Chapter 79

#079

"What's starting? And what's that unpleasant magic?"

Tesaya, who had been warming herself by the bonfire, asked.

Ian took off his cloak and put it in the subspace, then began to tighten the loose straps of his armor.

"Tes. You stay here and guard the carriage. Don't lose a single horse."

He added calmly, stretching his neck and shoulders.

"At least give me an explanation... ...!"

Tesaya's head, which had been muttering, suddenly turned towards the entrance of the village they had entered. Her eyes, which had paused for a moment, slowly moved to the side, eventually turning to the other entrance.

"We're... surrounded?"

"Don't forget your role."

Ian, who had spoken, headed towards the open space.

Charlotte, who had been catching her breath with her twin swords hanging down, turned to look at him. Her orange eyes were filled with anticipation for the battle about to begin.

"There are many. And... something is different from before."

"Yeah. There's a commander."

Ian's gaze suddenly turned to the entrance they had entered.

"I'll take care of that guy. But during that time, I might not be able to pay attention to other things."

"I'll handle the rest."

"It won't be easy alone."

"That's why it's meaningful, Ian."

Ian stared at Charlotte. Reading the various emotions in her eyes, he finally said,

"Don't think about dying here."

"I'll try."

Charlotte shrugged.

"You're both crazy..."

Tesaya, who had muttered indifferently and stood up, approached the carriage. The two war horses were already sensing something and were breathing uneasily.

She approached them, looking into their frightened eyes and muttered,

"It's okay... just rest. I won't eat you."

Her red eyes rippled like concentric circles spreading from the center. The horses' eyes, which had been shining brightly, began to dull.

Their breathing calmed, and both of them sat on the ground without moving, as if in a hypnotic state, half-asleep.

While Tesaya was smiling, Ian and Charlotte leaped to the roofs of different buildings.

Tesaya, who had also thrown off her cloak, leaped. Catching a rat that had been hiding in a corner, she climbed up the wall and soared to the roof.

Holding the struggling rat, the desolate scene of the abandoned village unfolded before her.

Beyond the jagged wooden fence,

"..."

Tesaya, who had seen the things that had stopped and surrounded the village, frowned.

They were human and dwarf undead, armed with old equipment, standing motionless like inanimate objects. Dozens of them surrounded the area.

The calm, blue eyes glowing through the falling snowflakes were eerie even to a vampire.

"Hiss..."

As Tesaya scanned the undead, she suddenly drew a breath.

Her eyes met something that stood out in the middle of the undead.

A giant with pitch-black skin, twice the size of the surrounding undead, stood there. Wearing only a ragged loincloth, he held a massive double-bladed axe in his hand. His head, unlike the rest of his body, was mummified, revealing the shape of his skull.

The empty eye sockets glowed with a blue light that flickered irregularly, unlike the others, as if it held emotions.

A giant warrior resurrected with the madness of a black wall.

"Amazing..."

As Tesaya stared blankly at the giant, Charlotte's voice reached her ears. A smile was on Charlotte's face as she looked at the giant warrior.

"It's not my place to say, but there's no one crazier than you..."

Tesaya's voice trailed off as a question flashed through her mind.

If that's Charlotte's opponent...

'What is Ian fighting...?'

Whoosh—

Just then, a gust of wind mixed with snowflakes made Tesaya's body stiffen. She was momentarily overwhelmed by the sticky, polluted magic within it, filled with obsession and madness.

The rat in her hand went limp with a crack, and Tesaya's gaze, instinctively lowering her stance, turned towards the direction the wind had come from.

The first thing she saw was Ian's back on the opposite roof.

"Why is he..."

His head was tilted slightly downward.

Tesaya's gaze followed the same direction.

"!"

Her eyes widened.

In the middle of the road leading into the village stood a massive figure in old, hole-ridden armor. The darkness inside the armor was not an illusion; it was a pitch-black silhouette that seemed to absorb all light, revealing the true form of the creature.

A powerful wraith, strong enough to take on a complete form.

Through the black mass, the features of the creature flickered like a mirage.

The emotions that had swept over Tesaya were emanating from the creature. Under the helmet that covered even the nose, deep blue eyes flashed.

A precarious silence.

As the snow continued to fall, gradually whitening the surroundings, as if indifferent to the situation,

"■■... ■■■■……!"

A low, cave-like voice, filled with magical waves, spread out.

An unpleasant sensation that seemed to vibrate the entire body.

Tesaya's brow slowly furrowed as she glared at the wraith giant.

'What is he saying...?'

At that moment, a low breathing sound came from Ian.

It was a unique sound he made when mocking something.

Can you understand that?

Thinking this, Tesaya looked at Ian's back.

A predatory aura, like a beast stalking its prey, emanated from his back.

"■■■- ■■■■……!"

The wraith giant's cry continued.

"Ah, is that so?"

Ian, who had been muttering, drew his sword.

The blue eyes of the wraith giant began to flicker immediately after.

Gaaahh- Gaaahh—

A chorus of eerie cries echoed from all around.

The undead, who had been standing motionless, began to howl, their jaws clattering.

Their eyes flickered and burned as if in a frenzy.

The giant warrior was also roaring, a sound filled with anger, unlike the others.

Whoosh—

Wind spread over Ian's body. The snowflakes that had been falling were drawn to him, swirling around him before rising and scattering into the sky.

The wraith giant, at that moment, drew a massive greatsword from its back.

It was large enough to split a building with a single strike.

"■■■ ■■■-!"

As the creature roared, a bluish magic spread over its body.

"Too much talking. I don't want to hear it."

Ian, who had muttered, leaped towards the creature in a seemingly reckless charge. However, Tesaya couldn't see him collide with the wraith giant.

The undead that had surrounded them began to surge forward as if the wraith giant's cry was a signal.

"Why... is it already dangerous...!"

Tesaya, who had spoken, bit the rat in her hand.

Her eyes glowed, and a luster began to flow through her silver hair.

"Guard the carriage properly, you fool."

Charlotte, holding her twin swords, turned to her and said,

"I'll bring back the giant's head."

"What...? If you go too—"

By the time Tesaya turned her head, Charlotte was already running across the roof, getting farther away.

"...Like a mad beast."

Tesaya's gaze turned to the approaching undead.

She was only now realizing the journey Ian had been on, having only observed from a distance or seen the aftermath of his destruction.

"Following Ian... is actually more dangerous, isn't it?"

It was a realization that came too late.

Crack, crack—

Her fingernails began to grow like blades at the tips of her fingers.

***

Crack!

An undead caught on the tip of the extended sword shattered. Charlotte, who had rolled on the ground upon landing, immediately leaped up and continued her charge.

The undead, their eyes glowing, ran through the increasingly heavy snow.

Charlotte's lips curled, revealing her sharp fangs.

Crack!

She dodged a battle-axe thrown by a dwarf undead by spinning her body to the side and then kicked the skull of the approaching undead with her knee.

Bone fragments flew up with the helmet, and the blue eyes exploded. Charlotte, who had passed through the creature, adjusted her grip on her sword.

Gaaahh- Aaaahh—

Two undead warriors, roaring, charged at her.

Charlotte twisted her body in mid-air.

Crack! Bang!

The curved lines formed from her arms to the tips of her swords pierced through the creatures.

The rusty swords swung by the undead only grazed her shoulder.

"!"

Charlotte, who had been retracting her extended arm, suddenly rolled on the ground.

Sssss- Bang!

A double-bladed axe, aimed to split her head, buried itself deep into the ground.

Dust flew up. The axe was as large as a small human.

Charlotte, who had straightened her posture, looked up.

The emaciated head of the giant warrior was there.

Even as he had swung the axe, he was looking down at her.

Suddenly, Charlotte, who had crouched, sprang up like a spring.

The trajectory of the twin swords, spiraling upwards, intersected and fell on the arm holding the axe.

Crack!

Charlotte's strength was not enough to sever the giant's sword arm. It felt like striking frozen ground. Black, tar-like fluid spread from the arm where the twin swords were embedded.

At that moment, the giant warrior, releasing his other hand from the axe handle, swung a fist at her.

Sssss!

The sound of the fist breaking the air was ominous.

Despite his massive size, he was not slow. Charlotte, who had been holding the axe handle, straightened her arm and leaped up, letting go of the handle.

Whoosh!

The fist narrowly missed her, passing below her. Charlotte, who had spun in the air, landed precisely where she had jumped from.

Gripping the axe handle, she pulled out the blade with all her might and leaped onto the crossed arms of the giant, who had swung his fist.

The face of the giant, whose skin was barely clinging to his bones, came closer.

The blue eyes, burning with rage.

"A- Aaaahh-!"

The creature roared, opening its mouth wide.

The shockwave that erupted simultaneously swept over Charlotte. She was thrown back, losing one of her swords, and spun in the air before landing.

The giant warrior pulled out the axe buried in the ground. The black fluid that had been flowing from his arm had already coagulated, looking like his original skin.

Sssss!

The axe, swung again by the giant, fell towards Charlotte as if to split her in two.

Charlotte, who had been watching the axe blade, suddenly dodged to the side.

Crack!

The axe buried itself deep into the ground.

Amidst the rising dust, Charlotte's eyes, glowing orange, rushed towards the axe handle.

Her sword, gripped with both hands, struck the giant's wrist.

Crack

The sword blade cut through the giant's wrist halfway. Charlotte's arm swelled as if muscles were bulging.

Crack!

Finally, the giant's wrist was severed.

The black fluid that spurted from the cut hit Charlotte's head.

"O- Oooohh...!"

The giant, holding up his severed hand, howled.

"Hah... Haha...!"

Joy spread across Charlotte's face as she looked up at the creature.

As she shook the blood off her sword and lowered her stance,

Sssss!

A shockwave that erupted from far away resonated through her body.

Charlotte instinctively turned around.

The first thing she saw was the wraith giant, who had struck with his greatsword, and the massive explosion around it.

The sword, spinning and flying, was briefly visible.

There was no need to guess who the owner of that sword was.

"Ian...?"

Her sigh did not last long.

The giant warrior, who had already stood up, was about to strike her with his axe.

Without even realizing that she had been worried about Ian, Charlotte leaped towards the giant again.

***

Bang!

Ian, who had been thrown like a cannonball and rolled on the ground, frowned.

Despite being protected by a swirling barrier and wind blades, the impact would have shattered the bones of an ordinary person.

If he hadn't let go of his sword, his wrist would have broken long ago.

Of course, the real reason Ian frowned was different.

'Starting at the final phase is really pushing it.'

This wraith giant, the 'Guardian of the Gateway,' was a named monster he had fought in the game.

The first phase of the creature was purely physical attacks.

He had only gone outside the village to prevent the greatsword from turning the place into a mess.

Ian had planned to break the creature's armor piece by piece, as he had done in the game, to lead the battle as safely as possible.

Until the creature started using the skills it only used in the final phase.

Of course, he had prepared for some variables.

After all, this creature wasn't supposed to appear here.

"Usurper-!"

It had spouted words he had never heard in the game. More importantly, a quest had appeared as soon as the battle started.

However, he hadn't expected it to jump straight to the final phase from the start.

Until now, the variables had been limited to new attack patterns or a faster progression through the phases.

Whoosh! Boom!

His rolling body stopped against a tree trunk.

Despite the metallic taste of blood rising in his mouth, Ian first checked the sensation in his limbs.

Fortunately, they all moved.

'That was quite a throw.'

His gaze turned to the back of the Guardian of the Gateway, who was lifting the greatsword he had struck down.

"■■ Speak- or prove-!"

The creature roared, turning to look at Ian.

The blue eyes, burning like flames.

Alright, I'll show you. You bastard.

Ian, spitting out the blood in his mouth, stood up and drew the commander's baton from the subspace.