Chapter 168: But the Bus Flipped (2)
Chapter 168: But the Bus Flipped (2)
The Iona bus had flipped.
But that didn't necessarily mean we were screwed.
To be honest, this wasn't a situation where we were completely backed into a corner with no way out.
A Lord-class vampire—someone who could toy with an Archbishop alone and secure a victory against a Cardinal after a bit of a struggle.
That was Iona.
I hadn't followed her around like a lost puppy for nothing; I had put my faith in her strength.
Iris hadn't been overly worried either, precisely because she knew how powerful Iona was.
That was why this couldn't be called the absolute worst-case scenario.
One Cardinal and seven Archbishops. On top of that, about fifteen Bishop-class enemies and an undead army that likely blanketed the entire area.
It was a terrifying force, one that could probably bring a major city to its knees in an instant, but…
I would be fine.
With Iona’s full power, she could maintain an even fight for quite a long time.
Therefore, I wasn't the one in danger. It was Iona, who had resolved to put her life on the line.
"I'll hold them off here, so go! Hurry!"
Unlike her usual self, her voice was a seductive blend of intimidation and allure.
I forced my legs to stop trembling—they had been trying to move on their own in obedience to her command—and quickly scanned the front.
The first thing I saw was a woman staggering toward us, missing an arm. Behind her were the faces of numerous mid-bosses I recognized.
The undead bursting through the ground and the Fishermen crawling up from the distant shore were just the icing on the cake.
Once more, I carefully observed the woman leading the pack… a face that felt strangely familiar despite it being the first time I’d seen it.
She looked to be in her late twenties. Her hair, white as an old woman's despite her youthful features, was striking.
However, the familiar dark-red light swirling in her eyes felt slightly jarring.
It was my first time seeing her in person, but those features made her easy to identify.
Ayla the Gazer.
The Cardinal of Narrow-minded Usurpation, and the younger sister Iona wanted to kill so badly.
"What are you doing?! I said go!"
"Whoa."
Perhaps she found my brief hesitation frustrating, because Iona lightly waved her hand.
Suddenly, my body was forcibly dragged away as if an invisible hand had grabbed me by the scruff of the neck.
Telekinesis?
Carla and Elisha seemed to be in the same boat, as they tumbled across the grass with bewildered expressions.
In an instant, Iona and I were separated by at least ten meters.
In that gap, a massive amount of mana surged up like a wall.
It was as if she were pushing us away, or perhaps blocking the enemies from reaching us.
Beyond the translucent red barrier, Iona glanced back at us.
She exuded the aura of a strange temptress, radiating sex appeal with every breath. Yet, the look on her face was one of familiar playfulness.
"It's okay, it's okay. You're not running away; you're going to get reinforcements. If Student Yandel comes back quickly, I can survive too, so I'm counting on you. Got it?"
"……."
It was a lie so blatant even a child wouldn't fall for it.
Going for reinforcements? Where?
Going to some mediocre village would be pointless. They wouldn't have any decent communication magical tools.
In that case, how long would it take to run to the nearest city from this remote port town?
Even using magic, it wasn't a distance we could cover in a few hours.
Countless words rose and fell in my mind—each one a logical rebuttal to Iona's clumsy lie.
But I couldn't say a word.
I didn't know what to say, or even what I wanted to say.
I was simply frozen, overwhelmed by the weight of the emotions contained in Iona's final words, her gaze, and her smile.
Carla pulled at me, leading me in the opposite direction of Iona.
One step. Two steps. Three steps.
Once momentum took over, my legs moved on their own without needing to be led.
I glanced back briefly, but all I could see was Iona’s back as she let out a short sigh.
She looked almost relieved, and seeing her like that, the words I wanted to say finally came to mind.
But it was already too late.
We were too far. Even if I shouted, Iona wouldn't hear me.
More importantly, a blood-colored mana light was already blazing atop the pale hand Iona had raised.
"Get a hold of yourself, Master! This way, quickly!"
At the warm touch pulling my hand, I reflexively looked forward. Then, a thunderous explosion rang out.
K-Boom—!
The hot wind sweeping from behind made me stumble.
The roar and the impact were on a completely different scale.
Normally, it's said that low-grade magic has enough power to easily kill a person.
Intermediate magic can wipe out a well-coordinated veteran party, and advanced magic is said to be able to bring down a fortress.
If that was the case, what level was the magic Iona just used? And what about those cultists who were still burning with hostility even after being hit by it?
One thing was certain: it was far too early for the current me to interfere.
"……."
Perhaps it was because the shockwave had felt like a slap to the back of my head, but my cluttered mind felt suddenly clear.
I scrapped all the plans I had made until a moment ago and started over from scratch.
It wasn't like we had to reach the Academy or a nearby city to call for help.
I immediately pulled the communication crystal linked to Iris from my inventory and infused it with mana.
Static. Bzzzt—
Unfortunately, the crystal only reflected my face on its smooth surface; it didn't spit out Iris's voice. All I could hear was unrecognizable noise.
Well, of course. If they had blocked spatial movement, they wouldn't have left communication methods alone.
But there was still a way. Iris had told me that if I broke the crystal, she would find me no matter where I was or what the situation was.
"Hup!"
Shatter!
As I hurled the crystal to the ground, five-colored smoke began to rise from the shards.
Judging by the energy I felt, it wasn't ordinary smoke but a transformation of mana.
Seeing the smoke rise toward the sky, unhindered by anything, Carla cried out in shock.
"Master! If you break that here…!"
"Spatial movement is blocked anyway, so she can't come instantly. We don't even know how far the barrier extends."
"But…."
"And it'll be hard even if Iris comes alone. It's much better to use the fact that teleportation is blocked as a warning in itself."
Iris was much smarter than me. She would surely catch on to my warning and come fully prepared.
For instance, by requesting help from the Academy professors or the Church of the Good God.
If she used my name and revealed the fact that she was my slave, it was entirely possible.
In the meantime, we had to get as far away from here as possible to ensure our safety….
Thrum—
Just as I reached that thought, the surrounding air suddenly became unnervingly heavy.
A sense of resistance felt throughout my entire body, as if I had stepped into water.
…It was a sensation I already knew.
I drew up my mana and circulated it through my body. The weight on my shoulders lightened slightly.
It seemed basic resistance was nowhere near enough.
Then the only thing left was the direct approach.
Recalling what I had learned at the Academy and from Carla, I squeezed my core.
Thump. Thump.
My heart beat powerfully, pumping out mana. I released the gathered mana all at once, imagining it striking the surroundings.
Crack!
The sound of something breaking. Simultaneously, the pressure surrounding me vanished without a trace.
Carla and Elisha also seemed to be released at almost the same time, letting out long-held breaths.
"It's a curse, you."
"I know. It felt like a binding curse, but fortunately, it didn't seem to be a very powerful one—"
"…Master?"
Carla cut me off mid-sentence while running. Surprised by her uncharacteristic behavior, I turned my head to see her pointing a finger toward the sky.
"Huh?"
The five-colored smoke, which had been rising without issue, had suddenly stopped.
More accurately, I realized after seeing the smoke become so incredibly slow it looked as if it had stopped.
The binding curse we had just escaped wasn't aimed at us, but at the signal I was trying to send to Iris.
We had simply been caught in the crossfire.
Naturally, it should be impossible to bind mana with a curse.
A curse, by definition, was magic predicated on being cast upon a living creature.
…But if the result was right there before my eyes, the story changed.
Accomplishing the impossible through magic—we called that a miracle.
Only a curse that took the form of an Authority, rather than a common curse, could bind even the flow of mana.
I hurriedly looked around.
Sure enough, my eyes met those of a mysterious woman accompanied by countless undead.
She was incessantly biting her fingernails, as if she were incredibly anxious.
Even though there was quite a distance between us, her gloomy aura reached all the way here.
Saw-nailed Sophia.
An expert in curses and undead manipulation, and an Archbishop of Narrow-minded Usurpation.
She looked at us as we stood frozen and smiled with her pale, chapped lips.
"…Carla. Can you dispel that?"
"I've been trying for a while now, but I can't."
If that signal failed to reach Iris, it would only be a matter of time before we were in danger as well.
I turned my head toward Iona for a moment.
The wall of mana still stood firm, incessantly launching armaments made of blood to keep the cultists at bay.
That meant Sophia was the only one who had made it past the barrier.
I didn't know how she had bypassed it, but if she was alone, even an Archbishop was worth a shot.
Especially since Carla was with me now.
I glared at the front of the undead horde rushing toward us.
They were ghouls, still with enough flesh attached to tell that they had been the Beastkin living here until a few days ago.
Looking at their half-rotted ears and tails, I raised my staff.
"Everyone, prepare for battle."
First. We had to take this one down.