Chapter 363
Translator: Tseirp
I was just fighting the Demonic King Dragon with Talwi just a few days ago so why was she here now?
And why did she attack me?
“Why am I here? Because there is a battle to be had here . ”
Talwi released a thrust . The thrust was a lot sharper than when I fought Kyanshi in the past and I avoided it to the side but the trajectory of the sword suddenly changed and hit my flank .
“Guah …”
“ … It didn’t cut you . You seem to be wearing strange clothes . ”
That was dangerous . If I wasn’t wearing the clothes Rarael made, I would have been cut .
What power .
Even if Talwi’s Beast Warrior level was high, that speed … don’t tell me .
“You’re using Beast Blood?”
Beast Blood – A Beast Warrior skill that would dramatically raise their power and speed for 10 minutes .
Skills that were released outward were probably dispersed by the light below my feet but I guess that did not apply to the blood that circulated in her body .
I would be at a disadvantage there . I had to leave as soon as possible .
“Home Return! … I knew it wouldn’t activate . ”
I took out the Lucky Hammer from my item bag and swung it at the door .
It was a hammer that could add a 100 kg of weight to the hammer for an instant using MP .
There are no doors that can’t be destroyed with this –
Guwaaaan! The noise reverberated throughout the room but the door was unharmed .
“Such a sturdy door . ”
I commented as I stored the hammer in my item bag .
I won’t be able to use the hammer against Talwi who had greater speed than me .
“You should be able to tell now . You will not be able to leave here . ”
“Yeah, it doesn’t look like I can exit . ”
I said as I wiped my sweat .
“Talwi-san . What about you? You are locked in here too . Won’t you starve to death after you defeat me?”
“There’s no need for your concern . I will be able to leave once everything is over . ”
I see – As expected, Talwi had a way to leave .
I took out two talismans from my item bag .
I tore one of the talisman .
“(That is … a Silencing Talisman … what are you planning?)”
Even with a tenth of the original volume, the room was silent . Talwi’s voice could reach me .
A talisman is not a skill . It looked like I could use it without any issues .
“(Well, I was thinking of getting you to open the door for me . )”
I said as I took out a loudspeaker talisman .
Ten times the sound in a room with a tenth of the volume .
By using that, I could speak with normal volume .
“This is Talwi! I have defeated Ichinojo! Open the door now!”
I spoke with Talwi’s voice .
Using the Copy Cat skill, Voice Mimic .
I was able to change my voice . Since voice is emitted from the throat, it was a useable skill similar to Beast Blood .
… Eh?
My voice mimic should have been perfect but I didn’t sense the door opening .
“(Hahaha, that’s an interesting skill . So other people would hear you speak in my voice . )”
“Open the door now! Can you hear me!”
“(It’s useless, the guys outside had already left when we entered this place . )”
So my trump card didn’t work .
In that case –
“Would you tell me the way to exit if I defeat you?”
“(Ah, sure . I might even tell you why I’m doing all this . )”
“All right – then I’ll jump straight into my evil methods . ”
I took out Miri’s favorite from my item bag, the Kusaya juice used to make Kusaya, and sprinkled it on the floor . (TLN: Kusaya = Japanese fermented fish known for its pungent smell)
A strong offensive odor filled the room .
“(What is that smell!)”
Talwi’s expression distorted in pain .
“How’s that . It should be painful given the White Wolf Race’s good sense of smell . ”
To be honest, it was hard for me too .
“(That’s cowardly – but that makes it enjoyable . )”
Talwi took out another sword .
Dual-wielding?
“(A fight is a life or death situation . Cowardice and evil methods are the essences of battle . )”
Talwi’s two swords attacked me like two-headed snakes .
Talwi’s swords blurred . I protected my face so everything else was defenseless . I could feel the damage over my clothes .
What was that –
I took some distance .
She shouldn’t be able to use skills .
“Slash!”
I tried releasing a sword wave but … it didn’t activate as expected .
In that case – I sheathed my White Wolf Fang and attempted the sword draw skill .
I drew my White Wolf Fang but it was a regular draw and it did not activate the skill .
Talwi had closed the distanced and resumed her attacks while I was performing trial and error .
I didn’t mistake the blurring of her sword .
I was forced into a defensive situation .
Do I have a skill that can be used for offense?
“It looks like the Silencing Talisman effect has worn off . I will have to end this soon . The Beast Blood effect will only last a little longer . ”
“That would be good . Let’s call it a draw and take –”
“I can’t agree with that . ”
Talwi’s sword assailed me and the wounds on my body continued to increase .
That was bad, I would really lose if that continued any longer .
Not being able to use magic was a miscalculation . I would definitely not lose if I could use magic .
I have been relying too much on magic and skills until now .
I have to focus more on fighting without relying on magic and skills .
(Hn? Ah, so that’s it . )
I looked at Talwi’s sword movements closely .
The snake-like sword movements were confusing but they were all illusions .
“Just like how a shaken pencil will look bent . ”
I was flustered because I thought she was using skills in a space that negated skills but I was mistaken .
“The reason was much simpler . Talwi, your attack doesn’t rely on offensive skills . So that is a sword technique achieve with only technique?”
Talwi didn’t answer even when I asked .
“I’ll take your silence as agreement . ”
“I won’t lose to a magician like you just because you found the answer . ”
“Then I’ll have to use my last resort too . ”
I said and grinned .
“Nope, I guess it’s not a last resort . More like a front door?” (TLN: Last resort/trump card is ‘Back hand’ in Japanese and the ‘front door’ here is ‘Door in front of my hand’ . )
I said and took out the Lucky Hammer from my item bag once again and slammed it against the door .
It made an immense sound but the door didn’t budge as expected .
Sheesh, what kind of material was it made of?
But –
“What!?”
Talwi looked at the door – or rather the presence on the other side of the door .
It looked like she noticed .
The door made a sound and slowly opened .
I didn’t have to look back .
Even if I didn’t look back, I know who came .
“Sorry for the wait, Master . ”
“It’s okay, you are right on time, Haru . ”
I knew from the start that there was a chance this would be a trap .
There was no way I would trust that inspector .
I sent a message and told Haru .
In case of something unexpected, I told her to tail me from a distance .
There were other beastmen so I asked her to keep quite a distance away .
And when in front of the shrine, I sent a message telling her to open the door from the outside if she hears the sound of a second hammer strike if I was locked up .
“I actually wanted to escape with my own ability though . ”
When I said that, Talwi moved with even greater speed than she had before .
She either used a skill similar to Beast Blood or she had been going easy on me, or both . I didn’t know .
But –
“It’s too late . ”
I stopped Talwi’s attack with my sword .
“Wha …”
“Sorry but I wasn’t serious either . I had to stall for time to prevent you from escaping until Haru arrived so I played it such that it was a close battle . ”
I did make a big mistake by lowering my guard and taking that first strike but I knew that I would not take any significant damage if I protected my face .
“Even if you were acting, you can’t act a swing like that –”
As she was speaking, I moved with my actual speed and slashed at her stomach . With the back of the sword .
But the damage should still be quite significant .
“Kahaa”
Yeah, I didn’t have to act when swinging my sword .
I just had to not change my jobs from the magic-specialised jobs I had assigned .
“Your Beast Blood effect has probably ended . Resign yourself and be captured . You are a companion who we fought the Demonic King Dragon with . I’ll listen to your circumstances and might even help you if I can . ”
“ … Fuh, so naïve . I hate that naivety but I like that strength . Sheesh, so terrifying . What rear guard . ”
Talwi finally stood up with great effort but smiled as she wiped the corner of her mouth .
She had cut her lip so it drew a line of blood across her cheek .
“So that pungent liquid was so that I would not notice Haurvatat’s arrival outside huh? I couldn’t use my nose for a short time . ”
“No, that Kusaya juice was just to harass you . ”
In the first place, I didn’t even imagine that she would be able to sense Haru’s smell outside .
“Master, it’s really smelly . ”
Gah .
Haru, don’t say it like that . It sounded as though you are saying I stink .
“Sorry, Haru . You can wait outside . I’ll use Clean when I exit and the smell will be gone . ”
“Sigh, even if the battle is over, you don’t have a shred of tension . ”
She said as she picked up the sword she dropped .
Haru and I were wary but she sheathed her sword .
“It’s a promise . I will tell you my reasons . ”
That’s right .
I had to go through quite a detour for that .
“My goal is the destruction of the world and the salvation of the world . ”
“The destruction and salvation of the world?”
Was it related to the End of the World?
Or was it completely unrelated?
There was not enough information .
“Mallegory will soon be led to its destruction . ”
“I don’t understand . Explain it more in detail . ”
She took out a piece of talisman after I said that .
After realizing the identity of that talisman, I drew my sword but in a location that sealed my skills, I could not make it in time .
“Wait!”
I shouted in vain as she tore the talisman .
She suddenly disappeared .
“Master, that was?”
“A Transfer Talisman … I think . ”
But a Transfer Talisman can only be made in a dungeon and can only be used inside a dungeon .
“Is this part of a dungeon?”
There was no other location that seemed like an entrance but we didn’t see Talwi appear anywhere .
“Haru, lets quickly return to Mallegory . I have a bad premonition .
Just as I said that .
『Haru-san, Haru-san, can you hear me?』
I could hear Carol’s voice coming from Haru’s chest .
Haru took out the Communication Talisman sandwiched between her breasts .
Why did she put it there? Ah, yeah, that would be a place that would not get in the way but still be audible .
“What happened, Carol!”
『Ichino-sama, so you are all right . It’s terrible! I have received news that 12,000 soldiers from the Tsuaobal army have started invading Mallegory . 』
What!?
Carol wouldn’t lie .
Was this the event that would lead to the destruction of Mallegory?
Just what is your goal, Talwi?