Chapter 28
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 28
Chapter Title: Help Me Just This Once!!
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“...Karack?”
The thing filling my vision was a massive wall of muscle.
In that split second when I thought Araktoo's greatsword would cleave through the air and take my head, Karack had thrown himself in front of me.
He used his axe and his own body as a shield to take Araktoo's strike head-on.
Crack—!
Shards from Karack's already shattered axe scattered through the air.
Araktoo's greatsword, having finally breached the defensive line, plunged deep into the warrior's solid shoulder.
Squelch, crunch—!
The chilling sound of bone grinding and tough muscle tearing pierced my eardrums.
If he hadn't deflected some of the force with his axe first, Karack's massive frame would already have been split in two.
“Kuhk...!”
Hot blood sprayed from Karack's mouth, soaking the ground.
But even amid that excruciating pain, the light in Karack's eyes hadn't died.
Instead, he clamped both hands tightly around the blade of Araktoo's greatsword.
Grip—
His palms shredded against the saw-like edge, but with beastly strength, Karack locked the blade in place against his shoulder.
A look of shock flashed in Araktoo's eyes.
“Y-You mad dog bastard...! Let go! Release it right now!”
“Keh heh... Can't... let... go...”
Karack spat the words through a mouthful of blood, his voice low but resolute.
Araktoo desperately tried to pull his sword free, but he couldn't shake off Karack, who clung to it even as it carved into his own flesh.
Of course. After unleashing such a massive technique in an exhausted state, his body couldn't possibly be normal.
Karack bared his bloodstained teeth and turned to look at me.
“...Now's... the time... Kel... Bark...”
In that instant, my mind went ice-cold, as if doused with freezing water.
Sentimental things like sorrow or rage came second.
Karack can wait. What I need to do is not waste this once-in-a-lifetime chance he's created with his life on the line!
Mourning a comrade's sacrifice? Better to cut off the enemy's breath.
That was the survival method I'd learned in the back alleys—and the surest way to honor Karack's resolve.
Thud—!
'Kugh!'
I pushed through the pain in my gut and launched myself forward.
Araktoo's gaze was still fixed on Karack, who clung to his sword.
Hummm—
The Kel Kar in my hand resonated coldly.
I condensed all the energy from my third-stage Imprints into a single point at the sword's tip.
This time, I wouldn't miss.
“Kraaaah!! You bastard!! Die!!”
“Y-You filthy scum...!”
Araktoo belatedly raised his empty left arm to block, but my downward slash, riding gravity, was faster.
I can do it! I can cut him!
“Kraaaaaah!!!”
Slash—!
Spurt—!
With a fierce shout, I severed through dense muscle, crushed thick bone, and lopped off his shoulder in a single stroke, the power of his fighting spirit swirling within.
Red blood arced through the air.
Araktoo's left arm, etched with vivid blood tattoos, flew limply into the sky.
“Kraaaaaaaaagh!!”
Araktoo's death scream tore through the plains.
I caught his falling forearm as I landed.
Whoosh—!
Even severed from its body, the fighting spirit's magic pulsing within it scorched my palm.
I hurriedly supported Karack and bellowed at the top of my lungs.
“Lilian! Batu! We're retreating!! Now!!!”
A little before Edel severed Araktoo's arm, Knight Captain Hart was on the verge of madness.
Clang—!
“What in the world are you doing, my lady?!”
If not for the barbarian in front of him, he could have subdued and captured the lady somehow, but this hulking brute was a high-level fighter on the cusp of Adept.
In Hart's exhausted state, subduing him instantly was impossible.
And Batu's tactics were utterly despicable.
“You barbarian scum!!”
The moment Hart's sword surged forward, Batu unhesitatingly hoisted Lilian up like a shield and thrust her out front.
“Kyaaaaah!! Help! Somebody save me!”
If he didn't pull back his sword, he'd end up a noble lady killer for sure.
“Tch!! You damn bastard!! And you call yourself an honorable warrior?!!”
Hart halted his blade and spat curses he rarely uttered in his lifetime.
Batu flinched but quickly hardened his expression, recalling Edel's strict instructions.
—Honor and warrior pride be damned. Winning is everything. If it's urgent, pick up Lilian and use her as a shield. That knight won't dare attack.
—But... isn't that... too cowardly...?
—Failing the chieftain's orders is the real dishonor! If you have to choose one, what'll it be?
“...Fulfill... orders. That's... my... honor...”
Batu's strategy was purely to buy time.
He understood perfectly that he just needed to keep this knight tied up until Edel gave the signal.
Lilian, too, put on a tearful face but shouted anyway.
“Sir Hart! There's a reason for all this!! Please, just hear me out!”
Boom—!
Hart leaped aside to dodge the spell.
“Tch! How am I supposed to be convinced when you're hurling flames like that, my lady?!”
Talking mid-cast.
A vile trick Edel had taught her.
“Those red-tattooed barbarians are offering up our kingdom's citizens as living sacrifices! I hired these men to stop it!”
Flash—!
This time, a small lightning bolt struck near Hart's feet.
“Don't spout such nonsense! The idea that barbarians were hired by continentals is...!”
That was when it happened.
“Lilian!! Batu!! We're retreating!! Now!!”
Hart's eyes widened at Edel's shout.
“What...?”
Retreat? Retreat?
From these barbarians who never stopped once battle began until the end?
And he'd clearly called out to Lilian by name.
Is what she says truly real?
At that moment, Lilian recalled her conversation with Edel and shouted with all her might.
—Lilian, if you get a chance to talk to Hart, convince him with this logic. Fill in the details yourself.
—Wow... that sounds plausible. Were you a noble by any chance?
—Eh, let's say I had an interest.
“The one who lost his arm is their leader! Sir Hart, this is an opportunity for you too! Who would dare touch the knight captain who slew a barbarian chieftain to save kingdom citizens even during a civil war? With this justification alone, you won't have to get dragged into this filthy war!!”
“!!!”
Lilian's cry pierced Hart's chest like a dagger.
It pinpointed exactly what he wanted.
What he sought to protect was the Ayula Kingdom, not the princes' greed for the throne.
But the capital's pressure was becoming hard to withstand.
If the lady's words are true...
In the end, Hart's sword slowly lowered.
“...I'll believe you just this once.”
Lilian flashed a bright smile and mounted Dromas, galloping off with Batu.
“You made the right choice! Be sure to tell my father I'm doing well!!”
And just like that, Lilian vanished in an instant.
Watching her back, Hart could only click his tongue.
“Hah... really... what in the world... are you all up to...”
His gaze turned to Araktoo, collapsed with his arm severed.
“Tch, looks like cleanup will keep me busy.”
He infused his voice with aura and bellowed across the battlefield.
“The enemy leader is down!! All troops, assemble!! Cease pursuit!! Bind all nearby barbarians first!”
“Damn it! Damn it! Don't die! Don't you dare die!”
Thud thud thud—!
I hoisted Karack onto Dromas and rode like a madman.
Lilian had hastily staunched the bleeding with ice magic, but the wound exposing bone and organs wasn't something a makeshift fix could handle.
“...Kel Bark... how... did it... go...”
“We won!! I even cut off his arm, thanks to you, Karack!!”
“Kuh... kehahaha... Knew... you'd do it... Kel Bark... You're... amazing... If it's Kel Bark... our tribe...”
I roughly cut him off.
“Don't plant death flags, you bastard! Stay with me! We'll fix you up soon!!”
I shouted back at Batu and Lilian following behind.
“Lilian!! Get on my back! We might need magic!”
Whoosh—
Slap—
Batu tossed Lilian, and she stuck to my back.
“Got it!! I'll do my best!!”
Then I yelled at Batu again.
“Batu! Hurry to Aila! Tell her or Lunia—whichever's better at healing rituals—to come to Belvat Castle immediately!!”
“Un... derstood.”
Heading back to Belvat Castle was a dangerous gamble, but it was the only place with the facilities and manpower to save Karack right now.
Belvat Fortress, lord's manor, private office.
“Aaaagh! Slowly! Please, slowly, you brute!”
Baron Hound writhed on the luxurious sofa, screaming.
His personal physician, sweating profusely, poured potion on the baron's broken fingers and splinted them.
The lord's manor, ravaged by the barbarians, was a mess, and the baron's pride was even more miserably crumpled.
“Those... uncivilized beasts! Dare to ravage my territory and lay hands on my body?! I'll send word to His Highness the Prince and wipe that tribe off the map!”
Every twinge of pain from his broken fingers made the baron grind his teeth, picturing Edel's face.
“That bastard... That Kel Bark... I won't let him die easy. I'll skin him alive and hang him from the walls! I swear...!”
As he vowed revenge and pointed furiously at the air—
Bang—!
The heavy office door was ripped from its hinges and slammed into the wall.
“H-Hiiik?!”
The baron jolted in terror and tumbled behind the sofa.
Emerging from the dust cloud was the very demon who had crushed his fingers moments ago.
Edel stood drenched in blood, Araktoo's severed arm in his mouth, Karack's massive body on his back.
The sight was like a man-eating monster crawled straight from hell.
That's... a human arm...? Hiiik!! Did he eat a person?!
Regardless of the baron's misconception, Edel's eyes burned with desperation.
“Perfect timing!! Turns out you're useful after all! Good thing I kept you alive!!”
Thud—!
Edel roughly planted the Kel Kar in the floor and grabbed the frozen physician by the collar.
“Hey, doc.”
“Y-Yes?! Hik!”
“You're saving this guy starting now. No puking. Get to it.”
The physician paled at Karack's wound.
“Th-This... The wound's too deep, organs damaged... I can't do it alone...”
“Can't fix him? You die first.”
Edel's voice was low, but the killing intent within was too much for an ordinary doctor to bear.
Lilian hurriedly assisted from the side.
“I'll support with magic!! You focus on suturing and treatment! Hurry!!”
The physician scrambled to gather his tools.
The baron, huddled in the corner, trembled as he watched.
This cannibalistic barbarian who treated the lord's office like his own home, barging in twice a day.
Me... get revenge on that thing...? Before the capital troops arrive, I'll be eaten first!!
The baron's thirst for revenge was devoured by fear.
Edel gripped Karack's hand tightly.
Damn it, it's so cold!!
“Hang in there, Karack! You're my first axe, remember? What axe breaks without its master's permission?”
Edel, who had lived his life learning only to steal, hurt, and kill others' things in the back alleys.
For the first time, he felt a desperate wish to save someone.
“Damn gods! Help me just this once! I've rolled in the dirt like a dog my whole life! Can't you help me once?!”
Edel's desperate cry filled the lord's office, raw and pleading.