Chapter 110
Though his usual carefree demeanor often makes one forget, there is one undeniable truth.
The man before her was a legendary figure, one who had single-handedly repelled a Knight Order.
Of course, the Knight Order had its excuses at the time.
They had accumulated a month's worth of fatigue in the unfamiliar Space of the Forbidden Forest, and visibility was poor due to the fog.But that didn't change the fact of their defeat.
Even Yor had been under adverse conditions. In fact, his situation was even more severe. Unlike the Knight Order, he was alone, and his opponents even had holy water as a counter. Yet, he overcame all of that and survived.
She had known of his greatness and expected him to be strong enough, but...
*‘I never imagined he'd be this strong...’*
Odelia watched the battle for a moment, filled with admiration. The Monster that the Knights couldn't push back even when united was being driven back by a single Human. He had even inflicted a rather deep cut on its forearm, though not a fatal wound.
Thinking back, when Yor fought the Knight Order, he could barely use his abilities due to the variable of holy water. But this time, there were no such restrictions, allowing him to unleash his full power.
Clang- Clack-!
Blades clashed against each other. Each time, it was the Demon, Andras, who was slightly pushed back.
Sizzle-!
“Tch...”
Of course, that didn't mean Yor maintained the upper hand. After all, his Opponent was a Demon, and the Flame surrounding its sword was extremely threatening. As the sword grazed Yor's arm, he frowned sharply and quickly pulled back.
It wasn't even a cut from the sword's edge. It had merely touched him, yet a Burn Mark was left on his arm. The pain seemed considerable, as his furrowed brow didn't easily smooth out.
“Ah.”
It was then that Odelia snapped out of it and joined the battle.
“All injured ones, fall back! Refrain from throwing holy water, as that man might get hit. Instead, slowly restrict its movements.”
The tide of battle quickly turned in their favor. Odelia thought.
If they played it right, they might be able to capture it without heavy casualties.
*
“You, Human... that's quite the Blood Power Art. Who taught you that?”
Blood Power Art... it literally means a technique that uses blood as power. Not a bad name. I'd been at a loss for what to call the ability I used most often. I decided to adopt its naming sense.
“Would you believe me if I said I learned it on my own?”
Swiftly. Around that time, the Knight Order also began to move. It, centered around the 2nd Knight Commander, Odelia, slowly began to pressure the Demon. It was already getting tough, so its intervention was welcome.
Indeed, Demons were never easy to face alone. The pressure intensified the longer they fought, with this one especially, its sword wreathed in flame. Even at this very moment, the heat emanating from its sword was growing stronger.
Of course, it didn't seem infinite. I could feel a tremendous amount of demonic energy being consumed in real-time.
When its demonic energy ran out, the heat at the sword's tip would subside.
*‘The problem is, I don't know when that will be...’*
Of course, the solution was to finish it before that heat reached its peak. So, I joined forces with the Knight Order and began to pressure it.
I excessively dodged any Attack that seemed like it would cause serious trouble, and whenever someone restricted its movements, I seized the opportunity to deliver a Strike. Perhaps because one of its arms was already injured, it couldn't block all the Attacks. Scratches gradually accumulated on its smooth skin.
There's nothing like ganging up on someone. When I was on the receiving end, I was furious, but being the one doing it felt incredibly comfortable.
“You damned Humans...!”
Around that time, the Demon also began to roar in rage. Fury etched itself onto its previously expressionless, beautiful face.
“You wretches would turn to ash with a single breath if Lord Amon appeared! You reek of disgust and prance about, ignorant of your place! Ah, how lamentable that This Place is not a blazing furnace!”
I focused on the word “Amon” there.
‘Dantalion kept calling out Paimon's name, but this one...’
This time, the name Amon came up. I cautiously speculated that it might be the king of the Faction he belonged to.
After roaring in rage for a while, the Demon then made a bold move.
Thud-!
It briefly dug into the ground with the tip of its sword, then scattered a pile of dirt at us.
It was a childish attack, but the dirt it scattered was superheated by its Flaming Sword.
“Ow- hot!”
The surprisingly stinging dirt piles made us falter for a moment. And taking advantage of that opening, it began to flee. Regardless of whether they were Demons or anything else, they knew how to run when the battle turned unfavorable.
“Catch it!”
Of course, we weren't about to just stand there and watch. Each of us used True Step and began to pursue it.
“Haa, we finally arrived... wait, where are you going again?!”
“Seriously...!”
Because of that, Chaerin and Haneul, who had just arrived, fell behind once more... but it couldn't be helped. Not only they but the Knights were also falling behind. Its Defense wasn't particularly high, but its mobility seemed to be another matter.
As a result, only Odelia and I were able to keep up with its pursuit. The scenery of the Territory rapidly changed. I frowned for a moment.
*‘This isn't good...’*
With this level of Forces, we might be able to corner it, but catching it is uncertain.
Still, I couldn't let it escape like this, so I immediately unleashed my “Blood Power Art,” just as it was called, and began to launch attacks. Clumps of crimson blood coalesced in the air, transforming into sharp blades that flew towards the Demon.
The Demon seemed to block them with its sword, but a few still grazed its body. Seeing that, Odelia spoke with an incredulous tone.
“What the— how do you even do that...? Ugh, never mind.”
It seemed that Attack was quite unusual. Well, it's not an ability you see every day.
But even so, the distance between us and the Demon didn't close. Even if it was injured, they were ultimately just superficial. I thought to myself for a moment.
*“Damn it, are those Lemegeton guys even coming?”*
Speak of the devil, and he shall appear.
Fortunately, not long after I thought that, something unexpected happened.
“Swoosh- Haa...”
Suddenly, a chilling air swept in from somewhere. For a moment, it was a dense cold that pushed back even the heat emanating from Andras. Just as we sensed the sudden change in temperature, a massive ice wall appeared before Andras.
Crack-!
“...Ugh!”
Forced by the sudden appearance of the wall, the Demon had no choice but to stop.
Turning my head towards the source of the chill, I saw two familiar women approaching: Nikki and Sephiroth. It was Sephiroth who had used the Magic. Ice shards floated around her.
“Well... it seemed advantageous, so I was just going to observe. But it appears I should help.”
They were certainly powerful reinforcements. But before I could show any relief, I first felt concern. Although our immediate Goal was the same, they belonged to Lemegeton. Moreover, Odelia, the Leader of a Knight Order, was also here.
“Wait, Sephiroth? What are you doing here?”
Odelia's face momentarily went blank. It was a perfect opportunity for a pincer attack, yet she defensively raised her greatsword and became wary.
Indeed, from her perspective, she might have thought she could be attacked from both sides.
I understood her, but it wasn't the appropriate attitude for the current situation.
Andras was already striking the ice wall and melting the ice.
“Don't tell me you've come to rescue a Demon again? Ha! Not this time, absolutely not!”
“Calm down. We've come to eliminate it this time. How about we cooperate for a moment?” “Don't lie!”
For now, I decided to charge at Andras myself. It looked like their conversation was going to drag on.
“How can I trust a woman so obsessed with Demons that she abandoned her position as Tower Master of the White Magic Tower and ran off?”
“...Don't speak so carelessly about that.”
And before I charged, I caught a glimpse. For a brief moment, Sephiroth's usually expressionless face was furrowed in a frown.
*“What was that?”*
It seemed Odelia knew something about her past. She wasn't talking about her being a Branch Leader, but something else entirely. A slight curiosity arose, but I ignored it for now.
And even at that moment, the ice wall was slowly melting. It was certainly large and thick ice, but ultimately, it was just ice. There was a limit to how long it could withstand the immense heat of the Demon's sword.
Crack-! Snap-! Eventually, after withstanding a few strikes, the wall began to crack. Frustrated, I finally shouted at them.
“Stop fighting and attack this thing! Didn't you come here to take its head anyway?!”
At my words, they finally stopped their standoff and looked my way. Understanding the situation, they immediately prepared to attack.
Odelia swung her greatsword in a wide horizontal arc, aiming for Andras's flank. Sephiroth created an Ice spear in the Void and mercilessly shot it towards the Demon's head.
Sometimes, a single action can create more value than dozens of words. Because the more urgent and decisive an action is, the more sincerity it holds. And at this moment, Sephiroth attacked the Demon without hesitation—its head, which, if hit, would surely mean death.
At the very least, they must have realized they shared the same Goal. It would have been great if the Attack had Hit as it was... but unfortunately, it was already too late. No, more precisely, it would be correct to say that the Demon had one hidden move left.
Andras then brought its sword to the cracked ice wall. It was a strange posture, neither swinging nor thrusting. Just looking at it, one felt as if it was about to launch something.
And my prediction was correct.
“Launch!”
Whoosh-!
As the sword shouted, a tremendous blaze erupted from the sword's tip.
As if to engulf everything around it, a crimson Fire Demon spread in all directions.
Due to its visual intimidation alone, we had no choice but to pull back for a moment.
“Ugh!”
By the time the flames subsided a little... the Demon had already vanished from sight.
With looks of dismay, they stared blankly at the spot where it had disappeared.
Annoyed for no reason, I snapped at them.
“You idiots, we lost it because of you!”
“...Mm.”
“...”
No one offered an excuse.
*
Although we had unfortunately lost the Demon, giving up was not an option.
We immediately gathered and began to discuss.
“It probably couldn't have gone far.”
For now, Sephiroth and Nikki were also temporarily participating in the discussion. Although it felt a bit awkward, their Goal of catching the Demon was the same. It was cooperation, yet not. Of course, Odelia's frown showed no sign of easing, as if she wasn't pleased.
Fortunately, we quickly figured out where the Demon might have gone.
“That Demon was looking for a certain Place.”
The man rescued by the Knight Order gave us the information.
“It was looking for something called Flauros... it must have gone West because of that.”
Thus, our Destination was naturally set. Our Goal was West, towards the Everburning Tree.