When Roy realized the demon general’s target had shifted from Airi to himself, the expression hidden deep in his heart could only be described as *amused*.
*Huh. Not only didn’t he run—he’s walking straight toward me?*
*Truly brave.*
*Perfect. I’ll meet him head-on.*
*How could I possibly disappoint him?*
The boy suddenly pulled free from Elsa’s embrace.
Though his own cheeks were slightly tense and his breath came quick,
he stepped firmly in front of both Elsa and Airi, settling into a defensive stance.
“Roy!” Elsa’s startled cry rang out behind him.
“No! Come back!”
But Roy’s face hardened with resolve. Not an inch of retreat.
“Don’t worry, Elsa,” he said.
“I’ve learned a little magic from President Enlil.”
“More importantly—how could I, a man, hide behind you two?”
“Elsa. Airi.”
“I’ll… protect you!”
No sword in hand. No mage’s staff.
Yet the boy’s eyes burned with a will sharper than any blade.
In that moment, his figure seemed to tower taller than ever before.
Airi stared at Roy’s back, her vision blurring.
Memories surged—the nightmare that had haunted her entire gloomy adolescence.
Waking in tears night after night, dreading sleep.
In that dream, she’d been utterly helpless.
Too weak to become the Hero she’d dreamed of as a child.
Too weak to flee.
No one ever came to save her from the monster.
Until she met Roy. Until he gave her that knight plushie.
One night, trapped again in that familiar terror,
she’d braced for despair—
only to see someone step forward at the dream’s end.
Standing firm. Shielding her.
Becoming the light in her darkness.
A young knight, sword raised, slaying the beast!
She’d strained to see his face as he turned—
but dawn broke.
Her arms clutched only Roy’s plushie, held desperately tight.
Her only solace.
She’d never seen that knight’s face clearly…
until now.
Every strand of hair, every angle of his stance—mirroring her dream.
It was Roy.
Tears streamed down Airi’s cheeks.
“How touching~”
“But that’s what makes it *delicious*.”
“I’ve waited years for this day. Heh… truly a sweet little treat!”
The demon general, Juno, licked his lips. He could already taste Roy’s panic—watching the boy flee in terror after seeing his true form, his power.
*Oh, but I won’t let him run.*
*Let him writhe in shame before these girls first. Then I’ll make his death slow.*
*Only then can I savor their faces… crumbling from hope to despair.*
Drool dripped from Juno’s maw. His fangs lengthened, trembling with excitement.
*Heh heh heh. Serve it up already!*
Juno, a werewolf demon general, threw back his black robe with a snarl.
Beneath it crouched a gaunt, skeletal wolf-man.
Beastkin weren’t rare—but Juno’s form matched Airi’s nightmare *exactly*.
One blood-red eye. The other socket: a hollow, lightless pit.
Scars crisscrossed his body. Bloodstained claws gleamed.
Worst of all—a skeletal eagle’s head sprouted from his shoulder,
its empty eye sockets burning with ghostly blue flames.
His legs ended in twisted eagle talons. Tattered bone wings curled against his back.
“AAAAH!” Airi’s scream tore through the air.
This *was* her nightmare made flesh.
Yet past the terror, one thought blazed:
*Run, Roy!*
*Don’t fight this monster for me—don’t—!*
*Please… don’t…*
Roy couldn’t see the silent plea in the girl’s tear-filled eyes.
He sucked in a sharp breath—*hss*—
not from fear.
*Disgusting.*
Natural hybrids like griffins or chimeras? Majestic.
But this twisted fusion? Just… wrong.
Swallowing his revulsion, Roy shouted:
“Elsa! Airi! Run!”
His voice, clear and boyish—perfect for calling “big sister”—
was all wrong for what came next.
“I said…”
“I’ll protect you.”
A fireball materialized mid-air, hurtling toward Juno.
Roy’s weakest spell.
(He’d carefully throttled his mana—no “Eternal Ember” accidents today.)
It struck Juno’s skull with a *fwoomp*, singeing a few hairs before vanishing.
The absurdity? Like bonking a legendary demon god with a stick.
Juno’s roar shook the ground.
***HUMAN! HOW DARE YOU—***
No retreat. Only reckless defiance!
*I’ll flay you alive!*
*Starting with your throat!*
Juno lunged—a blur of fangs and claws.
One heartbeat. That’s all it’d take to slit Roy’s throat.
To paint the air with a spray of crimson blossoms.
The boy stood frozen, seemingly stunned.
“ROY!”
“NO!”
“MASTER…!”
Three cries—two aloud, one hidden—ripped from throats.
Juno faltered.
*Why… does this moment stretch so long?*
The world seemed to freeze.
Then even that thought dimmed—
—as countless ethereal spears of holy light rained from the heavens!
*THUD. THUD. THUD.*
Piercing head, limbs, torso, eagle-skull, claws—
nailing the demon general to the earth.
Not an inch forward.
(The arrow through his heart went unnoticed.)
—***Divine Retribution: Radiant Spear***—
The Goddess of Light had spoken.
The Hero was born.
