Chapter 155: Growth Verification (2)
The 49th group capturing the Demon King.
This was something that Yuri hadn’t even considered.
A possibility that was virtually nonexistent.
However, thanks to Yulia’s abilities and the remarkable performance of the 49th group, the formula in Yuri’s mind began to change.
Originally…
Throw the 49th group as a sacrifice to the Demon King.
⇨ Take advantage of the situation to slip away with Theresia and finish the quest.
⇨ Spend happy times with the power crystal that truly became his.
…was the original plan.
Now, the 49th group captures the Demon King.
⇨ The quest ends.
⇨ The power crystal is awarded to the 49th group as a reward.
⇨ The power crystal he coveted is taken away.
…this was the new reality.
‘This is quite a problem, isn’t it?’
If things continued like this, the original plan to pass through the starting point with Theresia to end the quest would become useless.
Even if he and Theresia made it through the starting point, only their quest would be over.
The others would continue their quest until the end time, and if the Demon King was captured during that period, the power crystal would have to be handed over.
‘I’ve worked so hard; there’s no way I’m leaving empty-handed.’
Reflecting on how he had underestimated the 49th group, Yuri began to think.
He needed to find a way to unravel the currently tangled situation.
‘This delicate balance is maintained thanks to the equilibrium Yulia Sing has set.’
But that balance was extremely precarious.
If one had to put it in numbers, the balance was roughly 48 to 52.
Of course, the 49th group held the 52.
The 49th group was slightly ahead.
This was not an ideal situation for Yuri.
‘The best outcome would be for the 49th group to deplete the Demon King’s strength and narrowly lose…’
The problem was, the situation seemed likely to maintain its current balance.
Thus, Yuri decided to alter this equilibrium.
‘It would be ideal if the Demon King had 55 and the 49th group had 45.’
Yuri quickly scanned his surroundings, seeking a suitable sacrifice.
He needed a sacrifice that could tip the balance.
Not particularly strong, but not weak either.
Someone useful in various ways, but replaceable if absent.
Eventually, Yuri identified the perfect sacrifice and began to move stealthily amidst the chaos.
Silently.
Like a predator stalking its prey.
“Jerry! Fall back! Rexion, step in!”
The battle with the Demon King raged on swiftly and fiercely.
Under Yulia’s commands, many switched their positions.
This included Jerry.
Having completed his task moments earlier, he retreated at Yulia’s signal.
Jerry’s face was slightly flushed.
‘This… might actually work?’
His embarrassment at Yuri’s strange misjudgment about the Demon King was fleeting.
As they truly began to gain an upper hand against the actual Demon King, hope swelled within him.
And then, at that very moment.
Thud-.
Something grabbed the nape of his neck, and Jerry’s body was suddenly lifted into the air.
By the time he regained his senses, his body was already flying through the sky.
‘…Huh? What’s going on?’
At first, it felt like a dream.
The situation was so surreal.
When he glanced down slightly, he could clearly see who had thrown him amidst the slowly passing scenery.
‘That, that bastard?!’
It was exactly who he thought.
Yuri, smirking slyly.
After throwing Jerry, he alternated pointing between his own eyes and Jerry with his index and middle fingers.
A gesture that suggested he had been watching all along.
Simultaneously, Yuri’s lips moved.
Jerry instantly read the unmistakable movement of his lips.
‘Ah. I. Got. Too. Excited?’
Yuri’s mocking words brought Jerry to the realization of his actions.
The memory of when his eyes had turned inside out, chasing after Yuri with reckless abandon.
Along with that, a wave of regret washed over him.
‘Ah, damn… Why did I do that? I should have known that lunatic’s temperament.’
He must have been temporarily possessed.
Filled with regret, Jerry shouted.
“You bastard! No matter what, this isn’t right!”
His scream echoed through the air.
Just as Jerry was about to be delivered straight to the Demon King’s face.
A savior appeared.
Thud-.
A shadow suddenly intervened.
Appearing naturally as if it had been there all along, the shadow caught Jerry mid-air.
And the shadow’s owner, Yulia, shouted in a resounding voice.
“Everyone, retreat five steps!”
In response, the entire 49th group took five steps back.
Including Yulia, who held Jerry by the nape of his neck.
The only one standing idly was Yuri.
“Huh?”
Yuri, who had been so confident just moments ago, let out a bewildered sound.
It was understandable because the once chaotic scene had cleared up, leaving only him and the Demon King standing face-to-face.
Surrounded in a circle by the 49th group with Yuri and the Demon King at the center.
Yuri felt a chill run down his spine.
‘Huh? Could it be that they anticipated my actions…?’
A moment ago, Yulia had appeared as if she knew Yuri would throw Jerry, catching him precisely along that path.
She immediately issued the command for everyone to step back five paces, resulting in the current setup.
‘If this situation changed so drastically just from a five-step retreat…’
It would mean that they had positioned their forces with the anticipation of Yuri’s intervention right from the start.
Even while battling the Demon King.
When Yuri turned his gaze, he saw Yulia smiling faintly.
She clenched her fist.
‘Got it!’
While maneuvering the 49th group with her mounted combat skills, Yulia was more focused on Yuri than the Demon King.
Yuri was the one who suddenly appeared and disrupted everything.
And if that wasn’t enough, he had brought the Demon King and used them as a shield.
Yulia realized that the most unpredictable factor in the current situation was Yuri.
Therefore, she decided to eliminate Yuri from the equation… but…
‘That’s not something to take lightly. Carelessly excluding Yuri might cause the Demon King to react unpredictably.’
It was Yuri who lured the Demon King here, but paradoxically, it was also Yuri who was keeping the Demon King tethered.
She had already confirmed that the Demon King’s focus was solely on Yuri.
If Yuri were to disappear, it was impossible to predict how the Demon King would act.
Thus, she needed to keep Yuri as bait to hold the Demon King as long as possible.
And even if not, she doubted Yuri would simply fall for any attempt to exclude him.
‘You can’t take Yuri Holland lightly.’
From her analysis of the 50th group’s quest details, Yuri was smart, skilled, and even perceptive.
More frighteningly, this sharp-minded, capable, and perceptive individual would stop at nothing to achieve his goals.
Would someone like Yuri just sit back and accept being excluded?
Would he simply laugh off a situation where he was nearly caught off guard?
And if left alone, would he stay quiet?
Yulia shook her head firmly at her own question.
‘Absolutely not.’
Leaving Yuri Holland unchecked would mean no one knew where he might spring up next—that was Yulia’s conclusion.
So she prepared methodically.
Setting the stage.
Drawing Yuri, who had been content to observe, naturally into the fray.
While positioning herself to step back and observe.
Carefully switching her and Yuri’s positions without him noticing.
She continued to watch Yuri’s every move, ready for any unexpected developments.
And her efforts paid off splendidly.
“Tsk.”
Now with no apparent escape route, Yuri found himself inevitably face-to-face with the Demon King and clicked his tongue.
“…Looks like I’ve been completely played.”
Since arriving in the Cradle, never before had his strategies been so thoroughly exposed.
And not only that, he was now in a position where he was being used by the enemy.
Step-.
“At last, I get to see your face.”
As the Demon King approached with more killing intent than when facing the 49th group, Yuri sighed.
If he were to fight the Demon King here, Yulia, who had been observing from behind, would be waiting for an opportunity to intervene at any moment.
Just as he had done.
‘Hmm, what to do…’
After pondering for a moment, Yuri nodded briefly.
‘There’s… only one way now, huh?’
Having found a strategy to break through the situation, Yuri suddenly turned his back on the approaching Demon King.
And facing those who surrounded him, he roared.
“Hah! You fools! How dare you try to harm the Demon King? Do you not fear divine punishment?!”
“……”
“Demon King, let’s join forces! I, too, shall lend my strength to defeat these vile heroes!”
The princess, cornered, sought to become the Demon King’s lackey.
‘Rather than being used like this, the best option is to join forces with the Demon King and wipe out the 49th group!’
Watching Yuri shout enthusiastically about joining the Demon King, the 49th group looked on in disbelief.
“…What the hell is that?”
“…So seriously, what was his deal?”
“Demon King’s forces?”
“Isn’t he saying he’s joining the Demon King’s forces now?”
Those who still didn’t know Yuri’s true identity as the princess shook their heads.
“Theresia, didn’t you come with him? Do you know anything?”
Under the curious stares of her comrades, Theresia turned her head in embarrassment.
Meanwhile, some members of the 49th group worried about what would happen if Yuri and the Demon King really joined forces.
‘It’s already tough dealing with just the Demon King…’
‘If Yuri Holland joins the Demon King, our chances of winning are gone.’
Though they didn’t know Yuri’s exact strength, if he aided the Demon King, the balance of power that had slightly favored the 49th group would decisively tip towards the Demon King.
But those worries were unnecessary.
“Do not turn your back to me.”
The Demon King’s cold voice reached Yuri’s ears.
“If you try to pull any more stunts and turn your back on me again… I will cut you down without mercy.”
A chilling killing intent swept over Yuri’s back, causing his expression to harden.
With an awkward face, he turned back around and asked.
“Demon King? It seems things have gotten a bit complicated… How about we team up now and deal with our issues later?”
“The matter I need to deal with first is your disposal; they are secondary.”
“Well… If it’s about that, I can return it to the Demon King’s castle right now!”
Yuri tapped the power crystal in his possession.
Of course, he had no intention of returning it, but he was willing to lie as much as needed to resolve the situation.
However, even that didn’t work on the Demon King.
“It’s already too late.”
“Huh?”
“I’ve already given you a chance, and you kicked it away. You must now face the consequences.”
“……”
Hearing the uncompromising tone, Yuri let out a deep sigh.
‘…So it won’t work.’
Frankly, from the moment they met in the Demon King’s castle, he had sensed that the Demon King adhered to principles quite rigidly.
But he hadn’t expected him to be so inflexible that he wouldn’t even leave room for negotiation.
“Hm…”
Yuri smirked bitterly.
No matter how much he thought, no other solution came to mind.
It was a moment where he truly felt the limitations of his scheming after a long time.
So, Yuri decided to clear his mind.
“I guess it can’t be helped…”
Drawing his sword, Yuri faced the Demon King.
Srrng-.
‘If every logical path is blocked, I’ll have to break through physically.’
Of course, this was far from an easy task.
If it were, he wouldn’t have been running from the Demon King in the first place.
This was undoubtedly a fight with slim chances of victory.
‘But if this is the only option left… I’ll have to give it a shot.’
Just as Yuri was bracing himself for the low-probability fight with an unyielding spirit.
Amidst the formation encircling Yuri and the Demon King, among the onlookers, one person stepped forward.
“Huh? Where are you going?”
“Theresia?”
People called out to Theresia in confusion, but she, with a blank expression, walked up to Yuri.
Yet when she finally stood by his left side, her expression twisted.
“You’re really… Sigh…”
Theresia let out a deep sigh, prompting a delighted reaction from Yuri.
“Oh? You’re here to help me?”
“Yes, that’s what we agreed on from the beginning. And…”
Theresia gave a small nod and casually twirled her spear, lowering the tip diagonally.
Swish-.
“…If not me, who else would protect our princess?”
Theresia responded calmly, her eyes fixed on the Demon King.
Yuri grinned broadly.
“That’s reassuring, my hero!”
Swish-.
Mimicking Theresia’s stance, Yuri lowered his sword’s tip diagonally to the right, setting his sights on the Demon King.
As the hero and princess stood side by side, facing the Demon King.
Twitch-.
The slim chances of victory, previously considered negligible, stretched and expanded significantly.