“Agh, blast! It won’t hold much longer! Kouki, you need to retreat! The rest of you as well!”
“I refuse! I can’t leave you guys behind! We’re all going to make it back together!”
“Kuh, now’s not the time to go on an ego trip...” Captain Meld grimaced as those words left his mouth.
In such a cramped space, it would be difficult to dodge the Behemoth’s charge. Which was why the best course of action was to run while the barrier was still up. However, the knights only realized that fact because they were veterans of numerous battles. For the students, it was still a difficult order to swallow.
Unfortunately, though, Meld had tried to explain the situation to Kouki, who absolutely could not accept the idea of “abandoning” anyone. Plus, to make matters worse, he still thought he could take the Behemoth head on. The glint in his eyes clearly showed that he wanted to fight.
Captain Meld realized it was the overconfidence of someone who was still wet behind the ears. It appeared that praising Kouki and the others for their skills to make them feel more confident had backfired.
“Kouki! You have to listen to the captain and retreat!” Shizuku had grasped the situation, so she grabbed Kouki’s arm, urging him to retreat.
“Eh, this isn’t the first time we’ve had to put up with your dumb antics, Kouki. I’m with you all the way!”
“Ryutarou... Thank you.” However, Ryutarou’s words solidified Kouki’s resolve. Shizuku clicked her tongue impatiently at the exchange.
“You’re letting the situation get to your head, stupid!”
“Shizuku-chan...” Kaori worriedly looked over at the irritated Shizuku. It was then that a certain boy ran up in front of Kouki.
“Amanogawa-kun!” Hajime screamed.
“N-Nagumo!?”
“Nagumo-kun!?”
“You need to retreat! You have to go back to where everyone is! They need you! Now!” Hajime yelled angrily at the surprised party.
“What do you mean? And more importantly, why are you here!? You shouldn’t be here! Leave this place is to us, Nagumo, and—”
“This isn’t the time to be saying that!” Hajime cut off Kouki, who was implying that Hajime would be of no use and should retreat, and yelled with a vehemence he had never expressed before. Kouki unconsciously stiffened up. He didn’t expect the guy who was usually so quiet and mature, the one who generally blew everything off with a smile, to yell so angrily.
“Don’t you see what’s happening behind you!? They’re all panicking because their leader isn’t with them!” Hajime grabbed Kouki by the collar and pointed behind him.
Kouki saw his panicking classmates slowly being surrounded by the Traum Soldiers. All of their training had flown out the window and the students were all fighting wildly. Because of their inefficient fighting style, the steady rush of reinforcements had kept them from breaking through. Their exceptional stats had protected them so far, but it was only a matter of time until someone died.
“They need someone who has the strength to blow all that away in a single attack! They need someone who can blow their fear away! And the only one who can do that is you, Amanogawa-kun! You’re their leader, so quit being so focused on what’s in front of you! Look at what’s behind you for once!” Dazed, Kouki looked from his panicking and screaming classmates back to Hajime, who was furiously shaking his head, and nodded.
“Yeah, I get it now. We’re retreating! Meld-san, sorry—”
“Get down!” Kouki turned to Captain Meld, planning to say “Sorry for retreating without you,” but at that moment Captain Meld screamed out a warning as the barrier finally shattered.
A massive shockwave headed toward Hajime and the others. Hajime instantly transmuted the ground to make a stone wall, but the shockwave shattered it with ease, sending everyone flying. His wall had managed to lessen the force a little... but then the Behemoth let out a huge roar and the dust cleared, only to reveal Captain Meld and the other three knights lying on the ground, moaning in pain. The shockwave had robbed them of their ability to move.
Kouki and the others had collapsed too, but they were able to quickly get back up. Since they’d been behind both Hajime’s wall and the knights, they hadn’t taken as much damage.
“Gah... Ryutarou, Shizuku, can you buy us some time?” Kouki asked. It looked like they were in pain, but they still stepped forward. Since the knights had been defeated, they had to do something about the Behemoth themselves.
“Not like we’ve got a damn choice!”
“...We’ll manage somehow.” The two of them charged the Behemoth after uttering those responses.
“Kaori, you need to heal Meld-san and the others!”
“Got it!” At Kouki’s command, Kaori ran over to the knights.
Hajime was already kneeling beside them. He created another stone barrier to keep the effects of the fight from reaching them. He doubted it would be of much use in the grand scheme of things, but reasoned that it was better than nothing.
Meanwhile, Kouki began chanting the strongest spell he knew.
“O Holy spirit! Bring ruin to all that is evil with thine divine light! By the breath of God, may these clouds of darkness be swept clear, and the world bathed in sanctity! By the mercy of God, may this strike redeem the sins of man! Divine Wrath!”
Auroras of light poured out from the holy sword. The skill Kouki had used was of the same category as the Celestial Flash he’d unleashed earlier, but this one was far more powerful. The bridge creaked ominously as the rays of light gouged furrows through the stone while racing toward the Behemoth.
Ryutarou and Shizuku retreated the moment Kouki finished chanting. They were in bad shape and wouldn’t have lasted much longer. Though it had been a scant few seconds, they’d suffered quite a bit of damage in fending off the Behemoth.
The bombardment of light crashed into the Behemoth with a thunderous roar. It was covered in a coat of white as the light enveloped it. Cracks began appearing in the bridge.
“That should have been enough... Haah... Haaah...”
“Haah... Haaah... Yeah, that had to have killed it, right?”
“I’d like to think so, but...” Ryutarou and Shizuku fell back to where Kouki was standing. He was panting hard after casting such a powerful spell. That last attack had been Kouki’s ace in the hole. It had used up almost all of his remaining mana. Captain Meld stood up behind him, his wounds healed.
Gradually the light began to fade and the dust surrounding the Behemoth cleared. And the Behemoth... didn’t even have a scratch on it.
It let out a low growl, and the dark red mana that was unique to monsters began pouring out of its body. The murderous glare it aimed at Kouki was so intense that Kouki felt he might die just looking at it. Then it raised its head high, and its horn began letting out a high pitched buzz as it glowed red hot. The red spread to the rest of its helmet until it seemed like its entire head was a glowing ball of magma.
“Don’t just stand there! Run!” Captain Meld’s shout brought Kouki and the others back to their senses. Finally over the shock that Kouki hadn’t managed to even scratch it, they prepared to run. But it was at that moment the Behemoth chose to charge. Before it reached Kouki, it leaped into the air and hurtled toward them, head down, like a burning meteor.
They were able to leap to the side to avoid a direct hit, but the shockwaves from the impact bowled Kouki and the others over. They rolled across the ground like toppled pins, and were covered in wounds from head to toe when they finally stopped.
Captain Meld was still somehow able to move and he ran over to the others. The rest of the knights were still being healed by Kaori. The Behemoth braced its legs and tried to pull its head out of the hole it had smashed into the bridge.
“Can you guys still move!?” The only responses Captain Meld got were groans. Their bodies had been paralyzed by the shockwaves, just like Captain Meld’s team had been a while ago. Their internal organs had taken quite a pounding too.
>
Captain Meld turned around to call Kaori over. But the words died in his throat when he saw Hajime running toward him.
“Kid! Get Kaori to help you carry Kouki out of here!” Meld decided to ask Hajime instead.
He asked Hajime to take Kouki and Kouki alone. In other words, his orders implied that it was impossible to save more than one person in this situation. Captain Meld bit his lip so hard it drew blood and grimly raised his shield, lamenting that he could not save everyone. Still, he resolved to give his life to stop the beast for as long as possible.
However, instead of obeying, Hajime desperately yelled out an alternative plan. It was possibly the only way everyone would be able to escape with their lives. However, it was an insane, reckless plan with chances of success that were beyond slim. And to top it off, Hajime himself would have to play the most dangerous role.
Captain Meld hesitated for a few precious seconds, which was enough time for the Behemoth to get its head unstuck. Its helmet began glowing bright red once more. Meld was out of time.
“...Are you sure you can do it, kid?”
“I am.” Meld laughed and broke out into a grin when he saw the resolve in Hajime’s gaze.
“Never thought I’d trust my life to you of all people... I promise I won’t leave you behind. So... don’t let me down, kid!”
“Yes sir!” Captain Meld finished talking and walked up to the Behemoth. He unleashed a weak spell at it, provoking its ire. It appeared that the Behemoth had a tendency to focus on whatever was attacking it, which was why it had aimed for Kouki earlier. The spell did the trick, and the Behemoth’s gaze locked onto Captain Meld.
It finished charging up its helmet, rushed forward, and jumped. Meld was planning on drawing its attention for as long as possible and got into an evasive stance as the Behemoth hurtled toward him. He then whispered a short chant.
“Be swept away, Wind wall!” Meld quickly jumped back after he chanted that spell.
The Behemoth smashed into the ground, pulverizing the spot Captain Meld had been standing on not even a second before. The shockwave and rubble were blown away by the wind wall, keeping Meld unharmed. With how imprecise the Behemoth’s attacks were, even a weak spell was enough to help avoid indirect damage. But if Meld had been forced to defend Kouki and the others he would have been utterly crushed.
While the Behemoth was still stuck in the ground, Hajime jumped up onto it. The residual heat burned his skin as he landed. However, he ignored the pain as he gathered his sky blue mana, and chanted. He said no more than the name of the spell. It was, after all, the simplest, most basic magic.
“Transmute!” The Behemoth, which had been struggling to unstick its head from the ground, suddenly stopped moving. Because every time it tried to dislodge itself even a little, Hajime reformed the stone around it, keeping its head buried.
It braced its legs, attempting to use the weight of its whole body to rip its head free, only to find that the ground around its legs had been transmuted as well. The Behemoth’s legs had sunk a full meter into the ground. And to make completely sure it wouldn’t be able to break free, Hajime hardened the stone around them as well.
Even then, the Behemoth’s strength was fearsome, and Hajime knew even a moment’s lapse in concentration would allow the Behemoth break free. It kept struggling, cracks continually forming in its stone prison, but Hajime continued to relentlessly transmute the ground to repair them. The end result being that the Behemoth was unable to free its head. Were this not a matter of life and death, it would have looked rather comedic.
In the meantime, Captain Meld gathered the recovered knights and Kaori together, and they began carrying Kouki and the others to safety. It seemed that some of the students had finally regained their composure, as they were working in tandem to push the Traum Soldiers back. The one that had rallied them was actually the female student Hajime had saved earlier. Despite his weakness, he had still contributed greatly.
“Wait! Nagumo-kun’s still over there!” Kaori started arguing with Meld, who was trying to get everyone to retreat.
“This is all a part of the kid’s plan! We’re going to break through the soldiers and set up a defensive line so the mages can bombard it with spells! Of course, that comes after he’s out of our line of fire! Then he’s going to run back to us while we keep the Behemoth busy with a barrage of spells and we’re all retreating together!”
“Then I’ll stay behind with him!”
“No, you can’t! Once we’ve made it to safety, you have to heal Kouki, Kaori!”
“But—” Kaori’s angry protests were cut short by Meld’s next words.
“What you’re doing is nothing more than spitting on his resolve!”
“Ah—”
After Captain Meld, the strongest member of their party was without a doubt Kouki. They would need every bit of firepower they could get to hold the Behemoth at bay with just magic. Kouki’s condition meant the difference between life and death for Hajime, which was why Kaori needed to be healing him the whole time while they retreated. The Behemoth would be free the moment Hajime’s mana ran out and he could no longer transmute.
“O breath of life, grant succor to this injured soul, Heaven’s Blessing!” Kaori began chanting, tears in her eyes. Her artifact, a white staff, glowed faintly, and wrapped Kouki in a gentle light. Heaven’s Blessing was a high level healing spell that restored mana on top of healing wounds.
Captain Meld gripped Kaori’s shoulders and nodded encouragingly to her. Kaori nodded back, then turned around to look at Hajime, who was still desperately transmuting the ground. Then, she began retreating from the bridge, together with Captain Meld and the knights, who were carrying Ryutarou, Shizuku, and Kouki.
The Traum Soldiers were still increasing in number. There were more than two hundred of them crowding the landing by that point. There were so many that a chunk of them had spilled over onto the bridge itself.
However, that was actually a blessing in disguise. Had they spread themselves out properly, they would have easily been able to surround and then subsequently slaughter the students who charged through the ranks. After all, a good number of the students had done just that when the initial hundred had appeared.
The only reason no one had died yet was because of the knights. It was only because of their excellent skills that were able to cover for the students’ inexperience. However, because of how much it had taxed them to keep all the students safe, they were all covered in wounds.
And so, with the knights’ support flagging and the army of monsters only increasing, the students were slowly falling into a panic once more. They forgot all about using magic and swung their weapons blindly. In a few more minutes they would’ve surely been annihilated.
The students had realized the gravity of their own situation as well, and despair painted their faces. The girl Hajime had saved continued trying to coordinate her small knot of students, but they too were reaching their limits, and there were tears in her eyes.
Everyone was on the verge of giving up, when suddenly—
“Celestial Flash!” A blade of pure light tore through the center of the Traum Soldiers, obliterating the enemies in its path.
The ones that weren’t instantly destroyed were blown away by the force of the spell, and tumbled to their deaths in the depths below. A new wave of Traum Soldiers rose to take their place, but for an instant the students caught a glimpse of the stairs that led to their salvation. The hope that they had been unable to see even for a second no matter how hard they had fought.
“Everyone! Don’t give up! I’ll carve open a path for us!” Kouki accompanied his shouts with a second Celestial Flash, mowing down yet another group of Traum Soldiers. His overwhelming charisma bolstered the students’ flagging morale.
“You morons! Did all your training just fly out the window!? What the hell has gotten into you! Get back in formation this instant!”
The ever reliable Captain Meld unleashed an attack that w
as arguably even more powerful than Kouki’s Celestial Flash, annihilating another line of Traum Soldiers. The students’ depression was blown away as their pillar of support returned to assist them.
The haze of panic was lifted from their eyes, and strength returned to their limbs. Though, part of that was due to Kaori’s magic. She had cast a mental focus spell. Normally it would do no more than help someone relax a little, but its effect multiplied exponentially when combined with Kouki’s morale-boosting speech.
The healers began healing the injured, while the mages fell back and started chanting their most powerful spells. The vanguard got into a proper line, and focused on defending the backline.
Once healed, the knights returned to the fray as well, and the counterattack began in earnest. Everyone’s overpowered skills and weapons hit the soldiers in waves, drowning them in a sea of attacks. They began destroying the soldiers faster than the magic circles could pour new ones out.
Finally, a path to the stairs was secured.
“Forward, men! We need to secure the landing!” Kouki ran forward, leading the way.
Ryutarou and Shizuku, who had both recovered somewhat, followed close behind him. Together, they cut through their enemies like a hot knife through butter.
In moments, everyone had escaped the encirclement. The soldiers attempted to make a meat wall, or rather bone wall, and close off the path to the bridge again, but Kouki unleashed another spell to blow a hole open in their lines.
His classmates all stared at him in confusion. That was only natural. After all, the stairs were in front of them, not behind. All of them were only thinking of escape at this point.
“Everyone, wait! We still have to save Nagumo-kun! Nagumo-kun’s still out there stopping that monster all by himself!” Her classmates all then stared at Kaori in confusion. That too, was only natural. After all, Hajime was the class’s supposed “incompetent.”
However, when they looked past the thinned crowd of Traum Soldiers toward the bridge, they saw none other than Hajime.
Arifureta: From Commonplace to World's Strongest Vol. 1 (Premium) Page 8