Elven Village Defense Battle ⑥

[Philimes]

I discard hesitation.

I unleash my maximum火力 magic toward Yugo.

The skywind magic, level 4, "Ryūfū."

In essence, this magic generates a tornado.

It may sound unimpressive at first, but on Earth, actual tornadoes are natural disasters.

While Japan rarely experiences tornado damage, in places like America, they can cause catastrophic destruction, lifting entire houses into the air.

The storm’s winds can easily consume a human.

Only those with strength beyond human limits—like Shun—or entities classified as Danger Class A or higher might have resisted.

But Yugo has lost all skills and his stats have decreased.

Years have passed since then. Even if he were to begin anew, he would not regain his former strength.

I know he possesses one of the Seven Deadly Sins skills.

But the skill he holds is likely Lust.

According to elven records, the Lust skill grants mind-control abilities.

It induces an exceptionally strong indoctrination, though it is not a direct combat skill.

His status may have increased slightly through titles, but nothing more.

My magic cannot withstand it.

The whirlwind devours soldiers—and their lives.

It advances toward Yugo.

"U—raa!"

Dissipated by Yugo’s sword.

What!?

That magic should be among the most powerful I can wield!

My magic attack power exceeds 1,500!

How… was that possible?

"Ookaa-chan! Missed ya! Didn't think I'd find you here, though!"

Yugo shouts.

The voice carries a quality of instability—madness lingers in it.

"Was gonna pay my respects after destroying your homeland, stealing your precious master's students, and plunging you into utter despair. So why are you here? Huh?"

No answer given. He fires another spell.

This time, a wind projectile aimed directly at Yugo alone.

Yugo deflects it with his sword.

"Aha-ha-ha! You really think that weak magic would work? You think I'd stay powerless forever?!"

Assessing the spell as ineffective, he draws his bow.

As an elf, I am capable with a bow.

He imbues the bow with wind magic and releases it.

The arrow imbued with wind power accelerates, flying like a bullet.

It is as if the previous wind projectile now possesses physical form.

Yet this time, it is avoided.

"Surprising, isn't it? Want to know? The reason I've grown this strong!"

Yugo casually pushes off the ground.

One step closes the distance between us in an instant.

Backing away, I nock another arrow and release it.

Earlier, Yugo did not deflect the arrow with his sword—he dodged it.

That means the sword could not have deflected it.

Even if it was wishful thinking, he likely felt the impact would be dangerous.

As expected, Yugo shifts sideways from the arrow's trajectory and avoids it.

His forward momentum slows as a result, increasing the distance between us.

"Don't run away! We're not rivals, me and Kō-chan!"

I release another arrow.

At the same time, the surrounding elves, who had been moving in coordination, launch a synchronized assault on Yugo.

"Get real!"

Yugo deflects the cascading magic and arrows with a gust.

This was not anticipated.

I issue a mental command for the nearby elves to retreat.

Yugo is beyond the reach of half-measures.

"Let's continue this conversation! I mean, I'm actually grateful to you! Thanks to the agony that nearly drove me mad, I am who I am now!"

It wasn't "nearly mad," but outright mad.

No— I have no right to say that.

It was me who drove Yugo mad.

"This power is what I gained! You know one of them, right? Skill: 'Lust.' The ultimate tool for controlling another at will!"

I release an arrow.

It is evaded.

And one more! I possess the power to become invincible! That is the skill 'Greed'! The ultimate ability—stealing a portion of an enemy's strength upon defeat! Do you know why I’m on the front lines? Because the more enemies I kill, the more strength I can absorb!

I hesitated—just for an instant.

Skill: 'Greed.'

One of the Seven Deadly Sins. Upon killing another, it grants partial acquisition of their power.

The acquired attribute is random—could be stats, a skill, or skill points.

The skill does not copy the target's ability directly. Instead, it seizes it at a reduced level.

Even if a level 9 skill is taken, it reverts to level 1.

That explains it.

Why they possess just enough stats to lightly deflect my magic—yet still refrain from ranged attacks, continuing only with pursuit.

Yugo does not refrain from long-range attacks. He likely cannot.

Even after having his magic skill stripped, he remains at Level 1.

Level 1 magic is negligible. Even if used, its effect is minimal.

No.

That is irrelevant now.

What matters is that he has grown stronger using that skill.

How many lives has he taken?

How many sins has he committed to reclaim such power?

He halted for a moment.

In that moment, Yugo closed the distance and raised his sword.

"Here!"

"Ku—!?"

The swung blade pierced through the wind armor I normally wear, slicing shallowly across my arm.

I immediately triggered a wind explosion between us, using the recoil to create distance.

Damage will also affect me, but in close combat, I am at a disadvantage.

"Ah. Not bad."

Yugo shows no visible damage.

He fires arrows without hesitation.

Yugo sidesteps lightly.

But preparation is complete.

I did not fire arrows aimlessly.

If Yugo were thinking clearly, he would have noticed I was retreating in a wide arc.

The arrows embedded in the ground serve as anchors for a barrier.

Output is lower than the one that once covered the village, but this is a barrier unreplicable by modern techniques—modeled after ancient magic.

Yugo is trapped within the barrier.

Not merely enclosed.

Air is rapidly draining from within.

Controlling wind means manipulating air.

And though this world differs in many ways from Earth, it does contain oxygen.

The laws of this world are not different from those of Earth. They only appear different because magic and skills have been added as new rules atop the original ones.

Therefore, humans cannot survive without air, just as on Earth.

The barrier does not change form, but the air within it will rapidly deplete, causing pressure to shift abruptly.

The human body cannot withstand such changes. Even if it could, suffocation would eventually lead to death.

This is my original magic, developed independently.

Yugo is desperately attempting to break the barrier. Useless.

Though output is low, it replicates a primordial barrier.

I cannot activate it without significant risk, but once activated, the barrier cannot be broken.

I have won.

Yes— I let my guard down.

A lightning strike pierces me from the side.

"K—kya?!"

Consciousness fractures for an instant.

At the same time, the maintenance of the barrier becomes neglected.

Ugo did not miss the opening.

"Hahaha! That was close! Really close!? Nice one, Julius!"

Ugo praised the one who had cast the lightning spell upon me, now that the barrier had been broken.

There stood Julius, smiling.

When Ugo was declared a hero, she too had been declared a saint.

As a saint, the attendant of a hero, her presence here was not unexpected.

In fact, her absence would have been more unusual.

Careless.

I had focused entirely on Ugo, neglecting awareness of my surroundings.

This meant I could not mock Ugo’s actions.

With me paralyzed by lightning, Ugo brought his sword down without mercy.

I barely, just barely dodge it—but not entirely. My abdomen is deeply slashed.

Pain!

Pain!

Pain!

"You're making this interesting. But I'm winning. Heh heh. I won't kill you. You'll have to watch your people—the elves—fall into ruin with your own eyes. What should I do with the rest of my class? If they cooperate, I might take them into my ranks. Resist, and I'll torture them right before Okacchan’s eyes. They’ll look so pleased then. Ahahaha! I can’t wait. Isn’t that right!?"

Please stop!

I can’t stop it.

But the pain won’t let my body move properly.

Yurichan pushes my body down onto the ground.

"Still alive, I see. Opposite of before. How does it feel, cowering on the ground? Can't you feel the dread? The despair? You won't be broken by indoctrination. I'll leave you fully aware as I drag you down into the abyss—until your mind shatters."

Pain.

Fear.

It is over. I cannot continue.

I can no longer endure this.

I can no longer endure this.

Help me, please.

Someone, please save me.

Julius was blown off me.

A shadow lunging at Yugo.

Yugo abruptly stepped backward to avoid it.

A man stands before me, shield raised.

A少年 stands in front of Yugo, sword raised.

I apologize for my lateness, Teacher.

Leave the rest to us.

With those words, I lost consciousness.