Ch.223Episode 11 – All Quiet on the Northern Front (End)

“You seem to be doing much better than before.”

Camilla muttered.

“Has it really healed its wounds?”

“That’s impossible to know.”

“Hmm…”

Camilla’s gaze turned toward the spider.

Its appearance was still terrible, but looking closely, one could notice something strange. The carapace that had somehow reattached itself, the exposed flesh that had been oozing fluid now restored to its original form.

The creature that had lost its legs glared at us from behind the numerous holy knights and battle mages. Like it was staring at a mortal enemy.

The moment when blue eyes and red eyeballs crossed paths.

“…Well.”

Flames rose from Camilla’s fingertips as she moved her lips.

“I suppose we’ll find out now.”

And then,

A ferocious roar cut through the gloomy sky.

Episode 11 – All Quiet on the Northern Front

The monstrous jaw opened wide, revealing a green web-like oral structure stretching like cheese.

Fangs filled with venom from its poison glands approached, ready to tear into a neck.

“Kuh…!”

The holy knight quickly lowered his body and rolled across the ground.

His silver armor, imbued with light, was instantly soiled with mud and filth, and his head was drenched in the corpse spider’s bodily fluids, but the holy knight didn’t even blink.

Instead, he swung his sword.

A pure white blade rose from the mud.

The sword, trailing a white light like a tail, carved a smooth trajectory and left a thick mark on the giant spider’s body.

“Fall back!”

A powerful voice shook the surroundings.

The holy knight who was about to slash the monster’s body turned his head sharply.

“Commander!”

“Retreat! Go and stop the corpse spiders!”

Following his superior’s order, the holy knight fell back.

Ferretti, who had saved his subordinate, began facing the monster himself, sword in hand.

Beyond the silver sword strikes that emitted a more brilliant radiance than any holy knight’s, the scene of a fierce battlefield unfolded.

A sea of corpse spiders, writhing like surging waves, was rushing toward them.

The holy knight who had joined the rear line on the commander’s orders swung his sword at the corpse spiders.

-Slash!

The body of a spider that had been attacking from behind a fellow holy knight fell to the ground, precisely split in half.

His comrade nodded in acknowledgment after confirming the spider carcass rolling at his feet.

Ferretti, having visually confirmed his knights diving into the midst of the corpse spider swarm and cutting them down, planted his sword in the ground and spoke in a gruff tone.

“Lord Martinez, was it? I heard you were an adventurer, but it seems you have little aptitude for combat.”

“It’s not something I’d boast about, but I haven’t achieved so little as to deserve such harsh criticism.”

Juan Pablo Martinez spread his arms while moving his lips to prepare a spell.

Magical power flowed from his chest, gathering in the air as complex magical formulas were inscribed.

In an instant, a green barrier appeared before him where there had been nothing.

Beyond the complex arithmetic formulas slowly rotating and the green magical power rippling.

Though visibility was poor due to dust and fog, Martinez sensed something approaching at high speed.

Then,

A massive leg collided with the barrier.

“…Hmm.”

The monster repeatedly swung its leg covered in black carapace.

-Thud!

As if it wanted to crush Ferretti, who had taken its leg, and Martinez, who blocked its path to him, the monster attacked the barrier with its massive leg.

Swinging. Striking. Pressing down.

The barrier, which had been like a calm lake, began to shake. Like a sea caught in a storm, like a pond in heavy rain, ripples appeared throughout the green barrier.

Yet, there was no sign of dismay in Martinez’s expression as he maintained the barrier.

He simply held the barrier silently, enduring the attacks without even counterattacking, as if waiting for something.

-Boom!

Martinez looked up at the explosion from the front. It was distinctly different from the sound of something hitting the barrier.

Slashes rained down from the sky.

Blue magical sword strikes fiercely clawed at the spider’s back. The blue magic that slashed through the massive body left deep scars on the black carapace.

-Kieeeeeeek!

The monster screamed at the unexpected attack from the air.

In its red retinas filled with painful cries, the figure of a person appeared.

The gloomy sky where not even a ray of sunlight penetrated through the overcast clouds.

The air above, filled with a cold blue light, dyed by magic that had surged from the rift.

Under that sky, there was a woman with violet hair fluttering in the wind, holding a sword engraved with strange patterns.

*

One of the common misconceptions about wizards with their long history is that “wizards are disadvantaged in close combat.”

Swordsmanship is advantageous in close combat.

Magic, which requires prior preparation such as incantations and materials, is disadvantageous in close combat.

Therefore, in close combat, a wizard cannot defeat a swordsman.

A complete syllogism.

This kind of misunderstanding generally originated during the period of the Independence War between the Church and the Magic Tower.

It stems from gossip about how the wizards of the Magic Tower were completely decimated when they faced the Inquisitors, battle priests, and holy knights under the Inquisition in the early stages of the war, which has been distorted until today.

It’s half right and half wrong.

To be precise, it’s an error resulting from a result-oriented approach that doesn’t consider the circumstances of the time.

The Inquisition had been conducting heresy trials against wizards for thousands of years. The Inquisition was more proficient in anti-magic warfare than any intelligence agency, and the Church was a state genuinely committed to punishing wizards who dared to dabble in magic and rebel against religious authority.

On the other hand, wizards didn’t know how to deal with clergy until the war broke out.

After all, isn’t it strange that people who had been scattered around the world, living in hiding, would suddenly achieve consecutive victories against the Church, which had existed under the banner of religion for thousands of years? So naturally, they were pushed back in the early stages.

Wizards researched effective ways to deal with clergy in order to survive.

And that’s how battle mages were born.

And contrary to public perception, the battle mages during the full-scale war between the Church and the Magic Tower were not the kind who were pushed back in close combat even against holy knights.

-Shaaaak!

A blue magical slash cut through the air.

The slash grazed the monster’s leg, cutting it, and exploded as it hit the ground. Amid the mud mixed with blood and snow scattering in all directions.

“Hoo-“

Francesca, having gathered her magical power, shook her sword once to readjust her stance.

And then,

-Chwaaaak!

As the blade turned blue, a second slash was fired. This time it seemed to hit properly, as the creature’s screams echoed loudly.

Francesca shook her sword once more, dispersing the remaining traces of magical power.

“It’s my first time using a rune sword in actual combat, and it’s better than I expected.”

An unusual, elegant sword.

The sword in Francesca’s hand was glowing blue. To be precise, the strange characters engraved on the blade were emitting light.

The characters, reminiscent of old-fashioned cursive, turned bluer and bluer as she infused them with magical power.

“Did you make that too?”

“I didn’t make it myself; I took it from my family’s vault, Sir.”

I know about the Ranieri family vault.

A warehouse where all sorts of items touched by the family’s founder and ancestors were stored. I heard it was a place where expensive alchemical gems rolled around like pebbles and all kinds of treasures were piled up.

Of course, that’s ancient history now.

It was confiscated by the state when the previous head of the family, Francesca’s grandfather, was marked as a public security criminal.

Francesca readjusted her grip on the ancestral rune sword and continued.

“It’s something I took secretly, but what can I do? I don’t think my ancestors would have wanted it gathering dust in that musty place.”

“Wait, you stole it?”

While I was looking at Francesca with an exasperated expression, Camilla, who had been fending off the approaching corpse spiders with others, shouted.

She threw a fireball toward a cluster of spiders like a game of catch and turned her head toward us.

“Spiders are coming from all directions!”

The flames that bloomed like a fully opened flower engulfed several corpse spiders at once.

“Are we ready yet?!”

“No.”

Francesca raised the rune sword high into the sky.

“Almost there.”

Swoosh! A new slash cut through the air and moved forward.

Seeming to realize that no matter how impact-resistant its carapace was, it shouldn’t be hit by the blue slashes, the monster actively moved its remaining legs to avoid the slash Francesca had fired.

It crouched its house-sized body well and dodged. Its long legs sifted through the ashes of corpses, abandoned supplies, and concrete fragments as it retreated.

There was one figure pursuing it.

“Where do you think you’re running, you damned monster!”

Ferretti, who had charged forward like a shell, swung his sword while facing the cutting wind.

A white slash, swung as smoothly as rowing a boat, flew through the air.

Ferretti’s sword, distinctly different from Francesca’s rune sword, slashed three of the monster’s legs at once in the blink of an eye.

Although he didn’t completely sever them, it was still an impressive feat. It was something no one else had managed to do.

Francesca, holding the rune sword, unleashed attacks along with Ferretti.

When the creature lowered its body to avoid the blue slashes raining down from the sky, the white slashes approached like a viper targeting its ankles, and when it raised its body to avoid the white slashes, the blue slashes flew like arrows.

And then,

-Clang!

A vial flew unexpectedly through the air.

The solution that exploded in mid-air was sprayed along with glass fragments.

The creature, distracted by avoiding the slashes, was hit by the solution and paid the price for its carelessness as its carapace and skin began to melt.

-Kieeeeeeek!!

The spider, letting out an agonized scream, retreated convulsively.

Like dodging a barrage of bullets, the monster frantically moved its legs, struggling.

“Hahaha!”

Ferretti’s hearty laughter cut through the sharp wind.

“I thought alchemists were just desk-bound scholars, but you’re quite the fighter, my lady! Do you have more of those mysterious vials?”

Francesca, putting her hand into her inner pocket, counted by the sensation at her fingertips.

“…We’re running low. I don’t have enough to throw them around carelessly.”

“What a shame! Then…”

Ferretti grinned.

The holy knight crouched down and dashed forward.

“Keep your eyes wide open for any opening!”

A white slash flew toward the cursed monster. Ferretti swung his sword, and Francesca also infused magical power into her rune sword.

Slashes intertwined chaotically.

The ground shook with the monster’s movements as it dodged the slashes, and occasionally, when the creature was hit and screamed, the charred branches trembled. Ferretti unleashed attacks to create openings, and Francesca didn’t miss those opportunities to throw her vials.

Compared to Ferretti, who had honed his skills for decades, Francesca’s swordsmanship was clearly inferior.

However, the rune sword created by the Ranieri family’s ancestors was certainly no toy used for playing soldier.

-Chwaaaak!

A blue slash was fired.

The slash extending from Francesca’s arm, imbued with blue magical power, cut across the gloomy ash-gray sky.

The slash hit the monster’s lower abdomen.

The creature, which had lifted its body into the air to avoid the holy knight’s low attack, ended up allowing the alchemist’s attack.

-Kiiiit!

The spider didn’t avoid the approaching blue slash.

To be precise, it couldn’t avoid it, but underlying that was the judgment that it wouldn’t sustain serious injuries from that attack.

Between the merciless silver slash that could cut off half its legs and the blue slash that would only leave a few wounds on its carapace, if it had to choose one to be hit by, even the monster’s brain could calculate which one it should take.

However, there was a problem.

The slash that Francesca had just created was much larger and more massive than before.

And by the time the creature realized this, the blue slash had already reached it, cutting through its carapace and tearing into its tender flesh.

-Kyaaaaaaaaaak!!!

An unprecedented, tremendous pain crossed its body.

Compared to the pain of having its legs cut off, this was an immense agony beyond comparison. The giant spider suspended in the air was so overwhelmed by the pain that it couldn’t even think about landing.

Kuung! The ground shook as the spider, as tall as a three-story building, crashed down.

Its back, which had been straight, suddenly hunched, and its two feet, precariously standing on the mud softened by melted snow, someone’s blood, and bodily fluids, sank deeply.

I, who had planted the buttstock of my rifle into the concrete pile covered in ash, forcibly raised my body that was about to collapse precariously.

“Damn!”

Looking up, I saw spiders everywhere.

Corpse spiders converging from all directions formed a sea of bodies. Since they’re bugs, should I call it a sea of insects?

“Camilla, are spiders insects or animals?”

“Why are you asking that now?! Fight quickly!”

Camilla swung her arm like a whip. Red flames flickered as her hand struck the air like slapping the cheek of a Black slave.

The rising flames swept across the front in a curve. The flames surged like a wave, and a beat later, the chorus of corpse spiders erupted.

-Kieeeeeek!

-Kyaaaaat!

-Grrrrrk…!

Magic manifested beside Camilla as she twisted her body to readjust her posture. Above the spiders retreating from the sight of their burning comrades, surging earth crashed down.

This wasn’t a literary expression; the ground really did surge up.

“Anton! Help me!”

“Dig up the ground quickly!”

Mages dispatched from the rift defense unit plowed the earth.

Thud! When a military boot sank into the mud, the ground surged up, and when a raised hand struck down, the ground caved in.

Mages who had majored in elemental studies but were assigned as combat engineers due to their element being deemed less valuable for combat were using their expertise in digging trenches to bury the corpse spider swarm alive.

Next to them, a holy knight from the Church swung his sword at the corpse spiders.

-Slash!

The body of a spider attacking from behind a fellow holy knight fell to the ground, precisely split in half.

His comrade nodded in acknowledgment after confirming the spider carcass rolling at his feet.

Ferretti, having visually confirmed his subordinate knights diving into the midst of the corpse spider swarm and cutting them down, planted his sword in the ground and spoke in a gruff tone.

“Lord Martinez, was it? I heard you were an adventurer, but it seems you have little aptitude for combat.”

“It’s not something I’d boast about, but I haven’t achieved so little as to deserve such harsh criticism.”

Juan Pablo Martinez spread his arms while moving his lips to prepare a spell.

Magical power flowed from his chest, gathering in the air as complex magical formulas were inscribed.

In an instant, a green barrier appeared before him where there had been nothing.

Beyond the complex arithmetic formulas slowly rotating and the green magical power rippling.

Though visibility was poor due to dust and fog, Martinez sensed something approaching at high speed.

Then,

A massive leg collided with the barrier.

“…Hmm.”

The monster repeatedly swung its leg covered in black carapace.

-Thud!

As if it wanted to crush Ferretti, who had taken its leg, and Martinez, who blocked its path to him, the monster attacked the barrier with its massive leg.

Swinging. Striking. Pressing down.

The barrier, which had been like a calm lake, began to shake. Like a sea caught in a storm, like a pond in heavy rain, ripples appeared throughout the green barrier.

Yet, there was no sign of dismay in Martinez’s expression as he maintained the barrier.

He simply held the barrier silently, enduring the attacks without even counterattacking, as if waiting for something.

-Boom!

Martinez looked up at the explosion from the front. It was distinctly different from the sound of something hitting the barrier.

Slashes rained down from the sky.

Blue magical sword strikes fiercely clawed at the spider’s back. The blue magic that slashed through the massive body left deep scars on the black carapace.

-Kieeeeeeek!

The monster screamed at the unexpected attack from the air.

In its red retinas filled with painful cries, the figure of a person appeared.

The gloomy sky where not even a ray of sunlight penetrated through the overcast clouds.

The air above, filled with a cold blue light, dyed by magic that had surged from the rift.

Under that sky, there was a woman with violet hair fluttering in the wind, holding a sword engraved with strange patterns.

*

One of the common misconceptions about wizards with their long history is that “wizards are disadvantaged in close combat.”

Swordsmanship is advantageous in close combat.

Magic, which requires prior preparation such as incantations and materials, is disadvantageous in close combat.

Therefore, in close combat, a wizard cannot defeat a swordsman.

A complete syllogism.

This kind of misunderstanding generally originated during the period of the Independence War between the Church and the Magic Tower.

It stems from gossip about how the wizards of the Magic Tower were completely decimated when they faced the Inquisitors, battle priests, and holy knights under the Inquisition in the early stages of the war, which has been distorted until today.

It’s half right and half wrong.

To be precise, it’s an error resulting from a result-oriented approach that doesn’t consider the circumstances of the time.

The Inquisition had been conducting heresy trials against wizards for thousands of years. The Inquisition was more proficient in anti-magic warfare than any intelligence agency, and the Church was a state genuinely committed to punishing wizards who dared to dabble in magic and rebel against religious authority.

On the other hand, wizards didn’t know how to deal with clergy until the war broke out.

After all, isn’t it strange that people who had been scattered around the world, living in hiding, would suddenly achieve consecutive victories against the Church, which had existed under the banner of religion for thousands of years? So naturally, they were pushed back in the early stages.

Wizards researched effective ways to deal with clergy in order to survive.

And that’s how battle mages were born.

And contrary to public perception, the battle mages during the full-scale war between the Church and the Magic Tower were not the kind who were pushed back in close combat even against holy knights.

-Shaaaak!

A blue magical slash cut through the air.

The slash grazed the monster’s leg, cutting it, and exploded as it hit the ground. Amid the mud mixed with blood and snow scattering in all directions.

“Hoo-“

Francesca, having gathered her magical power, shook her sword once to readjust her stance.

And then,

-Chwaaaak!

As the blade turned blue, a second slash was fired. This time it seemed to hit properly, as the creature’s screams echoed loudly.

Francesca shook her sword once more, dispersing the remaining traces of magical power.

“It’s my first time using a rune sword in actual combat, and it’s better than I expected.”

An unusual, elegant sword.

The sword in Francesca’s hand was glowing blue. To be precise, the strange characters engraved on the blade were emitting light.

The characters, reminiscent of old-fashioned cursive, turned bluer and bluer as she infused them with magical power.

“Did you make that too?”

“I didn’t make it myself; I took it from my family’s vault, Sir.”

I know about the Ranieri family vault.

A warehouse where all sorts of items touched by the family’s founder and ancestors were stored. I heard it was a place where expensive alchemical gems rolled around like pebbles and all kinds of treasures were piled up.

Of course, that’s ancient history now.

It was confiscated by the state when the previous head of the family, Francesca’s grandfather, was marked as a public security criminal.

Francesca readjusted her grip on the ancestral rune sword and continued.

“It’s something I took secretly, but what can I do? I don’t think my ancestors would have wanted it gathering dust in that musty place.”

“Wait, you stole it?”

While I was looking at Francesca with an exasperated expression, Camilla, who had been fending off the approaching corpse spiders with others, shouted.

She threw a fireball toward a cluster of spiders like a game of catch and turned her head toward us.

“Spiders are coming from all directions!”

The flames that bloomed like a fully opened flower engulfed several corpse spiders at once.

“Are we ready yet?!”

“No.”

Francesca raised the rune sword high into the sky.

“Almost there.”

Swoosh! A new slash cut through the air and moved forward.

Seeming to realize that no matter how impact-resistant its carapace was, it shouldn’t be hit by the blue slashes, the monster actively moved its remaining legs to avoid the slash Francesca had fired.

It crouched its house-sized body well and dodged. Its long legs sifted through the ashes of corpses, abandoned supplies, and concrete fragments as it retreated.

There was one figure pursuing it.

“Where do you think you’re running, you damned monster!”

Ferretti, who had charged forward like a shell, swung his sword while facing the cutting wind.

A white slash, swung as smoothly as rowing a boat, flew through the air.

Ferretti’s sword, distinctly different from Francesca’s rune sword, slashed three of the monster’s legs at once in the blink of an eye.

Although he didn’t completely sever them, it was still an impressive feat. It was something no one else had managed to do.

Francesca, holding the rune sword, unleashed attacks along with Ferretti.

When the creature lowered its body to avoid the blue slashes raining down from the sky, the white slashes approached like a viper targeting its ankles, and when it raised its body to avoid the white slashes, the blue slashes flew like arrows.

And then,

-Clang!

A vial flew unexpectedly through the air.

The solution that exploded in mid-air was sprayed along with glass fragments.

The creature, distracted by avoiding the slashes, was hit by the solution and paid the price for its carelessness as its carapace and skin began to melt.

-Kieeeeeeek!!

The spider, letting out an agonized scream, retreated convulsively.

Like dodging a barrage of bullets, the monster frantically moved its legs, struggling.

“Hahaha!”

Ferretti’s hearty laughter cut through the sharp wind.

“I thought alchemists were just desk-bound scholars, but you’re quite the fighter, my lady! Do you have more of those mysterious vials?”

Francesca, putting her hand into her inner pocket, counted by the sensation at her fingertips.

“…We’re running low. I don’t have enough to throw them around carelessly.”

“What a shame! Then…”

Ferretti grinned.

The holy knight crouched down and dashed forward.

“Keep your eyes wide open for any opening!”

A white slash flew toward the cursed monster. Ferretti swung his sword, and Francesca also infused magical power into her rune sword.

Slashes intertwined chaotically.

The ground shook with the monster’s movements as it dodged the slashes, and occasionally, when the creature was hit and screamed, the charred branches trembled. Ferretti unleashed attacks to create openings, and Francesca didn’t miss those opportunities to throw her vials.

Compared to Ferretti, who had honed his skills for decades, Francesca’s swordsmanship was clearly inferior.

However, the rune sword created by the Ranieri family’s ancestors was certainly no toy used for playing soldier.

-Chwaaaak!

A blue slash was fired.

The slash extending from Francesca’s arm, imbued with blue magical power, cut across the gloomy ash-gray sky.

The slash hit the monster’s lower abdomen.

The creature, which had lifted its body into the air to avoid the holy knight’s low attack, ended up allowing the alchemist’s attack.

-Kiiiit!

The spider didn’t avoid the approaching blue slash.

To be precise, it couldn’t avoid it, but underlying that was the judgment that it wouldn’t sustain serious injuries from that attack.

Between the merciless silver slash that could cut off half its legs and the blue slash that would only leave a few wounds on its carapace, if it had to choose one to be hit by, even the monster’s brain could calculate which one it should take.

However, there was a problem.

The slash that Francesca had just created was much larger and more massive than before.

And by the time the creature realized this, the blue slash had already reached it, cutting through its carapace and tearing into its tender flesh.

-Kyaaaaaaaaaak!!!

An unprecedented, tremendous pain crossed its body.

Compared to the pain of having its legs cut off, this was an immense agony beyond comparison. The giant spider suspended in the air was so overwhelmed by the pain that it couldn’t even think about landing.

Kuung! The ground shook as the spider, as tall as a three-story building, crashed down.

Its back, which had been straight, suddenly hunched, and its two feet, precariously standing on the mud softened by melted snow, someone’s blood, and bodily fluids, sank deeply.

I, who had planted the buttstock of my rifle into the concrete pile covered in ash, forcibly raised my body that was about to collapse precariously.

“Damn!”

Looking up, I saw spiders everywhere.

Corpse spiders converging from all directions formed a sea of bodies. Since they’re bugs, should I call it a sea of insects?

“Camilla, are spiders insects or animals?”

“Why are you asking that now?! Fight quickly!”

Camilla swung her arm like a whip. Red flames flickered as her hand struck the air like slapping the cheek of a Black slave.

The rising flames swept across the front in a curve. The flames surged like a wave, and a beat later, the chorus of corpse spiders erupted.

-Kieeeeeek!

-Kyaaaaat!

-Grrrrrk…!

Magic manifested beside Camilla as she twisted her body to readjust her posture. Above the spiders retreating from the sight of their burning comrades, surging earth crashed down.

This wasn’t a literary expression; the ground really did surge up.

“Anton! Help me!”

“Dig up the ground quickly!”

Mages dispatched from the rift defense unit plowed the earth.

Thud! When a military boot sank into the mud, the ground surged up, and when a raised hand struck down, the ground caved in.

Mages who had majored in elemental studies but were assigned as combat engineers due to their element being deemed less valuable for combat were using their expertise in digging trenches to bury the corpse spider swarm alive.

Next to them, a holy knight from the Church swung his sword at the corpse spiders, and beside him, a battle mage from the Magic Tower was frying corpse spiders with electricity.

“Don’t let the spiders reach the Commander!”

“Be careful of magical depletion! Take a potion if you’re not feeling well!”

Shouts erupted from everywhere.

About a dozen people were holding back corpse spiders swarming from all directions with the momentum to overturn a distant mountain range. Meanwhile, the giant monster that had massacred the armored unit was being faced by just three people.

I was wondering how to report this to the higher-ups when I raised my rifle to aim at an approaching spider.

After all, I need to be alive to write a report.

-Bang!

Puk! The corpse spider’s head exploded. The bolt retreated, opening the chamber, and a brass cartridge jumped onto the snow.

Bang! Bang! Bang! I pulled the trigger, planting bullets into the approaching spiders. Occasionally I heard unusual gunshots that weren’t mine, but my attention was focused on the spider swarm in front of me.

“Camilla! Stop using fire and shoot your gun! I gave it to you earlier, did you sell it or something?”

“I gave it to the unit members earlier!”

“You idiot! Why would you leave it there!”

I could hear Camilla shouting apologies.

As much as I wanted to scold her severely right now, unfortunately, I had to postpone smacking Camilla’s head.

-Kyaaaaat!

Sharp fangs glistening with venom were thrust before my eyes.

A corpse spider that suddenly appeared. I reflexively jabbed my gun into its mouth.

-Kieeeeeeek!

The spider that had rushed at me to bite my face now had a gun barrel in its mouth. A baby with a pacifier might be cute, but this damn spider was gnawing on the barrel and clawing at me with its sharp legs.

“You damn!”

I moved my middle finger to switch the control lever to automatic. Then I pulled the trigger, planting plenty of bullets into the monster’s oral cavity.

Ratatatatat! Each time flames flashed in the creature’s dark mouth, its head exploded.

The corpse spider, which had splattered its sticky brain matter on the ground, convulsed with each bullet to its head and died.

After kicking the mouth with my boot to retrieve my gun, I fired indiscriminately at the spiders approaching from all directions. When I ran out of bullets, I drew my pistol to deal with them, and when I had a moment, I quickly changed magazines.

Holy knights and mages, quasi-civilians, soldiers. Everyone was straining to kill the monsters converging on the rift.

It almost felt like every spider attacking the rift was gathering here. But that was just an illusion. It had been well over an hour since we received the radio message that the unit defending the rift was under attack.

With the background of screams accompanying the flashes of white and blue slashes, I killed spiders with all my might.

While repeating this precarious tightrope walk through life-threatening situations.

“Sir!”

I heard Francesca’s voice that I had been waiting for.

I grabbed Camilla, who was spewing fire, and shouted.

“Camilla, now!”

“Got it!”

Between Camilla’s hands that were almost touching. Fierce flames rose within her palms.

The flames grew bigger and bigger.

The air shimmered with heat, and just as everyone, both people and monsters, was distracted by the light.

“Die!”

The swirling, tightly packed flames crossed the northern snow mountain.

Toward the monster that had been slashed by the sword strikes.

As the sun was setting in the west.

Against the backdrop of the gloomy ash-gray sky where twilight was descending.

The falling flames engulfed the monster.

*

In the northern snow mountains of the Kien Empire. Huge flames rose in the basin surrounding the rift.

A fireball that fell like a meteor landed on the monster’s head.

On the queen leading the swarm, or the general commanding the army, not a corpse spider but the one acting as the leader of the corpse spiders, that massive spider.

It was truly a majestic sight.

Humans and monsters alike.

Those swinging swords and those firing magic.

People straining to kill monsters and spiders rushing to kill people.

Everyone stopped their actions at the rising flames.

Even the person who created those flames.

We silently watched the massive shadow slowly collapsing at the center of the rising flames. The corpse spiders, having witnessed their leader trapped in fire and dying, seemed to sense something and suddenly stopped their attacks and retreated.

The corpse spider swarm surrounding us and the humans holding them back. And the massive bonfire blooming on the snow mountain, looking down on everyone.

It was a moment when everyone was frozen by this bizarre, almost strange scene.

-Grrrrrng…!

Stepping on the rising flames, it stood up.

The monster that survived Camilla’s flames woke up again, just as it had endured the bombardment.

Of course, it was far from being in an intact state.

-Grrrrrk…!!

Carapace cut and broken by slashes. Flesh distorted hideously by the melting solution. A body burned crisp like charcoal, with no trace of moisture.

The creature that had crawled back from the threshold of death stood up precariously, looking as if it might collapse at any moment.

“Shit…”

Someone’s curse reached my ears.

-!!!

An indescribable scream shook the area.

The withered dead tree. The ground that had turned into a swamp. The living beings on it. Everything around vibrated.

They say animals sense disasters first. As if to prove this true, the corpse spider swarm that had surrounded us began to flee with urgent steps, showing their backs.

Like a crowd trying to distance themselves from an impending catastrophe.

And that catastrophe soon revealed itself before us.

“…Oh, it’s coming!”

“Block it!”

Sticky liquid spurted from the giant spider’s mouth. An ominous bodily fluid mixed with green and red.

It was the desperate act of a creature about to die. After spewing the fluid, it collapsed, unable to stand properly.

Nevertheless, the fluid it had ejected was still crossing the air, approaching us.

Most people didn’t know what it was, but they instinctively knew they shouldn’t touch it. It was instinct.

“…Tear it!”

Ferretti, who had taken out a thick book like a scripture from his chest, shouted. Rip! Simultaneously with the sound of paper tearing, barriers glowing with white light rose up in various places.

“Lord Martinez!”

With Francesca’s voice that sounded like a scream, magic was deployed half a beat late.

Complex arithmetic formulas were drawn in the air, and a green barrier blocked the front.

Similarly, the Magic Tower’s mages also deployed barriers like Martinez. Some mages jumped in like people avoiding rain, entering their colleagues’ barriers.

The Empire’s mages raised the earth to create shields.

The Church and the Magic Tower each tried their best to block the falling bodily fluid.

The problem was Camilla and me.

Although a mage, Camilla didn’t know many spells properly. And barrier formation magic was one of the arcane arts passed down only within the Guardian School.

So Camilla didn’t know how to create barriers. And I, who couldn’t use magic, needn’t be mentioned.

“…Ah!”

By the time I came to my senses, the sky was already covered with green liquid.

The nearest barrier was nearby, but it wasn’t large enough for two people. And the distance to the next barrier was too far to run.

And in an awkward position separated from others, Camilla and I still hadn’t moved.

“Sir…!”

I heard Francesca’s voice. Her golem was running from a distance.

“……”

I fell into a brief contemplation.

Fortunately, the contemplation wasn’t long.

I forcibly grabbed Camilla, positioned her toward the barrier, and then kicked her, pushing her into the barrier.

The shocked faces of people and Camilla’s wide-open eyes.

The approaching golem and Camilla being pushed away.

Voices piercing my eardrums and the western sky where even the red energy was fading, being filled with darkness.

The green liquid gradually approaching, casting shadows.

As the green liquid filled my vision.

I quietly closed my eyes.

*

-Rip…!

At that moment, a sound like tearing paper clearly reached through the screams.

I, who had been imagining the green liquid rushing like a torrent, opened my eyes at that sound.

What filled my vision was a mass of pure white light.

And,

“I thought I was late…”

“Huh…?”

Golden hair fluttering in the wind.

With a thick book tucked under her arm,

Lucia, standing behind a barrier emitting brilliant radiance,

“Fortunately, it seems I arrived just in time.”

Looked down at me with a smile.

“Are you hurt?”

Episode 11 – All Quiet on the Northern Front – END –