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Aria initiated the counterattack. As she moved sideways, she fired her crossbow, but Klein dodged the bolt just by seeing it and closed the distance.
“Where should I start, Aria! Your hand? Your leg!”
The onslaught unleashed by his Status, boasting an Overall Combat Strength exceeding 9000, assaulted Aria.
Clang!
“Tch.”
In that instant, Klein deflected the Pendulum attacking from the side with his sword, and Aria threw a small pouch she’d retrieved from her Shadow Storage.
“Poison!”
Powder spilled from the pouch. Klein dispersed the attack—normally impossible to dodge—purely through brute strength, simply by swinging his sword wildly.
But—
“—Hk.”
Klein winced for a moment. I see, that wasn’t poison, but iron sand.
Unlike lightweight poisons or irritants, metal powder can’t be easily blown away. If even a speck got into his eyes, just for an instant… there’s no way Aria would miss such a minuscule opening.
“Haaaah!”
Aria’s Black Knife, filled with fighting spirit, aimed for Klein.
Clang!
“Don’t think you can cut me with that!”
Even so, Klein blocked the knife with his own sword. His Demon Sword and Aria’s Dragon Fang Knife scattered sparks of Mana.
Aria’s Overall Combat Strength, including Body Enhancement, was around 3300. His combat strength, three times hers, sent Aria’s light body flying.
“It’s over!”
Closing in at a speed where I had no opening to intervene, Klein thrust his sword, its tip aimed at Aria. But… is that really okay?
Whizz.
“What!”
At that moment, the thread of the Pendulum Aria had placed in mid-air wrapped itself around Klein’s neck. And then—.
GRAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!!
Kitty, lying in wait, pounced on Klein, swinging his giant claws. But Klein saw even that coming and dodged with ease.
“Is that all—”
Just then, Klein’s voice, which had been chattering mockingly, stopped for an instant.
The taut, dark red thread… Kitty hadn’t aimed for Klein, but for the thread wrapped around his neck.
The tough monster thread gains the strength of steel when Mana flows through it. As his neck was constricted, even Klein’s face literally changed color.
“—Iron Rose—”
【Aria (Alicia)】【Race: Human ♀】【Rank 5】
【Mana Capacity: 333/410】【HP: 251/310】
【Overall Combat Strength: 2484 (Special Body Enhancement Active: 5133)】
There, Aria, having activated Iron Rose, slashed Klein’s stomach with her Black Dagger.
The two of them had executed this entire sequence with just glances. We wouldn’t have been able to land a blow on the Hero if we hadn’t gone this far.
You were too careless, Klein.
Blood scattered… Klein’s face, colored with astonishment…
But!
“Uoooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooh!!”
Klein grabbed the thread tightening around his neck and pulled with sheer force.
Just how much power did the Hero possess? Klein swung Kitty’s massive body around, tearing the thread, and threw him towards Aria and me.
“Nero!”
As Aria shouted, her gaze met mine for an instant.
Yes… Aria. I understand.
I’ve been waiting for this moment.
“—Chase Lightning—”
Twin bolts of Lightning shot from my hands, weaving around Aria and Kitty, using Kitty’s huge body as a blind spot to strike Klein.
“—Guoooooooooooooooooaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaah!!”
Klein couldn’t help but scream. But it’s not over yet!
“Aria!”
As I called out, Aria and Kitty leaped back.
“—Freeze—hk”
The strongest single-target freezing magic. Thanks to them buying time, I was able to pour plenty of Mana into it.
Struck by over ten bolts of Lightning, the staggering Klein began to freeze solid white.
“Snow…”
“…Yeah, I know.”
It’s truly a pain, but we can’t kill the Hero yet.
Killing the Hero means all-out hostility with the Holy Church, not only making us criminals in the eyes of every nation on this continent but possibly isolating the Kingdom of Claydale as well.
The Princess might be able to do something about it, but… For now, let’s crush his limbs and think about it then.
—GRAAAH!!
Just then, a beam of light shot out, piercing Kitty who had become our shield.
“Nero!”
Crack!
Cracks appeared on the surface of the frozen-white Klein, and as if shattering it from within, Klein revived.
…You’re kidding, right? How high is his magic resistance to still be able to move after that?
As Aria stepped forward protectively in front of Kitty, raising her weapons, and we gathered our Mana, Klein clutched his face and glared at us with one eye.
His left eye was still cloudy white, as if frozen. That wound, the kind that would eventually heal if he kept casting Cure on it, was the result of the three of us attacking with all our might.
The Hero… How absurd.
“…How cruel. To do this… to me, the Hero who saves the world.”
As Klein muttered, the skin burned by lightning, the wound in his stomach slashed by Aria, healed before my eyes, returning to normal.
Is this absurd power the Hero’s Divine Protection?
“…Enough. I don’t… need you anymore.”
“Snow!”
At Aria’s voice, I instantly spread my Mana out in front of me, just as a powerful impact sent me flying into the rock wall.
“—Gofu!”
As I flew back, I realized it was Klein’s kick. I couldn’t see it at all. I defended with Mana reflexively, but as I lay immobilized, Klein raised his sword.
“Disappear.”
“You disappear.”
CLANG!!
Aria, flapping particles of light like wings, slashed at Klein from the side.
Klein blocked it with his mithril gauntlet. Mana Particles of light covered his entire body, creating an effect like armor magic.
Keeping the knife blocked, Klein slashed with his sword, and Aria blocked with her dagger.
“Kuh!”
Did that light swing really have that much power? Aria, having blocked it, was blown away to the opposite rock wall.
“—Fireball—”
Klein fired a Fireball at Aria, who had slammed into the wall.
Klein, who had intended to take us back alive and had only used earth magic until now, had finally started trying to kill us.
GRAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH!
Kitty, despite being pierced, intercepted the Fireball as if shielding Aria, then lunged at Klein as if to tear through the magic itself.
“—Rock Blast—”
BOOM!!
『GAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!』
The large boulder fired struck Kitty and exploded on impact, sending his massive body flying.
“You’ve been getting in the way.”
Klein fired a Fireball at Kitty. He’s a high-rank Mystic Beast, so he’s not dead yet, but if he takes high-level magic consecutively, even Kitty would be in danger.
“Hah!!”
CRASH!
Aria intercepted just before impact, and the Fireball, sliced in two by her Black Knife, destroyed the rock walls on either side.
“Haha, still able to move?!”
Klein laughed at Aria as she wiped blood from her mouth.
“—Hurricane—”
Klein unleashed wind magic towards Aria.
She dodged as if riding the wind, but, no, Aria! It’s not over yet!
“—Stone Cannon—”
Countless rock cannonballs were fired, caught in the Hurricane, and the colliding and shattering rocks assaulted Aria.
“Haaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaah!”
Aria parried them using her knife, dagger, Martial Arts, and kicks.
“Don’t look away!”
But on top of that, Klein grabbed a boulder the size of an embrace flying through the air and slammed it down onto Aria.
“—Hk!”
Aria blocked it instantly with the sole of her boot and escaped the area of the wind magic while being struck all over by small rocks.
Aria sensed the danger of Klein’s Demon Sword, which had even sliced a Fire Dragon, and had thoroughly avoided taking that one blow with anything other than her weapons. But because of that, she took too many other hits, and Aria’s HP was being whittled down.
“Just disappear already, you small fry!”
The moment Aria crossed her knife and dagger to block Klein’s forceful sword strike, Klein’s kick struck Aria down.
“Kuh!”
Even using Iron Rose, there’s nearly a twofold difference in Overall Combat Strength between Klein and Aria.
This wasn’t about killing or not killing anymore. If Klein wasn’t defeated, Aria would die. Aria hadn’t given up yet, but at this rate, Klein would torture her to death first.
I never thought the Hero would be such a monster…
I won’t let Aria die. I won’t let her die.
Because dying for Aria’s sake is the only reason I’m still alive.
So, Aria…
I’m sorry.
If it comes to Aria dying, then I’ll die instead.
“…【Soulthorn】…”
The Hero’s power surpassed all expectations.
Snow reached for a forbidden power.