Chapter 287

[Adeshan. Dangerous].

“Ugh—!”

Adeshan clutched his forehead against a sudden headache. The woman’s voice echoed in his head again. It was the first time he’d ever heard it in a situation that demanded such concentration.

“So what’s more dangerous in this situation—!”

She said to herself. She didn’t answer. By this point, I was getting annoyed. This was no time for warnings. Shouts, screams, and maniacal roars erupted sporadically across the battlefield.

“Get more diluent, don’t spread it out, aim for a point!”

“We need to blow this thing up in one shot. Call in backup bombing from the martops now—

The chatter of the soldiers besieging the fortress was swallowed up by an explosion. A spear of light, aimed at a square, struck directly into the center of the formation. Where the smoke had settled, chunks of torn flesh emerged.

“Damn it—!”

“Da, legs, my legs!”

An agonized scream rang out as an instantly activated defensive spell enveloped their heads. Bang, bang, bang, the spears of light exploded as they struck the shield.

No further damage was done, but the surprise shot alone had already claimed dozens of victims. A soldier who had barely escaped with his life pointed to the sky and shouted.

“Look! There’s three of them right up there!”

Adeshan looked up, and as the soldier had said, three artificial giants were taking turns throwing spears at her. Drawing her crossbow, she aimed at the closest flying giant and pulled the trigger.

“Off.”

The distance was long, but it didn’t matter. The crossbow shot out in a straight line and struck the artificial giant in the forehead. Pfft! The arrowhead, forged in Ronan’s blood, burrowed deep into the giant’s brain and exploded.

[KUCK—!

The giant, missing the top of its forehead, fell helplessly. Adeshan reloaded and fired two more shots in quick succession.

Poof! Poof! This time, it hit them in the forehead and temple. With a small explosion, the falling giants bounced off the shields. The soldiers cheered at the divine sniping.

“Zee, the commander got him! Hooray!”

“Never be at a disadvantage! Push!”

A morale-boosted allied force charged. Adeshan was once again refining his strategy. One of the soldiers called out in an urgent voice.

“Gee, Commander!”

“Hmm?”

Adeshan’s eyes widened as he whirled around. A man covered in stars was running toward him, daggers crossed.

“You’re a bitch, die!”

A Cult assassin who had snuck out of the fortress. The head of the Southeast Branch had been killing Allied officers one by one. Adeshan chewed his lip.

“Bam—!”

“In the name of the Great Star!”

It was too late to dodge, she realized, as she tried to take control of her mind. The ground heaved and a rising stone wall closed in between her and the assassin. The panicked assassin cursed.

“Holy shit, what the—.”

He was about to pull away. The rock transformed into a giant hand and grabbed the assassin. A crushing and popping sound rang out simultaneously.

“Kaboom!”

A thick pool of blood spurted from the inside of the gaping assassin’s mouth. Instant death, no doubt. With a bang, dozens of identical rock grips rose up as his lifeless body was thrown away. A voice came from behind the stunned Adeshan.

“Are you okay?”

“Now, Professor Jarodin?”

Adeshan sucked in a breath. A thin man stood with his hands in his pockets. It was the familiar Professor Jarodin of Phileon Academy, he said in a bland voice.

“According to what he just said, you’re one of the Allied General Staff. I think you can slip a little further to the rear.”

“—Thank you.”

“You’re welcome.”

Adeshan ducked his head. Jarodin, his back still turned, snapped his fingers. The giant rock hands began to move freely, parrying the giants’ attacks or pounding against the fortress’s outer walls.

“—Great.”

Adeshan was impressed. His magic was powerful, but he wasted very little mana, even when he used such large spells in quick succession. He hadn’t really gotten to know her since he’d been in the lab every day, but she seemed to be a true Tower Mage of the Full Moon Demon Tower.

The star’s seemingly ironclad protection was cracking. In the fortress, Nebula Clazier’s followers fought back with arrows and magic, but nothing could stop the advance of the Nodos and their allies.

The general offensive was progressing as furiously as expected. The Allies were pounding the gates of the Nine Fortresses with all but the smallest of forces. It was a gateway they must pass through to reach the Pale Castle, home to Ithil and the Pontoon.

“These ignorant things—!”

“Hold out until the archbishops come!”

The followers of Nebula Clazier were waging a determined defense against such a coalition. The artificial giants were a tough nut to crack, and the bishops and prefects were quite powerful.

But if you’re asking if the odds were stacked against the Allies, they certainly weren’t. The long-honed blade was doing its job.

There was just one thing that bothered him. Adeshan muttered.

“But…where are all the archbishops?”

****

“It’s just, you know, normal.”

Ronan blurted out. He’d finished the ritual and sliced up a few monsters, but he didn’t feel any change. At most, he felt a little lighter? He examined his wrists and ankles.

“Are you sure the curse is gone? I’m not sure.”

“The ritual was clearly successful. The curse must still be breaking down. I would have expected you to feel some pain, but you’re still intact—you’re quite adaptable.”

“You’re upset? Why?”

Ronan shook his head. Scratching his head, the Savior spoke with a tone of disdain.

“I have placed a curse on you that is far more powerful than you realize. Something so vile and evil that no mere mortal could even begin to comprehend it.”

“Thanks for that.”

“There will be pain later, big or small, but as long as you’re okay now, you’re okay. Now listen–cough!”

Suddenly, the Savior coughed, covering his mouth with his left hand. The sound was unusually watery. Ronan, panicked, helped him up.

“What, are you okay?”

“Okay–that’s fine.”

The Savior surreptitiously wiped his left hand across the hem of his shorts. A reddish stain appeared, but Ronan didn’t notice, as he was too deft with his movements.

“Damn, I don’t think so, so why did you ask me to come here?”

Ronan frowned. The man was not a good listener, after all. The Savior had traveled all the way to Dainhar against Elsia’s advice that he should rest. Sita, who had carried them both, let out a worried cry.

“Powwow—.”

“Look, he’s worried too, I’m just traveling alone.”

“You can’t do that.”

The Savior spoke firmly. Ronan’s brow flared. Honestly, there were a lot of things I didn’t understand. To travel through this backwoods, not to mention the pain, and not knowing what those lunatics are doing to my sister right now. The Savior spoke up.

“There’s something you need to see. It’s now or never.”

“That’s real.”

Ronan clenched his fists. The look in her eyes was too serious for him to just punch her in the face and run. Ronan sighed, chewing on his bottom lip.

“Huh—okay.”

“Thank you.”

“Instead, if you’re late and something happens to your sister, you’re dead on my hands.”

“Don’t worry about that. I’ll be there sooner, not later, though this guy was pretty good.”

The Savior glanced back at Sita and said confidently. Ronan didn’t answer; he didn’t know what he was up to, but at this point, he had no choice but to trust. Ronan scratched Sita’s neck.

“Sita. You do the scouting. If you see anything, tell me.”

“Bam!”

Hearing the command, Sita took flight. Within a few steps, the two of them were in front of Dainhar’s nose. Ronan looked around and grunted in frustration.

“Nothing’s changed here.”

In my brief visit, Dynahar was as stark as ever. The mountains of rock and metal that had grown up around the ruins looked like a fire in the desert.

The shield that had been raised after Ronan and Schlieffen had been driven away still enveloped Dainhar perfectly. Suddenly, he remembered a bizarre experience from three years ago. The Unidentified had somehow been driven away.

“What was what.”

It was the strangest thing he’d ever seen. It was the car that brought him back to the past. A man’s voice came from near the rocky mountains of Dainhar.

“Ro, Ronan? Are you Ronan?”

“Huh?”

Ronan arched an eyebrow. The voice sounded vaguely familiar. He looked up to see a dark-haired native youth poking his head out of a crevice in the rocky mountain. Ronan’s eyes widened.

“Dreaming thunder?”

“Ronan! It’s really Ronan!”

The young man started down the rocky mountain with a booming voice. Time passed, but I remembered it clearly. It was Dreaming Thunder, the native boy I had once met in Dainhar. The Savior asked, somewhat surprised.

“You have a connection to the natives here. Do you know them well?”

“Yeah. A little bit before.”

Ronan nodded. He and Schlieffen had rescued him from being chased by Teranil and Yuria, Nebula Clazier’s henchmen. His brother, the Raging Gust, had even made it to the center of the ruins.” Ronan waved, his face brightening.

“Hey, it’s been a while, how are you?”

“We’ve all been fine, no one since the intruder!”

Dreaming Thunder called out. He said that the people and the ruins were all safe, though he had obviously grown in the three years that had passed.

He added that Nebula Clazier had come again and again, but none of them had been able to penetrate the new defenses. Ronan breathed a sigh of relief.

“That’s great. Now let us in!”

“No!”

“What?”

Ronan’s brow creased. So adamant that for a moment I thought I’d misheard him, he curled his hand over his mouth and spoke aloud.

“Why not!”

“The invisibility curtain won’t go away! No one but our tribe can enter or leave!”

“Nimi. What are you talking about?”

“It’s real! We have to ask some girl’s permission before we go out!”

Thunder slid down the rocky mountain and finally landed on the sand. He swung his long limbs and began to run toward Ronan. A woman, what the hell was that? Ronan tapped his shields.

[You are an unauthorized user and are prohibited from entering].

“Oh shit. Surprise.”

A woman’s voice echoed in his head, accompanied by a stinging sensation. Ronan jerked his hand away. It was the same voice he’d heard when he’d been cast out in the past.

“So this is how you’re going to come out?”

I thought I understood what the thunder was saying. The celebration was still going on. Thrrrr—! Ronan tugged on the hilt of his sword. It was a shield of mana, no matter how thick it was.

He was just about to strike out with his arm. The Savior, holding Ronan’s wrist, shook his head.

“Don’t get excited, it’s natural, and if you break the shield now, it won’t work when it matters.”

“It’s a no-brainer?”

“Yes. Even in the past, Dynhar was a place only a select few were allowed to enter. Judging by those tattoos, it seems the tradition is alive and well.”

The Savior’s gaze was fixed on the tattoos on Thunder’s body, which, as it turned out, were tattooed on every native here, young and old alike. Scanning Dainhar with longing in his eyes, the Savior placed a hand on his shield.

“It’s been a while since I’ve been here, really.”

A faint glow emanated from the area where my palm met my hand. Something was wrong. A few seconds later, the woman’s voice echoed in everyone’s heads once again.

[Registered user. temporarily disables the defense].

“Huh?!”

At the same time, the shield that enveloped all of Dainhar vanished. The mana residing within the force field rushed out. The rushing Dreaming Thunder sprawled on the sand in a frenzy of surprise. The Savior looked back at Ronan.

“Come on, let’s go, so we can save my daughter and save the world at the same time.”