Chapter 121: Queen Maker (19)
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 121: Queen Maker (19)
“Urk…!”
The knights whose hands had been severed belatedly clutched their wrists to stanch the bleeding. They wanted to pick up their fallen hands, but they didn't dare, fearing their remaining hands would be cut off too.
The other escort knights were in the same predicament.
Watching the blood drip from Neria’s sword, they couldn't bring themselves to lay a hand on their own hilts.
I couldn't even react…
Unlike the subpar knights of the Prona Kingdom, the knights of the Kalita Kingdom were of high quality. That was why they had been able to see Neria’s sword strike.
But that was all.
Even if they had been in their comrades' place, nothing would have changed.
So this is a Hero's companion…
A single clash was enough to reveal the chasm in their skills.
Can we win if we all attack together?
The knights who entertained the thought quickly dismissed it. They weren't comrades from the same knight order, but knights from different families.
There was no way they could coordinate an attack.
Besides, even if they had a chance of winning, the fight itself was the problem.
Neria wasn't the only one here.
“What are you doing? I told you to sign.”
The Hero, Cloud.
And his companions were with him.
If they assumed all of them were on the same level as Neria…
They stood no chance.
The nobles and their escort knights came to this conclusion and turned their gazes to Lorian.
He was a Hero, too. They hoped he would do something.
Lorian looked down at Cloud with a displeased expression.
“Must you truly resort to this?”
“What then? What do you want me to do? Did you expect me to get scared by your pathetic little games and hand over the city? Lorian… just cut the fucking bullshit.”
“…It seems words will not suffice.”
Lorian began to mutter to himself, his voice just loud enough for him to hear.
Cloud rose from his seat and strode toward him. At his movement, the startled nobles and escort knights parted to make way.
A straight path opened up.
By the time Cloud stood before Lorian, Lorian’s skin and armor were encased in grayish-white stone.
Seeing this, Cloud let out a hollow laugh.
“What are you, a gargoyle?”
“Your foolish remarks suggest you still haven't grasped the gravity of the situation.”
Lorian drew his sword and swung it in a wide, diagonal arc. As Cloud stepped back to dodge, one of Lorian’s companions took the opportunity to hand him a shield.
It was a silver shield with the face of a lion protruding from it.
“I will instill in you a proper sense of tension.”
“Go ahead.”
With that, the two Heroes shot forward simultaneously. Clang! Sword and shield collided. The shockwave that erupted from the impact made the nobles and their knights grimace.
I can't see…
They could only perceive Cloud and Lorian’s movements as blurry shapes, unable to track them properly.
Clang! Chiiing!
They saw sparks fly with the clash of metal.
Whoosh!
They could only guess at the fierce exchange from the sound of blades slicing through the air.
This is a battle between Heroes…
Their level… no, their entire dimension was different.
Just as the escort knights were feeling a sense of powerlessness they hadn't experienced since becoming official knights, the two Heroes broke apart.
“You know, this is the first time we’ve fought,” Cloud said, shaking out his wrists.
Lorian narrowed his eyes, then smirked.
“The first time? Have you forgotten what happened that day? Then again, it must have been a shameful memory for you… I wouldn't be surprised if you forced yourself to forget.”
In the past, Cloud had been overwhelmingly defeated by Lorian in a sparring match. Those who witnessed it said it was like watching an adult fight a child. At the time, Cloud had been incredibly embarrassed whenever he heard the story.
The current Cloud didn't know about that.
But he could guess the gist of it from Lorian’s words.
“I think the present is more important than the past.”
“A mental victory, I see. How pathetic.”
“The only thing pathetic here is your face.”
[All Bless]
[All Bless]
The stacked blessings greatly amplified Cloud’s physical abilities.
He immediately leaped toward Lorian.
Lorian, seeing his opponent was much faster than before, hastily raised his shield to defend.
[All Curse]
[All Curse]
Two curses were stacked, drastically reducing Lorian’s stats. He faltered as his physical abilities suddenly plummeted. Cloud, who had already closed the distance, raised his sword.
Lorian quickly regained his composure.
I can take one hit.
He had significantly boosted his defense with [Blessing of the Stone Turtle] and also had a protective barrier called [Gargoyle's Skin].
He could afford to take a single attack.
As Lorian, having made that judgment, contemplated his next move, Cloud’s sword drew a blue arc.
Drake-style Swordsmanship.
[Tree Splitting]
Crack!
The heavy blow shattered the [Gargoyle's Skin] and crushed his pauldron.
“Kugh?!”
Lorian’s face contorted in unexpected pain.
It not only broke through Gargoyle's Skin but also pierced my pauldron and shattered my shoulder bone?
Unlike in the past, the current Lorian could withstand an ogre’s attack without taking much damage. Yet, he was injured by a single strike from Cloud. It was no wonder he was stunned.
The problem was that their fight was being fought not in seconds, but in fractions of a second. A moment of emotional turmoil was fatal.
Cloud retrieved his sword and swung it down once more.
This time, he intended to sever the arm completely.
But as Lorraine jumped in front of Lorian, he had no choice but to pull his strength.
Clang!
His sword clashed with Lorraine’s.
Taking advantage of the opening, Lorian threw himself toward the inn wall. Crash! The wooden wall shattered, and he fell outside.
Cloud didn't even glance that way, instead looking at Lorraine.
“What were you thinking, jumping in like that?”
“…You were going to kill him, weren't you?”
“What?”
“You were going to kill my brother. Weren't you?”
As she spoke, Lorraine’s usual boldness was nowhere to be found.
“Don’t…”
“…”
She looked as pitiful as a stray cat in the rain. Cloud let out a deep sigh.
“I’m not going to kill him. Do I look stupid enough to kill a fellow Hero?”
“…”
Lorraine silently shook her head.
Cloud walked past her toward the hole Lorian had made in the inn wall.
She no longer tried to stop him.
*
It didn't take long for Cloud to find Lorian. He hadn't burst out of the inn to escape in the first place.
He just needed time to regroup.
Having healed his shoulder and status ailments with a potion, he was now wearing a sharp-looking helmet. Behind it, a pure white lion’s mane floated, sustained by magic power.
Cloud knew what that armor was.
“So it was the Lion King’s Armor.”
“You know of it?”
Cloud nodded.
How could he not?
The Lion King’s Armor.
Lorian’s final equipment set in the game.
As an endgame item, it boasted insane performance.
It was from Phase 2, if I remember correctly.
Phase 2 began after you broke through his disgusting defense and whittled his health down by more than half, at which point he would don his helmet and awaken.
Like Gis’s Phase 2, it was an event designed for the player to lose. Unlike Gis’s random patterns, however, Lorian’s were fixed.
One might think that if the patterns are fixed, you could just prepare and counter them.
But as I just said, the fight with Lorian was an event designed for you to lose.
In other words, you can't block it even if you know it's coming.
“I didn't expect you to know about this armor… but it doesn't matter. Knowing won't change anything.”
Lorian snapped his fingers.
White magic power was drawn from the lion’s mane, forming the shapes of pure white lions.
Summoned beasts created from the profound magic of the hero once called the Lion King.
There were six of them.
“Just don't kill him.”
Lorian commanded the summoned beasts with a tilt of his chin. They began to creep forward, surrounding Cloud. Without even glancing at them, Cloud looked at Lorian and smirked.
“The bastard who hid behind his sister's skirt is acting all high and mighty.”
“…Let me rephrase that. Just don't kill him. I'll permit you to tear off his arms and legs.”
The white lions bared their sharp teeth and charged at Cloud.
*
[White Lion pack's 'White Flame Fang'.]
[Cloud has dodged.]
[Cloud has dodged.]
.
.
.
[Cloud has dodged.]
[Cloud used 'Wolf Slayer'.]
[Critical Hit.]
[White Lion 1 has taken 7420 damage.]
[White Lion 1 has fallen.]
[Lorian used 'Aegis of the Stone Turtle'.]
[Lorian's defense has increased.]
[White Lion pack's 'Hunting White Flame'.]
[Cloud used 'Fire Wheel Sword'.]
[The White Lions' 'White Flame' was blocked by Cloud's 'Fire Wheel'.]
[Lorian used 'Gargoyle's Skin'.]
[Lorian's defense has greatly increased.]
[A shield of 1000 has been created for Lorian.]
[White Lion pack's 'White Flame Claw'.]
[Counter!]
[White Lion 2 has taken 2600 damage.]
[Cloud used 'Rapid Sword Dance'.]
[White Lion 2 has taken 4310 damage.]
[White Lion 3 has taken 4620 damage.]
[White Lion 4 has taken 4100 damage.]
[White Lion 5 has taken 4420 damage.]
[White Lion 6 has taken 4330 damage.]
[White Lion 2 and 3 have fallen.]
[Lorian used 'Aegis of the Shield Bearer'.]
[Lorian's defense and guard rate have increased.]
[The White Lion pack is terrified.]
[Lorian used 'Aegis of the Lion King'.]
[Lorian and the White Lion pack's max HP has greatly increased.]
[Lorian and the White Lion pack's HP has been fully restored.]
[Lorian used 'Lion King's Roar'.]
[The White Lion pack's terror has disappeared.]
[The White Lion pack's attack power has greatly increased.]
[The White Lion pack's agility has greatly increased.]
[The White Lion pack's durability has greatly increased.]
*
Summoned beasts that turn tail and run in fear.
How could these things possibly be the summoned beasts created from the Lion King’s magic?
Of course, the [Lion King's Roar] had made them fierce again. But forcing him to use the roar in the first place was the problem.
[Lion King's Roar] was a demanding skill that consumed a significant amount of magic power.
Lorian clicked his tongue.
I'll have to reconsider using summoned beasts.
With that thought, Lorian watched the battle between Cloud and the white lions intently, waiting for an opening. When he finally saw a brief gap, he immediately unfurled a scroll he was holding.
“Oh, Constraint Witch. I offer my destiny as payment and demand this of you. Bind that man for five seconds.”
A contract scroll of the Constraint Witch.
It was a scroll that granted the right to make a contract with the Constraint Witch, allowing one to place a desired constraint on a designated target as long as the payment was sufficient. It had the tricky condition that the constraint and the payment had to be of equal value, but it was undeniably a formidable magic item.
Lorian had found it by chance in a dungeon.
Honestly, it's a waste to use it here, but…
Lorian thought of Frillite.
Specifically, of Frillite smiling at Cloud.
Grind.
He ground his teeth in fury.
—The payment is good, but the demand is so modest. There's barely anything in it for me.
A lazy yet alluring voice tickled his ear. She seemed to ponder for a moment before whispering to him again.
—I'll do it this once as a freebie. But next time, you have to place a big order, okay~?
Of course, I'll still be taking payment for this one.
The moment the bewitching, chuckling voice faded, a purple magic circle appeared beneath Cloud’s feet.
Shhhk!
Purple thorn vines shot out from the magic circle, binding Cloud’s limbs.
Seeing this, Lorian snapped to his senses and thrust his shield forward.
On the front of the shield, the lion’s head opened its maw.
A massive amount of magic power surged from the shield, forming the shape of a lion.
Lorian bent his knees.
The giant lion crouched, ready to hunt.
When he kicked off the ground, a loud boom! sent dust flying in all directions.
At the center of the advancing cloud of dust was a lion, baring its fangs at its prey.
[Lion's Fang]
If the conditions were met, it was the most powerful skill Lorian could use.
It was originally meant to be a finishing move, but…
You're a Hero, too. You won't die.
As Lorian charged with that complacent thought, the thorn vines binding Cloud came undone.
Lorian’s eyebrow twitched.
It hasn't even been three seconds, and he's free?
Did the Constraint Witch betray him?
But he had heard that when it came to contracts, the witch valued trust more than her own life.
Whatever the case, this was a problem.
No matter how strong a technique was, it was useless if it didn't hit. That was why he had used the scroll, to guarantee a hit…
Hm?
Lorian narrowed his eyes.
Even though he was free, Cloud made no attempt to dodge his charge.
Is he counting on something?
He didn't know what it was, but he was grateful that Cloud wasn't dodging. Whatever he was counting on, he would just have to push through that as well.
With a smirk, Lorian accelerated his charge.
The lion, wreathed in white flame, opened its maw wide.
The white lion’s fangs descended upon Cloud. The white flame fangs that had torn even ogres apart failed to rip Cloud to shreds.
It couldn't even shred him, much less knock him back or push him away.
The moment Cloud’s outstretched hand touched Lorian’s shield, the White Flame that had been aimed at him scattered with absurd ease.
“What… is this…?”
Bewilderment filled Lorian’s eyes. Cloud pushed the lion shield down and met Lorian’s gaze.
“You don't know how to use that, do you?”
As he spoke, the earring he wore had lost its magic and turned black.
The Dragon King's Scale Earring.
An item that compresses immense magic power to protect the user's body for three seconds.