Chapter 61 : Chapter 61
Chapter 61. Captain? Colleague!
“Get a grip. I don’t know what history you have with that man, but you didn’t come here for revenge. You came here for a rescue.”
At my words, Nigues’s eyes widened as he calmed the frantically spinning mana circle within him.
“I apologize.”
“Move instead of apologizing. Don’t you have a wife and daughter to save?”
“What are you going to do about this place….”
I gave a slight smile at Nigues’s question. Then, I grasped the hilt of Dawn and fully opened my mana heart. A 3rd Circle mage would be able to roughly sense the aura of mana emanating from me. That would be a sufficient answer without needing words.
“Go quickly. You’re the only one who knows what your wife and daughter look like.”
“……Thank you.”
“Of course! You should be thankful. I’ll be settling the bill properly when this is all over, so be prepared.”
Nigues’s expression brightened. He nodded and turned his body toward the warehouse entrance.
“Look at them, having fun.”
Along with the sneering voice, two arrows took aim at Nigues.
Pabak!
Odekerkh’s stone wall intercepted the arrows. He looked at the one who had shot them with cold eyes.
“Mi, Michelle.”
He then requested she return fire.
Michelle quickly changed her position and loosed an arrow.
Kaang!
This time, a sword struck down Michelle’s arrow.
“Aren’t you all playing so cutely.”
“Cute, my ass!”
Piontek ground his teeth and shot lightning toward the man.
Pabababak!
This time, Sul erected a wall, blocking Piontek’s attack.
“Young whelps, running wild without knowing fear.”
Sul said, looking at me and the others.
“Hmm, I wonder? We’re not that young, and I don’t think we’re ignorant of fear either.”
“Insolent!”
Sul’s gaze fixed on me. He ground his teeth, relentlessly unleashing his killing intent.
“Right, seeing as you’re stepping up, interfering, and blabbering fearlessly, you must be the captain.”
“I am the captain.”
Suddenly, my face started to sting. It wasn’t because of Sul’s gaze.
“Who said he’s the captain?”
“Who decided that?”
“A fr, friend.”
Adellian, Piontek, and Odekerkh said. Words they really didn’t need to say.
“……You were the captain?”
Michelle had just been doing as she was told, so she probably hadn’t given it much thought.
Anyway, isn’t this the wrong time for these people to be doing this? They need to maintain their tension when facing the enemy.
“These bastards.”
Seeing our reaction, Sul’s face crumpled into a hideous expression.
“Your lives will end today!”
He waved both hands toward the empty air. At that moment, a scorching heat rose, warming the surroundings. The faintly falling raindrops met the heat and turned to steam.
‘Fire and earth…….’
He wasn’t using fire magic through formulas. So, he must have sworn an oath to Terion and Ignia.
“Th, this. E, everyone, to me.”
As the fog grew thick, Odekerkh erected a stone wall and shouted to everyone.
Everyone quickly headed toward Odekerkh. Since we didn’t know when or where the enemy’s attack would come from, Odekerkh’s protection was necessary.
“Sul, Geom, Gwon, Gung. That’s who’s here, right?”
Adellian asked, looking at me.
“Bu and Chang went to the warehouse. So, yes.”
Piontek answered in my stead.
“So what do we do now?”
With Adellian’s words, everyone’s gaze turned to me.
“Why are you looking at me?”
“You said you were the captain.”
“That’s right! You said you were the captain earlier.”
“Gi, give us a plan.”
Where did they sell off the words they were saying just a moment ago, now they’re clamoring for me to come up with an answer?
“I’ll take on the strongest one, so you guys figure out the rest.”
“Who’s the strongest?”
Piontek asked.
“The one giving orders is probably the strongest. He uses both the power of earth and the power of fire.”
“A 3rd Circle?”
“Probably?”
Sul had easily blocked Nigues’s attack. Although earth is strong against water, it would require at least 2nd Circle power to block a 3rd Circle attack. So, his earth power was at least 2nd Circle. And he used fire power on top of that, so he was definitely at least 3rd Circle.
‘A 4th Circle… I don’t think so.’
The power of fire had an offensive nature. Yet, the man didn’t launch a direct attack with fire power. He only used it for support. This was a characteristic seen in 1st Circle magic.
“What about the rest?”
“The rest are…….”
Kung!
A crack appeared in the stone wall with a thud.
“Survive by your wits. If you think it’s dangerous, run.”
There was no need to force a fight. Survival was the priority.
Kwaang!
With a roar, the wall came crumbling down. A thick cloud of dust rose.
“Says who?”
A grotesque face popped out. It was Gwon. He threw a punch wreathed in blazing fire.
Kung!
Once again, Dawn blocked the man’s attack.
Gwon’s eyebrows shot up with a ‘You again?’ expression.
“We’re not the kind of people who need to ask for permission.”
I pulled Dawn back with all my might to slash Gwon. A thick line aimed for Gwon’s torso.
“Hmph!”
Gwon crossed his arms and took the full force of the attack.
Kagak!
A dull sound echoed, so much so that it was hard to believe I was cutting muscle. The sensation transmitted to my fingertips also felt like hitting stone or thick iron.
“You’ve been getting on my nerves since earlier. I’m going to crush you to bits.”
Gwon, pushed back by the impact, shook his arms one after the other.
“Then I guess I’ll have to slice you thin.”
I said, brushing the dust off Dawn with my hand.
Seeing this, Gwon let out an unpleasant laugh and pointed behind me.
“But hey. Aren’t you worried about your subordinates dying? You seemed to care a lot earlier.”
“I said they’re not my subordinates.”
“So you’re abandoning them?”
“No, they can handle themselves just fine.”
These were the kids who faced the Amirios Clan; what could you lot possibly do?
***
As soon as Maxim leaped out to block Gwon’s attack, two arrows aimed for Michelle.
“Mi, Michelle!”
Odekerkh, who noticed the attack late, shouted. He tried to raise the earth to create a wall.
However, the arrows flew past Odekerkh’s line of sight, faster than the rising earth.
Pabak!
The arrows struck the ground where Michelle had been standing. Michelle, having read the arrows’ movement with her eyes, had stepped back.
“What? How did you dodge that?”
A wheezing breath and an irritated voice rang out.
Michelle pulled out the arrow stuck in the ground and tilted her head.
“Because I can see it. This is cheap, isn't it?”
“What? Hey! You! Do you even know what kind of arrow that is to call it cheap! Are you crazy? Huh?”
“……It is cheap, though? This is iron. Wood. Chicken feathers.”
Michelle showed the arrow to Odekerkh, asking with her eyes as if to confirm she was right.
“It l, looks ordinary. Uh, yeah.”
“These bastards! You’ve got eyes just for decoration!”
With rough, panting breaths, three arrows came flying.
Odekerkh did his best to erect a wall, but he was a step too late again.
Swish.
The arrows grazed Michelle’s arm, shoulder, and leg.
Odekerkh looked at Michelle with surprised eyes.
In response, Michelle shrugged her shoulders with a calm expression.
“Damn it! You dodged?”
“I was standing still.”
“Don’t make me laugh! I saw you dodge like a rat!”
“……I was standing still. Maybe you can’t see properly because you’re hiding in the fog?”
“……”
This time, the sound of grinding teeth echoed.
Michelle’s gaze sharpened. She quickly turned her body and shot an arrow.
Ting! Tititing!
The power of wind in one arrow knocked down six other arrows that were like the fangs of a beast.
Michelle relaxed her stiff face and prepared for the next attack.
At that moment.
Thud!
An unpleasant sound of flesh being pierced came from behind Michelle. She hurriedly turned her head.
“I, I’m o, okay.”
Odekerkh, with an arrow embedded in his arm, forced a smile to calm Michelle.
“Bl, blood……”
But a flustered Michelle didn’t know what to do. It was because she knew Odekerkh had sacrificed his arm to protect her.
Odekerkh said, ‘I, I’m really okay,’ and pulled out the arrow stuck in his arm. Then, as if it were nothing, he shook it a couple of times.
“Are you able to move?”
“Ye, yes……!”
Odekerkh, who had been soothing Michelle with a warm smile, changed his expression and drew his sword. Green mana swirled fiercely, creating mounds of earth around Odekerkh and Michelle.
“Tch!”
Gung’s annoyed voice was heard.
Several arrows were embedded in the mounds of earth.
“You were lucky, but will that luck continue?”
Arrows flew continuously from beyond the fog.
Two from the right, three from the left, one from the front…….
“Wh, where in the world is she shooting from?”
Odekerkh said, struggling to block the attacks. He felt that he didn’t have much mana left.
So, he thought he had to find a way.
‘Where in the world is she?’
He felt anxious. The enemy, as if mocking him, made the fog even thicker.
“Keuk!”
Odekerkh started to miss arrows. A few of them grazed his skin.
Michelle wasn’t free from Gung’s attacks either. Her wounds from Gung’s arrows were increasing. But she didn’t flinch in the slightest. She kept her eyes focused, continuously tracking the direction the arrows were coming from.
“There.”
Michelle said, gripping her bow tightly. She placed a hand on Odekerkh’s shoulder.
“Huh?”
“Can you use it?”
“My a, arm?”
Michelle nodded.
“I, I can fight.”
“Then, can you make stepping stones to match my running speed?”
Odekerkh placed a hand on his chest where his mana circle was. He felt the amount of mana swirling above the circle.
“I, I think I can do it.”
“Then. I’m going to run in that direction. The height should be about my height.”
“Th, that high?”
“Yes.”
Hearing her answer, Odekerkh confirmed the direction Michelle was pointing at with his eyes.
The two of them lowered their stances and waited for the barrage of arrows to stop.
“Looks like you’ve given up? Good thinking. Puff out your chest and come forward. I’ll send you off without any pain.”
Gung chattered excitedly.
“Now.”
Michelle nocked an arrow on her bow and started running towards the target.
Odekerkh created stone pillars one by one as she requested.
“Persistent, aren’t you. You insect-like things!”
Gung drew the bow she had stopped.
The arrows flew toward Michelle. But not a single arrow reached her.
“I, it’s like she’s da, dancing.”
Odekerkh, who was creating stepping stones with stone pillars, marveled at Michelle’s movements.
“This! This! You dodged again? This!”
Gung, finding Michelle’s dodging of arrows extremely annoying, unleashed a greater number of attacks.
Michelle once again dodged the arrows as if she were dancing. Though several shallow cuts appeared on her face, arms, chest, and legs, not a single arrow could stop her advance.
“D, don’t come! Go away!”
Gung shouted, seeing Michelle getting closer.
Michelle lightly ignored it and threw her body forward with all her might. Her arm drew a line, creating the stem of a flower. Her feet left marks all over the sky, drawing petals.
“A b, butterfly.”
A butterfly flying between flowers.
That’s how Michelle looked in Odekerkh’s eyes.
“Found you.”
Michelle, seeing Gung’s face, twisted her body and drew her bow. Nocked on her bow was the arrow that had been stuck in Odekerkh’s arm.
“D, die!”
Gung panicked and tried to shoot an arrow. But it was too late.
Thud!
The arrow that left Michelle’s hand pierced Gung’s forehead.
Thud.
At the same time as Gung fell, Michelle descended to the ground. It was an incredibly elegant movement.
“Sh, she did it.”
Odekerkh let out a breath filled with admiration.
Michelle looked down at the bleeding and dying Gung and shook her head.
“Weak.”
And she turned her head toward the flashing place beyond the fog, the place where Maxim had run.