The Strongest Onmyoji and the Shikigami With AI are Unparalleled in Another World ~ A Second Life Properly Enjoyed Using Artificial Intelligence ~ - Chapter 45

♦ ♦ Sven PoV ♦ ♦

“Shit! Shit! Shit! What the hell is that man!?”

I leaned against a tree deep in the forest, hanging my head.

I thought it would be an easy job, but I ended up in a terrible situation.

If our decision to escape had been even slightly delayed, the barrier would have been broken, and we would have been burned to ashes by that golden flame.

“Sven-sama.”

I turned around at the sound of a voice and saw one of my subordinates standing there.

Her duty was supposed to be to watch over the town and the battle against monsters.

“What’s wrong? Has the town fallen?”

I stopped sending monsters and the frenzy magic halfway through, but I was able to send enough monsters to destroy the town.

“W-Well… um…”

My subordinate hesitated.

“What’s wrong? What happened?”

“T-The town… couldn’t be taken.”

“What!?”

What’s going on!?

There shouldn’t have been any forces in that town capable of dealing with that many monsters!

“Why not!?”

“W-Well… um…”

“Speak!”

“Yes! Suddenly, a giant spider monster appeared and routed the monsters.”

Huh?

“What are you talking about?”

“I’m just telling you what I saw… I’m sorry, but I…”

My subordinate seems confused.

“Calm down. Take your time and tell me in detail.”

“Yes… The swarm of monsters attacked the town relentlessly. Despite the soldiers and adventurers in the town putting up a good fight, it seemed like it was only a matter of time before it fell.”

Well, that makes sense.

No matter how hard the humans tried, that number was impossible to handle.

“And then?”

“Yes… As evening approached, when we thought it was about to end, suddenly, a giant and grotesque monster spider appeared near the town.”

“It appeared? Where did it come from?”

“I… I don’t know. It really just appeared out of nowhere. I couldn’t understand it myself, and it seems both the monsters and the humans were the same; everyone was frozen for a while.”

Well, that’s not entirely implausible.

Listening to this story, I can’t make heads or tails of it, and it sounds like this person is lying. If I feel this way, then those who were actually there would surely be even more shaken.

“If the humans were frozen too, doesn’t that mean it’s not on the humans’ side?”

“I don’t know. But that spider soon started moving and began to crush the monsters.”

Crush, huh.

“How strong was this spider thing?”

“…It’s a monster. It’s a genuine monster. It was beyond anything I could handle, and it had terrifying magical power. Moreover, it used magic to burn the plains along with the monsters.”

My subordinate is of the same demon race as me.

He’s certainly not weak, and his magical power is high.

Yet, he’s trembling as he speaks.

Such a monster…

“A divine beast… or perhaps a creature of ancient calamity…”

“I don’t know. It disappeared at the same time the monsters were crushed. The humans weren’t attacked, and naturally, there was no damage to the town either.”

Is it clearly allied with the humans?

In that case, a divine beast…

“A divine beast living in or near that town…”

“N-No… That ominous magical power doesn’t seem divine. If anything, it’s more akin to us demons and monsters…”

Akin to us?

Why would something like that be allied with humans…?

Akin to us…?

“Did you notice anything else?”

“Anything else? Not particularly…”

“Did you see any large bees?”

“Bees… No, I didn’t see anything like that… Sorry. I can’t say for sure if it was bees, but I felt like there was something in the sky.”

It’s a perception-inhibiting spell.

In that case, it must be…

That man!

That man was initially riding a giant bee.

I repelled it with a beam, but it was definitely a large bee.

A large bee and a large spider…

I’m not foolish enough to dismiss this as mere coincidence.

“Tch! A genuine monster…”

That spider was probably summoned by that man.

He left the spider to guard the town and came to me.

Then, when it’s done, he’ll return to the town and make the spider disappear.

There’s no other explanation.

“U-Um, do you have any idea?”

“Shut up!”

“S-Sorry!”

Damn it!

I’m so shaken that I’m lashing out at my own subordinate…!

“Hey hey, someone’s in a bad mood!”

Suddenly, a loud voice rang out, and I turned to see a towering man.

“Lord Domik…”

As my subordinate muttered the man’s name, Domik glared at him.

“Ah? Who said you could open your mouth!?”

“I-I’m terribly sorry!”

The subordinate immediately bowed down and apologized.

“Drop dead!”

Domik said that as he approached my subordinate.

“Domik. What are you planning to do to my subordinate? Do you want to die?”

With that, Domik stopped in his tracks.

“Don’t need a guy like this.”

“It’s not up to you to decide. More importantly, what are you doing here?”

“It’s obvious, isn’t it? I heard you were using monsters to destroy the town, so I came to see. I thought I’d enjoy the humans’ screams of agony.”

Domik grinned as he spoke.

“You were planning to join in for a bit of fun anyway, right? Do whatever you want to rampage, but don’t get in my way.”

“Hahaha! Really now! Well, my bad. But hey, I just checked it out earlier, and the town is still standing, you know? Not only that, but the monsters are scattered and fleeing. What the hell’s going on?”

Just die!

What a worthless pig, just causing trouble!

“That’s exactly it. It failed.”

“Hah! Hahaha! What’s with the high and mighty talk while being a failure? Are you underestimating me!?”

Domik came up to me and leaned in with a smile.

“Shut up. I’m in a bad mood. If you don’t want to die, disappear.”

“Hey hey! What’s gotten into you? You always say some nonsense and then leave, but today you’re oddly looking for a fight?”

Domik grinned as he patted my shoulder.

“A fight? Just take care of nuisances, right?”

“Hey, seriously, what’s wrong? What happened?”

Domik’s expression turned serious.

“The plan failed. The town is protected by some mysterious giant spider, and I was repelled by adventurers and forced to retreat.”

Damn it!

How frustrating!

“Enough with the boring jokes, tell me the truth. Why did it fail? Was that mirror acting up?”

“Jokes? Do I look like a man who makes jokes? The monsters were repelled by a giant spider on the level of divine beasts or calamity-class creatures, and we were nearly incinerated by a man who seemed to be a demon named Yuuma.”

“Hahaha! That’s really something, Sven. There’s no way something like that exists in a town like that.”

What a brute…

“Laugh all you want. I have to report this.”

“Hey… Were you careless or something? If you lost, aren’t you going to retaliate?”

Careless, huh…

I won’t deny it.

But more than that, that magic power…

Damn it! I can’t forget that man’s golden eyes!

“We’ll retaliate eventually. But before that, I have to report the failed operation and the information.”

“Ah! Sven! What are you even saying? Who cares if some complicated operation like Stampede failed? Dealing with those humans should be the priority!”

There’s no saving this guy…

“I don’t care. I was only ordered to cause Stampede using that mirror.”

“You serious… Ugh! Do whatever you want! Boring.”

With that, Domik walked away from us towards the town.

“Umm, Lord Sven… Is that really okay?”

After Domik was gone, my subordinate stood up and asked.

“I don’t know. But he seemed like he might act on his own… I’m going back, so keep an eye on him.”

“Keep an eye on him?”

My subordinate seemed a bit reluctant.

I understand how they feel.

“Domik is strong, but he’s not very smart. If he starts causing trouble, don’t hesitate to deal with him.”

“Are you sure?”

“I don’t mind. He probably won’t listen anyway.”

“Got it. I’ll do as you say.”

With that, my subordinate bowed and walked towards the direction Domik had gone.

Domik isn’t good at sensing magic power, so he probably won’t notice. The problem is Yuuma…

Well, unlike Domik, my subordinate won’t push themselves too hard, so it should be fine.

More importantly, I need to come up with a plan for dealing with Yuuma.

He said fire wouldn’t work, and my favorite magic was sealed.

I’ll need a different magic…

While pondering, I began to walk in the opposite direction of Domik and my subordinate.