Book 19 Chapter 12
A Fragment of an Old Aristocrat,
Dirbeta Front (1)
“Nock arrow, shoot!”
In Uruk’s battles, there is no room for tactics.
What Uruk worships is power, only overwhelming power. It is their tradition to subdue opponents with power devoid of any pretense.
It is said that an Uruk warrior who could not tear apart a line of human spearmen alone was criticized as a hopeless novice in clan society.
“A, a sandstorm!”
“Arrows are useless!”
“Hold, hold them back! This fortress must be defended at all costs!”
Humanity could gain an advantage against Uruk only through long-range archery battles from fixed positions.
But in that era!
The problem was that it was before mages and witches were largely trained through Sage Rain Ludwig's book 『On Attributes』 and Friede, Priestess of the Fire Dragon's personally compiled 『Anyone Can Do It, An Introduction to Sorcery』.
“Kursu bash, harvest the souls of all two-legged moving things!”
Even cold weapons like crossbows could barely pierce the armor and skin of the Uruk! It was truly impossible to stop the Uruk army protected by the sandstorm!
“Anyone who violates or eats the prey before the harvest is complete will be killed by me, Bilkbhine!”
* * *
“Hey, don’t try to just ignorantly jump over it. You’re not an idiot. I hate people who just guess the answers to math problems the most in the world.”
Rin was left behind in the fortress city <Ellsbarh>. The reason was that she couldn't accompany the party until Tureyna earned her keep.
This was a 20-day showdown!
It was a decisive contest waged by Friede and herself, betting on their insights. She absolutely could not lose.
“First, let’s understand magic power. What is magic power?”
“Don’t know.”
“Kkyu, kkyu, kkyukkyu!”
Sval began flapping its wings and having a fit in front of Tureyna.
“Hmph… Forgive me, Sval.”
Tureyna does that when she imitates Rin’s way of speaking, as if saying, “How dare she imitate my master’s tone, shall I kill her, Master?”
“Kkyuuuuut!”
Just as she was about to start explaining magic power, for some reason, or perhaps it was natural, the Dean’s lesson on the second day at the Magic Tower flashed through her mind.
- “Magic power is life energy. It’s a power that everyone generates within their body under the name of 'ki'. The profession changes depending on how one handles magic power.”
Manaheart, which concentrates magic power around the heart to exert pinpoint accuracy, is mainly used by ronin and archers.
Manachain, which forges and manifests magic power within the body like chains, is the main force for those who use weapons.
And Manacircle, which weaves magic power into rings to use independent power, that is the magic power of mages.
“The organ that generates mana is the Jukyeol located near this shoulder blade, and unlike other professions, mages draw magic power directly from this Jukyeol and use it immediately.”
Rin pressed a finger on the back of Tureyna’s shoulder blade, sending a faint electric current, just as the Dean had done.
“Feel the tingle, right? You clearly know where the magic power organ is now, don’t you?”
“!”
“Since magic power is life energy itself, it becomes the source of killing intent, morale, fighting spirit, and so on. If discharged more powerfully, it’s even possible to suppress an opponent’s breath or inflict physical damage.”
What Friede unleashed also looked like flames, but in reality, it was not fire but a collection of such powers.
Of course, witches don’t use magic power, but rather the natural forces wandering in the atmosphere. It’s also called Holy Spirit or Dharma Power.
It is said that Friede's Dharma Power manifests miraculously, taking on the form of flames like a red dragon. However, even if the source of power is different, the principle is the same.
“There’s only one way to protect yourself from such power: by enveloping your body with the same power. Like this.”
Against such ki, one doesn't necessarily need to use magic. If you discharge magic power itself and wrap it around your arm, it becomes a sure breakwater.
“See, I put my hand inside this, and it doesn't burn at all, does it?”
“!”
“For this to be possible, you must first clearly grasp how to wield magic power. Try casting any 1-star spell you can mentally calculate. Yes, and keep that magic circle maintained. The goal is 3 hours.”
A single layer magic circle began to rotate on Tureyna's palm.
Soon, beads of cold sweat began to form on her forehead.
- “Though it is said that the wielding of magic power is determined by innate talent, I don’t fully agree with that statement.”
Right now, to completely make the flow of magic power her own, such extreme measures are necessary, but once she becomes a little proficient, magic power meditation in a cross-legged position will be enough.
- “The amount of magic power is indeed innate talent. But its wielding, that is, the texture of magic power… depends on how much effort you put in.”
Ever since Rin learned how to wield magic power from the Dean, she had started every morning in a cross-legged position. She had been refining the texture of her magic power through 3 hours of meditation.
“You’re holding up quite well. You can definitely feel the heat from your Jukyeol and palm, right? Now, try putting your hand inside, with the feeling of concentrating that heat into your hand.”
Watching Tureyna close her eyes and take a long breath, Rin thought.
‘You can do it, if it’s you.’
And she felt that the Dean must have held the exact same expectations for her back then. That made her feel awkwardly happy for some reason.
“!”
The next moment, Tureyna, opening her eyes, plunged her right hand without a shred of hesitation into the flames where the magic circle was rotating.
Like that, 1 second, 2 seconds, 3 seconds…!
The hand she pulled out again was perfectly fine!
The magic barrier wrapped around Tureyna’s entire hand crackled and trembled, showing signs that it had withstood Friede’s heat.
“Yes, that’s it!”
This kid, she’s amazing. Was being understood this joyful?
In the Magic Tower, no one, not even Arch-Senior Disciple Pomas… had ever understood and executed her words at once.
Not knowing how to express such joy, she instead gave her a punch on the top of her head.
“Hey, just one hit.”
“?”
“No, that won’t do, two hits.”
The act of patting someone’s head was a weak action that the [Strongest Mage] should not do. In fact, having been on the receiving end every time, it didn’t feel very good. The Dean's pats were the only exception.
“Ah, good, three hits.”
Three hits seemed necessary to fully release this fresh emotion, so she added one more.
“?????????”
* * *
“When fighting the Uruk army, it should be normal to have many human hybrids, but so far, not a single human hybrid has been confirmed.”
When they rushed to where the request for reinforcements came from, the fortress had already fallen, and the only traces of victims were flesh and drops of blood.
“Their method is to continuously increase their army with hybrids until they have a military force capable of overwhelming the enemy, then launch an all-out offensive… this is truly strange.”
Nils Blantz nodded, agreeing with Friede’s words.
“To sacrifice all human souls, even suppressing their naturally born lust… they must be under the command of an incredible individual.”
Rista, who had been offering tearful prayers for the souls of those who had died without even being able to let out a proper scream, opened her mouth.
“Friede, you know the war history of the Mythological Era inside out, right?”
“Who do you think I am?”
“Could there be an old aristocrat who was subjugated in this vicinity during a war in the Mythological Era?”
Friede had a habit of holding a pipe in her mouth for a long time when recalling memories precisely.
Memories retrieved this way could be recited down to the second for time, and like a dictionary without a single typo for information.
To become a priestess, one must completely memorize the Dragon Sutras and Psalms, and Friede’s memorization ability surpassed all priestesses in history, so this was a natural result.
“There’s no need to mention Pleasure City <Langbard>. It’s where the Eldia Heroes entered the Duke of Gluttony’s body and subjugated him…”
The Duke of Gluttony, known as a ‘living volcanic zone,’ fell to a special attack where two heroes, Eldia Alma (01) and Eldia Bete (02), infiltrated his body.
“And this place, which can be called the midway point between <Langbard> and <Shuriganakyus>… could it be where the Count of Debauchery fell?”
The Count of Debauchery was ranked 3rd among the Four Generals of Annihilation directly under the Lizard Lord.
He was infamous as a being who bewitched souls and harvested them into sands of annihilation, and the form of weapon he used was two scythes.
He was sealed by the Blood-Red Sun Shurigan in the Mythological Era.
“Since this large-scale soul harvest and the Count of Debauchery’s abilities are consistent… couldn't it also explain the situation where sandstorms rage more furiously here than in other areas?”
Friede summoned her broom and began drawing a map on the sand. It was perfectly accurate, from geographical locations to coordinates.
“If the information in the texts is accurate, the place where the Count of Debauchery was subjugated is a fortnight’s journey southwest from here. <Yukahara>. It was a place where the lingering thoughts of an old aristocrat were too strong, so a sanctuary was built to suppress that power.”
Kies drew three long parabolas with his boot between the current coordinates and <Yukahara>.
This symbolized the encirclement originating from Uruk’s overwhelming military strength.
Nils Blantz nodded.
“I understand why the encirclement is so thick. But even when General Belom of the Bloodtip Army merely possessed the power of an old aristocrat, we had to go through all sorts of hardships. It will be too late once the old aristocrat fully awakens. We must suppress him in the initial battle. We’ll need powerful firepower.”
“You mean Rin is needed?”
“If we’re going to undertake a solo breakthrough deep into Uruk’s enemy lines, isn’t that obvious? How incredible is Uruk’s reproductive power? I said we need more than just that.”
“More than that?”
“For that, Link and I will depart for a while. Last time, the command authority of the Ain Army came to me, and a report came that that unit landed on the west coast. Um haha, let’s meet again soon. Then I’ll show you what the Ain Army’s all-out offensive barrage is.”
As Nils and Rista exchanged smiles, Friede winked at Pipi, who was sitting on her shoulder.
“Pipi, go tell Rin. Leave that kid with the witches of <Ellsbarh> for now, and come rushing over to us immediately.”
While Pipi flew off, Rista, who had been lost in thought with her arms crossed, opened her mouth.
“But even if Rin comes, wouldn’t it be too dangerous an operation with just the four of us…?”
“Why are you suddenly like this?”
“This is a breakthrough operation. We’ll be threatened by enemy exposure from all sides. But I’m the only one covering the vanguard, and I only have one body… it’s impossible to cover all directions.”
And isn’t the enemy’s number impossible to even estimate?
Furthermore, the problem of exhausting food or stamina before reaching the destination would also have to be considered.
Amidst Rista’s anguish, there was a youthful, resonant voice.
“It seems you need help! Chosen Samiggle, Rista Alter Shirping!”
An incomparably tender and clear voice!
A being appears on the northern horizon with a triumphant expression!
There were two peculiarities: exceptionally long ears among fairies, and an extremely cute expression!
“Samiggle means an unchosen being! ‘Chosen Samiggle,’ what a pun! Oh, it’s so funny I think my belly button might pop off, Your Grace! Sahahahaha!”
At the paladin’s shout from behind, the young Shasa’s nose became even more upturned.
“If you beg ‘Please help us, Your Grace!’ to this wandering Lord Shasa Simian, there’s nothing I can’t help you with!”
“Please help us, Your Grace!”
“Hmph! You can’t do it? The weight of a mission carried by a fake hero is fake anyway, so there’s nothing to be surprised about… What did you say?”
By the time Simian retorted, Rista’s hand was already wildly messing up Simian’s hair.
Simian was simply too cute! Especially using an arrogant tone with that young face was utterly adorable!
There was a hand that rescued Shasa from Rista’s grasp! The Master! It was the being protecting Shasa, the Paladin!
“Faycarier, you wretch! How dare you do such an irreverent thing to our Lord Shasa!”
Shasa, the theocratic leader of the fairies, is famous for always being accompanied by an exclusive paladin for her safety.
The Paladin, master of the Holy Spear, is the strongest of the fairy soldiers!
They were in an implicit rivalry with Faycarier, but their history was even longer than Faycarier's, tracing its origins back to the Mythological Era.
“What can I do if Your Grace is cute! Or are you saying Your Grace isn’t cute?”
“Th-that’s right! I am cute!”
“You a-are cute, but! That kind of behavior is not permissible!”
“Why isn't it permissible? She's cute?”
“No, I mean!”
Watching Shasa and the Paladin being forcibly overwhelmed, Friede puffed out a cloud of cigarette smoke with an incredulous smile.
“Rista’s stubbornness, once you’re subjected to it, you can’t get your mind straight. She doesn’t know she’s a lunatic. She thinks her way of thinking is normal. Stiff-necked ear-folk like fairies wouldn’t have immunity to such actions.”
Rivyn repeatedly protected Simian from Rista’s grasp, then drew the Holy Spear strapped to his back and pointed behind him!
“The subordinates are watching! Can’t you stop it!”
Even Rista, seeing the direction pointed by that spear-thrust, was momentarily overwhelmed by its majesty.
Shasa Corps!
The Shasa Corps, the fairy's elite unit summoned by Shasa in emergencies, were the successors of the Holtlanx Phalanx used by the army of <The Comers> in the Mythological Era.
“Holtlanx, it’s the language of <The Comers> meaning hedgehog.”
As Kies made a curious expression, Friede explained.
“A unit that uses enormous greatshields and long spears that remain long even when three people wield them together. To be a member of that formation, one must be able to use such equipment, so the individual skill is undeniable.”
The slaughter of a demon army more than 10 times their size by 300 fairy soldiers in a Holtlanx formation was too often reported in eyewitness accounts even to the present day to dismiss it as mere exaggeration peculiar to proud fairies.
“If we can get help from that unit, breaking through <Yukahara> would truly be a piece of cake, wouldn’t it?”