Chapter 15
Chapter 15
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 15
Chapter Title: Dragon Shadow (4)
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“Filthy beasts!”
She roared as she swung her sword. The forest orc blocked it with its thick blade. It trusted in its much larger frame compared to hers and the protective magic shielding it.
But the result was gruesome.
Kwaak!
In a single strike, the forest orc’s weapon shattered, and its body exploded as if torn apart by massive fangs, scattering in all directions. Blood droplets and chunks of flesh sprayed out like an eruption.
Arietta’s movements were even faster than the flying blood droplets. The moment she felled the first foe, she activated Flash Step, appearing amidst the forest orcs in an instant.
The orcs couldn’t track her at all. Before they could even turn their heads, Arietta’s sword rushed forward, then vanished with Flash Step, shifting her position once more.
Paaang!
Arietta’s sword was finally blocked when she targeted a forest orc a full head taller than the others. It spewed a pale yellow-white flame-like force, halting her attack.
Fudududuk!
As Arietta’s flowing white hair settled, the blood and flesh from the first forest orc she’d slain rained down. Right after, seven forest orcs collapsed, spurting blood.
All this happened in the blink of an eye, before the soaring blood droplets could fall. It was as if she moved along a different axis of time.
“Krurrrr...!”
The one who blocked Arietta’s sword was the leader of the forest orcs. Orcs were beings of the demonic realm, and among them, exceptional individuals with outstanding mana force occasionally appeared. These were far sturdier than others and wielded special powers through their mana force.
It had blocked Arietta’s attack by concentrating mana force into its sword, overlaying a field of light. But that was its limit.
Arietta glared at it with her sunset-hued eyes and said,
“You’re the first orc to withstand my strike.”
The height difference between them was eighty centimeters. In bulk, it was more than double.
“But that seems to have been your limit.”
Even so, the forest orc pressing against Arietta and her sword convulsed, unable to bear the downward force. Just blocking the blow had shaken its innards and buckled its knees halfway.
“Kwarrgh!”
At that moment, a massive shadow emerged from between the dense trees. A giant over five meters tall—an ogre.
Rough, thick gray skin like rock, a bald head, glowing red eyes, and a face like a vicious demon. The sheer terror of such a being approaching with the bulk of a house was overwhelming.
The ogre swung its log-thick arm.
Kwajak!
A towering tree struck by its arm snapped and toppled. But the ogre’s target had already vanished.
“Hmm.”
That target was Azel. He had used Flash Step to land on the ogre’s shoulder.
“Kuu?”
The ogre panicked. For a moment, it couldn’t tell where Azel had gone.
Ogres were called walking calamities for their immense power. The strength from their rock-like frames could tear humans apart with a finger, and they were agile enough that humans struggled to flee. Their hides were so tough that mere sword strikes rarely even scratched them.
But even ogres had weaknesses.
“Kaaaaah!”
The ogre let out a scream of agony. Azel had thrust his sword deep into its ear canal.
Azel released the sword and retreated, kicking the hilt with his foot. The hilt drove deeper into its skull, and soon the mana force within detonated inside.
“Kreeee...!”
The ogre’s eyes rolled back. No ogre could endure having its brain scrambled.
As the unconscious ogre’s body tilted, the nearby forest orcs scattered in horror. A thunderous crash like a collapsing house echoed as the ogre’s corpse hit the ground.
Kuuung!
6
“......”
Everyone was speechless. For such a terrifying ogre to die like that...
“Good thing I took out the troublesome one easily.”
Azel dropped to the ground and picked up one of the dead forest orcs’ swords. Seeing this, Arietta felt a sense of unfamiliarity.
‘I’ve never seen a man fight like that.’
It wasn’t just how he’d dealt with the ogre. She’d never seen anyone treat weapons so thoroughly as disposables. Even if he was using an enemy’s weapon, could he really discard it without hesitation like that?
Krrng! Karng!
The silence didn’t last. From another direction, blood wolves appeared, their red eyes gleaming. These massive beasts, the size of bulls with dark red fur, breathed black flames of curse from their maws.
Azel clicked his tongue.
“Really, all sorts.”
That wasn’t about the blood wolves.
Countless black tentacles erupted from the ground, wrapping around Azel. They were tentacles of magic made from darkness.
But just before they seized him, Azel escaped with Flash Step.
Pajijik!
The next instant, blue sparks flew from behind the hovering mage. Yet the mage didn’t panic and turned around.
“Pretty fast, but lacking power.”
As a high mage, he could accelerate his senses far beyond a normal person’s and always protected himself with various means. Azel’s Flash Step was still within his perceptual speed.
Azel’s sword had been blocked by the invisible barrier he’d set up. Azel had infused mana force into his sword, but it wasn’t enough to pierce the barrier.
Azel grumbled.
“Stabbed right where it hurts. Definitely lacking power.”
“You should die here.”
The mage turned fully, attempting to cast a spell. Or trying to.
Paak!
Azel’s sword, blocked by the barrier moments ago, sliced through the mage’s body as if by magic.
“Eh...?”
The mage groaned in disbelief. His face, shrouded in a veil of darkness, was surely etched with shock.
Puk!
Azel, still airborne, kicked the mage down and mounted him.
“I’ll return those words right back.”
Then Azel stabbed the mage’s heart, kicked the body away, and leaped into the air.
Kung!
The mage’s body plummeted, spraying blood.
“Full of openings.”
Azel muttered at the lifeless mage.
Just now, when Azel’s sword clashed with the barrier, the mage’s moment of leisure was foolish. In Azel’s era, doing that against a master-level Spirit Order practitioner was a fatal mistake deserving death.
‘To dispatch him this easily... He must know mana force synchronization, right?’
Azel had synchronized the mana force in his sword with the pattern in the mage’s barrier, neutralizing its repulsion.
Even for Azel, instantly grasping an enemy’s magic mana force pattern was impossible. He’d done it by calmly analyzing during contact, but the Dragon Shadow mage hadn’t even considered that, giving him seconds of leeway and paying the price.
In Azel’s time, mages in close combat constantly altered their mana force patterns and never allowed contact leisure—it was ironclad. But did this era’s mages lack that common sense?
Yet the dead mage’s skill was considerable.
‘He must’ve underestimated me as some nobody.’
True, a Spirit Order practitioner’s prowess generally scaled with their mana force. Beyond a certain level, that didn’t hold, but with Azel’s meager mana force, it was natural to let guard down.
Azel clicked his tongue at the bloodied sword.
“This one’s done for.”
It had cracked from clashing with the barrier, on the verge of breaking. Expecting quality from an orc sword was unrealistic.
Azel discarded it without regret and kicked up another from the ground, snatching it midair. Thanks to Arietta’s slaughter of the forest orcs, weapons littered the area.
Right after, he took a slight step sideways.
Kwang!
An invisible magic bullet grazed where his head had been. The explosion and dust cloud behind indicated it was lethal.
But Azel didn’t flinch and said,
“If you want revenge for your comrade, why hide? That sloppy sniping won’t work on me, Dragon Demon Hybrid.”
“Kuh...”
The groan came from about a hundred meters from the battlefield.
A Dragon Shadow member, hidden by magic, revealed himself. Dressed like the others, he was a Dragon Demon Hybrid exposing a dull bluish-gray Dragon Demon Stone on his hand.
Seeing him, Arietta tensed.
‘What method is he using?’
How could he fool her senses so easily? And...
‘How is that one detecting the enemy?’
Azel was effortlessly spotting foes she couldn’t sense.
Then the enemy Dragon Demon Hybrid raged.
“How dare a pathetic human kill our organization member!”
“Wow, that’s fresh. Is it trendy for Dragon Demon Hybrids to talk like Dragonkin these days?”
“Shut up!”
The Dragon Demon Hybrid drew his sword. Unlike the other Dragon Shadow members he’d faced, this one used a weapon.
“You who bear a name deserving death, Azel, know this: I am Zikel.”
“No clue what nonsense that’s supposed to mean. Care to explain?”
“No need. Wasting breath on a doomed sinner is pointless.”
Hwaaaaak!
Flames erupted behind Zikel, rapidly spreading and incinerating the forest.
Azel was startled.
“Starting a fire in a forest like this? Are you insane?”
Common sense dictated no fire attacks in a forest battlefield. Yet he openly set it ablaze?
Zikel sneered.
“Who cares if this forest burns? Now, Dragon Demon Princess, you can’t reach the fortress.”
“You set the fire to block me from the Western Border Fortress?”
Arietta was dumbfounded.
Zikel replied,
“Exactly.”
With flames spreading everywhere, even Arietta couldn’t easily reach the Western Border Fortress. She’d have to detour around the blaze, and Dragon Shadow would pursue her in the meantime.
Arietta asked,
“Why target me?”
“You’ll learn if you come with us.”
“Annoying pests!”
Arietta roared but couldn’t approach Zikel. Ogres, beasts, and forest orcs swarmed from all sides. Protecting her companions prevented reckless advances.
Zikel declared,
“Dragon Demon Princess, you’ll end up in our hands.”
Then he vanished into the massive flames, refusing to engage Azel or Arietta.