Episode 14: Emperor's Hound Brahim (1)
Episode 14: Emperor's Hound Brahim (1)
"The Papacy is under attack?"
"Yes, Your Majesty. They say it might fall if things continue like this."
In the conference room, the heart of the Walpurgis Empire, numerous ministers and Emperor Balthazar were present.
"The warrior who attacked the checkpoint and the rebel forces have joined together and are launching a fierce assault."
"Hmm..."
Balthazar stroked the scar on his face, showing signs of displeasure.
"Reinhardt dies, the checkpoint is breached, the allied nations show military movements, and now the Papacy is about to be taken by rebels?"
Balthazar grabbed the hair of the minister who was delivering the report and lifted him up.
"Gyaaaaaah!!"
"Useless fools. I put you here to use your heads, and you can't do anything."
He then slammed the minister's head down onto the round table as if striking it.
"Enough. I will take to the field myself. Immediately mobilize all troops that can be deployed and prepare the artifacts made with the witches' mana."
"Your Majesty, the situation is dangerous, would it not be better to send the generals?"
Balthazar threw a punch at the face of the attendant who interjected.
- Thwack!
"Shut up. I will no longer listen to your advice."
"Yes, Your Majesty..."
The terrified ministers knelt in unison.
"I must see with my own eyes this warrior called Van. We march on the Papacy. I will sweep them away along with the traitors."
Attacks imbued with pure, highly concentrated mana rained down indiscriminately.
Brahim was barely holding them off, but he was gradually being pushed into a corner, and the frequency of him being hit increased.
"How is it? Does it hurt?"
Priscilla poured out relentless magical strikes as she slowly approached Fishel and Evelyn.
"What are your names?"
"I am Knight Fishel of the Rohim Kingdom, and next to me is Evelyn, a follower of the Saintess."
"Thanks for helping. But there's one problem."
"Yes?"
Priscilla, without stopping her magical strikes, whispered quietly to Fishel.
"I've already had too much mana drained, so I can't use anything beyond this level of magic. Can you take that guy down?"
Fishel, with a surprised expression, broke out in a cold sweat.
"Uh... if we team up, maybe?"
"Good, then let's fight in sync~"
As soon as Priscilla stopped her magic, Fishel, bolstered by Evelyn's support magic, charged in.
Sword strikes poured into the openings of Brahim, who was tired from Priscilla's onslaught.
- Kwa-chang!!!
"Now!"
- Kwa-gang!!!
Whenever Fishel's attacks missed, Priscilla would thrust in her magic. Though they were seeing each other for the first time, they showed coordination beyond imagination.
"Graaah!"
Unable to withstand the intense assault, Brahim was pushed back into a corner and collapsed.
"Trash-like bastards."
"As expected, the surefire way to win is a beatdown..."
The three women slowly approached the fallen Brahim to deliver the final blow.
Seeing the three women approaching, Brahim, with an unusual glint in his eyes, sensed the danger and pulled something out from his chest.
"Huh? My mana!"
Seeing the vial Brahim pulled out, Priscilla shouted.
"That's right, highly concentrated mana. Originally, I should have offered it to His Majesty the Emperor, but the situation being what it is, I have no choice."
Brahim promptly downed the entire vial of mana in one gulp.
"Um, Lady Priscilla? What happens if he does that?"
Priscilla stroked her chin in thought for a moment before opening her mouth.
"It's highly concentrated mana, and on top of that, he ingested mine, from a high-ranking witch. Wouldn't a mana overload occur, allowing him to momentarily surpass his limits?"
Seeing Priscilla explain with a giggle, Fishel and Evelyn tightly closed their eyes.
Then, Brahim, who had ingested all the mana, began to transform.
The leather armor he wore tore apart as his body swelled, his eyes turned bloodshot red, and his hair fell out in an instant.
"Since he's not a mage, he must be using all the mana for physical enhancement."
"What should we do, Lady Priscilla?"
"It seems too late to run, and a significant portion of my mana is depleted. Hmm... Might be a crisis?"
"Sigh..."
Letting out a sigh, Fishel stepped forward and raised her sword.
"In the end, I guess I have to try... If only Van were here at a time like this."
As the name 'Van' left Fishel's lips, Priscilla's expression changed.
"Van? Van came here?"
"Yes, Van came all the way from the Kingdom, smashing everything to pieces, saying he'd come to save you, Lady Priscilla."
"Is that so... As expected, he's my man!"
Priscilla clapped her hands happily.
Seeing this, Brahim shouted.
"Are you done with your last conversation before death?"
"No, not yet! Wait a moment!"
Priscilla raised her hand as if to tell him to wait, then cupped her hands to her mouth as if about to shout loudly.
And she shouted with all her might.
"Vaaaaaaan!!! Heeeelp meeeeee!!!!"
An impossibly loud voice for her slender frame echoed through the area.
"Lady Priscilla, Van is probably at the top, so it's unlikely he'd hear your voice."
Fishel tried to dissuade her from the side, but Priscilla paid no heed, winked once, and shouted again.
"Vaaaaaaaaan!!! I'm!! Here!!!!"
- Thud!
A small, faint sound of something collapsing could be heard from somewhere.
"Huh?"
Fishel looked up at the ceiling, seeming puzzled.
- Ku-gung!
The sound grew gradually closer.
- Ku-gu-gu-gung!
"What have you bastards done?"
Hearing the ominous sound, Brahim spoke in a flustered manner.
"Yeah, you're fucked. My knight is coming."
- Ku-gu-gu-gu-gu-gung!!!
"You sons of bitches!!"
Immediately after, as Brahim charged with his sword raised, the ceiling above his head collapsed.
- Kwa-ga-ga-ga-gang!
"Kyaaah!!"
Amidst a woman's scream, a colossal someone made their appearance.
On the rubble of the collapsed ceiling, there stood the Great Warrior Van, holding a Great Sword in one hand and embracing the Saintess Charlotte in the other.
"Long time no see, Van."
"I'm glad you're safe, Lady Priscilla."
Van and Priscilla gazed at each other intently.
For the first time since the journey began, a faint smile spread across Van's usually stern, expressionless face.
"Who's the kid you're holding?"
"The Saintess."
Ignoring the fact that he was stepping on Brahim, Van walked down and set the Saintess down.
The Saintess, covering her reddened face, whispered softly.
"It's the first time I've been held by a man... So this is what it feels like."
"Lady Charlotte!!!"
Seeing the Saintess, Evelyn immediately ran over, knelt, and rejoiced. Van nodded to the Saintess and then approached Priscilla.
And he gently stroked Priscilla's face.
"I'm sorry I'm late."
"No, Van. It was the perfect timing."
Priscilla smiled and hugged Van.
"Haven't seen you in a while, but you've become more dependable."
"Thanks to you, I got to see a bit of the world for the first time. There were a lot of problems."
"Right?"
For a moment, the two quietly felt each other's warmth.
- Ku-gu-gu-gu-gung!!
At that moment, Brahim rose from the rubble of the ceiling Van had destroyed.
"I'll kill you all."
With a twisted face, seeming quite angry, Brahim charged at Van and Priscilla.
"Don't interrupt."
Van frowned and launched a serious slash at the charging Brahim.
- Kwa-ga-ga-ga-gang!!
Although Brahim's physical abilities had been drastically enhanced by the mana overload.
With just one full-powered slash from Van, his body crumbled and was smashed into the wall.
Brahim, buried in the wall, showed no further movement.
"Haven't you gotten too strong, Van?"
Priscilla said with a sweet smile.
"I feel like my skills improve quickly when I experience real combat."
Hearing this, Fishel spoke in a tone of disbelief.
"Wait, weren't you a warrior who's seen all kinds of battles?"
"I usually haven't ventured far from the swamp. Enemies of this level are all first-time encounters for me."
"Sigh... Just how much stronger are you going to get later."
Fishel let out a hollow laugh and scratched her head.
"Great Warrior Van-isiyeo."
Saintess Charlotte, who had been quietly watching, approached Van.
"I just received a signal from the other followers. They have subdued the remaining forces of the Papacy, and it seems we have captured it."
"That's fortunate. With this, we have both achieved our goals. We can finally each return to our normal lives."
Van stroked Priscilla's face and spoke.
"How should we ever express our gratitude for this matter.... You are our savior, Van-nim."
Charlotte and Evelyn bowed before Van.
When Van gestured that it was okay, Charlotte took Van's hand.
"When the situation calms down someday, I will definitely repay your kindness. Everything I can do, I will do for you, Van-nim..."
Charlotte expressed her gratitude with tears in her eyes.
And she stroked Van's large hand and gazed at him intently.
Seeing this, Priscilla, while hugging Van, spoke.
"Ah, wait. Line order. Even though Van is such a charming man and I'd hate to monopolize him, everything has its order."
Hearing this, Fishel sneakily approached and stood behind Priscilla.
"I'm... second in line."
Priscilla stroked Fishel's head as if finding her cute.
"I'll allow Fishel. You're brave and cute..."
"Thank you...!"
Saintess Charlotte, seeming not to understand, tilted her head for a moment before finally realizing something and blushing.
"Then... I'm third... in line..."
It was Charlotte, raising one hand slightly and whispering softly.
"No, this isn't the time... If everyone is alright, how about we go to the banquet hall within the Papacy to share a meal, finish our unfinished conversations, and relieve our fatigue?"
"As expected of the merciful Saintess. I will have the followers prepare it."
"No, Evelyn. For everyone's sake, I will prepare it myself. I want to do something of my own will for the first time in a long while."
Hearing Charlotte's words, Evelyn wiped her tears and bowed her head deeply.
And wiping her tears, she looked at Van.
"Great Warrior-isiyeo, the grace of freeing the Saintess from oppression is something I and the followers will never forget. No matter what happens, we will stand on your side."
"Good, I'm glad it all worked out well."
With Van's rare smile, everyone present thought it was the end of their arduous journey.
But the sparks of war were gathering towards them.