Boukensha Ni Naritai To Miyako Ni Deteitta Musume Ga S Rank Ni Natteta Chapter 24

Editor: H . K . Glenstid

The wind is similar to the breath of a magic beast . It’s warm and sticks to the skin .

The group ran after the young adventurer guiding them, who is talking as if he is excited by the situation .

“Even though there was no wind, the weird black clouds came from the west and covered the whole city in an instant! Now there’s undeads! What the h.e.l.l is going on?”

“So it’s a black cloud…Is there someone behind all this?” Belgriff tilts his head .

Upon arriving, the street is full of people fleeing for their lives away from the cemetery . The hordes of people make it difficult to pa.s.s through .  

“This is bad . Everyone’s panicking . ”

“Yes… we won’t be able to get through here…”

As the group struggles to move forward, a familiar voice booms .

“Everybody! There is no need to panic! I need you all to calm down and follow what the soldiers say!” Sasha arrives at the scene with a unit of soldiers following closely behind her . They split upon Sasha’s orders and start evacuating the citizens in an orderly fas.h.i.+on .

Sasha’s eyes catch the groups . “Sorry to keep you waiting! Let’s go!”

“Nice work Sasha . We should get a move on . ”

With the chaos in the streets finally under the soldier’s control, the group of adventurers can finally move through .  

Bordeaux has only one cemetery on the outskirts of the city . It covers a ma.s.sive area; and it’s for this reason that the group are greeted by a never ending stream of the undead .

The undead are literally moving corpses . Regardless of whether it used to be a human or animal, the corpse turns into a magic beast due to the presence of magical power inside it . The body always retains its original form . Decomposed and rotten flesh make up its structure, with the foulest of odours oozing from its body .  

If there are only a few, the threat can be considered minimal; something that a few adventurers can handle easily . But the danger of an undead legion isn’t a matter of strength, but by their numbers . If there are hundreds of undead, then the situation requires high-ranking adventurers .  

In addition to that, there are instances where incorporeal spirits and high undead appear — powerful high-ranking magic beasts . Normal weapons do not work against these creatures and can only be defeated through magical means .

The Bordeaux adventurers struggle to maintain ground against the never ending stream of undeads . With the foul odour of rotting corpses warping the adventurers’ senses and the fact that undeads have no need for stamina; it’s clear that the adventurers will not last long under these circ.u.mstances .

“d.a.m.n it! W-Why…why is this happening?”

“n.o.body knows! So shut up and keep fighting!”

The adventurers are slowly pushed back by the horde . Adventurers here and there are being forced to retreat, and the overall morale and their hope slowly begin to diminish .  

All hope seems lost .   

Then a rain of arrows falls from the sky .

The Bordeaux adventurers watch on in amazement as the shower mows down the corpses .  

Anessa runs past with a grin .  

A new burst of arrows falls from the sky and the undead who were approaching the area are all knocked to the ground . For a few brief seconds, the battle seems to stop and the adventurers let out a collective sigh of relief .  

At that moment, Miriam’s magic begins to s.h.i.+ne from above . Geometric patterns appear in layers in the sky . After a chant, bolts of lightning strikes one after the other . Undeads explode on impact, the ground rips from its power . The smell of seared flesh emits into the air .

Like a blur, Angeline jumps into action . She speeds towards the undead with light steps and gracefully cuts every undead she sees down . Even an incorporeal spirit—a being that is immune to physical attacks—falls before the ‘Black Haired Valkyrie’ .

The undead cannot be defeated by the ordinary attack of a sword, no matter how many times it is cut . They are after all; beings created and sustained by magical means . But if the sword is imbued with magical power, the undead will fall with a single blow .

The Bordeaux adventurers can only watch with jaw dropping awe at the ease with which the girls defeat the undead .

“Incredible…as expected of an S Rank adventurer party!”

“They’re…the most powerful people I have ever seen…”

“Oi lads! Don’t give up just yet! I say we show them the strength of the Bordeaux adventurers!” 

Inspired by the three girls, the adventurers’ morales rises . And the counterattack begins .

Belgriff watches this scene from behind the adventurers, a proud smile involuntarily on his face when he sees his daughter’s skill with the blade . Right now, she’s not the sweet little girl from Tornela, but the ‘Black Haired Valkyrie’ Angeline .  

A true S Rank adventurer .  

Belgriff closes his eyes, a warm smile lingering on his peaceful expression .

I never thought I’d get this feeling again…I wonder how many times I partic.i.p.ated in subjugation quests when I was an adventurer? Belgriff thinks .

Belgriff pauses . “No…there’s a time and a place for a trip down memory lane . ” 

The retired adventurer eyes harden as he slowly unsheathes his sword . The leather scabbard hisses in familiarity from the blade, and a wry smile finds its way on Belgriff’s face as he takes a heavy step forward .  

Belgriff blurs forward and with a single swing of his sword, he splits an undead who was standing above a couple of downed adventurers . The adventurers raise their voices in surprise .

“Y-You’re… You’re the ‘Red Ogre’…”

“I’m sorry we weren’t of much help . ”

“Thank you for saving us! You are seriously strong!”

“You’re a very reliable person!” The adventurers raise their weapons and cheer harder for the man . Belgriff doesn’t think it’s such a big deal, but he still gives them a nod and a warm smile .

The undead currently have lost their advantage due to the initial attack of Angeline and the girls, but their numbers show no sign of stopping . It’s still only a matter of time before they regain their original momentum .

Angeline slips through the hordes of undead, her blade flas.h.i.+ng left and right and striking down her targets with relative ease . Her body moves with perfected grace with her blade, like an intricate and deadly dance . She sneers at the foul smell emitting from each kill, but pushes herself to continue forward .  

Meanwhile, Anessa covers Angeline from behind her, like a hawk watching its prey . Each arrow flies true, and with no fear of striking her friend .  

Miriam continues to bombard the undeads with her magic from a safe distance, destroying waves upon waves of undeads .

Sasha also charges through the battlefield . Though not as skilled, her vigor rivals Angeline’s, taking down the hordes as they come .

Belgriff closes his eyes and takes a deep breath . He can’t move like Angeline or Sasha right now . Also, the smell of the cemetery is quite putrid, but it’s not completely unbearable . Belgriff then concentrates on what movements his body can make .  

He smiles, finding it quite peculiar that right now he isn’t training; but in the middle of a real battle .

Using his prosthetic leg as an axis, Belgriff spins and lashes his sword, beheading an undead . With minimal movement, the old adventurer leans back, letting a skeletal arm swing by him . Using the undeads momentum Belgriff embeds his sword in its chest .  

Although his magical power is considerably below average, he can still feel the magic emitting from his body to his sword . He wasn’t expecting to kill the undeads in a single strike . So he is quite surprised to see that his enemies are falling to his blade one after the other .

“I wonder…can this be applied to anything other than undead?” 

However, as Belgriff murmurs to himself, another undead approaches and attacks from his back . But the decomposing body is slow and sluggish, nothing that Belgriff couldn’t handle . A swift swing and its head goes flying .

These movements don’t burden his body too much, but he has yet to become fully accustomed to them .  

And that could leave him with a lot of openings if he’s not careful .

“I really shouldn’t think too much about it . ”

I must sharpen my senses, he thinks to himself . Then, he squeezes the hilt of his sword and throws himself towards the nearest undead . His movements slowly grow faster, his instinct hone with each strike . His heart races and his adrenaline kicks into overdrive . How long has he last felt this feeling? This nostalgic feeling off…battle? Belgriff can’t help but smile childishly .

Gradually, the combat begins to lean in favor of the adventurers thanks to the intervention of the S Rank adventurer party . One by one, the number of enemies reduces .  

In this kind of situation, there are magical barriers that allow adventurers to finish off the undead in an instant . But for some reason, Elmore—who’s supposed to take care of that— hasn’t activated them .

It was at this moment the old Guild Master comes running to the cemetery . He looks exhausted and is covered in sweat, but he manages to get to where Belgriff and the other adventurers are .

“We have a situation . The barriers won’t activate . That black cloud is affecting it somehow, but I have no idea how . It’s impossible to contain the situation and if this goes on…well, we will be fighting an inevitable losing battle . ”

“It interferes with barriers? What could that cloud possibly be…?” Belgriff looks up .  

Maybe it was due to the position of the sun, but the cloud seems less dark in this place . Does the density of the cloud vary from linking to place? Belgriff looks towards the Bordeaux mansion . In that direction, the clouds are much thicker and darker .

“I think it’s coming from the west…where Hazel is . ” 

Belgriff immediately has a bad feeling . If he remembered correctly, Hazel was the city governed by people who don’t agree with the Bordeaux’s policy .

“Tell me Elmore, are all the adventurers here?” Belgriff asks the Guild Master .

“Yes, most of them are gathered here . Of course there are others currently away on quests, but we have the garrison a.s.sisting us when they can . Residents are still being evacuated, and a small amount of the undead have also made an appearance in various parts of the city . ”

Belgriff goes silent . “A focussed attack that requires all the adventurers and the garrison, and a cloud that blocks the containing barrier . It’s quite convenient for just an outbreak of undead, isn’t it? It’s almost as if there’s someone pulling the strings somewhere . But if that’s the case then…”

Belgriff turns his head towards the black cloud over Bordeaux mansion in the distance . “There may also be other objectives…”

Elmore nods, thinking hard over Belgriff’s words . “It is certainly unnatural…Also, it’s quite peculiar that something like this happens without any warning . ” 

“I’m going to the Bordeaux mansion,” Belgriff says . “For some reason, the clouds are thicker in that place . I have a bad feeling . ”

“Well…I suppose that’s true,” Elmore looks at the cemetery . Most of the adventurers seem tired from the long battle, but the girls are still fighting on the front line remaining strong and maintaining their stamina . “I’ll go with you Belgriff . If Lady Sasha and Lady Angeline are here, there’s nothing to worry about . ”

“That would help a lot . In fact, I’m still not familiar with the streets of the city,” says Belgriff with a humoured smile . Apparently, some of the other adventurers were listening to Belgriff and offered their a.s.sistance .  

A few moments later, a small force storms towards the Bordeaux mansion .

It took them completely by surprise . Most of the guards of the mansion had to go to the streets of the city as the soldiers and adventurers were shorthanded .

The ground floor is full of undead, and with no escape, the feeling of hopelessness began to spread . With only a handful of guards, Ashcroft could barely do anything as the undead overwhelmed them at the entrance of the mansion and forced them to the second floor . With the remaining guards, Ashcroft made a defensive formation .

In front of the guards, there is a sea of undead . Behind them, Helvetica and Selen—along with a few servants and escorts—are hidden inside one of the rooms .  

The wounds Ashcroft had suffered in his battle with Angeline that same morning have yet to fully heal . Tired and still sustaining his injuries, there was little that he could do . And if that were not enough, among the ordinary undead there are some powerful higher-ranking species . In addition, the unpleasant smell wasn’t doing anyone favours .

In a one-on-one fight, Ashcroft is quite confident in his abilities . But he was no adventurer, he has no experience fighting an undead horde . The guards do their best, but they slowly fall one after the other, and right now he’s only got only ten comrades left .  

Ashcroft can only curse himself for the precarious situation they find themselves in . His own arrogance that morning placed him in this unfavourable situation .

“d.a.m.n…What kind of butler am I? I’m an idiot…”

He hadn’t realised his pride had grown so much . As soon as he had begun to help with the development of the territory his arrogance and ego had only grown . This was the result . He—as a butler—had sentenced his own master to her death, because of his foolishness and petty ego .

All that pride and self-esteem he had felt until that morning had been shattered into pieces . But he couldn’t let his mind wander now . Right now he had to try his best to mend the situation . If he died while performing his duties, then let fate be so .

“We are servants of the Bordeaux family! Do not falter! Do not cower!” says Ashcroft in a thunderous voice to lift the spirits of his comrades . “For Lady Helvetica and Lady Selen, we stand our ground!”

The butler readies his sword . Although his sword technique cannot be compared to Sasha’s, he can at least give her a worthy challenge . Even when injured, his skill with a blade was no joke .

However, the number of undead does not decrease . If one is defeated, another appears in its place . Ashcroft’s and the guard’s movements are tiring, their stamina and morale depleting as they try their best to maintain their position .  

One of the guards gives a heartwrenching scream when one of the undead bites his neck . Ashcroft s.h.i.+vers and lunges, piercing the undead where it stands . He quickly checks for the guard, and sees his body already no longer moving .

Ashcroft hand trembles .

“Is this retribution…for my att.i.tude?” murmurs Ashcroft . Would his ego bring death to his Lord? No…he refused to let them pay for his mistake . As long as he lived, he will not fail his masters .

Ashcroft fixes his gla.s.ses and regrips his blade with a renewed resolve . He prepares to create an escape route for Helvetica and Sasha .

Then a loud rumble is heard behind the undead . It doesn’t sound like more undeads . Cries and moans of undeads lingers through the air, followed shortly by battlecries, combat, and explosions .

“Wh-What is going on…?”

The sound of battle is slowly approaching . The waves of undead are slain from behind . It takes a few seconds to release what he’s looking at, but Ashcroft is astonished to see red hair amongst the sea of undead .

“M-Mr . Belgriff…”

“Are you alright Sir Ashcroft?!” Belgriff asks . He lets out a sigh of relief when he sees Ashcroft in one piece .

Belgriff hair was disheveled slightly, the few wounds he sports was exposed for the world to see, but Belgriff did his best to ignore them . Something quite difficult for a man his age who suffers from pains in his joints and muscles . Behind the retired adventurer, a magical explosion erupts, wiping out a group of undead . Elmore continues to pelt them with magic, incinerating undeads to ashes .

“Sir Ashcroft, are you alright? Where is Lady Helvetica?” asks Elmore upon seeing Ashcroft .

“Uh, in the back room . Why…w-why are you two here?”

“I had a bad feeling…well, it was more of a hunch . Anyway, I’m glad you’re okay . ” Belgriff responds, laughing lightly .

Seeing Belgriff’s smiling face, Ashcroft’s eyes waters . He doesn’t know why he’s crying, he wasn’t the kind to cry . The feeling of shame pains his heart and Ashcroft hangs his head while he sobs . Seeing him in this condition, Belgriff places a comforting hand on the butler’s shoulder .

“It’s alright to cry . But right now you must save your tears for afterwards . We need to evacuate everyone now . ”

The butler nods slowly, wiping his tears with his sleeves .

“Y-You’re right!” Ashcroft opens the door of a room and calls Helvetica and the others . “Lady Helvetica, Lady Selen! The number of enemies has decreased! Now’s the perfect opportunity to escape!”

Helvetica nods with a calm expression . Selen seems a little scared, but when she sees Belgriff and Elmore, she relaxes .

Everyone leaves the mansion while the remaining undead are eliminated . Elmore—a former AA Rank adventurer—and the adventurers who accompany him have more experience dealing with magic beasts; so they can kill the undead more easily than the inexperienced guards . Belgriff a.s.sists as much as possible, despite the pain in his muscles .

Outside, the sun is already setting over the horizon . The black clouds have become thicker and the darkness has deepened . Elmore is forced to create a small sphere of light in his hand for everyone to even see where they’re going . The guards and adventurers form a protective formation around Helvetica and Selen and begin to advance .

“For now, we have to group up with the remaining forces,” Belgriff tells Elmore as he searches the surroundings .

“Yes . I hope the battle at the cemetery is over… but Sir Belgriff, you seem a little agitated, are you all right?”

Belgriff smiles bitterly “It’s sad to say, but I haven’t moved my body this way in years…I think I pushed myself a bit far . ”

“I understand, I didn’t mean to pry,” Elmore apologises, his expression becoming a little gloomy .

“Oh, no . Don’t be like that . This is just the result of me being reckless . ”

“That doesn’t exactly rea.s.sure me . Please don’t push yourself too hard . ”

Belgriff just laughs nervously . Beside them, Ashcroft gathers the courage to confront Belgriff .  

“I-I…I injured my body this morning and could not perform my duty due to my incompetence,” Ashcroft says solemnly . He looks downtrodden, but his voice remains strong . “Mr . Belgriff, you’re a great man . Please forgive me for being rude this morning . ”

“What are you saying? We made it on time because you held your ground . Ashcroft, you did well . You should be proud . “

“It’s not a big deal…seriously . ” Ashcroft says, turning his face away bashfully, scratching his cheek .

Suddenly a hand touches Ashcroft’s head and stirs his hair .

“It’s like Sir Belgriff said, you did well, Ash . ” Says Helvetica with a gentle smile .

” …Those words are more than I deserve . “

Seeing Ashcroft’s tear up, Selen smiles teasingly . “I didn’t know you were a crybaby, Ash . ”

Ashcroft reddens instantly and slips his hand under his gla.s.ses to cover his face .

At the back of the cemetery, one can see the presence of powerful magic . The number of the undead has finally diminished and the situation seems to be under control .

However, Angeline still feels like something was off .

She scans the area and searches for her father . Just a few minutes ago, he was behind her, fighting the undead . Angeline was happy to have the opportunity to fight beside her father, but now, she can’t find him . Has he been left behind?

At that moment, someone in the vicinity screams and points upwards . Everyone present looks up at the sky .

The black clouds covering the sky converge at a single point and descend to the ground, at the back of the cemetery . A warm breeze blows, cascading all the adventurers with a gentle breath .  

Angeline squints . She knows this feeling . She’s felt it before…but where?

When the clouds converge, the evening sky appears again . The sky is dyed light red, and then turns purple and ultramarine as it goes towards the zenith . And one can even see some bright stars .  

Under the beautiful sky, a dark sinister being stands .  

It was a shadowy like creature . It’s as if the darkness of the night had taken physical form . However, the shape is not defined and changes its appearance constantly as if it were a viscous magic beastslime .

Dust like magic moves adrift and seems to penetrate people’s skin . Angeline takes a deep breath and turns around, her eyes widening .

“Another Demon King? But…”

The feeling now is somewhat different from before . The appearance of the creature and the environment are similar . But that creature looks like an imitation .

At that moment, Anessa and Miriam skid to a halt at Angeline’s side .

“I felt magic being distorted…what’s with the black b.u.mp?”

“Which one? Oh! That looks like bad news . ”

“I think…it’s another Demon King . ” 

When the girls heard Angeline’s words, they immediately observed the black creature .

The creature changes shape again and begins to move slowly as if carefully feeling what is around it . A large number of tentacle-like limbs suddenly emerge from the main body and with them, the creature begins to move like a spider . Then, the main body seems to tear in half, and from the two halves emerge huge and threatening fangs .

“I… b-back… home…”

After saying that, several magic beasts crawl out of its mouth . They are Dark Walkers, a superior species of wicked spirit . It’s hard to see the magic beasts behind all the dust . The adventurers make a fuss, but Angeline raises her voice .

“We need Light Magic! Light everything up!”

Angeline’s cry seems to rea.s.sure the sorcerers, who immediately start throwing spheres of light into the sky . The dark cemetery is completely illuminated and the movements of the Dark Walkers become sluggish and weak .

“Now’s our chance! Charge!” shouts Sasha as she raises her sword .

The adventurers rally their battlecries and their weapons, charging forward .

“Ane, Miri, let them take care of the small fry . ”

Angeline kicks off the floor without waiting for an answer . She speeds through the cemetery weaving past the Dark Walkers until she reaches the black creature .  

Hand tight on the handle, she draws her sword in a devastating strike . The tentacles are easily cut, and when they fall to the ground they disperse into black smoke and disappear with the wind .

“It didn’t struggle…what is going on?” says Angeline as her eyes narrow suspiciously .

Hindered by her thoughts, Angeline fails to see one of the creature’s tentacles strike her side . The young woman is flung into the air, but she manages to recover and land gracefully on her feet . The strike had a lot of power behind it…but there was no pain? Angeline brings her hand to her hip, but doesn’t feel any wounds .

“They are not hard?”

The creature’s limbs lash out once more and attempting to surround Angeline . But they didn’t even come close to a problem for the ‘Black Haired Valkyrie’ .  

Angeline ducks under the first tentacle, bringing down her sword for a clean cut . She leaps over the next attack, parries another, not letting a single tentacle even touch her . Between her movements, she counter attacks when she can, slicing through tentacles tactically .

But in every attack is like cutting fog . For some reason, she feels like the creature is making fun of her .

“You really think you can make fun of me!”

Hopping over the next tentacle, as soon as Angeline’s feet touch the ground, she raises her sword again and bursts towards the main body of the shadow creature . And as expected, Angeline’s sword pierces the creature’s body quite easily .  

But at the same time, the body seems to explode in a cloud of black smoke and envelops Angeline .

Smoke enters her mouth and nose . Her shoulder, which should already be healed, starts to hurt again .  

Is this poison?

Angeline attempts to kick off the ground, but she cannot move . It’s as if the smoke had suddenly acquired ma.s.s and locked her in place . Angeline tries to struggle, but she feels her strength vanis.h.i.+ng . She falls to her knees .

At that moment, a sinister voice resounds in her head .

“THESAMETHESAMETHESAME”

“Argh!”

She struggles to breathe, clawing at her chest . Her shoulders rise and fall quickly as she gasps for air, but with each breath Angeline inhales more of the black smoke . She feels a cold sweat trace down her back, a burning pain erupts in her shoulder and blood starts coming out of it .

“What the h.e.l.l are you going on about?!”

With a final roar, Angeline gathers all her remaining strength and rips away from the creature . Disorientated, she flies through the air and lands heavily on the ground . She skids a few more feet, her lungs grasping at the clean air .

“Angie!”

“W-What happened?”

Anessa and Miriam come running . However, the fog gathers together once more, forming the black creature . It brings down its tentacles, destroying the ground and blocking the path to Angeline . Angeline feels her limbs being latched on too, and finds herself being lifted into the air .

“GOBACKHOMEGOBACKHOMEGOBACKHOMEGOBACKHOME”

“Ugh…! Ha!”

Angeline swings her sword with her remaining strength and manages to cut some tentacles . However, more tentacles are replaced and they wrap around Angeline’s body tightly . They move as if each of them had a mind of its own, and Angeline’s skin ends up covered with gooseb.u.mps .  

The strange voice continues to scream in her head .

“THESAMETHESAMETHESAME GOBACKHOMEGOBACKHOME”

It’s like her own mind isn’t hers anymore . A terrifying sensation of dread begins to swell up inside her . Was this it? In all her years as an adventurer, she had never felt this feeling before . It was…scary, it frightened her, and before she knew it, tears began to run down her cheeks .

“I…hate…this . ”

“Lady Angeline!”

At that moment, Sasha swings her sword and rushes to Angeline’s side . With one of her hands, she cuts the tentacles, and with the other she lifts Angeline over her shoulder . The voice in the head of the ‘Black Haired Valkyrie’ stops instantly, but she is not able to move her body as if she were paralyzed, but they both somehow manage to escape .

Angeline breathes heavily and moans in disgust . “I’m sorry Sasha… I wasn’t ready for that”

“Lady Angeline…what the h.e.l.l is that monster?” Sasha asks as she lets Angeline off her shoulder .

Upon seeing the creature take down an S Rank adventurer, the morale was slowly dying down amongst everyone . The impact of seeing this is too much, as the movements of the adventurers become insecure .

Taking advantage of the confusion, the mouth in the black creature’s torso reopens and more Dark Walkers begin to emerge from within .  

The situation once more leans in favor of the magic beasts .  

More tentacles appear in the creature’s body and it begins to advance on the adventurers . The number of Dark Walkers have also increased, and the adventurers are forced to retreat .

It was at this moment that the air trembles as if it were suddenly pulsating . The adventurers are taken aback and look around for the cause of the disturbance . A girl around ten years old strolls through the crowd . Her long white hair blows back from the gentle breeze, and her unwavering crimson eyes pierce the creature with an expressionless stare .

“Hey! It’s dangerous! Come back!”

The girl turns to see the adventurers trying to stop her and she smiles sweetly at them .

“Don’t worry . I’ll be fine . ”

At that moment, some Dark Walkers throw themselves at her . Some adventurers could only hold their breath, while others leap forward in hopes of reaching the girl .  

When everything seemed lost for the girl, she simply raises her right hand . The Dark Walkers are thrown into the air, before slamming back down into the ground . Everyone goes silent .

“Behold! A Miracle of the Great Philosopher Solomon!”

In a moment, from the girl’s body, a torrent of fearsome magic erupts from her body, heading towards the dark creature . The magical power starts to swirl around the monster, gradually gaining momentum . In response to this, the black creature’s body becomes black smoke and is propelled into the sky by the magic, dispersing high up . Like a chain reaction, the Dark Walkers also explode into dust .

Every adventurer just stares at the girl, their jaws hanging low . No one understands what just happened . Was it really a miracle? It’s like everyone just woke up from a long dream .

“Everyone! The danger is gone!” says the girl sweetly, twirling around to greet the adventurers .

“W-Who…who are you?”

The girl smiles broadly and raises her hands up expressively .

“My name is Charlotte! I’m traveling to help save the world!”

At the same time, the sound of hooves and armor is heard . The adventurers raise their voices bewildered and confused at the sight of the fat man on horseback .

“C-Count Malta?”

“What is he doing in a place like this?!”

The cold eyes of Count Malta look down on the adventurers until he finally notices Sasha . He approaches her on his horse and bows his head mockingly low .

“Well, well, but if it isn’t the lovely Lady Sasha . It seems like you all were in quite the struggle . ”

“Count Malta, why are you here?”

Count Malta laughs with disdain . “Why, it was barely the stroke of noon when my men saw strange clouds appeared from the west . According to what Miss Charlotte told me, the clouds contained magical power and was extremely dangerous . I had a bad feeling, so as any good man would do, I rushed here with my army . I’m glad I got here on time . ”

He speaks politely, but the fact that he hadn’t gotten off his horse and keeps looking at everyone from above…Sasha knows perfectly well what he’s doing, but she can’t accuse him with nothing .

“Apparently you were facing some evil spirits, but what happened to the barrier?” Malta continues .

“The barrier was compromised, and could not be activated . ”

“Oh no! How unfortunate! That means that even if all the adventurers got together, you’d be easily outnumbered! Well, I don’t want to know what would have happened if we hadn’t arrived on time…could the Bordeaux Family be too busy with political affairs to respond to such a critical situation as this?”

Sasha looks down with frustration when she hears Malta’s mocking tone . Her hand twitches over her blade, eager to put him in his place . But she also knows that without him, they wouldn’t have killed the magic beasts . If she adopts a despot att.i.tude in this place, it would end up affecting the reputation of the Bordeaux Family .

Seeing Sasha unable to respond, Malta just snorts . “Anyway, I’m glad you’re safe, Lady Sasha . It would be nice if Lady Helvetica was safe too . ”

“My Sister is in the mansion . It’s far safer than this place . ”

“Oh? Really? I had no idea . ”

Sasha looks angrily at Malta, who smiles broadly as if he found that conversation quite amusing . However, his expression was off putting . Sasha feels uneasy with a sudden desire to return home .

At that moment, Angeline, who is still leaning on Sasha, smiles amusingly . “Even though he’s late, he does it with a haughty att.i.tude as well…so Sasha, who’s the pig?”

The smile on Malta’s face disappears immediately . His face reddens, and he points his finger threateningly at Angeline . “What? What did you just call me you brat?”

“People who arrive late and seek to steal all the credit from the adventurers are the worst, not to mention while being a jerk… in other words, you are the worst . ”

When Count Malta hears Angeline’s words, his face instantly blushes and he begins to grind his teeth . But when he tries to talk back, Sasha’s face lights up with an expression of relief .

“Big Sis! Selen!”

Malta abruptly stops and slowly turns around . His expression is that of someone who just saw a ghost . Helvetica, Selen, Ashcroft, and Belgriff have arrived at the cemetery .

Helvetica smiles stoically as she nods to Count Malta . “Thank you for coming to help us from so far away, Lord Malta . I, the Countess of Bordeaux, thank you . ”

“Y-Yes…I was just…performing my duties . ”

Although Helvetica’s lips are smiling, her eyes remain cold and calculating . She’s looking at Malta with a penetrating gaze . Count Malta tries his best to maintain eye contact, but finds himself turning away . He begins to sweat .

Then Ashcroft raises an eyebrow questioningly . “Count Malta…is it not customary for a subordinate to get off their horse when talking to their superior?”

Count Malta panics, and stumbles off his horse and clumsily bows in front of Helvetica . Her smile widens slightly and without paying more attention to him, she starts talking to the soldiers around .

“After the events of today, we don’t know what else could happen tonight . The citizens are to stay out of this area until further notice . I’ll ask all of you to take turns on the night watch . And to all adventurers, I thank you for your a.s.sistance . I implore that you get some well deserved rest . ”

The adventurers all sigh in relief and immediately head for the Guild . Helvetica, on the other hand, turns to the count, who was still bowing .

“Count Malta, I cannot welcome you properly because of this situation . But you didn’t come all the way here for a cup of tea, did you? And since you brought so many soldiers, will they be able to help with the night watch?”

Count Malta doesn’t say anything, and leaps at his horse and gallops away as soon as Helvetica stops talking . Charlotte quickly runs after him .

Then Helvetica lets out a sigh . “Apparently, my survival ended up ruining his plans . ”

“But Sister, there is no evidence . You’ll have to move carefully . ”

“I know, Selen…Come on then, we have to repair the mansion . ”

Belgriff searches for Angeline and her friends . The adrenaline had died down by now, so the after effects and painful joints is starting to kick in . He quickly limps and hops his way through the crowd of adventurers, and when he finally finds her, he smiles . Then he sees her being supported by Sasha . Immediately Belgriff forgets all his pain as he rushes to his daughter’s side .

“Angie! What’s wrong? What happened? Are you okay? Are you hurt?”

Angeline smiles when she sees her father’s worried face . “I’m fine…but I don’t have the strength to move anymore . So please, carry me . ”

She reaches out with her hands, her face begging him to carry her .

“Really? That’s good…I guess . Come here . ” Belgriff bending down so Angeline can get on his back .  

Cheering, Angeline leaps onto her father’s back, and embraces him in a warm hug . As she buries her face in Belgriff’s hair, she remembers the feeling she had when she was wrapped in the black smoke . She frowns .

“No…I am myself,” she mutters shaking her head and pus.h.i.+ng away the dark thoughts .  

Now that she’s on Belgriff’s back, it was time to rest . Angeline is at peace and before she knows it, she ends up falling asleep .