Chapter 172 - Episode 167: A Futile Fierce Battle
Noein and Viowulf's battle had already continued for over five minutes. It was a fierce clash where neither side would yield a single step.
When Viowulf generated and launched masses of earth, Noein's golems dodged them by a hair's breadth. The earth masses that flew past them struck civilian houses, scattering as if they had exploded.
As Viowulf caused the ground to swell to create a defensive wall to block the path of the charging golems, one golem used another as a stepping stone to leap over the wall and close in on Viowulf.
However, by that time, Viowulf had retreated and created further earthen steps to escape onto the roof of a nearby building.
A golem snapped one of the building's pillars, and the house collapsed diagonally. Viowulf, who rolled down from there, instantly buried the golem that had approached him in earth.
Another golem charged into that earth, smashing through it, and the buried golem escaped.
"S-so amazing..."
"It's like a battle from a heroic epic..."
The soldiers watched the violent clash between the two in stunned silence. Not only those under Baron Wikander, but also the soldiers of the Southwestern camp, whose hands were tied and whose ability to resist had been stripped away, stood side-by-side watching the combat.
Both Noein and Viowulf were mages who, in last year's war, had exerted a significant influence on the tide of battle at a single fortress on their own. Golems of extraordinary speed raced about, while Viowulf countered them with the destructive and defensive power of massive quantities of earth. The battle was so flashy, so detached from reality, that to those around them, it looked like a scene from a war story that would be carved into history.
However, contrary to the appearance of a nail-biting battle, the hearts of the parties actually fighting were completely cold.
...How stupid.
Noein was not giving it his all. Or rather, he was not showing his true strength in his original form.
The movements of the golems contained a great deal of waste that was not usually there. He made them wind up their arms exaggeratedly so that Viowulf would know they were about to punch, made them leap excessively, or had them perform a meaningless spin upon landing.
Noein himself hardly moved, and whenever a stray mass of earth flew toward him, Matilda blocked it with her small shield.
Rather than trying to win the fight, Noein manipulated the golems so that the battle would look as flashy and as violent as possible.
...How empty.
Conversely, Viowulf was also launching magic with an emphasis on appearance.
If he were to attack by throwing earth masses, it would actually generate more destructive power to increase the density of the earth and sharpen the tips before launching. However, Viowulf intentionally flew roughly solidified cylindrical masses of earth, making them scatter flashily at the point of impact.
If he wanted to stop the golems' feet, it would be faster to cause the ground beneath them to cave in and make them trip, but instead, he blocked the golems' charge with the needlessly high-impact method of swelling the ground to create earthen walls.
Even when burying the golems in earth, he intentionally produced earth that wasn't very firm so that it would be easy to break through.
In order to make those around them think a fierce battle of give-and-take was unfolding, Viowulf unleashed his magic to prolong the fight with Noein as much as possible.
A battle focused solely on appearance, conscious only of looking flashy. Both Noein and Viowulf thought that the soldiers watching from the sidelines must be having quite a time.
I wonder how much longer I should keep this up...
Noein's golem leaped using a nearby abandoned wagon as a foothold.
I wonder if it's about time to end this...
Viowulf generated a mass of earth with an exaggerated motion.
Ah...
Honestly...
( (This is such a pain...!) )
While exchanging thoughts that should never occur in the midst of a battle, the two clashed the golems and the earth masses.
Earth scattered spectacularly, and a blown-away golem collided with the stone roof of the church. Unluckily, its waist joint struck the corner of the roof directly and was damaged, causing the golem's lower body to fall off.
When Viowulf searched for the remaining golem with his eyes—the golem was just about to charge from a blind spot diagonally behind him.
The charge with the left shoulder thrust forward was a signal from Noein saying, "Let's make this the finishing blow." This had been decided when they discussed it inside the church.
Viowulf instantaneously created an earthen wall in front of him. Since the base of that earthen wall was made fragile compared to the top, it could not withstand the golem's charge. This too was intentional.
Viowulf was sent flying by the golem that crashed through the earthen wall. What he collided with was merely the earthen wall, and since he had also flown backward slightly at the moment of impact, the damage Viowulf received was greatly reduced compared to how it looked.
When the blown-away Viowulf hit the ground, he performed a flashy series of rolls. To an observer, it must have looked incredibly painful.
Noein approached the fallen Viowulf. Matilda followed immediately beside him, so that she could protect Noein at any time if Viowulf happened to get up and counterattack.
"Excellency Rosbroke, that is enough. You fought well. Surrender."
Noein was saying, let's just end this already.
"...Yes, I will not struggle any further. I lose."
Viowulf responded, yeah, let's end it.
Hearing those words, Noein let out a sigh of relief and looked back.
"Baron Rosbroke has surrendered! Restrain him!"
The soldiers, who had been frozen as if time had stopped, captivated by the overly violent battle, began to move at Noein's call.
Several soldiers, who seemed to have received instructions from Baron Wikander, ran over with ropes to bind Viowulf. Others moved busily to clean up after the battle, moving prisoners, checking the situation within the village, or calling back the evacuated villagers.
"Good work, Noein-sama."
"Thank you, Matilda. How was it? Did I look cool?"
"Yes, it was a splendid performance. I felt proud once again to be one who serves Noein-sama."
Having finally finished the battle and relaxed, Noein enjoyed such a conversation with Matilda by his side. Then, Yuri and Radley, along with Gustav and Cecilia, approached.
"You certainly rampaged."
"It was a stupidly flashy fight, wasn't it?"
Yuri and Radley, who knew the previous battle had been a farce, spoke in a teasing tone. Since there were no soldiers under Baron Wikander nearby, there was no worry of being overheard.
"It was a spectacle and interesting, right? You can pay me a viewing fee later."
"Then, I'll treat you to some sake at the inn on the way back."
"I'm looking forward to that."
Noein grinned and laughed back at Yuri, who replied with a smirk.
"...Noein-sama's skill is tremendous. I respect you from the bottom of my heart once again."
"Really, it was so amazing it knocked the wind out of me...!"
"Thank you. I'm glad I could uphold my honor as a master of golem users."
Noein responded with a bit of pride to Gustav and Cecilia, who were staring at him with sparkling eyes.
"...But, it's a pain that one golem was split in two. I'll have to ask Daphne to repair it."
Although it was due to bad luck, even Noein hadn't expected a sturdy golem to break. If he requested it from the magic item crafter Daphne, the repairs would likely be finished by winter, but until then, he would have to get by with one golem.
"To be blown away with enough force to destroy a sturdy golem... the opponent's earth mage was also incredibly strong."
"I was surprised too. If this kind of thing can happen, maybe I should have some spare golems made..."
Daphne was currently renovating Gustav and the others' golems in order, but Noein decided that once that was finished, he would request the production of several spare golems.
While this was happening, the post-battle cleanup progressed, and the following day, Baron Wikander declared the provisional resolution of the situation.