Chapter 110: The Tin Knight and the Crimson Monster (2)
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 110: The Tin Knight and the Crimson Monster (2)
“Argh, seriously! What is this thing?!”
Dorothea yelled in frustration at the transparent barrier blocking her path.
Thwack! Thwack!
The ebony staff, its status demoted from a secret weapon for the finals to a mere wooden club, let out a pitiful scream, but Dorothea's relentless beating continued, heedless of its cries.
Of course, she knew full well that this wouldn't break the barrier.
Over in the distance, the legendary adventurer was unleashing torrents of sword energy on the barrier to no effect. It was arrogant to think she could smash it with a mere wooden staff.
But there was no other way.
After seeing Adel's limbs twisted at unnatural angles, she had seriously considered just closing her eyes and unleashing her necromancy with all her might. But even if she summoned an army of tens of thousands of corpses, it would be meaningless against a wall this absurdly durable.
‘If that Peter guy can’t break it, then sword energy is useless. That leaves magic…’
The type of mage who would be most useful in this situation wasn't a Necromancer, an Alchemist, or an Enchantress.
It was a Wizard.
Dorothea quickly scanned her surroundings.
Finding a specific person in the teeming crowd was incredibly difficult, but the target’s appearance was so conspicuous, and the surrounding spectators were keeping their distance, creating an empty space around her, that Dorothea managed to spot her.
“Hey, you!”
“Addressing someone as ‘you’ doesn’t seem very dignified, Dorothea Aschengard.”
A beautiful girl with hair as white as snow. Algind Goodwitch replied with a decidedly elegant air.
For a moment, seeing Algind so composed amidst the chaos, Dorothea felt the urge to snap at her, but she remembered her purpose and managed to suppress it.
“Whatever. That barrier, can you break it?”
“Hmm.”
Algind paused for a moment, her expression unchanging, before finally nodding.
“Yes, I can. In fact, I’m likely the only one here who can.”
“In that case—”
“In that case, what?”
Algind cut Dorothea off, retorting.
“Surely you’re not about to ask me to break it, I hope. Do you have any idea what kind of disaster would unfold if I did?”
Algind gestured toward the inside of the arena.
There, the Tin Knight and Kalidahs were locked in a tremendous battle that seemed to defy this world.
Every time one blocked the other’s strike, their feet dug into the ground. Passing sword energy and sword winds pulverized everything nearby. The mere shockwaves and mana clashing between them created a hellscape lethal to any ordinary person.
“The only reason these spectators can watch so placidly with those dazed looks on their faces is because of that barrier. In other words, the moment it disappears, this place will turn into a scene of tragedy.”
“I’m not asking you to destroy the whole thing. Just making a hole is enough.”
“It’s just as dangerous.”
“I don’t have time for this. Just give me a straight answer.”
Dorothea was frantic.
She didn’t think the Tin Knight would lose, but leaving the severely injured Adel right next to that clash of titans was another matter entirely.
As Algind remained silent, Dorothea’s brow furrowed.
Her lips twitched for a moment before she spoke, a reluctant look on her face.
“If necessary, I’ll pay the price—”
“Miss Dorothea.”
A voice from behind cut Dorothea off.
When Dorothea turned, a serious-faced Sophia was shaking her head.
“Let’s go back.”
“But.”
“It’s alright. So, please, let’s go.”
Dorothea hesitated at Sophia’s words, then closed her eyes.
When she opened them again, she spoke to Algind.
“Never mind. I’m leaving.”
Algind silently watched the two of them depart without another moment’s hesitation.
And after they were completely gone, she muttered under her breath.
“—Hmph, what a pity.”
*
Trust in the Tin Knight, Sophia had said.
Dorothea was growing anxious just having to wait, but the wait was not in vain.
The Tin Knight’s sword had successfully cut down Kalidahs.
And it had done so without getting Adel caught in the battle at all.
“Phew.”
Dorothea let out a long sigh.
She had broken out in a cold sweat when, at the last moment, Kalidahs had fired a terrifying blast of sword energy in Adel’s direction, but the Tin Knight’s response had been perfect.
It was worth buying him that expensive equipment from Franka's shop.
Once Kalidahs fell, the barrier surrounding them also began to crumble.
Sophia suddenly muttered.
“What strange timing.”
“What do you mean?”
Instead of answering Dorothea’s question, Sophia just shook her head.
“I’ll tell you later. For now, Lady Adel comes first.”
She was right, so Dorothea nodded obediently and vaulted over the spectator wall into the arena.
She could hear the flustered shouts of the organizers and guards trying to stop her, but she blithely ignored them.
The two of them reached Adel and quickly began administering first aid.
They set the twisted bones back into place, applied medicine to the wounds, and after doing everything they could surgically, Sophia used her holy magic.
She tried to avoid using it in front of others as much as possible, but the situation left her no choice.
To at least suppress the visible signs of her power, Dorothea poured her necromantic mana into Sophia.
The situation was so chaotic that she could only pray no one would notice.
With Adel, who had passed out from the pain of having her bones set, on her back, the two approached the Tin Knight.
Perhaps because they had taken time to heal Adel, a sizable crowd had already gathered around the Tin Knight and Kalidahs.
“Wait, you can’t come over here…”
A few of the guards tried to stop them, but their words trailed off.
They had realized that the Tin Knight and the two women were on the same team, and that the Tin Knight was a magic doll contracted to Dorothea.
Having witnessed the Tin Knight’s monstrous battle up close, their expressions held a certain awe.
“So, um, can, can it talk?”
The Lord of Thracus, who had been awkwardly trying to communicate with the Tin Knight, brightened when he saw Dorothea.
“Ah, thank goodness. Well, there are many things I’d like to ask to understand this situation. Could you accompany me for a moment?”
Dorothea thought for a moment before finally nodding.
She had plenty of questions of her own, and if she handled this poorly, she could very well be framed as the culprit. She also needed to tell them about Kalidahs’s belt.
This has become a real pain, Dorothea thought, glaring at the corpse of the one who had caused this whole mess.
‘Hm?’
It was then that something strange caught Dorothea’s eye.
Around Kalidahs. Something like a crimson fissure had flickered into existence for a moment before vanishing.
She could have dismissed it as a trick of the eye, but the fact that she had just been sharing mana with Sophia to help her made her hesitate.
“Sophia.”
Without a detailed explanation, Dorothea lightly tapped her finger beside her eye. Sophia immediately understood the signal.
Sophia’s blood-red mana flowed into Dorothea’s mind.
As the crimson fissure became visible once more, Dorothea reached out her hand.
*
Once upon a time, not so long ago, there was a woman who lived by the sword.
The woman was ordinary.
Once hailed as a prodigy, her talent had faded with time.
But it was too late to choose another path; she had invested too much to throw it all away.
One day, as she lived her aimless life, the woman came across a mysterious armor.
The monstrous armor, bearing the forms of a bear and a tiger, gave the woman many things.
Superb skill, formidable stamina, and abundant mana.
Strength itself was a treasure that filled her coffers.
The generosity and cheerfulness she had forgotten due to a life of poverty returned.
Her irritable personality gave way to a relaxed composure, and her words and actions carried the dignity of the strong.
However, it was not without a price.
One day, when she took off the armor and saw her reflection in the mirror, the woman was horrified.
The face staring back was not the one she remembered.
Not the red hair, not the violet eyes, not even the fine details of her face.
The image of her past self that she remembered had long since vanished.
She was afraid, but she couldn't give up the armor.
The power she had once held was too sweet.
The woman wrapped the armor around herself even more tightly.
So that others, and even she herself, could no longer see her changed form.
She excused her actions to herself, reasoning that if no one knew, it would be fine, even if the transformation accelerated as a result.
The woman did not realize.
Or perhaps she realized and chose to ignore it.
The hatred for the brilliant gold.
The grudge against the lustrous violet.
The deep rumbling in her chest she felt whenever she saw those who bore the name of the lion.
By ignoring it, by acting as if it were nothing, the woman was able to remain herself.
She could have continued that way, until she saw a certain fragment of the past unfurled by the girl before her.
Amidst the overflowing emotions, the woman lost herself.
And she realized. The alias she had been using without a second thought was, in fact, the name of this armor’s original owner.
The lingering thoughts left in the armor were mere dregs compared to what its original master had felt, but even that was a poison potent enough to completely overwhelm the woman’s mind.
The woman fell into a sleep from which she would not wake.
As if to take her place, Kalidahs opened its eyes.
And the crimson monster’s violet eyes stared at Dorothea.
*
“Ugh!”
Dorothea clutched her head reflexively.
Her heart was pounding.
That final gaze.
That, at least, was no mere illusion or vicarious experience.
The monster’s eyes held a clear will and substance.
Somewhere in this world, it was still burning with resentment and hatred.
Judging by Sophia’s pensive expression, she had seen the same thing.
[The ‘Tin Knight’ is puzzled, asking if you all watched a cutscene without him!]
[The ‘Tin Knight’ complains that while he isn’t the type to care about minor details or background settings, being left out is not cool!]
[The ‘Tin Knight’ asks if it’s okay to loot this belt!]
“You’re really… No, forget it. What’s the point.”
Dorothea shook her head.
Looking at the carefree Tin Knight, she felt like an idiot for having felt any sense of crisis or gravity.
“Well, I know what you all must be thinking, but Kalidahs wasn't always like this. I’m not trying to defend her, exactly, but I just wanted you to know.”
At the Lord of Thracus’s sudden words, Dorothea wondered what on earth he was talking about before realizing her own actions.
After all, a mage whose teammate had nearly been sliced to pieces by Kalidahs was now staring at the body with a deep frown, silent for a long moment. Anyone would assume she was harboring a grudge.
Dorothea considered correcting the misunderstanding but decided to let it be.
It was easier than trying to explain Sophia’s ability.
“My lord, what should we do with the champion’s body?”
“We can’t just leave her here. Move her for now. We need to investigate the possibility that she was affected by some suspicious drug or magic.”
At the lord’s command, several burly men rushed over to Kalidahs.
The moment they tried to lift her, it happened.
Crack.
A small fissure at first.
It spread and spread, branching out across the entire suit of armor.
“Wh-what the?”
The crimson leather and iron plates, the gauntlets as sharp as a beast’s claws, the bear emblem carved on the shoulder, the tiger-like helmet, and even the flesh left within—all of it cracked, crumbled, and then scattered into dust.
Only one thing remained.
A belt, like a blazing flame, was left behind, as if it were an entirely different kind of existence.