This chapter was brought to you by the collaboration between PolterGlast and Saekano Translations.
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Volume 2
Chapter 4.4
Those Who Once
Fled, Those Who Still Struggling Part 4
Translator : PolterGlast
After confirming the
location of the demonic beast's footprints from near the east gate of Arcazam,
Irisdina and the others went straight into the forest, following the
footprints.
Garm's footprints, the
leader, were much larger than those of the others. On top of that, there were
also the footprints of other demonic beasts surrounding it. It was rather easy
to follow the trail.
"To the East,
huh? ....... If we keep going this way, we'll end up in a tributary of the Vein
River."
The Vein River is a
primary river that supports the distribution of goods in Arcazam. This river is
supplied with water from the Spasim Forest and serves as the border between the
Cremazzone Empire and the Kingdom of Forsina.
The Vein River has a
wide width and contains a considerable volume of water, regardless of the fact
that it is a tributary.
As they approached the
tributary, they encountered more and more mud and soil.
"H~m, I can see
the footprints quite clearly now, but it's hard to walk in all this
mud......"
Mimuru's face grimaced
at the sticky mud clinging to the soles of her shoes.
"And this blatant
way of making footprints. It's likely they're luring us~~."
Although the
footprints of not only the leader, Garm, but also those of Direwolves kept on
going, the number of those accompanying Direwolves' footprints has been
gradually decreasing.
It was conceivable
that they were dispersing to search for prey, but the way they dispersed was
strange nonetheless. They tend to group together in twos and threes and
separate themselves from the pack. Perhaps, the reason was to anticipate the
possibility of being attacked and to provide bait so that they would be able to
detect the movements of their pursuers.
The tension within the
party heightened as they faced a situation in which they were clearly being
lured.
"Better keep your
weapons drawn. They could attack us at any time."
Everyone nodded in
agreement with Irisdina's words, and each of them pulled out their weapons and
began following the footprints of the demonic beasts once again.
Eventually, they could
hear the sound of rushing water gradually approaching. And the light coming
from behind the overgrown trees gradually became stronger. The tributary was
getting closer.
"There it
is......"
Then, they spotted the
demonic beast they were after.
A huge gray-colored
beast was sitting on a boulder beside the tributary.
"There it is.
Garm. And it's a pretty big one."'
"Yeah, certainly,
this one's a big one."
Compared to a normal
Direwolf, its stature is two or three times that of a normal Direwolf. On its
chest, distinctive red fur unique to Garm could be seen. Among demonic beasts,
except for a few that belong to the S rank, such as dragons, Garm is considered
to be a special class existence.
At that moment, [Gray]
eyes with deep intelligence turned toward Irisdina and the others.
"We got
you."
"The wind has
stopped ...... here they come."
Immediately afterward,
three shadows jumped out from behind Irisdina and the others who were hiding in
the bushes.
Three Direwolves
pounced on them. The three Direwolves leaped at Shina and Tima, who were in the
back of the group, trying to pierce them with their fangs.
"Fuh~!"
"Zeei!" "Teiryaa~!"
However, the fangs of
the three wolves did not reach them, and their lives were reaped in an instant.
Irisdina, Mars, and
Mimuru responded immediately, and with a flash of their weapons, they cut down
the attacking Direwolves.
*Uoooooon!*
The [Gray]'s howl
echoed. Even though their first pack has been annihilated, the Direwolves'
fighting spirit remains undiminished.
New Direwolves sprang
out of the bushes and surrounded Irisdina and the others.
Perhaps they were
trying to distract them by surrounding them, and then pouncing on them when
they saw an opening.
However, no matter how
many Direwolves surrounded them, it was still pointless.
*Ssh!*
*Gyan!*
Tima's magic bullets
and Shina's arrows flew.
The magic bullets and
arrows, boasting an unparalleled combination of magic and bow and
overwhelmingly precise timing and accuracy, strike the Direwolves surrounding
them, distorting and piercing their walls of encirclement.
"Oraaaa!"
Mars charged into the
hole and swung his greatsword, which was wrapped in a blade of wind.
The swinging blades,
billowing roar, magic bullets and arrows being shot. The slow-moving Direwolves
were slaughtered one after another.
However, when a part
of them rushed out, it naturally created a gap in the formation of Irisdina and
the others.
*U~on!*
At the opposite side
of the rushing out Mars. Another Direwolf pounced on Shina and the others from
behind.
"Now, now, this
way is off-limits~!"
However, Mimuru would
not allow it. With her Qi-jutsu, she further enhanced her originally superior
beastman physical abilities, and with the agility of a cat, she outperformed
the Direwolves. Wielding daggers in both hands, she slaughtered the beasts that
approached one after another.
*Grrrr......*
The [Gray] stood up on
top of the boulder with anger in its eyes and raised its tail high in the air.
Immediately afterward,
magical power shot up from the [Gray]'s huge frame and swirled around its
raised tail.
The air began emitting
a shrieking sound.
"~, Get down!"
Upon hearing
Irisdina's voice, all of them quickly got down on the ground.
Immediately after,
five blades were shot out from the [Gray]'s tail.
The blades, woven
together by magic power, flew at high speed and passed over the heads of
Irisdina and the others who were lying on the ground. The blades cut down the
trees in the direction they were traveling and gouged out the ground.
"Tch, that's quite
a powerful one there!"
"As expected of
Garm. Even compared to the magic stone-bearer Direwolves, this magic blade is
overwhelmingly more powerful."
Garm's magic blade
would easily slice through a soft human body if hit directly.
Moreover, the other
Direwolves tried to pounce on Irisdina and the others as they evaded the
[Gray]'s magic blade.
"On top of that,
he has a lot of cronies!"
While cutting down the
Direwolves that pounced on her, Irisdina stood up and used her ability
[Immediate Deployment] to produce magic bullets, scattering them in all
directions, as if to keep them away from approaching.
The Direwolves were
blocked from pursuing by the swarm of Irisdina's magic bullets, but their
numbers did not seem to have decreased at all.
On top of that, [Gray]
began to ramp up its magic power again. With a roar, the blade of magic power
once again enveloped its raised tail.
"Wait, wait!
Isn't this kind of bad!?"
Mimuru yelled out in
impatience.
Shina, who was
readying her bow next to her, took out an arrow from the quiver on her back and
nocked it.
It was an engraved
arrow made specifically by Tom. When Shina began to pour magic power into the
arrow, the engraved formula was activated. The arrowhead began to heat up red
hot, drawing in the surrounding magic power.
*Shh!*
While focusing her
mind, she fired the arrow right between the [Gray]'s eyebrows.
The red-hot arrow flew
in a straight line toward the [Grey]'s skull while slicing through the
air.......
"No
way......"
However, it was easily
crushed by [Gray]'s gigantic fangs.
[Gray], whose entire
body was raging with magic power, spat out the shattered remains of the arrow
from its mouth and glared at Shina with its piercing eyes.
*U~ooon!*
At that moment, one of
the Direwolves surrounding Irisdina and the others howled.
Upon hearing that
howl, the [Gray]'s eyes lit up with a strong color of anger. Upon closer look,
the Direwolf that howled was the survivor of the magical stone bearer that was
subjugated on the highway.
"I see. So you
are avenging your companions......"
[Gray] released the
magic blades that had filled its tail.
Facing the five
oncoming blades along with the sound of explosions, Irisdina kneaded her
magical power without hesitation.
"Certainly,
they're powerful. But that doesn't mean they can't be blocked."
As Irisdina swung her
arm, five magic bullets, the same as the approaching magic blades, were
produced and released.
The magic bullets look
obviously weaker than the [Gray]'s magic blades. However, Irisdina's magic
bullets flew through the air gracefully and landed precisely on the midsection
of the approaching magic blades.
Immediately after,
with a sound like breaking glasses, the [Gray]'s magic blades were shattered
and dispersed.
"Compared to its
powerful firepower, its durability is rather poor."
Certainly, [Gray]'s
magic is powerful. Both its power and range capabilities are impeccable.
However, because they
are demonic beasts, the density of their magic blades had obvious flaws.
In the first place,
there is no such thing as a proper technique in the magic of these demonic
beasts. To use an analogy, they are like mudworks that have been forcibly
hardened by force. Irisdina simply exploited that fragile point.
However, if one were to
ask if anyone else could do the same thing, it would never be the case. There
is a difference between what one understands and what one can do.
"And if it's
firepower we're talking about, we have someone better."
Shortly after that, a
magic power that not even [Gray] could compare to rage over the area.
The magic erupted from
the girl in the middle of the party, the one in the safest place.
Tima Lime. If it were
only based on one's magic power, she would be the best mage in the entire
continent, let alone in Arcazam.
The magic power
converged on the staff she held up. Two magic circles were being formed. The
blue and brown magic circle floating in the air began to rotate at high speed,
and a deafening *kiiiiin!* sound began to echo in response.
"......~!"
The [Gray]'s gaze
turned to Tima, whose magic power was raging.
Its instincts, having
survived in this Spasim forest for so many years, released an intense sense of
impending danger in response to Tima's magic, as if all the hairs on its body
stood on end.
The next moment,
[Gray] sprinted as fast as it could, driven by the alarming sound that rang in
its brain. Its target was, of course, Tima.
"I won't let
you!"
However, Mars, raising
his greatsword, stood in the [Gray]'s way.
With his abundant Qi,
he strengthened his body with all his might to intercept the [Gray]'s rush.
The two were firmly
engaged in a fierce confrontation. Mars blocked the fangs of the [Gray] that
were trying to bite him as it pressed down on him, by letting it bite his
greatsword.
Both Mars and [Gray]
did not move a muscle, as if they were completely on par with each other in
terms of their physical strength.
"~!"
There was no way out
of this. Judging so, Mars poured his Qi into his greatsword and created a blade
of wind.
[Qi-jutsu・Wind Blade]. Suddenly, countless razor blades appeared
and tried to slice through the [Gray]'s mouth.
However, [Gray] also
concentrated his magic power in its mouth and tried to push back while
preventing Mars' wind blades from cutting him.
"G~uuu~uu~u……!"
*Gu, ooooo……!*
Opposing forces and
powers, magic and Qi compete against each other.
The opposing magic
power and Qi eventually exploded with a tremendous roar, blasting Mars and
[Gray] away.
"Gahah
......!"
*Grrrrrrrr ......!*
Mars and [Gray] were
hit by the shockwave at close range, but it was [Gray] who regained its posture
first.
[Gray] made use of its
superior physical strength as a demonic beast and its four-legged physique,
which made it easy to keep its balance, and was only slightly pushed backward.
"Ugh ...... Tima,
blow it away!"
"Haaaaa!"
But it was enough. The
next moment, the magic that Tima had been casting was activated.
Advanced Magic
[Crucifixion Burial].
The ground undulated
around Tima, and countless earth spears protruded and bared their fangs at the
Drewolves.
The spears spread out
in concentric circles like a tsunami, swallowing up [Gray] and all of its
subordinates in the blink of an eye.
After the tsunami of
spears subsided, the body of the Direwolves, whose bodies had been pierced
countless times, was lying on the ground.
"Phew......"
Having finished
casting her magic, Tima exhaled heavily from exhaustion. No matter how enormous
one's magic power may be, the use of magic always imposes a considerable burden
on one's body and mind.
Tima, in particular,
possessed an enormous amount of magic power, so the scale of magic she cast
would be huge, and the burden tended to be correspondingly high.
"Wow~, what an
amazing magic......"
"Yes, it really
is......"
Mimuru and Sina,
seemingly at a loss for words, let out a sigh of admiration.
They too were familiar
with Tima Lime's name, but when they actually saw her up close like this, the
overwhelming difference in their abilities was undeniable.
Tima Lime is not the
only one. Irisdina Francilt, too, has a remarkable talent.
She was able to
accurately identify the flaw in the magic blades that flew at high speed, and
then precisely shatter the blades with multiple magic bullets that were cast in
the blink of an eye. Who else but her could do such a feat?
An indescribable
jealousy welled up in Shina's heart. Because she understood the magnitude of
what she had lost more than anyone else, and also because she wanted it more
than anyone else.
(What the hell am I
thinking? It's not even their fault... I can't believe I'm jealous of
them......)
Shaking off her own
ugly jealousy, Shina let out a sigh and looked around.
Countless dead
Direwolves lie on the muddy ground. The sheer number of them would make the
task of dismantling them a vexing problem.
The corpses of demonic
beasts tend to attract other demonic beasts. Especially with this many, there
was no telling how many demonic beasts they would attract.
If they were not
handled properly, there might be a possibility that the demonic beasts that
devoured these corpses would wander around the vicinity of Arcazam. It would be
best to dispose of them as soon as possible.
*Grrrrrrrr......*
However, among the
corpses lying on the ground, there was one individual who stood up despite
being injured. It was [Gray], the leader of this pack.
As expected of an
exceptional individual, his vitality was unmatched compared to the other
Direwolves.
Even though its body
was pierced by multiple earth spears and bleeding, it stood firmly on the
ground with its limbs and glared at Irisdina and the others with eyes filled
with the flames of fury.
"As expected, a
tenacious one."
However, judging from
the amount of blood that was flowing out, one could already tell that this
demonic beast's life was not going to last much longer.
However, it was a
wounded beast. It could still easily slaughter a person with a single bite.
They could not let their guard down until the last moment.
"Good grief,
looks like they beat us to it."
In that tension-filled
place, a voice that did not belong to Irisdina's party echoed.
Emerging from the
depths of the forest was a silver-haired beastman. It was Kevin Ardinal. Behind
him were about 20 party members, whom he seemed to be leading.
"Kevin......"
"Hey there,
Irisdina. Looks like it wasn't over yet."
If one were to look closely,
one would see that Kevin and his party members had been fighting demonic beasts
somewhere, and their clothes were stained with dirt and blood in several
places. The smell of blood soaked into their clothes made [Gray] change the
color of its eyes.
*Grrrrrrrr......*
"Yeah, I killed
all of your comrades."
Apparently, Kevin's
party was also fighting against part of the pack led by [Gray].
[Grey], whose men had
been slaughtered, pounced on Kevin in a rage of fury.
*Guooooo!*
He poured out all his
remaining magic power and fired his magic blade while howling as if he was
trying to drag at least one person along with him.
"Oopsie......."
Kevin did not look
particularly nervous in the face of the looming [Gray] and its magic blade.
He dropped to the ground
and gripped the ground firmly with both hands and feet, focusing his Qi on his
fists.
Kevin's weapons were
black gauntlets on his hands. The color contrasted with his school uniform,
which was based on white, further highlighting the uniqueness of his hands.
"Phew!"
With a short exhale,
he flashed a knife-hand strike.
The knife-hand strike
smashed [Gray]'s magic blade with a single strike.
"Zei!"
Following that, he
activated his [Flash Step] while clenching his fist. Diving into the looming
[Gray]'s chest in an instant, Kevin pulled back his left hand that he had swung
down, and in sync, he unleashed his right fist.
Legs, hips, and torso.
Everything was in perfect synchronization as he unleashed his fist.
The next moment,
*bang!*, there was an explosion sound and a flash of light, and the blow,
delivered in the manner of a hook, struck [Gray] in the left side.
The impact shattered
its ribs, and at the same time, a thunderbolt struck it, destroying its left
lung and heart.
"With this, it's
over ...... My bad, Irisdina, I've just finished it off."
While glancing at the
collapsing [Gray], Kevin waved his hand toward Irisdina.
However wounded it
might be, Kevin managed to shatter that magic blade with his hand and inflict a
fatal wound with a single blow. Everyone except Irisdina and Tima looked at him
with wide eyes.
"He's fast.......
Moreover, that blow just now, it was like a lightning strike......."
"Ah, that's
[Qi-Lightning Transformation]. It's Kevin's ability that allows him to
transform his condensed Qi into lightning."
[Qi-Lightning
Transformation]
As the name describes,
this ability allows the user to convert Qi into lightning.
The converted
lightning moves as the user desires, and although it is fixed in the form of
lightning, unlike magic, it does not require time for chanting, making it
possible to attack quickly, which is the nature of Qi-jutsu.
This rapid attack
nature meshed surprisingly well with Kevin, who excelled in physical ability
and was good at combative techniques.
In fact, he managed to
inflict a fatal wound on Garm with a single blow.
*Gafu, gehyu……*
However, despite
having one lung and heart crushed, [Gray] was still alive.
"What a tenacious
bastard......"
Kevin threw cursing
words at [Gray], who did not die instantly, and squeezed his fist to finish it
off this time.
However, in the next
instant, [Gray] gathered its last strength, put on magic power all over its
body, and leaped from its spot in a single bound.
"Wha!......"
Then, *Splash!*. With
a splashing sound, [Gray] fell into the tributary of the Vein River.
The body of the big
wolf was swallowed up by the violent current of the river, and in the blink of
an eye, it disappeared downstream, out of sight.
"Tch, he escaped
by sheer willpower, huh? What a life force, even though its heart and one lung
were both crushed......"
"Now, now,
leader. It sustained a fatal wound anyway, so it will be dead soon
enough."
"I guess it will
take some time to confirm since we missed getting the proof that we defeated
it."
While Kevin's mouth
contorted in frustration, his party members looked downstream and muttered so
optimistically.
Even if they had
inflicted fatal wounds, if they did not actually confirm the bodies and take
proof of subjugation, they would only receive a meager reward and evaluation.
In the midst of all
this, Karanti of Kevin's party opened her mouth to Shina.
"Dead-Leaf Ears,
were you hiding behind someone? You seem to be as good as ever at using people
as shields."
"Shut
up......"
"Ara~, are you
offended because I hit the nail on your head?"
Karanti rushed toward
Shina, creating an antagonistic atmosphere between the two of them. By nature,
she was someone who never hid her dislike for Shina, and when confronted with
Shina's sharp glare, instead of feeling bad about it, she deepened her
condescending expression even further.
"Oi, you-
......."
Irisdina opened her
mouth, frowning with displeasure at Karanti, who was in confrontation with
Shina.
However, before
Irisdina could utter a word, a dignified voice other than hers rang out.
"Karanti, and the
rest of you, shut your mouths. They are the ones who defeated this pack of
demonic beasts. We only killed the small fry among them at best, and we even
failed to finish off the boss. If these guys were mediocre, we'd be less than
mediocre."
"Eh,
that's......"
Kevin's words made
Karanti mumble as if flustered. In fact, what Kevin and his party members were
fighting until they got here was only a part of the pack that[Gray] had
scattered.
"The sun is
already setting......"
The sun was already
setting and the forest was beginning to be tinted with the colors of twilight.
When night descended,
the threat of demonic beasts would increase drastically. They should not stay
too long.
"It's no use.
That's enough for today."
With a single command
from Kevin, his party started to head back to Arcazam.
Irisdina and the
others buried the remains of the Direwolves they had killed with Tima's magic,
and immediately after, they made their way back to their homes.
As they depart,
silence once again returned to the forest.
Only the sounds of
rustling leaves and wind could be heard, and as the darkness of night began to
cover the forest, the grass growing along the tributary of Vein River swayed.
From behind the bushes
peeked a pair of crimson eyes. The eyes, as red as blood, were staring
downstream as if searching for something.
◆
A tributary of the
Vein River. The wounded Garm has washed ashore in the shallows of a riverbank
near a bend in the river.
*Gehyu......*
With a weak exhale, he
spat out what little blood remained from his mouth, which had gaped open
weakly.
The inside of his body
was already torn to pieces. The blood overflowing from his crushed heart and
lungs had accumulated in his body, completely disrupting his normal breathing
and blood circulation.
Considering that his
heart had already been crushed, it was a miracle that he was still breathing.
It was a coincidence that he was instinctively using his excess magic power to
sustain his life.
But that was the
limit.
His flickering vision
finally faded into darkness. As his consciousness faded, [Gray] lamented the
fact that he could not avenge his family, but he still kept his hatred burning.
*Gafu......*
Suddenly, there was
something at the edge of his fading vision.
It was a black,
mud-like lump of sludge rising out of the gravel on the riverbank.
The lump of sludge,
which eventually became a spherical mass in mid-air, approached [Gray]. It
floated in mid-air, motionless as if it had a will of its own, and then touched
[Gray]'s body and dug into it as if it were being absorbed into it.
*Gu~u, gi~u! ......*
An inarticulate scream
escaped from [Gray]'s mouth.
The vision that was
about to fade away suddenly turned red and flickered repeatedly as the
sensation of the inside of the body was transforming.
[Gray]'s limbs, which
had been lying on the ground, began to regain his strength, and along with it,
his gray fur gradually began to turn black.
*Guuuu…… ooooooo!*
[Gray] roared out into
the dark night as he raised his body.
His body was painted
jet black, and his eyes had somehow turned blood red.
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