Chapter 67: Prophecy (6)
Chapter 67: Prophecy (6)
The path the golem had charged down looked as though a storm had swept through it. Fortunately, no one appeared to have been killed or injured.
'That's a dark elf festival for you.'
Even in the sudden chaos, no one became tangled together; they scattered along the most efficient escape routes. Their movements were as orderly as if they drilled evacuations regularly.
There was none of the usual clutching at heads, collapsing in panic, or tripping while fleeing.
"How do you calm down an angry golem?"
It was the most absurd opponent Eugene had ever faced. Hitting it with a blade would obviously damage the weapon more than the golem.
"I know nothing about golems myself."
"...!"
"Wh-why are you looking at me like that?"
"I never imagined there was something even Varda-nim didn't know."
"I'm a forest mage. I know a fair amount about other fields, but I'm not omniscient."
"Understood. Homi! Bring me my weapon!"
Homi raced toward the Black Hand Tribe's section.
"Hup!"
She sprang off a nearby tent pole, caught the roof with one hand, and vaulted onto it.
She ran straight across the rooftops. Whenever her body tilted, her long, thick tail swung the opposite way to balance her.
'That's one trick I could never copy.'
Formidable strength, low body weight, a woman's flexibility, and a tail. All four came together to make that movement possible.
"Do you intend to fight?"
"I'll at least try to buy some time."
Festival rules required every nearby warrior to join the response whenever danger broke out. Eugene was a knight; there was no telling what people would say if he ran away.
Besides, the Black Hand warriors would be joining the fight. As their guest, he could hardly stand by, especially when he did not want to see any of them killed or wounded.
The warhorse golem ran into the festival guards rushing to the scene. They were lightly armed warriors who routinely patrolled the perimeter.
"Don't engage it head-on! Not unless you want to end up like mashed potatoes!"
"We'll use the doctrine for fighting medium-sized monsters!"
None of them had fought anything like this before, but they responded calmly. A tough enemy that could kill with a single charge was not much different from the medium-sized monsters they had faced before.
"The tribal shamans and elite warriors will be here soon!"
Arrows poured in from every direction without causing even minor damage. The thing was not merely a lump of stone; true to its warhorse design, it was wrapped in iron barding as well.
GRRRAAAK—!
"Scatter!"
For the warriors, meanwhile, even a glancing hit meant permanent disability at best and death more often than not.
While the scattered warriors used infantry-style swarm tactics, Eugene got Varda to safety.
CRASH!
The golem's body slam smashed everything it touched to pieces.
"Keep shooting! Whether it hurts it or not, just keep its attention on us!"
This was a sparsely populated outer area. If the golem broke through and charged into the dense festival crowds, it could become a catastrophe.
"See? This is why we should get rid of the magic-item exhibition!"
One warrior shouted.
There had been uncontrollable accidents before, even if none as dangerous as this. There was a reason the exhibition had been placed on the outskirts.
"Which house brought that thing, anyway?"
"Damn it! If they can't even control it properly, why inflict this mess on everyone else?!"
As the warriors cursed in unison, several people could be seen shrinking back with pale faces. They were probably from the house that had brought the golem.
"Here it comes again!"
RUMBLE!
An iron market stall flew high into the air, scattering shards of broken pottery.
The impact generated by the golem's weight and strength was tremendous, but its movements were linear.
As long as they kept their wits about them, avoiding it was not difficult. That was one reason there had been no casualties.
"Varda-nim, keep moving to safety."
The enemy was a magical construct without life force, and they were on a dirt road where even a single blade of grass was hard to find. A forest mage had nothing useful to work with here.
"What will you do without a weapon?"
"I'll wait for Homi and throw whatever I can find in the meantime."
"Oh!"
Varda had been about to stop him, but when Eugene picked up a bronze jar as large as a grown man's torso, she found herself nodding.
He was only holding a jar, yet somehow he looked more dependable than all the warriors fighting the golem put together.
"Don't push yourself. No matter how great a knight you are, if that thing rams you, you'll die like anyone else."
"I doubt there's a more cautious warrior here than me. Don't worry."
"..."
For a moment Varda wanted to object, but she quietly withdrew. This was not the time to argue about it.
Her running form was excellent and she was fast. With her athleticism and stamina, it was convenient that Eugene could send her to safety alone in situations like this.
"You there, human! Get away from here this instant!"
One warrior warned Eugene as he approached the fighting.
Perhaps because it was festival season, the warning was unusually kind for a dark elf. Normally they would have ignored a worthless human whether he lived or died.
"I'm Eugene Meyer, a knight invited by the Black Hand Tribe! I've come to help fight!"
"What? Are you insane?!"
The warriors stared at him in disbelief when he announced that he meant to fight without armor or a weapon.
But their expressions changed soon enough.
BRRRR.
Veins bulged on Eugene's arm as the mouth of the bronze jar crumpled. Putting the strength of his entire body into it, he hurled it at the invitingly exposed back of the golem's head.
CLAAANG!
The jar flew with terrifying momentum and smashed into the golem's head, throwing sparks and making its massive body lurch.
"Aaaagh!"
The crumpled jar crashed down among the warriors as they frantically threw themselves aside.
"I'll skip the apologies! Dodge on your own!"
Eugene grabbed anything nearby that looked heavy and hurled it.
BOOM!
A mortar pestle spinning at three revolutions per second slammed into the golem's chest, scattering fragments of its barding in every direction.
GRRRAAAK—!
"I-is that thing in pain?"
"Wouldn't you be in pain if you got hit by that?"
"No, I mean, can a golem even feel pain...?"
"Shut up and focus on the fight, you idiots!"
The stunned warriors' conversation was drowned out by the sound of a stone mortar ripping through the air.
Apparently even the golem did not want to take a rock bigger than its own head; it darted aside.
CRACK!
The mortar slammed into a tree behind it and snapped a trunk as thick as a man's torso in half.
The spirit inside the golem bristled and became wary of Eugene. It had realized the warrior before it was not merely something to vent its anger on, but an extremely dangerous enemy.
TICK!
TICK-TICK!
Arrows bounced off the golem's cheek, muzzle, and joints.
"Keep shooting! We're helping that warrior create an opening!"
The tribal warriors revised their tactics on the spot, making the mysteriously powerful knight their main attacker while they focused on creating openings.
GRRRAAAK—!
Enraged by the weaklings that would turn into chunks of meat from a mere graze continuing to pester it, the golem wheeled around.
CRUNCH!
While it was distracted, a large barrel hurled by Eugene struck true. Splintered wood flew everywhere as the sharp smell of alcohol spread through the air.
"Set it on fire!"
At Eugene's roar, the warriors hurriedly improvised fire arrows from nearby braziers and campfires and loosed them.
WHOOSH!
As flames engulfed the golem, Eugene heard the spirit inside shrieking in panic.
BOOM!
He landed another barrel in the opening, and it exploded in a towering burst of flame.
The warriors cheered at the sight. Even notoriously hardy monsters such as trolls and minotaurs would be certain to die if reduced to that state.
Only Eugene kept a cool expression.
'It's not alive, so I'm not sure if it'll even work.'
Fire carried purifying power and had long been favored in battles against evil beings. But their opponent was a purely magical construct.
'Wait, if this spreads into a fire, won't I be responsible for it?'
He had set it ablaze because he had to try something, but now that he had done it, even Eugene broke into a cold sweat.
In fact, the golem did not seem particularly distressed even with its whole body on fire.
"I-it's not working?"
"Sparks! Get back!"
Instead, the warriors were the ones thrown into panic by burning debris flying off the rampaging golem.
As if pleased by the sight, the golem raised its head triumphantly.
WHISTLE!
Right on cue, Homi arrived.
She held Last Autumn in her left hand and the flail in her right.
"Throw it! The flail!"
As a magical entity, the Etherje sword would probably be effective, but Eugene did not want to swing its blade against a lump of rock. Even one chip in the edge would hurt.
CLANG!
The solid iron handle in his grip and the heavy metal club swinging from its end—at last, the corners of Eugene's mouth rose.
"A golem is rampaging?"
"The knight is fighting without even a weapon! Send support at once!"
The Black Hand House was thrown into turmoil as soon as the news arrived.
Having an invited guest killed or injured would damage their prestige, and this was no ordinary guest.
"No armor. There's no time to put it on, and if that thing hits you through armor, you're dead anyway. Keep yourselves light."
Under Rex's command, the warriors assembled with bows and silver arrows.
"Leave the crossbows! They'll be useless against a lump of stone!"
The mercenaries under Eugene also gripped borrowed silver-plated spears with determined expressions.
As befitted a tribe for whom monster hunting was routine, they were well prepared to deal with magical beings.
"I'm coming too!"
Marbas joined them after hastily gathering his reagents.
With thunderous impacts repeatedly echoing from the battlefield, finding Eugene required no guide.
"Oh, good heavens!"
From afar they saw a lone knight confronting an enormous monster wreathed in flames.
BOOM!
The charging golem took the iron club across the neck and tumbled headfirst off course.
It was the same creature that had shrugged off dozens of arrows from powerful bows as though they tickled.
But it could not withstand the massive blunt weapon Eugene swung with both hands.
BOOM!
Another blow landed, scattering shattered pieces of flaming barding in every direction. Every fragment of metal was ablaze, making the sight dazzling.
Not only the festival guards but even the crowds watching from relative safety stared in awe.
The sight of a knight boldly confronting a demonic beast shaped like a burning horse was simply that magnificent.
Strictly speaking, it was only a golem on fire, but very few people knew the full story.
'Why aren't these people running away?'
Meanwhile Eugene was growing anxious. Instead of evacuating, the noncombatants were gathering in greater and greater numbers.
Then Eugene's gaze fell on the golem's ankles and shins. The thin, unarmored sections looked invitingly vulnerable.
'Come to think of it, real horses are famous for having fragile lower legs.'
The flail seemed aimed at the torso, then suddenly changed course and swept low.
CRACK!
A sharp crack came from the front leg, and the golem lurched badly.
CRUNCH!
Another blow landed in the opening and snapped the front leg.
When the savage, rampaging creature dropped to its knees, cheers erupted from all sides.
The festivalgoers who had crept closer were the ones cheering. Some were even drinking as they rooted for him.
'These crazy bastards!'
Dark elves might be mad for watching fights, but surely this was going too far.
In a human city, people screamed and ran if even a single hobgoblin appeared. What was wrong with this place?
"Cease fire!"
As Eugene began circling all the way around the golem, the guards stopped shooting as well.
The enraged golem tried to turn its upper body to track Eugene, but with only three legs it could not keep up.
CRUNCH!
The flail shattered another hind leg, and the golem's heavy body toppled sideways.
Eugene approached the fallen creature as it thrashed on the ground.
GRRRAAAK—!
The golem glared at Eugene with burning eyes, so he gave it two more swings of the flail.
THUD! THUD!
Its head whipped violently from side to side as though struck by the palm of a god, spraying chips of stone.
THOOM!
The golem smashed face-first into the ground. Its body was still heaving, so it had not been completely destroyed.
BOOM! BOOM! BOOM! BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!
Eugene kept his distance and hammered the golem's head with the flail to make absolutely sure it was dead.
"U-ugh!"
"Looks like it's already dead..."
The warriors surrounding him whispered among themselves, but none dared step forward and tell him to stop.
The moment the golem's head was completely pulverized, Eugene felt the spirit expelled with a scream.
As Eugene wiped the sweat from his brow, the Black Hand warriors arrived.
"You beat a golem that size to pieces?"
Marbas looked back and forth between Eugene and the burning golem, dumbfounded.
No magical power could be felt from the badly dented flail. For all intents and purposes, it was an ordinary weapon.
"Rock breaks if you hit it, doesn't it?"
"W-well, yes, but..."
The summoner scratched the back of his head at the knight's matter-of-fact reply.