108 – 47. Unexpected Situation (3)
After taking a deep breath, Ian sat down and forcefully pushed off the edge of the cliff to begin the descent.
Thud!
Unlike his younger brother, who landed with a loud noise and shockwave, Ian gently settled on the ground.
Ariel stared through him intently.
Given that she pushed him off, it wouldn’t be strange if he were angry. However, there was no anger mixed in Ariel’s gaze.
“Sigh… You’re here?”
‘It’s a different reaction than I expected.’
He just shrugged his shoulders while looking at the enemies losing their lives and disappearing. Perhaps he wanted to boast about handling the majority of the monsters alone.
‘I don’t know what he was thinking to change like this.’
In a not-so-bad situation, Ian gave up trying to read her thoughts.
Instead, he shifted his gaze to his sister, who had forcibly rolled her body.
“Hoo…. Hoo…. Huh? Why are you looking at me like that?”
“Judging by your rough breathing, you seem exhausted.”
“Ah, no. I’m not that tired. Really.”
Ariel waved her hands, insisting that she was fine. But Ian couldn’t be fooled by her eyes.
Ariel’s actions, like gasping for breath, seemed to be what humans do when they’re exhausted.
It must be because she had expended a lot of energy hunting monsters.
“It’s not embarrassing to be tired, and I don’t know why she’s trying to hide it. It’s not like she’s taking a stamina test or anything.”
Ariel, whose complexion had hardened, wasn’t embarrassed about being tired from hunting monsters.
But Ian didn’t care whether she was tired or not.
After all, it wasn’t a big problem, was it?
“As long as she can still stand on both legs and is fine, it doesn’t matter.”
Not only did she single-handedly take care of almost half of the approaching enemies, but Ariel was also not wearing her usual equipment.
Ian, who knew how important her usual gear was to her, could fully understand her pain.
“It’s not just about being used to it or not. She didn’t have time to get used to the equipment that fits her body. It must have been quite uncomfortable.”
Ariel preferred light armor for her fast movements and charges.
Now she was wearing heavy armor that made her feel weighed down, even at first glance. It must have been a challenging battle.
“She even changed her fighting style. Sacrificing herself to protect her allies.”
Wearing unfamiliar clothes and performing unfamiliar movements. It would never be easy without the experience and know-how.
Most of Ariel’s stamina was probably quickly depleted.
“I-I’m really fine, so… Please don’t look at me like that…”
“You don’t look fine at all.”
Ian raised an eyebrow as he watched Ariel try to act fine.
She knows what she feels.
Probably doesn’t want to be treated like baggage anymore.
Can’t tell what happened in the time she was absent. But it seemed like she felt a sense of guilt.
‘So she’s probably more determined to fight. Trying to be recognized for a demeanor contrasting with her naive actions before.’
I understand that sentiment, but unfortunately, I had no intention of letting Ariel roll over me.
‘I might have tried to reconcile with Ariel before.’
Didn’t I look at her with both eyes? A complete transformation from the excessively selfish past, fully prepared to dedicate herself for the party.
Since I’ve completely fixed my previous bad habits, there was no reason to test Ariel.
Clack!
“What… What is this?”
“Sit down and relax. It’ll be over soon.”
When I took out the folding chair I had prepared, Ariel’s eyes widened.
Briefly surprised by what popped out of thin air. She tried to resist standing up with all her might, but…
“I can help too… What?”
“Your tasks are done. Now just sit and rest.”
Due to the ether spread by Ian, she had no choice but to sit still.
Unable to handle opponents who don’t even react to the characteristics of Levrion, they weren’t strong, despite their numbers.
Since I decided to teach Ariel swordsmanship, it’s a good opportunity to show her a thing or two.
Kuoo!
The crystallized mana swallowed Rebrion in a single breath, and the mana that hadn’t seeped into the sword began to swirl around Ian.
Kugwagwagwa!
A storm erupted in an instant, tearing apart everything approaching. At the center of it all was Ian.
‘What on earth is that….’
Arielle couldn’t believe her eyes, her whole body trembling at the vast amount of mana.
She couldn’t comprehend if what she was seeing was really true.
‘A dream…. No, it can’t be?’
Arielle raised her hand to rub her eyes, thinking she might be seeing things wrong. But she couldn’t bring herself to move her hand away from her eyes.
If she missed this attack, she might never grow.
She knew it was an attack that couldn’t be imitated even after watching it hundreds of times.
Yet, as a swordsman and, before that, as an inspector, missing this attack could mean a lifetime of regret.
That was why.
‘Absolutely…. Don’t miss a single move, engrave it in your mind.’
The reason she decided to carefully cherish this precious time in her heart.
Arielle opened her eyes wide, keeping a close eye on Ian’s movements.
Kuwung! Shyaaah!
Eventually, a storm swept through, and a circular blade of darkness extended, slicing through everything in its path, scattering all things into pieces with its black mana.
The storm, raging and dispersing, tainted the atmosphere with its presence.
Ariel opened her eyes and could see.
“The world is completely black and white.”
The grass had turned black, as had the corpses of the monsters that had been cut into pieces.
It was only for a moment, but it was the moment when the entire space lost its color.
“Wow….”
Ian smirked as he watched Ariel, who seemed stunned, staring blankly around her.
“If it’s just this, it should be enough for a textbook.”
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He didn’t expect her to imitate the swordsmanship he had just shown her.
The reason Ian had shown her such swordsmanship was simply because she was someone who was close to the level Ariel was aiming for, so he cleared the path for her in advance.
To give her a strong impression that would serve as a stepping stone for growth. That was enough.
“Phew. Shall we go back now?”
Since it seemed like they had caught all the monsters, there was no reason to stay here any longer, right?
They had also finished checking Ariel’s condition, which was their goal, so there was even less reason to stay.
Besides, she seemed tired as well, so it would be better to rest and prepare for the upcoming battles.
Just as they were about to start preparing to go back.
“Huh? What’s that?”
“What are you talking about?”
“Look over there! There’s something!”
The moment they pointed through the thick dust and wind.
“What could it be… Could it be that there’s someone who hasn’t died yet?”
Was there anyone who survived that attack just now?
It wasn’t a fatal blow, but it was a powerful strike that could take the lives of the monsters in this place.
Moreover, there didn’t seem to be any particularly outstanding individuals when I looked down from the cliff.
“Then, was there someone else hiding?”
There could be a mistake that was missed. With that thought in mind, Ian infused mana into his sword once again.
“We’re not enemies, so can you please stop attacking? Ian?”
“This voice…!”
Ian put his sword back in its sheath as a voice flowed out from the gradually thinning fog.
Of course, because the presence in front of him was not an enemy.
Ian and Ariel burst into laughter at the sight of a woman smiling wickedly within the protective barrier of divine power, along with two men behind her.
“Grendia?”
“That attack just now… You’ve grown much stronger than before. I heard you reached the rank of Master, and it seems to be true.”
Unexpectedly meeting with their comrades, Ian raised the corners of his mouth.
***
“Annihilation… How interesting.”
Lucifer exhaled a breath he had been holding, as if he couldn’t believe that all the troops he had sent because of Ian and the hero had been wiped out.
No matter how many soldiers he had prepared, it was worrisome if the result was annihilation.
But Lucifer, who was quietly laughing, made his closest advisor and scribe, Serenos, taste death.
“It seems that the enemies are stronger than I thought. We are currently overwhelming them in terms of numbers, but if time is delayed, problems may arise.”
“Hmm. Are you worried?”
“…Honestly, that’s correct. Capturing the strong on the human side was a success. But if we can’t quickly deal with the hero party, our side will suffer massive losses.”
The picture Serenos was painting was simple.
Among those excluding the hero party, the most awkward were undoubtedly the masters of the empire. Using the remaining forces of Astelgia to detain them.
Simultaneously, he planned to summon the hero party here and deal with them at the same time.
In simple terms, it was a two-pronged operation that could be considered a plan.
It was a risky operation that would go awry if it failed. However, considering the situation turning unfavorable, Serenos saw the necessity of throwing the dice.
‘Still, initially, it went well as planned. We succeeded in binding the empire tightly.’
He worried, but the results were not bad. Not only were figures like the hero and the high-ranking officials immobilized, but even the sacred knights of Edenia, who were considered the second most dangerous enemies, did not dispatch support to the empire.
A situation where he unintentionally caught both the empire and Edenia in a trap.
The best-case scenario for the gamble to succeed. Yet, Serenos’s face hardly showed any relaxation.
‘No matter how tightly we bind the empire… If we can’t handle the hero party, it’s as good as a loss.’
What’s the use of binding them? The hero party, which should be killed, hasn’t even come to fight yet.
Of course, they are still gathering, so it will take some time. However, if, even after they assemble, they decide to face us without waiting, it could deteriorate into the worst situation.
The situation where the picture he painted falls apart and incurs complete losses in the gamble.
Therefore, Serenos felt that composure was essential.
“hehehe! Don’t worry too much, Serenos.”
Lucifer, as if understanding his concerns, burst into laughter.
“I know what you’re worried about. You’re probably thinking that they might resist before our forces fully assemble… But there’s no reason to think in such a negative way, is there.”
“What are you talking about?”
“If you’re worried that the enemies might not come, you just have to make them come.”
“Is there no other way?”
Are you saying there is such a way?
Serenos tilted his head, wondering how he could possibly summon them.
“Exactly how…”
“Open the gate.”
“The, the gate you mean?”
His pupils filled with shock at the words coming out of his mouth.
Open the gate. There was only one thing that phrase meant.
“If we open the gate… the party of heroes will come straight here.”
“If the enemies try to come out defensively. Just clear the way for them.”
After summoning them to the depths of Astalgia, he would handle it himself.
Serenos didn’t know what to do with Lucifer’s confident ambition.
Wait, is this novel reaching its end?
Because it seems so. The “misunderstandings” between the characters are almost all cleared (in a very unsatisfying way, I must add) and the, supposedly, last boss is right around the corner.