Chapter 119: The Lord is With Us (40)
Chapter 119: The Lord is With Us (40)
In the heat of the melee, even maintaining a clear line of sight was difficult.
The ring of clashing metal echoed from all sides. Sparks flew as blades met blades, creating a dizzying display. Along with it came an endless spray of blood and a chorus of screams.
My vision and hearing grew muffled simultaneously. Yet, I couldn't afford to hesitate for even a single moment.
This was a battlefield where lives were traded. A moment's indecision would mean an enemy's blade piercing my throat.
Thwack! My hand axe slammed into the skull of a monkey beast. A fountain of blood erupted into the air, accompanied by the sickening crunch of a shattering cranium.
There was no time to linger. Another monkey beast was already lunging toward the Saintess and Senior Elsie, eyeing an opening.
I immediately wrenched the hand axe free and hurled it to the side.
Crunch! The axe buried itself in the side of the monkey's head. With that, another life flickered out.
I had to settle things in one or two strikes. Otherwise, we wouldn't be able to handle the monkey beasts surging in like a tide.
Before I knew it, a mountain of monkey beast corpses had piled up. While the swordsmen forming the circular formation had taken down more than half, the Saintess and Senior Elsie were putting in significant work as well.
"O Lord, grant us the Shield of Faith amidst this tribulation and hardship!"
Following the Saintess's low cry, a brilliant white radiance enveloped our bodies. It was an armor of divine power capable of blocking even a couple of fatal blows.
Not only that, but a surge of vitality I’d never felt before flooded my body. With my strength and reflexes enhanced, sweeping through the monkey beasts became much easier.
Senior Elsie assisted us in a more overt manner.
"…Align the elements upon the logic of the thirty-two constellations and the flickering second imperial throne!"
Amidst a flurry of mumbled astronomical symbols, mana began to boil around Senior Elsie like a furnace.
The undulating, materialized mana soon spread to our feet. Then, with a crackling sound, white electrical charges began to rise.
"O Light, overflow!"
At the signal of Senior Elsie's clear voice, a storm of electrical discharge swept across the earth.
Not a single beast touching the ground was spared. Even those leaping from the trees emitted black smoke and shrieked as they were struck.
With a sharp crackle, white light exploded in blinding flashes. I instinctively shielded my eyes, but relying on my Qi Sense, I managed to take the life of one monkey beast that had luckily been mid-air.
As soon as the monkey beast hit the ground with a wet thud, the sizzling sound of electrocution followed.
The acrid, distinct smell of burning flesh filled the air. I coughed and wiped my eyes. Only then did my vision fully return.
The battlefield, after the passage of that powerful magic, was utterly gruesome. The charred corpses of the beasts, burnt beyond recognition, clung to the ground like heaps of ash.
Every single one of them had their tongues lolling out, eyes wide open. Their deaths had been that sudden.
This was why one always needed a mage.
Not only were they advantageous when facing multiple foes in a melee, but lethal magic capable of taking dozens of lives at once was also effective at breaking the enemy's morale.
Of course, that was assuming the mage's skills were proven.
If Senior Elsie's mana control had been even slightly clumsy, we would have been the ones smelling like burnt meat on the ground alongside those monkeys.
It was a terrifying thought. Feeling a chill run down my spine, I immediately flipped a lunging monkey beast over my shoulder.
Thump! The ground vibrated. The monkey beasts, who had hesitated for a moment, let out a collective screech and rushed at me.
I sprang up and threw my sword. Stab! The blade struck true, piercing a beast's heart. A beast rushing from the side wore a look of pure joy.
It had realized I no longer had a weapon in my hands.
However, that smile didn't last long.
Skreeee! The sound of metal grinding against bone rang out.
The beast, which had just leaped with its arm raised to strike me, blankly shifted its gaze to its own chest.
A blade flying in from the side had dug into its chest, scraping against its ribs. Unable to withstand the impact, the monkey beast tumbled across the ground.
It was a technique applying the Secret of Stillness in Motion.
Just as a hand axe flying through the air could change its trajectory, if I snapped the path of a blade thrown in a straight line toward the side, I could eliminate two enemies at once.
Unfortunately, my control was still unrefined, so I couldn't slide it between the ribs to strike the heart directly.
I retrieved my hand axe and approached the monkey beast, which was gasping for breath. A life on the verge of death looked up at me with difficulty.
Meeting that gaze, I let out a hollow chuckle.
"…What are you looking at, you brat?"
Naturally, I felt no pity.
Crack! With the sound of a skull shattering, blood and brain matter stained the hand axe. My breath was ragged as I pulled the weapon back.
That beast was the last one.
Dozens of those beasts had lost their lives right here. Even with a force of seven, it was a noteworthy achievement.
However, the expressions of the group who had won such a magnificent victory weren't particularly bright.
Celine slumped to the ground as if sliding down. The earth around her was particularly gouged out. It meant the ground had exploded every time her sword struck.
Looking exhausted, Celine let out a sigh of relief.
"It's finally over…"
Excluding the last Hunting Festival, this was essentially her first real battle. Even with Senior Delphine's help, it was impressive that she had held out until the end.
Senior Delphine seemed satisfied with Celine's performance as well, nodding simply.
"Good work, Haster."
"…I was just a burden, really."
Despite her words, Celine seemed dejected, but Senior Delphine didn't offer any further comfort.
She likely considered it a process Celine had to overcome on her own. Since it wasn't a wrong judgment, I didn't add anything either.
I simply steadied my breathing and spoke in a low voice.
"It's not over yet. We still have the cave."
The relaxed atmosphere of the group tightened once more at my words.
It was exactly as I said. This battle was merely a skirmish.
The secret they were trying to protect, even by mobilizing so many demonic beasts, still remained in the cave.
Our goal today was to find out what was happening inside. We didn't have time to bask in the afterglow of victory.
My gaze turned toward the edge of the forest. I could see a clearing, and there, the faint shape of a cave entrance stood out.
We were almost there. Just as I was about to move again—
"…S-Sir Ian!"
A girl with sparkling eyes ran up and stood before me, her face beaming.
It was Senior Elsie. At her sudden use of honorifics, everyone except Senior Delphine widened their eyes in shock.
My determined expression crumbled instantly, replaced by one filled with immense awkwardness.
Regardless, Senior Elsie looked ready to wag a tail like a puppy meeting its master. With her small fists clenched tightly, words of admiration poured from her mouth.
"Th-That was amazing! That cruelty in crushing the monkey beast's skull without hesitation! That boldness in throwing even your weapon just to see blood! It was incredible—"
"…Senior Elsie."
At my low call, Senior Elsie finally seemed to snap out of it.
Startled, she looked around. Shocked gazes were fixed on her and me. Senior Elsie's face turned pale.
After a moment, she cleared her throat and straightened her posture. Though her ears were already beet red, she tried to regain her dignity by fanning herself and wearing a haughty smile.
Hmph. Letting out a boastful chuckle, Senior Elsie attempted to salvage the situation.
"O-Of course, victory would have been impossible without the contribution of this Elsie Lainella. S-So… I did well, right? Hmm?"
As she spoke, Senior Elsie looked up at me with eyes full of expectation. Unable to refuse that twinkling gaze, I let out a deep sigh and placed my hand on her head.
As soon as I started stroking her hair, her expression immediately turned into a silly grin.
"…You did well, Senior Elsie. I'll be counting on you from now on too."
"Ehehe… Yes, sir!"
It was a loyal response.
When my eyes returned to the rest of the group, everyone except Senior Delphine was staring at me. Senior Delphine was just shaking her head with a sigh, as if she had expected this.
I kept my mouth shut. After debating for a long time how to explain this, I eventually chose to flee.
"We're busy right now, so let's talk about this later."
The group's expressions immediately turned sour.
But what could they do? I was the one leading them, and it wasn't a lie that the situation was urgent.
In the end, the group had no choice but to prepare to move again, though they grumbled, looked dissatisfied, or sent suspicious glances my way.
And so, we finally entered the cave.
It wasn't a naturally formed cave. What natural cave would lead straight underground from the middle of a forest clearing?
It meant this place was artificially constructed. That made it all the more dangerous.
We had no idea what might be installed or how it was structured.
We had to proceed with the utmost caution.
With Senior Delphine and me—the strongest in actual combat—at the lead, the group slowly advanced into the cave. The damp, chilly air felt heavy in our lungs.
The cave wasn't very deep.
Surprisingly, there were no traps, and we reached the end in barely ten minutes.
Constructing an artificial cave was no easy task to begin with. Whether using magic or manual labor, it was the same.
It seemed they had decided that digging any deeper would be inefficient.
However, the sight revealed at the end of that short passage was so grotesque…
A heavy silence fell over the group as everyone froze in place.