It Seems That the Demon King Is Among the Members of the Hero’s Party

35. The Party’s Direction

───Our party gathered in a room at the church. When everyone arrived, Noel gave me a meaningful glance, but it seems we’ll prioritize sharing information for now.

I remembered that Noel was engaged two days ago. Yesterday, I prioritized resting my body. I felt more mentally exhausted than physically tired. After taking a day off, my condition should be perfect.

As I glanced around, I saw that the party members were also looking around the room.

This room seems to be used for meetings or something. The shelves along the walls are packed with books. A large, round table is in the center of the room, with exactly the right number of chairs. Unnecessary chairs are stacked in a corner of the room.

Since there were no designated seats, I sat down casually, and Darl quickly sat down to my right. When I looked to my left, Eclair was already seated. Tra-san smiled and sat down next to Eclair, while Sacha sat down next to Darl. Noel sat down in front of me, so our eyes naturally met. It’s embarrassing.

But I’d like to make an excuse. The ones who sat down next to me were Darl and Eclair. Please consider that I didn’t sit down last.

As I gazed at Noel, she suddenly blushed. Her slightly pointed ears turned red.

“What’s wrong?”

Sacha looked at me with a smirk, as if she knew something. What should I say?

I felt Darl’s gaze on me from my right.

“There’s nothing. You were staring at me, so you got embarrassed, right?”

“If I stared at you, you’d get embarrassed too! I understand how Noel feels!”

Darl backed me up, which was a huge relief. Sacha looked unconvinced but didn’t pursue the matter further.

Sacha, with her keen intuition, probably sensed what was going on between me and Noel. She’s still smirking.

“Can we move on to the discussion, Noel?”

I decided to steer the conversation towards the topic and avoid being teased by Sacha in the future. As I spoke, I felt Noel’s gaze on me, and then it stopped at Sacha.

I turned to look, and saw that Sacha had taken out a wine bottle and glasses using storage magic. She’s planning to drink.

While being fed up with Sasha’s nonchalant attitude, I let out a sigh as I gazed at Noel. Sasha wouldn’t listen even if I said anything.

“I think Kyle told you, but we received information from the church’s people, so I’ll share it with you.”

“About Clovicas?”

“That’s right. I think you know, but we’ve finally found out where Clovicas is. I received a report again yesterday, and it seems they haven’t changed their residence. They must have some purpose for staying there.”

“Where is it?”

When I asked, Noel opened a map on the desk and pointed to the southeastern part of the continent with a long, thin stick.

“It’s ‘Cremaltas’. Geographically, it’s near the royal capital.”

“To be precise, it’s not the royal capital. It’s a small village located south of the royal capital.”

“Is there any sign of them heading towards the royal capital?”

“As of now, it’s unconfirmed. Their purpose is unknown, but they’ve been staying in that village for about 20 days.”

Twenty days in a village near the royal capital. I think their target is the royal capital of Cremaltas, but what are they after?

Is there something going on around there? The distance to the Leg ruins where Silvy is said to be is considerable. The recent big commotions in Cremaltas were the assassination of the queen and the massive outbreak of goblins.

The former was caused by the demon tribe, and the latter was due to the goblins that escaped from the dragon. We also participated in the subjugation, but we couldn’t defeat them all and let about half of them escape. Where are they now?

The worst possible scenario I can think of is that they’re using the goblin outbreak as a diversion to attack Clovicas.

And if Silvy gets involved, what will happen? There’s a possibility that Cremaltas will be destroyed.

“Can’t we consider using goblins as a decoy?”

“I can’t say it’s impossible. It’s only been two months since the massive outbreak, so there’s a high possibility that goblins are still nearby.”

It’s a highly possible scenario. I look around to see what everyone thinks. Tra-san is just nodding silently, seemingly having given up on thinking. When I look at Sasha, they give a slight thought before drinking their wine. Why did they drink now?

“Do you think they’re trying to lure us out?”

“Lure us out?”

“They’re the demon tribe that we couldn’t find even a hint of, despite searching so much. Suddenly, their location is revealed, and they’re staying in the same place for a long time. It looks like a trap to me.”

“If it’s a trap, I can disarm it!”

“I don’t think it’s that kind of physical trap.”

I couldn’t help but laugh at Darl and Sasha’s exchange. Tra-san is also laughing loudly. I glance at Eclair, who’s sitting beside me, but they’re as silent as usual, watching us.

“Do you think Eclair also thinks it’s a trap?”

When I ask, Eclair nods. Since she’s someone with excellent intuition, it’s probably the case.

Everyone here thinks it’s a trap. Even so, our course of action is decided.

We’ll take action, knowing it’s a trap, and head to subjugate Clovicas. We can’t just leave it alone.

“Let’s decide on a plan, then. As for Clovicas, it’s clear they’re trying to lure us out. We’ll head to subjugate them, knowing it’s a trap.”

“The problem is the Four Heavenly Kings, though…”

Sasha, who’s leaning on the desk, pours wine into their cup while giving me a glance. It seems they want me to speak up.

“The ‘Undead Queen’ Silvy was spotted in the Leg ruins within the Cremaltas territory. Around the same time, there’s also information about the ‘Red Dragon’ Drake being seen in the Dekee mountain range along the border of Telma’s country. Since it’s around the same timing as Clovicas, I think there’s some intention behind it.”

“We can’t handle three things at once!”

“I’ve already contacted the church about Drake, so the elves of Telma will handle it.”

It seems they were listening to my conversation with Sasha. The response is quick. Although it’s not commendable to eavesdrop, it’s helpful this time. As for Drake, we’ll leave it to the elves.

“The problem is Silvy. We don’t have a way to defeat the undead queen.”

(Note: I’ve preserved the line breaks and formatting of the original text.)

“I think the only way is to seal it.”

“If we can do that, we won’t have to struggle.”

It’s going to be tough, though. Once Silvy is sealed, they’ll be on high alert. We need to find a way to immobilize them and force the seal. The risk is high.

“How about throwing them into the magma of ‘Hokka Mountain’? Even if they’re immortal, being boiled in magma is unbearable, don’t you think?”

“How are we going to take them there, though? Hokka Mountain is in the north of the Arcadia Kingdom. It’s pretty far.”

“What if I carry them?”

“Even if you carry them, we can’t catch them off guard. They won’t go quietly.”

“If we can catch them, it’s better to seal them on the spot. No need to carry them all the way.”

“That’s true.”

This is how we face the problem of Silvy, and the laziness of the Four Heavenly Kings becomes clear.

In the history of brave warriors, they’ve struggled against the Four Heavenly Kings. It’s not just about strength, but also about dealing with troublesome foes.

“Either way, we can’t handle both Clovikas and Silvy at the same time. Let’s ask Klematras to deal with Silvy and have the knights respond. Meanwhile, we’ll take care of Clovikas.”

“I think that’s a good idea. Once we have a plan, we can adapt to the situation when we arrive at Klematras.”

“I agree.”

“For now, let’s just focus on defeating Clovikas.”

“That’s a good idea.”

Noel nods in agreement, and Eclair follows suit. We can’t stick to a detailed plan; we need to respond to each situation as it arises. Our strategy is simple, and we’ll adapt to the circumstances.

“Let’s get some rest and prepare for tomorrow.”

“Goodnight. I want to drink some wine.”

“You’re already drinking, aren’t you?”

“Not enough!”

With our plan set, we each retire to our rooms to rest and prepare for the next day. Sasha is the first to leave, followed by Tra and Eclair.

I thought Dal was going to leave too, but he approached me.

“Let’s go eat lunch together outside?”

“Why bother waiting? We can just go together…”

“Noel has something to discuss, so I’ll wait outside. Let’s talk when you’re done!”

Dal says and quickly exits. Noel has something to discuss? I didn’t hear about it. I’m filled with doubt, and when I turn around, I meet Noel’s gaze.

“Sorry.”

I apologize involuntarily.