Black Mage Subjugation Battle (4)
Thud. My two feet landed on the underground floor, tingling slightly. I flicked off Eileen, who was dangling limply from my side letting out a pathetic "Hweee…," and shook out my legs to chase away the numbness.
Still, thinking about it, the forced workouts over the past three years had been pretty helpful. If I'd been the scrawny, whimpering weakling I used to be, I never would've even dreamed of jumping down like this. Rini. That insane gym instructor. It felt kinda weird seeing the day I'd actually benefit from that lunatic's training.
"Get up, Eileen."
"Nueee… I think I'm gonna puke…"
Good is good, so I hauled the sprawled-out Eileen to her feet and scanned our surroundings. The intense explosion had obliterated the stairs leading underground. Everything around us was scorched pitch-black, and high above, the subjugation team members were peeking down cautiously. It'd take them quite a while to reach us.
So.
"You're alive. Not just some random drifter, then."
"Euh…? Oh, knights and mages!"
With a crackling pajijik, the barrier shattered. Only the knights and mages who'd survived unscathed could press forward right away. My heels clicked tak tak as I approached them. Of course, with my face still shrouded in the robe, their weapons trained on me immediately. I raised both hands, flapping them to show I meant no harm.
"Sorry, but I'm not a black mage—I'm on your side."
"Ah, hmm. Apologies. With the stairs gone, we figured it'd take the subjugation team forever to get down here."
The knight at the front who'd pointed his sword at me offered an apology, but their blades and staves stayed aimed at me.
"Your words and actions don't match."
"Even so, we'll need you to drop the robe for a moment to believe you. Black mages reek of it, so show your ID and take off the hood."
"…."
To be honest, I could probably take them all down by myself. After my steep growth spurt these past years, these knights and mages were nothing to me. But.
That didn't mean they couldn't figure out who I was at all.
"What's wrong? If you won't, we have to stay suspicious."
"…No. Fine, I'll do it."
I bit my lip hard, pulled out my ID, and yanked down the robe's hood. Murmurs and gasps rippled through them. Some gawked wide-eyed at my looks, others blushed and turned away. A few clicked their tongues jealously as they lowered their weapons.
"Ooh… Ah. Ahem… Right. Not a black mage. My bad. But that girl hanging off your robe—she can fight, yeah?"
"…She can't, but I'll keep her out of the way."
"Hmph. Leave her behind if she becomes a liability."
"Yes."
Of course, my multi-layered concealment wouldn't give me away instantly. No one sharp enough to spot the gray right off the bat raised their weapons again. But a few tilted their heads instead of ogling. They looked puzzled, sensing some inexplicable wrongness, lost in thought.
The silver lining? Their suspicions got diverted to Eileen, who was still whimpering "Hweee…" like an idiot. And before their doubts could solidify, higher-ups who looked like they were in charge started wrapping things up.
"Casualty report."
"Everyone who made it inside the barrier survived, but three adventurers, five mercenaries, and one knight who couldn't make it in are dead."
Listening to them, not everyone had survived.
"…Painful losses. No reinforcements coming down anytime soon. Mana reserves sufficient?"
"Factoring in the barrier for that big blast and dismantling the inscribed magic circles, we've got just over ten percent left."
Starting off burning more than ten percent of their mana seemed like a huge problem to me.
"Eh. Within expectations. Reform ranks, quick."
"Yes, sir!"
They wrapped up the report casually and reformed their lines without fuss. I trailed slowly behind the lead knights and mages.
Dark, gloomy corridor. The arched passage of unfamiliar bricks was lit only by flickering torches, so the mages advanced with light spells illuminating the way.
And then.
"Ahem. Where'd you come from?"
"…."
One or two sidled up to me, striking up conversation.
"You looked pretty young earlier. Mind sharing your age?"
"Excuse me. Move ahead."
Some knights smirked, eyes flicking to my ample chest that the robe couldn't fully hide. And from Eileen, glued to my side, came a tiny mutter.
"Th-they're gonna die…."
"Eileen, quiet."
"Y-yes."
This wouldn't kill them. If it did, I'd have racked up hundreds of bodies working at the grocery store. To stay the good person Ain wanted me to be, I wouldn't act rashly. But.
For those who wouldn't take a hint, a physical warning was needed.
"Haha, quite the stoic lady. How about a drink after this subjugation's done?"
"Great idea! We can show you a good time."
The hands slithering onto my shoulder from those leering creeps felt gross. If they hadn't touched me, I'd have ignored them. Cursed body or not, this flesh wasn't for any man but Ain. It wasn't allowed for these lust-driven fools—only Ain could touch it.
"…Take your hands off."
"Hm? What'd you say?"
"Get your filthy hands off my shoulder."
I channeled mana and crushed their hands on my shoulder.
"Guhk! Gyaaaah!!!"
"Aaaagh!! Guh… guhk…!"
Their screams echoed down the corridor. Eyes turned back from the front, and the women who'd watched smugly now paled, glancing between me and the men.
"W-we're screwed! Lady Asha used casual speech…!"
"Shut up."
"Y-yes."
I hadn't gone casual. I'd just cut them off. Anyway.
The apparent leader halted, approached, and surveyed the scene.
"What the…? Crushing valuable troops' hands is a problem."
"I'll heal them, so just keep them away from me. Their groping pisses me off."
I answered, then healed their hands with magic. Terrified just from crushed hands, the men scurried away.
"Hmph… I get the gist. My fault for not controlling the knights. I'll handle it this time. But if it happens again, tone down the violence a bit."
"Yes."
Ain's words were spot on. The stick is the answer. Those who won't listen need a beating to learn. I exhaled in relief, and Eileen flashed a thumbs-up beside me.
Up ahead, I caught mutters calling me a bitchy mage or suspicious, but so what? As long as I stayed sweet and demure for Ain alone, that was fine.
And then.
As we trudged the quiet, endless corridor.
The clash with the black mages finally began. The vanguard mages dismantling inscribed circles one by one must've irked them. Black mages started appearing, blocking our path and chanting spells.
「ξολψζ」
A chant even I didn't recognize. Ominous, inky-black mana blobs writhed, overtaking the corridor.
"Brace! Mages, prepare!"
The long passage blackened entirely, pulsing like the guts of some living beast. Eileen clung to my waist, sniffling in terror.
"A-Asha…!"
"Don't let go. I can't save you if you do."
I whipped up mana, layering barriers around Eileen and me. The corridor warped into something unrecognizable. Black mages chanted with mad grins as our mages unleashed spells. Potent magic cracked their barriers with a peureong, but fresh mana oozed from the writhing walls, reforming them.
The knights drew swords and charged. Their lifelong training transcended human limits, they say. True enough—they flew forward, infusing blades with something called aura and slashing. Crackling pajijik split the barriers further, and mages' spells shattered them completely.
Still just the ruins' entrance, but the black mages' heads were lopped off in a flash, thudding to the ground in sprays of blood. Only veterans with perfect teamwork could pull that off.
But their faces weren't triumphant. More black mages surged from behind the fallen ones. The knights' and mages' briefly relaxed expressions hardened.
They'd said earlier it was expected even after burning over ten percent mana. The black mages' century-old schemes were only ramping up.
So.
I swallowed those thoughts, pondering nonstop. Calculating. Weighing, predicting. What price to pay to resolve this place. If I could get what I wanted and leave without exposing myself. And if my identity slipped—what then.
I had to keep craving, thinking, searching for that path.