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The news of the Dragon Priestess throwing down the gauntlet against the Demon King quickly spread throughout the world.

…But that didn’t happen.

It seemed Alice wanted to scatter that news everywhere, but for now, I stopped her.

Well, I understand that Alice wants to do that. But it might be too late to do it after everything is finished…

Even during their advance towards the Demon King’s castle, rumors would definitely spread anyway… Ideally, it would be just as they approached the Demon King’s castle.

If not, it would be better if the rumors spread a significant time after they set off on their journey.

There are various reasons for this, but the biggest one is the humans who have been subjugated by the Demon King.

Whether by choice or coercion, those dominated by the Demon King are infused with dark magic and forced to serve as the Demon King’s minions… Essentially, they become the Demon King’s slaves. Some might say they become what are referred to as demons.

Normally, the Demon army would wipe out any humans on sight, but why this change occurred… Well… It’s probably due to that ‘Mahayu’ guy who acts as an advisor to the Demon King’s army.

Anyway, it looked like he was using demons who, on the surface, don’t seem much different from ordinary humans, to siphon off information from this side. So if the Hero and the Dragon Priestess set off to beat up the Demon King, that news would travel fast.

If the information spreads quickly, they can start preparing and set traps over there.

Honestly, Alice isn’t too worried about it, but Eric definitely is.

So, this was just in case.

At first, Alice wore a dissatisfied expression, but once I explained it was for Eric’s sake, she actually listened.

Thus, the Hero Eric and the Dragon Priestess Alice began their thorough preparations.

They packed lightweight yet sturdy Dwarven armor and Elven leather armor, along with a special pouch woven from Wyvern skin that could infinitely expand its internal space, shoving in whatever they needed for their journey.

They piled in non-stop supplies like food and water, along with camping supplies like a tent and sleeping bags.

“Alright. This should be enough preparation,” Alice said.

‘Well, we don’t really need those healing potions, right? My healing magic is much faster and more effective,’ I thought.

“Just in case,” she replied. “Oh, and make sure to pack this too.”

At that moment, a small feather floated down before Alice’s eyes.

It was a pure white feather. At first glance, it seemed ordinary, but the magical power contained within was anything but.

‘What’s this…?’

“It’s a feather infused with special magic. If you bend this feather in half… it will activate a spell to transport you and Eric back to the main Church, no matter where you are.”

‘Long-distance spatial movement magic?’

A small object carrying such extraordinary magic. Alice gasped and started inspecting the feather in her hand.

‘Can such a small feather withstand that kind of magical power?’

“It’s specially made, so I doubt anyone besides me could create it.”

‘The magical inscriptions engraved within… They’re incredibly intricate. Quite amazing.’

Surprisingly, it seemed Alice could read a little bit of the inscriptions inside the feather.

That was unexpected.

‘Can I look closely at this?’

“Of course. It was made for you to use anyway, so how you handle it is entirely up to you.”

You can even toss it away if you don’t think you’ll need it.

‘Thank you. Me.’

Alice smiled faintly, and I mirrored her smile.

From my perspective of just observing, moments like these are a joyous experience.

– – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –

Thus, after their thorough preparations, Hero Eric and Dragon Priestess Alice departed on their journey.

Setting out from the Church of Life’s main headquarters, they headed north. Simply north.

They smashed through every single one of the Demon King’s forces they encountered, destroyed obstacles, and freed all the Demon King’s slaves who tried to hinder them. Without a moment’s hesitation, they continued northward.

What could be called an adventure to defeat the Demon King wreaking havoc on the world turned into a rather comfortable journey.

Countless individuals helped by them, and the number of fallen Demon forces was infinite.

By the time they approached the Demon King’s castle, their feats were widely acknowledged.

“Well, it wasn’t without its hardships,” I said.

“It was quite entertaining from a spectator’s perspective,” Alice added.

If I had to describe it, it felt like a max-level mage giving a ride to a just-graduated beginner warrior.

Most ordinary monster armies were easily wiped out, and thanks to Eric accumulating enough battle experience, he exuded the air of a worthy hero as they neared the Demon King’s castle, despite being slightly unsure before their adventure kicked off.

“It was easier than expected. Especially against the Demon King’s Four Heavenly Kings.”

While they could dispatch most foes with ease, those four put up quite a fight.

“Yeah. They were no trivial opponents. Especially the Dark Knight.”

Sure enough, the Demon King’s Four Heavenly Kings didn’t fall easily to the Hero and Dragon Priestess.

In fact, they engaged in real knockdown-dragout fights.

If it were ordinary monsters or undead, they would instantaneously evaporate under Alice’s magic, but those four were different.

Oh, and there was also the Golden Goblin. Weaker than the four, but it could still put up a decent fight.

“Still, it didn’t feel too bad.”

Yeah, I guess it wouldn’t. For Alice, ordinary monsters probably felt as easy to crush as pests, and even the Demon King’s Four Heavenly Kings must be the level of appropriate combatants to feel like a challenge.

Lacking no supplies at all, they were simply taking it easy on their journey.

“Eric thinks differently, though.”

‘Eric… well, I guess it’s good he’s gotten stronger like a hero?’

“Although it’s true he got strong from enduring all sorts of hardships.”

He had to overcome perilous situations countless times, even wielding the legendary weapon of a hero.

But I suppose on the upside, now he possesses strength befitting a hero.

Especially the influence of the Demon King’s Four Heavenly Kings was immense.

Taking a closer look at those four…

– – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –

First among the Demon King’s Four Heavenly Kings: The Black Sage, Mahyaja. The one who weaves plots in the shadows.

With adept manipulation of the demons, known as the Demon King’s slaves, and magical abilities to materialize shadows or use them as mediums for various effects, along with his extraordinary strategies, he relentlessly pressured Hero Eric and Dragon Priestess Alice.

To name one of his most sinister deeds… he placed hostages and deliberately leaked information so they would be rescued, only to then ensnare the rescuers, making them suffer immensely before detonating the hidden magic implanted within the hostages. He intended to use them as human bombs.

Thanks to Alice’s vigilance, she quickly dispelled the self-destruct spell, averting disaster. They almost fell victim to the human bomb trap!

Moreover, Mahyaja was skilled in battle using shadow manipulation magic. The spears created from shadows were difficult to block with ordinary defenses.

Well, it didn’t work on Alice! But if shadows are a problem, just get rid of them!

She gathered countless orbs of light and vaporized nearly all the shadows around her. It was quite the sight.

However, she couldn’t completely finish him off. In a crucial moment, he melted into the ground like a shadow and vanished as if teleporting away. That kind of escaping was almost impossible for Alice to catch with her magic.

Next up, the second of the Demon King’s Four Heavenly Kings: Beelzebub, the Lord of Flies, a leftover remnant of a decaying god.

He may have once been a remnant of the God of Thunder, but whatever dignity he had back then was now lost. Now, he merely consisted of countless flies that gathered to form a massive fly… quite the pathetic state of existence.

That said, it’s undeniable he was a threat. Flies that somehow had their beaks transformed into poisonous stingers or blades? What in the world?

Additionally, his vitality was incredibly persistent; simply killing a few wouldn’t be enough, and even using chain lightning to try and catch him didn’t seem effective as he resisted the lightning with apparent ease. Unsurprisingly, physical attacks barely did much, only managing to take out a few flies in his swarm.

Of course, he was also laying down poison from the get-go, causing Eric to be on the brink of poisoning several times.

In a fit of desperation, Alice burned the surrounding area, incinerating about 80% of the flies making up Beelzebub, but soon after, they proliferated again.

The only silver lining? This proliferation wasn’t infinite. If they multiplied too much, they seemed to lose their self-control, leading to flies eating one another.

Honestly, for someone once called a god, that’s a remarkably grim state of affairs.

I feel a bit sorry for Eric, but it’s nice having strong adversaries to keep things interesting, right?

So, let’s move on to discuss the last two Heavenly Kings.

 

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