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

36. It was a trap after all!

───The location is within the Klematras territory, in the village of ‘Tashinotou’. It took us several days to get here, but we arrived safely without any interference from demons. We fought a large wolf-like demon called Dia Wolf on the way.

The entire village is surrounded by a wooden fence to protect against demons. There was a massive outbreak of goblins two months ago. Since the demon king’s revival, demon activity has increased, and even small villages are building fences for defense.

A wooden fence is no match for demons, but it’s better than nothing. Larger towns would build stronger walls, I suppose.

As we approach the village, we see a gatekeeper at the entrance.

When they confirm our identities, they show caution and grip their spear tightly.

“Do you have business in this village?”

“Yes. Can we enter?”

“Please show your identification.”

I find this exchange annoying, but I take out my identification from my bag and show it to the gatekeeper. It’s a certificate issued by the Arcadia Kingdom, recognized by the church and known worldwide as a brave warrior party. The gatekeeper confirms my identification and salutes me respectfully.

“Is this the Brave Party? I apologize for the intrusion. Please, come inside.”

“Thank you.”

“Is the reason you all came to this village related to demons or demonic creatures?”

“I can’t tell you the details, but it’s related to demons. Please be extra cautious.”

“I’ll be careful!”

The gatekeeper, who gave a somewhat exaggerated salute, bowed slightly before we entered the village.

“There’s nothing out of the ordinary here.”

“It seems that way.”

“It’s probably proof that Crovicas hasn’t made a move yet.”

The village is small, and there aren’t many residents. However, it’s located near the royal capital, so there are guards patrolling the village and gatekeepers who can quickly report to the kingdom if anything happens.

We’ve finally arrived at the village where Crovicas is staying. Now, what should we do?

“Should we split up and search for suspicious areas?”

“I don’t think that’s a good idea. Since we’ve been lured here, it’s better to avoid splitting up into small groups.”

“That’s right. This village isn’t that big, so it’s fine if we all search together.”

“Alright. If necessary, I’ll map out the area!”

“I’ll count on you, Dal.”

Dal puffs out his chest, looking around confidently. The villagers glance at us as we talk, their gazes lingering. Some of them seem to be watching us warily, their eyes narrowing. The atmosphere is tense. There have been consecutive incidents of demonic creatures and demons causing harm in Cremaltas, so it’s no wonder the villagers are on high alert.

“Sasha, let’s hold off on drinking for now. We don’t know when we’ll have to fight.”

“Aww, come on! Just a little won’t hurt!”

“I told you, we don’t know when we’ll have to fight. Sasha, please be cautious.”

“I suppose you’re right…”

This woman, Sasha, was drinking without a care when the gatekeeper and I were talking earlier. I didn’t say anything to her on the way here, but now that we’re in the village where Crovicas is staying, I need her to be cautious. After confirming that Sasha had stored her liquor using her “Storage” magic, I called out to everyone to start searching the village.

About 30 minutes into our search, I said there was nothing out of the ordinary, but Tora’s expression turned serious.

“What’s wrong, Tora?”

“There’s a smell of blood.”

A tense, prickling sensation ran through me. Even Dal, who had been humming a tune, looked serious. Ekurea was staring intently at the entrance of the village. Is something there? I want to ask, but first, I need to confirm the source of the blood smell that Tora detected. I have a bad feeling.

“Will you lead the way, Tora?”

“Yeah, follow me!”

The smell of blood was something only Tora, a beastman, could detect. We followed Tora, who led us to a location slightly away from the main street. Is this a villager’s house? However, it didn’t seem like anyone was taking care of it. It’s possible that it’s a storage shed rather than a residence.

Tora led us to the back of the building. It seemed like the source wasn’t inside the building.

As we followed Tora to the back of the building, we saw a large pile of firewood stacked haphazardly.

Tora stopped in her tracks. The smell of blood was faintly present here. Upon closer inspection, the bottom of the firewood pile was stained red. Was something hidden underneath…?

“Sasha!”

“Wind!”

I called out to Sasha, and she immediately cast her magic. A small tornado, about 30cm in diameter, appeared from a green magic circle floating in the air, blowing away the firewood.

Who’s going to clean up this mess? The scattered firewood looked out of place.

“It’s an elf.”

The thing hidden under the firewood was an elf’s corpse. Both arms and legs had been cut off, and the wounds had been cauterized to stop the bleeding. The purpose wasn’t to kill, but to torture. The body was covered in wounds.

The elf’s distinctive pointed ears had been ripped off and stuffed into the mouth of the corpse.

I’ve seen this tactic before. It’s Crovikas’ style.

“He’s a member of the Church, isn’t he?”

“He was caught monitoring and got killed, that’s what happened.”

Since the surveillance was exposed, the risk of being killed is high. Being a spy is a life-or-death job. He risked his life to deliver the information to us. Even if it was Crovikas’ trap, we have no choice but to make use of it.

They’re deliberately hiding the corpse, making it seem like they did it themselves. Is this a provocation towards us? Or do they have some other goal in mind? Are they trying to stall or lead us somewhere…?

I was patted on the shoulder with a “pon pon” sound. When I turned around, I saw Eclair.

“Eclair, what’s going on?”

There was no response as usual. Instead, she pointed towards the direction we came from. When I looked in that direction, I saw villagers running around in a panic. I got a bad feeling.

“Something’s happened, it seems.”

“It looks like there’s a commotion going on in the distance. I can hear angry shouts and screams. This isn’t normal.”

Tora-san’s ears perked up. It seems she can hear it even from here. If what she said is true, then something has indeed happened. And at this timing, too…

“Let’s head there first. We can bury the corpse later.”

I bowed my head towards the elf’s corpse and headed towards the commotion. As we got closer, the voices became clearer. “Help! I don’t want to die! I’m scared!” and “Fight back! You can do it!” shouted a man.

When we reached the street, we saw what was happening. The women and children were gathering in the center of the village, while the men were holding farm tools and shouting. The patrol guards who were supposed to be on duty were running out of the village in a panic.

It must be a monster attack or something.

“Hero-sama!”

A guard who saw us rushed over, his face pale. Fear was written all over his face.

“What’s happening?”

“A large army of goblins is attacking the village! We’re trying to respond, but there are too many of them, and we can’t handle it on our own. If this continues, the villagers will be harmed!”

Eclair nodded when I looked at her. A large army of goblins, just as I feared.

“Which direction are the goblins coming from?”

This village should have entrances on both the west and east sides. We entered from the west, and the soldiers ran towards the east. Are they coming from the east?

“They’re coming from both the west and east! There are at least 1000 of them, I think!”

They’re coming from both sides, and there are over 1000 of them. Goblins themselves aren’t a big deal, but their numbers are a problem. We can’t have everyone focus on one side, though. It’s not good to say, but the guards alone can’t handle it.

“We have no choice but to split into two groups.”

“How will we divide the members?”

“I’ll take the east side with Tora-san and Noel. Eclair, Sasha, and Dal can handle the west side.”

“Leave it to me!”

“…………” Eclair nodded.

“Isn’t that a heavy burden for Sasha?”

“Leave it to Sasha.”

“Yes, yes, I’ll do my best, and so should you guys. We can’t let our guard down, especially with Crovikas involved.”

“I understand.”

Eclair and the others headed towards the west entrance. Sasha didn’t look too happy about it. It’s best to have her handle it, though.

“Let’s go, too.”

“I’ll leave my protection to you.”

“Kuhahaha! I’ll protect both of you!”

“I’m counting on you, Tora-san.”

We headed towards the east entrance, accompanied by the guard who explained the situation to us. His face was still pale, but it was better than before. He’s still young and inexperienced, it seems.

This time, both combinations are rear guard and front line. Darl is more inclined towards the rear guard, but it’s not a problem against goblins.

It’s better to separate Eclair and Noel, who can use recovery magic. With Sasha’s wide-range magic, it’s not difficult to annihilate them if we guard Eclair and Darl.

We’ll leave the support to Noel and have me and Tra fight on the front lines.

The village entrance is in sight. The guards are desperately defending, and it’s like a green wall. The sheer number of goblins is staggering.

“Let’s go, Tra!”

“Yeah!”

We leave the village entrance to Noel and charge into the goblin horde with Tra.

As we confirm our positions, the goblins attack, and I slash them down with Durandal while advancing.

I glance at Tra, who’s grappling with a large High Goblin, its body bigger than its kind. It’s like a small tornado. The High Goblin, used as a weapon, is already battered.

“Hahaha! I’ll take care of this one!”

Tra tosses the High Goblin aside and charges into the goblins, laughing maniacally.

There’s no need to worry about him.

Tra is doing fine.

───However, things are going smoothly.

Dispersing enemy forces is a basic tactic. That’s the work of a seasoned demon, Clovickus. Where will he attack from?

“Whoa!”

The guard beside me was blown away by a goblin. Sorry, I forgot to protect him.