Chapter 125
Chapter 125
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Translator: Vine
Chapter: 125
Chapter Title: Catastrophe
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"First squad, draw!"
At the commander's order, the elves drew their bowstrings. Among them were archers with large bows fixed to the ground, but their hands held no arrows.
Soon, the hands of the elves drawing the bowstrings began to glow green. It took a full minute for the wind to gather and form the shape of an arrow. Considering they were in the middle of a raid, it was a rather long loading time.
But its power seemed undeniable. The massive arrow nocked on the string was so large it looked more like a bolt for a heavy ballista than an arrow for a bow.
"First squad, fire!"
When the commander's order finally came, the elves holding the drawn strings released them in unison.
*Fwoosh—!*
A thunderous crack split the air, far too loud to be from a mere bowshot. The arrows, leaving the elves' hands, flew with such force that, unlike ordinary arrows affected by gravity, they shot forward in a straight line without the slightest waver.
Reaching their target in the blink of an eye, every single arrow struck the Volcanic Horned Dragon's legs. The arrows had long since lost their typical piercing quality. Instead, explosions of wind, like miniature tempests, ripped into the Volcanic Horned Dragon's legs.
The Volcanic Horned Dragon roared from the sudden assault, pulling back its injured legs. It seemed even an attack that powerful wasn't enough to bring it to its knees.
"Wow... that's amazing..."
"So these are elves..."
Tia and Stella, standing beside Arthur, marveled at the sight. Not only was the firepower immense, but the scale of the battle seemed far too grand for just a single monster. But this was no time for admiration.
"Let's do our part."
The mission assigned to Arthur's party was to watch for a potential demon attack. To carry it out, Arthur and the heroines stood back-to-back, surveying their surroundings.
However, they were overlooking one thing: the most dangerous threat here wasn't a demon or Luke, but the Volcanic Horned Dragon right in front of them.
*Thud!*
The Volcanic Horned Dragon took a step forward. The ground, unable to bear its weight, gave way, leaving a massive footprint as dust and dirt flew into the air. The Volcanic Horned Dragon, whose colossal body was a catastrophe in itself, didn't stop there. Black smoke billowed from the volcano on its back, shrouding the bright sky in darkness.
*KABOOM!!*
Immediately after, the volcano erupted with a deafening explosion. Volcanic ash mixed with the air, blurring their vision until they couldn't tell if it was morning or evening. From the erupted volcano, countless volcanic bombs began to rain down in arcs.
"You've got to be kidding me...!"
Arthur was horrified by the sight. Naturally, the volcanic bombs were headed straight for Arthur and the elves. He had been prepared for something, but the size of the approaching fireballs, reminiscent of small suns, forced a curse from his lips.
The volcanic bombs weren't liquid. They were sharp fragments of the Volcanic Horned Dragon's shell, burning as they fell.
"Support squad! Fire!"
Just then, at the commander's shout, several arrows struck one of the volcanic bombs. *K-BOOM!* The bomb exploded, turning to dust and vanishing. Fortunately, they had stopped one, but unfortunately, it wasn't the only one.
The elves, who hadn't finished reloading, couldn't respond to the second bomb that followed. Neither could Arthur's party.
*'W-what do I do?'*
As he pondered this, a man with long black hair passed by his side. By the time Arthur belatedly realized who it was, the volcanic bomb had already been reduced to dust.
"A flashier attack than I expected."
The man who spoke was Gideon. The moment the strongest swordsman in humanity stepped forward. Arthur wanted to offer his thanks, but unfortunately, there was no time.
"He won't show himself if I'm here, so I'm heading to the front. You just focus on what you need to do."
"...Understood."
With those words, Gideon leaped toward the Volcanic Horned Dragon, cutting down falling volcanic bombs as he went. Gideon's entry into the fray changed the tide of battle. All the falling bombs were destroyed before they could hit the ground, and with a great swing of his mace, he succeeded where the elves had failed, forcing the Volcanic Horned Dragon to its knees.
True to his title of Weapon Master, Gideon continued to display attacks using a variety of weapons. First, he wielded a mace, then he picked up a spear and threw it, attacking the Volcanic Horned Dragon's eye.
The raid was proceeding steadily, but the current situation had several problems. The S-rank adventurer was gone, and the elves couldn't take their eyes off the Volcanic Horned Dragon for even a second. The smoke from the volcano had darkened the forest, creating the perfect conditions for a demon to appear.
"Kikikik-kyok-kik-kyok-kyakakak─────────────."
A disturbing sound came from behind Arthur's party. It emerged from the darkness with such confidence that it was hard to believe it had been hiding all this time.
What came into their view was a man with purple skin, red pupils, and sharp teeth. Clearly not human, the creature was licking the blades of its claw.
"Arthur!"
"Mr. Arthur!"
"Right."
Arthur and the heroines immediately prepared for battle. The demon, who had been watching them, charged forward with glee.
"Kyahahahaha!!!"
*Clang!*
Their blades met with the screech of scraping metal. Arthur's sword was wedged between the blades of the claw. The demon's speed was incredible. So fast that Arthur, despite having consumed all sorts of fortuitous items, could barely manage to parry.
"Kuh...!"
He wasn't outmatched in strength, but the attack, delivered at such high speed, carried immense weight from its momentum.
Just then, the demon lowered its hand, and with a grating sound—*Kagagagak*—the claw slid down the flat of Arthur's sword to the crossguard.
The demon had trapped his sword. Because of this, Arthur couldn't easily move his blade.
"What...?!"
Then, the demon lashed out with its free arm. For Arthur, who was holding his sword with both hands, there were two options.
Push forward with all his strength, or abandon his sword and retreat. Any half-hearted attempt to both hold the sword and evade would result in him being pushed back and impaled by the claw.
However, Arthur opted to evade while holding the sword with one hand. Seeing this, the demon's lips curled into a grin that threatened to tear, but a move that would have been impossible alone was made possible by party members providing backup.
An ice spear and a rock spike flew in from the side, striking the demon's flank. The demon was thrown back, and Arthur's sword was naturally freed from the claw's grip.
"Kahak...!"
Watching the demon lick the blood trickling from its mouth, Arthur thought.
*'This is easier than I thought...?'*
Of course, "easy" was a relative term. Compared to the events he'd faced so far, the mere fact that the three of them could hold their ground against it was what made it seem easy.
Arthur thought he could keep pressing the advantage, but...
"Kik, kihihik! This is fun! Keep entertaining me until I kill you!"
Whether it didn't understand the situation or was simply a battle maniac... the demon's grin only widened as it laughed with delight.
And once again, the demon leaped. Arthur raised his sword to meet it, but...
*'It's faster than before?!'*
Was he mistaken? The thought crossed his mind, but it was definitely faster. Before, he could barely follow it with his eyes; now that it was faster, he could only react on instinct. If it got any faster, he wouldn't even be able to react before he was killed.
This time, the demon wasn't targeting Arthur, but Tia and Stella behind him. Targeting the supporters and mages in the rear first was a textbook strategy. Arthur quickly leaped between the demon and the heroines, blocking the attack.
"Guhk...?!"
The weight of the faster attack was immense. The tips of the claw's blades, jutting past his sword, came right before his eyes. This created a blind spot on one side, which the demon quickly tried to exploit with another attack, but...
a wall of rock shot up from the side, protecting Arthur's flank. Following that, just like before, an ice spear flew toward the demon's side. But Arthur wasn't the only one who wouldn't fall for the same trick twice; the demon also leaped back, evading the attack.
The thought that his life had been on the line multiple times in such a short span was mentally draining. Just as Arthur steeled himself to focus and caught his breath...
"Hihik...! Hihi, haha, kyahahak!"
...the demon suddenly began to laugh unsettlingly.
*Stab!*
"......!"
It slashed its own body with its claw. The problem was, it didn't stop at one. Slashing and stabbing its own body. The demon continued to self-mutilate.
What the hell is it doing? The moment the question crossed Arthur's mind...
"Kihihi, kehehek!"
...a sinister aura flared around the demon's body, and then it abruptly stopped moving. This demon hadn't appeared in the original story, so Arthur had no idea what abilities it possessed.
In a situation where it took three of them just to fight on even terms, there was no time to leisurely figure out the demon's abilities.
The best way to break this stalemate was to kill the demon before it could use its ability. Believing he could do it with the blessing of the World Tree, he asked Tia and Stella for support.
"Tia, Stella. I think we need to end this quickly. I need your support."
"Leave it to us!"
"Yes!"
This time, Arthur attacked first. The demon was still not moving. Its inexplicable movements were eerie, but he planned to use this opening to kill it. Just as Arthur reached the demon and thrust his sword forward with a shout...
"Guhk...!"
...the demon was suddenly behind him, and in that brief instant, Arthur's entire body was covered in lacerations. The demon could have clearly killed Arthur, but it had deliberately chosen not to. Instead, it just giggled, continuing to carve cuts into Arthur's body.
***
And at that moment. Somewhere in the forest.
"Phew—looks like I'm not too late."
"...You are late."
Luke had arrived on the battlefield.