Witch, Fireball and Steam Evil God

Chapter 392 Hunting
In the Sixth Age, during the reign of Henry VI, the Golden Fleet annihilated the Demon King and his remaining forces.

The cycle of heroes and demon kings ends in this era.

……

Late at night, on the outskirts of the town.

The Golden Fleet had been gone for a long time, and the search of the town had come to an end. The shadowy figure, who had been holding back for so long, finally couldn't help but speak, "You, you! You were too fast!"

When the magic cannons came down, it thought it was all over. In its current state, it was impossible for it to withstand a few more magic cannon shots. However, when it came to its senses, it found itself in the forest outside the town, with several townspeople who were still in a daze and did not understand what was going on.

Behind them, the town was reduced to a deep pit, and the residents' homes were now nothing but scorched earth.

Unlike the residents who were still confused about the situation, the shadowy figure vaguely sensed that he had been carried out of the town.

But, how is this possible?

By then, the magic cannon had already descended upon them, and they could feel its scorching and destructive temperature.

The Imperial Knight Commander's speed was beyond common sense, so fast it was as if time had stopped.

"Only you are left."

Bi'an regretfully told the few survivors of the disaster the unfortunate news. Not long ago, the town had experienced a massacre. She roughly examined the bodies and found that most of the wounds were caused by sharp weapons. The bodies on the outskirts of the town had all died from gunfire.

This is similar to the weapons carried by the previous intruders.

She glanced at the shadowy figure and said, "Of course, it's also possible that an evil demon king murdered the townspeople and then used this method to frame others."

"no!"

Several rescued townspeople spoke in unison, actually defending the Demon King: "It was the Empire's army that stormed into the town and killed many people!"

"why?"

This was basically in line with the other side's judgment, but she couldn't think of a reason why the army suddenly broke into the town and started killing people. You know, even during Julius's reign, the imperial army would be bound by appearances and would not openly do such a thing that violated the teachings of the Goddess of Life.

"Tsk, do they need a reason to kill someone?"

The shadowy figure sneered, "The Imperial Army has the power of life and death over civilians."

"They say evil breeds here."

An elderly resident whispered, "They say it's because one of us tipped off the Demon King that the hero disappeared."

Those who witnessed the battle knew that the hero and the demon king had disappeared together in the summoning spell created by the great sage Ilya. However, just as they breathed a sigh of relief, the imperial army suddenly appeared, intending to settle accounts for their crimes and make them pay the price for betraying the hero and the empire.

"Where are the hero's companions? Are they just going to let the imperial army run rampant like this?"

"They...left."

Her intuition told her that something was definitely fishy. The Imperial Army launched a purge immediately after the hero disappeared and his companions left. As someone who had experienced the Julius era, she felt that it was more like the Imperial Army was just using a pretext to silence him.

If we think about it more deeply...

The disappearance of the hero beloved by the people of the empire and the annihilation of the Demon King by the Golden Fleet are undoubtedly the situations that those in power most desire to see.

Bi'an looked at the girl who was still kneeling on the ground with empty eyes. It was she who had set up the bloody ritual and chanted the incantation to summon the Demon King. However, Bi'an did not feel any magical fluctuations from her. Such a profound summoning ritual was not something a little girl could master. Even in their society, it would require at least a follower of an evil god like the Nightmare Witch.

“I don’t know… she was wearing a mask.”

"What did she say?"

“She said if I wanted to end all this, I should do what she said… My father and mother were killed, and they still want to break in. I didn’t want this either.”

In this way, the crime of summoning the Demon King would indeed be established.

The other side could imagine that the reason the Demon King appeared in this town and met the hero's party was also the result of a summons. Perhaps this was different from the story of the Demon King and the hero that they were familiar with, and that someone was manipulating everything behind the scenes.

"Hey, who summoned you here first?"

"how could I know?"

Although the response was still full of gunpowder, the shadowy figure's tone softened somewhat. It had changed its view of the other side. In its stereotype, the combination of "Empire" and "Knight Commander" could only produce a super scoundrel. However, since meeting the other side, everything she had done had overturned its view of the Empire.

In particular, the fact that she risked being blasted to smithereens by a magic cannon to save these townspeople who were completely unrelated to her was just... just like a real knight!

The shadowy figure shifted its gaze to the other side and whispered, "They were all dead when I arrived. There were about a dozen of them, in a small farmhouse."

The corpses lay sprawled about, and in the center of the summoning circle lay a young man whose throat had just been slit. Bloodstained coins lay scattered on a pile of dry grain, a scene of mockery. Almost immediately, it learned that the hero's party had arrived in the town. Once again, it was as if the encounter was predestined.

Bi'an frowned. She had thought of herself as a representative of the fighting faction, but she hadn't expected that this demon king was even more reckless than her.

Do you have somewhere to go?

Upon hearing this, the townspeople gazed sadly at the deep pit outside the forest, their familiar home, now completely gone. Confusion filled their hearts, and their nightmare was clearly far from over. If the Imperial Army knew they were still alive, they would surely exterminate them all.

The silence says it all.

Bi'an glanced sideways at the dark figure. "And what about you?"

"Me? What did I do now?"

"Where is your Demon King's Castle?"

The magnificent Demon King's castle is home to countless dark creatures and four powerful Heavenly Kings. This is the setup in most Demon King and Hero stories. Bi'an thinks that such a large castle should be able to accommodate a few refugees without any problem.

"What Demon King's Castle?"

"Are you really the Demon King?"

The other side's head throbbed with pain, and the shadowy figure's puzzled reaction seemed genuine, meaning she had likely encountered a bizarre demon king who didn't even have a private castle.

"Yes! I am!"

This question seemed to trigger some strange switch. The shadowy figure even answered in the same tone as it had at Ethan's house. It even struck a strange pose to defend its legitimacy as the demon king.

"And what about your subordinates? The Four Heavenly Kings, the Dark Dragon, or at the very least, skeleton soldiers, right?"

"I don't need those, I work alone."

The dark figure crossed his arms, seemingly proud rather than ashamed.

After the assessment, this guy was at best a street urchin, the kind of "freelancer" who didn't even belong to a gang. This conversation forced Bi'an to abandon the idea of ​​using the magnificent Demon King's Castle as a temporary combat center. She then turned to the trembling townspeople, "Do you know how to get to the nearest city?"

Several people nodded.

"If you want to survive, forget everything that happened here. From now on, you are a group of wandering merchants."

The other side made a decision: "Take me to the city closest to here."

"And what about me?" "Go find me some mounts."

The other side rolled its eyes at the dark figure, clearly annoyed.

..............................

Late at night, in Gear City.

The empire's border city, a great and dazzling trading hub, still had its streets brightly lit even in the early hours of the morning.

Gear City was more lively than usual today because, as early as evening, exciting news had spread throughout the city.

The wicked demon king was finally defeated. The people of Gear City no longer had to worry about being harassed by the demon king. They no longer had to fear the night and could indulge in singing and dancing in the middle of the night until dawn the next day.

Although the people of the empire have lost their hero forever, this brave and fearless young man has fulfilled all his mission. He is a hero in everyone's heart. The royal family will hold a memorial service for him in a few days and erect a monument for the hero in the central square of the capital city.

Moreover, heroes will never disappear.

Whenever night falls, if the Demon King appears again, he will return to the people in a different identity and in a different way to fight for them.

Before that, everyone in Gear City could enjoy the night to the fullest—it was won for them by the heroes!
The news spread like wildfire throughout the streets and alleys of Gear City, and newsboys couldn't wait to spread this exciting news to every corner of the city.

However, not everyone can fully enjoy this hard-won night. In the southwest corner of the city, a couple blocked the way of a young girl dressed in a gorgeous bubble dress, looking like a high-society lady.

"Grand Summoner Hetia, please forgive our insolence and do us justice!"

The couple felt as if they had seen a savior.

There are many other residents in Gear City living at the very bottom of society, just like them. The best news for them is that after the Demon King was defeated, the Grand Summoner Hetia returned to her hometown.

She is a member of the team that fights the Demon King, both brave and kind.

They had so much to tell Hetia; they wanted to tell the Grand Summoner how the officials and nobles of Gear City had treated them without her knowledge.

Hetia stopped and returned the couple's warm smile.

She was as kind and brave as the rumors suggested.

"Don't worry, please tell me what happened?"

Her kindness moved the couple to tears; they were almost overjoyed. Bitterness had been building in their hearts for too long, and today, their heroes had finally returned to them.

This city is about to get better.

“It’s our child. She was taken away by Baron Flin a few days ago. He sent his security team into our house and accused my daughter of stealing what belonged to them. But the child has always stayed with us and has never been to Baron Flin’s mansion.”

There must be some misunderstanding here.

Hetia said, "Please follow me."

The couple stared at each other in disbelief, never expecting that the Grand Summoner would actually be willing to mediate on their behalf.

"Thank you so much, thank you so much!"

Baron Flint's manor was not hard to find; it was located in the most bustling area of ​​Gear City. The manor was brightly lit, and you could smell a strong odor of alcohol even through the fence. Heitia gestured for the manor guards to step aside, walked up the steps, and gently knocked on the gate of the baron's manor.

Not long after, a middle-aged man who was overweight and balding opened the door drunkenly. He was carrying a bottle of liquor in his hand, and his clothes were disheveled and barely covering his body.

Hetia briefly explained the couple's purpose to Baron Flint. The drunken man stared at the two for a long time before saying, "Misunderstanding? This is not a misunderstanding at all. Their daughter has confessed everything. Lady Hetia, you must have been deceived by these scum of the lowest rungs of society. They are like rats in the gutter, their hands are not clean, and they still want to deceive your sympathy—if you don't believe me, Sheriff Black can testify!"

The second stop was the police station in Gear City.

Upon learning that the Grand Summoner Hetia was coming to visit, Sheriff Black rushed back to the police station overnight.

He looked somewhat disheveled and reeked of alcohol. He was clearly part of the celebration. He showed Hetia the case files. During the interrogation, the girl accused of theft had confessed to all her crimes. When asked about the girl's sentence, Sheriff Black hesitated to speak.

Under Heitia's repeated questioning, he finally stammered out the story of the tragedy.

After learning her sentence, the girl attacked the detective escorting her. During her attempt to seize the detective's gun, the detective was forced to shoot and kill her.

Upon hearing this, the couple turned pale, and their lips trembled.

"impossible……"

They kept repeating the same sentence.

The materials prepared by the sheriff were full of loopholes, and all the testimonies came from the girl's confession. As for the subsequent gun-grabbing and shooting, it was only the detective's side of the story.

Such things happen every day, but the sheriff has the full authority to interpret the case, and the couple can only look to Hetia with pleading eyes, hoping that the wise Grand Summoner can see through this clumsy trick.

However, the only response they received was Hetia's helpless gaze.

They had to leave the police station and return to the cold streets.

"These people are absolutely rotten, aren't they?"

The gentle Hetia suddenly changed her expression, "Your daughter must have been murdered by them."

Her sapphire blue eyes shone with a seductive light as she gazed at the two of them. "Someone has to do something to punish the truly wicked, but my strength alone is far from enough. Are you willing to help me? Are you willing to personally punish those who trample on the law?"

A glimmer of hope rekindled in the couple's gloomy eyes; they grasped at their last straw.

Hetia smiled with satisfaction, and she coaxed, "I know a spell, a simple summoning spell..."

A spell that even ordinary people who have never been exposed to summoning magic can use skillfully.

She concealed that barely perceptible emotion.

Heitia explained patiently, guiding the couple to draw a magic circle on the back of their palms, where they had cut open the wounds and were drawing blood. She was already very familiar with this method.

If you can control hatred, you control their hearts.

As the incantation was chanted, the summoning circle drawn with blood burst forth with dazzling light.

When the light faded, the street returned to silence once more.

Two mutilated corpses were found on the open ground behind the police station.

Heitia finally smiled, but unlike her usual gentle smile, her smile this time was full of fervor.

so good.

Nowadays,

She also cleared out two potential demon kings from the empire.

(End of this chapter)