Before long, the wails of the cave, spread like dusk, shook the world.
Dust fell from the ceiling, and cracks began to appear in the sturdy cave walls. I could only smile wryly at the sight.
“…What have you done?”
A growl slipped out, scraping my vocal cords. However, despite my threatening tone, Miltram only burst into joyous laughter.
“A great hunter prepares two traps, you see. If something goes wrong, one means to reset everything should suffice, don’t you think?”
As she spoke, the threads of magic in Miltram’s hands writhed and stood up.
The target she aimed for was the Imperial Princess.
I immediately struck down the threads of magic with my sword. With a noise of kachak, the twisted trajectory of the thread wrapped around my arm and ignited.
To the still dazed Lady Knight and the Imperial Princess, I urgently shouted.
“I told you to run immediately!”
“Yes, it would be better to flee quickly…”
Miltram’s tone was so calm it was uncanny.
Yet, she could not hide the faint thrill and madness lurking beneath. The woman’s mouth twisted into an unearthly grin.
“This cave is scheduled to collapse before long.”
Upon hearing those words, the Lady Knight’s face turned pale. If the cave were to collapse, the fate awaiting those left inside was clear.
Only death awaited.
The Lady Knight, reeling, immediately rose to her feet. Just before she turned to flee, she glanced back at me with hesitant eyes.
The question she had intended to ask slipped from the Imperial Princess’s lips.
“W-What about Sir Ian…”
That breathless voice, still tinged with moisture, caused my body to freeze.
“W-What should we do… It’s dangerous, we need to… run away…”
“Your Highness.”
It was then that my gaze finally met the Imperial Princess’s slate-gray eyes.
I offered a faint smile.
“…I’m glad you’re alive.”
The vertically torn eyes of the Imperial Princess widened in shock.
She stood as still as an ice statue, showing no sign of movement. Only the tears that welled up proved she was a girl with human emotions.
Before she could utter a word, I spoke in a firm voice.
“Leave.”
Of course, it wasn’t directed at the Imperial Princess.
If it were, I wouldn’t have spoken in such a commanding tone.
The Lady Knight nodded her head sadly once. Then, she kicked off the ground and fled towards the entrance.
The sound of her footsteps grew distant.
Even then, Miltram offered no resistance. Instead, she leaned back and casually whistled while watching the Lady Knight disappear.
At my puzzled expression, Miltram smiled.
“After all, this is a game gone awry, isn’t it? It’s difficult to safely secure the Imperial Princess’s eyes, so one must choose a contingency plan.”
“A contingency plan?”
“Precisely, it’s you.”
Miltram’s eyes glowed with a subtle heat as she glared at me. It felt as if her gaze could pierce my body.
The corners of her mouth twisted into a smirk.
“You are an obstacle. Not just today, but in the future as well… So, for today, I’ll be satisfied with eliminating you.”
Hearing those words, I could only smile bitterly.
It was an excessive evaluation. No matter how one looked at it, it was not the kind of praise worth receiving from a dark priest who embeds test subjects beside royalty.
However, for now, I didn’t mind.
At least, the likelihood of Miltram disregarding me to pursue the Imperial Princess had significantly decreased. For me, who needed to protect the Imperial Princess first and foremost, it was not a bad situation.
Yet, feeling a bit frustrated by her nonchalant attitude, I continued to put on airs until the end.
“You can kill me, right?”
Once more, a thundering sound shook the cave.
It was the second tremor I had experienced, so I lost my balance no longer. Instead, I gritted my teeth and shot a fierce glare at Miltram.
Miltram mumbled in a daze, her eyes glazed over.
“…There’s not much time left.”
“What on earth have you done to the cave?”
Instead of answering, she gave a faint smile. Covering her mouth, she chuckled softly.
“Wasn’t it a bit strange? Why on earth is there a cave beneath the Academy? They could have done a more thorough job…”
With her words, dozens of blue threads of magic scattered down.
It was a clear expression of hostility. I let out a groan but readied my grip on my sword.
My arm hadn’t fully healed, injuries stacked up from the explosion, and even my ankle joint was misaligned.
Positives were nowhere to be found. Still, there was no option of not fighting back.
With my ankle compromised, there was no way I could properly escape from that monster.
The only thing I could do was buy time until the Imperial Princess could escape.
Miltram spoke in a voice tinged with ghastly insanity.
“…Ah, by the way. Do you like dancing?”
And, swirling around, dozens of threads rose like living snakes.
Today’s dance partner was an immortal monster that wouldn’t die even if reduced to ashes.
Dozens of threads shot out like needles.
I had long since surpassed the number I could respond to with a single sword. I had no choice but to grip my sword in one hand and an axe in the other.
The blades whirled at high speed, grinding the threads of magic like a skilled weaver’s loom.
Even so, some of the bouncing threads were unavoidable as they burrowed into my arms and legs.
With a thud, once again my calf was pierced.
I took a few steps back with a faint groan.
Maybe it was because I was used to it, but even the stinging pain didn’t affect me much. My vision blurred, and my senses became increasingly acute.
Once more, the threads of magic shot out. I chose not to block them this time but rather grabbed hold of one.
The blazing threads of magic stabbed into my hand. Gritting my teeth, I pulled on the thread and hurled it away.
It was a full-force counterattack.
With a thud, Miltram’s body plummeted to the ground like a fish caught on a hook.
Yet Miltram burst into hearty laughter.
The tremors in the cave were growing more frequent, each interval shorter than the last.
Only clumps of dirt fell from the ceiling. What had appeared to be stable walls of the cave began bulging and spitting out their contents.
Instinct and reason rang alarm bells in unison.
Collapse was imminent.
Yet, Miltram simply shook the shock off her head and wore a relaxed smile.
“Ian Fercurus, why do you deny it?”
“…Deny what?”
Gasping, I retorted.
In truth, I didn’t particularly care what Miltram said. As long as I could catch my breath for a moment, exchanging a few words wasn’t a difficult task.
She must have known my intentions, but Miltram’s smile only grew wider.
“You’re angry, aren’t you?”
As she spoke, Miltram tilted her head at an odd angle as if forcing it back in place. Taking a deep breath, she continued her words.
“Nobles are generally foolish. They’re bound by rules and customs more than anyone else, yet they pretend to have a better understanding of the world based on outdated thinking… They don’t grasp the greater good. Their minds have already solidified.”
Nonsense, I thought as I tightened my grip on the hand axe.
With a crack, a shockwave surged as I threw the axe. A supersonic impact that didn’t even make a sound streaked through the air.
However, Miltram did not block it.
She merely chuckled, guiding it to slice off her head.
With a pop, blood spurted forth as Miltram’s head floated into the air.
The threads of blue magic that connected her neck and head tugged at each other like threads forming a cocoon.
As the two remnants met, Miltram’s mouth opened to speak once more.
If I didn’t sever those threads of magic, there would be no answer.
At least not with my current aura. The strength of those threads required repeated strikes for even a chance at severance.
Gasping for breath, I raised my hand and snatched the returning axe.
Miltram exhibited the calmness befitting one of the strong.
Chortling, she continued to persuade.
“So, you’re angry.”
Miltram stepped closer.
I gritted my teeth and threw the axe again.
With a pop, blood sprayed, and the result was the same.
The axe returned, and Miltram took another step forward.
“Fools without any skill! Because you can’t grasp your status, this is why you get hurt and suffer every day. If it weren’t for that…!”
I lunged forward and shoved my blade into her mouth.
Blood trickled down from her gaping mouth. Still unsatisfied, my hand rained the axe down in a frenzy.
Thud! Thud! Thud!
The sound of the axe embedding itself in flesh was eclipsed by the splatter of the fragments mixing with blood.
At first, there was blood, then flesh, and afterward marrow burst forth, even her eyeballs popped out.
Miltram’s laughter did not cease even then.
“Guh, ghap… k-keheh! But, still… haah, it wouldn’t have happened to you? Guf, Ugh… hehehehe!”
Miltram’s steps did not stop.
Before I knew it, she had burrowed into my arms, lightly grasped my arm, and slammed me down onto the ground.
With a thud and a shockwave, blood erupted from my mouth.
The effective blows I had landed paled in comparison to what Miltram absorbed.
No matter how many times I struck her, I thought the strongest threads of magic would eventually sever. But it soon became clear that such judgment had been a mistake.
The threads of magic connecting Miltram’s body parts were regenerating in real-time.
If not severed in one shot, cutting off that connection was impossible. This meant that Miltram, with her flesh of another, was almost invincible.
To cut threads of magic with such density, one must at least reach the expert level.
As I writhed on the ground, my body convulsing like a fish out of water, Miltram whispered into my ear with her slowly regenerating mouth.
“…Do you wish to win?”
The voice suddenly embedded itself in my mind, probing the depths of my desires.
