Chapter 34 – The Black Storm
Charlotte was laughing as she waited for the living dead to attack her.
She is shaking her head from side to side, waiting for the moment of slaughter, looking truly happy.
If I chop off the head, it stops immediately and is boring. I have to chop it off little by little. And thenI’ll give it one last blow to the head.
Or shall I strip it of its limbs and see if it will still come at me?
In her first battlefield, she had always thought that she would be dealing with humans and dragon people.
That’s why she was enjoying the unexpected situation of being surrounded by the dead like this.
She was unfazed by the slightest injury. I wonder how far my sword can go against a body that is stronger than most humans.
“Hmm. For now.”
She looked at the people of the city who had been burned by the pale flames and turned into corpses that can only be manipulated by the ghost at will.
Behind such a girl, the corpse that had been torn apart and killed was lying miserably. The cobblestones are littered with a great deal of blood and offal.
The swords that Charlotte held in both hands were both stained with bright red blood and yellow grease.
But the girl, who didn’t seem to care about that, decided on her next prey.
“Oh, it’s the old lady from the fruit stand. She’s dead, isn’t she?”
She said this without much emotion and then slashed off one arm of the old dead woman who was lumbering up to her.
The old woman lost her stance and fell to the ground, wobbling on her feet as if she were doing a bad dance.
However, the dead woman immediately looked up and stared in the wrong direction with lifeless eyes.
Charlotte moved closer to the old woman and called out to her.
“Hey, Grandma. Does it hurt? Does it hurt?”
“Uuu… Aaaaa…”
“I don’t think just one arm is enough. Okay, now…”
When Charlotte took aim and was about to swing her sword, a lump of magic power hit the old woman’s body.
A bright red flame rises up and gradually scorches the pathetic corpse.
When Charlotte saw this, she puffed out her cheeks and looked backwards.
“Elsa! Why are you interrupting me?”
“My Lady Charlotte. Please don’t try to humiliate the dead.”
“Humiliate? Why do I need to care about that? She’s dead, right?”
“This.”
Elsa remains expressionless and says what she has to tell this girl who has become too powerful for her.
“Do you think, your mother…. Natasha willing you to do that?”
Charlotte, who hadn’t lost her smile until now, raised her eyebrows and opened her mouth uncomfortably.
“That’s how you talk about my mother again…”
“I won’t get tired of saying it again and again. Let me tell you, she’s…….”
“Where’s my mother?”
Elsa didn’t have time to finish her words.
Those are the words that the girl had said before. And it was a part of the unfathomable darkness that the girl still carries in her heart.
“My mother is dead. She’s gone. She is nowhere to be found, not next to me, not in the tomb, not in the sky, not anywhere.”
“No, it is not like that. Your mother may be dead, but her heart will always be with you, Miss Charlotte.”
As if to interrupt the maid, Charlotte shouted.
“She’s not here! She’s not here to be found! There’s so many dead here, but my mother is none of them! If she really care about me, she should come to me right away, right? But she doesn’t come! It’s okay if she becomes a ghost or anything, I’ve always wanted to see her, but she never comes!! Always, always. My mother always appears in front of me in my dreams! She looks like she’s in pain all the time and say ‘help me’ all the time!”
Charlotte bit her bottom lip hard as if she wanted to cry out. She continued to breathe hard, not caring that blood was seeping out of it.
“But when I woke up, she was gone. After all, mother with the painful face was all in my dream. She was just a phantom. The real Mother is nowhere to be found.”
“…… Miss Charlotte, ….”
“I couldn’t help her back then. But now I’m different. I’m not as weak as I used to be.”
Charlotte said with a stagnant look in her eyes.
“I’ll never forgive him for killing my mother like that. I’ll never forgive him. No matter how strong he is, I will definitely catch him, make him suffer a lot, and then–make a mess! In pieces! I’m going to slash him to pieces! I’m going to kill him after I’ve messed up all his blood, flesh, and bones!”
Charlotte shouted as if in a frenzy, then suddenly drowned out the expression on her face, which had previously been on the verge of tears, before saying.
“It’s all I can do for my mother, who is nowhere to be found. I don’t have time to cry or be sad. I just need to be able to fight and become stronger. So don’t interfere, Elsa. If you still want to interfere, then even if it’s you, Elsa–”
“Then slay me with your sword.”
“…… eh.”
Charlotte made a stupid voice, as if she had been told something she hadn’t expected.
Elsa says to Charlotte with a blank expression on her face.
“I can’t even begin to guess how you feel or what you’re going through, Lady Charlotte. I can’t even stop you from seeking revenge and becoming stronger, because it’s too dangerous. And my words will not reach your heart, because I cannot restrain you by force. So, this body is already unnecessary.”
“…..eh…? Eh….. eh…!!!”
“I am, of course, Lady Charlotte’s protector. But what you are doing is nothing short of inhumane. Neither your mother nor your father would wish for such a thing. If you wish to continue to unnecessarily hurt the dead, I will stop you even if I have to present myself. If I’m an obstacle to you, then you may cut me down without mercy.”
As Charlotte lowers her sword in distress, other dead people attack the girl, but the mass of magic from Elsa’s magic gun burns them all up.
“E-, Elsa?”
The words of the maid, who she usually complained but somehow obeyed to her, were very upsetting even to the heart of Charlotte, who had a strong resolve.
She doesn’t know hot to respond. The girl was confused at that very moment.
A series of black spear-like objects protruded from the cobblestones behind Elsa, and their sharp blades stabbed her ankles as she tried to avoid them.
“Kuh…!”
“Eh, Elsa!!”
Numerous black spears protruded from the cobblestones, undulating like tentacles.They attacked Elsa, who was slightly out of shape, at once.
“Elsa!”
Charlotte forgot her upset feelings and jumped at Erza as if she was going to hit her.
She crashed into the wall of a nearby house with the same impact that had engulfed her.
The black tentacle-shaped spear that had designated Elsa as its prey pierced the cobblestone pavement on which she was standing.
However, the tentacles that failed to catch their prey were quickly pulled out, and as they seemed to branch out again, they began to pierce everything around them one after another.
They rampaged in all directions, engulfing the dead as well as the buildings. The tentacles were like a black storm.
“…… Miss Charlotte, ……!”
“Elsa! Are you okay? Are you okay?”
“No problem. It’s just a slight injury to my leg.”
Charlotte gasped as she looked at Elsa’s legs, following her words.
The flesh from the right thigh to the ankle had been gouged out, exposing a little bone. It was not something that could be dismissed with the word “injured”.
It’s a direct hit.
Suddenly, she looked at the cobblestone that the tentacle-like thing had gouged out. It had easily penetrated and gouged through the hard surface.
It was like the scars on her mother, who had once been slaughtered.
In front of Charlotte, who was confused, someone slowly approached her.
The girl immediately recognised him and saw that it was a tall, thin, black figure standing there. In his hand he held what looked like the hilt of a sword, but the part where the blade should have been was covered with countless black tentacles that were rampaging through the city.
“Who are you?”
“…… Charlotte Duras.”
Although she was increasingly confused by the mention of her name, Charlotte quickly stood up and readied her sword.
“Miss Charlotte, don’t!”
“I will protect Elsa.
Charlotte, her expression tightened, said while breaking out in a cold sweat.
She knew with just one glance. She knew that this being in front of her was a monster that surpassed her.
But the girl wasn’t intimidated. She would not retreat a step to protect the ones she cared about.
“…… Although I’m interested in the taste of your flesh and blood, killing such a child carelessly will take me far from the path to true paradise.”
“I have no idea what you’re talking about …… but I’m not going to forgive you. You hurt Elsa, and you will never be forgiven.”
Even though her eyes were filled with hatred, the man in black did not seem to be fazed.
Charlotte said, looking at the man.
“Did …… you kill my mother?”
She asked, remembering the gouged out cobblestones from earlier, but the man didn’t answer.
He just stared at Charlotte in silence.
His eyes were indescribable. They were not hostile, neither mocking.
On the contrary, it seems to be a peaceful one. She glanced at the tall man, whose eyes looked out of place on the battlefield.
“If you don’t answer, that’s fine. I’ll cut off your limbs and ask you one more time before you die.”
“… The daughter of a great hero, who has been blessed by the gods. If you don’t want to die….. Come with me for a moment.”
“I’ve beaten everyone who let their guard down because they thought I were just a kid. You’re not different.”
Charlotte instantly closes the distance and slashes at the man in black. However, the girl’s blade was cut off by a black spear sticking out of the ground in front of where the man was standing.
It was a full blow, but in contrast to the unflinching tentacles, Charlotte’s sword in her right hand shattered easily.
“Kuh…!!”
“….. That’s rediculous. Next time it would be your hands….”
The man, who didn’t seem to have a trace of life in him, returned the black spear to the ground.
Perhaps because it had destroyed everything around it, the spear quickly shrank and converged, returning to the shape of a sword.
Charlotte holds the remaining sword in one hand as she watches the man standing there with his large sword propped up on the cobblestones.
“Huh!”
Charlotte jumped at him with such speed that he seemed to disappear from the scene in an instant, and swung her sword to cut off the man’s head. But.
“What?”
“…. Pitiful. The speed at which it makes up for its inefficiency is like a turtle crawling.”
Catching the sword with one hand, the man lightly crushed the blade.
In front of an unbelievable sight, a kick is put into Charlotte’s abdomen, which was delayed for a moment.
“My Lady!”
Charlotte was blown away as if she had been caught in a gust of wind, but she managed to adjust her posture in the air and land on her feet.
However, she quickly deflates on the spot. And.
“Ugh …… ugh ……!”
She spat out the contents of her stomach, causing her body to convulse.
Her eyes blurred as tears naturally welled up in a physiological reaction. Still, she desperately raised her face to look at the man.
“…..you’re only slightly above the common soldiers. No wonder you’re such a helpless child….”
Elsa quickly fired a magic gun shot at the man who was staring at Charlotte with emotionless eyes.
The lump of magic power immediately hit the man. But.
“And ……”
The man caught the mass of magic power with one hand and let it dissipate into the clouds.
Even though the blow that unleashed the power of the magic gun to the maximum was a blow equivalent to the magic of the seventh rank.
“…. you may be good at handling toys, but that’s nothing for me. You’re like a bug. Come.”
The blade of the greatsword that had been propped up against the cobblestones once again transformed into tentacles.
They come close to shooting through Elsa’s body. Charlotte reacted immediately and stood in front of Elsa. A tentacle-shaped spear gouged out the girl’s side.
“Aaaaaarhhh…..!!”
“My Lady! What, what are you doing!”
“El, Elsa….. I will protect you..”
It waa most intense pain she has ever experienced.
The girl’s voice shook as she felt the pain of a hot iron being pressed against her skin, pulsing wildly.
Although the wound was not fatal, a large amount of fresh blood poured out from the girl’s side.
When a black tentacle rubbed it as if to lick it off the ground, the man in black muttered as if in admiration.
“…… It’s delicious. It is forbidden to sip and eat the flesh and blood of children, but I can’t forget the rich taste ……”
Tentacles pierced Charlotte’s shoulders and thighs as if she were a living being with a will.
“Aaaaarhhh ……!!!”
“My lady, leave me alone and run away quickly!”
“No, no, no, ……! Elsa, Elsa is also…… my… precious family …….”
Charlotte hugs the maid who can’t even stand up from the spot and crouches down on the spot as if to protect her. However, the pain was so severe and the amount of blood loss so heavy that it clouded the girl’s consciousness.
Elsa will die.
Charlotte was filled by the thought that she ignored her pain.
She even forgot about the insanity that she couldn’t control and didn’t let go of her stance to protect her precious family.
“…… Ah, can I no longer taste this flesh and blood? The soft and mellow blood of a child. Flesh …… still, still not enough. But ……”
The man who had been calm held his head in one hand and kept muttering something unintelligible.
But that didn’t last long.
“I don’t care if it’s just one ….. one person. I don’t care if it’s just one ……one person. I don’t care if it’s just one …… person. I will never forget this taste until my body rots. ……!”
The black tentacles undulated and aimed right at the back of the girl who was crouched down to protect the maid. And when the tentacles tried to pierce its small back at high speed.
“Eating children is in bad hobby, you know.”
With a squeal, the black tentacle was caught. Grasping it with his bare hands was a boy with bright blue hair.
“Hmm, I’m a little late because of the interruption. Are you okay, you two?”
“Uh, ………….”
The girl, who was on the verge of losing consciousness, turned around and saw a boy standing there with a smile on his face.
When he appeared, the blue-haired boy-Theodor says, clenching the tentacles with one hand, which is powerful enough to destroy everything.
“Good work, Charlotte. Leave the rest to me. Sleep well.”
Hearing these words, Charlotte suddenly felt thinly as if she were relieved.
She laughed, then collapsed, leaning against Elsa’s body, and lost consciousness.
◆
The temple of Granden was exposed to the onslaught of the dead.
However, all of the dead that were attacking them in large numbers disappeared as if they had evaporated in an instant.
The shockwave from the divine energy released from Claude’s divine sword Revisistra easily tore through the bodies of ghosts with ease.
Although it has a tremendous destructive power that instantly disappears a group of overwhelmingly durable ghosts, its shock wave does not cause any damage to surrounding people or buildings.
The purple-haired girl, who was watching the scene from some distance away, couldn’t help but let out a dry laugh.
(No, first of all, I can barely see the slashes. …… What’s going on here?)
Some of the men from the unit led by Major General Karsati were still there.
All of them were transfixed by Claude’s actions.
Even the ghosts that were closing in on them were obliterated without a trace by the shockwave from Claude’s divine sword.
Even the old soldier, who had been called a fierce warrior, could only stop waving his sword and look at it.
Soon, the number of the approaching dead was visibly decreasing, and finally, the dead had disappeared from around the temple.
It seemed like a fierce battle, but we had to wait here in the temple and completely evacuate the dead.
Toto was the only one who noticed that Claude hadn’t moved an inch from the spot.
(The heroic tale of Zenan is not an exaggeration or anything. …… In fact, I’d say it’s even great than I’ve heard. ……)
The girl, who had been slaughtering her ghost effortlessly until earlier, approached Claude with a slightly dismayed expression over the shock, witnessing such a terrible sight.
“Uh, well, …… who are you really ……?”
“Toto. Are you hurt?”
“Uh, oh, yeah, of course. ……”
Even if Claude hadn’t been there, Toto was confident she wouldn’t have suffered even a scratch, but she could only come up with a few slurred words.
Perbedaannya terlalu kentara.
The dimensions are too different.
She felt a shiver run through her as she faced the person she could only describe as such, but she shook her head lightly and regained her composure.
“There are no more dead thanks to General Duras…. What are you going to do now?”
“I’ve already decided what to do next.”
“Whoa. What’s that–”
A blinding slash ripped through Toto’s body.
A tremendous blow that cut the opponent in two sent the girl’s body flying, and her slender body crashed into the pillar of the temple.
Everyone in the place could only stand by and watch the unexpected behavior.
It was as if they couldn’t understand what was happening right in front of their eyes.
The girl who hit the pillar with her whole body, splashing blood, was powerless on the spot.
She fell, and the divine sword in her hand, Mea Viper, rolled to the ground with a thud.
Claude Duras, the master who had sliced through Toto, swung his sword in the same motion as before, as if he was trying to get rid of the blood.
There was no emotion in the eyes of the great hero as he slayed the human.
