Chapter 70

Lambert, having broken free of his restraints, assumed a combat stance. Adamaria glared at him as if he were a monster.

Adamaria had thought she understood.

That the man who had almost single-handedly crushed their main forces was a monstrous being.

But she realized that her understanding was still insufficient.

The man standing before her was something more than a monster.

"It's no use! At the very least, protect Lady Adamaria!"

"We will buy time! Lady Adamaria, you must inform Lord Manji...!"

Two of Adamaria's subordinates stood in front of Lambert, readying their staves.

Adamaria began to flee in the opposite direction from Lambert.

She clearly understood that the success or failure of this attack depended on whether she could kill the armored swordsman before her.

As long as that armored swordsman lived, their forces would be whittled down over time.

She needed to get Manji to act as quickly as possible.

Lambert silently readied his greatsword.

"Don't let him get within range; that's our limit."

A man standing behind the two warned them.

The one who was addressed nodded, still glaring at Lambert.

Before they knew it, Lambert had approached, his greatsword raised diagonally.

A scream erupted from the throats of the two who had been speaking bravely of self-sacrifice.

Their upper bodies flew together as Lambert brought down his greatsword.

Their upper bodies, thrown into the air, fell to the ground, gushing blood from the severed wounds.

The last of Adamaria's subordinates, still holding his staff, trembled as he backed away, pointing the staff at Lambert.

"A... a..."

"What's wrong? Aren't you going to attack?"

The distance between the man and Lambert was still considerable.

It was within the range where a mage could act effectively.

The best opportunity should have been the moment Lambert cut down the previous two.

The man had missed it easily.

But even now, with the mage having the advantage in this range, there was still a chance to win.

At this distance, a normal swordsman would not be able to approach before the mage could cast two spells.

The man tried to calm his racing heart.

Holding his breath, he tried to calm his mind while keeping the staff pointed at Lambert.

"U... u... ugh!"

The man threw away his staff and fled in a direction different from Adamaria's.

(The armored swordsman will definitely target the leader, Lady Adamaria...!)

This was a cowardly thought, thinking he could escape.

But it was not entirely blameworthy. If he fled with Adamaria, they would both be cut down for sure.

The previous two had already proven that standing against him was futile.

"You're pathetic. You only had a choice in how you died."

Lambert, in a way, was arrogant in calling it cowardice.

The man screamed as he realized the armored swordsman was coming towards him.

Lambert wielded the greatsword effortlessly with one arm.

Extending his gauntleted arm, the massive blade pierced the man's back, through his heart, and then severed his bone and right shoulder before pulling out.

Kicking the dead man away, Lambert quickly changed direction and pursued the last remaining Adamaria.

Adamaria fell hard on the ground, where there was nothing.

She realized her knees were convulsing.

Her legs had failed her out of fear.

"Huh, huh... I, who am so proud... huh, huh... I look like a little girl."

Adamaria whispered to herself, self-mocking.

She had already accepted her death. She did not regret falling. Escaping from there was impossible no matter how she struggled.

Lambert approached Adamaria, his greatsword at the ready.

Adamaria, on her knees, pointed her staff at him.

In the next moment, her vision flipped upside down.

Pain shot through her arm as her staff flew away. She realized later that it had been swept away by the sheath.

Then, a crack sounded from her arm. Lambert's knee was pressing down on her arm joint.

Her bones were clearly crushed.

Lambert's greatsword was thrust at Adamaria's nose.

"Manji, I see, is your leader. You want me to tell Lord Manji...? It seems the worms you spoke of are not so easily controlled."

"... Kill me. I'm not weak enough to spill information."

Saying this, Adamaria touched the right side of her face, revealing the grotesque appearance of her skin being peeled off.

"It's from when I was captured by the Kingdom's Heresy Inquisition. But I maintained my innocence... and ultimately, I managed to escape!"

The Kingdom's Heresy Inquisition was a forbidden magic organization established to eradicate magic organizations and magicians who researched and practiced taboo magic.

This organization, which aimed to fight evil with evil, was formed by a gathering of high-ranking magicians within the kingdom.

While the identities of the inquisitors were kept secret, there were rumors that former death row inmates had become inquisitors, that they had conducted research on immortality under the king's orders, and that they had burned an entire territory to the ground based on a false accusation.

Despite their mostly covert activities, they were also enemies of the "Pied Piper Demons."

Once captured, even if it was later proven to be a false accusation, one could never escape alive.

However, Adamaria had received extensive training in withstanding torture within the "Pied Piper Demons."

She had continued to feign being an innocent civilian caught up in the situation, eventually luring the ruthless inquisitors into a false sense of security and escaping from their clutches.

Lambert lifted his helmet.

"Wh... what... a, a..."

The ominous skull head hidden under the majestic helmet was revealed.

The hollow eye sockets glowed with a hateful, red light.

The light stared down at Adamaria from above.

"I've never been good at delicate work, and I'm not skilled at torture. Glyph was better at that sort of thing."

Adamaria was at a loss.

She could not believe that an undead could retain so much will.

But one thing was clear.

By revealing his face, he had no intention of offering a false promise of freedom to extract information. He intended to use simple violence and pain to make her talk.