The Infinite Journey of a Certain Flame

A Certain Infernal Affairs in Another World (Konosuba): Chapter Thirty-One: This Goddess is Mine, I Won't Give Her to You

As it turns out, the Demon King's army was actually a disorganized mess.

These officials were basically all busy with their own things, and they had absolutely no loyalty to the Demon King.

What a joke! A demon being loyal? He's just asking for trouble.

No demon is ever truly loyal to anyone, and even if there are, they are a very small minority.

Demons like Barnier prefer to work alone and will readily ignore the Demon King's orders.

So he's definitely not capable of doing something like specifically capturing goddesses to take back.

The reason for mentioning Aqua is...

"There seems to be some kind of magic circle behind this door. I originally wanted to use it as the main room of the bunker, but it's blocked so I can't get in."

As he spoke, Barnier stroked his chin and glanced at Akya beside him.

When the great demon first met Kiana and the others, he had already discerned their true nature and found that these people were indeed extraordinary.

The first to be affected was this gorgeously dressed girl, who looked like a princess from a foreign land.

She... is actually one of the Demon King's officers?

It's hard to believe that the Demon King recruited such a powerful subordinate. But it's strange, was there any news about her before? And what's her background?

Even Barney was somewhat puzzled about Kiana's identity.

First, he didn't remember having such a cadre, and second, he was completely baffled about the intelligence operation.

Fortunately, these things are not the main point.

The key point is... this official actually brought a demon king with him?

It's hard to imagine...

Barnier stared at the goddess who seemed still in shock, unsure of what to say.

How could the goddess of water appear here so inexplicably?

That's strange. Is she being considerate of the people's feelings, or did she come down because she discovered me?

If so...

That's so comfortable!

"Hahahaha!"

Barnier spread his hands and laughed wildly, leaving Kiana and Aqua looking at each other in bewilderment.

"That's strange..." Kiana took a few steps back, puzzled, and asked Aqua without turning her head, "Do you know him?"

Upon hearing this, Akya immediately crossed her arms, revealing a face full of disdain.

Even though the scene was very dark, Kiana was still able to tell from her good dark vision that the goddess was looking very impatient.

It seems that he felt genuinely... disgusted because he was mistakenly believed to know a demon?

"No, who would know such a stinky, devilish cadre! Ugh! It stinks so bad, I feel like I'm going to throw up if I stay here any longer, ugh!"

As Akya spoke, she didn't forget to beat her chest and gag as if she were retching, looking extremely uncomfortable.

It was as if the guy in front of them, spouting endless spittle, wasn't some demonic military officer, but some disgusting lump of something.

This scene is truly fascinating.

Kiana even sheathed her sword and scratched the back of her head in a somewhat helpless manner.

"You two don't seem like enemies at all?"

"Huh?" Aqua raised her head, as if she didn't understand Kiana's meaning.

Just as the two were facing off...

"Hahaha!"

Barnier stepped forward, then sang in an extremely exaggerated tone, as if performing an opera:

"Ah~ the valiant adventurer and the foolish goddess~"

"Who's the foolish goddess, you stinking demon!" Aqua, who had been inexplicably rebuked, bared her teeth and claws at Barnier, wishing she could rush up and bite this stinking demon to death. "You believe I'll purify you in a minute!"

"Hmm~ Delicious! Is this the goddess's negative emotions? Hahaha, it's absolutely delicious!"

Despite the idiot goddess's aggressive behavior, Barney didn't feel uncomfortable; instead, he looked quite pleased.

Despite being warned, he showed no sign of discomfort and simply raised his hand slowly.

He raised his head as if he had just enjoyed a sumptuous meal, his face full of delight.

"Ah! Really—!"

"Alright, are you ever going to stop?!" Kiana had reached her breaking point after listening to a demon rave about this for so long.

She slowly closed her eyes, then put her hands on her hips, her contemplative expression revealing a hint of gentleness.

Unfortunately, after a brief silence, Kiana slowly opened her eyes.

"Phew, so in short, you want to kidnap Aqua, right?"

“You could say that.” Barnier covered his chest with one hand and bowed like a butler.

"I'm sorry."

Kiana was overjoyed to finally find her way back after wandering around for most of the day.

She stopped the foolish goddess, then slowly pointed her sword at Barnier and said:

"She may be a bit slow, but she's still part of my team. Don't think I'd abandon her so easily!"

Upon hearing this, the goddess, who had been rather naive, blushed for some reason.

"W-what?! Do I need your protection? I could take down a second-rate demon with one punch!"

"Huh?" Barnier slowly raised his head upon hearing this.

The half of the face hidden by the mask suddenly flashed with an eerie red light.

The moment this light appeared, the foolish goddess, who had initially been somewhat imposing, instantly cowered.

She hurriedly took a few steps back, then made a move to release magic to purify herself, seemingly unable to bear the demon before her any longer.

Seeing this, Barnier decisively pointed at Akya:

"Then let me see the goddess's fighting power!"

"Speak," the demon army officer rushed forward.

As a result, it was shattered instantly by the goddess's purification...

"Huh?"

Kiana was somewhat bewildered as she looked at the Demon King's army officer who had turned into a pile of sand and mud on the ground.

What kind of situation is this? The enemy was gone the moment I made a move?

I thought he was a really good guy, but who would have thought he was just like this?

"They're quite the smooth talkers... Does that mean there aren't many normal people in the Demon King's army? That's really something!"

However, before Kiana could finish speaking...

[Host, be careful.]

"what?"

The system's sudden notification left her momentarily speechless.

Then, something extremely bizarre happened.

Suddenly, the mask left behind by the demon king's military officer flew back.

Seeing this, Kiana hurriedly raised her sword to strike, but the sword's edge barely hit her before her opponent dodged it with a somersault.

Taking advantage of this opening, Barney's mask was placed directly on her face...

In a fleeting moment, Kiana felt as if her mind was being inexplicably interfered with.

His consciousness began to blur, and all he could hear was Aqua's call echoing in his ears.

You can still hear the rumble of the ruins collapsing and Barnier's loud laughter.

And...the system's call.

[Host! Don't trust...the demon...]

A Certain Infernal Affairs in Another World (Konosuba): Chapter Thirty-Two: Hehehe, Aunt Himeko...wait! You're fake!

Don't believe in demons? Isn't that obvious?

Who would believe a demon that looks so strange!

Kiana had this thought in her mind, then slowly closed her eyes and stretched:

"Seriously, System, do you really think I'd be defeated by that cadre? There's a limit to how much you can look down on people."

However, the system, which should have responded immediately, fell silent at this moment.

It was as if it had been shut out by some uncontrollable force.

It's a bit strange, what kind of force could make the system behave?

Feeling puzzled, Kiana slowly opened her eyes... What she saw was a calm beach, with a warm sea breeze blowing, the slightly salty smell reminding her of the leisurely times she had spent on a seaside vacation with the headmaster and other students in the past.

The reason I recalled this memory is not because of the memory of being inexplicably sent on a trip by the system.

Mainly because...

In the distance, a familiar warship floated in the sky.

Although the beach on this small island was deserted, without a single person or creature, Kiana still felt a sense of peace.

"Is everyone waiting for me somewhere?"