Betrayed by His Party, a Failed Healing Mage Revived Past Demon Lords Out of Spite and They Were All Overpowered Beautiful Girls - 5

Chapter 5: The Healing Mage Gets Ready for an Attack

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Side: Hero

After defeating the Demon Lord, the hero Albert returned to his homeland, the royal capital of the Kingdom of Halmesia, where he received an enthusiastic welcome from many citizens. That was only natural. He had defeated the Demon Lord who had tormented the people and saved countless lives. Everyone praised his great achievement.

“Phew, being a hero isn’t easy. All these parades every day are exhausting.”

In a room inside a mansion larger than those of nobles, a reward granted to Albert by the king of Halmesia for defeating the Demon Lord. Sitting on a sofa in the grand hall, Albert stretched his body.

“Hmph, there’s still no time to rest. Tomorrow is a party hosted by the king.”

“Yo, Testarossa. Welcome back.”

“Yeah, I’m back.”

The one who sat beside the relaxing Albert was Testarossa, the Sword Saint of the hero’s party. She was a beautiful girl with striking red hair.

“Where are Mana and Karia?”

“Mana received permission from the king to enter the forbidden library, didn’t she? She’s been holed up there, eager to learn new magic. Karia is pretty much the same.”

“And you’ve been busy too, getting appointed as captain of the knights and training all the time.”

“Yeah, exactly.”

Testarossa had been recognized for her achievements in defeating the Demon Lord and was appointed as the first female captain of the knights. She wasn’t the only one to receive a reward. Every member of the hero’s party received substantial rewards from the king.

“I hear that great nobles and royalty from other countries will be attending tomorrow’s party. You’ll have to tell ‘that story’ in front of a large audience. Will you be alright?”

“No problem. I’ve already told it many times to the commoners and the nobles of this country.”

“‘The hero who fulfilled his duty despite losing his beloved lover to betrayal by a companion’… heh, in reality Alicia was so dense that she ignored all your advances, yet you made her your lover in the story.”

“Doesn’t that make it more interesting? And you guys must be happy too, being seen as the devoted wives who comforted a pitiful hero wounded at heart.”

“…I won’t deny it.”

If someone had overheard this conversation, they would have been confused, unable to make sense of it. No one could have imagined that the hero had killed his childhood friend to leave his name in history as a “tragic hero.”

“Anyway, since Mana and Karia aren’t here, it’s just the two of us for the first time in a while.”

“H-hey, I just finished training, so I’m sweaty…”

“I don’t mind.”

Just as Albert and Testarossa were about to press their bodies together—

“Hero-sama!! Hero-sama!!”

“Huh? What is it? Damn it, I was just getting to the good part.”

Someone was knocking loudly on the front door. Grumbling, Albert opened the door with a composed smile. Standing there was a knight who served the king.

“You are… from the royal guard, if I recall. Has something happened?”

“A massive horde of undead has appeared from the Great Forest of Ruve, where the Demon Lord’s castle is located!! The nearby town of Sapan has been annihilated!!”

“What? The town of Sapan was destroyed?”

“Accordingly, His Majesty the King commands that you report to the castle immediately for a strategy meeting!!”

The town of Sapan had served as the hero party’s base right before they challenged the Demon Lord’s castle. They had many acquaintances there.

“U-understood, I’ll head to the castle right away!!”

Albert hurriedly prepared himself and rushed to the royal castle. Waiting for him in the meeting room, where the kingdom’s leaders, including the king, had gathered, was a heavy atmosphere like a funeral. Those who had been celebrating the Demon Lord’s defeat just days ago now radiated despair.

“What is going on!? Why are undead in the town of Sapan!?”

“Could it be that the Demon Lord was still alive?”

“Impossible!! Are you suggesting that Albert-dono failed to finish the Demon Lord!?”

“C-calm down. Didn’t the priests of the church say they felt the wave of evil magic that occurs when the Demon Lord dies? The Demon Lord is certainly dead.”

“Albert-dono, do you know anything about this!?”

Of course, even as they pressed him, Albert had no way of knowing why a large number of undead had emerged from the forest where the Demon Lord’s castle had been.

“Everyone, calm yourselves.”

“Y-Your Majesty…”

At the king’s single command, the agitated leaders fell silent. Even to Albert, the king exuded authority. The king then gave precise instructions and determined their course of action.

“First, we shall wait for the knights sent to investigate to return. Prepare to receive refugees from Sapan and the surrounding towns at any time.”

“Yes, Your Majesty!!”

If the Demon Lord they had supposedly killed was still alive… Just thinking about it made cold sweat pour down Albert’s back. No, that couldn’t be. Even now, he could still feel the certainty of having killed the Demon Lord in his hands. There had to be another cause.

Convincing himself of that, Albert waited for the investigation team to return.

◆ ◇ ◆

Time rewound a little.

I was flying through the sky with Elshadow, heading toward the town of Sapan near the Great Forest of Ruve, where the Demon Lord’s castle was located.

Vampires are amazing. We grow bat-like wings and can move freely through the air.

A journey that would have taken days on foot when I was human could now be done in just a few hours, and without much fatigue. It was incredibly convenient.

“I wonder what Elizabeth-san wants to do?”

Since I had nothing to do during the trip, I called out to Elshadow, who was flying beside me. She responded.

“I do not know. However, she has sent even you, whom she would normally keep by her side rather than deploy. It must be something significant.”

Elizabeth would not be participating in the attack on the town of Sapan this time. She had said she had something she wanted to do in the Demon Lord’s castle. Well, with Elshadow here, whose power rivaled Elizabeth’s, there shouldn’t be any problems unless someone on the level of the hero’s party appeared.

That was what I thought, but…

“I will say this in advance. As a former Demon Lord, I have my pride. I will only face strong opponents directly.”

“Huh? Does that mean I have to fight alone!? I’m a healer, you know!? And I can only use low-level healing magic! I have zero combat ability!?”

Well, I am a vampire now, so I might manage against moderately strong opponents. Even so, I am nowhere near the level of Albert and the others from the hero’s party, the ones I want revenge on, excluding Alicia. So I do need some way to become stronger, but that kind of thing takes time.

There is no way to suddenly become powerful overnight. At the very least, there is no way I could destroy a town on my own right now.

As I held my head in frustration, Elshadow let out a small laugh.

“I am not telling you to fight. You are an executive of the Demon Lord’s army. It would not be fitting for you to be thrown into the front lines immediately.”

“I-I see… is that how it works?”

“That is how it works. Therefore, this time, I shall prepare the troops.”

“Troops?”

At that moment, the town of Sapan came into view, so we descended into the nearby forest. Elshadow snapped her fingers. Two magic circles appeared at her sides, and from them, inhuman figures crawled out.

“Whoa, skeletons!?”

“Necromancy: Create Skeleton Army. It is magic that generates an army of skeleton soldiers. Individually they are weak, but they can be produced in large numbers.”

“Demon Lords are amazing…”

Honestly, do I even need to be here?

“I have prepared about five thousand. I will use three thousand, so you may use the remaining two thousand.”

“I don’t know anything about military tactics, though.”

“Hmph, do as you like. Even if they are all destroyed, I can simply create more.”

“…Understood. I’ll do what I can.”

Being able to instantly prepare five thousand monsters and still fight personally… 

It was terrifying. But what was even more terrifying was the fact that this Demon Lord had once been killed in the past.

This was seriously scary.

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