Chapter 250: The Army of the Holy Mother
The remote region of Baal was ruled by the Demon Army.
In its provincial capital, Tiotihuacan, the Holy Steriana Queendom suddenly appeared.
To the demonic forces, who were on the verge of conquering the entire continent, this rise of power was a nightmare materialized from nowhere. The regime that had long dominated the Baal region crumbled within moments.
An army of ten thousand sent as reinforcements to defend Baal vanished the instant it clashed with the Holy Mother’s forces—not annihilated, but completely erased.
The territory of the Holy Steriana Queendom expanded at triple the speed of the demon nation, which had relied on powerful demon beasts to conquer its lands. It was impossible to tell if this rapid conquest was the result of a divine miracle or some demonic act.
Merely hearing rumors of the miracles of the Holy Mother Steriana sparked rebellions not only in Baal but also in the neighboring regions of Dagon and Linmon. And now, that army was advancing toward Nisrok, the very heart of the Great Demon King Ifriil’s domain.
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「Is the Holy Mother’s army some kind of plague?」
These were the words muttered by Aslan Salzburn, the Demon Army’s supreme commander, as he led fifteen thousand soldiers, 120 demon beasts, and four of the eight Demon Generals to crush the Holy Mother’s forces.
The uprisings spreading throughout the conquered territories felt like an infectious disease plaguing the continent. Yet, despite these widespread rebellions, the Holy Mother’s army marched directly toward Nisrok’s capital. Though they could track the army’s movements, every scout sent to gather intelligence was killed, leaving their actual forces shrouded in mystery. What sort of enemy were they really facing?
The unseen nature of their foe grated on Aslan’s nerves.
「They’re horrifying… beyond comprehension.」
It was rare for a supreme commander like Aslan to voice such dread, but to deny the truth would be foolish. The Holy Mother’s army was a clear and present danger. They had somehow made an entire vanguard of ten thousand disappear in an instant.
Aslan knew they couldn’t afford to divide their forces to deal with the scattered rebellions. He resolved to concentrate their strength and strike at the heart of the rebellion: the Holy Mother Steriana herself.
If they could kill the Holy Mother, the spiritual figurehead of the rebel armies, the insurrections would likely die with her.
「There’s no other option.」
Aslan made his decision, flanked by his four trusted Demon Generals, who all pledged victory.
「With the might of the Four Generals and the leadership of Aslan-sama, we will surely crush this so-called Holy Mother.」
「The previous wave was filled with weaklings and cowardly commanders. We, the elite of the Great Demon King’s personal guard, are far stronger!」
「Being defeated by some upstart Holy Mother is a disgrace to the Eight Generals of the Demon Kingdom!」
「Hahaha, whatever happened, we shall avenge our fallen comrades and rid ourselves of this nuisance!」
Their confidence was inspiring, but Aslan cautioned them not to get too carried away. They were leading fifteen thousand elite soldiers, accompanied by 120 of the most powerful demon beasts, and reinforced with units from the Great Demon King’s own guard. This was a force unmatched in strength.
However, overconfidence could be their undoing. If, by some misfortune, Aslan and his forces were to meet the same fate as the first vanguard, there would be nothing left to stop the enemy from reaching the Demon Capital.
Thus, the next move had to be taken with utmost caution.
Just as Aslan thought this, a deep thoom echoed as if a colossal golem had stomped the ground.
The command tent trembled violently.
「What is happening…?」
Even with this abnormal shaking, the famed Four Generals of the Demon Army showed no signs of panic.
「Could the enemy be using golems?」
「If that’s the case, it explains why the vanguard of ten thousand was defeated.」
「Aslan-sama, allow me to investigate.」
「No, wait. Let’s all go. The sound is getting closer.」
Thoom, thoom—the sound, resembling heavy footsteps, grew louder. Despite the elite forces Aslan had gathered, there was no creature in their ranks comparable to a giant golem. However, they had no shortage of powerful beasts, including massive fire dragons among their number. After all, there were 120 demon beasts at their disposal.
Their collective strength was more than enough to topple any city in Abyss Continent within moments. Confident in their superiority over any foe, Aslan stepped out of the tent—only to find himself speechless.
「W-what is this…?」
Massive stone pillars were impaled into the tents of the encampment. He had thought they could handle any enemy, but these were no ordinary opponents—just giant stones?
One of the Four Generals, Havriel, known for his unmatched intuition, shouted, ‘Above us!’
「Aslan-sama, step back!」
Cried Kazanju, another of the Four Generals, famed for his unparalleled strength. He hurled himself against an incoming boulder, managing to divert its trajectory.
「Uooooh! 」
Kazanju let out a mighty roar as he was sent flying from the impact. The boulders had enough force to knock even the mighty Kazanju back.
「This must be magic… Murmoon, cast Dispel Magic.」
There was a spell known as Meteor Strike, which called down falling stars. If this was magic, they had countermeasures.
Murmoon, one of the Four Generals, known as the wisest of the Demon Army and an advance mage, raised his voice, tinged with panic.
「Aslan-sama, I’ve already cast Dispel Magic!」
「What?」
「This is not magic!」
「Impossible! How else could such a situation be created?」
Aslan looked up at the sky, but no enemy was visible. Where were these rocks coming from?
The terrain around them was rocky, but even if someone was using a massive trebuchet to hurl the stones, Aslan shook his head.
As a commander, Aslan was familiar with siege engines, but the idea that any device could launch such enormous rocks from an invisible height was ludicrous.
Could some beast or creature of unimaginable power be responsible? But no, not even a demon beast could accomplish such a feat.
Then, a dreadful thought crossed his mind.
「…Could the enemy be a demon god or some divine being?」
Was it possible that the Holy Mother Steriana wielded power on the same level as the Great Demon King Ifriil? If the Great Demon King, with his godlike abilities, could achieve such mysterious feats, then perhaps the Holy Mother also possessed similar divine power.
If that were the case… how could mere mortals like Aslan and his army hope to prevail?
「Aah…」
In the encampment, soldiers were being crushed beneath the relentless rain of falling stones. The magnitude of the situation caused Aslan to crush the command rod in his hand.
Old General Murmoon was using shockwaves to deflect the incoming stones, but it was clear that even the main camp wouldn’t be safe for much longer at this rate.
「Aslan-sama, please, allow us to use the might of our beast legion.」
Came the voice of General Cuban.
「Oh, Cuban! I’m counting on you!」
Cuban, one of the Four Generals and master of the Demon Army’s demon beasts, rode upon a flying steed himself, leading the massive force of 120 magical creatures.
Dragons and other airborne beasts could take to the skies. His plan was to strike down the unseen enemy from above.
With a terrifying roar, the beasts, led by Cuban, soared into the sky. And then, the rain of rocks ceased.
「Did… did we do it? As expected of Cuban!」
It seemed that in the skies above, Cuban’s beast legion was battling the invisible foe, crushing them with their overwhelming might. Filled with hope, Aslan turned to rally his disoriented troops, to regain order as their supreme commander.
But before he could act, thoom, thoom—more impacts from above.
What fell this time wasn’t stones, but the shattered remains of the demon beasts—the dragons and other creatures, crushed into fragments. One after another, their broken bodies rained down, covering the battlefield in a sea of blood.
「Gyaaaaah!」 「This is the end of the world!」
Came the screams of Aslan’s soldiers.
The hellish sight, too horrific for even the demons of the Demon Army, made even them tremble in fear.
Before Aslan’s very eyes, the elite soldiers of the Great Demon King’s personal guard, the pride of the Demon Kingdom, were fleeing in terror, their screams echoing across the battlefield.
「This… this is impossible…」
Such a thing should not happen.
Murmoon, now drained of his magical power, turned to Aslan with a defeated expression.
「Aslan-sama, you must retreat.」
「What nonsense are you spouting, Murmoon?!」
The Demon Army, proclaimed as the strongest force on the continent, retreating without landing a single blow on the enemy? It was unthinkable.
「Cuban may have been defeated by the enemy in the sky, but the three of us generals will hold the line. You, Aslan-sama, must withdraw.」
「But—!」
「If you are killed here along with the Great Demon King’s personal guard, there will be no one left to defend the capital. You must retreat while you still can!」
Both Havriel and Kazanju echoed Murmoon’s plea.
「I will cover the rear!」 「We’ll meet again in the depths of hell!」
Aslan’s personal guards, who had stayed by his side, brought forward his horse. His mind now cleared.
This was truly a turning point for the fate of the Demon Kingdom. With things at this stage, even Aslan had no choice but to retreat for now.
「Very well… I leave this battle to you three, but know that the defense of the capital will require your strength as well. We will meet again!」
Aslan trusted the combined might of the Three Generals—the embodiment of wisdom, power, and instinct. If anyone could navigate this crisis, it would be them. He had no choice but to believe in them.
But this situation had gone far beyond his control. Only Great Demon King Ifriil could resolve this now.
While his subordinates bought him time, Supreme General Aslan would return to the capital, report the disaster to Great Demon King Ifriil, and they would undoubtedly prepare for a counterattack that would reclaim everything.
Survive… somehow, until then.
Aslan thought as he urged himself forward. Yet, a deafening explosion behind him made him instinctively turn around.
What he saw froze him in place.
The area where the Three Generals had been holding the line, the very heart of their base, was now nothing but a mountain of rubble.
Fifteen thousand soldiers, one hundred twenty demon beasts, and the Four Generals—all buried beneath an avalanche of boulders that had rained down mercilessly from the sky.
「No… no….」
If he had stayed behind, Aslan realized he too would have been crushed beneath the rocks.
The relief of being spared mingled with the overwhelming despair of facing an enemy of such unimaginable power.
There was no choice now. He had to push forward, to make it back to the Demon Capital. With that resolution in mind, Aslan forced himself to look ahead—only to be met with another shocking sight.
Before him, rocks floated gently in the air. Clinging to one of them was a small dragon-like girl.
「What… what is that?」
The girl’s appearance resembled that of the Great Demon King’s dragonkin, though her scales were a different color. Could the one hurling these massive stones be not the Holy Mother, but a dragonkin instead?
「Oh no, I’ve been spotted.」
「Really, Asatte! What are you doing, you clumsy fool!」
「Sorryyyy.」
「Well, it doesn’t matter. We’ll crush them all anyway, so it’s not a big deal.」
「Oh my, he’s quite a handsome older man, isn’t he? It’d be a shame to crush him.」
「Ha! If you start flirting, I’ll tattle on you to Admiral Drake!」
「Oh, you know I’m loyal to Drake-ojisama. Just joking around, Are-sama.」
「Fine, fine! Then crush him without a second thought!」
Aslan stood dumbfounded, witnessing the absurdly casual banter between the two dragonkin amidst the hellish battlefield. His shock quickly gave way to fury.
With a snarl, he drew the Shadow Demon Sword, the symbol of his rank as Supreme General.
「You dare say you’ll crush this Supreme General?!」
Aslan roared, charging at them in a blind rage.
But that was the end of it. In the very next moment, a massive boulder filled his entire vision, and—
His consciousness snapped off like a light extinguished, as everything around him went black.
Thus ended Supreme General Aslan, along with his army of fifteen thousand.
With the destruction of the Demon Kingdom’s strongest force, only the Morok and Nisrok province remained. The land, stripped of its defenders, now lay exposed and vulnerable.