After being forced to step down, the once-annoying nun eloped with me.

Because the closest enemy to the direction of Ysgard's main force's advance is the Roman demon.

The primal demons needed to start from the vicinity of the capital, in other words, they had to chase after Ysgard's main force—a situation unacceptable to the demon servants, both in terms of time and efficiency.

But the Roman demons, closest to the Isgardians... are a major threat to the demon servants. Can these uncontrollable bastards, who don't even spare their own kind, really be of any use?

The demon servant was skeptical... but soon, through his growing wisdom, he realized that now was no longer the time to worry about whether the building materials would work.

What he needs is to use every means to trip up the advance of the Issugard colonial army!

"Since you all love gold and silver, enjoy infighting, and are envious of others' achievements..."

Then I'll grant your request! I'll show you what you like best!

The demon servant gritted his teeth and sprinted across the demonized ground, arriving at the vicinity of the Roman demons, who were locked in internal strife, the very moment the main force of Ysgard officially set off.

The Roman demons are still fighting amongst themselves. But they no longer care about the gold and jewels created with magic.

In the eyes of the demon servants, the Roman demons had already generated a large number of [consciousnesses] – each group of Roman demons had a collective consciousness, and these collective consciousnesses were filled with hatred because of the previous battles. Even those collective consciousnesses without hatred were thinking about ways to take advantage of the chaos.

Even worse, some people secretly collected the corpses of Roman the Demon and then feasted on them right next to the battlefield!

"Even the lizardmen from thousands of years ago weren't this outrageous..."

The demon servant was furious. But he didn't forget his duty. After roaring angrily a few times, he calmed down and began to cast his spell.

In most cases, demonic magic is not as systematic as that of humans or elves. However, in the Demon Realm, the magic that controls the flow of magical energy within the realm follows a standardized, industrialized process.

Take the present as an example. Although the demon servant is nominally the supreme ruler of the Roman Demon Realm, in order to avoid squandering the magic power on which the Demon Realm depends for its survival, the demon servant still has to confirm the [password] he sets, then choose the amount of magic power he wants to use at once, and then wait for feedback from the demon mother nest and the heart of the Demon Realm.

At that time, the Demon Mother Nest will temporarily stop producing offspring to conserve magic power, and the Demon Heart will pump magic power from other areas to the designated area for the use of the Demon Servants... But frankly speaking, the Demon Servants will consume the Demon Realm's magic power no matter what they do. Is it really necessary for him to waste precious resources on a bunch of shameless bastards?

The demon servant lowered his head, looking at the main force of Ysgard marching in the distance, and gritted his teeth: Yes!

It was precisely to purify the Roman Demon Realm that he needed to waste magic power sending the Roman demons to their deaths! Can this be considered a waste of magic power? Definitely not!

This is just...

Just cleaning up the trash in the house!

The demon servant took a deep breath.

After using the magic he had mobilized to forcibly control the Roman demons who were currently engaged in a civil war, he compulsively tampered with their vision.

At this moment.

Each Roman demon sees the others as their spoils. A Roman demon can only refrain from killing when they consider the other as their possession, but even then, when certain that what belongs to them will be taken, they will still choose to destroy everything they can.

Therefore, the demon servants were very careful. They neither made the Roman demons, who were gradually ceasing their fighting, realize that the [loot] was out of control, nor did they allow them to completely relax.

He merely manipulated magic, allowing it to continue reshaping the world as seen through the eyes of the Roman demon. He transformed what the Roman demon saw as "trophies" into slaves and women; he imprinted a steel seal into the collective consciousness of the Roman demons; and finally, he turned the fully armed Isgardians, as seen through the Roman demons, into a group of elderly, weak, sick, and disabled escorting gold, along with delicacies.

...It's hard to say whether all of this will work. But at least, the demon servants saw that the Roman demons were beginning to become restless.

The Roman demons began to launch a pincer attack on the main force of Ysgard amidst the chaos.

The demon servant, however, had infiltrated the group—he had to seize this last opportunity to get close to the regent. He had to succeed. Otherwise, all of this would have been for nothing.

"Just once... just let me touch you! Just once, just once!"

The howls of the demon servants echoed among the Roman demons.

On the other side, Yang Hao and the others noticed the impending pincer attack by Roman the Demon during their last clear view, and they realized that the final battle was about to begin.

After all, once they reach Lighthouse Village, there aren't many demons active on the road between Lighthouse Village and the border gap of the Demon Realm. They can then leave the Demon Realm safely and without worry. On the contrary, the section of road from the main camp to the village is the most dangerous part.

"Once we can defeat these demons, we'll be safe... but we can't stay in one place. We have to keep moving forward and fighting the demons at the same time."

Yang Hao knew the difficulty of fighting while moving, but he was even more aware that if the main force really stopped to fight somewhere, they would lose their way again in the chaos. Although it was not impossible to make Lalumia light up the sky again, who could guarantee that more demons wouldn't come to join in during the time they stayed there?

To avoid being besieged by more demons and to leave this place as soon as possible, Yang Hao issued a marching order for the warriors of Isgard to prepare to fire while advancing.

The soldiers knew that escaping was not safe, but their equipment was a real headache for Yang Hao...

They're all single-shot rifles. They do have suppressive power when firing in volleys, and they can reload faster than flintlock rifles... but as expected, compared to the United Nations, your single-shot breech-loading rifles are still too outdated.

“Let our golems advance alongside the group on both sides,” Yang Hao sighed and said to Elena. “Have the mages not be stingy with their magic either, cast spells on the areas where the demons are most concentrated on both sides—we’ll be alright once we get through this. Go.”

"Confusion: It's not safe for you to be around."

“I have Lalumia and the hunters to protect me, so don’t worry about me—Elena, go. You’re in charge of the flanks.”

"..."

The synthetic doll looked at Lalumia with some worry, but after receiving a confident and gentle smile from Lalumia, she finally nodded and left.

At this point, Yang Hao's rescue force split into three. Apart from his own team, the remaining two teams took all the elven mages and golems to support the flanks of Isugard's main force, providing them with necessary fire support.

Among them, Yang Hao's team was, in a sense, the weakest in the eyes of the commander of Isgard...

The 20 hunters armed with various weapons, along with the only nun who looked like a clergyman, made this the weakest unit in a sense.

But the problem is, for those who know Lalumia...

This is the strongest guard team.

"So, from now on, don't leave my side, understand?"

The world before them was gradually shrouded in mist again. Amidst the increasing gunfire, Lalumia gently moved closer to Yang Hao's side and whispered in his ear.

Yang Hao nodded slightly in agreement. It was at this moment that they noticed the gunfire coming from their right was becoming increasingly intense.

"...It seems that Roman's main force of demons is on the right flank. Lalumia, I remember that's where the most demons are."

"A bunch of demons who would fight their own kind for gold and silver. I know. They're nothing to fear, and that demon servant certainly knows that too... So, his target can only be you."

Yang Hao did some calculations. Annihilating the Primal Demon was extremely difficult, but defeating the Roman Demon was a relatively easy matter—if he, as a human, could see this, then the Demon Servant, as a genuine intelligent demon, was even more likely to see it as well.

In other words, the demon servants' instigation of the Roman demons to launch an attack was, in a sense, not intended to defeat the main force of Ysgard at all... As long as they did not stop advancing, the Roman demons could at most cause some harassment and acceptable casualties to the main force of Ysgard who had identified the direction, delaying their advance for a while, but they would not be able to defeat them.

But conversely...

What if the demon servant only needs that fleeting delay? What if all he needs is a brief moment of stagnation and chaos?

...

Yang Hao frowned, exchanged a glance with the commander of Isgard, and then they said in unison:

"We can't let them all be wiped out!"

Correct!

If the demon servant's aim is to rout the entire Ysgard army by defeating its main force, the "Brain," then Yang Hao and the commander will become his number one enemy.

As the saying goes, you can't put all your eggs in one basket. Although Yang Hao believed he was absolutely safe with Lalumia's protection, what if that unexpected event actually happened?

In the most dangerous situation, Lalumia would prioritize taking herself and Elena away... What if the Commander is also present and being targeted at that moment?

With the loss of three command levels, the collapse of the main force was clearly visible... Therefore, in order to avoid being wiped out in one fell swoop, Yang Hao had to split up with the commander.

Among them, the commander of Ysgard is the one who needs to hide his tracks the most.

"I will advance openly and conspicuously with the entire army, since, barring any unforeseen circumstances, I am the primary target of that highly intelligent demon."

My personal guard can ensure my safety, but that doesn't mean they can guarantee yours—in the worst-case scenario, I also have the ability to escape the Demon Realm directly, so in a sense, Commander, you are the one who absolutely cannot die or go missing.

Yang Hao earnestly instructed the commander of Isugard, making sure the soldier gave a definite answer in the most concise way, and then quietly left the center of the troops amidst the increasingly intense gunfire.

Yang Hao looked up at the surrounding mist and asked, "How is it outside now?"

Lalumia shook his head and said, "The situation is good. The soldiers of Isgard possess, in a sense, the same discipline as the army of Bayrzans. They are taking turns resting and firing at each other, but more importantly, they are using the machine gun golems to suppress the Roman demons with firepower while looking for opportunities to launch a volley at the Roman demons' [command level]."

Although this would normally be impossible in the mist, with the help of Golem and the Magical Doll, the soldiers of Ysgard were able to fire volleys roughly in the direction of Roman's command headquarters—but then again...

"The difference between Roman demons and primal demons is getting bigger and bigger... You know, for primal demons, individuals with high intelligence are extremely rare."

But the intelligent individuals among the Roman demons are clearly far more numerous than those among the primal demons—to put it simply, they're more like humans than a swarm of demons... Hmm? But in a way, that's good news.

"Because of the differences between different groups... they will fight each other, hesitate to let their companions die first, and more importantly, they will actively run away, right?"

"Yes, I'll give you a pat on the head as a reward."

The deity stroked Yang Hao's hair, and at the very moment Yang Hao's cheek inevitably touched the broad chest, the deity's whispered words reached Yang Hao's ears:

"...It's already nearby. Although I don't know its exact location, I can feel a burning gaze fixed on you."

Lady Lalumia squinted, pretending to let Yang Hao take advantage of the situation, but her words were actually unusually cold.

Could this be due to Lalumia's hatred for the demon race? Yang Hao pondered, but after she pulled his face slightly closer to her tight nun's habit, he realized this was not the time to think about that.

"Am I really the target? Do I need to step forward alone to attract his attention?"

Yang Hao's first plan was to step forward and expose the demon servant's true form.

This confidence was based on Larumia's strength. But the gods shook their heads in denial:

"No, child. I can't let you take even the slightest risk."

She seemed to be overprotecting Yang Hao, but in a sense, Yang Hao had reasons to accept this overprotection... So after thinking for a while, Yang Hao tentatively gave another answer:

"Then let's maintain the status quo and give it a chance?"

If one cannot stand out alone, then conversely, maintaining the status quo and waiting with Lalumia for the demon servants to rise up is also a good tactic.

But this would likely cause the demon servant to abandon its mission... Does Yang Hao really want to give up this opportunity that could severely injure the demon servant? Is he really willing to risk losing the chance to seriously damage the demon servant?

He and Lalumia looked at each other. After a moment, Lalumia said in an undeniable tone: A man is a man in public, but around his mother, he is still a child who needs protection.

Moreover, it's not yet time for Yang Hao to make a sacrifice.

"So... listen to me. Understand?"

She patted Yang Hao's cheek, and Yang Hao nodded with a wry smile, inwardly sighing that he might be watching the opportunity slip away.

...He decided to maintain the status quo.

Meanwhile, the demon servants who had already infiltrated the ranks of Isgard's soldiers were extremely anxious about this.

The discipline of the Isgard soldiers exceeded his expectations... He had thought they would gradually descend into chaos under the siege of the Roman demons, but the Isgard soldiers gave him a good lesson in what discipline truly meant.

"Truly a terrifying professional soldier..." the demon servant muttered. After going through countless hardships to finally blend into the crowd, he was now stuck in the middle, unable to move forward or backward.

To get close to Yang Hao, he, now disguised as a soldier, couldn't leave his own ranks—similarly, he also had no legitimate way to leave this place and retreat.

...In short, is the only way still to force the humans around us to mutate quickly?

The demon servant followed the example of the soldier next door, examining parts of the gun he had imitated—this time, his gun looked even more dilapidated, with visible signs of battle everywhere, so he wouldn't arouse suspicion anymore... So?

How can I get close to the regent?