Chapter 82
Chapter 82
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Translator: Vine
Chapter: 82
Chapter Title: Yuria Repays a Debt (6)
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The werewolves took up more time than I expected.
Seriously, I don't have a moment to spare. This is a problem.
I left only the unconscious werewolf's head above ground and hurried toward the location from the email.
It was quite a distance from here to my destination.
But if I flew at full speed without holding back, I should be able to reach it in just a few minutes.
Every second counted. This was no time to take it easy.
‘Hngh…! It's so cold, moving this fast.’
*Whoosh!*
The cold wind sliced at my skin as it rushed past my ears.
It felt like riding a motorcycle on a freezing day without any winter gear.
Of course, my frail body couldn't possibly withstand it.
My skin instantly turned bright red, and my exposed ears were already numb.
But I gritted my teeth and endured. What did it matter if I felt like I was freezing to death?
If I could buy time with suffering, I'd do it a hundred, a thousand times over.
I fanned the flames of my will, forcing my body to fight back against the urge to shrink from the cold.
“…!”
As I leaped from rooftop to rooftop, taking the shortest route, my eyes caught an unnaturally blackened exterior wall.
It was a striking, and in many ways, peculiar mark.
It couldn't have been a bomb, as nothing had collapsed. It couldn't have been a fire, as the building itself was intact.
How could one single spot be so deeply scorched, as if someone had just dotted it?
As I rushed forward, weighing the possibilities, a thought crossed my mind.
‘Come to think of it, I heard a loud noise earlier, like a lightning strike. Wait, if it's the Liberation Army and lightning…!’
*Thump.*
An ominous premonition sent a chill down my spine.
The reason was simple.
The Liberation Army just so happened to have a high-ranking officer who specialized in lightning magic.
The highest position in the Metahuman Liberation Army is the Supreme Commander.
And beneath the Supreme Commander were the top brass, the highest-ranking commanders known as the Seven Extremes.
Each of them commanded their own unit, but they were also monsters in their own right, possessing exceptional combat prowess.
Well… if you looked closely, they were a mess of betrayals and backstabbing.
Surprisingly, the individual combat strength of the Seven Extremes was on par with Raven's—at the upper echelon of the double-number Fixers.
No, that might be a bit hard to understand. It would be better to put it in terms of numbers.
Double-number Fixers are those ranked from 10th to 99th.
So, it was easier to understand if you thought of most of the Seven Extremes as being within the top 20 in the entire world.
Considering a powerful mage could unleash firepower equivalent to an entire battalion, you could begin to grasp how a single organization could wage war against all of humanity.
‘Akashumir of the Crimson Lightning. If she's really here... Greg can't handle her. Lightning isn't something you can just endure with your body.’
To be honest, Greg was strong enough to make my worrying seem laughable.
An orc's unique vitality and sturdy physique were comparable to a bear's or a lion's, even bare-handed.
But Greg hailed from the Great Warrior Orcs, said to be the best among them.
It was no exaggeration to call him a walking bioweapon, capable of tearing a tank apart without a weapon.
However, if his opponent was a skilled lightning mage, that advantage would quickly fade.
Lightning, perhaps even more dangerous than fire, possessed an overwhelming power that not even Greg could withstand.
Even if he was lucky enough to dodge an attack and close the distance, if his opponent wreathed themselves in lightning... he, who fought without weapons, would have no choice but to take the damage.
If Greg had a sturdy weapon that could withstand the force of lightning, it might be a different story, but he, who always avoided fights, would never carry something like that.
‘If Raven isn't late, it might be okay... I don't know. I'll have to see the situation first.’
Suppressing my anxiety, I picked up my pace.
All I could do now was trust in Raven.
And just as I finally reached my destination, the piercing noise growing louder as I drew near.
Before I could even think, I threw myself forward.
Before I could even rejoice at seeing Greg with my own two eyes for the first time in so long.
The sight of a woman about to attack him as he knelt on one knee caught my eye.
“Fry to a crisp! Fulgur!”
“…!”
*Screech!*
Skidding to a halt, I managed to stop just in time to stand in front of Greg.
From the other side came a crimson flash that stung my retinas for a fleeting moment.
So her attack was lightning magic, just as I thought.
What a relief. If I hadn't thought of it beforehand, I would have been too late trying to figure out how to counter it.
Feeling a small sense of relief in the back of my mind, I extended my psychokinesis into the ground.
I grabbed hold of the solid, non-conductive earth beneath the stone floor.
But this alone might not be enough to withstand the power of her attack.
So, I embedded pieces of metal lying nearby into the side of the earthen wall I'd raised to the height of a person.
Some of the lightning will use that metal as a conductor and flow to the side, dispersing its power enough!
And in the very next moment, the massive wall of earth and the crimson lightning collided.
*CRACK!*
Even before the roar reached me, my body reacted as if it wanted to vomit just from blocking the attack.
An immense force tore at my psychokinesis holding the earth together, pushing my body back.
I guess even if I've gotten a little stronger, the gap between me and a truly powerful person is still the same.
A sense of powerlessness, similar to when I faced Drakel, seemed to press down hard on my shoulders.
Still, I absolutely refused to lose.
No, I won't lose.
With a determination bordering on obsession, I held onto the psychokinesis blocking the crimson lightning until the very end.
If it breaks through so easily, I won't be able to face Greg.
‘You will not get past me!’
*Ssshhh….*
The fleeting moment that felt like an eternity began to move again.
The force that had tried to pierce the earthen wall I held up with psychokinesis had spent itself.
What that meant was simple.
I had successfully blocked the opponent's magic that was meant to attack Greg.
The moment I realized this, I let go of the earth I was holding so tightly.
The man-high wall of earth crumbled, kicking up a massive cloud of dust.
“…Yuria?”
Before the thick dust could even settle, a familiar voice called out.
A low, gruff tone that seemed devoid of emotion, yet held an underlying kindness.
At that, I threw back the hood of the cloth covering my head and turned to look at Greg.
*Hello, you liar. You didn't come back after a month, so I came to get you myself.*
That's what I felt like I would have said, if I could speak.
“How did you get here... No, this isn't the time for that. Thank you. You saved my life.”
“…”
“Hm? Ah, these are just minor wounds. Nothing to worry ab—kuh, never mind.”
As the dust slowly settled, Greg's condition was revealed to be truly wretched.
His clothes were in tatters, and beneath them, his body was covered in bandages that looked like they'd been there for a while.
On top of that, deep wounds on his shoulder and abdomen, seemingly fresh, were bleeding profusely.
And one of his arms was charred black, as if it had taken a direct hit from the lightning.
How could someone be so covered in wounds?
Before pity, a searing rage, as if my brain were boiling, surged through me.
‘Akashumir…!’
I gritted my teeth and turned back around.
My gaze fell upon a red-haired woman who was looking our way, her hand raised near her eyes as if bothered by the dust.
Her appearance matched what I knew of Akashumir of the Crimson Lightning.
Her grayish skin and long, prominent ears clearly marked her as a dark elf.
Considering the red lightning magic she just cast, there was no need to even consider the possibility that she wasn't Akashumir.
Well, anyone who could cast magic powerful enough to roast Greg's arm had to be the real deal.
“What's this? I thought something jumped in. A kid? I don't sense any mana, so you're not a mage…”
Akashumir stared at me, seemingly debating whether to attack or not.
It seemed she was wary of the fact that I had blocked her lightning without any mana.
Was she worried about what might happen if she provoked an unexpected variable?
Or maybe she was considering how to control her power so she could capture me alive.
For me, this was a good thing.
Having used nearly thirty percent of my strength to block that one attack, this was a golden opportunity to catch my breath.
‘My chances of winning... are honestly zero.’
I was furious.
If Greg had taken that last attack, he would have died or suffered an equally grievous injury.
Thinking about that, it was impossible not to be enraged.
But emotions aside, considering the power gap between us, the situation was utterly hopeless.
There were at least two walls of power between Greg and Akashumir, and at least three between me and Greg.
Mathematically speaking, that meant there were five walls between Akashumir and me.
‘Was blocking that attack a miracle...? No, come to think of it, she was just trying to finish off a downed opponent, and I barely blocked it with all my strength. I might not have been able to stop it at all.’
The gap was so wide it was almost laughable. Is this what it feels like to face a tank with a single rifle?
If I weren't so blindingly angry, I wouldn't even be able to stand under this pressure.
But for some reason, the confidence I'd felt earlier was still holding its head high.
Is this courage? Or recklessness? Realistically, she's an opponent I can't beat. This is strange.
As I was tilting my head, confused by my own feelings, Greg suddenly spoke.
“Yuria. Run. You have no reason to be involved here. Raven is nearby, fighting another enemy. I'll buy you time to get to him. I still have the strength to withstand her magic. So... mmph!”
“…”
*Hmph. What is he talking about?*
I sealed Greg's mouth with psychokinesis for spouting such nonsense.
A man on the verge of death wants to buy me time? He can barely even stand.
Besides, I'm the one who came here to save him.
No matter how strong she is, just running away won't accomplish anything.
I'm going to survive this and return to Nighthaven with Greg.
‘That kind of future... Wait, maybe there's a way…’
*Flash.*
An idea sparked in my mind.
It was a method that might just be the only solution to this situation.
But I couldn't be sure. A possibility was just that—a possibility.
The only way to change reality was to try.
“Ah, forget it. I can't stand brats. Just get fried along with him. Let's wrap this annoying business up. Fulmen.”
Akashumir muttered, pointing a finger in our direction.
It seemed her short supply of patience had run out.
Perhaps she was confident that her full-power attack would be unstoppable.
This time, a massive bolt of lightning that I couldn't possibly block, even with all my strength, came crashing down.
*KRA-KOOM!*
A crimson death sentence, tearing everything apart, descended upon the earth.
And for a moment, a silence fell, as if even the world had stopped breathing.