Rudell finished his preparations in no time upon reaching the mountainside.
“This should do it.”
Muttering to himself, Rudell buried the last shell in the snow.
Shells with seals engraved on them, glowing like flames.
That was the magic he inscribed to trigger all the shells at once.
Once he poured his magic power into them, they would explode simultaneously, triggering an avalanche.
“Phew…”
As Rudell surveyed his surroundings, he shuddered lightly with a short sigh.
It wasn’t due to the cold temperature of the Bladehook Mountain Range.
It was because he was tense at the thought of triggering an artificial avalanche.
Rudell, too, couldn’t be sure about the scale of the avalanche or its aftermath.
If things went wrong, not only Leje but the Count’s Domain could get involved.
“Calm down, me…”
He knew he had no choice but to go through with it, but feeling tense was unavoidable.
And after a few seconds passed…
“Alright…”
Steeling his resolve, Rudell moved to a spot slightly away and released his magic with a puff of white breath.
His magic spread, reacting with the seals on the shells, starting to burn brightly with a red glow…
BOOOOM!!
Then, with a loud noise, countless explosions erupted from the mountainside of the Bladehook Mountain Range.
The thunderous noise created by dozens of shells exploding resonated throughout the mountain, where only the sound of the wind had echoed…
“…?”
Rudell could only stare blankly at the situation that unfolded.
“What the…? Why is nothing happening?”
Despite the explosive debut of dozens of shells, the snow covering the mountains showed no signs of change.
“Could it be they didn’t have enough power!?”
The snowballs remained unmoved…
This was completely unexpected for him.
“Calm down, Rudell. I need to stay calm…!!”
They say the more you hurry, the more you go backward.
If shells won’t do, he could at least try magic.
Just as Rudell thought about raising his magic power to create another explosion…
RUMBLE…
“…?”
At a strange noise coming from somewhere, Rudell turned his head curiously in the direction of the sound.
When he confirmed the origin of the noise, goosebumps crawled all over his body.
BOOOOOOM!!!
What came into his view was a tremendous amount of snow cascading down from the top of the Bladehook Mountain Range, accompanied by a loud noise.
An avalanche possibly weighing dozens… or maybe even hundreds of tons was heading straight for him, ready to swallow everything in its path.
In that moment, only one thought crossed Rudell’s mind.
‘If I get caught, I’m dead.’
“AAAAH!! What the heck!!”
With no time to contemplate anything further, Rudell shouted and quickly moved out of the way, and just seconds later, a massive avalanche swept through the spot he had occupied.
What would have happened if he had been caught in it?
The mere thought sent chills down his spine, and he shuddered lightly.
But just as he was contemplating…
“Wait a minute…”
Wasn’t there something he was forgetting? That thought crossed his mind…
“Leje!!”
At the same time, recollecting what he had forgotten, Rudell began to dash along the mountain with a pale face.
*
“Hah!!”
GRRRR–!!
As Leje collided with a monstrous beast, a powerful shockwave spread out, and the empty village where the battle was occurring was destroyed beyond recognition.
“When is he even coming!?”
With a voice full of irritation, Leje glared at the monstrous beast before her.
Both Leje and the beast were clearly exhausted.
After over several hours of fighting without a break, anyone would be worn out.
“I’m definitely making you pay for this later…!!”
Shouting with a voice full of grievances, she was about to launch another attack at the beast when…
RUMBLE…
“Eh?”
Startled by an ominous noise from behind, she froze in her movements.
Then, with an unsettling premonition, she turned her head to see…
BOOOOOOOOM!!
“W-WHAT IS THAT?!”
Before her eyes was an enormous avalanche pouring down, ready to engulf everything.
If she got swept away, she’d die.
Leje thought this as she desperately tried to escape the spot.
But…
GRRRR–!!
Spotting the monstrous beast trying to flee, her thought process turned around.
What was the reason for the avalanche?
To bury that beast, wasn’t it?
If she left now, the beast would also escape, and all the time she had spent would be for nothing.
“No way.”
You’re going to die with me, whether you like it or not.
With that thought, she leapt towards the fleeing beast.
GRRRR–!!
The beast reacted to her movement and resumed its attack stance.
At the same time, Leje swung her sword multiple times.
Her sword clashes with the beast’s attacks created numerous echoes, and the looming avalanche drew closer.
Should she escape now? Surely there must be another way?
Thoughts raced around in her mind, but she struggled to shake them off.
‘Rudell will find a way.’
Amidst the rising anxiety, that unwavering belief kept her rooted where she stood.
Meanwhile, the noise from behind grew louder, and along with it, her internal dread heightened.
But she couldn’t let go of her sword.
She simply couldn’t bear the thought of all this hardship being for nothing.
The icy sensation creeping up from behind her.
That was surely a sign that the avalanche was right at her tail.
GRRRR…
The beast, sensing the imminent avalanche, tried to flee, leaving Leje behind.
But she knew.
It was already too late.
Buried in the noise of the avalanche, even the beast’s roars were drowned out.
She could imagine the situation behind her well enough, without even needing to see it.
“Hah…”
Relaxing her grip on the sword, she let out a short sigh.
While she had considered this outcome, seeing it unfold in front of her was frightening.
With that thought, she closed her eyes.
Still, the Count’s Domain should be safe.
That much was enough.
At that moment, a powerful impact struck her body, and her consciousness faded into darkness.
*
[Are you not scared of me?]
It was a spring day she couldn’t even remember when.
She had asked Rudell that.
[Huh? Why would I be?]
And Rudell had answered her like that.
[Well… I’m a duchess, and I have extraordinary strength that others don’t. Whatever I do, I do it well…]
She was special compared to others.
For her, it indicated that an insurmountable wall existed between herself and others.
But…
[Does that matter?]
[What?]
[You said you could do everything better than others, right? Then can you use magic?]
[Well, not that one…]
She trailed off in response to his question.
The way of handling magic was determined from birth.
People like her, with physical enhancement traits, couldn’t use magic, which was established by releasing magic power, while those who could release magic couldn’t enhance their bodies.
It was common sense and truth.
[See? Everyone has their own special trait. Your strength is special, just like my ability to use magic.]
[Is that so…?]
[Let me give you another example. Do you play chess better than me?]
[T-That’s just because I’m a beginner?!]
Her chess record was a whopping 0 wins and 10 losses.
Which was nothing short of her overwhelming defeat.
[You said you could do everything better than others, right?]
[Ugh…!!]
At Rudell’s teasing words, she let out a low groan.
While someone else might have felt insulted by such a conversation, surprisingly, she didn’t feel that way when he said it.
Instead, it was enjoyable.
[Honestly, talking to you makes me feel like I’m the fool.]
[You are a fool, though.]
Leje let out a short sigh at his remark while he smiled faintly.
[You really want to die?]
Even though he said that, a smile lingered on her lips.
There was no falsehood or deceit in that genuine smile.
That was an expression she had never shown anyone, except for her father and those from the Duke’s House.
This must be what it meant to be a true friend.
[Thank you, Rudell. For being my friend.]
With that thought, she set down her fragrant tea and said.
