Chapter 171: I had a pleasant time after a long time (5)
She held her sword straight, ready to showcase her skills once again. However, as if a technique seen once wouldn’t work twice, Baius moved as if dragging his feet, escaping her range.
Watching him, I held my sword in front of me and focused. Each of us is fighting in our own way. Then, I too will fight with my family’s swordsmanship.
“My sword, cut through space, pierce, and cry out.”
It’s been a long time since I’ve uttered the incantation of the Herduke family’s sword. I lowered my stance and charged towards Baius.
I strike from above as if to chop him down. He raises the shaft of his halberd to block it. I swing my sword down again, diagonally. This too is blocked. I thrust forward, but it’s blocked by an upward defense.
Now, my body is loosening up. I’m starting to feel it. The stiffness in my joints disappears, replaced by warmth spreading through my body.
Nine swords dance.
I pull back the sword that was about to strike down and aim for his side. The secret swordsmanship of the Herduke family, Hwan-geom, confuses the enemy with its speed. Thanks to the lightweight enchantment the Iperfect mages cast on my sword, I can move much more easily.
Baius, thinking my target was his side, tried to move his body back. But that too was a feint. Using feints to restrict the opponent’s movements.
Swish!
Two feints were used for a single thrust, but it was effective. I could see the surprise on Baius’s face.
Tch!
The sword grazed his armor, sparking flames. Damn it! I missed! Baius quickly regained his composure and swung his halberd at me. It was a truly calm movement.
“Ha!”
But I wasn’t worried. Because there was someone to block that blow.
Levidian blocked the halberd with a powerful strike. Then she grabbed the back of my neck and pulled me back. Ugh? What are you doing?!
“Time’s up.”
“Huh? Ah!”
As soon as I retreated, I looked back. There, the future Archmage, who had been waiting as if to show off a mage’s battle, stood with a triumphant smile.
“Now, now, try this medicine! Ol Keres Pendens’s Heavy Dimension!”
“Ugh?!”
Baius Extoria let out a strangled groan. His posture slumped, as if he was carrying a heavy burden.
There were no visual effects, but I could tell that an immense weight had been placed on him.
Lucy laughed, as if she was going crazy with joy.
“Hahahaha! How do you like it! My magic that overlays space and adds a massive weight! Calculating the function with spatial constant arrangement and variable adjustment, and forming an overlapping space almost killed me!”
I don’t think it needs to be explained in detail, but anyway, it’s a great magic. Baius Extoria lowered his arm, as if holding the halberd was a chore.
“Groan!”
The tendons in his neck bulged, and his face flushed red. It was a bit awkward to deal with a warrior like this, but we have to use every method we can.
I turned my head. On one side, Aila, Joey, and Namia were fiercely pushing Silvan Harcian.
Their combination was truly the strongest. Shadow Manipulation had the property of being nullified when it came into contact with light created by magic or holy spells, and Namia and Joey were followers of the God of Light.
The tentacles of Shadow Manipulation were powerful enough to crush a large oak tree, but they vanished in the light that even a low-ranking priest of Lynin could create.
Silvan Harcian was struggling against Joey, who was covered in light, Namia, who was constantly attacking with light, and Aila, who was attacking while enveloped in a white light of unknown origin.
“Old man, go play in a nursing home!”
Aila, with a witty remark, kicked off the air and repeated irregular jumps. Then she hid behind Joey, and in the next moment, jumped over his head and landed behind Silvan Harcian. Then she grabbed Silvan Harcian’s clothes.
“Strip – Show!”
Whoosh!
Silvan Harcian’s black robe was ripped off by Aila’s hand. The robe, already cut here and there, couldn’t withstand her strength and most of it detached from Silvan Harcian’s body.
Underneath the robe was a skinny, white-haired old man in a thin leather armor, his eyes burning with fury. His skin was tan, the typical appearance of a Southerner.
“You, you brats-!”
He yelled angrily and pulled out the tentacles of shadow, but his momentum was much weaker than before. Aila quickly moved away and waved his robe.
“Did you think I wouldn’t know? The source of Shadow Manipulation is shadows! The shadows you were surrounding yourself with are gone now! No matter how good a Shadow Manipulator you are, you can’t do anything in the middle of light!”
I see! Shadow Manipulation is a technique that uses shadows. So it needs shadows. Silvan Harcian was creating shadows while concealing his body with his robe!
Aila said proudly.
“It’ll be difficult to create large-scale shadows. The people you’re facing now are apostles of the God of Light, Lynin!”
Silvan Harcian looked resentfully at the white light surrounding him and the sun shining down from the sky. His wrinkled lips twisted.
“Ugh……!”
He fell to his knees and let out a frustrated sigh. Aila tossed his clothes aside and said cheerfully.
“Risel, we’re done here!”
Levidian translated her words.
“We won.”
“Huh? W-We won?”
“Yes. Baius Extoria and Silvan Harcian are incapacitated. We won.”
“Huh? B-But no one’s hurt?”
“Because we had the numbers.”
Levidian smiled and looked at me. I looked at Baius and Silvan alternately, then back at Levidian. She nodded, clearing up my doubts.
W-We won! We defeated two of Artshever’s companions!
I beamed. I raised my hand and tried to shout a victory cry. I’ve been doing it so often lately that it’s become familiar, but I was about to let out a joyful shout no matter how many times I’ve done it.
If it weren’t for the sudden lightning strike.
Crackle!
A house-sized lightning bolt struck out of the blue. A white light exploded before my eyes and disappeared, and I heard Levidian’s scream, muffled by the sound of the lightning.
W-What! Even a bolt from the blue has its limits!
The air crackled, releasing static electricity like in midwinter, as the lightning struck almost right next to me. The tingling sensation all over my skin was unpleasant.
“Ouch! Ouch! Hot!”
“Ugh!”
I heard Lucy and the others’ voices. I covered my eyes and tried to stay as still as possible. And I tried to calm down.
When I opened my eyes, I saw a person standing where the lightning had struck.
Her hair was redder than Namia’s, hanging down. A bright red robe that hid her hair, and red boots that looked like they were made of red lizard skin peeked out from under the robe. And a staff made of bright red wood, so red that it made me wonder if there was a Red Forest that was a sibling to the Gray Forest, was resting on the ground beside her.
A mage dressed entirely in red…… a woman.
Was she in her twenties or thirties? The female mage, exuding mature charm, opened her eyes. Her slightly flushed skin and blood-red irises matched bewitchingly.
She looked around and spoke in a sharp tone.
“Did you guys get into this mess because I was a little late, Silvan, Baius?”
“R-Referndi, I apologize.”
At Silvan Harcian’s weak reply, the female mage with sharp eyes widened her eyes.
R-Referndi?! The only one of Artshever’s companions whose whereabouts were unknown! But, was she a mage? Oh my god! I didn’t know!
Referndi spoke with a puzzled expression.
“Such a weak expression, unlike you, Silvan. Does that mean these people here are strong?”
“That’s right…… Strong.”
“How strong?”
“Strong enough to be worth destroying by you.”
I don’t know what kind of value she meant by “worth destroying,” but pure destructive desire flashed in Referndi’s red eyes. It was a light that made people instinctively back away.
She let out a regretful sigh. She looked at Baius and said.
“If Silvan says so, it must be true…… But it’s a shame. I came here today on business. But who’s the little guy who tied up Baius like that?”
“Hey, lady, who the hell are you!”
“Lady? Sorry, gray-haired kid. Could you please not call a woman who’s not even married a lady? Dispell!”
She said so and snapped her fingers. Snap! Then Baius Extoria collapsed and let out a big sigh. Lucy’s magic was dispelled?!
“Huff, huff……! I-I apologize, Referndi.”
“No. Arts knew everything and sent me anyway. You don’t have to apologize. The little ones seem quite strong.”
“We were about to be defeated. Huff……”
“H-How did you do that! How did you dispel my magic……!”
Lucy was utterly shocked. I was surprised too. To think there was someone who could dispel Lucy’s magic so easily!
Referndi smiled faintly. It was a sword-like smile that could be seen as seductive depending on the situation.
“You’re still clumsy. Even though you belong to the Ol Keres Pendens school, you still don’t understand its essence. You’re unworthy of the school’s name.”
“How do you know my school……!”
“I know it well. Kersilla Creon, I still haven’t forgotten that day! I want to repay all the shame and humiliation you gave me…… but today is not the day. Be grateful. That little one over there, you know what I mean, right?”
She winked at me. I understood. And I realized who she was and her identity.
“The, the Red-Haired Witch Lindy!”
“You know me well? But didn’t you learn that you get in trouble for calling people by names they hate? When you call me, I’d like you to call me ‘Lindy, who holds the Fundamental.’”
“The, the Fundamental?!”
Lucy’s scream was heard. I don’t know why he was so surprised. All I know is that the female mage named Referndi was the nemesis of Lucy, who was once one of the Eight Strongest on the continent.
Oh my god! Did she, did she also reset?!
While I was in shock, Baius Extoria approached her. He looked at me and said.
“Cough! Are you, Risel?”
“That’s right.”
“You have potential. Gain some more experience. Then you might be able to be my opponent.”
“Is he that great? That little guy? Ah, Risel! That’s right. You’re that Arisein. You were the little guy our clown liked so much.”
Referndi looked at me with gentle eyes for a moment. That gentleness was at the level of gentleness one would give to delicious food, so I had to shudder at the chills that ran down my spine.
“Little guy…… Risel, Arts told me to tell you. He said it’s about time you started wondering.”
“What is it?”
She pointed to her chest and said.
“Who shot the arrow that pierced here? The most fatal shot. The one that led to death, who was the one who shot it?”
I widened my eyes. I instantly understood what she was talking about.
People who have reset. My kind. Brother Lime, Duke Ecoshian, my grandmother…… The common point of their deaths was that they were all killed by Artshever.
Then…… me too?
Was the arrow that pierced my chest back then, shot by Artshever?!
She smiled and struck the ground with her staff. Then, a magic circle formed beneath her, encompassing Baius and Silvan as well.
Ugh! Are they trying to escape?!
“Lucy! Aila!”
“Damn it……! We’re too late!”
“Ugh! Sorry, Risel. We’re late too.”
Referndi smiled with delight. She let out a giggle that tickled the inside of her body.
“Ohohoho! Cute little ones. I don’t know when we’ll see each other again…… but let’s have more fun next time. And Risel, Arts told me to tell you that since he gave you the disease, it’s common courtesy to give you the medicine too. He said, ‘I’ll give up on Narvilt. It’s a shame, but what can I do? I’ll consider it as having no connection and offer it to Duke Arisein. Oh, I had a pleasant time after a long time watching the war situation. They were interesting strategies. Thank you.’ He said that. He seemed quite amused, in my opinion. Well then, goodbye!”
Referndi struck the ground with her staff once more. Then, their figures, enveloped in red light, became blurry and disappeared.
The place where they disappeared…… only the mark of the lightning Referndi rode on, scorched on the ground, remained.
“Ugh……!”
We were defeated. Completely defeated. I thought I had pushed through to the end according to my plan, but I had overlooked Artshever’s remaining move.
Referndi…… To think Referndi was actually the Red-Haired Witch Lindy……!
“Damn it! Artshever-!”
We were played again. Right before success, we even received charity from that damn clown.
I can almost see the face of my opponent, smiling complacently in the Imperial Capital. I punched that face with all my might. And so, my fist hit the ground.
It hurt.
It hurt like hell.
Leave a Reply