#214
Jeron’s Hardship (3)
Kuhuk—
Black, congealed blood burst without cease from his nose and mouth.
He had tried to suppress it somehow, but this bleeding was beyond the scope of what his will could control.
*‘Damn it, at this rate, I’m really going to die.’*
The blood flowing outward was merely a part of the phenomenon.
Because he had forcibly overexerted himself, the mana circuits inside his body were not merely twisted but mangled into tatters, and the curse that had flooded in through the weakened gap in his control rampaged like mad, voraciously devouring his vitality.
He was only alive to this extent thanks to the holy token Heinrich had given him; otherwise, it wouldn’t have ended at merely this level.
And the price he had to pay was not simply limited to that, but…
*‘Still, it’s fine since I managed to make it in time.’*
Hesperon smiled bitterly as he felt the necklace he had hung around his neck and tucked inside his clothes crumble and vanish.
Trickle—
Immediately after, bloody tears streamed down from his right eye.
Slowly, his vision on that side blurred, and eventually went completely dark.
*‘…My right eye, huh.’*
A dramatic rescue performed at the very moment the heroine fell into crisis.
If one only considered that exquisite timing, it could have looked like the cliché of a protagonist awakened in an extreme situation taking action, but…
At least for the current him, it wasn’t such a convenient story.
—Hannibal Strauss: Still, losing just one eye isn’t bad. The more you forcibly raise your abilities, the greater the price you must pay. Your efforts until the very last moment were worthwhile.
—Halli: Kahat! Ahem, it’s just an eye! Just strap on a new one! Like me!
Among the black magic tools Hans had obtained while settling the Undead Army, there were many items possessed of all sorts of bizarre abilities.
It was ironic that the majority of them demanded a price such as vitality or lifespan, making them unusable by the undead, but…
《The individual has met the conditions for growth. The skill "Cord of Bonds" evolves into the special skill "Chain of Oath".》
The necklace Hesperon had used this time was one among them.
Because that artifact had filled in for part of the lacking skill growth value, he was able to evolve "Cord of Bonds" and summon Riley, the target of his contract.
*Not only did I gain additional correction, but I can now exert forcible influence as I just did. Even the skill’s applicable range has expanded, allowing me to forge bonds with inanimate objects.*
Of course, since the skill had just evolved, he would need to think more deeply about its applications, but the fact that his range of possibilities had increased was nevertheless welcome.
“Heron…?”
Just then, Riley’s bewildered voice reached his ears.
Well, she had thought she was dead for certain, only to wake up in a strange man’s embrace.
It was only natural she’d be flustered.
But now wasn’t the time to chat leisurely.
Without even looking at her, he simply smirked and opened his mouth.
“Riley, let’s talk later. The situation is a bit urgent right now.”
“…Okay.”
Hesperon’s gaze had been fixed on one spot from beginning to end.
Toward the man standing stock-still a short distance away—Stave.
He was still holding a grotesque dagger in one hand, simply turning his head to stare blankly this way.
*All that remains is to synchronize Riley and myself through "Chain of Oath," and leave this place using "Footsteps of the Hero," but…*
However, perhaps because he had forcibly summoned Riley just now, the connection of "Chain of Oath" was unstable and needed some time to be readjusted.
It was an inevitable problem given he had forcibly used a skill beyond his original capabilities, but in this situation, it was absolutely not good news.
“What a nuisance…”
As expected.
Sss—
Stave’s body, which had been muttering quietly, blurred and flickered.
*As I thought, he won’t wait!*
The moment Hesperon’s mind was heightened, "Nerve Hypersensitivity" activated, and the surrounding time began to slow down drastically.
However…
*He’s still moving that fast even in this state?*
Stave’s movements visible within that endlessly stretching world were clearly alien.
Unlike his surroundings slowing to a halt, he alone strode forward toward them—a sight enough to make one’s hair stand on end.
*…I’ve been swimming in such deep waters lately that I’d lost my sense of it.*
Having recently associated with nothing but big shots among enemies and allies alike, he had grown somewhat dull, but the realm called transcendence was never a low level to begin with.
Even in the Brokoslak Clan, one of the three great powers of vampire society where they easily lived for hundreds of years, there were only three True Bloods including the Lord, and it was a realm corresponding to the executive level of Paladins and Archbishops within the Lord God Order that boasted the continent’s greatest influence.
And now, such an opponent was charging this way with murderous intent blazing in both eyes.
Hesperon gritted his teeth and forced his body to move.
However, by the time he had desperately retreated one step backward, the other had already taken four or five steps forward without hesitation.
Though he could barely perceive his opponent thanks to his abnormal stats and skills, even his currently strengthened flesh was woefully insufficient to respond to the movements of a knight who had reached transcendence.
*Kuk, just a little more!*
Within the slowly flowing time, the synchronization process was proceeding equally slowly.
No matter how little mana was bound by the laws of physics, the passage it traveled through was unmistakably a real body, so it couldn’t be completely unrelated—thus it was unavoidable.
*Close combat is hopeless. I have to keep him from approaching as much as possible.*
In the end, Hesperon began pouring out every means at his disposal to buy time.
Blood-red orbs concentrated with Heinz II’s "Refined Blood Crystals" were thrown in clusters, unleashing the blood magic engraved within them in all directions.
A holy token filled with Heinrich’s holy power formed a barrier to block the opponent’s steps.
Needless to say, cursed objects and all sorts of other magical tools were mobilized as well.
“Kuk, what a bother! Just how did you obtain such things?”
Sswak—
Chwachwachwak!
But unfortunately, the opponent did not seem very pleased with his surprise gift barrage.
—Heinrich: So it wasn’t merely pleasure after all. He is precisely targeting the vulnerabilities of incomplete spells manifested through mediums. His skill is certainly above that of Gios.
Stave bared his teeth in annoyance as he closed the distance, pulverizing every obstruction with the blazing blade of his aura.
Now he was at a distance that could truly be called point-blank.
Throb.
Was it because he had overused the cursed objects?
Throughout Hesperon’s entire body… especially his right hand, extreme pain surged.
But he couldn’t give up now.
He hugged Riley in his arms and retreated a few more steps.
Crack—
Perhaps because he was overexerting himself to match the opponent’s pace within the slowed world, the muscles throughout his body screamed, but now was not the time to worry about such trivialities.
“Stave, you bastard! How dare this filthy traitor lay a hand on Her Highness!”
“Kueok! I’m going to die here anyway; do you think I’ll just take this lying down!”
As he retreated, several knights who had survived until now instead stepped in front of him, disregarding their lives and clinging to Stave’s ankles.
Though they had already suffered serious wounds and were far too few in number to oppose the overwhelming tide, each and every one of them could be called an elite.
At least, they were sufficient forces to buy a very brief moment in this urgent situation.
“Kuk, you fools! Can’t you even stop these guys properly anymore?”
“F-forgive us, Commander!”
And that moment the knights bought with their lives, perishing heroically,
was the very moment Hesperon had desperately wished for.
*It’s done.*
With his remaining one eye, he watched the last knight fall to Stave’s blade and took a deep breath.
“Huu— You all.”
And lastly, sweeping his gaze across the faces of the traitors charging fiercely from all sides, he uttered a low remark.
“Go ahead and struggle all you want.”
He flipped his palm downward, dropping the final gift to the ground with a tap, and simultaneously activated "Footsteps of the Hero."
Beyond his blurring vision as space distorted.
Unlike the men charging this way with murderous intent, Stave urgently shouted something and threw himself backward—a scene that passed as if in slow motion—then…
the surrounding scenery changed in an instant, as if the screen had cut.
*As expected, your senses are sharp. Well, the real deal starts now, though. The moment Riley escapes safely, those bastards are as good as fallen into the abyss.*
That went not only for them but also for anyone even remotely connected to this affair.
When the reckless gambit of attempting to eliminate the princess, going so far as to commit terrorism in the capital, failed, a fitting price was bound to follow.
Ah, and for reference, the gift was really nothing special.
He had simply noticed that the things he had taken out until now weren’t very satisfactory, and since it was a shame to part like this, he had prepared something with a bit more care.
Hans’s special Abyss Bomb, packed to the limit.
***
A large-scale invasion of the Undead Army was occurring throughout the continent.
It was inflicting damage across the world that could not be compared to the raids of before.
[Kihihihik!]
Kkadeudeuk! Kkadeuk—!
[Join us!]
“Block them with your lives! If this place is breached, the entire city is in danger!”
“W-wait. This is different from what we’ve faced until now!”
“Where’s the support! Is the support not here yet? We’re really at our limit now!”
The greatest cause of this was the leadership’s complacent response.
The danger of this raid had already been repeatedly emphasized several times by Saint Heinrich, but—
the problem was that people had grown accustomed to Hans’s “gentle” invasions and thought it would be enough to simply raise their existing response level moderately.
[Aah—! Wonderful! How long has it been since I walked the mortal realm! This sweet blood and screaming excites me! Wonderful, yes. More— scream more!]
[Upon this land— unending fear— eternal death—!]
Moreover, among the invaders this time, high-ranking undead who had been holed up in their undead strongholds were even mixed in occasionally…
Thinking *‘This level should be enough?’* and letting their guard down, the situation became a mess in an instant.
The high-ranking undead, who had rarely shown themselves, led the forces amassed in the northern mountain range and struck ruthlessly across the continent, and the civilian casualties swept up in it were snowballing.
It was an event sufficient to shake up the times, which had been in a slight stagnation due to the ambiguous peace that had continued until now.
However, regardless of such matters, there were those who moved diligently as always and showed results more certain than anyone…
Sshwuk— Pung!
[Kueuuuh—!]
Kuwung!
The Hero’s party, which had recruited a new member this time, was precisely the main contributor.
“Situation resolved. No special enemies are detected nearby anymore.”
The green-haired elf who had blown away the core of the Death Knight, the enemy leader, with an arrow composed of wind opened her mouth indifferently.
She was a High Elf and the leader of the Wardens, the Elven Kingdom’s combat group—Lydia Granwood, who had joined the Hero’s party immediately after the second summit meeting.
At first, she had come to the Ion Continent as the successor to Lapoli, who was nearing retirement, but with the current situation flowing urgently, she naturally joined the party.
Of course, it wasn’t so out of the blue since she, a combatant from the start, had come as an envoy to the Ion Continent to actively respond to this chaotic situation.
However, it was only a shame that Lapoli’s retirement had been pushed back once again because of this.
“Saint? Are you alright? It seemed you couldn’t focus on the battle earlier and were somewhat uncomfortable.”
As the party was gradually wrapping up, a woman approached Heinrich, who had been silently lost in thought with a serious expression, and cautiously opened her mouth.
It was Isea Pristin, the Empire’s great mage—a small-statured girl with black hair and black eyes.
“Ah, Lady Isea. I had something bothering me. I’m fine now. I just resolved it.”
Heinrich, who had been checking the situation on the Empire’s side, looked at her and smiled softly.
Fortunately, unlike Hesperon, Princess Riley was safe without a single injury, so he could speak confidently to her as well.
She didn’t seem to know about the incident in Jeron yet because the conspirators had thoroughly blocked communications, but she would be contacted soon.
She probably wouldn’t be able to maintain such a calm appearance then.
“…But this time, the number of casualties is much higher than usual. The undead forces were also at a level I’ve never seen before. To think a raid of this scale is happening across the entire continent?”
“Haa— that’s right. Ah! I should also help tend to the wounded now. After all, it must be difficult for the Holy Lady to handle that many alone.”
“Ah, then I should help clean up the surroundings too.”
Isea watched Heinrich quickly head toward the patients, then looked around the horrifically devastated surroundings again and bit her lower lip.
The place they were in now was Saridan, a trade city at the southernmost tip of the Turc Kingdom, and specifically the branch where the Merchant Union’s headquarters was located.
But now, rather than being vibrant with people, it was devastated to the point of resembling the middle of a battlefield.
“…So that’s how it is. Now I truly realize what we’re fighting against.”
The Demon King’s invasion. A land filled with death. A world-ending crisis.
What had felt somewhat distant until now was beginning to be felt clearly.
After standing still for a moment, Isea clenched her fist tightly and moved to find something she could help with.
And Heinrich, who had hurriedly moved away due to pangs of conscience, sighed inwardly upon hearing her soliloquy.
*‘Huu, Hans…’*
In truth, his own feelings were not very different from hers.
He only wanted to end the current situation somehow.
No matter what anyone said, he was this world’s Hero who protected justice and light.