novelraw Chapter 132 : Chapter 132
Chapter 132 : Chapter 132
Chapter 132 : Geniuses
It wouldn't even tickle my liver.
That was exactly how Muno felt.
The ones who had approached stealthily, even using concealment magic, were mostly pathetic 1st and 2nd Circle magicians, with only one of them being a 3rd Circle.
"Don't tell me that guy was the leader? I don't see any Magic Knights either."
"There was one. But he's dead by my hand."
Victon pointed at the corpse of the one who was, among them, equipped with somewhat decent gear, his expression sour.
The body of the Magic Knight, who had died without even being able to draw the axe from his back, was already rapidly decaying.
"What are these?"
"What could they be?"
The murderous fiends, who had laid waste to the forest in an instant, tilted their heads in unison over the pile of corpses they had created.
"Just in case, I subdued one of them…"
"Kuuuuh…"
Following Rauel's gesture, their gazes shifted to a man with the impression of a bandit, trembling like a collected insect with arrows piercing his limbs.
"Good job, Rauel."
"It's nothing."
For a moment, Muno, who was patting Rauel's shoulder, tilted his head slightly.
'Is this right?'
He had massacred people as if harvesting rice during a harvest, made a taxidermy-like display out of one of them, and was now even praising it as a job well done. It felt quite unsettling.
'As a human being, I feel like I shouldn't be doing this…'
Come to think of it, he had grown accustomed to the fishy smell of blood, and he felt nothing even when looking at corpses.
It felt as if his humanity was eroding.
"Well, as long as I treat my people like people, it's fine."
"Yes?"
"Ah, no. Let's interrogate him."
This was a world of barbarism, after all.
Moreover, wasn't it more ridiculous for him, who had been kidnapped in his infancy and subjected to experiments akin to torture, to seek humanity from his enemies?
"From the reason they approached with such murderous intent, to where their boss is. Let's find out for sure."
Crack.
"Leave it to me!"
Rauel stepped forward with a chilly smile.
"S-save me…"
Soon, the pathetic mercenary, who had not a single point of demonic energy, drooled profusely after being force-fed an excessive amount of truth serum and spewed out everything he knew.
However, the result was ambiguous.
"...The location is different, isn't it? From what you said, Sir Victon."
Victon's face had already been contorted before Rauel even spoke.
Even after becoming half-wit from the truth serum, the man was spewing out the same information he had spoken with a clear mind.
It meant that, at least as far as this mercenary knew, that was the truth.
"...That can't be."
"Can you tell me where you got your information?"
"That… is difficult. But it is a reliable source. That's why I came to find you, isn't it?"
"But this guy is saying something different."
"Ugh."
It wasn't just slightly off; it was a completely different direction.
It was the same mountain range that formed the border between the Empire and the Kingdom, but he was pointing to a mountain on the complete opposite side.
"Of course, this guy's words are more suspicious."
"It could be a lure."
"That's right. It's more suspicious that someone who just looks like a mercenary would know the location of the main base."
"That's what I'm saying, Miss Rauel."
It wasn't wrong, but there were parts that made it ambiguous to see it that way.
To get to the place this guy mentioned, they would have to take a completely different mountain path, so they would get further from their original destination, but.
"Even so, at best, it's just buying about a day's time. Would they use a lure, even sacrificing their own subordinates, for that?"
"...That's true."
Although they were easily massacred by the party, the number of personnel mobilized was almost twenty.
Among them was a 3rd Circle magician and, although low-ranking, even a Magic Knight.
"It's because they ran into us. In the provinces, they would be considered quite capable, wouldn't they? To throw away such people so futilely?"
"If they knew about the events in Erundel, it might be possible, don't you think?"
"...I suppose so."
Hearing Rauel's words, he had no choice but to agree.
"Let's just go as originally planned."
"That's a good idea. We can't change our strategy now that we're right in front of our destination."
Victon nodded as if it were a matter of course.
It was just that this incident had made them feel even more uneasy, so they decided to give up sleep and push on with a night hike.
And.
Not long after they started climbing the mountain, at the entrance of the mountain range, Muno couldn't help but frown again.
"There's more…"
"Again?"
"Behind the rock on the left mountain ridge. A magician."
At those words, Victon's gaze turned towards the mountain ridge, which seemed to be at least 1km away.
"...Over there?"
"Yeah."
"Good grief…. It's hard not to believe you at this point."
"Don't worry. At least when it comes to searching for magicians, I'm the expert."
"Is that the ability of the artifact called Magician Slayer?"
"Well, something like that."
"...Hah."
As Victon made a skeptical face, Muno immediately turned his head towards Rauel.
"Rauel?"
"Yes. It's possible."
Rauel, who then drew her bow and concentrated, widened her eyes slightly.
"Indeed, there is something."
Twang, thwip.
Along with those words, her arrows were shot, flying in an unbelievably large arc from the foot of the mountain to that far-off place.
And.
"Good grief, I wasn't saying I didn't believe you."
Immediately, a pure white mist spread through the forest, which had been soaked in darkness.
- Ack!
Soon, faint screams began to be heard from above the mountain ridge.
However, this time too, the result troubled the party.
"Keuk, southeast, mountain, in the underground cave…"
A 3rd Circle magician, captured just in case.
The evolved Muno's demonic energy control ability suppressed the incomprehensible demonic energy that was trying to burst his head, allowing the man to spew out information.
Of course, as soon as it was determined that there was no more information to be obtained, the control was released.
Soon.
Pooooof!
"...I never get used to seeing this, no matter how many times."
"They're completely insane."
"But this is troublesome."
Muno frowned as he listened to the party's words.
'Even now, I couldn't completely absorb or erase that small bit of demonic energy. What the hell is going on?'
His curiosity and wonder about the Demon Cult's leader(?) grew anew.
But that wasn't what was important right now.
"It's the same as what that guy said earlier?"
"Indeed it is."
"Is it really a lure?"
"It feels like it, but what the hell is this all about…"
"I think something is strange too. Even 3rd Circle magicians can be a considerable force if gathered, but to throw them away like this…. Wouldn't it be hard to see it as a lure?"
Rauel wasn't wrong either.
Most of all.
"Even if it is a lure, it would take a high-ranking Corporeal Arts user at most half a day to move from there to the original coordinates. For us now, it wouldn't even take a few hours. To throw away relatively high-level personnel like magicians at the enemy just to buy that much time is a bit…"
It was understandable why Victon was frowning and contemplating.
"Then, is the one called the elder really over there?"
"That's strange too. If that were the case, wouldn't it be better to hide thoroughly instead of diverting them outside like this?"
Throughout the conversation between Rauel and Victon, Muno's head felt itchy.
The ominous sense of unease he had felt since the end of the battle in Erundel was growing stronger.
'The one called the elder wasn't there, but they were quite high-ranking magicians. They were doing something incredibly dangerous. Wait a minute…'
At some point, that feeling finally surfaced in his mind as a clear image.
"Time…"
"Yes?"
"Ah!"
The two people's reactions to his unintentional mumble were different.
The moment Rauel's gaze shifted between Muno and Victon.
Victon raised his voice as if he had realized something.
"A feeling of rushing! Those guys before also seemed to be forcing that transformation because of our attack. If that one called the elder is attempting something similar to them, or something even more dangerous."
"It's only been two days…"
"He still needs time! Even if it's just half a day."
"To buy time…"
"He abandons his subordinates."
It was something that didn't make sense by common sense.
"Those guys would do it."
The moment Muno ground his teeth.
"We'll go with my original information."
The party's movements began to speed up even more.
And as if their judgment was not wrong.
A moment later.
"There are quite a lot this time."
"As expected!"
The mountain path of the hill they were trying to cross was overflowing with ambushes.
"Intruders!!"
"Kill them!"
A motley crew of various types rushing in like moths to a flame.
Pouring magic and arrows, and even masked figures popping out from the shadows.
However.
"We'll pass through, killing only those who block us."
"That goes without saying!"
"As you command!"
To stop the geniuses who had each surpassed their limits and evolved in Erundel, they were insufficient in both number and quality.
Kra-dduk.
"Keuk."
Muno lightly grabbed and crushed the neck of a masked figure who had suddenly popped out from the shadows.
It was a rather novel technique, but as long as it was a technique based on magic and they were attacking with metal (a blade), there was no way they could escape his senses.
He violently threw the corpse with its broken neck towards the pouring arrows.
Taking that opportunity, enemies rushed him from all sides.
However.
"Hmph!"
Shhnnk.
A lightly swung blade whip split the necks of four masked figures like a thunderbolt.
Thump.
Muno, who had charged through the barrage of arrows, taking them with his body, slammed into the enemy's defensive line, which had set up a barrier on the mountain ridge facing down.
KRAAAAAASH!
"Aaaack!"
The moment the dark demonic energy-clad palisade was smashed to pieces along with the people behind it.
Flash.
Krrrrrrrrrr.
Suddenly, the ground Muno was standing on collapsed, and lightning struck from above his head.
Kaboom!
On top of that, a torrent of fire poured into the pit he had fallen into.
But.
"D-did we get him?"
While one of the enemies was chanting a resurrection spell, two chains shot out from within the torrent of fire, moving like living snakes.
Chwaaaak.
"K-keuk!"
"Krrrrk!"
"W-what is that…"
The moment the enemies, who had been watching the two magicians who were pouring magic turn into mummies in an instant, froze.
Thud.
The Black Knight, who had shot up from the pit again, began to do a sword dance with his greatsword in the midst of them.
Shhhnnk.
"Aaaack!"
"I-it's a monster!"
"Don't retreat!"
"Crazy…!"
The advantage of the terrain was rendered meaningless as the numerous forces collapsed just like that.
'Hoo…. This should be enough here.'
The moment Muno, who had fulfilled his role as the vanguard in breaking the enemy's formation by 120%, briefly raised his head.
A wind of pure white smoke brushed past him.
And.
Sgagagak.
"Aaaack!"
He could see the remaining thirty-odd enemies all collapsing at once, screaming in unison.
A sight that made him wonder if his slightly restricted vision due to the helmet was showing him an illusion.
'That guy, he's definitely much faster than last time, and his attack range has widened….'
It was truly an unbelievable speed and a wide-ranging slash.
Most of all, the way his smoke-like body would only reveal its weapon and physical form when attacking was even mysterious.
Just watching it anew made him marvel.
'How do you block that?'
If he thought of himself as Victon's opponent, it seemed like it would be truly daunting.
If that guy had a weakness.
'It seems like he's avoiding attacks imbued with magic….'
He also remembered how he had reflexively blocked the guy's smoke(?) with his mana-clad hand when they had first picked a fight.
'Does it mean only attacks imbued with magical power or mana work?'
Conversely, it meant that no matter how many people who couldn't handle magic or mana came at him, it would just be them throwing their lives away against Victon.
'Even if I use a mana-infused attack, his speed is too fast. Can I even hit him?'
Just when he thought that the only way to fight him would probably be to use a wide-range attack with Spirit Arts or magic.
A part of the mist materialized next to him.
"What is it? Are you perhaps already tired?"
"Not a chance."
"The number of enemies is increasing. In other words, my information is correct."
"I know."
"Then, please put in a little more effort."
"I was going to do that anyway."
Muno retorted to Victon's words with a snort and started moving towards the battlefield again.
As he said, there were enemies to be dealt with right in front of him.
And.
'Something terribly demonic is moving over there.'
A threat greater than that had begun to be felt on his skin.
"I'll finish this as quickly as possible."
In a slightly different sense than Victon, the knight armed with an armor that would never break began to dash again.