Chapter 21
THE THREE CLAMBERED over the remains of the rock wall and ran up the staircase behind it. They arrived at a room five meters wide and ten meters deep—rather small for a battlefield. The heavily armored man awaited them there.
“My word! You made it through him fast. Gods, he couldn’t even buy time!” When he noticed the trio, he pushed the giant metal door in front of him harder to close it. Then, he locked the door in a panic and turned around as if nothing had happened, readying his halberd for battle. “Well, I suppose it’s no surprise. He is the weakest of us three.”
He’d hardly finished his sentence and already Mira was at point-blank range; she had used Shrinking Earth to approach.
“What?! How did you get there?!”
Though Mira’s sudden appearance startled him, he wasted no time and swung his halberd. The swing was surprisingly agile for the weapon’s apparent weight as it cut through the air, whipping up powerful winds.
The room shook. The attack revealed great power, but alas, his weapon failed to strike the summoner.
“I see. You have the skills to back up your claim that he is the weakest. That reaction was faster than I’d expected.” Mira returned to her original location and added, “Still, it seems your bulk makes it difficult to keep track of your own belongings.” She then revealed what she was holding.
“When did you do that?!”
Mira was holding the key to the metal door. Since she’d gotten so close, she took it before stepping away. The armored man looked at his empty hand and shouted in genuine astonishment. However, his shock didn’t last long. He began chuckling fearlessly and gripped his halberd tightly in both hands.
“With or without the key, you shall not pass as long as I, the great Ironclad Imperial, stand in your path! The beast is almost ready, and I will protect it with my life.” The self-proclaimed Ironclad Imperial stood protectively in front of the door. His name was no lie; he was like an impenetrable mountain standing imposingly before their goal. He did not attack; it seemed his purpose really was to protect the door. He would wait and counterattack when they approached.
“Naturally, his armor is spirit gear as well,” Mira muttered to herself, sizing it up—it looked tough. “In that case, there’s no use in using middling or below. Even advanced may not get through…”
The armor was much thicker than when she’d fought Gregorius at the Ancient Ring Gate. It seemed like nearly the perfect defense.
“Hmm. I wooonder what went into making that…” Kagura simmered.
If it had existed in the game world, this armor might’ve been labeled a cheat item. How many spirits had been sacrificed to make this single suit? The thought of it sent her into an almost palpable rage.
“One could call that unnatural strength the symbol of Chimera,” Cyril murmured as he stared at the Ironclad Imperial. Kagura stepped forward, but he stopped her with a hand. “Mira and Kagura. We already have the key, so you two should go ahead. I’m worried about this ‘beast’ they’re preparing. Allow me to deal with him.”
Given how the executives spoke, it seemed they were quite confident in this beast. It might even be a trump card that could flip this battle on its head. Was he wary of that—or was Cyril more worried about Kagura losing her cool and refusing to hold back against this foe? Either way, he knew that the coming destruction would be great, so he offered to deal with this enemy himself and pointed his companions toward the door in the back. The tragedy that befell their first enemy reminded Cyril of a battle from long ago. It seemed even this guild leader didn’t want to be anywhere near a Wise Man using her full power.
“Hrmm,” said Mira. “Unlike the last one, breaking through those defenses will be tedious. I find myself curious about their ‘beast,’ as well. Hurrying through would be the ideal course of action.”
“Fair. Even if the enemy is nothing special, they’re using the power of spirits. We can’t be careless.” With that, Kagura parted from Cyril and circled around the middle of the room to make for the door in the back.
“Ahem! I said you shall not pass!” The Ironclad Imperial swung his halberd wide, sending violent winds swirling throughout the room and blowing the trio back against the walls. Mira used the air as a foothold, spun around, and righted herself again. With graceful motions, Cyril landed feetfirst on the wall and stepped down onto the floor again.
Meanwhile, Kagura used a mesh of tree branches to catch herself and gently descended, her face shining with the light of a cold grin. “Aha. Then that’s why this room is so small.”
“Unlike the first one, he’s thought this through.”
“This is a waste of time.”
The three of them dealt with his attack like it was nothing and looked back at the man standing in the back of the cramped room.
“Well. Having my attack dealt with so easily does wound my pride,” the Ironclad Imperial said. But he did not give up; instead, he changed his stance. His weapon had the power of a wind spirit, whipping up raging winds with each swing. It might have been inferior to other weapons in pure killing power, but it was quite versatile in a master’s hands. And it was certainly useful for buying time—as long as the enemy was of relatively similar strength, that is.
“I’ll suppress his weapon. You two just take advantage of the opening.” Cyril slowly drew his sword and began walking toward the Ironclad Imperial.
“Once again, you shall not pass me!” His halberd ruled the room through the winds it created. When Cyril was halfway across, the Ironclad Imperial gripped his weapon tightly and swung. This time, when a gust of wind blew through the quiet, there was an unusually dense metallic noise.
It was Cyril. He’d swiftly closed in on the Ironclad Imperial and stopped the halberd mid-swing with his sword. Despite only being able to sprint for short distances, his speed was reminiscent of Mira’s Shrinking Earth. The fact that he was merely running was proof of his training.
“That’s fantasy for you,” Mira mused. “It never ceases to amaze me when I see it.”
“Right? Overcoming the limits of human strength is such a great trope,” Kagura agreed. They watched Cyril, impressed, for a moment. Then, the Wise Men ran together.
“We leave this to you, Cyril.”
“All yours!”
They called out as they passed.
“I won’t allow it!” The Ironclad Imperial swung his halberd up to bring it down on Mira and Kagura—but the halberd didn’t move. The tip of Cyril’s sword pressed against its hilt, preventing it from swinging down.
“Yes, they left you to me.”
“You’re an impudent one!” the Ironclad Imperial shouted. He exerted more force, and his halberd swung powerfully down, and raging winds swept through the room. But nobody was hit by their blast. Cyril had deflected the halberd, and the armored man’s swing was ineffectual.
In the meantime, Mira and Kagura unlocked the door and slipped inside.
“Hmph! One mustn’t be careless when dealing with the leader of a famous guild.” The Ironclad Imperial swiftly put distance between himself and Cyril. He narrowed his eyes in frustration at the open door, but after a sigh, he turned to Cyril once more and grinned fiercely. “Still, I’d say I’ve done my job well enough. After all, I’ve managed to delay you, the strongest member of your little trio,” he added, happily returning to his post in front of the door and readying his halberd again.
Cyril’s guild, Écarlate Carillon, was known all over the continent for its exploits; there was no shortage of stories about them eliminating criminal organizations, defeating calamity-level fiends, and more. Some even called them an “evil-annihilating light.” When it came to groups that shady people didn’t want to run into, they always made the top of the list.
Écarlate Carillon operated on a large scale to match their fame, as well. Emella was but one example; the guild had vice captains leading groups all across the continent. Every one of them was extremely strong and capable, and their exploits were often mentioned as some of the world’s most famous deeds.
Cyril was the one who had gathered all of these powerful folk. It was natural for Chimera Clausen, an organization acknowledged as evil by all, to be wary of such a man. Stopping the leader of Écarlate Carillon was enough; he was the one who required the most caution to deal with, after all.
Cyril smirked at the man’s misunderstanding. “You seem to be mistaken. I stayed here because I believed I could handle you alone. That I wouldn’t need to waste their time on you.”
“Mm… What is that supposed to mean? You make it sound as if you’re inferior to those two children.”
“Actually, that’s exactly what I’m saying. Try as I may, I’ll never be a match for them.”
The Ironclad Imperial raised an eyebrow, and his face melted into an expression of obvious confusion.
“You…seem serious. If they’re strong enough to make a man like you say that, then… Hmm. Perhaps I’ve misjudged the situation. It was my mistake focusing on you.”
Cyril had told no lies. His tone betrayed hints of envy, and his demeanor told the Ironclad Imperial that he was being sincere. The Ironclad Imperial knew from Mira’s victory over Gregorius that she was a threat, but he’d assumed her to be weaker than Cyril. Meanwhile, he knew nothing at all about Kagura. But perhaps due to Cyril’s prominence, the Ironclad Imperial had unconsciously decided that he must be the strongest. And now the girls were gone.
He gritted his teeth at this blunder.
“Don’t worry too much about it,” Cyril said. “This was my plan either way, so there’s nothing you could’ve done to change things.”
Even if his foe had been fully cautious of Mira and Kagura, this one-on-one battle was inevitable. Cyril calmly readied his sword with a fearless smile.
“How kind of you. Well, all that’s left for me to do is to deal with you swiftly and rejoin the larger battle!” The Ironclad Imperial swung his halberd right away. The blade growled and stirred up the surrounding air, creating a tornado.
But Cyril had already moved out of the way of the violent whirlwind. A flash of light struck the armored man’s arm. There were two shrill noises, and the Ironclad Imperial stumbled back to try to keep his footing.
“So the rumors were true. That spirit armor of yours is strong, indeed.” Cyril pulled back his sword and returned to a ready stance. He’d aimed for the elbow joint where the armor was thinnest, yet only the sword’s blunt impact had an effect. And even that was only enough to make him recoil a bit; it was far from leaving any sort of wound. Cyril had heard beforehand how difficult this spirit gear was to deal with, but he gazed at it impressed nonetheless.
“How interesting. Your skill truly is on another level. If not for this armor, that might have settled the match. But as long as I am protected, your sword—no, none of your attacks will work.”
“Are you sure of that? Well, that only makes me want to try all the more.”
Apparently confident in his armor, the Ironclad Imperial did not take any defensive stance; he simply held his halberd out straight ahead. Cyril was fully on the offensive, as well.
Thus, the battle between Écarlate Carillon and Chimera Clausen’s top warriors began.
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