Let’s turn back the clock a few minutes.
Mide had flown up into the air to meet with Idria.
Neril, watching Mide fade into a distant speck, lowered her gaze.
Then she spoke to everyone.
“Everyone, listen up. I’ve got a plan.”
Serein asked,
“Um… Do we really have time for a strategy meeting? That giant beetle-looking thing is right in front of us.”
“You’re surprisingly sharp for once.”
“Talk less.”
“Let’s just bind it first.”Neril pulled out Erenica’s heirloom spellbook from within her robes.
After forming hand seals, she slammed the book open.
Whirl.
The book floated into the air, pages fluttering until they stopped at a particular one.
Then she gripped the Gem of Desolation and shouted,
“Ark Sil!”
Normally, even Neril wouldn’t attempt such a spell lightly. But by converting the Gem of Desolation’s vitality into mana, the magic activated easily.
“Oh, what a spectacle.”
As Offense said, it was quite the sight.
Hundreds of magic circles appeared around the giant beetle, Helnaim.
From them, countless chains shot out.
Grrrrrr…
The two joined hands and began to pray.
“O Celestial God…”
“There are those here who defy your providence…”
Neril turned to the rest of the party.
“Purification won’t go faster just because we rush. Expect it to take the same five minutes as in Hasphil.”
“Hm.”
“Then there’s no choice. Let’s take out the beetle king ourselves.”
She explained quickly.
“My disintegration magic will be the main way to kill it.”
“The one that wiped out the Black Sun?”
“Yeah. But I can’t use Ark Sil and disintegration at the same time.”
“So our job is to keep the beetle restrained until you cast disintegration.”
“Can you manage it?”
Offense hesitated, then pulled something from his pocket.
A small vial.
He dipped a dagger into the liquid inside.
“I’ve been wanting to try this. Perfect chance.”
“Poison?”
“A neurotoxin strong enough to paralyze twenty grown men with a single drop. I’m sure it’ll work on monsters. But… that beetle’s shell is too hard. I need a place I can stick this dagger in.”
Then Adwin spoke, pointing at Helnaim.
“There. Right there.”
Near Helnaim’s head, a tiny eye, minuscule compared to its full size, twitched and blinked.
It darted around erratically, as if searching for its next kill once it broke free.
Offense clicked his tongue.
“Such a small target. Not sure I can hit it with a throw.”
“I’ll support you with a spirit. I’ll boost your focus to the limit, it’ll work.”
“Even if I do hit it… that bug’s got eyelids, somehow.”
Lisel replied reassuringly,
“Then I’ll lift its eyelids for you. With a wind spirit.”
“Oh. That’d be great.”
“No problem. Neril, with this setup, we’re good to go, right?”
Neril had been feeling a warm sensation in her chest.
Party members who could figure out what to do without needing detailed orders.
‘Is this how Mide feels when he looks at us?’
She forced her smile down and said,
“Alright. Let’s do this. No mistakes.”
“Right. And from now on, if Mide’s away, you should be the sub-leader.”
“…What?”
“You’ve got a knack for it. The way you gave commands just now, you really resembled Mide.”
In the end, Neril couldn’t hold back her smile.
My movements weren’t much different from when I was on the ground.
That’s how well Neril’s flight spell was working.
Thanks to that…
‘Quick Sprint!’
I closed in on Ophelia at full speed, just like I usually would.
“Kh!”
Ophelia raised her arms in what looked like a reckless defensive stance, simply crossing them to block my sword.
Normally, it would have been slashed straight through, arms and all…
CLANG!
My sword bounced off like it hit solid metal.
Ophelia cried out.
“Ahh. Ow, ow.”
“Sorry. I’m not the most delicate type.”
“Owww!”
Whiiiiir.
Suddenly, millions of insects began to gather from the ground.
Since many had already burrowed into the townsfolk, it was far fewer than the original insect landslide.
But gathered in one place, they looked like a rising mountain.
Buzz, buzz.
The insects climbed over each other, reaching all the way up to our altitude.
They wrapped around Ophelia and formed a giant humanoid figure to hide her within.
[An insect giant.]
‘This is bad. Every one of those bugs is basically a bomb.’
Fwoosh.
The giant, at least ten times bigger than Agril, raised a hand toward me.
Something like light was shot at me.
It was hurling its own insect body parts at me like projectiles.
‘Ridiculously Intense Slashing!’
I used a technique against what looked like thousands of incoming insects.
Swish. Slash.
Screeech!
Graaagh!
Their cries alone were enough to disorient me with sound waves.
My eardrums shook and I briefly lost my sense of balance, but the real problem was something else.
KABOOM!
Every time I cut an insect, it exploded.
I tried to redirect my strikes to avoid the blasts, but by the time the technique ended, my sword was shattered.
“Seriously.”
I tossed away the broken hilt and pulled out the fake Hero’s sword.
“This one should hold up better, even if I rough it up!”
I charged at the giant.
And unleashed my next series of attacks.
‘Ridiculously Intense Slashing!’
A continuous barrage of Ridiculously Intense Slashing.
Normally, just using it once would be so exhausting that I’d need to pause and catch my breath. It’s a technique with that much strain.
But just like when I used it in front of the emperor last time, I felt no problem using this absurd skill over and over.
‘Actually… I feel like I’m getting faster with each swing?’
[You really are one freakish guy.]
‘I meant to say I’m amazing, not freakish.’
[Still, no matter how much stronger or faster you’ve gotten, cutting down all those bugs one by one isn’t realistic. Even if you kept at it for three straight days, it wouldn’t be enough.]
‘Exactly. I need to end this.’
I steadily closed the distance with the giant.
Earlier, the place where it had hidden Ophelia was near its heart.
I focused on my altitude and the exact range.
SCREEEECH
“Shut up. I’m trying to focus.”
Still using Ridiculously Intense Slashing, I gradually pushed toward the giant’s heart, toward Ophelia.
Finally, I reached a spot I deemed sufficient.
Maybe it realized I was aiming for its weakness, because the giant clasped its hands together, transforming them into a massive hammer.
It swung that hammer down at my head.
There had to be at least five times more bugs in that blow than in any of its previous attacks.
[Danger!]
Yeah, I can see that, damn it.
‘No way can I handle that with just regular Ridiculously Intense Slashing.’
Just then…
[Mide. You have really become a superhuman while I wasn’t watching.]
‘Lady Lepia?’
[I was considering giving you advice, but it seems you don’t need it.]
‘No, I do. I can’t break that hammer with my current skill set.’
[Hmm… You mean the sword’s sweeping technique, right?]
She meant Ridiculously Intense Slashing.
[You tend to overcomplicate things, Mide.]
‘What?’
[Try unleashing that technique multiple times simultaneously.]
‘You think I didn’t try? It’s insanely hard on my body!’
[No, I believe you can do it now.]
Lepia, a sword incarnate and the second Hero, said this with absolute conviction.
And somehow, I believed her.
BOOOM.
The hammer was nearly on top of me.
No more time to think!
‘Alright, here goes nothing.’
I pictured unleashing Ridiculously Intense Slashing multiple times at once.
Not additive, multiplicative.
Not multiplicative—exponential.
If I had to name it…
‘Ridiculously Intense Slashing!’
WOOOOOOOOOM.
A roaring wind I could hardly believe came from my sword.
My arm moved so fast it felt like the air was burning against my skin from friction.
Gritting my teeth, I smashed through the hammer.
SKREEEEEE!
The giant staggered, shocked that its own hand had been severed.
I took a deep breath, ignoring the tremble in my limbs.
Then Lepia muttered in disbelief…
[Wait, it actually worked?]
‘…What?’
[Ah, ahem. Anyway, now’s your chance, Mide.]
I had a lot to say, but I’d save it for later.
The giant was staggering, about to retreat.
I aimed my sword at its heart.
‘Cut What I Want to Cut!’
My sword didn’t go for the bugs, it aimed past them, straight at Ophelia hidden behind.
At the last moment, I turned the blade flat-side.
Just as it was about to strike the back of her neck..
“Ugh… Please!”
Ophelia’s voice rang out suddenly.
On reflex, I stopped the attack.
My instincts told me that voice wasn’t faked.
“You know, stopping a technique mid use really messes with me.”
“Mide… Hero…”
“You have regained your mind?”
“No… If I faint… the townsfolk…”
Rrrrip.
The giant’s chest opened.
There, holding her head, was Ophelia.
A glimmer of clarity had returned to her eyes.
“Urgh… If I faint… the townspeople…”
“What?”
“The townsfolk… they will explode.”
She barely managed a few words, but I understood what she meant.
‘Right, those townspeople already had bugs inside them!’
[Not just a few, there were tons. Is she saying if she faints, the bugs will explode?]
‘And that would mean this giant, too, will explode.’
Xenia and Serein might be able to stop the giant’s blast somehow.
But even divine shield can’t protect people from explosions inside their bodies.
This was bad.
‘Damn it. Do I have to run around and find every infected citizen? But how long would that take?’
Then Ophelia spoke again.
“Ki… kill me…”
“What?”
“Please kill me.”
“You just said if you faint, they will explode. If you die, won’t that cause a massive explosion?”
“If I die… the Demon King’s power will be cut off… and the bugs will… disappear…”
Ah.
That makes sense.
If she only faints, the Demon King’s authority remains active.
The bugs, sensing their master’s danger, would explode.
‘But if Ophelia actually dies…’
Then Idria’s authority would be severed completely.
The bugs, maintained by that power, would disappear like morning dew.
Even the “explosion” was likely bound to the authority.
[So… what do we do?]
[Yeah, what now?]
[Would you shut up already? Let Mide think!]
[But I was here first…]
Sorry, but I have got nothing.
I bit my lip.
That’s when it happened.
“Huh?”
Suddenly, the sky split open.
Not metaphorically, it actually split.
From the rift, dazzling light poured down.
I couldn’t help but smile at the sight.
Grand Purification!
They figured it out and cast it without me saying a word?
“Our party members really are the best.”
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