The Aftermath of Karon (4)
"Sharpen, transform, pierce, and rend"
-Squelch!
The inside of the armor twisted itself into a forest of hedgehog-like spines, each needle impaling its own master from within.
"Ghk... guh... Shit..."
In his final moment, sanity seemed to flicker back into his eyes.
But he never managed to force another word past his lips. His head drooped forward, carried down by the cascade of blood that poured from his body.
"Phew... Hah... We won...!"
Count Kelrn's corpse was a gruesome sight.
His own armor had thrust outward inward, sprouting sharp protrusions that had skewered his entire body.
'Gross...'
Blood dripped from the iron spikes that jutted out of the armor, staining the floor red.
As I stood there staring vacantly, Elisa, who had been waiting at a distance, came running toward me with an urgent cry.
"Master!"
"Ah, Elisa. That was some nice magic."
Her face, already pale, turned even whiter as she rushed over, not even caring that the hem of her maid uniform was getting filthy with dirt.
"Are you injured, Master? There's... blood...!"
Panicking, her hands roamed over my body, checking for wounds.
"It's not my blood. Just some splatter from the Count. I'm fine. A bit dizzy from using up all my mana, but..."
I had some minor cuts and scrapes, but Roxanna's pendant had blocked the big attacks.
I'd have to thank her when we got back.
"...Thank goodness. Truly, thank goodness..."
Hearing my answer, Elisa finally let out a sigh of relief.
I was about to say something as I watched her relax, but then—
"Ugh..."
The tension in my body dissolved, and a wave of exhaustion crashed over me, weighing down my entire being.
'Mana exhaustion.'
A symptom that appears when you push your mana to its absolute limit.
Not surprising, since I'd poured every last drop of magical power into that spell to take down the Count. This was my first time feeling this particular sensation, and it made my head spin.
"Ah..."
The world swirled before my eyes, and everything went dark.
The strength in my legs, which I had been barely holding onto, gave out. My body pitched forward.
"Master?!"
Startled, Elisa quickly reached out and caught me in her arms as I fell.
I could hear her voice calling my name, but my consciousness was already fading.
'Soft...'
Surrendering to the drowsiness that swept over me while cradled in her embrace, I closed my eyes.
"Master?!"
Elisa, flustered, caught Ian as he collapsed into her arms and examined him carefully.
Thankfully, aside from minor scratches, there were no serious injuries.
'Mana exhaustion, I see.'
"Phew..."
Letting out a relieved sigh, Elisa gently stroked the back of Ian's head.
His breathing was steady—he seemed to have fallen asleep from sheer fatigue.
'I can't believe he actually pulled it off.'
Even though she had provided some assistance...
A 4th Circle mage defeating a Sword Expert?
When news of this reached the kingdom, the voices calling for her master to be named Crown Prince would only grow louder.
Even now, the Commoners' Council was already murmuring about whether it wouldn't be better to elevate him to that position.
'My master hates troublesome things, though.'
Not that you'd guess it from the scale of things he keeps stirring up.
She wished he would rely a little more on his maid.
But lately, he seemed determined to handle everything on his own, which left a slightly bitter taste in her heart.
He used to be the kind of person who would dump every tedious task onto someone else.
'Which is why I used to play pranks on him sometimes, too.'
She wanted to see his face when he had to lean on her for help, so she'd once put a weight-increasing spell on the door to his workshop.
'I think he's caught on to some of it, though...'
Maybe he just tolerated her mischief because she was his diligent maid.
'Unless it's something else...'
Embarrassed by that line of thought, Elisa felt her face heat up. She shook her head to dispel the train of thought.
From now on, he would be busier than ever.
This incident would only make the Empire focus more intently on him.
'For now, though, he'll have to concentrate on putting the Karon Territory in order.'
The Karon Territory was a vast domain.
Most of its land was flat plains, making it a massive granary.
That was why the Empire had coveted it in the first place.
And once word reached other kingdoms that the Espada Kingdom had driven the Empire out...
'There will be those who try to take advantage.'
Moreover, the kingdom was now in a position where, even if they had justification, they had attacked the Empire.
No matter how unstable the Empire's internal conflicts had made things, its strength had not simply vanished.
There would be full-scale reprisals and diplomatic pressure coming.
Tiresome, annoying business would come crashing down on them soon enough.
'But when that time comes, I just need to do my best as a maid and help him.'
"For now, may you have pleasant dreams."
A few days later.
The northernmost reaches of the Tellus Empire.
-Knock, knock.
Having made his way through the howling blizzard to the North, an intelligence agent knocked on the door of the Northern Grand Duke's office.
"Enter."
"Your Grace. Urgent news has arrived from our eyes planted in the Karon Territory."
In there