#213 Jeron’s Ordeal (2)
There were still a few knights who had survived the surprise attack and were resisting, but it was only a matter of time before they were all dealt with.
Some of the enemy were opening the doors of the delegation’s carriages one by one and carrying out a merciless slaughter, while additional barriers laid down by mages covered the surrounding area, making escape impossible without using 「Footsteps of the Hero」.
In the midst of that crisis, Hesperon’s mind spun faster than ever. ‘What the hell are they thinking, doing something like this in the middle of the capital? How are they planning to clean this up? Are they trying to start a rebellion?’ When he had investigated the important figures beforehand, Stav, the captain of the Imperial Guard, had definitely been neutral… or more precisely, belonged to the Emperor’s faction.
That was why he had heard that Riley had been putting considerable effort into drawing him to her side. ‘Damn it, he’s been cooped up inside the imperial palace, so there’s not enough information. No, his motive doesn’t matter right now! I need to find some way out of this!’ Even now, Riley’s emotions were being transmitted to him directly through 「Thread of Bonding」.
As expected of an imperial princess, she seemed to be trying all sorts of methods, perhaps with some hidden measures up her sleeve, but that thread-thin hope kept being blocked by something and sinking back into despair. ‘…Was the thorough preparation he mentioned at the start not about the Immortal King, but about making sure no one could get out of here?’ No matter how hard he searched for a solution, the situation was hopeless.
And yet, despite all that… she had not given up until the very end.
A girl who had not even come of age was feeling terror at the shadow of death drawing closer by the second, and yet she was desperately maintaining her composure and struggling until the final, final moment.
If he were to give up first and retreat here… ‘What could be more pathetic than that?’ He was practically the mastermind manipulating this world from behind the scenes. Wouldn’t that wound his pride far too much? ‘I can’t give up without even trying. Besides, I’ve just seen a possibility.’
But to turn that possibility into reality, there was one thing he absolutely needed.
Time.
The barrier installed on the imperial princess’s carriage was on the verge of complete destruction, and two knights had already approached right up to the carriage he was riding in.
Even now, with his thought processes dramatically enhanced, it felt desperately tight.
-Hannibal Strauss: Tch, foolish and inefficient. If both of you are going to die, would it not be more profitable for you alone to escape?
-Hesperon: No, I’m only barely at the level of an intermediate mage anyway. My greatest asset is my connection to Riley, the next heir to the imperial throne.
They shared and understood each other’s thoughts, but because their fundamental ways of thinking differed, they could not accept them in the same way.
So Hesperon very kindly added an explanation that Hans would be able to accept.
-Hesperon: But if I run away here, all that’ll be left is one mediocre intermediate mage. Rather than that, wouldn’t it be better to take a gamble? If it succeeds, I become the closest aide to the next emperor, you know?
-Hannibal Strauss: Ho—? That certainly has a point. Well, at your current level, it would not be all that difficult to make you again.
-Hesperon: …It kind of hurts when you say it so decisively.
-Hannibal Strauss: Very well. It may be a waste of time, but considering the return, it is worth the wager.
-Heinrich: My battle just ended too. I’ve got some leeway now, so I’ll start preparing right away. I really hope this works. I don’t want to see anything happen to the princess.
-Heinz II: Hmm, a means of buying time, is it?
-Howard: Wait! Now that I think about it, there’s something I prepared in a simple form. It’s still incomplete, but…
Thus ended the emergency meeting inside his brain, held within accelerated time.
And the situation began to unfold at a rapid pace once more.
***
Kwaaang!
The knight who had drawn his sword and was about to open the door of the carriage carrying the attendants instantly stepped back.
Someone had suddenly kicked the carriage door open and swung a sword at him in a surprise attack.
But it was not at a level that an upper-grade knight of the empire could not handle.
“Resistance, is it? How troublesome.”
“He is Viscount Pristin’s disciple. He is a mage, so be careful.”
“A mage, you say? A mage using a sword…”
But no sooner had another knight standing a short distance away warned him than—
Blue magical light flashed over the entire body of that man, Hesperon, and his speed multiplied several times over.
“Petty tricks! Not good enough!”
But even that was laughable to a knight.
A dense haze rose from his entire body, and the sword likewise wrapped in brilliant aura split the sword of the mage daring to charge him in two with a single stroke.
And the moment he, emboldened by that, tried to cut down his defenseless opponent then and there…
Kwaaang—!
Together with a flash of black magical light, Hesperon’s fist, amplified several more times in an instant, drove straight into his chest.
“Keheuk?!”
Giiiiik.
—As if made for a fighter, the metal gauntlet with reinforced knuckles scraped against the knight’s armor, spreading an ominous sound.
“What… is… this…!”
On top of that, the problem was not merely the shock from the impact.
A deadly curse emitted from his fist burrowed into the aura surrounding the knight’s body and restricted his movement.
If it had not been for his aura, that curse alone would probably have left him completely unable to fight.
But that did not mean he had any hope of surviving.
Puhwaak—!
With a chilling sound, bright-red blood scattered, and the knight’s headless corpse slowly toppled backward.
“You bastard!”
And at the same time—
Chaeng!
The sword of the other knight, who had moved the instant his comrade was struck, was already locked against the “pitch-black sword” that had appeared in Hesperon’s hand.
Of course, that sword, still dripping with the blood of the life it had just harvested, also gave off ominous black magic power.
Just like what was leaking from his body right now.
The knight pressed down harder with his sword and spat out his words.
“Don’t tell me you were a black mage? And where did you get a magic sword like that…!”
“Kuh, I borrowed it from a friend!”
At that brazen reply, he furrowed his brow in displeasure… but that was all.
Whether he strengthened his body with black magic or tried to use the power of a magic sword to oppose aura—
Chaeng—! Chaang! Chaechaeng—!
Before a high-ranking knight who had reached the top tier, he was nothing more than a child playing with a dangerous toy. ‘No, he is not at the level of a child. I was told he was definitely a mage, yet that martial art earlier, and now this swordsmanship—what is this? He is not merely reacting with physical ability alone, is he?’ Even if he had borrowed the power of an unorthodox path (外道), the fact that he was somehow reacting to his attacks and crossing swords with him was proof that he was not ordinary.
Although he was only barely, narrowly enduring it, even that alone was enough to be worthy of praise.
Crack— ‘But this is as far as it goes.’ The knight looked at the magic sword that had begun to crack under his fierce aura and raised the corners of his mouth viciously.
No matter how full of black magic power the object was, it had been exposed several times to attacks swung with full force by one who had reached a high realm. It was only natural. ‘If he had been able to reinforce his weapon with aura, that might have been different, but with that paltry magical power, it is impossible. A mage daring to imitate a knight—he should know his place!’
And so, convinced of his victory, he swung his sword toward the crack in the magic sword.
The instant their blades met again, he felt black magic power begin to swell from that gap and opened his eyes wide.
“Huh? …This is?!”
But the moment he belatedly realized something was wrong, he had no time to react in any way.
Kwajajajak!
Fragments shattered into pieces in an instant by the tremendous pressure that had started from the crack were fired in one direction with a specific purpose and orientation by the spell placed on the magic sword.
Kwaaaang—!
Countless fragments, filled with deadly black magic power, swept across the front like a claymore mine.
This sure-kill magic sword, made to annihilate the opponent whose weapon clashed with it, had intentionally limited its effective range to an extreme degree in order to maximize its lethality.
Thud!
But precisely because of that, it boasted overwhelming effectiveness against anyone who came within range.
Even if that someone was a knight who had reached the very top tier.
“Haa, haa— Level isn’t everything, you know. This is what you call the power of gear.”
Hesperon breathed roughly as he looked at the knight’s corpse, which had only barely retained its shape thanks to his immense aura.
Even if he enhanced his body with support magic using 「Introduction to Magic Studies」 and made use of skills such as 「Martial Arts」 and 「Monstrous Strength」, it was utterly impossible for him to defeat knights of this level with his own abilities alone.
To break through this situation, he naturally needed external assistance…
And that was support in the form of high-grade items through 「Avatar Cloud」. ‘Magic tools focused on black magic power, too, with effects that are absolutely killer.’
They were items personally selected by none other than the Immortal King himself, even adjusted by his own hand before being sent over, so there was no need to mention their quality.
Of course, there was no way he could use such items without any side effects at all.
Paseuseuk—
“Mm.”
The one-use magic sword, of which only the handle remained, turned to powder and vanished, and a vicious curse began to burrow into the right hand that had held it.
Not only that, but the rings, necklace, bracelets, and so on worn on his body… the many accessories provided to enhance his physical ability and attack power were steadily producing contamination and gnawing away at his lifespan. ‘Well, lifespan doesn’t really matter. …Still, they’re really glaring at me.’
Even so, Hesperon swallowed down the blood rising up his throat and maintained his tension to the end.
Considering the commotion he had caused, it was only natural, but the gazes of all the knights scattered around him were already fixed on him.
“…Cursed objects. Was he really a black mage?”
“No, looking closely, it does not seem like he learned it himself. Those magic tools appear to be the cause. …Well, at this point, I suppose that hardly matters.”
“Kunter is one thing, but to think even Sir Wilhelm would be taken down.”
In a very brief span, one knight had died, and the one who had stepped forward immediately afterward had also been killed by an unexpected blow.
They had thought he would win without issue and merely watched, only for two of their comrades to die sudden, violent deaths, so they had no choice but to refrain from rushing in recklessly and heighten their vigilance. ‘How prickly.’
Of course, they were merely not stepping forward immediately; the blade-like momentum rising among the knights was ominous enough to cut him to pieces at any moment.
-Heinrich: I’m a little late. Still, this much should be helpful enough. I’ll send more as soon as it’s ready.
As he was wary of the knights slowly surrounding him—
The holy symbol, now held in Hesperon’s right hand and filled with Heinrich’s divine power, began to crush the cursed energy burrowing into it. ‘Ah, I feel like I can live a little.’
It was only an indirect exertion of power through a holy symbol, but it was still the divine power of one called a saint.
At that energy, the knights who had been preparing to attack together flinched and furrowed their brows again.
“…Tremendous divine power. Is it a holy relic?”
“Seeing as it is rapidly decreasing, it seems temporary. Even so, at that level, at least someone of archbishop class must have intervened, no?”
“Those cursed items earlier were one thing, but he even has something like that? What in the world is he?” ‘I’m an alt character receiving support from the main character. The gear advantage sure is sweet.’
Though Hesperon put on a serious expression and acted dignified, he answered playfully on the inside, but in truth, the situation was not so relaxed.
Even while fighting, he had continuously focused on 「Thread of Bonding」 with one corner of his mind, yet he was still slightly short of reaching what he wanted. ‘It feels like I’d get there if I just had a little more time.’
He subtly looked around.
Those who had been riding in the carriages had already all been massacred, except for the few who seemed to be in league with them.
Still, perhaps because the uproar he had caused had scattered their attention, there were still quite a few survivors among the group of knights who had not betrayed them.
As he was observing the situation like that—
Chill—
At the sudden cold sensation he felt, he quietly turned his gaze in that direction.
Sure enough, standing there was Stav, the leader of the traitors, glaring at him.
With the carriage door wide open right in front of him.
***
Stav, who had been staring fixedly at Hesperon, soon turned his gaze away.
Right now, this matter was more important than that one man.
Watching for a moment, it was clear that while the items he possessed were somewhat troublesome, his realm itself was not particularly high.
Now that his subordinates would no longer let their guard down, they should be more than capable of dealing with him on their own.
“...Sir Stav. Why would you do such a thing?”
“My apologies, Your Highness. Is this not what political strife is always like? We merely wanted different things.”
“Do you think you’ll be safe after moving so openly in Jeron? His Majesty the Emperor will never overlook this!”
“Please do not worry about that. We did not set this in motion without thinking.”
Stav replied calmly to Riley’s warning.
After all, he had poured both tangible and intangible resources into this affair to the point that his faction might reel from it, and he was not the only one directly mobilized.
Most unfortunately, the Fifth Imperial Princess Riley, who had barely escaped the Immortal King’s grasp, would be dealt with as having been killed by the undead army that pursued her to execute an escaped prisoner.
The terror attacks currently taking place in the city were also part of that, and all physical and magical evidence, as well as witnesses, had already been prepared. ‘Everyone here, including me, as well.’ He smiled coldly and looked down at her with frigid eyes.
“I am sorry, but there is no more time. It is time for you to go.”
He had indulged her in conversation as a final courtesy to an imperial princess, but since they had little leeway left, he could not spare any more time.
Even with all their forces buying time at the center and elsewhere, there had to be a limit.
“Wait! Don’t tell me you’re...”
Riley tried to keep him talking somehow to buy time, but Stav ignored her and calmly took a short dagger from his subspace magic tool. ...In truth, it was only called a dagger because it had a handle; judging by its appearance alone, it was something shaped like the claw of a demonic beast.
“Ah, there is one more thing I must ask your understanding for. You will likely find it difficult to die cleanly. It will be quite painful, and you will end up in a rather gruesome state.”
The blood-red claw dagger, the moment it appeared, sprayed an aura in all directions as though it would tear everything apart.
That, too, was a cursed demonic sword filled with black magic power.
“Come to think of it, that fellow was using cursed objects earlier. I had intended from the beginning to frame him as one of the Immortal King’s minions, but making him the actual culprit who murdered Your Highness would not be a bad idea either.”
His gaze turned toward the place where the commotion could still be heard.
He had thought the presence he had been sensing for a while was strange, and it turned out that the man had slipped in among the few knights who had survived and was supporting them while pulling all sorts of tricks.
He restored the knights with items imbued with divine power, bought time in emergencies with barrier magic tools, and a storm of blood activated through some blood-red bead was hindering the mages’ interference.
On top of that, because of the ominous objects he had taken out in the midst of it all, including a demonic sword, his subordinates could not act rashly.
“...Tch, useless fools. I suppose I will have to handle that side myself as well. I am busy, so let us end this here.”
Stav frowned and lightly clicked his tongue.
As if there was no need to wait any longer, he swung the dagger straight at Princess Riley.
No, to be precise...
At the place where Princess Riley had “been.”
“...Huh?”
After cutting through empty air, Stav froze for a moment, then slowly turned his head, following his senses.
To the middle of the battlefield, where chaos was still raging.
And there—
“Damn, that was close.”
In the arms of Hesperon, who was grinning foolishly even as blood streamed from his nose and mouth,
Princess Riley was nestled demurely, her eyes wide with shock.