There are three left. My stamina is severely depleted.
A battle is not just about swinging a sword. A captain must also consider strategy and tactics, and protect the safety of their subordinates. Rational thought and action ensure victory, while rushing into a trap is the height of folly.
With my Wide-Area Mind’s Eye, I locate the three remaining pursuers. They were still looking for me, huh? How long have they been at this? They really have nothing better to do. I, on the other hand, was incredibly busy.
“Good evening, Priscilla. Don’t you think it’s a beautiful starry sky?”
It’s already night. It’s gotten dark all around. I wonder if the brigade is having dinner. I’m pretty full, but I’m still growing, you know.
“Where the hell have you been? I’m tired of waiting.”
You should have just gone to sleep if you were tired of waiting. I would have kept you company. Then we could have had some morning coffee.
“My apologies. Please wait a little longer, if possible.”
I roll the Flashbang I received from Orietta at my feet, close my eyes, and cover my ears. Suddenly, “BANG!”
It was all in vain. My eyes and ears were fully assaulted by the Flashbang, and we all writhed on the ground. The only saving grace was that I had thrown it myself. Because I was protected, my recovery was slightly faster.
With Godspeed and Wide-Area Mind’s Eye, I scoop up Sophia and flee. I can tell Sophia is in pain, her eyes closed and ears covered, but I need to get some distance.
Once we were far enough away, I push Sophia down again, hold her hands above her head, and brace for the Platinum Laser.
“Sophia, are you angry too?”
I’ve asked this question several times, but why did I make her angry? I did something wrong… I have no memory of it. Does my memory often fade?
“…A little.”
She’s angry?! Why? Didn’t Christine explain the job properly? Guarding a Duke is an honorable task.
“Didn’t you hear from Christine? The job was reconnaissance and guarding.”
“…”
Sophia turns her face away. She seems angry, but not seriously. If she were truly angry, a ball of light would be targeting me at full power by now. I feel a slight twinge of guilt, but I force a kiss to her neck.
“No…”
Oops, rejection! She usually goes along with it… Is this also a trap?! Saying “no” but actually wanting it. That’s quite an advanced technique.
I’m not someone who falls for such a trap. Besides, when Sophia, who normally wouldn’t say “no,” says it, it’s even more intriguing. Today is a day for more forceful actions.
I quickly remove Sophia’s clothes… Huh? She’s not resisting, and they come off easily. It seems my assumption that “no” was a fake was correct.
I quickly strip off my clothes and cover Sophia. It’s all about the flesh, after all. Her sensually endowed body is unmatched in the White Lily Corps.
“Sophia…”
Her skin, tinged with a faint pink, looked incredibly alluring, as if she were in heat. I trail my tongue over the soft peaks of her breasts.
“Ah… nngh… No…”
With one hand using my tongue and the other finger with Godspeed, sometimes fiercely, sometimes gently, I make Sophia writhe in pleasure over time.
“Ah… an… Haaah! Ugh… Haa…nnn…”
Even as she writhes erotically, she doesn’t pull away. My partner has grown from slime to a Petty Knife. I resist the urge to pierce her with a Buster Sword and instead thrust into Sophia.
“Ahhh… Ugh… Haa…nnnaah… Ahh.”
Sophia’s core, which accepts me so readily, clings to my partner as if unwilling to let go. I thrust in and out several times, giving her unbearable pleasure.
“Ah… Haa… Nngh… Ugh, Foo… Nngh…”
Ejaculation. I came so much I thought I might overflow. Sophia’s body trembles in response. It seems I’ve lasted until my hit points ran out.
I am very satisfied. Sometimes, something like this is nice. After it was over, as we lay embracing each other, five lasers pierced through my abdomen from left to right.
“So… Sophia…”
“I already said I didn’t want it. Hmph.”
Her final “hmph” was cute, but the blood flowing from me wouldn’t stop. I managed to appease her and earn her forgiveness, but how much of that was a trap? Two left.
A wounded warrior walks. Blood flows, and his stamina is at its limit. His legs are without strength as he walks. A trail of blood follows the warrior.
A woman in the distance notices. The scent of blood. Her heart pounds at the smell of blood, which she hasn’t experienced in a long time. The woman parts from her companions and alone, follows the trail of blood.
The wounded warrior collapses. As if after a hard-fought battle, his ragged clothes are bloodstained, and he no longer moves.
The trail of blood continues. The woman finds it, scoops some up with her finger, and brings it to her mouth. An indescribable sweetness, a lewdness that makes one writhe. She craves this blood.
“Someone has surely killed him. A regrettable loss. At the very least, let me make him a Zombie and keep him with me until the end of time…”
The woman standing before the fallen warrior smiles like a demon.
I jolt upright and seize Rufina’s lips! Don’t you go killing people on me, take this instead.
I transfer the blood in my mouth, my own blood, into Rufina’s mouth. Caught off guard, she swallows the blood without resistance.
Poor Rufina. The sudden influx of blood overloads her magic power, and she sinks into a state of ecstasy, akin to magical intoxication.
Ugh, it’s disgusting. Even though it’s my own blood, my mouth is full of it, tasting undeniably metallic. This was the plan I came up with when I received the Platinum Laser from Sophia, to deal with Rufina.
Dubbed “Kiss of Blood to Induce Fainting,” it seems to have been a complete success. …No sense of style. I had my wound healed, but I had saved the flowing blood separately.
Rufina is a Necromancer who replenishes her magic power from blood. My blood seems to be special, so its effects are also special. Looking at Rufina, she’s twitching. This is the first time I’ve seen Rufina anywhere other than a Bed, and I revel in my victory more than necessary.
“Mikael. It has been a while.”
I had forgotten. That Rossa was also with her. Looking back, Rossa, in skeletal mode, emanates a terrifyingly dark aura, enough to drive a normal person insane if they were nearby.
“It has been a while, Rossa. What about meat?”
“My apologies. It is likely that my Lord’s magic has been over-accumulated, and this manifestation is a safety measure. My power is overflowing at the moment.”
I can see that. It’s even blacker than the underground of the Asht Empire where I first met him. Is his voice slightly echoing? Or is it the resonance of the skull?
“Are you going to fight? You too, Rossa?”
Frankly, my stamina is depleted. But what is this sense of fulfillment in my heart?! I can’t wait to fight Priscilla. If you’re going to interfere now, I’ll obliterate you at an atomic level.
“I do desire to be defeated, but at present, I am more concerned for my Lord. I am well aware of the power of Mikael-sama’s blood, but to this extent…”
That’s a good answer. A loyal retainer concerned for his master. I wonder if I’ve ever been worried about.
“Please take care of Rufina. Carry her to the brigade. Also, if you’re going, you should attach some meat, or there will be trouble.”
“Thank you. I shall arrive to be defeated one day. Until then, I bid you good health.”
Leaving Rufina to Rossa should be fine. I search for Priscilla with Wide-Area Mind’s Eye.
She’s easy to find. Priscilla is sitting by the edge of a small plaza with a fountain, scooping water.
Please wait for me, Priscilla. Today, I will make you an supreme existence. For all humanity… limited to men… about thirty percent of them will be akin to a god that makes the heart dance. I arrive in Mode Three. Last, Priscilla.
“I have kept you waiting.”
The small fountain features stone statues of a naked man and woman reaching for an angel, a grand construction that seems to say even gods are within reach.
Priscilla, sitting by the water’s edge, scooping water with a pensive gaze, is more beautiful than the nude statue.
“Are you finished? Where is everyone else…?”
Her dignified voice drifts into the night air, and I am reminded anew of Priscilla’s nobility.
“Everyone else is likely resting by now. They were quite tough.”
“I imagine so… They’re from the White Lily Corps, after all… And aren’t you part of the White Lily Corps too?”
Oh, you knew! I am Mikael Shin, captain of the White Lily Corps. And, by the way, a Baron of the Asht Empire.
“You just do as you please! Guarding the Duke, you say! Don’t mess with me, did you charge ahead alone again?”
No, that’s a misunderstanding. I invited you first, Priscilla. We could have had a lovely job together. And Anneliese too, of course.
“Priscilla, we can talk later. Today, let’s fight.”
At times like this, I was always passive. Fighting is trivial. Fighting creates nothing. It’s just emptiness. But I am changing. I can’t stop my desire to use this new sword.
“That’s unusual… I don’t dislike it!”
She rises from the edge of the fountain and effortlessly lifts her heavy Halberd, channeling ultra-vibration. The vibration transmitted from the blade shakes the air.
I draw the sword Orietta made for me. It’s my first brand-new sword since becoming a mercenary. I’d always made do with used ones, and how many had I broken because they couldn’t withstand my speed?
Now, I will perform my first virgin kill with a brand-new sword. I will infuse the sword with Priscilla’s blood. And after that…
“Light!”
I raise my sword high and cry out. Light explodes, enveloping and shaping the sword, transforming the Short Sword into a Buster Sword, the light erupting.
“You…”
This is the masterpiece of Orietta and Sophia’s collaboration, the Sword of Light. From the protrusions extending from the sword’s guard, a Platinum Laser materializes and extends towards the blade, covering the body and growing in length depending on the magic power, exceeding that of a Buster Sword.
The light that forms the blade is a fusion of Sophia’s magic and mine, possessing destructive power equivalent to the Platinum Laser. With Godspeed added, there is nothing in this world that cannot be cut.
The Sword of Light, shining in the dark night, is painful to look at directly. It radiates a brilliance that threatens to blind, like being subjected to arc welding up close.
Orietta said that its brilliance could be controlled by how magic is used, but this is my first real battle, and I got carried away and made it too bright. It could be useful for blinding enemies. It can also serve as a torch in dark places.
“This is excellent. It is the strongest sword in the world.”
That is likely not an exaggeration. To cut with a laser, it’s practically a beam saber. An essential item for combat robots, or for cosmic knights who swing them with “vroom, vroom” sounds, engaging in dance-like duels.
“It’s too good for you. You’re going to die here.”
I wouldn’t mind dying. To activate the laser part of this Sword of Light, I have to shout it out loud. Does it have voice recognition software? The light appears with my voice.
Honestly, it’s embarrassing. To be a grown man, to raise a sword and shout “Light!” at the top of my lungs, is embarrassing. And to top it off, it doesn’t recognize it unless it’s at a certain volume.
There’s a reason for raising it. To be conspicuous with the shining Sword of Light. Sand Dragons glow to announce their presence when they release magic stones. I’ll follow their example and make myself known as Mikael Shin on the battlefield… No, that’s all a lie.
When the Sword of Light emits its laser, it simultaneously generates high-temperature heat. A radius of fifty centimeters around the blade will result in more than just burns. If I were to shout “Light!” while it was still at my waist, a large hole would open in my left side.
In other words, in exchange for the highest performance, I must act unnecessarily cool. If I were to do that on a hellish battlefield, my comrades would likely throw stones at me from behind.
“Priscilla. Today, I will make you a supreme goddess.”
“I will take your head today!”
In this battle, I will create a supreme goddess.
