Chapter 47: Shadow(3)
Chapter 47: Shadow(3)
A carriage, adorned with ornate golden roses, sped along the road. Even the horses pulling it were elegant white steeds.
An entire troop of knights escorted the carriage.
The star of this splendid procession was the Empire's First Princess, Beatrice.
“...Must you really go?”
Beatrice’s escort knight asked, his expression grim.
“Billman! How many times are you going to ask? I’m going, no matter what! Absolutely! I don’t care what anyone says, I’m going!”
“...”
“Just think about it. Don’t you agree that the only one who can save me is the hero?”
“But you were never in any danger to begin with...”
“Billman... you idiot who knows nothing but the sword! The hero I've only ever read about in novels has actually appeared. And it's a classic cliché for that hero to rescue me, the princess!”
“As I said, Your Highness was never in any danger...”
“I am in grave danger right now. If things go wrong, I’m going to end up marrying that fat, clumsy fiancé of mine!”
“What does marriage have to do with the hero?”
“If the hero proposes to the princess... Father might change his mind and call off the engagement. Don’t you get it? Idiot! Idiot!”
“....”
Beatrice’s face flushed red whenever she imagined the gallant hero.
She hadn’t heard any specific details about him yet, but a hero was bound to be strong and handsome, just like in the stories.
Despising her fat, clumsy fiancé, Beatrice saw this as a destiny bestowed by the heavens.
“Perhaps it would be better to summon the hero to the castle? It is too dangerous for you to go seeking him out yourself.”
“What’s so dangerous? You worry too much, Billman. We have all these knights with us, don’t we? With so many knights, can’t you protect one little me?”
“I am only accompanying you because it was His Majesty the Emperor’s command... but frankly, I wish to turn back.”
The moment he said that, Beatrice’s eyes blazed with fury.
“...Billman. How dare you say such a thing? If we turn back now and by some one-in-a-million chance... I end up marrying that ugly, stupid pig, how will you take responsibility? Can you? Can you!”
“....”
“Hmph. Honestly! And why is this carriage so slow! I need to meet the hero quickly while he’s still in the Magic City.”
“We are already traveling at maximum speed. It will take at least a week to reach the Magic City.”
“Ugh. So slow! It’s frustrating. If I’m late and I can’t marry the hero... Billman! I’ll resent you for the rest of my life!”
How is that my fault!
Billman’s head was throbbing. Still, he didn’t want to be resented for life by Beatrice, whom he had guarded since childhood.
In the end, he had no choice but to push his men, who were already riding at full speed.
*
Back at the abandoned mine where Lina’s party was. It wasn’t long after Kerry had sent an urgent message to the Sage.
The elite mages of the Magic Tower, who had been on standby, began to storm the mine.
“Leave none of the traitors alive!”
““Waaaargh!””
Mages in blue robes swarmed in.
Ghouls and traps poured out from the depths of the mine, but they were no match for the mages.
Inevitably, the Chancellor's mages clashed with the Sage's mages.
“Lina, the Chancellor is trying to slip away!”
“Yes, I see him! Kerry, you stay here. Natasha! Let’s stop him together. Victoria, please protect Kerry!”
“I will.”
Victoria stood protectively in front of Kerry. With her shield and sword, she looked incredibly dependable.
“Kerry. Just stay behind me. I will not let anyone harm you.”
“Thank you, Victoria.”
The battle was gruesome. Ghouls with maggot-ridden faces charged forward as flashes of magic lit up the chaotic mine.
Victoria cut down every ghoul that approached. She also blocked the occasional spell with her shield.
Must be an enchanted shield. How reassuring.
This side was secure. Kerry turned his gaze toward Lina and Natasha. They were already relentlessly pressuring the Chancellor.
The Chancellor, seemingly trying to live up to his title, was holding out against the two of them.
Though all he could do was raise a shield to defend himself.
Then again, their movements were so fast that even Kerry, watching from a distance, couldn't follow them.
Afterimages flickered back and forth in a blur, and sparks flew violently from the shield.
If he had been fighting with a proper party, the Chancellor wouldn't have been so helpless.
But he’d been caught while abandoning his subordinates and trying to flee alone, so there was nothing he could do.
“It’s going smoothly.”
“Do not let your guard down, Kerry,” Victoria said as she lopped off a ghoul’s head.
“Because even a cornered rat will bite a cat.”
Jeez, that’s a scary way to put it. And isn't the Chancellor of the Magic Tower a bit too big to be called a rat?
Just then, under the relentless assault of Lina and Natasha’s swords, the Chancellor’s shield began to crack.
“Kugh! You bitches!”
The Chancellor was clearly being pushed back. If that shield broke, he would likely be diced to pieces by swords too fast to see.
His frantic expression showed he knew it, too. And then, finally, the Chancellor’s shield shattered.
Crack!
The shield broke apart like glass. Inside, the Chancellor, his face pale as a sheet, squeezed his eyes shut.
But the pain he expected never came.
Only, the hand that had been holding his staff was simply... gone.
Lina pointed her sword at the Chancellor’s neck and said, “It’s over, Chancellor. Surrender.”
That’s our Lina, so cool! Now that the leader’s been caught, his lackeys will give up. The Chancellor looked at his severed, bleeding wrist and screamed.
“Aaargh! My arm... my arm!!”
In an instant, a venomous look spread across the Chancellor's face. Suddenly, his body began to bulge and contort, transforming into a giant monster.
“Kraaaaaah!”
The Chancellor, now a massive beast, began to attack indiscriminately. Lina and Natasha were forced to retreat for a moment.
If she’d just gone for the neck, this might have been over.
Then again, it wasn’t in Lina’s nature to do something like that.
The Chancellor continued to grow, taking on a demonic form. He then began to extend his massive arms toward his own men.
Tendrils shot out from his arms, enveloping his subordinates.
“Aaaah! No! Chancellor! Nooo!”
“Help me! I don’t want to be... be eaten!”
The Chancellor began to absorb his men one by one. Not only his subordinates, but all the nearby ghouls were also being sucked toward him.
With each one, the Chancellor’s grotesque body grew larger.
Is this similar to that Combined Ghoul?
This one looked less horrifying than that thing, at least. It still felt like a living creature.
But the sense of pressure it gave off was far greater.
“Krrrk. Once I take this form, I can never return to being human... but I have no choice. It’s better than dying.”
“...Even your own men... you despicable bastard!”
“Don’t make me laugh. The world is survival of the fittest. This is no different from a human eating a pig.”
Grind.
It was as if I could hear Lina grinding her teeth from here. It had been a while since I’d seen her this angry.
The Chancellor extended a massive arm and began to attack Lina and Natasha.
But attacking with his huge body was a feint. The Chancellor’s real attack was something else.
Kerry could see it.
[Skills – Hellfire, Ice Spike, Lightning Chain, Fireball, Ice Wall, Demonization, Barrier, Fire Arrow, Breath, Bind, Poison Cloud, Hypnosis, Lightning Storm.......]
The spells were still in the creature’s skill list. That meant it could still use magic in this state. This was dangerous.
The staff he’d lost only served to amplify magic. He may have become a monster, but he was still a mage.
“Lina, it’s a trap! He might use magic!”
Just after Kerry shouted, magic circles began to appear around the transformed Chancellor.
“Too late!”
He had devoured his subordinates and rapidly increased his mana.
Using magic with that much power... I didn’t even want to imagine what kind of force it would unleash.
But there was nothing Lina’s party could do.
They had already been forced to retreat a good distance by his indiscriminate attacks.
It was too late to rush in and stop the casting.
Just then, Kerry took out the Magic Storage Orb. The fire spell the White Witch had inscribed for him was stored inside the orb.
The image was a blazing mass of fire.
As soon as Kerry infused the Magic Storage Orb with mana and focused on the image, the air temperature around him began to rise sharply.
And a sphere of fire shot forward.
The fire Kerry launched struck the Chancellor right in the face as he was forming his magic circles.
Fwoosh-!
It only managed to scorch the massive Chancellor’s face, but that was enough.
“Uwaaaargh! My face! My face! Which one of you! Kraaagh!”
His spell casting was canceled, and the Chancellor writhed in agony from the fire on his face.
Lina did not miss the opening. She immediately rushed toward him. She ran up the Chancellor’s massive body and began to slash at him wildly.
Blood spurted every time Lina’s sword cut into his body. Natasha also attacked the Chancellor with swift movements.
“You... you damn bitches!”
The Chancellor reached out to grab the women, who were smaller than his fists, but he had no chance of catching them.
With his face still burning, the Chancellor raised a giant fist and slammed it into the wall.
One of the mine’s walls collapsed under his fist, and the entire cavern began to shake violently.
Kwakwakwang-
“If it’s come to this, then you’ll all die with me!”
The Chancellor rampaged in his monstrous form.
But no matter how much he thrashed about, Lina stayed just out of reach, never giving him a chance to cast another spell.
Then, Kerry’s eyes met the Chancellor’s.
“Because of you! If it weren’t for your magic! This would have all been over! Kraaagh!”
Shit. Why the hell is he suddenly coming after me?
The transformed Chancellor’s giant fist flew toward Kerry. He had to dodge.
But for some reason, Victoria, standing in front of Kerry, didn’t budge. What was she planning to do against that huge fist?
“Kerry! Do not move from behind me!”
Could Victoria block a fist three or four times the size of her own body? Normally, it would be impossible.
Just then, a transparent barrier began to form in front of Victoria. It was a massive shield, large enough to cover not only her but the area around her as well.
Victoria braced herself, preparing to receive the giant fist.
BOOM!
A deafening roar echoed as Victoria and the Chancellor’s fist collided.
The inside of the mine trembled violently.
But Kerry could see that the massive fist that had been hurtling toward him hadn’t moved an inch.
Instead, the fist was crumbling as if it had struck solid steel.
“Krrgh! You bastard!”
Victoria had perfectly blocked the Chancellor’s massive fist. As expected of the hero’s companion from a past life!
Victoria was a reliable tank.
“Kerry! Are you unharmed!”
“Yes. I’m fine, Victoria.”
“Good. I’m glad.”
Victoria’s back looked truly magnificent.
Lina approached the Chancellor, looking as if she was about to deliver the final blow.
“It’s over, Chancellor.”
“Stay away! I told you I won’t die alone! One punch from me and this whole place will collapse!”
The Chancellor backed away, making empty threats.
In his massive body, he looked utterly terrified of the small, blonde swordswoman.
Lina’s eyes gleamed as she looked for an opening.
Just then, a low voice echoed from a dark passage in the mine.