Abel answered Linphia while kicking a skeleton away.
The battle line that had been resisting the enemy's semi-encirclement in a curved formation had collapsed.
Leo, however, chose not to retreat but instead formed a circular formation centered around himself.
As a result, they were almost completely surrounded by the enemy but managed to stay in place while maintaining their fighting strength.
However, being surrounded left no time to rest, and it was the top adventurers like Linphia and Abel, along with the royal guards, who had been fighting fiercely to hold their ground.
"Linphia, how long can this last?"
"I think we'll move soon..."
"You don't know either?"
Abel said this while looking around.
Allies were gradually being taken down, but they were managing to pull them back into the circle, so there were no deaths yet. However, if this continued, there would be no one left to fight.
"It would help if those who retreated came back to help."
"Expecting cowards to help is just a waste of time."
About a thousand people had gathered under Leo.
The other thousand had retreated when the battle line collapsed.
Most of them were knights, while many of the adventurers remained under Leo. The difference in mindset between the adventurers who had voluntarily joined the raid quest and the knights who had been dispatched by the lord's order was evident.
Of course, many knights had stayed, but it was hard not to think that the situation would have been different if the knights who had retreated had stayed.
What particularly annoyed Abel was that some of the royal guards who had been with Leo were now missing.
"Damn! I shouldn't have taken on a request like this! Ever since we got here, it's been nothing but bad vibes!"
"Then why don't you run away?"
"Don't be ridiculous. We're adventurers. Can we abandon a request once we've accepted it?"
"Isn't this beyond the scope of the request?"
"The request we accepted was to protect the village. To deal with these monsters, protecting the prince is the best course of action, right?"
Abel's party members, who were also present, agreed with his words.
Unlike Abel, who was classified as a skilled adventurer, the other party members were covered in wounds. Still, they managed to smile.
He knew that in such a dire situation, it was meaningless to wear a gloomy face.
"Leader! When this is over, tell the prince to give us more rewards!"
"Right, right! It's not worth it!"
"Indeed. I'll do that."
Just as Abel and his party were exchanging light-hearted banter, Leo, who was in the center of the circle, muttered.
"They're here."
At the same time, a cavalry unit approached from the north.
It was part of the knights who had retreated.
"Break the circle! Charge at Balsa! Everyone, follow!"
Leo led the knights he had kept in reserve and charged at Balsa.
The cavalry unit that had come from the north also charged at the skeleton army and penetrated it.
"Hey, what's this? Did they change their minds!?"
"It's Prince Leonardo's strategy."
"Strategy?"
"He deliberately let some of the royal guards leave to lead the retreating knights. Among the retreating knights, there were those who retreated out of the flow and those who didn't understand the situation."
"Doing that in the midst of all that chaos..."
"In that situation, the first thing that comes to mind is to retreat. But Prince Leonardo excluded that from the start, so he could calmly plan the next move."
"It would have been easier if they had just run away."
"Indeed. He is worthy of being a contender for the throne."
Linphia, having praised Leo, followed him.
Leo, leading the way, cut a path through the skeletons, and the knights who followed expanded the path. The adventurers then followed.
Their destination was Balsa, where a black sphere floated.
■■■
"Your Highness! Please fall back! It's enough now!"
"It's not enough anywhere!"
A royal guard advised Leo, who was leading the charge, to fall back, but Leo stubbornly refused to give up his position.
With a fierce effort, he cut down the skeletons and cleared the way.
The morale was high, and it was now up to the royal guards to take over.
The separate unit was also close, and their joining would increase their momentum.
It seemed there was no reason for Leo to push so hard.
"Then at least move to the second or third row!"
"Stop saying foolish things! A ragtag group of knights and adventurers, I'm the one who put them in danger! They're following me because I'm leading! Who would follow someone shouting from a safe place!?"
The royal guard, reprimanded by Leo, was speechless.
Leo had shown a side that was completely different from the impression he had always given.
Although he was skilled in martial arts, Leo had never been seen as fierce. He was a kind prince who had been raised well. That was the impression everyone had.
But now, leading the charge, he was truly the commander of an army.
"Your Highness..."
"Follow me in silence! We will definitely break through here!"
With that, Leo spurred his horse even faster.
The separate unit joined, and Leo's momentum increased.
Balsa, which had been visible only in the distance, was now clearly in sight.
"Balsa is close! Everyone, give it your all!"
Just as Leo gave the order, someone swung a sword at him.
Leo managed to block the sword, but his horse's pace stopped.
And when Leo stopped, everyone else stopped too.
They were in the middle of a sea of monsters.
Stopping meant death.
Leo tried to push forward, but the man in front of him wouldn't let him pass.
"Who are you!?"
"Hmm... Who am I?"
The man, dressed in black, was the instructor who had killed Dennis in the mansion's basement, but his eyes were completely black.
Even the parts that should not have been black were all black.
The man was clearly abnormal, but more than that, Leo was struggling with his strength.
It was not a level that could be described simply as strong.
Seeing Leo struggle, the surrounding royal guards also joined the fight, but they couldn't overpower him.
"Damn! Who is this guy!?"
"Why is such a strong person here!?"
Leo, of course, was not an ordinary fighter, and the royal guards, the elite of the empire, were also not ordinary fighters.
A man who couldn't be injured even by several of them at once.
His skill was such that he could be famous in the world.
"Who are you?"
Leo asked again.
Because the surrounding skeletons didn't even show any signs of attacking the man.
"If you want to know my name, why don't you give yours first?"
"...Leonard Rieks Ardler. The eighth prince of the empire."
"I see, a royal. Then I will give my name as well. My name is Baram. In your human terms, I am a demon."
"A demon!?"
It was a shocking statement.
Demons were thought to be inhabitants of a different world, the Underworld, and were often far stronger than humans.
They were said to have been summoned by mages and brought disasters to the continent, and the demon king who was once defeated by a hero was also a demon.
A demon had appeared here.
Why?
"Could it be... these monsters came from the Underworld...?"
"Correct. They are the vanguard. A portal connecting the Underworld to this land has been opened in the center of this town. Eventually, a large number of demons will come to this land. You have no tomorrow."
"Then we will close it!"
With that, Leo charged at Baram, but Baram easily blocked Leo's sword.
"Give up. There is no way to seal it."
"Unfortunately, I just decided not to give up!"
"Hmm, foolish. It's too late."
"---Not necessarily."
A clear voice rang out.
At the same time, Baram's left hand flew into the air.
Baram quickly put some distance between himself and the person who had cut off his left hand.
"A woman... Who are you?"
"Marshal of the Imperial Army, Lieselotte Rieks Ardler. Leo's sister."
"Sister...!?"
Leo's eyes widened as he stared at Liesel, whom he hadn't seen in a long time.
She was surrounded by a commanding presence, her blue cloak billowing.