Chapter 73
“Ignisia, come this way.”
“Mm, I’m coming!”
Calidora was smiling.
“Master, the young lady’s condition seems quite serious.”
When he had received his attendants’ urgent call a few days ago, Avelus’s heart nearly stopped.
He had wanted desperately to heal Calidora, but Avelus didn’t know how to keep people from feeling lonely.
So instead, he granted a request he had always refused before—just to bring her some joy.
Should I have brought her sooner?
Even if it meant bearing more himself, he should never have left her to feel lonely. He knew what that feeling was, yet he had made that mistake.
Since realizing that, he no longer had the heart to refuse anything Calidora asked.
Nothing bad will happen.
Forcing himself to stay calm, Avelus stepped into the barrier around the arena.
Nothing would happen to Calidora. He would make sure of it.
“Waaaah!”
I jumped excitedly from the stands and ran straight to the center of the arena.
Teams split up naturally without much discussion.
Lord Avelus and I paired together, while the other three formed a team.
Everyone but me faced each other in battle-ready stances.
Since Lord Avelus was standing upright with a shield in one hand, I copied him, raising my empty arm stiffly in front of me.
“Calidora, just relax and stand comfortably.”
He must have thought I looked too tense, because Lord Avelus lightly tapped my shoulder.
“Ah—yes!”
Now that I looked, everyone’s stances were different anyway. Topus, who had no weapon, was bent low to draw from the ground. Pavonius and Exi each held their swords.
The thing I’m best at is breathing fire… what do I do?
Should I keep my mouth open in advance?
I thought about actually doing that, but decided it would look ridiculous.
“What kind of game is this? Are there rules?”
I asked Lord Avelus.
While he hesitated a moment, Exi quickly cut in with an explanation.
“The only rule is that if you’re forced out of bounds, you’re eliminated. Other than that, use any means to disable all your opponents. As for what the game is—well, you’ll find out when it’s over.”
“Ohh.”
As I murmured, Lord Avelus added, almost awkwardly:
“…As long as you understood, that’s enough.”
“Young lady, I’ll go easy then!”
Topus, standing in front, shouted at me.
“Don’t hold back! I’m an Ignitus just like Lord Avelus!”
At that, Topus grinned mischievously.
Bweeet!
A sharp whistle signaled the start.
“Here I come!”
Even before his words finished, the arena floor began to sink.
“Uwaah…!”
My feet sank as if into a swamp.
No matter how I tried to move, I couldn’t.
Avelus, running easily, scooped me up with one arm.
“Eek!”
Right in the stomach—
I cried out and folded in half, dangling from his arm like laundry on a clothesline.
But Topus’s fierce assault didn’t let up.
Dodging lava showers that looked like they might bury us at any moment, Avelus leapt from solid patches of ground, again and again gathering momentum.
“Ugh…”
Meanwhile, the speed made it impossible for me to use my power—or even figure out what was happening.
Yet Avelus calmly explained to me as we went.
His words were organized—it must have been what he’d tried to tell me earlier before Exi cut him off.
“The basics of battle using powers is to identify the nature of your opponent’s strength.”
He gestured at the sticky floor.
“Topus’s ability is to melt rock. In other words, his power is useless somewhere without material to melt.”
With that, Avelus released his own power toward the ground.
Whoosh!
Flames burst downward, launching us into the air.
The lava below quickly gathered to strike us again, but Avelus had been right.
No matter how high it surged, it couldn’t reach us.
“Damn it…!”
Below, Topus, controlling the lava, looked flustered.
In a flash, he recalled it and gave the turn to Exi.
“Lord Avelus! Something else is coming!”
Around us, small, spark-like power cores filled the air.
Exi’s power.
“Don’t touch them. If fire hits those shining things, they’ll explode. Explosivus’s power is strong, but it takes a few seconds to charge. You have to destroy the immature blast cores before they’re fully grown.”
Boom, boom, boom!
Even as he finished, the powers exploded in a cascade.
But we had already moved a step aside and avoided them.
Whoosh—
The next instant, air split above us.
The wind’s power was invisible.
Only the rush of approaching magic revealed an attack was incoming.
Three against us at once—it’s impossible to focus…!
While Avelus carried me away, I scattered the half-grown blast cores around us, trying to help even a little.
Avelus kept shifting position until a lava wall rose from the ground. He hid us behind it, then held out the shield in his right hand to me.
“I’ll entrust this to you. Try blocking the attacks that come our way.”
“This is…”
It was Firma. The keepsake left by Lord Avelus’s father.
He wanted to entrust something so important to me?
“Is there a problem?”
When I hesitated, Avelus looked puzzled.
Ah, that’s right. Since I only saw it in the past, Lord Avelus doesn’t know that I know.
I quickly shook my head and gripped it tightly.
It’s lighter than I thought. Maybe it’s enchanted.
Just as I thought that—
Rumble…
The ground began twisting again beneath us.
“It’s coming.”
“Yes!”
I raised the shield with determination.
It’s faster to sense the magic than rely on sight.
So I closed my eyes.
The lava, Avelus would handle. I decided to focus only on blocking the ranged attacks.
Right side…!
Whoosh!
The sound neared.
I raised the shield at the right moment.
Clang!
A violent impact shook through both arms.
I had blocked Pavonius’s strike.
“Calidora, you…!”
Avelus must have sensed it too.
But the situation was too urgent—he said no more.
I kept blocking attacks over and over.
Right side again. Above my head. From the left flank…
The endless clashes and tremors were wearing me out.
“Are you struggling?”
As I panted for breath, Avelus asked.
I opened my eyes and nodded.
But he too was panting hard.
Of course. Even alone it would have been tough, but he had been carrying me and running nonstop.
“In that case, let’s end this.”
Avelus spoke.
I blinked. End this? How, in this chaos?
I couldn’t even see the enemies. The explosions were so loud I could barely hear Avelus though he was right beside me.
Then suddenly, he grinned and leapt high into the air.
“Lord Avelus…?”
Wouldn’t that expose our position?
“From here, I’ll attack. Hold on tight.”
Attack? Now?
In that instant, shock struck me like a blow to the head.
Because Avelus—until now—hadn’t attacked even once!
