Ossan Saikyō Chapter 6 Part 05
When I woke up in the morning, for some reason Freynil was clinging to my arm.
“When she woke up during the commotion last night and you were gone, Freynil panicked. Try to think about that a little, okay?”
Rani told me that, and now that she mentioned it, I might have made her uneasy. She still has a somewhat childlike side, so I’ll need to be more mindful of that going forward.
The call to assemble was given, so we readied our equipment and headed to the gathering point.
We lined up next to the C-rank party〈Fortuner〉. Of course, we were still assigned to the commander’s unit today.
“Yo, sounds like you did pretty well last night.”
Zeal, the leader of〈Fortuner〉, called out to me. Behind him were the female mage Leila who had cleaned me yesterday, a burly warrior named Dolno carrying a shield as tall as himself, and a beastkin woman dressed like a ninja named König.
“I ended up covered in zombie flesh, though. Thanks to Leila, I was saved.”
“Zombies, huh… when there’s a lot of ’em, someone’s gotta dive in and get dirty or it won’t end. Good thing that girl Freynil can use «Absolution».”
“Yeah, seriously. If the smell hadn’t come off, it would’ve been the worst.”
“Heh, you’ve got two girls with you, after all, better keep up appearances.”
While we were chatting like that, the signal was given, and Anatolia began her speech.
“You all fought well last night. Some of you may be tired, but if we delay, they will only increase in number. Today, we must completely destroy the undead stronghold and rid the people of their fear. I expect great efforts from all of you!”
With a collective roars “Yeah!”, the subjugation force began advancing toward the forest.
As usual, the hundred adventurers led the way, followed by two hundred soldiers of the territorial army.
From a distance, the undead castle still wasn’t visible, but some adventurers seemed to sense something beyond the forest, murmuring among themselves.
At about 200 meters from the forest, Anatolia halted the advance.
She stepped forward alone and raised a short staff with a crystal attached. The crystal flashed sharply, and abruptly, the castle deep within the forest became clearly visible. It seemed to be a tool that dispelled illusions.
“Wha-?! That thing was really there!?”
“I can’t believe something that large was hidden… Soushi-sama was right.”
Rani and Freynil stared in shock. The other adventurers were also murmuring, though the four members of〈Fortuner〉simply glared at the castle in silence.
“From here on, it is enemy territory. Advance with caution!”
Led by the beastkin woman König, we entered the forest. She apparently excelled at detection skills and trap-finding, essentially a scout.
We reached the front of the castle without incident. Not even a single Terror Knight appeared. It seemed they were waiting inside.
Up close, the undead castle was enormous. The walls had no windows, only a large double door at the front.
“Mages, forward. We will destroy the door with projectile-type magic. Prepare!”
At Anatolia’s command, around twenty-five mages stepped forward and began concentrating.
“Fire!”
A barrage of stone bullets and rock spears struck the door, shattering it and blasting it inward.
I expected monsters to rush out, but nothing emerged. Instead, a strange, clinging presence seeped out from the gaping entrance.
Freynil stepped beside me, her face tense.
“Soushi-sama, I feel an extremely strong presence. I think there are three powerful undead.”
“You can tell?”
“Yes… I think they’re stronger than the Lich from before.”
“Hmm…”
I considered reporting it to Anatolia, but Freynil didn’t yet have enough experience to guarantee the accuracy of her senses. If the information wasn’t reliable, the situation would remain unchanged.
Still, saying nothing didn’t feel right either. Someone capable should at least be aware. In that case, he’d be the right choice.
“Excuse me, Zeal, may I have a moment?”
“What is it?”
Zeal replied without taking his eyes off the entrance.
“Freynil from my party, says there are three undead stronger than a Lich inside. Just keep it in mind.”
“Can you trust that?”
“She seems to have sharp perception regarding undead, possibly some kind of skill. But she lacks experience, so I can’t guarantee its reliability yet.”
“…Got it. I’ll remember.”
That should do. Even if he complained about unnecessary information, Zeal seemed the type who could handle it. As expected.
When I returned to Freynil and Rani, Anatolia began issuing orders.
She split the adventurers into two groups: one group centered around herself would enter the castle, while the other would remain outside to provide support if needed.
If all hundred adventurers went inside, it would just cause congestion. And some needed to stay behind to protect the soldiers.
“Alright, we’re going in. Follow me!”
Amazingly, Commander Anatolia herself took the lead and headed toward the entrance. If powerful monsters appeared suddenly, having an A-rank at the front would reduce casualties…
The three of us followed〈Fortuner〉into the castle.
Inside was a vast, empty lobby. There was a staircase at the back and two corridors on each side.
As all fifty adventurers entered, multiple presences approached from both corridors.
The adventurers spread out and readied themselves, then Terror Knights began marching out in droves.
“D-rank to the front, E-rank provide support!”
Even as an improvised unit, the adventurers coordinated well. The Terror Knights’ tough armor stood little chance against D-rank attackers. They were sliced, crushed, and pierced one after another.
We were positioned in the center, so for now we had no role. But judging by how Anatolia stared at the staircase, things wouldn’t stay easy.
“Soushi-sama, it’s coming…!”
Freynil said, also looking up the stairs.
The next moment, even I could feel a powerful presence descending.
“Freynir, «Sacred Ray»!”
“Yes!”
Sliding down the stairs came a warrior clad in exceptionally fine armor. No, inside that black armor was empty. Must be a superior version of a Terror Knight.
The notable feature was that it held its helmet under one arm, meaning it had no head. Like a Dullahan, though without a horse.
“Headless Adept, B-rank. Rest of you, do not engage!”
Anatolia shouted sharply and charged. In the next instant, the clash of blades rang out, and their positions had swapped. I couldn’t even follow it.
“Crap, more are coming — two of them!”
Zeal pointed ahead. Two more headless armored warriors had descended, likely lower variants.
“Headless Soldiers, huh. We’ll handle them.”
〈Fortuner〉moved into formation.
“Soushi-sama, I can fire «Sacred Ray»!”
“Wait, Freynil. Cancel «Sacred Ray», prepare『Halo.』. Use【Crucible】and make it strong.”
“Ah, understood!”
Freynil began concentrating again.
Firing magic into〈Fortuner〉’s fight would be bad. But support magic should be fine.
From what I could see, neither Anatolia’s fight nor〈Fortuner〉’s was something we could interfere in. While Anatolia’s battle was too high-level to even judge,〈Fortuner〉seemed at a disadvantage; the Soldiers’ swordsmanship, enhanced by the【Whiplash】skill, had no openings.
Also, with the bosses appearing, the number of Terror Knights had increased. At this rate, things could turn into a battle of attrition.
“Hey, Soushi, are you sure about using『Halo』?”
Rani asked, worried about revealing Freynil’s likely ultra-rare【Divine Magic】in front of so many.
“I know… but we don’t have a choice. If we hold back and people die, Freynil would regret it.”
“Yeah… that’s true…”
“Soushi-sama,『Halo』is ready!”
Hearing her call, I raised my voice.
“Debuff magic is being cast! Everyone, watch out for the light! Do it!”
(E/N: The first part was said towards everyone else, 'Do it!' was for Freynil)
Freynil activated «Divine Glory». The wide lobby was flooded with light.
“What the hell was that…? Wait, these guys are slowing down!?”
Zeal seized the moment and cleaved a Soldier in half.
The other one suddenly turned and charged toward us, apparently sensing Freynil as a threat.
I raised my shield and stepped forward. It feinted a strike and tried to slip past me.
A feint using the【Whiplash】skill. Too bad, I have it too.
Ignoring physical laws, I smashed my mace into it.
The combined force of【Might】,【Heavy Burst】, and my trained power crushed its weakened armor like paper.
“Shii!”
A sharp exhale rang out. Anatolia’s blade flashed, bisecting the Adept vertically.
It didn’t even look like the sword made contact… Was that skill or pure technique?
With all three Bosses defeated, the Terror Knights stopped appearing. The rest were quickly wiped out.
Then a rumbling tremor rose from deep underground. Figures, the was castle collapsing.
“Retreat! Get out of the castle immediately!”
Following Anatolia’s command, we quickly exited the castle.
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E/N:
Kind of wanted Ossan to land a hit! And I guess, there was no choice but to reveal the ace debuff spell…
Stay tuned!
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