Chapter – 35
Ka-WAAANG!
“Use the cart as cover!”
At Pirancheva’s shout, the mercenaries moved quickly. This time, Pirancheva couldn’t help them much.
“Pirancheva, can you handle it alone? They look strong just by the way they’re standing.”
“If you want to die, you can leave it to Mr. Giltmin, but if you want to live, stick to the cart. And shoot the arrows in the directions I tell you.”
After speaking quickly, Pirancheva confronted the enemies.
These newcomers were stronger than any enemies they had faced before, wielding refined swordsmanship.
It was clear even at a glance that these were beyond ordinary soldiers.
While facing multiple such opponents, Pirancheva guided Giltmin on where to aim if the black wizard Diviner tried to cast magic.
“Seven o’clock, shoot four arrows.”
One arrow from Pirancheva would be enough to suppress him, but since Giltmin couldn’t pinpoint the black wizard, several arrows were fired in hopes that at least one would strike near him.
If it hit close enough, the magic would be canceled; if not, the spell could threaten their lives.
Fortunately, the cart served as cover, giving the mercenaries a place to avoid the magic.
Being a dwarven-made cart, its durability far exceeded that of a human-made one.
Ka-WAAANG!
The magic struck the cart directly, but it only shook slightly and did not break.
“How long will this hold?”
“Unless it’s a fifth-circle spell, it won’t break. Don’t worry.”
Jabes spoke confidently about the cart’s durability.
“So, as long as the opponent isn’t a fifth-circle wizard, we’re safe?”
“Exactly.”
Hearing Jabes and the mercenaries, Pirancheva spoke urgently.
“If he casts mental magic on the knight, we can’t rule out that he’s a fifth-circle wizard. Be careful. Mr. Giltmin, five arrows at four o’clock!”
Following Pirancheva’s shout, Giltmin stepped slightly away from the cart and drew his bow toward four o’clock.
Fwoosh!
Five arrows shot off, and luckily, one struck near the black wizard, preventing his magic from coming toward them.
While keeping an eye on the black wizard, Pirancheva fought four knights, not losing ground at all.
When one knight thrust at Pirancheva’s shoulder, she used a sudden evasive maneuver to parry and twisted to block a swing from the opposite side.
Paaah!
Seeing a horizontal slash from the left, she twisted and rolled aside, then dropped to the ground as a knight brought his sword down vertically.
She raised her shield to block, then tilted slightly, causing the sword to slide down the shield.
At that moment, the knight’s stance faltered, and Pirancheva’s sword cut through his torso.
“Guh!”
The knight wore leather armor, not plate, so Pirancheva infused her sword with mana to create a manasword, cutting through both armor and flesh in one strike.
The knight collapsed forward, and Pirancheva kicked his body toward another knight to disrupt their timing.
Having taken down one, she used the fallen knight to block another’s attack, then moved toward the next.
Watching a vertical thrust carefully, she spun past the knight, letting his sword graze her waist.
Screech!
Passing behind him, she swung her sword toward his neck.
The knight had no time to react as his neck was severed.
“Mr. Giltmin, five arrows at five o’clock!”
Even while fighting the knights, Pirancheva reminded Giltmin to watch the black wizard.
After dealing with two knights, she moved toward another.
Cheeeeng!
The knight launched a flurry of strikes, but Pirancheva blocked them all and countered.
Thunderstrike!
Using the Heaven-Demon technique, her attacks were overwhelming.
“Ugh!”
The knight staggered back, letting out a low groan.
Pirancheva approached quickly, stepping on her Heaven-Demon Strike platform, and the knight withdrew while swinging his sword.
With mana-enhanced speed, she ducked beneath the blade, her hair catching a few cuts, then drew her dagger and stabbed into the knight’s abdomen.
“Ugh!”
At the same moment, she spoke another word.
“Lightning!”
Zzzap!
Mana surged along the dagger, instantly burning the knight from the inside.
The knight collapsed, and Pirancheva’s gaze shifted to the last knight, who swung toward her side.
Cheeeeng!
“Ugh!”
She blocked in a slightly unstable stance, using the knight’s momentum to roll sideways and create distance.
The knight advanced, and Pirancheva touched the ground and cast:
“Earth Wave!”
The ground beneath the knight heaved.
“Whoa!”
Off balance, he stumbled, allowing her to close in using the Heaven-Demon Strike platform.
“Guh!”
Her dagger pierced his neck.
“Mr. Giltmin! Five arrows at four o’clock!”
Pirancheva ordered while rushing toward the black wizard, intending to remove a fifth-circle threat before he could use mental magic on the lord.
She closed the distance in an instant. The mercenaries called after her, but she had already vanished from sight.
“They seem strong, but not stronger than her,” one mercenary said.
“Even without elite academy training, she’s honed her skills in real combat,” Jabes remarked.
If Pirancheva hadn’t moved to attack the black wizard, Jabes would have stepped in himself.
Pirancheva’s speed was terrifying, and the black wizard tried to flee, but she was too fast.
Finally, he attempted to cast magic against her.
“Cancel!”
Pirancheva easily nullified the spell.
“Gah!”
The black wizard stared in shock, realizing she could also use magic.
“You… are…”
He realized too late that she was a wizard, thinking he had been toyed with.
“You!”
The Diviner attempted another spell, but Pirancheva nullified it effortlessly.
“How…?”
The Diviner fell to his knees, stunned.
“Wizards’ predictable thinking is their weakness. If you just thought a little differently, you would have realized I was a wizard—like Mr. Jabes did.”
As he died, he tried to grab Pirancheva, but she avoided him.
After checking his belongings, she found his spellbook and collected gold and jewels from a small pouch.
“I’ll use this for research and to beat up some worthless lizards,” she muttered.
Stepping on the black wizard’s head to ensure he couldn’t survive any dark magic tricks, she left no chance for revival.
Pirancheva had fought many wizards while working as a mercenary in Belforden, learning their weaknesses.
Using Unspell magic to cancel spells is effective, except against wizards of a higher circle, though encountering a sixth-circle wizard is rare.
After successfully merging mana flows with martial techniques in Goblin Dungeon, she had maximized the power of both magic and swordsmanship.
Returning to the cart, the group was already ready to depart.
“Did you get them?” Jabes asked.
“Yes. Wizards these days seem too foolish,” Pirancheva replied, drawing a smirk from the mercenaries.
“Not because you’re abnormal, right?”
“Who’s normal like me? Two eyes, one nose, one mouth, two ears,” she joked, leaving them dumbfounded.
“Let’s leave. The blood could attract monsters,” Jabes said.
With preparations done, they quickly departed.
“By the way, Jabes,” she asked.
“Yes?”
“Why was the black wizard after this cart? Were the weapons so dangerous he feared them reaching Duke Durand?”
“There’s nothing special. They’re all regular arms, delivered periodically. I don’t know why he attacked.”
“I’m sure there’s a reason.”
“Maybe. But for now, since we caught him, there won’t be any more attacks unless someone’s watching or they communicate and mobilize forces before we enter Duke Durand’s territory.”
“Then we should think about why the black wizard targeted these arms.”
“Yes. Let me know if you find out.”
“I will.”
