Chapter 73
[Lily's POV]
The Sword-Lord tournament wasn't of much interest to me, but orders from Merk made it necessary to at least be aware of the surroundings. As such, I was stuck on lookout duty outside the arena.
There wasn't much to do, though it was certainly odd when I could no longer hear the cheering crows echoing out of the building. I nearly went to investigate, but then everything went to hell.
“Help! They killed him! Help m—”
A hysterical young woman came running from behind the main building. I recalled seeing her and a handsome guy sneaking back there earlier.
She looked so giddy and full of life back then, but now she was just a corpse on the ground.
An arrow had come whizzing after her and pierced through her back, likely striking her in the heart, considering how immediately the life left her eyes.
“M-murder!”
Someone screamed after the initial shock wore off, and the common folk immediately began panicking. Most ran to escape the campus, but some were coming towards me.
“We have to alert the Emperor!”
One of them cried out.
Three arrows flew, and three more people fell to the ground dead. The attackers were sniping from atop the main building's rooftop, clearly prioritising those who aimed for the arena.
“Aaahh! Help! Let go of me!”
A third-year, bronze-class girl had been grabbed by her wrist and was being dragged away by a silent elf.
“Hey! Let her go! Damnit, listen to me!”
A male from the same class drew his mace and ran forward, ready to bash the elf over the head.
“Let g—”
His voice was cut off with a rasping gurgle as the elf produced a stiletto and buried it in his throat. It was removed and sheathed again with such fluidity that many would have missed what happened.
“David! No!”
The girl began kicking and squirming, trying to break free from her captor.
“Silence, human. Do not resist, or you will join him.”
The elf, whose perfect beauty made it difficult to distinguish its gender, spoke without emotion.
Seeing similar scenes playing out all around me, I decided to lose them in the crowd and run for Borderton with the others.
I hid among the civilians, planning to use them as a convenient meat shield should a hail of arrows arrive. But oddly, the five elven warriors at the gate did nothing.
Not to us, at least. They had their bows drawn, aiming at a single Imperial soldier escorting an elderly man.
That soldier dropped dead with five arrows spread between vital points. The old man, unable to walk unassisted, tumbled to the ground.
I was no virtuous human, so I did not stop my retreat. I did, however, take solace in the knowledge that these pointy-eared scum would soon be dead once my master realised what was happening.
We filtered out, and thankfully, our attackers did not pursue. But that didn't make us safe.
“Run for the western gate! We're under attack! It's the Soleans! Soleo has betrayed us!”
One of the gate guards was bellowing out in the centre of the street, and sure enough, he was soon beset by two Solean soldiers. He managed to push them back with his spear and ran one of them through, but more were fast approaching.
It was a situation that should have delighted me. I could definitely escape in all this chaos, and neither Rex nor Merk would have the spare time to pursue me.
Indeed, they both had the means to locate me eventually, but until then, why not enjoy my freedom?
“They're coming from the west! They're everywhere!”
More soldiers came running, but unlike the Soleans, who moved as one, our men were scattered and confused.
“We need to regroup! To the academy, we can join up with the Emperor!”
The gate guard swept the other Solean's feet out from under him and plunged his spear into the man's chest.
“No!”
I yelled in response.
“There are too many that way; we can use the backstreets.”
Spotting a row of Solean crossbowmen preparing to shoot, I threw out a blowing them away.
Sure, I could run… but what rewards awaited me out there? If I did well here, Merk would have to recognise my efforts. It would also endear me to Rex, who might finally drop that annoying wall of his.
Yeah, I wanted him to trust me, so what? He's a fun guy, and I'd rather keep him around at least until he sticks his nose in another conspiracy and gets himself killed.
“Follow me.”
I ran past them and darted between two buildings. I led them over fences and through bushes, taking the unconventional paths I had memorised these past three months.
We weren't moving as fast as I would have liked, owing to the dead weight of our non-combatant members. As a consequence, we eventually encountered some suspicious figures.
“Oi, who are you, girl?”
A hooded man reached for a cudgel tucked into his belt, but did not immediately draw it.
“She's the right age… probably one of them academy kids.”
His lackey whispered, but my keen ears picked them up clearly.
“C'mere, kid. We'll take you back to class.”
The leader stomped over and tried to grab me by force.
I hadn't identified him as one of the attackers yet, so I let him think he was in control and did not resist.
“Kyaaaaah! Don't touch me there!”
“Wh-what? Stop that.”
“Nooooo! Pervert!”
“Boss…”
“No! She's lying! Don't listen to her—”
“No, boss! Imperials!”
“Damnit, kill them!”
The author's tale has been misappropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon.
That was enough messing around. I heard what I needed to hear.
The leader's neck snapped, and his body hit the ground hard. My shadow had crept up his leg and constricted, dealing with him before he could reveal his strength.
“You bitch!”
One of his men lunged for me, but a spear pierced his stomach and pushed him back into the wall. The gate guard had jumped into action.
“Get them!”
I only had the two Imperial soldiers with me, but they were properly armed and armoured. And with the gate guard's spear, he held a clear advantage in these narrow pathways. The other soldier was rather handy with his short sword and shield as well.
And with me tripping the enemy up and throwing the occasional we made short work of the suspicious group.
“Wonder who they were…”
I muttered, not really expecting an answer.
“Vernon of Darrowby, Dylan of Tow, and the others were probably rabble from their gangs.”
The gate guard spat on one of the bodies and kicked it for good measure.
“Thieves and thugs from Soleo. I recognise their faces from the old wanted posters. Must've been let out early in exchange for helping take control of Borderton.”
“Oh?”
A smile played on my lips. Most would say ‘how could Soleo sink to such disgraceful tactics?’ But as a devil, I knew all humans to be capable of such duplicity. The real entertainment would be in how to use this information in the future.
“Honey, no! Get back inside!”
“I'll be godsdamned if I let some punk set foot in house!”
A commotion caused the two guards to run and investigate.
“Shit, there are too many…”
The gate guard looked torn, and when I followed the direction of his gaze, I understood why.
There must have been ten or so men, some in Solean armour, trying to force their way into someone's house through the back door.
The door itself had already been hacked apart, and the barricade of furniture was quickly being pulled apart.
Behind it all was a man in his sixties, clearly a retired military man of some kind, judging by his build. He was putting up a hell of a fight.
“To the hells with ye, filthy mutts!”
The old man threw a pot of boiling water at the group, and as they shielded their faces, he thrust a broken broom handle into the eye of one of the attackers.
“Argh! Screw this! Kill them!”
The man who was stabbed pushed his way back as his men redoubled their efforts. It looked like the old man might be successful at first, but the soldiers must not have intended to use lethal force before. Now that had changed, and the barricade, along with the old man, was blown back by a spell.
A cone-shaped burst of compressed air was the last thing the couple inside the house would see if we didn't act.
“Bastards…”
The other Imperial guard muttered as he gripped his sword.
“Don't. We can't save everyone.”
The gate guard warned him.
“I know. Damnit!”
“What if there was a way? What would you sacrifice to save everyone?”
The two men looked at me.
“If I could give you the power to save that couple, would you accept my offer? Even if it meant sacrificing your soul?”
They looked annoyed, obviously thinking I was mocking them. But their frowns turned to gasps as I dropped the illusion on myself.
My horns, my skin, my eyes, my tail, and my wings. Only a fool could mistake my identity after seeing all of them.
“D-devil…”
The gate guard muttered. He didn't get a chance to say anything further, as the desperate pleas of the old man's wife rang out from behind him.
“Please! Please don't hurt us! My husband was only trying to protect us!”
“Tch, let the old bat go… but kill the man.”
The leader of the Soleans yanked the woman to her feet, shoving her aside as she dived over her unconscious husband in an effort to shield him.
“I'll do it. My soul or whatever, you can have it, just save them!”
The sword-wielding guard said.
I couldn't contain my grin. After so long in the material world, I finally found my chance to claim some souls. Desperation, fear, duty… these were the states of mind most easily abused into serving my purposes.
“The contract is sealed, one soul in exchange for saving them. But will one soul be enough, I wonder?”
The gate guard hesitated, but after seeing the raised sword of the Solean ready to strike, he made his decision.
“Fine! Save them, damnit!”
My wings unfurled, and in an instant, I burst out from the shadows in the house. With a flick of my tail, a gust of wind blew the men away.
“Devil! They're devil worshippers!”
“Ahaha! I never imagined it would feel good!”
I wrapped my arms around myself and swooned. Truly, I was feeling ecstatic after two souls became bound to me. And it wasn't just a mental thing; my mana capacity had temporarily swelled, and my body felt so .
“Ahhh… such a shame I don't have time to revel in this. I could flay and neuter you one by one, maybe even spare those who submit to me…. But no, the contract was clear, even if it wasn't written. I must be a saviour, and to ‘save’ these poor souls, the threat must be decisively eliminated.”
“Shut up, monster!”
One of the soldiers coated his blade in a shining light. Some holy spell, no doubt.
I caught it between my teeth and looked up at the man with eyes filled with ecstasy. Then, I bit down hard, shattering the useless metal.
“Wh-what…”
“What happened? A little bug just dove into an open flame.”
I finished his sentence for him and flicked a pink flame at his feet. It immediately exploded into an inferno that engulfed his entire body.
His screams were short-lived, and only his charred remains were left behind.
“A-aaarrgh!”
The group became desperate and all charged at once. But in the tight quarters of the house, and with all the shadows to play with, I could easily teleport out of harm's way.
One man felt my delicate touch in his heart, as my refined nails pierced through his chest.
One man saw beauty incarnate as I plucked out his eyes.
One man felt the warm embrace of my love as I engulfed him in my wings and sent my shadows down his throat to rupture his organs.
“We have to leave! Run!”
Two men ran for the back entrance, only to be skewered by the gate guard. He entered with eyes of fury and flame.
His soul had been claimed by infernal hellfire, but his heart remained resolute.
“None will pass.”
He stated firmly.
Four men remained. They went for the front door, leading out to the street.
But that door instead exploded inwards, sending them flying back.
The other Imperial guard had appeared on the opposite side and booted the door in. He caught one of the Soleans before he could stand, and his shield came crashing down.
One blow was all it took for his head to become pulp.
The numbers were evened out, and we each chose a victim. Of course, I claimed the one-eyed leader as my prize.
“In the name of Skori!”
He blasted me with a frost spell and immediately followed up with a thrust from a spear made of lightning.
“
His own shadow stretched out and pulled itself out from the ground before slamming him on both sides. Dark spikes dug into his flesh and tore chunks of meat out as he struggled to break free.
“Argh! ”
His armour shone, and a helmet appeared to cover his exposed face. A pair of wing-like rays of light burst from his back as he rose off the ground.
But as fancy as it looked, in the end it was just a simple holy spell designed to provide mobility and defence.
His shadow morphed into a large hand and squeezed his chest. His armour bent and broke beneath the pressure, and the air was audibly forced out of his lungs.
He was flung to the ground, his leg bent at an unhealthy angle.
The shadow-hand became a fist that drove him down again as he tried to stand.
His radiant armour dissipated, revealing the broken, near-dead body of the man.
His two remaining comrades had already been run through, and their bodies were being tossed into a pile.
“How funny for a devil to be saving the innocent from holy men… oh well, onto the pyre you go!”
I kicked him so hard I felt his spleen rupture, and he landed perfectly on the pile of bodies. Perhaps I had a future in Pillarball?
The man gurgled something incomprehensible, likely begging for mercy.
So I mercifully let him burn among his comrades, careful to make sure my flames did not damage the lovely house.
“Ma'am, it is not safe here. Let me tend to your husband.”
The gate guard opened a satchel and began applying first aid treatment to the old man. The woman, still shaking and terrified, said nothing.
That is, until I turned to head back the way we came.
“Thank you… thank you…”
“...Hm…”
I turned back to confirm she was talking to me, but even after doing so, I didn't know what to say. I simply nodded with a grunt and waited for them to finish up.
They managed to wake up the injured man, who seemed angry at the state of his house, but relieved that his wife was safe. I saw the old lady point me out to him, and he offered an acknowledging nod without further comment.
“S-sirs, is everything alrigh—”
The others we left behind mustered up the courage to check on us, but froze when they saw me.
“Do not worry, citizens, she is on our side.”
The gate guard quickly leapt to my defence.
“It's true, she saved our lives.”
The old woman also vouched for me.
“B-but… can we really trust her?”
“Maybe she is the cause of all this…”
The distrust was expected, and it did nothing to hurt my feelings. I still felt amazing after snuffing out those idiots.
Still, we wouldn't get anywhere if this carried on.
“Stick with me if you like, or take your chances alone, I don't care either way.”
I presented an easy ultimatum and immediately left through a side street. The guards and the old couple wasted no time following behind, and after a brief pause of contemplation, most of the others joined too. The gate guard had carried out Solean's weapons and distributed them to the strongest-looking member who stuck with us.
All in all, about 70% chose to follow.
I planned to lead the group east, to one of the meeting places that Merk and I had used, which was still operational. It acted as a pocket dimension, and should be perfectly safe, if a little cramped.
But while we did not run into any more enemies in the alleyways, the echoing sounds of battle still haunted our every step. One such noise stood out among the din.
“What is that? It sounds like a horse.”
One woman asked.
“Heavy cavalry… we don’t have any of those stationed in Borderton. Soleo must have brought them in from Farrowgate.”
The gate guard answered.
There was no reason to go out and face a cavalry charge while we were safe where we were, but it wouldn’t hurt to take a look.
I used my usual method to send out my eye and survey the main street. Sure enough, five horses were charging through the crowd. But what really caught my attention was a familiar figure, one who would be very useful to have on my side.
Axel was pummelling the attackers with such brutality that it was hard to believe he was once on their side. Even stranger was the body of water that followed and protected him, shifting its form constantly to adapt to the situation.
“Cover me.”
I made my decision and prepared to interrupt the cavalry charge.
