Chapter 45 : Chapter 45
Volume 1
Chapter 45 : A Sorry State
“ROAR!”
The lord of the lake let out another howl.
The deafening roar whipped up waves several meters high.
Eluca covered her ears, but even that was not enough to block out the agony brought by the violent sonic shock.
“So that is your dying cry?”
Ann, however, seemed utterly unaffected.
She raised the scythe in her hand high, like Death descending to reap the soul before her.
The lord of the lake’s eyes reflected Ann’s indifferent face, and a trace of human-like fear appeared within them.
It had never seen such a powerful human before.
But that fear was swiftly transformed into the madness of a beast driven into a dead end!
Even if it died, it would drag this human down with it!
Lightning flashed, white arcs of electricity coiling around the lord of the lake.
But the horn that had served as its launcher had already been broken.
Merely gathering that much lightning—how could it possibly threaten Ann with that alone?
Or was it simply using this desperate, self-destructive method to delay death for just a moment longer?
Ann frowned slightly, and the hand holding the raised scythe paused.
She was waiting for the lord of the lake to reach its limit and let the lightning dissipate.
But there was no sign of the lightning fading.
The lord of the lake was clearly exhausted, yet the lightning around it only grew even more dazzling.
“This is wrong. Very wrong.”
Not far away, Eluca noticed something amiss.
She heard a heartbeat.
A frantic heartbeat.
A heartbeat that sounded as though it were about to burst apart!
There was only one possible explanation for a heartbeat like that.
“Get out of the way! It’s going to self-destruct!”
Realizing the lord of the lake’s intent, Eluca hurriedly shouted anxiously at Ann.
Self-destruct?
Ann’s gaze sharpened as she looked at the lord of the lake.
Only now did she see the madness and mockery in the magical beast’s eyes.
“Heh. Did I underestimate you?”
In the next instant, the lightning gathered around the lord of the lake exploded outward.
BOOM!
With a world-shaking blast, the dazzling lightning lit up half the sky.
...
...
“Are... are you okay?”
Relying on the last of her Levitation Spell, Eluca hovered above the lake some distance away, watching that brilliant lightning blaze like a miniature sun before vanishing in an instant.
Charred chunks of flesh burst out from the center of the explosion in all directions, like a grotesque parody of a meteor shower.
The lord of the lake had clearly controlled the blast radius, so Eluca, at this distance, had not been caught in it.
But that only made her more worried.
Because the smaller the blast radius, the greater the damage concentrated within it!
The lord of the lake had obviously done it to make absolutely sure it could drag its enemy down with it!
“Please be all right, Miss.”
Praying silently in her heart, Eluca kept her eyes fixed on the center of the explosion.
The lingering heat of the blast had created a thick cloud of mist, making the center difficult to see clearly.
Fortunately, the rain had not stopped.
The mist soon dispersed beneath the downpour, and the scene at the center of the explosion gradually came into view.
Because the detonation had happened over the lake, the lord of the lake’s self-destruction had not left behind any especially horrifying devastation.
It was only that the iron thorn forest that had once bound it had partially melted from the extreme heat, then cooled again in the lake water.
Even now, the tips still bore red-white traces of molten metal.
The lord of the lake itself had long since vanished.
Most likely, even its remains had fallen into the lake as part of that grotesque meteor shower.
And above the iron thorn forest floated an enormous, striking metal sphere, suspended silently in the air with a kind of eerie beauty.
“This is...”
Seeing that metal sphere, Eluca’s heart leaped into her throat.
“Um... Miss, are you all right?”
She called out softly and cautiously.
Click.
A circular opening suddenly appeared in the metal sphere.
Ann stepped out from within.
She turned to look at Eluca, her expression still poised and tranquil, as though the mortal danger just now had not affected her in the slightest.
“I’m fine.”
“Hah, that’s wonderful.”
The heart Eluca had been holding up in suspense finally settled, and she could not help letting out a long breath of relief.
The tension that had been wound tight inside her loosened all at once, and instantly she was overcome by an exhaustion that nearly drowned her.
“Ah, right, I forgot to introduce myself. My name is Eluca. Thank you for saving me just now!” Eluca forced herself to bow.
“Ann. There is no need to thank me.”
Ann said:
“I only killed that magical beast because it was in my way.”
“Even so, I’m still very grateful to you, Miss Ann!”
Puffing out her cheeks, Eluca said earnestly, “Later, I’ll bring my companions to properly thank you. When the time comes, please don’t refuse!”
“...”
Ann suddenly fell silent, her cool eyes sweeping over Eluca’s face.
“Eh? Did I say something wrong?”
“No. I was only wondering whether you are not worried about your companions.”
“Ah, right, my companions!”
Only then did Eluca remember that her two companions were still missing.
“They fell in that direction.”
Ann pointed one way.
“Thank you!”
Eluca hurriedly thanked her, forced herself to gather her strength, and quickly flew off in that direction using her Levitation Spell.
After Eluca left, Ann withdrew her gaze.
Lowering her head to look at the vast lake, she rubbed her temple with a headache coming on.
“All right, the thing in the way has been dealt with. But how am I supposed to catch fish now?”
...
...
“Rod! Tia! Are you two all right?!”
Following the direction Ann had indicated, Eluca searched all the way there and finally found Rod and Tia by the shore.
The moment Rod saw Eluca, delight immediately appeared on his face.
“Eluca, perfect timing. Hurry and use healing magic. Tia, she...”
“What?”
Only now did Eluca notice that Tia was not mocking her miserable state as usual.
Instead, she was lying on the ground, pale-faced and clearly in great pain, with blood seeping from the corner of her mouth.
“The shockwave probably damaged her internal organs. Eluca, hurry and use healing magic on her!”
“But... my Mana is already completely used up...”
“Used up?”
Rod froze, then suddenly rushed over, grabbed Eluca by the collar, and shook her hard.
“What did you say? Your Mana is gone? Not a drop left? Then where’s the recovery potion?”
“Rod, you’re hurting me...”
Eluca pulled free of his grasp, gasped for breath twice, and said with difficulty:
“My Mana really is completely gone. And besides, weren’t the recovery potions always managed by Tia?”
“But I already checked her bag just now. There aren’t any.”
“If she forgot to bring them, then there’s nothing I can do about it.”
“Damn it!”
Rod slammed his fist against the ground. “As a mage, why didn’t you bring any potions with you?”
“...”
Had she not just said that Tia had always been the one managing the recovery potions?
And besides, Eluca was not like Tia, who was used to recklessly squandering her Mana.
If not for all these accidents, she never would have exhausted herself completely.
When it came down to it, was this not Tia’s fault for not bringing the potions?
“There’s no other choice. I’m taking Tia to the Association right now.”
Rod hoisted Tia onto his back in one swift motion.
“I’ll come too,” Eluca said.
“You stay here and rest.”
Rod did not even turn around.
“You’ll only hold me back right now!”
“...”
Eluca watched as Rod disappeared from sight with Tia on his back.
The rain came down harder and harder, stinging her eyes with pain.
Before she knew it, her ten fingers had already sunk deep into the mud, leaving several savage grooves in the ground, only for them to be quickly washed away by the rain.
...
She was such an eyesore.