After choosing to leave, they regretted it.

"Haha, that's really interesting. Aize is a brave warrior chosen by God, sent to defeat the demons and save the lost believers. Naturally, he can't be unclear with the demons, don't you think, maid lady?"

"Oh? I—"

"I am no longer a hero. This is certain, and I have no intention of taking this decision back."

Aize moved his feet and inserted himself directly between the two of them, took over unhappily and interrupted the conversation directly.

"If you have anything serious to say, please hurry up. I'm very busy right now and don't have much time to... chat."

The reason why we don't say this is nonsense is to keep the conversation at a minimum level so that both parties don't completely tear each other apart in terms of face.

But even so, this attitude was enough to make Rosalyn unhappy.

Extremely unhappy.

Her smile even disappeared from her face for a few frames - Aize was sure that he was not mistaken.

But on the surface, her attitude remained unchanged, and she still said with a smile:

"I'm just saying that the Imperial Guards don't necessarily need to be deployed on this kind of battlefield, right? If possible, please leave it to the Crusades. I don't think it will make any difference."

"……Oh."

To put it bluntly, the entire process of attacking Krielbas seemed too simple on the surface, so much so that she - and most likely her followers - had the illusion that they could do it too.

And they blamed Aize for not giving them such a good opportunity.

Although he had roughly guessed what the other party meant at the beginning of the conversation, when he actually confirmed it, Aize almost sneered out loud.

Thanks to the subconscious muscle memory gained from dealing with nobles for a long time.

But he was too lazy to talk nonsense:

"Next time, definitely next time. What else? Anything else?"

"of course."

Rosaline's persistence made Aize's mouth and eyes twitch gradually, and also made Villian behind him cross her arms more and more impatiently.

"Although the orc army has surrendered to you, their crimes against humanity over the past few years, or even millennia, remain innumerable. I personally believe that in the name of the goddess and humanity, we should annihilate them all to demonstrate our resolve and strength."

"……ha?"

Aize's brain froze for a few seconds.

The city of Lilbas still has a large number of humans gathered here.

Some of them are locals who did not have time to escape when the city fell a few years ago.

Some were slaves brought or bought from other places or channels during the period when the orcs ruled here.

These people suffered a lot during the occupation, were excessively enslaved and slaughtered at will, and their resentment towards the demons, especially the orcs, was extremely high.

Therefore, since surrender will not be held accountable, this is obviously impossible to explain to the locals.

But killing them all is definitely not the solution.

If the orcs' surrender is handled well, it will create an extremely exaggerated demonstration and chain reaction in the future, and may even change the situation in the entire world.

If there were to be a bloodbath, this possibility would be strangled in the cradle.

How to balance the victims' demands and future possibilities is also what Aize is currently considering.

But Rosalyn obviously didn't think that much, just as her followers didn't think that much.

Demons? Do they deserve to be alive? Just kill them all.

The fact that such an opinion can be raised seriously demonstrates just how extreme the faith network is.

"it's out of the question."

Aize refused bluntly.

"I'm not even talking about treating prisoners well, which is practically non-existent in this world. Even from a practical point of view, if we kill them all this time, wouldn't that force all the demons to fight to the death in the future? And in the end, wouldn't humans also have to shed extra blood!"

"Haha, there's nothing I can do about it. This is a necessary price to pay. People won't care."

The Pure White Saint's usual calm and unusual response made Aize feel nauseous.

At the same time, I also felt that the few minutes I wasted were not worth it.

"...That's it. Whether it's Lilbas or the undead army outside, there are a lot of problems to deal with. I'll take my leave now."

Aize said, waving his hand.

"see a visitor out."

"Yes!"

Several guards in the command post immediately came up and used their tall, armored bodies to block Rosaline's position, then said:

"Lady Rosalyn, this way please."

The words were polite but could not be refused.

As members of the Imperial Guard, their loyalty is to the Imperial family rather than the Church, and their faith, if any at all, is minimal.

So there was nothing Rosalyn could do at the moment.

He just glanced at Aize meaningfully and said with a smile:

"Be careful, the demands of believers who can't vent their anger can be terrifying."

This sentence is already a naked threat.

Previously, due to the lack of understanding of the nature of Rosaline's abilities, her actions seemed chaotic, random, and completely unpredictable, something indescribable.

Aize was really a little scared.

But it's different now.

When its true nature is revealed, it is still difficult to deal with, but it is no longer worth fearing.

So, Aize just shrugged easily:

"Thanks for reminding."

Then he pulled Villian along and left the temporary command center without looking back.

Rosaline, who was left there, stared at the backs of the two men until they gradually blurred and completely disappeared from her sight, then she turned and left.

The other end——

"Aize, is this... okay?"

"Hmm? What?"

"What that woman said, with her reaction like that, something big is bound to happen next, right? With the demons about to attack the city, is this... really okay?"

Villian's worries were not unfounded.

In Aize's not-so-long career, he has experienced several city defense battles, but none of them can be compared with the battle that is about to take place.

Trapped in an isolated city, they were directly blocking the advance of almost all the demon armies, and reinforcements were nowhere in sight and would not arrive in the foreseeable future.

In addition, there were the city defense facilities that had just been recovered and not yet fully restored, and the people who had just been liberated and had not yet been appeased, so there were some supplies, but they were definitely not abundant.

And Rosaline, the timed nuclear bomb.

All the entries have been maxed out. If I can make it through this, it won’t be an exaggeration to say that I’ve reached the top.

This question didn't even affect the expression on Aize's face:

"I chose to do this myself, so what's the problem? Besides, given the current situation, even if there are problems, we have no choice but to go all the way... But you, you don't usually say things like this, what's wrong?"

Villian has absolute and unwavering confidence in Aize's abilities.

But now, the situation before her actually made her mood - and even her expression - visibly depressed.

Based on past experience, this low mood definitely did not come from Aize or the current difficulties.

But -

"You're not really bothered by what that woman said, are you?"

"Ah."

The witch lady's eyes drifted slightly, and she nodded slowly.

"When I was still the leader, I did lead the witch army to attack humans many times, and I owed a lot of blood debts... Haha, maybe even more than the deceased Tal Sarago."

"It's not surprising. Isn't this the purpose of the demon tribe controlling a fake witch like you?"

Villian shook her head.

"That's what you say, but how many people would believe that I was controlled? And even if I was controlled, it wouldn't change what I did. What if the resentment towards me is taken out on you, Aize, one day... maybe it has already begun."

Due to her past experiences, Villian's sense of her own identity is somewhat distorted.

She doesn't consider herself a witch, she doesn't consider herself a demon, and of course she definitely doesn't consider herself a human.

The only one who really cares is Aize.

Apart from this, all attitudes towards any other person or demon are derived from the root of Aize and revolve around it.

Therefore, she doesn't care about killing people, nor does she care about being enemies with the demons. Even the so-called burden of morality or honor in the traditional sense basically does not exist.

But that was only for herself.

If these actions were to affect Aize, that would be another matter entirely.

If her desire to stay with Aize would eventually bring him trouble or even disaster, then Villian would make other choices without hesitation.

Even if it would be extremely painful for myself.

In response to this, Aize sighed softly, smiled bitterly and shook his head:

"I understand what you mean. That's why we're doing this now, tying your identity and achievements to the path of a little bit of luck, isn't it just to avoid the worst-case scenario? The plan has gone smoothly up to this point, what else is there to say now?"

"Yeah, I understand, I understand, but... well, after actually getting to this point, I realized that things aren't as easy as I imagined."

Miss Witch's gaze sank further.

When they realized their identities, whether it was Adrian, Lysander, or the members of the Royal Guards, the emotions subconsciously revealed in their eyes were surprise and suspicion.

This was even after they all accepted Villian's help and had no prejudice against Aize.

What would those who didn't benefit from it and instead had a blood feud with Villian think?

What will those who have a grudge against Aize and are worried about finding any evidence to prove him wrong do?

How will Rosaline use herself to target Aize?

These accumulated worries and anxieties, triggered by the warning from the Pure White Saint, burst out, causing her to fall into an almost unprecedented state of depression.

Aize looked at her like this, stopped, scratched his hair, and asked:

"So what are you going to do? Your identity has been revealed, and it's too late to regret it now, okay?"

"This... No, of course there is still a way!"

Villian raised her hand, placed it on her neck, and gently released magic power.

A glowing collar-shaped pattern then emerged.

Slave contract.

A few months ago, when the Tafia incident just ended, in order to appease Aize who was uneasy about the future, Villian almost forced him to sign this.

This matter was never mentioned afterwards, and Aize himself almost forgot about it.

"Here, use this! If you use this to claim that I'm your slave or your trophy, there won't be much criticism! Even if others want to make a fuss, they won't have anything to say!"

This is indeed a solution.

Even from a rational perspective, it is better than the strategies actually applied today.

But no.

Just like he rejected this plan without hesitation a few months ago, even when it was proposed by Villian herself, Aize did not waste even a second thinking about its rationality.

The reason...is actually nothing, it's just that I simply don't want to, don't like it, and am unwilling to do it.

As for Villian now, Aize held his forehead and sighed deeply:

"You usually act so relaxed that I can't help you, but why are you so sentimental about something like this? I'm a little uncomfortable, you should recover."

"No, so—"