BXBX NOVEL Chapter 158: The Bard’s Song (2/3)
Chapter 158: The Bard’s Song (2/3)
“Ruin! What’s gotten into you?!”
I yelled at Chano, who instinctively grabbed my hand and resisted.
“Get down!”
I grabbed him by the collar and pulled him down towards me.
The moment Chano lost his balance and stumbled forward, a blade shot out from where he had been standing, grazing his back.
A sharp blade appeared out of thin air without any warning.
Swish—
The blade tore through the outer layer of Chano\'s armor as it grazed his back.
“Wh-what was that?”
Chano wasn\'t the only one who was bewildered.
As everyone\'s attention focused on us, an ear-splitting scream erupted from the opposite direction.
Saaaa—
A thick fog gathered in front of us.
And beyond the fog, a human figure slowly emerged.
Silence fell.
Not even a breath could be heard.
Everyone stared intently at the human figure emerging from the fog, their eyes fixed.
Red eyes, a body clad in black.
The red eyes indicated it wasn\'t a monster, but the aura it exuded was ominous.
A humanoid monster.
Unlike the one we encountered earlier, this one was female, with long, flowing hair.
“A variant…?”
Chano, who had been staring at the monster as if possessed, suddenly covered his mouth and shouted.
“N-no. That\'s not a variant!”
I looked at Urek.
His pupils were shaking incessantly.
The emotion reflected in his eyes was clear terror.
Urek also knew the identity of that creature.
“A Fear Succubus. A Heaven-rank monster….”
Urek\'s eyes, which had been holding on to sanity until now, crumbled.
The monster shrieked.
A maddening sound.
Suddenly, a lone swordsman\'s eyes turned crimson, and he slashed the neck of the injured person next to him with his sword.
It was at that very moment that a pack of grizzly bears began to rush out from beyond the fog.
“Run!”
Urek shouted through gritted teeth.
“Everyone, get as far away from each other as possible!”
Chano collapsed to the ground, rolled, and then started to flee in the opposite direction, stumbling.
“W-we have to run. We can\'t win.”
The subordinates who had been observing the situation frowned and gathered in front of me.
“Are we going to stop that?”
Zion looked at me.
“No, Commander. Answer me. This is strange. Why are you just standing there?”
I pointed to the monster standing beyond the fog.
“I’ll go.”
“What about us?”
“Take care of the rest of them.”
Zion, who was about to complain, looked into my eyes and closed his mouth.
After exchanging glances with each other, my subordinates ran towards Urek.
The pungent, repulsive smell surged in once again.
“What the hell is that smell?”
I knew exactly what was causing this sense of déjà vu.
This thick, bloody stench was an echo of the past.
I looked up at the night sky for a moment.
It was still dark.
But the crimson landscape around me, created by the bodies mixed with sweat and blood, was no different from back then.
Those bastards who fought beneath the blood-soaked plateau.
“Remember the crimson rain.”
I pushed off the ground with force.
Gathering wind pressure at my feet, I flew straight towards the monster.
That infernal, dog-like song that pounded my eardrums.
“Even if I fall today, upon the mountain of the blood sea.”
The funeral song that those pathetic fools used to comfort themselves.
I immediately chanted the levitation spell and soared high into the sky. At the same time, I opened all the circles of my heart.
Whiiiiing—
The female monster, sensing the surge of power, looked at me, and then I heard Urek’s shout.
“…Magic won’t work! It’s not enough. Don’t do it!”
Fwhoosh—
I shot down towards the fog-shrouded ground.
Sensing the danger, the succubus sharpened her black claws and shrieked again.
“Screeeech!”
The horde of monsters surged towards me from all directions.
I raised my right arm at a right angle.
I visualized the image and chanted the incantation.
There was no need to choose such an inefficient method, but…
“The burning rage contained within the cold flame.”
I deliberately chanted those words.
5th Circle, Fire Sword.
Flames swirled around my right arm, transforming into a sharp sword of fire.
The difference between then and now was…
The enemies in front of me now were incomparably weaker than those from back then.
Fwoosh—
Without stopping the momentum of my descent, I swung the fire sword that enveloped my right arm.
Maximum speed.
Crack—
The sword pierced through the necks of the grizzly bears that surrounded me in layers, in a straight line.
There was nothing to obstruct it.
In that fleeting moment, I faced the succubus screeching within the fog.
Her red eyes seemed insignificant.
“…”
I passed by her as if brushing past.
It wasn\'t until I had taken a few more steps that I realized the succubus had stopped screaming.
I looked back and saw that the necks of the grizzly bears and the succubus had been pierced in the same trajectory.
Fire flickered through the pierced holes.
The embers that lingered where the fire sword had passed exploded.
BOOOOM—!
“…”
The fog cleared as if it had been washed away.
I slowly walked towards the succubus\'s corpse.
A Red Demon Realm Core floated near its heart.
“Commander of the Crazy Mage Squad!”
I looked back to see Urek, the knights, the mercenaries, and the swordsmen all staring at me.
Urek, who had checked the succubus’s corpse, widened his eyes in disbelief.
I also looked at them for a moment. There didn\'t seem to be any further casualties.
My squad members slowly approached me.
Zion, who let out an incomprehensible sigh of relief while looking at my face, said,
“You had all the fun by yourself again.”
I looked around at the squad members who had come closer.
“…”
I didn\'t recite the last verse of the funeral song.
I\'ll save that for later, to be sung to those who have gone ahead.
“Let’s go back, you fools.”
As I picked up the Red Demon Realm Core, the night sky split in two.
Then, a voice echoed.
[Section 1, demon realm conquest ended.]
***
The survivors simultaneously exited the incursion.
The Alliance members who had been waiting outside sensed that something was wrong and came running.
“Wh-what happened?”
“Why are there so many injured…?”
“Just help us for now!”
The injured were carried outside, one after another.
Meanwhile, people who had heard the news about Section 1 also gathered.
“What happened?!”
“This many people were injured?”
“It looks like only half of the people who went in made it out…?”
Section 1 was dangerous, but that was already a known fact.
Since skilled individuals had entered fully prepared, this number of casualties was extremely unusual.
However, everyone just watched from afar; no one came closer to ask what had happened.
This was because the expressions of those who had exited the incursion seemed so grave.
They watched as only I and the Crazy Mage Squad returned unscathed.
When the task of transporting the injured was nearing completion, a crowd surged from the regular branch office.
“What happened?!”
Porter, having heard the news, was approaching with his subordinates.
Porter, who was scanning the surroundings with narrowed eyes, approached Urek.
“What happened here, Sir Urek?”
“…Let’s talk later. We suffered heavy losses.”
“Tell me what happened. Did a variant appear or something?”
Urek sighed and replied,
“A variant wasn\'t the problem. A Heaven-rank monster appeared.”
“Eh?”
“Exactly as I said.”
Porter burst into laughter.
“A Heaven-rank monster? Come on, Sir Urek. What’s with this ridiculous joke?”
“…”
“Wait, are you serious?”
Suddenly, Urek opened his core and glared directly at Porter.
“Half of the subordinates who went in with me are dead. A Fear Succubus. A monster you’d only see in a Level 1 Demon Realm appeared here!”
Murmurs erupted simultaneously from the crowd gathered on the main street.
“Not Earth-rank, but Heaven-rank? That kind of monster appeared here?”
“That’s impossible!”
Urek growled in a low voice,
“How exactly is the Alliance managing the investigation team? You should have told us if there was anything unusual!”
Porter laughed again.
“There was nothing unusual. Fear Succubi are rare even in Level 1 incursions. If, as Sir Urek says, a Heaven-rank monster appeared...”
Porter looked around.
“There wouldn’t be this many injured. Almost everyone would be dead.”
Urek nodded.
“That’s right.”
“Then explain it to me properly again.”
“There’s nothing to explain.”
Urek pointed at me.
“Well you’re right. If it weren’t for the Samael Clan, the damage wouldn’t have ended here.”
Only then did Porter turn his gaze towards me.
The moment my eyes met Porter\'s, I nodded once more for no particular reason.
I whispered softly, mouthing the words,
‘Why are you speaking informally to me?’
Porter, unable to interpret my lip movements, tilted his head and then looked back at Urek.
“Are you telling me that those guys killed a Heaven-rank monster?”
“That’s right.”
“Ha, that’s ridiculous.”
It was then.
A questioning voice emerged from among the crowd that had been watching.
“What’s that Demon Realm Core?”
“…I’ve never seen that color before.”
Porter frowned and looked at me again.
He glanced at the Demon Realm Core in my hand and then his eyes widened.
“Red?”
A moment later, shouts erupted from the crowd.
“Level 1. It’s a Level 1 Demon Realm Core!”
“It was real. A Heaven-rank monster really did appear!”
Urek slowly walked towards me.
No one said anything, but…
As if it were natural, Urek’s subordinates followed behind him, and the mercenaries and swordsmen walked towards me.
That kind of atmosphere formed naturally.
Urek looked at me and bowed.
“Originally, I was planning to formally greet you after the situation was sorted out, but I will speak now.”
Urek, holding his spear high, looked around at the crowd and shouted,
“I have something to say. If it weren’t for the Samael Clan members here, this Urek might not be standing before you all in one piece today.”
“Stop it!”
I interrupted Urek.
I don’t know what this strange, unfamiliar feeling is that I keep experiencing, but I don’t like it.
However, Urek didn\'t seem to have any intention of stopping.
“Thank you for your courage in not backing down, for the opportunity to broaden our understanding of magic, and finally, thank you for saving us. Our Parisik Clan will not forget this debt!”
“We feel the same.”
“We, the Helm Mercenary Corps, will not forget this either!”
Suddenly, everyone’s attention was focused on me.
“…”
It felt like I was expected to say something.
Arin and Iron nudged me simultaneously from both sides.
But I had nothing to say.
Because I really had nothing to say.
“…”
At that moment, like a well-trained pickpocket, a figure swiftly moved in front of me with a swish— and stopped.
It was Zion.
I looked at him in surprise, and the Demon Realm Core I had been holding was gone.
Wow… Just how long had he been planning that?
Zion raised his right hand, holding the Demon Realm Core high.
“Who is that?”
The crowd’s attention instantly shifted to Zion.
Zion, enjoying the attention, opened his mouth.
“Everyone. Remember this clearly from now on. I am…”
Bzzt—
As soon as Arin’s hand crackled with electricity, Zion was startled and looked back.
Then, he made eye contact with each of us and cursed under his breath.
‘Ah, shit.’
Zion turned his head again, looked at the crowd, and after a moment of hesitation, said,
“Ahem. Let me rephrase that. Remember this clearly from now on. We are…”
Zion grinned.
“The Crazy Mage Squad of Samael.”