Chapter 91. No, I Got Caught Too
Hiiing—!
An untimely horse’s neigh echoed through the Hamelin Great Forest.
A ghostly wail that sank down coldly. Solion crossed the great forest astride a spectral horse.
‘T-this damn dog…!’
Two pupils shot through with blood-red. A face drained pale. A wreck of a figure, so ruined you’d wonder if a person could change like this in such a short time!
Inside, it was burning black no less than that.
‘It was done! I-it was done, but…!’
Destrow—its arrival was not far off.
Muspellun? He had seen through the strategy he’d devised.
Assuming a small detachment, preparing the curse, and even grinding in the spirits he’d gathered over an entire lifetime!
And yet, he felt no regret at all.
Why would he regret it!
Destrow.
The moment this ancient monstrosity (凶物) arrived, he would obtain far more than that.
His merits would be recognized; he would take an officer post in Salvatium and receive the reverence of all those forbidden mages. And was that all? With the reward handed down from the Elders’ Council, he might even dare to dream of a second shedding (脫却).
For Solion, it was a lifelong longing.
An officer post—no, more than that: to enter the Elders’ Council and enjoy a life close to eternal life (永生)!
But.
‘Because of that damn thing…!’
Solion fixed his eyes on the two Death Knights running ahead. And beyond them—
A bastard, flapping a robe turned to rags, fleeing like his tail was on fire.
Pathetic.
Fighting ancient wraiths, fighting Death Knights and undead—
His armor was scraped and gouged here and there, and his left arm had long since fallen to the ground and crumbled away!
Yet apart from that wretched appearance, that thing was the source of all of this.
‘Why you? How could you…!’
That whispered scream was for a trap that should have caught the unidentified masked man.
Muspellun’s strategy? The moment the masked man stepped into that trap, it wouldn’t matter.
All Solion had to do was wait for the sweet fruit to ripen, then simply take it into his hand!
But the moment that damn thing appeared, everything went awry.
Truly—everything had gone awry!
“You… you, and you still call yourself Shine von Lehmann! You’re the traitor of the age! You, and you still call yourself a knight!”
Solion screamed until his throat was about to burst.
It wasn’t to needle at her on purpose.
His insides were literally burning.
‘The Elders’ Council. Damn that Elders’ Council…!’
The thing forbidden mages prattle on about like a habit:
- You won’t be at peace even after death.
That isn’t a lie.
Even Solion himself could seize a soul and bestow pain beyond words.
It couldn’t be compared to some torture where death is an escape. It was absolute agony with no escape at all!
Unlike bodily pain, which has limits, the pain of the soul is horrific every moment, and every moment it is new.
‘No. No… Please, anything but that….’
With a desperate heart, Solion spurred on.
Whether they understood that heart or not, the Death Knights with their reason numbed only ran on in silence, hands steady on the reins.
‘Time… There isn’t much time!’
Before he knew it, a blue veil had been drawn across the sky.
With a flash of light, the ancient wraiths lost their bodies and became souls.
Muspellun’s operation had begun at last.
Even so, Solion could not let go of the reins of hope. No—he could not.
“If only… if only I can get you into my grasp… I can stop it!”
He was certain.
Shine von Lehmann, restored to reason—she was a more perfect existence than any Death Knight.
And then…
Wraith Lord (亡靈君主).
If Shine would merely command her undead legion with the “Wraith Lord” engraved into her when she was first made…!
Was it that Solion’s wish had gotten through?
[Th-this damn thing…!]
A sudden, single-syllable scream.
Shine’s movements visibly slowed.
Even on a spectral horse it had been hard to catch her, but her speed suddenly dropped.
As if she were walking underwater.
Why?
He didn’t know what had happened. No—honestly, he didn’t need to know.
All that mattered was that now he could catch her.
“Catch her, catch her! Catch that bastard…!”
At Solion’s bark, the two Death Knights sprang up into the air.
No—they hadn’t flown. It was simply that the spectral horse’s leap was that high, that high.
“Cut off her arms and legs and make her kneel!”
[How dare you…!]
Was she trying to resist?
Shine swung her sword with fierce momentum.
Solion flinched for a moment at that momentum, but it didn’t take long for him to regain his composure.
“U-haha! Uahaha! I said you’d held out quite a while!”
A booming laugh burst out.
On a face as drained of blood as someone dying, an utterly bright smile spread.
Delightful. No—he couldn’t help but be delighted.
Clang, whirrrrk.
Thwack!
Perhaps her strength gave out; with a single parry the blade went flying weakly and lodged into a tree.
Crunch! Clatter, clack.
The Death Knight’s second thrust severed that arm. Then the third, the fourth.
Thud-thud, thud.
Shine’s body slumped down, powerless.
“At last… at last… I’ve caught you!”
Solion smiled brightly at the sight.
He’d thought he’d stuck his head straight into the maw of hell, but there had been a sliver of hope after all.
So how could he not laugh!
He had no choice but to laugh.
Shine lay sprawled in exhaustion, staring up at the sky wrapped in the blue veil.
‘You damn dog… cutting off my mana?’
A violent chase.
It didn’t take long for the mana she’d stockpiled for emergencies to run dry.
That spectral horse—yeah, it really was good.
Even when she ran at full speed, it followed behind leisurely, unhurried.
And that wasn’t all—how fierce the undead were, too.
She’d been surrounded once, and just breaking through that encirclement had consumed half her mana!
So she’d barely kept herself going on the mana she was receiving… and then…
—Tuk.
All of a sudden, the mana supply cut off with a hard stop.
It was enough to make anyone go mad and jump out of their skin.
[They say you don’t trust a beast with black hair on its head…!]
His hair was gray, but black or gray—it was six of one, half a dozen of the other.
And while Shine was fanning the flames of hatred toward Aster, a shadow fell over her helmet at that very moment.
“Angry, are you? Shine von Lehmann? Heh-heh, looks like your master abandoned you, huh?”
[Cut it out with that obnoxious mug. Your bloodshot eyes are seriously nauseating.]
“Uahaha, this is the first time we’ve talked like this, you know. It’s a pretty fresh feeling.”
[Your eyes are rotted through, too—huh?]
A sharp voice, with a force like a blade.
But as Solion looked down at Shine like that, his face was calm to the extreme.
A Death Knight whose arms and legs had already been severed—what was there to fear?
It was simply laughable.
“Yeah, go on and yap as much as you like. The only time you can be that insolent to this body is right now.”
After saying that, Solion swept his gaze around. For a moment.
“Let’s see… You’re bound by a Bracelet of Subjugation, aren’t you?”
He hadn’t checked, but it was obvious.
How else could someone who wasn’t even a necromancer control undead? It was impossible without a Bracelet of Subjugation.
‘Then….’
Solion quietly turned things over in his head.
A retainer contract made with a Bracelet of Subjugation—powerful stuff.
Depending on how you used it, it could even make undead that already had a master your own.
But.
Who was it that had handed the Bracelet of Subjugation to Belloc? Solion himself.
‘Did you think I’d hand that Bracelet of Subjugation to an idiot like Belloc without preparing a countermeasure?’
A retainer contract made with a Bracelet of Subjugation—the method to break it had already been fully researched.
Solion leisurely set his hand on Shine’s breastplate.
“……. ……. ………….”
Lips moving without rest. A voice leaking out. From his grip, Black Magic Power flowed out, seeping into the breastplate.
That was when Shine opened her mouth.
[Uh, uhh…! H-hey, hey! What are you doing! You’re doing it right away?]
This was an unexpected development.
You know how it goes.
A villain who has barely defeated an apostle of justice—standing there, striking whatever poses he can, savoring his victory in front of them.
This is why you lost, that is why you lost. If you’d done this, it would be me lying there instead.
He replays the battle without anyone asking, and on top of that he babbles out the rest of his plans.
But for him to jump straight to the point like this?
[Have I ever seen a bastard with no sense of professional courtesy…!]
He was the same breed as that gray-haired bastard.
Of course, if we’re talking about being ill-mannered and the lowest of the low, the gray-haired one was a few steps higher—but in vibe, they were the same.
‘This rotten… I’m becoming this guy’s retainer again?’
Unacceptable.
Look over there.
Two Death Knights on horseback, spears drooping, staring straight ahead.
To ordinary people, it would be a sight that made their knees go weak.
If you tossed a blackish robe on them that was about to become rags and put a big scythe in their hands, they’d be Death (死神) itself.
But.
How stupid do they look!
Like broken dolls—standing there blankly unless given an order, waiting only for their master’s call. A pitiful state beyond belief!
—You damn bastard! Mana! Give me mana! If you just repair my arms and legs, I’ll take care of that damn necromancer right away…!
Shine urgently sent out a spirit message.
A moment ago she’d cursed him as someone she couldn’t be satisfied with even if she chewed him up, but once danger struck, the only thing she could rely on was him.
But there was no answer.
—Do you know who I am?! I’m Shine von Lehmann! Shine von Lehmann! And yet you’re throwing me away like this? Huh? Throwing me away?!
A deep surge of resentment rising from her chest.
It was infuriating.
‘Back then… I should’ve just left back then!’
He looked like a guy who’d be pretty fun, so she latched on—
But the one having fun wasn’t her; it was that bastard wearing a mask.
And now she was fated to become a black mage’s slave again!
And then, a realization suddenly flashed through her mind.
‘A servant and a slave—aren’t they basically the same thing… damn it!’
Shine desperately denied that realization. No—she had no choice but to deny it.
But she admitted it.
—Master bastard, hurry up and get here! The Death Knights are going to die!
A single coin of pride tossed away. The first time is hard; the second time is easy.
—Please, come already! Master bastard, I’m begging…!
The word “master” spilling out on its own!
For Shine, it was a desperate cry.
Because becoming that unlucky bastard’s servant was bad enough, but becoming a black mage’s slave was even more terrifying.
But was it that her earnest wish had gotten through?
—Master bastard?
A voice that rang in her mind.
—I’m here!
—No, not yet though. But master bastard?
‘This damn thing…!’
Her temper flared at that calm, unruffled voice, but Shine steadied herself and then corrected the form of address in an even tone.
No—she tried to correct it.
—Master… master… master… you piece of trash not even better than a nymph! Why the hell did you cut off the mana!
A single thread of pride left. The “sir” part—she absolutely could not allow it.
If you got down to it, nine times out of ten this mess was his fault.
—Where the hell are you! Huh?!
A frantic voice. She could feel it.
Tzuzuz—.
“……. ……………….”
The longer the black mage’s chant went on, the more it felt like something was making her not her. A filthy, damp feeling swelled higher and higher.
She was about to become that black mage’s slave. Like those miserable Death Knights!
—When are you coming already?!
The answer came immediately after.
—3.
—3…? What kind of damn bullsh—.
A voice came again.
—2.
She was startled, not understanding the situation, but only for a moment.
—Damn it, it’s over!
Shine could feel it.
That damn black mage’s trick was coming to an end.
Even now—look. Rather than resentment and hatred toward that damn gray-haired bastard, loyalty toward the black mage was swelling up, wasn’t it?
But then—
—1.
Thud—!
Right after that, a rough, dull impact sounded above her head.
“……. ……. …………Kagh!”
The black mage chanting let out a short scream and went flying like an arrow that had been loosed.
And then, soon after—
Wham!
After slamming into a giant tree, the body slumped down helplessly.
[What…?]
Shine couldn’t understand. From her viewpoint, the black mage had simply gone whoosh and flown away.
That was when a shadow fell over her face.
“Master what? You’re not using the right form of address, are you?”
[You…!]
An obnoxious face. But not disgusting—because he was wearing a mask.
[You finally came to save me!]
Shine raised her voice in delight, but Aster shook his head slightly.
“No. I got caught too.”
[……?]
The flame in Shine’s helmet flickered as if she didn’t understand.
Aster looked at her and snorted.
“Just kidding. I just wanted to say it once. Anyway….”
Eyes swiveling.
Aster tossed a single line while looking at the forbidden mage flailing after crashing into the giant tree.
“This body appears.”
Death Knights and a forbidden mage.
Villain vs villain.
The apostle of justice had arrived to bring that fight to an end.
A line that, depending on how you looked at it, almost sounded impressive. That was when a painful sound came.
“Uhp, uweeek…!”
“…….”
An abrupt sound of vomiting.
Aster—and Shine as well—turned their heads and fixed their eyes on the source of the sound.
“S-sorry… motion sickness… uup!”
It was Oberon.
