Jealousy Turns to Rage (3)
The moment jealousy and envy twist into hatred and rage, I start thinking fast. My strongest weapons—the spirits—are nowhere to be found. All I have left is this lump of protein I call a body. So… maybe I should just trust my durability and charge in?
“Don’t even think about trying to tank it with your body. There are mages here besides muscleheads like me.”
“Yeah, and why the hell should I care? I didn’t do anything wrong. At least tell me what this is about.”
I put on my most wronged expression, spreading my arms in protest. The only answer that came flying was the muscle pig’s heavy kick.
The feeling of a foot slamming into my stomach hurt way more than I expected—way, way more. My insides twisted, breath vanished for a second, and the pain was so intense I nearly threw up everything I’d eaten.
“Hrk… hah… hahhh…”
“You uncivilized bastard. You should’ve backed off when I gave you the hint.”
The guy who butted in without reading the room was now yelling at me instead. My vision blurred from the pain, and breathing became torture. Only one thought filled my head.
I have to survive.
I clenched my teeth, staggered to my feet, and forced myself upright. The bastards watching me laughed like it was the funniest thing they’d ever seen. I knew walking wouldn’t get me out of here, but I kept moving anyway, trying to escape.
They kept shoving me back into the center, cackling the whole time. They weren’t going to kill me—I knew that much—but this was getting humiliating. My contractor was getting beaten to a pulp, and the spirits weren’t even showing their faces? Seriously?
Due to the contractor’s strong will, a new skill has been unlocked.
Huh? What skill?
The contractor can now transmit strong will to their spirits through the soul link. Thoughts and intentions are conveyed directly through the soul.
Perfect. You bastards. I was wrong, so please come back now. I even made your favorite side dishes…
Panzy Vlad was in a foul mood.
Protecting the weak was a knight’s duty. The Vlad family took that duty so seriously it had become their family motto, and Panzy herself considered it an honor. That was why she had helped the student named Cain during the entrance ceremony.
She’d heard something had gone wrong during the first exam for the male students. The professors tried to brush it off as a simple accident, but after asking around she learned that a magical weapon had gone berserk. Cain had probably been caught up in it.
When she supported him, her unique senses told her he possessed no talent whatsoever. No mana, no strength—how had someone like him even gotten into the academy? It was simple curiosity at first.
Despite his weak body, Cain carried himself with dignity and never shrank back. He even showed up at the training grounds to do warm-ups, proving how diligent he was. Helping a fellow student like that was also part of a knight’s duty. She’d made up an excuse just to run beside him—until Vermillion Vermon interrupted.
“As the son of a knight family, I don’t believe he would do such a thing, but…”
Panzy trusted her instincts. Sometimes a swordsman’s gut feeling was more reliable than their own thoughts. She stopped her training and turned toward the direction Vermillion had disappeared, searching for Cain.
Finding them inside the large building was difficult even for her. The only saving grace was that the wide-open training grounds were ruled out. She tucked two practice wooden swords into her belt and began checking the building’s secluded corners.
They weren’t in any of the obvious places… so the lounge or the changing rooms, then.
“Maybe they went outside.”
But if they had, she would have seen them. She’d been watching the entrance ever since they vanished. That left only the lounge and changing rooms.
The moment she opened the door leading inside, she broke into a run. She could only hope her instincts were wrong.
Vermillion was riding a high he’d never felt before. He’d always felt a vague dissatisfaction with the noble act of parroting “we protect the people.” Commoners existed to be ruled. Anyone who dared climb above their station needed to be made an example of so they would obey.
Just like this man crawling on the floor beneath him, still trying to escape despite the pain.
Cain.
It had started as simple jealousy over his closeness to the Saintess. But watching this commoner keep crawling forward like a cockroach that refused to die no matter how many times it was stepped on… yes. Rage and hatred boiled up inside him.
Vermillion Vermon felt nothing but fury and loathing toward this persistent, incompetent man. And he surrendered himself to that emotion, drunk on the thrill.
“Keep crawling on the floor like the cockroach you are.”
“……”
Vermillion raised his leg again, ready to stomp down on Cain. But just before his foot could crush Cain’s head, something stopped it cold.
Vermillion’s eyes widened in shock. His lackeys, confused, gathered around. Cain slowly lifted his head and glared up at Vermillion with venomous eyes, one corner of his mouth curling upward.
“Screw. Off. You spineless bastard who only does what his compass tells him.”
-Cain. I’m sorry…
Silph’s apologetic voice echoed in his mind.
No. What are you sorry for? You look adorable to me.
[Silph. Where’s Kasa?]
-Cain! I’m here! I brought Silph!
[Good job.]
Communicating through thoughts alone was incredibly convenient. So this was what it felt like to be connected by a neural cord, huh?
I looked up at Vermillion’s frozen foot.
You’re so dead, you bastard.
“Screw. Off. You spineless bastard who only does what his compass tells him.”
The wind Silph summoned began to swirl violently. I was furious—furious enough that I didn’t care what happened to these bastards anymore. Why the hell were they picking a fight with me just because they couldn’t talk to or get close to the Saintess? This had gone far beyond simple jealousy.
[Silph.]
-Yeah.
[Burn half my life force.]
-Got it.
My will traveled through the soul link. Normally she would have refused out of worry, but my intent was so strong that she silently obeyed.
I was going to crush these bastards.
The wordless command surged into her. Silph consumed my life force and whipped up a tremendous gale. Vermillion and his lackeys panicked, then quickly took up combat stances and focused on me.
“That bastard cast magic without a magic circle or incantation!”
“Shit, was he hiding a magic tool?!”
Why did their reactions always follow the exact same pattern?
I slowly rose to my feet and placed Kasa on my palm. To everyone else, it would look like a small flame had appeared in my hand. Kasa made cheerful splashing sounds, stuck out her tongue, and grinned.
I met her eyes for a moment and smiled back.
Yeah. Time to burn every last one of these bastards.
Spirit Link – Fire Tornado
My life force became fuel. My rage took physical form from Kasa’s mouth. That rage met the wind and began to thrash even more violently. The mages trying to cast spells couldn’t withstand the heat and turned to flee. I extended my hand toward the ones holding clubs.
The fiery tornado grew larger and larger until it threatened to engulf the entire lounge. Lockers melted. Chairs fused to the floor. The swords and staves the lackeys carried began to melt or burn to ash under the intense heat.
Panicked, they rushed for the door, but it was the one they had locked themselves. It wouldn’t budge.
“Hrk, hahhh! H-hot! Stop it!”
Vermillion raised both hands, voice trembling. Yeah. They were all going to die at this rate. Some had already pissed themselves and fainted from terror. Others foamed at the mouth and collapsed. What a sight.
Feeling my life force draining rapidly, I began to pull back Silph and Kasa’s power. That was when it happened.
“Vermillion Vermon! How could the son of a knight family—huh?”
The door they had barricaded burst open with a crash. A pink-haired woman stormed in, drove the hilt of her wooden sword into Vermillion’s crown, and sent him sprawling. Then she rushed straight toward me.
Ah, she was a little late. She’d probably come looking for me out of her own sense of justice. I should greet her cheerfully.
“Ah~ Sorry. Did you come to help?”
“Hmm. Was this your doing?”
“Strictly speaking, I’m the victim here. Look, I’ve got wounds. Cough, cough… and I’m even bleeding.”
Well, the bleeding was from the life force the spirits had drained, but whatever.
To anyone watching, it looked like I had single-handedly swept them away with overwhelming power. Panzy stared at me blankly for a moment before letting out a small laugh and walking over.
“Can you walk? I’ll help you.”
“Ahaha. I feel bad making you do this.”
“Somehow, this is the second time we’ve met under these kinds of circumstances.”
I didn’t refuse and leaned against Panzy Vlad as we left the lounge. The intense heat from the flames had triggered the magical fire alarm, which was now blaring loud enough to tear eardrums. The professors could deal with the collapsed lackeys when they arrived, but I still felt pretty wronged about the whole situation.
“You look upset. You beat them that badly and you still have a score to settle?”
“Private revenge is one thing. I want to make those bastards suffer officially, too.”
Panzy’s eyes widened at the rough language she rarely heard from me, then she burst out laughing.
“Hahaha! You’re right—revenge alone isn’t enough! Don’t worry. After I take you to the infirmary, I’ll personally give my testimony.”
“Thanks, Panzy Vlad.”
“Just call me Panzy. No need for formalities or to treat me like a noble.”
She laughed heartily and gave my back a light pat. In the game she’d been known as the poster child for kuudere, but seeing this boisterous side of her made it hard to adjust. She was just a hot-blooded justice woman with a strong sense of right and wrong.
Maybe we’d all misunderstood the game Spirit Savior this whole time. But honestly, that wasn’t my problem. All that mattered was that the person supporting me right now was Panzy Vlad.