Just then, the man released Elfe and shoved her hard to the ground. Another one did the same to Alek, though he seemed to deliberately loosen his grip—almost as if he intended to spare his life.
And so, the battle began in earnest. Spotting several dragon knights rising back into the air, I quickly dashed over to Elfe and Alek, thinking to get them out of there first before figuring out our next move. But the moment I tried to activate 【Image Teleport】 , I felt a chill biting at my skin—the unmistakable scent of ice magic.
“Edge of frost, bring the blizzard here.”
“Read the shadows, weaken this one’s power.”
All the mages on the field began chanting their ice spells in unison, their overlapping incantations grating on my nerves. The freezing wind that descended slowed my movements to a crawl—
If only I could snap my fingers…
“Perceive the knots of space, lock this place in place.”
Another strange phrase rang out. I found it almost laughable—until I snapped my fingers and nothing happened. Only then did I realize what that spell meant… These abilities were so straightforward—they practically announced themselves through their chants.
But even with chains binding me, I couldn’t give up.
“Apologies—my men simply don’t want you running away. Since I’ve returned your companions to you, the least you can do is face me head-on, don’t you think?”
I curled my lips, hesitated, then finally straightened my back and stood before Elfe and Alek. Facing the dragon knights hovering in the air, I couldn’t help but swallow hard—
“Don’t worry, little girl! I’ll take you on myself!”
The dragon knight riding on a drake called out to me. She hadn’t even landed yet—she leaped from midair, her light armor clinking as she touched down heavily right in front of me.
Wait—this skin… I covered my mouth in disbelief, my body trembling for reasons I couldn’t explain…
She’s a dragonkin! That skin color and the grade of her weapon… No way! You’re one of the dragon race too?!
“Hehehe, look at you trembling with fear. I know exactly how humans feel when they learn I’m a dragonkin.”
“Tch… I’m not afraid! Bring it on!”
Forcing myself to be brave, I took a deep breath to steady my nerves. The dragonkin before me wore light armor and wielded a unique cold-steel lance. The flame flickering at the tip of her tail suggested she was attuned to fire.
“Make it fun for me, little girl!”
The dragon knight captain assumed a textbook thrusting stance. So she was more comfortable fighting on solid ground than mounted? Or maybe… she was even stronger on dragonback.
Should I use time-stop? Would that draw too much attention? Damn it, damn it! Is this why so many people surrounded us? No wonder they brought a whole squad here at night—if they wanted secrecy, then— I need to stop talking to myself!
I barely dodged the thrust that came straight at me and tried to grab the dragonkin, but she had already vanished. A whip-like strike across my back told me exactly where she’d gone—
She’s so fast… No—am I the one slowing down?
“Slow!”
I heard her voice—right in front of me. But my body, for some reason, just wouldn’t keep up. My punch hit nothing but air, and in its place came searing pain in my side, and a jolt that shook my entire frame…
For a long moment, I was stunned. Then the pain drummed against my abdomen again, sharper this time. I looked up—the lance had pierced clean through my small waist, the iron shaft stained with blood…
Status anomaly—clearing…
“Ah…”
The escape trigger didn’t activate. Bad luck, I guess… But then again, running into this kind of situation in the first place was already terrible luck. Still… it wasn’t enough. If you can take me down just like this, then the devs really did a poor job. Even moving at normal speed, I still had a trump card up my sleeve.
“Oh? Hehe, looks like I’ve found myself a fun little toy.”
(…What’s wrong? Are you hesitating—)
I forced my hand into a fist and muttered that spell under my breath. The moment I heard the “clink” of chains, I grabbed the lance, hauled myself upward, and rolled out of the way.
“Phew… phew…” That scared me. I almost thought I was going to die there.
Abnormal status restored
After taking a deep breath and pulling myself together, I felt all my strength return. I charged forward and clashed with the dragonkin. If it was a contest of pure martial arts, I wouldn’t lose to her. Well… maybe? Though my speed at full power was far greater than hers, her stats were nothing to sneeze at either.
“Flame Fist!”
I summoned my Emerald Shield to block her punch, then cancelled it in an instant to throw one of my own. I thought no one could react to that switch, but the dragonkin caught it effortlessly. I saw her tail twitching, ready to strike, and had no choice but to raise my shield again—
Locked in a grapple with the dragonkin, I met her eyes. They were filled with resolve and purity—she genuinely just wanted a good fight.
“Three limbs attacking—that’s so unfair!”
I shoved her away, scattered countless motes of light before me, and haphazardly traced lines with my mana like I was drawing.
If I could survive this move, I’d be free to go all out without holding back.
“Little girl, that spell you cast is interesting. 【Phantom】!”
When the light-saw missed its mark and carved a path straight ahead, my heart leapt with joy. I grabbed Elfe and Alek and bolted through the opening. The surrounding mages threw spells at me, but they were all useless—explosions of mana filled the air as I successfully broke out of the encirclement with my companions.
Staring at the still-unconscious Alek, my heart was in a knot—but seeing Elfe safe and sound made me feel a little better.
I gathered golden light in my hand and aimed it at the villains. I called it “Justice Shotgun”—haha, so cringey. It had a short range, but at least it gave us some breathing room to counterattack.
Forced back by the “shotgun,” the enemies had to retreat or even chant defensive spells. Meanwhile, the dragonkin who’d been fighting me jumped onto her drake and took to the sky again—
“Since you broke our agreement, it’s fair game to attack you now, isn’t it?”
A man hidden among the crowd stated coldly.
“…I never made any agreement with you! Don’t be so full of yourself!”
After throwing those harsh words, I quickly assessed our surroundings.
We were a good distance from the main road, with the entrance to the great forest behind us. Should I try to break through the crowd in front, or run into the forest for cover? Damn it—I’d be on my own in there, and Alek couldn’t help… Forget it!
Elfe was a nature spirit—the forest would let her shine. I trusted her to take care of herself—and Alek too—
“【Starry Flame Rain】!”
Before I could react, I instinctively conjured a tortoise-shell Emerald Shield over my head. In an instant, blue flames rained down like a storm, battering against the shield and sending jolts through my body.
When the blazing assault finally subsided, I had to take a moment to stop my arms from trembling.
“Elfe, I’m leaving Alek in your hands. I’ll hold them off as long as I can. In the meantime, I need you two to run as far away as possible…”
After those few words, I stood up and planted myself at the forest entrance.
“Miss Hatsuki…? I…”
“Shiryo… you… cough… don’t go…”
I blinked hard and swallowed the bitterness rising in my throat. We’d finally reunited, only for it to end like this. How cruel.
“Oh? Little girl, trying to play the hero?”
“Yes.”
There was no point in wasting more words. Even if it cost me everything, I had to hold this line. Whether it was 【Seven Spirits’ Divine Might】 or 【Baptism of All Things】 —I’d use them all. Hm? What’s that person?
I stared at a blonde man standing not far away. He was handsome, tall, and dressed like nobility… Huh. Was it just me, or were his lips moving, as if he were saying something—?!
What happened? I was wounded—but how? Everyone was still right there, barely moving… I looked down, trembling, and saw a short blade embedded in me. Unbelievably—it had come from behind. Behind? …Why—behind—!!!! AAAAAHHHH!!!!
The searing agony that followed made me scream uncontrollably! I didn’t care about dignity anymore—I screamed as loud as I could, if only to release this sudden torment!!
“Ah… ah…”
The sound faded… dirt met my eyes again… Ah… I’d fallen. My stomach… it felt split open… It hurts… it hurts so much… Ah… who… was it?… The one behind me… Elfe? Why would she—
I couldn’t see anything anymore. Everything was hazy. My muddled thoughts drifted away, second by second. The wound burned hotter and hotter. Blood rose in my throat and spilled from my mouth, staining my vision red. I couldn’t hear, couldn’t make out anything… I didn’t want to hear anymore…
The ground trembled. Someone came, or someone left—who? Was it them? Or Elfe? Why… why did it have to be… I… why…
“[Completely inaudible]”
“[Completely inaudible]”
The buzzing—was it conversation… Or… What a tragedy. And I… was the clown.
Someone grabbed the back of my collar and lifted me. My vision swam—I couldn’t see anything clearly. My ragged breaths seemed to whisper that death was near.
“[Can’t hear]”
“[Can’t hear]”
The force behind me vanished, and I hit the ground again. The pain on my face was nothing compared to my stomach… Honestly, if I wanted to, I could’ve stood up and slaughtered them all right then and there.
But I didn’t want to. Not after all this struggle, all this effort, only to end up like this… Hehehehe…
This was it… the tremors faded… they were gone.
My soul grew fainter and fainter… Were they really gone?… Hehehehe…
…Am I dying?… Death… death…
…Might as well die, then…
…How nice…
Let it all end…
*…
“Huff! Haah… these beastmen just won’t quit! Toh! How’s it on your side!”
“Ah, I’m almost out of mana… And you, Lyell?”
“Aagh! Can’t even use 【Earth Shatter】 anymore. I’m just about spent.”
“Never thought I’d meet my end here.”
“Same here—and I still haven’t found that kid…”
…*
*…
《Hey… hey! Milady! Wake up! Please! Grandpa Erik!》
“No, Illyr, I don’t have the power for this. Without the power of the World Tree, no one can bring the dead back to life.”
“She died because she wasn’t strong enough. Plain and simple.”
“Tia! Don’t talk like that!”
“Then give me a better reason, Clytie!”
“I…”
《That’s not true! Milady was betrayed by her companions! It was the elf beside her who stabbed her in the back…》
“An elf… an elf… I see. What a pity.”
“…Hey, hey—could everything she said before have been true? About protecting our kin and all…”
“She’s gone now. There’s no reason for us to stay. We’d better get moving. It’s getting late…”
…*
Name: Hatsuki Shiryo
Age: 14
Status: 【Deceased】
Social Status: None
——————
【Viewing】
Attack: ??
Defense: EX (due to 【KRYY Blood】)
Agility: ??
Magic: ∞
Physical Strength: EX
Growth Potential: ∞
Precision: A
Mental Strength: A+
Airheadedness: None / Wisdom: A
——————
Toggles: 【Judgment】【Injury Escape】【Scholar’s Brain】【Elemental Fury】【Growth Boost · Random】【Blood Boil】【Temporal Ability · Mode】【Sage’s Protection】
Mode-Enhanced Attributes: 【Permanent · Transcendent Realm · Form One — Serious Mode】【Spatial Will · Form One — Serious Mode】【Arcane Mystery · Impression Rift · Form One — Serious Mode】
Innate Abilities: 【Lock On · Boundless Vigor】【Time · Forced Rewind】【KRYY’s Blood · Universal】【Recovery Healing · Superpower】【Tea Farmer’s Appetite】【Check and Balance · Free Domain】
Weakness: 【Mental Frailty】
——————
Notification:
【Sage’s Protection】 has been triggered
