Chapter 27
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 27
Chapter Title: What? (4)
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‘I've used it for an incredibly long time, though...’
Asha's eyes twitched faintly.
She slowly, very slowly, lifted the hand gripping the sword hilt up to her eyes.
The blade was shattered like broken teeth.
She had always maintained it well and cherished it dearly, but apparently, this was as far as it would go.
Asha silently prayed for the eternal rest of her long-time companion sword.
Kraaang!
In the meantime, the Void Jaguar's front paw, filled with rage, swung once more toward Asha's upper body.
Asha crouched down to dodge the claws. Her gaze remained fixed on the sword hilt.
For Asha, this was a brief moment of farewell with her cherished first weapon. But to those watching, it didn't look that way at all.
It seemed like she was scrambling just to avoid attacks after suddenly losing her weapon.
A nearby elf knight shouted bravely.
"Hyaah! Your opponent is me, you beast!"
With those words, he charged at the Void Jaguar's side. His sword slashed fiercely toward its neck! Instead of dodging, the jaguar opened its massive maw wide.
Kaduduk!
The blade infused with sword aura caught between its teeth, producing a deafening screech.
Even its monstrous fangs were ground down at the tips with a grating sound.
Blood flowed from its torn gums, but the jaguar paid it no mind and clamped its jaws tight.
In that state, it whipped its head to the side.
"...!"
The startled elf knight let go of his sword.
His limbs went numb and tingling. Even for an elf, a direct strength contest with such a ferocious beast was too much.
Having won the contest of power, the jaguar grinned wickedly and flung the sword away carelessly.
Then it charged straight at the elf knight.
Its momentum was on a completely different level from before.
Blood sprayed from its severed tail as the enraged jaguar poured all its fury into swinging its front paw.
The elf knight rolled this way and that. His entire body was caked in dirt.
A dangerous situation unfolded where he could be struck down at any moment. It wasn't a monster meant to be taken alone in the first place. That's why the three elves had brought their subordinates.
His stamina steadily drained. The elf knight's eyes urgently scanned the surroundings for an escape.
The other two elves were still dealing with the thief knight and his men.
And the remaining one. The golden-haired girl.
Just then, their eyes met as he looked her way. They exchanged a glance, and the girl flicked her wrist to the side.
Whish— Thunk!
"...Gah!"
Rorck, the thief leader who had been stealthily biding his time nearby, let out a scream. A broken sword had suddenly flown in and embedded deeply into his clothing.
It had pierced so forcefully that it pinned him to a tree like a wedge, leather coat and all, without budging an inch.
The voice that followed made Rorck freeze solid.
"Stay put."
Even as she spoke, the Void Jaguar swung its front paw at the elf knight again.
He urgently rolled across the ground to evade. Rough dirt billowed up, carving out a large crater.
Regardless of the elf knight's ragged breathing, the jaguar didn't stop its assault.
The moment it raised its front paw once more.
Tat! With a sharp sound, Asha kicked off the ground.
In the blink of an eye, she reached the jaguar's front. The highly excited beast didn't even notice her approach.
Asha kicked off the ground again, leaping into the air with fluid grace.
Only then did the jaguar sense her presence and begin to turn its head.
Thwack!
Asha's kick landed squarely on the jaguar's temple.
Its head snapped back, pupils dilating momentarily. Its brain had been rattled.
Finally, its massive body staggered and toppled sideways with a thud!.
"!!!"
The elf knight right in front of it gaped in shock. He moved his lips as if to say something, but no words came to mind.
Asha landed lightly and extended her clean hand forward.
"Here, take my hand."
"Uh..., uh yeah."
The elf knight mumbled dazedly.
From his awkward half-crouched position, ready to roll on the ground, he instinctively reached out.
Then he suddenly realized and froze.
His palm was filthy with sweat and dirt. No matter what—
"What are you doing? Grab my hand."
Asha seized the elf knight's hand first.
With a strong pull, he stood up effortlessly without much effort on his part.
As he flustered, Asha brushed off her palms with a light pat, pat.
Then she smiled brightly and said,
"No damage to your gloves!"
"...".
For a moment, the elf knight's eyebrows twitched as if searching for words.
In this situation... .
Right then.
Krooong!
The Void Jaguar regained its senses and rose to its feet.
It shook its head vigorously, then glared at Asha.
The beast snorted roughly.
"Oh dear."
It was already back up?
Asha lightly bounced on her toes. She was definitely the target now. She put a little distance between her and the elf knight.
And as expected.
The beast charged at Asha with a sharp roar and explosive speed.
The Void Jaguar's most threatening weapon was its ferocious bite force. The moment anything got caught in those jaws that could crush steel, human flesh was reduced to mere mincemeat.
Even the previous elf knight's high-quality sword would have been pulverized whole without the sword aura.
...That is, if it got bitten.
"Not on my watch."
Asha twisted her upper body slightly to evade the incoming maw. By a margin of just one handspan. Perfect calculation.
Crack! The beast's massive jaws snapped at empty air with a chilling sound.
Asha's white hand whipped through the air. She had already grabbed its scruff. Using that hold, she spun her body like a top in an instant.
The incoming momentum realigned, and the jaguar's enormous body whirled around Asha in the air at ferocious speed.
In the midday forest, an unexpected galaxy was drawn. Its blackish-blue fur, scattering star-like dust, formed a swirling nebula.
But the end was anything but a beautiful sight.
Having gained maximum acceleration, Asha shifted her pivot leg and changed direction. The horizontal spin curved smoothly into a diagonal.
Kuuung!
Rough dirt and rock fragments erupted from the ground like an explosion.
From above to below, the jaguar's skull plummeted vertically and shattered on impact.
It couldn't even let out a death cry; its severed tail convulsed grotesquely before going limp.
The dust gradually settled.
Within it emerged Asha, brushing off the debris from her clothes as if nothing had happened.
And.
The Void Jaguar, its head smashed into the ground, life extinguished.
"M-My god...!"
"Whoa, holy shit!"
Even the elf knights perked up their long ears in astonishment.
It wasn't just the elves. The thieves, who had whipped their heads around at the massive boom,
Clang. Clatter. Clang, clang!
One by one, dropped their weapons to the ground.
They were already being toyed with by a single elf... .
And suddenly, a new elf appeared, displaying overwhelming power that could only be called monstrous!
What was the point of holding out here? The moment that elf came at them, it was over!
The thieves lost all morale. They had completely lost the will to fight.
They could only beg for their lives right then and there.
"Urk...! I-I surrender! We surrender!"
Likewise, the thief knight Milrock Dren, covered in abrasions, gave up resistance.
He might flail against the elf in front of him somehow, but against that elf girl? There was no chance of victory whatsoever.
'Bare-handed against a Void Jaguar!'
You needed some prospect of success to even flail! That thing was just a monster on a whole other level.
"Hmph... ."
In any normal situation, the elf knight would have slit his throat with an "And?" But now he just frowned without finishing it.
He had clearly heard the orders from Knight Order headquarters.
No matter how belligerent they were, they weren't ignoring orders entirely.
...Precisely, they were too stunned by the scene before them to notice a mere thief knight.
The object of their excitement had completely flipped.
Reinforcements arrived belatedly right then.
"We're late! Here for backup!"
"...Hm? It's already over?"
Asha, skilled in mountain paths and nimble, had taken the lead, with the rest following up the mountain.
They scanned the battlefield with confused expressions.
The thieves who had already lost the will to fight and surrendered. The thief knights still alive and intact.
...Along with the Void Jaguar's corpse, its head cleanly smashed. And beside it, the lone elf girl Asha standing there.
In contrast to the chaotic surroundings, she alone looked pristine.
"??"
"???"
What the hell?
That was the common question on everyone's mind who had come for support.
What on earth had happened in the short time it took to climb the mountain?
Some rubbed their eyes and looked at the jaguar's corpse again, while others asked comrades to pinch their cheeks.
All wore expressions refusing to accept the scene as reality.
Finally, Elysia stepped forward as representative and asked,
"Asha, care to explain the situation?"
At that moment.
"W-What?"
"Asha?"
"????"
The elf knights' gazes snapped to the golden-haired girl all at once.