Birth of a Demon City

by Hyougetsu

  “Haah!?”

  My eyes snapped open and I took a look around me. It appeared the explosion had left me sprawled unconscious in front of the city entrance. I’d used so much gunpowder that the iron gate had been blown to bits. Apparently its hinges had been rusted, so it had been even frailer than I predicted. Unfortunately, because I’d used so much gunpowder, the skeletons had all been pulverized. Their bones littered the floor around me. Had I been a human, that explosion would have killed me for sure.

  Originally my plan had been to rush the wall with the remaining undead soldiers after taking out the gates, but clearly that wasn’t happening anymore. We needed to clear the soldiers above, or Firnir and her men would suffer huge losses charging into the city. And right now, I was the only person near the gates. Guess it’s up to me. I leapt up onto the remains of the castle gates. Firnir would be here soon, so all I needed to do was buy us some time. I looked around and saw most of the soldiers were still lying on their backs from the force of the earlier explosion.

  “Hear me, soldiers of Thuvan! My name is Veight, the undefeated general of the demon army! Face me, if you have the courage!”

  I’d always wanted to declare a challenge like this to an enemy army. I’m glad I spent so much time in my past life practicing in secret. However, what happened next was beyond my expectations. Upon hearing my name, the militia started screaming in terror.

  “Veight!?”

  “It’s Veight the Butcher!”

  “The one who slaughtered our army of four hundred!?”

  “We’re done for!”

  They threw down their weapons and ran as fast as their legs would take them. I tilted my head quizzically as I watched them go. Veight...the Butcher? But it looked like I wouldn’t have time to ponder for long. Though the militia had fled, the garrison soldiers still stood their ground.

  “Show that demon bastard the pride of Thuvan’s army!”

  A large man stepped forward. His whole body was covered in plate armor, and he was wearing a full-face helmet, so he looked more like a walking suit of armor than a person. He raised his mace and shield, not even flinching in front of my terrifying visage.

  “So, you’re the demon army’s strongest werewolf, huh!?”

  “Uhh, I wouldn’t go that far...”

  “Well, I happen to be Thuvan’s strongest warrior!”

  Great. He’s one of those guys who doesn’t listen when other people are talking. He casually swung his two-handed mace with just one hand and yelled, “My name is Luvarius, Captain of the Southern Gate Guard!”

  Ah, so he’s a famous general, too. In that case, I better accept his challenge. Unfortunately, that earlier explosion had damaged my vocal chords. I could talk just fine, but I wouldn’t be able to use Soul Shaker for this fight. To make matters worse, all the surrounding soldiers were stringing their bows. If they loosed in tandem, I wouldn’t be able to dodge all the arrows. Luvarius closed in, seemingly still intent on dueling me.

  “En garde! I’ll show you the mettle of the southern gate guards!”

  That really doesn’t sound as impressive as you’re trying to make it sound. Still, that guy’s mace was bad news. It was definitely heavy enough to hurt me. I wouldn’t be able to ignore it like I would a sword.

  “So long as I draw breath, I won’t allow you to lay a finger on Thuvan’s citizens!”

  So he’s more than just a battle-fiend. In that case, I should probably get serious myself.

  “Bring it on.”

  I kicked off the flagstones and rushed forward. Blunt weapons tended to use gravity to their advantage, which meant they were almost always raised overhead and swung down. While the sight of an armored giant brandishing a massive mace was certainly intimidating, it was right before they attacked that you had the best chance of taking one down.

  I threw myself at Luvarius’ right arm while it was still raised. He tried to knock me away with the shield in his left, but a flimsy metal disc wasn’t enough to stop me. I jumped up, used his shield as a stepping stone, and grabbed his right arm in my claws. I then landed behind him, twisting his arm backwards as I went.

  “Guoooh!?”

  Luvarius’ shoulder popped out of its joint, and he screamed in pain. And since I was underneath him now, his body served as a shield against enemy arrows.

  But apparently the mettle of the southern gate guards was greater than I gave them credit for.

  “Damn you!”

  Instead of surrendering, Luvarius tried for an overhead throw with his disjointed arm. If he succeeded, I’d be lying face-up on the flagstones and an easy target for his crossbowmen. Unfortunately for him, werewolves were far stronger than humans. Even with his full strength, he couldn’t lift me off my feet.

  “Ngh! You cretin!”

  Just give it up, dude. Realizing he couldn’t throw me, Luvarius fell on top of me. Is he trying to crush me with his weight? It was a pretty bold, and actually rather smart move. Dropping to the ground gave him the added advantage of being able to move his disjointed arm again. Unfortunately, it was no use against a werewolf. For one thing, even in armor, he didn’t weigh nearly enough. All told, there was probably only 100 kilos pressing down on me. I could carry that much in one hand.

  “Up we go.”

  To prove my point, I lifted him up with one hand and held him in front of me. He tried to struggle free, but the armor restricted his movements.

  “Surrender. You’re only wasting your energy.”

  “What are you fools doing!? I don’t care if it kills me too, shoot him!”

  I could tell from his tone that he wasn’t bluffing. After a brief moment of hesitation, the soldiers steeled their resolve and loosed.

  “Stop!”

  I threw Luvarius to the ground and activated the strengthening magic I’d kept in reserve. By enhancing my kinetic vision, I was able to see the bolts in slow motion and knock them all down in midair. Dang, that was close. If I’d been any slower, Luvarius would have died.

  “Did you really think your puny arrows could hurt me?” I glared at the soldiers winding their crossbows. In truth, I’d be in trouble if they kept shooting. “If you continue to resist, I’ll slaughter every single person in this city. But if you surrender, I’ll spare your lives.”

  Ah, looks like they don’t trust me. Though the soldiers did look shaken, none of them were ready to give up. Guess I need to be nicer about this.

  “In honor of the courage you’ve shown, I’m willing to show you and the people of this city mercy. You stood your ground against the man who slaughtered four hundred troops. It would be a waste to kill you.”

  Perfect, now I sounded evil, and persuasive. But seriously, please surrender. To my surprise, it was Luvarius who capitulated first.

  “Men...lower your weapons.”

  “Captain!?”

  Luvarius struggled into a sitting position and said, “If that werewolf wanted to kill me, I’d be dead already. In fact, he purposely threw me out of the way to save me from being shot...”

  He noticed, huh? Luvarius staggered to his feet, turned to me, and took off his helmet. A scarred, middle-aged face looked up at me. He must have been through a lot of fights to have a face that beat-up. He tucked his helmet under his arm and bowed.

  “We surrender. I beg of you, have mercy on the citizens.”

  “As a general of the demon army, I swear no harm will come to them.”

  When I said that, the other soldiers all dropped their bows and swords. The kentauros flooded in right after, but then stopped when they saw that the fighting was already over. They looked up at me, dumbfounded.

  In the end, conquering Thuvan took only an afternoon. When they heard that “Veight the Butcher” had captured the southern gate, the citizens and militia tried to flee through the north gate. But they were quickly surrounded by the Bone Spears I’d left with Melaine, and surrendered. The cavalry that had ridden out to engage the kentauros were overwhelmed by the kentauros’ fierce atta
cks and surrendered. I barely even got a chance to fight... And thus, Firnir’s kentauros army was able to occupy Thuvan with only minimal losses.

  “That was way easier than I thought it’d be.”

  Firnir, who was now fully dressed, walked through the city streets together with me.

  “Next time you pull something like that, at least keep your clothes on. You gave me a shock.”

  “You were shocked!? I’m the one who should be shocked.”

  Since we’d only just captured the city, the two of us were being guarded by a squad of kentauros. Though it was probably unnecessary. Thanks to my sharp hearing, I could hear what the citizens were fearfully whispering about me.

  “So he’s the werewolf general that killed four hundred men all on his own...”

  “I heard he blew apart the gate with a single punch.”

  “All our militia and crossbowmen tried to bring him down, but not a single arrow reached him.”

  “I heard he killed the famous Captain Luvarius in one hit...”

  I can hear you, you know? Don’t you guys know that werewolves have good hearing? Also, I know rumors tend to get embellished, but isn’t this a little much?

  “By the way, Vaito, what was that thing you used earlier?”

  Firnir was clearly referring to the Dragon’s Breath. Unfortunately, that was a classified military secret, so I couldn’t tell her. Kurtz, who was also walking with us, gave me a silent look. ‘Don’t say a thing,’ he mouthed. So with no other choice, I replied, “A secret werewolf technique.”

  “Amazing!”

  “Yeah, I guess it is...”

  Thank god she’s simple-minded. Anyway, where’s this rotting smell coming from?

  We picked our way to the main square where the viceroy’s manor was supposed to be. Upon arriving, we found something rather strange. A section of the square had been cordoned off by an iron fence. A large cross rested inside the area, and a half-decomposed corpse was crucified to it. Chances were, the person had been a criminal on death row. Public executions of this nature weren’t that rare in this world. Even in Ryunheit, there were public executions for murderers and the like every few years. What caught my eye, though, was what happened to be below the cross. A man was chained to the platform beneath it. Onlookers were throwing rotten food and mud at him, and he smelled like a latrine. I came to a halt, and my kentauros guards stopped with me. Firnir turned back and looked at me quizzically.

  “What’s wrong, Vaito?”

  “There’s something I want to make sure of.”

  I headed over to the cross. The man in chains was old, and wore only a threadbare gown. He was covered in bruises; people must have been throwing rocks at him earlier. Thanks to the squalid conditions he’d been imprisoned in, his wounds were all infected. He was utterly drained, and lay unmoving on his side. His breath came in ragged gasps and he was obviously on death’s door.

  “Vaito, is he someone you know?”

  “I...don’t think so.”

  Just in case though, I asked, “Is that you, Bishop Yuhit?”

  The wounded old man slowly opened his eyes. Though his appearance had changed drastically, he was indeed the same bishop of the Sonnenlicht Order that I’d banished.

  “Vei...”

  His cracked lips trembled as he struggled to speak. I ripped the iron grille out of the way and rushed over to him.

  “Yuhit!” Ignoring the stench that invaded my nostrils, I lifted Yuhit up and smashed the shackles binding him to the cross. “Get a hold of yourself! What happened to you!?”

  Kurtz looked at the sign next to Yuhit’s body and said, “It’s written here: The rebel Belit is hereby stripped of his position as commander of the garrison and sentenced to death. The traitor Yuhit is to be chained up until he dies.”

  “Traitor!?”

  I couldn’t fathom Yuhit being a traitor. I mean, he had betrayed us, but he would never betray the humans. My guess was, they’d forced him and the commander to take responsibility for the failed attempt to retake Ryunheit. Considering the weight of the decision and the anger of the people whose friends and family were killed, I supposed it was a natural reaction. After all, what Yuhit had done was technically illegal. But that was no excuse to treat an old man so cruelly.

  “Listen up, humans!”

  I roared loud enough for my voice to carry across the square. A few of the people who’d been observing from the shadows shrunk back in fear. However, I had everyone’s attention now.

  “Is this how you do things!? Does stringing up a defenseless old man really bring you that much satisfaction!?”

  “Hey, Vaito...”

  Firnir tried to pull me back, but I shook her off.

  “If you want him to pay for his crimes, then you should just kill him! What reason do you have to torture him like this!?”

  Shouting calmed me down a little, and I suddenly realized how strange it was for someone in my position to be saying this. I had totally forgotten that, right now, I was one of the Demon Lord’s generals. I needed to spin this into something demonic, and fast. Uhhh, wait, I got it. I hurriedly organized the story in my head and sneered.

  “I must say, this is pathetic! Even when the enemy was at your gates, you wasted your time tormenting a pitiful old man! And thanks to the fact that you executed your own commander, taking your city was a piece of cake!”

  I smashed the cross with a well-placed punch, freeing Belit’s corpse. My sneer grew wider as I watched wooden splinters clatter to the floor.

  “It’s because you’re like this that you’ve already lost twice to us demons! You had best say your prayers, for I won’t show you any mercy!”

  There was one more thing I needed to say, as Ryunheit’s governor.

  “This bishop here was sent as an official envoy of the demon army, and he is one of Viceroy Airia’s diplomats! Your treatment of him is an insult to my city, and to the demon army!”

  What was the point in working so hard to preserve Yuhit’s title if they were just going to do this to him? His punishment was my responsibility. Even though I used to be human, I’d failed to anticipate that this would be their response. After threatening the citizens for a while longer, I turned to Firnir and said, “Alright, I’ve set myself up as the bad guy, so now you have to show you’re the kind demon ruler. They’re terrified of me, so if you just say some nice things, they’ll cling to you.”

  “O-Oh... I see.” Firnir nodded in understanding and yelled in a loud voice, “Uhh, don’t worry everyone! I’m going to be the ruler of this city, so I won’t let that scary werewolf do anything to you!”

  She kept her voice reassuring, but she didn’t forget to add, “As long as you don’t defy me, at least!”

  Yep, that’s the way. Rumors of that incident spread fast, as rumors were prone to do, and in half a day everyone in the city had heard of it. Of course, they’d been exaggerated quite a bit. By the end of the day, I was apparently furious that the people of Thuvan had the gall to lock up one of my messengers, and I was looking to slaughter every one of them. Though in this instance, it was better not to set the record straight.

  In the confusion following in the wake of the occupation, I snuck Yuhit out of the square and took him to the viceroy’s manor. As I was settling into the room I’d commandeered, Firnir poked her head in and asked, “What are you gonna do with that old guy?”

  “Since I made him a messenger of the demon army, I have an obligation to protect him.”

  “You do?”

  I didn’t, actually. It was normal to treat your messengers as disposable pawns in this world. Incidents like the one where Thuvan had killed Firnir’s unarmed messenger were commonplace. Being a messenger for the army was a dangerous profession.

  The viceroy’s servants had cleaned and bandaged Yuhit’s wounds, but he was so emaciated that he didn’t have the strength to rise from his bed. It probably didn’t help that he was running a fever thanks to his infected cuts. The simplest solution woul
d be to let him die. However, I possessed the power to save him. I should at least try to heal him.

  I wasn’t too skilled at healing magic, but I had the scientific knowledge to know how to disinfect wounds, which gave me an edge. Since his infection was likely bacterial, detoxification magic, which had disinfectant properties, would work well here. Furthermore, I’d be able to bolster his immune system using strengthening magic. After that, I just had to feed him a steady supply of mana and fluids, and hope he made a full recovery. Whether or not it’d work was up to his god, though. Kurtz came with me to watch me treat the old man.

  “You’re a kind man, Sir Veight,” he muttered.

  “It’s my fault he suffered. I feel like I owe it to him to save him this time.”

  “Aren’t you worried he might betray you again after he’s recovered?”

  “If he does, I’ll kill him myself this time.”

  Fortunately, it appeared my healing magic did the trick. That evening, his condition stabilized. Given time, he’d heal. When I went to see him, I found him awake and lucid. He was still weak, but he had enough strength to talk.

  “Sir Veight... Why are you here? Wait, does this mean Thuvan has fallen?”

  “Correct.” I sighed, and continued, “Once you’ve healed, we’re going back. Make sure you’re ready to leave.”

  Yuhit’s eyebrows rose up in surprise. He struggled into a sitting position and whispered, “You mean...”

  “You’re Ryunheit’s bishop for the Sonnenlicht Order, aren’t you? Or would you rather retire and spend your remaining days in Thuvan?”

  After the initial shock passed, Yuhit closed his eyes and shook his head.

  “No... I have no right to remain here. I’ll return to Ryunheit.”

  I ordered a pair of skeleton soldiers to guard Yuhit and keep an eye on him while I went to check out the other rooms. As I approached the main office, I heard Firnir arguing with Thuvan’s viceroy.