Chapter 3
Tutorial (2)
It was a relief that my stamina was relatively high. Several minutes had passed since we ran through the dense forest. I only slowed down after hearing an artificial roar.
The clash between the guardian and the Imperial Knight Order had begun. I leaned against a large tree and caught my breath. I could feel Bereninche’s pathetic-looking gaze.
“So what’s the plan? That place looks pretty intense in its own way.”
Bereninche seed to have worked herself up without realizing it. I slowly moved my feet.
“Do you know what that thing actually is?”
“The Forest Guardian, right?”
I rembered my first ti playing the ga. How thrilled I had been when I saw that overwhelming presence. At my half-expecting question, I got exactly the answer I anticipated.
“It’s the Forest Guardian. But where’s there a forest on this island? Museion Island is an island made by cutting down forests.”
“That’s right.”
“The Forest Guardian is the island itself. That thing is a kind of terminal. An avatar ant to protect the forest efficiently.”
Massive tremors rang out one after another. In the middle of that, we calmly held a conversation. Bereninche grasped my intention imdiately, showing the traits of a cheat character blessed with intellect as well as brute force.
“So we just have to cut the connection.”
“Right. Then it’ll weaken.”
“You know how to cut the connection too, don’t you?”
“Of course.”
Our peaceful walk didn’t last long. A strange place ca into view. A clearing where neatly trimd grass grew amid dense, irregular vegetation. At its exact center, a wooden grave marker caught my eye.
“That it?”
“Yeah. That…….”
Bang.
Before I could even finish speaking, Bereninche’s water spear (水槍) fired. The ground caved in as if a bomb had exploded. When the dust settled, there was nothing there.
“That’s it?”
I couldn’t open my mouth at her casually asked question. She was far more terrifying than I had expected. Feeling a faint vibration, Bereninche drew out another water spear.
“A gatekeeper. Sothing like that.”
What pushed its way up through the ground was a humanoid figure made of wood. A wooden sword and wooden shield, followed by a combat stance. Bereninche boldly stepped forward.
Muscles bulged from the arm she pulled back. Just before they burst, a stream of water surged forth. The fired water spear caused a powerful explosion, but it had little effect. The wooden giant endured firmly.
“I’ll cut the connection. Do sothing about that guy.”
Without even replying, Bereninche launched a third water spear. The wooden monster slightly twisted its shield, altering the trajectory of the spear.
After blocking countless water spears, the wooden monster charged at Bereninche. The mont Bereninche completely drew its aggro, I dashed off.
“It won’t take long!”
I arrived at the spot where the wooden monster had appeared and imdiately started digging into the ground. Just in case, I used a mountain folding shovel.
During the fight, Bereninche watched and let out a hollow laugh. I dug into the ground as hard as I could. No matter how highly I evaluated Bereninche, she wouldn’t be able to win easily.
It had a counter attribute and infinite regeneration on top of that. Bereninche didn’t look tired, but she was clearly irritated that her attacks weren’t landing effectively.
“Fucking deep.”
Only after digging until the hole reached up to my chest did my shovel hit sothing. I pulled a dagger from my chest pocket. I drove the second dagger, layered with engravings, into the wooden box.
I hastily jumped back, and between the pits I had dug, intense lightning flared up. The engraving that burned life force would have certainly burned the wooden box and the essence that must have been inside it.
“It’s over!”
The mont my words ended, Bereninche’s stance, which had been focused on defense, changed. The long, rotating stream of water now clearly began to stack damage.
It shaved away the shield, pierced through the chest, and finally blew the head off. The body left behind lost its vitality and withered away.
“So the connection’s over now?”
“No, we have to do it two more tis.”
“…….”
Bereninche’s gaze turned sharp. I avoided her eyes as much as possible. There was no way I could give up such a sweet bus ride.
***
Sheila, the vice-commander of the 6th Imperial Knight Order, felt a sense of unease. The knight order responsible for security and safety on Museion Island was the first to stand before the giant figure.
The rampage of the being called the Forest Guardian. Facing the enormous tree serpent, they did their utmost to neutralize it.
“Right flank! Hold the line!”
The guardian, whose very body was the island itself, could not be killed. A letter had already been sent to the academy, so reinforcents would arrive soon. Holding out until then was the knight order’s role.
The seasoned knights firmly established their battle line and were effectively draining the guardian’s strength. Led by the knight commander who was holding back the massive bulk, they endured resolutely.
“We’ll be joining soon.”
The vice-commander’s unit, which had relatively lower defense, was waiting for an opening. The magic unit that had pushed its offensive power to the limit soon finished preparing for battle.
“Focus on the right flank.”
At the vice-commander’s order, magical power surged. The sword in her left hand resonated with a blue glow, and magic unfolded from the staff in her right hand.
Various elental spells, excluding fire magic, slamd into the guardian’s right side. The holes punched through and the wounds inflicted were quickly restored.
“Squad two, join the main force. The rest, move.”
Although the damage recovered quickly, its montum was broken. That alone allowed the right-flank knights, who had been enduring concentrated attacks, to catch their breath.
Taking advantage of the mont of recovery, the knight commander’s assault continued, and the right-flank knights completed their reorganization. The vice-commander moved positions while watching the scene.
“Vice-commander. Sothing feels off.”
The rampage of a guardian was not common, but it wasn’t completely unfamiliar either. The vice-commander, who had served on this island for six years, had also faced the guardian in the past.
At the aide’s words, the vice-commander nodded heavily. Sothing was off. Unlike before, the guardian’s condition was strange.
The speed at which it recovered was visibly slowing in real ti, and its movents were gradually becoming sluggish.
“Stand by. Everyone except those assessing the situation, take a breather.”
The magic unit, having repositioned to a safe area, collapsed onto the ground one by one, save for a few. The vice-commander stood absentmindedly and surveyed the battlefield.
She didn’t know the reason, but the guardian was clearly weakened. At this level, she wondered if it could be brought down. If they could finish it early without overexerting themselves, then of course they should.
“Vice-commander. Here’s so water.”
“It looks like we’re going to subjugate it.”
She spoke casually while taking the water the aide handed her. The aide looked slightly fatigued. Just how much magical power would it take to smash that massive body?
“It’s a guardian though. Is it really okay to subjugate it?”
“So what. The academy side will handle it.”
“I suppose so. We could definitely get so good materials out of it too.”
It wasn’t just ordinary wood. It was high-quality wood brimming with life energy. Since it was a material especially favored by mages, it stirred a bit of greed.
Even so, the one responsible was the knight commander. The vice-commander was waiting for the knight commander’s order. Even weakened, it couldn’t be taken lightly. Just a single swing of that massive body could produce a one-hit kill.
From far away, she could see jade-colored magical power raging violently.
“Battle stations! Subjugation order! From now on, give it everything you’ve got and strike down the guardian!”
She could see the knight commander fully unleashing his magical power. The vice-commander swiftly issued commands and raised her own magic. Clear, brilliant blue magical power surged and shot up into the sky.
Bang! Kwang!
The knight commander’s jade-colored sword energy and the vice-commander’s enormous ice spear pierced it simultaneously. Struck with trendous damage from both front and back, the guardian let out a scream.
Following that, the knight orders that had been focused on defense actively joined the offensive. The magic unit also unleashed the strongest spells they had.
Kieeeeeek!
Startled, the guardian went berserk. Its building-sized body beca even more dynamic as it crushed everything around it.
The magic unit steadily cast spells while slowly rging with the main force. The relentless assault continued. The guardian, struggling desperately, suddenly looked up at the sky.
Its enormous maw opened wide, and the area around its throat bulged outward.
“Main force, maximum shields!”
At the vice-commander’s shout upon noticing the anomaly, the magic unit moved urgently. The guardian roared, and vast energy poured out from its dark maw.
The densely layered shields, along with multiple overlapping barriers in front of them, t the breath attack head-on. The vice-commander grit her teeth and drew up even more magical power.
“It’s especially prickly today!”
It hadn’t even used that skill last ti. Whether reducing firepower or changing direction, they had to do sothing. Cold magical power ford ice spears in midair.
Six ice spears shot forward like arrows and struck the guardian’s face. The sudden impact twisted the direction of the breath attack. The breath swept past the main force that was struggling to defend and poured toward the right flank where the vice-commander was.
She quickly activated her shields and avoided a direct hit, but the aftermath was no joke. Caught in the powerful shock, the vice-commander was flung far away.
If she were smashed into the ground like that, she, a physically weak mage, would have suffered serious injuries for sure. However, there was a figure that caught the vice-commander’s body.
“What is this.”
Bereninche caught the vice-commander falling from the sky. Startled by what he thought was an attack, Davide flinched, then made a baffled expression when he saw a woman held in his sister’s arms.
“I al… almost died.”
Relief at having survived made the vice-commander’s body go limp. Bereninche caught her for the mont, then tossed the perfectly fine vice-commander aside.
“How much longer do we wait?”
“Just a little more.”
The vice-commander looked at the two whispering to each other. Sea-colored hair and sun-tanned skin. Seeing their similar facial features, they seed to be siblings.
“Academy students?”
“Huh?”
“First of all, thank you for saving . However, this is an evacuation area, so you shouldn’t stay here.”
Davide reacted to the unfamiliar voice. The vice-commander was worried about the safety of those who looked like students. Bereninche lightly poked Davide and gestured with her chin, telling him to handle it.
“Teacher?”
“Ah, I’m Sheila, vice-commander of the 6th Imperial Knight Order.”
“Yes, Vice-Commander. Do you happen to have so magical power left?”
“What?”
The vice-commander looked at the male student calmly asking her a question. His eyebrows, raised high on both sides, gave him a fierce impression.
At the sudden question, she nodded without realizing it.
“What attribute do you use?”
“Uh… ice attribute.”
“Oh, a rare attribute. And since you’re a vice-commander, it must be powerful. When I give the signal, just fire off one really strong attack.”
The vice-commander was dumbfounded by the sudden proposal. Davide, misunderstanding her blank stare, pointed at the guardian. Not , that thing.
The vice-commander glanced to the side. The girl was yawning lazily, clearly bored. In this extrely urgent situation, only these two felt completely detached from it.
“Phase two will end soon. You can fire it then.”
“What’s a phase?”
“There’s sothing like that.”
“This is ridiculous. Seriously.”
It didn’t seem like he was too stupid to understand the situation. And she felt like she had seen them sowhere before. Sea-colored hair wasn’t exactly common.
“Ah! Duhein, by any chance?”
Her eyes widened at the information that suddenly ca to mind. Devourer of Waves. The monster with sea-colored hair. Those were all nicknas of the Duhein Family.
The two Duheins’ gazes converged. One glinted with ferocity, while the other was excessively calm.
Then did that tall man happen to be that infamous bastard from the rumors?
“Hey, hey. Get ready. Vice-Commander too.”
The one who broke the silence was Davide. After surveying the battlefield, he hurriedly spoke. Bereninche imdiately summoned a water spear.
Holding the endlessly rotating water spear, she took her stance. The vice-commander also got up reflexively and drew up her magical power.
“Now! Fire!”
When the guardian’s back split open and sothing began to rise out, Davide gave the go-ahead. Bereninche hurled the water spear with all her strength. The water spear, creating countless ripples, embedded itself squarely into the guardian’s back.
The fiercely rotating water spear eventually pierced through the guardian’s body and then sprayed streams of water in all directions. It ravaged the inside with terrifying power.
The ice sphere fired by the vice-commander completely covered one side of the guardian as it writhed in pain. In that freezing cold, the water streams that had infiltrated the guardian’s body froze solid.
“Divine power?”
Was this enough? The vice-commander, who had been staring blankly at the guardian, turned her head at the holy aura she felt beside her.
She saw Davide holding a sacred book that emitted a soft glow. The book flipped on its own, stopped at a page, and from within it burst forth a radiant sword of light.
The sword forged of lightning barely maintained its shape, but the aura it emitted was far from ordinary.
“To think I’d see sothing like this in my lifeti.”
Seeing Davide gripping the Lightning Spike of Anaye, Bereninche swallowed a hollow laugh. It was a power far too beautiful for this piece of human trash to wield.
“Last hit. I’ll take it, thanks.”
Davide hurled the lightning spike straight ahead. A massive bolt of lightning engulfed the half-frozen guardian.
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