The Defense of Ireves (7)

White Dunamis is level 50. In other words, it's an enemy on par with the Troll Knight, which had put us in danger several times even when we all ganged up on it. To make matters worse, the goddess's support had completely healed it, and it was strengthened within the temple. There's no doubt it's a formidable foe.

However, it was also true that the backlash from its forced evolution had left parts of its body falling apart. This was reflected in the Skill 【Collapsing Body】 as well. A quick glance wasn't enough to tell what was being affected or how. We would find out as the battle continued.

"Both of you, fight as you have been. I'll take the skirmisher role. Surely this is the optimal solution for the three of us."

With only Nanako, my summoned servants, and Moss-san as the vanguard, we had to admit that our front line was woefully inadequate. Could Nanako handle it, then? No, that would be even more impossible than it would be for me. Unlike me, he had no close-combat Skill like 【Scythe Arts】.

Besides, I have at least been taught how to protect myself by Jigoro and Genjuro, the Battle Junkie Duo. I have several ways to fight at close range, so I am unquestionably better suited to the role than Nanako, who is practically a pure mage.

"Understood."

"We've come this far, so let's see it through to the end!"

"Then let us go!"

I raised my scythe and flew into the air. Then I charged straight at the angel.

'Now! Attack!'

"Flash, then Short Teleport."

Or so you thought? No, there was no way I could win by fighting it head-on. As I had done earlier, this would probably become a basic tactic for a magic warrior capable of using 【Space-Time Magic】.

However, acquiring 【Space-Time Magic】 requires first obtaining 【Light Magic】 and 【Dark Magic】 and raising their levels, then spending a huge amount of SP. On top of that, using Short Teleport during combat takes a subtle knack. If those two hadn't put me through such Spartan training, I doubt I could have used it as smoothly as I had just now.

The fighting style itself is tricky and requires a certain amount of practice, and it takes quite a while to become capable of using it properly. Besides, while it may be stylish, its firepower is honestly low. Unless the player is exceptionally skilled, they might end up holding their companions back.

Leaving aside my analysis of space-time magic warriors, I used Black Sword, which dealt damage by slicing through shadows. Just because I had raised my scythe didn't mean I had to use it. I was a mage, so it was only natural that magic would provide greater firepower.

'A blinding attack won't work!'

"And now, Astral Magic Circle activation: Black Sword!"

Naturally, I hadn't expected a flash of light to blind an angel serving a god who ruled over light. My aim was to use Short Teleport to perform a Flash and Black Sword combo all by myself.

I had practiced this quite a bit, you know? The difficulty wasn't particularly high, but it had taken a lot of work before I could perform it reliably.

'If you're going to raise your scythe, then use it!'

"Then I shall. Flying Slash."

To answer her request, I leaped backward and used my scythe to unleash a weapon technique. It was Flying Slash, the technique that sent a cutting slash flying, which I had used countless times before. Incidentally, this slash was imbued with the Dark attribute. That was an effect of my great scythe, the Old Great Scythe. Until now, I had never encountered an enemy that seemed particularly vulnerable to the Dark attribute, so its presence had been extremely understated. I was very happy that it had finally gotten its moment in the sun.

However, Flying Slash, with no feint or anything else to disguise it, was easily canceled out by the angel's sword. It should have dealt guaranteed damage if it hit, but things were never that simple. The angel then tried to pursue me, following its master's command. But was it wise to focus solely on me?

"All-out volley! Moss-san!"

"Understood!"

Of course, Nanako and Moss-san, who had moved behind it, launched their attacks. A rain of magic from Nanako and his summoned crows poured down, immediately followed by the bats led by Moss-san attacking every part of the angel's body. We had once destroyed a body part by repeatedly attacking the same spot, but if we wanted to make the most of their small size and numbers, it would be better to envelop the entire body.

'How annoying! Take out the small fry first!'

"I won't let you! Astral Magic Circle activation: Black Thread!"

I couldn't let the number of Moss-san's front-line forces be reduced here. Thus, I bound the angel with Black Thread. I hadn't adjusted the spell, so it might tear free almost immediately, but that didn't matter. As long as I restrained it close to the ground, that was enough.

"Go, Trolls!"

"GRAAAAAAAAH!!!"

That was because there were power-type Trolls on the ground. The two of them grabbed the angel's legs and dragged it down. One seized both of the angel's wrists from the front and bit into its throat, while the other grabbed its wings from behind and twisted them with all its might. We had successfully restrained it both physically and magically!

"Good! Keep it like this as long as possible! Astral Magic Circle activation, Spell Adjustment: Thorn Whip!"

This time, I used Tree Magic's Thorn Whip to bind it even more tightly. Stopping an enemy's movement completely and then beating it down was my basic strategy. On top of that, the thorn-covered briars dealt additional damage. It was killing two birds with one stone.

"Now! Hit it with everything..."

"No, wait!"

I had just thought we should hit it as much as possible while we had the chance, but Moss-san hurriedly stopped Nanako, who was about to send the bat army on a suicide charge. I had noticed it too, but for some reason the angel had begun to glow. I had no idea what was happening, but it couldn't be good.

'Kzz... Kzzzzzzzzzzzzzz!'

The angel, which had not uttered a single word until now, began making a sound like the static of an old cathode-ray television. Could this be the effect of 【Collapsing Body】...?

'KRRRRRRRRR!!!'

"Woooooah!?"

"Guh!?"

"Aaaaaah! My eyes!"

The next moment, the wounds carved into the angel's hard, ceramic-like body spread as though they were cracking. Then blinding flashes burst from them! The radiance left Nanako in the same condition as if he had been hit by the Flash I had used earlier, and he fell to the ground. The light also seemed to have a damage check, because Moss-san and I took a solid chunk of damage when it struck us.

"GRAAAAAAAAAAH!?"

However, the Trolls closest to it suffered the greatest damage. They took the beams head-on from point-blank range and died instantly. That was only natural, since the beams had pierced through their biting mouths and straight through their heads. Damn it, I had intended to let them play a much bigger role!

'J-Just as calculated! Now finish them...'

'KRRR.'

'Eek!?'

It seemed the goddess had been trying to say something, but for some reason the angel slashed at the goddess's statue with its sword. It wasn't destroyed, but a deep scar was carved into it. Hey, was that really okay? That was its master, wasn't it?

'Aaaah...! W-What should I do!?'

"Hey, what's happening to that thing? Why is it pointing its sword at you, too?"

'I-I forcibly evolved it, so it went berserk... Wait! Why should I have to tell you that!?'

I see. So this incompetent goddess was indeed the root of all this trouble. What a useless goddess—you couldn't even control your own subordinate.

'Kzz... Kzzzzzz.'

"Tch, this isn't the time for chatting. Both of you, watch how things play out for now. Don't force your way closer."

"Sure thing, boss."

"Understood."

The angel faced us while spitting out glittering white particles from its wounds. Combined with the vacant look of an angel that had always lacked much expression, it was extremely eerie.

"For now, just a probing spell. Astral Magic Circle activation: Dark Ball! Nanako!"

"Yeah! Wind Lance!"

Nanako, his summoned beasts, and I all unleashed magic. We were trying to overwhelm it with quantity rather than quality. Now, how would it move?

'Kzzzz... Kzzzzzzzz...'

Perhaps in response to being attacked, the angel swung its swords to intercept the magic. Its movements were one notch faster and more powerful than before. At the same time, it scattered the white particles billowing from its entire body. When they touched the magic, they erased it completely. And then those particles flew all the way to us!

"Guh... huh?"

"That didn't do much damage."

It didn't seem to have been weakened, but that didn't mean it had simply been strengthened, either. Its movements were sloppy somehow. It looked as though it was merely swinging the swords in both hands with brute force. I could tell after enduring Jigoro and Genjuro's so-called loving beatings! It was no match for those two, but it was completely different from the movements the angel had shown earlier.

Could it be that the bonus from 【Dual Sword Arts】 was no longer working? That alone wouldn't be enough to say so, but perhaps it had lost the ability to use Skills. If that was the case, there were all sorts of ways we could deal with it.

Besides, it made a creaking sound every time it moved, and the effects around its wounds had grown slightly larger. This was only speculation, but perhaps forcing its body to move meant that it took damage whenever it performed any kind of action.

"And it ain't coming any closer, either?"

As Nanako said, the angel did not approach us despite our attacks. The damage I had taken must have been like a stray shot. Good. To confirm that clearly, let's run one experiment.

"Nanako, Moss-san. I'm going to try something. Keep an eye on how it reacts."

"Sure thing!"

"What are you going to do?"

"Just watch. Summon."

I summoned three crows of the same type as Nanako's. Then I sent them flying so that they surrounded the angel.

'Krrr...'

Just as it had before, the angel swung its swords at full force in a wild frenzy, slicing the crows apart. Its movements were as crude as ever, consisting entirely of large swings that could be dodged if you watched closely. At the same time, the areas around its wounds crumbled away bit by bit, and the instant it finished cutting down the crows, it stopped attacking altogether.

"I see... So that's how it is."

"It can only counterattack enemies that approach, and it seems to be taking self-inflicted damage too."

I thought Moss-san's theory was correct. From here on, we could apparently deal with it simply by attacking from a distance. What an empty threat. This would be a cinch...

'I won't let you! Take that!'

'Kzz... Beep... KRRRRRRRRR!'

Just as we were about to exploit the angel's malfunction and defeat it with a cowardly, persistent long-range strategy, the goddess apparently did something else. In response, the angel began convulsing violently like a creature from a horror movie, all while increasing the amount of white smoke billowing from its body.

This is just plain scary, isn't it? The fact that it had originally been an angel made it all the more unsettling.

"Hey, what did you do?"

'I only gave it a boost! Angels, as a Race, can be forced to obey their goddess master!'

"Didn't you just get slashed?"

'S-Shut up! At this point, I don't care if the temple gets a little wrecked! We can repair it after taking you down! Get them!'

No sooner had the goddess said this than the angel charged straight at us. You little...! Always sticking your nose in and making things worse! Then I'll beat it down in a real fight!