MTM 212

“Mmm… it’s so noisy….”

Harto grimaced at the ear splitting noise and ceaseless vibration. The warmth enveloping his body was so cozy that he wanted to go back to sleep, but the surroundings were far too clamorous.

“The time has come.”

Upon hearing that voice, Harto managed to open his heavy eyelids. The first things to enter his field of vision were the prophet’s expressionless face and the bluebird perched on his shoulder.

“Chirp.”

“Huh…?”

Startled when the bluebird recognized him and let out a cheerful chirp, Harto reflexively tried to sit up.

“…Ngh.”

A sudden tightness in his chest made him let out a soft groan. Yet, the pain lasted only an instant. His body felt light, and the fatigue that had always weighed down his chest seemed to have disappeared completely.

That wasn’t all. The vigorous beating of his heart reminded him of someone.

“Zed….”

He knew it. Zed had finally succeeded in safely removing the Demon King’s heart from his chest and creating a whole new one using holy power.

“Are you awake? Do you remember the last thing that happened?”

The prophet asked in a low voice as he looked at Harto, who was smiling while gently touching his chest.

Harto blinked blankly at him, then tried to piece together his memories.

“I… I fell into the sea. I saw a white… a huge, white whale… Ah, Zed! Is Zed safe?!”

Harto looked around urgently for Zed.

The prophet raised a hand and pointed down the hill.

“Ah…!”

Harto gasped the moment he looked down. Swarms of monsters, black as a colony of ants, had gathered, and a dark red aura rising from the cracked earth hung heavy. Parts of the island were engulfed in blazing red flames, and the sky was choked with undead dragons.

“Th-that is…”

Among the chaos, Harto’s gaze lingered on a pitch black vortex in the blood red sky, from which a pillar of fire erupted. Lightning struck ceaselessly within it, and wherever unauthorized copythe bolts hit, the earth twisted and lava spewed forth.

He had been sleeping soundly, oblivious to all this. The scene unfolding before him was nothing short of hell.

“Wh-what happened…?”

Harto asked in a trembling voice, seized by fear; the prophet, seemingly unafraid even in this crisis, smiled.

“Something that should never have happened has finally come to pass.”

At the prophet’s calm reply, Harto turned his head back toward the hellish battlefield.

“Zed…!”

Right in the midst of it all were Zed and his companions. Zed was fighting a monster, his entire body wreathed in light; nearby, Gerard and the Carseon holy knights were ruthlessly cutting down monsters, while Isadora and the Royal Knights were subduing the undead dragons.

“I… I need to help right now….”

He had to lend his strength and fight alongside them.

Harto scrambled to his feet.

“…Harto!”

Just then, accompanied by shouts, Ser and Leon came running up the hill.

“Leon! Ser!”

“Harto! I’m so glad you’re safe!”

As Ser embraced him, his face a mix of worry and relief, Harto gently patted his back. His eyes grew misty.

“Pipit!”

“Pyupyu!”

Familiar sounds followed in quick succession.

Spi and Mir jumped out of Leon’s pocket.

“Spi! Mir!”

When Harto happily held out his hand, the two squeaked as they scurried up his wrist and pressed themselves against his cheeks. Harto beamed at the contrasting warmth and coolness of the two elementals.

But then, thinking of Krom, he looked at Leon with an anxious expression and asked in a low voice.

“What about Krom…?”

“Ah, well….”

Leon looked visibly troubled as he carefully rummaged through his other pocket.

Then, he pulled something out and held it right in front of Harto.

“Krrng!”

Krom appeared. He spread his arms wide with a spirited shout.

“Krom!”

Harto beamed as he faced Krom, who had finally returned to his original form. He hadn’t realized just how much he had missed the sensation of Krom resting in his hands.

“I found Krom sitting and waiting on the beach here at Ruinbelt.”

“On the beach…?”

Harto’s eyes went wide.

“I’ll explain the details later. Time is of the essence, so I’m going to get to work! First, I’ll set up a defensive barrier here!”

“I’ll help too.”

Leon quickly drew a magic circle in the air and erected a barrier. The prophet, apparently capable of magic as well, assisted Leon by layering a second barrier over the first.

“What should I do? I want to help too…!”

“Harto!”

As Harto shouted, Ser grabbed his hand to stop him.

Harto turned to look at Ser and saw concern in his eyes.

“You don’t need to help.”

Ser shook his head and spoke firmly.

“Harto, the Demon King is about to wake up.”

“……!”

Harto’s eyes widened in shock at the devastating news. He had anticipated this to some extent after removing the Demon King’s heart from his own body, but he hadn’t truly expected a resurrection.

“Is… is there no way to seal the Demon King away again…?”

“Archpriest Edmund and Cynthia are attempting to reseal the Demon King, but…”

Just as Ser said, in front of the altar within the ruined Demon Castle, Allen and Robert were fending off swarms of monsters while protecting the two of them.

“The biggest problem, however, is that the gate to the Demon Realm has fully opened.”

“The gate to the Demon Realm…?”

“Yes. Now that it’s open, monsters will keep coming, and as the land becomes increasingly tainted, more undead will flock here as well. That’s why we plan to escape immediately once Leon finishes the teleportation spell. We have to hold out somehow until then.”

Ser explained this before switching places with Leon. He then used his alchemy to inscribe a formula on the ground to make the barrier sturdier.

“Harto, please give me your arm.”

“My arm…?”

Leon approached, took a piece of magic chalk from his pocket, ​Read on​and drew a magical formula onto Harto’s arm and the back of his hand.

“Perhaps because of the dragon mark carved into the rock here, the monsters seem reluctant to approach. But that won’t last forever; it’s only a matter of time. We need to escape this place as soon as possible.”

“Escape to where…?”

“Long distance travel isn’t possible, so I intend to cast a teleportation spell targeting the coordinates of the Carseon fleet waiting at sea. The formula I drew on your arm ensures that you go first…”

“You mean I’m supposed to escape first?”

When Harto challenged him on this, Leon glanced around awkwardly and quietly swapped places with Ser.

Harto immediately turned to Ser.

“Ser, I can’t do that… We have to help each other and make it out together. I can’t just leave alone…”

“Harto, I’m sorry! I promised Zed I’d get you out of here first!”

Ser shouted urgently and glanced at the prophet. It was a signal to hold Harto back so he wouldn’t break away and rush into the battlefield.

The prophet stepped up beside Harto.

“E-everyone… please don’t do this.”

Harto looked on the verge of tears.

“Harto, you only just got your new heart. You mustn’t push yourself too hard.”

Ser gently tried to reason with him.

But Harto shook his head vigorously.

“B-but everyone is risking their lives fighting! I can’t just run away without doing anything!”

Even at this very moment, everyone was locked in a desperate battle for survival. Yet, while the situation had escalated to this point, he had simply been sleeping soundly. He had to help them. He had to do something. No, he felt a powerful conviction that he absolutely had to act.

“There is one way you can help.”

Just then, the prophet spoke up in a calm voice.