Chapter 91
Battle (3)
The knights possessed exceptional skill when it came to fighting other people, but they were somewhat lacking when it came to exorcising demons.
That was because they could not wield divine power.
The absence of divine power was an enormous weakness.
To survive as a combat specialist in a world teeming with demons, one absolutely had to possess some means of fighting them.
Most commonly, people used holy water.
Yuri was no exception.
She had secretly coated her blade with the highest-grade holy water.
It was meant for White Horn.
Fortunately, he had failed to notice.
As Yuri carved wounds all over his body, she had applied the holy water to them.
Now, its effects were revealing themselves.
The moment she used her aura as a trigger, all the holy water absorbed into Mapheltan’s body erupted.
Demonic energy and divinity collided.
Explosions erupted without pause.
Yuri immediately put some distance between herself and Mapheltan.
She could not afford to be caught in the backlash.
If she stepped within the blast radius, her frail human body would vanish without a trace.
Yuri retreated and watched Mapheltan.
Black smoke billowed all the way into the sky. A pool of pitch-black blood had formed on the ground.
Corroded chunks of flesh fell into the blood with wet plops.
Mapheltan writhed in agony.
“Kh—haaagh!”
He was undoubtedly dying.
A faint sense of relief appeared on Yuri’s face.
As expected, the highest-grade holy water was tremendously effective.
The more powerful the demon, the more brightly holy water displayed its worth.
Yuri wiped away her cold sweat.
She was immensely glad that she had obtained it.
With the world growing increasingly dangerous, she had shamelessly asked the Saintess for some. It had truly paid off.
Without the holy water, Yuri would never have survived.
She made the sign of the cross.
“Saint Margiel, this lamb offers her thanks for your boundless grace.”
Mapheltan dropped heavily to one knee.
His wings had been torn to shreds, and his left eye was shut.
Even his remaining eye flickered faintly.
Apostle or not, it would now be difficult for White Horn to recover.
All she had to do was finish him off.
Yuri cautiously approached White Horn.
Then a languid voice reached her ears.
“Well, now. You were thoroughly done in.”
Yuri immediately turned her head. Tension returned to her face.
She had forgotten about Hakain.
He was still sitting in front of the castle gate, leisurely puffing on his pipe.
Yuri spoke to him.
“White Horn’s fate is sealed, so you should leave as well. If you disappear without causing trouble, I will overlook your apostasy.”
She was not confident she could handle Hakain.
Yuri sincerely hoped he would simply leave.
He gave her a lazy smile.
“It seems the lady knight is afraid of me.”
Yuri scowled.
“I merely wish to avoid a pointless fight.”
Hakain tapped the ash from his pipe.
“Don’t worry. I have no intention of interfering. I agreed not to step in unless the situation became truly dire.”
Yuri’s eyes sharpened.
“What do you mean by that?”
Hakain pointed toward Mapheltan.
“It isn’t over until it’s over. Haven’t you ever heard that saying?”
Yuri looked back at Mapheltan.
Her expression slowly stiffened.
“Wh-What is this...?”
Mapheltan’s body was restoring itself.
The pooled blood flowed back into his body, and fresh flesh grew across his shredded wings.
The dim light in his eye gradually regained its color, glowing crimson once more.
Mapheltan raised his upper body.
He repeatedly clenched and opened his fists as he inspected himself.
What impressive performance.
It was the power of his Authority, Soul-Shaving Restoration.
It restored the body by shaving away the soul.
It was also the reason Johan had survived being impaled by the Holy Spear Espa.
Although this Authority had awakened quite some time ago, this was Mapheltan’s first time using it.
He was quite satisfied with its effectiveness.
It must have shaved away a small portion of my soul, though.
The side effect was probably the loss of his humanity.
He would need to be careful when using it.
Of course, he could not feel any difference yet.
Mapheltan stared at Yuri and raised the corner of his mouth.
“You look as though you’ve seen a ghost.”
Yuri could not conceal her agitation. She wanted to deny Mapheltan’s resurrection.
“I-I poured all that holy water into you. How...?”
Mapheltan chuckled.
“If an Apostle could be killed with mere holy water, your people wouldn’t have struggled so desperately five hundred years ago.”
No matter how young he was, an Apostle was still an Apostle.
A mere knight—not even a holy knight—could not exorcise one.
Despair colored Yuri’s face.
She still had a few tricks left, but none of them would work against the Apostle before her.
“...Damn it.”
Was this how it would end?
Yuri’s clenched fists trembled.
Mapheltan spoke calmly.
“You did rather well. I also have a general understanding of a first-rate knight’s abilities now.”
The experience from this battle would become a valuable asset.
He had learned quite a few things.
It was not over until it was over.
He should always account for his opponent’s final move.
That was dangerous.
He had never imagined she would coat his wounds with holy water.
He would not fall for the same method again.
Making that vow, Mapheltan trudged toward Yuri.
Yuri tightened her grip on her sword.
The outcome was practically decided, but she had no intention of giving up.
As a knight, she could never submit to a demon.
Fighting spirit once again blazed in Yuri’s eyes.
She pointed her rapier at Mapheltan.
“...I will resist until I die. No—even after death.”
Mapheltan shook his head.
“No. Your role is finished. Rest for a while.”
At that moment, a heavy impact rang out.
The demonic spear he had thrown earlier came flying back and struck Yuri in the back of the head.
The additional property of the Holy Spear Espa remained even after it had become a demonic spear.
Just like Espa, the Demonic Spear Turavak would return to its master’s side on its own.
Struck by the spear, Yuri collapsed.
She had lost consciousness.
Hakain rose from his seat.
“I’ll go deal with the others now.”
Yuri was not the only member of the Royal Guard.
They would have to subdue all of them.
Mapheltan nodded.
“Handle it without causing a commotion.”
The other guards were in the village.
There were many witnesses there.
Although the castle had been completely emptied, Johan had been unable to drive the villagers out as well.
He could hardly force them to sleep on a mountain in the middle of the night.
Hakain replied,
“Do not worry. I’ll deal with them quietly.”
He could be trusted with the task.
Mapheltan immediately headed into the lord’s castle.
Depending on the situation, he might need to help Ilea.
But Mapheltan immediately abandoned that thought.
The battle between Ilea and Gawain was on a level where he could not possibly intervene.
He realized it the moment he opened the castle gate.
The interior of the castle had been completely transformed.
Every staircase had been destroyed, and the very concept of separate floors no longer existed.
The space from the first floor all the way to the rooftop had been blasted open.
Broken debris continued to rain down from somewhere above.
The sounds of things shattering and breaking echoed endlessly.
Far above Mapheltan’s head, brilliant flashes of light continued to erupt.
Divine power and mana were colliding.
His skin tingled painfully.
Mapheltan stared into the air.
Something was constantly moving like a bolt of lightning, yet he could not even perceive its afterimage.
A hollow laugh escaped him.
I can’t even perceive them.
He had thought he had grown a little stronger, but that had been an illusion.
Compared to those two monsters, Mapheltan was infinitely weak.
There was no way for him to help Ilea right now.
He would only become a burden.
Mapheltan turned back toward the gate.
Just as he was about to step outside, he heard a shriek of air so violent that it seemed to tear space apart.
Mapheltan turned his head.
He saw a flash of light.
The instant he perceived it, something was already right in front of him.
“...White Horn.”
It was Gawain.
His face contorted with overwhelming fury as he thrust out his fist.
A pure-white fist hurtled toward Mapheltan.
He had neither the means nor the ability to dodge.
The moment it struck him, his body would vanish without a trace.
Mapheltan felt an overwhelming sense of defeat.
His life flashed before his eyes.
The approaching fist seemed to slow.
“...What?”
It was not merely his imagination.
Gawain had truly stopped in midair.
It was as if time itself had frozen.
Mapheltan’s perception could not keep up with what was happening.
As he stared in confusion, a familiar, beautiful voice reached his ears.
“I forgot to tell you. You must not open the castle gate under any circumstances for the next few hours.”
A cluster of blue light snatched Mapheltan up and carried him into the air.
Immediately afterward, Gawain’s fist slammed into the wall.
Shattered fragments of stone exploded in every direction.
Time was flowing normally again.
Gawain looked upward.
Ilea and Mapheltan had landed atop a chandelier.
Gawain’s face twisted like that of an evil spirit.
He immediately kicked off the ground, but he was unable to leap.
He had been bound by mana tangled around him like spiderwebs.
It was a binding spell meant to immobilize him for a short while.
Mapheltan looked at Ilea.
“...What do you mean, I mustn’t open the gate?”
“I’ve isolated the castle’s interior from the outside world. If the gate is opened, the barrier will continue to distort.”
Only then did Mapheltan understand why the castle had remained so quiet.
The lord’s castle was currently a completely isolated space.
None of the noise or shock generated inside could escape.
Preparations like these were essential when fighting someone like Gawain.
Without the barrier, the entire Myatro territory would have been reduced to ruins.
Mapheltan swallowed a groan.
“I didn’t know the castle gate was the barrier’s axis. I was careless.”
Ilea shook her head.
“No, I failed to tell you. Please get out of here quickly. We don’t have time for a long conversation.”
Mapheltan had to leave the castle before the binding spell restraining Gawain reached the end of its lifespan.
“Will you be all right?”
Ilea looked considerably exhausted.
None of her usual composure remained.
“Don’t worry about me. I won’t disappoint you.”
Mapheltan was worried about her, but there was nothing he could do to help.
The best thing he could do was disappear as quickly as possible.
Mapheltan leaped from the chandelier and flew toward the castle gate.
“I’ll wait outside. Don’t push yourself too hard.”
Ilea smiled faintly and waved.
“I’ll see you in a little while.”
Mapheltan immediately left the lord’s castle.
***
A considerable amount of time passed.
The sun had already risen.
Johan sat motionlessly across from the castle gate.
He had spent the entire night lost in thought.
Even now, those thoughts continued to plague him.
“...Ha.”
It was difficult to shake off the crushing sense of helplessness.
Just as he clicked his tongue, his train of thought abruptly broke.
The castle gate opened with an old metallic groan.
A figure trudged out from the pitch-black interior.
Johan shot to his feet.
The person who emerged drenched in blood was none other than Gawain.
Could Ilea have lost?
It was almost impossible to believe.
As Johan tightly gripped the shaft of his spear, Gawain slowly raised one arm.
A horrifying tension coursed through Johan’s entire body.
Then Gawain’s movement abruptly stopped.
He collapsed like a puppet whose strings had been cut.
Another figure walked out of the ruined lord’s castle.
“You’ve been waiting a long time, haven’t you? He gave me more trouble than I expected.”
Ilea smiled with difficulty.
A moment later, she too collapsed.