Chapter 1:
Golden Fire Cub
Aside: Salutia
HOW LONG AGO had Fran gone north?
She was the guiding star of the Black Cat tribe, and we were lost without her. Every resident of the little village of Schwarz Katze trudged through the forest, heading for Green Goat. In the darkness, it was impossible to tell how long it had been. An hour? Twelve? Before tonight, I never understood how exhausting it was to walk through pitch darkness in fear, and yet, this was all in a day’s work for adventurers like the Black Lightning Princess. They really were something else.
The children and elderly Black Cats among us were starting to struggle, but we couldn’t slow down. A terrible monster army was descending from the north. It wouldn’t be long before they engulfed whatever was left of our village. I knew the princess would defeat them, but some monsters would inevitably slip by her; there were thousands of them, after all. We had to reach Green Goat.
I expected the forest to be swarming with horrible creatures, but so far, the journey had been quiet. Maybe I was just being paranoid, and there were fewer monsters than I thought. I could feel the other villagers relax as they came to the same conclusion.
But the world wasn’t that kind, after all.
The creatures must have been waiting for us to let our guard down. Fiends immediately surrounded us. Goblins.
“Black Cats! Stay in formation!”
“They’re coming from behind!”
“Gyogyagya!”
The village soldiers took up defensive positions around us. There wasn’t a single Black Cat among them, and yet these Red Dogs and White Rabbits were prepared to give their lives protecting us.
Perhaps they hoped the goblins were weak, but our hopes were soon dashed. The enemy was great in number, and most of them hid under the cover of darkness. For every one of them that our soldiers killed, ten would take its place.
“Gyaaa!”
“Moloth! No!”
It was only a matter of time until one of our guardsmen fell. He wasn’t dead, but the blood was pouring out of him. One of the other soldiers took out the potion the princess gave them, but the goblins blocked their way.
“Out of the way, damn it!”
“Gya gya!”
I knew the goblins were laughing. They swarmed around Moloth, but they didn’t finish him off. In an instant, I realized what they were doing: They were trying to make us panic. Goblins might not be that smart, but they were still Fiends. They knew plenty about evil. A shiver went down my spine after seeing such malice up close.
“Uwaaah!”
“Eeegh!”
Someone screamed behind us. I yelped, turning around to see more goblins closing in. They didn’t attack us immediately, but hung back, eyeing our weapons. Still, it wouldn’t be long before they realized that we didn’t know how to use them. And, when that time came…
“!”
I opened my mouth to call for the guardsmen, but couldn’t bring myself to do it when I saw the situation they were in. They were having a rough time of it; several of them were injured now, aside from Moloth. There were only five or six of them left unharmed.
They couldn’t help us even if they wanted to. They might try, if we asked, but that would only put them in greater danger.
“…!”
Could I just stand here and watch this?! If only the princess were here! …
Tears welled up in my eyes.
Princess…!
“…No.”
No. Stand here and watch? There had to be something else I could do. I looked down at the spear in my hand. The spear that Fran had made for me. I saw the steel reinforced leather armor I was wearing.
Couldn’t I fight with these?
I remembered the last conversation I had with the princess.
“I can’t come with you. Will you be all right?”
“Yes. We can defend ourselves with the armaments you’ve provided us.”
“They’re good enough to beat the local monsters with!”
“Hm. Take care of the village, Salutia.”
“I will!”
“I’ll be off.”
What am I doing?!
The princess was fighting hordes of monsters to the north, while a pathetic smattering of goblins had me shaking in my boots! I didn’t even know how to fight. I’d never learned. Pathetic! No wonder the other tribes looked down on the Black Cats.
“Rrraaaaagggghhhh!”
“Salutia?”
The village elder started back from me, surprised by my battle cry. I didn’t have time to explain. I gripped my spear and thrust it directly at the goblin in front of me. To my shock, it didn’t even try to get out of the way—it just stood there and watched as I plunged my spear into its pudgy belly.
“Gyagaaaa!”
“Aaaaah!”
“Gyo…”
I twisted, driving the spear deeper into the goblin’s abdomen. It shrieked and squirmed for a moment, then went quiet and limp. It was dead.
“Gya gya…!”
The other goblins froze with fear. They might be Fiends, but they were still afraid of death. I had scared them.
I felt it like a physical weight, lifting from my shoulders. I knew it was shallow of me to feel strong in the face of a weak enemy, but right now, our lives were at stake. And that meant I needed all of us to fight. It was all that Fran had asked of us.
“They’re only goblins! We can do this!” I shouted in a trembling voice.
It was pathetic, really, but I couldn’t help it. I was still afraid, and I knew that all my friends were too.
“We are lucky!” I shouted. “Remember, we have to kill Fiends to evolve. Well, they’re coming in droves! Wait until the Black Lightning Princess hears of how many we killed this night!”
It was all an act, but one of us had to be strong. How could I expect anyone else to fight when I wasn’t determined to fight them myself?
“See what you hold in your hands! We are armed with weapons our princess has forged for us. Are you telling me that you won’t use them?!”
No one said a word, but everyone had heard me.
The men did exactly as I had several moments ago, looking down at their weapons. When they lifted their faces, their eyes were still filled with fear, but I could tell something new had now entered into them.
“Y-You’re right… We’re armed now…”
“The princess made these weapons for us…”
“That’s right!”
“Come on, everyone! Time to make ourselves useful!”
Determined, they readied their weapons. But some still shook in fear. They needed an extra push to get going, so I roused them with words that I knew would strike their hearts.
“Our princess is fighting for us! When she comes back, she’ll be a hero! If we keep acting like cowards, we’ll sully her name!”
“Y-yes…”
“A-all right, come on! I’m not gonna lose to a bunch of goblins!”
We were weak, and therefore, we had to be protected. That had been the truth of our circumstances. But it wasn’t enough. Not anymore.
We had to stand and fight for the honor of the Black Cat tribe.
“Everyone! To arms!”
“Rrraaaaggghhhh!”
Fran and I were locked in furious combat with the monster army, which had just been supplemented by reinforcements. But just as we were pushed into a corner, who should come to our assistance but the beast girl, Mea, and her maid, Quina, both of whom we had just met the other day. They pushed against the Valkyrie who commanded the Fiend army, saving our skins.
Mea released a battle cry from the back of her dragon, Lind, as he rained down fire from the sky. Her pale white skin and crimson eyes blazed in the firelight as she straddled her dragon with a grace most adventurers lacked. Even the Fiends around us stopped fighting and stared up at her, transfixed.
“Now!”
Mea must have sensed her moment. She leapt from Lind’s back with theatrical flair, plummeting to the ground from a great height, but still landing so quietly and with so much grace that I expected her feline blood had something to do with it.
Her flashiness might leave glaring holes in her defense, but Fran was more than happy to keep the Valkyrie and her monsters occupied. What’s more, Quina had stopped sending her phantoms into battle and joined the fray herself. Her Illusion Magic made for a terrifying spectacle, so I was glad to have her on our side, to say the least.
Once on the ground, Mea stared the Valkyrie down with her crimson eyes.
“Did you think you had the right to fight my rival? Only I can do that! And don’t think I’ll spare you, even if you tell me your plans.”
“I wouldn’t have told you, regardless.”
“Excellent!” Mea shouted. “Then I shall crush you. Ready, Fran?”
“Hm!”
Fran nodded determinedly, knowing we were no longer cornered. She wasn’t foolish enough to be tempted by the thrill of a single combatant duel. In fact, she was looking forward to fighting alongside Mea instead of against her.
“Quina, handle the Dullahan.”
“Heavily armored creatures are not my forte, if I’m being honest.”
“Just do it!”
“Oh, very well. Promise me you won’t be a bother to Fran.”
“Yes, yes, just go!”
The maid bowed to her shouting master and then left to face the Dullahan. Quina looked like she was walking, but she moved faster than a flat-out sprint. She must have been using some kind of skill. Truly, she was more of an assassin than a maid.
“Lind,” Mea said. “Annihilate the Fiends as you wish, but try not to get hurt.”
“Kuoooo!”
The dragon took to the skies and charged toward the heart of the horde, evading the arrows the Fiends fired at it and breathing down a wall of fire. It was enough to shake the Valkyrie’s hold on her army—the monsters were starting to scatter. Lind would have no trouble mopping them up.
Mea squared off against the Valkyrie.
“Shall we get to it, then? You have threatened the lives of my people. Now, I shall deal out retribution.”
“‘My people’? A mere adventurer like you dares to speak like royalty?” The Valkyrie scoffed at Mea’s apparent boast, but Mea only grinned in return.
“Hmph. You will know who I am once I unleash my full power. I may as well tell you now!”
Mea threw off her cloak and pointed her right hand at the sky. I thought for a moment that she was about to try something, but apparently, she just wanted to look cool.
“At times, I am but a simple, though beautiful, swordswoman!” She swung her left hand to the side to strike a different pose. “At times, I am a mysterious dragon tamer!”
Next, she assumed Rider #2’s transformation pose. Her gestures become more intense with every motion. Did she really have to pose while giving her speech?
“But beneath all that…!”
Finally, she put both hands to her hips and puffed out her chest. As she did so, an explosion erupted behind her—a spell she’d cast herself, by my reckoning.
“I am the eldest daughter of the Beast King, Rigdith Narasimha! I am Nemea Narasimha!”
***
My name is Quina, and I am a maid assigned to the Beast Nation’s royal family.
I entered the Royal Maid Nursery when I was two years old, not that I remember much of that period in my life. The nursery was a place that took in orphans and trained them to become maids for the royal family. Those of us who showed exceptional aptitude were assigned to the family directly, while the rest went on to serve other departments. Our training was harsh, pushing us to the brink of death, but no one was actually ever killed, nor expelled, even if they couldn’t perform up to standard. A decent lot for any orphan, and certainly infinitely preferable to dying of exposure.
Fortunately, I had a latent talent for combat, so I was assigned to work as a royal maid. I trained under the ever-watchful gaze of my seniors until I was fourteen years old. That is when I was dispatched to serve the princess.
I was introduced to her on the very day she was born. A day I will never forget.
I wasn’t overwhelmed by her cuteness, nor by the dreadful weight of responsibility on my shoulders, though I did feel those things to some degree. You see, the princess was unbelievably pale. As white as paper, in fact. Red Cat babies generally have blond hair with orange-tinted skin. The blond hair of some royals had faint streaks of red, but these were far and few in between. As for the eyes, gold, silver, blue, and brown were the most common.
The princess, however, had white hair and skin. Her eyes were burning red. For a moment, I didn’t understand what I was looking at.
Only later did I learn that she was a White Priestess—an extremely rare form of Red Cat, known for their special Skills and powers. Everyone was pleased by her birth. From a young age, it became clear that she was blessed with White Fire, a unique and powerful skill. According to royal researchers, with proper use and training, it could even exceed the power of the Golden Flame.
Now, I understand that certain things are expected of a princess, but the pressure put on her proved to be unbearable. Some even said that she would grow up to destroy Basharl. I thought perhaps they should try conquering it themselves before they placed all that expectation on a child, but I kept those thoughts to myself.
Still, even the Beast King himself was worried the princess would be crushed by the weight of expectation. He might seem like little more than a meathead—and a meathead he remains—but he had managed to gain some wisdom through his experience wielding raw strength. He certainly wasn’t deaf to the whispers of the courtiers, who were disseminating anti-Basharl sentiments, but he couldn’t simply cast out the fools. For the first time, I found myself sympathizing with a king’s pain. He would run out of people if he couldn’t use even the worst of his men.
Not long after, he arranged a body double for the princess, so she could be free of the royal palace—with me remaining at her side to guard her. It was a risk, but Rigdith realized that she would wither and die if they kept her locked up in that place. Instead, the princess grew up hale and healthy and, with the blessings of a White Priestess, she was soon a force to be reckoned with in combat.
In fact, she completely destroyed a dungeon when she was thirteen. The princess hadn’t yet learned to control her skills, and they went haywire—wiping a whole E-Rank dungeon off the map. She didn’t just defeat it; she completely annihilated it.
It all began when we heard talk in an adventurers’ guild about how a nearby dungeon was on the verge of running out of control. “It is the responsibility of the royal family to protect our citizens,” the princess said, charging straight in even as I was preparing for a raid.
The first room was already packed solid with monsters on the verge of a stampede. The princess unleashed the White Fire on them, trying to hold them back. E- and D-Threat monsters were no match for the power of the White Flame, especially once it raged out of control. By the time it was all over, the princess had burned the entire dungeon and everything inside it, from the entrance all the way to the core, to cinders. One might venture to say that the dungeon itself was the sole victim that day, being utterly destroyed.
Fortunately, the princess and the anti-stampede adventuring party made it out in one piece. She still received an earful for her antics. Ah, yes, even the princess had her moments of mischief and acting out…
The princess amassed so much EXP from her folly that she evolved that day and earned herself a new title in the process. Not Dungeon Raider, as we expected, but Tyrant. I could feel the irony trickling down from the gods themselves.
After that, her enthusiasm was always getting her into trouble. But then, I have never been on the receiving end of it, so I am not worried. What does concern me is her inability to make friends her own age. Children her age felt pressured by her raw power, not to mention her royal status. They were repelled by her, even if they wanted to be friends with her.
That is, until the Black Lightning Princess came along.
The two of them hit it off right away. Of course, I had heard the rumors about a powerful Black Cat girl and had even hoped that she and the princess might become friends. But of course, as soon as they met, the princess immediately picked a fight with her. That girl really does leave me speechless sometimes.
Fortunately, Fran loved combat about as much as the princess did. It warmed my heart to see the princess finally find someone she could call a friend. She called Fran her rival, but her understanding of the word probably encompassed friendship. I never did understand the way these brute-force types’ minds worked…
After we parted with Fran, the princess and I headed south to join the battle against Basharl, but there was no way our commanders would allow the king’s own daughter onto the frontlines. They didn’t want to be held responsible for any unfortunate incidents on the field of battle, after all. In the end, we spent most of our time negotiating with a supply depot at the rear of the field.
The princess was pretty disgruntled after that, but she cheered up immediately when I told her we could go back to see Fran. In fact, the tactic worked so well that I might just use it again.
Either way, we headed north to meet up with Fran but, almost right away, I had a bad feeling about it. Fran’s tracks eventually faded out on the road, and all we could tell was that she was heading toward Schwarz Katze. Ultimately, the princess ran out of patience, and she Awakened so that she could run at full speed. I suppose Fran’s wolf familiar must be faster than we’d expected.
And then, just as we were about to catch up with her, something happened.
We arrived in Green Goat to find the whole town fortified and preparing for war. When we asked the marquis what was going on, he told us a horde of monsters was coming from the north, headed straight toward them.
A horde of monsters at this time of year? The timing was so impeccable that the whole thing reeked of conspiracy. A Basharlian conspiracy, to be more exact. They had to be involved somehow. Fran and other powerful adventurers had also been attacked by assassins, which was confirmation enough for me. The hot-blooded adventurers of our nation were eager to deliver swift retribution, and they marched to reinforce the southern front, leaving Green Goat short-handed for the northern threat.
Naturally, the princess cut right to the heart of the matter. We were told that the marquis was waiting for reinforcements before sortieing, but she immediately sprang into action.
The enemy was stronger than I expected, however. I detected monster hordes coming in from directions other than the one the scouts reported. Two of them. They were smart enough to organize into attack units. They must have a commander of some sort.
One of the enemy units had already engaged with one of our vanguard units. The vanguard unit was a small team of elite volunteers, so they would have no trouble disposing of them. If anything, they might be a bit excessive. And so, the princess and I went to meet the smaller unit.
To my surprise, it proved to be more than a mere mob of monsters. We were faced with a unit of Fiends, all wearing the same armor and riding other monsters as steeds. They were taking orders from a Dullahan and therefore deploying actual combat maneuvers, and yet, they were no match for us. Once the Dullahan was neutralized, the rest would scatter and become easy pickings.
Once the second group was eliminated, we headed north to investigate who was behind the attack. Lind certainly made our progress much easier, but what started out as simple reconnaissance soon turned into an emergency. There was a great army of monsters out there and, fighting in the midst of them all, was Fran. All by herself.
The princess couldn’t abandon her rival, so we joined the battle. I suppose I should have suspected that the princess would never be satisfied with a simple recon mission, but why send me to face a heavily armored Dullahan alone?
I really do not like fighting such creatures. Of course, I could kill one if I had to, but it did not suit my skills. My combat style revolved around exploiting my opponents’ weaknesses, and now I had to fight an animated suit of armor. How awful.
Still, the princess had issued her order, and I was not going to disobey.
“It seems I am to keep you occupied,” I said.
“…”
“This is why I don’t like fighting the undead. You’re all so quiet.”
“…”
“Ah, very well. I suppose I shall be quiet too. Let’s get this over with.”
Enjoy life to the fullest by putting in the least amount of effort. That was my motto, but I was willing to break my own rules to live up to the princess’s expectations.
***
“I am the eldest daughter of the Beast King, Rigdith Narasimha! I am Nemea Narasimha!”
Wait, hang on. Did I hear that right? The Beast King’s daughter? Nemea Narasimha? I still couldn’t get a good Identify on her, but I knew she was speaking the truth.
I didn’t even have to use Essence of Falsehood—the way she carried herself was convincing enough. No wonder she reminded me of Rigdith! She had clearly inherited his facial features as well as his demeanor.
“And now!” Mea cried. “I shall give you a taste of my powers. Awaken!”
She grinned, unleashing her full strength on the Valkyrie. Red flames engulfed Mea’s body, and the air around her started to shimmer with heat. The flames intensified, then erupted in a roar.
Still, Mea’s appearance didn’t change much on Awakening. She was like Fran in that regard. Her short hair had more volume to it now, but that’s about it, I think. It stood on end much like a lion’s mane, despite the fact that she was a girl. Her nails and fangs had grown a couple of inches, too.
“You’re so cool, Mea.”
Fran looked at Mea with shining eyes. She wasn’t trying to flatter her now that she knew she was a princess—she really thought Mea’s evolved form looked spectacular.
“Ha ha ha! That I am!”
The Valkyrie watched the scene unfold with unease.
“I see… I heard rumors that the Beast King’s daughter had white hair. I suppose it is true.”
“Indeed. And here I am. We tried to keep it a secret, but the people cannot help talking about me, I suppose. Rumors tend to start that way.”
“That’s quite a lot of mana you have there,” said the Valkyrie.
She was right. It felt the same as when Fran charged up Flashing Thunderclap.
“Heh heh heh,” Mea chuckled.
Then she threw back her head and laughed, full-throated, as she tore the choker away from her neck.
“…!”
Fran’s eyes instantly widened in surprise. Even the Valkyrie looked more troubled.
“Something…is wrong here,” she said.
“‘Quite a lot of mana?’ I’m flattered… But do you really think that this is all I have?”
“What?”
“I told you. I’ll show you the true extent of my power!”
She struck another pose. This time, it reminded me of V3’s transformation pose. Were we sure she hadn’t been reincarnated from my Earth, too?
“Golden Flame of Extinction!”
The flames swirling around Mea turned divine gold at her command. Golden Flame of Extinction was a Class Skill that only the Golden Fire Lions possessed. She looked exactly like Rigdith as the golden flames covered her body.
Mea was part of the Ten Tribes, just like Fran and the Beast King. This was the reason behind Fran’s surprise. As a beastman, she could tell what other beastmen had evolved into. The choker was probably manatech, meant to conceal her identity. With it gone, Fran immediately felt what she was.
Immense power and mana emanated from Mea as she used Golden Flame of Extinction. I knew beyond a shadow of a doubt now that she was Rigdith’s daughter. You couldn’t fake that kind of royal presence. Energy swirled in currents and eddies over her body, and her aura exerted such immense pressure on her surroundings that an ordinary person would have fallen flat on their face, ended up on their rear, or just passed right out.
“There now,” Mea roared. “Prepare to die!”
The flames curling around her exploded, and she charged the Valkyrie head-on, a lion wreathed in golden flame, surrounded by a menacing blend of mana and intimidation.
“Urgh!” the Valkyrie cried.
She fired off an arrow, but Mea just kept charging directly toward it.
“As if that would work!”
The arrow disappeared before it even touched her. The Golden Flame of Extinction consumed it entirely, its defensive capability so powerful that it seemed almost unfair, even against an enemy.
No, wait—some part of it must have managed to break through. A thin red line formed on Mea’s pale cheek. She wasn’t quite as powerful as the Beast King yet, then. But she had shown herself to be at least as powerful as Fran at full power, and we were glad for her support.
“Prepare yourself, battle maiden!” Mea cried.
“Hm!” said Fran. “Get ready!”
They both raised their swords.
“Fran,” said Mea. “You shall support me.”
“…All right.”
Fran knew that Mea was being considerate. She breathed out and deactivated Flashing Thunderclap, or I would have had to force her to do it. As a member of the Ten Tribes, Mea understood its power, and that Fran had already gone past her limits.
And with that, the battle between the two girls and the Valkyrie began.
“Yaaah!”
“Haaaa!”
Mea and Fran slashed at the Valkyrie.
“Damn it! You little brats!”
The Valkyrie winced, defending herself with her spear. She was highly skilled with it, but not skilled enough to handle two experienced swordsmen at the same time. We were finally landing hits and, even better, we had her on the run.
While they concentrated on the Valkyrie, I kept an eye on the Dullahan and the other Fiends. Fortunately, it seemed that Quina was holding her own against the Dullahan, while Lind was still raining down fire on the Fiends. Even from this distance, I could see flames pouring down like water from the sky. It’s a good thing we were on the same side.
The dragon wasn’t just fast. It seemed to ignore the physical laws of acceleration—using magic and skills to fly, rather than its wings. It could stop and turn on a dime, suggesting a spell like Vernier, although I was sure that there was more to it than that. Magic blasted from Lind’s wings as it twisted and rolled through the air. The dragon was intelligent enough to make tactical decisions. It narrowly avoided the Fiends’ pike thrusts from below, while spraying weaker bursts of fire to provoke more attacks—encouraging them to exhaust themselves. Its flight pattern was so unpredictable that they couldn’t hit it with arrows either, and every time the monsters regrouped, it roared to scare and confuse them.
Lind might not have been dealing much damage, but it was providing a solid distraction and keeping the horde away from Mea and Quina. And from Fran too. It really was just as well that we were all on the same side. If nothing else, it meant that Fran and Mea were able to face the Valkyrie head-on.
“Flame Sword!”
“Quartet Slash!”
As the spearhead of our attack, Mea brought down her flaming sword on the Valkyrie, while Fran slashed from the other side. If the Valkyrie wanted to avoid one attack, she would have to lay herself open to the other. It was a devastating strategy.
The Valkyrie brought her spear up to block Mea’s burning blade, but it slowed her enough to give Fran a chance to attack. Excellent coordination for an impromptu team.
“Urgh! So many attacks!”
“Heh heh. Watch your step.”
“Gah!”
“Hm,” said Fran. “Too slow.”
“Argh…!”
But it didn’t seem to matter how much damage we did—it was all still being transferred to her Fiend army.
“You have Shield Arts, I see. No wonder your wounds keep disappearing.”
“What’s it do?” Fran asked.
“Shield Arts allows you to transfer an ally’s damage to yourself. Advanced Shield Arts mean you can transfer your own damage to an ally.”
“I see.”
I’d known it was Shield Arts. But its usefulness was shrinking: the Dullahan and Fiends were locked in battle, and the activation rate kept dropping as the fight went on. There was now a considerable lag before the Valkyrie’s wounds transferred over.
Fran and Mea kept pressing their advantage. This time, the Valkyrie barely had time to fire her powerful bow. Should I just use Skill Taker on her? I wouldn’t even need to take her Bow Arts to neutralize her at this point, but I held off for now. If nothing else, there was still this mysterious Murelia person who was commanding them. I needed to save myself for that encounter if I could.
“Flame Cut!”
“Kuaah!”
The Valkyrie was doing everything she could to avoid Mea’s flames, even at the expense of getting hit by Fran’s lightning. Mea had noticed it too.
“It seems that you hate flames, which burn your body, more than lightning, which inflicts instant death.”
The fire was much harder for the damage transfer Shield Arts to handle, I was guessing.
“I see. You’re so smart, Mea.”
“Mwahaha! You have my permission to shower me with compliments!”
“Super smart.”
“Mwahaha!”
The Valkyrie looked furious to see Fran holding a conversation while evading her attacks. “Can you really afford to talk in the middle of a battle?!”
“You’re giving us ample opportunity to!”
“Hm. No problem.”
“Urk!”
Veins bulged on the side of the Valkyrie’s neck. Fran and Mea were really starting to get to her. After what she did to Fran earlier, it was pretty satisfying to watch. The Valkyrie’s attacks become more disorganized every time they taunted her.
“Come now, battle maiden,” Mea teased. “You were quite talkative earlier. What’s the matter?”
“I guess she needs to focus, since she’s in trouble.”
“S-silence!”
I mean, we’d only started talking because things were finally going in our favor. They were putting enough pressure on the Valkyrie now that she couldn’t talk back.
“Gotcha.”
“Gaaaah!”
And with that, Fran sliced the Valkyrie’s arm clean off. The damage transfer skill had reached its limit, and Mea didn’t let the opening go to waste.
“I have you now!”
“Urgh…gaaaaaah!”
Mea lobbed her burning sword straight through the Valkyrie’s body. The skin around the wound immediately turned as black as charcoal and began to crumble away, but somehow, the Valkyrie still clung to life. She glared at us with hateful eyes.
“Well? Had a change of heart? Tell us what we want to know and your death shall be swift.”
“Urgh…”
“Tell us what you know about Murelia.”
“Hm. You said she’s the boss of this army.”
“…”
The Valkyrie knew she was beaten. Even as she stood there, her armor started to vanish. She didn’t have a Pocket Dimension, but she must have had some skill that allowed her to store it away at will. The half-naked battle maiden trembled on the battlefield. You could see every wound she had received so far. Her burnt side looked particularly painful, crumbling to ashes. It wasn’t a fatal blow, but still a grave one.
“Do you feel like talking now?” Mea asked.
“Yes. In fact, let me tell you this…” the Valkyrie muttered.
There was something in her hand. A jet-black spear swirling with pitch-dark mana. I recognized the way it felt. It emitted the same wavelength as the Fiendmancer, Linford, and Theraclede, once he became a half-Fiend.
The spear in the Valkyrie’s hand was made out of Fiendstone.
“You’re not getting anything out of me, even if it means my death!” the Valkyrie howled in anger. The taunting had done its job. She had to be furious at Fran for mocking her, but I thought she was angriest at herself for failing to live up to her master’s expectations.
She roared, glaring at Fran with bloodshot eyes. “Aaaaargh! I’ll kill you! I’ll massacre you! This place will be your grave!”
I felt the edge of my blade crawl. The Malice pouring out of that spear was tremendous.
Fran—
I tried to warn her, but it was too late. A torrent of Malice surged out of the Valkyrie’s black spear.
“I cannot contain its power!” the Valkyrie cried. “Take me, consume my entire soul, and turn it into pure destruction!”
Her beautiful face twisted into something hideous.
“Gaaaaaaaaaaahhh!” As if in response to the Valkyrie’s animalistic roar, pillar of black light surged out of the spear. The Malice was so thick, it was visible to the naked eye, every bit as bad as the miasma Linford emitted once he became a half-Field. It consumed the Valkyrie and everything around her.
Fran, whatever she’s about to do, you need to stop her!
“Hm!”
“She who dares wins!” Mea cried.
They leaped in together as the Valkyrie readied her spear, but both of their blades were deflected by the barrier that had appeared around her. That felt similar to the one that Linford used too, although I suppose I had no way of knowing if they were exactly the same.
“This power was meant to lay waste to Green Goat,” the Valkyrie screamed. “But no matter! Killing the two of you will wreak far more havoc than that. I may die, but you’re going to die with me!”
Her wounds were knitting closed again, but this time, the open cuts wriggled with new flesh and black tumors, until it looked like she had been patched up with goblin hide. I Identified her again and found that she was now half-Fiend. She had also acquired the title: Slave of the Evil One. Worst of all, her stats had all increased, and now she had access to Fiendmancy.
Was this all the spear’s doing? I couldn’t tell. Anything related to the Evil One seemed utterly beyond explanation, but one thing was for sure: the Valkyrie was now far more dangerous.
“Fiendstone! Take my soul and destroy everything in my sight!”
The Valkyrie arched her back, and black mana poured out of her.
“Urgh, one more time, Fran!” Mea shouted.
“Hm!”
“Inferno Burst!”
“Haaaa!”
They took a few steps back and fired thunder and flame spells in toward the Valkyrie, but they all fizzled out on her barrier.
“Ugaaaahhhh!”
The Valkyrie rushed forward. Her eyes had turned black, and her voice was now more animal than human. The Fiendification was rapidly consuming her body, and the Valkyrie was losing her mind to it.
“Gaaah!”
“Argh! Bastard!”
Mea took the full impact of the Valkyrie’s spear. It was much more powerful this time, and she was knocked back by the blow.
“Mea!”
Fran rushed in to defend her, slashing straight down the Valkyrie’s spine. Fortunately, the Valkyrie’s barrier didn’t have an auto-guard function like Linford’s. This time, our attack got through. It ignored the Valkyrie’s increased defense and cut her all the way down to her back. But, almost as soon as the wound opened, it sprouted black skin, closing completely. The Valkyrie was still moving. She didn’t even look like she was in pain.
“Gaaaah!”
“Gwah!”
She kicked clean through Mea’s golden flames, sending her flying. It burned the Valkyrie’s leg to ashes from the knee down, of course, but the setback didn’t last long. Before Fran could attack again, flesh bulged from the charred stump, making a grating noise as the whole leg regenerated. Every time she healed like this, the Valkyrie became more monstrous—her flawless skin patched up with tumors and goblin meat.
“Uraaaaagh!”
She spun the heavy spear in one hand and turned to face Fran. Fortunately, we were prepared for just such a surprise attack.
Not so fast!
I deflected the spear with Telekinesis, throwing the Valkyrie off balance and making her stumble. It was the perfect time to use Fran’s Advanced Sword Art, but every time we hurt this woman, she just seemed to come back stronger—even now, when she was still burning with Mea’s flames. Across the battlefield, Mea was getting back to her feet. She’d barely managed to block that kick before it knocked her back, but she didn’t look much the worse for wear.
Mea frowned. “Damn it! This thing’s shrugging off everything we throw at it!”
“Rooooooorrrggh!”
The Valkyrie roared, showing no sign of pain as her wounds regenerated once again.
“Waah!”
Despite her current state, she seemed to remember that the flames were more of a threat to her. She lunged after Mea and punched her, burning her own arm away in the process. Even then, it regenerated almost immediately—replaced by grotesque-looking flesh. Mea seemed to realize that there’d be no stopping her at this rate.
“Fran, I shall charge a powerful attack!” she cried. “Keep her busy!”
She must be planning to go all out. That had a bigger chance of blowing the Valkyrie away than continuing to chip away.
“Okay!”
“Hrm!”
Mea fell back, and Fran jumped into her place. Even with the Valkyrie’s boosted stats and Fran lacking Flashing Thunderclap, we could hold our own against her. It was certainly easier since the Fiends and the Dullahan were out of the way.
Haaa!
“Tsch!”
They clashed, and Fran retreated half a step to draw the Valkyrie toward her. Just as planned, the Valkyrie gave chase, turning her back on Mea. At least she was easier to fool now that she’d lost her reason.
Is it just me, or is she getting faster?
“She is.”
Not only that, but her attacks and defense were getting smoother too. Perhaps she was still getting used to her new Fiend body. Once she gained full control of herself, she’d be even more dangerous. We had to find a way to hold her until Mea finished charging her move.
“Impact Slash!”
Fran met the Valkyrie’s spear with an Advanced Sword Art. Sword clashed against spear, and Fran was soon overwhelmed by the difference in strength. But this was all part of our plan. We could use the Valkyrie’s own momentum to distance ourselves from her. As we did so, Mea charged in and her eyes met Fran’s. They both knew what to do, and when. They were so in sync that I couldn’t believe this was their first time as a tag team. The Valkyrie didn’t even have time to react as Mea appeared behind her.
“Haaa! Golden Flame of Annihilation!”
Instead of her Drakeblade, Mea was holding a sword of compressed golden fire. The air shimmered with heat around it. How much mana did that thing even take?! I was sure Mea had to be in an altered state before she could even attempt it, much like Fran’s Black Thunderfall.
“Neeeyah!”
Mea stabbed the Valkyrie in the back with her sword.
“Gaa…gaaah…”
Fire roared like a blast furnace out of the Valkyrie’s eyes and mouth, burning her up from the inside.
“Gugyaoooo!”
In an instant, she was immolated in a pillar of golden fire that shot up into the sky. I would have been a beautiful sight, were it not for the abomination at its center, screaming as her insides burned away.
“Gugaaaah!”
Teacher!
On it!
Despite the blazing heat pouring from the Valkyrie’s body, Fran pressed her attack. She wanted to use Skycutter, one of the Sword King Arts, but it was no good. She had to be in Flashing Thunderclap to pull it off.
“Haaaa!”
Uoooooh!
As Fran launched a Pressurized Quickdraw, I magnified the size of my blade. As soon as it touched the golden fire, my blade began to melt. Fortunately, Flame Resistance stopped me from being utterly incinerated. Somehow, between that and Instant Regeneration, I managed to maintain my form.
However strong Mea’s flames were, they were still no match for the Beast King’s. When we fought him, I didn’t even notice that my blade was gone.
Fran brought me down in one almighty strike, parting the Valkyrie from head to toe. I felt the momentary snag as I absorbed her crystal, and mana flowed through my blade. We’d done it!
Here we go!
We’d pressed our offensive, and it had paid off! I didn’t care how strong the Valkyrie was—nothing could survive having its crystal taken away. The figure at the center of the fire stopped moving. It was over.
As Mea’s Golden Flame of Annihilation died down, we could see what was left of the Valkyrie—now little more than a carbonized husk of a figure, split clean in half.
I pulled my attention away and checked over the new skills I’d acquired: Advanced Bow Arts, Advanced Bow Mastery, Confusion Resistance, Light Magic, Earth Magic, Walking Assistance, and Battlemaiden. Those were all pretty rare skills. Today might prove to be our biggest haul to date. I mean, I had no idea what half of them did, but there would be plenty of time for that later.
For now, my primary concern was the Fiendmancy. So long as we had it, people might mistake us for vassals of the Evil One. And who knew what kind of adverse effects it might cause if we equipped it? No, it would be better to send it straight to the graveyard…wait. Where did it go?
Oh, did we not get Fiendmancy in the first place?
The Valkyrie clearly had it, but for some reason, it hadn’t transferred across. Perhaps the skill had some special requirements? Or we couldn’t obtain it because we didn’t have any titles related to the Evil One? Either way, it was lucky for us, and we no longer had to worry about disposing of such a dangerous skill. No use crying over a dodged bullet, as I always say!
Still, it didn’t look as though my crystal counter had gone up by as much as I’d expected. A monster of the Valkyrie’s level should have netted me at least five hundred points, but I only got three hundred. And it wasn’t as though Fiends had a reduced yield or anything. Had her crystal degraded because of how much power she’d used up? I guess we’d never know.
“Did we win…?” Mea asked.
“Hm…”
But the anomalies didn’t end there. The Valkyrie should have been more than dead after losing her crystal and being burnt to a crisp by Mea’s flames but, somehow, her body was still emitting thick, black Malice. Mea had used her trump card and fallen out of her Awakened state, but she watched the Valkyrie’s smoldering corpse carefully.
Is she still alive? Fran asked.
I can feel Malice coming out of her, but…that’s impossible…
Wait. The Malice was coming from the spear. Powerful Malice streamed out of the Fiendstone, through the Valkyrie’s charred hand, and into her body. We had to do something.
Fran!
“Mea, the spear!”
“Of course! I see it now!”
Take this!
“Fire Javelin!”
“Haa!”
In the same moment, Fran shot a thunder spell while Mea attacked it with flame. But we still didn’t manage to get through its barrier. It must have some kind of special power that was protecting it.
Before we could attack again, the spear began pulsing with black light. Slowly at first, then faster and faster until somehow, inexplicably, the Valkyrie’s body reacted. Tentacles spouted between the left and right halves of her body, squirming as they drew her back together—controlling the husk of her body like some horrific marionette.
Fran and Mea recoiled from it in disgust, but they pushed their horror aside and attacked.
“Fire Arrow!”
“Haaa!”
But again, their spells bounced harmlessly away.
“Gaaga… gaaa…”
The creature that used to be the Valkyrie was barely even scratched.
“Gaaaga… gaaa…”
The Valkyrie’s mouth opened, and a weird grating sound came out—like the white noise on a radio. Her corpse twisted and bloated, as if there was something inside her, bursting to get out. The Malice swirling around her thickened and congealed.
Fran frowned, and Mea turned even paler. The air was turning black. Soon, it would be difficult to breathe.
When I Identified the creature, I discovered that it was no longer a Valkyrie.
Name: Fiendstone
Race: Vilefiend
Status: Vile
Title: Power of the Evil One
It was exactly like the giant monster that Linford became in Bulbola, and the Malice was only getting stronger.
“Gagagaga—”
Don’t hold back, Fran! We have to go all out!
“Hm! Mea, I’m going in!”
“V-very well!”
And they both had the same idea on how to do it. They hopped away from the spear and focused their energy. We had no idea how much of a beating that barrier could take, so our only choice was to hit it with everything we had.
“Flashing Thunderclap!”
“White Flame…!”
Oooooh!
Mea might not be in her Awakened stake, but she could still contribute to the attack. White fire wrapped around her body in place of the gold, and she took on an aura that was as intimidating as it was divine.
Was this another Golden Flame Lion skill? Or was it something unique to Mea herself? Either way, considering the intense mana gathering around her, it was certainly powerful.
Let’s go! Haaaa!
For my part, I cast multiple Kanna Kamuys simultaneously. It might be the most mana I’d ever expended in one go, and it would probably exhaust me, but we couldn’t risk a half-baked attack against that barrier. I overcharged the mana and stabilized the incantation.
A cold snap ran through my blade, warning me of the risk I was taking. Powerful magic wasn’t supposed to be cast simultaneously like this. It might even push me beyond my breaking point. But what choice did I have? If not now, then when?
By the time I finished the indication, I was barely in control of the spell.
Die!
“Black Thunderfall!”
“Consume my enemies! White Fire!”
We attacked together: me with two Kanna Kamuys, Fran with black lightning, and Mea with her white flame. Even the Evil One’s barrier was no match against our barrage of powerful spells. It managed to momentarily hold off my Kanna Kamuys, but then immediately melted away beneath the torrent of black lightning and white fire.
Every ounce of our destructive force soaked into the Valkyrie and, a moment later, she exploded. It was like standing in the middle of a bomb site, or watching an explosion in a sci-fi movie. An overwhelming wall of fire, light, sound, and heat roared across the battlefield.
“Nuooh?!”
“Hm…!”
We were a good distance away, but Fran and Mea were almost blown away by the backdraft. Somehow, they managed to stand their ground against the typhoon-level winds, but I had no idea how long they could hold out. It was the kind of destruction I’d only ever seen on the news back home.
Acting as quick as I could, I threw up a Wind Wall to protect them from the hurricane of shrapnel. When it finally cleared, we surveyed the epicenter of the blast, but all that was left was a massive crater. It was several times bigger than any crater Kanna Kamuy left behind, and the Fiendstone spear was gone.
“What an awesome explosion,” Mea muttered.
“Hm.”
“That even scared me a little!”
They drew closer to the edge of the crater.
“Well?” Mea asked.
“Nothing.”
I can’t feel any Malice coming out of it either.
Both the Valkyrie and her spear were completely obliterated. Somehow, we had won. And probably just as well too. Who knew what kind of crazy magic that thing was about to throw out?
“What was that fearsome energy?” Mea asked. “It gave me goosebumps.”
“The spear,” said Fran. “It was made of Fiendstone.”
“Fiendstone…I see. So, the Evil One is involved in this after all.”
As the two of them talked, I remembered something important.
I think… I think the Dullahan’s sword was made of Fiendstone.
“That’s bad!”
“What?” Mea asked, confused.
“We have to help Quina.”
“Sure. I mean, I don’t think she’d lose to a mere Dullahan, but the sooner we can deal with that thing, the better.”
When we arrived on the scene, the battle was still raging. That sword was definitely Fiendstone, but it wasn’t behaving strangely so far. Still, we’d better help Quina as quickly as possible.
Be careful around that thing, I warned Fran. Don’t let it touch you.
“Hm!”
As we drew closer, I used Identify on the Dullahan, but it was still just an Undead. It didn’t have any skills related to the Evil One either.
What gives?
The moment the Valkyrie equipped that spear, her name and race changed, and she immediately went on the rampage as the Fiendstone consumed her soul.
Did a spear have a different effect from a sword? That couldn’t be right. Most objects related to the Evil One seemed to induce madness, and this Fiendstone sword was no different.
And yet the Dullahan looked calm and composed as it fought Quina in undead silence. Wait. Could Undead even go into a frenzy? Maybe the Fiendstone couldn’t possess the Dullahan precisely because it was Undead. After all, that meant it didn’t have a soul.
Back on the floating island dungeon, a necromancer named Jean gave us a primer on the Undead. He told us that souls were the domain of the gods and could never be controlled by men. When a creature died, its soul immediately entered the presence of the gods—in short, it went to Heaven. So, while necromancers may appear to control souls, that was not actually the case. They only manipulated the corpse’s leftover mana and willpower to make it move.
That meant this Dullahan didn’t have a soul either. All it had was a crystal, or the mock soul created by a necromancer. The Fiendstone had nothing to latch onto.
So, what happens when someone gets cut by that sword?
The Valkyrie had lost her mind just by holding it. Getting cut by a Fiendstone blade would probably infect your soul with Malice. Could you reject its influence to stop it from controlling you? That was probably just wishful thinking.
Teacher…
You feel it too, Fran?
A faint trace of Malice was coming from Quina, and a quick Identify revealed that she was Malice Drunk. Her shoulder was wounded, and the cut was tainted black. I told Fran about my analysis and warned her about the dangers of being cut by the Fiendstone sword.
Fran, do not let that sword cut you! You might get infected and end up like the Valkyrie.
Got it.
Could Healing or Cleansing Magic get rid of Malice? We had no way of knowing. Fran quickly repeated everything to Mea.
“What?!” Perhaps we should have left out the part about Quina getting infected. “Quina has been infected?! I’m coming, Quina!”
Aaaaaand she’s gone.
Oh, well, we’d just have to do our best to support her.
Fran, Mea’s attacks are pretty powerful, so leave it to her. Let’s run defense.
“All right.”
Fran nodded with frustration, but even she had to admit she was exhausted. I just hoped we didn’t need to use another Flashing Thunderclap to destroy the Fiendstone sword.
“We’re here to help you, Quina!” Mea cried, stepping between the maid and the Dullahan.
“Watch yourself around that sword, young lady. If you get cut, it will make you feel sick.”
“I know. Get behind me.”
“Very well.”
Quina obeyed and stepped back. They might not have the usual relationship between master and servant, but Quina trusted Mea to handle herself.
“That creature feels no pain,” Quina reported. “I can fool it with my illusions, but it would be much easier if it were still alive.”
“I see,” said Mea. “I suppose it was a bad matchup for you.”
“As I said in the beginning, I believe.”
“A-anyway,” Mea stammered. “Just run support would you, woman?!”
“Right away.”
They moved in perfect harmony: Mea attacking the Dullhan from in front with her fire, while Quina chipped away at it from behind. Neither one’s attacks interrupted the other. They both seemed to ebb and flow perfectly around each other.
“Yaaargh!”
“…”
As the Dullahan blocked Mea’s flames with its shield, Quina crept in behind it. She grabbed its wrist and sent it flying. From here, it looked like she simply flicked the creature’s wrist and threw it through the air and into the ground. It looked like something straight out of an action comic. Mea followed up with a flame spell that blew the Dullahan even further away, and Quina sidestepped the explosion perfectly.
They made a great team, but I couldn’t tell if they were actually doing any damage. The Dullahan was bloodless and silent, which made it look almost invincible. It never slowed down, and it never felt pain or exhaustion, but it had to be starting to suffer, even if it couldn’t feel the pain.
The creature wasn’t as powerful as the Valkyrie, but it was equipped with a Fiendstone sword. Another large, coordinated attack was probably the best way to defeat it. Mea clearly had the same idea, for she wrapped herself in white flames and issued orders to Fran and Quina.
“We need to do the same as before and hit it with our most powerful attacks. Can you do it, Fran?”
“Hm!”
“Quina, get rid of its shield.”
“Understood.”
This time, Fran would use Kanna Kamuy, while Mea went with White Fire. Then we could finish it off with the Sword King Art, Skycutter. At least, that was the plan…
“Fran?” Mea asked.
“Hm?”
“I hope you don’t mind me finishing this one. After all, you did already take out the Valkyrie.”
She was farming EXP to get stronger and wanted this even more than she’d wanted those Manticore materials. But we wanted to deal the finishing blow as much as she did. Or rather, we wanted its crystal—but absorbing it would doubtless chalk the kill up to us. We could always ask for the crystal afterward, but there probably wouldn’t be much of it left after Fran and Mea hit it with all they had.
“Do you get EXP for dealing the final blow?”
“I don’t know! But it feels like you get more if you do!”
“There’s still a lot of other monsters left,” said Fran. “You can have those. Let me take this one.”
“What?” Mea frowned. “You’re more insatiable than you look! Very well, then. I won’t argue about it.”
“Thanks,” said Fran.
“Think nothing of it. I suppose you are younger than me. It is my duty to yield to you when I can.”
Fortunately for us, it looked as though Mea enjoyed playing the part of older sister. Meanwhile, Quina had managed to strip the Dullahan of its shield while Mea and Fran talked. She created an opening with a phantasm spell, then threw the creature again and wrestled its shield away.
“Now, young lady!”
“All right! Come on, Fran!”
“Hm!”
“Oooh! Consume my enemies! White Fire!”
“Taaah!”
Fran cast Kanna Kamuy a moment later. She managed to endure the intense headache it caused, although it was only about half as powerful as the one I had cast earlier. The double-pronged attack would usually be overkill, but we couldn’t take any chances. Not after what we’d seen of Fiendstone weapons so far. Mea had promised us the final blow, but I was worried there would be no crystal left by the time we got close to it. In the end, my concern was unfounded, and we were right to go overboard.
As the spells hit, the Fiendstone sword threw up a barrier to protect the shieldless Dullahan, but ultimately, it was no match for Mea and Fran. The barrier collapsed and, a moment later, the Dullahan exploded.
Unperturbed, Fran set her gaze on the heart of the explosion and charged into the blast.
“Haaaa!”
Gravel pinged off her barrier as she accelerated toward the Dullahan, raising me above her head at the center of the white-hot explosion and bracing herself for the impact.
Sword King Arts. Skycutter.
“…”
This time, I cut through Mea’s White Fire and into the Dullahan like it was tofu, splitting the creature clean in half. That was the true power of a Sword King Art.
However, cracks spread down my blade like a spider web. The stress was overwhelming. Even Mea’s White Fire dealt me less damage than this. Any ordinary sword would have shattered before the attack even landed, but I was able to hold my own.
What was happening? I’d only lost about half my durability when Fran hit the Valkyrie with Skycutter, but this time, it was much worse. Was I about to break? The only thing I could think was that I didn’t have enough practice with Sword King Arts yet. It was ironic that Fran could handle me better than I could handle myself.
Cracks sped down my blade, making distressing sounds as they went. Still, somehow I was able to break the Dullahan’s crystal, and power rushed back into my body. Unlike with the Valkyrie, my crystal counter went up by a lot this time. I guess that Fiendstone spear really had eaten away at her soul. I was close to evolving now and got myself some extra Skills. After killing so many Fiends, I already had most of them, but Mental Status Resistance would come in handy. I quite liked Resistance Skills—they offered Fran some more protection.
“Time to exterminate the stragglers,” said Mea. “As promised, you shall leave most of them to me.”
“Got it,” Fran agreed.
“Very good. And you shall continue to run support.”
“Hm.”
“I shouldn’t have any problems with those creatures,” said Mea. “Even without Awakening.”
Quina cleared her throat. “Um, young lady?”
“Well, well, well. Is this what I think it is?”
“Indeed,” said the maid. “I prepared it for just such an occasion.”
She handed some kind of magical potion to Mea, but I didn’t see where she got it from. Her outfit hardly had that kind of storage. Could it have been under her skirt?! Truly, a maid’s uniform was a mysterious thing indeed.
“What’s that?” Fran asked.
“An Awakening Potion,” Mea explained.
It allowed a beastman to Awaken more than once. Awakening put great stress on the body, and ordinarily, it could only be used once a day. A beastman couldn’t Awaken if they were fully exhausted, but the potion reduced the stress of it. That sounded extremely effective, but that in and of itself made me doubt its safety.
“Any side effects?” Fran asked.
“Not really,” said Mea. “Not with just one. Although I won’t be able to smell very well tomorrow, or for a few days afterward.”
That was quite a dangerous side effect for a beastman, but I guess it paled in comparison to being able to Awaken multiple times.
“Looks like the monsters are scattering,” Mea observed. “We’d better hurry.”
The Fiends were still fighting even though their leader had fallen, but the other monsters were another matter. We needed to get rid of them all before they could flee into the woods. Even with backup coming for the refugees, the more random monsters we could deal with, the better.
Let’s stop them from getting away.
“Hm!”
“Do you have a plan?” Mea asked.
Fran nodded. “Leave it to me.”
The Great Wall we’d thrown up earlier was still standing, despite a few holes here and there from the Valkyrie’s arrows. But we could patch those up easily enough, and the wall would be vital in crushing the remaining monsters.
We fired off a bunch of spells, pushing the horde of monsters and Fiends back into the bottleneck. It was sealed off at the far end, but without a leader, the monsters were easily corralled. Just as we planned, their backs were soon to the wall.
The monsters were already confused and afraid, and we were more than happy to add to the harassment that Lind was providing. Monster and Fiend alike ran from Fran screaming. I guess they held her responsible for what happened to the Valkyrie. And the Dullahan.
Once the horde was funneled into the walls, Fran and Mea stood in the entrance, blocking it off.
“Excellent, Fran! Now I can destroy them all!”
And destroy them she did.
Mea’s eyes sparked as she charged into the fray, swinging her sword and unleashing flame spell after flame spell, burning away everything up to medium range. The way she fought reminded me of the way Fran and I fought together, but Mea had the added bonus of Lind providing air support.
“Kuooooo!”
The passageway was filled with the death howls of incinerated monsters.
So, what do we do now? I asked.
Help Mea.
Sure, but I don’t think she needs our help, Fran.
In fact, she might even be upset if we got involved. Still, it would be good to absorb a few more crystals from notable monsters if I could, although extermination remained our top priority. After all, the battle wasn’t over yet—we still had this Murelia, the Valkyrie’s superior, to deal with. We needed to recuperate as much strength as we could.
For now, we erected another Great Wall across the mouth of the funnel. It cost a significant amount of mana, but it was better than wasting our energy chasing down stragglers.
“Haaaa!”
Transmogrify!
I swept through the monsters closest to us and consumed all the crystals that I could, while firing off a quick volley of spells at the ones further away. At the same time, I used Life Steal and Mana Steal to regain my strength and throw up one final Great Wall.
That about does it!
“Hm!”
It took some time, but the remaining army of monsters and Fiends were finally fenced in. Now all we had to do was hang back and provide support as Mea obliterated them all.
Then again, our help might not be needed. I already sensed a huge amount of mana amassing at the center of the horde. By the looks of it, Mea had triggered the Golden Lion’s Class Skill, Golden Flames of Extinction, again. But that wasn’t all. This time, the flames curling around her body were a mixture of white and gold. Somehow, she must be using White Fire at the same time. I had no idea how she did it, but it was a spectacular sight.
My Danger Sense wouldn’t stop firing, despite the fact that all this chaos was coming from an ally. Not that I needed a skill to tell me how scary it was. The mana saturation was off the charts.
This doesn’t look good.
“Hm. Are we gonna get caught in it?” Fran muttered anxiously.
Before I could answer, Quina ran straight up the Great Wall and stood beside us, surveying the carnage below. She paused for barely a moment before jumping clear on the other side.
“I’m getting out of here. You’ll get caught up in that if you stay.”
She didn’t need to tell us twice! Quina had been fighting right alongside Mea, so if she was quitting the battlefield, Mea must be preparing a truly devastating attack. Even Lind was retreating up to higher altitudes.
Let’s get out of here, Fran.
“Hm!”
We headed after Quina, beating our escape. And then it happened.
A pillar of white-and-gold fire burst through the Great Wall. From a distance, it must have looked like a bright fountain. The walls couldn’t withstand Mea’s power, and the ground all around us dried up and melted away. It was just about the strangest thing I’d ever seen.
Oh, wow…
If we’d stayed where we were, we’d be done for—incinerated, or drowned in the pool of lava made from the quickly melting walls.
“Such tremendous power,” said Quina. “She’s put more effort into this than I thought.”
“That’s too much,” said Fran.
“Indeed. I agree.”
We could only stare back at the pillar of fire as we made our escape. I didn’t sense any monsters now. Clearly, there was nothing left alive in there. Nothing, that is, besides Mea. She’d annihilated everything. Over a thousand monsters in a single attack.
“Will she be okay?” Fran asked.
Quina nodded. “Yes. Her own flames won’t consume her, although she will be a little tired. I am more worried about her lack of concern for those fighting with her. She assumes anything is fair game, as long as she isn’t harmed herself. It’s an awful habit. She needs a good lecturing.”
Quina’s eyes filled with quiet fury. She looked a lot like Fran in that respect. It was always the quiet types you needed to worry about. Still, I agreed with Quina on this one. If Mea didn’t learn soon, she’d incinerate her entire adventuring party one day.
Still, at least the fight was over for now. We could finally take a break.
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