The scenery has no meaning amidst the sprinting.
After all, it felt compressed into a thin line. The only thing stimulating my senses along with the fierce sound of the wind was the heavy sensation transmitted through my stepping feet.
It was a desperate dash, to say the least.
I had no time to spare to look around. As I neared my destination, my vision was being consumed by the dust and sand.
The faint smell of blood brushed against my nostrils. Shrieks were carried on the wind. The sharp noise of clashing weapons filled my mind with images of someone.
Ria Percus, my younger sister, was staying over there.
Dozens to hundreds of hellholes were continuously spewing corrosive liquid. The holy knights covered in dark green liquid screamed. The anguished faces of melted humans were hardly a sight to behold.
It had only been a few hours since I had left, and in that time, the military camp had turned into chaos.
I gasped for breath and halted before the battlefield. It was then that the man riding on my back gently set his feet down.
It was Mr. Raymond.
A mage cannot run faster than a swordsman. While it’s possible to increase speed through flight magic, it cannot compare to the speed at full force of a skilled swordsman. Thus, Mr. Raymond had to endure the humiliation of being carried on my back.
In large-scale chaos, the presence of a capable mage is irreplaceable.
As if he sensed my impatience, Mr. Raymond spoke in a calm tone.
“Quickly, go find the young woman.”
“But…”
I shared that urge. However, I could not bring myself to voice my desire to leave.
The situation had already delved into chaos. I could see holy knights retreating while wounded. In the face of those who were staring death in the eye, how could I prioritize my selfishness?
Nonetheless, there was not a hint of agitation on Mr. Raymond’s face.
“I’ll take responsibility here.”
While I hesitated, Mr. Raymond raised a finger and subtly gestured. A blue arc of energy lined up along that trajectory.
And a few seconds later.
The atmosphere screamed as lightning rained down. An explosion erupted, tearing up the ground indiscriminately. The hellholes writhed in agony.
“It’s a mage! Support from the mage has arrived!”
“Counterattack, counterattack! Protect the wounded!”
There was hardly any chant. He merely flicked his fingers a few times, and the result of Mr. Raymond’s gesture was truly terrifying.
It was nearly as powerful as Senior Elsi’s “Storm Trust.”
I couldn’t help but recall Mr. Raymond’s title once more.
‘Archmage,’ indeed, it was a skill of a different caliber. I finally understood why Senior Elsi feared Mr. Raymond.
He compelled me once more.
“Go.”
I nodded silently. He had assured me with such a show of power, and I could not retort.
With a relieved heart, the dash resumed.
As I had feared, the chaos of the battlefield had shifted inside the military camp. Priests hurriedly rushed to tend to the incoming wounded, while merchants and non-combat personnel hurriedly scrambled to organize their luggage.
A faint groan escaped my lips as I watched this.
Hellhole corpses were strewn everywhere. It seemed they had dug underground for a surprise attack. No wonder everyone was terrified and trying to flee.
My heart felt as if it were on fire. All I wanted was to find Ria. But no matter how much I looked around, I could not find her.
Instead, one person caught my eye. A man I had some familiarity with around here.
Two holy knights had stepped forward to guard me.
They were swallowing their groans and continuing to fight valiantly. After a moment of hesitation, I took out my hand axe.
Chasing after Ria recklessly seemed too risky. It was better to find someone who might know where she had gone.
Those two were the most plausible candidates.
They had received orders to escort Mr. Raymond and me. Naturally, they had likely been entrusted with keeping tabs on our party member, Ria.
In any case, I couldn’t leave them behind. The vibrations echoing from underground were teasing my instincts.
A silver flash shot from my hand.
“Get back!”
My words were so short they didn’t even form a proper honorific. It was that urgent a situation.
The holy knights looked on with bewildered expressions but quickly darted to the side. And from the crackling sound, a hand axe pierced the air and struck down.
Then, blood burst forth from the earth.
Keeeehhh!
With a scream, a wrinkled cylindrical body shot up. Blood flowed profusely from its mouth, which had been filled with dirt until just a moment ago. Dark green corrosive venom dripped and mingled with the blood.
The hand axe was embedded halfway into the top of the monster’s mouth.
I couldn’t help but click my tongue. I had intended to finish it off in one blow, but it was difficult to gauge its exact position after it had sprung up from underground.
Of course, that was a matter limited to me.
The holy knights, who hadn’t even sensed the presence of the hellhole, looked extremely shocked. The eyes of the two men scanned my face in disbelief, as though they were meeting someone entirely new.
A wave of suspicion flowed through my eyes. Shortly after, I realized the hood that had been obscuring my face during the battle had come undone.
The holy knights did not recognize my identity. Naturally, they could only look at me with unfamiliar eyes.
However, the presence of the hand axe I threw was evidently beyond their expectations.
“C-Could you possibly be… Sir Ian?”
The younger of the two holy knights’ eyes sparkled. It was a gaze tinged with admiration.
He had looked frustrated just a few hours prior.
I forced an awkward smile and nodded my head instead.
“Yes, that is correct.”
Then, the older holy knight displayed an even more dramatic reaction.
His face, which had previously shown signs of distress when I had last met him, was now bright with relief. However, after hearing my words, the shadow that had been hanging over his face quickly lifted.
He instead filled with joy and exclaimed.
“Sir Ian Fercurus has arrived! You’ve come to save us!”
His voice resonated with magical energy.
A hush fell over the surroundings, and I was taken aback by his unexpected declaration.
That was when cheers erupted from all directions.
“The hero of humanity has arrived!”
“Monsters cannot defeat us!”
“If you want honor, wield your sword!”
Ultimately, all that escaped my lips was a hollow laugh.
I hadn’t even confirmed the truth of the matter. Whether I was indeed Ian Fercurus or someone impersonating him. Yet everyone was cheering.
Perhaps it was because they wanted to believe.
They were suddenly facing a horde of monsters. The conditions were objectively desperate, and amidst it all, there was no visible path to victory. The first spark of hope that emerged in that moment was me.
It could well be described as a form of self-brainwashing.
What set it apart was that I had the duty to make that brainwashing a reality. I tossed aside the hand axe that had returned to me and drove my sword deep into the ground.
The earth trembled.
Drawing upon the noise resonating in my ears, I poured all my strength into the hand gripping the sword. As the magical power accumulated, the blade resonated, screaming. A white aura parted the earth.
Crack, snap. A sound akin to something snapping echoed from somewhere.
Whether it was a blood vessel or a tendon.
My veins bulged in my eyes, clenched tight in agony. Finally, a strained groan escaped from my mouth, exhausted from releasing my magical energy.
Please, let us end this now.
Just as that wish was about to culminate, the world was bathed in light.
Ka-boom! With a violent explosion, the ground erupted. Earth and the screams of the hellholes filled the air. Cracks opened up in the ground centered around where I had plunged my sword.
And from those spiderweb-like fissures, blood surged forth.
Twisting and writhing, the weakened hellholes managed to push their faces above ground only to collapse. They were left with injuries all over their bodies. This was the result of being ravaged by the aura that had burst forth from underground.
The vibrations that had been felt from below had vanished. Upon confirming this, I hurried to the middle-aged holy knight.
“Where is Ria?”
“Y-You were truly Sir Ian…”
The middle-aged holy knight wore a dazed expression. I offered a hollow smile to his gaze, which held a hint of lingering disbelief.
“Well, of course! But more importantly, my younger sister…”
“She is in the tent located at the rear.”
The answer came from the younger holy knight. I looked at him in surprise.
“I had her evacuated there right as the attack began. Given her status as a guest…”
“Thank you.”
I left only a brief word of thanks and hurriedly slammed my feet into the ground. Following the direction indicated by the younger holy knight, I ran for a while, and I caught sight of an elegant tent.
So that is where she is.
Just as I was about to feel relieved, a scream echoed from within the tent.
“Help, help… brother!”
The unmistakable voice of my younger sister.
My mind instantly turned blank.
Strange memories began to rise within the recesses of my retinas.
