The sky, which had been clear this morning, grew cloudier the farther west we went.
After watching Luna head toward Shion, I switched my focus.
"Nagisa, can you locate Halt? The more precise, the better."
"Yes. Please give me a moment."
Nagisa quietly closed her eyes and brought her hands together in front of her chest. Using an expanded interpretation of her ability, Spirit Interference, she could locate not only demons but also people she was close to. There seemed to be a distance limit, but I had heard she could track anyone inside the country.
A faint light rose from her palms and stretched toward the north.
"I see him. Halt is currently in the forest near the northern agricultural city of Honae."
"Honae, huh."
I had assumed he would be near the western trade city of Tsuranami if the Federation had attacked, so why was he in the north?
While wondering about that, I recreated the mental link ability.
I extended my consciousness northward and quickly found Halt.
"Halt, can you hear me?"
The response came immediately.
"Orun! You're back!"
"Yeah. Nagisa told me about the Federation invasion. Give me the situation."
"The enemy split into three fronts. I'm with Telche in the north, Fuka is in the south, and Kati and Huey are handling the west."
"Three directions at once... That's troublesome."
"Yeah. But we're pushing them back up here in the north. We're currently hunting down the remnants in the forest. Telche set up defensive lines, so we've kept casualties to a minimum."
The forest near Honae was a decent defensive position. Using the terrain properly, even a small force could handle it well.
"What about the south and west?"
"The south has fewer enemies and Fuka is there, so it wouldn't surprise me if they're already done. The problem is the west. That's where their main force is."
"Tsuranami?"
"Yeah. The Federation fleet is on the move. It's a pretty big scale. Their real target is probably the invasion from the west."
Halt's voice grew a little lower. He was clearly feeling the flow of the battle.
"Can I leave the north to you?"
"Yeah, don't worry. Telche and I are both fine. We'll secure this area."
After ending the mental link with Halt, I shifted my focus south, toward Fuka. I concentrated my magic power into a single point and formed a thin spiritual thread.
I checked the situation with Fuka the same way, and just as Halt predicted, she had already finished. She really was reliable. I decided to leave the defense of Hanemiya to her.
The north and south were fine. That left only the west.
The wind grew stronger and carried the faint scent of the sea. It felt like the prelude to a storm.
"Oliver, let's go."
"Have you grasped the situation?"
"Yeah. We're heading to stop the enemy's main force. Destination is off the coast of Tsuranami."
"Understood."
After speaking with Oliver, I called out to Nagisa one last time.
"I'll keep the link with you open. If anything big happens with Fuka, Halt, or anywhere else, let me know through the mental link."
"Understood! I'm sorry for dragging you into Kyokuto's mess again, Orun, but please take care of it!"
"There's a good chance this whole thing started because of me. I'm the one who might be causing trouble for Kyokuto. So you don't need to feel sorry, Nagisa. See you later."
After finishing with Nagisa, Oliver and I exchanged glances and kicked off the ground almost at the same time.
We activated Flowing Flight Elseria and headed for Tsuranami.
◇
The scenery below raced away in an instant. As we entered the western part of Kyokuto, the blue sky began turning leaden gray. The wind grew wild and the clouds hung low.
It felt as if something was trying to cover up the western edge of the country. A heavy, oppressive presence filled the air.
"This is a bad sky," Oliver muttered quietly.
"It's probably not a natural phenomenon. The magic disturbance is too strong."
"Demons?"
"No. It's more likely the aftermath of Shion and Ruari's battle."
"The clash between cold and heat, huh..."
As we continued while talking, the sea became visible through gaps in the clouds.
Black waves churned violently, and the shadows of many ships appeared between the swells. More than half of them were already burning.
The sound of explosions and creaking metal rode the wind, along with the smell of scorched sailcloth.
"This is awful."
"So this is what war with magic weapons looks like."
"..."
Smoke drifted on the wind, leaving faint traces of cannon fire. But the battle itself seemed to have already quieted down.
Just to be safe, I sent a mental link to Katina.
"Katina, can you hear me? How is the situation?"
"Oh, Orun! I was just about to report. We won over here! The Federation army is preparing to retreat!"
"I see. That's good."
"The Kyokuto ambassador is currently setting up a meeting with the Federation commander. I think a ceasefire will happen soon."
Those words eased the tension in my chest. It looked like this battle was over for now.
In that case, I should head to Shion. I trusted Luna, but I was still a little worried about Shion.
Right as that thought crossed my mind, I felt a faint gaze. Amid the drifting cloud shadows, I looked down at the sea surface and spotted a small figure.
A child was clinging to a piece of wood, bobbing in the waves and looking up at us.
(Why is a child in a place like this? Was a civilian evacuation ship caught up in it?)
Many questions came to mind, but rescuing them came first. The sea was cold at this time of year after summer had passed. If left like this, the child could easily suffer from hypothermia.
I descended slowly and approached the child.
"Hey, are you okay?"
There was no reply. The child simply stared at me with a blank expression. They had probably lost their voice after witnessing the battlefield. That was understandable.
I called out again in the gentlest voice I could manage.
"It's okay now. This place is dangerous, so let's get away from here."
I reached out and lifted the child into my arms. Their thin body was trembling. It was probably from the freezing seawater.
I was thinking about carrying them to shore when the child's small lips moved.
"Are you Orun Dura?"
"..."
My thoughts stopped for a moment. How did they know my name?
I had been living in this country for the past month, but I had not appeared in public. Only my companions and the upper ranks of Kyokuto knew about me. Most citizens thought of the "Demon Lord" as a criminal and did not know that same Demon Lord was in Kyokuto. I was supposed to be just one of the companions Fuka had brought.
"I'm glad you can still speak. For now, let's get you to a safe place—"
The moment I trailed off and smiled, light flashed.
A sharp pain ran across my cheek.
"—!?"
I twisted my body on reflex, and a silver blade grazed right in front of my eyes.
The tip of the knife cut through the air and left a shallow cut on my cheek.
A single drop of blood fell onto the sea surface.
Before I knew it, four shadows had surrounded me.
They were all children wearing red cloaks.
And they were flying through the sky. Flight magic was supposed to be undeveloped for ordinary people.
"Why are they flying—"
The next instant, light bullets were fired.
I flipped my body instantly and deployed a magic barrier to block the direct hits.
While sliding backward across the sea surface, I observed the enemy's equipment. Complex magic circles were engraved on the cuffs and backs beneath their red cloaks. Magic power flowed across the fabric and glowed faintly.
(I see... Those are magic tools assisting their flight.)
The children stayed silent as they changed formation and tightened the encirclement.
In the center, the boy I had just been holding now stood on the sea surface.
His expression remained unchanged, but his voice was strangely clear.
"First verification experiment complete. Moving to the second verification experiment."
A jet-black magic stone appeared in the boy's right hand. Dense darkness pulsed inside it.
"Stop!"
Before my voice could reach him, the boy dropped it into the sea. The moment the stone touched the water, a heavy sound echoed from the seabed.
Immediately after, the sea surged upward.
A dark water column rose toward the sky, and a massive shadow emerged from within.
It was an enormous octopus-like phantom beast with countless tentacles, as large as a mountain.
Its tentacles smashed the surrounding ships without distinguishing between Kyokuto and Federation vessels