For the past year, we hadn’t experienced a battle of this scale. This was a literal 'war,' with hundreds of people supporting the effort.

Even though this wasn't a military or knightly force, we knew that war inevitably brings casualties. So, when we first realized that Alphares' western gate was under attack, a single thought filled my mind.

Fewer troops than at other gates. And because of that, countless civilian casualties.

...And among them, a severely injured comrade of ours.

However... that didn’t happen.

[A mage cast a protective spell over the western gate's walls.] [Thanks to that, even though the Black Fortress attacked, the damage was minimal.]

Even though it was a surprise attack, the fact that there was no significant damage was remarkable. But the mage who cast the spell? She didn’t show even a hint of emotion.

The start was good. But the war was just beginning.

Thousands of monsters were pouring out of the fortress, far too many for our party to handle. Eventually, adventurers, mercenaries, and the city guards had to join the fight. Not that we were underestimating them, but their skills were slightly below what was needed to face such powerful monsters.

Our party worked hard to minimize casualties, but even so, gaps began to form in our defense.

[Multiscale Enchanting.]

With that, she enchanted the equipment of the combatants, filling the gaps in our defense. Those who suddenly became stronger were now able to handle the monsters on their own, giving our party a chance to catch its breath.

By evening, the monsters had stopped coming. And to our surprise, though there were injuries, not a single person had died.

The rule that war must claim lives had been broken.

It was as if she could see the future. She always seemed a step ahead of us and, in doing so, significantly boosted our party’s combat strength.

Before another attack could come, we planned to destroy the fortress and prepared to enter. At that moment, she handed us bracelets.

[These can track the position and condition of the wearer.]

Any doubts as to why she gave us these magical tools were immediately cleared up when we entered the fortress and our party scattered almost instantly. Had we not had the bracelets, we might have been picked off one by one.

Thanks to the bracelets, we quickly regrouped.

And now, we stood before a door, ready to face the master of the fortress.

We were in the best condition possible—no casualties, no serious injuries.

Guided by her, we arrived at a massive door. It was clearly important, adorned with numerous decorations, and the size of the room itself was enormous.

[There’s no spell on the door.]

Hearing her words, we began to slowly open it.

Creak...

“Watch out!”

Boom!

An attack flew out the moment the door opened. I instinctively raised my sword to deflect it, preventing any harm.

“Hmph, as expected of a hero.”

A voice from afar. An old man’s sigh echoed through the room. When our eyes met, a shudder ran through my body.

‘...He’s real.’

A chilling laugh.

Even the demon that tried to kill her had been strong. But compared to this old man, that demon was clearly outmatched.

The aura of malice and power radiating from him was overwhelming.

“Ah, these creatures of the fortress were useless after all. What a waste.”

The old man leaned on his staff, pacing lazily around a black chair nearby.

No other demons could be sensed in the area. I relayed this to my comrades, and we slowly advanced into the room.

“You’re cautious, I’ll give you that. What’s your name?”

“...”

“Sigh, rude. It seems you know nothing of respect.”

Rumble...

Every word he spoke made the fortress tremble. There was no longer any doubt—this old man was the master of the fortress.

“Prepare for battle!”

At my command, everyone took their stances once more. There was only one enemy, but we had to be wary of reinforcements or surprise attacks in enemy territory.

“Well, I guess I have no choice but to introduce myself first, since the hero is so lacking in manners.”

Clang!

I drew the holy sword from its sheath and charged toward the old man. Thanks to the gloves, boots, and bracelet she had given me, it took only a moment to close the distance.

“Baal Pellegrino. I will kill you and consume this land.”

In an instant, Baal's eyes turned black, and his mouth stretched wide into a horrific grin. I twisted my body, but I couldn’t avoid the crimson tentacles that shot out from his body.

Boom!

“Gah!”

“Aswell!!”

“I’m fine. No serious injuries.”

The protective shield from the bracelet absorbed some of the impact.

‘Even with that...’

The anti-magic properties of the holy sword and my sacred armor must have helped, but I was still forced back several steps. I recalculated the threat level of Baal in my mind.

“Hero.”

“...Louie.”

Serlin and Liene began engaging Baal, while Aria provided support. And then she approached me, writing golden letters in the air with her pen.

The letters danced in the air before sinking into my gloves, boots, and bracelet.

“I’ve added more defensive spells. Also... be careful of those tentacles. They’re not imbued with magic.”

“They’re not?”

“No. Which means you shouldn’t rely solely on your holy sword and armor.”

“...Thanks.”

With her advice in mind, I moved to Serlin’s side.

“You okay?”

“Yeah, thanks for holding the line.”

“I have to, if I’m going to stand by your side.”

Boom!

“Where do you think you’re going?!”

“That pest...”

Another tentacle flew toward us but was intercepted by Liene’s arrow. Baal tried to pull the arrow out, only to be blocked by Serlin.

“Serlin, left side!”

“I’ll cover you!”

We couldn’t just sit back and watch. Serlin and I charged forward, slicing through the countless tentacles reaching out from Baal.

“Holy Resonance!”

Aria’s shout echoed from afar, and a soft white light enveloped Serlin’s sword. Even though Serlin lacked holy power, she could now effectively deal with the tentacles.

“Aria, move back a bit. You’re now outside the range of the tentacles. Lapiere, aim for the highest tentacle on the right.”

Finally, with her tactical guidance and magical support, we pushed forward.

“Hmph, so you’re not just some ragtag group after all!”

Baal sneered, revealing his fangs as he dodged Serlin’s sword by a hair’s breadth.

Tentacles, swords, and arrows clashed in a chaotic exchange. Baal continued to unleash magic, but she and Aria consistently protected us from the onslaught.

“Heh, is this the power those beneath me fear so much? How pathetic.”

‘It’s just one man...’

Was this the power she spoke of—the “First Bloodline”?

If we had entered this place without any information... I didn’t want to imagine what might have happened.

‘But time is on our side.’

We needed time for her plan to work. So, from the start, we had kept the battle in a stalemate.

“Astraea.”

Light poured from the holy sword, enveloping the area in a radiant cloud. The tentacles recoiling toward us were flung away.

It seemed like the time was drawing near.

“Louie!”

“It’s time.”

At her words, Serlin and I pulled back. Liene and Aria joined her as well.

“Running away now? Are you really a hero?”

“Master key. Synchronization. Catalyst activation.”

Her plan was simple. There was a ‘room’ that housed the magic circle keeping this fortress anchored to this world. Its location had already been pinpointed through magical tools, and with a bit of time, it could be destroyed remotely.

[The meteorite fragment we retrieved from the village you accepted the quest from can cause an explosion.]

Once the magic circle was destroyed, Baal would lose part of his power, and the other vampires would either be reverse summoned or suffer heavy casualties from the explosion of the fortress.

It sounded like a gamble, but we all agreed. After all, everything she had done and said so far had proven trustworthy.

No one doubted her.

Finally, the last word left her lips.

“Detonate.”

Boom...

In an instant, a blinding light engulfed the surroundings.

And then.

“Reinforce the barrier. Maximum capacity.”

With a single command from her, the fortress exploded into a massive blast.

When I opened my eyes, dawn was breaking. Seeing the sun meant we were outside the fortress.

That meant her plan had succeeded.

“Cough, cough!”

“Huff... Is everyone okay?”

“Uh... probably?”

“Probably? What kind of answer is that?”

I quickly stood up and surveyed the area. Confused faces stared back at me. Behind us, the half-destroyed fortress was being swallowed by the darkness.

“Gyaaaaah!!”

“Help...!”

Some of the vampires had been crushed by the rubble or severely injured. As for Baal... he was nowhere to be seen. Perhaps he had been swept away and destroyed in the reverse summoning.

‘I hope so.’

“Louie, are you alright?”

“Yes. So... please stop touching my face...”

Watching Liene’s exaggerated concern for Louie, I couldn’t help but chuckle.

‘I remember Louie saying this after planning everything.’

[There’s no reason to confront them head-on. If there’s an easier way, we should take it.]

In the end, we successfully eliminated the fortress and the vampires without any major injuries.

This would surely deal a significant blow to the Demon King, meaning Alphares would enjoy a period of peace for a while...

“Hahahaha!! Is that it? Is this what you were waiting for?!”

A crazed laugh echoed through the air, and I quickly raised my holy sword.

Emerging from the rubble of the fortress was a pool of blood.

From within it, none other than Baal reappeared.

“Hahaha, hahahaha!!”

“Everyone, it’s not over yet.”

Despite being heavily wounded by the explosion of the fortress, Baal still emitted an overwhelming aura of malice.

“Amazing... Truly amazing. Hero, do you know what surprised me the most?”

“...What is it?”

“Oh? You’re responding this time. Then I’ll give you an answer. The fact that your party and I had the same thought!”

The same thought?

Could it be... stalling for time?

“No way.”

Her voice came from behind me.

“Randellion! Have you died?!”

“No, Lord Baal.”

At Baal’s call, a woman appeared at his side. She possessed power comparable to Baal.

“The second bloodline...”

“Yes, and the preparations are complete, as you’ve given me ample time.”

“Of course. We are ready to summon fifty fortresses.”

What?

Fifty fortresses?

Does that mean there are fifty more fortresses just like this one? And they're going to appear here?

I looked back toward Alphares. There were tens of thousands of civilians in the city.

If the fortresses were summoned, they would all be massacred. Not just that, but the monsters emerging from fifty fortresses would spread across the empire, causing countless casualties.

We had to stop them.

“Hmph, do you finally realize the gravity of the situation?”

Baal smirked, as if reading my thoughts.

“But it’s too late now. Didn’t you think it was strange that we weren’t already on our way?”

As his declaration echoed, the ground began to tremble.

Rumble...

It was the same vibration that had occurred just before the fortress appeared.

And in the distance, towers began to rise from the ruins of the fortress.

At least hundreds of them. And with them, the presence of thousands of vampires could be felt rising from the ground.

‘We have to stop this.’

If we don’t, many will die. That’s not something I want.

But how?

Can I destroy all these vampires and fortresses with just my holy sword? Can I do it without anyone dying or getting hurt?

It seems impossible...

‘Even if it’s impossible, I have to try!’

I gripped my holy sword tightly and readied myself. Everything stemmed from these two vampires.

If we kill them, we might stand a chance.

Starting with that female vampire...

“Hero.”

“Huh?”

“Hug me for a moment.”

“What... did you say?”

“To be precise, hide me from view. And promise me one thing.”

What was she talking about?

As I pondered her strange words, I noticed a star shining brightly in the sky above us.

No... was it a star?

It was far too bright, and it was moving quickly.

“From now on, whatever happens, it wasn’t me—it was you who did it. If anyone asks, that’s what you’ll tell them.”

“What are you talking about...?”

“And... don’t worry if I don’t wake up for a while.”

Her steps were slow enough that I could have stopped her with just a hand. But I couldn’t stop her, and eventually, she fell into my embrace.

Leaning against me, she raised her white staff to the sky and shouted.

“Master key, synchronization. Celestial alignment. Orbital lock.”

The star above us drew closer as she spoke, each word making its light flash brighter.

“Connecting all mana reservoirs. Coordinate setting. Target: western Alphares region.”

The light grew bigger and brighter. It was as if something was about to explode.

“Orbital strike. Ultimate Star-spear.”

In the next moment, a beam of light shot down from the sky.

And...

“Taste the purest mana of the stars.”

The rising fortress and the two vampires vanished.

Completely.