Chapter 113
Chapter 113
When I slightly turned my head, my eyes caught sight of alien beings that had appeared among the monster horde.
A handsome man with ash-gray hair and pale skin that reminded me of someone.
And, in contrast, a bald, muscular giant with bronze-colored skin.
‘The ash-gray-haired one must be a mage, and the muscular one another Sword Master.’
If those two were as strong as Isabel, the situation would become difficult.
However, the aura they gave off felt similar to when I first met Isabel.
“Isabel, you…….”
“Azazel, why did you only give me something this good now?”
The eyes of the ash-gray man called Azazel narrowed.
Judging by that reaction, Isabel’s change seemed far from ordinary even among her own companions.
Well, if every Majin became that strong with just a single black mass in their heart, the continent would have fallen long ago.
“What happened? I told you to leave it as insurance for right before death.”
“I mean it literally—it was right before death. Ah, I died once, you know. That guy’s a holy sword user. If it weren’t for this, I’d have already dissipated.”
“A holy sword user? In a place like this?”
Azazel’s eyes went wide.
Then he looked at the sword in my hand and stroked his chin.
“…I’ve seen that pattern before.
Britain’s Excalibur. I see. You’re Prince Leios!”
“Prince Leios? The one who defeated Lady Gremory and Lord Aloken?”
Isabel’s eyes opened wide.
Then she smacked her lips and looked at me.
“No wonder you were so strong even without counting the holy sword. I thought it strange that such a powerhouse would be in a backwater. If that’s the case, it makes sense. You’re engaged to the eldest daughter of this territory, right?”
“There’s a record that Demedrio’s side made contact with this guy before starting anything. It was strange that all news cut off after that, but so he fell to the holy sword.”
Just as I pieced the clues together, they too seemed to understand something from the elements surrounding me and nodded.
At that, I subtly lowered my stance.
‘If this happens, our existences become mutually inconvenient.’
The Majin had not yet fully revealed themselves to the world.
If they moved directly, they could have conquered the castle much faster, but the reason they went through the trouble of controlling monsters like this was because they did not want to expose their existence to the world.
Though the Empire was said to be on the verge of splitting, it was still standing strong, and the Holy Kingdom had its eyes blazing as it searched for heretics and those connected to demons.
They had fought the demon race for countless long ages, and they would surely have caught a whiff of the current situation as well.
And in the midst of that, the Majin had had their existence discovered.
By one of the imperial princes, no less—the very core of the Empire.
Likewise, my own hidden power and identity had been exposed to them.
That meant only one thing: both sides had no choice but to kill each other to silence the truth.
Tadadad-!
Without even thinking, I charged first toward Azazel.
There were three enemies.
One had suddenly grown much stronger and would be hard to take down in one blow.
In that case, the top priority was to eliminate the most troublesome one—the mage.
“Hup!”
The surging Aura Blade cleaved through the air and rushed at Azazel.
In response, he thrust his hand into the air and grabbed hold of something.
‘As if I’d let you cast magic.’
The holy sword stood at the polar opposite of demonic energy.
Around it, most ordinary magic would be scattered away.
But what emerged from his grasp was a single sword filled with roiling demonic energy.
Kang-!
“…?!”
A sharp metallic cry rang out.
A sword shrouded in demonic energy blocked my blade.
Which meant that the mage was…….
“Descartes!”
Hwaaaaaak-!
As if responding to Azazel’s shout, the ground turned pitch-black and dozens of black hands surged up to grab me.
“Fuck! Why is the bald musclehead the one using magic!”
What a truly shitty reverse cliché.
Spitting out curses, I kicked off the ground in a hurry as the black hands brushed past my toes.
It was a type of black magic I recognized—its name was probably Hand of Death.
If you got dragged under there, you’d be trapped in a separated space.
It was a kind of sealing magic that only mage-class users could cast, and there had been an episode where even the protagonist suffered badly from it.
Thud!
I stomped hard, stepping on a troll’s head and using the recoil to leap up again.
The impact caused the troll’s head to burst, but I didn’t have time to appreciate it.
“Pretty boy, where do you think you’re going?”
At some point, Isabel had closed the distance and thrust her sword toward my waist.
I twisted my body frantically to avoid it, but her blade was faster.
Shhk!
A spray of blood scattered through the air.
Without even having time to clutch my split side, I flipped my body again with a hollow gasp to evade Azazel’s attack waiting beneath my feet.
Thung!
Even if Azazel’s was an Aura Blade wrapped in demonic energy, compared to Isabel’s it was nothing more than a stick.
When I casually kicked it aside with my foot, Azazel’s face flushed as if he felt slighted.
Seeing that, Isabel burst into loud laughter.
“Azazel, our pretty boy’s got more of a temper than he looks. Either shove that thing into your heart like I did, or stay out of it. You’re in the way.”
“…Something this trivial!”
At those words, Azazel’s eyes rolled back as he pulled out from his chest the same pitch-black mass that Isabel had embedded in her heart.
I took that as a golden opportunity.
Slash.
Perhaps their relationship wasn’t good even among allies—Azazel’s attention was completely scattered.
Even at the cost of taking a hit from Isabel, I severed his arm and snatched the mass he had been holding.
“Looks like a tar-soaked lung.”
Judging by its position, calling it a heart would be accurate, but it felt exactly like a model of the lungs of someone who had smoked for decades, like the ones shown in old educational programs.
“Ahhhhhk!”
Azazel screamed as he clutched his arm that had been cut in half.
The severed arm burned away in pure white holy fire, disappearing without leaving even ashes behind.
The severed stump was likewise being eaten away by the same white flames.
“Tsk, you’re noisy.”
Perhaps finding the scream unpleasant, Isabel raised her sword and cut away even more of the severed area.
Only then did Azazel, who had barely managed to calm down, lift his head and glare at me with bloodshot eyes.
“I’ll kill you. I’ll definitely kill you.”
“Looks like you’ll die first before that.”
When I shrugged and said so, Isabel covered her stomach and snickered.
At that, Descartes, with a stiff expression, used demonic energy to treat Azazel’s arm.
‘Roughly speaking, this is how the balance of power stacks up.’
Isabel was equal to me or stronger, and Azazel and Descartes together were about on par with me alone.
“Tsk.”
Clicking my tongue, I looked at the wound that had opened up on my side.
I had obtained something pitch-black, but my side had also taken heavy damage.
Since they hadn’t even given me time to take out a potion, I hastily twisted my clothes and pressed them against the wound to stop the bleeding.
“Mm?”
Isabel stared at me leisurely, while Azazel and Descartes watched me warily with cold, hardened expressions.
The battle situation was still fierce.
Just moments ago, an ogre had climbed onto the city wall and was locked in a bloody melee with the knights.
Petra, who had been watching me from the watchtower, was also fighting.
She glanced this way from time to time, and I wished she would be careful.
“Looks like you’ve got the leisure to look away?”
“……!!”
Before I knew it, petrification began creeping up from my toes.
I brought Excalibur over, dispelled the magic, and raised my sword again.
“Buy me some time. Once I secure it, there’ll be plenty of uses for it.”
As Descartes waved his hand, countless magic circles floated into the air.
At a glance, it looked like he was about to unleash something far from ordinary.
When I stepped forward, Azazel and Isabel blocked my path, staring at me with bloodshot eyes.
“There’s no need for that. If we cut off all your limbs, you won’t be able to move even if you want to. Then you won’t be able to use that precious holy sword either.”
Demonic energy began to swirl.
Perhaps sensing danger instinctively, the monsters ignored this side entirely and resumed their assault on the city wall.
At that, I took a deep breath, shook off my tension, and murmured quietly.
“[O flames that annihilate evil and burn away sin, scatter your radiant light, and descend upon this place now.]”
Enchant: Prometheus’s Flame.
Blue holy fire bloomed and surged as it covered my blade.
“You should have seen that it doesn’t work?”
“Earlier, I only used the flames by themselves.”
The holy aura of Excalibur combined with flames that burned demonic energy.
When joined together, their power would be doubled.
Though raw strength had compensated for the difference until now, the disparity in compatibility still remained.
If hit head-on by this, no matter how tough she was, she wouldn’t endure it.
In battles against opponents of this caliber, trivial magic was useless anyway.
Victory could only be decided with such definitive, effective blows.
Prometheus’s Flame flickered atop Excalibur.
When it reached its peak, the trajectories of the three of us crossed.
Kang-!
A sharp metallic cry rang out in the middle of the clamorous battlefield.
Isabel had indeed grown faster and stronger, but fundamentally, her skill was still inferior to mine.
She hadn’t yet fully adapted to her newfound power, so I had to exploit her through fine details.
“Ghk.”
But the difference was laid bare without mercy.
A long trail of blood stretched down my back.
I had deflected Azazel’s attack and blocked Isabel’s, but there was no way to avoid taking damage entirely.
‘There is a way to break through this crisis, but…….’
The Excalibur-exclusive skill, ‘Last Stardust’.
It possessed such overwhelming power that it could momentarily seize the attention of Sword Saint Yohanel and Archmage Chris.
However, it was a technique I could only use once.
If it failed, I would be drained of strength and unable to fight any longer.
If I were lucky, I might be able to escape.
‘In the worst case, that means abandoning this place.’
A short-range teleport scroll lay dormant in my subspace pouch.
Using it was simple—just take it out and tear it straight down, and I would be instantly transported somewhere far away.
But the Leipzig territory left behind would be reduced to ruins.
Even so, if this dragged into a battle of attrition, I would be the one to collapse first.
“Hoo…….”
With the wish that I wouldn’t have to tear the scroll and flee, I raised Excalibur.
All of my remaining strength gathered into Excalibur, wreathed in Prometheus’s Flame.
When the auspicious holy aura rose over it, that light intertwined with the sacred fire and shifted into a blue dusk.
“…What!”
Sensing that something was seriously amiss, Isabel swung her sword again, erecting a blade barrier.
But if she blocked it, all the better.
You who used demonic energy would be swept away without leaving even a trace.
[SYSTEM: Excalibur-exclusive extra skill ‘Last Stardust’ is activated.]
The blue dusk soon became a wave that covered the world, sweeping across all directions.
Any monsters caught within its range were mercilessly torn apart and killed.
The three Majin also tried to resist, energy flaring up where they stood, but they were quickly engulfed as well.
“…..”
Ragged breaths escaped me.
In an instant, my strength drained away, and I lowered my sword.
White steam rose from Excalibur and my body.
I no longer had the strength to fight.
All I could do was hope that the enemies had fallen.
“…This is honestly surprising.”
But when the steam cleared, they appeared.
Azazel and Descartes lay sprawled on the ground, reduced to charred lumps.
They twitched faintly—alive, but seemingly at their limits.
Isabel, whom I had been most wary of, had half her body torn away, yet her vicious gaze was still brimming with killing intent.
“I’ve changed my mind. Just cutting off your limbs won’t be enough. I’ll break every bone in your body and strip away your flesh. As long as the face is intact, that’s fine.”
Demonic energy surged and bloomed along her sword.
For the first time, I felt my heart grow heavy.
I reached into my subspace pouch and grabbed hold of a scroll.
But there were still many people fighting atop the city wall.
‘…Damn it.’
As I hesitated, unable to choose either option, Isabel—having realized that I was at my limit—began to slowly approach me.
At that, I squeezed my eyes shut and pulled out not the scroll, but a mana potion.
And at the same time, from high above the sky, two beams of light descended, falling to either side of me.
“…Huh?”