The familiar broadcast could be heard through the entire town. After quickly double-checking our equipment, Aqua, Komekko, and I dashed to the front gate to join with the gathering group of fellow adventurers.
When we arrived on the scene, a man in a full suit of armor and a two-handed sword strapped behind his back was standing atop a short hill just outside of town, watching as the adventurers hurried into position.
The Demon King's general.
Using my Farsight skill, I took a closer look at him. His features were definitely Japanese, and if I had to say, he looked like he was the right age to be a college student. Just a couple years older than me.
The Demon King's general balled his fists and shook as he raised his voice, shouting loudly for everyone to hear.
"Every day, every single day, every bloody damn day, someone from this town comes to our secret plantation in the forest and eats up all of my colleague's plants, and I demand to know who it is!"
His voice trembled and cracked as he shrieked, indicating that this general was majorly pissed.
"A secret plantation?"
"Full of plants?"
"Does anyone know what he's talking about?"
I heard the adventurers around me start to chatter. Seems none of them really understand what is the matter.
"Somebody is stealing crops and eating them?"
"If we're talking about someone who will eat anything including vegetables that aren't ripe enough for harvest, wouldn't that be…"
"The one who eats everything without discrimination is…"
The gaze of everyone in the vicinity immediately settled on Komekko who stood next to me.
Komekko cocked an eyebrow and looked directly to her right, where a young mage girl with a pointy hat and stockings looked up defensively.
"Huh? Me? No, I haven't been in the forest lately! I've only been taking odd jobs or exploring the beginner's dungeon! Why is everyone staring at me?" she denied forthwith.
Stop trying to frame an innocent girl, Komekko!
Breaking into a sweat, I leaned over and whispered, "I guess we've been found out. I didn't expect the general to figure out where we were hiding so quickly, but I sort of knew this would happen eventually. C'mon, Komekko. You reap what you sow. I'm at fault too, so I'll shoulder the blame with you."
Komekko nodded, and together, we stepped forward, into the general's gaze. Aqua, after hesitating for a second, decided to follow a short distance behind us.
"So, I take it the trespassers are you two?" the general asked once we had separated ourselves from the pack. "I'm impressed that a couple of novice adventurers discovered our hidden farm so easily. The Demon King considered posting some guards to protect the plantation, but none of us believed that anyone was capable of pulling off such evil acts of this magnitude. Especially from the town of beginners! The Demon King is not interested in conquering a territory this far out, full of weaklings, and we have left this town alone all this time! So can you explain to me why you would go so far out of your way to harass and terrorize all those plants we are trying to raise?! They are all helpless, weak, and tiny little creatures! Killing them isn't that different from killing babies! Is there something wrong with your heads?!"
I was about to shout back a snarky reply about those particular monsters being like wolves in sheep's clothing, but Komekko was faster.
"I am Komekko! My calling is that of an archwizard, and my position is that of the elite mage of this town! I killed all those Tranquility Plants to lure you out here and expose the Demon King's wicked deeds before all these adventurers, and it seems you've fallen straight into my trap!"
Huh? Since when was that her plan? I'm pretty sure Komekko just enjoyed being able to dine on abundant and weak monsters day in and day out.
The general raised the pitch of his voice. "What kind of stupid-ass name is Komekko? Are you making that up to escape being put on the Demon King's shitlist?"
"If you've got a problem with the name my parents gave me, let's hear it!" Komekko's crimson eyes glowed fiercely.
"Wait, those red eyes, don't tell me! You're one of those Crimson Demons? That would explain the strange name…" He sighed, calming himself. "Well, forget it. In case you weren't aware, one of my colleagues is in charge of that field. A fellow general of the Demon King's army. I can understand it if up till now you were attacking out of your duty as adventurers to eradicate monsters wherever you encounter them. However, know this! Any further assaults on that plantation will earn you the ire of the Demon King and his armies! Do not attempt to go there anymore." Using a commanding voice, the general spoke thus for all the adventurers who had gathered to hear.
Komekko squared her shoulders and looked the general straight in the eye. "I refuse! We Crimson Demons require vast amounts of calories to supply our massive stores of mana! If we do not eat many monsters every day, we'll die!"
"What? I've never heard that before! That's definitely bogus!"
"Are you suggesting people do not need food to live?"
"I didn't say that! If you need food so badly, then just go kill some monsters elsewhere!"
Komekko seemed to be enjoying herself toying with the Demon King's general.
"Hey Satou, what should we do?" Aqua, tugging at my sleeve, whispered to me. She was crouching behind me like a shy toddler huddling behind its mother. "I was really hoping this general would be an undead. Then I wouldn't have any trouble purifying him."
"An undead? What made you think that?"
"Well, I just thought he would be like the last time we fought the first of the Demon King's generals."
She literally revived and transported this man here from Japan herself. How did she forget that detail already? Just when I thought Aqua's intelligence couldn't be any lower.
"Komekko is buying time for Alice to get here. You said Alice is stronger than any of the Demon King's generals, right? We just have to stall the general until she makes it," I said. "Then we'll be in the clear!"
Aqua nodded, satisfied with my plan.
"Ahem!" The general coughed into his fist to regain his composure. "Anyways, my business in this area isn't actually with you. I'm looking for a certain adventurer. Our spies reported that a new Japanese reincarnate landed here recently. Kazuma Satou, I sent you a letter last week. Are you here? Is anyone here named Kazuma Satou?"
He scanned the mobilized forces of Axel.
Guess it's now or never.
I nonchalantly raised my hand. "I'm Kazuma Satou."
"You!?"
Doesn't look like he wasn't expecting me to be the same person who had been destroying all his Tranquility Girls recently. The general's eyes were bloodshot with rage.
"If you're hellbent on playing the hero and sabotaging the Demon King's plans, then challenge us to a fight directly! Your daily strikes on the plantation may have been wiping out only a small portion of the crops at a time, but do you realize how heavy the psychological blow you have dealt to the Tranquility Girls has become? Every day, the surviving plants are left increasingly distraught by the 'monsters' that keep coming and eating them! The forests near Axel where only weak monsters live was supposed to be the ideal location to grow them. So we decided to set up some monster repellent items around the fields just to be safe, and then guess what?! The attacks kept happening! Turns out, the so-called 'monsters' were just a couple of adventurers all along! You realize that Tranquility Girls can't run away or fight back, right? So now all the saplings are asking to be replanted far away! Some are saying they can't handle the pressure! That being cornered and eaten everyday is too much for them to take! They no longer listen to us when we try to explain to them that most humans don't have the heart to take out a Tranquility Girl! Only a person with a black heart would be capable of it!"
I glanced at Komekko, who blatantly avoided my gaze. Typical. She felt absolutely no remorse for her actions.
"He said I have a black heart! How cool of a line is that? Ehehe…" she softly muttered.
I heaved a sigh.
Well, there was one card I could play here.
"Look," I said, trying to sound innocent, "it's just like you said. We happened to come across that Tranquility Girl farm by chance, and as adventurers, we had to kill as many monsters as we could. It's not like we knew they were the work of the Demon King's generals, or anything!"
It's not a complete lie. We may have speculated about the farm being the Demon King's latest strategy in turning the tides in the battle against humanity, but we didn't have any real proof.
"I see." Stroking his chin, the general mulled over my response. "Does that mean you weren't actually attacking our farm in deliberate resistance to the Demon King?"
"That's right!" I declared. Which is technically the truth. We were really just going there everyday to satisfy Komekko's weird obsessions. It wasn't to deliberately spite or harass the Demon King, particularly.
The general's shoulders dropped in relief. "That's good to hear! I was worried there for a second that maybe you had somehow learned of our plans to use those monsters against the Demon King's enemies. Allow me to introduce myself. I am Kenji Yoshida, the sword-dreamer! Wielder of the magical dream sword, Harpe, and the Demon King's general in charge of war propaganda and recruitment! Let's try to get along!"
A wave of whispers and mutters rippled through the adventurers behind us as the general introduced himself.
"The sword-dreamer is here? Shoot, why did it have to be him?"
"Oh no, I've heard of him! He used to be one of the highest leveled adventurers in the country before he defected to the Demon King's forces!"
"Isn't this really bad?"
Overhearing their conversations, I broke into a sweat. Sounds like this guy has a reputation befitting a general of the Demon King.
"Not bad, for an 'other-worlder'. Fufufu! His introduction included a cool nickname and a title, which I'll give him points for. However! He didn't strike a cool pose! A cool pose is what makes an introduction memorable! For forgetting that, I only award him twenty points!"
Meanwhile, Komekko was rating his introduction with her own arbitrary point system that I didn't want to understand.
"Okay, Satou, it's your turn! And use a cool-looking pose! Don't let that general's run-of-the-mill introduction beat yours!"
"Huh?"
Saying such, Komekko turned expectantly to me.
"Who cares whose introduction is better?" I said. "Anyways, due to some bad luck, I happen to have the same name as the Demon King. Um, I also hope we can get along."
"You call that an introduction? I've been meaning to say this for a while now, but your introductions are terrible! It should be more like this, or this!"
I ignored Komekko, who swung her arms wildly to illustrate her point.
Mr. Yoshida nodded. "Nice to meet you, Mr. Satou. And who is your cute friend who keeps hiding behind you?"
I felt Aqua shudder when she was noticed. "Who, me? Oh, I'm nobody important―"
"The goddess!?" the general upstarted. It seems Mr. Yoshida recognized her upon giving her a closer look. "What's the trashy goddess doing here?" Mr. Yoshida demanded with a finger point.
"You're calling me trash?! Look who's talking! Weren't you that guy who died when, after getting caught sneaking into the R-Rated section of a bookstore in Japan underage, he ran into traffic trying to make a quick getaway? It's no surprise that a pervert like you ended up joining Kazuma."
Upon being insulted, Aqua stopped acting shy and even began laughing to herself while she insulted the man.
A vein on his forehead started bulging as the general grinded his molars. "Go jump in a lake! Ah, I've been waiting forever to use that!" Mr. Yoshida momentarily wore a pleased look before going back to being angry. "But seriously, what are you doing here? Don't you usually go back to your cushy desk job in heaven after showing new reincarnates around on their first day?"
This is the second time I have heard of this, but this guy makes it sound more like Aqua was just being lazy.
"An upper-management goddess like me can do whatever she pleases!" retorted Aqua. "Since my efforts already led to the defeat of one Demon King, I have special privileges to come oversee how things are going in the mortal plane whenever the fancy strikes!"
Now she just admitted to abusing her status and power to goof off and play around.
"That's a weird way of putting, 'I was the direct cause of the new Demon King's rise,' but whatever you say, goddess of brainrot," the general responded.
"G-goddess of brainrot? Whose brain is rotting? It's goddess of water! I'm the goddess of water, stupid! Can't you tell that much from the color of my eyes and my hair?"
"Oh, my bad. 'Goddess of brainrot' is just what the Demon King calls you."
Leaving Aqua shaking her fists in rage, the general looked back at me. "I assume you read my letter, right? Like it said, we are very interested in you and your abilities, Mr. Satou. There is a spot for you in the Demon King's army. The pay is great, and so are the benefits! We offer plenty of vacation days, which the Demon King understands is especially important for most of us reincarnates. Since the majority of reincarnates were shut-ins previously, he's aware we value our days off. And best of all, you know the Red District I mentioned? It has all the perks. And I mean, all of them!"
Komekko raised her voice to the general, while holding out her arm as if to stay me. "You're dead wrong if you think you can lure Satou away using brothels as bait! Right, Satou?"
"Right…" I couldn't stop myself from looking the other direction.
"Ho?" Mr. Yoshida said, a knowing smile crossing his face. "Are things actually progressing well between you two as party members? Crimson Demon girl, are you saying you are a couple?"
"That's exactly it! Satou already has himself a girlfriend! As such, he has no need to visit your brothels!"
"As if!" I pushed Komekko away and dodged her teasing when she tried to take hold of my arm in front of the general. I don't know why she has recently become so pleased with herself about joking around like this. "Don't listen to this crazy girl! She was joking just now!"
"How can you say that when we even went on dates every day this week?" Komekko fought, clinging to me while I tried to keep her at a distance.
"Aren't girls normally supposed to be shy and subdued around the boy they like?" I countered. "Komekko just thinks she'll get food out of this arrangement somehow, that's the only explanation for her behavior right now!" I cried, trying to explain the situation to the general.
Mr. Yoshida chuckled. "Looks like my suspicions were right on the mark. Having girls in the party can really be a hassle, huh, Mr. Satou? That's why you can take it from me, this is a really good deal! And listen, if joining the army directly isn't for you, the Demon King has authorized me to give you this alternative proposal. A lot of reincarnates can't handle fighting or just don't want to have to commit to any career path, like the military, after all. So if that's the case, the Demon King will offer you a kickback of 40,000,000 eris so long as you swear not to oppose him. How about that? All you have to do is promise not to fight him or do anything that gets in the way of his plans, and you can live a comfortable life without having to work at all! It's perfect for NEETs and shut-ins, don't you agree?"
"Forty million!" x3
At the mention of so much money, Komekko finally stopped trying to resist me and returned her attention back to the general. Likewise, I felt rather than saw Aqua's jaw drop.
So there was something to those rumors about the Demon King being stupid rich, if he's handing out offers like that to every reincarnate who comes along.
Seeing he had the attention of all three of us, the general lowered his voice. "If that isn't enough for you, it's possible to earn even more! Is your divine treasure a weapon, or any other physical object of some kind? If so, the Demon King will buy it from you for double the price! After all, once you swear an oath of non-aggression against the Demon King, it's not like you'll need it anymore!"
"Lizard runner steak… fried toad… duxion wings…" Komekko was drooling as she mumbled a whole slew of her favorite foods.
I felt a tug on my sleeve by Aqua, who was probably afraid I would accept the offer, thereby abandoning the task she had given me back in heaven of defeating the Demon King―
"Hey, Satou, we're a party, so it's only fair if we split the money evenly between all of us, right?" she whispered into my ear.
She was in favor of accepting the bribe?! What happened to her goal to get revenge on the Demon King for breaking up her adventuring party and protecting humanity?
"And remember, if you can manage to distinguish yourself in the Demon King's army, you're likely to earn much more than that in the long run. Anyways, you've already had a week to think it over, so what is your answer, Mr. Satou?"
Of course, I had put plenty of thought into this matter over the past week and reached my decision.
"What happens if I refuse?" I asked. Komekko and Aqua snapped back to attention.
"It would be a first," Mr. Yoshida answered, closing one eye. "I mean, come on! How can you turn down an offer like this?" Opening his palms, he continued. "It would be one thing if you were the stickler or class rep type of personality. You would have me worried if you were some idiot who's a goodie-two-shoes and lets their misplaced sense of justice or whatever get in the way of having a good time. But you are not that, are you, Mr. Satou? Considering our spies have reported that you were seen using the Farsight skill to peep on a woman in the guild."
I winced and clenched my teeth.
"They also claimed to have witnessed you once trying to sell a girl in a cage that you paraded around town."
Behind me, Aqua flinched.
"Apparently, you were also spotted carrying around a loli on your back who appeared totally exhausted and was covered in a mysterious, slimy substance."
Komekko stifled a grunt, but she couldn't hide it when her ears turned a tinge red.
"All of those were accidents!" I desperately shouted. "Or misunderstandings!"
"Sure they were. I haven't misjudged you! A man capable of these sorts of acts belongs in the Demon King's army! That's why I know you won't refuse!" Mr. Yoshida laughed as he boldly made his claims.
It appears that my reputation is beginning to get out of hand. I'll have to be more careful in the future.
World Pause!
My special ability gained by coming into this world does have its rare useful sides. I may not be able to move, but with time frozen, I can gain extra time to carefully mull over my options.
I was planning on turning the general down, but having learned that the Demon King is offering 40,000,000 eris, I can't deny that it's tempting to take his bribe. Despite only living in this world for a short time, based on what I've seen, things are overall pretty peaceful. The Demon King doesn't seem to be the existential threat to humanity I was expecting. If anything, he's only a threat to the moral standing of society. That isn't really something I can see myself feeling strongly enough about to risk my life over.
Meanwhile, that kind of money is enough to change your life forever. I wouldn't need to worry about anything ever again. And while I wasn't technically a NEET while I was alive, I was living aimlessly without any goals or the motivation to try anything that sounded difficult. That much hasn't changed since I restarted in this world.
It might disappoint Aqua, Komekko, and Alice, but I don't think they will resent me too badly if I take the option to remain neutral. They seem to be on board with getting rich quick, if anything.
Fine! I've made up my mind!
I took a deep breath and braced myself.
"Mr. Yoshida, I―"
"Hey everyone, look, it's Tsumugi! Tsumugi is here now!"
"Thank goodness! I was worried for a while, but now everything will be okay!"
"Tsumugi-chan, I'm so glad to see you!"
I heard a ruckus rising out from the group of adventurers, and turned to see the girl with the hair clip emerging from the crowd along with her two groupies, spear guy and mage guy. The lineup of adventurers split apart to let them through. A dark shadow rested on Hair Clip Girl's face.
"Kazuma Satou! I knew it! You're working with the Demon King's general, aren't you?" she demanded, swinging her arms overbearingly as she marched toward me. "I knew you were up to something! Lady Aqua, stand back! I'll protect you from this monster!"
"Huh?" I staggered as my mind caught up to what she was saying. "N-no! I wasn't―I'm not with him, or anything!"
"Who are you?" Mr. Yoshida asked while carefully watching Hair Clip Girl approach. "Another adventurer? Ah, you must be Japanese, too! What's your name?"
"You knew I was Japanese? How'd you―oh, so that's how it is," Hair Clip Girl said, looking like she was figuring out the situation on her own that we were all Japanese reincarnates. "I am Tsumugi Matsumoto. I heard the announcement that a general of the Demon King's army had arrived, and by the time I got here, I saw Kazuma Satou standing out here in front of the city with everyone in the adventurer's guild watching him. That was how I deduced how you were working together."
"Like I said! We aren't on the same side!" I repeated as she stomped up to within arm's reach and glowered at me. Her two boyfriends stood back apace with their eyes on me and the general.
Mr. Yoshida cocked his head. "Tsumugi Matsumoto? Hmm, I have heard that name before. It's a pleasure to finally meet you. I am Kenji Yoshida, the sword-dreamer, one of the eight generals of the Demon King."
"Hk!" Hair Clip Girl tensed up and held her hand cautiously over her waist, ready to draw her hunting knife if she needed.
"Please, relax," Mr. Yoshida said, holding out his hands in a gesture of peace. "I'm not here to start a fight. In fact, I was just inviting Mr. Satou here to join the Demon King's army."
A short gasp escaped from Hair Clip Girl. "You mean you aren't accomplices?"
It's good to see she has finally realized that much.
"But since you're here, Ms. Matsumoto, I might as well extend the same offer to you." Mr. Yoshida continued. "The Demon King is actually Japanese, like us! He isn't some majin or oni like you normally expect ruling in fantasy worlds."
"I am well aware about the Demon King's true identity!" Hair Clip Girl spat. "Kazuma Satou is known around the world by many names, such as Kazuma, the King of the Panty Thieves, and Kazuma, the Lecher of Crime!"
I really wish my parents had named me something like Haruto, or Ren, or any other really common boy's name. Are these the sorts of nicknames people in this world associate me with whenever I introduce myself?
Mr. Yoshida's cheeks tightened, then he put on a forced smile. "Heh, I won't argue that those nicknames aren't deserved―"
"Save your breath!" Hair Clip Girl growled. "I'll never join the Demon King! I made a promise that I would defeat him for her sake, for Lady Aqua!" She glanced sidelong at my companions. Then her stare rested to seethe on me. "And you, Kazuma Satou, I'll only warn you once. Do not dare join them."
"I wasn't going to!" I said without thinking.
Mr. Yoshida gave me a surprised look. "You're turning me down?"
"Huh? Wait, no, I wasn't meaning to―"
Dang it, there goes my chance at an easy life! I messed up! I want a redo!
I grinded my molars at Hair Clip Girl, whose interruption had been what had thrown me off.
"Um… Mr. Yoshida… what I meant to say was… I was going to… to…"
Hair Clip Girl shot me another glare, and for some reason, I couldn't finish my acceptance of the 40 mill. Komekko and Aqua also were―
Don't look at me with those faces that looked ready to take the 40 mill and run a minute ago!
Still, I can't help but feel disappointed in my own lack of resolve. If three cuties weren't all giving me those looks right now, I would be a rich man. I didn't realize I was so weak-willed when it came to girls.
The general shook his head and tsked. "That's too bad. I'll be honest, I'm a bit shocked! Haha, I kind of feel like a schoolboy getting his love confession rejected by a girl! Isn't that weird? I've never been turned down before, what a rare feeling!"
He was laughing, but it was obvious that he wasn't pleased. His one hand was planted against his forehead to reign in his giggle, but I could see his other balled tightly in a fist.
"Oh my my, what an interesting development! Kenji-kun, what will you do now, I wonder?"
"Shut it, you!"
I looked around. A woman's voice, one with a really sexy, mature tone, had just emanated from somewhere―or rather, almost from Mr. Yoshida himself.
"Aw, but you're always neglecting me! Boo-hoo, why did my partner have to turn out to be like this?" the woman's voice pouted.
"That should be my line!" the general said, twisting around as if to talk to someone standing on his shoulder.
Is this guy… okay?
Hair Clip Girl looked similarly off put, glancing around here and there to find the speaker.
"Who's there? Show yourself!"
"Well, Kenji-kun? Aren't you going to introduce me? C'mon, let me out to see for myself! Are there any cute boys among the novice adventurers of Axel? It's a town of rookies, so there's bound to be at least a few really young ones, right? Hah~"
Hearing a sexy woman's voice sound so intoxicated while she said that made me involuntarily squirm.
What was going on?
The general covered his face as if he were embarrassed. "Please, Harpe, I already mentioned your name to them back at the beginning. Isn't that introduction enough? And just like the reports said, Mr. Satou is already the age of a high schooler, so I doubt you'd find him interesting. So please be quiet and mind your manners."
I take it back. Originally, I thought the sexy woman's voice was coming from somewhere near the general, but as I listened more, it dawned on me. The voice didn't come from anywhere. It somehow projected itself into my head. Telepathically.
"Oh! It's the divine relic, Harpe!" Aqua exclaimed, pointing at the sword Mr. Yoshida carried. "The dream sword, Harpe! That was this guy's cheat! I remember now!"
The rest of us looked curiously at the sword which Aqua was claiming to be the source of the voice we all heard in our heads.
"Is that the voice of the idiot goddess who forced me to become attached to this old uncle?" the dream sword, Harpe, asked.
"Hey, who are you calling an old uncle?"
"I would have really preferred a master who was half this guy's age! Did I not express that clearly enough in the first place, goddess? Hey, Kenji-kun, what are you doing? Stop that! Stop swinging me around! Are you trying to make me sick? I'm a sword, you know, so it won't work! Hey, stop it! Stop!"
I don't really get it, but apparently, the mature, sexy voice belonged to the general's sword.
"Hey, Aqua, what's the deal with this sword? I can hear its voice in my head," Komekko muttered. "I can sense a deep, ancient magic coming from it, too."
"I already told you," Aqua stated. "That's the divine relic, Harpe, the dream sword. A cursed sword forged by the same blacksmith deity who crafted the invincible suit of armor, Aigis."
"Ooh!" Oohed Komekko, basking in the presence of a magical item that no doubt appealed to her particular tastes.
"Hey, goddess, I heard my little brother Aigis ran away after he was worn by the warrior princess. You haven't seen him recently, have you? I'm not that worried about him being hurt, but he is my little brother, so I do at least want to confirm how he's doing." Harpe casually asked even while Mr. Yoshida tried to muffle it by covering the sword up under a cloak.
A strange look came over Aqua's face. "I haven't seen the magical suit of armor since it made such a scene at the banquet King Barbados threw for our party in the capitol back when we defeated the Demon King! White Suit Lady swore she would unleash the wrath of the Sword of the Kingdom on that pervert if she ever saw it again, so I doubt it is gonna show its helmet-face around here anytime soon."
Harpe laughed. "Huhuhu! That sounds like li'l Aigis, all right! Guess he's still having his fun!"
I didn't really understand what they were talking about, but based on what Aqua described, I was quite sure I didn't want to.
"Just go back to sleep already! This is the town of rookies! Even without your help, I could clean the clocks of every adventurer here!" Mr. Yoshida angrily strapped his talking sword behind his back where it was out of sight.
"Ah, I won't be able to sleep now! I want to feel the soft, mild sensation of a little boy's touch! His tiny hands! His small body! The smoothness of his bare sword that is still developing and hasn't yet sprouted any hair! Hah~! Just thinking about it is getting me this worked up!"
"SHUT UP!" screamed Mr. Yoshida. "I'm sick and tired of hearing you talk like that! Gross!"
"You're calling me gross? Considering what you did with those slimes that one night in your favorite brothel, isn't that the pot calling the kettle black?"
"Hk! Shut up, I said! I knew I should have left you back in the capitol!"
I can't believe I'm saying this, but I'm honestly not at all surprised that the hand-picked general of Demon King Kazuma Satou turned out like this.
Mr. Yoshida turned to face us once more. "Sorry about that. That sword is a handful, no pun intended. …? Hey, it's okay to laugh, you know―Anyways! Where were we?"
Hair Clip Girl put on a fierce stare. "Kenji Yoshida! You have betrayed the trust of Lady Aqua and defected to become one of the Demon King's generals! And for that, I will send you to hell!"
Declaring her battle cry, Hair Clip Girl unsheathed her hunting knife and charged at the general. Without missing a beat, her two lackeys, spear bro and mage bro, rushed in behind to support her.
As expected of li'l Miss main character pretender.
"Time to fight, I guess," I heard the general respond as he closed his eyes. His face instantly became peaceful and tranquil, as if he had fallen asleep.
"Aaaahhhh!" Hair Clip Girl lunged at him with her knife. Without opening his eyes, the general side-stepped her attack so smoothly it looked like they were dancing.
"I've got him, Tsumugi!" Spear guy launched himself at the general's form―
And was parried in a way that made it look easy.
The general pivoted and delivered a swift roundhouse kick to spear guy's ribcage, with enough power to forcibly knock him several meters back. Spear guy collided with the ground and let out a sickening grunt, then moved no more.
"Lightning bolt!"
Mage guy aimed an electric attack at the general without giving him any time to recover.
Still never opening his eyes, the general leapt aside to dodge the attack, then flicked his wrist in mage guy's direction.
Spurts of red showered from his stomach. Only then did I perceive the throwing knife that had moved too quickly for my eyes to even detect, which knife had penetrated deep into his belly.
"Lars! Cortney!" Hair Clip Girl bellowed in rage. "Heee-yahhhh!"
Approaching from the general's back, she attacked his blind spot.
In a flash, the general acrobatically kicked out his heel to deflect her blade while in the same, smooth motion, drove his fist into her stomach.
"Gah!"
Hair Clip Girl's eyes bulged from receiving the blow. Spittle and blood flew from her lips.
Then, raising his elbow, the general pile-drived her into the ground with so much force, it kicked up a cloud of dust and partially embedded her body and head into the soil.
Holy shit holy shit holy shit holy shit holy shit holy shit holy shit holy % !/%$―
Opening his eyes for the first time since the fight started, the general lifted his chin and stretched. "That wasn't a bad attempt. This just shows the difference in our levels." He stepped over the limp and possibly dead bodies of Hair Clip Girl's party.
Turning his attention to Aqua, Komekko, and me―
"Who's next?"