Chapter 154
Chapter 154
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Translator: Ace
Chapter: 154
Chapter Title: The Second Encounter (3)
-----------------------------------------------------------------
“Can you handle it? His Schema won't be on the level of a cadet.”
“Even so, what choice do we have? We just have to try.”
Rian let the greatsword, the symbol of the Ogent family, drag on the ground as he slowly advanced. In contrast, Tess moved sideways, as if to slip out of Falcoa's line of sight.
It was a textbook formation for a two-person team, but Falcoa paid it no mind.
If he, once called the Demon of the Battlefield, were to be swayed by mere brats like these, how the souls lost to his blade would laugh.
Rian straightforwardly presented his greatsword and said, “Come on. I'll take you on.”
But before he could even finish his sentence, Falcoa was already upon him. His instantaneous acceleration was beyond imagination.
“Khahahahaha!”
Blocking the longsword as it slammed down vertically, Rian felt a sting in his nose. It wasn't like two swords clashing; it was the impact of a sledgehammer striking down.
“What's this? Giving up already?”
Falcoa began hammering away at the greatsword like a madman. With each impact, Rian's knees buckled. Eventually, he couldn't hold on any longer and dropped to one knee.
“Keuk!”
The muscles in his sword arm spasmed. In that instant, Falcoa's kick struck him in the solar plexus.
Rian's body tumbled across the ground like a ball, rolling into the distance.
“Rian!”
Tess cried out in distress. The situation seemed to be over. But contrary to Falcoa's expectations, Rian shot back to his feet.
His superhuman strength was one thing, but his resilience was also one of Rian's greatest assets.
“Hoo, I get the gist of it now. So this is your level, huh?”
Falcoa's eyebrow twitched. But Rian didn't stop there; he aimed his greatsword straight at his opponent, provoking him.
“Good. Now we're getting started. Come at me with all you've got.”
“Kekekeke, I'll kill you.”
The corners of Falcoa's mouth stretched to his ears.
It was the very same expression he wore when he was known as the Demon of the Battlefield.
* * *
Shirone opened the building's door and stepped inside. An immaculate living room was revealed, belying its use by a mercenary group, with a row of potted plants decorating the space beneath a sunlit window.
“Where is Jis's sister?”
Shirone went from room to room. As he opened the third door, his hand froze on the knob.
A pleasant fragrance emanated from the room. A red carpet covered the floor, and upon it, a bed and desk were neatly arranged.
Shirone stared at the woman sitting on the bed. When he'd heard Tess's story, it had felt vague, but seeing her in person was an immense shock.
“Oh, you're here, Shirone. Have you been well?”
“Marsha…”
Marsha was undoubtedly the leader of the group that had kidnapped Yuna. Yet she was smiling with a face so gentle it made it impossible to believe.
“Did you get home safely that day? And did you make up with your friend?”
Shirone swallowed the reply that had risen to his throat. It seemed Marsha knew he was coming. And yet, she hadn't handed Yuna over.
“You already know, don't you? You must have heard everything.”
“Oh my, what's wrong, Shirone? You're being scary. Are you mad at me? I'm sorry for tricking you back then.”
As Marsha approached with a flirtatious air, Shirone backed away, maintaining the same distance between them.
“Hoo, you really seem angry. What will it take for you to forgive me? Should I get on my knees and beg right here? I'll do it if you want.”
“Return Jis's sister. That's all I ask.”
“Aha! So that's what this is about? Oh, you should have said so sooner. I misunderstood and thought you came to fight me. Then again, a good boy like Shirone would never do something like that. What a relief.”
Shirone was confused. Who was this person? Her actions were incomprehensible, as if he were experiencing a different situation in another world.
“Where is Yuna?”
“She's on the second floor. You can take her if you want.”
Shirone turned away. He didn't want to think about Marsha anymore. He just wanted to leave this place as quickly as possible.
“Ah, right. But shouldn't you take something to cover her with?”
Shirone's steps halted. When he turned back around, Marsha was smiling, her eyes full of mischief.
“It's a bit awkward to see a stranger's naked body, isn't it? That's why I'm telling you beforehand. Try not to startle her too much. Her mind might be broken. My subordinates were quite rough with her.”
The colder Shirone's gaze became, the faster Marsha spoke.
“I watched from the side, and her screams were no joke. I mean, even I wouldn't have been able to endure that. Thinking back, maybe it was too much. But Shirone, you know what? It was all my order. Still, I'm sure you'll understand. Because you're good old Shirone. Right?”
Shirone remained tight-lipped. That fact brought Marsha immense happiness.
“How does it feel, Shirone?”
“How does what feel? What exactly do you want to hear?”
Shirone no longer felt any reason to respect Marsha. But to Marsha, this was a truly gratifying event.
“Hohoho! You look really mad now. Why are you angry at me? You're the one who said my kleptomania would get better someday. But you've changed your mind now, haven't you? What if you had given me a stern scolding back then? Maybe I wouldn't have kidnapped Yuna. To be honest, you were incredibly annoying.”
Shirone turned to face her completely. This was no longer about Yuna. Marsha had done something she never should have.
“Hm? I said, answer me. How does it feel? Like you're going crazy? Does it feel miserable that the girl you adored so much is suddenly acting like this? Are you starting to think there's nothing left to believe in in this world?”
“Another person's feelings… do you really have to hear them spoken aloud to feel reassured?”
At Shirone's question, Marsha's laughter died.
“If that's what you truly wanted, you should have just done it. So why do you care about my feelings? Are you afraid I might be disappointed?”
“Don't be ridiculous! I'm mocking you!”
“Is that so? In that case, shall I tell you what I think of you right now?”
Marsha's face hardened. She waited for Shirone's answer like someone who had been robbed of the right to speak.
“I don't hate you. In my memories, you're still a good person.”
Marsha's expression changed in real time. Her bewildered face gradually shifted to disappointment, and finally, to rage.
“Stop spouting nonsense. If that's true, can you forgive me? Can you smile at me like you used to, after I trampled all over Jis's sister?”
“No. You did something unforgivable. If you really did that, I will never forgive you.”
“Haha! Don't tell me you think I'm lying? Well, too bad for you. What I said is true. Go upstairs and see for yourself.”
“Even if it is true, I don't hate you. It's just…”
Shirone looked at her and bit his lip.
“…that I'm sad that you, who should know that pain better than anyone, would do such a thing.”
Sparks flew in Marsha's eyes. Her features twisted viciously, and she gritted her teeth with a grinding sound.
If she had actually trampled Yuna, at least it wouldn't have felt so unfair. This was unbearable. Shirone, chattering on as if he knew everything about her, was infuriating.
“You! You're seriously pissing me off!”
Shirone hastily retreated. Marsha's Zone, penetrating his synesthesia, was so sharp it stung.
A star-shaped Zone.
Among the four cardinal forms, it was a sensation unique to the offensive type.
Shirone prepared for Marsha's attack by assuming a defensive form. But he was worried about Yuna on the second floor.
An urban area was a rather tricky environment for a mage. It wasn't a simple matter of reducing the radius of one's Spirit Zone.
To put it in a swordsman's terms, it was like abandoning your primary longsword to fight with a dagger.
‘What school of magic does she use, I wonder…’
While observing Marsha, Shirone pre-cast a photonization spell so he could instantly evade any attack.
But Marsha's magic surpassed Shirone's expectations. As her eyes shot wide and she let out a piercing scream, a tremendous roar tore through his eardrums.
“Keuk!”
Struck by the mental shock, Shirone staggered. A sharp pain shot through him, as if a needle had pierced one ear and exited the other.
‘Acoustic Cannon. So she's a sound mage. This is dangerous.’
Mages of the sound school are researchers of acoustics. They vibrate the air to create various sound waves, not necessarily with the human voice, and a prime example of their offensive magic was the Acoustic Cannon Marsha had just cast.
The sound pressure of an Acoustic Cannon exceeds 150 decibels. At close range, it was powerful enough to rupture eardrums and cause deafness.
It was a directional spell that amplified sound waves, so it didn't spread over a wide radius like a laser, but being invisible made it one of the more difficult spells to counter.
‘I'm at a disadvantage here.’
Just as Shirone and Amy's effectiveness varied drastically depending on the situation and environment, for Marsha, who manipulated sound, fighting in an enclosed space was like playing in her own backyard.
Shirone wracked his brain to find a way out of his current predicament. The method he finally chose was ultra-high-speed teleportation within the confined space.
As he moved around the room, mixing Patrol and Rainbow Drop, the complex pattern of flashing lights disoriented Marsha.
Shirone got behind her and immediately cast Photon Cannon. But Marsha easily dodged the spell rushing from her blind spot by twisting her body.
‘How?’
Unless she had eyes in the back of her head, there was no way to detect an attack from a blind spot.
No, even if she did, dodging a Photon Cannon at this range should have been impossible.
“Huhu, you look surprised. Surely that's not all you've got?”
“Don't tell me… Sonar?”
“Wow, just as expected from a magic academy student. You must study hard, huh?”
Sonar is the ability to read sound. While its use is normally maximized underwater, mages could use their omnipotence to turn their own Zone into a medium at will.
It is said that the detection ability of a sonar master surpasses that of a Zoner in terms of density.
Therefore, it was only natural that she could react the instant Shirone cast Photon Cannon.
“Amplification magic is annoying. It's so unrefined.”
Shirone tilted his head. He could have just let it go, but on second thought, it was a strange thing to say. No mage would disparage the magic they had mastered.
“But I like this one.”
If she had mastered sonar, there was no need to amplify sound at all. Marsha spread her arms, and the air in front of her vibrated as Acoustic Cannons flew at him from both sides.
Shirone hastily cast teleport. But the sound was faster than his reflexes.
As the high-decibel sound wave scrambled his thoughts, the spell broke. For a mage who needed to concentrate, acoustic magic was indeed a dangerous foe.
Marsha used Side-Looking magic to scan the entire building.
It was a powerful detection spell, much like a dolphin emitting sound waves and reading the echoes, allowing her to accurately measure presence, direction, and distance regardless of cover.
Shirone was cornered. The Acoustic Cannon was impossible to defend against. On top of that, she was easily dodging his Photon Cannon thanks to the instant detection from Side-Looking.
‘This is really strange. The acoustic school is highly specialized magic. How can Marsha, a former mercenary, be able to use sound magic?’
Mages of the sound school spend their entire lives researching and collecting only sounds.
Even if one had a fortuitous encounter, it was a difficult magic to transfer without academic knowledge.
“You're making quite a face. I can clearly see the 'How could someone like you?' feeling written all over it.”