The Giant Slash
A worthless skeleton appeared on the battlefield.
Everyone watching shared the same thought.
What was that thing going to do?
The three knights had stepped aside as ordered, but none of them believed that pathetic skeleton could accomplish a thing. Instead, they reminded themselves of their duty.
Whatever happens, we protect Young Master Khtun.
Yes. That was their mission.
—If the worst should come, I leave Khtun in your care.
No matter what happened, protecting Khtun was the charge their lord had given them. Even if…
…the price is our lives.
The three knights steeled their hearts and moved to shield Khtun. Their bodies were far from whole after the battle with the fusion creature, but their own condition did not matter.
And then—
Krrrk—!
A strange sound of something cutting through the air came from somewhere. Every hair on their bodies stood on end.
What…
This aura…?
The three knights stopped as one and took in the scene before them.
What they found was a sword being drawn—slowly. From the worthless skeleton's grip, an iron blade slowly emerged and lazily cut through the empty air.
It was a simple strike, yet the knights felt as if their breath had stopped.
Heavy. Suffocatingly so.
Under that choking pressure, the knights watched the sword stroke. As if time itself had slowed, the skeleton's blade extended endlessly within their consciousness.
But that trance did not last long.
Thuk.
From left to right.
When the sword reached its destination and was sheathed once more, the knights' awareness snapped back to the normal flow of time.
The roar came immediately after.
KRAAAAAAASH—!
Everything tore apart and exploded outward. The fusion creature, the ancient castle, even the sloping earth beyond—
Arch Falaon.
In that moment, the sword strike of the hero who had slain a dragon in ages past was reborn.
And so, in an instant, the land was reduced to scorched earth.
As I stared blankly at the landscape before me, my ancestor—now free of the possession—grinned with smug satisfaction.
"How was that?"
Huh?
"I said, how was that. That right there is the Giant Slash—the sword technique your great ancestor forged to fell giants. Crafted it at a mere twenty years of age."
Giant Slash?
What a naming sense.
But.
You… cut down a giant?
In his later years he slew a dragon, and at twenty he cut down a giant. A person's life isn't a hero's epic, you know.
But having witnessed that sword strike firsthand, I couldn't dismiss my ancestor's words as pure bluster.
A dragon… yeah, he probably did slay one. There's at least some historical record of that, so I'll believe it.
A giant too… fine, he probably cut one down. Even without evidence, he probably did.
But what mattered now wasn't what achievements my ancestor had racked up in the past or what power he'd possessed.
So what did matter?
6-Khtun…
"Hmm?"
Did you see that? That was 6-Khtun.
"What… the great one here is not you…"
Whatever.
Leaving my glory-obsessed ancestor behind, I quickly assessed the situation.
The fusion creature?
Dead. Not just dead—its upper body had been blown clean off by the Giant Slash. A miserable end.
And the ancient castle beyond had completely collapsed. The demon worshippers inside wouldn't have fared any better.
So what did I need to do?
Simple.
"Valhaaaaaallaaaaa—!"
First, belt out a Valhalla, then raise my mace high.
Re-summoning the Goltikmu Trio that had been reverse-summoned by the Giant Slash was impossible—my mana was depleted. Instead, I shouted at the three knights.
"Chaaarge—!"
Wipe out the demons.
"Y-Yes, sir!"
"Sir!"
The knights were still dazed by the sudden turn of events, but as seasoned combat veterans they snapped back to their senses and threw themselves at the lesser demons. Even Manor Knight Vilders, sensing the battle was over, joined in.
"Hoo…"
I watched the scene and plopped down on the ground.
"You're not fighting?"
Huh? Why would I fight?
Necromancers are high-value assets who need protection, you know?
Honestly speaking, I was out of mana and had nothing left. Just staying conscious was something I wanted to congratulate myself for.
But, well…
…I guess I can rest a bit.
What could go wrong?
Just as I was about to let myself relax—
"Little brother."
"…Sir Ren?"
When did he get here?
I tilted my head, and Ren's voice slipped into my ear.
"Get up. We still have a guest."
"A guest…?"
Ren was looking at a particular spot. Not the front where a one-sided slaughter was underway, but the already-collapsed ancient castle.
What's over there?
I laboriously twisted my body to sit facing the castle. And I found her.
Atop the rubble of the completely ruined ancient castle, a woman stood quietly, looking our way. She seemed to have arrived after the catastrophe of the sword strike—her robe was pristine as it fluttered—and her gaze was fixed on me.
I met her eyes without flinching.
What? What do you want?
Staring at me—what are you going to do about it? Want a taste of 6-Khtun?
As I looked back with that attitude, Ren's mouth opened before long.
"Rebecca. It's been a while."
"…Bioren."
Contempt filled the woman's eyes.
What? They know each other?
"How fascinating."
Right?
I adjusted my sitting posture. But unfortunately, the drama(?) reached its finale quickly.
"If there's something you need to grab, grab it and leave. I might just let you go if it's now."
"Funny. You mean you have no choice but to let me go."
"Want to try me?"
When Ren smiled like a mastermind behind the curtain, the expression of the demon worshipper called Rebecca twisted. After a moment, she picked up a black crystal from the ruins and left.
"Bioren… you'd better prepare yourself. I still haven't forgotten your sins."
Leaving behind a classic villain line.
It didn't seem like it would take the three knights and Manor Knight Vilders long to finish off the lesser demons. In the meantime, I was thinking about the demon worshipper Rebecca I'd just seen.
She and Ren… seemed to know each other, right?
"So it appeared."
Just what kind of past was Ren hiding? There was more than one or two strange things about him.
Come to think of it, back at Hamstone Village he also seemed oddly familiar with fighting demons.
The way he instantly used hundreds of curses to identify a demon's presence—that was the work of an expert.
Of course, I didn't ask him directly. Those shadowy types never spill their own stories, after all.
Still.
"What was that black crystal earlier?"
"A medium for summoning high-ranking demons… does that make it easier to understand?"
"A medium?"
"Yeah. Looks like they were trying to summon something with it… Do you remember the Shadow Demonkin we first fought?"
"Yes."
How could I forget? Including the doppelganger, that was the first demon I ever faced.
"Mindless demons will come pouring through if you just leave a gate open, but intelligent ones move more carefully on their own terms. That crystal is for calling those kinds."
Ah, so that's how it works.
For reference, doppelgangers aren't strictly intelligent beings either. They only gain intelligence after mimicry, so before that they're no different from those mindless demons.
Anyway.
"So during the Fog Incident, they used a gem like that to call the Shadow Demonkin?"
"Probably."
"Why?"
Something felt off. I'd naturally assumed the Fog Incident was part of the demon disturbances that had broken out across the entire southern region. But had any intelligent demons appeared during the southern demon disturbances?
No, they hadn't.
Yet during the Fog Incident, an intelligent one showed up. What's the difference?
Until now I'd just thought of it as a special case by coincidence. But thinking about it again now—the only demons we dealt with during the Fog Incident were the doppelganger and the Shadow Demonkin.
"Well… who knows what a dead man was thinking, but whatever it was, it was probably a futile plan. It's not rare for people to think they can put demons under their heel and command them."
"Hmm."
Well… fine.
The Fog Incident is one thing.
What mattered now was the present.
Here's a question.
What are the worshippers trying to do by summoning intelligent beings?
Is crushing Hadion going more slowly than expected, so they're taking extreme measures?
I don't know. But one thing was certain. Whatever their scheme, it would be filled with truly demonic and wicked intent.
The moment I realized that, a sense of justice surged up in my heart. And right on cue, the three knights who'd finished cleaning up the lesser demons approached.
"Young Master, we're done."
"Alright. Let's go, then."
There was no time to delay. Even at this very moment, those damn demon worshippers' wicked plans would be eating away at my land of Hadion.
Two days later.
We decided to leave Boderan Village as soon as we'd recovered from our fatigue.
"I'd like to ask you to rest a little longer, but… given the circumstances, I have no choice but to send you off like this."
"Yes. Even at this moment, the worshippers' wicked plans are surely progressing."
"Young Master Khtun, it was an honor to fight alongside you. I look forward to the day we meet again."
"Yes."
Manor Knight Vilders saw us off with the utmost courtesy. Of course he did. After we'd destroyed the summoning circle, the large-scale demon attacks had stopped and the village had regained its stability.
More than anything.
After seeing the power of 6-Khtun with his own eyes, he wouldn't dare put on airs.
"Please… do not belittle a knight's respect so."
But I'm not wrong, am I?
Anyway, we hurried our steps toward Hadion's main town. I would have liked to find and smash every summoning circle along the route, but looking at how things were going, Hadion's main town itself probably wasn't in great shape either.
Along the way, wicked demons who didn't know their place charged us, but stopping the advance of Holy Khtun was beyond them.
About a day later.
"Just a little further and we'll reach the main town."
"Mm."
At the words of Shuren, Hadion's squire, I nodded with solemn dignity. It was for the sake of maintaining a dignity befitting my power.
"Young Master."
"Yes, Sir Zeke."
"…Sir? That is far too grand a title for one who has yet to receive a knighthood."
"I get confused, so I'm just going to call you that. Anyway, what is it?"
Zeke couldn't hide his overwhelmed expression, then snapped to attention at my question and reported.
"A report has come in from the scouts. Up ahead, Hadion's forces are engaged in battle with demons. What would you have us do?"
I thought for a moment at Zeke's question, then answered.
"We go."
We were heading there to help anyway—might as well help along the way, right?
Arriving at the scene, I could see why Hadion's forces were struggling outside the territory.
There's a summoning circle over there.
They were trying to destroy it, of course.
"Sir Zeke, take the soldiers and join them first."
"Yes, sir!"
I sent the soldiers led by Zeke and Milo ahead first, then moved forward with the three knights.
My ancestor asked.
"Where are you going?"
Me?
Where else. I'm going to go click them with 6-Khtun.
Ah, I haven't fully recharged my holy power, so maybe 3-Khtun?
Anyway.
Cli—ck.