Desperate Battle Without Baptism
Don't you have any pride? Capier hadn't undergone baptism yet, but he had battled countless monsters on the previous continent and during his journey here.
Dangerous. His instincts were screaming it. The Griffin before him was the strongest foe he'd faced so far.
Bad timing... Capier gazed regretfully at the Goddess Token gripped in his hand. He could summon the Holy Sword right now. But the problem was, even if he did, he couldn't wield it properly.
Anyone who wasn't a Hero holding the Holy Sword was just clutching a lump of scrap metal. It wasn't sharp. It held no divine power.
—Crunch.
If only I'd at least received baptism in the Ellinsier Kingdom before facing this. It was heartbreaking, but there was no helping it. The situation had already crashed down on him.
Did they know I was coming? Maybe the Demon King's army had learned he was heading from the continent to the Ellinsier Kingdom. Judging by how the message reached him only in the late dawn, they hadn't noticed right away.
Beibaros had definitely said he "came looking" for him.
Fuck, no way... Only then did Capier recall their earlier conversation.
—"The new Hero, you said? Seems stronger than I thought, huh? Keehihihi."
—"How much of a fucking pushover did he think I was? And technically, I'm not even a Hero yet?"
—"What? Don't lie. Then what the hell is that power of yours?"
What a fucking moronic mistake... Beibaros, whose pursuit had been slower than expected, must have assumed Capier had already received baptism. That's why he'd casually probed the man.
To see if he'd been granted the qualifications of a Hero.
By admitting I'm not a Hero, he figures I can't use the Holy Sword's power. That's why he's acting so goddamn cocky.
But Capier wasn't entirely blameless either. Before the Griffin appeared, these were enemies he could've handled without the Holy Sword's power.
Beibaros was a guy who rose to corps commander in the Demon King's army purely on cunning. Underestimating him because of his retarded speech and dumbass behavior had been a fatal error.
"Fucking bastard... you were testing me."
"Keehihihi, figured it out now? If you'd already been baptized and come here, we'd all be fucked, but do I look like a moron who'd charge in blindly like this?"
"Even without the Holy Sword, I'm strong enough. It means if I die, I'll take your head with me."
"Keehihihi, sure, I get it. That's why I'm making the offer. Hand over the Holy Sword, and I'll let you go quietly."
"Keehik—or would you rather we both die here? If that's what you want, sure, keehihik."
Capier knew full well how crucial the Holy Sword and Goddess Token were. If he handed them over and headed to the kingdom, he'd be as good as dead.
Fleeing the kingdom in the opposite direction? That wouldn't solve it either. If the Hero took too long to reach the Ellinsier Kingdom, the kingdom's elite forces would hunt him down relentlessly.
And once they found him, they'd check if he had the Holy Sword and Goddess Token.
'If they confirm I don't have them, they'll kill me to summon the next Hero.'
No escape.
Capier raised his sword. His current strength wasn't enough to take down the Griffin and hundreds of monsters.
But even so... no other choice.
Facing the enemies right in front of him offered better odds of survival than being hunted by the entire kingdom.
—Whoosh.
Capier began pouring divine power into the sword he held.
"Keehik, what a fool. Humans really can't think straight, huh?"
—Clang.
Capier lunged at Beibaros. Just as he was about to cleave him in half, Beibaros whistled, and the Griffin unleashed a massive storm of wind with its wings.
"Guh..."
The enormous gust from its wings threw him off, missing Beibaros. The goblin had already circled back, mounting the Griffin and whispering to it.
"Fly into the sky."
The Griffin soared high.
"Keehihik, obviously I don't wanna die. Play with those guys down there first, yeah?"
"You cowardly fuck, no pride at all?"
"Keehik... isn't that a bit harsh? Don't worry, once you're worn out enough, I'll have the Griffin fight you~"
"Fuck, I'm definitely killing you."
"Ooh, scary~ Keehihik."
With a mocking laugh, Beibaros gestured, and the goblins, orcs, and minotaurs that had been waiting charged all at once.
—Slash.
He bisected the oncoming goblin.
—Clang.
He parried the orc's club and severed its neck.
—Stab.
He twisted his body to dodge the minotaur's downward axe swing, then plunged his blade into its heart.
In that instant, dozens of goblins from behind leaped onto him.
Fuck.
He slaughtered most in a flash, but a few clung to his body.
—Whoosh.
—Crunch.
Even amid the chaos, the minotaurs' and orcs' attacks didn't stop. Their blows weren't a big deal even if he took a few.
But if he kept getting hit one by one, the wounds would pile up. And that would make fighting the Griffin later way too disadvantageous.
Need to handle this with minimal damage.
Capier sliced through orcs and minotaurs, then bit and tore off the hands of the goblins clinging to him.
"Kieeeek!"
The goblins, fingers ripped clean off, screamed in agony and fell from his body.
"Hoo... hoo..."
After a prolonged fight, Capier caught his breath and surveyed the battlefield.
Only about half of Beibaros's forces remained; the rest lay dead.
Kihik?... Fuck... what the hell is this?
Beibaros, watching from atop the Griffin, was stunned.
No fucking way, how is he fighting that well...?
That guy's really not baptized yet...?
Beibaros's expression grew deadly serious.
He hadn't expected much from the goblins anyway, nor from the orcs and minotaurs.
But at the very least, he thought they'd land a scratch or two on the Hero.
Hundreds of them, after all? Against an unbaptized Hero, and not a single solid hit?
Impossible.
I have to kill him. No matter what.
Beibaros changed his mind: he had to kill the Hero somehow. If this guy got baptized and grew even stronger, he'd be an unbelievable threat to the Demon King's army.
He couldn't rely on the idiots fighting below anymore.
Beibaros frantically scanned the terrain, environment—anything he could use.
"Keehihik, looks like the Goddess is on our side after all."
He spotted a trembling woman inside the cave where the Hero had first stood.
"Everyone, charge the cave!"
At Beibaros's shout, Capier flinched. The goblin didn't miss that brief reaction.
Keehihik, figured. Someone he knows.
Capier dashed desperately to the cave entrance.
Until now, he'd charged forward, forcing the monsters into defense. But now the tables had turned.
—Clang.
—Clang.
—Clang.
Unable to move freely imposed massive restrictions in battle. Capier couldn't roll to dodge like before or dive into their midst to hack them apart.
Any slight movement, and the monsters doggedly tried to push into the cave. He desperately held his ground.
Convinced the man couldn't leave that spot, Beibaros finally dismounted the Griffin for the first time and issued orders.
"Keehihihik, Griffin—attack."
Its wings spread wide, and it began relentlessly showering sharp feathers.
Attacks Capier could easily dodge, but he blocked them with his sword.
If I dodge, the girl inside gets hurt.
—Thuk.
—Thuk.
But no matter how skilled Capier was, he couldn't block every single one.
"Hoh, finally..."
—Drip.
—Drip.
Blood began flowing from Capier's body for the first time. Countless feathers pierced his thighs and upper body.
—Thuk.
Beibaros repeated the tactic several more times. Each time, the pile of monster corpses sliced by Capier at the cave mouth grew, as did the Griffin feathers embedded in his flesh.
Hoo... hoo...
Capier's breathing grew ever more ragged.
—Plop.
Soon, blood dripped from his entire body.