“Yumi?” everyone shouted in surprise. None of them expected her to jump in that direction. They figured that working on the city would be what she wanted to do. Whatever that could be done to protect the citizens.

She turned to face all of her friends. “We need an accurate read of the situation if we’re going to prepare a defense. And I doubt, no offense Lord Konjo, that they have anyone as fast as us.”

“Not all of us,” commented Yuki, referring to him and Nerine.

“That’s why you two are staying behind.”

“What?!”

“Yumi’s right about this, Yuki.” Saki stepped out alongside Yumi for the plan that seemed to be coming together. “We can move quickly and get back before the end of the day with a report. If we only have a week, speed is going to be paramount.”

“And if you get into trouble?”

“It’s just a scouting mission, Yuki. We’ll be fine.” Yumi approached Yuki lifting up his hands. “Thank you for your worry, but you can do more here.” She looked over at Nerine and then back at the Lord. Even without them in the city, they still had a defense to raise. “They can help with the defense of the city, Lord Konjo.”

“Is that true? We would greatly welcome anything that you can offer.” A hopeful look in the Lord’s eyes appeared. While he clearly kept it hidden very well. The offer of something that might give them survival nearly broke him, a man that already accepted death.

Yuki leaned in to whisper to Yumi a little concerned about what she might be suggesting. “I can’t be using my powers, Yumi.”

“Just be creative. I trust you.” Yumi pulled away from him and motioned for the others to move to the door. She looked over her shoulder at her rival in the silent corner he kept. “You’re coming with us too.” The demon quickly obeyed without question. “Lord Konjo, if you give us the location to investigate.”

“Oh yes, thank you. I’ll inform the Council of this as well. They’ll be very pleased.”

“The Association’s going to have a fit,” Saki commented as they walked out of them.

“Like I care about them,” Yumi replied.

Yuki watched them depart the hall leaving him with Nerine in the room. He crossed his arms weighing on everything that happened. The turn of events wasn’t anything like he expected. Extra complications added to the situation, surviving the demon invasion wouldn’t be the last thing that they had to deal with now. But the way Yumi handled everything impressed him. “She’s changed and gotten stronger. Shame that Yori can’t see it.”

“She’s become skilled in manipulating too.”

“Noticed that as well. Yeah, pretty clever calling me out knowing that I’m not going to want people to be killed, even if they’re just digital projections. We don’t have an easy task, Nerine.”

“Yes, sir.”

“Nerine.”

“Sorry, I slipped.”

Chapter 429 – Longing Desires

Outside the mansion, Yumi looked up into the sky. They had a map on them along with the information from the Lord about their destination. All they had to do was scout out the developments and report back, but it still made her nervous knowing that they were going into an army with a Demon Lord.

Saki gave her a comforting pat on the back letting her know that they were all ready. She had a course, she had to keep her resolve. The future was still undecided. They still had time to figure out a way.

Hovering off the ground, she picked up the others with her power before flying into the air. They agreed going out the front would only be more problematic for them given their current situation with the Association. And they also had no time to waste walking out of the city. Taking to the air would be the fastest way for them to move.

Yumi kept them all nearby her as she increased her speed getting more used to flying. It was still something a little new for her. She had flown many times before, but it was always while fighting and her mind wasn’t focused on the ins and outs of the whole thing. The comfort of flight was unfamiliar.

At her right side, she had Saki with the map out keeping an eye on their route. They could quickly make corrections based off anything she saw. While Seiji above her kept an eye out for any trouble. There was no certainty that there were no demons out ahead of the main force. Then taking the left side was Manekamaru, who acted like he enjoyed the free ride.

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She glanced over at the demon. “How many Demon Lords are there?” The report hadn’t been fully revealed, so they had no idea on who the Demon Lord might be. And that was relying on the scouts that made the report actually being able to identify which of the Demon Lords it could be.

“Each of the major clans is led by a Lord, but there are many smaller clans. When we arrived we came with five major households. So long as our intelligence remains accurate, they are all still alive.”

“Given how powerful yours is I guess I shouldn’t be surprised. Any thoughts on which it might be leading the demons?”

The question left him in thought for a while as he considered an answer. Weighing the different personalities and realities made it difficult for him to make a clear answer. “If I had a guess, then it would likely be Lord Guri. He was the one that opposed the end of the fighting and is the only still active Lord.”

Yumi nodded with the sound logic. Though it was merely a guess, she had to see it for herself to find out what was really happening. “How does Guri compare to your Lord?”

“He is weaker in power, but he’s a Lord still.”

‘Meaning that he’s still very powerful and I can’t even beat Manekamaru straight out. So I’m not going to stand a chance at all against this Guri demon. My only hope is getting a sneak attack, but that didn’t even have a chance against the other Demon Lord…’ Her body still clearly remembered that power. It wasn’t something that she wanted to feel again. Yet no matter what happened, she knew she would. Such a day made her body cold.

She tried to focus away from the memories. “What sort of demon is Guri?”

“Young by comparison to the other Lords. He joined the war looking for honor and now is filled with nothing, but hate and regret. Unlike the others, he never found any sort of comfort in this world. He’s rash and quick to act, but still a skilled warrior able to leverage the aggressive fighting style to his strength.”

Facing down a Demon Lord no matter how much weaker than Manekamaru’s Lord wasn’t going to be something Yumi could do. She understood that much. And to make it worse, this one was aggressive meaning it would be even harder for her to sneak up on. He was probably always on edge and ready for an attack. ‘We’re going to need something that can turn this battle around…’ Yumi didn’t like the direction things headed in this world. It felt like she would lose no matter what she did.

As they approached the last reported area from the scouts, Yumi landed on the ground releasing everyone. They took cover within a forest as the mountains rose in all directions. Nothing from the sky was visible of a marching demon army. It gave her a bit of hope that maybe the reports were exaggerated or false.

Quietly, they began their march through the forest. According to the little bit that they got from Lord Konjo, the scouts came from this area in their search. Which was just as likely that the demons might have left. But a large enough force would be easy to track. They just needed to find any evidence if they had left. Yumi wished that she stuck around long enough to get the full details of the report, but they could not waste time. She needed to act.

The forest remained still, oddly still. A familiar feeling for Yumi in her time fighting demons. ‘Even if I can’t hear a demon, I can’t hear anything. They’ve been here or nearby still…’ Her mind remained in conflict to which she wanted to be true. A bit of excitement snuck into her muscles as she approached closer. She wanted to know what she would see once she exited the forest. Would it be the demons waiting for her? Would they attack now?

Any question that she had for their mission came to an end quickly. The forest edge came up and the peak of the mountain revealed itself once more. It rose up higher into the sky surrounded by thick white clouds. Snow might be falling, but it would do nothing to lighten the darkness being cast over the mountain.

“Dammit, I can’t see anything from here.”

They had a poor angle on the mountain in their position. Yumi didn’t want to risk the air with what she felt in the atmosphere. She didn’t know what sort of demons were in the army or what abilities that they possessed. Secrecy was more important. But because they couldn’t see anything they needed to get closer. All that was visible was a haze over the mountain that distorted the air. “What is that?” Her first reaction was torches, but it didn’t have the same sort of color and left her stomach with a sick feeling that she only felt once before, against the demon army.

“The mass of demonic energy. What you’re seeing is the effect that power has on nature. This only happens when either someone of immense power is present or a large number of demons.” Manekamaru stared deeply into the distance. A longing expression seemed to appear as though he felt some nostalgia. It looked to be drawing him forward.

“This isn’t anything like before,” Yumi groaned, feeling how her body reacted. It wasn’t nearly as strong of a feeling as with the Demon Lord, but she didn’t like the feeling and the near comparable sensation it gave. Something that rivaled that power.

Manekamaru nodded, distracted by the sight. “Not since the start of the war have I seen a sight like this.”

“That’s not a positive image,” muttered Saki. She already felt the doom of inevitability that permeated the world. Everything she saw only enforced that feeling she had. Doubt changed to certainty. It made her body shake. Her hands clenched together unsettled by the weakening nerves she felt.

Yumi marched out of the forest taking the lead. Their demon companion followed willingly as Saki and Seiji went cautiously with some reluctance. Each step they made the mountain lowered the veil on the demon army. Before they realized it, they were at the ridge of the valley looking down into a deep basin between mountains.

Far below them rested the amassed demon army. Yumi’s mouth fell open with a gasp as the others stared in shock. What they saw before them was even more than their minds could prepare them for. It paled in comparison. They had been calling it an army what they fought, but it felt inaccurate a word now. What they saw in the valley truly was an army, while they had only fought a company or battalion. The numbers were beyond counting.

Minutes passed staring in silence, not even aware of their own risk or danger. Yumi snapped back to reality and began searching around the demon camp. There were so many different types that she had never seen before. They all looked unique and she couldn’t pick out the strong from the weak. She really wished for an ability to sense power.

Looking over at the distracted Manekamaru, she grabbed his shoulder to get his attention. “Where’s this Lord Guri?”

“He’s by that circle of demons shouting out orders.”

Yumi changed her sight, fixing her view. A commanding demon barked out orders to the demons looking pissed off at something. They were too far away to hear anything, but she could see he didn’t look pleased. At their distance, she could remember his appearance, the one that she would be facing in the future.

A human appearing demon, like Manekamaru and the Lord she met before. He had a skilled appearance that looked flawless. There was no hint of him seeming like a demon. Though he had a tall and muscular presence. She assumed that their form was something that they crafted. It made it very clear he valued the intimidation factor. Easily two and half meters tall, it was the first sign that he wasn’t human. An inhuman height, though he had a wild red mane of hair that flowed back to stand up on end as the longer strains draped over his shoulders. Through his kimono styled clothes his thick chest bulged out with the tips of his tight abs appearing. The height of martial and masculinity, if physical appearance was the judge.

A dangerous foe.

Then a gasp came from Manekamaru that surprised Yumi. While he looked longingly at the presence and seemed to want to go down to join his kin, nothing about it did much to stir any other reaction. Everything seemed to fit within his expectations. Yet something had shocked him, for a demon that had seen it all. Yumi didn’t think that she would find anything that caught him off guard.

“What is it? What’s wrong?”

“It’s Lord Hokuren! The General of our army, the oldest of the Demon Lords. He’s returned!”