Chapter 244

Philanthropy and Favoritism

Our preparations for the confrontation were steadily proceeding .

Between forming the ranks, deciding their formation, preparing for the aftermath, and procuring supplies, there were many things that we needed to do .

We will need to open the path to the Demon Queen, repel Plato and Rates, and defeat the Demon Queen .

There was no doubt that the road forward was perilous .

It was decided that a small elite force would directly challenge the Demon Queen .

Specifically, Claire-sama, Mei, Alea, Manaria-sama, Lily-sama, Rodd-sama, Misha, Yuu-sama and myself, a total of nine .

Additionally, a mixed force composed of soldiers from both Bauer and Naa would clear the path toward the Demon Queen .

Even putting Plato and Rates aside, it would be too draining if the elite force also needed to deal with monster hordes .

So, the mixed force would be required to open the path until then .

Finally, in regards to the Demon Queen’s magic barrier that had previously caused us so much trouble―

“Rodd-sama, this is its nucleus?”

“Yeah, spot on . ”

Rodd-sama responded with a hearty nod before happily tapping the magic device next to him .

The device was about the size of a large rock that could barely be lifted with both arms . Inserted in its rear was an exceptionally large magic gem .

In the front there was a sword-shaped protrusion with another magic gem inserted .

The closest comparison to something that exists in the 21st century would be a tank’s main cannon .

“This attack is our trump card . A large scale magic formula, the Magi Shibley . ”

“Magi Shibley… those are words in Bauer’s ancient language for collective magic . ”

Just as I’d expect from Claire-sama .

She’s very knowledgeable .

“Collective magic… if that’s what it’s called, this thing collects and binds something?

“Pretty much . Here, take a look at this . ”

Having said that, Rodd-sama tossed something to each of us one by one .

“What’s this…?”

“It’s another magic device . This one gathers magic energy, and this guy is set up to gather that energy for its attack . ”

I see .

In essence, it seems that it’s a magic version of the Spirit Bomb .

“In our previous battle with the Demon Queen, I shot with magic energy that I’d previously stocked supplemented by the magic of my soldiers . You saw its strength, right?

“Yes, it was quite fierce . ”

“With Sein’s help, we intend to collect magic energy from all over Bauer . Compared to the last attack, we should be able to launch something even more fierce . Unlike the last one which was a surprise attack, I bet this will break through the barrier even if the Demon Queen has her guard up .

Those words were very reassuring .

So this is the truth behind the large scale magic formula that Rodd-sama developed .

“That being said, if this guy is the nucleus, won’t we need a team to protect it?”

“True . Before the Demon Queen, we still need to take down those two demons, yeah? If they target this device, things might turn sour . ”

“It seems too dangerous to leave it in the frontlines . What is the range on its attack?”

From what I saw in the last battle, the attack seemed to travel quite far .

“Mmー, probably at most 500 meters? It’s not that the attack won’t travel further, but the further we go the harder it will be to aim . ”

“In that case, it sounds like the safe plan would be to keep it in the back until we confront the Demon Queen . Then, we’ll move it forward as close as we can for the final confrontation . ”

“Sounds about right . While this device is strong, the downside is that we’re not yet able to mass produce it . This guy’s a one of a kind prototype after all . ”

Rodd-sama roughly scratched his head .

“Wait, isn’t the place for the final confrontation likely to be the Imperial Palace? If we’re inside, won’t we need to bring the device even closer…?”

“It’s just a wall, let’s just blow it down . ”

“I don’t think Philine would react very positively to that if she heard you . ”

That being said, with humanity’s continued existence at stake, there were more important things to worry about than a building .

“By the way Rodd-sama, is this something that Rodd-sama came up with?”

“Yup, that’s right . ”

“… Wow…”

“Hey! What’s with that expression filled with doubt?

“Well I mean, Rodd-sama just seems more like the type that would rush straight in with brute force . I didn’t see you as the thinking type . ”

To say it simply, I thought Rodd-sama was muscle-brained, so just as he said, it was unexpected .

“Rei, that’s impolite . Hasn’t Rodd-sama always performed well academically?”

“Nah, Rei’s in the right here . It’s true that I don’t generally consider these kinds of things my strong point . When it comes to magic, Sein generally has me beat . ”

“As I thought . ”

“Hey, Rei!”

“Ahaha! You really don’t hold back . ”

Rodd-sama continued his big-hearted laugh .

“I’ve always focused on individual strength over collective strength . Perhaps because I naturally had more magical capacity than most, I never doubted my way of thinking . However, during that revolution I came to realize . This isn’t enough . ”

“Isn’t enough?”

“Yeah . You two were only able to carry through with that revolution because you borrowed the power of many, including my own . That was something that undoubtedly couldn’t be achieved by individual strength . ”

It seems those thoughts took part in his decision to leave behind his status as royalty and join the army as well .

“I originally started on this magic to give me a shot in my rematch against Manaria . However, no matter how much I struggled, I couldn’t see myself winning . That’s why I changed my way of thinking, even if myself can’t win, Bauer won’t lose . ”

It seems that all of this culminated in the development of this collective magic .

“However, wouldn’t Manaria simply be able to cast Spell Breaker?”

“I think that’s a tall order . This device gathers and binds magic energy from many people before launching it . The composition is of course complex, but beyond that analyzing the mixed magic energy is quite difficult as well .

“I see, you really did think it through . ”

“The nerve on you! Hahaha!”

No, that wasn’t intended as jest .

I was genuinely impressed .

“Now that it’s come to this, it’ll be pointing at the Demon Queen rather than Manaria, but well, I’m fine with that . She’s even stronger than Manaria, a fitting target for the Magi Shibley . ”

“We’ll be relying on it, Rodd-sama . Without this, it doesn’t seem feasible to break through the Demon Queen’s defensive barrier . ”

“Yeah, leave it to me . We’ll reign in this other Rei and teach her a lesson . ”

Having said that, Rodd-sama laughed brightly…Then he suddenly stopped as though he remembered something .

“Mm? Come to think of it, the Demon Queen is another Rei, right?”

“That’s correct . What about it?”

“It’s just, this Rei is head over heels for Claire, but I just thought I might have a shot at the other Rei . ”

“… Rodd-sama, you hadn’t given up yet?”

“Why would I have to give up?”

Rodd-sama tilted his head in serious consideration .

That’s why the ‘ore-sama’ personality is…

“In some regards, I think the Demon Queen is far more infatuated with Claire-sama than I am . Rodd-sama saw the virtual reality that TAIM showed us, right?”

“Those memories? I definitely saw them . But I mean, the reason she wants to end the world is because of her feelings for Claire, yeah?”

“That’s right . ”

“In that case, what if we open her eyes to a new love? If we show her that she has more options than just Claire, isn’t it possible that she’ll stop trying to end the world?”

I hadn’t thought of that .

However, for the Demon Queen, who had remained single-heartedly devoted to a single girl for hundreds of millions of years, it was hard to imagine a sudden change of heart .

Beyond that― .

“Rodd-sama, I’ve said it before, and I’ll say it again . The Demon Queen and I are both only interested in women . As a man, Rodd-sama does not have a chance . ”

“Is that how it works?”

“Yes . Also, any man who tries to interfere with yuri will raise a terrible death flag .

“Yuri? Death flag?”

A question mark seemed to hover over Rodd-sama’s head .

“Rodd-sama, pay no heed to her . It’s her usual delusions speaking . ”

“Gotcha . Then I’ll forget about it . I’m starting to feel excited about our confrontation with the Demon Queen . ”

“… As always, it seems this person has an excessively open mind . ”

“You say something?”

“Just that Rodd-sama is open minded . ”

“Hahaha, how unusual for Rei to compliment me . ”

No, I didn’t intend that as a compliment .

While I continued to glare at him, Rodd-sama suddenly wore a serious expression as he continued .

“…From your perspective, this may seem archaic, but guys just want to protect the girl they love . Claire-sama has you . However, the Demon Queen doesn’t have anyone . Isn’t that just too lonely?”

“Rodd-sama…”

“If possible, it’d be nice if we could save the Demon Queen too . ”

“…”

Rodd-sama’s way of thinking wasn’t something that I could understand .

To me, Claire-sama comes first, anything that threatens Claire-sama is my enemy .

I have absolutely no intention to offer mercy to my enemy .

Rodd-sama on the other hand, seemed to feel something akin to compassion .

Personally, I don’t believe that there are fixed differences between genders, but rather that individuality is a larger factor .

This difference likely isn’t a difference between men and women, but rather a difference between Rodd-sama who won’t change until he dies, and me, who didn’t change even after death .