In the sumr of the 830th year of the Altera Period, the demon squad led by , the Hades scorpion demon, had obliterated the escort force protecting the Republic army’s supply convoy. Once we confird there were no survivors, we borrowed so food and usable supplies before setting the supply wagons and the remaining materials ablaze using our spiritual arts.
As the wooden supply wagons caught fire violently, one of the demons with a keen sense of sll confird that they were loaded with oil used for maintaining armor. At this rate, it wouldn’t take much ti for everything to turn to ashes.
“Boss, I owe you one. I ssed up.”
“As long as you’re safe, that’s fine.”
I grabbed Tigar’s arm, who had been shot in the knee during the battle and helped him up, offering my shoulder for support as we walked. From the outside, his wounds seed to be healing already, but complex areas like joints would take ti to fully recover. I knew from past battles that it would still take a while before he regained his full strength.
The battle to recapture Carnela Port in the Empire ended in a stalemate for both sides. While the Empire managed to reclaim the port, it suffered relentless bombardnt from the Republic fleet, which had escaped being crushed, leaving Carnela port thoroughly devastated and reduced to a pile of rubble.
None of my companions fell to their deaths, as there were sand cushions to break their fall. However, they were far from unscathed. So got their limbs trapped under debris, leaving them unable to move, while others suffered worse fates—broken bones or crushed limbs due to unfortunate circumstances.
While broken bones could be healed relatively quickly, missing limbs were a different story. Even with the combined healing abilities of the demons and the activated fighting spirit, such severe injuries couldn’t be fully healed.
Nevertheless, we considered ourselves lucky that there were no casualties. The Karelvo demons who couldn’t withstand the bombardnt, and the slow-reacting Imperial soldiers faced a fate that could only be described as tragic. Those who were on the outer walls were slamd to the ground, and even those on the ground were blown away by the explosion, only to be crushed by falling debris.
Despite this, many demons managed to survive due to their inherent durability. However, the Imperial soldiers who infiltrated Carnela Port from underground lost over half of their forces. It was the Imperial forces’ tily rescue, minimizing the pressure from the retreating Republic army, that prevented the death toll from being even higher.
Apparently, the general at that ti had a policy of not abandoning his subordinates. Having successfully achieved the minimal objective of driving the Republic forces out of Carnela Port, he prioritized his soldiers’ lives over any further glory on the battlefield.
Even those of us who survived made every effort to assist in the rescue, saving many Imperial soldiers who were groaning amidst the debris. Among them were our commanders, Marcellus and Decius, who were also severely injured. It was truly a relief not to lose familiar faces.
After the battle, the exploits and usefulness of the demons, including us, seed to be highly appreciated by the Empire. The Empire swiftly decided to form a unit composed entirely of demons, a special and exceptional force that could be deployed to the battlefield at a mont’s notice if deed necessary. Naturally, we, who were made by Orvo and were branded as “failed experints” by Karelvo, were included in this newly ford unit.
The na of the newly established unit was the “Demon Regint”. Everyone in the regint, except the commander, was a demon, making it an extraordinarily unique force within the Imperial Army. Among them, we were designated as the “Special Operations Unit” or simply known as the “Spec Ops Unit”. Over the past four years, we had been fighting on two fronts: the Eastern Front and the Central Front, carrying out missions back and forth.
Since Karelvo was the only one who knew how to create demons, despite not being part of the Imperial army, he had the authority to interfere in the organization and policies of the demon regint. Moreover, he harbored resentnt towards us, the creations of Orvo, who was the true mastermind behind the production of demons and also his younger brother.
As a result, they assigned us to the most challenging battlefields on the Eastern Front and made us the first unit to be dispatched in response to requests for reinforcents from the Central Front. Over these four years, our unit must have been deployed to the battlefield more than any other, without a doubt.
Karelvo must have wished for us to be worn by the consecutive battles. However, we were demons—difficult to tire and quick to heal from exhaustion. Of course, we had suffered casualties in previous battles, but as a unit, we had survived these four years.
Not only that, but we had grown significantly as a unit through repeated battles. The bond among the approximately 100 mbers of the “Special Operations Unit” had beco stronger, and everyone’s individual abilities were honed.
“Are you alright, Father!? Did you get shot sowhere!?”
“I’ll carry you, bumo~.”
Furthermore, even those who were not considered strong fighters at the ti had beco capable of standing alongside us in battle. Running towards Tigar and were Leo and Shuu. Although he was still a child, Leo had been on the battlefield since last year. In this surprise attack mission, he was fighting in the unit led by Zald.
Leo was synthesized with the sa radiant lion I had encountered at the rookie tournant when I was still a battle beast. Although I had defeated the creature, it was a being that had lost to the Land Emperor Bird I had battled. When I and Orvo, who wanted it as a material, went to capture it, I was prepared for the possibility of death. That was because the wild radiant lions were entirely different from the ones I faced in the rookie tournant; they were utterly relentless.
This beast unleashed scorching heat that incinerated all approaching enemies from its splendid mane. With a supple yet powerful body, it pounced on its enemies, swiftly finishing them off with sharp claws and fangs. Without the resistance to the searing heat and the sturdy exoskeleton that protected from its claws and fangs, I might have been defeated.
Leo, now transford into a radiant lion demon, had already proven to be among the strongest among the demons. His father, Tigar, had passed down his bold swordsmanship, allowing Leo to deliver devastating blows despite his small appearance, just like the radiant lion’s intense heat.
Especially, Leo’s heat exceeded that of a regular radiant lion, to the extent that when he was once caught off guard and faced danger from a white-armored soldier, he dissolved the latter’s armor. It was not only his innate ability, but also a strong compatibility with his powers, much like my own synthesis with Yaro, the Reka race mber.
“I’m fine…though I’d like to say that, we must retreat quickly. I’m counting on you.”
“Understood, bumo~!”
Then, Shuu, who had transford into a demon form, easily lifted Tigar, whose legs weren’t moving well, and carried him on his shoulder. Over these four years, Shuu and Apao had evolved from re companions who pulled carts into sothing more. In their demon forms, they had learned Ditto language well enough for everyday conversations and even wielded weapons in battle.
I, just like them, have the soul of a non-human creature As expected of Orvo’s creation, their physical abilities are not much different from other demons. Even the two who were originally livestock beca fluent speakers with diligent study… Though, it’s a bit strange coming from , who was originally a scorpion.
However, their ntal age is quite young. According to them, their mories up until becoming demons are vague. Hence, from their perspective, they are still just four years old. They seed even younger than Lappy when I first t her. Perhaps you could even say they’ve grown remarkably fast.
Speaking of language, recently, I’ve finally managed to produce a normal voice. Due to the significant differences in my previous vocal organs compared to the human species, I could only produce hoarse sounds, but after four years, I’ve learned the knack of speaking. It’s incredibly convenient now that I can communicate fluently.
Though there were others injured besides Tigar, no one had beco unable to walk. With the smoke rising from the wreckage of the wagons behind us, we hurriedly retreated. Our destination was a grassland located south from the main road. There, we had dug holes using spiritual arts, and that’s where our other comrades were waiting.
“Nevertheless, I never expected the Republic’s army to use wagons. Now, the amount of supplies they can transport will be reduced, and they’ll also have to take care of the horses…”
“That’s true. However, it has made tracking more challenging. The wagons were enchanted with sound-canceling spiritual arts, so they might have realized that we were relying on sound for detection.”
While dashing across the grasslands, Zald and Mika discussed the Republic’s use of wagons. It was the first ti they had witnessed the Republic’s army employing wagons, making it incredibly challenging to spot their supply wagons.
As Mika pointed out, there was a high possibility that the enemy had discovered our reliance on sound to locate them. The Republic’s army had prioritized silencing their movents, even if it ant reducing the amount of supplies they could transport.
I wondered why they didn’t apply the sa sound-canceling spiritual arts to their own vehicles, after all, the technique had been in use by the Republic’s army for a long ti. But Mika explained that attempting to apply it to larger and more intricate structures seed futile, as the sound could not be completely nullified. That explains why they decided to switch to using wagons as a counterasure.
This change would undoubtedly make detection through sound much more challenging in the future. As I leaped towards an unremarkable patch of ground, I couldn’t help but contemplate how locating the enemy might beco quite a hassle.
Instead of landing on the ground, I seamlessly slipped through it, descending underground. Here lay the entrance to a hidden hole where our comrades remained concealed, thanks to Rinne’s illusionary spiritual arts.
The illusion projected above the hole blended in perfectly, causing no sense of incongruity. The illusionary grass and trees swayed with the wind, seamlessly matching their surroundings. Without knowing the precise location, even I couldn’t discern the movent of spiritual energy, despite my earnest attempts. Rinne’s direct combat skills might be limited, but her illusions contributed imnsely to the unit.
“Ah, welco back, big brother.”
Lappy was the one who welcod . As soon as I landed at the bottom of the hole, she leaped onto my head and swiftly maneuvered herself into a piggyback position on top of . Lately, it seed like she enjoyed riding on my shoulders.
Lappy, like Leo, was a skilled warrior who could be counted among the best. She had already gained experience in combat, having slain a few armored soldiers in actual battles. However, due to her young age, we tried to keep her away from real combat as much as possible. This ti, too, we left her behind to guard our hideout.
Guarding the hideout was also an essential role, but I knew she wanted to co along. That’s why I decided to comply with her wishes as much as possible, at least for a while.
I gently held onto Lappy’s legs and then checked on the condition of our comrades inside the hole. There seed to be no sign of any issues, and they appeared relieved upon seeing our return. It seed we had managed to survive another day. Seeing my companions reassuring each other of their safety, I felt a sense of relief wash over as well.
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TN: mc can finally taaalk, I’m so proud of him.
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