Chapter 399

Chapter 399

“You figured it out? So soon?”
“Yeah–it’s not perfect”
Abel nodded.
I was so focused that my nose was still dripping.
He wiped his face with the back of his hand.
“I remember drawing this desert when I was making maps back in the day. It’s ten times the size of the Empire.”
“Damn, ten times?”
“I’m not surprised. After all, this planet is a star hundreds of times larger than the one we came from. A fitting home for space-faring conquerors, don’t you think?”
Abel snorted.
My face and the others’ hardened.
I had never imagined something that big, not even a continent, but hundreds of times the size of a star.
He jerked over the horizon.
“To get to the source, we just need to keep going in that direction. But there’s one small problem.”
“Minor issue. What is it?”
A sense of foreboding settled over me.
It seemed like it would never be trivial.
“If we fly at this rate, it will take us about five years. Assuming we don’t encounter any obstacles, of course.”
“Fuck .”
I was right.
Eating and sleeping had to be done on Orse’s back.
Holy shit, the idea of a star being hundreds of times the size of a star made me nervous.
I asked, clenching my fists.
“Not in five years. Is there any way to get there faster?”
“There is.”
“Thank goodness. I was going to kick your ass out of here if you didn’t have a plan. Go ahead.”
In five years, my child would be five years old.
No fucking way.
The last thing I wanted to do was come home from a trip to a parallel world and be greeted by a little kid asking me, “Who is this guy?
Plus, I’m still missing Adeshan, and it’s killing me.
Abel paused for a moment, then spoke up.
“We’re going through their city. It’s never easy.”
“Cities? Do bald fuckers have those?”
“Yes. It’s not what we think it is, but it exists. Communities are organized around major facilities. I’ve never been there myself, but I know there are portals that connect every corner of the stars.”
Abel explained that they use portals to move through the vastness of space.
It was the moment when the secret of maneuverability was unlocked.
I was wondering if the star was too big for the wings to cover.
“Okay. So let’s get right to it. Where do we go?”
“It’s up.”
Abel pointed his index finger at the sky.
The others, including me, nodded along.
Pale, moody clouds were rolling in.
It seemed hundreds of times denser than our own star, which had been captured.
The clouds flashed brightly now and then, and the shadows of the Bald Race flitted across them.
“As you climb through the cloud layer, you’ll suddenly see an open space. There’s a horizon of clouds, and when you get there, you’ll be able to see the city with the naked eye.”
“What are the odds of being attacked by a bunch of bald bandits on the way?”
“Do you wish that a shark would not appear on a subject that is bleeding and wandering in the sea?”
“That’s right. Ha ha—it’s my ninja.”
I sighed.
I knew it was an unconscionable statement on a topic that I had declared a frontal assault on.
Still, good is good.
It’s easy to get carried away.
It’s better to get this out of the way sooner rather than later.
I tapped the scales under my feet with my heel.
“Orse. Are you okay?”
[What does it mean?
“No, why not–you’re essentially walking into their lair, and it could be scary. I’m just worried.”
[Ha, how dare you insult me like that!
Orsay laughed.
Black flames leaked from between his teeth.
A booming voice echoed over the desert.
[I’ll be there before you can sleep, so keep your eyes open!
Four wings exploded open.
The idea that this was enemy territory was wrapped in thin bread.
It doesn’t matter.
It was the moment I simultaneously grabbed Orsay’s equivalent and Letancier by the scruff of the neck.
Shhhhhhhh!
Orse shot into the sky as a black comet.
“Hiccup!”
“He’s so easy, I actually like him.”
Letancier screamed.
If I hadn’t caught it, it really would have been a flying squirrel.
The other two somehow managed to hold on to the thorns.
It took less than a minute to enter the cloud layer.
“Killing it.”
I whistled at the scenery around me.
Clouds of shimmering mana covered everything.
It didn’t even compare to the sea mist I encountered on the ocean.
A path of white clouds formed behind Orse’s wings.
“Off! Heeeeeeee!”
“That’s good. Demon dragon.”
Abel chuckled.
It was comparable to Naransonia, the fastest dragon.
This was probably the maximum speed Orsay was capable of.
The wind is howling, my hair is tousled, and it’s not mine anymore.
Sarante’s coat fluttered like a flag hoisted during a typhoon.
“Wait. The intruder is—”
“Stop—”
All around me, the voices of bald men were coming and going.
It sensed our presence but seemed to be moving too fast to keep up.
“Is this a little honey?
Unexpected.
But it was a very pleasant miss.
I was going to have a hell of an adventure in the City of Giants anyway, so I might as well make it easier on myself.
Yes.
I shook the shit out of him as soon as I got here, and a man needs time to breathe.
I was enjoying the breeze with my eyes closed.
“Epsilon will judge you.”
“What?”
Suddenly, a low, gravelly voice rang out from directly overhead.
By the time I woke up, it was already happening.
A bald man with six wings was descending toward us.
“That asshole.”
It was even a familiar face.
A distinctly larger than average bald head, with tattoos of unknown meaning all over his body.
Four arms, as imposing as six wings.
There was no doubt.
He was the leader of the group that ambushed us in the desert.
In each of his four hands, he held a sword that glowed like lightning.
“Ha–shit.”
After all, there was no wind.
I was about to pull the hilt.
Pantathion, who had been holding his ground, leaped forward with a series of equivalents.
“Deer.”
It was a move that bordered on interception magic.
The behemoth was already more than twice as bloated as an Auror.
He swung his arm, clutching the double-edged axe in both hands.
“Mui profit-!!”
It was a blow that doubled as a tidal wave of light.
My blood-coated axe dug in, tearing through his shields in one swift stroke.
So far so good.
Kaaaaang-!!
There was a crashing sound as sword and axe clashed.
With a thunderous bang, the Fantasion bounced off.
“Kaboom!”
I felt like I’d been run over by a herd of rhinos.
The giant, who introduced himself as Epsilon, was unharmed.
As it fell, Fantasia was about to be swallowed by the clouds.
“Far, Fantasia!”
Letancier stretched out his arms.
The falling colossus stops in midair.
He was slowly pulled up into the clouds like a tuna being lifted.
“Oh my God—!
Are you okay?!”
“Gee—!”
It was a close call.
An invisible hand held Pantheon in place.
If Letancier had been any later, he would have fallen into the desert and died.
Fantasia’s chest was scorched like she’d been burned by a fire.
Letancier’s brow twitched.
“How dare you!”
Concentrating, she stretched out her arms.
A whirlwind of telekinetic power shot toward Epsilon.
The intangible energy, reminiscent of a torrent, twisted into a double helix, adding to its power.
“Hmm. That’s good.”
Abel marveled.
And for good reason.
It was Letancier’s special move that could make even giants cough up blood and collapse.
The problem was that they weren’t usually bald.
It was a moment of conflict.
Epsilon crossed his swords and blocked the whirlwind.
“Arrogant beauty.”
There was a loud boom.
Letancier continued to pour on the whirlwind.
But unlike her rapidly draining mind, Epsilon remained strong.
Six fully extended wings were controlling the recoil.
“Profit!”
“Cease and desist, and be destroyed.”
A confrontation ensued.
Epsilon swung his sword with his two remaining hands.
The vortex ripped into four equal parts, releasing a crisscross of sword energy.
“—ah.”
My eyes lit up.
Letancier’s ranting has ceased.
The crossed swords were huge enough to cut through the main building of Phileon Academy with a single strike.
There was no way to stop it.
Orsay spat an expletive and attempted an evasive maneuver.
“Okay, that’s it.”
“Ronan?”
I leapfrogged ahead of Letancier.
I definitely felt lighter.
The gap closed in an instant, and Epsilon’s sword energy filled my vision.
“I’m still six sheets deep, but it’s great.
It was rewarding to watch the fight.
Letancier and Fantasion did a much better job than I expected.
Just by not freaking out in front of six cards, he had plenty of room to play later.
Epsilon scowled.
“Foolishness. You choose your own death.”
“That would be you, asshole.”
I don’t understand.
I can’t believe you’re making this judgment when you could have seen it with your own eyes.
“If you have six wings, do you think you have six lives?”
There was no time for small talk.
I tugged on the hilt of my sword in silence.
Hundreds of hits were fired into thin air.
Absylon’s blade shattered.
Boom!
The shattered fragments of Yeki were as beautiful as cherry blossoms in the wind.
“What.”
Epsilon blushed with embarrassment.
But my turn wasn’t over yet.
The sword glowed in the sunset, lighting up the front.
Epsilon was pulled toward me from the distance.
Three steps at most.
The distance you reach when you swing your sword.
“Again—!”
Epsilon reflexively ducked out of the way.
But my stab had already dug into the center of the crossed swords.
The blade of light crumbled like clay.
The holy sword, a four-pronged blade, sliced into Epsilon’s throat.
“Kuck.”
It was unassuming for a will.
Raise the sword vertically.
His face split in half with a sensation like a watermelon being sliced.
Phew!
Blood gushed out like a fountain, soaking his face.
“Like this—easy.”
Fantasia muttered.
His large eyes were glittering in an uncharacteristic way.
I know.
Only pure admiration and longing for power could have produced such a look.
I made a V with my index and middle finger at the deer hanging by telekinesis.
Hoping for some kind of epiphany.
“Oh my God.”
Letancier’s mouth dropped open in disbelief.
Abel was looking at me like I was some kind of numerical monster.
Epsilon’s six wings stiffened.
A bald man with a cracked face plummeted below the clouds.
That’s when I landed on Orsay’s back again.
“Huh?”
After what seemed like an eternity, the cloud cover parted, and a bright light poured in.