Something's off... I don't have any ability to gauge an opponent's strength, but when Marin fought at the Luminous Spirit Church, she was clearly on a different level. Her wailing had the power to freeze the very soul of anyone who heard it, leaving them defenseless and unconscious — a fitting display for the name of the strongest curse.
But right now, her wailing was nothing more than a scream. Knowing how she'd been during the church battle, this was a huge letdown.
Come to think of it, wasn't that Marin from back then creating things like a Black Knight's shield with black flames or something? ...What happened to that?
Under attack, the Phantoms shifted their targets.
Some of the arrows were fired at Marin as she wailed desperately, piercing her small body and sending her flying. The cursed staff flew from her hands and rolled to his feet.
Maybe distracted by the blown-away Marin, the Black Knight took an arrow head-on and was sent flying.
It bounced off the ground several times before slamming into the base of a large tree. The deeply rooted tree swayed violently from the impact.
The force was terrifying — not something you'd expect from arrows. The attacks stopped, and silence returned.
Tino cautiously called out to the ally who'd been taken out in an instant.
"!? C-Could it be that... their... grudge is fading? I mean, the fact that they're willing to listen to what humans say already makes them pretty human-like, doesn't it!?"
"...Y-Yeah, I guess you could look at it that way."
Curses are the manifestation of powerful emotions elevated into formulaic rites. If the feelings of resentment faded, it was only natural that the power would weaken.
I'd completely let that slip my mind.
I was planning to dump everything on Marin — but now what?
The blown-away Marin glided through the air and floated back. It seemed that even in her weakened state, the immortality she'd shown at the Luminous Spirit Church was still intact. The arrow had hit dead center, yet her body showed no wounds.
But her expression was clouded with fear and confusion.
"Huh? H-Why?"
Marin let out a hoarse, bewildered voice. I'd like to know the answer too, but... it seemed even she hadn't realized she'd lost her power.
At this rate, the Black Knight's power was probably fading too. Maybe it was bad that she'd been swallowed by Sherlo once, or maybe my careful handling of the cursed artifact had dissolved her lingering attachment. She was so strong when we were enemies, but the moment she became an ally, she got weak — I wished they'd told me this an hour earlier. Finding out only after being attacked by Phantoms was the worst possible timing.
Some weird accident always happens every single time — honestly (passing the blame).
"...This isn't over yet! If it's Marin, I'm sure she can pull through!!"
"!?"
I had no other plan, but I said it half out of desperation. Marin stared at me in surprise.
Originally, I'd planned to run immediately if Marin's power failed and I couldn't buy enough time — but that firing speed... a violent rain of arrows rivaling Lucia's attack magic. Could I really escape?
It was said that a skilled Archer could snipe from over a kilometer away. Phantoms of a Level 10 Treasure Hall would presumably have extraordinary eyesight too. Arrows could come from anywhere.
The arrow barrage had stopped, but the Phantoms hadn't left. Quietly, eerily, their masks observed us.
The Black Knight staggered back. Its armor was crumpled with a large hole in it, but fortunately it could still move.
It stepped forward with its sword drawn, positioning itself to protect Marin, but being targeted from all directions made it far too unreliable.
"Mastaa — there's still a Mage among them."
"Why do you think they haven't attacked?"
"...I think they were... gauging our strength. To ensure victory... Even Hunters are cautious the first time they fight a Monster. Or they might be waiting for reinforcements — "
I see... a trait unique to high-level Treasure Hall Phantoms... I wonder if they'll keep just observing forever.
Keeping watch on the Phantoms' movements, I picked up the staff that had rolled to my feet and spoke to Tino.
"Tino, hide inside Mimikun."
Marin and the Black Knight were strong. Well, they seemed to have gotten weaker, but curses couldn't be defeated by normal attacks in the first place. And while I had the Barrier Ring as a safety net, Tino didn't.
Hiding inside Mimikun and then figuring things out from there wasn't ideal, but it was better than fighting here.
At my words, Tino pressed her lips into a thin line and looked up at me.
Her beautiful black eyes were twisted, on the verge of tears. Then Tino said in a trembling voice.
"No — this time, I'm going to fight too!!"
"...Huh?"
"I know I'm not strong enough. Always... forever... being protected by Mastaa — by Master, is something I can't keep doing!! I've been training so that I can fight alongside Master!!"
By the time she finished, the trembling had left her voice entirely. Tino glared fiercely at the Phantoms.
Her words were filled with strong resolve. Even Marin and the Black Knight looked surprised at Tino.
I'd been planning to run after Tino fled, but the atmosphere sure didn't lend itself to that kind of thing anymore.
To my hardboiled grin, Tino said quietly.
"There should be a gap in their defenses. I... can't do anything unless I close the distance. I'll move forward."
??? Did she not see how the Black Knight got focused fire the second it stepped forward?
"If I charge, even I can't be ignored. I'll create an opening. Master, attack!"
"...Can you handle the arrow barrage?"
"If all three of us charge, the attacks should be split. I'll dodge through sheer willpower."
It was so reckless it was almost laughable.
But that recklessness — that courage — was unmistakably something she'd inherited from my childhood friends. I was starting to feel responsible. It's fine... I'm running anyway, so you don't need to try that hard.
Even if we fought, that role wouldn't suit me. My combat ability was practically zero, and the main attacker had to be someone other than me...
Reluctantly, I grabbed the shoulder of my brave junior and stepped forward.
"Tino, courage is a Hunter's trait. But don't forget what our objective is this time."
I think I said something similar at the White Wolf's Den?
"The... objective...!!!"
Tino's eyes widened. That's right. Our objective wasn't to defeat the enemy.
Sending in Marin and the others was part of buying time. And furthermore, we didn't even need to protect the device!
The Phantoms were still observing. Citry and the others were more capable than me, and their plan was surely going well.
Citry had said that if we weakened the Treasure Hall it would lose its form — but how long would it take to disappear?
I wish it would just vanish right now...
For starters, I declared confidently so that Tino would follow my instructions and hide inside Mimikun.
"I have a plan."
"!!?"
Just then — suddenly, an explosive shattering sound rang out.
Glass fragments glimmered as they fell from directly above.
The Mana Material stirring device was half-destroyed. Black arrows were embedded everywhere.
It hadn't been able to react at all, but it seemed a Phantom had attacked the device.
They weren't supposed to know about it... Smart of you guys.
"!? Master!"
"C-Calm down, Tino. We don't need the device."
What mattered was our lives. It seemed we didn't have time to wait for them to weaken.
Suddenly, the Barrier Ring activated. An arrow was deflected, and I realized I was being attacked.
The speed completely exceeded my perception. This was beyond the level of dodging or anything like that.
The Black Knight swung its sword and cut down an arrow, while Marin used her powered-down wailing to intimidate the Phantoms. Tino let out a sharp breath with a determined expression, then threw a punch in front of me as I stood frozen.
Several arrows embedded themselves in the ground. They'd been deflected... Was it really possible to parry Level 10 Phantom arrows with bare hands? Was she some kind of monster?
"!! M-Master, the Mage — it's charging up!!"
Tino screamed. It seemed the Phantoms had stopped observing.
With a crackling sound like thunder, I hurriedly looked up at the sky.
From all four directions, light was converging overhead.
A Mage's spell scaled in charge time proportional to its magnitude. And this was — ritual magic.
An ultimate strike from multiple Mages. They'd used arrows to keep us in check, and now they intended to blow everything away.
Well, I still had the Barrier Ring. Only one was activated so far, so I had room to spare.
Large-scale magic that required charge time and the Barrier Ring were very compatible. Fire magic would've been pretty bad, but lightning should be manageable.
"!? M-M-Mastaa!!?"
I pulled the stiff-faced Tino close. The Barrier Ring was basically single-user, but if we were pressed together it could barely protect two people. As for Marin and the others... well, they'd manage even without protection. They were curses, after all.
Then, casually, I tried to lift the staff I'd been holding — and that's when I noticed.
The staff was — heavy. It wouldn't come up.
I looked down cautiously. The base of the staff had sunk into the ground. No — "sunk" wasn't quite the right word.
The end of the staff had extended like a tentacle and pierced into the earth.
It seemed the impaled staff had branched out underground like roots, and the ground was pulsating. Occasionally, root-like protrusions would burst above the surface.
I tried to pull the staff out with force, but it didn't budge.
...That's one weird staff.
Tino, who'd been shielding me, noticed what was at her feet and froze.
Then the roots that had been writhing underground suddenly turned toward one spot and shot out with arrow-like force.
The roots were aimed at the destructive energy being assembled in the sky.
Countless roots touched the light and were blown back. Half of them were burned away, and a charred, acrid stench filled the air.
But the staff didn't give up. Even more branch-like roots surged toward the light, heedless of the damage.
And then — the ground shook violently. I hurriedly grabbed hold of the staff.
The earth cracked open, and something black surged up from below.
No — that was a trunk. A trunk of the same pitch-black color as the staff.
It seemed the staff impaled in the ground had been growing inside the earth.
The ground kept rising beneath my feet, and my viewpoint climbed higher. About to fall, I tightened my grip on the staff. Mimikun extended an arm and grabbed the trunk.
In this incomprehensible situation — where all I could do was smile — Tino called out.
"!? ...This... is this the... Black World Tree!?"