110: You know, it's dangerous how much you can't just abandon your comrades.

Because I made the divine wine, the eight-headed hydra came straight for me.

When Raidock’s party found out, they risked their lives to come straight to where I was with Maina.

I felt like crying from how grateful I was.

Raidock and Solar arrived first. Bep and Bardack showed up a bit later, both out of breath.

Morda, the heavily armed type, didn’t make it, not surprising.

“Raidock! Don’t let the hydra get behind me!”

“What!? …Got it!”

He hesitated for a second, puzzled, but then realized where Maina was, and slowly shifted his movements to steer the hydra away in another direction.

Smart.

The hydra’s head shot toward Solar at high speed.

Big body, so stand your ground!

Solar leaps sideways to dodge the charge, but barely manages to avoid it.

“Rainbow Barrier!!”

A quick defensive spell, instinctively cast.

It won’t stop that massive form, but it’s enough to deflect the hydra’s momentum. Just in time, Solar slides past the gap and narrowly avoids the attack.

“Nice one! Craft!”

Magic recovers naturally.

But if you keep using it to cast defenses every time it recovers a little, you can’t build up enough for a big spell.

“…Bardack!”

Raidock shouts the name of his party’s mage, Bardack.

“You’re out! Fall back and regroup!”

“…Wha—? But—”

“You know it yourself, don’t you!? You’re just a burden right now!”

“…Gh!”

Raidock barks at Bardack, harsh as a whip.

But I get it. He wouldn’t have left if I hadn’t said it like that.

...Kinda jealous.

But now that we’re here, Bardack’s magic has been drained dry. He’s been casting nonstop since arrival.

If he’d had even a shred of coordination with the lizardmen or the adventurers, he wouldn’t have burned through so much. But with only five of us, there’s no room to hold back.

Worst of all, Bardack doesn’t have a crest.

No matter how fast he recovers, he’s outmatched from the start.

It’s brutal—but in this situation, a magic user with no power left is just dead weight.

But Bardack’s not like me back then. He fought hard before pulling back. Should be proud.

So I shout.

"Bardack! Leave the rest to me! Meet up with Eva and the others—tell them the situation! Do exactly what I just said! By the time we catch up again, you’ll have a little magic back, right? Then join the adventurers when the time comes!"

That’s right. Bardack’s the kind of mage who made it without a crest.

I struggled with a bad crest. He struggled because he couldn’t get one carved at all. I know exactly how he feels.

He’s not useless—no way in hell!

Did my thoughts somehow reach him? Bardack, who’d been hesitating, snapped upright.

"Right... yeah. A messenger’s duty, I’ll take it! Hold on till I get back!"

"Leave it to us!!"

My voice and Raidock’s overlapped.

As Bardack turned and ran, a hydra’s neck shot forward at blinding speed.

"Hah! You’re not exactly hiding, are you!"

Raidock had read the hydra’s movement—slipped underneath its lashing neck at perfect timing.

Sword planted deep, a moment’s pause.

A gap too big to ignore. But Raidock’s foresight won. The hydra’s neck, already lunging toward Bardack, couldn’t twist.

“This chance? I’ve been waiting for this! Take this! ‘Crimson Rising Dragon Slash!’”

Raidock slashed upward, wreathed in fire.

Like a fire dragon rising into the sky.

Never seen this move before—but it’s brutal.

He must’ve held back until now. The charge needed timing. Too hard to pull off.

Maybe that’s why he lowered Bardack—created this opening.

Raidock’s sword technique was terrifying.

Perfectly severed the hydra’s neck—wait.

Just barely, the head still clung on.

Normally, that’d be a death blow. But this damn snake’s regeneration is insane—it’s already starting to regrow from the sliver of skin still clinging on.

“Damn it!”

Raidock tried to finish it off—but the remaining neck lunged at him relentlessly.

“Damn it! Just one more strike!”

Raidock roared in frustration.

“Raidock!”

I still have a card left!

Instant boost potion!

It’s a rare alchemical concoction—special ingredients, hard to produce. Only two bottles prepared this time.

It rockets up physical strength—but the effect lasts only a second. A damn tricky potion to use right.

Now’s the time to play it!

“Raidock! Boosting now! Lasts just a second… but can you do it!?”

He glances back at me—grins with that smug, reckless smirk.

“Who’re you talking to? Leave it to me!”

Ah, right. That’s him.

The ace of Goldendown. Raidock, was it?

Our eyes lock. That’s all it takes.

I hurl the boost potion with everything I’ve got—right into empty space.

“Huh!?”

Soral, who’d just let loose an arrow nearby, blinks in shock.

But it’s fine.

Raidock, facing off against the Hydra, suddenly feints and leaps sideways. Of course, he doesn’t even glance at the potion bottle.

But the spot he lands in? Perfectly matches the place where I threw the potion.

The bottle vanishes in a burst of magic, and the boost potion rains down over Raidock’s entire body.

“Let’s go! ‘Wind and Snow Slash’!”

Raidock’s body surges with power. He darts forward like a blue lightning strike, dodging the Hydra’s neck attack and slamming his sword into the head still healing itself.

Gyuumagaaaaaahhhhh!!!

That was the Hydra’s final scream.

The head spun through the air, flung away. Its face was twisted in rage.

"Nice one! Raidock!"

Raidock gave a fleeting, cold smile—then snapped back to grim focus, readjusting his sword.

The boost potion’s effect had already worn off.

"Don’t get cocky! Five heads still left!"

Exactly!

You’d think losing a head would calm it down, but no—it just went wilder.

Like it didn’t even care about getting hurt anymore. Its movements were fast. Brutal.

Honestly, how the hell are we holding up against this giant monster?

The Hydra’s no longer holding back—its attacks are overwhelming us completely.

Bep the priest’s got a mark too, but he’s been flinging minor healing spells nonstop—his magic’s running dry.

Raidock’s healing is starting to fall behind.

Sure, we’re using Healing Potions, but between me and Bep, we’re just running around while our magic recharges—can’t keep up.

Raidock’s taking on more than he should, just to protect us.

And then, finally, the line breaks.

At the exact moment my magic runs out, the head I’d been fighting—still locked with Raidock—suddenly lunges straight at me.

A hydra head bigger than a house. No defense magic I can cast. No way to stop it.

I’m timing the detonation of my self-destruct spell.

“Raidock! Last opening—make it! I’m counting on you!”

One bomb might not be enough to finish it.

But if I create an opening, Raidock’ll finish it.

One neck cut, and the rest’ll handle themselves. With that kind of confidence, I glare straight at the hydra’s head as it closes in—inevitable, unstoppable.

“You idiot! ‘Fist of Fury, Break the Sky!’”

I can’t believe it—Raidock stumbles forward, charging straight at me, shoving me aside.

The result’s obvious.

Raidock takes the hydra’s charge head-on, spinning through the air before getting flung back.

““Raidock!!””

Me, Solar, and Bep scream in utter dread.

But that’s bad!

That bastard—he won’t die from one hit, but he’s not getting up either!

Knowing that, the hydra ignores us three and charges straight at Raidock.

"Damn it! Come here, you damn snake bastard!"

Soral fires arrows, we two throw what little magic we’ve got—but even our best spells barely tickle the hydra.

Raidock’s flung back with a brutal force, spinning end over end across the ground, rolling for an impossible distance.

Any normal man would’ve been dead already.

"Damn... damn..."

But Raidock’s Raidock. Not dead.

He uses his sword as a staff, barely lifting his upper body.

Blood all over him.

I want to toss him a Healing Potion right now—but it’s too far!

And the hydra’s just about to stretch five of its heads toward Raidock.

Damn it!

That move still works with the divine wine?!

That’s cheating!

The hydra lunges forward, jaws about to tear Raidock apart—

"『Steel Briar Prison』!"

Suddenly, a steel rose erupted around Raidock.

"What?!"

The hydra charged forward with full force, slamming into the iron thorns. The impact tore open its whole body, and it reared back with a shriek.

The steel rose that had spread out to protect Raidock vanished with a soft swish, somewhere.

Damn solid defense spell.

Someone who can unleash magic this powerful…

Took my time, didn’t I?

A broad, pointed hat. A splendid mantle.

A beautifully aged, well-worn staff.

Of course, it was Eva—the eldest of the three sisters, the Caspers.

You're joking, right? A goddess?

I wanted to cheer inside, but I rejected it the next instant.

Raidock? What the hell—!?

The mage who’d thought Raidock was a goddess let out a ridiculous scream.

“Now I’m fixing you, okay? ‘Severe Wound Healing.’”

Without rushing, the youngest of the three sisters, Marilyn—(big chest)—rushed to Raidock’s side.

She used advanced healing magic to mend his wounds.

The goddess was Marilyn.

The second sister, Camille, immediately stepped in to support the three.

Hydra’s in pain right now, but it’ll heal itself fast and attack again soon.

A once-in-a-lifetime chance—and no way to strike back!

Eva’s probably drained her magic with that defensive spell, so we can’t count on a max-tier incantation.

If Van or Alphard were here, we could follow up!

Just then, a man’s voice echoed from the back.

“Hmph. Kept you waiting, huh?”

I turn toward the voice, hope in my eyes, thinking it was the two of them showing up.

There, standing before me, was Zaid—the older brother of Kyle.

Inside my head, I scream.

(No way!!)

The single volume release date looks like it’s around December 28th.

I’ll write about it in my activity report once I confirm the details.