Volume 11 Chapter 15 Mixed-Up Party
First, darkness spread out from Chiero.
For a moment, everything in sight was completely swallowed by darkness. A darkness so deep that even the Ajna Chakra couldn't see through it. It passed through me in an instant.
What was left was a world where understanding was destroyed.
"...?"
I blinked a few times, staring at the crowd that filled my vision. Then, I thought this:
――I don't understand.
I have no idea who is an enemy and who is an ally.
In front of me, Commander Chiero chuckled.
"War is best when it's intense and chaotic. But you, the boy who leads this event, you tried to organize this war. Like a reconnaissance mission with nothing to lose."
Such an event is no good. Chiero said.
"Boring. A farce is boring. That's not good. So, I, Chiero, took it upon myself to mix things up."
"W-What are you saying...!"
"Can't understand? Of course, you can't. That's what this Domain Control does. It rejects understanding and brings chaos. A wide, yet subtle Domain Control."
That's why, Chiero continued.
"I can still make this chaos bigger. More complex! More intertwined! Fun! Fun!"
Chiero snapped his fingers. "Domain Control! 'Trickster'!" he shouted.
Once again, darkness that destroyed understanding swept through. I felt the ground shake and fell to my knees.
"D-Damn it, what's going on...?"
I raised my head. What I saw wasn't the Demon King's camp, but a circus.
"...Huh...?"
Hahahahahaha! Laughter echoes. It seems to be the laughter of the circus leader, Chiero, ringing loud and clear.
'The second chaos! It is the destruction of understanding the location! Therefore, I have connected the Demon King army and my circus! Young man! And all the fighting Demons! Welcome to the circus!'
The laughter fades away. I look around in astonishment.
There are demons whose appearances I can see, but I don't know who they are. I don't know who is friend or foe, nothing, nothing at all.
The time is morning. It's morning. I think, so what if it's morning. It should be an important factor, but I don't understand why it is important.
And yet, I...
"...ha, haha, hahaha"
For some reason, I can't help but laugh uncontrollably.
* * *
Ice and Clay, who had set up the command headquarters at a base different from the inn, were checking the situation with pale faces.
"...th, this, is..."
"This is bad, really bad. A terrible thing has happened. All our allies inside the Demon King army have been affected by Domain Control. At worst, they will end up killing each other."
It's not the Domain Control they've encountered before, which tries to kill with brute force. This one only rewrites the rules.
But, because of that, the gathered forces have become the ones suffering the most.
The effective range is extremely wide, with additional effects, and all of them are focused on confusion.
Ice looks at Clay. Although he is talkative, cold sweat is dripping from his face, and he is not calm.
Rollo was watching. While listening to Ice's story, Rollo stared at Ice with her usual provocative look.
Ice took a deep breath and called out, "Clay-kun."
"Can you, organize, the situation for me...? I'm increasing the ice birds I sent out to gather information."
"Ah, uh, yeah. ...Got it. Right. We have to do what we need to do."
Clay also took a deep breath and started speaking fluently.
"Currently, everyone except us is inside Domain Control. However, the movements are split into 2 units."
"Yeah...!"
"First, Wade-kun's unit. They went to mess with the main force of the Demon King's army to extract strategic information. The members are Wade-kun, Sandra-san, Mudi-san, Renril-kun, and Mung-san."
"And the other unit is...!"
"The other unit is Toxy-san's unit. It's the medical team, and they were acting to steal information about Commander Chiero. The members are Toxy-san, Philia-san, and Sur-san."
So, Clay continued.
"Toxy-san's unit is in a relatively safe situation against friendly fire. They have a strategy to avoid fighting as much as possible, and the 3 of them are moving together. Their protection priority is low."
"Yeah, that's true... But, there's one concern. Toxy-chan and the others have information about Commander Chiero...!"
"...! I see. Without that information, we can't break Domain Control and free everyone. In that case, we need at least one of the 3 to join up with Wade-kun."
Thoughts on the Toxy team should be good enough like this. Just as they were thinking that, Rollo spoke up.
"So, prioritizing protection means we do something to prevent friendly fire, right~?"
"Yeah, that's right, Rollo-chan... Everyone is strong enough to not lose to some half-baked enemies, but if Sur-san's family or allies start fighting each other, it could be dangerous...!"
"Hmm~?"
Ice looked at Clay. Clay nodded and said, "Let's talk about Wade-kun's team."
"Wade-kun's team is the most dangerous. The chances of friendly fire are very high. They aren't even moving together. So, the best option is for Ice-san to handle it and relay the information."
"Yeah...! ...Sorry. I haven't found anyone yet...! Or rather, the ice birds might be affected by Domain Control, and I can't tell individuals apart..."
"We'll think about that too. Anyway――――"
There, Clay stopped talking. When Ice turned around to see what was going on, no one was there.
Rollo, who was supposed to be there, had disappeared.
"Huh...?"
Ice stood there with her mouth open. But reality didn't change.
Just like smoke dispersing, Rollo had vanished.
Please bookmark this series and rate ☆☆☆☆☆ on here!
Donate me
Support Me with USDC
(ERC20)
Support Me with XLM
(Stellar Lumens)