The Fake Saintess and the Elf Warrior

If the Demon King's army's efforts over the years are sacrificed, and the Demon King's own life is lost, all for the sake of a girl like this, then that would be the most worthless thing.

Perhaps it would be better for the Demon King's army to simply kill this girl here...

"...No, I shouldn't have meddled..."

But he immediately shook his head, denying the thought that had flashed through his mind.

His original stance on this matter was to let the Demon King and the girl resolve their own issues. As subjects, they had no right to interfere. He also didn't want to meddle in the Demon King's romantic affairs. Not to mention, the Demon King had specifically instructed him not to use his full strength and not to harm the other party. He only needed to stall and buy time.

Both publicly and privately, there was no need for him to kill the girl and invite trouble. Otherwise, if His Majesty blamed him, he would have to bear all the responsibility. This was not in line with Udoni's original intention... Right now, he only needed to follow orders and his own principles, and do what he was supposed to do. He shouldn't think about anything else. He shouldn't do anything unnecessary.

Udoni gave these words of advice to his own wandering thoughts...

"........ah!"

While immersed in confusion, Udoni occasionally looked up and realized that something was amiss.

There should have been three girls in front of them, but now there are only two.

A hero, a saint.

The strange girl who had followed them, dressed in light, airy clothes that didn't seem like she was there to fight, yet somehow managed to get there, has vanished.

"Could it be...?"

He quickly turned around.

Sure enough, without her noticing, the girl had secretly bypassed her and was already close to the entrance of the next door.

Once you open that door, you'll find yourself in the room where Princess Mayella is imprisoned.

"Hey...hey!"

He had no intention of hurting the girl; he was simply so distracted by his wild speculations that he was shocked that he hadn’t even noticed the girl had unknowingly moved out of his sight. He instinctively called out to the girl and reached out his hand.

But to others, this will be interpreted in a completely different way.

"Malayajie!!!"

Tatia called out the name of the girl who had been targeted by the five generals.

She felt a surge of relief when she saw Malyajie dodge aside and approach the next door. She hadn't expected Malyajie to muster the courage to slip through the melee while she and Udoni were fighting. She was incredibly excited by the girl's boldness and composure.

But now, the girl has been discovered. Udoni reached out his hand to her. That means that Mayajie is about to be attacked by the Fifth General.

She was just an ordinary person with no fighting ability. Even a slight attack, or even a casual punch from Udoni, would be enough to shatter her body into pieces.

"I swore... I would never allow any monster to kill a human in front of me... let alone my comrades!"

The hands gripping the two swords once again channeled immense power.

"To protect everyone around me and to keep my promises... that's my 'wish'!!"

And when that key phrase was recalled again, a miracle finally happened once more.

"Varied...."

".....huh?"

Pais and Udoni both exclaimed in surprise.

Before them, Tatia radiated a dazzling green light. It was breathtaking.

After the light faded, what appeared in the room was a girl who looked like an older version of Tatia, floating in mid-air with enormous wings, like an angel. However, she no longer held the two swords that Tatia had once held.

"Huh? What? You...you are...Takia...? Huh? What's going on?"

Pais, seeing this for the first time, stammered incoherently. She had originally had a chance to see Tatia in this form months ago, but she had been knocked unconscious and missed the opportunity. This time, she finally saw a part of what she had missed that night.

"What's this?"

Udoni was even more shocked.

The girl in front of me is said to be an elf.

But now, it seems to have "evolved" into another species, appearing before him in a form that is completely unimaginable for a monster.

More importantly, her abilities...

Even without engaging in combat, Udoni could sense it...

...The girl in front of me now is completely different from the innocent Tatia from before!

"Swish"

Amidst the astonished gazes of the crowd, Taqia swung her right arm vertically. Instantly, a blade of emerald light flew swiftly towards Udoni.

"Tch!"

He quickly dodged to the side, avoiding the attack.

If this attack were to hit, even he himself might not be unharmed. This attack, in terms of both power and speed, far surpassed the strength that Tatia had just displayed.

But he still didn't realize one thing...

"boom!"

A tremendous roar resounded behind Udoni. The door to the room behind him, made of resilient metal that had withstood their fierce clash without a scratch, was also breached by this powerful blow.

It's not very big, but it's probably big enough for a petite girl to crawl through.

"Malya Jie! Hurry up!"

"Um!"

The only girl in the room who wasn't drawn to the radiance emanating from Tatia, and who had been walking straight ahead the whole time, responded to Tatia without turning her head.

From the very beginning, Tatia's attack was solely aimed at helping Mayage open the passage to the room where Maya was. Nothing more.

"Oh no, oh no...! Hey! Stop right there..."

The monarch had instructed him to "buy time," not to "allow them to pass." Even though His Majesty the Demon King had specifically told him not to concern himself with what the other two girls were planning, and that dealing with Tatya alone was enough, Udoni still subconsciously tried to stop Maya, who was about to break through his defenses.

I won't give you a chance.

But Tatsia appeared before him as if by teleportation. Her wings blocked Malyajie from Udoni's view, standing between the two.

"Thump!"

The next instant, a loud bang resounded in Udoni's abdomen. He was thrown back several steps, nearly falling. He finally managed to stop after being pushed back about five or six meters.

"snort...."

But this time, instead of doubt, laughter came from his lips.

It started as a smile, but soon it turned into a big laugh.

Hahahaha!

Finally, all his doubts were dispelled.

Why did Diaz lose to her?

Why is the Demon King so fond of her?

Based on what we just saw, and that attack... everything can be explained clearly!

"Not bad, little girl..."

Udoni swung his right arm. Although Taqia had intended to attack his abdomen, he had managed to block the blow with his arm at the last moment.

In this way, even if it's just a matter of stalling for time, the process won't become boring.

Even a simple maneuver can turn into a life-or-death struggle...

...For Udoni, there was nothing more interesting than this.

"That's more like it! I've finally waited until you went all out!"

He roared and opened his arms wide.

"Come on, girl! Let me see just how capable the guy who defeated Diaz really is!"

"...As you wish."

Tatia calmly answered him, the elven power in her hand slowly condensing into the shape of a scepter-like weapon.

Ignoring the two, and equally ignored by the two who were in a high-spirited state, Malyajie clung to the crack in the door that Taqiya had blasted open, lifted her leg, and climbed up.

"Just a little longer... Xiao Ai..."

Although she would worry about Tatia's safety, she would not turn back because of it.

Because there was only one thing worthy of her eternal gaze, not behind her, but not far ahead. Malya knew that she had come here precisely to take her back.

Even if only one person makes it to the end, she will still walk this path to the end.

"I...I'm coming to save you right away!"

Because this was the choice she made that she would never regret in her life.

Operation Mayera (The Strongest Enemy)

The sound of explosions was incessant.

Every New Year and during summer festivals, Malyajie would hear faint explosions coming from outside her lonely room. It was said to be the sound of firecrackers, something that only happened when people gathered together to celebrate.

Why are those people gathered together? What are they doing amidst all those explosions? What are they celebrating?

Once, Ma'er Yajie gazed out the window, out of reach of others. She stood there silently, simply imagining, but she couldn't see the joyful, happy faces of the people.

And now, she was once again facing away from the explosions. But this time, it wasn't that she couldn't watch; rather, she deliberately avoided looking. She didn't even try to imagine them.

In the room behind, Miss Tatya is probably engaged in a fierce battle with the enemy... This thought did flash through Maya's mind, but it was just a fleeting bubble.

She knows very well what she needs to do, what she can do, and what she should do.

If Lucia and Ruri's mission is to confront the majority of monsters and buy time for Tatia and the others... and if Tatia is currently fighting the enemy while Pais is using magic to assist her...

There's only one thing that I, without any combat ability, can do.

"Xiao Ai, wait for me... I'm coming to save you!"

She struggled to squeeze through the crack in the wall that Taqia had deliberately blasted open for her, and even though it was very difficult, she still moved straight forward.

Simply because what she wanted wasn't behind her.

...

"Hmm... almost there... Hah! Hah... Hah..."

Finally, Malyajie squeezed her way out of the crack with great difficulty. She had never learned any combat skills, nor did she possess any talent for combat. Even just squeezing through a crack was an extremely difficult task for her.

The crack was incomplete; its rough, sharp edges tore through Ma Yajie's clothes, leaving several shallow wounds on her body. Having just emerged from the crack, Ma Yajie was so exhausted that she had to kneel on the ground to catch her breath. A slightly deeper wound on her knee had begun to ooze a bright red blood, leaving a red line on Ma Yajie's delicate leg.

It's impossible for Malya Jie not to feel pain. But there's something even more important to her...

That's the room. And the wall at the very back of the room.

It was an empty, small room made of bricks and tiles. It was considerably smaller than the previous two rooms, barely enough to hold about ten people. Rubble, rusty iron bars, and iron plates were scattered on the floor. It seemed as if someone had been using it not long ago, but it had been temporarily vacated.

And the goal that Ma Yajie was so desperately seeking was imprisoned here.

"Xiao Ai!"

On the wall directly in front of them, which resembled a large lump of flesh, a girl's head drooped unconscious. Her long, silvery-white hair partially obscured her beautiful face. Below her neck, she was completely embedded in the fleshy wall. She was fixed to the wall as if suspended in mid-air.

Even if only her head is visible, Ma Yajie can quickly pinpoint her location and identity.

"Xiao Ai! Wake up! It's me! It's Ma Erya Jie... Don't be afraid! Xiao Ai! I'm coming right now... *gulp*..."

Maya tried to stand up, but a sharp pain in her knee nearly made her fall. Even so, Maya stumbled toward the flesh wall, calling out to Mayera.

But Mayera seemed to have completely lost consciousness and did not respond to Mayajie at all.

"Xiao Ai!...I, my daughter, I'm coming right now..."

What would have taken her three or four seconds to jog took Malya Jie a full minute to barely cover, dragging her bleeding knee. She arrived before the fleshy wall.

"How...how can we get Xiao Ai out of this thing...?"

She tried to grab it, but found the fleshy wall soft and moist. She couldn't climb up it at all. She couldn't get close to Mayera, who was trapped high up.

"Damn it...this disgusting thing...get away from Xiao Ai!"

Despite her strict upbringing and impeccable manners, Ma Yajie uttered vile words she had never heard or learned before. Unable to climb up, she tried to tear open the fleshy walls with her hands. But how could someone as weak as her possibly tear them apart?

"First published on 705u.com - Book Club"