Chapter 49
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Translator: 8uhl
Chapter: 49
Chapter Title: An Unscheduled Event (3)
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Rumble rumble rumble!
Staring at the boulders starting to roll down from the cliff above, Remina bit her delicate lower lip.
Roin! Luem! Emergency! Get up!
She shouted at the top of her lungs.
But her voice was quickly swallowed by the noise of the Valley of Screams.
Her expression was hardening by the second.
She rushed to Roins side and tried to shake him awake.
But the boulders would reach them first.
She had to make a decision.
Remina pulled one of the many potion bottles from her belt.
She grabbed the small one filled with an orange liquid.
It was the explosive potion shed brought just in case.
She hurled it at the nearest oncoming boulder.
Boom!
A massive explosion rang out.
But even that blast was scattered and lost in the din of the Valley of Screams.
The effect, however, was tremendous.
At least one of the rolling boulders was completely shattered.
The problem was there werent just one or two.
Remina used up all three of her explosive potions.
She tried desperately to wake her companions and get them out of there.
No openings at all!
At this rate, theyd be crushed under the boulders.
Cold sweat trickled down Reminas forehead as her hand went to her waist.
Shed run out of explosive potions.
No choice!
She pulled out a frost potion and threw it.
Crack!
The boulder rolling in with momentum froze solid to the ground.
Its so dark I cant even see where the boulders are coming from!
The lighting items effect was starting to fade.
Who wouldve thought shed face a crisis like this in the middle of training.
This was completely unscheduled.
Before the boulders piercing the darkness, Remina was helpless.
Shed done everything she could.
This was the end.
Finally, Remina called Roins name.
Roin!!!
She knew full well her cry would be drowned out by the Valley of Screams, but she couldnt let go of that thread of hope.
Did her shout reach him somehow?
The boulders charging to crush them suddenly shattered into pieces and scattered.
Remina, unable to comprehend what was happening, blinked and looked around.
Knives embedded in the ground all around.
Their owner, Rointhe one whod smashed the boulders with themopened his half-closed eyes and spoke.
That much wont kill me. Dont make a fuss.
That was true only for Roin.
Not for the others.
Emerging from his sleeping bag, Roin nudged Luem, who was snoring nearby, with his toe.
Only then did Luem start to stir.
Hey, get up.
Even as Roin spoke, Luem showed no sign of waking.
He couldnt hear the words.
If words dont work, what do you do?
Wake him with your body.
Thwack!
Roin kicked Luem squarely in the butt.
Only then did Luems eyes snap open.
W-Whats happening, L-Lord Roin!
Get up. Emergency situation.
Roin didnt think the boulders falling on their camp were some natural disaster coincidence.
Someone had done this on purpose.
Suspicious guys have been watching us for a while. Probably their doing.
Huh? There were people like that?
Yeah.
They didnt feel like fellow students from the Swordsmanship Academy.
Their gazes carried killing intent.
The kind that wanted to wipe out Roins group entirely this time.
Roin had a pretty good idea who was behind it.
Nut. Assassins sent by that bastard.
He approached Remina and asked,
No injuries, right?
Yeah. Thanks to you.
If not for Roin, Remina might have been the first crushed under a boulder.
Thanks to him coming to, theyd escaped the crisis.
With voices inaudible over the distance, they had to close in to talk.
But battle was imminent.
Conversation up close would be impossible then.
Roin signaled to Remina and Luem.
Stay put and hold position.
The two nodded obediently at his signal.
Enemies could pop out anytime, anywhere.
These werent monsters, but humans.
Against assassins, staying sharp was key.
First, gauge their numbers.
You cant counter without knowing the enemys strength.
Roin activated his Aura to enhance his eyes.
Reinforcing specific body parts with Aura was one of the high-difficulty techniques.
Even Senior Knights struggled with it.
Yet Roin activated the body reinforcement in this chaotic situation, without any prep time.
The suspicious figures perched above on the cliff.
Roughly five of them.
He could even see their expressions in detail.
They were shocked.
Probably because Roin had neutralized all the boulders.
The flustered group finally drew their weapons and began descending rapidly toward Roins party.
Four swordsmen, one mage. Thats the lineup.
Roin drew his longsword and started climbing the cliff.
Not crawling slowly with hands and feet.
He ran up the cliff face like it was a training field, stepping off ledges with ferocious speed.
The assassins couldnt hide their dismay at Roins movements.
Using Aura marked one as a Senior Knight.
Yet Roin, a mere Junior Knight, wielded Aura.
And with the control of a veteran Senior Knight whod handled it for years.
Aura gathered in Roins right hand.
He hurled it at the assassins with all his might.
Faster and more powerful than any mages magic missile.
Tch! So this is what my bad feeling was about!
Dwork, the assassin leader, shouted to his men.
Dont try to block itscatter!
Yes!
Dworks judgment was spot-on.
Trying to parry Roins Aura head-on mightve punched a hole through them.
Shaping Aura into a solid projectile like that was astonishing.
Impossible without precise control.
Dwork swallowed dryly.
We heard Roin wasnt ordinary
But no one expected this level of strength.
Roin was far beyond their predictions.
In that case!
No need to risk fighting a tough opponent.
Dwork signaled.
A signal only they understood.
They nodded.
The teams sole mage began casting.
As her casting ended, a snakes head burst from the cliff.
An earth-and-rock summon serpent lunged at Roin.
Trying to block me with a mere summon!
Roin scoffed.
He infused his longsword with Aura and swung wide.
Slash!
The moment its head was severed, it crumbled back to dirt and stone.
But that was it.
No follow-up attacks came at Roin.
What?
Roin had figured Dworks crew would use the summon to draw his aggro, then strike with the others.
But they ignored him completely.
Passed right by.
In that instant.
Roins mind raced.
They werent after him from the start.
The Tactical Golems two rampages.
During those incidents.
Roin wasnt the only one repeatedly present.
There was one more.
Remina!
Dworks group was targeting Remina, not Roin.
Roin whipped around too late.
Hed deliberately moved away from Remina and Luem to handle the assassins.
Since they were only after him anyway.
He wouldnt go down easily.
So he could fight safely, without worrying about others.
Miscalculation.
I thought too much about myself!
Never imagined their target was Remina.
His Roin-centric thinking had tripped him up.
.
Remina scanned her surroundings, rapier in hand.
Ten minutes since Roin left.
No sign of him yet.
Remina nudged Luems back with her elbow.
Give me your lighting items.
All of them?
She nodded emphatically.
Just before.
When the boulders rolled in, several of the small rod items Remina used had fallen from Luems belt pouch.
She took them, activated their lights, and tossed them in different directions.
East, west, south, north.
Light bathed every direction.
Visibility was finally improving.
But it was too early to relax.
A dart flew in fast.
Remina instinctively dodged sideways.
Less saw and dodged, more unconscious reflex.
The dart embedded perfectly in the tree opposite her.
As it hit, it hissed, smoke leaking out.
Poison-coated.
The tree blackened instantly from the virulent toxin.
That level of potency.
Even a graze is fatal.
Not just ReminaLuem spotted the poisoned dart too.
Tension gripped their sword hands.
From the darts direction, a man strolled out slowly.
A slicked-back man.
Dwork.
His fellow assassins emerged one by one.
Assassins dont usually show themselves so openly to targets.
But theres one case they do.
When theyre confident they can kill for sure.
Unlike Roin, Remina and Luem had skills befitting Junior Knights.
Superior to most, sure.
But childs play compared to Dwork and his assassins.
Dwork silently drew his weapon.
No point talkingthe Valley of Screams would drown it anyway.
Dwork pointed his blade at Remina and Luem.
His assassins charged in unison.
I wont go down easy!
Clang!
Clang!
Remina parried the oncoming assassins sword.
The assassins eyes flickered, shaken.
Reminas skill was better than expected.
But only momentarily.
Remina and Luem were cornered in seconds.
Outnumbered and outmatched.
Completely at a disadvantage.
What do we do, Lady Remina?
.
Only one solution came to mind.
Hold out until Roin gets back.
Their only way to survive.