Ending Maker Chapter 93
Ending Maker Chapter 93
Chapter 32 - Legal Guardian
The enemy's numbers had not changed.
Excluding the sacrifices brought for the ritual, the number of combat troops had not changed.
But Yuder's face no longer held the same concern as when he had first faced the enemy.
And the same was true of Cordelia.
"Let's do hammer and anvil!"
As soon as Yuder caught up to her, Cordelia shouted as if she had been waiting.
Hammer and anvil.
A smile spread across Yuder's face as well.
"I'm the anvil?"
"I'm the hammer!"
It was decided.
What Cordelia had in mind differed somewhat from the standard hammer-and-anvil tactic, but they could already understand each other with a glance. With words added to that, no further explanation was necessary.
"I'm counting on you!"
"Me too!"
Thud!
Yuder kicked forcefully off the ground to build even more momentum. In an instant, he more than doubled his speed and shot away from Cordelia like a beam of light, whipping up a violent whirlwind in his wake.
Boom!
Black Wind Arrival.
Tearing through the wind, Yuder took in the entire battlefield.
He identified the positions of the tomb guardians roaring upon Solari's land, and he saw Blue Beard heaving himself upright beyond them.
And that was not all.
The enemy's positions.
The enemy's numbers.
The position of Bilvain, whom Yuder himself had to pin down as the anvil!
Thud!
He accelerated once more.
Startled by the thunderous noise and the gale, every enemy turned to look at Yuder, and among them was Bilvain.
'A mid-grade Demonic Human.'
And among them, he was a named enemy ranked near the top.
But what did that matter?
"Ha!"
Yuder spun his body.
The whirlwind and the gale swirled together as he rotated, scattering the surrounding snow and momentarily blocking the enemies' vision.
Yuder saw Bilvain reflexively raise his shield and take a defensive stance. Satisfied, he focused the strength of his entire body into his feet.
Black Dragon Cross Strike—True.
He had added the dragon crest to the Black Dragon Cross Strike.
Because of that, the black dragon's energy had grown stronger.
Yuder's back kick, delivered as he spun in midair, exploded against Bilvain's shield. The blow, closer to a push kick than a rolling sobat, unleashed terrifying force along with a jet-black cross.
BOOOOM—!
Bilvain's defense, comparable to a castle wall, held firm.
Despite the monstrous impact, his guard did not break.
But he could not avoid being driven far backward.
Bilvain was pushed back more than twenty meters, and in that instant, he became completely isolated from his subordinates.
And Yuder charged again.
He whipped the whirlwind and gale up even larger, turning them into something like a tornado that enclosed himself and Bilvain.
The scattering snow once again cut Yuder and Bilvain off from everyone's sight.
"Black Knight Bilvain."
He was a strong man.
In a one-on-one duel, he was a peerless fighter whom almost none of the Devil's Eye's mid-grade Demonic Humans could match.
"But."
Yuder knew Bilvain's level.
He also knew his combat patterns, and he had every trait and weakness memorized.
'Not long ago, I couldn't even have faced him.'
But now it was different.
Yuder had gained nearly 20 levels since his fight with Madga in Gentle Snow Breeze's land.
His physical abilities alone had become incomparably stronger, and on top of that, he had newly opened three gates of the Nine Heavens Nine Gates.
'And then the stat bonuses on top of that.'
He was far stronger than an ordinary level-55 playable character.
By a simple calculation, his stats were equivalent to those of someone above level 60.
'Bilvain's level is 62.'
It really was high.
But he could fight him.
He was more than capable of serving as the anvil and keeping Bilvain pinned down.
"I am Yuder Bayel of the Count Bayel Household. Black Knight Bilvain, I challenge you to a duel."
When Yuder suddenly spoke with formal courtesy, Bilvain flinched, but he soon assumed a knightly posture and answered.
"Black Knight Bilvain. I accept your challenge."
Bilvain, who came from a fallen knightly house, still took pride in his family even after becoming a demon worshipper.
The fact that he even showed a hint of pleasure when Yuder courteously requested a duel was proof of that.
'Good, that bought a few seconds.'
If he added a little more courtesy and exchanged a few more words, he could easily buy twenty seconds.
"I have long heard of the Black Knight's great renown. It is an honor to face you today."
"I too knew the name of the Count Bayel Household. It is likewise an honor to cross swords with a scion of a distinguished house."
Ah, Bilvain. Ah, Bilvain.
Yuder clenched his fist and spoke again, and Bilvain answered just as earnestly.
The whirlwind spinning with the snow blocked not only their vision but also most ordinary sounds, and so the two of them could focus solely on each other as if they stood in an isolated space.
"Here I come."
"Come, scion of a distinguished house."
Yuder waited until Bilvain finished his solemn declaration, then immediately kicked off the ground.
Though his opponent was weakened by Solari's land, he was still the Black Knight Bilvain.
He was a swordmaster against whom a single moment of carelessness could mean death.
SWISH!
Bilvain's sword shot toward Yuder's chest.
It was not a simple thrust. He had read Yuder's path and stabbed into the position Yuder would inevitably reach—a truly unavoidable strike.
So Yuder did not dodge.
As if he had known from the start how Bilvain would attack, Yuder intercepted the sword with his gauntleted forearm and smoothly knocked the thrust off course.
SMACK!
Yuder drove into Bilvain's guard. In that instant, Bilvain's shield came at him like a wall, but Yuder was not flustered this time either. Strikes using the shield were one of Bilvain's specialties, after all.
WHOOSH!
A wind rose.
The Black Knight Bilvain's attribute was earth, so Yuder had used every piece of equipment available to set himself up for the wind attribute.
That was also why the whirlwind remained stronger than usual.
CRASH—!
The wind blunted the force of the shield attack, if only a little. Yuder spun his body once more, fully driving into Bilvain's guard, and at the same time, he shoved hard against Bilvain's chest with his back.
Thud!
The strike, reminiscent of Bājíquán's Iron Mountain Lean, pushed Bilvain back—but only briefly.
As if putting down roots, Bilvain quickly righted his stance and swung his sword at Yuder again. No—he tried to swing it.
SMACK!
It was blocked.
Before the sword could trace its proper arc, Yuder's arm struck Bilvain's arm away.
The instant he cut off the attack, Yuder spun again and drove his free hand into Bilvain's side.
CLANG!
At the close-range blow, Bilvain's armor rang like a bell.
"Guh!"
The moment Bilvain stepped backward, Yuder let out a breath. He gritted his teeth and unleashed the Thunderclap Strike.
BOOM!
A lightning-like seven-strike chain poured down on Bilvain, but Bilvain was no pushover either.
Using his shield, he blocked every single one of Yuder's attacks.
CLANG! CLANG! CLANG!
Metal rang out, and the earth energy coating Bilvain's shield sent damage back into Yuder.
It was fortunate that he had fully set himself up with the wind attribute; otherwise, Yuder, the attacker, might have taken even greater damage instead.
SHING—!
That was the moment.
Bilvain, who had been entirely on the defensive, swung his sword with terrifying speed, and the strike flew toward Yuder's neck.
Yuder knew this attack and had braced himself for it in advance.
But even so, he could barely dodge it.
Yuder dropped low enough to avoid the slash, though a few strands of hair were severed and sent flying. Bilvain's knee then shot toward his face.
SMACK!
Yuder caught Bilvain's knee with his palm. He yielded to Bilvain's shoving force and leaped far backward.
Thud!
It was the sound of Bilvain's foot slamming into the ground after it had just sent Yuder flying backward.
Instantly steadying his stance, Bilvain fired a continuous stream of sword energy at Yuder.
SHK-SHK-SHK!
As if daring him to dodge, three arcs of sword energy traced different trajectories.
So Yuder did not dodge. He canceled out the sword energy itself with the Black Dragon Cross Strike.
CRASH!
The cross-shaped strike and the sword energy annihilated each other.
Having forced out his power too quickly, Yuder swallowed a groan as he landed. Bilvain had already kicked off the ground.
As if determined to press Yuder, he closed the distance in an instant and swung his sword.
Black Lightning.
A blow that could be called the Black Knight Bilvain's ultimate technique.
At the lightning-like strike pouring down in a black arc, Yuder's eyes gleamed.
He reacted instantly, as if he had been waiting for this very moment.
CRASH!
Bilvain's sword struck the ground. The released sword energy tore through the whirlwind, and with an explosive burst, the entire vortex shattered.
WHOOSH—
The snow carried aloft by the whirlwind poured down from the sky, and Yuder fell among it.
Having dodged the Black Lightning with Fairy's Footsteps, Yuder widened the distance from Bilvain without hesitation.
'Because lightning strikes twice.'
Black Lightning was not a single-hit technique. If he dodged the sword strike and closed in, he would be hit by the second bolt concentrated in Bilvain's shield hand.
Besides, it was time now.
"Cordelia."
At the sight beyond the shattered whirlwind, Yuder smiled.
On the other hand, Bilvain's eyes flew wide open in shock.
The dark-red-haired witch was literally smashing Bilvain's subordinates to pieces.
Rampaging like a beast alongside the tomb guardians, she was a natural disaster incarnate.
Double Casting.
Echo of Spells.
She could now turn a single cast into four spells.
Every time she cast a multi-shot Magic Missile, dozens of Magic Missiles were created, and all of them swept through the surroundings like a storm.
"Human Disaster."
It was the nickname Cordelia had in Hero Legend 2.
Bilvain's subordinates were already weakened by the influence of Solari's land.
On top of that, the tomb guardians radiated holy aura, and Blue Beard, who had belatedly risen to his feet, joined in, so the bastards had no way to withstand it.
"Was this what you were aiming for?"
Bilvain glared at Yuder like a man who had been betrayed, and Yuder smiled.
It was Bilvain's own fault for getting caught up in a one-on-one duel without first understanding the enemy's actual strength.
And there was one more reason Yuder smiled.
"Beast mode, huh?"
Yuder spoke not to Bilvain but to Cordelia.
Quite a few of Bilvain's subordinates still remained, but Cordelia, having left them to the tomb guardians and Blue Beard, approached Yuder and Bilvain.
Pretending not to have heard Yuder's words, she spoke to Bilvain.
"The hammer's here, so shall we start round two?"
Anvil and hammer.
Bilvain flinched, then looked at Yuder again and shouted.
"Cowardly! Do you intend to gang up on me in a one-on-one duel?!"
"Yeah."
"Yep."
Even Bilvain went blank for a moment at their breezy answers. Then Cordelia took another step forward and spoke.
"No, wait. You're the one who came at us with a whole bunch of underlings in the first place, so you're more cowardly."
If you counted just the ratio, it had been forty to five.
Moreover, though he styled himself a knight, he was ultimately a demon worshipper. The atrocities he had committed as the Devil's Eye's lapdog alone numbered not just in the tens but close to a hundred.
At Cordelia's words, Bilvain flinched again and gritted his teeth, and Cordelia's expression softened a little.
Since Bilvain at least had enough shame to recognize the point, Cordelia's expression softened slightly and she spoke again.
"Black Knight Bilvain, as the agent of the Golden Dragon, I shall face you."
Because Bilvain liked declarations of that sort.
But Yuder saw through Cordelia's true feelings.
'She liked it.'
The fact that she was a bomber—no, an agent—recognized by the Golden Dragon.
But pointing it out would only make her face turn red, so Yuder laughed inwardly, took his stance, and stepped forward in rhythm with Cordelia.
"Grr! Come at me!"
Bilvain shouted in desperation, and Yuder and Cordelia did not hesitate. They charged him at the same time.
* * *
"Victory!"
Two rings of light appeared one after another before Cordelia's chest as she beamed and flashed a V-sign.
Her hair had become disheveled from the aftermath of the battle, and her clothes were torn here and there, but her bright smile seemed to shine.
Yuder clapped for her, then approached Bilvain, who was scattering into ash.
He quietly watched the pitch-black ash drifting between the black helmet and armor, then slowly reached out his hand.
"Black Knight's Armor."
Beside it was a jet-black shield boasting tremendous resistance against demonic power.
Yuder did not wear heavy armor, but the gear would surely prove useful somewhere if he took it with him.
Like giving them to Lucas, or selling them at the auction house.
"Looks like things are all wrapped up over there too."
Just as Cordelia said, Bilvain's subordinates were also effectively annihilated.
A few tried to flee, but with Blue Beard flying after them in a fury, none seemed likely to escape.
"He seems embarrassed, doesn't he?"
"He must be."
Because he had ignored Cordelia's warning, charged in, and nearly died.
And after the two of them had saved his life and helped him recover his honor, someone as capable of shame as Blue Beard could hardly avoid feeling embarrassed.
"Hehe, then we can squeeze more out of him."
"......Huh?"
"No, I mean, since he owes us, he'll listen well. Right? First of all, we're definitely taking Solari's necklace."
"R-right."
When Cordelia smiled angelically and said that, Yuder agreed for now, but he felt a strange pang of conscience.
What was it?
This sense of guilt, as if he had carelessly dirtied this pure white snowfield.
"Why the face? Are you hurt? Did you get hit by a sword or something?"
"No, it's just...... I was thinking about the innocent old days."
Where had the Cordelia of those days gone—the girl who was so bad at lying that she spoke as stiffly as if she were reading from a textbook?
'No, well, I'm the one who dirtied her, of course.'
While Yuder wrestled alone with his guilt, Cordelia tilted her head a few times, then beamed again and looked back toward the temple where Lena was.
* * *
"What do you mean? It'll be delayed?"
"This battle consumed too much of the holy land's power. Naturally, the power to cleanse the corruption has also become insufficient...... It cannot be helped."
As if slightly cowed by Cordelia's agitated voice, Blue Beard answered with a troubled face.
To be precise, they had spent too much of Solari's power at the holy land, leaving too little for healing.
Therefore, considering the time needed for Solari's power to recover and the slowed healing speed, at least close to a month would be required.
'So that's how it is.'
Unlike Cordelia, Yuder had anticipated the current situation to some extent.
After all, he was the very person who had drained Solari's power in the first place.
"Cordelia, it can't be helped. Still, recovery is possible, so we have no choice but to leave her here."
"Ughhh......."
Yuder and Cordelia had not come to the Wild Lands solely to save Lena.
They had to join forces with the Great Storm tribe to build the eastern coalition and fight the Angry Rhino Tribe, which had seized control of the west, so it was about time to return to the Great Storm tribe's village.
"Ugh... haa... It can't be helped. Blue Beard, please take good care of Lena. All right?"
"Understood."
Blue Beard spoke while looking at Solari's necklace hanging at Cordelia's waist.
Because it had been worn by the massive Blue Beard, it was too large for Cordelia, so she had hung it at her waist instead of her neck. In any case, from now on, it was no longer Blue Beard's possession but Cordelia's.
And in truth, that was not all.
Yuder and Cordelia each wore several relics of Solari that had been stored in the holy land for many years.
Blue Beard himself had given them up, and there were certainly good reasons to give them up, but he could not help feeling empty.
'They saved my life, protected the holy land, and on top of that, the two of them are guardians of the Wild Lands recognized by the Golden Dragon.......'
How could he disobey the Golden Dragon's command to give them every possible support?
At the moment Blue Beard secretly wiped away a tear, Cordelia looked toward Kaplan and spoke.
"Sir Kaplan, you're staying here?"
"Yes, I intend to study the holy land and wait for Lady Lena to awaken."
At Kaplan's spirited words, Cordelia smiled softly, gave him a firm hug, and then spoke.
"Thanks to Sir Kaplan, we were able to resolve the incident in Endymion. Thank you. Sir Kaplan is nothing less than a lucky angel to Yuder and me."
Thanks to Kaplan, they had been able to meet the Wild Fairies, and they had also been able to find Endymion's hidden paths.
The fact that there was a Dragon Vein at the end was also information they had learned because Kaplan had interpreted the High Elves' language.
"Lady Cordelia......."
Kaplan's face was instantly covered in tears.
He was already grateful that she had continued to travel with him, and now she was calling him a lucky angel.
Was that not the kind of thing he had never heard in his entire life, and had thought he never would?
"I'll look forward to the day we meet again."
"Yes, I will surely come to see you again."
When Kaplan wiped his tears and beamed, Cordelia smiled back at him, then rose from her seat.
'Now, you too.'
Cordelia glanced meaningfully at Yuder, who for some reason had been counting something behind her, and he spoke as well.
"Sir Kaplan, don't forget. You are not a god. You are simply a diligent and trustworthy explorer and archaeologist."
"Yes, I won't forget, Yuder."
After shaking hands with Kaplan, Yuder exchanged final farewells with Blue Beard, then left the temple with Cordelia.
"Are we heading straight back now?"
"We should. It's a little disappointing that we can't see the Fairy Queen, but going through Endymion would take too long, so let's cut straight across from here."
In a straight line, without passing through Bladebeak Canyon.
Instead of unfolding a map, Yuder drew a picture on the ground to explain, and Cordelia nodded.
"Okay, then let's head out right away."
"Yeah."
"But Yuder."
"Hm?"
"Did something good happen? Your face looks brighter than usual."
"Because we won?"
"Hmm, true. Because we won."
Cordelia smiled softly and began walking in the lead, and Yuder stepped forward side by side with her.
And at the same time.
"If we go one more day from here, Bladebeak Canyon should appear. According to what Fine Eyes said, Yuder and Cordelia will be there."
It was information she already knew, but since it was Gale speaking, Adelia listened attentively for now, then let out a sigh.
"Ha...... really. At this rate, we're going to cover the entire Wild Lands."
"Indeed."
Who would have thought that the journey they had expected to end around Hraesvelgr County would cross the border and continue all the way here?
Moreover, to make matters worse, Count Chase's ring—the only magic tool capable of roughly tracking Cordelia's location—had broken after they entered the Wild Lands, making the pursuit even harder.
'Well...... still, fortunately, their destinations are clear.'
The Wild Lands were vast but had few inhabited areas, and perhaps because they were beyond the border, Cordelia had not particularly hidden her destinations either.
'Haa... Anyway, when I catch them, I'll have to give someone a good spanking.'
Of course, not the kind and innocent Cordelia's butt, but Yuder's.
"Lady Adelia."
"Yes?! Ah, yes. Lord Gale."
When Adelia answered in surprise, Gale tilted his head, but soon asked again in a serious tone.
"Is your leave all right? You've already gone far past your original schedule......."
"Well, it can't be helped. Things turned out this way."
Adelia shrugged and smiled bitterly, while Gale spoke with his usual earnest expression.
"This matter has already gone beyond a simple runaway case. It has become a major incident deeply connected to the defense of the north, so I will write a petition...... no, a statement to the Royal Magic Corps in the name of the Count Bayel Household and send it."
"Mm...... thank you."
Normally, if her adjutant had said something like that, Adelia would have told him not to overdo it. But with Gale, different words came out.
'How should I put it? It's more than simple diligence...'
Should she say he had sincerity?
A man with a sense of stability you could trust and lean on.
"Lady Adelia, I know it must be hard, but if we go just a little farther, we should be able to find a place to rest. Let's start moving again soon."
Gale rose from his seat first and politely extended his hand to Adelia, and Adelia let out a needless cough before taking his hand and standing up.
"Shall we go?"
"Yes, let's go. Lord Gale."
Gale and Adelia, smiling at each other, also stepped forward side by side.
And because of that, the paths of Yuder and Gale—and Cordelia and Adelia—completely diverged.
And then, one more person.
"This is serious."
Count Chase, who looked back at the bags that had somehow grown to four, checked his budget and then made up his mind.
He hurriedly wrote a letter to send to Red Dawn Tower.
'Have them send a spatial expansion bag.'
Since the journey had grown long, ordinary bags alone were no longer enough.
Still unaware that his two daughters, one prospective son-in-law, and another man who might someday become one were all beyond the border in the Wild Lands, Count Chase was staying in Lankebust, the northernmost city in the north.