Chapter 105 : Chapter 105
Chapter 105
“Nice shot.”
Reinhardt saw it.
A flash of light over the charging horde of magical beasts.
And then.
[You have executed ‘Archbishop Ritney’.]
*[Justice]’s effect has been enhanced.
*Stat increase per stack +9
The plan had succeeded.
Bitdori had eliminated the troublesome enemy in the most efficient way possible.
‘Four left, I guess.’
Reinhardt gauged the enemy’s strength.
All four were stronger than the warlocks he had faced so far.
In addition, there were about twenty magical beasts.
Five Grade 3 magical beasts, and the rest were mobs.
‘Plenty.’
There was no need to weigh his options.
[Buff Applied: Justice x3]
[All stats are increased by 267.]
His stats were overwhelming.
He had also secured plenty of Anti-Magic Power early on.
“Archbishop Ritney!”
“The Archbishop…!”
“It’s the knight! It’s Reinhardt!”
The four warlocks clamored loudly.
All of them were mounted on the heads of magical beasts.
It was tricky to approach them, but that wasn't a problem.
“Get down! Something is attacking!”
They had now noticed Bitdori’s existence.
They had no choice but to give up the advantage of their position.
The warlocks temporarily withdrew from the battlefield, leaving only the horde of magical beasts.
Thud.
With the tip of his sword pointed down, Reinhardt walked slowly toward them.
He observed the faces of the magical beasts. He assessed their value.
‘How considerate of them. They’re practically spoon-feeding me.’
The charging magical beasts were all valuable specimens.
The byproducts from them alone would be enough to craft dozens of top-tier pieces of equipment.
First, there was a Giant Tree.
A huge tree that had gained intelligence. A magical beast that entangled its enemies with its living roots and smashed them, bones and all, with its massive branches.
‘Even just chopping up the branches and processing them is useful. And if I’m lucky enough to pick up a fruit, that’s a jackpot too.’
There were also two or three magical beasts similar to the Direwolf he had met before.
They were magical beasts that basically took the form of predators.
Their claws and teeth were naturally threatening, and because they were so large, a simple swing of a foreleg was a fatal blow to a human.
‘This one is not bad either, if I assess it properly.’
And above all.
‘That friend is quite rare too.’
A golem in the shape of crudely joined rocks.
Other than its chillingly crimson eyes, the magical beast didn't even give the impression of being ‘alive’.
‘It’s a lottery ticket.’
Its name in the original work was Stone Golem.
By hunting it, one could obtain a special reward with a certain probability.
RUUUMBLE!
The ground began to tremble.
Even though they were close enough to clash in a few seconds, Reinhardt wasn't tense at all; instead, he was busy calculating in his head.
“The income is good. And my Justice will rise a bit as well.”
Shing.
Reinhardt readjusted his grip on the sword and slightly lowered his stance.
It was to gain momentum.
The enemy was now right in front of him.
Just as Reinhardt kicked off the ground and moved forward, dozens of roots rushed towards him.
SWOOOSH! CRUNCH!
Reinhardt spun his body widely and swung his sword.
Fragments of severed roots rained down in all directions.
Then, a massive foreleg came flying.
It carried enough power to crush him, armor and all, if he took even one hit.
Tap.
Reinhardt lightly kicked off the ground and changed direction.
The foreleg, having missed its trajectory, struck the ground. It was a perfect position for Reinhardt to strike.
SLICE!
The upward slash of his sword accurately severed the tendon.
“Grrrrrr!”
Black blood splattered everywhere, and the foreleg, drained of its strength, hung limp.
Reinhardt leaped onto the beast’s foreleg.
He ran swiftly up its forearm and reached the neck of the wolf-like magical beast.
Swish.
The tip of his sword pointed downward.
Gripping the hilt with both hands, Reinhardt plunged the sword vertically downwards.
“Guhaaaa!”
The Sword of Pure Light itself repels magical energy.
This meant that simply cutting a magical beast would inflict more than just the physical damage.
[You have defeated a magical beast.]
*[Justice]’s effect has been enhanced.
*Stat increase per stack +2
‘One down for now.’
Four remained.
The mobs weren't even worth considering. They were creatures that could be cleared in an
instant with just a few swings of the sword.
Thud.
Balancing himself on the head of the fallen magical beast, Reinhardt’s gaze went far.
‘If they were going to run, they shouldn’t have started a fight.’
He could see the warlocks fleeing with their tails between their legs.
All four were riding on the fastest small magical beasts, moving away.
It would still take time to deal with the magical beasts.
‘Next up is that friend.’
After deciding the order of engagement, Reinhardt spoke.
“Bitdori. Stop them from getting away.”
***
The priests of the Dark Order do not despair easily.
They were those who held onto the thread of hope even when they had fallen to the very bottom, who tenaciously survived and harbored thoughts of revenge against their enemies.
In fact, it couldn't be helped.
It was because the one they served wanted it so.
The demon Agrios enjoyed watching humans wallow miserably in the gutter.
They had to be a spectacle.
Not a spectacle for other humans, but a being that the one they served could watch with interest.
“Archbishop Ritney…!”
Archbishop Ritney was dead.
It was a futile and miserable death.
He had been crushed by the magical beast he commanded.
The situation was so sudden that he didn't even have time to draw out his magical energy.
In a single gasp, he was thrown off, fell, and met his end.
“…Agrios must be watching us.”
Four dark priests.
One of them spoke with a heavy voice.
“That can’t be. There’s no reason for him to do so.”
“Why do you think there’s no reason? The Archbishop is dead. We have been left behind. A knight strong enough to be difficult to face will soon chase us, and we probably won’t be able to escape.”
“If we flee at this speed, somehow…”
“Did you not see what happened to Archbishop Ritney? That knight has a means to attack enemies even from a distance.”
The Archbishop had fallen, and the cause of his fall was obvious.
Everyone here had seen the light that had flashed for a moment.
“Then what about now?”
“He probably can’t use it during combat. In that case, he’ll chase us right after defeating the last magical beast.”
“It’s enough to buy some time!”
“You can still say that after seeing that sight?”
One of the warlocks snapped his head back.
Two huge magical beasts had already fallen.
The low-level magical beasts they had brought just in case had long since been swept away by the aftermath.
In the end, only three remained.
At this rate, it would only be a moment before they were all defeated.
“Agrios is watching us.”
Then, the warlock who had spoken first said.
His heavy voice was that of one who had made a resolution.
When one has made a difficult decision.
For example, like when deciding to sacrifice one of their comrades.
“What changes even if he is watching? Do you expect him to bestow a blessing upon us? In the time we spend having this foolish conversation, I would rather get a little farther… far… ther.”
The eyes of the warlock who had snapped back went blank.
Then he stopped talking and, on the back of the running small magical beast, stared vacantly into the air.
“Agrios is watching us.”
It was the warlock who had spoken first.
A blackish energy was forming in his hand.
“All of us.”
He observed the complexions of his surrounding comrades.
All three were staring into the air with vacant eyes.
“You should have learned to always be prepared to resist magical energy. You should have put it into practice. To avoid having your consciousness stolen by a comrade at your side, like now.”
A human whose consciousness has been dominated can no longer be considered human.
The comrades who had been sharing opinions just a moment ago had become dolls.
They had become shields that would willingly die for him with a single gesture.
The warlock opened his mouth, his eyes heavy and sunken.
“If it pleases you, we will gladly offer our lives.”
Twitch.
The warlock moved his finger.
Simultaneously, the dolls all jumped off the running magical beasts.
Then he released his control over the magical beasts.
Focus returned to the pupils of the creatures that had been obediently following him.
They hesitated for a moment as if they couldn't understand the situation, and then they spotted the fallen dolls.
All magical beasts feel hostility towards living things.
The dolls and the magical beasts became entangled, and red blood splattered in all directions.
The warlock watched the entire process with a calm expression.
But there was no change.
The situation was still desperate.
The moment Agrios extended his hand was always when one had fallen into the pit of despair.
That was why he had hoped.
“If you are not satisfied.”
The warlock resigned himself.
He let go of his attachment to life.
He was ready to willingly face death.
He resolved to follow his comrades who had gone before him and suffer together in the fires of hell.
And only then.
At the very moment he released his control over the last magical beast and was about to throw himself away.
Agrios extended his hand.
“Aah…”
Abundant magical energy filled him.
A power great enough to extinguish all surrounding light was placed in his grasp.
He had satisfied his master.
His resolute choice had clearly been an interesting enough spectacle.
His vision changed.
The warlock Deryl could now see much more.
He could see the magical energy held by the surrounding magical beasts, the souls of his dead comrades being sucked somewhere, and the halo of the knight fighting in the distance.
And also.
“Piiiiiit!”
A single streak of light, approaching at high speed.
“This… yes, this was the means that attacked the Archbishop.”
Deryl raised the corners of his mouth and stretched out his right hand forward.
A thick magical energy shot out fiercely. The magical energy and the light collided head-on.
“Pit…!”
The light plummeted.
Only then did Deryl gain certainty.
With this power.
He, who had been chosen by Agrios.
“I will send you to hell.”
He believed he could send even a knight, so strong it was hard to believe he was human, to Agrios's side.
***
THUD.
The last magical beast fell.
The giant tree, with its branches and roots drooping, was losing its vitality.
A foul magical energy flowed from it, contaminating the earth. Fortunately, it was at a level that didn't have much effect on Reinhardt.
“I’ll clean up slowly.”
He postponed looting the spoils.
It wasn't as if someone would steal them if he left them here.
Reinhardt wiped the sweat from his brow.
He looked at his hands and saw the magical beasts’ characteristic black blood mixed with his sweat.
It wasn't something that could be cleaned by a simple wipe. Reinhardt resignedly raised his gaze.
“Let’s see.”
Bitdori should be holding the warlocks by their ankles.
Considering the power it possessed, it wouldn't be strange if it had beaten them to a pulp.
“Where is it?”
Only then did Reinhardt realize that something was strange.
He couldn't see the light.
He couldn't hear its cries.
It was as if it had disappeared somewhere.
“Wait a minute. What’s that…”
Instead, he saw a great darkness.
A thick magical energy was rising in the distance.
It was clearly of an immense concentration. Enough to kill an ordinary person with just a slight touch.
Tap.
Reinhardt reflexively started to run.
At full speed, as fast as he could, he ran towards the darkness.
‘Bitdori.’
Light spirits do not die.
No matter what kind of blow they take, they temporarily disappear, and after sufficient rest, they reappear.
That was the kind of being they were in the first place.
They were beings born from the providence of God, according to the lore.
The problem was that the rest period was excessively long by human standards.
A few months at the shortest.
If the injury was fatal, it could extend to several decades.
“…!”
And then Reinhardt found it.
The light spirit, collapsed helplessly in front of the great darkness.
And also, the wave of magical energy, surging once more, aiming for the spirit.