Chapter 31
Borderland Knights. Third Knight, Kantas.
A veteran knight who had weathered every conceivable hardship.
He could only blink blankly.
“......”
Because even a veteran with years of experience had never seen anything like this.
Ghouls.
Humans mutated after receiving vampire blood.
Monsters whose selves had died, leaving only the instinct to drink blood.
As far as Kantas knew, ghoulification was an irreversible curse.
‘And yet......’
The masked man, Garuric.
He said he belonged to a secret organization called [Slayers].
He was a captain.
Apparently, they were vampire hunters operating in the shadows across the continent.
Under normal circumstances, he would have scoffed and called it bullshit, but after seeing this, he couldn't.
‘......He reversed ghoulification?’
A miracle.
For several hours now, the same scene had been repeating before his eyes.
“All righty. One more, please!”
Swishhh-!
Ghouls thrown without pause.
Across from them, Garuric stood holding the balloon sword.
The colorful blade shot out and knocked away the incoming ghoul.
“Sir Kantas! Catch!”
“Huh...... Ah! I've got it!”
Kantas belatedly came to his senses.
Then he caught the ghoul that had soared high into the air.
Perhaps thanks to his trained body, he was able to catch it securely in his arms.
“Ugh...... Where am I......?”
A mutter heard through a sleepy haze.
When he looked down, a girl who looked as though she had just woken up was nestled in his arms.
Her skin and eyes were no longer blood-red. She had returned to human form.
Kantas briefly explained the situation, then sent her over to the group of survivors.
“Senia? Is it really you, Senia?”
“Dad......!”
Another moving reunion.
Kantas watched the whole scene blankly.
‘What...... is even going on?’
He glanced down into the deep pit.
Until a few hours ago, it had been filled with victims who had undergone ghoulification.
But now, only a few ghouls remained visible.
Even those few were being transported using blood manipulation......
‘......Is this a dream?’
Every time the balloon sword was swung, a ghoul returned to human form.
An utterly surreal sight.
Still, he had no choice but to believe it.
Because there were noisy people making a fuss beside him.
“Captain, Captain! Did you see that just now? Three ghouls at once......!”
“The ghoul turned back into a human! I've never seen anything like this in my life!”
“How did he even do that? Captain! Is that person standing over there some kind of high priest?”
“Haa......”
Immature fools.
They were members of the Borderland Knights, just like Kantas, and the men he led.
How could they still have so much energy when they had only just returned to human form?
Kantas thumped each of them once, as if to tell them to calm down.
“Ow! Why, why did you hit me?”
“Honestly, you were amazed too, Captain!”
Even as this went on, the ghoul baseball continued.
Before long, only the final ball remained.
One of his subordinate knights muttered analytically.
“I don't sense any special energy from that gentleman. Mana, sorcery, demonic energy...... He has none of it. At a glance, he can't even be distinguished from a civilian......”
“What? Then what are we looking at right now?”
“I don't know either......”
“Well, I suppose that's true?”
“Could there be something hidden in that balloon sword? Maybe it's infused with some special energy, or perhaps that balloon sword is actually a holy relic......”
“It looks like an ordinary balloon sword on the outside, though?”
“Idiot. That's only how it looks on the outside. If it were ordinary, it would have burst several times over by now.”
“A holy relic......”
The knights' foolish conversation went back and forth.
Kantas let out a deep sigh.
He thought quietly to himself.
‘Could it be......?’
Now that he looked at it, the balloon sword did seem unusually taut......
It certainly didn't look like an ordinary weapon.
Besides, Garuric was a captain of a world-renowned organization.
He was skilled enough to seize a ranch single-handedly.
The weapon used by such a man being an ordinary balloon sword was absurd on its face.
‘Could it really be a holy relic......?’
By now, Kantas had firmly accepted that the balloon sword was a powerful weapon.
Absolute Balloon Sword.
A holy sword that would surely be recorded in history.
The man quietly witnessed the miracle.
“Phew...... Is this the end?”
“Well done. Captain Garuric.”
“Manur, you worked hard too.”
After successfully batting even the final ghoul, the two returned unhurriedly.
Garuric & Manur.
The two were problem children, but they were the strongest.
A crowd of survivors teemed around them.
Far more numerous than when they had first stepped forward.
The result of the ghouls in the pit being restored to normal.
-Sob, my daughter...... To be able to hold you like this again......
-Oh, Mother! I thought I'd never see you again......
-Thank goodness, really, sob, thank goodness......
Wails rose from every direction.
But these cries were quite different from those of a few hours earlier.
They were steeped in joy rather than sorrow, fulfillment rather than loss......
“......A miracle.”
Someone muttered.
Yes, it was a miracle.
There was no other way to explain it.
It was as though light had reached out a hand to them after they had been plunged into despair.
“Aah......! Saint!”
“We stand before an apostle of God......”
“Thank you! Thank you, my God......!”
Cries choked with sobs.
Hundreds of people knelt before the mask.
They bowed their heads, filled with reverence and joy.
“Huh? Everyone......?”
The one they called a saint.
He froze in place for a moment, seemingly flustered.
“Um...... Ah.”
But,
Perhaps he soon understood the situation, because he nodded.
“That's right.”
A merciful voice rang out.
The man spread both arms wide.
In his hand was the holy weapon, the Absolute Balloon Sword.
A heroic bearing worthy of being recorded in the Bible.
“I am indeed an apostle who carries out the will of God.”
In truth, he had only wanted to cause a little chaos......
Well, what mattered was that it all worked out.
A spectacle of multicolored balloons blooming in full.
Before they knew it, the Borderland Knights were kneeling too.
Kantas among them was so immersed that tears were streaming down his face.
“Sir Garuric! Sir Manur!”
The veteran knight looked up.
Slayers.
Vampire hunters.
A secret organization known to no one.
And thus, their sacrifices went unrecognized.
Even so, they were warriors who took up silver and stakes for the sake of others.
“Borderland Knights! Third in rank within my order! Third Knight, Kantas! I am moved by your devotion!”
They were exactly the image of heroes Kantas had dreamed of.
To think that such people had received the will of God and were spreading holiness throughout the world.
“I swear upon the constellations in the heavens above! Our Borderland Knights will cooperate with Slayers anytime, anywhere! Give me only a word, and I will mobilize the entire order to support you! Please allow us to join you in your noble cause......!”
The Borderland Knights were an alliance of numerous minor knightly orders.
The individual members were not particularly powerful, but in size, they surpassed most major knightly orders.
They would certainly be useful.
“......Hehe.”
The clown answered with a smile instead.
A whole host of misconceptions was rolling along.
Ding-!
[You have cleared the subquest!]
-Title: Vulgar Slaughter, Groveling Survival.
-Description: Prevent the vampires of the New Kingdom from constructing a ‘human ranch.’ Rescue the people kidnapped by the vampires.
[You have accomplished an impossible feat!]
-Description: Rescue 113 civilians who had become ghouls.
-Result: Additional rewards will be issued!
[Rewards Acquired]
1. Infinite goodwill from the city of ‘Riventa’.
2. Infinite goodwill from the ‘Borderland Knights’.
3. Acquired title [Saint].
Messages continued to rise without pause.
The clown rolled his eyes behind the mask.
Ding-!
[One misconception has been activated 30 or more times!]
[A new misconception has been registered in the Mistaken Belief Collector!]
.
[Mistaken Belief Collector]
1. Step Skip(Step Skip)
2. Slowdown(Slowdown)
3. Parrying(Parrying)
4. Imaginary Parry(Status Effect-Parrying)
-> When one misconception is used 30 or more times, it is registered in the collector.
-> Misconceptions registered in the collector greatly reduce the burden on the user.
A celebratory barrage from the flashy status window.
Along with it, the fierce quest of the night came to an end.
***
After the situation was over.
Carmilla and I returned to the academy.
We left a huge amount of gunpowder at the ranch and blew it up so that not a trace remained.
-Leave the rest to us!
-The Borderland Knights will take care of everything.
The rescued survivors.
Kantas's side would handle the various complicated procedures as well.
It was a relief for me, since I could skip the bothersome parts.
‘More importantly...... I may have raised their favorability a little too much.’
I had no idea how many times I'd heard the words “Thank you” just today.
I'd gotten carried away and done quite a lot, but would it be all right?
Various worries came to mind, but I decided to set them aside for now.
Because it felt as though my body might melt right where I stood.
“Phew...... I think I overdid it a bit today.”
[Are you all right? Why do you never take care of yourself......]
“It's not like I'm going to die. I'll probably recover if I get a good night's sleep in the dormitory.”
[Yes, tomorrow is a day without lectures. I would like to sleep all day myself......]
“Your Highness, you worked hard too.”
Before long, Carmilla had returned to her bat form.
I walked with her wriggling form held in my arms.
On the way to the dormitory building.
“Student Victor.”
“......?”
Someone was standing in front of the building.
A woman leaning against the wall as though she had been waiting for me.
Flowing red hair framed her green eyes.
“......Professor Jaber?”
Jaber.
The moment our eyes met, I couldn't help but flinch.
“It's late. You passed dormitory curfew by quite a bit; it's nearly morning.”
“......”
“And yet...... where could Student Victor have gone so secretly?”
“......”
A chill ran down my spine.
Her green eyes had turned cold.
I swallowed dryly to myself.
“Where have you been? All night.”
“......”
No.
Why is my big sister here......?