Chapter 238: The Tin Knight and the Witch of Heaven's Change (8)
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 238: The Tin Knight and the Witch of Heaven's Change (8)
What to watch out for when fighting an evil witch.
One. Do not make contact with the witch. Your body will inflate like a balloon and explode.
Two. Do not let the witch escape into a crowd of living people. She will hide among them and conceal her identity.
Three. Do not be mistaken into thinking her main body is weak just because her special skills are overpowered. The ability to freely change her body means she can create an ideal physique at will.
Four. Consider her defense to be virtually infinite. No matter how many times you strike her, her body will not sustain a single scratch.
Five. Do not expect the witch to fight fair and square. Your opponent is not an honorable knight, but a cunning witch. She will, at any moment, ignore the opponent before her to target your allies in the rear. The moment you let your guard down, your allies will fall, leading to the worst possible outcome.
How do you win against such an enemy? Isn't it too unfair? It's fine.
Because he is the Tin Knight.
[The ‘Tin Knight’ assesses that bosses with invincibility patterns are not that uncommon!]
[The ‘Tin Knight’ insists that while there are escort targets who are no help at all and just run to their deaths, an escort target who knows how to stay safe and properly do their part is a true godsend!]
Fortunately or unfortunately, the Witch of the North did not retort, "What is that nonsense?" upon hearing the Tin Knight's words.
Because she couldn't hear them.
In truth, the Tin Knight hadn't intended for his opponent to hear him anyway. He was a man who spoke to his enemies with steel.
The Witch of the North's swinging right arm tore through the ground, and a bundle of tentacles sprouting from her back aimed for the Tin Knight's body like an awl.
The Tin Knight swung his sword and cut through the tentacles, but protected by magic characters, they were merely pushed back for a moment, sustaining not even a scratch.
The Tin Knight paid it no mind.
If it were completely impossible to interfere physically, that would be one thing, but as long as he could affect his opponent's body, there were plenty of ways to deal with her.
Parry the tentacles, parry, parry, and when the enraged opponent unleashed a bold, sweeping attack, he would counter with a throw.
The moment she tried to raise her upper body, he would stop her with the tip of his sword to her forehead. When she tried to glare at him, he would kick her chin to forcibly turn her gaze away. Once he had provoked her enough to draw her full attention, he would use that opening for a strike from the white knight.
KRA-KOOOOM!
The white knight's firepower was simply immense.
A fact the Tin Knight knew all too well, having crossed swords with him himself.
Protected by a mana barrier, Mombi's body wasn't pierced by the spear, but precisely because of that, she was pushed further and further back with every blow.
《How long do you think these cheap tricks will work?!》
Mombi, transformed into a monstrous form, shouted in irritation.
With both her main skills, the instant death touch and surprise attacks, sealed away, she was forced into close-quarters combat, and her frustration was boiling over.
Her body transformed, becoming even heavier and thicker.
Just like that, she began to charge recklessly toward Dorothea and Gale.
The Tin Knight and the white knight swung their weapons to stop her, but it seemed the magic she had just used had greatly increased her body weight, as their sword and spear were deflected instead.
Dorothea and Gale tried to back away and create distance, but Mombi was faster.
Having no choice, the white knight used his own body to block Mombi's path.
Spear and claws clashed. The spear succeeded in finally halting Mombi's charge, but at the cost of his left arm.
Next up, the Tin Knight not only blocked Mombi with his dazzling sword energy and combat techniques but actually overwhelmed her. However, her level was so high that the mana consumption was extreme.
The moment the Tin Knight, worried about running out of fuel, slightly lowered his output, the bundle of tentacles, now like an awl, gouged out his side.
After that, Mombi repeatedly used the most troublesome pattern against the party.
Increase her weight to prevent being pushed back by attacks, then rely on her barrier, disregard defense, and just charge and attack.
It was a simple tactic, but for that very reason, one with no clear counter.
This was the Witch of the North’s domain.
As long as the very earth supplied Mombi with power, the party would be forced to fight at a constant disadvantage.
So they waited.
For the coming opportunity, for their comrade's moment to shine.
And then.
*
The girl who had suffered great pain had nevertheless vowed not to live solely for revenge.
Because she knew there were those who had lived proudly until the very end.
Because she realized the duty left to her was not merely a reckless bloodbath of vengeance, but the restoration of their honor.
Because she had comrades who did not hesitate to face one of the continent's most powerful forces to keep her from falling completely into darkness.
That was why she knew restraint, and throughout the fight with the magic tower, she moved as rationally as possible instead of blindly rampaging.
However, there was one thing that should not be misunderstood.
Just because she was not swayed by her anger did not mean that her anger was weak.
The young—no, youthful—lion was overflowing with rage.
CR-CR-CR-CRASH!
With a deafening noise, the bodies of Adelaide and Lotbart plummeted to the 9th floor.
A voice filled with bewilderment came from somewhere, but Adelaide ignored it and once again put strength into her right hand.
《You... brat...!》
She slammed the back of the head of her opponent, who still seemed able to speak, into the ground with all her might.
With a massive impact that shook the tower, countless spiderweb-like cracks appeared.
However, unlike the 10th floor, which had already been weakened by the battle, it didn't break through in one go.
It didn't matter.
She just had to keep slamming him until it broke.
BAM!
KRAAACK!
KRA-BOOOOM!!
Another plunge.
A large hole opened in the 9th-floor ground, and the two of them fell downward once more.
Lotbart tried to use magic to attack Adelaide, but each time, she slammed his head into the ground, forcibly interrupting his spell.
The 8th floor shattered.
Lotbart, perhaps realizing he no longer had the luxury of casting sophisticated magic, tried to resist with physical force. His scepter struck Adelaide's head hard, tearing her skin. The blood that flowed out froze in the cold.
Without even a change in her expression, Adelaide moved her arm again.
The 7th floor gave way.
“Wh-what was that?”
“Someone fell from above!”
“A golden-haired swordswoman! It’s a Lennart! One of them!”
It seemed the entrance the pirates had been blocking had been breached, as figures who appeared to be Control’s reinforcements were ascending the tower. Spotting Adelaide, they unleashed a barrage of attacks.
Lotbart, hoping Adelaide's attention would be diverted, tried to escape, but Adelaide simply endured the incoming attacks with her body and slammed him downward again.
The 6th floor was breached, and their bodies plummeted down once more.
《...Guh... hck.》
The fact that Lotbart's body could maintain a somewhat intact form was largely thanks to the immense mana he held and his transformed, monstrous body.
But the damage was beginning to accumulate beyond what even that body could handle, and Lotbart's limbs began to twitch.
Adelaide was not unscathed either.
No, judging by appearances, Adelaide was in even worse shape than Lotbart.
And yet, she did not stop her assault.
The 5th floor was pierced.
In his dazed state, Lotbart somehow attempted a counterattack.
He was not a king skilled only in schemes and trickery.
In the old days, it might have been different, but in the modern Magic State, where the concepts of mage and monarch had become intertwined, a king also had to be an outstanding mage.
Therefore, he had never stopped training even in his old age and had abundant combat experience.
But this was not that.
The battles he had experienced, the fights he had envisioned, were things of more dignity, formality, and grandeur—not a dogfight like two beasts tearing at each other.
No, considering that even a mere beast would be extremely reluctant to get hurt, this was a fight less than bestial.
Thump, thump, thump, thwack.
Lotbart's body, which had been repeatedly hammered into the ground, was suddenly flung in a bizarre direction.
It was because Adelaide's right hand, unable to withstand the terrible cold and successive impacts, had been damaged to the point where it could no longer hold onto anything.
The flesh was torn away, and all her finger bones were crushed in grotesque directions.
《......!》
Realizing this was his chance to escape, Lotbart tried to get his body up.
He turned his torso, placed a hand on the floor, and was about to stand by planting one foot on the ground, when—
“—Three more to go.”
Adelaide's left hand grabbed his ankle.
The world turned upside down.
KRA-BOOOOOOM!
The wreckage of the 4th floor fell downward, along with Lotbart's body.
This utterly primitive violence, which broke and shattered his entire body, steadily chipped away at the old man's greatest weapon: his reason.
No longer able to even save face, he squeezed out a shout to the Control mages who were staring at him in shock.
《Kill her! Kill this monster, whatever it takes!! She is an enemy of the tower!!》
The mages' reaction was slow.
Having somehow shaken off the endlessly respawning pirates who had been holding them back, they had made their way up only to be thrown into confusion by the sight of the two figures amidst the broken ceiling and its debris.
Not a single one of them recognized the screaming Lotbart—completely transformed into a monstrous shape, having lost all his usual dignity—as their tower head.
Therefore, their choice was, in a sense, rational.
“It's the Lennart wench!!”
“Protect the tower! Kill all the intruders!!”
A torrent of various attack spells descended, as if to bury both Adelaide and Lotbart together without distinction.
《You incompetent fools...!!》
Lotbart was furious, but it was impossible for him to correct the misunderstanding.
Because Adelaide swung Lotbart's body to block the incoming attack spells.
And what she would do next was obvious.
A large hole opened in the 3rd floor.
By the time he reached the 2nd floor, Lotbart's state was nothing short of wretched.
The scepter that symbolized his glory had long since broken and been lost somewhere, the crystal armor that exuded dignity was in tatters, his legs were crushed, and only one arm remained.
Adelaide was in a similarly grave state; it was impossible to tell if what was attached to her wrist was a human hand or a mangled lump of flesh.
A situation where she could no longer grab or swing anything.
So, she climbed on top of Lotbart.
Her clasped fists came down like a hammer.
THWACK!
Her stamina, her body—both had already reached their limit.
And yet, the attacks did not stop.
THWACK!
The Belt of Amaryllis pulsed with a fierce energy, as if to say, That's my master, and the violet lightning intensified its glow, as if urging her to unleash even more fury.
The ground trembled, and cracks formed.
THUD!
There were those who watched, but they were so intimidated by the demonic sight of Adelaide, blood streaming down her as she relentlessly hammered down her fists, that not a single one of them could move.
In the final moment, Lotbart showed signs of wanting to say something.
It might have been a plea to stop, or perhaps he was trying to leave some last words as a king.
Adelaide did not listen.
Just after his head, mixed with crystal, was completely crushed with a sickening squelch, a small gap, barely large enough for two people to fall through, opened in the floor.
The body of the old man who dreamed of being a king fell to the 1st floor, shattering into pieces from the impact of the fall.
After watching the scene dispassionately, the light in Adelaide's eyes, which had been burning so vividly, quickly faded like a dying candle flame.
The last thing she saw was Sophia, far above, unhesitatingly throwing herself through the hole Adelaide had created. Then, the lion lost consciousness.
*
The Tin Knight's sword energy and the white knight's charge pierced Mombi's body at the same time.
And in Mombi's counterattack, parts of both knights' bodies were sheared off.
At a glance, it seemed like nothing had changed.
But the magic characters surrounding Mombi's body were no longer replenishing themselves.
The connection that linked her to the ley lines had already been severed.
Realizing this, the witch's face hardened, and the Tin Knight shouted.
[The ‘Tin Knight’ cheers, ‘That’s my pupil!’]