Karahan (2)
The woman's steps were endlessly slow.
At this rate, she would clearly be slaughtered by the magic beasts in less than a minute.
I drew in a breath and leapt down from the boulder.
A tingling pain shot through my legs.
"N-Noah?!"
"Rubia, there's a critically wounded person approaching a hundred meters ahead. Behind her... seventy-eight magic beasts are in pursuit..."
Rubia, who had been steeped in panic, quickly collected herself, scanning the surroundings as she spoke.
"Seventy of them... We'll have to fight with our backs to the rock. Hepais, take down the tent. And..."
Her gaze turned to me once more.
I quietly nodded and slid the greatsword free of its scabbard.
"I'll support you as much as I can, Noah."
"Never mind me. Please look after Hepais and... the injured person."
I expanded my Qi Sensing.
Hundreds of magic beasts inhabiting the area took shape in my mind.
Dozens of adventurers preparing their camps appeared as well.
But...
The pain was milder than expected.
No blood burst forth.
Ever since I faced Carpeng...?
"Hah..."
I drew the greatsword and shoved every stray thought into a corner.
Focus only on the fight right now.
I concentrated my Qi Sensing on a single point.
A woman appeared, her expression lighting up with hope the moment she spotted us.
"Fifty meters."
Rubia's divine power stirred restlessly.
Even Hepais's racing heartbeat reached me.
"Thirty meters."
"...Be careful, Noah."
Rubia's voice trembled as the beasts entered her sight as well.
"I'll trust only you, Rubia."
After checking the potions tucked inside my clothes, I walked forward at a measured pace.
The woman, who had been struggling desperately to run, reached me and then—
"Hah... ah, m-magic..."
—collapsed right where she stood.
A bit rough, but there was no time.
I seized her arm and flung her behind me.
"Guhk—!"
She didn't even have the strength left to scream; only the sound of air escaping her lungs came out.
Trusting Rubia to handle her, I planted the greatsword upright.
Forty-two goblins.
Thirty-three horned wolves.
And... three minotaurs.
Magic beasts that should never coexist were charging together.
Creatures that ought to be tearing into one another were fixated on a single target.
Something about the situation felt wrong.
I tightened my grip on the hilt.
If I entered combat, injury would be unavoidable.
That meant the conditions for using the Fragment would be met.
But... I couldn't ignore the uncertainties that would follow afterward either.
I still didn't know how the penalty would apply.
Unless absolute safety was guaranteed, I couldn't afford to take that penalty.
Even now, magic beasts drawn by the scent of blood were closing in, so I steeled myself to face at least a hundred and twenty of them.
I swatted aside an arrow flying toward me.
I couldn't let them surround us.
I had to hold this ground.
Deflecting a dozen more arrows that sought to tear into my flesh, I waited.
At last, the horned wolf at the very front reached me.
I stomped the earth and swung the greatsword.
The horned wolf's entrails soaked the dirt.
A continuous flurry of strikes followed.
I spun my body, adding weight to the blade until it shattered more than a dozen skulls.
Goblin brain matter sprayed in every direction.
Behind me, Rubia's divine power, which had been writhing, condensed tightly.
"Noah!"
The instant her voice reached me, I threw myself sideways.
A spear of divine power, thick with murderous intent, grazed past my hair.
With a heavy thud, it buried itself in the path of the charging beasts.
Then it exploded.
Chunks of magic beast flesh flew everywhere.
After that, countless arrows of divine power Rubia loosed finished off the remaining creatures.
I brushed a scrap of meat from my cheek and wiped away cold sweat.
Her speed, her power... both had grown far stronger than before.
Rubia proudly raised a thumbs-up.
Even so, she never stopped treating the woman.
"Th-that's not fair... dirty mage..."
She tilted her head, apparently not hearing my mutter.
I simply raised my own thumb in return.
Then I gripped the greatsword again.
I raised it toward the minotaurs that would have to endure this irritation of mine.
One of them, caught fully in the earlier explosion, was already reduced to pulp.
Another had lost an arm.
The last one remained unharmed.
Fortunately... there was still work left for me.
No longer needing to keep my back to the rock, I charged forward.
I immediately parried a massive axe swing and brought the greatsword down on the neck of the one-armed beast.
A rough resistance slowed the blade.
I clenched my teeth and poured more strength into it.
The edge punched through hide and tore through muscle.
-GRAAAAAAAA-!
The creature screamed in agony.
In that instant, a fist from the remaining one came swinging from behind.
I gripped the hilt with both hands and hauled my body upward as if doing a pull-up.
The fist slammed into the dying beast's abdomen instead.
It toppled.
I kicked its face to free the greatsword, then landed.
The moment my feet touched the ground, a swinging axe filled my vision.
And then—
Clang—
Rubia's divine power intercepted the axe.
...I could have blocked that myself just now.
I stomped a furious stomp and swung the greatsword with everything I had.
In that instant, the blade moved at a speed that even startled me, shearing clean through both of the minotaur's legs.
Its body, easily over two meters tall, crashed to the ground.
Even then it swung a fist at me.
I reversed my grip on the greatsword and twisted my body the other way.
Crunch— A sensation like crushing bone, and the back of its skull went soft and wet.
The last minotaur's heartbeat stopped.
I expanded my Qi Sensing again.
Magic beasts whose attention had been drawn this way...
None.
The moment the situation ended, the tension drained out of me all at once.
I never expected it to finish so anticlimactically.
My gear had been upgraded, my Qi Sensing sharper than ever...
Yet I hadn't gotten a proper chance to shine, so I felt a little...
Just a tiny bit... disappointed.
I could have won this alone easily enough...
Of course, finishing without a single injury was the best outcome, but still...
It was just... something... something-something...
"Haa..."
On the way back I finished off the magic beasts that still clung faintly to life.
"Noah. You worked hard."
Rubia, tension gone from her face, offered a light smile and held out her hand.
"...Th-that was a bit strong."
"Right?"
The gentle smile quickly turned smug.
Ignoring that irritating expression, I took her hand lightly.
"Ah, I've roughly finished treating that woman as well. But... these wounds weren't caused by magic beasts."
Rubia's voice grew heavy.
I had half expected as much, but...
Among the people my Qi Sensing had picked up, none had seemed suspicious.
So where had she been fleeing from?
"She's unconscious for now, but she should wake soon. When she does, we'll need to hear her story..."
I gave a rough nod and followed Rubia.
"Unni! You're not hurt anywhere?"
"Mm... thanks to the greatsword. Thank you, Hepais..."
As we drew near, Hepais, who had been re-erecting the tent, greeted me cheerfully.
"Okay, hand over the greatsword now."
And she reached for my greatsword...
"W-why...?"
"I have to clean it, obviously. Look at this, look. If you just wipe it roughly while it's caked in blood like this, it'll fall apart in no time. So hurry up and give it here."
"Ugh..."
"Noah. Listen to Hepais. Quickly."
"Eugh... R-Rubia too..."
Faced with their firm tones, I had no choice but to hand over the greatsword.
At once Rubia's arm slipped around my waist.
"We need to get you cleaned up. We can't leave that woman alone, so... once she wakes, we'll all go together."
"I-is there somewhere to wash...?"
"Yes. There's a stream nearby. It'll be a little cold, but it can't be helped."
"I hate the cold though..."
Rubia let out a soft laugh and gradually came to a stop.
"Here, shall we sit?"
Then she naturally settled me down.
"You're not hurt anywhere, right?"
Her hand brushed down my cheek.
"I-I wouldn't get hurt from something like this... And Rubia... you pretty much killed them all yourself."
I pouted.
I got stronger too, you know.
When I took down that minotaur earlier, I sliced both its legs off in a single stroke!
I could feel myself improving with every swing!!
And!
I'm a Gold-rank adventurer now!!!
"Does that bother you so much?"
The hand stroking my cheek moved up to gently pet my hair.
"I-it's not that it bothers me exactly... just... something..."
I used to be the one protecting her all the time... and now it's suddenly like this...
Besides, I definitely got stronger too.
But Rubia is on a whole different level now...
"Um... Rubia."
"Yes?"
"H-how did you... get so strong?"
"Ah... well, how should I explain this..."
A thoughtful hum came from her.
"When did it start... Probably after Ca—"
"All done!"
Hepais's sudden voice completely buried Rubia's words...
Ca... Ca what!!!
"A-ah...! He... Hepais...!"
"Hm...?"
"Heheh— your timing is perfect, Hepais."
"Ah... d-did I do something wrong...?"
"No... th-that's not it... augh..."
"Can't be helped. We'll save the explanation for later... For now, shall we finish the camping preparations we were working on earlier?"
"Yeees..."
"Here, Noah Unni's greatsword... and I don't know what for, but... sorry..."
Hepais plopped the greatsword into my hands.
"Mm... no. You don't need to apologize..."
I gripped the hilt and activated Qi Sensing.
Hepais's and Rubia's expressions took shape.
So did the form of the woman lying collapsed in front of us.
But... looking more carefully now...
"Uh... R-Rubia...?"
"Yes?"
"Th-that person... inside her stomach."
Rubia's head tilted.
"There's a strange... little stone in there...?"
"What...?"
"About the size of a fingernail... angular shape... a star? No... overlapping stars?"
Rubia hurriedly began examining the woman's abdomen.
"Noah, you're certain?"
"Y-yes... I'm certain."
"Haa..."
Pressing one hand to her forehead, Rubia pulled a knife from her bag.
"R-Rubia...?"
"It's a tracking device used by a certain criminal organization. If we don't cut it out and destroy it right this second..."
Then she brought the blade to the woman's belly and murmured low.
"They'll come swarming."