The Demon King's First General
Chapter 118: Stringless Puppeteer

Chapter 118: Stringless Puppeteer

On the outskirts of Frostbloom Kingdom, several horses were galloping as fast as possible. The men clad in armor and riding them were gritting their teeth, not out of anger or pain.

"Damn it! We’re still far away from the capital!" One of the knights yelled in disappointment.

They were anxious after hearing the news about the state of their city at the moment. Even the prince was contemplating whether they would arrive on time. He glanced for a second behind him and gulped after seeing the gorgeous lad stare back at him.

’If we manage to overcome this problem, the emperor’s wrath will come next.’ He sighed, realizing how doomed their current situation was.

"Don’t worry, we’ll make it on time!" The empire’s princess assured the prince.

Upon hearing her alluring voice and seeing the arc on her lips, which felt so enchanted, Flynn turned his head around as he felt his face hotter than the day.

’That’s not what I’m worrying about,’ he thought, exhaling a deep breath once more.

. . . . .

"Here! Is this enough, or do you still need some?" Sena, the mage, screamed at the top of her lungs as she heard their enemy’s mockery.

Out of nowhere, a giant fireball, enough to cover half of the castle ground, materialized as Sena finished her casting. With a flick of her hand, it paved its path towards Rain at an incredible speed. However, what happened next left the people dumbfounded; their eyes widened in shock as the ball of fire vanished, leaving a speck of traceless embers. Instead, a doll appeared standing in front of Rain; afterward, it hopped its way back to Djaneryse’s arms.

"I feel underestimated just now for you to attack my companion when you’re supposed to fight me. Perhaps... are you thinking that turning someone into a doll is the best that I can do?" Djaneryse voiced out while walking a few steps forward.

The disappearance of the fireball was her sole act all along. A while ago, as soon as she noticed the magic, she threw the doll she was holding, and the moment it opened its mouth, like a black hole, it sucked the energy that kept the spell from burning.

"I’m not as petty as you think; other than Him, no one is allowed to look down on me!" Djaneryse added, her voice filled with irritation.

The next moment, like a thunderstorm echoed in the castle grounds, the dozen of dolls lining in front of her merged into one.

The women stepped backward as they stared at the creature being born right before their eyes.

"M-Monster," Polar uttered in silence.

With a hideous appearance, it let out an ear-piercing scream—a single body with ten arms holding a sword in each of its hands. It had heads that were facing all directions.

Djaneryse walked towards the newly born doll.

"Perfect!" She grinned and extended her hand to tap the back of the creature.

The monster turned around afterwards and kneeled. Despite its position, it still had the same height as the woman, showcasing how tall it was. Then, with a sweet smile on her face, Djaneryse gestured her hand for the doll to stand. The next second, all the eyes on its head glared at the three women.

"They are all yours to play with, my child," Djaneryse stated.

"Charge and rip them apart," she added, and her laughter reverberated like a nightmare.

. . . . .

Rain puffed out plenty of smoke; he managed to get his hand on an ember before it vanished in thin air. Then, with a smirk, he looked in the direction where the doll monster was clashing against the women.

"You should get healed and help them; they will be corpses any second from now," Rain conveyed.

"They are not that weak to be defeated by a mere monster," Londaire answered as he raised his sword again, ignoring the wounds present on his body.

Upon hearing the mercenary, Rain couldn’t help but chuckle.

"It’s not the monster that’s the problem; it’s the one controlling it right now, the Stringless Puppeteer," he said.

Londaire looked at the fighting happening several distances away from him. Arctic was facing the monster with her sword, while Sena was providing support with her long-range spells. However, they were on a stalemate; they couldn’t penetrate the doll’s overwhelming defense, while Arctic was having a hard time dodging all the swords constantly slashing at her.

’She will collapse soon,’ Londaire thought.

Then he looked at the woman, who was watching the fight from afar. Aside from her hair that was swaying from the constant waves of energies, she was showing no other movements at all.

"Lumiel, speed buff," Londaire shouted, and her support did the thing he ordered without any question.

After analyzing his companion’s current situation, Londaire dashed towards Djaneryse with the thought of taking her down.

Without any dolls around her aside from the one she was hugging, the mercenary believed that he could kill her in that instance, though he still watched the woman’s companion, expecting him to intercept and protect his friend.

However, contrary to his expectations, Rain didn’t even lift a finger to prevent him from approaching his friend. Instead, he looked at him with a smirk, as if telling him to go and try, so he didn’t worry about him for the time being.

The next moment, Londaire leaped up and plunged downward, aiming the tip of his sword into Djaneryse’s head. Seconds before the collision, the doll resting on the woman’s arm gazed up, then opened its mouth and spit out a giant ball of fire.

"Londaire!" Lumiel yelled upon seeing her comrade collide with the sudden eruption of flame.

"Hmnn, for you to actually escape that, creating a pillar of energy right on time to propel yourself sideways, I commend you on that," Djaneryse said without averting her eyes from Arctic and her doll.

’So a sneak attack is not possible,’ Londaire thought.

Then he glanced at Rain, who was standing still, enjoying the scene while smoking.

’He won’t move for the time being, I guess,’ Londaire concluded.

So, he decided to unleash his Legacy and attack the puppeteer one more time.

. . . . .

Inside the castle, the king was sitting at the side of the bed while looking at his queen, who was catching her breath and writhing in pain. Since the day that the invaders came, she had fallen into this state, and even the best healer in the kingdom had failed to find a cure for her.

And now, those people were back to cause more suffering. The screeching sound of the battle outside was getting more intense as time went by.

"I can’t stay here any longer; our daughters need my support," he imparted.

Then he stood up and started to walk to the doorstep. Upon reaching the handle, he looked behind one more time before proceeding to leave with an indisputable expression of madness.

On his every step, the floor froze, turning the interior of the hallway into a tunnel of ice.

. . . . .

Meanwhile, Djaneryse knitted her brows and looked in the direction where the city entrance was located.

"It died; another one appeared," she thought, and a smile curled on her lips after placing her soft finger against it.

Then, without further ado, she called out to her companion before facing him.

"Rain, the doll I left at the city entrance was destroyed. Can you please have a look for the culprit? I’m quite occupied right now," she requested.

"Are you sure about that? The king will make his move soon, and there’s also that man hiding behind that pillar," Rain answered, and the golden piercings floating around him went back to his ears.

"Mr. Fluffy is enough to handle them," Djnaryse replied.

Then she lifted up the doll and spoke again.

"Right, Mr. Fluffy?" She asked, smiling, but she received no response from the hideous doll.

"If you say so, then I’ll go ahead," Rain said.

Djaneryse watched him fly away in the direction of the capital’s entrance, and as soon as he was gone from her sight, she turned around and looked at Londaire, who was concentrating at the moment.

His eyes were closed, and thin needles of ice were accumulating around him.

’Did he really think that those strands of ice could hurt me? Pathetic!’ Djaneryse exclaimed inside her thoughts.

She was waiting until the Diamond-class mercenary finished his preparations.

"Are you still not done yet?" She asked after almost a minute.

If she were to count the needles of ice, they would have already passed tens of thousands in numbers, and still, hundreds were being materialized every second.

’Boring,’ she thought, then glanced at her doll pushing the women around the corner.

The princess had small cuts all over her body, though she managed to stop the bleeding by freezing the wounds. Her usual calm expression was now showing uneasiness.

"She’s still beautiful despite her dreadful sight," Djaneryse uttered, her eyes sparkling as she stared at the princess.

The next second, she felt the pressure coming from the mercenary, and as she reverted her gaze back to him, she saw him staring at her while the millions of ice needles were nowhere to be found.

"Where are those tiny little strands?" Djaneryse asked, curiosity present on her face.

Londaire raised his hand and pointed at the puppeeter with his sword.

"A few centimeters around you," he stated.

Then Djaneryse felt something pierce her shoulder, and the next second, her whole body was punctured with millions of ice needles.

They were so thin that they blended perfectly with their surroundings, making them invisible to others’ eyes.

"W-What the..." Djaneryse tried to speak but found it hard to do so.

No blood was spilling out of her body aside from those that were flowing from her punctured eyes.

"Only an ounce of energy is present from each of those strands. Once they scatter through the air, there’s no way for anyone to detect them. My Legacy is perfect for assassination, but not in an honest battle," Londaire explained.

"Thank you for giving me enough time to prepare," he added.

After saying his piece, Londaire turned around to walk towards the princess, leaving the dying puppeteer.

’So, the doll can still move despite its owner’s state,’ he thought.

However, a sudden burst of laughter made him look back.

"Ahhhh, what was the last time I suffered this kind of pain and humiliation? Ahhh! Yes! I remembered! Celestine! That witch!" Djaneryse chuckled as she tried to move every part of her body.

Afterward, the doll monster moved back in front of her. The cold made her muscles contract, giving her a very hard time moving, though she still placed her hand on the monster’s back, and a set of eyes disappeared from one of its heads.

. . . . .