94 – What to do
Leonos, the leader of the Demon Beast Corps, was a clear enemy to mankind.
The number of casualties caused by the dispatch of the Beast Corps is immeasurable, and even famous knights, mercenaries, and S-rank adventurers lost their lives at the hands of Leonos.
Innumerable people have lost their hometowns and bases, and there are countless people who cannot return to this day. To sympathize with him would be disrespect for the many people who lost their lives in the war, and even Leonos would take it as an insult to himself.
But.
Unlike the Immortal Corps, which destroyed the capital from the start of the war and turned the kingdom into an undead den, and the Demonic Chung Corps, which led unreasonable insects and inflicted great damage on civilians, the Demonic Beast Corps always fought only against the army.
What Leonos, the leader of the Demonic Beast Corps, wanted was a struggle against the strong. It had a great influence on the movement of the Demonic Beast Corps.
It is unknown whether Leonos intentionally avoided civilians or if he was simply indifferent. However, while he may loot, he does not commit excessive massacres of civilians, and sometimes even shows mercy to his acknowledged enemies.
‘It’s been a while since I’ve seen sprouts… It’s too wasteful to die right here and now. Come back stronger! Let’s fight again then!’
If the first corps commander I encountered during the war hadn’t been for Leonos, he might not be where he is today. So he didn’t want to do anything about avoiding a fight against him.
I told Elizabeth to save her trump card, but… It was undeniable that the lingering feeling of not being able to settle down with Leonos had some effect on me.
The scattered ashes were carried away by the wind before I knew it, leaving no trace.
It was time to move.
The airship, which had already been weakened by the explosion, had long since exceeded its limits due to the fight with Leonos. The turbine collapsed on impact and was damaged, so the old method of safely landing was no longer viable.
Time is urgent, and there is no time to think for a long time. Eventually, the moment came when I had to use the method I wanted to avoid.
“Elizabeth.”
“Yes, Instructor.”
“Jump down.”
“… Yes?”
Elizabeth’s expression froze for a moment.
“Instructor, I’m sorry… If I jump from this height, I think I will die, even if the instructor doesn’t know.”
As well as Elizabeth, jumping naked from such a height is a bit daunting for me as well.
“Yes. So the airship will jump right before it hits the ground.”
“… Is that possible?”
I nodded and said.
“Trust me. It has already been done once.”
“… ….”
Elizabeth was deeply troubled. Her white hair was blowing wildly from the wind that blew across her deck, but Elisabeth looked down at her without even thinking to tidy it up.
Her height made her already pale face even paler, but in the end she replied with a nod of her head.
“Others would have thought it was suicidal… I will trust the instructor.”
“Okay.”
With Elisabeth’s consent, the only thing left for her was to drop the rain fair in a safe place.
Of course, if you just stay still, the airship will crash soon, but you have to avoid flying in the wrong direction and falling over the islands or nearby villages. And even if the fall was too fast, Elisabeth’s body might not be able to sustain it the moment she landed.
I took the tip of the spear of Ezetus on the deck of the airship. And the dark magic that welled up inside me spread throughout the airship. I felt the magical energy that enveloped my body pulsating endlessly, spreading everywhere like a wave.
Magic energy quickly permeated the airship’s internal structure. Magical power wrapped around the entire airship like fine threads, and as if those threads were entangled one by one to form a dense net.
I felt it. Which parts of this ship are ruined and which parts are still intact. Although I lacked mechanical knowledge, I intuitively knew how to get the ship to move the way I wanted.
What I’m trying to do now is to destroy this airship as safely as possible.
“Hold on to me and never let go.”
Elizabeth hugged me tightly by the nape of my neck. It was possible because there were no more magical sparks leaking through the cracks in her armor. And the flames roamed freely inside the airship, ready to burst wherever I wanted.
“Suck!”
Kwaang-!!
The engine room exploded. At the same time, all surviving systems in the airship stopped working, and the airship lost buoyancy and began to fall toward the ground.
With the sensation of being upside down in an instant, I felt a sense of floating throughout my body as if in a state of weightlessness. It was proof that gravity was pulling us down fast.
While the airship was in free fall, I continued to cause explosions at various locations inside the airship. It would have been difficult just to generate sparks, but it was possible in this place full of intricately intertwined mechanical parts.
Boom! Bang! Quaang!!
The airship rocked wildly from the recoil of the explosion, and it fell in the direction I wanted. The slowing down of the fall was also intended. But even so, it was not a speed that humans could endure with their bare bodies.
“Wow! Ugh… !”
It was not unusual for anyone to scream at the tremendous speed of the fall, but Elisabeth nonetheless persevered with clenched teeth. Seeing her fully trusting me and enduring, I pulled out Ezetus from the deck.
The ground is already right in front of you. There was no point in causing more explosions.
I hugged Elisabeth’s slender waist tightly and jumped out of her deck without hesitation.
The destination was right in front of the cliff where I was touring the islands with Instructor Lyria. The bottom of the cliff was a wasteland, and the height of the cliff was just right for the job I had to do.
I drove Ezetus into the cliff with all my might.
The bloody spear tip cut through the rocks of the cliff without any resistance.
Kagagak-!!
The impact spread throughout the body, followed by the sound of rocks being ground. Spears were digging into the rock, slowing their fall along the massive cliff.
From noble mtl dot com
I held Elizabeth tightly with one arm. So was Elizabeth. As the cliff cracked deeply, pieces of stone flew out in all directions, but the fragments hit my back as I embraced Elizabeth and bounced off.
With complete loss of speed, we landed at the bottom of the cliff.
Just at that moment, the airship from which we escaped crashed into the ground from behind.
Kwagwang―!!!
With an ear-piercing explosion, a huge pillar of fire burst from the airship.
Scorching heat and small debris poured in all directions. Even that only gave me a slight pat on the back, and did no harm to Elizabeth.
After watching the black smoke and flames rising high, I patted Elizabeth lightly on the back and said,
“Elizabeth. It is over now.”
But there was no reply.
“Ha ha ha….”
Elizabeth shook her shoulders and barely exhaled.
The sound of her heavy breathing, the pounding of her heart, and the cold sweat running through her hair spoke of the fear and tension she was experiencing. Her arm, which was tightly gripping the nape of her neck, showed no signs of letting go.
“… ….”
I had no choice but to stand still and wait for Elizabeth to feel at ease.
As time passed, the sound of her breathing became more and more stable.
Elizabeth spoke slowly.
“… I won’t do it twice.”
“… Okay.”
It wasn’t something I wanted to experience twice.
***
We watched the fire rising from under the cliff.
The airship’s flames were a bit large for a campfire, but at least they were visible from a distance. At this size, the Royal Guard or the Imperial Military Police would soon find out and arrive.
Elizabeth looked at the flames and quietly opened her mouth.
“I was late to greet you because I was not in a hurry. Thank you, Instructor.”
I answered in a calm tone.
“It was something I had to do as an instructor.”
“This is a big deal. To think that the instructor’s job was to prevent the assassination of the princess and fight the Demonic Beast Corps commander. Fillion Academy is soon going to collapse due to lack of manpower. President Heinkel must be grieved.”
“Um….”
Elisabeth giggled at my speechless look and continued her words.
“May I ask why you did that?”
“Because there was no reason not to.”
“… There are many reasons. I can name more than 10 of the things that pop into my head right now.”
I thought about it for a while and then said.
“Looking at a drowning person, I don’t think of any reason not to save it. You are my student, and that was enough reason to save me.”
“… Is that all? That I saved it because I’m a princess, or that I want something… Isn’t that what it is?”
I nodded calmly.
Elizabeth’s red eyes contained surprise and disbelief. Eventually, she looked at me in silence for a long while before shaking her head in disbelief.
“A lie is… I don’t think so.”
“Because there is no reason to do it.”
At that time, my senses sensed a number of people approaching this direction.
The master class level strongmen presumed to be the Royal Guard were rapidly approaching. It seemed that he was in such a hurry that he came running without even riding a horse.
When I told that to Elizabeth, she said what she was thinking while raising her red lips.
“The instructor who saved the imperial princess…. Congratulations. You will become a star in the social world.”
In lieu of answering, I hardened my expression in disgust.
At that response, Elizabeth smiled contentedly.
“Can I hide it?”
“Can you?”
“If the instructor wants it.”
I nodded, and Elisabeth stood up and brushed the dust from her clothes. She lightly tidied up her disheveled hair and straightened her back. Suddenly, there was no 18-year-old girl with a mischievous smile, but only the imperial princess.
“There are so many things I want to ask and say… I’ll have to put it off for later. I’ll try to find a decent place soon, so could you please give me some time then?”
“I will do that.”
“Whoops, did you promise?”
Suddenly, I could see the Royal Guard running. It was time to leave.
Elizabeth didn’t look back at me, and neither did I. We didn’t even have to say goodbye to each other.
Because she knew that she would meet again soon anyway.
***
That afternoon.
After returning to the opal black dormitory, someone from the imperial family came to visit me.
With a man’s tailcoat and mask, and an invitation to the prom.
“… ….”
I just had a bad feeling.