Chapter 122
Chapter 122
Chapter 122
Southern Great Forest (5)
"A, a bet?"
"That's right. We could just cut off your heads right here and feel satisfied, but that wouldn't leave us with anything, would it?"
Golden Dawn Society.
It wasn't a particularly significant group, but it had been covered to some extent in Chapter 1.
'Those who ruled the Kingdom of Rohans from behind the scenes before being driven out by the demons.'
Naturally, its members were either in high positions in the Kingdom of Rohans or held real power despite not being openly visible.
Even if their origins lay in fleeing the oppression of the Morian Empire, that was 350 years ago.
Unless they were crazy like the Celestials who held grudges for nearly a thousand years, present grievances were more important than past ones.
'They probably harbor bone-deep resentment.'
It would be better to let these kinds of people live long lives clashing with the demons.
"A, alright. What kind of bet?"
"A three-against-one duel."
"What?"
"If you win, I'll let you go peacefully along with your subordinates lying over there. But if you lose, you'll have to serve under these other races here until this great forest is restored to normal."
"...!"
Dormel's expression twisted sharply.
"Isn't that too unfavorable a proposal?"
"Hmm? It's not that cruel."
You have no choice but to accept anyway, so why make such a fuss?
"Even if it's me, you want me to handle three-against-one including a Sword Master? If you want to humiliate me that much, just kill me instead!"
"Ah."
Right now, this guy is mistaken, thinking it's a three-against-one with Rudian participating.
"That's not it, mister. The 'three' participating are those three over there."
Rudian's finger pointed to where Gray, Elvin, and Luciella stood.
"You'll duel against those three to determine the winner. How about it? Don't you see some possibility in this?"
"Those, those three?"
Though his words were stammering, Dormel's sharp eyes immediately assessed the abilities of the three.
'A 6th Class Magician, a woman taking the vanguard position, and a high-level psychic user?'
Honestly, for Dormel who didn't possess the 'Eye of the Warrior,' Luciella's abilities didn't stand out much.
'She's not even a man but a woman, and she looks young too, so there must be limits to the level she's achieved.'
Then the problem would be the psychic user and the magician.
"Kukukuk, this will be quite easy."
"..."
Immediately, Dormel's complexion brightened.
Though he hadn't been able to properly display his abilities due to the surprise attack, if that psychic user was also considered a 6th Class Magician, he would be an easy opponent.
No, even assuming 7th Class would be more than manageable.
"I accept."
"Then let's make a vow."
A vow of words was carved into each of their hearts.
If he lost, things would turn so badly that he wouldn't be able to handle the aftermath, but whatever happened, it was a matter of winning.
Rudian returned to his companions with a bright smile.
"Since it's come to this, think of it as gaining good experience and give it a try."
"Brother... You really like bets."
"To be precise, I like winning bets."
"Swindler."
"Deceiver."
Elvin and Gray reproached Rudian, but Rudian proudly accepted their reproach.
There was no way Rudian would have set up a fight he would lose.
Of course, even if the level itself would be difficult if fighting against the current party, at least the possibility would be sufficient.
"What's the level of this enemy?"
Rudian answered Elvin's question.
"Of course, in terms of comprehensive ability, he's similar to the Archbishop of the Apophis Cult we fought before. But the type is completely different."
"After a monster, now a magician..."
"If the previous Archbishop only knew how to use brute force, this time it's an opponent who can freely manipulate the power they possess."
Gray clenched his fists, burning with fighting spirit.
"This one's more of a classic type. You should be able to deal with him much more easily than that snake head."
At those words, Luciella smiled bitterly and shook her head.
"I didn't know we'd frequently gain real combat experience with strong enemies like this."
"The princess is the key to this fight."
Rudian glanced at Dormel with a slight smirk.
"It seems like he's completely disregarding the princess."
"Yes, I felt that too."
Luciella gripped her beloved sword and smiled coldly.
"So I'll have to thoroughly teach him that his thinking is wrong."
"That's a good mindset."
Little by little, little by little.
In the future, these people would engage in death battles with even stronger enemies.
'There's plenty of experience to be gained in this world. So grow strong and healthy.'
That's how they become pillars that protect the world.
***
"I am Dormel Paon 'Di Domenec.'”
"Luciella Delphione."
"Gray Bellatrix."
"Elvin Kepler."
Dormel was surprised that those blocking his path were much bigger figures than he had thought.
"Hmm? Delphione and Bellatrix? Don't tell me you're young lords? Why have people like you crawled into such a remote place?"
He was particularly surprised to learn that the young girl he had dismissed was actually the precious daughter of Delphione, the continent's greatest sword family.
"That's none of your business. Rather, Duke Domenec, I don't understand why you're here."
For Gray, who didn't know that Duke Domenec of the Kingdom of Rohans had already been replaced by a disguised demon, it was simply puzzling.
But social status was useless in the current fight.
"Kukuk, we can't tell each other our reasons, can we? What's important is that I've gotten an opportunity against youngsters."
Dormel deployed his domain and raised his magic power.
Immediately, small whirlwinds swirled and dozens of magic circles began to appear.
"I'll end this in one go!"
Dormel was confident.
In a situation where he was prepared for a frontal confrontation rather than a surprise attack, he was certain of victory.
"Whether you go for a quick decisive battle or endure and counterattack, do as you please!"
But then...
'Huh...?'
CRACK! CRACK!
Suddenly, the 'guys' charging through, tearing apart the dozen or so shields he had set up.
There were differences, but the common point was that both were handling 'aura.'
"W-wait! Why are there two vanguards?"
"There were two from the beginning."
It had been the same combination when they caught the Archbishop of the Apophis Cult.
It was Dormel's mistake caused by the tremendous impact of the gravity-manipulating psychic power.
"Both of them are Expert high-level or above?"
He had prepared for a surprise attack, but the opponents' level was much higher than expected!
Normally, even a typical high-level knight couldn't break through these shields.
But one woman showed tremendous output that might be close to Master level, while the other guy displayed tremendous breakthrough power using a divine weapon made of rare metal.
'Tsk, reaching the princess's level is still difficult.'
Elvin, who had been charging while smashing through the shields, clicked his tongue slightly.
Actually, until just before the final battle in Nevan, he had remained at Expert intermediate level, handling Magic Swords.
But now he had risen to a level where he could draw out Aura Swords without difficulty.
'To think the day would come when I'd receive sword instruction from that guy...'
Absurdly, the junior who once didn't even know the basics of swordsmanship had somehow far surpassed him and was now pulling him up from above.
'What's even more absurd is that his instruction is genuinely helpful.'
He received theoretical instruction whenever he had time while doing coachman work or resting, and absorbed that theory through sparring.
Then, through life-or-death real combat, he greatly increased his proficiency level, achieving growth that far exceeded normal growth rates.
And the result of that was this Aura Sword.
'Rudian said that coming here would involve repeating real combat and training beyond imagination.'
Of course, he didn't know from the start that he'd be fighting an 8th Class Great Magician, but still, this level wasn't an insurmountable enemy.
'I will definitely achieve the fusion of 'sword' and 'psychic power' in this great forest!'
Elvin gripped his sword handle even more firmly with this determination.
***
With two vanguards, Dormel had to admit that his opponents had become annoyingly troublesome beyond imagination.
'These guys won't give me a chance to use great magic!'
One Hellfire spell would turn them all to ash, but the two vanguards absolutely wouldn't give him that opening.
'Damn! If it were just one person, I could somehow find an opening!'
Especially fatal was the fact that the young magician he had considered the main attacker was actually a supporter.
The magician was firing off 5th Class and below magic that could be cast without incantation while looking for openings, but whenever there was any sign of trying to use 7th Class or higher great magic, he would pour out magic power like a ghost to interfere.
"Where do you think you're going! Dispel Magic!"
"Eeek!"
When his 7th Class magic Arcane Blizzard was dispelled, he settled for 5th Class Diamond Dust to block the vision of those approaching.
But...
"Hurricane Bomber."
Just when he thought he had blocked their vision, a fierce wind immediately blew, making the Diamond Dust useless.
"You damn bastard!"
"I didn't grow up being damned, you know?"
Gray continued to provoke verbally while thoroughly performing the role of countering his opponent.
"I don't know where you put your age. A man who's spent his whole life training in magic being dispelled by a kid who's not even an adult!"
GRIND!
"A youngster who wouldn't even be a match in one-on-one!"
"So what? If you're envious, bring your own vanguard!"
By the way, the knights and magicians of the Golden Dawn Society that Dormel had brought... Rudian had subdued them all right after blowing away Barto.
In other words, he was in a situation where he couldn't use tricks even if he wanted to.
"I'll thoroughly wear you down! Look forward to it, you age-eaten grandpa!"
"Gray, don't let your guard down."
Seeing that he had become too overconfident, Rudian, who was watching from the side, gave a quiet warning.
Then Gray immediately changed his expression and nodded.
"I know. That grandpa is actually an incredibly tricky opponent."
8th Class wasn't a title won through gambling.
He was only somehow managing to block magic that could cause instant death if it exploded, but it was difficult to even offset magic below that level.
The 5th-6th Class magic that Dormel poured out without incantation had the power to massacre over a hundred ordinary soldiers in one shot.
Dealing with that essentially depended on the autonomous judgment of Elvin and Luciella who were currently engaging him.
'Gray is blocking as much as possible with his genius-level magic manipulation, but there are still limits.'
Level, amount of magic... Dormel was two or three steps above in everything.
If there was one thing that was similar, it was combat proficiency.
Dormel was certainly worthy of being called a Great Magician, but it was hard to see him as skilled in combat.
'It's natural since he's lived his whole life as a Duke of the kingdom.'
Since his main job was as a magician, even though he held a title like knights, he wouldn't have had to go to battlefields to fight, and he would have comfortably grown his abilities while being treated well in a magic tower.
It seemed he had been accumulating combat experience recently by fighting demons...
'The only hope lies there.'
If judged purely by power and authority, the Archbishop of the Apophis Cult would probably be a much stronger opponent.
But the 'Eye of State' rated the comprehensive combat power of the Archbishop and Dormel as similar.
Unlike the Archbishop who fought only with poison and physical strength from his bulk, Dormel had the ability to respond to numerous variables even if his raw power was lacking.
'It's a fight of who becomes more accustomed to the opponent's strategy first. Now, let's see how this turns out...'
Rudian watched the four's fight with great interest.
Or rather, he tried to watch.
'Uninvited guests have arrived.'
He could feel the gazes of considerable strong opponents from all directions.
'There are demons, and other guys too... Quite a variety has gathered.'
This was currently the great forest in a state of chaos.
Since there was a collision of forces that couldn't be ignored, they probably gathered out of interest or feeling threatened.
'It's not just my companions who need to accumulate experience.'
Rudian gripped Diablo's scabbard and turned his gaze.