How to Survive as a Genius Spy in the Game Chapter 266 - Villa (4)

My blood accelerated and my body heated up. The pulsing Devil’s Blood was incomparable to before. This was why I was certain it was a Great Devil.

Just as the massive presence felt from the distant northeast of the continent differed from previous devils, the manifestation of the blood was also more intense.

Overwhelming pressure and powerlessness came simultaneously. How should I describe it? Even knowing of its existence from so far away, it felt like my strength was draining.

I couldn’t tell if it was because of the Devil’s Blood manifesting, but I suddenly lost my balance and staggered. Erendil grabbed my shoulder.

“Something’s wrong.”

Erendil noticed immediately. The blood manifestation must no longer be unfamiliar to her. Come to think of it, it seemed like devils descended every time I was with Erendil.

When we went to Tenorio, during the festival last time, and now this time as well…

Should I stay away from Erendil? It was a silly thought. Although it happened every time, it was closer to an uncanny coincidence. And a Great Devil had already descended anyway.

“Yes.”

“It seems a bit different from before.”

Erendil squinted one eye as she examined my complexion and stammered.

“Could it be… a Great Devil has appeared?”

“It seems so.”

“Oh dear…”

Erendil clicked her tongue but looked surprisingly calm. Perhaps she had been expecting this. I had been as well.

Although we had prepared quickly, the whereabouts of those who had crossed over to the east were unclear.

Moreover, experiments to produce Devil’s Blood were taking place in the northeastern mountains.

I thought the possibility was low, but if they had brought over powerful individuals from the east to experiment based on their research results, one might have emerged.

“That aside. Schurtafen, are you alright? You look more strained than before.”

“I’m fine. It just looks that way because of the blood.”

“You’re not pretending to be fine for my sake, are you?”

“No, I’m really fine.”

“If you say so, that’s a relief.”

Erendil seemed more worried about my physical condition than the appearance of the Great Devil.

“Aren’t you concerned?”

“Of course I’m worried. But weren’t we keeping this possibility in mind?”

She still seemed more composed than I expected. Well, Erendil must know the terror of a Great Devil. She had researched Great Devils in old books after I returned from the east.

Rather, I thought she might be maintaining composure as the emperor. It seems I’m still thinking of Erendil as her old self.

“That’s right.”

“Besides, you’ve been by my side supporting me well until now. I trust you.”

“You flatter me.”

“It’s not flattery.”

Erendil stood up.

“If I had known our vacation would turn out like this, I would have come a day earlier…”

I thought it would have been better not to take a break at all, but I didn’t say anything.

“It’s regrettable, but let’s head back now.”

“Yes.”

“Count Campbell will nag.”

“What kind of nagging?”

“He’ll obviously say we shouldn’t have rested when we had the chance to be alone.”

Somehow, I could see that happening and a laugh escaped. It didn’t suit the unfavorable conditions of a Great Devil’s appearance, but still.

“The result would have been similar even if we hadn’t rested.”

“That one would say we could have set out a day earlier.”

I nodded automatically as I could imagine the conversation.

“Still, it wasn’t bad. Don’t you think?”

“Yes. It was a beautiful place.”

Erendil nodded and stopped walking to look at the moonlit lake.

“Let’s come back here again.”

If we get the chance to come back again, it would be after victory in the war against the Great Devil.

She seemed to prefer the moonlit lake over the waterfall falling into empty space, so I thought she might like it even more if we went to Moon Well in the east together.

“Next time, I’ll take you to a place I know.”

“Is there a nice place?”

“You won’t be disappointed.”

“I look forward to it. Let’s go together for sure.”

Erendil smiled brightly in the moonlight. Of course, something bad had happened, but facing that smile made me feel a little less worried.

***

We arrived in Chenarus at dawn. The only sleep we got was inside the moving dragon carriage. As soon as we arrived at the imperial palace, Erendil summoned people.

Despite the untimely call, all the core personnel returned to the palace by dawn. Even during vacation, they were restricted to staying within the capital.

Erendil going far away was possible because she was the emperor. Everyone looked exhausted. A day of rest wouldn’t have been enough to recover from their recent hardships.

Moreover, since it was a two-day vacation, most people probably spent the first day drinking.

‘Most of them smell of alcohol.’

Still, they had washed up before meeting the emperor, and no one seemed completely drunk. The approximately 15 core personnel all had solemn expressions.

It was clear that a problem had arisen for the emperor to summon them at dawn right after giving them vacation.

Amidst the heavy atmosphere, I could see Count Campbell and a few other intellectuals deep in thought.

They must have considered the worst-case scenario and were now contemplating how to respond accordingly.

Some people glanced at me. Their expressions seemed to ask if I knew something. I didn’t react.

It was Erendil’s place to speak. For me to say anything here would be touching the emperor’s authority.

Only the Sword Masters who had greeted us as soon as we arrived in Chenarus knew the truth.

Soon, Erendil arrived. She entered with a cool expression and sat at the head seat. Not even breathing could be heard as the atmosphere grew even heavier.

“First, I want to apologize for calling you out at dawn during your vacation.”

“It’s nothing.”

After the simultaneous response, everyone looked at Erendil. She frowned and clicked her tongue.

“A Great Devil has appeared. The location is in the north of the eastern region.”

“…”

In the silence, only the sound of a few people taking deep breaths could be heard. Count Campbell closed his eyes tightly as if he had been expecting this.

“This is the worst-case scenario we had anticipated. All vacations are canceled. I’m sorry to all of you, but everyone is to return to work as of this moment.”

“We will obey your command.”

Although they were suddenly returning to work after a brief respite from their duties, no one seemed to be displeased. The matter at hand was grave.

Everyone just had serious expressions. Erendil opened her mouth again.

“Count.”

Among the 15 people, there were only three counts, but it was obvious who Erendil was addressing like this. Count Campbell bowed his head.

“Yes, Your Majesty.”

“What should we do?”

No one thought this conversation was really asking what to do. Now that a Great Devil had appeared, we needed to set a date for the march to the east quickly.

A Great Devil is different from a devil. It will grow stronger with each passing day. Erendil’s question meant to ask if there were any other plans.

“First of all, everyone knows we need to expedite our march to the east as much as possible. We can’t give them time.”

All the listeners nodded. My ears perked up. To preface like this meant he had something in mind.

“It would be better to dispatch troops in two days. I’d like to send them tomorrow if possible, but we need time to regroup the forces after their return from vacation.”

“Count, we haven’t completely cleared the path through the Trafal Mountain Range yet…”

Another nobleman expressed concern. The soldiers who had established a frontline at the eastern mountain range were now carving a path through the mountains.

A large-scale army needs to cross the massive Trafal Mountain Range. It’s a different problem from small groups crossing.

“We have no choice. We’ll have to use all the magic bombs we have.”

“That’s…”

“Yes. Originally, we planned to use them after crossing to the east, but we don’t know how effective they’ll be against a Great Devil.”

Count Campbell glanced at me. That must have been said with glowstone in mind. The use of glowstone was still kept secret.

However, even a devil hit directly by glowstone didn’t die immediately.

Of course, it was left in a critical state, but it was closer to saying that magic bombs incomparable to glowstone would be difficult to damage a Great Devil.

In fact, the plan to use bombs in the east was before the Great Devil’s descent, so it was more for breaking through the eastern forces rather than devils.

“Time is of the essence. As clearly stated in the old books, whether the enemy has a Great Devil or not makes a difference day by day. We need to move as quickly as possible.”

“Do so.”

Erendil gave her permission.

“We also need to make sure the western and southern forces can follow immediately. They should be able to join us around the time we cross to the east and establish a frontline.”

The audience nodded. The natives of the southwest were to focus on keeping the elves in check.

The joining of natives who don’t like the empire would be unhelpful for both sides among the soldiers, even if the higher-ups were fine with it.

“Lord Carl, can you continue to track the devil’s location?”

“Probably.”

Just before this Devil’s Blood manifested, I confirmed that the blood manifestations occurred at regular intervals. It happened while I was training in the capital, so I estimate it to be about a month and a half cycle.

And unlike before, the Great Devil’s presence could still be felt after the blood manifestation.

Previously, when devils descended, their location was only briefly detectable and then unknown, but the Great Devil’s presence was felt until the end of the blood manifestation.

Of course, this could be the Great Devil’s intention, which is why I answered “probably.”

However, even so, I thought we might be able to find out with the magical tool that detects Devil’s Blood. It probably won’t be too far from the other devils.

“Then after entering the east, we should head straight for the Great Devil.”

“It won’t be easy.”

“I’m sure. The eastern region has likely become their territory, so the kingdoms will rush to stop us.”

Count Campbell spoke in an emotionless tone.

“Even if everything goes according to our plan and we face the Great Devil, we may not be able to guarantee victory. We don’t have a Sword Lord like the founding emperor.”

“Count!”

At first glance, it could have sounded like he was disparaging the current emperor. Someone shouted loudly, but Count Campbell paid no attention.

Well, in the game, he was someone who cursed at the emperor calling him crazy during the war. Instead, Erendil waved her hand.

“No, he’s right. In the end, time is crucial, but we may already be too late.”

Count Campbell nodded and continued.

“I apologize if I’ve only said unpleasant things, but there is also a hopeful observation.”

The audience’s attention focused again.

“In the past, Lord Carl Schurtafen dealt with something related to the Great Devil. It was one out of three.”

I nodded.

“We judged that they were backed into a corner. All circumstances actually showed that. And in the midst of that, we eliminated one of the three last resorts they had.”

The corners of Count Campbell’s mouth lifted slightly. It was so subtle that it would go unnoticed if you weren’t paying attention.

“The Trinity. I believe those were essential for summoning the Great Devil. It’s my personal conjecture, but I’m certain that the Great Devil that has descended on the continent is not whole.”