Drawing Near (3)
Is this what a soccer player feels like, watching their team from the sidelines while injured? Alternating only between training and recuperation, I was killing time in the infirmary. The noise drifting in from the window had been growing louder since yesterday. There probably wasn't much time left before the monsters launched their invasion.
“[How can you speak of killing time when it has barely been a few days?]” the Holy Sword chided.
Well, it was true that I was anxious. Even without me, they certainly had enough strength to hold off a horde of monsters, but it was frustrating not being able to see it with my own eyes on the field.
“...Still, I'm glad my recovery is going smoothly.”
“[It is indeed a relief, but you must seal away that dual-wielding of yours for the time being. Your body has already been wrecked once; it needs time to recover before you push it to the brink again. There is no guarantee your body will hold up unscathed the next time you use that technique.]”
Just as the Holy Sword said, it did place a heavy strain on my body, but dual-wielding was undeniably powerful. Wielding two different forces would make it far more difficult for enemies to counter. Since I had already overcome the strain of using the Holy Sword, I figured dual-wielding should be possible too, but the Holy Sword seemed to disagree.
“[Do not do something foolish in the middle of a war and end up sidelined.]”
Being shut down so flatly left me with no room for rebuttal.
“[You would do better to spend that time diligently practicing the swordsmanship the Grand Duke of the North adjusted for you.]”
“And what about you? Do you have any intention of teaching me a sword style?”
“[It is impossible to instruct someone who does not fully understand the sword with mere words. It might even end up hindering you. For now, the only things I can teach you are the basics and movement.]”
I should consider even that a massive blessing. It had saved my skin multiple times already.
“[Once you become more accustomed to the sword, I shall teach you bit by bit. The sword styles used by the heroes of old—styles that have now become myth.]” the Holy Sword said, as if coaxing me.
“Understood. For now, I should focus on unlocking the second stage.”
It was a good thing that I had plenty of time to challenge the trial of the Crown of Thorns. Ever since I began training with the Grand Duke, the duration I could endure the trial had been steadily increasing. Though I wasn't entirely sure if that was a positive sign or not.
“[And thanks to that, you must have slept comfortably on that sister's thighs again.]”
...Just as the Holy Sword said, my physical condition made it impossible to tie myself to a pillar, so I had asked Marianne for help. She had assisted me as requested, ensuring the thorns of the Crown of Thorns wouldn't pierce my head when I collapsed. However, she gave me a lap pillow every single time I passed out, which was rather awkward. I had once asked her to just place my head on a regular pillow, but whenever I opened my eyes, the first thing I saw was always Marianne's face. What made it even more awkward was that I was slowly getting used to the sensation. Naturally, the Holy Sword's nagging only grew louder by the day.
“I didn't have a choice.”
“[You did look quite comfortable, though.]”
I let out a hollow laugh and buried my face in the pillow. Since I had received permission to return to active combat starting tomorrow, I decided to turn in early tonight. My plan was to wake up at the crack of dawn and head straight to the city walls.
It was just as I leaned the Holy Sword against the window frame and closed my eyes to sleep.
*Rumble—*
The moment the noise echoed, I snatched the Holy Sword. Though I desperately wanted to throw on my gear and leap straight out the window, I forced myself to run down the infirmary stairs like a civilized person.
“[They are coming. It is a stroke of luck amidst misfortune that they waited until you were nearly fully recovered.]”
“My days of being stuck in bed are finally over.”
Soldiers and knights rushed past me as I stepped out of the infirmary. Some were even galloping on horseback. Even without looking toward the outer wall, I could feel the overwhelming presence of the approaching monsters.
*Thud. Thud.*
Explosions reverberated through the air. It seemed the mages had begun casting in earnest. Shouts, battle cries, the chaotic clashing of spears and swords, and the twang of tightly drawn bowstrings releasing echoed all around. The closer I got to the wall, the clearer the sounds became.
“...Pour it down!...”
“...Drop them into the fire pit!...”
From the wall where the shouts occasionally drifted down, a dark mass plummeted. It was a monster sliced clean in half. Without losing momentum, I dashed toward the stairs leading up the wall. The soldier guarding the path gasped in surprise and immediately stepped aside.
I climbed the stairs. Drawing the Holy Sword ahead of time, I circulated my mana. My body felt light. It seemed the past few days of rest had done me some good.
At the top of the stairs, a crawler was rolling on the ground, grappling with a knight. I thrust my sword forward without hesitation. The crawler, which had been screeching with its maw wide open, had its head severed, sending it tumbling down the stairs.
“Thank you, Hero.”
The knight, drenched in monster blood, gave a brief nod before rushing back into the fray. I followed behind him, scanning the battlefield to see where help was needed.
Screeech! Skreeee!
Yet, strangely enough, there didn't seem to be any place that particularly required my intervention. Among the screams and death throes echoing across the wall, very few belonged to the soldiers or knights. I approached Grand Duke Quenor, who was sweeping through the monsters with overwhelming might at the center of the battle.
The Grand Duke kicked a white wolf off the wall with a single boot and turned his head toward me.
“You are late.”
“How can you scold me for being late when you're the one who locked me in the infirmary?”
“Indeed. Though no one would have blamed you even if you had stayed quietly in bed until tomorrow.”
“I'm completely healed. You don't need to worry.”
Frowning, I knocked down a monster that was crawling up the wall. The creature flailed its limbs in the air before being engulfed in flames, letting out a final shriek.
“But at this rate, there won't be anything left for me to do.”
I wondered if they even needed my help. In the distance, Daphne, her pink hair fluttering, was lavishly pouring out 5th Circle magic. Georg, true to his role as a heavy shield warrior, stood firmly in place, swinging his mace to turn the monsters into mush. And near them, Marianne, clad in armor, darted across the wall, piercing through monsters like a flash of light with her Holy Spear.
“Why wouldn't there be anything for you to do?”
The Grand Duke pointed toward the wall. Monsters, soldiers, and knights were tangled together in a brutal, blood-splattered melee. Soldiers' spears pierced the bellies of monsters, and knights' swords lopped off the heads of the impaled beasts. At that sight, I gripped my hilt tightly.
“I leave the soldiers in your hands.”
“Of course.”
Back-to-back, the Grand Duke and I kicked off the ground simultaneously. The cold wind from the rapidly approaching Boundary Line brushed past my cheeks. Gliding low across the ground, I recalled the Grand Duke's teachings.
“Your movements and basics are so excellent that I have no need to touch them. However, what you lack, in my eyes, are the finer details of combat. Ultimately, it is a matter of how you utilize the power you possess.”
I angled my blade. There were plenty of targets before me.
“Your instincts are sharp, but fighting solely on instinct is a battle that fails to consider the total capacity of your physical limits. Hero Elroy, engrave my movements into your mind.”
Exercise restraint. Keep arm movements to a minimum. Filter what can and cannot be done within the limits of what my body can handle without overexerting itself.
“War is not short, Elroy. There is a reason they say you do not use a cleaver to kill a chicken. Power is at its most potent when it is properly distributed.”
“[The Grand Duke of the North has taught you well. Put it to good use.]”
Maintaining my forward momentum, I naturally sliced the first monster's torso in half. Even without exerting much force, the monster split apart effortlessly. The yeti that had been locked in a struggle with the soldiers died just like that.
“Hey, Hero!”
“Are you really stealing our kills?!”
Good-natured complaints erupted from behind me. I turned back, flashed them a grin, and began carving through the monsters in earnest. Wherever the line was faltering, I rushed in and swung my sword. I killed every monster in sight, over and over again. In less than two hours, I had cut down nearly a hundred of them.
“...I knew this would happen.”
When I finally came to my senses, all the surrounding monsters had turned their gaze toward me. It seemed that because I had been running rampant, I had become their top priority target. I caught my breath as I faced them down.
“Kill that one first.”
A yeti that seemed to possess intelligence growled in a low voice. At his command, the monsters crawling up the wall lunged at me all at once. I slashed, parried, and dodged. Meanwhile, more monsters were closing in from behind to ambush me. It was fine. If I circulated my mana, their fangs wouldn't even pierce my skin. Just as I clenched my teeth to brace for the impact—
*Crash!*
“Are you alright, Hero?”
I let out a helpless chuckle, the tension leaving my body. Marianne's Holy Spear had pierced through the two monsters lunging from behind in an instant.
“Perfect timing, Marianne.”
“I shall clear the path.”
Georg charged ahead of me, clearing a path with his mace and shield. The monsters were swept away, unable to offer even a shred of resistance against his brute strength. Then—
“Lightning Bolt.”
Daphne's spell struck the body of the yeti standing at the rear. The yeti writhed, howling in agony. Daphne flashed a small smile from beside me.
“Isn't the final blow the Hero's job?”
“...You're making me look bad.”
Even as I spoke, my legs were already moving toward the yeti. A single slash. The neck of the yeti, bound by Daphne's magic, was severed by the blade of the Holy Sword.
The initial fierce onslaught of the monsters was gradually dying down. The monsters' corpses served as kindling, fueling the raging fires, while the wall of bodies became a barricade that prevented the remaining beasts from scaling the wall.
“Push them back!”
The monsters clinging desperately to the walls were cut down. Because the sun continued to shine brightly, I had lost all track of time. It felt as though the sky had briefly been dyed a deep orange, but now the pale morning light was filtering through once more.
The last monster tumbled off the wall. I stared at the burning pile of corpses, which emitted a foul stench. Beyond that hill of bodies, the monsters could no longer advance. Eventually, as if some sort of command had been issued, they turned back and began to disappear into the forest.
“Regroup. Today's battle is over.”
With the Grand Duke's declaration, the soldiers let out sighs of relief and began clearing the battlefield. The Grand Duke's eyes, still burning with fighting spirit, stared at the monsters beyond the wall.
“...We won't be able to just defend forever,” I said.
Grand Duke Quenor nodded.
“Indeed. The moment the Boundary Line reaches this fortress, it is over. Just as you said, a single stomp from the Giant will bring everything crashing down.”
The Grand Duke did not call today's battle a victory. The soldiers, too, did not seem to let their guard down.
“Once the royal palace's reinforcements arrive, leaving them to defend the fortress while we head out to slay the Giant would be the ideal strategy. But there is no guarantee those monsters will move according to our wishes.”
Grand Duke Quenor narrowed his eyes and let out a sigh.
“...I only hope our soldiers do not grow to fear the coming of tomorrow.”
The monsters' offensive was as regular as a scouting operation. We fought off the monsters that swarmed us every morning, and they retreated at night after suffering countless casualties. The siege dragged on for days, but the enemy always attacked with the same intensity. The casualties from a single battle were few, but like a gentle drizzle soaking through clothes, they slowly began to pile up.
“I am Legion Commander Mur.”
A single commander who scaled the wall killed ten knights. The soldiers' casualties must have exceeded a hundred. The Grand Duke eventually severed the creature's head. That day's battle ended earlier than usual. Even after the fighting stopped, I did not speak to the Grand Duke.
Night was gradually drawing closer to this land. The sun, which used to blaze all day, now dipped past the afternoon, casting long shadows of dusk. The night would vanish after only a couple of hours of waiting. Yet, the arrival of night on the battlefield was hardly a welcome guest.
“...Don't you think it's gotten a bit colder?”
One night after a battle. The soldiers huddled against the wall, shivering from the sudden chill. The stench of the monsters still made our heads throb.
“How much longer do we have to hold out like this?”
I could hear the soldiers muttering. I walked over to where our party was huddled together and took a seat in a corner.
“This feels completely different from when we fought the Kraken,” Georg said, shaking his head with a click of his tongue. “Back then, it felt like we were fighting a typhoon. Now, it feels like a noose is slowly tightening around our necks.”
“They say once the reinforcements arrive, we'll open the gates and head out to defeat the Giant. Though I don't know if the monsters will wait for us until then.”
Daphne was taking a light nap, leaning against the wall. Having consumed her mana like crazy over the past few days, she must have been utterly exhausted. Marianne was still awake, but her face was equally worn with fatigue.
Just then, a sudden chill ran down my spine. Feeling a strange sense of déjà vu, I bolted upright. Yes. This was a sensation I had felt before. The midwinter landscape that the Crown of Thorns had shown me.
“Elroy?”
*RUUUUUUMBLE—!!!*
The world shook. Every soldier and knight resting against the wall sprang to their feet as alarms blared. I rushed to the edge of the wall and peered out toward the forest.
“...Damn it.”
Beyond the hazy, white shroud of the Boundary Line, a massive silhouette was beginning to take shape.