to think she went there…”
“It is still thanks to their cooperation that they are able to put up a resistance against the Devils there…”
“But that’s not something a queen should do! Good grief, why did she rush into danger like that.”

One couldn’t object to the king’s statement in general, so the subordinates around didn’t oppose his words.

Elliot was well aware of the situation, which was why he didn’t order them to bring her back.

He couldn’t pull personnel from the sole battlefront that was putting up a proper fight against the Devils.

After all, he knew that if this paper-thin balance broke, the entire front could collapse with it.

“I’m worried about Priscilla… but the other fronts are also…”

The battle was at a disadvantage, and places, where Count Raglan and his daughter weren’t present, were using the rampart to somehow manage to endure the attacks.

At this rate, let alone repelling them, the royal capital could actually fall.

“You still can’t contact Lord Lyell and Lord Maxwell?”
“Sir, it appears that Raum and the pioneer village are also facing the Devil attacks…”
“Even there?! Just where did this flood of Devils come from?!”

He punched down the throne’s armrest. This kind of rage was rare for a gentle king like Elliot. Which was why his retainers were currently as scared as they had ever been.

But Elliot has more things to worry about now. At this rate, he would let his soldiers die in vain. He had to make some decisions as soon as possible.

“…………We… are going to abandon Tryad.”
“W-What?!”
“There’s less enemy at the southern gate, right? Then evacuate the citizens from there. Hurry up!”
“Your Highness, please reconsider! This city can still stand!”
“Exactly. How could we abandon this capital that we have finally rebuilt… Please reconsider!”
“And how many soldiers do you think will die in the process? What we can do now is to save our military force as much as possible and reorganize ourselves.”

Elliot’s and his subordinates’ opinions clashed, throwing the place into chaos and hindering further instructions. Meanwhile, a messenger rushed into the audience hall.

“Reporting! The third western gate has been broken through!”
“What?!”
“There are already casualties among the citizens! P-Please, send reinforc—!”

The next moment, the messenger fell forward.

Looking closely, his body was wounded all over, and was in total exhaustion. He probably used all his stamina to rush here.

Seeing that, Elliot’s retainers that were opposing him were at a loss for words.

They failed to realize it from the castle, but now they finally learned that the situation was much direr than they expected.

“Did you see? We can’t lose even a second. Quickly, evacuate the—”
“Yes, that’s a good decision, but could ye wait fer a little?”

Suddenly, a voice interrupted Elliot’s words. At the same time, a woman showed herself from behind a pillar that supported the ceiling.

She was slim and had two short swords on her back. Her hair was cut at shoulder length, and rather than a beauty, her looks made her feel more like an amiable and charming girl.

If anything, she looked closer to Priscilla.

“I’m the northern area supervisin’ branch manager of the Guild. I’m usually in Stollar, though.”

The female introduced herself while scratching her head. She had a peculiar accent that gave her a special atmosphere.

“We’ve made several strategies on how ta defeat those Devils. I wanted to offer some help.”
“You have a way of beating them?!”
“Yuup!”

She narrowed her eyes and gave a sly grin.

Elliot ignored her scheming grin and latched onto her proposal.

“If you can, please do! I promise I will respond with any reward that’s in my ability!”
“Kay, we seem ta have reached an agreement.”

She said so, then took out a small box-shaped tool from her pocket. The guards instantly reacted to it and drew their swords in vigilance.

However, the woman ignored them altogether, and casually spoke towards the box.

“I have their agreement. Do yer job properly now.”
“Got it.”

That was the only response that came from the box. After that, the communication got cut off.

The tense atmosphere continued for ten-odd minutes. The woman stood while still grinning like before.

Elliot, who couldn’t follow the situation, didn’t move and waited for some kind of reaction.

And then, the long-awaited messenger showed up in the audience hall.

“Reporting! The Devil at the first eastern gate has been defeated!”
“What?! How did they do it?!”
“Sir, a group of Adventurers suddenly attacked it with a battering ram, stopping it first and then skewering it.”
“A battering ram… against a Devil?”
“Y-Yes.”

The woman answered shocked Elliot while maintaining her grin.

“If ye can’t deal any effective damage due ta their hard defenses, ya just hafta hit them with an attack that exceeds it, right? Even a Devil can’t endure an attack of a battering ram that can destroy castle gates.”
“A simple method like that…”

In the first place, battering rams simply had sharpened logs on them that you used to slam against a giant target.

They were of course reinforced and had wheels for easier transportation too.

“Fortunately, Devils have giant bodies, so it’s surprisingly easy ta slam it at them.”

They were giants over three meters tall. And that backfired on them now. Of course, the Devils could try to evade it, but with the numbers on their side, they could seal their mobility.

That would be all the more possible if capable people like Adventurers who could adapt to various situations were the ones doing it.

“Two gates in the north, three gates in east and west, eight in total, have already deployed the battering rams. Those fellows haven’t prepared well enough, and they are going ta taste how scary humans can be.”

After saying so, the woman’s mouth turned up into a bigger grin. Her smile was just like that of a devil that deceived people taking part in a drama.

At the same time, several messengers rushed into the audience hall.

Seeing that, Elliot was convinced of their victory.

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