The Hero King, Reincarnate to Master the Art of War (LN) - Volume 5 - Chapter 2

Chapter II: Inglis, Age 15—The Evil Hieral Menace (2)

“This actually works pretty well. There’s plenty of snow. Enough for a feast!” Rafinha said.

“Yes, but once it melts, it’s just water. That’s not very satisfying,” Inglis commented.

“Ow...!” Rafinha suddenly stopped.

“Rani? What’s wrong?” Inglis asked.

“My tummy hurts a little...”

“It’s because you ate something so cold too fast... Ah!”

“You too, Inglis?” Leone asked in shock.

“No. Something’s coming.” Inglis had sensed it first. “Over there!” She pointed at the sky, where several Flygear silhouettes were approaching through the blowing snow. They were unmistakably headed directly for the knights’ academy students.

Rafinha gasped. “That’s—”

“Probably the Highlanders the innkeeper mentioned,” Inglis said.

“We must have drawn their attention with the soup kitchen. This is my fault, everyone!” Rafinha grimaced, but not because of her stomachache.

“Don’t put this all on yourself, Rafinha. We all wanted to do it,” Leone said.

“Indeed. They might just be making their rounds...” Liselotte pointed out. “Regardless, what do we do about this?”

“I didn’t particularly want to give away our food stocks, but I sure do like cleaning up this kind of mess,” Inglis said. Fighting Highlanders would make up for the sorrow of having to subsist on sugared snow. Furthermore, if the Highlanders had food with them, she could requisition it to replenish the stocks they had used for the soup kitchen. Therefore, fighting would only be beneficial.

As far as Inglis understood the situation in Alcard, the army, camped on the border, was taking a wait-and-see approach, whereas the hieral menace and Highlanders running wild across the country were attempting to push them into action. If she took down the Highlanders, Alcard’s army would be less likely to attack because she would have reduced the pressure on them. Highland was using civilians as hostages, and if she dealt with that, Highland wouldn’t be able to force the army to make its move.

With that in mind, her having a little fun would be okay.

“Heh heh heh. It’s been a while. A real fight, heh heh heh...” Inglis smacked her fist into her open palm three times in succession.

“Don’t jump to the take-no-prisoners approach, Chris. We should try to talk it out with them. They’re not magicite beasts.”

“Of course. I won’t take them down right away. I need them to give it their all. What would be the point otherwise?”

“Don’t just assume there’s gonna be a fight!”

“I’ll leave everything but the fighting to you, Rani. I believe in you.”

“Oh, sure, you say that when it works out for you.”

Meanwhile, the townspeople had taken notice of the incoming Flygears.

“It’s the Highlanders! The Highlanders are coming!”

“Aaaaaah!”

“M-Mommy! I’m scared!”

Rafinha’s voice clearly cut through the shrieks of terror. “Everyone, it’s okay! Please stay calm! Leave this to us! Don’t panic, hide inside, and stay out of harm’s way!”

“B-But if we do that, you’ll be in danger! Run away!” the innkeeper begged.

“Don’t worry! See?” Rafinha pulled off a glove, and from her hand glistened a Rune in the shape of a bow. Then from her pack, she took out her bow Artifact, Shiny Flow, and showed it to the townspeople.

“Everyone, listen! We’re knights from Karelia! We came to stop the war between Karelia and Alcard—and to help you! So don’t worry. Leave this to us!”

She’d readily revealed their true identity. That was quite a bold move—or, more likely, Rafinha had done it out of a desire to reassure the townspeople. Inglis didn’t know for sure.

“Leone, Liselotte, Pullum, let’s go!”

“Y-Yes!”

“Understood!”

“Of course!”

They each brandished their upper-class Runes and Artifacts to the cheers of the townspeople.

“W-Wow!”

“Incredible!”

“So many of Karelia’s knights!”

“Are they here to save us?!”

Their status had quite an uplifting effect on the townspeople. Rafinha’s choice could come back to haunt them later, but Inglis would cross that bridge when she got to it.

Inglis Eucus herself was not inclined to proactively interject in the affairs of others in her second life, but she couldn’t deny that Rafinha was. The sight of her thinking of and giving her utmost for the people in front of her was as adorable as it was heartwarming.

“Now that you understand, go hide!” At Rafinha’s prompt, the townspeople scattered. Inglis’s group stayed behind, awaiting the Flygears.

Before long, they saw a young Highlander with a stigmata riding on the leading Flygear.

“So it is the Highlanders!” Rafinha said.

“Yeah. That’s nice,” Inglis remarked.

“No, it isn’t!”

Beside them, Pullum shrieked. “Aaaaaah!”

“Wh-What?! Pullum...?!” Rafinha stammered.

“What’s wrong?!” Inglis asked.

Pullum’s face went pale, and she trembled. “B-Big brother...”

“Whaaat?!” Rafinha yelped.

“Wait, is that...” Leone began.

“Your brother?!” Liselotte finished her sentence without missing a beat.

The revelation shocked the rest of the group. The person with the stigmata did seem to resemble Pullum in hair color and facial structure.

“There’s no mistaking him! That’s Harim!” Lahti exclaimed.

Ian recognized him as well. “It really is! But why?”

“So he didn’t used to be a Highlander?” Inglis asked.

“O-Of course not! My big brother’s no Highlander!” Pullum insisted.

“Meaning he received the stigmata and became a Highlander later.” Inglis thought back on Rahl and Fars. “Ian, was he a Highlander before you left Alcard?”

Ian fiercely shook his head. “No! Absolutely not.”

“So maybe Highland’s policy has changed considerably since Evel’s death.”

Evel wouldn’t have given Alcardians the power of Highlanders; he would more likely have modified their bodies, as he had with Ian and General Diego. It wasn’t a question of right or wrong, just a clear change in behavior.

“Anyway, you should probably hide, Lahti. Pullum, you too,” Inglis suggested.

“Huh?! But—!”

“But he’s my brother...!”

“She’s right. He knows your faces,” Ian said. “Especially if he sees you, Lahti, he’ll suspect you’re here on His Majesty’s orders. That could adversely affect our position.”

He’d summarized the situation well. Inglis took note of that. Perhaps he had potential as a strategist.

“What about you, Ian?!” Lahti asked.

“After all, he knows you too,” Pullum said.

“Even if he sees me, he’ll think I’ve switched sides. There’s no reason for His Majesty to be suspicious of a traitor with Karelian knights. Plus, it’ll be easier to get information out of him if someone he knows is there. I’m staying.”

“It’s as he says. It may be better for you to show yourself openly at some point, Lahti, but you should stay concealed for now. Hide among the Flygear Port’s cargo. Hurry,” Inglis prompted.

“O-Okay...”

“All right...”

Lahti and Pullum withdrew per Inglis’s suggestion. They were gone before the Flygear with Pullum’s brother on board drew close enough for them to speak.

His name’s Harim, right? Inglis thought as she stared at him.

“Well, that’s a face I didn’t expect to see here. It’s been a long time, Ian.” Harim was calm as he called out to them.

Pullum was also a calm person—generally, at least. Inglis wondered if this was a trait the siblings shared.

“Sir Harim...” Ian began.

“The ladies with you... They’re not from Alcard, are they? Knights with upper-class Artifacts are rare in Alcard, and I know who has them. So they must be Karelian—it appears you’ve sold out your country.”

“I could say the same of you! I’ve heard from the townspeople of how lawless the hieral menace sent from Highland is, yet you’ve joined forces with her, Sir Harim? Why would you allow such acts?”

“Lady Tiffanyer demands her price. We must be grateful for her presence, and offer her our best. Those who can offer up food do so; those who cannot offer up their lives instead. That’s all there is to it.”

“What are you saying?! We’d hoped for a hieral menace to defend the country from magicite beasts! If she hurts people, she’s no different from those very creatures! How could that be for this country’s sake?”

“But Lady Tiffanyer will be pleased. That’s good enough for me. The rest is unimportant.”

“I can’t believe you’d say that, Sir Harim!”

“I like Lady Tiffanyer, Ian. She’s wonderful. See this? I had only a lower-class Rune, but with this stigmata, I’ve been reborn as a Highlander. And I’m not alone—she’s graced anyone who’s caught her fancy. She’s different from that stuck-up Evel, who only turned people into cold machines. It seems like you and General Diego drew the short straw. If it’d happened after Lady Tiffanyer arrived, you might have become Highlanders too.”

“But...!”

“And that’s not all. She gives us her love—the pleasure of being wrapped in her soft, sweet warmth is simply incomparable. But in your case, you’ll never feel the wondrous touch of a woman. Not with that body, will you?”

Ian took in a sharp breath. “Sir Harim! You’re not the Sir Harim I knew!”

“Indeed. Lady Tiffanyer has shaped me into someone new. In body and soul.”

“Sir Harim, that’s...! I remember when you were an administrator with a promising future!”

“Now, I can’t simply ignore a traitor who brings the enemy’s knights into our midst. I’ll be taking the supplies you have on board as well.”

“Wait! Please work with us! If the people are suffering under a hieral menace, we must stop her! For Alcard’s sake!”

“I refuse! To bring Lady Tiffanyer pleasure is all I care about. I’ve finally found the one to whom I am willing to offer myself up completely. It’s in the best interest of this country to leave everything to her.”

Ian gritted his teeth and turned his attention to the knights’ academy students. “I’m sorry. I don’t know if I can make him see reason...”

“No, I’ve seen enough to get some idea of the situation,” Inglis said to Ian as she stepped forward.

From what Pullum’s brother had said, this hieral menace—Tiffanyer—not only stole from the people of Alcard, but she also bestowed upon some Highlander powers and seduced those who were to be her pawns.

Tiffanyer was in no way like the hieral menaces Inglis knew—Eris, Ripple, even Sistia to a degree. They did not have the privilege of turning their chosen into Highlanders, and they had no intention of hurting people on the surface; even though they’d been sent from Highland, Eris and Ripple were especially sincere in their mission to protect others. They didn’t seem to have any notion of gaining their own pawns through seduction. If they ever did develop such an inclination... They were beautiful, powerful ladies. Karelia would be in serious trouble.

Tiffanyer was a different kind of hieral menace. If she had different powers, a different disposition, then Inglis expected a battle with her would also be different. That was something to look forward to—but for now, a different battle altogether awaited her. With Ian’s attempt at persuasion having failed, a fight seemed to be unavoidable.

“Leave the rest to me. What’s the point in being in enemy territory without it turning out like this?” Inglis laughed. This would serve as a perfect warm-up to a fight with a hieral menace.

“Well, uh... You seem pretty happy about this, but...remember, that’s Pullum’s brother, and he’s the son of a cabinet minister, so... At least try to keep him alive...” Ian cautioned.

“That goes without saying. It’s better if one can repeatedly challenge strong foes. It would be a shame to defeat him only once. If he survives, I can fight him yet again.”

“Well, umm... I mean, I appreciate the agreement, but I’m not quite sure about your reasoning... I...guess it’ll work out?”

Ian’s anxiety was obvious, so Rafinha nodded vigorously from the side in encouragement. “Don’t worry, Ian. Chris is always like this.”

“She is?! And the knights of Karelia allow such hostility?!”

“It’s not really a good thing, but it’s just how she is. It’s like they say, you set a thief to catch a thief.”

“Umm...”

“Well, excuse me,” Inglis interjected. “Don’t worry, I won’t make things worse. I’m just going to have a little fun along the way.”

“I hope so. Don’t destroy the town like you did the theater in the capital, okay? Everyone’s hiding,” Rafinha warned.

“Yeah. Got it.”

Inglis nodded and took measured steps toward Harim. Behind her, Rafinha, Leone, and Liselotte fanned out, ready for whatever would come their way.

Harim sneered, his face oozing condescension as he watched. “Ha ha... A challenge from a Runeless? Is this some kind of joke?”

“I’m entirely serious,” Inglis replied. “I can’t let you do as you please with this town or our supplies. I’m here to resist.”

“Ha ha ha ha! If you’re opposing me, I won’t hold back! Are you sure about this?”

“Yes. I would appreciate your giving it your all.”

“Well, well. You’re as much of a looker as Lady Tiffanyer, but it seems you’re quite out of your mind. Still, we have uses for people like you—you can satisfy the other Highlanders, leaving Lady Tiffanyer all to me while they’re distracted.”

“Go right ahead. After you defeat me, that is.”

“Ha ha ha ha ha! The hardest part will be keeping a Runeless opponent alive in a fight! But I’m sure the knights behind you can take your place—ahhh!” Harim’s cackling suddenly cut off.

Inglis had closed the distance to him in no time at all, bounding to his Flygear. She gripped him by the neck and held him up. Her Aether Shell-powered movement had left him completely unable to react.

“Gah... Wh-What...?!”

“I don’t care what you say to me, but would you please stop saying untoward things to Rani? It could be detrimental to her healthy development.”

In fact, Rafinha had scoffed, “You’re the worst,” with a disgusted look on her face. Leone and Liselotte had responded much the same way. Inglis was sure that Pullum, in hiding, hadn’t appreciated her brother’s manner either—though for her, it was better to stay quiet.

“This power... This massive amount of mana?! Who are you?!” Harim choked out what words he could while grunting in pain.

Just as she had done in previous fights against powerful foes, Inglis was transforming the aether wrapped around her into mana. When she did so, those who could sense mana could finally feel her power rather than treating her as a weakling. As a Highlander now, Harim sensed it as she intended. He was utterly astonished before her. Thanks to that, Inglis concluded he would come at her with all his might without letting his guard down. After all, what was best but to persist in a hard-fought battle where she’d be pushed to her limits and come out victorious? It was the optimal growth strategy.

“I’m merely a squire. Or, since I’m on the battlefield, you may think of me as a simple soldier. You have no need to hold back or show mercy at all. Please, don’t go easy on me. Give me all you’ve got.” After reminding Harim of this, Inglis let go of his neck and jumped down from his Flygear, spinning once in the air before her feet elegantly tapped against the floor as she landed. “Now, then. Go right ahead.” Lightly poised, she beckoned with a smile.

The careless, mocking sneer that had been on Harim’s face was gone; he looked down upon her with sharp eyes. He was serious now.

My first real fight, real time on the battlefield in so long—I can’t wait. It may have happened by chance, but I’m going to enjoy it.

Harim waited patiently and silently, considering what approach to take.

But no matter what choice he made, Inglis had an idea of what to expect. Highlanders could use a magic that transported its targets to another dimension, similar to the effect of Leone’s dark greatsword Artifact. Unlike Leone’s, though, which simply created a dimension and then evacuated or isolated people there, the Highlanders’ magic filled their created dimensions with particles that blocked the flow of mana, rendering Artifacts powerless inside.

It was likely because of this power that the Highlanders had no qualms about scattering Artifacts indiscriminately over the surface. Even if the knights of the surface countries were to turn the Artifacts’ power against Highland, the Highlanders could simply neutralize those weapons by pulling them into this dimension before striking back.

Rahl’s father, who went by the name Fars after becoming a Highlander, had also used such magic, so it was likely Harim could as well. The Highlanders likely considered it their last line of defense, but Inglis thought that since Harim had sensed her power, it wouldn’t be surprising if he jumped straight to using it. She wouldn’t mind if he did. In that dimension, she could let loose and fight without worrying about causing any harm to her surroundings. Plus, Rafinha’s, Leone’s, and Liselotte’s Artifacts wouldn’t function, so she could have the enemies all to herself.

Hurry up and pull me into that other dimension! I want to fight you all! Inglis thought, watching Harim in anticipation.

Instead, Harim waved his hand, a signal to his men. “Go!”

Is he being cautious or still underestimating me? Inglis was fine with that in either case; it would let her savor the fight for longer.

Harim’s soldiers wore helmets that covered their entire faces, making it impossible to see their expressions. They reminded Inglis of the large, enslaved man whom Rahl had brought to her hometown of Ymir. They, too, were likely a Highlander’s enslaved bodyguards. At any rate, two of the silent soldiers pointed the prows of their Flygears at her at Harim’s signal.

Sching!

From those prows, several thick iron thorns sprang forth. They were spikes used in conjunction with a vehicle-ramming attack.

“I see... What a vicious weapon,” Inglis commented. The speed and weight of the Flygear would make those spikes skewer the target. They would leave barely a trace of their victim behind. Harim and his men must have used them to lay waste to Alcard. The thorns of the Flygears were stained red.

“Those are covered with blood! You must have killed so many innocent people with those... How dare you!” Rafinha yelled.

“You lot are terrible! If anything, I’m glad you spotted us!” Leone agreed.

“Indeed! This way we can stop you from hurting any more people!” Liselotte said.

All three of them were enraged. They deeply cared about justice, and they possessed kind hearts. They weren’t the kind of girls who would stand by and watch as the powerless were oppressed.

Inglis didn’t consider that a bad thing. Their youth could cause them to act recklessly, their misjudgments could occasionally lead them to failure—but one could not be a good knight without keeping that spirit at the core of their being. One could not protect or lead people without it.

That was also why Inglis had renounced such sentiments in her new life, but she still had a deep respect for their anger on behalf of foreigners they had no connection to. On the other hand, she didn’t want them to get involved right now. She needed all the opponents she could get! If only this fight could be taken to one of those mysterious dimensions...

Vwooom!

Her wish remained ungranted, as the engines of the two enemy Flygears roared and plunged toward her at full acceleration. Their charge took full advantage of the Flygears’ speed and mass. If she avoided them, the Flygears would surely crash into the ground or a building.

“Wh—?! If you dodge that, they’ll only hurt themselves!” Rafinha gasped.

“Rani! Everyone! Get back!”

Rafinha and the others scattered at her call. Inglis remained motionless, thinking, This way, they’re only targeting me—meaning, they’re all mine. She was thankful for the enemy’s reckless approach. And a desperate charge, self-destructive if avoided, was honestly the right attack to use when facing Inglis. She had absolutely no intention of avoiding it after all.

Enemy attacks are to be met head-on!

“Haaaah!”

Inglis stretched out her hands toward the ramming horns of the two approaching Flygears. With one in each hand, left and right, she brought them to an abrupt and complete stop.

Vweeeeeeem!

The Flygears, forced to a standstill, practically shrieked in pain as their engines began humming even louder.

“Now this is worth it! Not bad!” she exclaimed.

It was an appropriate challenge without her using Aether Shell and while enhancing gravity on herself with magic. It would have been even better if two or three more Flygears came in. Fortunately, there were still many hovering above. Calling them down and having a contest of strength with everyone seemed like a fun idea.

“This doesn’t make sense! Where do you find such strength in your slender body?! You’re like Lady Tiffanyer...!” Harim yelled.

“Two Flygears aren’t enough.” As Inglis applied even more force, the rears of the two Flygears rose higher in the air.

Drrrggggggggg!

As if something had broken within them, the machinery began to make strange noises.

“Now why don’t you all come down and help out? I’d never say something tactless like ‘outnumbering someone is cowardice’—the more the merrier, right?” Inglis urged the enemy soldiers on with a gentle, ladylike smile.

If it were to dance or dine, anyone would be delighted with such an invitation from such a stunning beauty, but it was a different story when she was holding back two high-performance Flygears by brute force.

In fact, it was precisely because Harim found Inglis so beautiful that she now evoked unfathomable dread. “Ugh...!” It was neither by mistake nor coincidence that she’d been able to strangle him without even a hint of a struggle. Still, Harim also had a plan.

“What’s wrong, Harim? You or your men are welcome to join in,” she challenged.

“No, that won’t be necessary,” Harim said, the surprise and impatience from before replaced with a calm, cold smile.

He snapped his fingers. In the two Flygears that Inglis held, the bodies of the enemy soldiers who gripped the control sticks were suddenly enveloped in a blinding light.

Inglis gasped. This... This rapid swelling of mana!

Not only that, but as the mana emitted from the enemy soldiers, it flowed into their Flygears and its outburst was further accelerated.

“Ngh!” Panicking, she leaped high. With the two Flygears still in her arms, she landed on the roof of a nearby building.

Boooooooom!

The enemy soldiers, along with the Flygears they rode, exploded. Inglis had sensed this coming, bounding upward as quickly as she could to avoid catching Rafinha and the others, or any buildings, in the explosion. Her three friends below screamed.

“Chris?!”

“Inglis!”

“Inglis, no!”

The close-range explosion sent Inglis’s body flying, smashing through a wall and landing inside the inn where they had recently rented lodging.

“Ha ha ha! Good reflexes! But you’re too naive, throwing away your life to save those around you!” Harim snickered.

Inglis understood now. His plan from the beginning must have been to use those under his command for a devastatingly powerful attack. If that was the case, of course his men would have charged forward so self-destructively. After all, they knew that was the plan going in.

Self-destructing at Harim’s command—that might have originally been designed as a measure to prevent rebellion, but here it was a means of attack.

Moreover, perhaps in combination with the magic that Highlander Flygears amplified and shot out, that vehicle-ramming attack had been incredibly destructive. Harim hadn’t pulled her into another dimension because he could hold the surrounding buildings and people hostage here. If Inglis had avoided their first attack, the enemy would have hurt innocent people. Seeing that, she would have been unable to bring herself to avoid the second. Such a tactic would have been unavailable had he used Highlander dimension magic.

In other words, Harim hadn’t held back, nor had he been acting cautiously. He had attacked with full force from the beginning. It was inhumane. It was a tactic Inglis couldn’t enjoy at all, as her enemies would self-destruct and be gone. She couldn’t deny its effectiveness, though.

“Oh, you poor dear! Ahhh, why did it come to this! I’m sorry! I’m so sorry!” The innkeeper rushed into the destroyed room and ran to Inglis’s side in tears.

Yet Inglis hopped lightly to her feet.

“Huuuh?!”

“Ah, sorry to damage the room, ma’am.” Inglis bowed her head.

“No, no, that’s fine—but wait! I had been hiding, but that was a really big, loud explosion! I can’t believe you could have made it out without a scratch. How are you on your feet?!”

“Well, I work out a lot.” Inglis smiled as she brushed the dust off her clothes.

In reality, she’d covered her body with Aether Shell just before the explosion. It would take an even more powerful blast to pierce her defensive wall of aether. The only problem was that, in the air without a firm footing, the collision had bounced her around.

“How dare you use such a dirty trick on Chris!” Rafinha yelled outside. Inglis could hear the rage making her voice tremble.

“Ah, that’s no good—ma’am, I’ll apologize properly later.” Inglis cheerfully jumped back through the hole in the wall.

“Wait, Rani!” Changing direction with a midair somersault, she returned to where Rafinha and the others were. The trio was glaring at Harim, but once she landed, they gave her a big hug from behind.

“Chris! Are you okay?! You’re not hurt, are you?”

“Not at all. It’s okay, I’m fine.”

“Really? How about here?!”

“Eeek! Y-You don’t have to poke me there all of a sudden!”

“But you really are unhurt! My worrying was a waste. It’s too bad you weren’t hurt a little—I could have healed you.”

“Umm... That’s—”

“And that way you wouldn’t always be so reckless. I’m always so worried about you...”

“Aha ha ha. Sorry for scaring you like that. I hadn’t expected them to do that.” Inglis never would have guessed Harim’s men had been prepared to die in such a fashion.

“Seriously! Just commanding that out of nowhere, it’s like he doesn’t see people as people!” Rafinha shouted. “I’m sorry, but I don’t care if he is Pullum’s brother. I have nothing good to say about him! There are a lot of Highlanders that really rub me the wrong way!”

“It’s an effective tactic—it took me off guard, after all—but I agree, Rani. It’s a waste, and it doesn’t impress me,” Inglis said, turning toward Harim.

He couldn’t conceal his surprise. “Impossible! After all that, you’re still unhurt?! But even so...”

He was up to something again. Inglis was grateful that he hadn’t lost his will to fight yet, but she had reasons to be suspicious.

“Listen,” Harim said. “You saw that explosion. One signal from me, and my men crash straight into those buildings and explode. And you know what that means, don’t you?”

“That the townspeople hiding inside are your hostages?” Inglis replied, catching on.

Harim smirked. “Correct! I’m glad you’re so perceptive.”

“Wh—?! That’s so underhanded! Can’t you fight fair?!” Rafinha shouted.

“Hmph. What value is there in fairness? This is all for Lady Tiffanyer! Any tactics are justified if they’re for her sake! Besides, were she to see this, she’d be delighted by how amusing it is!” Harim boasted.

“Just what kind of hieral menace is she?” Rafinha spat.

“I don’t want to believe it, but it seems not all hieral menaces care about the surface,” Leone said.

“We’re fortunate to be protected by Lady Eris and Lady Ripple...” Liselotte remarked.

Each made their distaste for Tiffanyer clear, but one person felt differently.

“I can’t wait to meet her,” Inglis said with a laugh. That was how it was for her.

“You’ll never meet Lady Tiffanyer, because I’m going to finish you off here! Now, come on. You know what you have to do to save those townspeople,” Harim taunted.

“Ugh... This is bad, Chris!”

“We can’t just run away!” Leone said.

“But we can’t mount a counterattack either!” Liselotte said.

Whether they fled or counterattacked, Harim would have his men explode themselves along with the townspeople. They could abandon the idea of protecting the nearby people, but that wouldn’t be an easy decision for Rafinha and the others to come to. If it came to that, it would probably leave scars on their hearts. That left Inglis with one choice.

“Yes, I understand. Meaning...” Inglis held her empty palms to the sky, stepping forward. “We take you out before you can do a thing, right?”

“Huh...?” everyone muttered.

Inglis focused on one thing: Aether Strike!

Blammmmmm!

A gigantic blast of blue light roared forth, racing from the ground to the sky. Swallowed in its massive destructive power, two of Harim’s men vanished in an instant, Flygears and all.

But only two of them. There were still plenty more.

“What?! You’ve got a lot of nerve! Men, show her what happens when you cross us!” Harim glared at Inglis—who was no longer there. “Wh—?! Where are you?! No, that doesn’t matter! Do it!”

“You’ll have to stop me first! Haaaaah!” Inglis’s voice rang out from different directions. It followed the trajectory of her Aether Strike, which she was bouncing around with kicks to swallow the various enemy soldiers. Wrapped in the glow of Aether Shell, she was already winding up another kick.

Blammmmmm!

Inglis swung her leg through the air, and the Aether Strike changed direction, swallowing another soldier in its path and his Flygear along with him.

“D-Don’t falter! Spread out and charge!” Harim ordered. However, Inglis moved far faster than his words.

Blammmmmm!

As the sound of blows echoed, the Aether Strike twisted again and again, taking out a soldier each time.

Slam! Slam! Slam! Slam! Slam!

Each time the Aether Strike changed its trajectory, the number of enemies decreased. And finally...

“Haaaaah!”

Blammmmmm!

“Aaagh!” The last impact of the Aether Strike shot straight up, grazing Harim’s face as it shot off into the sky and disappeared.

At that moment, each of Harim’s men had been swallowed by the light and vanished. Inglis could, of course, have hit Harim with it as well—but she chose to respect Ian’s request.

“Y-You really did settle that quickly,” Leone said in dismay.

“A-Amazing, Chris!”

“It was so bright that I could hardly keep my eyes open!” Liselotte gasped.

“I’d wanted to take my time fighting them, but with circumstances how they were...” Inglis said.

It’d been the opportunity for a real fight. She wanted to face a challenge, no matter the circumstances. She didn’t like to use overwhelming force and kill her opponents in the blink of an eye at all. She couldn’t help but feel pity for Harim’s men. If they’d lived, maybe she could have fought them again, but it had been the only way to stop them from hurting everyone around at Harim’s will.

Ignoring the humanitarian issues of that tactic, Inglis deemed it a powerful attack with huge costs. While she was well aware that Harim wasn’t an admirable human being, she could tell he had a brilliant mind.

“Well, I also got to try out a new technique, so I guess I have to say it turned out well.”

Strictly speaking, it wasn’t a new technique, but rather a new application of Aether Strike and Aether Breaker. If a foe was likely to self-destruct along with their surroundings when attacked, it was best to unhesitatingly use Aether Strike to obliterate them.

Inglis’s aether endurance wasn’t sufficient to handle multiple uses of Aether Strike to take out several foes across a great distance. Therefore, she had to use a single Aether Strike to vanquish multiple foes. Rather than direct fire, she needed a guided projectile that chased the enemy.

However, aether was a difficult power to handle, and Inglis didn’t yet possess that kind of precise control. She couldn’t even curve its path.

With his control, the black-masked leader of the Steelblood Front might be able to, but...

Inglis couldn’t guide the trajectory of her Aether Strike, but she could do what she’d just done—get ahead of the projectile, then forcibly alter its path with a blow under the effect of Aether Shell, allowing her to simulate the effect of a guided projectile.

“I guess that was the direct approach—kicking the blast of light to force it to change trajectory,” Inglis assessed.

“But very like you, Inglis. Very, very like you,” Leone said.

“Indeed,” Liselotte agreed.

“Yeah. You have such a sweet face, Chris, but your solution to every problem involves brute force.”

“That’s not very nice. I’m just trying to experience as many battles as possible, not solve problems.”

“Isn’t that even worse?” Rafinha asked.

“Besides, that was actually a pretty complex maneuver,” Inglis insisted. It may have seemed like brute force, but it had required delicate control. If Inglis had simply smashed Aether Shell into Aether Strike, their interaction would have caused an explosion at that point of several times their individual destructive power. That was Aether Breaker, the technique she’d used against the larval Prismer. In order for the blow to change the Aether Strike’s trajectory, she needed to consciously adjust the aether’s wavelength.

It was only recently that Inglis had become able to do such a thing at all. As a result of assisting the Weismar Troupe with their recent performance, and both sparring with Yua and observing her control of her powers up close, Inglis had gained a deeper awareness of that power’s wavelength and flow.

Yua seemed to have grown stronger by absorbing the Prismer’s power rather than being absorbed by it, and Inglis looked forward to a rematch. Although Yua didn’t want to spar without a reason, so Inglis would need to find a good excuse.

“And, with that out of the way...” Inglis turned her gaze back to Harim, who was left alone.

“Grrr...! H-How’d you take them out so fast?! Are you some kind of monster?!”

As Harim shuddered, Inglis smiled at him. “Now run along back to Leclair, and tell Tiffanyer this: ‘I’ll be visiting soon, and I’d like to spar,’ if you would.”

“Ugh...! So you’re letting me go? You’ll regret this!”

With that, Harim’s form twisted, and he and his Flygear disappeared. Inglis assumed he’d finally used his dimension-shifting magic, but to escape.

“I guess that’s about all for today.” Inglis still felt a bit let down, but she’d been able to try out a technique she’d just learned in a real battle, so on the balance she was pleased.

However, there were people who were struggling with what they’d just witnessed.

“Sir Harim... I can’t believe you’d...” Ian muttered, slumping his shoulders.

“Ah...! Wait, Pullum! You can’t go out yet!” Lahti yelled as he chased after Pullum, both of them appearing from the cargo aboard the Flygear Port.

“Stupid Harim! Why are you doing such terrible things?! If this is how you are now, I don’t ever want to see you again!” Pullum cried. Harim was already gone, though. He could not give her an answer.

“Oww... She got so violent! I had a hard time holding her back!” Lahti grumbled. He’d been holding Pullum back the whole time as she was about to jump out and confront Harim. It was a humble, but important, job.

“Thank you for that, Lahti,” Inglis said.

“No worries. But really, dammit, Harim!”

The events of the day had left a heavy weight on the three Alcardians.