Chapter 168 - 168 Sieged By a Coven

168: Sieged By a Coven 168: Sieged By a Coven CRASHH...!! All of a sudden, every single window that filled one side of the classroom exploded simultaneously, erupting into showers of glass shards that rained down violently upon us. Instinctively, I covered my face with my arm, protecting myself from the razor-sharp rain as I used my other to grab the Protagonist, bringing her to my side as quickly as I could move and covering her. Hearing shuffling all around us, I couldn’t see it, but I knew it was nothing else but the sound of those black robes. In the following moments, as the rain of glass ceased and I lowered my arm, I saw them. ‘It’s them... Damn it!’ I already guessed it, but with the raw moonlight now having gained access to the classroom, I could see it reflecting off their robes and cloaks―an emblem of a Black Rose. All of their faces were covered with hoods and black shadows, but before they had a chance to come at me properly, I held the Protagonist tight to my chest and jumped away. Focusing all my senses on the present, I heard meaningless chanting behind me―turning my head just enough to get a glance, I spotted various magical lights emerging in the air and converging, an evident precursor to spells being cast. Quickly moving my attention back to what lay in front of me, I summoned the Holy Sword in one hand and cut down the witch preparing a spell in front of me with enough force to move her out of the way, continuing to dismiss the sword and run past her without slowing down for a second. Then, summoning the Draconic Shadow to replace the outfit of the disguise, I barely had enough time― “Gh– Ngh...! ―Something heavy impacted my left side, sending a powerful jolt through my body and forcing me to grit my teeth. Hurriedly planting my feet firmly on the ground, I managed to get away just sliding a few metres across. Intentionally not thinking about how much force that carried even through the armour’s Superior Magic Resistance, I kept going, reaching the classroom’s door and bursting through it into the corridor beyond. Without looking back, I sprinted, glancing down at the Protagonist in my arms. “...” Seeing her gaze as impassively up at me as she always had done, her heterochromatic eyes seeming to pierce through my own, I turned back to look ahead. Then, realising I wasn’t being chased for some reason, I slowed, halted, and turned around. ‘They’re not coming...?’ I thought it was strange, but I certainly wouldn’t complain if that was all. Now, all I had to do was wait for Aradine to arrive... “Mother won’t come.” “...What?” Suddenly, the girl I was holding said that. “Why not? You’re in danger, so of course she should–” Interrupting my confusion, she pointed at something down the corridor. Or rather, the lack of something. “...Oh, the lights? But, why would that mean...” When she pointed it out, I belatedly realised she was correct―the glowing wisps that used to illuminate the corridor were no longer present. I could see that much, obviously, but I couldn’t understand why that was relevant here. “Mother’s surveillance. The wisps act like familiars.” “Ah... I understand.” But then, she shook her head. “No. It’s not all.” Pointing at her own eye, the one that was a simple, dull shade of purple, she continued. “My eye is also surveillance. Mother can see, but can’t come because the wisps are gone.” Naturally, my brows furrowed. First of all, the Protagonist’s eye being a surveillance camera for Aradine meant she likely already knew everything I had been asking her and that she had been asking me, including all those suspicious questions about her safety and vulnerability. However, aside from that, I couldn’t see how the wisps’ presence affected her ability to come to where we were. “What do you mean she can’t come because the wisps are gone? What about the lack of wisps makes it impossible?” “It’s not the lack of wisps. It’s the reason the wisps are gone.” ‘The reason? So what, something like a nullification field...? Magic nullification, or otherwise just something that prevents her from getting over here with whatever magical method she usually uses...’ Finally, I was beginning to get it. And, just as I attained such a grasp of the situation, I caught a shimmer in the darkness. Something along the lines of a magic miss– SLAM-! “Hk...!” Intending to block and stop the projectile with my arm, it somehow contained enough force to slam my arm back into my own chest, making me inadvertently knock the wind out of myself. Fortunately, the missile was flying higher than the height at which I was holding the Protagonist, but I could only remain grateful for that for so long. Before I had the chance to fully recover, a dozen or so more magical lights shimmered, and just as many magical projectiles came flying my way. “Tsk, just how many...! Hang on tight!” Turning my back to the missiles, it might’ve been a stupid move to even consider, but I didn’t want to risk the Protagonist getting hit and blown out of my arms. I was fully confident she wouldn’t die even if hit by the entire volley, so all I had to do was make sure I held onto her. Gritting my teeth in preparation, I hardly had a single instant to brace for the impact. SLAM, SLAM SLAM SLAM SLAM–!!! The barrage of magic projectiles hit me all in succession, first sliding across the floor then flying, crashing to the ground while turning midair to not land on top of the Protagonist. ‘Fucking magic...! It’s not doing any damage, but why is the knockback so damn high...?!’ I wasn’t sure if the Superior Magic Resistance was less effective against magic with the purpose of pure knockback, or if the magic itself was just that strong, but either way, I could only take the lack of serious harm as a thin silver lining. Rolling across the ground to not get stuck as a sitting duck, I immediately jumped to my feet, narrowly evading the last couple of magic missiles by an inch. I didn’t have time to breathe. “Enki. Familiars.” Picking up the Protagonist’s whispered warning as she clung to me, I realised what she was talking about. Right ahead, very clearly magical creatures all rushed at me like a stampede. Wolves, snakes, birds, cats, rats, hares, and even frogs all came at me at once. Having no time to think or even curse, I hastily moved the Protagonist onto my back and shoulders, ensuring she was holding on tightly before summoning the Holy Sword once again, this time into my left hand, and summoning the Villainous Blade into my right. Standing in the middle of the corridor, brandishing each of those antithetical blades in front of me, I took a deep breath. “Come on then!” And they did. Along the ground, the wolves were the first to make it, and at the same time, the crows and ravens through the air, about half-a-dozen or so of each. Swinging my left arm to first block a wolf from the front, I brought my right arm down to cut both it and an unfortunately-positioned bird down with one strike, immediately swivelling my body to transition into a roundhouse kick for another wolf jumping from the side, turning the former two into dissipating magic vapour and knocking the latter to the ground. My body was not necessarily strong, but the same could be said for these familiars, and with the addition of the Draconic Shadow covering my body, it’s purpose wasn’t just to serve as protection. After all, even a shield could deal some devastating damage. Gaining some distance, I let two more wolves jump at me from each side, dashing forward to dodge before turning around and cutting one down mid-air, following it up with a no-pause slash on the other, evaporating them. With the big flock of birds that remained, I simply continued to move further and further back down the hallway to gain some distance, cutting them down in swathes with a big sweep of the sword, and taking out the others when they were vulnerable. By the time most of them were erased, the rest of the horde arrived. Still, with the defensive capabilities of the Draconic Shadow, I was confident none of them could even deal me a scratch. All I needed to was ensure that none attacked from behind where the Protagonist was vulnerable, and that was easy enough to guarantee when fighting in this corridor that was no more than five metres in width. Eventually, enough of the masses had been culled for me to dismiss the Holy Sword, instead replacing it with the Black Wisp which I used without hesitation to take pot shots at the scurrying little rodents that remained. Just as I managed to take most of those out, the numbers left could hardly even be called a threat, and as I spotted more shimmers in the distant shadows, I decided to take the initiative. Sprinting forward, I ran straight past the pitiful stragglers and towards the witches I knew were hiding far back. In my head, I felt a simultaneous sense of incongruity at the unnatural length of the corridor, but there was no time nor luxury to consider it. Concentrating instead on ensuring that the Protagonist was properly holding on, I took a few aimless shots into the shadows with the Black Wisp before dismissing it, holding the Villainous Blade with a firmer grip and increasing my speed to the limit. It wasn’t anything special, but it was enough to catch a glimpse of them just before they fired off their magic, and as they did, I was already prepared. Charging forward, I watched the incoming magic missiles and balls of raw energy as if they were in slow motion, raising my left fist to meet that which was fastest. “Gh...!” My eyes shot open as the impact sent me a few metres back, but not out of pain. Immediately thereafter, I ducked to the ground to avoid a few more projectiles, jumping up to my feet fast enough to swing the Villainous Blade at the final magic missile. CLANG~~!! Just like that, a sonorous sound of ringing metal echoed throughout the vast corridor, a simple product of the opposing magic missile being deflected by the blade. The frankly evil sword might not have evolved enough to cut the thing in half, but it was more than enough for my purposes. After that, there was no more volley of magic, and I had reached the casters responsible before they had a chance to go for another round. Over a dozen witches lay bare before me, without their familiars, without their magic. Pulling my arm back in preparation to swing, I couldn’t help but grin when I saw the terror on their faces. ‘――Gotcha.’ At that very moment, when I was inches away from severing their heads from their bodies, their expressions flipped to something like ridicule, and before I knew it― “...?!” BOOOM-!! The witches exploded. CREATORS’ THOUGHTS Ted_ Thanks for reading ???? Testing new cover, may or may not be temporary depending on reception.