Ossan Saikyō Chapter 8 Part 19
The next morning, after finishing breakfast early, we once again set out along the highway toward Euron.
Hofena rode in the carrying frame from the start, and we maintained as brisk a pace as possible.
“Dost thou believe someone will once again attempt to take my life, Soushi-dono?”
Shizuna asked as we walked.
“I think it's a possibility. If the truth behind this incident is what I suspect, then it would be best not to let our guard down until your innocence has been officially established.”
“I see... What a troublesome scheme this I have been caught up in.”
“But I think it's amazing that you noticed the scheme at all, Soushi-san. I was so busy making medicine and treating patients that I didn't have the spare attention to think about anything else.”
Hofena said from my back.
“Everyone has their own role to play. I couldn't cure a plague, so that's perfectly fine. Besides, I don't even know whether my conclusions are actually correct.”
“But someone really did try to assassinate her, didn't they? At that point, doesn't that prove your theory was right?”
“To be honest, I'd rather have been wrong. If I was right, then that means there's still another complication waiting for us.”
The reason we were hurrying along was precisely to avoid that complication.
Still, I had a feeling Mr.【Bad Luck】was gearing up to do his job.
After all, someone had been following us at a fixed distance for some time now.
No ordinary traveler would go out of their way to keep pace with a group of adventurers moving at a fast march.
Whoever it was clearly had business with us.
“Hey, Soushi. There's a strange smell ahead. It smells like that golem from before.”
Rani's warning was almost exactly what I had expected.
None of the belongings recovered from the three former members of Shizuna's party had contained anything related to golem summoning.
That made it almost certain that someone else had been responsible.
“Sphenia, keep an eye on the person behind us. If they make a move, feel free to attack. Fray, prepare『Halo』. After that, put up『Barrier』around Hofena-san and Shizuna-san.”
“Understood.”
“Yes, Soushi-sama.”
“My, my. Do they truly wish to be rid of me that badly?”
“It seems so. Shizuna-san, please close to Hofena-san.”
We continued down the road.
A short while later, a tremor shook the ground and the earth beside the highway bulged upward.
Emerging from beneath the soil was, as expected, another Flesh Golem made from stitched-together corpses.
This time, however, it wasn't crocodilian.
It was humanoid.
About five meters tall, perhaps.
Its lower body was thick, likely for stability, making it appear slow-moving, but its arms were correspondingly long, so we'd have to be careful of its reach.
“I'm casting『Halo』.”
Light spread across the area as Freynil activated her spell.
Every time I saw it, I was reminded how valuable it was to weaken an enemy right from the start.
Since Sphenia was watching the pursuer behind us, we wouldn't be receiving magical support this time.
“Rani, attack the limbs whenever you see an opening. It looks dangerous if it grabs you, so don't push too much.”
“Got it!”
I stepped forward and faced the golem.
Its first move was a kick.
A massive strike like a piece of heavy machinery swinging into motion.
I raised my shield and took it head-on.
Thanks to【Stability】,【Steadfast】, and【Steel Core】, I was pushed back only about a meter.
Even so, the impact was tremendous.
There was no chance to counterattack immediately.
“I'll take this one!”
Taking advantage of the opening, Rani activated【Dash】and【Vault】, springing upward and slashing at the golem's arm with her flaming sword.
The log-like limb wasn't severed, but the golem roared, so the damage had clearly been significant.
The golem swung its other arm at her.
However, Rani had already landed and evaded with a backward step.
I used the opportunity to sprint toward the golem's legs.
Thanks to the Agility +1 accessory, my acceleration was noticeably faster.
I brought my mace crashing down on one of its tree-trunk-like legs.
Everything below the knee exploded away.
GUMOOOOOOH!
The golem bellowed and slammed an arm toward me.
I raised my shield and blocked it, but this time I was forced to one knee.
“Take this!”
Rani leapt again and struck the same arm she'd damaged earlier.
This time she succeeded in severing it completely.
But the golem seemed to have been waiting for that.
Its remaining arm shot toward her.
Rani was still in midair.
“Too slow!”
Using【Air Kick】, she performed a second jump and instantly widened the distance.
Looks like she'd learned from the previous battle.
I regained my footing and smashed the same leg again.
The lower portion shattered completely, and the golem lost its balance and collapsed.
Even lying face down, it continued reaching toward me.
Its arm exploded apart beneath a single blow from my mace.
When I looked up, Rani was standing atop its back, driving her flaming sword into its skull.
Flames burst from the creature's eyes, nose, and mouth.
Even then it struggled for a while longer before suddenly collapsing like a puppet whose strings had been cut.
“Phew! We did it!”
“Yeah. That was a good hit. Your aerial dodge was impressive too.”
“Hehe. Gotta make sure I don't repeat the same mistake.”
Praising Rani, the star performer of the battle, I returned to the other four.
“Hm. So this is what a D-Rank adventurer is like. The movements are entirely different. I am nowhere near thy level.”
Shizuna sounded impressed.
In reality, we were probably far stronger than an ordinary D-Rank party, but as a former Japanese person, openly saying that felt uncomfortable.
“Well... anyway. Sphenia, how are things on your end?”
Sphenia had been staring into the distance.
At my question, she let out a breath and turned back toward us.
“The person who was following us left after seeing the golem defeated.”
“I see... Then they're almost certainly involved. Did you get a look at them?”
“They appeared to be a slender man. However, his face was concealed, so that's all I could tell.”
“At that distance, that's impressive enough. Hopefully this is enough to make them give up.”
“Once we enter Euron and hand Shizuna-san over to the Viscount, they shouldn't be able to make another move. Anatolia is there as well.”
“True. Let's dispose of the corpse and move on as quickly as possible.”
We extracted the magic stone from the giant golem, gathered the remains, and had Sphenia incinerate them with magic.
Freynil finished the job with «Absolution», and we left the area behind.
Still, it was astonishing that someone capable of controlling such enormous golems existed.
But if such a person truly exists, could they really remain unknown?
And if they are someone famous, wouldn't they stop at nothing to complete their mission?
Despite those concerns, nothing else happened afterward.
And around noon the following day, we finally arrived in the town of Euron.
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E/N:
Nah man, I got a feeling the Mekalinan bast*rds and the one's from the Undead castle as well as the one who attacked are completely different groups, perhaps working together…
Who's this mystery Slenderman?
Stay tuned!
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