Counter Stop – Chapter 222

◆ Avangarde Royal Capital – Inside the Castle Gate ◆

“Right! More to the right! Good job, John!”
“What the hell is this kid?! What kind of moves does she have?!”

Despite the chaos, Elmera was engaged in a brawl with someone from the sixth squad, mocking him all the while. Who is this John? Elmera effortlessly dodged his flurry of punches without retaliating even once.

“You’re the only one left, John! Show us the pride of the sixth squad!”
“Damn it! Our captain’s down, and now I’m being toyed with by this kid?!”

John wasn’t weak by any means. He was giving Ai and the soldiers a hard time in hand-to-hand combat, which meant he had trained quite a bit.

“By the way!”

“Gah!”

Elmera’s fist landed squarely in John’s solar plexus, ending the fight in an instant. The entire sixth squad, including their captain Bunarg, lay defeated. They were hurt badly enough that even if they managed to stand again, they wouldn’t have the strength to fight. While I hesitated to kill, leaving them like this was, as Weiss said, not a good idea. So my answer was this: if they lose their will and ability to fight, they won’t be able to cause trouble again. They would likely be taken to the castle and thrown into a dungeon, but I didn’t want to think that far ahead.

“Lua-chan, I’ve taken care of most of the eighth squad over here too!”
“Yeah, I saw. You knocked them all down with your staff.”
“Kurinka-chan is so cute, but she’s definitely a dragon! You can’t deny the blood of a dragon!”
“I don’t quite get what you mean… Kurinka?”

Kurinka, being serious, indulged Elmera’s nonsensical comments. Because of that, Elmera started to play with Kurinka’s blonde hair. If she got too carried away, Kurinka might get angry.

“Growl…!”

“W-Why is there a monster here?! Stay back! Shoo! Shoo!”

Over there, a Blast Chimera had cornered the thieves against the wall. As it inched closer, they tried to push back and retreat. But they couldn’t back away any further.

“Don’t kill them!”
“Rar!”

Since it responded, I figured it would be fine. After all, it was a good creature.

“The sixth and eighth squads are nearly wiped out… Lord Verbal!”

“By pushing the sixth squad to near annihilation, we will bring forth even greater tragedy! They will experience the terror of my Custom Magic!”

The man in the triangular hat was Verbal, the captain of the eighth squad. Come to think of it, I had heard that name before. It was mentioned by the pirates who attacked us while we were on the Leopardess Guild’s ship. That meant he had water attributes.

“Custom Magic, Bubble Hazard!”

Countless bubbles appeared in the air. This was bad.

“Pop!”

“Imagination Magic, Pollution!”

Elmera effortlessly dispelled the multitude of bubbles with a flick of her finger. Verbal stood frozen in place, unable to comprehend that his magic had been erased. It seemed to take him a while to realize what had happened.

“W-What? What is this tragedy?!”
“Isn’t it just water magic? What’s so custom about it? Die, idiot.”
“What did you do?!”
“If it’s water, I can just evaporate it. You were planning to attack with the droplets from the popped bubbles, right? Your sense isn’t terrible, but there are about thirty-two better methods. Want to take a class?”

Instead of experiencing the terror of his own magic, Verbal ended up realizing the horror of Elmera’s Imagination Magic. He trembled and swayed, supported by his subordinates.

“Lord Verbal! Pull yourself together!”
“I’ve been researching water attributes for a long time! That was the most efficient magic I could come up with for causing damage! Even the captain acknowledged it! I was confident in my ability to cause large-scale destruction, but now I can’t trust anything! Tragedy, tragedy, tragedy!”

“Looks like he’s broken.”

Despite having done something quite terrible, Elmera flashed a bright smile and gave us a peace sign. That man had spent so much time perfecting his water magic, only for Elmera to ruin it in an instant. Anyone would lose faith in everything after that.

“Lua-san…”
“It might be better for Ai and the others to stay back.”
“Y-Yeah, you’re right.”
“But I’d appreciate it if you could fight.”
“I-Is that okay? We might just be a hindrance…”
“If you understand that, then just step back instead of peeking out!”
“Don’t mock those who fought with their lives on the line, Elmera.”

When I really wanted her to be quiet, I glared at her seriously. Elmera stuck out her tongue and shrugged as if to say, “What a hassle,” but she never defied me. It might not be very admirable to overpower her like that, but I thought it was just right for Elmera. After all, it was sad to see the three of them huddled together like turtles, looking dejected.

“N-Next wave is coming!”

When one of the soldiers shouted, the thieves revealed themselves through Shadow Entry. Now, there were more than double the number we had just defeated. The soldiers and Ai’s trio turned pale; it was indeed disheartening to see them appearing so easily.

“Wow, what a wonderful spell! Six points!”
“Your grading is harsh…”
“Huh? That ‘pop!’ from earlier was only 0.4 points, you know? By the way, Kurinka-chan’s magic is…”
“Oh, no thanks. I don’t want to hear it.”

Neither do I. If she starts giving out ten points, I might just smack her.

“Hey, isn’t that the Flash Strike Girl?”
“Don’t be ridiculous. The Kyanser and his crew should have taken care of her!”
“But the sixth and eighth squads are already decimated! It has to be the real deal! This is not what we were told!”
“W-Well, calm down. The rumor about her taking down a giant dragon in one hit is probably just exaggerated. Look, compare her to the wanted poster…”

“““She looks just like the real deal!”””

As soon as they realized it, they panicked, comparing the paper in their hands to me. Elmera looked like she was about to burst out laughing, and I couldn’t understand why I was being treated this way. Also, my item pouch was trembling.

“Upon closer inspection, there’s something else besides the Flash Strike Girl!”
“The blonde one is often seen with her… the Flame Princess!”
“Who’s that strange-eared kid over there?”
“She’s actually pretty cute. So pale, I just want to lick her all over… A girl should be just like that.”
“I want her too! I’d love to have her from behind!”
“You don’t get it, do you? The mouth is the ultimate pleasure!”
“Too young is just stinky, you know?”

“Hey, why are humans like this?”
“Not all humans are like that, okay?”

With her pointed ears drooping, Kurinka’s exasperation was palpable. I felt like there was nothing more I could say to support her. I had no idea what those guys were talking about. What do they mean by “behind” or “mouth”?

“To all squads of five, seven, and nine! This is Magnes, who has taken over as the new captain of the fifth squad in place of Grabe! We must connect this to the main force… and the pursuit of squads two, three, and four! My Custom Magic generates magnetic force! No matter how fast the Flash Strike Girl is, if she can’t move, it’s over!”
“You don’t need to explain all that, Magnes!”
“You idiot! I hate underhanded tactics! There’s value in a fair and square victory!”

With hair that looked like serrated teeth standing straight up, he seemed surprisingly serious. But if he really wanted to fight fairly, he shouldn’t be coming out from below.

“You don’t have to do that; just do it this way, Magnes.”

Just as I was mesmerized by Magnes, my spine turned cold when I saw what a thief had brought out from a nearby house. In his hands were the severed heads of a woman and a little girl. Warm blood dripped from the necks, and it was beyond painful to witness.

“H-How horrible…!”

Kurinka’s disgust was evident, and even Elmera’s playful demeanor vanished, her eyes narrowing with a serious glare. From her click of the tongue, I could sense a deeper disappointment in humanity.

“These guys have really crossed the line, in more ways than one. And the other half of this…”

Another thief emerged, cradling a small boy under his arm. His lips and everything else were pale, and he probably didn’t even understand what was happening. The tears welling in his eyes reflected the unbearable weight of senseless violence.

“I told the father, who’s rolling around inside, that if he wants to spare one of them, he has to kill the other. Can you believe it? He freaked out and came charging at me, even though I generously offered him a choice. How stupid can you get? Right, everyone?”

“I wouldn’t kill a kid! Reducing the number of mouths to feed would make things easier, right? Hyahahahaha!”
“You idiot! You could sell the kid to a slave trader! If you kill your wife, you can find another woman, right?”
“No way, you’d just get ambushed there, wouldn’t you?”
“I guess that’s why you died, huh? We, on the other hand, are lucky. We got good gear and even learned Custom Magic. Those who are cursed from birth are just destined to be that way!”

“Hahahahahaha!”

“Hey, seriously… why are humans like this?”

As I felt like I was about to be drenched in blood from head to toe, a chill ran down my spine from beside me. For a moment, Elmera’s quiet emotions sent a shiver through me. It was so silent that it felt like I couldn’t grasp anything, yet it was an anger so immense it was almost overwhelming. The fact that Elmera, who was leading the Phantoms and occupying the Nation of Negesta, could say such things only fueled her violent rage. This anger had reached a point of absurdity. Where would it be directed?

“Now, let’s have the Flash Strike Girl represent us and ask a question! If you want to keep this brat alive, what do you need to do?”
“A hostage! How dirty! Hehe!”
“But this is us, the Comet Wolf Brigade! We won’t back down while being looked down upon, even if it means losing our heads! No matter who the opponent is! Did you think we would be scared? Hyahha!”

I was at my limit too. As Kurinka transformed into a dragon, Elmera activated her Imagination Magic, and I moved almost simultaneously.

◆ Avangarde Royal Capital – Port ◆

Our passenger ship was attacked at Avangarde Port. I never expected such an unforeseen situation to occur. The moment I stepped off the ship and was surrounded by unsavory characters, I had a bad feeling.

“This is… quite troublesome.”
“Bottom-san… help…”
“Hm? Ah, of course.”

I never imagined the enemy would be the Comet Wolf Brigade, but it was okay. The passengers were still on the ship, and it was just me, Rash, the adventurers guarding the ship, and the soldiers from Avangarde.

“How’s that, Truppo-neechan!”
“Don’t let your guard down…”

“Ugh, what the hell is going on?!”
“Is it over there? No, is it here?!”

Today, I had never felt more grateful for Rash’s Illusion Magic. While I was completely powerless against something like the Golem army led by Zeech from before, against living opponents, it was unparalleled violence. The thieves, deprived of both sight and recognition, attacked in the wrong direction or fought amongst themselves.

“Bottom-san! Let’s regroup for a moment!”
“Jijinia, most of them can’t move because of Rash-kun’s Illusion Magic. We can leave those guys alone.”

“That’s right… we should be careful of others…”

The adventurers guarding the passenger ship were quite skilled, but against this level of force, it felt unreliable. Moreover, there were too many enemies to cover with Illusion Magic. There were hundreds of them. I wondered if Rua and the others were safe. No, it wasn’t worth worrying about them.
What worried me more was Grandpa. I couldn’t shake the curiosity about why he brought me to this country, even putting me to sleep. I knew he had something to hide, but I absolutely didn’t want that to be our last goodbye. I would never let him say goodbye again.

“The Comet Wolf Brigade isn’t that impressive, huh? I could probably take them down all by myself! After all, my Illusion Magic even fooled Rua-neechan and the others!”
“Don’t get cocky like that… Grandpa told me that’s not good…”
“Truppo-neechan, you act like that when there are others around too. Just talk normally instead of wearing that oversized robe.”

I wanted to do that too. But it couldn’t be helped now that things had turned out this way. Grandpa said it was like extreme social anxiety, but it wasn’t that I hated people.

“More importantly, I need to quickly tell Grandpa and Rua-neechan about that. If that’s true…”

“…to convey that, I need to…”

Ahead of me stood a man who moved strangely, unaffected by Rash’s Illusion Magic. He had long pink hair, black glasses, and a red suit that clung to his body uncomfortably.

“Ahh, hohoho, hehehe♪ Oops, I got carried away with the rhythm.”

The man smoothly approached while spinning, and I braced myself, unsure how to deal with someone so bizarre.

“There’s a terrifying boy with Illusion Magic, huh? But you know, fighting is all about rhythm. There’s a rhythm you should follow in everything. Once you understand that, you won’t be confused by anything. Ahaha, hohohoho♪ Oops, I got carried away again…”

“Truppo-neechan, who is this guy?”

“I am Jikaru, captain of the 14th squad of the Comet Wolf Brigade. Now, everyone! Dance to my rhythm!”

As the man named Jikaru clapped his hands, the movements of the thieves came to a halt. Then, in the next moment, they began to spin and perform various movements.

“Hi hi!”
“Hehehe hey hey hey!”
“Yeehaw!”

“Now! More tempo! 3, 2, 3, 2, 1! Chan-chan-chararan-chan-charara-chan-chan♪”

In short, everyone was dancing. Led by Jikaru, the thieves moved in perfect harmony as if they were performing in a show.

“Whoa! What is this?!”
“Silva! Don’t get distracted! I’ve heard rumors! There’s a dancer who was expelled from a theater and can control the battlefield with dance in the Comet Wolf Brigade!”
“You know about him, Jijinia!”

“Wow… that’s something impressive…”

“R-Rash! No! Don’t get entranced!”

Bottom-san’s warning came too late. Just a moment of being captivated by that dance was enough to seal Rash’s fate.

“W-What? My body is moving on its own?! Whoa whoa whoa!”

“Hi hi hi! You like my rhythm, don’t you? This is Custom Magic, Heart Charm!”

“No way! But it feels kind of fun!”

“Rash! Focus!”

Even as Bottom-san and I tried to hold him back, he broke free with a strength that belied his age and continued dancing. Before I knew it, the soldiers from Avangarde had joined in, turning it into a large-scale musical.

“We need to do something fast…”

“We’re the ruthless band of thieves~♪”

“Wahya!”

A thief’s blade grazed my nose. If I hadn’t instinctively stepped back during the chant, I would have been cut. Terrifyingly, everyone was launching some form of attack while dancing. Soldiers dancing alongside the thieves were burned, pierced, and slashed. Yet, the soldiers continued to dance, and it took me a while to realize that this bloody musical was Jikaru’s true essence.

“Hi hi! You’re getting into it! This is just the beginning! Ahaha! Hehehe! Huhuhuh! Hehe! One! A! Hah! Oops, I got carried away again…”

“W-What should I do…?”

Right now, the only ones who could move properly were Bottom-san, the three of us, and me. If I carelessly approached that dance, I would be attacked immediately. And whatever rhythm it was, my Fire Shot missed naturally when I tried to test it. In this chaotic state, I could hit even our own soldiers.
Rhythm, it was something so wonderful that it could captivate so many people. I wasn’t praising the enemy; I was beginning to see something that had been missing within me. Yes, I couldn’t understand people’s hearts. I couldn’t tell if they were happy, angry, or sad. When I spoke without knowing, I would end up hurt. I had unconsciously feared that. So, gradually, I distanced myself from people, and eventually, I truly understood nothing. I couldn’t even grasp what was so good about this rhythm or what everyone was moved by. Ironically, that was now becoming a source of help.

“You’re cute, boy! Let’s dance together! Those freckles! Those skinny legs from your shorts! So tempting! So tempting!”

“W-Wahhh! This feels so wrong! Truppo-neechan! Help me!”

The incomprehensible preferences made me feel nauseous. I couldn’t tell if this was a punishment for avoiding people all this time.

◆ Shin Report ◆

This is bad.
Current situation:

◆ Avangarde Central Street ◆
Kirkton, Ord, Ritta, Irene, Yuyu, Mugen, soldiers
VS
Mysterious man

◆ East Street ◆
Seigel
VS
Jag

◆ Near the Castle Gate ◆
Rua, Kurinka, Elmera, Ai, Mai, Mi, soldiers
VS
Comet Wolf Brigade squads 5, 7, 9
Squad 5, Captain Magnus
Squad 7, Captain ????
Squad 9, Captain ????

Avangarde Port
Truppo, Rash, Bottom, Jijinia, Silva, soldiers
VS
Squad 14, Captain Jikaru

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