Episode 452
The Three Swordsmen
“…Uhh. What was that shock?”
Fiona murmured with an expression of little change, leaning her body at 90o, standing on the wall of Galahad’s great city wall.
“Kyu.”
And then, moaning like a small animal, Lily went limp with her eyes rolling around. In such a cute down state, she was being held by Fiona on her side.
The two attacked the hammer wielded by the Captain, but immediately afterwards, the shockwave generated by Kurono’s forceful flick of the hammer threw them out of the castle walls like leaves flying in the wind.
At the moment of the tremendous wind pressure, the first thing Fiona did was to protect her hat. The way she quickly held it in place with her right hand to prevent it from flying away was as graceful as a young lady playing on the beach quickly putting her hand on her hat to prevent it from being snatched by the sea breeze.
After that she quickly caught Lily, who was shouting, “Woo!” in a very cheerful way and seems to be flying off into the air.
Just after she had made it that far, the soles of my feet left the ground and I flew away.
I kicked the backs of two or three adventurers who were also flying through the air, and changed direction in midair. After that, I concentrated on using “Air Walk” on both of my feet, and I was able to safely land on the wall.
“Come on, Lily, pull yourself together.”
“Ugh, I can’t hold it…”
I shook her lightly, but Lily’s reply was similar to that of a tourist who has fallen into severe seasickness.
Fiona immediately threw Lily away thinking that holding her was no good.
“Mmm, Kurono, where’s Kurono?”
“Kurono is already fighting that Captain. He seems to be enjoying himself so much that he doesn’t seem to need backup.”
“Eh!”
Lily, who had been ruthlessly purged by Fiona, was floating, flapping the wings on her back, although she didn’t look too good. But now, in her juvenile state, she couldn’t fly, so she quickly returned to the wall and landed lightly at Fiona’s feet, like a butterfly perching on a flower.
“Lily will save Kurono!”
“Even if you say so, I have a feeling that it would be a waste of time to enter the battle now.”
As the two looked up, they saw the Captain, with its magic boosters blasting, rampaging through the air, and three swordsmen boldly slashing at its huge body.
“Wooooooooo!”
The leader of the Element Masters, the Nightmare Berserker Kurono, was leading the way.
The jet-black chain that is his favorite black magic “magic hand binding arts” has already been attached straight to the head of the Captain with its large monocular eyes glittering. Then, by hoisting the chain at super high speed, he flies in a straight line to his destination. Holding the chain in his left hand and the machete in his right, Kurono sprinted through the void, as if he himself had become the Bullet fired from his “Bullet Arts” itself.
However, this Captain brought out the true power of a Taurus, and the pilot who controlled it was also very skilled at realizing instantaneous attacks and defenses. He would not wait for Kurono in silence.
“Whoa!”
It was impossible for the Taurus, whose head was integrated with its body and had no neck to begin with, to make a large head tilt movement, but by blowing the sub-thrusters on both shoulders, it made a movement that shook only its upper body.
As a result, the chain swung loudly, and Kurono’s body was swung around by the strong centrifugal force.
Even as he squirmed in the air, Kurono never let go of the chain with his superhuman grip and unyielding guts, and eventually landed with a thump on his shoulder.
He was shaking his head, perhaps because he had turned a little dizzy. It’s kind of cute, both Fiona and Lily thought. There was nothing to worry about.
In parallel with Kurono’s journey down to the shoulder, there was a black and a white figure running through the right arm of the Captain.
“—Stay back, you miserable vampire.”
“Hmph, you’ll lose your footing if you get carried away like a little girl, Gladiator.”
The one who was running as fast as the Luminous Arrow “Lux Sagita” was Farkius, the handsome Star Gladiator of Spada. His golden gladiatorial armor was literally shining, and his red cloak fluttering in the wind.
In contrast, Rudra, a vampire who was once an adversary, ran with the calmness of a black knife thrown by an assassin. He was wearing a black coat similar to Kurono’s, but it’s older and in the middle of a fierce battle, it looked terrible. In fact, it was in tatters.
However, his run was not a step slower than Farkius’ who was using “Air Walker” technique, and had a faint white aura surrounding his legs.
There was no aura on Rudra’s legs, but Fiona noticed that the soles of his feet were covered with a dark shadow that was different from the soles of his boots.
“I see … that technique seems to be more suited for Kurono to use.”
“Of that black thing, really?”
Just the other day, when Kurono asked me for tips on how to stand on a wall with “Air Walker”, I taught him very clearly and carefully, but unfortunately, he did not learn it.
In addition, both of Kurono’s legs always have the same flow of magic power as when someone activates “Air Walker”. Maybe his legs have been reinforced and remodeled to always have the basic level of “Air Walker” active. Therefore, he has already been using this technique without knowledge.
However, sticking to the wall, kicking the sky, etc. are techniques that are beyond speed enhancement, so they are not natural to use.
And unlike magic, Martial Arts are learned by experience, so it is important to go through long, repeated practice. At the very least, Kurono didn’t have the natural talent to be able to do it right away after a little bit of watching and listening to a few tips.
However, if it is Rudra’s running method, which is likely to apply the primary dark magic on the soles of his shoes, then…
“Now, at last, Kurono will be able to master the techniques I teach him.”
“Why can’t the vampire teach him?”
“Teaching others is a wonderful thing, isn’t it? I think I can understand your feelings a little bit now, teacher.”
While Fiona was fantasizing about Kurono crying tears of joy after receiving her perfect Martial Arts instruction, the fight against the Captain was progressing minute by minute.
Farkius and Rudra were running majestically on the right arm of the giant that crushed enemies, buildings, and everything else, and of course the pilot would not miss their progress. They had just passed the elbow and were walking up to the upper arm when the right arm swung outward from the inside. It was a natural movement, like a person shaking off a flying insect.
No matter how skilled a martial artist you are, you will not be able to stay attached to the Dragon’s tail while it swings it. Even if it were possible, the damage to the body would be severe.
Therefore, the two of them had the same response: dodge.
The two swordsmen, both of whom had abilities that set them apart from ordinary swordsmen, could not fail to notice the moment when others arms began to work. Both of them kicked the Captain’s arm and jumped away.
At the same time as the right arm swung out to create a roaring storm, they had landed soundlessly on its chest. Structurally speaking, the pilot’s seat would be right under their feet. Although it would be impossible to cut through the chest armor, which boasted the greatest protection, and aim directly at the pilot.
As originally planned, the two of them started to move forward again, aiming for the head where the single red eye was shining – just as Taurus’ right arm came back.
It was not a fist, but a slap. With a roar again, a huge iron palm with five fingers spread wide slammed into the thick chest armor.
The heavy sound of steel clashing with steel echoed throughout the battlefield. And the tremors running through the whole body of Taurus were so strong that they seemed to have been felt even by Lily and Fiona, who were standing apart. Kurono , who was standing on the Taurus’s shoulder nearly fell down but was saved by Hitsugi’s chains.
Lily gave an innocent shout of “Hang in there!”, but no matter how much Kurono tried, it would be impossible for him to hear her.
“I’m going first. It’s your turn next.”
“I hope so.”
The duo of Farkius and Rudra, who had a subtle disagreement, went through the huge palm strike without a care in the world and were finally about to reach their target, the eye.
If the Captain still had its left arm left, it would have been able to stop them, but such a hypothetical scenario was meaningless. The pilot of the Captain, who had long since lost his reason and sanity, would not regret this situation either.
So Farkius went one step ahead of Rudra, just as he said. They had already run through the chest and the red eye was already in front of them.
With one, two light steps, Farkius had already landed on the Taurus’ face.
Farkius grasped his silvery double-edged long sword in both hands, ready to unleash his Martial Arts skills. Rudra was the only one here who could understand how powerful and elegant his movements were, and how high he could go as a swordsman. However, there was definitely something there that attracted the attention of even those who were ignorant of swords.
A dazzling golden aura gushed out from the silvery, shimmering blade that was raised to the top.
Those who saw him were simply mesmerized by his beauty, and those who took him on as an enemy were able to tell at a glance that the following blow would be deadly.
“Bright Sword, Victoria.”
A golden slash appeared on the battlefield. It was the glittering sword of victory that had led Farkius to the pinnacle of gladiatorship.
Then a pale golden trail was drawn, and the splendor of the Martial Arts came to a fleeting end.
After this attack, only the corpses of enemies are left behind.
If the enemy is not a person, but a thing, then the wreckage cut into pieces is left.
As he swung his sword away, the Taurus tumbled to the left and right of Farkius – and a thick, black, metal armor plate appeared. Yes, it was as clear as glass, but it was not a lens.
“Damn, I didn’t know you had one of those shields hidden in there too.”
Farkius, who spat out unamused, could see the unharmed red eyes in front of him.
Just before the bursting of the Martial Arts technique “Bright Sword Victorica”, a shutter-like black metal armor was instantly deployed like an eyelid.
Was this the Taurus’ original function, or had the Crusaders taken countermeasures after being targeted in the eye during the previous battle? The reason for its existence was not clear, but it was a fact that the Captain had managed to survive the blow.
“Retreat, gladiator.”
“No, I’m still—“
“Move it! Farkius!”
“All right, Kurono!”
But as soon as Kurono’s shout roared from the side, he flipped his opinion and red cloak and easily fell back. His escape was also brilliant.
Rudra’s advance and Farkius’ retreat was completed in a matter of moments.
And Kurono, who was running on the shoulder of the Captain, was still a few meters out of range. This was a good time for Rudra to fire a shot and then follow up with a strike, but apparently Kurono was planning to join the attack at the same time.
In the left hand of the black-clad maniacal warrior was a jet-black naginata that screamed of resentment that seemed to tear the silk.
“Grudge Resonance!”
The “Haunted Grave” was released by Kurono’s brilliant one-handed throw. It was releasing a loud cursed melody that would overwhelm an ordinary person if he/she hears it.
However, the head of the enemy where it was headed was not an ordinary person. And the only ally standing there was the undead vampire.
Normally, only Kurono’s two swords would benefit from the enhanced tremor of the Resonant Grudge, but because it was vampire Rudra, the cursed song instead–
“Oh, what a wonderful sound … that makes my dry blood boil again!”
With his eyes wide open, Rudra shook his eerie red aura from his slender body and touched his sword on his waist.
The cursed sword “Bloodsucking Princess Scarlet Dye” which had now evolved to “Bloodsucking Warrior Princess” was pulled out with a clear sound like a bell ringing. The dark blade exposed to the sun appeared to be shimmering like fire, probably because of the “Grudge Resonance”.
Rudra’s pale complexion was faintly inflamed, and it was obvious that the duet between the “Haunted Grave” and the “Bloodsucking Warrior Princess” sounded extremely pleasant to him.
However, Kurono was the only other one who could enjoy his singing voice in this place. It was probably Kurono’s kindness that made Farkius, a true swordsman, step back, as it would be a great danger to let him hear this.
And just as Rudra was about to unleash his most powerful Martial Arts move, Kurono threw the “Haunted Grave”, which pierced the side of the captain’s head and stopped his movement. The resonance of the two black blades reached its climax.
“Heaven Beheading Scarlet Scintillation”
This time, the scarlet slash cut off the Taurus’ eye camera lens. It seems that the second piece of armor was not up to the task, and the black blade, which gushed a red aura, sliced through the lens with a slash.
Immediately after the scarlet trajectory passed by, the huge red eye shattered with a rumbling sound like glassware hitting the floor. This was the result of the additional effect of the tremor of the “Resonance Grudge” running through the entire lens from the cut surface.
Thus, the hole necessary to finish off the Captain Taurus was opened.
The only thing left to do was to deliver the final blow.
Kurono was already standing in front of the broken eye so that he wouldn’t miss this perfect opportunity.
The weapon of destruction, “The Greed” was then pointed at the open weak spot.
“I know the barrel’s in trouble, Hitsugi. But I still have to shoot here.”
While muttering this, Kurono pulled the trigger without hesitation.
“Plasma Blaster!”
Then, an extremely large spear of purple light pierced the Taurus from the inside.
“There were a few close calls, but it was a brilliant move.”
“It could have gone better with me.”
As they watched Captain Taurus fall, spewing red flames and black smoke, Lily and Fiona were still discussing their impressions in a casual manner. It seems that their pride in being able to work better with Kurono is more important than the joy of defeating the big guy.
“It seems that the other side has been dealt with for now, so let’s meet up with Kurono. The enemy number will steadily rise.”
The target was a deformed chimera soldier who was crawling up the castle wall.
Yes, the Chimera soldiers, who had not been seen since the first day of battle, had reappeared – or more correctly, they had attacked at once when the Taurus attacked the city walls.
The sight of the Chimeras advancing through the snowfield simultaneously with the Tauruses had not gone unnoticed by the Spada soldiers, but with the huge threat of Taurus looming in front of them, they could not satisfactorily intercept the Chimeras.
And so the Chimeras successfully accomplished their mission. Some of them climbed the walls and attacked the Spada soldiers, while the others were guarding the Taurus.
Therefore, from the moment they stood on the castle wall until now, Lily and Fiona had not only been chatting, but also preventing the Chimera soldiers from attacking the three swordsmen who were fighting against the Captain. Thanks to their support, the three of them succeeded in destroying the Captain without being disturbed by anyone.
“Yeah, it’s not safe here anymore.”
“I agree.”
They saw the Chimera troops charging at them with the force of a raging storm, and behind them, a large army of crusaders marching in unison from a position a kilometer away.
Due to the simultaneous attack on the walls by Taurus and the Chimeras , the wall was destroyed and the defense line deployed on the wall of Galahad was on the edge of its limits respectively. If the main force of the Crusaders were to join in here…
“Even if the apostles don’t show up, it’s going to be a tough battle.”
It was a sight that made even Fiona acknowledge that battle was going to be a hard one.