Lament of the Undead Master and Servant (6)

The pale-blue flames that had initially been smoldering suddenly flared up, engulfing Claude. Their intensity continued to increase until, at last, flames took the shape of his entire body in place of ash.

Flames leaked from the gaps and cracks in his bone armor, making him look like an embodiment of flame. Only around his head, however, a skull floated within the flames. As expected, that head was his true body—and his weakness.

And Catherine was still clinging to his back, translucent as ever. Claude-kun was burning, but wasn't he hot? Or could the flames be adjusted so that they did not affect her? Or was she simply unaffected? For some reason, I found myself strangely concerned about something so trivial.

"Genzuro and the others, fall back and let Eiji's group take over. Eiji, Cal, don't overdo it under any circumstances."

"If I die, that's one less shield, after all."

"Grrrrrrrrr!"

"Toji and Moc-san, you too. Take it slow and steady."

"Don't worry. I'm not the type to get fired up."

"Of course. Now that we've come this far, I want us to break through with everyone still alive."

I completely agreed with Moc-san's opinion. Claude was the strongest enemy we had encountered so far, but somehow we had driven him to use his 'Ultimate Art.' Unless bosses were an exception to the usual rules, that meant we had forced him to use his trump card. We would see this through and win!

With Eiji holding his shield at the front, we closed the distance to Claude. In the meantime, he wrapped the wavering pale-blue flames around the blade of his sword and the axe head of his halberd. Was it a Skill similar to 【Imbuement】?

"Gwooooooooooh! Greatshield Heavy Strike!"

'Hmph!'

"Gah!? Hot, hot, hot!"

Eiji attacked without hesitation with a martial technique from 【Shield Arts】. When Claude blocked it with his sword, Eiji's shield began turning red-hot before my eyes! Just how high had its temperature become?

The sensation of heat was probably just in my head, but there was no doubt that Eiji had taken damage through the shield. That shield was supposed to have resistance to magic, yet the attack had pierced right through it. Those pale-blue flames really were no ordinary flames.

"It passes through, but it still deals damage, huh?"

"This is rough for me, since I fight barehanded."

Physical attacks still seemed difficult to use against him. Moreover, changing from ash to flame had made him the worst possible opponent for Moc-san, who fought with his talons and wings. Fighters like Moc-san and Shifune, who relied on their own bodies, had a hard time in situations like this.

I used magic to raise our resistance to fire, Wool's cry raised our resistance to magic in general, and Mikelo's healing helped as well, so we weren't taking much damage. There was a good chance Claude could increase his firepower further, so we could not let our guard down.

"Gaooooooooooooooooooh!"

However, Cal, who likewise treated his body as a weapon, continued fighting despite his scales being burned. He could force his way through like that because he had so many defensive Skills, including 【Physical Enhancement】, 【Defense Enhancement】, 【Dragon Scales】, and 【Regeneration】. I told him not to overdo it... Would I have to lecture him later?

Thanks to Cal pushing himself, we were able to fight evenly even though Eiji could no longer keep Claude occupied by himself. But since everything depended on Cal's reckless effort, it would not last long. Besides, our mana was running low after such a long battle. We could not keep supporting him forever, so at this point, we'd better use an 'Ultimate Art' or 'Secret Art' and finish Claude off.

"Brother, from here on, we're going to attack at a faster pace. Be ready to use your 'Ultimate Art' at any time."

"Heh! That's more like it!"

Jigoro replied cheerfully as usual. When all was said and done, he was a man who loved fighting with all his might, so perhaps his frustration had been building up this whole time.

Even as we spoke, Eiji and the others continued fighting. Their mysterious health loss continued as before, so it was almost time to switch them out. In that case, they might as well use an 'Ultimate Art' first.

"The three of you, give him everything you've got!"

"...Really? Then I'll go first. 【Chaotic Blade Dance: Heat Haze】!"

Toji quickly understood my intention and immediately used an 'Ultimate Art.' His movements were slow at first, but his speed gradually increased until, in the end, they became impossible to follow with the eye.

This 'Ultimate Art' was a type of sword dance in which a curved sword was swung with constantly varying speed. Its unique movements supposedly made it extremely difficult to read. The sword flickered like a heat haze, impossible to predict, and broke through Claude's defense to slash apart his armor and body. It was less effective against the flames, but the final slash reached the skull.

'Nuaaah! Guarding Blade Flash!'

"I won't let you! 【True Mighty Countershield】!"

A blow to the head really did seem effective, and Claude's health visibly dropped. Immediately after Toji's 'Ultimate Art' ended, Claude tried to slash him with his sword, but Eiji's 'Ultimate Art' blocked it completely.

Its effects were overwhelming defense and reflected damage. It only worked against the first attack received after activation, but it granted enough defense to withstand that attack almost unfailingly, even if the enemy was stronger, while reflecting the attack's damage back at them. If used at the right moment, it was a powerful 'Ultimate Art.'

The attack Eiji blocked was Claude's martial technique aimed at Toji. The sword was imbued with pale-blue flames as well, so its power was easy to imagine. The reflected damage made the flames forming Claude's body waver violently and threw his stance badly out of alignment.

"Now! 【Scarlet Wing Blade Descent】!"

Moc-san used an 'Ultimate Art' in that opening as well. Moc-san's four wings were dyed scarlet and began shining with a metallic sheen. Then he charged at Claude's head like a cannonball.

Claude tried to knock him down with his halberd, but just before impact, Moc-san's trajectory warped and veered aside. The attack was not avoided completely, so the halberd's shaft struck the edge of his wing, preventing a fatal blow to the head. Still, like Toji, he succeeded in grazing Claude, and once again managed to inflict damage.

'Damn you...!'

"All three of you, fall back! Cal!"

Ignoring Claude's strained voice, the three of them fled at full speed. They had realized what Cal was about to do.

"Gwooooooooooooooooooar!"

"Whoa-aaah!?"

"...If we'd been caught in that, we might've been vaporized."

"Ah!? Eiji-kun!"

Cal unleashed the 【Dragon Breath】 he had been charging high above. A black torrent that would have blown me to pieces in an instant if it struck me directly assailed Claude with terrifying force and pressure.

The three of them had hurried away, but Eiji, the slowest of them, could not escape the blast and was blown toward us. He traced an arc through the air like something out of a gag manga and was about to land headfirst, but Iris's tentacles, Nenashi's vines, and Mikelo caught him, so he escaped serious injury.

'Gwoooooooooooooooooooo!?'

Claude, who had taken Cal's 【Dragon Breath】 head-on—a blast powerful enough to send even the huge Eiji flying with its aftershock alone—was enduring it with all his might. He swung his sword and halberd wildly, dispersing the breath with the force of his blades.

Cal had an attack that even an opponent above Level 80 could only withstand by defending with all their might, while Claude was fending it off even as he was being worn down. Which of them deserved more praise? It was a difficult question.

"【Warhawk's Heroic Arrow】!"

"Then I'll use mine too! 【Transcendent Doppelganger】!"

"【Monster-Shattering Sonic Wave】~. Baa~"

"It's luck-based, but... 【Goddess's Mischief】."

"I regret not having a combat-oriented 'Ultimate Art.'"

"Fighting isn't your main profession, after all."

Still, admiration was no reason to hold back. While Claude was fully occupied dealing with Cal's 【Dragon Breath】, the rear line launched one attack after another.

An arrow flew from Shio's bow accompanied by a fierce, jet-like rush of wind and an effect resembling white feathers, while Shichiko summoned a doppelganger stronger than himself for a very brief time. Wool's sonic waves completely destroyed Claude's armor while shaking his body, and Mikelo prayed to Eefa-sama, randomly weakening the enemy.

Iris and Shiitake did not have combat-oriented 'Ultimate Arts,' so the two of them continued throwing things as usual. As Shiitake said, we relied heavily on them in their actual profession, production, so there was absolutely no need to worry about it.

"Goh-hooooooooo..."

'Hah... hah...'

"How can you go this far...?"

After Cal's 【Dragon Breath】 ended, Claude was still standing despite being battered all over. The flames had weakened, and the floating skull was so badly distorted that it was strange it still retained its shape. Even so, he remained firmly upright on both feet.

Despite his horrific condition—and despite the fact that he should not even have had a facial expression—I could not sense his fighting spirit diminishing at all. He would not retreat or turn his back, and he tried to block everything. There had been many moments when he could simply have rolled across the ground to break his fall instead... What was driving him to act this way?

Was it because this was a game? Because he had been programmed that way? That might certainly be true, but the opponent was an AI with emotions no less genuine than those of a real person. If so, when placed in such an overwhelmingly disadvantageous situation, would it not be natural for him to become inclined to flee?

Rather, it made more sense to assume that there was a reason he could never escape. The sight was so terrifyingly intense that I was not the only one who felt overwhelmed. It seemed to affect not only Iris, who had murmured involuntarily, but Jigoro as well, whose expression had become unusually serious.

"I'm going in all at once, okay? 【Flying Heaven Thunder Drive】!"

"Finishing move! 【Heroic Ultimate Art: Heaven-Rending Earth-Piercer】!"

That did not mean we would retreat either. Ragaa charged through the air with lightning crackling from her entire body, while Kanna, mounted on her horse, unleashed a continuous barrage of attacks with her fangtian ji using the 'Heroic Ultimate Art,' which could only be used by someone recognized by many people as a Hero.

She had competed in the First Martial Arts Tournament and won the pairs division, so she was recognized as a Hero not only by Players but also by the NPC residents who had watched the matches. Therefore, she had been eligible to learn it.

"【Beast-Fused Armament】! Hyaaaaaaaaaah!"

While Kanna and the others attacked from above, Sei approached with his body held low. He was not mounted because he had fused his familiars with his equipment using a new 'Ultimate Art.'

The wolf Phil had fused with his armor, while the spirit Tess had fused with his club. As a result, Sei had gained a wolf's agility and a light-element weapon. Clad in armor whose design had changed to vaguely evoke a wolf, he rushed in swiftly while scattering white phosphorescence and swung his club upward toward Claude's head.

Crack!

The halberd that blocked Sei's club snapped cleanly in half. It had continued to withstand our fierce assault, but apparently even it had reached its limit.

'Ooooooooooh!'

"O-oh, dear!?"

"Gwaaaah!?"

"Damn it! I missed the kill!"

When Claude let out a beastlike roar, the pale-blue flames surged violently. Kanna and Ragaa hurriedly backed away, but the flames burned through one of Kanna's legs and Ragaa's abdomen. Neither had died, but a limb-loss icon had appeared on Kanna's marker. It would be difficult for her to fight even from horseback.

It looked like a desperate attack, but its firepower was apparently extremely high. If someone did not pull away from it, they would have to be either unable to move or resistant to fire.

"【The Asura's Path I Walk】! Hahahahahahahaha!"

The one who charged into the pale-blue flames was Jigoro, releasing golden flames and lightning from his entire body. The two flames collided, mixed together, and rose upward, melting through the ceiling in an instant.

It was the perfect name for an 'Ultimate Art' used by someone who craved battle. A few seconds after the two combatants collided, the flames of the two colors seemed to burn each other out and vanished.

Jigoro then leaped back toward us. Smoke was rising from his entire body, so apparently his resistance had been overcome and he had taken damage. On top of that, his left arm had been severed above the elbow. It was a serious injury that Mikelo needed to treat immediately.

However, his recklessness had paid off. His right hand was gripping a sharp piece of metal—in other words, the tip of a sword. Inside the flames, he had sacrificed his left arm but managed to snap Claude's sword in two.

"Yo, brother. I'll leave the rest to you..."

"Mikelo! Treat him! Genzuro!"

"Leave it to me! 【Extreme Thrust】! Ooooooooooh!!!"

With a battle cry that seemed to rend the air, Genzuro thrust out the great spear held in his four arms. His 'Ultimate Art' amplified his speed and power the longer he remained still and charged, so he drove the spear into Claude's head at a speed that left sound itself behind.

Claude immediately tried to block with his sword, but Jigoro had broken it, so he could not bring his defense up in the fraction of a second available. Genzuro's full-strength thrust pierced straight through the center of Claude's brow.

'Nooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo!!!!'

We had won. At the very moment everyone thought so, Catherine, who had done nothing but smile until then, let out a scream. The scream became a shockwave that blasted us away and sent us crashing into the walls.