Published: March 21, 2026
"Of course we're running away! Now, if you don't want to die, run!!!"
At Lattice Nail's words we took a step in the opposite direction of the approaching demonic beasts.
"Lattice Nail!!"
At that moment I pulled Lattice Nail's arm toward me.
A beat later, a large bearded man fell from somewhere and landed in our path.
"Oh? You dodged. How pitiful, the time you'll spend terrified before you die, young lady!!"
"...Huh, it's you."
Where Lattice Nail had been about to step, a huge bladed weapon, the sort that could cleanly cut a human in two, was silently embedded deep in the ground.
At first glance it looked like a long-handled spear, but the blade wasn't a thin sword‑like edge — it was heavier and larger than that. I hadn't seen it in Human territory, but I recognized it from a Beastmen territory weapon shop. I think it's called a greatsword. But this one's haft was thicker than usual, and even lifting it would clearly require tremendous strength. Yet the man handled it almost single‑handed with ease. He was no ordinary fellow.
"That's Blythe Otto. He's the eighth-ranked man of the ten demon lords' council. His weapon is a custom greatsword, several times heavier than a normal greatsword. If you try to parry him with your weapon he'll just chop the whole thing off, so be careful."
Lattice Nail explained quickly. I nodded and drew the Night Blade God.
Although his rank in the ten demon lords' council was lower than Darion who attacked the airship, or Mahiro and Aurum we fought in the Brute Labyrinth, complacency would be fatal.
I viewed his stats with the World Eye.
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Blythe Otto
Race: Demon Clan Profession: berserker lv.84
HP: 40000/40000 Attack: 38400 (when berserk: 64000) Defense: 19200
Magic: 31050/32000
Skills: berserk lv.7 muscle strength enhancement lv.8 agility enhancement lv.7 superhuman strength lv.4
Extra Skill: demonic beast manipulation
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Judging by the stats, he was a pure brute combat type. His attack nearly doubled when berserk — notable but unsurprising.
In this world, people who fight mostly with skills and magic like Mahiro were rarer than I thought. In the end, the only thing you can truly rely on is your own body.
"I thought Aurum would be the first to fly in for this kind of thing!"
"That battle‑junkie boy's been sent to a remote region today at the demon lord's request. But you really think you can beat me!?"
Blythe swung his greatsword overhead, the wind whistling, then stopped with perfect balance and crouched low with that massive blade. One wrong step and you'd be killed. His reach was wide, so we couldn't just sidestep past him. We probably couldn't go across the roofs either because of the barrier covering the buildings.
Demons in front, a horde of demonic beasts behind. Now what?
Kyousuke, the hero, and I formed a circle around Lattice Nail, weapons ready.
"You took multiple national treasures without permission, you shirked your heir's studies to run about other continents, and in the end you even helped a hero enter Krul at the Royal Castle's doorstep. But the demon lord will forgive you again this time, right? How long do you plan to keep taking advantage of the demon lord's kindness?"
Surprisingly, Blythe spoke instead of killing immediately. He was probably confident he could kill us whenever he wanted. Aurum would have attacked without warning.
I felt anger rise from behind; the Night reacted on my shoulder. Lattice Nail stood behind me.
"The demon lord's kindness, huh... Because of people like you, that man never tries to face reality."
I glanced over my shoulder. Lattice Nail glared at Blythe like I'd never seen before.
"How many centuries have passed since Misty Hermes died? How much time have you wasted? That's why you lose to the Humans in technology despite shorter lifespans. It's embarrassing for a once-great technological nation. How long will you keep validating a king who stands still and only looks back!? Aren't you going to admonish him!?"