Black Iron Magician

Chapter 506 The Demon King’s Army Descends

「The combination technique between me and Chinatsu-chan went well! Even if we didn’t get close to the enemies, we could defeat them unharmed, and my shoulders warmed up~」

Haruna cheerfully spun her arms with a pleased expression. On the other hand, Chinatsu looked very tired.

「As for me, I don’t want to use this move anymore. The timing to release the barrier is severe….」

The combination technique they were talking about refers to Haruna’s magically created poison mud wrapped in Chinatsu’s barrier. The ball-shaped barrier containing poison mud was about the size of a baseball, making it suitable for Haruna to throw. When Haruna threw it toward the enemies and Chinatsu released the barrier just before the collision, the enemies were hit only by the poison mud. Even if the enemies were basked in the mud, it only did little damage to them and gave them abnormal status (whole body paralysis and coma). After the enemies were incapacitated, Haruna kicked the air and touched them faster than their fall from the air. Then, she manipulated their gravity. She did so in order to finish the battle efficiently and to reduce the amount of magic power consumption. Actually, it was more like training for her. It was probably too boring for Haruna to just running without doing anything.

Well, setting that aside, the journey across Elderado’s territory is nearing the end. After defeated all those who blocked their way (their HP was almost full), Haruna and the others finally reached the imperial capital of Elderado.

「Wow, a big city and castle! It’s worth to explore!」

「I’m a little surprised that it’s so bright.」

Looking down from the sky, they see a vast castle town surrounded by a wall several tens of meters high and a huge castle standing in the center of the town. Even though the sun has set and it’s already dark, the city is filled with dazzling light as if it’s daytime. However, there are no civilians in the city, and the only people they see are soldiers.

「I wonder if martial law is in place. Maybe non-soldiers are shutting themselves in their homes.

「Now we can fight normally, right? But what if the emperor is hiding in one of those dwellings and he gets the civilians involved? In that case, what should we do?」

「The best way is to incapacitate them just like what we did on the way here. But honestly, I think he’ll deliberately get the civilians involved in the fight if he doesn’t care about his appearance. He will use any means necessary, just like terrorists.」

「Like, planting bombs on people who ask for help?」

「I don’t want to think about it, but it’s quite possible. But well, the most dangerous thing is――」

「■■■■! ■■!」

「――Kira-san.」

Kira’s condition hasn’t changed at all, even though they have reached the imperial capital. It was a monotonous path up to this point, but after entering the imperial capital, Chinatsu is now in a headache with the presence of the mad warrior, wondering what to do.

「I’ll take care of Kira-san after we broke in. And judging from the order, it’s my turn.」

「Then, I and Touko will be in charge of the search?」

「Is that okay? Chinatsu’s katana is a bad match against this berserker, right?」

「It’s easy to forget, but my job is a priest, you know? When it comes to dealing with undead, there’s no better job than it.」

「「Ah, that’s right!」」

The two forgot about it.

「Sigh…. Before we descend, I will use 『Frage』 on everyone. If we go invisible, I think we won’t be discovered by ordinary soldiers」

「What about Kira-san?」

「That’s not good. If Kira-san becomes invisible, it will be dangerous.」

Chinatsu applied the magic on herself, Haruna, and Touko. The detailed optical camouflage is truly splendid, and even if you look closely at them, you will hardly notice them. In addition, she also camouflaged the barrier carpet, making all but Kira invisible. After that, they moved to the top of the castle, but they didn’t see any enemy guarding the sky.

「No enemy! It’s a bit disappointing!」

「I guess they must have deployed all the forces that could handle this altitude on the way before. The enemies we dropped were a lot after all.」

「Hmm, about a hundred?」

「It’s more, Haruna. You’re one digit short….」

「More importantly, where are we going to land? Should we go separately from the start?」

「No, we have plenty of time, so let’s go together first. But since we can attack from the sky, it might be a good idea to go to the place that seems to have the most security. For example… the throne room?」

「Oh, that’s easy to understand. I vote for that.」

「I’m okay anywhere! I vote the same.」

「It’s decided. Let’s aim for that area and descend.」

「Okay! Let’s go!」

「■■■!」

The three jumped down from the barrier, and Kira chased after them.

「Alright, that bastard Kira is following us properly.」

「Waa~, the wind feels so good~」

「Hmm… I wonder if we can fall a little faster?」

「「C-Chinatsu(-chan)?」」

Surprisingly, it was Chinatsu who was a bit dissatisfied with the falling movement in the air. It’s also easy to forget, but she’s an extreme fan of thrill rides. The level of thrill that Chinatsu seeks seems to be getting higher and higher as she raises her level.

「F-For the time being, I will break the roof, so get back.」

Just before colliding with the castle, Touko smashed the roof of the castle. The sound of the impact was so loud and it reverberated through the castle. Next, the sound of the four’s grand landing also reverberated.

「It looks like we’re in the throne room, just as we planned. As for the emperor… he’s not here!」

Haruna looked around in the dust that swirled around and discovered the luxurious throne. No one is sitting there at the moment, but it’s clear that it’s the throne room. At the same time, she also saw the dumbfounded soldiers in the surroundings.

「W-What is that sound!?」

「Enemy attack, enemy attack!」

「The 『Headless』 has appeared in the throne room! Call for reinforcements!」

「■■■…!」

After a few seconds, they came to their senses, but it seems that they could only see Kira, who hasn’t been made invisible. As if to respond to their shouts, Kira raised an ominous growl from his neck.

「Gah!?」

「Ugh…!」

Haruna and Touko wiped out the surrounding soldiers because it would be troublesome if they call for help. It took less than a second for them to knock down the soldiers.

「I’m sorry, but I will restrain you too, Kira-san. I’ve thought about it a lot, but this seems to be the best way.」

Immediately after Kira landed, Chinatsu put up a barrier around him. Of course, it’s no ordinary wall barrier. It’s a barrier prison made by tracing his form. It might be better to describe it as locking him inside an invisible wall.

「■,■■…!?」

Kira’s body is still in the landing pose, and because he is stuck in the barrier, he can’t even move his fingertips. He even seems to be shaken from his voice.

「H-Hey, Chinatsu, can he breathe? Won’t that kill him?」

「When I opened the consultation office for the undead people, I heard about their general characteristics, so it’s okay. I heard that undead won’t die even if they can’t breathe. He won’t be able to swing his weapon, so I think I will let him like this for a while.」

「H-Hee…」

‘If the opponent is a human, they would suffocate, right?’ Thinking so, Touko decided not to anger Chinatsu.

「Chinatsu-chan, I’m going to use Fume Fog to scatter poison around the castle, so can you use magic to prevent abnormal status on everyone? I don’t think it will have much effect on you two, but use it just in case since it’s the kind that would instantly knock out a normal person.」

「Okay. Then, while I’m here, I’ll set up barriers in the throne room and remake it as our base. If something happens, just come running in here.」

「Somehow, I’m starting to feel sorry for the enemies….」

Thus, Elderado Castle was filled with poisonous gas that caused paralysis and coma, and the throne room was used as an impregnable base.