Chapter 457: Proof of Existence (45)
Chapter 457: Proof of Existence (45)
It was one thing for a swordsman to stall for time, but what use was there in a mage doing so? There wasn't much a swordsman could accomplish in such a short window.
However, Sir Reynold’s resolve seemed firm.
“While I do that, try to do something that grabs her attention. Then, no matter how much she wants to focus on me, she’ll have no choice but to look away.”
“But, how…?”
“I believe in you. You’re a man who can at least save his own fiancée.”
Isn't he just dumping the responsibility on me?
I was flustered and wanted to retort, but the girl spoke before I could.
“Ah, it’s such sweet, delightful music no matter how many times I hear it… The screams of fools are truly so delicious.”
Clatter. Along with that voice trembling with ecstasy, the blood-red curtains closed once more.
Threads of light flickered along the violently shuddering blood sun.
Then, the blood-red threads, heated to their limit, shot straight toward the screaming, faceless monsters.
The sound of hundreds of threads piercing flesh echoed through the air.
As I slightly furrowed my brows at that unpleasant noise, screams several times louder began to erupt from all directions.
Monsters, their entire bodies stained crimson, were bursting through the threads and rushing out.
It was then that Sir Reynold slapped me on the back.
“Now, go!”
Immediately after, a storm of lightning scorched the earth once again.
Boom! Boom! Boom!
Explosions erupted, but the crimson-stained monsters didn't go down easily. In fact, they didn't even slow down as they charged toward us through the barrage of electricity.
I grit my teeth and swung my sword horizontally.
A silver galaxy poured down, leaving a trail in its wake.
The bloody complexion of the monsters touched by the silver aura gradually faded. The monsters, which had been a vivid red, lost their saturation and collapsed one by one as they passed through the silver mist.
There was no time to hesitate.
My legs instinctively sprinted toward the girl’s rear—toward the spot where Senior Elsie, Celine, and my younger sister, Lia, were held.
Then, a blood-red whip slammed down, tearing through the ground right before my eyes.
Golden eyes were fixed on me, accompanied by a deep smirk.
“Where do you think you’re going, Oppa? You should play with the sister you haven’t seen in so long… just like you did with that fake!”
By the end, it was a scream, like a desperate struggle.
Two whips struck the ground alternately like falling guillotines. I had to roll my body here and there to avoid being caught by those blood-red steel lines.
Forward, backward.
And when that wasn't enough, I used my sword.
Thump! A heavy shockwave made my lungs shrivel. My body, unable to fully withstand the momentum, dug an inch into the ground.
I was only able to hold my ground by using Binding.
If I had tried to use Unbinding to scatter the whip, I would have been rendered combat-ineffective and rolling on the ground by now.
It was a relief the girl didn't intend to kill me.
If she had, I would have been turned into a handful of bloody water long ago.
Watching my struggle, the girl hummed a cheerful tune.
“Good, good! That’s a wonderful dance. I should respond in kind…!”
Flash! A vertical line was drawn from the sky.
Witnessing that golden line, the girl’s eyes blankly turned toward the heavens. The direction that thread of light was aiming for was clearly the spot where she stood.
A golden roar erupted.
A pillar of lightning struck the girl directly. The aftershock alone was enough to make my muscles tingle and shake. I caught the voice drifting through the waves of that explosion.
“Nephew-in-law! Hurry!”
His voice sounded quite strained.
I kicked off the ground again, determined not to miss the opportunity Sir Reynold had created. Though the magic was terrifyingly powerful at a glance, the gap it bought was truly only a fleeting moment.
Rip! The lightning scattered in all directions as if tearing through a membrane.
Inside stood the girl, her face contorted with rage. Her rising voice alone was enough to tell.
“This old man, seriously… You really want to go at it…!”
Then, those golden eyes instinctively chased after me.
It was a short time, but it was enough to achieve my goal. I was already sprinting with all my might.
My destination was clear. I hadn't even intended to hide it.
The place where the hostages were bound.
And from the blade held in my hand, the silver aura was scattering once more.
Various thoughts flashed across the girl’s retinas.
Yes, think about it.
How did I undo the restraints?
It wouldn't take long for the fragmented clues to fall into place. The girl’s mouth hung open slightly, then she grit her teeth.
Her golden eyes burned like a fierce wildfire.
“You’re doing something so useless…!”
The blood-red whip flew toward me, but it was already too late.
Thwack! I pulled out my hand axe and immediately smashed the nearest restraint.
It was Lia. Seeing Lia’s pale face, I hurriedly asked if she was okay.
“Lia, Lia… were you very scared? It’s okay now… Gah!”
“Oppa!”
Clang! The blood-red whip struck my side.
I managed to block it with the hand axe at the last second, but I couldn't completely offset the impact. It seemed she had put quite a bit of sincerity into it, as my side felt numb from the aftershock alone.
My heightened senses transmitted a dizzying pain to my brain.
However, I grit my teeth and suppressed the groan. Forcing a warm expression, I reached out and stroked Lia’s cheek.
Of course, the hand axe didn't stop.
Clang! Clang!
Like a blacksmith striking an anvil, I swung the hand axe with force. With every strike, the restraints binding Lia fell away one by one.
I continued to soothe her.
“It’s okay, it’s okay. Lia… I’ll save you.”
Then, I heard the sound of teeth grinding together so hard they seemed to shatter.
The girl’s eyes, suppressing her rage to the limit, burned with hatred and jealousy. In truth, it was exactly what I had intended.
You can’t look away, can you?
Because that’s how you were created.
While I felt a deep pity for that fact, I also felt disgusted with myself for exploiting it.
That was how much I wanted to save my comrades.
Come to think of it, wasn't I of a similar sort?
A faint sneer at myself touched my lips. I had been arrogant, thinking I was different, but anyone is bound to compromise when a crisis hits.
If I were to go back to the past.
Could I really say we shouldn't use Blood Essence?
If I did, I would have ended up a cripple, and the Agent of the Evil God would be roaming the earth.
I didn't know the answer. Perhaps, as the girl said, God didn't exist.
Even if it was cowardly, I chose to compromise with reality.
“How, how… dare you! Right in front of me!!”
Anger that exceeds its limit actually delays action.
In that opening, I finished freeing Lia and patted her on the back.
“Hurry and get away, Lia. She won't kill you.”
“W-What about you, Oppa?”
I gave her a smile instead of an answer.
Then, with a thud, my body was pushed back. It wasn't just the blood-red whip. Blood threads were surrounding me like a spiderweb, closing the encirclement.
“For a mere fake like that!!!”
Regardless, I ran toward Senior Elsie, plunging the sword in my hand deep into the ground.
Just as the blood threads reached me.
Boom! With an explosion, the silver aura tore through the blood threads and spread outward.
I was already at my limit. Perhaps because I had squeezed out every last drop of mana, my meridian points were screaming.
But this was enough.
Just before the girl could swing the blood-red whip again.
Hummmm.
The silent atmosphere began to wail.
The girl had intended to ignore even this, but she had no choice in the face of the high-density mana that was now staining the world a brilliant blue.
Everyone’s gaze turned toward the source of the gale.
There stood the Archmage, maintaining a heavy silence.
The wheels of lightning rising behind his back were beginning to rotate violently, spitting out electrical charges. The stronger the rotation became, the more powerful the pressure radiating from the Archmage grew.
Before long, not a single monster remained standing around him.
A groan of shock escaped the girl’s lips.
“When did he…!”
Whish, catch.
The middle-aged man, covered in sweat, blood, and dust, looked exhausted. Nevertheless, he didn't stop tossing and catching the jet-black rod in his hand.
A faint smile appeared on the Archmage’s lips.
“What will you do?”
At those words, the girl’s brow furrowed sharply.
If she tried to check Sir Reynold, she would have to give up the hostages. In that case, the choice for me and Sir Reynold would be simple.
We could just flee.
There would be no reason to face the girl head-on anymore.
On the other hand, what if she tried to keep the hostages?
She would have to withstand the Archmage’s full-power magic. This seemed to be a burdensome choice even for her, as she hesitated, unable to make a quick decision.
In that gap, I finished liberating Senior Elsie.
The girl’s head dropped.
“Heh, hehehe….”
Had she given up?
The girl’s blood-red whip rotated like a wheel. It was aimed at the Archmage.
I quickly approached Celine and swung the hand axe.
Clang! Clang!
Even as the restraints were being removed, Celine couldn't quite regain her senses. She only let out low groans.
An urgent plea escaped my lips.
“Wake up, wake up. Celine!”
Boom! Boom!
The sounds of the whip and lightning clashing echoed. Sir Reynold didn't seem to have any intention of canceling his chant easily either.
We won.
Just as I was about to feel that certainty.
“Pfft, ahahahaha—hahahahaha!”
The girl’s mad laughter rang out.
And thwack—Celine’s foot, which I had just freed, slammed into my solar plexus.