episode_0223

Episode 223

A river of blue flash that extends endlessly to an unseen place.

It seemed to be part of another mystery that worked differently than mana.

The roots of Sephiroth. The reason Aila, who fell far away, was able to appear in my dreams like this… is probably because I used this.

Aila seemed to have regained her composure a little. When I showed interest in it, even his smile came back.

“Isn’t it beautiful? It is a sight that is impossible for a human to see in person. Thank you for allowing me to see this great sight, even if only in my dreams.”

“Is this… your trump card?”

“Well? You speak as if you know what this is. But you wouldn’t even guess. This is…”

“Tree of Knowledge, extremity of the Sephiroth. Right?”

Aila closed her mouth as if she was displeased. Although the overall impression was different, this expression was quite similar to Carmel.

“How do you do that?”

“The Tree of Knowledge told me directly. Please help me as you try to take control of your roots.”

“You asked for help…? The last great being left on earth… to a mere human…?”

A look of astonishment appears on Eila’s expression. I looked at Aila’s face calmly.

The purpose of this dream is to take me to the ruins. It must have been to provoke me first and then tell me about its evil plans for the Tree of Knowledge to make me take action.

But both have already completely backfired. Aila, who was planning to embarrass me and lead me at her own pace, was looking at me with a face filled with only displeasure.

“Sera Lustier… What are you?”

Would you believe me if I told you that I was Enekra’s reincarnation… and a reincarnation from another world? Of course, I have no intention of saying that yet.

“There is no need to say it is stagnant. She is just an ordinary, ordinary princess.”

Nice to see. It’s always fun to see a villainess with a lot of energy lose her face.

Well, even though we gained the psychological upper hand, that doesn’t mean the other side’s cards have disappeared. The plan to seize the roots of the Tree of Knowledge is still a threat.

“I already understand your plot. I plan to rush into the Katerina Ruins where you are hiding as soon as tomorrow. Leading an elite force of countless knights. Your black goat sashimi, which is less than a handful, will never be safe.”

As she heard my words, the discomfort on Eila’s face gradually disappeared. Soon, Aila was smiling as creepy as when she first appeared.

“Kkkk…”

A sound of laughter like dry tree branches rubbing together. Even though his body has returned to its youthful appearance, his laughter seems to remain the same as when he was old.

“Funny. Do you think that only human knights can touch me? Come and see, Princess Sera. But you’d better hurry. If you are a little late, I will curse all humans in your kingdom to become monsters with rotten bodies.”

You seem quite happy. Regardless of the process, I felt better when I faced the outcome of heading to the ruins.

However, the threatening remarks that followed seem to be somewhat pretentious. I really intend to do that, and if it were possible, I would have carried it out quietly and without a word. I guess it could be seen as a ploy to draw me in by emphasizing his threat.

“I won’t let that happen.”

I answered firmly. Before I knew it, the dark figures around me, including Aila, were becoming increasingly blurred.

“Then come and stop it. Take as many of those great knights with you.”

With those last words, the dream world made of mana sank into complete darkness.

* * *

next day.

The Katerina ruins can be seen in the distance. The building, which was clearly exposed as if it were hidden between two hills, was quite small in scale to be given the grand name of a ruin.

The part exposed on the outside is small, but the inside hidden under the surface seems to be quite deep. There was no sign of anything suspicious around until I entered the entrance.

Rika, holding a torch in one hand, took the lead, illuminating the inside. The group of less than twenty people moved into the dark ruins, each looking in a different direction.

Compared to the threats made to Aila, the number of people was overwhelmingly small. Considering that Aila had subtly suggested deploying a large number of troops, I guess this is the right answer.

Aela’s power can turn humans into monsters. This means that hundreds of knights can soon turn into hundreds of enemies.

It is reasonable to attack with a small number of elite personnel who can be protected with my magic poetry, Reelia’s divine power, and other magical means.

First of all, me and Carmel, then Juliana and Rielia. Although he is remote, considering that Monaz is with him, he can be said to be the strongest member in the realm of magic in the kingdom. If you look at her immediate strength, Aila looks shabby.

And there are a total of twelve knights to escort us. He is an elite member of the Knights, including Rika and Philgret. Considering the scale of the ruins, this was an appropriate number of people.

“…It smells really bad inside. I hope everyone prepares their hearts.”

While going down the gentle stairs leading to the basement, Pilgret said that. I soon realized what the stench he was talking about was.

A wet, fishy smell that seems to stick to your nose. It was the smell of blood and decay.

It was leaking from the stone gate in front of me.

When I opened the stone door, a large cave-like space appeared. It wasn’t that dark inside with the lights turned on sparsely.

On the round altar, unknown characters were written in abundance. The altar and the floor around it were all red, and the smell was coming from there.

“Human sacrifice… How many people…”

Carmel walked to the front of the altar without hesitation and looked around. Carmel’s expression was quite stiff, although not as strong as that of Reeliana and the knights.

“This is… a spell to meet a great being. The human sacrifice was probably intended to maximize its effect… It appears that those sacrificed were residents of a nearby village. Probably to contact the roots of the Tree of Knowledge.”

A spell that involves sacrificing human life. Its power has been fully experienced in the case of Mystilia.

Maybe Aila would have continued to sacrifice human beings here if I hadn’t shown up. Until what was a bluff became real.

Philgret had been frowning ever since the moment he entered this place. For someone with an extremely sensitive sense of smell, being here would be nothing short of torture. Then he suddenly jumped forward.

Pot!

Something flying towards Carmel bounced off Pilgret’s gauntlet. It was a small arrow.

“enemy!”

Coo!

There is the sound of a stone door closing behind you. At the same time, people with their bodies and faces covered in black clothes appeared from a corner.

It seems that shamans are not the only ones who make up the Black Mountain Goat Association. While there were typical shamans who radiated black magic around their bodies, there were also those who held swords and small bows.

Under Philgret’s command, the knights immediately deployed into battle formation. Reelia also protected the knights from the curse by emitting brilliant white divine power. Soon, the group dressed in black rushed in and the battle began.

Compared to the knights whose entire bodies were covered in armor, they were wearing only light cloth clothes. Light and acrobatic movements disturbed the gaze. However, their weapons could not penetrate the hard armor.

Moreover, this side had the upper hand in both the number of combatants and individual combat power. However, it was not easy to destroy the enemy. The reason is that there were many restrictions on the movements of the knights.

“They use poison! Make sure no one gets hit!”

Basilisk poison. They have the means to almost guarantee death with one hit. The knights were maintaining their positions to protect those of us who were not wearing armor.

Moreover, there is a limit to the range that can be protected by Reelia’s divine power. There was black magic in the hands of the shamans, as if they were waiting for them to leave the area.

The result is a deadlock. Two black goats are lying dead on the floor. There have been no losses on this side yet.

‘…Where is Aila?’

No matter how you look at it, it looks like they have no intention of winning this battle. Is the purpose of delay? But even that wouldn’t have meant much.

“Juliana.”

“Yes.”

Today’s Juliana is not dressed as a prisoner. Both hands were free without handcuffs. Julianna summoned the Red Fairy Book and immediately created a huge wall to trap the enemy’s rear ranks.

“What should I do? Shall we end it?”

Juliana asked with such calmness. Julianna, facing another target of revenge, had cold and cruel eyes.

“Yes, do it.”

At the same time as my answer, a desperate scream and a dull pounding sound were heard from inside the wall. It looks like he’s probably going through something similar to what happened to James.

Black mana leaked out as if trying to do something… but it was neutralized by Riellia’s divine power before it could even reach this area.

Those holding the swords were staring in fascination at the massacre taking place behind them, as if in shock.

Soon, the sounds inside the walls could no longer be heard. The short-lived stalemate naturally collapsed. Although the shaman was lost, the others didn’t seem to have any intention of running away. They all died heroically while fighting against overwhelmingly different knights.

Meanwhile, Aila did not appear at all. Due to the nature of the Black Mountain Goat Society, which operates like a secret society, this would be almost all they had. What is the intention behind such vain annihilation?

You will find out everything when you meet Aila. We continued toward where they appeared.

“…That…!”

A space similar in size to before. But unlike the previous one, which gave a terrible impression, this place had a sublime atmosphere.

What fills the room is blue water. Although it was somewhat small for an artificial lake, it was quite large for one installed indoors. Aila was standing in the middle of the calm water.

“You’re here, Lustier’s dogs.”

It’s the same outfit I saw in my dream. An outfit that was almost like being naked with only a piece of cloth on. In addition, it was so wet that you could even see the texture of its skin.

“That’s it, Aila.”

Aila didn’t respond to what I said. She smiled seductively as if she could not feel the murderous gaze of the knights surrounding her at all, and began to emit a beautiful voice.

A song in an ancient language that I have never heard before.