Chapter 106: Death King

“L-A-S-T-I is coming!”

“L-A-S-T-I is coming!”

A wave of overwhelming power surged from the demonic realm and swept across the continent. 

Humanity immediately deployed troops to monitor the demons—summons capable of observing enemy movements from over 1,000 meters above the sky.

These summoned beasts, soaring high like modern military satellites, tracked the demons’ actions from above, then quickly returned to report what they had witnessed.

“Enemy number: only one.”

“…Only one?”

Upon hearing the report, the Emperor let out a sigh of relief. He had anticipated that the enraged Demon King would send an army—but just one?

Had he misjudged the situation? Or did the Demon King truly believe that a single entity could defeat all of mankind?

‘Even if you underestimate us, this is too much.’

Humanity was not so weak. If they could be destroyed by just one demon, they would have long since perished and vanished from the world.

This lone enemy was proof that humanity still had strength.

“Summon all the dukes. Even though the absolute defense lines in each region are at risk… the enemy before us must take priority.”

With that command, the Emperor abandoned the defense lines to bring together all the dukes.

Behind the scenes, the four Protectors Ian had spoken of would also offer their support.

‘He said if humanity was on the verge of extinction, they would intervene and save us, right?’

Still, the existence of such beings had to be kept secret. If the Demon King learned of them, he would grow cautious.

They were humanity’s final trump card.

Now, only one move remained.

“I’m going.”

“Y-Your Majesty!? It’s too dangerous!”

“Danger?”

The Emperor burst into laughter. It had been a long time since anyone had dared say that to him.

He turned to his vassal with an expression of absolute confidence—one befitting an Emperor.

“Do you know who I am?”

The greatest and strongest summoner of humanity.

Albert Friedrich.

Wielder of the 5-star summon, Artia.

*****

[Now that it’s come to this, prepare yourself and return.]

“Return? Return where…?”

[Where else would cadets go, if not the Academy?]

The Emperor posed the question as though Ian should have known the answer. He meant for them to return to the Academy until the situation was resolved.

Ian wanted to argue, but without the Emperor’s help, he couldn’t even leave this place. So, he simply nodded.

“…Ian, do we—do we really have to go?”

“Yeah.”

He nodded in response to Noah’s question. 

Back to the Academy. 

It was as if the human race didn’t view the current crisis as all that serious.

If things were truly urgent, they would have drafted every cadet onto the battlefield—regardless of their readiness.

‘Is it arrogance, or confidence…?’

Given the Emperor’s character, it was likely the latter. He wasn’t the type to boast needlessly.

An Emperor who valued even a handful of lives more than his pride. Though, to be honest, his kind of “cherishing” felt more like a farmer caring for crops than someone cherishing humans…

‘Still, compared to how nobles on Earth oppressed commoners like slaves, the nobility here isn’t nearly as harsh. Probably because of the Emperor.’

Thanks to him, even commoners could live decent lives—as decent as farmers, at least.

*****

“…Ian.”

“Yeah?”

“You said you were going to defeat the Demon King.”

“Right.”

“So how can you just go back to the Academy?”

Stella looked at Ian, puzzled that he was following the Emperor’s orders without protest. Hadn’t he said he would defeat the Demon King? Then why return now?

“Do you think the Demon King is someone you can take down with a simple charge?”

To Ian, the question was absurd.

What? Aren’t you going to fight the Demon King?

If it were that easy, he would have charged in already.

“We don’t fully understand the situation yet, so it makes sense to follow His Majesty’s judgment.”

“…I see.”

It was a far cry from the heroic figure she had imagined. Stella felt a tinge of disappointment. In the end, fairy tale heroes only lived in fairy tales.

Reality was far more complicated.

“Besides, there’s probably another reason why we’re being sent back to the Academy.”

“Like what?”

“Because we have to hand over Ifrit first.”

Currently, the 4-star summon Ifrit was in Stella’s possession. To transfer it to the Duke, she had to be called to the Academy first.

After handing over the summon, Stella would become an ordinary 3-star summoner. Because of that, there was a high chance she would stay at the academy for her safety.

‘Honestly, from here on, I can’t predict anything…’

In the original story, humanity rejected the demons’ proposal and went to war. That marked the beginning of the player’s guerrilla warfare—an infiltration into the enemy’s territory to defeat the Four Heavenly King and the vanguard general, Lasti. 

That was how Chapter 2 ended.

But the problem now was that things had gone wrong from the start. Humanity hadn’t rejected the demons’ proposal—instead, they had tried to deceive them. Once the demons discovered this, the consequences were beyond prediction. 

Even Ian couldn’t foresee what an enraged Demon King might do.

“For now… returning to the academy is the priority.”

With that in mind, Ian waited for the carriage to return. But the one who came to pick them up wasn’t a carriage.

“… Long time no see.”

“Oh? Aren’t you Countess Korn?”

It was the court white mage,Countess Korn. She summoned her summon with a displeased expression. Riding Massive Eagle, a creature said to soar ninety thousand li in a day, she flew straight to the academy with the party aboard.

“Did you really need to come get us yourself?”

“After dropping you off at the academy, I have to transport the dukes to the battlefield.”

“You?”

“… The Marquis and the cadets.”

When Ian, who held the title of marquis—a rank higher than count—pointed out her informality, Countess Korn hesitated, looking uncomfortable at the idea of using honorifics for a cadet younger than herself.

Ian chuckled and told her it was fine to drop the formalities, then casually began prying information from her.

“How many were there?”

“You mean the demons? Just one.”

“… One?”

Hearing that, Ian fell silent and focused on her words. Regardless of whether Ian responded, Countess Korn continued relaying what she had heard.

“Yes. They said only one demon appeared… in the form of a skeleton.”

“A skeleton?”

A certain infamous boss monster immediately came to Ian’s mind.

The Death King.

Lasti had arrived.

***

After arriving at the academy, Ian and the others headed straight to the principal’s office. 

There, a duke was waiting for his daughter who had just arrived.

“Stella—”

“… Father.”

Duke Hypnos stared silently at Stella, who had decided to fake her death without informing him. After a deep sigh, he dismissed his summoned beast.

“I thought you died.”

“… What do you take me for?”

“Then, it is what it is.”

Without further comment, the Duke took over Ifrit, and without even saying goodbye, left for the battlefield.

The cadets were allowed to remain at the academy, but that exception didn’t apply to the adults.

Watching her father’s back as he departed, Stella wore a bitter expression.

“… Ian.”

“What is it?”

“Is there… anything I can do?”

Stella seemed to believe Ian was some kind of all-rounder who could do anything. But that wasn’t the case. 

In truth, Ian was closer to being incompetent. 

Still, rather than saying there was nothing she could do, he gave her a reassuring smile.

And that smile alone was enough to comfort Stella.

***

Darak—dalkrak!

Lasti’s half-eroded jawbone rattled as he walked into human territory.

His presence was so conspicuous that the Summoners suspected there must be an ambush. 

For a long while, they kept their guard up, waiting for other demons to appear. But no matter how long they waited, no others came. 

Eventually, the Summoners launched a full assault.

“As always, the 1-star summons are going first.”

“Yes!”

It was standard practice: since summons could be revived as long as their essence remained intact, the strategy relied on using 1-star and 2-star summons to absorb attacks, while 3-star and higher summons delivered a combined offensive.

This method had always allowed humanity to fend off demons far stronger than themselves—and it had been used time and again.

Just like before, the 1-star summons charged ahead. 

The lower their star rating, the closer they were to instinct-driven beasts rather than reasoning creatures. They never hesitated to rush toward death when commanded.

As the summons charged him, Lasti observed them with a tearful expression in his hollow, skeletal eyes.

[Ah, you poor beings.]

Kwae-aeeng!?

A wave of energy radiated from Lasti, engulfing the summons. Their bodies dissolved on contact.

A powerful curse—one that even a 1-star summon’s defense could not resist.

The summons disintegrated completely, not even leaving behind bone fragments. 

But they weren’t gone. 

They were reborn… as Lasti’s soldiers.

[Break free from the curse of death, death, and death… and fall into slumber.]

Reborn as undead, the summons that had once been comrades turned their fangs toward the humans.

This was why Lasti was known as the Death King.

He commanded death itself.

And that made it impossible for 1-star summons to even stand before him.