The Hunter’s Arrival.
This situation holds significant meaning for me.
First, a very solid ally has appeared.
I can’t tell how strong the Hunter has become yet, but considering my own growth rate, the current Hunter is at least at the level of the White Mask. If the circumstances align, they might even have enough combat power to hold their ground against the Deputy Director.
The reason the Pure Hunter route is tough isn’t just the difficulty, there are community discussions stating it has the best performance among all roles.
So, this means I won’t have to fall behind the Candles anymore.
But here lies the problem.
The second meaning.
“….”
The Hunter was glaring at me, floating in mid-air with a fierce look.
That gaze, it was a face I’d seen once in the Underground Prison.
It typically wore such an expression when deep in thought.
The second meaning was that the Hunter’s assessment of me might significantly drop.
Because, currently, I had taken in some parts of the Outsider.
No matter how much I tried to help Rondan, to the Hunter who loathes Outsiders, this would only look like a horrific situation.
I was on guard, carefully observing how the Hunter would act.
But the Hunter soon returned to a gaze no different from usual and started moving towards the Candles.
…So, am I passing for now?
If so, what on earth was going through his mind to leave me like this?
Even though he had sensed Lia while confined in the detention center, this appearance seemed to have crossed a line
“Tanton! Help!”
At that moment, I saw the Deputy Director, straining to shout, while barely blocking about six Candles’ swords with a great sword, grimacing in pain.
As I flapped my wings to strike towards the Deputy Director, he recoiled and sent the Candles’ swords bouncing away before taking a significant step back.
Wherever my sword winds passed, only Candles remained.
“Graaah!”
The Candles bounced away in all directions, some even soaring to heights before falling to the ground.
Right, let’s keep this together.
It doesn’t matter what my reputation is right now.
It was a bit of a problem that the Hunter was the protagonist of the story, but… I’ll manage somehow later.
The Hunter’s participation in the battle made a significant difference.
“Hunter.”
“So this prestigious Knights is floundering against these things?”
“…I don’t mind discussing my past mistakes. Just be thankful for the help.”
“Tch, how bland.”
The Deputy Director, cured of his trauma, was no longer the exact same person from before – void of flexibility.
Seeing that, the Hunter merely clicked his tongue and walked past.
Generally, the Hunter didn’t dislike good people.
While the Deputy Director was breaking the Candles’ front line up close, the Hunter dispatched the ones trying to encircle us with a double-barreled shotgun.
On one side, Muyun danced ruthlessly with her axe, while the White Mask swept through with sword strikes using her Qi.
And in response to this, I cleared the path overall with the power of the Dragon Slayer.
…I thought we would definitely win, but things were progressing too smoothly.
Had there ever been an operation where I could come in so clear-headed until now?
Or could it be that battling the Elite Outsiders had raised the threshold for operations against humans?
Whichever it was, it was definitely a blessing.
So.
I should work harder.
“You guys! Are you going to let an apprentice knight who has implanted Outsider into their body beat you! Shouldn’t we be doing something too?”
“Absolutely, Team Leader!”
“We are Rondan’s Knights!!!”
Could it be that they saw hope in this?
The morale of the ordinary knights rose even higher, and the number of Candles we were holding off was not insignificant.
The White Mask must be feeling regret now.
At this rate, they wouldn’t even need to break the train.
“The enemy numbers are dropping! Knights, charge!!!”
With the Deputy Director’s shout, the entire Knights that were carrying out the operation roared with high spirit, while the invading Candles started to shrink back.
“Hey, hey. What’s going on here? I thought Rondan would be weaker without the Knight Commander!”
“I never imagined they’d handle a humanoid Outsider!”
“Retreat! Retreat!!!”
Only after three-quarters of the enemy fell did the Candles realize how overwhelmingly disadvantaged they were and began to flee.
The ordinary knights tried to chase them more aggressively, but checked the Deputy Director’s signal and stopped there, breathing heavily.
The Candles were fleeing without a single one remaining behind.
Not a single Candle on the ground was moving.
Our Rondan Knights had suffered no losses.
The only implication of that was one.
“Knights!”
The Deputy Director raised their sword high and shouted.
Although it looked like plastic to me, to the Knights, it must have shone like a glorious great sword above anything else.
The Deputy Director turned around to face the Knights.
“We have achieved a glorious victory! We defended Rondan with our own hands!”
Finally, at the moment the Deputy Director proclaimed the victory.
Not a single knight in the Knights failed to roar.
#
All the Knights briefly left the Candle corpses on the ground and were returning to Rondan for a rest.
Now that the battle was over, I thought about returning the Dragon Slayer power.
“Are you leaving already?”
It’s over now. You need to rest too.
“I want to be with you longer, husband…”
Hehe.
If you keep throwing tantrums like this, it’s going to be tricky.
So how do I get rid of these wings?
“That will belong to you forever, my beloved. You can fold them and bring them out whenever you wish.”
Wwhoosh.
I tried to fold the wings, and truly felt those huge wings fitting inside the bone structure.
I wondered if it wouldn’t cause my back to swell up, feeling around, but mysteriously, they perfectly disappeared.
Oh?
In that case, I wouldn’t have to burden the Elite Outsiders and could fight alone?
“That’s not the case. Since your body is human, that power will be unstable for you, so I’ll need to replenish you periodically.”
Wait a minute, does that mean…
“I look forward to our next meeting… Hehe.”
Leaving behind some unsettling hints, the Dragon Slayer vanished.
…Why did that particularly annoying one suddenly turn so perverted?
Could it be because of me?
I’m lost now.
At that moment, someone approached me.
It was the Hunter.
“….”
“Uh….”
The Hunter came closer, not saying a word.
I could not grasp what thoughts were in those eyes at all and swallowed dryly.
A tense atmosphere.
I was picking out how to respond to all possible questions since I had no idea what the Hunter would say.
“…Was this the meaning?”
The Hunter spoke first.
“…?”
“Was everything, even to mess around with the Elite Outsiders, saved up for this moment?”
With that one sentence from the Hunter, I could only be astonished.
No way.
Could it be that he saw me caught by the Elite Outsiders when I went to see the Record Keeper’s texts?
But he had said nothing until now?
I looked at the Hunter.
He still had an expressionless face, but thankfully, I could feel that trust towards me still remained in those eyes.
Is that so?
After all, the Hunter probably thought deeply about the time spent with Agartha and me in the Underground Prison.
So it seemed they were intentionally trying to understand the situation in a good direction.
“H-Hunter.”
“What are you doing standing around blankly? Let’s head back.”
The Hunter said that, flicking my solar plexus with a fist before turning away.
Thump.
No, if you’re going to joke around, at least know the limits!
I felt a moment of suffocation as if I was about to ascend to the afterlife.
Fortunately, everything wrapped up for now.
I planned to receive the sword from Sintol and get directions from the White Mask while preparing to grow stronger as I stepped into the domain of Rondan.
But.
Soon, the joy of having everything end didn’t last long.
“Kuahaha! Finally, the Interrogator has descended upon this land!”
With a loud voice, a man with a megaphone was shouting from some building.
The red mist oozing out from inside was spreading ominously.
Interrogator?
What on earth does that mean?
Wasn’t all the Cultists already wiped out by then?
“Behold! The one who will crush these foolish humans and genuinely save this world will emerge! Everyone, revere him!”
Each time the man uttered a word, the eerie crimson aura from deep inside that building grew stronger.
“What the…”
“Interrogator.”
Just then, a voice came from behind.
Turning around, I saw the Saint entering with about five ordinary knights.
“Oh no, this can’t be. Has she grown strong enough to descend upon this land…!”
Even the Saint, who usually showed a keen interest in the Record Keeper, wore a face of horror.
The red mist had already spread enough to cover the sky above Rondan.
“Behold! He….”
At that moment, the man raised his arms to the sky with a maddened grin.
“…!”
“Eek…!”
Suddenly, the man collapsed to the ground, and not understanding what had happened, the Deputy Director spoke in a voice filled with horror.
“He got his neck, cut off… out of nowhere?”
Grind.
I ground my teeth.
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Wait isnt interrogator an idea level? They can manifest?
Also lol isn’t mc immune to all pain and bad feelings due to super coward mode?