Chapter 51
“Waaaaah!”
The first roar came from the direction of the mercenaries.
Then the knights also shouted.
“He killed Kun Gersha!”
“This guy actually killed that terrifying monster!”
Perhaps he didn’t expect that he could kill a monster so easily.
Even the young knight, who looked dazed while staring at Kun Gersha’s severed head, raised his sword high when he heard the cheers.
“Waaaah!”
It was dead.
That terrifying monster… Kun Gersha was dead.
The young knight’s family had been brutally slaughtered by monsters long ago.
It was a typical story, but the prince had defeated and saved them from the very monster that would have torn them apart.
Since then, he had pledged loyalty to the prince and became a knight.
But no matter how much of a knight he became, he painfully realized day by day that it was almost impossible for a mere human to kill monsters.
All he could do was cover the rising hatred with helplessness.
He lived day by day, slowly eating away at himself.
But today…
“Uaaaaaah!”
The young knight roared and cut down a nearby monster.
If he could even defeat Kun Gersha, he had no reason to fear this monster.
He would no longer live as prey.
Even though they now had weapons, each one of these monsters was undoubtedly fearsome.
Moreover, for some reason, they were more ferocious than usual.
Yet still, the morale of the mercenaries and knights soared even higher.
The battle at Parmahal became one that offered exhilarating hope—that they wouldn’t have to be massacred by monsters anymore.
Above their heads, a group of blue lights quietly covered them.
Feeling the power slowly draining, Yurein quietly smiled.
With the lord’s power, the people had become stronger.
The guide could only interfere through the Espers.
Yet she could feel the power of an Esper in that ‘sword’.
“You said this was… done by you, right? That sword.”
Even though the lord had regulated it so her strength gradually drained, her head spun and she felt dizzy.
Her stomach churned, too. But despite the exhaustion, she did not feel despair.
Arsen and Zarkal, controlling the monsters on the ground and in the sky while protecting Yurein, nodded.
“Yes, that’s right, young lady.”
“Yes. That is correct, my lady.”
At those words, Yurein nodded.
A faint smile spread across her lips.
“Amazing…”
It was because of that sword that Yurein could guide all these people.
The sword’s Esper energy sharpened further, slightly enhancing people’s physical abilities through the blue light swarm.
Although they weren’t Espers themselves, it was thanks to the Esper energy within the sword that they could achieve this.
So that they could cut down monsters more easily.
The monsters were being eliminated at a rapid pace.
The stronger monsters were quickly handled by Zarkal and Arsen.
Now that they were no longer outnumbered, capturing weakened monsters wasn’t a difficult task.
Thus, the seemingly endless night at Parmahal finally ended, and morning came.
Clack-
The lord, flying in the sky, descended to the ground.
As the massive bird suddenly appeared, people flinched and dodged instinctively.
Almost all the monsters on the ground had already been dealt with.
No… now on the ground or in the sky, only the corpses of dead monsters remained.
There were no living monsters left in Parmahal.
Being skilled in battle, the knights and mercenaries had easily slaughtered the monsters as soon as they acquired weapons to subdue them.
The blue light swarm had also assisted them.
Just as they thought all monsters were dealt with, a huge bird suddenly descended from the sky, startling everyone.
Could it be a monster? Of course, it must be.
The knights and mercenaries raised their swords again.
“Uh…?”
At that moment, one of the mercenaries tilted his head.
He noticed that the blue light swarm covering their bodies was flowing toward the large bird.
The blue light swarm, which had spread among the people, gathered around the bird.
The lights swirled around it, and the sunlight shimmered faintly over the spectacle—it was extremely mystical.
Could one call that a malevolent monster? It looked so sacred and mysterious.
The strength drained from the hands holding swords.
Although people couldn’t completely drop their guard, they instinctively knew that this creature wasn’t a monster.
Clack.
Then, someone descended from the bird’s back.
Like the bird, they were enveloped in the blue light swarm.
Striking silver hair. Brilliant pale jade eyes.
Yurein.
“Who… who are you?!”
One of the knights drew their sword and shouted.
Judging by the way they commanded the blue light swarm, it seemed they were the one helping the people.
But no one could completely drop their guard.
Half caution, half curiosity, everyone watched Yurein.
“Ah, I—”
“You are not someone to be treated carelessly.”
Just as Yurein was about to speak, someone suddenly appeared beside her.
Seeing someone suddenly fall from the sky, people tried to be cautious again but quickly recognized him and lowered their swords.
“Ha—no, Zarkal-sama!”
The one leading the knights stepped before Zarkal and knelt.
Then all the knights planted their swords in the ground and knelt on one knee.
The force of all the knights kneeling at once was overwhelming.
The mercenaries hesitated at the sight.
Seeing the knights behave this way, it was clear that Zarkal had nothing to do with the monsters.
But then—
“It’s really okay!”
Thud! A sound, and another person fell from the sky.
Even if it was the second time, seeing someone fall from the sky was far from an ordinary experience.
All eyes turned as Arsen appeared.
He raised his greatsword high and smiled brightly.
“This young lady helped us fight better with the blue light!”
Arsen raised his sword high again.
The mercenaries, stunned, raised their swords in response.
“We won!”
“It’s finally over!”
“Yeah!”
“We won!”
Cheers erupted.
The long night was truly over.
Parmahal would be rebuilt and, for many years, remain a city for mercenaries—a cradle of safety.
Watching the people cheer with joy, Yurein faintly smiled and squinted her eyes.
‘This…’
The black petals that had scattered when the girl disappeared had mostly embedded themselves into the monsters.
Yet one black flower bud, as if just bloomed, lay on the ground near Yurein.
She was the only one to notice it.
Taking advantage of the commotion, Yurein reached for the bud.
“Lord, could I keep this in a potion bottle?”
She didn’t know what it was immediately, but it needed to be examined later.
Whispering quietly so no one else could hear, the lord answered so only Yurein could hear:
Yes. That’s possible.
She carefully placed the fallen bud into an empty potion bottle she had used and sealed it tightly with the lord’s power.
Looking around, Yurein confirmed no one was watching and let out a small sigh.
Everyone was caught up in a frenzy of joy.
Understandably so, as they had thought the battle unwinnable but emerged victorious.
No one could resist longing for home.
The mercenaries had defended their homeland themselves, and for the first time, they were hunters, not prey.
Naturally, they were intoxicated with victory.
In the midst of this, no one would be worrying about her.
‘Thank goodness.’
Yurein smiled softly, seeing them.
She was glad they had protected their homes.
She was glad she could help protect them, even just a little.
She had nowhere to return to now.
So she understood the value of having somewhere to go.
At least these people still had a home to return to, a place they could protect… how fortunate.
“Ah…”
Her head spun.
Young lady!
The lord, flapping his wings in alarm, called to Yurein.
She felt her vision blur.
She had expended too much magical power. It was impressive she had lasted this long.
‘When I wake up again, my body will be in terrible shape.’
It was only natural after using so much strength.
But she was accustomed to the pain. Yurein smiled faintly.
Feeling herself unable to control her body, she began to fall swiftly—it was a chilling sensation.
“My lady…!”
“Miss!”
Urgent voices and the feeling of hands firmly supporting her waist, and Yurein fainted.
