…
…..
Kaelan and her vanguard had already fallen to the ground. I imagine that through that last battle, their standing among the people would have risen quite a bit—even if they did end up losing.
I let out a long sigh, dusted off my hands, and stretched my arms as if to call it a day. But to my surprise, Kaelan forced herself back to her feet. The sharp rasp of her blade cutting through the air made it easy for me to notice—even with no hope of victory, she still wanted to land at least one hit?
To me, that’s just a boring but pure kind of faith.
There shouldn’t be any more surprises now, right? Like a sudden ambush, reinforcements from the patrol, or that guy from earlier giving chase. Ahh, I really don’t want to get hurt or anything.
“Hey! Even the city’s best vanguard squad couldn’t beat her!”
“Are we… are we done for?!”
“We should run!” Yeah, yeah—all you instigators better scram and go running back to your mommies while you still can.
I turned to face Kaelan. She was swaying on her feet, barely able to stand after the fight, and had no choice but to prop herself up with her greatsword to keep from collapsing.
Does constantly using that sword drain her stamina that quickly? Or is it a trade-off—exhaustion after battle in exchange for sustained energy while fighting?
Well, that greatsword itself is pretty strange. It’s not unusual for metal to be infused with elements and manifest them physically, but that’s usually limited to gauntlets worn by martial artists with exceptional talent and skill, or the blades carried by veteran swordsmen…
Heh, maybe I’m just speaking from my own limited perspective.
I walked up to Kaelan. She tried to swing her sword again, but I pressed down on the hilt to stop her—though honestly, in this situation, throwing a punch would’ve been more useful.
“Stop it, Kaelan. You know better.”
“…Ugh… then… please, you stop too…”
Stop? What is she even talking about… After I left the patrol station, I met up with Miss Huihui and came straight here. Speaking of which, where’d that scout from earlier go? Ahh, I was so focused on fighting Kaelan and her group that I didn’t pay much attention to my surroundings.
…Do you see it? This chaotic place…
Chaotic? Is it chaotic here? Whoa—!!
“Hey! What are you doing?! Why are you pointing your sword at us?!”
“Stay back! Put your weapon away now!”
“AAAAHHH—!!”
“How could this happen—we were just enjoying the festival!”
Ahh, before I knew it, those creatures had spread all over the streets and alleys. Everywhere I turned, there were screams and wails, confusion and terror. This isn’t about betrayal or loyalty—it’s just the basic instinct of any lifeform: expansion and reproduction require land.
Those grotesque, nightmarish creatures were doing exactly what I’d imagined—trying to replace the city’s original inhabitants. But what I hadn’t expected was how fast they could spread and how completely they could evolve—they even seemed to possess human-level intelligence. Still, compared to that, is instinct really the top priority?
Was that “Philiert” from before just the first generation?
I used telekinesis to move the unconscious Xiong Xin, the stunned Mia, and the unconscious squad leader to a corner of the plaza. It was well-hidden and easy to defend, but if too many of them showed up, it’d eventually become a liability…
“Miss Kaelan… this might be the last time we meet. Please take care of your people. I have some personal matters to deal with.”
“You… why go this far?”
“Yeah… why, indeed? I don’t even know the answer myself… Why don’t you sit down and rest for a bit? Recover some strength so you can protect yourself.”
After settling Kaelan down, I stood up to leave, but she called out to me. She asked for my name. I smiled but said nothing, hesitating for a long while before finally replying—
“My name is Hayuki Tōryō. Don’t forget that string of characters, okay?”
For some reason, I just wanted to tell her. I wanted her to remember. Otherwise, everything I’d done here would feel meaningless? Heh, what a childish thought—but it’s been a long time since I’ve been this childish.
I conjured flames and shaped them into a hammer, dragging the searing magic in a spin before hurling the blazing hammer fiercely to the side.
Boom!—with a sizzling sound like cooking meat, the scorching hammer struck the “head” of a figure dressed as a cook, taking out the neck and parts below as well. But even with its upper body in tatters, the “person” still tried to swing its kitchen knife at me.
So it’s one of those flesh-clumps after all? Its spiritual signature is completely different…
I swept my hand through the air, and several fireballs materialized instantly—this kind of scene is pretty routine now. Phew, that was close.
A spike shot out from the “person’s” abdomen. I grabbed it and snapped it off just in time to avoid being pierced. But that spike was hard as stone—not like a feeding tentacle at all. Could this thing… no, these things—do they actually have a strong killing intent toward me?
Then die.
After being hit by the fireballs and engulfed in flames, the “person” reverted to its original form, with a faint smell of burning.
“Miss Kaelan, please move further back. I’ll cast a concealment spell on you so you won’t get caught up in this.—Tch! Just what are these things trying to do?!”
I was about to cast [Universal Concealment], but a whistling wind-blade interrupted me. I turned around, only to have to dodge again as someone lunged at me.
I parried the swinging blade with a forearm blade formed from azure mana, then took another step back. My eyes focused on three “figures.”
One was tall and burly, but from how he moved, he didn’t seem skilled in hand-to-hand combat. Another gripped an iron sword and looked like he’d had some training. The last one held a book and had the air of a mediocre mage.
Ahh, I really don’t want to start fighting like this.
I slammed [Honesty] into the ground, maneuvered it beneath the area in front of me, and then erupted it upward, forming a cage of azure blades.
Simple, isn’t it?
Ahh, if only I could do this back in the modern world… Well, if I did, I’d probably get caught and experimented on—tsk, that brought back some bad memories.
“———Ugh… uh…” Kaelan seemed too stunned to speak. I waved my hand in front of her face to snap her out of it.
“Sorry to startle you. But I’m sure you’ve seen far more astonishing things than this. Bye for now.”
I cast the concealment spell and immediately turned to run toward the heart of the chaos. The area had already been consumed by flames—toppled bonfires had fueled this farce, and the core was spreading in all directions.
If I didn’t stop it in time, this city would be finished.
“Mom! Dad, he—!”
“Sweetie, we have to run! Your father isn’t your father anymore!”
“But—but! He just said he would—!”
I threw a cyan ribbon toward the source of the voice, lassoing the “man” who was waving a torch. With a sharp yank, I pulled him in front of me… His spiritual signature was dim, and he carried the instinctual mark of that race. Another one of them?
I looked back to where the voice came from. A boy a few years younger than me stood there, trembling, his gaze blank yet still filled with emotion. Tears he shouldn’t have shed at this moment streamed down his face.
I looked down at the “man,” my lips curling in frustration, and then reluctantly scattered azure motes of light—even though making a child witness this would probably leave a scar on his young heart, still…
Do I really have to do this?
The motes of light resting over the “man’s” heart pulsed, almost urging me to trigger them. But—
“Kid! Run now!”
“I don’t want to! Because Dad, he—”
“He’s not your father anymore! Let’s go!”
What heartbreaking words… ah, so this is what a broken heart sounds like?
I watched as the boy was dragged away by a woman. The look in his eyes as he left was filled with resentment, with discontent—why was it aimed at me? I don’t understand…
But at least now, there were no more hesitations. I triggered the motes, and the summoned blades sliced through the man’s body before vanishing, leaving behind two halves… Hm? His vitality—why has it become as fragile as a human’s? Shouldn’t it have remained active?
Well, I don’t care about that anymore, nor do I want to.
I continued searching around the plaza, taking down several more “mimics”—let’s call them that for now, since they can adopt the appearance of whatever they’ve consumed. And I noticed that most mimics didn’t possess the same high-level human intelligence as the earlier ones. They seemed to be less evolved—like juveniles in a normal biological growth cycle.
I pulled the forearm blade out of the abdomen of the eleventh mimic, kicked it down, and finished it off with a fireball. Glancing around, I could see plenty of other flesh-clumps turning their weapons on each other… Were they prioritizing killing, consuming, and expanding over keeping up their disguises?
Ah, my clothes are all dirty now. How am I supposed to get dried blood and dust out and make them look new again?
“Hm?” What’s that… fire? But the color’s too white…
Amid the distant chaos, I finally picked up the sound of a fight. From the voice and the tone of the words, it was definitely a normal human. That actually made me worry—the owner of that voice sounded like one of the righteous side, probably one of the guards. If they recognized me, we’d end up in another chase.
Of course, “chase” wouldn’t really be the right word—more like a one-sided massacre—
The number of mimics in this area had already decreased somewhat. I’m sure those guards can handle the rest. With that, there’s no need for me to stick around here anymore. I can go take care of my own business.
“I really hope all this nonsense ends soon…”
