Chapter 61: Subjugation Campaign (3)

“All wounded, fall back immediately! Even small wounds can be fatal!”

“Get your heads in the game, you bastards! Stay still and you’ll be turned into jerky!”

Shouts rang out from every direction. Voices bellowed commands so loud they made your ears ring, and the soldiers moved swiftly in response.

Perhaps it was the years of working together, but the coordination between the Holy Knights Order and our own order was remarkably smooth.

Even though we were taking them down one by one, the monster wave showed no signs of ending.

I frowned unconsciously at the sight of the swarm pouring out of the dimensional rift. Every single one of them looked grotesque and repulsive.

It was as if they had some level of intelligence—their relentless assault targeted the escort team with frightening precision.

Were they aiming for the priests by pushing through the subjugation squad’s defenses? These so-called Catastrophe-class monsters clearly possessed high intelligence.

Grrrk.

A tentacled monster, shaped like a giant octopus, flung its limbs in every direction, catching knights by their ankles. A few, caught off guard, stumbled and fell.

Just as a crack began to form in the subjugation squad’s formation, a white magic circle appeared above the creature’s head. In a blink, the monster’s head split in two.

Its inky black blood splattered in the air, but before it could fall to the ground, the creature disintegrated into dust.

“Stay calm. I’m here with you.”

Abel stepped forward as he spoke.

His composed voice lifted the morale of our knights. The Holy Knights, unwilling to be outdone, let out fierce shouts as they pushed forward.

Even the priests providing support from behind began to smile.

[A Split-type is coming!]

“How many?”

[Looks like it’ll split into five!]

At Sylphi’s warning, I raised my rapier instantly.

Wind circled in the air as I turned to face the monster attempting to divide. I clicked my tongue at the sight of it splitting cleanly into five under a Holy Knight’s slash.

What is this, a slime? Splitting every time it dies—how absurd. This was exactly why we had a separate escort team.

The subjugation squad alone couldn’t handle the sheer number of monsters, and leaving them unchecked would threaten the rear.

Sshk.

I flinched at the sickening feeling of flesh being sliced, but I couldn’t afford to stop.

Just as I was trained, I swung my rapier and began methodically taking down the split-off creatures. After cleaving through the last one, I took a deep breath.

[They just keep coming, these damn things!]

Sylphy’s tone was more irritated than usual. Crude as he was, I completely agreed.

They were swarming in endless, nauseating waves. And to make things worse, none of them were weak either—they were annoyingly tough to deal with.

[Ten split-types incoming!]

So that’s potentially fifty splits. Truly, a monster straight out of a nightmare.

I took a deep breath to calm the irritation welling up inside.

“Wind, heed me.”

Blue winds swirled around Sylphy. My physical ability and reaction speed surged drastically. The familiar, comforting energy wrapped my body along with the wind.

As the subjugation squad struck, the monsters immediately began to split.

And just like they were waiting for it, the newly spawned ones charged straight for the priests. Their desperate movements screamed one thing: eliminate the priests.

Of course, there was no way I’d just sit back and let that happen.

With a quick breath, I kicked off the ground.

Blue wind stormed across the battlefield. A combat technique inspired by Sylphy’s magic, based on the physical enhancement spell Wind Armor.

It allowed my physical capabilities to temporarily double.

Sure, it consumed a huge amount of energy—but now wasn’t the time to hold back.

Sshk.

Slash after slash tore through flesh. Though my vision whirled chaotically, I could sense the enemies’ positions with near-instinctual clarity.

A Spirit Mage who commands the wind can perceive everything within its flow in an instant.

Of course, my current abilities limited that range, but it was more than enough.

I swung my rapier, slicing into their cores and wiping them out. A simple, repetitive task.

Yet the results were far from simple.

Screeee!

Split-types shrieked hideously as they dissolved into dust mid-air.

Since they were from another world, they left no corpses behind—thankfully.

If they had, I probably would’ve puked on the spot.

“Yde-nim.”

A man’s voice suddenly called out. I turned to see Mr. Karl giving me a thumbs up with a bright smile.

“Well done.”

“Thanks for the compliment.”

I returned his smile and flicked the blood off my rapier. As soon as the droplets scattered, they turned to dust and vanished in the air.

So this was the fate of all beings from beyond.

Somehow, it left me feeling strangely hollow.

Maybe because a part of me wondered if someday I’d end up the same way.

Sylphy, reading my thoughts, let out a sigh and said:

[Focus, Contractor. It’s not over yet.]

‘Yeah, you’re right.’

Just like Sylphy said, now wasn’t the time for sentimental thoughts. I could get lost in those later.

For now, I had to give my all in this moment. With that thought, I turned my gaze back to the frontlines.

And just then, a massive monster emerged from the rift in space.

I froze.

It was on a whole different scale from anything we’d seen so far.

GUWOOOOR!

“Ghk?!”

“Aaaagh!!”

Screams erupted across the battlefield.

Some collapsed to their knees, unable to continue fighting. Others simply passed out on the spot.

Dozens of eyes bubbled up from its surface, tentacles stretched in every direction like nerve bundles, and eyeballs rolled around endlessly.

All of it coated in a layer of pitch-black slime.

Just looking at it sent chills down my spine.

A feeling like my brain was refusing to process what I was seeing. It was similar to the time I heard Abel speak, filtered by his restrictions.

[That thing… that exists in the Otherworld?!]

Sylphy clenched his teeth and glared at the creature. He seemed to recognize it, his expression more twisted than I’d ever seen.

I felt a strange ripple in my mind as I stared at it too. Even as I tried to steady my breath, dragging my hands down my arms, the unease wouldn’t go away.

Don’t look.

A voice rang in my head.

Immediately, I turned my head, forcing the creature out of sight. Bit by bit, my mind began to clear.

Just seeing it had that kind of impact? Could such a monster really exist?

As I caught my breath, Abel silently stepped toward it.

No way… is Abel…

Snap.

With a crisp snap of his fingers, dozens of magic circles bloomed in midair. From them, hundreds of spears began to rain down.

Contrary to my fears, Abel stood there with arms crossed, completely unbothered.

GUWOOOOR!

Even as the monster screamed in agony, its mental interference caused waves of panic among the knights.

BOOM!

A thunderous boom—and the monster vanished without a trace.

No... could you even call that a “monster”?

In an instant, that being had torn a hole in the subjugation team’s formation. And the swarming monsters weren’t foolish enough to miss that opening.

As if they had been waiting for it, they rushed toward the priests.

But the mental interference hadn’t lifted yet—none of the knights could move from where they stood.

“Damn it, get a grip! We have to protect the priests!”

“Ghk, I know that!”

Their faces twisted in frustration. Was this why people were always so cautious about mental-type magic?

I was no different—I couldn’t move my body properly either. I could shift slightly, but nowhere near enough to actually run.

‘Damn it, Sylphi!’

[Tch… this is bad!]

“Goddess…”

A delicate voice sounded beside me.

Yuruf slowly stepped forward with her eyes closed.

“Please, hear my prayer and grant me your blessing…”

Her pure, crystalline voice rang out over the battlefield. At the same time, holy energy began to gather around her, forming a small, shimmering barrier.

A tremendous amount of divine power condensed around her.

“Deliver us from the false gods…”

With that final invocation, the barrier rapidly expanded—until it enveloped the entire battlefield.

And just like that, the mental interference constricting my entire body vanished completely.

A Saintess?

She looked exactly like the holy figure I’d only ever heard about in stories. Even as someone who never believed in gods, I found her appearance… divine.

“I offer my body to the Goddess!”

With her blessing complete, the tide began to turn. The monster horde was swiftly subdued. Even the priests in the rear exhaled with relief.

But monsters were now converging on Yuruf herself, drawn to her divine aura.

As if they knew she was a priestess, they charged at her with desperate ferocity.

“Yurph!”

She still hadn’t noticed them. With a serene expression, she turned toward us.

Gritting my teeth, I summoned the power of the wind.

[The effect won’t last long!]

“Got it!”

I kicked off with my right foot and soared into the air.

There were only about 30 meters between us—not a huge distance, but too far for me to reach her with just my physical ability.

But with Sylphi’s support, I could make it in time.

The scenery blurred as I accelerated—Yuruf was right in front of me now.

From my rapier burst a blade of cutting wind. Monsters split in half in a single instant.

But then, from within the chaos, one hidden monster lunged and spat something at Yuruf.

Purple venom mixed into its breath attack—I clenched my teeth.

“Sylphy!”

[I’m on it!]

A barrier of wind formed in midair. The powerful gusts redirected the breath, hurling it off course.

A faint mist of poison remained, but it wasn’t enough to worry about. Worst case, I could just get healing from a priest.

I slashed with my rapier, cutting down the last monster lurking in the shadows.

“You’re…”

When I turned my head, Yuruf looked pale. Her legs gave out, and she began to wobble.

I quickly caught her before she fell.

“Are you okay?!”

Yuruf closed her eyes, dizzy and barely conscious.

“Why… did you save me…?”

“What? What do you mean—”

Before I could finish, she lost consciousness and collapsed in my arms.

– – The End of The Chapter––

 

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