Chapter 76
Chapter 76
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 76
Chapter Title: Side Story, Apostate (4)
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Deep into the night, rain fell over the black plains. Raindrops bounced off the grass blades, pattering softly. The rain-soaked plains felt chill. An eerie atmosphere hung in the air.
In the biting cold air, Kuntel gazed at his sword. The blade, drawn partway from its sheath, gleamed silver.
A sword forged from rare metal.
A blade bestowed upon him as a Sword Saint in the holy land of swords. The weapon he had wielded for decades was like an extension of his body. Like his very life.
"......"
Kuntel reflected on his life.
The first memory that surfaced was of his homeland. He recalled the day it fell to disaster.
'Sword Canyon, Galatric.'
A place that had produced countless Sword Masters.
The one who razed it was a single calamity.
'Blade of Death, Ganikalt.'
Kuntel remembered the form of that calamity who had single-handedly destroyed Sword Canyon. When he faced it, Kuntel couldn't even grip his sword. He froze solid, his blade slipping from his grasp.
-Aren't you going to draw your sword?
At that moment, the Blade of Death addressed Kuntel, who had dropped his weapon.
-Your homeland burns. Your master is dead. Sword Canyon falls. I am the one doing this. And I stand before you now.
The question was blunt.
A tone as if stating the obvious.
-Aren't you going to draw your sword?
Kuntel had no answer.
-You're no swordsman, then.
Ganikalt dragged his greatsword across the ground as he passed Kuntel. Blood splattered in his wake with every step.
-Not worth killing.
Leaving those words behind, the calamity departed.
That day, the Blade of Death massacred countless Sword Masters. He buried them along with the canyon.
And Kuntel fled.
Thirty years had passed since that shameful past.
For thirty years, Kuntel had honed his blade.
He had long since ascended to Sword Master. Yet he never grew overconfident in his skill. He swung his sword endlessly. Not a single day of rest.
For he saw it as a tribute to the swordsmen buried in Sword Canyon.
He aimed that honed blade at the Demon King's army. When his sword swung for humanity's sake, Kuntel felt fulfillment.
'Sword Saint, Kuntel.'
He made a name for himself as a Sword Saint. On countless battlefields, he matched the Hero's feats.
So Kuntel had secretly hoped.
That this time, his blade would reach that calamity. That it would fell the Blade of Death and the other four disasters.
'But what was the result?'
It didn't reach.
Not even Gletus herself, let alone the fog she had spread. He had merely sliced a wisp of it.
Kuntel looked at his dulled blade.
The chipped edge mirrored his life.
He had tried so hard, yet it fell short.
As the years wore on, his body grew frailer. His flesh had peaked and now declined. At that realization, Kuntel gave a wry smile.
"Futility itself."
The murmur scattered amid the raindrops.
As he slid the blade back into its sheath and exhaled, it happened.
Splash.
"......"
A footstep cut through the rain. It stopped before the tent. Kuntel gripped his hilt and parted the flap.
"...Raniel?"
There stood the Ashen Mage.
He was outside the tent with the Divine Archer Remia, braving the rain. His expression was grim.
"Uncle Kuntel."
Raniel spoke slowly.
"Call Uncle Heinkel and Kyle right now."
2.
"We have to stop it, no matter what."
Those were Raniel's first words.
Late at night, before the gathered commanders and the Hero in Kuntel's tent, Raniel spoke up.
"I scouted the fortress. And inside, I spotted Gletus. Her appearance matches the historical records. White hair down to her waist, emerald eyes."
Raniel pointed to the blueprint of Rodimel Fortress pinned on an improvised stand.
"Here, in Rodimel Fortress's hall, stands the Apostate Gletus. Only one monster guards the hall. An armored dragon based on the black dragon."
A monster based on the black dragon.
At those words, the western front commanders' faces darkened. Black dragons dominated the eastern and northern fronts. They rarely appeared on the western front.
But rare didn't mean never.
'Black Storm, Black Dragon Belial.'
The calamity etched in their minds was a symbol of terror. Some commanders rubbed their foreheads and spoke.
"...Then wouldn't it be better to abandon Rodimel Fortress?"
The suggestion was reasonable. Rodimel was a strategic hub. But if true, yielding it might minimize losses.
"No."
Yet Raniel shook his head.
"Even if Rodimel falls, we must stop Gletus here."
"...Why is that?"
"Gletus is crafting monsters in Rodimel Fortress. And the bases are three-fold."
Raniel spread three fingers.
"A dragon skeleton made from human bones."
"The hatchling corpse Belial guarded to the end."
"And finally..."
Folding the last finger, Raniel continued.
"The flesh and souls of holy knights melted alive."
"...What?"
"Using the hatchling corpse and dragon heart as the core, she assembles human bones for the frame. Then attaches the melted flesh of holy knights to the skeleton."
Raniel grimaced as he answered.
"What emerges isn't a true dragon."
A frame of bones, fleshed out.
The flesh made from living humans.
Beings alive yet craving death were no longer human. They were fodder for sorcery. What do you call a dragon made from such ready sacrifices?
Even Raniel didn't know.
'It's alien in its very existence.'
But the impact such a dragon would have on the battlefield was easy to imagine.
"A monster composed entirely of sorcerous offerings usable in rituals."
Raniel voiced his thoughts.
"A living spell rampaging across the field. To be honest... if we fail to stop it here, it'll become a black dragon-level nuisance."
The commanders' faces soured. They sighed, rubbing their foreheads. They agreed with the sage.
'We stop it here.'
We can't let a new calamity be born.
That left one question.
'Who stops it?'
The Apostate, Gletus.
Who would reclaim the fortress she occupied? Who would slay the monster gestating within?
Knights couldn't.
Not even a Sword Master's blade could reach.
She was a calamity beyond humanity's grasp. And there was always one to face such calamities.
'The Hero.'
All eyes turned to the Hero with his holy sword.
As if expecting it, Kyle rose slowly. He stepped toward Raniel.
"You've explained the situation."
He asked Raniel,
"When do we do it?"
He didn't ask how.
The sage always devised the plan, as always. He just needed to swing his sword on command.
"I'm ready."
Kyle tapped the hilt of his holy sword.
Raniel turned to gaze at the darkness-shrouded plains. Rain still fell.
Beyond the pouring drops, Raniel glared at Rodimel Fortress atop its cliff.
Then, he answered curtly.
"Dawn."
When night yielded to morning.
When dawn settled over the plains.
"That's the perfect time."
Kyle nodded. Knight Commander Heinkel, who had been listening, asked,
"Need backup?"
The answer was the usual one.
"Stand by."
Raniel said.
"We'll go, the four of us."
Numbers meant nothing against a calamity beyond reason. Raniel knew that well.
Especially in this case.
3.
The black fields bordering the demon realm.
On the horizon of the vast plains, the sun rose. From the cliffside castle overlooking the dawn-lit plains at a glance.
Four figures perched on its watchtower.
Having infiltrated from the underground aqueduct to the watchtower, they now eyed the heart of Rodimel Fortress.
"This feels awful."
Sensing the life stirring there, Sara wrinkled her nose. The writhing life was artificial. Blasphemy incarnate.
"You okay?"
"Have to be."
The sage answered the Saintess.
Blessed by Sara, Raniel rolled his neck twice. He flexed his fingers, stomped the floor a few times.
The blessing enhanced his body.
Adapting to this reinforcement unlike any spell, he steadied his breath.
"Remember the plan?"
"How many times you gonna say it? I heard. I remember. Human."
"Just making sure you don't forget, elf."
Raniel grumbled as he rotated his wrist.
As he took position, he glanced at the Hero, one foot on the watchtower edge beside him.
"Ready?"
"I'm ready."
Raniel smirked at the reply. He exhaled once more, then signaled upward.
"Fire, Remia."
The Divine Archer loosed her arrow. The wire-tethered shot flew straight, embedding firmly in the opposite wall.
Thud.
Kyle leaped from the watchtower, bounding along the wire.
Raniel followed. Some monsters turned toward them.
Pfsh!
Remia's follow-up arrows pierced the monsters' eyes.
Kieeeek!
Amid their screams, Kyle spun and landed atop the wall. He kicked off instantly, sprinting. At the end loomed a domed roof.
No hesitation in his movements.
Beneath that roof: the hall. And in the hall: the Apostate, Gletus.
'Five seconds.'
Counting inwardly as he trailed Kyle, Raniel timed it. The time until the summoner noticed something wrong with her linked monster.
'We breach before then.'
Raniel caught up beside Kyle, who repeatedly kicked off the ground, building momentum. Raniel overtook him with a light leap. Kyle stepped heavily, coiling power.
Raniel floated lightly into the air.
"Hey."
In midair, Raniel raised his fist.
"Here we go."
Stocked spells glowed sequentially along his forearm. Flashing like lightning, Raniel plummeted.
Smash.
His descending fist struck the roof. The unleashed spell rocked the castle.
Kwaaaang!
The roar cracked the roof.
It split and began to collapse. Stone chunks tumbled into the hall below.
-The hall is guarded by the armored dragon.
Watching this,
-Frontal assault is impossible. It reacts to even small pebbles, so stealth won't work. Fighting it while facing Gletus? No way.
Kyle recalled Raniel's plan.
-Can't give a summoner time. Have to end it in one go. So we'll use that hyper-sensitive armored dragon against her.
"Go, Kyle."
Kyle nodded.
Straightened his bent knee explosively. With a massive leap, he plunged toward the crumbling roof.
Amid the falling debris, Kyle peered into the hall.
In slowed perception, he saw the armored dragon stir. Coiled in the hall, it moved—but not toward him.
-We smash through the roof.
-It'll react to the falling stones first. That's our window.
The armored dragon reacted to the stone barrage first.
Twisting and spinning, it pulverized the chunks. Beyond the powdering debris, Kyle descended.
Restriction.
Chain.
Chains from somewhere snagged the falling stones. Kyle landed on them.
Krunch.
The stone beneath cracked.
Kyle crouched, looking down. The armored dragon climbed, grinding stones to dust.
-Hey, Kyle.
He gripped his sword.
Power gathered at his toes.
The stone creaked beneath.
-Remember when we severed the black dragon's wing?
He did.
When Raniel lowered its altitude with spells, Kyle had sliced its wing.
How had he done it?
Not with a laborious swing. He'd simply positioned the holy sword for the wing to fly into.
'Same here.'
No need to hesitate.
Thud.
He kicked off the stone. Each step on roof fragments made the chains sway. Using the recoil, Kyle leaped repeatedly, accelerating his body into a single arrow.
The shaft was Kyle's flesh.
The arrowhead, his gripped holy sword.
Shing.
He raised the holy sword. Light trailed along its blade. Tailing luminescence, Kyle accelerated.
Thud.
Last stone kicked.
Before him gaped the armored dragon's maw. Made from the black dragon's skull he'd once cleaved. Stones ground between its jaws.
-Split it open.
One arrow plunged into the armored dragon's maw.
Kagagagagagagagak!
Debris sprayed. The armored dragon's hide tore. The beast that seemed impervious to blood now bled.
Gyaaaaaaaak!
With its roar, blood gushed. Amid the spray advanced a beam of light. A platinum-glowing blade rent hide and burst forth.
Shwaaaaak!
Through the pouring blood, Kyle's eyes widened.
Emerging from the dragon's body, he spun midair and swung.
Slash!
The slash sprayed blood toward Gletus. Nor was Kyle the only one targeting her.
Smash.
Shock assaulted the hall's side. Amid exploding bricks, the Ashen Mage beckoned, sunlight at his back. The Divine Archer released her bowstring.
Whiiiiiish.
A moonlight arrow streaked, trailing light.
Straight for Gletus.
Kyle's slash.
Raniel's Smash.
Remia's moonlight arrow.
'Enough.'
They had seized momentum.
With that conviction, Kyle eyed Gletus. She lifted her head to meet his gaze. Their eyes locked in midair.
-Once the armored dragon falls, it's over.
-Summoners always have delay, no matter what. Absolute. They call familiars from other realms.
Her face emerged through swaying white hair.
Utterly expressionless.
-If we quickly eliminate the hall's armored dragon, we can deal massive damage before her prepared familiar arrives.
So composed.
-Even if we can't kill her, we tilt the battle in our favor.
No familiars to guard her, yet she remained calm. A chill ran through Kyle.
'Something's wrong.'
His instincts screamed.
"Ah."
Gletus blinked.
Her emerald eyes curved.
"It's you."
She smiled.
"Who killed the black dragon."
She swung her hand.
Her left arm emerged from beneath her robes. Kyle's eyes widened at the sight.
'Black.'
Like shrouded in shadow, pitch-black.
The ebony limb contrasting her pale skin tore into the air. To Kyle, it looked like ripping space itself.
And then, the anomaly began.
Something burst from the torn space. It resembled the armored dragon he'd just felled. A new one emerged.
It bit Kyle's slash.
Kagagagak!
And.
Kagagagak!
Not just one.
Kagagagagagagak!
Five armored dragons erupted into the air. They devoured Remia's moonlight arrow. Deflected Raniel's Smash.
"Fuck."
Raniel, falling outside the hall, reached out. A stocked spell glowed on his fingers.
Chain.
Grabbing the chains coiled around the falling Kyle, Raniel swung hard. Kyle, airborne, saw it.
'...What the hell.'
Armored dragons wrecked the fortress.
Spinning ones guarded Gletus.
As Kyle faltered, Raniel kept hurling chains. One outward, the other toward the watchtower.
"Remia!"
Remia clutched Sara and grabbed the chain.
Clang!
The chains thrashed along Raniel's mana. Remia and Sara were roughly slammed to the ground.
But no time for complaints.
Smash.
Raniel released the chain and swung his fist.
Shockwave blasted the charging armored dragon's skull. Yet Raniel was repelled.
Crack, crunch!
Unable to withstand the recoil, his arm buckled. Fingers snapped. Sacrificing one arm, Raniel escaped the dragon's range.
Bam!
He crashed into the wall.
"Tch, fuck..."
Shaking off rubble, he rose shakily. Blood flecked the spit Raniel coughed up.
"...What is this?"
Mud-caked Sara lifted her head.
"......"
Remia backed away silently.
And Kyle.
Kyle bit his lip, staring at Gletus.
The five armored dragons halted.
Like servants before a queen, they bowed and retreated. Through them fluttered snowy white hair.
The Apostate, Gletus.
Emerging from the debris, she swung her right hand.
The untouched right hand summoned the fortress-veiling fog inward.
Blue and red eyes glinted through the mist.
Slash.
She swung her blackened left arm.
Space tore. Fog poured from the rift. Eyes gleamed within.
"It's ruined."
Gletus muttered flatly.
"Right on the verge of completion, and it's ruined."
A hint of regret in her tone.
"Well, with better materials now, maybe it's fine?"
She narrowed her eyes.
Murky emerald orbs fixed on the Hero.
"The Hero's flesh."
......Calamities defied common sense.
The natural became unnatural before them. Facing madness head-on, Kyle swallowed dryly.
No path to victory came to mind.