Twin Lance Knight (6)

…Magical Beast transformation serum.”

The Saint──Corfe Lilac, muttered while shaking a small glass vial containing a translucent blue liquid.

An extremely small amount of liquid, no larger than the size and length of an index finger.

“If someone takes this, they become a Magical Beast?”

“…More precisely, they gain the power of a Magical Beast.”

An elderly man in pure white clothing answered with a chuckling laugh.

“Is the serum administered to Cornelio identical to this one?”

“Yes.”

To the Saint’s question, the old man smiled faintly.

“It’s still a test product with many issues, but… what you might call a prototype.”

“Prototype?”

The Saint asked with apparent interest. The old man slowly caressed a teacup shrouded in the warmth of the tea and said,

“The Magical Beast factor within the serum is extremely unstable and may go berserk due to certain triggers. For example, experiencing intense emotional changes. Or the factor going berserk to protect the host from a powerful physical shock…”

“Going berserk.”

The Saint repeated.

“What happens when it goes berserk?”

“I don’t know.”

The old man trailed off in a calm tone, almost muttering.

“But that’s precisely why… we need more specimens, don’t we?”

“…What is this?”

“A serum.”

The man wearing a white lab coat said to Cornelio.

“It’s a Magical Beast transformation serum completely identical to the one injected into you, Sir Cornelio.”

“Why are you giving this to me?”

Cornelio asked with suspicious eyes.

“When you find yourself in a situation you absolutely cannot handle with your current power, injecting this will give you even greater strength.”

“You’re not trying to trick me with some dangerous drug, are you?”

Despite the man’s explanation, Cornelio did not lower his suspicious gaze.

“I’m hurt. Haven’t you experienced the effects of the Magical Beast transformation serum better than anyone else?”

“…I suppose that’s true.”

Even he had to agree with the man’s words.

“Fine, I’ll accept it since you’re offering.”

Eventually, Cornelio accepted the serum contained in the small glass vial and put it inside his garment.

Not seeing the smiling face of the man behind his back.

There were three conditions to the orders given to Cornelio.

Mission: Cause a disturbance within the academy by disguising it as a Magical Beast attack.

Target: Those close to Evangeline Failondia.

Condition 1: Absolutely do not kill the targets.

Condition 2: No matter what, do not reveal the backers.

Condition 3: Avoid combat with Evangeline Failondia herself as much as possible.

“…’As much as possible,’ it says.”

Cornelio muttered quietly.

-Shuuuuuuu.

Through his nostrils, which had become hundreds of times more sensitive than when he was human, air imbued with mana was slowly drawn in.

Cold air filling his lungs and magical power spreading throughout his body via his bloodstream.

“I was wondering how I could fight you again.”

Cornelio muttered in a surprisingly calm voice, reaching toward his severed arm with his other hand.

-Squelch, crunch…!

Connecting the cleanly cut surface together, Cornelio deeply furrowed his brow.

“Kuh…!”

“…What on earth are you…”

Delphina, who had been muttering in a shocked voice, opened her eyes wide.

Even visible through the coarse fur, thick, protruding veins wriggled as they found their places.

-Sizzle…!

Smoke rose between the cut surfaces as if meat were being grilled, and the fingers of Cornelio’s left hand, which should have been severed, twitched slightly.

“Now, I no longer need to worry about that.”

“…Impressive.”

Evangeline said quietly.

“Quite a spectacle. Have you completely abandoned being human?”

“So, you’ve come…”

-Swoosh!!

“To me on your own feet!!!”

“Princess!!”

Cornelio brought down the short lance he had raised high.

Delphina screamed, and simultaneously Evangeline slowly raised her sword.

-Clang!!

Evangeline’s upward swing and Cornelio’s downward strike collided in the middle.

-Grind, grind…!

The metal pieces wrapped in Aura roughly ground against each other, and a thick vein bulged on Cornelio’s brow.

“Kuhaaaaaa…!!”

Cornelio breathed heavily and applied more force to his grip.

The wild Aura wrapping around the short lance intensified, taking a form like a blue storm.

-Crack!!

Unable to withstand the weight, Evangeline’s feet sank deep into the ground.

Cornelio grinned and said,

“You’ve gotten weaker.”

“…”

Evangeline silently bit her lower lip.

“Much weaker than in your prime.”

-Crack!!

“…It’s been a long time. For this moment alone, I had to endure humiliating times, even deserting.”

Cornelio exclaimed with a growl, seemingly highly excited.

“But I survived. To survive, I abandoned all honor and bowed my head to scoundrels to get here!”

“…Kuhup.”

“All for this moment when I could make you taste the humiliation of defeat!!”

Cornelio shouted, grinding his teeth.

“After I kill you, I’ll kill all those scoundrels too!!”

Watching Cornelio, who was laughing maniacally while pressing down on Evangeline, Delphina gritted her teeth.

‘…Damn it, my body won’t move.’

Whether due to the release of tension, or a problem with her personally not properly refining her breathing.

She grimaced.

She felt self-loathing for being unable to do anything while watching the Princess being pushed back.

‘Cornelio is a monster. He’s become a monster who has abandoned being human. Even for the Princess, this is…’

Before her eyes, Evangeline slightly turned her head.

──It’s okay.

Her lips moved slightly.

Immediately after, Evangeline tilted her greatsword to the side.

-Crash!!!

Cornelio’s body, which had been blindly pressing down on her with force, somersaulted forward along the tilted greatsword.

Right after that, Evangeline swung the tilted greatsword upward.

A strike that deeply tore through the middle of his chest covered with coarse fur.

“Kuaaaaaa!!”

Cornelio screamed and stepped backward, while Evangeline, breathing roughly, readjusted her grip on the greatsword with trembling hands.

“…Kuh, w-why.”

Feeling the wound that deeply crossed the middle of his chest, Cornelio muttered with a shocked expression.

“What’s going on?! I, the current me should be the strongest!!”

“…I know.”

Evangeline opened her mouth.

“Indeed, as you said, I’ve gotten weaker.”

Toward Cornelio, who was clutching his chest and exhaling rough breaths, Evangeline said quietly.

“But it seems you’ve fallen even further.”

“…What?”

At these unexpected words, Cornelio asked blankly.

“When you were human, you were a piece of trash, but your strength at least was real. The technique and skill gained through constant training, and the experience gained from actual combat as a knight of the kingdom.”

Evangeline shook her head as if genuinely regretful.

“You’ve thrown all that away, becoming a child who simply crushes opponents with brute force. I can only evaluate it as pathetic.”

“Nonsense!!”

Cornelio exclaimed.

“I’ve become stronger! I must have become stronger!! Much more than at any time in my life!!”

Foaming at the mouth, Cornelio roared indiscriminately.

“The current me must be the strongest!! No matter who the opponent is, I must not lose!!!”

“…It’s pitiful to the point of being painful to watch.”

Evangeline sighed and raised her greatsword.

“What made you like this?”

“…Are you asking sincerely? Why I’m going to such lengths?”

Cornelio asked quietly.

-Grind, grindgrindgrind…!

Grinding his teeth madly, Cornelio shouted.

“Power!! Of course it’s power, what else could there be?!”

“…”

“Someone like you, who was born with everything from the start, wouldn’t understand! There’s nothing in the world as humiliating and infuriating as being defeated by someone!!”

Cornelio shouted as if insane.

“Yes, if only I had power…! I wouldn’t have had to flee from Palantie!!”

Palantie.

At that one word from Cornelio, Evangeline quietly asked back.

“…Did you say Palantie?”

-Bulge.

Blue veins protruded on the back of Evangeline’s hand holding the greatsword.

“…You…”

Evangeline’s lips trembled.

“…How dare you mention Palantie…!”

-Click.

Evangeline raised her greatsword with trembling hands.

“A cowardly bastard who abandoned his comrades and fled, barely saving his own life…!”

As if barely suppressing her anger, the end of Evangeline’s voice trembled.

“How many thousands of people do you think died there because of you!!”

-Thud!!

Striking the ground with her greatsword, Evangeline erupted in fury.

“You have the audacity to spout such nonsense!!!”

“What’s wrong with fleeing because I didn’t have power!!”

Toward the enraged Evangeline, Cornelio raised his voice even higher.

“Why don’t you understand!! My fleeing from that place! Those who died at Palantie!! Even your failure to protect them!!! All of it was because of insufficient power!!!”

“…What?”

With bloodshot eyes, Cornelio took out a glass vial containing blue liquid from inside his garment.

It had a long, sharp hole at the tip, allowing it to be directly inserted into a vein.

Commonly known as a syringe.

“I will win…! Whatever it takes, I will win… and prove my power!!”

-Stab.

The glass tube pierced through Cornelio’s forearm, and the blue liquid inside sloshed as it flowed into his arm.

“……Ku.”

As Evangeline stared blankly, Cornelio’s shoulder suddenly bulged upward.

-Crack, crackcrackcrack…!!

As if his skeleton was being inverted and broken, Cornelio’s body began to twist and contort bizarrely, rapidly swelling.

“Gurk, gruaaaaak──!!”

Spewing blood like a broken faucet from his widely opened jaws, Cornelio’s body gradually began to take on a bizarre yet specific form.

His legs bent even further in two stages, and from around his shoulders, a pair of grotesque arms with muscles nakedly exposed, uncovered by fur, rose up with cracking sounds.

The previously neatly protruding sharp teeth twisted and crumbled grotesquely, jutting out from his jaws, and his tail swelled massively like a third arm.

Finally, the transformed Cornelio slowly opened his jaws.

“…Eeevangeline.”

With jaws that couldn’t close properly, dripping with saliva, Cornelio mumbled in a bizarre voice.

-Crack…!!

A pair of grotesque arms that had grown from his back, uncovered by skin, slowly clenched their fists.

“Die…!”

Cornelio declared briefly.

That thing, already more enormous than Evangeline’s height with just one forearm, smashed down directly toward her.