+++ Lieutenant Hans Hoffman +++

"Glory to the Empire!"

"Long live mankind!"

It seemed that Hans was back in this moment after his speech at Fort Stahl. In front of him were the most veteran men from the 1st Anti-Demon Unit, all of them cheering his words with great zeal.

Many of them would be dead soon.

Hans however kept his smile on, as he looked to his side, noticing the confident smiles and grins of his fellow officers.

I died again…

It hurt, it definitely hurt so badly that he could feel every fiber of his being trembling from fear. His body wanted none of that pain, none of it. He could even say that it in fact wanted to run away from it.

The fear of being obliterated by that flail was deep and primal.

But his mind, oh, his mind thought differently. That damned bastard laid one of the finest traps out there for them. They were supposed to be her captors, but instead, they found themselves in one of the stickiest situations since the campaigns against Recklessness and Injustice.

"We can't underestimate this one," Hans suddenly muttered with a small grin.

That gained Adelyn's attention beside him. She seemed to be suddenly mortified by Hans's demeanor, his sudden change quite obvious to her.

"H-hans? Um…what happened? Why are you?"

"We're moving into a trap," Hans said, conviction clear in his words. "We're not facing 'lesser demons' today. No."

Cowardice, you damned bastard…

Yeah, sure, sit prettily over there as you wait for us.

You knew we'd come, didn't you?

Right, I see how it is.

The way she smiled at them, the way she arrogantly stood there assured that she would win, the way she even declared that they shouldn't take their attention off her. Cowardice, she turned herself into the freshest bait out there for a trap she would be a part of.

Part of Hans felt some sort of respect for the creature. Like him, she wasn't afraid to stick out her neck so foolishly just for a chance of victory. Indeed, to do such a thing against him and his team was insanity.

They were the only formation of soldiers that had, as of now, nearly a hundred percent victory rate against the demons. Not even three calamities managed to stop them, yet she stepped into a situation where she might not escape just to defeat Hans.

Indeed, how bold, and insane.

Kinda like myself.

Hans turned to Adelyn.

"I don't think the demon we're aiming for is normal," Hans said, his tone hushed. "Are you prepared to quickly summon your ideal once we arrive?"

"Um…sure…"

"And I need to conduct a reshuffle."

"What do you mean?"

"We're going to focus on the humanoid demon assigned to the 1st Anti-Demon Unit. I just know it. It'd be the most important and dangerous target of the day, because it's trying to lure us."

"I…I'm not sure how you came to this conclusion."

Adelyn seemed skeptical, but most of all, she seemed deathly worried. Hans was still feeling that raging adrenaline coursing through him, both fueled by the desire for revenge and deep, primal fear.

But it was broken when he felt Adelyn's soft hands touch his shoulder.

"But I trust you," Adelyn plainly declared. "What's your plan then? I'll do everything to get it done."

Hans stared at her beautiful, gentle, and most of all caring face. Trust, huh? That was something he usually forgot, the fact that this woman, who fought side-by-side with him trusted him so much that she'd listen to Hans' mad ramblings that would come out of the blue.

The comfort that idea gave to him was almost enough to bring him to tears, especially after being killed so brutally.

But he remained steely.

"Just a little shift, that's all we'll need…"

+++

The brief reorganization that Hans had requested sent the high-ups of the Ygeian Expeditionary Forces into quite a stir. It was unexpected, and it came out of nowhere, so of course, a lot of questions were asked, and a lot of bullshit was made, mostly by Hans.

In any case, his newly revised plan was simple.

He didn't know how Cowardice managed to find out that they were coming for her, so Hans didn't want to make massive changes. Each brigade of the Ygeian Expeditionary Force was still moving at the same assigned routes, and Elisa was expected to guide them through the battlefield.

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What changed was that Hans now packed the 1st Anti-Demon Unit with every capability he could bear. He bolstered their guns by adding eight cannons to the formation, then he added extra battlemages from other formations into them.

He'd also given Elisa instructions about making sure that the 3rd and 4th Anti-Demon Brigades would use routes that would make them converge into the 1st Anti-Demon Unit's positions.

Secondly, he took Lady Emilia and Miss Valeria with the 1st Anti-Demon Unit, giving them an explicit warning to deploy rapidly once battle began. He also gave specific instructions to Ebert and Jonas to position their troops at a two-mile distance from the demon they would target, before moving forward once Hans, Adelyn, Emilia, and Valeria engaged in the fight.

That, and he broke their plans about using minimal firepower to avoid killing the demon. Instead, he told them that they should overwhelm the bastard with the most lethal capabilities they had early on, and that they should not hold back, at all.

"But how would we detain it?" Elisa asked.

"Based on these changes, I presume that you suspect that this 'lesser demon' is a calamity, no?" General Kohler followed.

Hans nodded his head to General Kohler, and that also answered Elisa's question. It was quite obvious. If they were facing a calamity, then they would have to go all in. It wasn't like such a creature would die so easily anyway. They could take so much punishment before being sufficiently weakened, that this was a feasible plan.

"How sure are you that it's a calamity?" Adelyn curiously asked again.

"I don't know. We'll know once we get there," Hans said. "I hope I'm wrong."

"Your perception is quite scary, and I'm saying that as someone with the powers of the Angel of Love," the Empress said, her gloved hand underneath her chin. "Now you're making me cast doubts about my abilities, but I suppose it'd make sense. If one of them is indeed a calamity, they might have a chance to counter my ability."

That made enough sense to everyone, and soon, General Kohler approved the modified plan. They set out at once.

+++

+++ Unknown +++

"They're taking way too long…"

The Calamity of Cowardice stood still in her position. She was a graceful woman, her noble features and demeanour that of a refined lady. Well, she once was a refined lady of great standing.

The memories she had of her life before her corruption were vague, however. Cowardice could scarcely recall anything, as it dated back to the age when the 'Republic' and the 'Empire' fought.

Ah…yes…

Indeed, this was the feeling she went through during that day when she turned.

She felt like she was being watched. Even with her protective skill that masked everything about her, even the abilities of any of the great angels of virtue, she felt fear overwhelming her body. So much fear, that it felt like it was enough to make her puke.

Indeed, she remembered that day. She did puke. While she couldn't fully recall it, her life before that had been so peaceful and perfect, that when that day came, she was nothing but a twig that shattered from the cruel world's fiery breath.

She remembered running away from what she didn't know, but she ran away.

She was a coward. She still was, right now. When she received this assignment from her master, Cowardice remembered her legs trembling. Chase and confront the Empress herself? How could she do it?

She revelled in killing civilians, watching their blood flow so freely as she slaughtered them all, and they ran from her. Their fear and cowardice at confronting her filled her with such joy, as she felt like she belonged in this world more.

Indeed, she wasn't alone in being a coward. It was a comforting thought, and it made her mind joyful.

Now, she was about to prove that again. She was being watched, and they definitely were moving toward her. The western forces, whatever they were, were said to be capable of raising armies that could confront them. They even killed three calamities already in cold blood.

Such was the tide she was facing alone, alongside her lesser demon companions. Each time she received vague calls from them about the movement of the enemy, the immensity of what she faced only became more and more true.

She was about to face a foe so undefeatable, that standing here was foolish. But, she had a plan, and she'd finish it. She was the Calamity of Cowardice. Ever since she turned to this, she vowed to never run again, like the pathetic human swine she once was, and the pathetic human swine she slaughtered, and the pathetic human swine about to come from her.

Maybe this was foolish, but she wanted to revel in their fear and cowardice as well. She wanted to drive them back, scared, bloodied, and in mourning.

And so, she stood still, as she noticed them finally arriving. Her sole weapon of terror, her trusty flail, moved gracefully as she readied herself into her fighting position.

The Grey Knight, huh?

He was moving closer to her, eyeing her with that inhuman and alien machine of hers, something which she had only seen from the Calamity of Injustice.

How disgusting. That machine hid any expression of cowardice from that creature.

But she could feel it, and now…

She wanted to reveal it.

+++

+++ Lieutenant Hans Hoffman +++

The rest of the journey to reach this place had gone without a hitch.

Just like last time, they passed through all the lesser demons unabated, without much complications, owing to the proper guidance given by the Empress for their routes.

Still, Hans remained in full high alert throughout the ride, knowing that this wasn't going to be a simple detainment operation. No, this was going to be a hard battle, just to verify the truth.

He could even feel it from his allies. Whenever the Empress gave her reports, her voice was strained and unsure, gone was her earlier confidence in Hans' past loop. Of course, the revelation that an ability she placed all of her faith in could be wrong was something that wasn't going to be received well by her.

Still, it seemed like she was trying hard.

Adelyn was no different. Whenever she and Hans conversed, her tone was stiff, paranoid, and dreadfully concerned. Considering the number of demons they were sneaking through, it only made sense. Even with their strength now, Adelyn knew how much trouble it would be if this battle went sideways, and these demons swarmed them.

The rest of the Army though, not knowing the changes to their plans, were moving forward with gusto. They still believed that this was an operation they were well-prepared for, and that they wouldn't encounter a calamity, but a simple lesser demon.

That was broken when they finally arrived at the position taken by Cowardice.

The change of orders became clear. Colonel Strobel was moving cautiously, and they could see that Adelyn was summoning her ideal in advance, while two of the most powerful Imperial Mage Corps members—Lady Emilia and Miss Valeria, were with them, instead of being attached to the other teams that would target other lesser demons.

Most of all, in the distance, Cowardice stood still, that graceful smile of hers plastered on her face as she audaciously stood still in the face of their combined power.

But Hans was different. As he eyed her, a thought came to his mind.

This time, you're going to fall on your knees and talk.

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