81. Black Odd (1)

Is it black flames? Wayne wondered if that was truly black Odd.

In truth, neither the Carian king nor the king of Bras had ever seen black Odd with their own eyes. They'd only heard the tales passed down.

On the western side of the continent—beyond that massive Great Forest—lay rich, fertile lands and an ancient civilization more advanced than anything on the eastern continent. Yet even in ancient times, only dragons with their enormous wings could cross the Great Forest.

'Is that the black Odd Martias described?'

Among the civilizations of the western continent was a race called the "Necrosickers." Gaunt to the point where their bones protruded, with hunched spines, spindly legs, and unnaturally long arms, they had bodies so fragile that the slightest impact could snap their bones. Their numbers were few, too.

With the emergence of Great Forest monsters and giants, a race as weak as them should never have survived. But they possessed one bizarre power: their black Odd.

This black Odd was forged from the Necrosickers' very life force. It held the mystical ability to revive creatures that had absorbed Great Forest Odd and perished. No one knew where the Necrosickers originated or how they converted life force into black Odd, but they would infuse it into the corpses of dead monsters, resurrecting them as subordinates dubbed "black monsters."

Turning a massive monster into a black monster required a tremendous amount of black Odd, but even an A-rank beast revived at a quarter of its former might. Since a single Necrosicker could control multiple black monsters, no race dared underestimate them.

Black Odd was the natural counter to all other Odd. And there existed a cursed weapon born from a Necrosicker squeezing every last drop of black Odd from their body, sacrificing their life in the process. Called a Dark Soul, it was exceedingly rare. The black Odd imbued within it inflicted massive damage on monsters infused with Great Forest Odd, and wounds from it never healed.

'If that's a Dark Soul, then it makes sense why Curtis and the squad couldn't recover their Odd...'

Wayne finally understood why his subordinates' injuries hadn't healed. Humans weren't monsters, but Gigant pilots wielded Odd, so it seemed certain they'd been wounded by that pitch-black, flickering Odd and couldn't recover.

'This is serious!'

That tale implied he himself might suffer an unhealable wound if slashed by that sword—and lose his Odd in the process.

Wayne furrowed his brow.

"Waaah!"

"Pozar! Pozar!"

The soldiers chanted Pozar's name relentlessly as the black Magic Knight drew near.

It was the same ploy Wayne had used yesterday—taunting to draw out an opponent. But Wayne simply stood motionless, his Odd Eyes glinting, without mounting his Gigant.

Despite the continued provocations, Wayne didn't budge.

At that moment, former captain Rakins approached Wayne, his face taut with tension.

"Uh... are we just defending today, sir?"

Curtis reined Rakins ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠in.

"Hold on. When the captain's lost in thought like that, we don't disturb him."

"Right... but isn't this bad? That's the black Magic Knight from five—no, six years ago."

"Yeah."

Curtis wore a bitter expression, and Rakins grew anxious. The atmosphere was worlds apart from yesterday. It was all because of that black Magic Knight; the other pilots ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠trembled in fear.

Rakins knew it well himself. Though he'd been at the rear during the Sailon battle six years prior, the fall of Dresden's elite pilots had been a massive shock. No Gigant pilot in the empire was ignorant of the incident.

"We'll mount up and prepare for battle, at least."

"Yeah, thanks."

Curtis and his fellow pilots climbed into their Gigants, readying for the coming fight.

With Wayne remaining silent for so long, former captain Rakins spoke up.

"Young Lord Wayne, let me go fight! You handle the defense..."

"Ah! So it works!"

Wayne's face lit up as he slapped his knee.

"Why the hell didn't I think of this sooner? You idiot."

He smacked his own head hard—twice.

"Young Lord, what's wrong?"

"Mount up first."

Wayne and Rakins boarded their Gigants as well.

The black Magic Knight kept goading the imperial forces, morale plummeting.

Wayne glanced at his subordinates. Only Sara Raudi's Gigant blazed with Odd; the others seemed to shrink endlessly.

The Stormtrooper Gigants all turned toward Predator in unison. Though their faces weren't visible, they were surely bewildered.

Curtis shot back.

Curtis's voice trailed off.

Wayne wasn't mocking. Curtis was a genius upper-class pilot, the one Boltain Count had unhesitatingly chosen as his successor for the next generation. Even after the black Magic Knight wounded him six years ago, costing him his Odd and turning him into a cripple, they'd still made him an instructor at the Gigant academy out of respect for his skill.

Sara Raudi, singled out, subtly touched her lower abdomen. Even now, on rainy days, the scar there throbbed. She'd jolted awake from nightmares of that blade stabbing her hundreds of times over the past six years. She'd once dreamed of becoming Dresden's first female commander, and as Curtis's deputy, that dream had felt within reach. But the black Magic Knight before her had shattered it all.

Revenge burned in her, yet fear surged too. She bit her lip hard.

With a mechanical whine and heavy thuds, she overcame her terror and stepped forward. Her body shook wildly, but she judged she couldn't suffer nightmares forever.

Wayne's gaze shifted to Glen Jacob. Of everyone here, Glen had the most to lose. Unlike the others, he'd formed two high-purity Odd Holes with Wayne's help. Combat was still beyond him, but he could pilot and maneuver a 2nd-class Gigant. That was progress beyond his old self.

Glen looked around.

As Wayne's eyes turned to Bastian Schwine...

Glen's voice rang out.

At Wayne's question, Glen glanced sideways at Sara. Academy classmates, she'd been the heartthrob of every guy. Glen's personality wouldn't let him do anything embarrassing, even if he liked her. He'd never confessed; they just bickered endlessly whenever they met. But he couldn't send her out alone.

Thud! Sara's Stormtrooper punched Glen's in the gut.

As the two bickered, Wayne chuckled and turned to Bastian.

As Bastian's Gigant stirred...

Whirr! Thud!

Curtis's Gigant stepped forward.

Bastian sighed.

Bastian yielded, and Curtis took position beside Sara and Glen.

Sara shook her head. The three Gigants faced Wayne and saluted with fists to chests.

The gates creaked open, and the three 3rd-class Gigants marched out.

But—screech! Thud!

The gates slammed shut.

He didn't know why Wayne wasn't coming himself, but now they had to kill the black Magic Knight—or die trying.

"Waaah!"

"Win this!"

"Valhalla!"

Cheers erupted from the imperial lines.

Whirr! Boom boom!

The black Magic Knight Pozar advanced. A thick voice emanated from it.

Then Curtis bellowed.

This time, Sara shouted.

Sara's Stormtrooper extended its arms, ejecting blades.

Clang! Clang!

Halit laughed heartily.

The three Gigants spread out, encircling the black Magic Knight from three sides. Curtis addressed the other two.

From atop the wall, Wayne yelled.

They were so tense, committing errors they'd never make otherwise.

Whirr! Whirr! Whirr!

The black Magic Knight spun its chain. The scythe-like sword at the end whirled viciously.

Pozar flung the sword first at Curtis.

Whoosh! Slash!

'Ngh!'

Curtis bent his Gigant back ninety degrees, tumbling to evade the blade by a hair.

Whirr! Thud thud thud!

Sara and Glen lunged at the opening.

But the black Magic Knight yanked the chain, and the sword was suddenly back in its grasp. It swung the chain wide; as the sword spun toward the pair, they retreated without even clashing blades.

Rattle! Whoosh!

The chain-bound sword assaulted Sara's Gigant. She leaped aside.

Slash! Boom!

The blade grazed the ground, carving a black line that flickered and vanished. If it struck a Gigant directly, the pilot inside would suffer a matching wound.

Six years ago, they'd been careless and ignorant of the sword's Odd-harming nature, falling easily. Now, they desperately avoided contact with that blade and weren't going down without a fight.

Clang! Clang!

But soon Sara was cornered against the wall by the black Magic Knight. Each clash slowed her Gigant further. Once she lagged enough, it hurled the sword at her chest.

Whoosh!

Clang!

'Huh?'

Glen's Gigant had rushed in to block the sword. But his machine slowed instantly too.

Meanwhile, Curtis's Gigant crept silently around to the left, aiming for the black Magic Knight's back.

'Please! Just drop dead in one hit!'

Thud thud thud! Shing!

Curtis's right blade thrust at the black Magic Knight's waist.

But it already knew his move.

Clang!

Blade met sword. In that instant, black Odd surged like flames along Curtis's blade, engulfing him.

'Ngh!'

It was just like back then! A mere clash, yet his heart quaked, chest tightened, Odd flow sluggish.

The black Magic Knight stepped forward; the Stormtrooper yielded powerlessly. It couldn't lose a power contest to a 2nd-class. Curtis couldn't hold and shoved the sword away, retreating.

Then the black Magic Knight slashed.

Slash!

A black line scarred the Gigant's belly.

Curtis screamed. The black Magic Knight whipped its chain sword toward Sara and Glen attacking from behind.

Whoosh! Whoosh!

Overwhelmed by the ferocity, the pair fell back.

Wayne's voice cut in.

Curtis glanced at his belly. He'd been hit, so there should be a wound, but nothing.

Wayne had tested black Odd before sending them out. He'd tried red Odd, his green Odd, dwarf Odd, even the queen ant's yellow Odd—each scattered on contact. Mixing two yielded the same. But Mririk's white Odd resisted without vanishing.

And when Curtis got hit just now, he'd accelerated white Odd toward the Gigant. The physical graze remained, but no black Odd wound formed.

In short, black Odd couldn't harm white Odd. This water-exclusive special Odd was uniquely dense, the sole counter. Injecting it might even heal Curtis and the pilots' old wounds. No wonder he'd slapped his head—he'd never tried.

Curtis hauled his Gigant upright.

The three pilots unleashed furious Odd from their Gigants and charged the black Magic Knight.