Chapter 44
The Paganoa Knights were a group with a long and distinguished history.
Their history was long, the information they had accumulated was vast, and they were ones who hunted demons in a systematic way.
As such, members of Paganoa were thoroughly educated on what judgments to make in specific situations.
“According to protocol, the right thing to do is to charge in right now and execute him. Warlocks are things that must be wiped from this land as quickly as possible.”
Knight Fermil said so.
Because when a warlock’s existence was discovered, that was the only thing a Paganoa Knight had to do.
“But it would be better to move to a different location. Innocent people will get caught up.”
“You said it was protocol.”
“It’s a bit embarrassing to say this honestly, but my way of thinking has changed after seeing you. I was able to reflect on what is most important to me.”
Before the gates of Serigel a while ago.
Reinhardt did not harm the humans being controlled by the warlock.
He found a way not to inflict damage on them, executed it, and in the end, achieved a successful result.
“Nepas’s warlocks are those who handle destructive Black Magic. Perhaps a corner of the city might end up in a state no different from ruins. You wouldn’t just stand by and watch such a situation, would you, Reinhardt?”
“If it’s not a situation where I have no choice.”
“Fortunately, it doesn’t seem to be such a situation. Let’s do this. One of us will move first and drive him out. Out of the city, that is.”
It was a plan that Reinhardt liked.
However, there was a problem.
“You said it’s a Nepas warlock. Is he at a level you can handle alone?”
“Of course. A situation like the one before is not common. The experience of directly facing even a part of a demon is, truly, a rare situation.”
Fermil said with a face full of conviction.
Reinhardt agreed with him.
In any case, a single warlock would be easily dealt with by either Reinhardt or Fermil.
“But we must be cautious. If we happen to miss him, he’ll hide away in a place we can never find.”
“You drive him. I’ll wait.”
“……You mean you will face him, Reinhardt. I understand.”
Fermil readily accepted the proposal.
But, perhaps feeling a little anxious, he asked again.
“I’m just asking, just in case, but it has to be done this way, right?”
“Waiting for him is what I have to do right now.”
“Understood loud and clear. I won’t inform the City Hall separately. If a fuss is made unnecessarily, tracking him might become difficult.”
It was exactly what Reinhardt wanted.
Perhaps Fermil was only putting forth opinions that suited Reinhardt’s taste.
“The direction is north. I’ll push up from the bottom.”
“I’ll wait at the north gate.”
Nod.
Fermil disappeared somewhere first.
He was dressed with his sword and armor fully exposed to announce to everyone that a knight was on the move.
Everywhere Fermil went, the atmosphere became boisterous.
It was bustling with people wanting to see the Paganoa Knight even once.
“Bitdori. You heard everything?”
“Pit!”
“Good. We’re going to catch the escaping warlock. To do that, we need to see exactly where he’s running, right?”
“Pit! Pipit!”
Clack.
Bitdori raised its arm in a salute.
Reinhardt nodded at its gaze that seemed to say, ‘Just trust me’.
“Let’s go.”
“Piiit!”
A flash of light soared high into the air.
Reinhardt checked the map and found a few places where the warlock might escape to and memorized them.
Then, Reinhardt called for Dirk.
An anxious expression was plainly on his face.
“Sir Knight, is something really going on?”
“It’s nothing to worry about. Just focus on protecting Irien. You said you knocked down ten men by yourself, so you won’t be pushed around by some riffraff, right?”
“If they’re at the level of the guy who came earlier, I can handle twenty of them easily. And……”
Dirk glanced to his side.
A sword and armor, looking sleek as if they had just been oiled, were placed there.
“If I use the things you gave me, Sir Knight, I could win against thirty.”
Indeed, Dirk’s physique was considerable.
If he had received proper training, he might have become a renowned knight or mercenary.
‘In any case, he’s Irien’s blood relative.’
In any case, he wasn't someone who would be pushed around by third-rate punks.
Reinhardt left the inn and mounted the horse he had tied up beforehand.
Dressed in a robe, he gripped the reins and spurred the horse.
‘There he is.’
Where he looked up, a sparkling light was moving rapidly.
The path of the light was the warlock’s escape route.
Reinhardt moved his position little by little to match it.
‘I should get out of the city. It’s better to keep some distance this time.’
This was a different case from Agrio-s.
The Nepas that Reinhardt remembered was a demon of monstrous strength, capable of destroying an entire city wall and more.
The warlock serving him would likely use similar magic.
But it was at that moment.
‘……The direction has changed.’
The trajectory of the light bent sharply.
It was heading south, not to the north gate where Reinhardt was waiting.
‘This bastard, don’t tell me?’
Hee-hee-hing!
Reinhardt hastily pulled the reins. The horse’s front legs rose high as it barely came to a stop.
After checking the trajectory again, Reinhardt was certain.
‘To think he’d be greedy even in this situation.’
The warlock was heading for the inn where Irien was staying.
Which meant, the plan to lure him out of the city and deal with him had been completely overturned.
“Bitdori!!”
A booming shout echoed through the streets.
At that, passersby flinched and looked back, and the trajectory of light that had been crisscrossing the sky also momentarily paused.
“Stop him!”
Reinhardt shouted again.
The trajectory of light began to be drawn in the air once more.
He wasn't sure, but he thought he heard a reply like, piiit.
Amidst the bewildered gazes, Reinhardt gripped the reins and spurred his horse. The speed was so great that his hood fell off, but he had no time to care.
“Kyaaak!”
“Hey! You should watch where you’re going!”
“Ugh!”
Reinhardt skillfully navigated through the pedestrians with his innate horsemanship, covering the distance.
Soon, Bitdori was no longer visible in the sky.
A battle might break out at any moment.
As he rode with that thought for a moment.
Kwaaaaaang-!
At the sound of an explosion from close range, Reinhardt once again turned the horse’s direction.
***
Tiriel was unable to come to his senses in a situation he had never experienced before.
‘What is this?’
His mind went blank. The flow of his thoughts stopped, and he curled his body into a ball to prepare for the successive impacts.
Paak! Kwaaaaaang!
Strong impacts were continuously being delivered. It felt as if a giant hammer was relentlessly striking him without a moment’s rest.
‘What in the world is happening?’
He felt like a well-bouncing ball.
Tiriel hit a wall, rolled on the floor, was buried in a pile of garbage, and then hit a wall again and bounced off.
“Lord Tiriel!”
“What happened!”
“T-Tiriel! What’s wrong with you!”
He heard the idiots chattering beside him.
Tiriel couldn’t understand their words.
What was wrong with him?
In the first place, this situation wasn’t happening because Tiriel wanted it to.
‘This…… son of a bitch.’
Even in his unclear state of mind, Tiriel felt anger.
He didn't know what the cause of his predicament was, but he felt that he wouldn’t feel better until he had smashed it to pieces.
“Uwaaaaaaaah!”
A shout full of anger erupted.
Tiriel scattered the mana seething inside his body in all directions.
Dark red mana covered the street. And.
Kwaaaaaang-!
A massive explosion occurred.
The mana itself was the medium for the explosion.
It was as if gunpowder had been scattered all around, and Tiriel had thrown a lit matchstick on top of it.
“Hah, haah……”
The impacts stopped.
Tiriel shook his dizzy head and tried to come to his senses.
He looked around, gritting his teeth.
A huge crater had formed. The idiots who had been chattering loudly were nowhere to be seen, likely caught in the explosion.
“Just what bastard was it.”
Tiriel looked around with bloodshot eyes.
He saw the outer walls of the surrounding buildings tattered as if they were sheets of paper.
If he had focused properly, the entire buildings would have been reduced to ashes, but since he had used it in a hurry, the power was lacking.
“Which son of a bitch was it.”
Tiriel’s voice trembled with anger.
If he had his way, he felt like blowing up the entire city itself.
But, that was impossible.
Also, the plan to ‘move secretly’ had been reduced to nothing by the recent explosion.
Swoosh.
Tiriel took a long breath and tried to control his emotions. He swept his blackened hair back.
“I’m taking the kid. If you mess with me again, I’ll completely smash Lockfort. I don’t know if you’re listening, though.”
Tiriel said to someone unknown.
It didn’t matter whether it was heard or not.
Thud.
Tiriel walked through the street covered in ashes.
Dark red magic undulated, enveloping him.
“It seems he has taken a liking to me.”
Tiriel muttered with a smirk.
He felt a fullness of mana he had never experienced before.
He was confident that he could now instantly kill even a Paganoa Knight.
The demon of [Destruction], Nepas, was clearly pleased with his faithful servant, Tiriel.
“Please wait a little longer. I will prepare an offering for you……”
“This one’s a real crazy bastard.”
“Hah.”
At the voice he heard then, Tiriel instinctively stretched out his hand.
Compressed mana accurately wrapped around the target, and then exploded.
Kwaaang-
Smoke billowed up. The target must not have even maintained its shape. Tiriel thought so, but.
Fwip.
A glittering sword blade shot out, piercing through the smoke.
It was a knight wearing blackened armor.
There was no time for questions. Towards the charging knight, Tiriel hastily released his mana.
“Damn it!”
“It won’t work.”
Even with the successive explosions, the knight was not damaged.
Tiriel saw a light. The sword shining under the sun was not something he could block.
Anger surged.
The power of Nepas was rooted in anger.
“Haaaaaaak!”
Tiriel gave up on his body.
Mana gathered in his left arm. He prepared a magic that would take a part of his body as a price.
If it exploded, it was a magic with enough power to vaporize the entire surrounding area.
But it didn't work.
“I told you it won’t work. You think I’m wearing anti-magic accessories for nothing?”
Slice.
With an unpleasant sound, the sensation from his left arm disappeared.
It was only natural, as his entire arm had been blown off.
But Tiriel did not yield. He had two arms, and there was still a chance.
“Cut my throat! Knight!”
“Bullshit.”
Slice.
His right arm was also gone.
The knight, instead of cutting Tiriel’s throat, was solely interested in thoroughly blocking his magic.
Tiriel glared at the knight with blood-red eyes.
He sent a gaze filled with all sorts of negative emotions, but the moment he looked into the knight’s eyes, he realized.
“If I kill you, the last spell you cast will become stronger. You think I don’t know that? Huh?”
The knight was also angry.
The depth of that anger was deeper and heavier than that of Tiriel, the follower of Nepas.