The carriage came to a complete stop.
With the demons closing in and knowing precisely where the source of that dark energy lay, the carriage was nothing more than a useless heap of junk.
If we were to rank our strength in order, the first would be Ludvik. As a hero wielding the legendary spear, he could deliver devastating firepower against those undead.
Second would be the Holy Knight Brigade. Though only ten in number, they trained rigorously to face demons, the enemies of the divine.
Third was Kaiyak. A silver-ranked adventurer, he was skilled with any two-handed weapon. As a Lizardman, his tough skin gave him an edge, allowing him to fight safely against the undead’s claws and bodily fluids.
Next in line were James, Alex, and Yona.
“…But why are you excluded? In terms of fighting ability, you and I are about the same, right?” Yona huffed with a pout.
Vigrind merely stared at her, his expression a mix of disbelief and amusement.
“I’m here to protect the hero and cast buffs while keeping the carriage safe. Do you think I’m some healer who can only work if I’m clinging to you? I’m not someone who’s calculated by combat power.”
Yona was left speechless by that.
It was true. As a healer who needed to stay close, she should be counted as part of the fighting power, but Vigrind could operate from a distance and still use his divine power effectively without needing to engage in close combat.
“Are you scared?”
With Alex’s hand resting reassuringly on her shoulder, Yona let out a huff.
“Don’t be too tense. This isn’t even a tough mission.”
“…My biggest concern is leaving you behind, you bald-headed brat.”
Yona swatted at Alex’s hand, her lips pouting.
That was her main complaint. The forces heading into battle against the wave of undead included Ludvik, Kaiyak, and the Holy Knight Brigade.
While Vigrind would focus on healing and protecting Ludvik, providing buffs, that was purely to prioritize Ludvik’s safety, not that of Kaiyak or the knights.
A priest’s healing flipped the bill for vast divine energy consumption, leaving no room to heal Kaiyak or the knights.
Thus, Yona joined as a healer to support Kaiyak and the Holy Knight Brigade.
“If you get hurt, I swear I won’t let it slide, Alex.”
“Just take care of yourself, Yona. Don’t go running around recklessly and get hurt. I’m worried about you, you know.”
Remaining behind to protect Vigrind was Alex.
As Yona followed Kaiyak, she couldn’t shake off her unease and kept glancing back at Alex.
He waved cheerily at her, trying to ease her worries.
*
One of the surprising essentials for an adventurer is a sense of humor.
Unexpectedly, there’s a sense of humor.
In the day-to-day life where you never know when you might kick the bucket, and amidst the tightening fear and terror, surprisingly, laughter has been a big help in relieving stress.
So, bursting into laughter at nonsensical comments that you’d normally scold someone for saying is all for that reason. Will I be able to make it back alive this time? Will I have a beer at Anne’s Inn? Will I be able to relax, smack the behind of an old, cheap whore, and let loose? It’s a way to shake off those fears.
“I just don’t get why humans bury the dead. Wouldn’t it be better to just send them floating down the river? Think of it as an offering to the God of Submersion.”
“What if someone like Alex floats by and the God of Submersion gets mad because he’s too dazzling?”
That seemed to be quite funny, as Kaiyak ruffled Yona’s hair with his claw-like hands. Ruffling her hair was a bother for him, but Yona didn’t push his hand away on purpose.
She knew very well it wasn’t because she didn’t like it.
“So, is Alex really bald?”
Ludvik took out his spear, swinging it around and then slamming it down to the ground as he asked.
As he scratched his ear while asking, it wasn’t so much curiosity as it was an obvious attempt to engage Yona in conversation, but Yona didn’t make an issue of it.
“Bald? He supposedly shaves his own head every morning.”
“Come on. That’s just a joke, isn’t it? If he were shaving his own head, then the leftover hair wouldn’t be prickly—”
‘What’s with him keeping at this?’
Yona frowned slightly. Then, turning to look ahead, she noticed the distance to the tide of the dead had significantly decreased. They were about to meet soon.
Looking in front, she saw the Holy Knight Brigade members forming a shield wall with their silver shields raised and maces held high. The shields were very long and wide enough to cover all of their bodies when standing awkwardly.
Moreover, the mace they held up had a head that looked so vicious, it could very well be called a morning star. It had spikes growing out of it from the metal, and swinging it would surely smash things to bits.
“…Don’t badmouth Alex, hero. If he is, then he is. What’s it matter if he’s bald or not? He’s quite good-looking, nothing to lack there.”
“Looks like you’ve gotten quite attached to him.”
Yona shot an annoyed glare at Ludvik, who was grinning, and decided to ignore him. She tried to loosen up a bit, but her mood just got sullied instead.
“Now, Yona, you don’t need to worry. I’ll take care of your protection. You should safely make your way back to Alex, okay?”
James grinned, showing his teeth. For someone who looked the part of a gentleman, it was nice to hear James say that, making Yona feel a little more at ease.
“Alright, it’s about that time.”
Just as Ludvik finished speaking, Louise, who was at the center of the Holy Knight Brigade forming the shield wall, raised his mace high and shouted loudly.
“IT was. Among the Holy Knight Brigade members setting up the frontline, Luis, standing in the middle, raised his mace high and shouted with all his might.
‘To the great Heavenly God, let the brilliant morning light shine upon the evil throngs that dare oppose Your will!’
‘Light!’
‘Light!’
‘Light!’
‘The Kapatia Cathedral Knights shall now show our might!’
‘Now!’
‘Now!’
Yona glanced towards the horde of the dead, swelling in numbers that surely exceeded hundreds. It was hard to get an exact count, given the mix of skeletons and zombies—the sight was too chaotic.
A gray wave, a blend of rotten blood and decayed flesh, surged forward, dripping with foulness. Yona looked at it for a moment before lowering her head. Nausea surged up. Yet, in the spirit of an adventurer and the lead healer on the frontline, a flimsy thread of her pride pushed that nausea back down.
‘… This is unbelievably terrifying.’
Yona’s hand waved through empty air. It wasn’t where it was supposed to be. She waved her hand again. Still nothing. Only then did she lift her head to look ahead. The bluish skin of Kaiyak was in front of her. Not a shoulder. There was no baldy. Alex was not there. She couldn’t see Alex’s shoulder. She needed to rest her hand on Alex’s shoulder to calm down, but it was gone. Yona’s hand trembled. Her hand trembled, and her lips quivered. Only then did she realize. She should be able to lean on Alex’s shoulder, she had to. But that shoulder was not here.
‘To the whole brigade, advance!’
Luis’s roar blended with the ringing in her ears, echoing faintly.
Yona, who had been looking down, lifted her head again. She had to do it. It was something that needed doing. Because she was an adventurer, because she had signed up for this. And behind her was Rubina, but Rubina would be protected by Alex. Vigrind was there too. That damn little nun probably wouldn’t cause them any trouble. But who would protect me? Me? I’m scared. Scared enough to die.
‘Yona, are you alright?’
‘Hik?!’
A hefty palm patted Yona’s shoulder. The shark-headed visage, scarred and battered as Kaiyak was, broke into a lopsided smile.
‘Even the world-renowned Yona has her moments of fear. Don’t worry; you won’t get hurt. I’ll go easy on them.’
Arrows flew over Kaiyak’s head. A few struck, and James came by Yona’s side, standing firm.
‘Don’t be tense; it’d be best to stay relaxed. It’s quite something, seeing that spirited girl in such a state.’
‘I’m not a girl.’
‘Whatever.’
With Yona’s fears in mind, Kaiyak slowly moved forward. The Holy Knight Brigade was already clashing front on, and the hero Ludvik was with them. It was a battlefield where Kaiyak didn’t need to take the lead in the fight. After all, that’s what adventurers were for.
Luis, wiping the zombie fluids splattering onto his visor, shouted.
‘Push forward! Don’t give in; we are the Holy Knight Brigade!’
There was no response. The force pressing against the shields was weak, but pushing them back was tough even for knights, given that it relied more on mass than strength.”
The incoming force was weak, but when it came to pushing with mass rather than strength, even a knight found it hard to hold on.
Countless foes were pushing in, and the horrific noise of skeleton bones crashing into armor echoed constantly, while every time a zombie’s head was crushed, disgusting fluids splattered all over.
“O divine one, I awaken to your calling and finally open my eyes!”
Chanting the battle prayer of the Holy Knight Brigade, Luis kept bashing zombie and skeleton heads while pushing back against them with his shield.
These damned undead weren’t fazed by having their limbs severed. In fact, if you cut off their legs, they become a more annoying problem, crawling and gnawing at your lower half, so smashing their heads was the wisest method right from the start.
“Don’t break the formation! Push forward—!”
That voice wasn’t even Luis’s. Those who had dreamed of becoming members of the Holy Knight Brigade since childhood and had constantly trained after achieving that dream weren’t people who would fall to these undead. They would rather burn their own flesh than retreat from the cursed beings.
Push, push, and keep pushing. Without a moment to think of the phrase “outnumbered and outgunned,” they held their ground as if their steel greaves were nailed to the ground, continuing to push forward.
“Lord Luis, excuse me!”
Ludvik’s shout echoed. Before Luis could even question what he meant by ‘excuse me,’ someone stomped on his shoulder and soared upward.
Flash—
It felt like the sun had risen again with that flash.
Although the sun was obscured by ashen clouds, at that moment, it truly seemed as if the sun had revealed itself once more.
—KWAANG!
Luis caught a glimpse of the sun falling beyond his visor, and then zombie and skeleton fragments were exploding into pieces as if ground by something, soaring into the sky before falling back down.
Surprisingly, it was almost beautiful—like petals scattered by a spring breeze, or green shoots swaying in a summer breeze across a barley field, every time golden spear flashed, the pieces of zombies and skeletons scattered exquisitely.
“Die already, you wicked spirits—!”
As Ludvik’s shout grew stronger, Luis felt a warmth rising in his chest.
And that feeling peaked when he saw Ludvik stab his elongated spear into the ground, bounce into the air, and then smash it back down.
Luis raised his visor. With his eyes now open, he surveyed the environment and shouted out loud.
“The divine warrior is with us—! Let’s put these spirits to rest here—!”
The echo of “put them to rest!” rang out.
With a powerful swing of his mace, he burst the head of a zombie that was gnawing at his shield and shouted again.
“We are the Kapatia Cathedral Knights—!”
Luis yelled that the Kapatia Cathedral Knights would not retreat from here.
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