Chapter 80: Comrade

"Once the Saint Sword is repaired and reforged, will you be adding additional abilities to it from the demon nobles among the nine strongest domains?"

"I'm afraid not." Nagano sounded apologetic from the other side of the phone. "We can no longer borrow power from them now that they're awake."

"HUH?! When were they ever sleeping?!"

"Ah, sorry. I got mixed up with The Silver Gravekeeper. You're supposed to be Golden."

"That's no longer on the level of a simple mix-up! Wait, you actually read The Silver Gravekeeper?!"

"They did have a Japanese animated version called Gin no Guardian."

"Okay, putting that aside…" I sighed, trying to suppress my annoyance. "We can't add a demon noble's power to my reforged weapon?"

"Actually…there's where your friend, Lilith Scarlet-san comes in."

"…"

I fell silent and waited for Nagano to explain.

"Before we arrived at Cross Castle, I already came up with plans for your Saint Sword. By then, I had met Lilith-san, so I incorporated a version where I can borrow her power to enchant your new sword. It will no longer be Minamoto-san's original Saint Sword but an enhanced, new weapon with even more power than before."

I gripped Takeda's smartphone tightly as I saw the screen change to indicate that a new message was being texted.

"This is what I believe to be the strongest version of the sword that I can forge. You can take a look first."

"Oh…with Lilith-san's ability incorporated into it, it'll become a vampire sword or something. This looks pretty awesome!"

I was thoroughly impressed by the schematic I was seeing in the smartphone. Returning it to Takeda, I retrieved my own smartphone and access the mobile storage space. Tapping on the icon that indicated my broken Saint Sword (which formerly belonged to Minamoto Kureha), I delivered it across space.

"This is great. I can finally repair this broken legendary sword!"

"If you don't have any more questions, then use the mail option and send me your broken Saint Sword."

Nagano sounded pretty excited about working on this new project.

"Ah! I can deliver it to you directly?"

I stared at my smartphone, dismayed. Scratching my head sheepishly, I apologized.

"Sorry. I thought I could only send it to people in my contact list!"

"This is a special ability of swordsmiths. We can directly receive other heroes or warriors' treasure weapons."

"My bad…I didn't know about that. I've already sent it to Lilith-san."

I stared at the holographic screen of my smartphone, which indicated that the transfer was successful and that she had received my sword.

"Looks like I'll have to get her to bring it to you. Is she nearby?"

"Yeah." Nagano nodded toward Aoyama, who was standing beside her as they listened to me. "Let her send it to me, it doesn't matter."

Nagano smiled insidiously, which was supposed to be unseen by me, but unfortunately for her, I had first person protagonist privilege, so I could see everything.

This way…Tanaka Tomoyuki-kun's weapon has been dealt with.

Her smile widened.

Things are going according to our leader's plan.

Uh, you do realize that I still have my staff, right? The staff that I took from Tsukishima Tomoyo after killing her? It made no difference whether I had the sword or not. Well, it did, but I wasn't completely helpless without my sword.

Takeda frowned when he studied our exchange, and shook his head in disapproval.

Nagano-san is being too cautious…even if we don't take away Tanaka-kun's treasure weapon, that kind of power can't match up to mine!

Unseen by me, he smirked to himself.

Meanwhile, Lilith was still talking to Domon Daisuke.

"So how do you plan to make up to Tomoyuki-kun?"

"Hmm…I have no idea. But thank you for listening to me."

Domon smiled.

"I feel refreshed now. But…"

He suddenly looked away, a guilty expression flashing across his face.

"…right now I owe my life to Takeda-kun. If it weren't for me, I would end up being Kobayashi's punching bag again. Takeda-kun was the one who brought me into his group and protected me from Kobayashi and his goons."

"Well, it's great that you have a lot of friends that you can rely on."

Lilith shrugged.

"Does…Tanaka-kun rely on you?"

"…I hope he does." Lilith glanced at her communication device. "I would like to believe that he does."

"That's great." Domon smiled. "I really hope there will be someone by his side…someone he can trust and depend on. I might not be that person…even though I owe him a debt that I can never repay, but I really hope he has comrades."

Lilith raised an eyebrow. "What…are you talking about?"

"N…nothing. Sometimes I wish Tanaka-kun wasn't thrown off the summoing spell by Kobayashi and the others. If that didn't happen…maybe I would be part of his group instead of Takeda-kun's. No, I'm still grateful to Takeda-kun, of course, but even then…"

"Why can't you be grateful to both of them?"

"…I am grateful to both of them. But sometimes, when there's a conflict of interest, and I'm forced to choose one side over the other…"

Lilith frowned.

"Choose one side over the other? What are you talking about?"

"Ah, no…sorry. I've been talking too much. Anyway, there's another request I would like to make of you. For Tanaka-kun's sake."

Lilith regarded him for a moment, and then nodded.

"Sure. What is it?"

"Nagano-san will have a request later. She will be asking you to lend Tanaka-kun your powers, to imbue his teasure weapon with your blood magic. That will vastly improve Tanaka-kun's combat techniques. If you were to do that…then you will be able to help Tanaka-kun a lot. Be a pillar of strength for him, no matter how far apart you are."

"Ah…so that's what this is about."

Lilith nodded as she opened the message and read through it. "Yeah, he did send his broken sword to me so that it'll be reforged by Nagano-san. And he did mention something about borrowing my power. I'm fine with it."

"Really? Thank you very much!"

"It's nothing much, really." Lilith raised her head, a nostalgic gaze taking over her eyes. "Like you, I owe the major a lot. He was the one who led a battalion into my domain to defend it from a couple of Evelyn's Chosen and their armies. If it weren't for him, my domain would have fallen to human forces in a very short order."

"…Major?"

"Ah…I guess he didn't tell you. You know that Tomoyuki-kun is currently affiliated with the demonic alliance, right?"

"Yes. We heard from Hoshizaki-san and Nagano-san that he is presently fighting for the demonic alliance."

"That's right." Lilith nodded. "He's serving as a Major in one of their battalions. One day, he came leading his army to reinforce my elite guard against the onslaught of human knights and a particularly powerful Evelyn's Chosen."

"Sakaguchi Seiji." Domon's eyes lit up. "I remember him. I heard about that! He and Miyazawa Miyako were defeated at Haemorage…your domain!"

"Exactly. With Tomoyuki-kun's help, we defeated the two Evelyn's Chosen, routed the human armies and captured them."

"As expected of Tanaka-kun!" Domon gushed excitedly. "I always knew that he was special. I didn't think he would be this impressive!"

"Ha ha, he always surpasses expectations, doesn't he?" Lilith chuckled softly. "I always wonder who he was…but hearing you talk about your past, and how you all come from another world, somehow none of this sounds surprising anymore…"

Back in the elevator, which was still slowly ascending toward the top, Takeda continued speaking to me.

"After we defeated the previous Demon Lord, the first few cracks appeared all over the class. I began to notice that there was something wrong with Kobayashi."

"What, it took you that long?" I blurted out in disbelief. Takeda smiled wryly.

"Okay, perhaps we knew all along there was something wrong with Kobayashi, but he only truly dsplayed his problems after we defeated the previous demon lord. First, he decided to delare a vacation and have all the heroes move away from the frontlines, leaving the human armies to fend for themselves in demon territories."

I had heard about that. That was an incredibly stupid move on his part.

"Thanks to that, we began to lose ground under the new Demon Lord's counterattack and ended up surrendering the gains we consolidated during the first victory. When news of consecutive defeats and the humans being driven back reached our ears, Kobayashi panicked and began sending us out to reconquer our lost territories."

"…"

Yeah, that sounded like Kobayashi all right.

"Before then, he was parading around as if we had already won, marching and showing off in cities, to emphasize his power. I guess the defeats made him look like a fool, especially after he declared that he would eradicate the demon race from the face of Restia."

Speaking of which, I did remember seeing the heroes' parade in Havia shortly after I became a mercenary there. So that was what he was doing. Showing off? What a blunder.

"Wait, eradicate…?"

"Yes, that's when we realized something was wrong. We had already won. Several of us sued for peace. We were tired of fighting, and we didn't want to annihilate the enemy. It was just morally wrong. It was genocide."

And nothing good ever came out genocide. I nodded undersdandingly.

"However, Kobayashi was obsessed with destroying and exterminating the demon race, to the point where he almost seemed insane. Then he began sharing with the other heroes how he planned on taking the throne for himself…how he planned to become Emperor. He asked for our support, in return, he would grant us noble statuses and territories, allowing us to be kings and queens under his reign. He planned to build an empire where he stands supreme over everyone else."

"That guy sounds like a madman," I muttered. Takeda agreed.

"I know, right? A lot of us voiced our concerns, but Kobayashi declared us traitors. If we weren't with him, we were against him, and therefore an enemy. We had a huge argument, and then we decided to split ways. I formed the Iron Knights and took this territory, Vashna, from Kobayashi while allying with the nearby demonic domains, or at least signing truces with them. But we still need the help of the greater demonic alliance."

"And that's where I come in."

"Yes…that's another interesting point. While we were falling out, Sakaguchi and Asakura reported that you were still alive. That was another confirmation when we realized that Kobayashi had truly gone mad. His expression changed. He became…obsessed with killing you. Him and all his goons, except Suzuki and his bunch. Everyone else was determined to wipe you out from the face of Restia for some reason, even though you hadn't even done much other than make a name for yourself as a highly respected and promising mercenary."

"I'm not highly respected or promising at all," I mumbled, embarrassed. Takeda chuckled at my expression.

"Don't sell yourself short, Tanaka-kun. From what I've heard, I know you'll be vital in the resistance toward Kobayashi. We need to stop him before he does anything crazy and unleash that Chaos thing you mention. Even if that isn't true, we can't just allow him to become Emperor of Restia and do whatever he wants."

"Sounds like a plan, but I don't know how I'll be of any help."

"You will. All you need to do is follow my instructions. I have a plan to stop Kobayashi and his group."

I frowned at that. For a moment, I thought Takeda sounded almost dictatorial. Follow his instructions? What did he think I was, his lackey? If we were going into this as equals, I didn't mind helping out, but I didn't feel pleased being talked down to like that.

Biting my lip, I suppressed my unease and annoyance and waited patiently. Takeda might just be using a figure of speech, or he was just overly confident of his plan. Either way, I shouldn't let my emotions get the better of me.

"I see."

"I'll be looking forward to receiving your assistance."

Takeda turned toward the door of the elevator as it jerked to a halt with a metallic sound. I breathed a sigh of relief.

Finally! We could finally get out of this goddamned elevator that we had been stuck inside for the last three chapters!

As the door opened, I shrank back, shielding my eyes as bright sunrays poured into the elevator. The lenses of my glasses automatically darkened, protecting my vision. I straightened and peered outside, seeing a vast, empty space on what seemed like the rooftop of Cross Castle.

"Finally at the top," I grumbled impatiently. I couldn't wait to get out of the elevator. Finally! At long last!

Takeda almost seemed to feel the same, taking a step out of the elevator and into the bright sunlight, which reflected off his shiny armor.

"Yes…" he said. "It's time to discuss something very important."

"You mean we haven't been discussing anything important that whole time we were in the elevator?" I demanded, astonished, as I hurriedly followed him into the open.

Then I suddenly stopped when I saw a gigantic big box right in the middle of the rooftop. Stretching over fifty meters high, it towered over us, casting a gigantic shadow to the side. Despite it being the middle of the day, I felt a cold, ominous aura emanating from within. Despite using Absolute Appraisal, I couldn't see its interior.

"What is this big box?"

As a reply, Takeda pressed his palm against the box. Immediately dozens of blue light ran through it like holograms, transforming the box into something. I gaped at it as it changed shape, turning into what looked like an intercontinental ballistic missile launcher.

I see…so that blurry thing that I couldn't make out with my Absolute Appraisal earlier is this box...

But why the hell was it turning into a massive missile launcher? It reminded me of a Deathstrike missile launcher that was constantly used in the 41st millennium. The detonation of one would lead to a vortex that opened a rift in space and allowed the creatures of the immaterium through. Anything in the vicinity would suffer mortal wounds, or they would be warped into hideous monstrosities that were beyond man's imagination.

"You've got to be kidding me…"

I gaped at the missile launcher, but was suddenly aware that it was bereft of any missiles. I breathed a sigh of relief.

At the same time, Lilith was confronting Domon.

"So…about Tomoyuki-kun…what was he like in your previous world?"

She had realized that she had known nothing about me, despite us being acquaintances for about a week or so.

"Like I told you, Tanaka-kun is a brave guy who will never back down in the face of adversity. He refuses to let even the likes of Kobayashi push him around." Domon smiled ironically. "He's the true hero among us heroes, even though he's not exactly a hero."

"That's the thing. Just what is he, exactly? You say he's one of you, comes from the same world as the rest of you, but he's clearly not an Evelyn's Chosen. His allegiance seems to be to another goddess. The goddess of knowledge, Lyia, if I'm not mistaken."

"Yes. As I told you before, Kobayashi and the others threw him off the summoning spell when the goddess Evelyn summoned us to Restia. As a result, he didn't receive the same blessings and powers that we heroes did. For a long time, we believed him dead. None of us could ever imagine that he survived that fall…but not only did he survive, it appeared he got lost in time and transported to Restia six months after we did. And he emerged even stronger than us."

"A human who's even stronger than Evelyn's Chosen?" Lilith scoffed. "I find that hard to believe."

"Yes…we couldn't believe it ourselves…but somehow he has killed five of us, despite being six months behind. Perhaps it has something to do with the goddess backing him."

"Lyia is not known for being a powerful goddess or a war goddess," Lilith countered. Domon shook his head.

"That's not what I mean. Eveyln had to split her power and blessings over twenty-nine of us. Lyia has only very few followers in comparison to split her blessings and power to. Therefore she's able to devote more of her power to her followers…like Tanaka-kun."

"Hmm…that makes sense." Lilith considered for a moment. "But from what you say, is he fighting against this Kobayashi and the remaining Evelyn's Chosen for the same reason as you guys?"

"Yes…and without his strength, we can't win against Kobayashi and his group," Domon admitted grudgingly. "But he has another reason to fight."

"…from what you told me about his past and enmity against this Kobayashi person…"

"That's right." Domon nodded to confirm Lilith's suspicions. "He's fighting for revenge. Not just to save Restia or the demon race, but purely for revenge."