Clang!!
Seda, the other twin, clashed her Shamshir against my Black Dagger, the high-pitched sound echoing through the Dungeon.
“Seda! —[Air Curtain]!”
Immediately, Seriku, the other twin, frowned at Seda’s impetuousness, but still erected a Wind Barrier around himself and Seda, and Seda’s attack, riding that momentum, forced me to retreat slightly.
“Don’t think you can win against us!”
Seriku and Seda, male and female twins, warriors under the command of Charleschan of the Yoma Clan.
Seriku, the male, was a Rank 4 Magician, using Dark Magic of at least Level 4. Though a Magician, he wore soft leather armor, so he was no amateur in close combat. Having mastered the Assassin-oriented Magic [Shadow Walker], I guessed he was in the same scouting line as me.
Seda, the female, was a close-combat warrior of Rank 4 as well. She was the type to attack with the speed of wielding a Shamshir, a lightweight one-handed sword. Her straightforward personality would be an advantage as a skirmishing light warrior charging into the enemy.
High-level Dark Magic and a dual-wielding light warrior. Both were the same combat style as me, and although both of them were weaker than me, who had mastered both, their individual skills were probably higher than mine.
“Oraora!!”
Seda swung her sword like a dance, shouting loudly, and I parried with my Knife and Dagger to match. The speed was equal. But, due to the difference in muscle strength or weight, my body was swept away each time I received a blow from Seda.
“—[Dark Gimlet]—!”
An unknown Dark Magic was unleashed from Seriku, and sharp needles were fired from a fist-sized mass of darkness shot above our heads.
“!”
“Haa!!”
Aiming for the moment I dodged the Dark Gimlet, Seda swung her sword with all her might, and I instinctively floated my feet and took distance as if being blown away by blocking it. But Seda, who I thought would follow up on my broken posture, crouched down on the spot.
“Die, human woman!!”
“—[Shadow Walker]—”
Dark Magic was unleashed from Seriku again, and at that moment, Seda, who had disappeared into her own Shadow, attacked from behind me. A deadly blade approached before my eyes. Thinking that I wouldn’t make it in time to parry with my Knife, I took the blow with the gauntlet on my left arm.
Ginn!!
I managed to block it with the Magic Steel core embedded in the gauntlet, but I couldn’t stop myself, and while rolling on the Dungeon’s stone floor, I threw the Hidden Weapon I took out from [Shadow Storage] at Seriku and Seda.
“Seda! Don’t stray too far!”
Seriku stopped Seda, who was gradually moving away from the supply unit, and she frowned slightly at his words as she was about to attack me.
“You saw that, right, Seriku? I won’t lose to this kind of guy even alone!”
“…Tch.”
Seda thought she could beat me alone with the feeling of crossing blades, and Seriku, who knew that I used [Shadow Walker] when I decided to participate as a warrior, was quite wary of me, who was of the same type.
“…………”
I kept the twins in sight, and while confirming that there were no abnormalities in my bones or tendons, I continued to analyze their strength.
Seda was straightforward… or rather, simple, and Seriku, on the other hand, seemed cautious or suspicious. If these two were to fight alone, they should be able to compensate for each other’s weaknesses and make the most of their strengths, but as it is, Seriku’s awareness is being diminished by the burden of the supply unit, and there is a discrepancy in the actions of the twins.
Besides… the “sensation” that made the fine hairs on my body stand on end that I felt at the beginning hasn’t disappeared.
“Are you running away!”
Seda immediately charged in to chase after me, who suddenly started to distance myself even further.
“Seda!!”
As expected, Seriku stopped Seda, who had stepped forward. But Seda, who had a slight quarrel earlier, ignored it and chased after me.
Behind Seriku, the supply unit was still fighting the Great Boar. With that strength, they shouldn’t lose, but they shouldn’t be able to get away unscathed either.
Worried about that, Seriku couldn’t leave that place. As a tactic, I would separate only Seda from this place, but I dared to use this situation.
“—[Fear]—”
“What!?”
Seriku reacted to the [Fear] that I released while retreating. I wasn’t aiming for Seda, but Seriku. Because he was a Dark Magic user himself, Seriku, who knew its effect, immediately tried to evade it.
The Dark Magic [Fear] is an inconvenient Magic that can be almost resisted if the Ranks are equal. But, even though Seriku, a Dark Magician, knew that, he chose to evade it with more caution than necessary because he was suspicious.
As long as the resistance probability is not 100%, there is a meaning to evade it. But, my real aim is not you.
『BumoOOOOOOOO!!』
“What!?”
My real target was the supply unit behind him. The reason I threw the Knife at Seriku, who had a Wind Barrier, was to concentrate his attention on me and make him forget the existence of those behind him even for a moment.
All the personnel in the supply unit were Rank 3. Even if it was a fluke, the effect of [Fear] would be exerted or not, but even if there was no effect, Seriku would have to check the situation behind him.
But, the [Fear] I released hit the Great Boar, which had been dealt with by the supply unit and was on the verge of death, turning it into a “death soldier” who had forgotten death.
“Damn it! I’ll deal with the Great Boar. Seda, keep that guy in check!”
“Hmph, I’ll defeat this woman before you’re done over there!”
Seda responded to Seriku’s voice without taking her eyes off me, and took out something like a “Tag” from her chest.
“I’ll show you my ‘trump card’.”
Seda chanted something like a spell and tore the Tag as if to break it. I don’t know what that act means, but at the same time as I threw the Pendulum, I, who had a hunch about the strangeness of that Mana Particles, Seda jumped out with several times the speed of before.
“Kuh.”
Gigi gigigi gigigigigigigigigigigigi!!
Perhaps her physical ability couldn’t keep up with her senses, Seda’s sword scraped the stone wall behind me, which I had dodged in a hurry—
Pakiin!!
With how much muscle strength would that happen, the Blade of the Shamshir finally shattered.
“Haaa!!”
“!”
Seda threw away the other Shamshir and swung her long, sharp claws.
I instantly suppressed the momentary confusion to the depths of my heart, and while parrying Seda’s claws with the Level 5 Martial Arts, we kicked each other away to create distance.
“Haa… Haa… How about it, human woman!”
Seda’s eyes, breathing roughly as if gasping for air, were dyed bright red to the whites of her eyes, and her muscles were swelling, and even sharp claws and fangs were growing.
Is that their “trump card”? It’s a phenomenon I’ve never seen before, but I recognized the flow of that Mana Particles.
“…“Sorcery”, huh.”
Sorcery is a magical technology that the Sage, an Elven Sorcerer of the Assassin Guild, also used.
The Sage used chemicals and Sorcery to turn humans into monsters, and used self-harm as a medium to use various Sorcery. Seda also used the Tag as a medium to put a “curse” on her own body, temporarily transforming herself into something close to a Monster.
“They use Sorcery and turn into ‘Demons’… so that’s the ‘Yoma Clan’.”
“That’s right. I’ve shown you this far. I’ll end it with your death soon.”
They must be applying physical enhancement through Sorcery to the members of the clan. As expected of a chosen warrior, it’s amazing that she still has her ego left after receiving this much curse, I honestly thought so.
If you combine human wisdom and technology with the power and toughness of Monsters, you should be able to defeat most enemies. But no matter how strong you become, if the opponent is a Monster, there is a way to fight like a Monster.
“…What?”
Seda narrowed her bright red eyes at me, who put the Knife and Dagger in their sheaths and held the Ball-Shaped and Blade Scythe Style Pendulums at a length of about 1 meter.
Dann!!
At the same time, I jumped out as if kicking the stone floor, and I, who allocated Body Enhancement to speed, kicked up Seda’s claws at the moment of crossing.
Seda ran up the wall with the momentum of jumping out, kicked the ceiling that was as high as a two-story roof, and pointed her claws at me, and I deflected those claws as if slamming the Ball-Shaped Pendulum into them, rolled to create distance, and ran towards where Seriku and the others were.
“I won’t let you escape!”
“Then come and chase me.”
“Seda!?”
Seriku raised his voice at me, who jumped in, and the transformed Seda.
The battle between the supply unit and the Great Boar still raged on. Even to my eyes, the Great Boar’s body was dead, but it continued to rampage, adding to the supply unit’s dead and wounded.
“Gah!?”
I embedded the Blade Scythe Style into one of the supply unit members, and as I switched positions as if pulling a thread, Seda’s claws, aimed at me, tore the man’s neck apart.
“You bastard!”
Seda, realizing what had happened, let out an angry shout and swung her claws at me as I slipped through the supply unit.
Having turned into a monster, Seda was in a state where she had self-awareness but couldn’t control her emotions. The Sage had controlled her by binding her actions with sorcery and drugs, but Seda, by hurting her comrades and feeling anger, rampaged even more, needlessly harming her own allies.
“Stop it, Seda!!”
Seriku, who had been momentarily stunned, shouted, and at the same time, Seda’s rampaging body was swallowed by Shadow.
He had instantly isolated Seda with 【Shadow Walker】, but what was he going to do with that? The shield that had been in charge of close combat was gone.
“Tch!”
Seriku retreated, took out the same tag as Seda from his pocket, and immediately tore it up. He probably thought that even if his close combat Skill was lower than Seda’s, he could fight me if he turned into a monster. That thought was correct. That’s why I had been able to anticipate it.
“Uooooooo!!”
Seriku, having drawn his Knife and turned into a monster, slashed at me. I pointed my fingertip straight at the target.
“—【Phantom Pain】—”
“Gah!?”
The Knife that Seriku unleashed pierced the torso of Seda, who had stiffened due to 【Phantom Pain】.
Where had Seriku sent Seda? No matter how flustered he was, he wouldn’t have sent Seda, who was in charge of close combat, far away, I thought.
It didn’t matter if that prediction was wrong. If that were the case, I just had to defeat Seriku before Seda returned. But from the battles so far, I predicted that Seriku would send Seda to my blind spot, and I had placed my 【Shadow Walker】 there.
Seda, who appeared between me and Seriku, stiffened with 【Phantom Pain】, and Seriku, who didn’t have a close combat Skill higher than Seda’s, couldn’t stop the Knife he had unleashed after turning into a monster, and pierced Seda’s body.
“Se, Seda!?”
The moment Seriku, stunned, raised his voice, the Ball-Shaped Pendulum crushed the head of the monsterized Seda from behind.
Blood splattered, Seda’s body slowly collapsed, and towards Seriku’s frightened face on the other side, I swung my Knife high.
“—【Critical Edge】—!”
A flash of Critical Edge, Seriku’s severed head flew through the air and disappeared into the Dungeon’s intricate Darkness.
“…………”
All that remained were the wounded supply unit and the nearly dead Great Boar.
There was also the fear that reinforcements would come, sensing the distorted space caused by the 【Shadow Walker】 that the twins and I had used repeatedly.
If possible, I should leave this place immediately. But I remained there, and instead of the supply unit, I pointed my Black Blade towards the Darkness of the Dungeon where the head had been cut off.
“The one who’s watching… come out.”
From the beginning, I had felt a chilling sensation.
At first, I thought there was a trap. That the real forms were the Yoma Clan twins, who also had the trump card of monsterization.
But it was different. From the beginning, I had felt a sensation that made my hair stand on end from the presence of “it.”
It hadn’t found me. It hadn’t noticed this battle.
Probably, from the beginning, it had been watching these twins as “bait.”
“…………I wanted to meet you. Pink Hair girl.”
A still young…childish voice was heard, and from beyond the Darkness, a small figure clad in a jet-black cloak appeared.
I didn’t feel the presence of life… But from that figure and its voice, which approached silently, without shaking or sliding, I felt a burning hatred akin to joy.
“…Do you know me?”
“Ah, I know you well. Only your face, that guy… Gostola sent it to me.”
“…………”
Gostola… There was only one person I knew with that name.
The Evil Race Vampire who sought achievements to ensure the survival of his clan, and who invaded the kingdom to kidnap the Princess, causing Elena and me to be blown away to the desert.
“I shouldn’t have let him go after all… If it was going to end like this, I shouldn’t have given him the Dungeon’s treasure. Only the corpse of my friend Gostola returned. That’s why I sold myself to the Yoma Clan… to avenge him… to meet you…”
The figure, who had been listing grievances, threw off the cloak, and a Dark Elf girl who looked no older than her early teens, wearing a blood-colored dress, turned her crimson eyes, as if shedding tears of blood, towards me.
“It’s you…! To kill you, who was burned into Gostola’s eyes! I swear on the name of the Vampire Clan Chief Scheherazade, I will kill you with my own hands!!”
To avenge the murdered Evil Race Vampires, to start a war to kill the human race, and to reach me, whom she didn’t even know, the clan chief herself had come all the way here.
“…Very well.”
I also threw off the shawl I had wrapped around my neck, and held the Black Dagger and Knife in both hands.
“I’ll cut off the cause of concern here.”
The past’s karma appears.
Next time, the battle with the strongest Vampire Princess begins.