"To think there was a monster even worse than a Lich waiting in the wings... what kind of nightmare is this..."
As I grumbled and tried to put some distance between myself and the woman, she didn't make any move to stop me—she was just staring up at the sky, which caught me off guard. I managed to reposition without any trouble. She didn't seem interested in letting me go, though. About fifty meters away, she turned her gaze toward me and smirked.
Her face was utterly revolting, and the cold sweat wouldn't stop. The creepiness she exuded might have been even worse than the Dragon Zombie.
"That thing... it's licking my blood..."
Still smirking, the woman began licking the blood on her hand—the blood from when she'd pierced my stomach. And she did it with an almost ecstatic expression... which only made her all the more horrifying.
She looked like a woman around Primera or Chris's age, but her presence was clearly something inhuman. At the same time, she wasn't rotting or showing bone like a Lich or a zombie. On top of that, my Appraisal wouldn't work on her, so aside from her appearance, I had no idea what she was. There was no way to describe her other than as an unidentified monster.
"Even if Grandpa noticed something was wrong, it'd take him a few minutes to get here, wouldn't it?"
If he just flew over, he could probably make it in a little over a minute, but the sand kicked up by Tempest and everything else had made visibility terrible. There was a chance he still hadn't noticed that I was facing off against that thing. If that was the case, I wasn't going to get any help until visibility improved.
I could try fighting in a way that would grab Grandpa's attention—spamming magic everywhere—but after the battle with the Lich, my remaining stamina and Magic Power were worryingly low, and I also had to keep treating the wound in my stomach. First, I decided to return the Gigant to my Magic Bag so I could move a little more freely and conserve Magic Power.
The potions I had should help with both the wound and Magic Power to some degree, but as for how many I'd need to drink to recover my Magic Power, that was another matter entirely. As for the wound, it didn't seem like any major organs had been damaged, but normally, having a hole punched through your abdomen would require extended bed rest. Healing a wound like that was going to take time, and since this woman might be an ally of the Lich—or rather the zombie—there was also the worry of infection, so I needed to treat it thoroughly.
"Treating it one-handed... the pain isn't going away at all. Fighting in this state is going to be really rough."
If I could buy a few minutes, Grandpa would come rushing in, but those few minutes might end up being the longest minutes of my life. Honestly, I felt like I'd had more room to breathe when I was fighting the Dragon Zombie.
"If only we could just keep staring each other down and let time pass... but it's never going to be that easy!"
I wanted to take advantage of the distance to treat my wound as much as possible, but before I'd even managed to close half of it, the woman suddenly closed the gap.
I'd initially figured she could move at speeds the eye couldn't track—after all, she'd gotten behind me without my noticing—but that wasn't the case. Her speed wasn't that different from when Grandpa or I flew. At that kind of speed, I could normally handle it just fine, but in my current condition, even a small movement sent searing pain through my wound. I couldn't move like I usually did, and on top of that, my stamina was too depleted to dodge at full effort.
"Still, if all I have to do is block... damn it!"
Escaping was difficult, and dodging was difficult too, but I figured I could at least stand my ground and defend—and then her weapon promptly showed me how naive that thought was.
"That spear—it can change length?!"
The weapon the woman was wielding was the same one that had pierced my stomach. It looked like a simple rod, but it was actually a spear with a spike-like pointed tip. Since it only had a point and no blade, I'd thought it wouldn't be much of a threat as long as I was careful about the tip. But just as I was timing my defense, ready to catch it with Kogarumaru, the spear's length changed right before impact.
The spear suddenly extended from its thrusting stance, and I was too slow to react. I managed to dodge it by a hair's breadth, but wrenching my body out of the way tore the wound open.
"This is bad... that spot that was just about to seal shut has completely torn open..."
And it wasn't just that the wound had reopened—it seemed to have spread even wider, bleeding more than when I was first impaled. It wouldn't kill me right away, but judging by the volume of blood, I wouldn't be able to keep moving for long.
"Still..."
"re..."
"main..."
"ing..."
"..."
"..."
"...it's incomplete, but I have no choice."
Even if I tried to buy time, my stamina wouldn't hold out, so I decided to go all in on one decisive gamble. Even if this didn't finish her off, as long as I could land the hit, I'd buy enough time for Gramps to arrive.
"The problem is, I only have enough magic for a single shot—I have to make it count..."
If I could stop her movement, I might be able to land it, but I didn't have the time, magic power, or stamina for that.
(I need to conserve every last bit of stamina and magic power I can...)
Flying also consumed magic power, so there was a risk of being attacked from above, but in order to use my potions I descended toward the ground—and for some reason, the woman lowered her altitude as well. She landed a few dozen meters away and stared fixedly in my direction.
(I don't know why, but this might be my chance...)
Without breaking eye contact with the woman, I quickly applied a wound potion and a recovery potion, then—
"Air Cutter!"
I fired off several rounds of Air Cutter in a sweeping horizontal motion. Of course, I didn't think this would be enough to finish her off, and the instant I launched them the woman shot up into the air to dodge. Right where she was—
"Take this! Takemikazuchi!"
I had prepared this in case I couldn't defeat the Lich with "Tempest."
"Did it hit...? Even if the power's been reduced, taking that head-on shouldn't leave her unscathed..."
Because of the time it took from preparation to release, nearly half the Magic Power I had whipped up into the air had scattered, so the power had diminished. But that didn't make the bolt slow enough for her to dodge—it was lightning bearing the name of a god, and it pierced straight through the woman... except—
"What?!"
Through the curtain of dust obscuring my vision, I tried to distance myself from the spot, but a black thorn pierced into my chest.
The thorn didn't run me through—it only sank two or three centimeters into the left side of my chest. Before I could even process what the thorn was or why it had stabbed me, I reflexively grabbed it and tried to pull it out—but—
"Guhk!"
The instant I gripped the thorn, a shock coursed through my entire body. The impact scrambled my sense of balance.
As the dust gradually cleared, standing at the center of where "Takemikazuchi" had struck was the woman, gripping the base of the thorn embedded in me with her right hand. Her left arm was gone from about halfway down the upper arm, and just below where that arm had been severed, another black thorn stretched from her body all the way into the ground.
Even on the verge of losing consciousness, I struggled to yank the thorn free and flee. The woman watched me with a smirk, then closed the distance and lifted me by the neck with one hand. The Lich then rose into the air, carrying me with her...
"Aha!"
She laughed, delighted. And immediately after that laugh, my consciousness cut out.
Merlin's Side
"Hmm... That's quite the 'Tempest' they've got going over there. Even from this far away, the wind is this strong. Jean, flying debris could come our way at any moment—you should warn everyone to stay alert."
"Yes, sir! Hey! Pass the word—everyone is to watch for incoming objects, and anyone whose horse gets spooked by the wind or noise should fall back to the rear of the formation!"
"Understood!"
I doubt battle-hardened horses would be frightened by wind or noise, but if they'd been wound up from all the fighting up until now, even a small jolt could set them off.
"These kinds of coordinated tactics really are second nature to them by now."
"We can't afford another disgraceful showing, and it may be difficult for us to contribute much more to this battle directly—so making sure things like this are handled properly is absolutely essential."
"There's no need to be so modest. Besides, even if Tenma finishes off the Lich, there are still plenty of zombies left. There will be no shortage of opportunities to shine."
Jan still seems to be dwelling on the big mistake he made during the first charge. From what I hear, it's hard to say Captain Jan bears no responsibility, but according to Chris, it was the result of a few knights going on a rampage. Chris has been covering for the misstep, and with Jan's subsequent performance, you could say he more than made up for it. He'll probably just get a talking-to, but in the grand scheme of things, it shouldn't be a major issue... or rather, it shouldn't be allowed to become one.
After all, it would be hard to pin all the blame for the rampage on
Jan
and
Jan
alone. Most of the knights responsible are already dead, and if they went searching for survivors to punish, there's a risk that those individuals' lords or close associates might switch factions. Well, if they were Reformist knights, it wouldn't be much of an issue, but the fact that they joined this reinforcement force means they're Reformists leaning toward the Royalist Faction. If they were Royalists or Neutrals, it would only add to the enemy count. In that case, it would be better for Alex to treat this as an unforeseen accident that occurred under special circumstances, and since the situation was recovered through individual and collective efforts afterward, to offer rewards instead of punishment — that way, there would be fewer problems down the line.
"Still, the Lich is putting up quite a fight."
"But Lord Merlin, Tenma said that Tempest is an area-of-effect spell. Wouldn't it be inefficient against a single Lich?"
"But Chris, Lord Ootori used Tempest against Dragon Zombies and even the Lich from the Great Old Forest in the past. Well, the one from the Great Old Forest was apparently finished off with a different spell afterward..."
Chris's question initially drew a counter from Jan, but partway through, he seemed to lose confidence in his own argument.
"You're right that using Tempest against a small number of enemies is inefficient in terms of magic power. However, as Jan said, it's still effective against single targets with large bodies and low defenses, like Dragon Zombies. The Lich from the Great Old Forest was the exception. According to Tenma, that was a setup to lead into Takemikazuchi."
"So that means this time as well, the finishing blow will be dealt with Takemikazuchi!"
Chris nodded as though that settled the matter, but
"Tenma certainly has Takemikazuchi prepared as well, but I think this time, Tempest will finish the job."
"Why is that?"
This time, Jan asked with genuine interest.
"I've never been inside one myself, but Tempest's interior is surrounded by walls of wind with no escape. Apparently there is an exit at the top... but to reach it, you'd be completely exposed to attacks from directly below. Well,"
"you could"
"turn"
"upside-down and brace for the attack, but Tempest can supposedly be controlled to some extent by Tenma's will, so it's apparently not much more dangerous than just fleeing normally."
"So Lord Ootori intends to settle things with the Lich in a situation where it has no escape and the conditions are favorable?"
"That's the gist of it. Besides, a weakened Lich would find it difficult to break through the wall of wind or flee into the sky, so it would have no choice but to fight Tenma even under unfavorable conditions. Well, that's only if the Lich was still in fighting shape, of course."
If the opponent was a Lich that was both weakened and pinned down, Tenma would most likely be able to turn it into a one-sided fight. That's precisely why I had sensed the Lich was holding out longer than expected.
"Oh my? The wind seems to be weakening, doesn't it?"
"Mm. It certainly does seem to be weakening. The fight has likely been decided. I think Tenma won, but there's always a slim chance otherwise. Jean, I'll wait a little longer until visibility improves, but you all should wait until the smoke has completely cleared."
I'd fly out there right this moment if I could, but if Tenma had lost, charging into the poor visibility only to be ambushed by the Lich could undo everything we've accomplished. In that case, it was best to act with even the worst-case scenario in mind.
"Lord Merlin, shouldn't we advance at the same time?"
"I'll be flying through the air, so I won't run into anything short of something extraordinary. But you lot advancing on the ground are a different story, aren't you? Moving through poor visibility when you can't even tell what's underfoot — well, I do feel sorry for the horses."
When I said this, Chris nodded in understanding, but had Tenma been defeated, sending the army forward at the same time as me would almost certainly have meant Chris and the others being targeted first and losing their lives.
"Oh well... I suppose I should be heading out now... Hmm?"
The smoke was thinning, and I was about to go meet up with Tenma when I sensed — from years of experience, I could tell by the way the smoke moved — that magic had been cast somewhere in the distance, in an area where the smoke was still thick. Right after that, lightning struck and a small explosion went off.
"That's Takemikazuchi! The battle is still ongoing!"
I should have moved out right after Tempest dissipated, I thought bitterly as I rose into the air... but the earlier lightning explosion had kicked up even more sand and dust, making visibility around where Tenma likely was even worse than before.
Even so, I raced toward Tenma at full speed... but before I had covered even half the distance, I spotted two shadows rising from the center of the smoke toward the sky, and I froze.
"Tenma..."
It was Tenma, limp and motionless, and an unfamiliar woman holding him up with one hand.
End of Merlin's Side