Dang—Dang—Dang—
The moment Mud discovered the demon, he relayed the information to his family’s troops through the magic crystal ball. Shortly after, a large bell echoed throughout the main house, and the summoners who had been resting inside rushed out.
“D*mn it!”
“Why now!?”
However, the state of the summoners who emerged was pitifully poor. It was only natural.
Earlier that morning, Duke Eritz had led an expedition south to fight against the legion of Naonmado, one of the Four Heavenly Kings. With the main force gone, only the injured who could barely move and the weaker summoners—those with ranks below 2-star—remained behind, useless in serious battle.
“…Only a few?”
“I identified a high-level demon… It must have timed this for when Ifrit wasn’t here.”
“No, think about it from another angle.”
Stella Eritz, the acting head of the family, saw the situation as an opportunity. The enemy assumed the house was empty and would be complacent. However, she was here.
“If it’s a high-level demon, that means it’s one of their elite. If we kill it here, we can deal a significant blow to their forces.”
“But, my lady…”
“I know. It’s dangerous without Ifrit.”
High-level demons were beings capable of fighting 4-star summons on their own. Even 3-star summons stood no chance and would be brutally slaughtered. If she were alone, she wouldn’t have dared face the demon, even if it meant abandoning her home and estate.
Stella turned towards Cadet Ian.
“Ian.”
“What?”
“…Help me.”
Her voice trembled slightly as she asked him for aid.
Ian could have refused, and it would have been understandable. Just earlier, Stella had sworn that the estate wouldn’t fall under attack. Now, she was asking him to risk his life against a high-level demon.
Ian smiled and relaxed his stance.
“Stella, didn’t you say nothing would happen if we stayed on guard?”
“…Don’t say that, not even as a joke.”
“Oops, sorry,” he laughed, stepping up beside her.
Although Stella could guess he wouldn’t refuse, she still needed to hear him confirm it.
“…Will you help me?”
“Huh? Of course. We’re friends, aren’t we?”
“Wow, friends? Others might get the wrong idea.”
“Wouldn’t it be strange if they didn’t?”
Stella closed her mouth. It was true—her feelings toward Ian had grown complicated over time.
The enemy was strong, their allies were weak. This could be a battle to the death. Yet Ian had agreed without hesitation. He was risking too much for it to be just out of friendship.
“Noah, Senior Dinua… Will you help too?”
“Help? Were you planning to fight without me?”
“Of course not!”
Noah and Senior Dinua joined them, stepping forward to stand beside Stella. She turned her head away, holding back the emotions welling inside her, and spoke firmly.
“I, as acting Duchess of Eritz, order the entire army—”
“Protect the territory.”
***
*Whoosh—Whoosh—*
The skies were so high that even human eyes, let alone demons, struggled to see clearly. A bird soared through the air, surveying the ground below. With a broad field of vision spanning several kilometers, it spotted the approaching demons with ease.
“Three kilometers away, at two o’clock,” Mud reported, using the senses of his summon.
The summoners gathered, including Noah’s Terraman, and began forming large stones.
“Colossus!”
The Colossus, one of Noah’s summons, picked up the enormous stones. The Colossus resembled a human form, and naturally, it mimicked human behavior—the ability to throw. As a giant, its strength surpassed that of any normal primate.
With a mighty heave, the Colossus hurled the stone.
Boom!
The stone shattered the sound barrier as it soared through the sky, producing a deafening roar. Even a simple siege catapult could deliver devastating force, but this stone—thrown at supersonic speed—was in a different league altogether.
Through the eyes of his summon, Mud watched the results.
“Half the enemy forces… wiped out.”
Half of the approaching demon troops were obliterated by a single strike. However, most of the casualties were low-level monsters that even 1-star summons could handle.
The remaining demons scattered in all directions to avoid the bombardment. They knew that if they stayed clustered, the Colossus would annihilate them. However, spreading out posed a new challenge.
“From the far left!”
The 2-star summons stationed on the wall intercepted the scattered monsters, using their abilities to pick them off from a distance. One by one, the demons fell as they sprinted across the open field.
If they grouped up, they would be crushed by stones. If they spread out, they were easy prey for the summoned creatures. It was a simple but effective strategy, and the demons were helpless against it.
Even so, not all of the demons could be stopped. In the end, nearly thirty percent of them managed to reach the wall.
The wall, too low to block the agile demons, became a battleground as the monsters climbed over like swarming insects. However, the summoners were prepared, battling the demons with practiced precision.
Everyone present had faced demons before. Although they were of low rank, they were experienced vassals of the Duke of Eritz—fighters hardened through countless battles.
“We can hold them off on our own,” one of the veterans declared.
It seemed that the remaining demons posed no real threat.
But then, an ominous presence stirred in the distance.
A catastrophe approached—a high-level demon radiating murderous intent and hostility. This was no ordinary monster. It was a noble among demons, and it was heading straight for the fortress wall.
“Don’t worry,” Stella said confidently, stepping forward.
The time had come for her to prove herself worthy of the title of princess.
The Colossus’ stone bombardment was no longer effective—now, they had to fight directly.
Goblin: sponsored chapter 3 of 4.
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Things are Not Looking Good:
Yes, things are not looking good. As you know, translation requires a lot of time and energy. I translate, edit and proofread the chapters on my own. I will be honest here, I started translating as a hobby, then it evolved to a hope of earning a living by doing something I enjoy.
However, I suffered a chain of misfortunes during and after the pandemic, and earnings from FSM and RTV helped me a lot. It became a significant part of my life. As long as my monthly income bordered around $200, I could make the time to translate in the middle of other works. Then RTV ended, and the earning decreased. Now, it has decreased to around $90-$100. And with PETTV nearing completion, that would decrease even more. A*dsence gets me about $ 0.50 per day, and you can’t get the payment until it reaches $100, so I can’t depend on that either.
It wouldn’t be an issue in normal circumstances, but it matters a lot to me since I am still dealing with a lot of financial troubles. I am currently looking for a job, and will have to invest my time and energy in it once I get it.
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Okey author have problems with physics. If the rock was launched with supersonic speed then it wouldn’t be a bombardment. It would fly straight, so why not throw the second projectile at the Noble demon?
Thanks for chapter