Chapter 41
One hour earlier - [Lily’s POV]
It didn’t take long for our group to find what we were looking for. The bandit group (who may or may not be harbouring a dangerous outlaw necromancer) did little to hide their presence, and the intel was that their camp hadn’t moved since they were first discovered by Farrowgate soldiers.
Less than an hour south of town, then follow a path leading east into the mountains, and before long, you’ll find the camp overlooking the road between Farrowgate and Lion’s Maw, a military fort south of Farrowgate.
It was probably chosen because it had a view of anyone approaching from either the port city or the military fort, which blocked off the only path to the Soleo capital.
I had to wonder how these kids would have approached the camp if I weren’t there. Naturally, my ‘Gift” let me use shadow magic to quietly scout ahead and find an alternate path, but how would they have done it otherwise?
Really, this covert nonsense was getting on my nerves. I had to constantly expend mana to maintain the illusion that made me appear human, and hold myself back from tapping into my unholy magic to evade detection.
When Rex saw me for what I was in—what did he call it? The Crucible? — I was somewhat relieved. So long as we worked together alone, I could drop the pretence and let loose. But no, of course I get stuck with the dipshit trio, a Goldklinge, and his personal ballwasher.
At least the existence of Gifts let me pretend my shadow magic was something other than infernal magic.
“They’ve got three lookouts. Looks like there’s more hiding in a cave that leads into the mountain. Maybe if we came back at night, I could get a look inside, but they’ll definitely see my shadow moving if I try it now.”
I relayed what my showed me to the group. It was a basic devil’s technique used for remote monitoring, usually to check in on the slaves and make sure they were meeting quota. Sight, sound, and even smell could be communicated through this handy skill.
“Can you tell how many are hiding?”
“No, sorry. I just see a cave entrance.”
I responded to Donald’s stupid question. He and his cronies were all talk the entire time they were walking here, going on about subduing enemies of the kingdom, and solving everything without Gustav. They seemed clueless about the fact that this would be a total disregard for our orders.
But now, when we were only a couple of hundred meters away from the targets, they were visibly trembling. If only I knew how to drop other people into the Crucible, I would show them what terror looks like.
I must have physically reacted to the memories that surfaced unwanted, because Leon’s hand landed on my shoulder.
“Relax, we’re just doing recon.”
“Haha, yeah, you’re right.”
Yeah, right, like I cared about some unwashed crooks running around poisoning fish and killing messengers. Compared to repeatedly dying in a world where magic doesn’t work, and at the hands of creatures even the denizens of Hell would flee from, this was nothing.
I called back my and turned to the group.
“So what now? We haven’t really learnt anything we didn’t already know.”
Leon fell into thought, and Frederick spoke up to sway him.
“Hey, why not lure them out? Then Lily can look around inside the cave.”
“And what? Put them on alert?”
I pointed out one of the many reasons this was a stupid idea.
“Well, we can just throw a rock or something. We just need them to move away for a few seconds.”
“Do you think they’ll all go together and then forget about the disturbance immediately after? What world do you live in?”
His face reddened at my words. It was pretty funny.
“Stop it, both of you. Master Leon is thinking.”
Arnold whispered angrily at us.
“...Our orders are simple; we won’t do anything to engage. Let’s just keep an eye on them until the others finish their jobs. Lily, how often can you use that Gift of yours?”
“As much as needed, it still uses mana, but I have a really high mana flow.”
That was a lie. Mana capacity and flow weren’t measured in Hell. There was no point really, since they were always the same, dependent on a devil’s rank. The real reason I could use shadow magic so often was because of my race. So long as a natural shadow existed for me to manipulate, it cost practically nothing to cast my spells.
“Ok, keep watching them. The rest of us will remain on standby to move in case their patrol comes too close.”
“You got it.”
My job was to watch some men watching the horizon while the others watched the perimeter. And they were going to stay like this for who knows how long.
It was times like this that I missed Meztili. She could at least keep me entertained by talking about spellcraft and showing off her intricate spell circles. It would be even better if Axel were here; just imagine the havoc he would cause in this situation.
Time passed slowly with nothing interesting happening. We hadn’t even been there long enough for the lookouts to rotate their shifts. I was staring at the same faces in the same positions, and they barely uttered a word to each other.
I couldn’t so much as eavesdrop on juicy gossip. Why were these bandits so damn serious?
…Now there’s a point.
Paying closer attention to their clothing and weapons, these guys weren’t exactly what I expected from ruffians. They were still wearing crappy clothes beneath mismatched fur and leather armour, but it was all too clean.
The weapons were well-maintained as well. They lacked anything fancier than basic iron, but they were devoid of any rust, and the edges looked freshly sharpened. They had splotches of dirt and grime on their hands and faces, but they had well-toned bodies and sharp eyes that spoke to years of hard training.
It struck me at last what was so wrong about their image. They looked like soldiers at being bandits.
“Hey, Gold King.”
I decided to confer with the others about this.
“...Gold… What is it?”
“Do we have any info on who the bandits are. Individually, I mean.”
“No. As of this morning, we’re assuming The Black Dael Banshee might be present, but that’s it.”
“Hmm…”
It was worth keeping in the back of my mind at least.
“Hey, something’s coming.”
Everybody jumped up to attention and faced the direction Arnold was pointing. Soon after, a wild goat-like creature came barrelling over the rocky formation we were hiding within. It slammed hard against the stones and crumpled dead at our feet.
“...What the…”
Donald prodded it with a look of confusion. I recognised this creature described in the IMA. They were common in mountainous areas, but usually resided much closer to the peaks. The name eluded me at the moment, but I knew they were difficult prey to hunt, owing to their rocky skin and deceptive agility.
What’s more, they rammed into boulders as part of their mating ritual; the impact just now shouldn’t have been enough to kill it.
As if to shed light on that inconsistency, a gruff voice spoke down to our group.
“Oh? Some kids on a field trip? What bad luck you have to wander into my territory.”
A giant of a man with two large horns grinned at them. He held a battleaxe that looked large enough to cleave the lot of us in one go. His muscular physique, towering height, and wild beard made me think of what Axel might look like in 30 years.
“Identify yourself!”
Leon drew his sword and called out loudly. If the lookouts didn’t already hear the giant man, they would definitely be coming now.
“Me? I don’t give my name to weaklings. Besides, you’re the ones trespassing here. Shouldn’t a good little knight give his name first?’
The man cracked his head side to side as he rested his axe over his shoulder.
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“Leon Goldklinge, second son of the Goldklinge house and here on official business on behalf of the Black Crown Empire and Soleo Kingdom!”
He seriously introduced himself? Of course he did, he’s yet another knight wannabe.
“Goldklinge, huh? That sword of yours will be a nice addition to my collection. Hand it over and I’ll only kill half your crew.”
He levied his axe towards us with a look of amusement.
“Huh?! You’re outnumbered, idiot! Surrender now!”
Donald yelled back. Did he think he looked brave bellowing from behind his shield like that? At least he and his buddies got into formation quickly enough.
“Oh yeah? I guess that’s true… But y’know, even a thousand flies can’t bring down a bear.”
“Run! Back towards the main road!”
Leon yelled as loud as he could, and we clambered out of our hiding spot and ran. It was a practiced withdrawal, with each member supporting one another to facilitate a joint escape.
But the giant man just watched our escape with mild amusement.
We soon discovered why he hadn’t bothered pursuing.
“Enemies in front!”
Arnold cried out as two men with axes and shields blocked our escape route.
“On the left flank!”
Another appeared with a crossbow and loosed a bolt right at me. Luckily, Arnold was the perceptive type, as he immediately struck the projectile from the air before it could cause any damage.
“Go right! Go right!”
Leon bellowed. I could see the sending stone in his hand glowing. It seemed he had already requested aid.
The path we were forced to take was treacherous, as we had to run downhill in rocky terrain. Our pursuers clearly knew they had the luxury of time on their side, as they leisurely followed after us without tempting fate by risking a fall in these conditions. All the while, the one archer continued to take shots at us from the top of the hill.
“Yo!”
After dodging the latest bolt, I turned to see the giant horned man had already circled around to cut us off. He drove his axe into the ground, and the sheer brute force behind his arm split the earth.
We each reacted instinctively, but this led us to end up on either side of the resulting fissure: Arnold, Frederick, Donald, and I on one side, and Leon and Christopher on the other.
The horned man didn’t make a move for either side. Instead, he sat on a rock and rested his hands on the pommel as he looked on at us.
“C’mon, kids, show me what you’ve got.”
His men were on us a moment later. The crossbow user had placed his weapon back on his back and drawn a longsword before engaging Leon. The other two locked onto Donald and Frederick.
Stuck in the middle with Arnold, we weren’t at liberty to watch both sides, and we had to be wary of the leader at the same time. He may not be attacking right now, but he was clearly the biggest obstacle facing us.
“Subdue them and escape! Don’t wait for us!”
Leon bellowed, his sword already locked against his opponent’s. The sending stone had been dropped to his feet, but I saw that it had been activated again a moment earlier.
I turned to focus on the two foes in front of me. Their shields were circular and lightweight, allowing them to manoeuvre swiftly and hook their axes around the sides of our sturdier, but less versatile tower shields.
They were trying to yank them back to create an opening, and the awkward footing we had to work with made this all the more precarious. I moved quickly, weaving my shadow to create two long whips that snapped at the hands of our opponents.
Blood was drawn, and they hopped back, clearly surprised by the sudden counterattack.
The front line side-stepped away from one another, allowing Arnold to step forward and thrust at one of them.
A perfect strike, aimed for the gut of the man on the left. But I saw the hesitation behind it. The hesitation that shifted the attack at the last second to curve upwards to the shoulder.
It still connected, but the wound was shallow due to the leather pauldron absorbing the brunt of the attack.
“It’s kill or be killed, don’t be an idiot!”
I yelled, trying to fix the mistake by firing off a .
The attack was deflected with a well-timed shield bash, which dispersed most of my flames. And immediately after, he lunged for Arnold.
The shield closed in and prevented the attack, then both Donald and Frederick locked shoulders and pushed forward, forcing both attackers back again.
From our rear, a cry of pain distracted Arnold, completely wasting the opening that was just created. Instead, I got to work weaving some spells into our shieldbearer’s shadows.
a spell to shape an element into the form of a creature to do one’s bidding. Naturally, I would form it out of the shadows themselves. The other spells included and
“Stop clinging to your master’s backside, Arnold! We need to get to a better position!”
I kicked him hard in the side as he kept nervously glancing at the other battle.
“Y-yes!”
I waited for the axemen to reengage, then activated Shadowy vines burst out and coiled around the attackers. They were physically powerful enough to avoid having their arms pinned to their sides, but still struggled to defend themselves properly.
“Get the left one!”
I yelled to Arnold while activating . The shadowy form of a bear slowly climbed out from Donald’s shadow. Without hesitation, it tackled the man on the right to the ground and tore out his throat.
With a spray of blood and a short-lived scream, the man’s life ended.
“Argh! Bastard!”
The other man took a spear to the thigh, but had managed to break free of the and slammed his shield down on Arnold’s wrist before he could pull back.
He had the perfect opening, but must have choked again. Now he couldn’t properly grip his own weapon.
I quickly activated , scorching the man’s face and setting his hair alight before he could raise his shield to intercept.
He gritted his teeth and endured, but my summoned bear had turned to strike him now, and he was unable to give us his full attention.
“Run!”
I yelled and followed my own command, setting the pace for the others to follow. The horned man watched us go with a sigh and slowly stood up, but I didn’t intend to give him time to catch up.
We sprinted downhill, hoping to make it back to flat ground before another fight began. Fortunately, Leon must have had success on his end, as he and Christopher had caught up to us.
“Are they following?”
Arnold yelled to Leon, relieved that he seemed unharmed.
“No, I can’t see anyone. Don’t stop though!”
Our path was clear of enemies, and I couldn’t see or hear anyone giving chase.
A thunderous noise accompanied by debris scattering towards us broke our pace. We all came to a sudden halt and prepared for battle again.
“Not bad kids, but this is the end of the road.”
The horned man had descended from the sky like a comet, his immense weight leaving a small crater beneath him.
Now that I was right in front of him, I could get a clearer look at his appearance.
His rough skin had a slight red tinge to it, his lower canines jutted out, and his eyes were speckled with yellow dots. He could pass for a therian, but these telltale signs betrayed his true heritage.
I couldn’t help but wrinkle my nose at the disgusting creature now that I could smell that foul scent of chaos and wanton slaughter. This was a human with the mixed blood of a demon. An ogre's blood, to be specific.
That explained the incredible physical strength and why he wouldn’t help his allies. He likely enjoyed watching people kill each other. Such voyeuristic tendencies were common in his damned breed.
He hoisted his axe and stepped forward with a wide-eyed grin.
Leon silently stepped out of formation with a grim expression.
“Your shields won’t help against this guy… Let me take point while you guys back me up.”
The horned man sneered at his words and suddenly delivered a kick aimed at Leon’s chest. But he was met with empty air and a downward slash that struck his ankle.
“Oh? Quick little mouse, aren’t you?”
He backhanded Leon, who had no time to register what had happened. Blood and teeth were sent flying, and Arnold immediately lunged to the rescue, coating his spear in ice and driving it towards the man’s chest.
The horned man used his other hand to angle the axe head to intercept the blow casually.
“Arnol’ geh back!”
Leon screamed through a mouthful of blood.
But Arnold was relentless despite his prior injury. He maintained a safe distance, thrusting with his advance sweeping at the legs as he leapt back out of range.
The horned man was only using one arm to swing his weapon, and he watched Arnold’s movements with moderate interest.
“Pretty good, give you a few years and you might even be good enough to whet my teeth on. Too bad about that wound, you're barely piercing my skin here, y'know?”
Arnold noticed the shift in atmosphere and retreated even further, casting a frost spell to freeze the ground in a wide area.
The others may not have caught on to it, but Arnold must have great survival instincts to react the way he did. He probably didn’t understand what was exactly, but I sure as hell did.
This was the moment a monster decided to make an example of his prey, and Arnold had made himself the prime target.
“Run!”
Arnold yelled, and we all turned to flee.
“Not a chance.”
The horned man stormed forward, his mighty legs shattering the frozen ground. I activated the last stored spell:
A barely perceptible orb of shimmering wind launched out from Donald’s shadow and hit the foe square in the head. The impact was enough to toss a grown man into the air, yet the only effect it had in that moment was to briefly stagger the horned man.
Time seemed to stand still as my mind worked to devise the best method of survival.
We weren’t outrunning him. That was the one certainty I could count on. I couldn’t outrun the others either, so using them as bait wouldn’t work unless someone got badly injured.
Leon’s blade had already been set ablaze with his bloodline Gift, yet it couldn’t pierce the man’s flesh. Arnold, on the other hand, had left some small, frozen cuts. It wasn’t enough to call it ‘effective’, but as of right now, he was the only person who could be perceived as a threat to that monster.
If I tripped Arnold up now, he would probably entertain the freak long enough for the rest of us to escape. I prepared my shadow to entangle Arnold’s foot, but the idiot-trio took action before I could enact my escape plan.
“He’s off balance! Get him on the ground!”
Their shields shone with a holy glow, and they charged him as a single unit. The resulting collision created a burst of light designed to add an additional burst of force behind their attack. This time, it really was enough to send the target hurtling through the air.
He landed on his back, right on the frozen ground where he couldn’t find a solid foothold to push himself back up.
“Retr—”
“Get him!”
The enthusiastic rallying cry of Donald Ackerman drowned out Leon’s order.
They ran forward, using their shields to pin the man while they rained down attacks from their weapons. But whether it be axe, mace, or sword, none of them made it through that thick skin of his.
“No! Retreat, you idiots!”
Leon bellowed, but it was too late.
A brawny hand firmly gripped Christopher’s shield, warping the steel before tearing it away completely. Then, that same hand wrapped around his throat.
“Urgh…”
Christopher hacked away with his axe, but it was futile.
The grip tightened. I could hear the air being forced out from Christopher’s wheezing throat and the bones in his neck cracking against the pressure.
The others realised what had happened and, in an act of desperation, they dropped their useless weapons and began hammering their shields down into the horned man’s face.
Above the metallic clanging, a dry laughter rose to chill their bones.
Christopher’s gurgling ceased. His frantically flailing limbs faltered and failed.
He was dead.
And without any grandiose goating or malicious monologueing, the horned man simply tossed the lifeless body aside.
The other two had frozen, staring bewildered at their fallen friend. Leon, standing beside me, wore an expression contorted with rage, and I knew this was the last chance for me to run.
“Everybody, fall back!”
A new voice entered the mix, and two large curved blades came flying through the air, cutting a clean ‘X’ shape into the horned man’s torso.
With a gust of wind, Gustav Falk shot past us with his shortsword drawn and attempted to skewer the horned man’s heart.
But he had torn Donald’s shield from his grip and used it to deflect the coming attack.
Donald and Frederick ran back to rejoin us, knees trembling and fear plastered over their faces. But they didn’t stop, they kept running without turning back. It was likely they would continue that way until they collapsed.
Gustav stood between us and the horned man, the two flying blades from earlier hovering above him and ready to strike at his command.
“Ah, finally… A knight. Care to introduce yourself?”
“...Leon, lead the others back to town. If you don’t receive further orders within the hour, you are to abandon the mission and report what happened here.”
Gustav ignored the horned man, but didn't look away for a moment as he gave his orders.
Leon looked ready to jump in and join the fight, but Arnold placed a hand on his chest, and with a shake of his head, they turned and followed after the others.
That left me alone. I wasn’t stupid enough to get mixed up in this, so I left a simple piece of advice.
“Watch out, he’s got ogre blood in him.”
Gustav nodded, and the horned man looked at me with a mixture of surprise and admiration, but I had already run for it before the ensuing chaos could ensnare me.
