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–––Fuzzura’s viewpoint

My master Aprila ordered me to find Lapis, the girl we believe to be Brave in disguise. We knew she had set base in the country of Bordaule, but not the specific area or city, and searching for her took quite some time. Eventually I found the house she and her friends shared, but no matter how much I waited, I never saw them come out or go inside. In the end I pretended to be an acquaintance and knocked on the door, but all I got was a woman wearing maid clothes who barely knew anything.

Apparently they had all left somewhere to train. She did not know when they would be back either, so I had no choice but to find a way to stay in the city for a long time. Something strange happened after a while though.

For some reason, Lapis and her friends were branded as wanted criminals. At the same time, a bunch of thugs in black armor came to the city, and it all got really weird. It was easier for a demon like myself to stay here this way, but I also wanted to avoid staying undercover while things got even worse.

I tried looking into those black knights just in case, and noticed a familiar demonic scent from them. A demon had given them power, or they were under someone’s control. Or maybe both. Controlling idiotic humans and having them kill each other was something we did as well. It was not strange for other demons to do that too. The issue was whether this change would get in Aprila’s way. If they could become a roadblock, I would need to get rid of them, if not, I could just let them be.

In the end, Lapis returned and took care of the rebellion herself. But the battle left deep scars, many people were hurt and exhausted, and there had been many casualties. I did not know which demon had done this, but I had to commend their work. Weakening a country to this extent created the perfect opening for a full-on attack, or for the infiltration of disguised demons into powerful positions, controlling the country from the inside out. I asked Aprila what to do, but was told to just continue watching. In other words, there was no need for me to act here. That was a rather mellow reaction from her, but maybe she was already planning something in secret with someone else. Instead, I was given a new mission.

I was to infiltrate Zelvis, a country to the north of Bordaule. I would regroup with other demons there, and we would instigate a rebellion there. That was an order so I could not refuse, so I left Bordaule and went north to Zelvis. I had no idea how this mission was going to end.

–––Diaria’s viewpoint

I finally returned home! So much kept happening that it felt like I was away for a long time, so it was shocking to realize it has not been even a year since I left. Thinking back, I was so close to dying so many times…but I survived thanks to my friends, and it all helped me become stronger, which I am very thankful for.

When I left, there were barely any people seeing me off, like I was just a burden on everyone, so why is this happening now? Their attitude welcoming me back feels the polar opposite. They are acting like the savior of their country just returned. I was lost for words seeing just how many people gathered to see me.

“Welcome back, Diaria. I’m glad to see you’re doing well. We’ve heard everything about you.”

My uncle Dirk, this country’s president, came out from the crowd smiling widely.

“I’m back, Mr. president.”

I realized I started smiling as I shook his hand. Coming back home really felt nice. Before I always thought my uncle spoke nothing but nonsense, but I was happy to see him again.

“Diaria, do you mind introducing your companions?”
“Oh, they’re my friends, Bordaule’s hero’s party.”
“Ohh! That’s them?! I never imagined they were such young and pretty ladies. Nice to meet you everyone, I’m Dirk, this country’s president. I know you’ve taken good care of my niece, so you’re welcome to stay as long as you want.”

My friends looked confused, either this was the first time someone complimented their looks so soon after meeting, or they were shocked to hear I was his niece. But as the leader of the party, Luvias quickly composed herself and firmly shook my uncle’s hand.

“Nice to meet you, Mr. president. I’m Luvias, the party’s leader. This is our frontliner Karin, next to her is Ciel, our magician, and behind is Lapis, our mentor. We’re pleased to make your acquaintance.”
“I’ve heard many stories about you all. It’s an honor to finally meet you in person. Also, if memory serves, I believe Lady Luvias is also Bordaule’s princess..?”
“Yes, you’re very knowledgeable, I see. I’m Bordaule’s princess. Though I’m trying to focus on being purely a hero, so please don’t mind my family.”
“…Got it. We’ll treat you as a hero during your stay in my country then.”

He probably would treat a princess as a state guest, but a hero receives a less preferential treatment? I felt like that was a bit unfair, but I knew it was a fight I could not win, so there was no point in arguing.

“I’ll make sure to throw a banquet to give you a proper welcome, but first I want to tell you more about why I’ve called you back, Diaria. Do the rest of you mind hanging around as well?”
“Of course, we’ve heard the rough outline as well, so we’ll help as much as we can.”
“I appreciate that. Follow me please then.”

My uncle started walking away somewhere so we followed him, while I noticed many familiar faces waving at me from the crowd. I could see my past bosses and coworkers, and even some of the shopkeepers from the stores I used to buy things from. I felt a bit creeped out seeing even people I was never that close to welcome me with such smiles.

“Please sit here. Anyway, let’s get right into it shall we? I’ll tell you why I’ve called you back.”
“Okay.”

I sat down in front of my uncle, while my friends sat to my sides. The couch in the presidential office was rather large, so even around five or six grown men could sit on it at the same time. I reach out for some tea, and then look at my uncle, who nods before talking.

“I believe it’s common knowledge that monster sightings have become much more frequent everywhere. Some suspect it might be the influence of demons, but we have no way to verify that so let’s ignore that for now. The issue is how to deal with it.”
“Did it get so bad the army can’t deal with it, and that’s why you called me?”
“The numbers are an issue, yes, but that’s not the main problem. To put it simply, they’ve gotten too strong. They’re the same type of monsters as before, but somehow they’re ridiculously strong, and casualties keep piling up.”

The same type of monsters but way stronger? That sounded familiar…

“Wait, could it be that the monsters from the Haunted Lands have started crossing to this side?”

It finally clicked when Ciel said that. It would make sense if they were the same monsters as in the Haunted Lands. Mere goblins could easily overpower beginner adventurers there.

“That’s one possibility. The thing is, our country has no border with the Haunted Lands. We only have Leble to the west, and I find it hard to believe monsters would travel across the entire empire just to come here…”
” ” “……” ” ”

A really uncomfortable feeling spread inside us hearing that. We knew that was probably exactly what was happening. There was a high possibility that Leble was allied with demons. Seeing what Stied did to Bordaule after working with Leble gave us enough reason to believe that.

“Uncle, you want us to find the source of those monsters and stop them?”
“Yes. I know you’re all strong, but having just the few of you travel all over the country exterminating every monster would be too much work, not to mention that it would only be a temporary fix before more appear. We need to find the source and destroy it, and that’s what I want you to do.”