What Do You Mean the Young Lord is Missing?

"What do you mean the young lord is missing?!"

Hugo stepped forward confidently. He stripped off his gloves and clenched his fists, veins bulging along his forearms. His target was the rock tribe chief wildly swinging his sword at the knights on the landing.

"Hup."

Hugo swept his arms wide and clapped them together in front of his chest.

—Whoosh!

A powerful shockwave erupted, kicking up a gust of wind. Corrupted divine power oozed from his black hands, forming a spell.

"The counter-curse is working... You said that barbarian is a shaman, right?"

Tanya, revitalized by my prescription, tossed her hair as she asked me.

"No matter how big he is, there's no way he has that level of physical ability naturally. He's pushing back the captain with sheer force."

"That's right."

"See that thing around his neck?"

I pointed at the chief on the stairs. The grooved amulet hanging from his neck glinted in the light.

"It's a legend-grade artifact. It lets him control curses below advanced level. A kind of folk religion talisman."

"Curses? Shamans use curses too?"

"Shamanism is in the same category as curses—it's a debuff that grants enhancement effects in exchange for a price."

"Different from blessings?"

"Blessings only require divine power. Curses and shamanism, on the other hand, demand blood, souls, or even lives as sacrifices. The effects are strong, but they're forbidden spells."

Tanya furrowed her brow.

"Diabolical. So he sacrificed other lives as living offerings to gain that power?"

I nodded.

"No mercy needed, then."

Tanya gripped her sword tighter and rose to her feet. Fighting spirit blazed in her eyes.

"Just wait ‍‍‌‌⁠⁠‌‍‍‌⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠‌‌‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠a bit. Hugo will neutralize that cheater."

Hugo's preparation was complete. The divine power shaped by the counter-curse spell rippled in an eerie form. Not a precise magic circle, but a spell formation that shifted like a living creature, constantly changing shape.

"Hngh!"

—Pop!

Hugo thrust both hands forward, firing the entire mass of divine power at the chief. The chief, exposed to the black wave, froze mid-swing as he slashed at a knight with his stone blade. He bared his teeth at us, as if annoyed by Hugo's counter-curse.

"Ngh!"

Hugo glared back with fierce determination, refusing to yield. He locked eyes with the barbarian, not even twitching an eyelid.

"Grraaaah—!!"

The chief, who had maintained his dignity in silence until now, couldn't hold back his rage and let out a roar. The eardrum-shattering threat meant he was feeling threatened. The counter-curse was starting to take effect, recognizing the chief clearly as an enemy and repelling his shamanism.

The chief's skin cracked and peeled like parched earth. Moreover, Hugo's divine power carried a built-in curse due to his hands, so mere exposure must hurt like hell.

"Mm...!"

A sphere formed in front of Hugo, crafted from divine power. Lines crisscrossed it, dividing it into puzzle-like pieces. It was a diagrammatic representation of the curse's ritual structure. This was the main event of the counter-curse spell.

"Grak—!!"

Thud, thud. The chief charged toward us with massive footsteps.

I held out ‍‍‌‌⁠⁠‌‍‍‌⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠‌‌‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠my arm to stop Tanya as she prepared to leap into action.

"Not yet. Wait for the timing."

Hugo spun the sphere, inspecting it. Thanks to his research on curses, he quickly grasped the shamanism's ritual structure. In an instant, he began disassembling the sphere.

Crack!

Hugo tore off the first piece and crushed it in his hand.

At the same moment——Boom!

"Grk?!"

Mana exploded from the chief's back, stripping away the first enhancement spell. He staggered, losing balance, but didn't stop his charge.

Thud, thud! The chief kept barreling toward us.

"Hmph!"

Hugo shattered the second piece.

"Grrraaak—!!"

The chief writhed in agony but didn't halt his menacing advance. Distance: fifteen meters.

"Hugo, how many left?"

"Three. Now two."

The enhancement spells on the chief were being countered one by one. His massive bulk shrank bit by bit, strength drained from his muscles, and his sharp teeth dulled.

The moment was approaching. Time for me to prepare too.

An eye for an eye, enhancement for enhancement.

I flipped open my notebook and quickly chanted the spells.

"Blessing of Strength, Blessing of Swiftness."

Tanya's body, enveloped in my divine power, shimmered brilliantly. Vitality returned to her battle-weary form.

"Grrraaaah—!!"

A thunderous bellow. The chief reached our heads and ‍‍‌‌⁠⁠‌‍‍‌⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠‌‌‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠swung his stone blade to smash us.

"One left—done!"

"Captain!"

—Flash!

Before I could even call her name, Tanya reacted first. With a running start, her sword shot forward, aimed precisely at the chief's neck. The keenly forged blade, glowing like fire, traced a beautiful straight line.

"—Grk."

The chief's head and body were severed in an instant, his power spent.

—Rumble!

His charging body flew past us on momentum, crashing into the rampart railing. Unable to withstand its own force, it shattered the railing and plummeted.

I peeked over the edge where the chief had fallen and looked down.

—Whoosh!

Fierce wind tousled my hair. An impossibly deep cliff, bottom lost to sight.

"Whew."

Tanya stylishly wiped her sword, sheathed it, and said flatly to me.

"Thought I was done for."

"Me too."

It was right then that I felt truly grateful for having Tanya.

"Good work, Hugo."

"That was quite fun."

I bumped fists with Hugo. With the chief down, seizing the central keep was a landslide victory. The remaining barbarian stragglers couldn't even group up, so mopping them up would be easy.

"Thanks to you, we took down the chief. I owe you one, sir."

"Good work, Captain. That sword aura was killer. Teach me sometime."

"Impossible. You have to be born with it."

Tanya was razor-sharp when it came to swords.

"Still, you pushed too hard. A healer who should be in the rear—not to mention the chief physician—charging into the front lines."

"Good results make it fine. Gotta head back before Asella chews me out."

As I headed down the landing, reports came in from the knights here and there.

"Third floor secured!"

"Corridor secured! No path to the basement in sight!"

"No civilian evacuees found yet!"

Still no sign of the hidden count and evacuees. Intel said they were somewhere underground—maybe locked in combat with barbarians.

'As long as it doesn't end with them all massacred. We went through hell to barely win this.'

I asked Tanya.

"Captain, no basement access yet?"

"Not found. The central keep is vast. We ran into the chief while trying to secure areas for the search."

"Stragglers still lurking everywhere, so we need to hurry. First..."

Swish.

Something fast-moving caught my eye.

"What was that?"

Up close, a young boy huddled terrified in a corner crevice.

"Hey, kid."

"Eek... A p-person!"

"Yeah, a person. You didn't think I was a barbarian, right?"

"Y-you came to rescue us?!"

"Yep. From the capital."

"I'm saved..."

The boy sighed in relief, clutching his chest. But then he shook his head frantically, face urgent.

"P-please help! My dad's badly hurt fighting the barbarians!"

A survivor. His clothes were fine quality—probably a knight's son. Filthy from not washing for ages.

"We were looking anyway. Where are the evacuees? How'd you get out?"

"Right below here. I came out this way."

The boy went to the rampart railing and pointed far down the outer wall. A small gap—ventilation for the basement.

"You crawled out through there and climbed up? Brave kid."

"Kinda."

I patted his back and asked.

"How do we get to the basement?"

"Uh... I don't know. It was chaos during evacuation. B-but more importantly."

"What?"

"The barbarians found the warehouse entrance where everyone's hiding! That's why I rushed out...!"

"Captain."

"Yes. I'll pinpoint the location based on his description and move swiftly."

Tanya replied crisply. As we prepared to move—

"Garr!"

"Grak!"

Suddenly, cries echoed from above as about five barbarians leaped down. Stragglers from the keep's roof.

"Sir!"

Tanya reacted fast, reaching to shield my shoulder. But pulling the boy from the outer stairs took me out of her range. I tossed the boy into Tanya's arms first.

The barbarians landed where we'd stood.

—Rumble!

The weakened ground from the fight couldn't bear their weight and collapsed.

Whoa, my feet are sinking too.

"Damn it."

I reached for Tanya, but missed ‍‍‌‌⁠⁠‌‍‍‌⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠‌‌‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠by a mile. My feet slipped on the icy bricks. Gravity yanked me down without mercy, vision flipping as I plummeted endlessly into the deep abyss.

◇◇◇◆◇◇◇

"Your Highness, we've exterminated and secured all barbarians in the central keep. Found the evacuees hiding underground too."

"The count of Blücher?"

"He's safe."

Asella smiled in victory at the captain's report. The tide of battle had turned. The credit for the extermination went entirely to her. Even on her first campaign, Moonlight Palace's battlefield control was flawless. Her command would surely impress the emperor.

"Once evacuees are rescued, we'll return to the southern keep and link up with Heike's forces."

"Understood. But one thing..."

"What?"

Joy was short-lived. Asella's face twisted savagely at the bad news the captain continued.

"Sir Gotberg..."

Asella bolted toward the keep without a thought for decorum.

"Captain Tanya!!"

Asella shrieked upon spotting Tanya. All the knights around gawked at their lord's unprecedented sight. Tanya had already assembled a rescue team, ready to descend the cliff.