Iron-Bronze Duo (4)

Humans are creatures of adaptation.

So remarkable was that adaptability that Ahin and Er had begun to think the stench of rotting corpses filling the catacombs was almost bearable. They paused for a moment to catch their breath.

"Hah… What the hell is with these endless zombies?"

"I know. It doesn't seem like this place has only been neglected for a day or two."

The flames from the burning zombies brightened the dim surroundings. Relying on that light, Ahin and Er stood still for a brief rest. The zombies they had already cut down numbered well past twenty.

Every time, Ahin had used his skills—and without fail, the zombies had given him an enthusiastic welcome.

The result:

"Ugh, I'm wiped…"

Having dodged zombie attacks and run around far more than Er, who held the front line, Ahin's face was thick with exhaustion.

"Shall we rest a little?"

"…Yeah, maybe."

Ordinarily Ahin would have insisted they push on even one more step instead of resting, but the drain on his stamina had been worse than expected. Part of it was all the hopping and scrambling to avoid the zombies—but buffing Er in every fight had taken its toll as well.

Sensing his fatigue as he set the mana-stone lantern on the floor and leaned against a pillar, Er spoke carefully.

"Ahin, maybe you could cut back a little on the skill use…"

"Then our pace slows down ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠and we end up just as tired anyway, right? Besides… if I don't even do that, I've got nothing to contribute."

Without his skills, Ahin's value amounted to little more than a pack mule. And given the nature of undead monsters, mana stones almost never dropped, so there wasn't even much luggage to carry. They had taken down over twenty zombies and come away with a single mana stone the size of a finger joint. Without Heal and Bless, it wouldn't have been wrong to say Ahin did nothing at all.

Few things frustrated him more than this.

He had felt this way before—left in the rear because he couldn't attack, forced to watch while others got hurt.

Ahin, fall back! I'll handle— Aaagh!

"…Damn it."

Unwelcome memories began to surface. Ahin muttered under his breath, swearing them away. Watching him, Er decided to change the subject.

"It's not that Heal doesn't work on zombies… the power just isn't enough."

"…Yeah. I've never actually used Heal on undead myself, so I didn't expect it to be this weak."

"If you could swing a sword like me, you could make up for the lack of power… It's a shame."

She seemed to mull it over for a moment—then clapped her hands as if a brilliant idea had struck her.

"You can bless weapons, right?"

"Bless… yeah?"

"Then can you put it on a weapon you're holding yourself?"

"What's the point? I can't attack."

That damned skill had sealed off every kind of offensive action. No matter how fine a weapon he held, if the attack itself was nullified, what good was it? That was why he hadn't even considered blessing a weapon of his own—he wasn't properly armed in the first place.

"It's worth testing, isn't it? Heal did damage the zombies. That's a fact."

"…You think so?"

"Let's try it! Even if it doesn't work, it's fine. I'll protect you."

Grinning, Er unfastened her sword and held it out to him.

"And if it fails, don't get discouraged. It's only a 'maybe,' after all. The odds are higher that it won't work. But don't worry—I'll keep you safe just like I have so far. So just trust me and—"

"…You sound like you want me to fail."

"I—I do not!"

At Ahin's sharp remark, Er stammered for some reason and looked away. Eyeing her with suspicion, Ahin finally tightened his grip and drew the blade.

It was a well-maintained sword. Perhaps thanks to Ahin's buffs, even after cutting down more than twenty zombies it showed no real damage. Even to Ahin, who knew nothing about blades, it looked like a fine piece—expensive, too. Carefully, he poured divine power into it.

"Mmm… this is hard."

"What if you think of it like using Heal on the sword?"

Er offered the advice as Ahin scowled at the vague sensation. His expression went rigid for a moment—then:

"…Heal."

"Pfft—"

Apparently forming the image had been too difficult; he ended up saying the skill name out loud. Er burst out laughing.

"Don't ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠laugh!"

"I—I wasn't— pfft."

"I said don't laugh!"

Ears faintly red, Ahin snapped at her—and in that same moment, light began to gather along the blade in his hand. It felt a little different from when Er used mana. A glow similar to the light that sometimes radiated from Ahin's own body was flowing from the sword.

And with it, a familiar line of text rose before his eyes.

It had been a while since he'd seen a message like that. Back in his temple days, the same kind of text had appeared whenever his curse strengthened or some strange new ability cropped up. Ahin's eyes narrowed.

"Divine Enchant…?"

"Ahin, did it work?"

"Seems like it…?"

"…Why?"

"I don't know either…?"

Answering in a dazed voice, Ahin began swinging the sword experimentally. At first his face twisted at the unexpectedly heavy feel—but it didn't take long for his expression to clear. A trail of light followed the arc of each swing. It looked impressive even at a glance, and Ahin's face brightened noticeably.

"Doesn't this look pretty legit?"

"…It does."

"Shall we test it out?"

All trace of his earlier exhaustion gone, Ahin sprang to his feet and ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠confidently took the lead. True to a catacomb crawling with zombies, they hadn't gone far before he spotted one wandering alone. In a slightly tense voice, he said:

"That one looks pretty weak, right?"

"…It just looks ordinary to me."

"Great—watch closely!"

With that, Ahin raised the sword high and let out a battle cry.

"Kyaaaaaaah!!!"

It was less a shout and more a shriek. He brought the blade down in the same motion. A silver trail followed his movement. Before the zombie could react, it slowly turned its head—just as the sword sank into its skull with a sickening sound.

Crack!

"I—it works!!!"

Ahin cheered at the sight of the blade buried in the zombie's shattered head. For the first time in his life he had landed a proper attack, and his voice rang with pure joy—

—Grrraaaaagh!!!

Enraged at having its head split open, the zombie flailed its arms and charged. But its opponent was no longer the helpless man of the past. This was a man reborn—finally armed with the effective means of attack he had dreamed of.

"Zombie! Taste my blade!!!"

"…Do you actually enjoy saying things like that?"

Er's incredulous voice at his hopelessly childish line was swallowed by Ahin's next battle cry.

Crunch!

The rotting skull shattered, bone fragments flying. Without the slightest resistance, Ahin kept swinging, a stream of shouts pouring from his mouth.

"Burst DPS, burst DPS!! Open wide—damage incoming!!!"

No technique, no form—just wild, reckless swings. Countless silver trails bloomed and vanished along those shaky arcs. Only after the zombie's body had been reduced to ground meat and begun to burn did he finally wipe the sweat from his brow with a thoroughly satisfied grin.

"Ahh, people really do need to deal damage! Whoo, that felt good. This is what being an adventurer is about."

"…Ahin, you really are a strange person."

"Er, a pureblood damage-tank like you wouldn't get it. People need DPS—DPS! If you drop the other guy's HP before yours drops, that's basically healing!"

"What kind of nonsense is that all of a sudden…"

Looking somehow sulky as she said it, Er checked the shape of the zombie burning in the flames.

"…It looks less like you cut it down and more like you beat it to death with a club."

"So what? The important thing is the damage went through!"

At his grinning face, Er's mood soured for reasons she couldn't quite name. She held out her hand.

"All right. Give the sword back now."

"…Can't I keep it just a little longer?"

"It's dangerous."

"I'm fi—"

"No. I'm the one in danger. How am I supposed to walk around unarmed when who knows what might jump out?"

"…"

Finding no counterargument, Ahin returned the sword with the expression of a man whose world had just ended. Er drew the blade a little to check—no real damage. The way he used a sword had looked a lot like clubbing things. Crude, one-dimensional attacks that smashed and crushed instead of cutting. Truly the clumsy style of a Scrap Iron–rank adventurer—and yet, thanks to his ability, the edge hadn't suffered, and every blow had counted as a valid attack against the zombie.

"Hah… All right, time to go back to our original posi—"

"Ohh! This works too!"

"…Ahin?"

Having sheathed the sword, Er turned around and asked in a bewildered voice.

"Wh-where did you get that stick…?"

"Picked it up earlier while I was explaining about Holy Knights."

"No, but why would you—"

Come to think of it, Ahin had a habit of pocketing pebbles and clumps of mud now and then. Perhaps that same instinct had kicked in again. The stick he had absently stashed away now glowed softly in his hand.

"Ohh… Look at this radiant light. Perfect…"

"W-wait a second! You never know—it might just be glowing and nothing else…"

"No way! It's written in the description!"

"Description?"

There were words Er couldn't see.

"The skill activated, so that settles it—I can deal damage too!"

"W-wai—"

"How about it, Er! Now that we've got two DPS, our exploration speed should pick up, right?"

Ahin asked brightly, cheerfully swinging the wooden club. Er started to say ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠something—then saw how happy he looked, and closed her mouth.

"…You're right. That's great."

She swallowed the truth that had nearly slipped out and forced the words past her lips. Oblivious to her real feelings, Ahin pressed on without bothering to hide his delight.

"Come on, let's go! Finish this quick and head back! Ah, now that I think about it—wouldn't it be fine to enjoy ourselves a little more? They're just zombies, after all."

"…Stop talking nonsense and focus. You're way too worked up."

"Haha, am I? Got it!"

Right now, nothing anyone said could sour his mood. Ahin answered with an easygoing smile. Er found the sight of him thoroughly irritating—whether it was petty jealousy or simply that his bouncing around grated on her nerves. She couldn't quite explain her own feelings, and only mumbled under her breath.

"Man, with this I won't starve to death alone wherever I go!"

"…"

Why did the man trailing behind her with that stupid grin get under her skin so much? No matter how hard she thought, she couldn't reach an answer—and she kept turning the question over and over in her mind.