Chapter 680 – Stampede

I’m a soldier of the demon king’s kingdom.

Although I’m just a lower rank soldier, I’m someone that can be proud of my ability because I can be assigned as a guard of the royal castle in the royal capital.

Maa, that’s all of us soldiers guarding the royal castle can boast, not just me.

Outside our working hours, we are talking about who’s stronger than who, who’s losing to who, and who wants to fight with who.

However, none of us dare challenge the captain.

Because we all know that the captain is definitely stronger than us.

So, even in our training hours, no one would challenge him.

-0-

That captain gathered us with a blue face.

Seeing that, anyone could tell.

Something bad happened.

The captain waited for a full minute before talking.

What happened?

Can we resign??

Isn’t it a little too late to quit now?

I heard that if you quit now, you won’t be allowed to do that.

Also, we have yet to pay our salary loan.

Right.

The captain gave us a drink.

Yeah, we can’t quit.

So, I decided to prepare.

I’m sure the others feel the same.

Yeah, we all have the same opinions.

I will be our representative and tell the captain.

「Captain, we would like to apply for a leave.」

It’s no use.

What a tyrannical workplace.

-0-

We resisted but the captain continued to explain.

It’s terrible.

Especially the important part.

「On the east side of the royal capital, there’s a sign of stampede.」

Stampede.

Of course, they are not people who are rushing to a sale.

It is a large-scale movement of monsters and demon beasts.

Maa, a stampede is not uncommon.

The demon king’s kingdom is vast so one occurs somewhere every year.

In addition, like what I’ve been saying, we are guards of the royal castle.

We have to do something when a stampede of monsters and demon beasts occurs.

We have to be there…..

But there’s a problem.

The reason for that stampede.

Most monsters and demon beasts have territories and they rarely come out of that territory.

A large-scale migration means they have abandoned their territories.

In other words, they are in a situation where they have to run away and abandon their territories.

There are a lot of reasons for them to do that but there can be categorized to only two.

Food shortages and threats.

Running away because of food shortage is a threat to ordinary citizens but it’s not enough to scare us.

The problem is the “threat”.

The more monsters and demon beasts abandon their previous territories, the more powerful the monster or demon beast has appeared.

And the subjugation of that powerful monster or demon beast will be our mission.

Honestly, it’s tough.

Be food shortage.

That’s what we hope.

However, the stampede happened on the east side of the royal capital.

On the east side of the royal capital, there is a certain area.

A den of evil monsters and demon beasts that monsters and demon beasts in all other places around the world seem to be children’s toys.

The forest where no lifeform should go.

The forest of death.

However, it is a good thing that steep mountains are preventing the invasion from the forest of death and there’s no record of any monsters or demon beasts crossing the mountains.

Aside from a certain record. It was when this area, including the royal capital, was still part of a human country.

It is said that a giant snake crossed the mountain.

The human country suffered severe damage caused by the giant snake and was destroyed by the offensive of the demon king’s kingdom.

In this stampede, I don’t think that the demon king’s kingdom will be destroyed but I’m worried about what the human countries will do.

-0-

「Don’t think too much. There’s only a sign of a stampede. For the time being, including our corps, there will be twenty others that will investigate.」

Did you ask the adventurers for help?

「Already have. Also, it seems that demon king-sama will move himself.」

Demon king-sama?

Why would he do something so dangerous?

「It seems like he wants to show off to his wife and daughter.」

Ah, ye-yeah.

I see.

「Then, let’s start the mission! Form a group of six! If anything happens, make sure one of you will come back alive!」

At least say all six must return alive!

-0-

The east side of the royal capital is not the mountain range yet.

There is a vast forest there before the mountain.

In this forest, there are some small forts.

They are forts that will raise an alarm if an enemy passes through the forest.

They were the ones who reported about the sign of stampede.

When we arrived at the fort and heard what’s happening, it was no longer a sign of a stampede, it was certain that there’s a stampede.

So, it has come to that.

And I have a bad feeling about it.

However, we can’t abandon our duty.

We should do our best to look for the cause.

Hnn?

How about the possibility of food shortage?

That’s no longer the case.

All the monsters and demon beasts that we defeated when we were traveling towards the fort are normal.

There’s no sign of hunger in them.

That means there’s no possibility of food shortage.

-0-

It has been ten days since we went out of the fort.

We finally found the cause.

Given the situation, it looks like it’s not the worst-case scenario….

We found an inferno wolf.

There’s no way we can win against it but looking at the power of the whole kingdom, we can do something about it.

But, how much damage will we get to suppress it?

I talked to the other members about what to do next.

As a rule, half will remain to watch over it.

The other half will report back.

Are we going to decide by draw lots?

「Draw lots? Have you heard about it?」

Hnn?

You mean the heaven-defying draw lots luck of demon king-sama?

「That’s not it. What I’m talking about is the rumor that an inferno wolf has come out in the royal capital.」

Yeah, I heard that.

However, it’s actually a deadly wolf, right?

「According to the report, however…..the knights say that they are certain that it is an inferno wolf.」

If that was the case, there should have been a stampede around the royal capital, right?

「There was.」

Really?

「Yeah, but only on a small scale. It seems like demon king-sama defeated it in no time.」

As expected of our demon king-sama.

「Demon king-sama is in front of the inferno wolf.」

Eh?

Ah, it’s true.

When did he arrive?

Are they going to fight?

It doesn’t look like it. Demon king-sama opened his arms as if welcoming the inferno wolf.

Ooohhhh.

Does demon king-sama have enough charisma to make the inferno wolf his follower?

Amazing.

Or so I thought. Demon king-sama was thrashed by the forefoot of the inferno wolf.

……….

Demon king-samaaaaaaaaaaaaa!

Deadly Wolf: I’m quietly living in the north forest of the royal capital.