My dear witch, please turn evil according to the script!

Chapter 229 Why are the Demon King's pectoral muscles so exaggerated?
Unfortunately, Roland no longer had the freedom to make his own decisions.

Not only this elderly man whom they had met once before, but all the people on the street were now looking at him.

They still feared "Roland," but their eyes now held a newfound respect and blessing.

The atmosphere had been built up to this point, and it seemed like I had no choice but to step in.

Before setting off, Roland wanted to see what the parchment scroll in his hand actually was.

Moreover, the effects of dreams are limited to Isfar, and it's unlikely that they could recreate a scene of a demon army attacking a city.

My worries were clearly unnecessary.

He probably wouldn't actually conjure up a whole army of demon kings for himself...

Roland took a deep breath and walked toward the north city wall amidst the respectful gazes of everyone.

Soon, the Demon King's army will arrive here.

All the residents along the way turned their gazes toward Roland, and the patrolling soldiers stopped their patrols and spontaneously followed Roland toward the city wall.

They knew very well that patrols were no longer necessary.

The only option left for everyone present was to fight.

Soon, some able-bodied young men joined the group. The better ones carried simple machetes and longswords, while the worse ones simply grabbed farm tools and joined the group.

Those who wanted to escape Isfar for the southern kingdoms have already left.

Those who remain in Isfar are those who are unwilling to leave their homeland and wish to live and die with their homeland and country.

When they abandoned their evacuation plan, they were prepared to die in battle.

Roland naturally noticed the group behind him, but he could only remain silent.

He was merely a bystander who stumbled into this distant history, a lucky spectator who ended up playing the role of a hero.

He didn't even actually travel through time.

It was only a dream spell called Spiral Hourglass that projected the ancient memories of this place, the eternal and profound memories of this place, into a dream.

He was destined to be unable to change anything.

But if he could, even just in his dreams, he wanted to change something...

As soon as the thought crossed Roland's mind, a phantom image of the World Tree flickered around him.

Before the effects of cognitive pollution could even begin to affect Roland, it was dispelled by the protection of the World Tree.

Roland, realizing what had happened, nearly broke out in a cold sweat.

Roland, clearly caught up in the atmosphere, almost forgot something crucial—this dream was a man-made prison!
The source of danger that imprisons Isfar!
Roland still remembered the way to break the dream spell—by altering a key point in history!

Although Roland may not necessarily be able to do this, the fact that this thought would appear in his mind, given his knowledge of the importance of dreams, truly demonstrates the fragility of dreams and the horror of the real culprit.

Even though a layer of dream barrier blocked it, Roland was almost affected as well.

It's clear that there's a reason why an entire city lost contact in such a short time, and why even the three ninth-ring powerhouses within the city were unable to react.

If Roland hadn't been protected by the World Tree, he probably would have already crashed and burned.

However, this dream lasted much longer than he had expected.

He crossed the border fortress almost along Isfar's main street.

It should be noted that Isfar during the Platia Kingdom period did not have the high walls and fortifications of the Imperial period, nor the giant circular structure that floated in the sky.

However, the size of Isfar has remained unchanged throughout history.

After all, this is essentially the line that demarcates the border between the two countries.

Beyond the moat outside the northern walls of Isfar lies the wasteland of the Kingdom of Platia.

To walk from the south wall area where Roland was previously located to the north wall would take at least two hours.

But Roland did just that, and that's how he ended his life.

When he arrived at the city wall, a force of several thousand people was already following behind him.

Among them were patrolling soldiers, wounded soldiers, and civilians. Almost everyone in Isfar City who could take up arms and retain the ability to fight followed Roland.

But even in such a large city, a city that Roland felt was bustling with life when he first entered, it could only muster the strength of five or six thousand people.

Even including the garrison on the city walls, the total defensive force of Isfar at this time was still less than 10,000.

According to the old man, the last remnants of the Federation of Nations were gathering their scattered troops and retreating towards Isfar.

They will arrive in Isfar before the Demon King's army arrives to assist in the defense... and the evacuation.

Roland simply sighed at this.

All he wants now is to finish this incredibly tragic battle of defending the city as soon as possible.

He desperately hoped that the shift in time and space would come soon.

Instead of revisiting history here, let's look for clues in reality.

However, once he reached the city wall, there weren't as many people behind him anymore.

They dispersed and, under the command of the garrison officers, began to be assigned their combat posts and tasks.

For the time being, no one is taking care of Roland.

Roland finally had time to take a look at the parchment scroll in his hand.

He untied the rope and then unfolded the scroll that had suddenly appeared in his hand.

Unfortunately, it didn't contain any magical powers or terrifying forbidden spells.

It doesn't even possess any magic.

Well, Roland was wrong. This wasn't the mysterious power hidden in that cave, the kind that required a ritual to obtain.

It's just a record.

A written record.

Clearly, this magical dream spell can effortlessly recreate a simple written record.

Roland unrolled the scroll and began to read.

This ancient record was clearly not written in the style of a report, but rather resembled the fragmentary poem that popped up when I searched for information about primordial runes in the knowledge base of the Academy.

It is also a story or legend recorded in the form of poetry.

Roland then began to read the records on it.

The gods hid the last spark of fire deep within the fruit's core.

When the King of Men opens his palm, the gates of the Kingdom of the Dead begin to breathe in reverse.

Flames danced across the arm, and roses bloomed from the bones.

In that instant, we recognized that familiar scent.

This is the placenta from which life emerges from its cocoon.

The king's people knelt on the ground, kissing their resurrected shadows.

The shadow is covered with scars, where the roots of the fruit tree are deeply embedded.

The crown of the King of Men hangs high, like the ever-shining sun. Now we understand the price of grace—when the golden apple takes root, when a thousand heartbeats resonate with the crown—we are the foundation upon which the crown grows.

After reading the poem, Roland was somewhat unsettled.

He saw the record of the golden apple for the first time in human records.

And... the King of Men?

Does such a role still exist in human history?
Is this human king the same as the Elf King? Or is it a title of honor similar to the sovereign of the human race?

Moreover, the legend recorded in this poem... seems to be related to resurrection?
Just as this thought popped into Roland's mind, time and space around him froze.

An expressionless girl with short silver hair stood at a corner of the city wall, quietly watching Roland.

Her eyes, which were a similar color to Iluvia's, cast a concerned glance at him. Just as Roland was about to examine her appearance and clothing more closely, the girl disappeared again.

Just like in that dream he had before about his birthday, it suddenly disappeared.

The next moment, Roland felt somewhat dazed.

He vaguely felt that he had forgotten something.

Roland, however, paid no attention and continued to look down at the parchment scroll.

He felt he had just seen the scroll, but he couldn't quite remember what it contained.

But when he looked at the scroll again, he only saw a meaningless black graffiti.

"Tsk, can't you see anything?"

"Could it be that this scroll records some incredible secret, which is why the dream cannot be reproduced?"

"Could it really be some kind of terrifying forbidden spell?"

As Roland was thinking this, a tall demon appeared before him.

It's at least two meters tall, but its magical energy fluctuations aren't strong... not even as strong as when I was at the second ring.

But this appearance...

Apart from its somewhat swollen head and the large horns on its head that are proportionally comparable to those of Father of Ultra, it looks no different from a human.

Oh wait... there's another eye on his forehead.

And...aren't your son's pectoral muscles a bit exaggerated?

What kind of two-meter-tall, big-breasted, big-horned demon race?

He had only seen this kind of setting in notebooks.

Typically, in this kind of setting, the older female demon will eventually be driven away by a human boy.

"Hey, don't you recognize me?" The strange demon looked down at Roland, her beautiful, androgynous face filled with displeasure and impatience.

Roland: “?”

Roland silently typed a question mark on his face.

Hey lady, who are you? Do we know each other?
Oh!
Could it be that I know the other person because of the role I played in this period of history?
Tsk tsk, who would have thought that such a melodramatic love story between a human and a demon would appear during the Demon King War?
And the fact that they came looking for us at this time suggests that the couple's fate was to die together in Isfar.

Or, in a more melodramatic twist, the demon sister in front of you dies, and then the human general you're playing suddenly gains superhuman abilities and launches a counterattack against the demon army.

Just as Roland was imagining the plot, the old man who had always been by Roland's side in the dream exclaimed, instantly filling Roland's mind with utter bewilderment.

"Oh no! It's the Demon King! Be careful, Your Excellency!"

The old man exclaimed in surprise as he used his remaining arm to draw his sword and shield Roland.

Although it's not very useful.

In Roland's perception, this "Demon King's" magical reaction didn't even reach the second ring.

But she still easily sent the old man flying with a wave of her hand, causing him to crash heavily onto the battlements of the city wall and lose consciousness.

"Hey, you really don't recognize me? Tch... cough cough."

The female demon, whom the old man called the Demon King, coughed and then let out a familiar, deep, smoky voice that horrified Roland.

"Hey kid, now you know me, right?"

Roland: “!!!”

The Demon King looked at Roland's horrified expression with amusement, appearing quite pleased. She bent down slightly and poked Roland's nose: "Hey kid, are you stupid? Hahahaha, it's really rare to see you make that face."

"I must be dreaming, um, dreaming..." Roland didn't answer, but just began to deceive himself.

Seeing Roland's reaction, the Demon King sighed helplessly and then began to examine his own "body".

"This spell is quite interesting. Although it's just a pretty but useless illusion, it actually recreated my appearance back then."

"Tsk tsk, this is truly a rare sight. This is the first time in hundreds of years that I have seen my own body again."

"Although it was just an illusion, it was still a novel experience. This dream felt quite real."

As he spoke, the Demon King bent down and cupped Roland's face in his hands, then looked Roland in the eye: "Hey, hey, stop daydreaming, I have something to tell you."

"I don't know why, but my soul is trapped in this past time and space. In other words, if you are in the real world, you can't call me."

"To return to normal, we may have to wait until the effects of the technique wear off."

"Finally, stop hypnotizing yourself. I was just pretending to be male before."

"Even that flat-chested elf doesn't know whether I'm male or female. After all, some races in the demon race don't have a clear distinction between genders. Demons have never lacked ways to change their voice and body shape."

"Also, barring any unforeseen circumstances, I will continue to communicate with you using the voice you are familiar with."

After saying that, the Demon King playfully lifted Roland's chin: "Or is it that you actually want to hear my voice now?"

Roland: "..."

"I want to be quiet."

"Tch, boring." The Demon King waved his hand and sighed, "Alright, although I can't go to that real space, I have some special abilities in this dream world."

"You'd better go back to the real world and look for clues. This place is just a remnant of history and is of no use to you."

"If you have any questions you want to know, I'll tell you slowly after we get out."

"Also, I sensed the presence of the prototype near Isfar... There's only one, and it's the original owner of this gauntlet. Don't be careless, be careful."

After saying that, the Demon King gently pushed Roland, and Roland immediately felt the world turn upside down.

After a moment of disorientation, Roland returned to the rooftop of the house where he had previously hidden.

The good news is that his stealth ability didn't fail him; he was still well hidden.

The bad news is that he may never be able to look at the thing hanging on his waist the same way again.

An elderly man with a ring who always speaks to you in a deep, magnetic, husky voice suddenly tells you that he was just kidding you all along, and that he is actually a woman.

Although this guy doesn't have a physical body to cause trouble for the time being, he's like a handsome good buddy who you get along with very well, and one day he'll ask you out to dinner.

After you finished eating, you two found an e-sports hotel and prepared to play games together all night. But halfway through the game, your good buddy pushed you down on the bed and told you that she was actually a woman, and that she had a great figure when she lifted her clothes.

Then he tells you that it's time for some deeper conversation, which is rather strange.

(End of this chapter)