It's natural for the two of them to be wondering. Even though management will be difficult, it's better to divide the load among multiple people to spread the risk.

Aria opened her mouth quietly, as if thinking.

"For example, there's a possibility that we weren't able to prepare enough high-quality recovery items."

Aria had simply spoken what was on her mind.

However, Luna nodded as if she had accepted it just a little.

"...Yes, that's right. Perhaps it was a simple reason like that after all."

After Luna chuckled, Sofia instructed the knight nearby, who was holding a map, to record the location where the recovery items were buried.

"For now... what we need to do... is properly record the location of the barrier... because we've been through a lot."

Sofia said, her tone slightly dissatisfied.

Aria immediately understood the reason. After all, if the Great Saintess had simply recorded the exact location of the barrier's core, there would have been no need to risk a blind investigation.

"Sofia. The barrier seems to be holding up pretty well, right?"

"Yeah. And once it's properly broken in, it'll unfold like it used to."

"Oh, I see. So, with Darius-sensei's recovery tools, there's no problem after all!"

"That's not a problem at all. In fact, since there's a lot more we can do with it than with the old recovery tools... I think the barrier will become much stronger from now on."

Seeing Sofia puff out her chest a little proudly, Aria felt the same way.

And so, everyone advanced toward Aldrian.

To give the knights more combat experience, they had been fighting with them at the center, but as they got closer to Aldrian, their injuries became more noticeable.

As long as Sofia is here, any minor damage can be quickly healed, but even so, it was clear that dense magical power filled the area around Aldrian.

At the end of the first lap, the knights were catching their breath.

"...What strength. They're not even comparable to those guys from Tigress."

"...Is it really? To think that was just the beginning..."

As she listened to the knights trying to catch their breath, Aria also nodded.

The monsters around Aldrian had become just as strong as those around the barrier where Darius was.

It was probably because they had been exposed to such long and dense magic for so long.

(...Everyone's pretty exhausted. If it weren't for Sofia's support magic... we probably wouldn't have made it this far with just the knights. It's dangerous to continue investigating the capital at this pace, but... hmm, what should we do?)

So far, the allied forces have suffered no casualties.

However, how far they could fight on Aldrian was the part that concerned her.

It was a close fight, relying on Sofia's support magic. By repeating this, the knights' skill and physical strength improved.

Even so, it's still minimal, and it would be difficult to handle combat without Sofia's support going forward.

And then, a few days after they began their advance.

They saw a city surrounded by massive city walls.

However, the sight was too painful. The city walls were crumbling everywhere, a testament to the ferocity of the monster attacks. And most obviously, as a clear sign of the abnormal situation, the entire city was covered in a sinister, purple magical energy.

"Wh-what is that...!? Is the space...distorting...?"

One of the knights muttered in disbelief. Luna answered the question with a stern expression.

"No, that's not it. The magic power there is too dense... it seems to be visualizing."

"...I think I saw something similar on the battlefield a long time ago."

Baldus also nodded quietly.

The two of them seem accustomed to it, but the other young knights are simply standing frozen in fear at the sight of something so ominous.

Aria also frowned at the scene.

(...Somehow, I just can't get into this kind of thing. It feels a bit... lonely, this kind of magic.)

"...Verrier-sama, are you sure that's Aldrian over there?"

In response to Sofia's question, Verrier slowly nodded.

"...Yes. That is the Aldrian Capital."

The distortion of the scenery caused by the dense magical power was exactly like hell made manifest.

Needless to say, everyone is intimidated, and Aria shouts so that everyone can hear her.

"All troops, halt! Before entering the capital, we will conduct a final operational check and rest!"

At Aria's command, everyone slowly nodded, and it was decided that they would take a break and confirm the operation again.

Chapter 51