Ch.43Imperial Invasion (1)

The tents are burning. All the tents right before his eyes. How did it come to this? Just moments ago, they were winning.

Each entry point had been progressing smoothly. Ghost had found the target, and the Battle Maniac was pushing forward, saying they would soon retrieve it.

The special forces that had been moving through two entry points had split into four entry points today, achieving great results. It seemed like they would finally end this war and return home.

After Ghost completed the retrieval of the target, they deployed all the empire’s great soldiers, knights, and mages to the first entry point to maintain momentum and achieve results there as well.

Until a red flash suddenly bloomed in the sky.

* * * * *

Turning back time, a few hours earlier.

A red flash suddenly appeared in the sky. That red light came from one of the four flares he had given to the special forces. Only five people, including himself, carried these flares, which were meant to be used only in the most desperate situations.

In that direction was the fourth entry point, where the Battle Maniac was stationed. If there was an opponent that even he—a specialist in one-on-one combat and expert at dominating the battlefield—couldn’t overwhelm…

“The Harlot. Could the Harlot have appeared?”

“Pardon?”

The staff officer beside him questioned his muttering, but he had no time to answer.

If that light was fired because of the Harlot, it would be fine. If Ghost had encountered the Harlot, she wouldn’t be able to fight properly due to their incompatible abilities. But the Battle Maniac could certainly handle the Harlot.

And now, everyone who had seen the flare—the second and third teams, plus Ghost who had returned to the main force—were all moving toward that signal. They should be able to defeat someone like the Harlot. He relaxed and continued monitoring the battlefield situation through magic.

Then a red flash rose not from the sky, but from within the forest. The sudden red light was bright enough to blind, causing trees to catch fire and smoke to rise. And then came the black flames.

The black flames, symbol of the Harlot, revealed themselves.

“Who went there?!”

“That’s… where Ghost went, sir!”

“Mage! Use the Far Sight magic to illuminate that area! Quickly!”

At his command, the magic that had been illuminating the entire forest began to focus on one area. There stood someone in a robe, spewing black flames and confronting Ghost.

* * * * *

“Really…!! What is this all of a sudden! I just moved the target, and suddenly the Harlot shows up…!! She usually appears once a week, so why twice this week?!”

Ghost was flying through the sky on a ghost ship, complaining irritably about the trouble that arose right after her success. She was urging Captain Krong, the owner of this ghost ship, to hurry.

But no matter how much she urged, they were moving slowly to maintain maximum altitude so the elves wouldn’t notice them.

Ghost was nervously biting her fingernails, wondering if it might be better to jump down and run through the forest despite the risk of being discovered.

Whoooosh——!!

Black flames shot from the ground engulfed the ghost ship she was riding.

Aaaaargh——

Kyaaaaaaah——

The ghost ship burst into flames instantly. Despite being an object of the dead rather than of this world, the black flames completely consumed the ghost ship. It was a pitiful end for the ghost who had once claimed to be the ruler of the seas.

Ghost, who had been aboard the ghost ship, didn’t escape unharmed either. The black flames were no ordinary fire—even the strongest ghost that enveloped her was affected by the flames and cried out in pain.

And the fire that clung to the ghost affected Ghost as well.

“Kyaaaaaaah——!! T-this fire… Harlooooot!!!!!”

Ghost called out with hatred to the person who had attacked her. She seemed to know her attacker well, identifying who had attacked her with just one strike. Looking down at the ground in fury.

Standing on top of a giant tree was a robed figure pointing a mace at the sky.

The empire’s enemy and her former colleague. The Catastrophe Saintess, known in the empire as the Black Fire Harlot, was there. The Harlot said nothing, merely shooting black flames once more.

Whoooosh——!!

The black flames flew toward Ghost, who was flying in the embrace of the ghost, but she managed to survive thanks to the strongest ghost carrying her.

But the Harlot seemed to have anticipated this and continued shooting black flames, trying to kill Ghost. For a necromancer like her, the Saintess’s flames were more dangerous than anything else.

Even if it came from a pagan god, the black flames imbued with divine power were fatal to Ghost.

The strongest ghost embracing her and flying through the sky was dodging well, but it was suffering whenever even small sparks hit it.

No matter how strong it was, ghosts’ inherent weakness to holy magic was unavoidable. Finally deciding she couldn’t escape, she pulled out a long cylinder from her pocket.

This was the danger flare given to special forces like herself by the commander. Since the Minotaur hadn’t appeared for a month, it had become essentially a flare exclusively for the weekly-appearing Harlot.

The Harlot, having witnessed this scene many times, wouldn’t just stand by. Her body became engulfed in black flames, and she instantly teleported next to Ghost as she was about to fire the flare into the air, striking at her arm.

Thud——!!

Of course, that attempt was blocked by the strongest ghost and couldn’t proceed further.

Whoooosh——!!

Ooooooh…

Crying out in pain as black flames engulfed her, Ghost removed her burning arm, but as a result, she fell to the ground, and the flare that had been aimed skyward was fired toward the ground as Ghost descended.

“Ugh—!! Come forth, Eilen!!”

Responding to her call, a ghost horse appeared, tearing through space. It had green flames burning at its feet and a mane made of green fire—a transparent horse that revealed itself.

The horse immediately carried her and began to flee the battlefield, but the attempt failed due to the Harlot’s thorough preparation.

Whoooosh——!!!

Black flames rose up, forming a wall, and the ghost horse, terrified by the sacred energy, turned to flee in another direction…

But there too, black flames erupted, blocking the escape route. This time, the flames appeared so close that the ghost horse couldn’t even dodge, and it was exorcised with a scream.

Ghost finally crashed to the ground. Thanks to the strongest ghost that returned when she fell, she wasn’t seriously injured, but the Saintess’s black flames had burned and disfigured Ghost’s arm.

“My, you look terrible, boy. Was the fruit of betrayal delicious?”

“Kyaaaaaaah——!!! How long are you going to call me ‘boy,’ you Harlot!!! I’m a girl now, a girl!!! And betrayal? That’s harsh!! Don’t you know our contract states we can’t kill each other!? But you were the one who unilaterally broke the contract terms first, so why am I the betrayer! When we made the contract, you said you’d be my friend! You rejected that, so the contract’s effect almost killed you!”

The Harlot seemed speechless at the girl’s brazen response, clicking her tongue as she looked at Ghost. When they first met, she didn’t know that what Ghost meant by “friend” was a ghost.

What nonsense, making a fraudulent contract to kill her. Feeling that engaging with Ghost’s shameless attitude would only harm herself, the Harlot approached Ghost with her mace raised.

“Do you think I’ll just keep taking this from you?!”

At those words, the Harlot looked around cautiously, but when nothing happened, she thought it was just bluffing and raised her mace toward the girl.

…

Behind Ghost appeared what she always called the strongest ghost, along with an archer, a sword master, and various other ghosts. Unfamiliar ghosts revealed themselves one after another.

“March of a Hundred Ghosts!”

* * * * *

March of a Hundred Ghosts

A Japanese term referring to a hundred ghosts wandering at night or attacking villages. They say it’s led by a great yokai called Nurarihyon, but since that monster isn’t here, the center is probably that ghost she calls the strongest.

Though the Harlot had been told where Ghost got the other ghosts and what their names were, she never revealed the name of the ghost she always called the strongest. The strongest ghost’s ability was to send slashing attacks to anything that came within a two-meter radius.

She thought it wouldn’t work against her holy fire, but Lee Juyeon, the Catastrophe Saintess, didn’t underestimate the boy’s confident attitude.

And so began the March of a Hundred Ghosts.

Arrows and something made of bones obscured her vision, but it didn’t matter. Impure things wouldn’t even touch her body. Indeed, even when ghosts capable of ranged attacks unleashed their assaults, the holy fire arising from her body blocked such attempts.

The same was true for ghosts attacking at close range. All kinds of ghosts came at her with weapons, or with their bodies if they had no weapons…

There were some dents and scratches on her armor, but ghosts that touched her body were purified by the holy fire that arose. Even a hundred ghosts were fleeting existences before her holy fire.

The ghosts were being exorcised far too easily despite Ghost’s confident declaration. Wondering if there was something more, she looked at the boy, but he too seemed surprised at how easily they were being defeated, biting his nails.

Realizing that even his last resort was just an ordinary skill, not one that had been tailored for her, she decided to end it.

“Sacred Domain Declaration”

Black flames spread in all directions around the Saintess.

“Kyaaaaaaah——!!!”

As the black flames surrounded the area, a glowing circle formed with the Saintess at its center. The March of a Hundred Ghosts was instantly exorcised, and even the ghost called the strongest, though it resisted for a while, couldn’t overcome the overwhelming divine power and was also exorcised.

All that remained was the boy, his body burning in the sacred domain.

“Farewell, Albert. If you had explained your definition of friendship properly from the beginning, we would have stayed together until the end.”

Swish—

With the ritual sword she was holding, she cut the boy’s throat to give him a peaceful end.