Chapter 259 - Chapter 258: Attack on the Capital 3
The Capital, District 2.
The Chimera that had appeared in District 3 was also appearing in District 2.
It possessed a long, snake-like head, a bulky body resembling that of a cow, and five long horns growing in place of a tail.
It spread its wings like those of a bird of prey to intimidate, writhing its snake head as it swallowed fleeing people whole.
"A beast!？"
"A monster!"
"""Eeeeeeeek!"""
"""Kyaaaaaaah!!!"""
At that bizarre appearance, people trembled in fear and scattered.
"Ah-ree, he-lp mee."
Amidst those fleeing people, there was "Fire".
He mingled with the flow of people, searching for a place where more people were gathering.
And then,
"This spot should be fine, I guess."
He took something out of his Magic Bag.
A knight.
That knight was wearing Kingdom Army armor all over his body.
However, the iron mask was not from the Kingdom Army.
The knights they had captured were not wearing any kind of helmet that could hide their faces.
Therefore, they had equipped them with items purchased in the Seven Duchies Federation.
That knight swayed his body slightly as he drew his sword.
Then, amidst the crowd pushing against one another, he swung that sword.
One swing cut down about ten people.
"""Ugyaaaaaah!？"""
The sudden appearance of the knight's bloody rampage caused the people's terror to accelerate and amplify even further.
"Hmm, delicious."
"Fire" couldn't help but grin.
The "Will" collected by "Black" is only stored in those who possess a certain level of strength.
That is wonderful in itself, but "Fire"'s preference is to take it in directly.
The "Will" that is squeezed out by being exposed to the terror of death, by actually being placed on the brink of death, is supreme.
An exquisite taste.
He thinks he should be serious, but his cheeks just can't help but relax.
"Wind" had warned "Black" not to "pick at the food," but there was no need to do such a thing.
There was so much more preferred "Will" overflowing everywhere.
It was an all-you-can-eat buffet.
"Fire" mingled with the crowd, while one person alone had a melted "whoa~" expression on their face.
It was worth enduring up until now.
Those who had let their guard down completely were simply tossed around by the sudden appearance of Death right before their eyes.
They were trampled.
That this could be so amusing.
It was a great laugh.
Fleeing from the Chimera, only to find a knight swinging a sword in the place they ran to? That was hilarious.
With this, as planned, "Black" should be full today alone.
The knight swinging the sword swayed his body unsteadily.
His legs moved unnaturally, writhing, but no one paid attention to that.
Everyone was too busy trying to escape.
The knight kept his face forward, jumped sideways, and swung with all his might.
He pushed the person in front of him, did a full spin.
Hmm, the movement was too unnatural.
"Well, whatever."
He left it to the Chimera and the knight, and moved on to the next place.
He had to scatter Chimeras randomly around the capital, collect the "Black" he had set up beforehand, and set up new "Black".
From now on, the Capital would keep producing "Will" of a completely different quality and quantity.
"Haa, busy, busy."
Muttering that with a smile, "Fire" disappeared into the crowd.
■■■■■■
Mika was flying through District 3, aiming for the strong light of "Fee".
The youth who seemed to have released the beasts appeared to be fleeing District 3 at quite a speed.
"...What is that!？"
Mika finally caught sight of the youth's figure, but let out a voice of surprise at what appeared there.
It was a massive lump of black mist.
The mist visible when Fee visualized curses.
A rare mist caused by a powerful curse that summons things like "Wraiths".
He had felt a strong curse from the fluctuation he felt upon contact, but this black mist was more ominous and sinister than imagined.
It was like a black sun or a black hole.
It forcibly evoked a sense of aversion in anyone who looked at it.
Even Mika, who had seen and touched curses countless times, felt a fear that made him shrink back.
The youth's figure was completely covered by such a black mist.
When Mika arrived, Fee flew over with a "pyuu" sound, trembling weakly and shivering.
"Thank you. Leave the rest to me."
She must have been trying hard to chase after him despite being scared.
As Mika chased the youth, he spoke to Fee.
(Still, what should I do...)
If he really had taken the Chimera out of the Magic Bag, it would be confirmed that it was an illegal Magic Bag.
There were at least two people who had held similar Magic Bags up until now.
Hibujiza and the red-haired youth, Ecrease.
The red-haired youth, Ecrease, whose head had been severed.
If Hibujiza was a resurrected existence of the red-haired youth, Ecrease...
(...But, just taking a life won't kill him!)
And then, an existence harboring a curse.
A girl who had become a "Wraith" while maintaining her self, becoming a curse herself.
Lunesee.
(The curse inhabiting Lunesee could not be dispelled just by dispelling it.)
Mika organized the things he had to do in his head.
He didn't know if this was the correct method or procedure.
To be honest, it was just a gamble.
It was nothing but a bet.
(Even so, it's worth trying!)
Mika chased the black mist trying to leave District 3 from the sky, closing the distance to about one hundred meters.
"If I get blown away again, I can't fight. I can't get too close."
Still, he had to align the direction he and the youth were moving in so he could subdue them in an instant.
With that in mind, Mika poured mana into "Blast" and accelerated.
"Laser Cannon!"
If the aim was off, it would cause damage to the surroundings.
However, to hit a youth moving with inhuman agility, it would be difficult to even hit him without "Laser Cannon".
Several beams of light shot down from the sky, piercing the black mist that had exited District 3.
Obstructed by the black mist, he couldn't confirm how much damage was inflicted.
Still, Mika did not stop his momentum and charged into the black mist.
"Please, seriously! Namu San!"
Mika did not kill his momentum, switching off "Blast" and "Low Gravity", and allocated mana to [Physical Enhancement].
Mika's [Physical Enhancement] had jumped up several hundred times.
A strategy to forcibly endure the terrible impact of the fall with just [Physical Enhancement].
Mika curled his body once, changed his posture with a spin, and fell as if from his feet.
Zuzuzuzuzuzun!!!
Mika's fall aimed at the black mist landed exactly on target.
Amidst the terrible ground tremor and dust cloud, he subdued the youth inside the black mist.
"Guhhhhh!?"
He heard the youth groan, crushed under Mika's foot.
The impact of the fall created a small crater-like depression of about two meters around Mika.
And, unable to withstand the impact, the youth's leg was blown off up to the thigh, and naturally, Mika's leg bones were also broken.
"It huuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuu...... I don't want to!"
Even while crying half-heartedly, Mika proceeded to the next step.
He concentrated mana in his hand that was holding the youth down, as if pushing back the curse's fluctuation.
"Auto-Dispel!"
Inside the black mist, Mika turned "Absorb Wing"'s mana absorption to full power and swung "Auto-Dispel" around.
He turned the absorbed mana directly over to dispelling.
He lowered [Physical Enhancement] to the bare minimum, and Mika fell to his knees, unable to even stand.
"Y-you!? L-let go, you trash aaaaaaaah!"
The youth whose head was being pressed down by Mika screamed.
The black mist covering the youth's body began to move as if trying to go somewhere.
However, "Absorb Wing" stuck to the black mist and continued to absorb the mana dispelled by "Auto-Dispel".
"Huh!? Why can't I move!? What is this aaaaaaaah!?"
Mika had planned to dispel everything in an instant, but the unexpectedly powerful curse could not be easily dispelled even with "Auto-Dispel" at full power.
But, fortunately, it seemed that swinging "Absorb Wing" made it stick intensely.
He didn't have to worry about the curse escaping.
"Y-you! [Blow awa—"
Scon!
Mika took out a short sword made of "Orichalcum" from his Magic Bag and stabbed it into the youth's forehead.
The youth died, but the black mist remained where it was.
If anything, the mist was flailing about, desperately trying to escape from "Absorb Wing".
As if it had its own will.
"Heh... I absolutely won't let you escape... You'll pay for doing whatever you wanted!"
Even if he dispelled a guy like this, the lost life would not return.
It would not come back.
Still, at least he wanted to take revenge.
"Get dispelled already!"
How powerful of a curse was it?
Even "Auto-Dispel" with so much mana poured into it was taking this long.
Mika desperately caught the black mist trying to escape with "Absorb Wing" and swung "Auto-Dispel" around.
■■■■■■
"Sorry, let me through! Let me through!"
Yaroibarov shouted, pushing his way against the surging flow of people.
Yaroibarov, who had received a request from the Knight Order, had asked the inn's guests for help.
He headed for the North Gate himself, defeated two Chimeras that had appeared at the Second Wall, and then headed for the West Gate.
Since he had sent reliable adventurers to the North-East and North-West gates, he skipped the North-West gate and headed for the West Gate.
There, he also defeated two Chimeras.
Thinking about where to go next, he entered District 2 for now, and encountered a Chimera.
Right near the West Main Street.
The Chimera, which he thought was only outside the city walls, had appeared in District 2 as well.
The flow of people naturally moved away from the Chimera, so Yaroibarov, who was heading toward the Chimera, was moving in the opposite direction.
If he forced his way through with strength, he might injure them.
But if he didn't hurry, the number of victims would only increase.
"Damn it!"
Yaroibarov cursed and moved to the side of the street.
There, he reached out to a building's window and illegally entered.
"Kyaaaah!"
A woman inside screamed at Yaroibarov, a brute-looking man holding a Halberd.
It seemed this woman had become paralyzed with fear and was hiding, unable to escape.
"S-sorry. I just want to go on the roof. Let me pass."
Speaking to the frightened woman, Yaroibarov jumped out of the room.
Then, he ran up the stairs leading upward, skipping eight steps at a time, to the top floor.
Leaning out of the window again, he stepped out onto the roof.
"...Is that Chimera over there?"
From here, he couldn't confirm its figure as it was hidden behind buildings.
Still, he could guess by the flow of people, and above all, he felt a violent presence.
Yaroibarov proceeded along the roofs.
(Why is there a Chimera inside District 2? Did a Chimera from one of the gates move here?)
There were so many things he didn't understand.
But the situation where Chimeras attacked from many directions of the capital all at once felt like some kind of design.
(There's no point in thinking about that now. Now, it's the turn to defend.)
They were currently in a disadvantaged position.
In times like these, it was important not to think about unnecessary things and to defend thoroughly.
And to wait for an opportunity to counterattack.
When the time to counterattack comes, he would know.
Until then, he wouldn't think about unnecessary things and would defend thoroughly.
When Yaroibarov advanced on the roof, he caught sight of the Chimera.
"...What is that."
Strength gathered in his hand holding the Halberd.
A long, snake-like head, a cow's body, and bird feathers?
Growing from its rear were five horn-like objects.
"The guy who made this Chimera is completely crazy."
The Chimeras at the North Gate and West Gate also had strange appearances.
As far as Yaroibarov knew, they were not the basic recipe Chimeras.
And the Chimera here also had a different appearance.
How many beasts and living things had been sacrificed to create these?
Yaroibarov jumped from the roof, exposing his figure before the Chimera.
Then, he spun his Halberd once and aimed it at the Chimera.
"At least, let me kill it closer to its original form. Snake, cow, and bird? ...I don't know where those horns came from, but I'll cut them off."
He was a victim of those who toyed with lives.
This Chimera too.
Now that it had become a beast, he could not show mercy, but at least he would let it die not as a monster, but in its respective forms.
Yaroibarov approached the Chimera head-on and punched the snake that came to bite him with a backfist, sending it flying.
Then, he severed the neck base that was left open with his Halberd.
The Halberd instantly sliced off the wing base, followed by cutting off the horn base.
Finally, he smashed the Halberd into the cow's body, and in the blink of an eye, the Chimera's giant body was sliced into rings.
"Fuu..."
Yaroibarov exhaled once and turned around.
Separate from the Chimera, there was someone scattering a strange presence since before.
"...You're not a knight."
So, Yaroibarov spoke.
He was wearing the armor of a Kingdom Army knight, but the presence was strange.
Furthermore, his body swayed unsteadily and awkwardly for some reason.
That knight hung a blood-stained sword loosely and approached Yaroibarov one step, then another.
Then, he casually jumped from a place more than ten meters away.
But that jump was strange.
Without any preparatory movement, he suddenly jumped and approached Yaroibarov in an instant.
Yaroibarov looked at the knight with eyes devoid of emotion, moved his body sideways, and spun his Halberd.
In the air, the knight, armor and all, was sliced into rings and fell to the ground with a clatter.
Yaroibarov held his Halberd ready and looked at the scattered remains of the knight.
Then, looking at the iron mask rolling around, he widened his eyes for a moment.
"...You monster..."
Yaroibarov's face turned red as he muttered and picked up the iron mask.
From the iron mask, a human head fell with a thud.
It was a human head with red eyes that shone brilliantly like a beast.
■■■■■■
The Adventurer Guild accepted the request from the Knight Order and instructed the dispatch of adventurers to both the First and Second Branches.
But, unfortunately, this instruction did not reach the branches.
One could only say it was bad luck.
The staff member who was supposed to deliver the instruction to the First Branch was killed after being attacked by the Chimera that appeared in District 2.
The staff member who was supposed to deliver it to the Second Branch couldn't even move properly because they were blocked by the crowd in the first place.
By the way, the Chimera that killed the staff member heading to the First Branch was the one Yaroibarov defeated on the West Main Street.
But there was also a silver lining in the misfortune.
Since it was Sunday, surprisingly many adventurers were in District 2 and District 3 of the capital.
And, those adventurers took the initiative to deal with it.
No matter how adventurers were usually called thugs or drunkards, they possessed some kind of pride.
There were not just one or two people who would instinctively move if someone was being attacked by a beast before their eyes.
Well, they were the kind of people who would later make insensitive jokes like "I should have taken money for this."
Still, there weren't that many adventurers who could defeat such violent beasts.
And even adventurers who clearly didn't have the skill to stand against a Chimera could at least handle emergency measures in a crisis.
Adventurers were active at the South-East Gate of the Second Wall as well.
"Hey, does anyone have a Potion?"
"Hey, don't drop it."
An adventurer tending to an injured boy spoke, and an adventurer a little further away threw a Potion.
The boy had several pieces of glass stuck in his back, and many other lacerations.
"Okay, I'll heal you right away."
The adventurer said that, but in reality, it was just comfort.
One of the pieces of glass stuck in his back seemed quite deep.
Probably, a Potion wouldn't heal it completely.
Still, it was better to pull out the glass and use a Potion to stop the bleeding than to leave it as is.
Trys silently watched the judgment of the adventurers she sometimes saw in the Guild lobby.
(...Damn it...)
Thus, she cursed her own inadequacy in her heart.
Trys had already used [Heal] up to the limit of her mana.
However, after all, she was a loser who had been selected through a national selection process as a second chance.
Originally, her mana capacity was not that large.
Without a Mana Recovery Potion, she would be knocked out by about four or five uses of [Heal].
She had already used up her Mana Recovery Potions and was now unable to move due to mana depletion.
Before Trys, a Mana Recovery Potion was extended.
"Please, use it."
Trys lifted her face with a pained expression and looked at the owner of the outstretched hand.
"...You are, I believe, Mika-chan's..."
"Yes. Mana depletion, right? Please, use it."
Yes, Rimliche smiled.
Around them, many children who seemed to be academy students had come without her noticing and were using [Heal] on the injured.
"I'm sorry. Please pull out all the glass shards. You'll hurt too, but please endure for a little while. I will definitely heal you."
The adventurer who was about to use a Potion on the boy didn't understand what was going on and made a suspicious face.
Rimliche explained simply to the adventurer.
"We are students of the Magic Academy. We can use [Heal]. Please cooperate."
Saying that, Rimliche bowed her head.
The adventurer was dumbfounded by the rampant use of [Heal] happening around him, but quickly pulled himself together.
"Ah... thanks. Hey, monk! You got lucky! If you endure for a little while, you'll be completely healed! You can cry or scream, but just don't move! Got it!"
Thus, the boy cried out from the pain of pulling out the glass, but he gritted his teeth and endured not moving.
After removing all the shards, Rimliche used [Heal].
"Here, you're fine now. You did a great job."
While patting the boy's head, Rimliche smiled.
Rimliche knew very well how difficult it was to endure having wounds touched.
She really wanted to convey that she truly thought he had done his best.
Trys, who was watching such a scene, asked Rimliche.
"What is this? Why are you academy students..."
"It's the Director's order. The upper-grade students are to participate in rescue operations. However, we can only operate within areas where safety has been confirmed."
Mika had flown away during class, and from the school building's windows, it seemed that something terrible was happening in the town.
She wanted to save everyone if possible, but the range of activities permitted to Rimliche and the others was not that wide.
Trys's mana recovered, and she was finally able to move.
She stood up immediately and smiled at Rimliche.
"I never thought there would be so many people who can use [Heal]. Maybe everyone can use [Heal] ten times?"
Among the Church's healers, there weren't many who could use it ten times a day.
"Well, I don't know about the others..."
Rimliche made a slightly troubled face.
"If I only use [Heal], I think I can probably use it four hundred or five hundred times."
"Ha...?"
Four... hundred?
What are you saying, kid?
"Recently, I haven't really experienced mana depletion from using too much mana... They even said my magic tool for measuring mana at the academy couldn't measure it... It's a bit embarrassing for a mage, but I don't even know how many times I can use it."
Yes, Rimliche smiled slightly shyly.
Seeing such Rimliche, Trys twisted her face.
(W-well... She is Mika-chan's friend, after all.)
She thought that.
"Are you really sure about this?"
Kefkof, the physical education teacher, asked the Academy Director Maurice, who was watching the students' rescue activities from a distance.
"What is it? This is just like an outdoor activity."
"But, if something goes wrong...!"
It seemed many extremely dangerous beasts had appeared.
The information was mixed up and he didn't know the exact details, but it couldn't be said that this area was completely safe either.
If he exposed precious mage candidates to danger with his own judgment and someone actually lost their lives, it would be the Director's responsibility.
If he was just dismissed from his post, that would be the better outcome.
Depending on the scale of the damage, it was a dangerous judgment where his head could be cut off.
(...If I were to abandon this, I wouldn't need such mages. It's a good opportunity for them to know who they fight for and why they bear such heavy obligations and go to the battlefield. ...It's a bit insensitive, though.)
Even an unprecedented calamity was being used for the growth of the students.
If the words reached the ears of those who actually suffered damage, it would not end with just being scolded.
Still, save those who can be saved.
They had the power to save.
It was a good opportunity to make the students realize that.
Mauris raised one eyebrow and looked up at Kefkof.
"If safety is confirmed, we will also dispatch to the South and East Gates. There is also information that beasts have appeared inside District 2. Be careful and rescue as much as possible."
"...Understood."
At Maurice's words, Kefkof nodded heavily.