Ch.55First Clash

The wolf who had introduced himself as Boris lightly jumped down and landed on the ground.

Following him, six Werebeasts lined up on either side leaped down from the wall in succession.

Despite their massive builds, they landed with an unbelievably silent touch.

They growled as they removed the cloak-like fabric covering their armor.

The beast-like presence intensified rapidly.

I wasn’t sure how it worked, but it must have been an enchanted cloak.

Some kind of perception-inhibiting magic that concealed their presence until they chose to reveal themselves.

Were they removing the effect now to prevent it from being damaged in battle?

Or perhaps it was the type that didn’t work during combat anyway?

No, this wasn’t the time to worry about such things.

I immediately drew my sword—not the spare black iron sword, but Imelia’s sword.

This wasn’t a situation where I could afford to hold back while worrying about others’ eyes.

Even if Nigel could keep Boris occupied, there was no guarantee I could defeat six pureblooded warriors simultaneously on my own.

But I had to hold them off somehow. At least until reinforcements arrived.

I pointed my sword toward the enemies.

A subtle blue glow circled the blade like moonlight.

Being made of true silver, it should be highly effective against Werebeasts.

Unable to use Frosting, I had to rely solely on this sword’s capabilities.

If I wore that and fought… I would end up attacking even Nigel without recognizing him.

It wasn’t something I could use to save someone. Not yet.

Boris bared his teeth when he saw me holding the longsword.

Smiling like a predator that had found its prey.

“Yes. The woman beside you definitely called you Haschal, didn’t she?”

Hearing Boris’s words, Nigel glanced at me and clicked his tongue as if regretting a mistake.

He knew about me?

“Haschal Aishan-Gioro. The Ka’har bitch… How fortunate. Our highest priority target appears right before us!”

The large sword he drew flashed in the light.

Though crude in appearance, its size and weight rivaled Demian’s greatsword.

Unlike Demian, however, it was merely an ordinary weapon they could wield with one hand.

“Highest priority target…?”

I couldn’t help but ask.

Those words sounded as if all this was happening because of me.

As if there would have been no reason to go this far if not for me.

“We never expected even Ka’har to become the Empire’s dog. That’s troublesome. It leaves us as the only enemies of the Empire. This is betrayal.”

Boris shrugged nonchalantly.

The six Werebeasts drew their weapons and slowly approached.

I felt suffocated.

So the peace treaty I had negotiated was the problem?

I hadn’t thought that far ahead.

I had only worried about how the relationship between the Empire and Ka’har, and Orhan’s fate, would change.

I never predicted that even the Werebeasts would care about Ka’har.

They had hardly any connection with each other.

How stupid of me.

The tip of my sword trembled.

The responsibility I had overlooked was now thrust before my eyes.

In the form of seven beasts and a burning city.

No, it’s not too late. I can still defeat these creatures and save everyone.

I just need to win.

If I win.

…Right?

—-

“Well, we don’t have much time, so that’s the end of our conversation.”

Boris turned to the other Werebeasts and pointed at us.

“I’ll take care of the blue-haired one. The rest of you, kill Aishan-Gioro. Natalya hasn’t arrived yet, but… six should be enough.”

“Lady Haschal, get back!”

Nigel aimed his spear at the Werebeasts and stood in front of me.

His stern gaze was filled with tension and determination. As if he would protect me even at the cost of his life.

Get back?

I couldn’t do that. No matter how skilled Nigel was, he couldn’t win against these numbers.

Boris alone would be challenging enough, let alone facing six purebloods attacking together.

“That’s a request I can’t honor, Nigel.”

“Lady Haschal!”

Ignoring Nigel’s words, I raised my longsword.

Retreating now would be like throwing Nigel to these beasts.

“You seem to care quite a bit for an Imperial, Ka’har. Have you already been tamed by the Empire? …Well, fine. I’ll kill you and that woman, then dismember all the other traitors before morning. It’s time to pay the price for wagging your tail at the Empire!”

Boris roared.

The six beasts howled in succession.

I forcibly suppressed the despair rising in my chest.

Time was running out, and the enemy was too strong.

Our chances of victory were far too slim.

“-How amusing.”

A cold voice cut through the roars.

“Beast bastards daring to make such noise, do you even know where you are?”

Soft footsteps echoed.

Frider was walking out from the special viewing box.

She wore a fur coat reinforced with metal guards, and in her right hand, she held a large saw like an axe.

A spiked mace swung at her waist, and she even carried a pump-action spear on her back.

“Really. Nothing goes according to plan. Damn it.”

Her expression was a mixture of contempt, irritation, and anger at its limit.

“That silver hair and saw-toothed axe… You must be Frider, the princess of Faelrun.”

“A dog dares to speak my name?”

Frider irritably threw a dagger.

The thrown dagger hit Boris’s claw and bounced off.

With a snort, Frider walked to my side.

“Frider…!”

“Were you planning to fight six purebloods with just a true silver longsword? Do you have five lives or something, barbarian?”

Frider glanced at my sword and, recognizing its material, mocked me.

Though her reaction was surprisingly calm.

She recognized the material of the sword but not its identity?

Well, the small crest on the blade would be hard to see in this darkness.

This crest, I think it glowed golden last time. Now it remained dormant without any sign of light.

“Pure true silver… I don’t know where you found such a precious item, but that’s a matter for later.”

Frider reached behind her head with her left hand and drew the spear she had been carrying on her back.

“Take half of them. You can manage that much, right?”

“…What about the others? Are they still inside the building?”

Perneisia aside, what was Asha doing?

“Your friend is currently holed up preparing weapons. With things going this wrong, it’s too late to distribute the silver arrows we had stockpiled to the regular students. She’s figuring out how to use them.”

“What about Perneisia?”

What was that legendary 15th-year student doing?

Surely she wasn’t still drunk and sleeping despite the situation?

“I don’t know. That woman will do as she pleases. Whether she fights or just watches, she’ll do what she wants.”

A hopeless answer.

“What kind of…”

“That’s what a fairy is like. Stop whining and prepare to fight. They’re coming.”

There was considerable tension in Frider’s eyes.

Yes, even for someone like her, facing six purebloods meant putting her life on the line.

I raised my tension as well.

It was time for a life-or-death battle.

—-

“So, what should I call you? I should know the name of tonight’s menu.”

Boris raised his greatsword and approached Nigel.

His steps were confident and unhindered, showing no tension—just the absolute certainty that he would win.

Nigel gripped his spear, raising his fighting spirit.

Cold sweat ran down my back.

This was a dangerous enemy. Perhaps even stronger than herself.

It was time to give everything.

“The shield of the Empire, Knight of Landenburg. I am Nigel!”

Nigel charged toward the black wolf.

The greatsword and lance collided with a thunderous sound.

—-

“Kuh!”

Blood spurted from my cheek where a spear tip had grazed me, too quick to dodge.

My newly fitted armor had already begun to break in several places.

There was barely time to breathe.

Even with Frider’s help, this melee against six Werebeasts was a life-threatening gamble at every moment.

I rolled on the ground to avoid a descending axe blade.

A spear tip came right before my eyes. I desperately turned my head to avoid the spear aiming for my eye and sprang up.

“Haah!”

My longsword drew an arc, tearing through thick fur. Faint smoke rose from the wound at the tip of my sword.

“Grrrr… it’s not healing. True silver indeed.”

Volkov, the gray wolf who had his forearm cut, groaned.

Just as I was about to attack again, a clawed foot flew toward my side.

It was the foot of Alexei, the lion Werebeast.

I twisted my waist to barely avoid it. My skirt tore completely, and blood seeped from the exposed flesh.

A stinging pain spread like heat.

“GROAR!”

A massive fist filled my vision from the front.

I clenched my left hand and struck back.

– KWANG!

With the explosive sound, my body was thrown backward.

It was the first time I had been pushed back in a head-on collision.

Except for when I blocked a blow in an unstable position during the fight with the troll, I had never been overpowered.

Surprisingly, my strength was slightly superior, but the fundamental difference in weight was enormous.

Fortunately, my black iron gauntlet held without breaking.

Rather, the bare-handed brown bear Werebeast, Kamenev’s fist was deeply gouged.

Though it was slowly regenerating.

So without Imelia’s sword, I can’t properly damage them?

One-on-one would be manageable, and even two-on-one seemed winnable, but six-on-two was a completely different story.

Whether they were skilled at this kind of group attack or not, they repeatedly attacked in groups of three or four and then retreated, giving me no proper chance to counterattack.

Fighting recklessly as usual was impossible.

I could definitely overpower one of them, but that would leave me too vulnerable to attacks from the others.

If I made a mistake, that would be the end. Unlike humans, a solid hit from a Werebeast would cause severe injury.

So I had to fight while avoiding openings as much as possible.

If Frider hadn’t been here, I would have been torn to pieces before long.

Truly a reliable senior.

“You beast bastards, getting cocky!”

Frider’s thrust spear lodged in the shoulder of Yelena, the female hyena.

With the impact, the pump moved, and a violent stream of blood spurted like a fountain from the end of the spear shaft.

“KYAAAAK!”

I avoided Yelena’s convulsively swung sword with a clean step.

Then I dove in again, scraping Yelena’s side with the saw-toothed axe.

Flesh was torn away and blood splattered violently.

“Yelena!”

Olga, the female wolf Werebeast, swung her halberd at Frider.

“Tch.”

Frider clicked her tongue, threw a harpoon-shaped dagger, and retreated.

“Grrrgh!”

Yelena grabbed the pump spear that had been gushing blood and threw it to the ground.

Then she stomped on it in anger, breaking the pump spear into three pieces.

The wounds on her shoulder and side were healing very slowly.

Whether it was because the weapon had silver mixed in or because of the massive blood loss, I couldn’t tell.

The battle entered a brief lull.

“Damn, this is taking too long.”

“You should be grateful that we have the advantage thanks to our weapons. If not for the true silver sword, they would have ignored their injuries and attacked more ferociously.”

Standing beside Frider, I assessed the situation.

Only two minutes had passed, but it felt much longer.

Frider’s fur coat was torn in several places, and she had lost one spear, but otherwise had no significant injuries.

Though she was covered in blood, it wasn’t her own.

My armor was broken in several places, and blood continuously flowed from my cheek and lower back.

My left hand and other areas that had been hit were quite sore.

Still, the opponents were in much worse shape.

Their various wounds were slowly healing, but the cuts from my sword weren’t healing at all.

And they must have lost a considerable amount of blood from Frider’s attacks.

If we continued fighting like this, I was confident we could win.

It would just take too much time.

And at this very moment, someone might be dying.

—-

The biggest problem was Nigel’s situation.

I glanced at the battlefield where continuous explosions echoed.

The spear and greatsword collided madly, scattering sparks and fragments.

“Won’t you consider surrendering and abandoning your master? What a shame. Even a half-blood master-level female could bear excellent offspring!”

“You dare insult the sword of Landenburg! Don’t underestimate me!”

“Ha, what you’re holding is a spear, isn’t it!”

Boris’s joyful roar filled the courtyard, and in response, Nigel shouted battle cries while continuously shooting spears and daggers.

A human master versus a Werebeast champion.

The outcome of that duel would determine the outcome of this entire battle.

The problem was that Nigel was gradually being pushed back.

His broken armor was in tatters, and blood flowed from several wounds.

Boris had similar injuries, but… the fundamental difference in species was holding Nigel back.

Nigel’s weapon must have had some true silver mixed in, as Boris’s wounds weren’t regenerating easily.

However, a champion-level Werebeast’s body possessed toughness that could withstand several penetrating wounds without concern.

Time was not on our side.

No, it had never been on our side from the beginning.

This is no time to just stand around.

I lowered my body and put strength into my legs.

I surrendered myself to fierce fighting spirit, raising my will to fight and kill.

Prepared for severe injury, I needed to kill at least one of them for certain.

I had to break the balance.

Even if it meant losing an arm, I had to accept it in this situation.

An arm was nothing—if I didn’t die, someone would heal it eventually.

I gripped the sword handle until it almost crushed and gritted my teeth.

As long as I don’t die. As long as I don’t die, I—

– CRASH!

At that moment.

With the sound of shattering glass, dozens of silver arrows rained down like a downpour toward the Werebeasts.