However, this was also possible thanks to the presence of another knight order accompanying them.

“Guh!?”

A knight took a direct hit from the thrust of a trident, the weapon of the Lizardman, and was sent flying with a strike to the chest.

Even the Third Knight Order’s members were not invincible.

As a fellow knight supported the one whose chest armor had been deeply dented by the impact, he coughed, spewing blood in sync with his breath.

“Shaaaahhh!!”

The Lizardman thrust its spear, aiming to slip it through the gaps in the knight’s helmet for a finishing blow.

The knight, now on one knee, desperately tried to ready his sword, but the spear would pierce through his skull before he could counter.

“All Heal!”

In that moment, an advanced healing spell was cast.

His wounds closed rapidly, and vitality surged from within.

In an instant, he was fully healed, regaining his sharp movements, and his sword cleanly severed the Lizardman’s head.

“—I am grateful, Sir Soel.”

“Sir Gwynn, the battle is not over yet.”

“Hah, of course!”

Two knight orders had been dispatched to the city of Azazel for this mission.

The Third Knight Order, known for its fearless bravery, overwhelming suppression power, and exceptional combat skills against monsters.

And the Tenth Knight Order, with more than half of its members being skilled in healing magic.

Leading the latter was Soel Grants.

Nicknamed "White Star," she was the kingdom’s greatest healer.

The battle for Azazel was a back-and-forth struggle, but the human forces had maintained the upper hand.

This was possible solely because the Tenth Knight Order, under her command, continuously healed the wounded knights and adventurers.

Despite being besieged by hordes of monsters ranked third class or higher, they had not been overwhelmed, largely thanks to the efforts of Soel and her healers.

(At this rate... we should be able to win without issue.)

Holding command over both knight orders, Soel surveyed the battlefield, relieved.

Thanks to her strategic commands and healing spells sent across the battlefield, not a single knight had perished yet.

If this momentum could be maintained, the defense of Azazel could be completed with minimal losses—that was her estimation.

But Soel knew.

The world rarely went according to plan.

That was why she always prepared for the worst.

And that concern would not be in vain.

The reality would prove to be even harsher than her worst expectations—

“Advance! Finish them off!”

“Ooooohhh!!”

The fierce battle raged on, spanning into the next day. However, with constant fighting through day and night, the end was finally in sight.

The monster attacks had become sporadic, and the humans' momentum was stronger than ever.

Soon, no more monsters arrived from the waters, leaving only those that had already landed to be slain before the battle could conclude.

As the possibility of victory became tangible—

Fwoom!

A sound like a swarm of insects, amplified dozens of times, echoed across the battlefield.

And before anyone knew it, it was already standing there.

“Hmm, I thought I’d find something worthwhile here... But it seems I was mistaken.”

“What!? Where did it come from!?”

It had appeared suddenly among the adventurers who had retreated for a break.

If one were to describe it in a single phrase—it was something with humanoid features.

At first glance, it appeared to be draped in a jet-black robe.

But upon closer inspection, there was no seam between the robe and its body.

Its skin was a pale shade of purple, and from its forehead sprouted two twisted horns.

It was a monster—the adventurers immediately concluded and pointed their swords at it.

“Annoying.”

The being lazily waved its hand.

In the next moment, a fierce storm erupted.

“Ugh!?”

“Gah!?”

But it wasn’t just ordinary wind.

The gales, infused with magic, carried razor-sharp wind blades that tore through anything they touched.

The adventurers who tried to strike the creature were mercilessly shredded and sent flying like ragdolls, bouncing across the ground.

“—Area Heal!”

Soel, unfazed by the sudden arrival of this creature, immediately cast a wide-range healing spell.

While it wasn’t enough for complete recovery, it served as emergency treatment.

There was no time to check on the injured.

If she did, she would fall victim to that wind herself.

“Sir Bradbury, Sir Connie, we will take it down together!”

“Understood!”

“Acknowledged!”

Realizing in an instant that this monster was no ordinary foe, Soel immediately shifted to a strategy using an elite strike force.

Her allies were Bradbury, leader of the Third Knight Order, and Connie, his vice-commander.

The other adventurers and knights recognized the situation and quickly withdrew.

Bradbury took the lead, with Connie as support, their mithril swords flashing in a seamless dance, covering each other’s openings.

Soel provided backup, continuously healing them as they fought.

Two of the kingdom’s strongest knights, along with its greatest healer.

And yet—

“—Guh!?”

“Aggh!?”

Their defeat was crushing.

All three collapsed to the ground, unable to stand.

The monster glanced at them with boredom, wiping the blood off its hands with a handkerchief.

“I came here thinking a hero had finally emerged… but to find nothing but a bunch of weaklings relying on sheer numbers. How disappointing.”

At the word "hero," Soel’s eyebrow twitched slightly.

Fortunately, being on the ground, the monster did not notice her reaction.

(Did someone figure it out? Could it be that this attack… is because of that?)

“Well, I suppose I’ll just slaughter all of you. If I keep killing, eventually the hero will show up… Oh, I should at least tell you before you die.”

A whirlwind began to swirl around the humanoid monster.

It had not yet cast a spell.

The mere overflow of magic from within it as it prepared a spell was already creating this storm.

If the residual energy alone was this intense, the actual spell’s power was beyond imagination.

Soel, well-versed in magic, immediately understood the devastating scale of what was about to be unleashed.

“My name is Bertoll—one of the Demon King's Ten Fingers, the ‘Hurricane,’ left second finger, Bertoll… Remember my name, even in the afterlife.”

The spell activated.

And then, overwhelming destruction was about to be unleashed—

“What?”

—But it was not.

Before the devastation could begin, something intervened, dispersing the magic completely.

Bertoll’s brow twitched, and Soel, lying on the ground, widened her eyes.

Standing amidst the swirling dust, the one who had erased everything was—

The very person Soel had envisioned, the one Bertoll had been seeking—

The hero, Rey.

“How dare you try to kill my master… I will never forgive you.”

“You won’t forgive me? And what of it?”