༺ The Lord Is With Us (52) ༻
The muddy ground made my steps heavy.
My breathing was at its limit. My body was already riddled with stab wounds.
The frenzied rush of flesh seeds seemed to be endless. I swung my sword again after catching my breath.
Blood naturally poured out from the flesh seed. A diagonal line bisected the head of one of the flesh seeds rushing my way.
I think I killed dozens of them already. How are there still any left?
My exhausted gaze turned toward the flesh nest. We were fast approaching it.
But the closer we got, the shorter the interval between the attacking flesh seeds became. The speed at which the thin-filmed cocoon opened and spewed flesh seeds was too fast for us to keep up with.
I understood that this meant it had generated flesh seeds at the expense of many humans.
The orphans were unlikely to be the end of it. Since it was an experimental lab of sorts for the Dark Order, they most likely kidnapped regular passersby. What came out of it was an army composed of hundreds of flesh seeds.
The only good news was that the prematurely newborn flesh seeds fell short in terms of physical abilities.
Screeeeech!
I heard a clicking sound of teeth grinding together. I cut the flesh seed’s head diagonally, but it didn’t seem to have properly pierced the center of the monster.
With a crunch, its skull burst open under my foot.
I glanced at Senior Delphine. Even the great Senior Delphine seemed to be out of breath by this point and had sweat dripping from her forehead.
Even so, her posture was still firm and proper. With every swing of her sword, the scorched flesh seeds fell without fail.
The only problem was that the flesh seeds, no longer feeling pain, kept attacking even as they burned.
“Kyaaaaaa!”
“Senior Delphine!”
Startled, I looked towards Senior Delphine. It seemed like one of the burnt flesh seeds managed to crawl to Senior Delphine, digging its nails into her ankle.
Dark red blood flowed. The skin around the wound melted and her posture faltered.
Of course, it had to be her ankle. I immediately threw my hatchet.
The head of the flesh seed rushing towards Senior Delphine exploded with a squelch. And a sonorous voice rang out just at the right time.
“…….Light, flood the area!”
A pure white electrical charge shocked the flesh seeds on the ground.
The bodies of the flesh seeds trembled as their muscles contracted arbitrarily. Even so, they somehow managed to continue their approach towards Senior Delphine with murderous gazes. It was terrifying..
I quickly rushed to her side. The flesh nest was right in front of us and my eyes widened in a daze.
“…….Go quickly.”
“But, Senior Delphine…..”
As I opened my mouth with a look of concern, Senior Delphine’s crimson eyes glared at me.
Her anger was evident from the way she was chewing her lips. As if she was sorry for suddenly becoming a burden to her junior.
“Even if I lose an ankle, I can still defend myself.. Do you not remember who I am? I’m Delphine Yurdina.”
“…….All right.”
Because I promised to help her win.
I staggered to my feet. Senior Delphine picked herself up by using her sword as a crutch. It seemed like she was planning on engaging in a more defensive battle.
My eyes turned to look behind me. In the distance, I saw Senior Elsie trying to analyze the current situation for Senior Delphine and me.
Protecting the injured was the first in priority. With that thought in mind, I looked towards Senior Elsie.
I noticed her slightly unsure expression, but there was nothing else we could do. Soon, Senior Elsie let out a sigh and nodded.
Senior Elsie’s support would now be focused on Senior Delphine.
That might have been our best course of action. In doing so, there would be more flesh seeds attacking Senior Delphine and it would open up a path for me to advance alone.
The pain I felt in my back increasingly worsened as time passed. I gritted my teeth and kicked off the ground once again.
The hatchet was fired into the air, letting out a whistle as it flew past.
The head of one of the flesh seeds was shattered into pieces and the hatched changed its trajectory once again to blow off the head of another flesh seed that was right next to it, preparing to attack.
In the next moment, my sword swung downwards to the left of where I was standing.
Three sword trajectories were drawn in the air and three streams of blood poured to the ground.
My arms were grazed by claws in the process.
Blood trickled. I felt my arm gradually losing its strength. Before I knew it, the hand I was wielding my sword with was shaking uncontrollably.
One of my legs was also bitten by a flesh seed.
The wound immediately began to swell, as if there was poison coating their teeth as well. I felt pain with every step I took. Everytime I put any weight on my lower body, dark blue blood spurted from my wound.
Even so, I continued to walk until I stood in front of the flesh nest.
A sound similar to a snicker rang in my ears. It was soon followed by a chilling whisper.
‘You can’t win.’
I burst out laughing. Then spat out my next words.
“……What a load of shit.”
And as I spoke, the skin of the flesh nest unfolded.
It looked like a bat spreading its wings. My body trembled in surprise because I was unaware that such a movement was even possible in the first place.
And from the membrane, dozens of tentacles stretched out.
Its exterior was petrifying. All kinds of body parts stuck out like thorns on the tentacles.
Arms, legs, and skulls.
The only thing in common between each was the fact they each had bones. I couldn’t help but let out a laugh.
“You’re a flesh nest. Why do you have bones?”
But it gave no answer. . The tentacles struck the ground like whips, each strike so powerful that the stone floor in the cave chipped away with every crack.
It was obvious that one hit would be fatal.
I swore under my breath and flung my body. I drew dozens of artificial trajectories in the air. I had to pull off an untimely trick in order to penetrate the gap.
‘You can’t win.’
Every time a chilling whisper rang out, a weird fog began to form around the area. An abhorrent smell stung my nose.
My head started to spin. That was never a good sign.
Every time I threw my body to move, roll on the ground, or sometimes back away, my concentration became more blurred.
Still, it was clear that I was getting closer to the flesh nest. The tentacles were hitting the floor around me with more caution.
I didn’t miss my opportunity.
My hatchet was fired through the air like a thunderbolt, whizzing by the cave while tearing up the atmosphere.
Its rotating blades carried tremendous momentum. It was enough to shatter any regular tree outside.
But that wasn’t the case for the flesh nest.
The hatched bounced off as if it came in contact with a rubber ball.
My eyes widened. It was the same hatchet that had previously been smashing through the flesh seeds’ skulls. Its effectiveness had been proven many times over.
But it was useless against the flesh nest?
And it was in that brief moment where I stood in a daze.
I felt something hit my back with a thud.
I fell forward while coughing up blood.
Only then I realized the flesh nest standing before me.
I was even able to see the source of the mysterious fog. It came from the top of the flesh nest––a magenta-colored fog was flowing with an eerie sound.
‘You cannot win.’
“…….Yeah?”
It was just as the flesh nest said. I lacked the strength to get back up and also felt like my insides were twisted into a pulp after a single hit against my back.
I felt around my body with shaking hands. I could feel the rough texture of parchment.
The tentacle was slowly approaching. It was then that I decided to tear the parchment without even a second of hesitation.
Suddenly, a wild flame spread through the cave floor.
The heat quickly moved around me, burning flesh.
It was scorching hot. The oxygen level in the area dropped dramatically and the sizzling pain continued to fester in my back where the wound hadn’t healed yet.
The flesh nest screamed and tore off its tentacles. I didn’t miss a beat and used that chance to bolt upright.
A brilliant silver aura coated my sword. Gritting my teeth, I thrusted forward with all my might.
It was my chance to turn the tide of the battle.
But in the next moment, I felt myself slipping.
Huh…? I found myself flying in the air again.
I coughed up a large amount of blood while floating in the air. As time seemed to slow, I looked down to see what was going on around me.
Senior Elsie, Celine, and Seria were all looking at me with their eyes wide open in terror. Even Senior Delphine’s face showed despair.
All their faces had expressions of defeat.
A voice came from near the top of the flesh nest.
‘You can never win.’
When my body fell, the impact shook the ground. Blood continued to come up my esophagus. No, perhaps it was my trachea.
Honestly, it was hard to know at this point.
The monster was truly something straight from a myth.
I never thought it would have physical resistance. My failure came from my misconception that flesh seeds were my only problem.
The Saintess came to my mind. I remembered her warning me that I might die.
My eyes stared blankly at the flesh nest.
‘You can’t win.’
My eyes slowly started to close. I felt myself slowly slip into a comfortable sleep.
This was the second time that I was about to lose consciousness. And it was right then.
“…….Flame.”
I came back to my senses and looked around for the voice that suddenly struck my ear.
No one was there. But my eyes naturally turned to the flesh nest’s tentacles.
The ends were hideously melted. It was due to the flame magic scroll that Leto gave me for combat.
Flames can cause damage. That fact flashed in my mind.
The only problem was that I had no fire to use as a weapon right now.
Yes, I didn’t have a source of fire.
I staggered to my feet with a hastily formed plan. My sword pitifully slipped from my hand as I got up. The sound of metal rolling on the ground echoed through the cave.
I heard teeth grinding. It was from the flesh nest.
It seemed like it was mocking the loser standing before it. It started to wriggle its tentacles as if it was getting ready for its final blow.
And right at the moment when the flesh nest raised its tentacles once again.
“…….Delphine Yurdina!”
For an instant, the world stopped.
I made eye contact with Senior Delphine. Her eyes seemed to ask questions, but I knew that she had to remember.
The promise that I made with her.
“Throw your sword!”
And right when the time started to tick again.
Her sword flew towards me with a sharp sound cutting through the air. The sword still had a golden aura surrounding it, just as her dagger had when she threw it before.
Dense aura remained on weapons even after it was thrown. I instantly caught the sword and threw it into the sky.
The sword spun in the air.
The flesh nest initially flinched, but soon continued grinding its teeth after seeing the sword spin without purpose.
‘You can’t wi…..’
I burst out laughing.
The laughter that erupted from my mouth soon turned into a whimper as it squeezed my lungs.
The flesh nest stopped mid-sentence, as if puzzled from my unexpected laughter. I sensed doubt arising from the tentacles.
Either way, its curiosity would be satiated soon enough.
So I tried to put a wild smile on my face.
“…….I won, you dumbass.”
The sword, with golden aura surrounding it, immediately pointed downwards.
A vertical flash of light burned the world around me.
And in that next moment.
Screeeeeeeeeeeeech!
Dozens of flesh seeds suddenly began to howl, clutching their heads. A shining, golden glow boiled through the flesh nest’s thick membrane coating.
Then, the top of the flesh seed opened as if it was screaming towards the sky. Brilliant light poured out from within.
My vision exploded as if firecrackers went off.
Everything turned white. My body messily rolled on the ground after being flung into the air.
The only thing I heard was a high-pitched tone ringing in my ears. I tried to crawl to my sword, but soon stopped.
I had no more energy left in my body. Consciousness was slowly slipping away.
I opened my eyes for a moment and saw crying faces in front of me.
“……I-I have a p-potion.”
And with that, I fainted again.
That concluded the battle.
**
Waking up from a deep slumber is always painful.
I furrowed my brows at the sunlight that hit my eyelids.
Where was I?
My memory was hazy. I couldn’t think of a single thought in my head.
Once I opened my eyes though, I saw a woman silently looking down at me.
The first thing that caught my eye was the mysterious shine from her hair, as if woven with silver thread. The next thing was her pure white and soft looking skin, with light pink eyes that seemed to shine in the light.
As my eyes opened, hers widened in surprise.
I wasn’t in a clear state of mind yet. So it was all I could do to stutter the first words that came to my mind.
“…….Holy Power Pouch?”
Soon after, a scream escaped my mouth.
It was a signal announcing a return back to daily life.
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