by Fujino Omori
“Anyone else willin’ to ride Hestia Familia’s luck? Aha-ha-ha!”
The excitement level in the bar doubled as the tough-looking human placed his bet. The man smirked at his companions’ looks of disbelief—for he had once attacked Bell with seething hatred on the eighteenth floor of the Dungeon. Mord sat down on the nearest chair, folded his arms, and thrust his chin forward with unwavering confidence.
Every corner of the city had been whipped into a frenzy. Their furor would boil over at this rate.
“I hope you’ve said your last good-byes to Bell Cranell?”
“…”
High above the whirlwind of tension and street level, Apollo approached Hestia inside Babel Tower.
The god’s hair had been perfectly set for the occasion. He approached Hestia’s seat with a smug grin plastered on his lips. Hestia didn’t respond, only turned her back to him with her eyes glued on her own personal mirror.
“My, my,” said Apollo with a shrug. He started back to his own chair, calm and extremely self-assured.
“We are just seconds from noon!”
The commentator’s voice filled the thirtieth floor.
Waves of cheers ran through the garden in front of the Guild headquarters.
“Here we go…”
“Yes…”
Eina and Misha talked quietly as both girls watched the large Divine Mirror floating behind the stage.
The eyes of adventurers, bar owners and staff, merchants, and gods all focused on the images inside of those “windows.”
And then…
“The War Game—has begun!”
Loud, deep bells rang out to signal the start of the battle.
At that moment, inside the castle ruins…
The ringing of the bells that signaled the start of the War Game wafted through the windows from afar.
Compared to the thrilling atmosphere in Orario, the battlefield itself was underwhelming.
Since this was a castle siege, the time limit had been set at three days. The vast majority of Apollo Familia believed that their opponent’s strategy would be to wait until the last day when their concentration would be lowest because they didn’t have the numbers to attack the castle head-on. As long as they kept their eye out for any probing attacks, they should be fine right where they were.
The mood inside the castle walls was relaxed.
“Hey, Luan. Go take a lookout post.”
“Wha……Why do I have to?!”
Luan the prum’s superior ordered him to leave the meticulously cleaned and decorated inner sanctum. “You’ve got good eyesight, right? Since you can’t fight, go do some laps around the wall like you did yesterday. Might as well be useful while you can.”
The castle itself was deceptively wide, big enough that one hundred people would have difficulty maintaining a constant visual around its entire circumference. They would always be shorthanded somewhere. Luan didn’t want to leave the comfort of the inner castle, but he begrudgingly obeyed the order.
He could hear the others laughing at him as he closed the door to the chamber and climbed the stairwell leading to the top of the wall.
“Hey, Luan. What are you doing here?”
“…Looking out.”
Two archers on patrol spotted him immediately when the prum emerged on the north edge of the wall. The two chuckled to themselves as soon as they heard those two words, knowing exactly what had happened. Luan turned his back on the two of them and looked out at the northern plains.
There was almost nothing out there. Sure, there was a random tree or boulder here and there, but no place for anyone to hide. The grasslands spread out from the north and out to the east. A river ran past the castle to the south and the edge of a forest was visible to the west. A gust of wind passed through the prum’s hair as he narrowed his eyes toward the north, when he heard voices coming from behind.
“Magic is really the only threat.”
“What’re you worried about? This big guy’s got a few presents for anyone who shows up.”
An animal person stroked his longbow and bared his fangs in a long grin, completely brushing off the other archer’s warning.
The power and range of all Magic was determined by the length of its trigger spell. The defensive wall was so thick and sturdy that only a really powerful type of Magic would have any hope of doing damage, let alone cracking it. Magic with a long trigger spell would be the enemy’s only option.
Any mage who wandered within range of their bows would be greeted by a rain of arrows long before they could finish reciting their trigger spell. The animal person wasn’t worried in the slightest.
“Keh,” coughed Luan in disgust, knowing that the two of them had everything covered. He had been given a pointless errand.
It was then—
The prum’s eyes caught something moving in the distance.
Someone walking through the grassland to the north straight toward the wall…A vaguely human figure completely covered by a cloak.
“H-hey!”
“What’s that…?”
It was very strange attire for anyone to be wearing. Most likely, the person had a hooded cape on underneath a long cloak that hid everything above the ankle. The archers took notice of the hooded figure as well.
There was no doubt it was an enemy. However, the enemy warrior was alone and not casting a spell. The hooded figure was walking slowly but surely in their direction. Luan’s eyes opened in fright at the mysterious warrior’s aura of calm, which smoldered like hot coals buried under ash. The breeze made the figure’s cloak sway, the flapping sounds reaching the sentry’s ears.
All three of them stood, watching the figure come within one hundred meders of the castle wall.
The hooded figure chose that moment to make its move.
Whoosh! It spread its arms out wide, outer cloak flying open, exposing what was hidden underneath.
Two thin, feminine hands held on to scarlet and violet blades—twin magic swords.
“Huh?”
Luan’s eyes became as round as the full moon as he watched the two long blades swing forward at the same time.
An overwhelming mass of magical energy was reflected in the eyes of everyone present on the north edge of the wall.
“Wh-what—wassat?!”
Utter chaos broke out within the castle the second that the magical energy hit the wall.
Screams echoed through the stone hallways as more impacts rocked the structure. Those who emerged from the main tower were immediately lost for words when they saw what had happened to their precious wall.
The breeze took enough of the clouds of smoke away for them to see that a piece of the wall was missing.
“U-unbelievable! It’s them—they’re attacking!”
Luan, who had been knocked off the top of the wall by the first blast, climbed back up. The same people who ordered him to “look out” a few moments ago brushed up to him in a panic.
“How many?!”
“J-just one!”
The prum’s superiors squinted at him, as if trying to make sure they’d heard him right. Luan, himself, was visibly shaken by fear. Still, he forced trembling words out of his mouth.
“C-could that be…N-no, it has to be! Crozzo’s Magic Swords! They’re going to break down the wall with legendary weapons?!”
A collective gasp emerged from the small group of people who had gathered around him. They knew he spoke the truth.
There was no other magic sword in this wide world that could possibly break through a wall of that size in one hit. Since this wasn’t cast Magic, Luan’s suggestion was the only explanation that made sense. Any doubts they had instantly disappeared.
Almost on cue, the voices of lookouts on top of the main tower rang out. “One enemy?!” “Attacking with magic swords!” Words that started as a call to arms ended in screams laced with fear and surprise.
“The castle’ll be blown sky high at this rate!”
Luan y
elled in sheer terror, his comrades frozen on the spot. Suddenly, KA-BOOM! The remains of the lookout tower only a few meders away took a direct hit. Large chunks of stone flew in every direction, showering the archers and onlookers with debris.
“UWWAAAAAHHHHHHHHH!” Luan shrieked at the top of his lungs. Leaving his allies behind, he rushed back into the relative safety of the inner sanctum.
“To think, there would come a day when I would use this magic sword…”
The hooded figure, Lyu, whispered to herself as she swung both blades toward the castle.
One flick of the scarlet blade sent a giant, crackling fireball hurtling toward the target. Bringing down the violet blade brought forth a thick column of electricity that snaked its way to the castle in less than a heartbeat. Both were powerful enough to pierce the outer layer of rock, sending bits and pieces high into the air.
The weapons had been prepared by Welf in less than a week. Crozzo Magic Swords.
The blades created by men with cursed blood were so powerful that they overpowered opponents to the point a counterattack was impossible. The kingdom of Rakia had demonstrated their power during the war, and the world had not forgotten the devastation they wrought.
There were even stories about how they’d used Crozzo Magic Swords to turn a previously impenetrable fortress into a pile of rubble in one night. The ultimate siege weapon.
“You cannot hit me from there.”
Archers hastily brought down a rain of arrows from the still-intact parts of the wall. However, Lyu had no trouble dodging them. Every time she spun, she swung one of the magic swords forward, engulfing the archers and magic users with flaming explosions and electrical eruptions. The sound was deafening even from this distance as even more of the castle wall came crumbling to the ground.
Its structural integrity gone, the heavily damaged northern wall started to tilt inward. Hurling a series of magical attacks stronger than regular Magic, Lyu worked her way east as she continued the assault. It wasn’t long before the castle’s eastern wall began to crumble under their power.
“If you insist on doing nothing, I’ll bring the castle down on top of you.”
Her sky-blue eyes narrowed from beneath her hood.
Another beam of electricity shot straight through the opening in the castle wall, lighting up the inside like a storm cloud. It didn’t take long for screams of pain to reach her ears.
“Now, come out.”
One more spin, and yet another explosion rocked the castle.
“S-status report! What the hell is going on?!”
Screams of panic and terror replaced the relaxed atmosphere inside the castle as Lyu continued her bombardment. Everyone was at a loss as to how to handle such an unpredictable and dangerous opponent.
Their arrows weren’t connecting, spells couldn’t be finished—Luan emerged from the middle chamber, running as if his life depended on it.
“Orders from Hyacinthus! Take fifty fighters and take that guy out!”
“Fifty?!”
Everyone present inside the sanctum was taken aback by that number. That would slice the forces defending the castle in half to take care of one enemy. Luan was quick to cut them off.
“Those magic swords will mow down any small groups we send! They don’t even have ten fighters—just get rid of that one and get back here!”
Everyone fell silent in the face of reason. Yet another explosion rocked the wall, sending shock waves through the stone and cracking the surface beneath their feet. “UwaHH!” Luan jumped back as small stones fell from the ceiling, and he ran away.
“C-come on, let’s get going!”
“Tsk…No choice. Move out!”
Luan’s message being the final push, fifty adventurers gathered around the elf, Lissos, and rushed toward the east gate. The iron doors swung open, an early afternoon breeze hitting their faces as another round of explosions made their ears ring.
“Spread out!” Obeying Lissos’s command, the adventurers split into ten groups of five as they converged on the hooded attacker from different angles.
“Guh, guahh…?!”
As predicted, the group that had taken point position was blown backward by a sparkling electrical explosion. One group after another was mercilessly knocked out of commission every time their enemy swung one of those two magic swords. Lissos jumped over the burning grass and weaved his way through the electrical strikes as he closed the distance.
Then he heard a cracking sound immediately after dodging a fireball. A moment later, the crimson blade shattered into thousands of pieces.
“Now! Attack as one!”
The magic sword had exceeded its limit. The violet blade began to crack the moment that Lissos ordered a full-out assault to seize the opportunity.
The hooded adventurer threw the remains of the weapons into the dirt and withdrew a wooden sword from beneath her cloak to engage the thirty remaining adventurers in close-quarters combat.
“S-so fast?!”
“Stay in formation; do not break ranks!”
It didn’t take long for the group under Lissos’s command to fall into chaos as the hooded adventurer sprang into action. Most of them were third-tier, Level 2 adventurers facing down an enemy who was on her own—yet she unleashed a massacre, wielding her wooden weapon with the force of gale winds. Cape flapping vigorously behind her, she deflected three oncoming swords with one upward sweep before sending a human who got too close twenty meders into the air, using the momentum of her backswing to propel her blade forward.
Thirty adventurers couldn’t even land one blow against a single enemy.
“Haa!”
“!”
Lissos timed his sneak attack to land the moment the hooded adventurer was repelling another weapon. The tip of his dagger cut across the enemy’s cheek.
The side of her hood had been sliced open enough to reveal, for just a moment, a long ear in the shape of a leaf. Time froze for Lissos as he realized the hooded adventurer was another elf. Fury spread through his veins like wildfire.
“Bastard! An elf dirtying her hands with foul weapons such as magic swords—have you no shame?!”
Rage filled Lissos’s body to the point that his ears were burning red as he dove toward the hooded adventurer.
Crozzo’s Magic Swords had turned an elvish forest into ash. “Those weapons destroyed the home of your people! How could you not know?!” He roared with the anger and grudge of an entire race. In response, the hooded adventurer—Lyu—remained expressionless and calm as she sideswiped the dagger, breaking it in half.
“—”
“Regrettably, there is something more important to me than the animosity of one people.”
Time stood still as Lissos watched his opponent step in, her words overpowering him as her weapon came forward.
“If it is shameful to rescue a friend, I shall gladly accept that.”
Lissos saw her feet leave the ground in a spin before losing consciousness on impact.
“This is incredible! Could Hestia Familia be looking to end this sooner rather than later?!”
Cheers of surprise and excitement erupted all over Orario.
The mirrors floating in the air showed images of the smoking north and east walls as well as the damage already taken by the inner tower of the old castle. Still others focused solely on the relentless attacks of the mysterious hooded adventurer who eliminated upper-class adventurers one by one in the blink of an eye. She was gaining fans by the moment. Onlookers filling the streets shouted cries of encouragement to the beautiful elf.
“Please tell us, Lord Ganesha, just what are those ferocious magic swords?”
“Those are—Ganesha?!”
“If you don’t feel like adding anything to the commentary, please go home, Lord Ganesha!”
The atmosphere in the Guild’s front lawn was absolutely electric as the announcers’ voices rang out throughout the city.
Meanwhile, inside the confines of Babel Tower in Cen
tral Park, many gods and goddesses voiced admiration for her exploits.
“That hooded adventurer—damn good, am I right?”
“According to Hermes, that’s a ‘helper’ from outside the city.”
“Hooded adventurer…Leon something or other…”
“Apollo Familia’s response time is very quick.”
Three gods had gathered in the corner, all watching the same mirror and exchanging opinions. Back at the main table, “Cheh!” Apollo snapped his tongue in disgust. He bared his white teeth menacingly at Hestia, but the young-looking goddess didn’t look up from her own mirror.
“Look at that—here comes another one!”
Movement could be seen in a mirror showing the northern grasslands. This time, it was a human girl racing across the landscape like a predator on the hunt.
Wearing camouflage to conceal herself in the grasslands, Mikoto took advantage of the chaos of battle to approach the castle unseen.
Thanks to Lyu’s distraction, she was able to climb over the rubble on the north side of the castle and get inside. Holding a rustic longsword in one hand, she ran into the damaged remains of the base of a lookout tower. Small piles of debris had accumulated inside, but she simply jumped over them.
“Fear, strong and winding—”
Then she began casting while running.
“A sneak attack—! Another enemy coming in from the north!”
The prum Luan was the first to recognize the danger and alerted his allies to Mikoto’s presence.
She used the stairwells inside the tower to emerge on the roof of the inner sanctum, all the while keeping her eyes locked on the strange tower where the enemy general was waiting on his throne. Her enemies moved to surround her and cut off her advance.
“I call upon the god, the destroyer of any and all, for guidance from the heavens. Grant this trivial body divine power beyond power.”
“That one’s got a magic sword, too! She’s going for Hyacinthus!”
Luan’s keen eyes had caught sight of the unorthodox weapon in her grip. Members of Apollo Familia swarmed in, flooding the roof from both sides.
“Saving, purifying light. Bring forth the evil-crushing blade!”