The Rift, Battle (1)
Fast.
The instant Adel saw Ruth's fist, he knew something was wrong. It was incomparably faster than a moment ago. A familiar energy sat at the man's fingertips.
Chakra?
Chakra. The realm every true expert had to reach. Strength was measured by the speed and size of the Chakra Disk spinning near the heart. But it wasn't something people used in a situation like this. The reason was simple: it was dangerous for both sides.
On top of that, even though Ruth was clearly circulating chakra, there was no killing intent. Which meant the attack wasn't serious — just a skilled fighter giving his all without realizing it.
If I counter here, he dies. No question.
His body had already moved on reflex. All he had to do was slip underneath and throw a single punch. Ribs would shatter. Organs would rupture.
No need to go that far.
If it had been an enemy, maybe. But this was Ruth — the man he'd been laughing and talking with just moments ago. And there was no killing intent besides. What more needed to be said?
So Adel simply rolled with the blow, choosing to let his opponent have that one.
"Ruth!"
"Ah—!"
After tumbling across the dirt a few times, Adel pushed himself up. When he turned his head, he found a crowd staring at him in a daze.
"You even used chakra."
"...Ah— ahh! I-I'm sor—"
"You lunatic!"
Ruth never got to finish his apology. The knights who'd been watching the spar crowded in, and before he could get another word out, they started stomping him without an ounce of mercy.
"You used chakra in a spar?!"
"Ghk!"
"Wasn't he the one who saved you? What, trying to assassinate him?"
"You're getting special treatment when we get back, you bastard!"
"I-I'm sorry! I'm sorry, everyone!"
"Don't apologize to us — apologize to him!"
Adel watched Ruth get piled on. Then he turned toward a gaze he felt on himself.
"..."
"...Ah."
The one whose eyes met his was none other than Sien. She let out a small sigh and quickly looked away. Adel could only tilt his head at that.
...What the hell.
Meanwhile, Brender swore under his breath. It wasn't out of anything negative. It was a rough sort of praise.
What the hell was that just now. He saw it coming and dodged?
The others would think Adel had gotten lucky. Even Brender himself had thought so for a split second. But if it really had been luck — then what about those utterly calm eyes? And that hand, already in position behind him the moment he slipped away?
Don't tell me he even had a counter lined up? And then he let it go?
A knight. That young man was definitely a knight. There was no other way he could have dodged an attack from a knight circulating chakra. Brender stared at Adel, thinking as much.
Lately, people had been flooding in, desperate to learn Lichtenauer swordsmanship and make a name for themselves. But the Lichtenauer knight examination was brutally harsh. So some of them skipped the legitimate competition entirely, trying instead to catch the eye of someone in the family. And right now, Adel looked exactly like one of those people.
I'll have to speak with Lady Sien and ask her to be careful.
From Adel's perspective, it would be utterly baffling. But from Brender's, there was no other conclusion to reach. Suspicion had hardened into certainty, and the misunderstanding only grew thicker.
The Lichtenauer family was a renowned house, famous for its swordsmanship. And Sien, who carried that blood, possessed skill befitting the family name. Even she had been impressed. What had just happened was remarkable.
He slipped past a knight using chakra.
That was no ordinary skill. At the very least, he'd have to be at the level of a knight's attendant.
Come to think of it, she'd heard something like that while living in the capital. There were people who'd had to leave their attendant posts for unavoidable reasons. They were so talented they went on to serve as regular soldiers. But they didn't want anyone knowing they'd failed to become knights, so they never mentioned having been attendants.
So he has circumstances he can't talk about.
Sien was operating under a completely different misunderstanding from Brender. Brender knew the family's situation, so he was wary. Sien, who still didn't know much about the family's circumstances, was simply curious. So even when Brender came to find her, she couldn't guess why.
"Lady Sien."
"Yes, Commander. Did you have something to say?"
"The truth is..."
Just as Brender was about to speak, the world heaved.
A deep, grinding rumble knocked everything on the ground off its feet. A deafening explosion followed, tearing at the ears.
BOOM!!
"Ugh!"
"Lady Sien!"
Brender caught his lord in a hurry and took stock of the situation. The ground shook as if in an earthquake, and a roar rolled across the land. For a human, it was the omen of the disaster they least wanted to face.
"Commander. Is this...?"
"Rift signs. They'd gone quiet for a while — I thought things had settled down!"
The hunting ground of demonic beasts. The maw of hell. The abyss. That accursed thing was opening its jaws once more.
"Commander! Commander! A rift! A rift is opening!"
"Get it together! Demonic beasts will start pouring out any second! Gather the carriages and civilians in the center and hold formation! The family estate isn't far — reinforcements will be here soon. Just hold on. Hold on a little longer!"
The Lichtenauer estate wasn't far. They would have sensed the anomaly there as well. Rifts had to be destroyed the moment they formed, because they never stopped spewing demonic beasts. Once they knew the location, the family's forces would come flooding in. If they could just hold until then, there wouldn't be a problem.
The worry is... the rift's grade.
Please let the light that burst out be gray or blue. He didn't think the Lichtenauer knights were weak. But they were short on numbers, and a high-grade rift would be far too dangerous.
"Rift confirmed!"
"Location!"
"Eleven o'clock! Not far! Visible to the naked eye!"
Brender snapped his head in that direction. At first, a dull gray aura swirled around it. He thought it would be a 5th-grade rift — the easiest kind. But the gray faded, and a blue light settled in its place.
Fine. That far was still acceptable. Just stop there. Brender and every knight present prayed for exactly that.
Unfortunately, reality was never that kind.
"Damn it!"
"Goddamn it!"
The aura shifted from blue to red. The light that signaled a 3rd-grade rift. At the same time, another roar thundered out as the abyss opened its maw.
Kieeek!!
Kieeeek!!
From beyond it, grotesque cries echoed forth.
"...Lady Sien."
A 3rd-grade demonic beast was a formidable opponent. Lichtenauer knights or not — they were too few, and there were too many to protect. They couldn't handle the full volume pouring from the rift.
"If you were to withdraw..."
In a few minutes, 3rd-grade demonic beasts would come crushing through. Incomparably stronger and more horrific than anything of the 5th grade. Even if the knights gave everything they had, there was always a chance something could go wrong.
"..."
Sien, who had nearly died to a demonic beast once before, was so terrified she wanted to run that very instant. Her heart pounded as if it would burst. Her body trembled of its own accord.
"...No."
But more terrifying than the beasts themselves was the thought of turning her back on the people who trusted her. And the thought of living with the guilt of having fled instead of fighting beside them.
"As you said, Commander, reinforcements will be here soon. Until then... let's hold until then."
"...Understood. I'll give it everything I have."
His lord's will was set. All that remained was to do what a knight was meant to do.
"Prepare for battle!!"
They weathered the first clash, if only barely. But the demonic beasts' charge was merciless. The second blow that followed shattered the knights' line. They were simply too few — the defensive wall was far too thin.
"Aaaagh!!"
"Protect the civilians! Drive them back!"
"Uwaaah!!"
Screams of people. Knights roaring themselves hoarse. The howls of starving demonic beasts filling the field. Only ten minutes had passed, and already hell had unfolded before them.
"Hah!"
Sien, already separated from Brender, swung her sword with all her strength. She couldn't call herself a powerhouse. But she wasn't so weak that she couldn't fight a demonic beast. She could protect herself — and go further, protect someone else.
This is bad! They broke through too fast!
A single massive sheet of ice doesn't melt easily on water. But once that ice is broken into pieces, it's a different story entirely. That was exactly the situation now. The knights were still holding firm — but they'd all been scattered. It was no longer enough to watch the front. They had to watch every direction.
Kieeeek!!
Had her mind wandered? Sien barely managed to dodge a demonic beast lunging at her back.
"Kh..."
She couldn't stop its claws from raking across her back, though. A sharp pain lanced through her, and her body pitched forward.
"Uwaaah!!"
"Aaaaah!!"
Screams erupted from every direction. Whether they belonged to knights or helpless civilians, there was no way to tell.
Kyaaaak!!
Another demonic beast came for Sien. Fortunately, her sword was just a little faster than its yellowed fangs.
"Ah!"
But the thing fought back even as it died. This time, a sizable gash opened on her thigh. Sien staggered, then sank to the ground where she stood. She had to move. She had to keep fighting. She had to — but her body wouldn't obey.
"Dad!"
Up ahead, a handful of civilians had been driven into a corner. A middle-aged man swung a pole this way and that, but it wasn't enough.
"Nngh!"
She forced her bleeding leg to stand. It hadn't been by her own choice, but she was now the head of the Lichtenauer family. She stood in place of the father and brother who had already left this world.
Why had they given up those precious lives? Because they had not turned away. Because they had fought to the end to protect. Upholding the family's honor. Fulfilling their duty as nobles. With nothing but the conviction to protect those in their care, they had acted without a shred of shame, and accepted the end that came.
"Aaaaah!!"
She launched herself straight at the monster.
BOOM!
Unable to withstand the impact, Sien went tumbling. Perhaps startled by the sudden charge, the demonic beast regarded her with a hint of confusion. But it soon realized that this human — nothing more than prey — had simply done something foolish.
Grrrr...
The beast shifted its target from the people in front of it to Sien. It lunged at her as she tried to rise. In that instant, Sien bit her lip and closed her eyes.
CRUNCH!
"..."
Something was off. Instead of pain, she felt a presence.
"...That was close."
A familiar voice. Sien opened her eyes and looked ahead. Had he already been fighting his way here? Covered head to toe in demonic beast blood, Adel stood between her and the creature.
"Why did you do that."
"...What?"
"You didn't have to."
Even with a demonic beast right in front of them, Adel asked the question as if it were nothing.
"You don't have to fight."
Why did she do that? Why did she throw herself in? It was an obvious question. A perfectly obvious question. She was scared. She was terrified. She wanted to run. But she knew she couldn't.
If someone had to die today, it should be her. Just as her father had. Just as her brother had. Because that was what it meant to be the head of Lichtenauer.