Chapter 37

“…!” But Bash’s head didn’t fall off. The carotid artery was torn open, and blood began gushing out like a fountain. That sort of bleeding could be fatal to a human. “Glad that worked, but… Can you react to that?” The woman, on the other hand, had a broken left arm and was facing in the wrong direction, bleeding profusely. Her chest piece was split open, and two large mounds were exposed. “All right, this is where things start to get chaotic. It looks like my bones are going to break. Or maybe they’re already broken…” The woman readied her sword. She knew that, though the orc before her was bleeding profusely from its neck, it wouldn’t stop. The light was still in the orc’s eyes, and his body was emanating heat that turned to steam against the cold rain. Orc warriors do not stop, even when they receive wounds that would cause a human to despair. (He’s stronger than expected… So this is the Hero who killed the dragon…) In fact, the woman was more panicked than Bash looked. Based on her plans, she should have been able to dodge Bash’s sword just in the nick of time. Once, she had defeated an orc warrior using the same methods she was using now. By baring her breasts, she could stay the orc’s hand and distract him with his own lust. Get him thinking about what he could do after the battle, turning his murderous intent into a state of confused horniness. The orc she had once defeated had been a decorated warrior, but a Hero had to be of a higher caliber than that. This orc, after all, prioritized saving children over pursuing women. Her methods may have been too shortsighted for him. Still, the orc and the human woman had far different builds. The woman was physically inferior. Though Bash was losing a lot of blood, it was the woman who was growing exhausted first. So she stepped forward. To slash at Bash’s treelike neck with another blow. In response, Bash unleashed a blow at the woman’s head, as if to say, You can’t charm me. “‘Healing Wind’!” Bash’s sword slashed through thin air. The woman spun around and was enveloped by a magical wind. The wind, which had a color similar to that of fairy dust, healed the woman’s wounds in an instant. The woman’s wounds healed, leaving only Bash wounded. Now the situation was reversed somewhat. “…!” However, Bash’s slashing attacks were swift. His speed, which anyone would agree was monstrous, brought with it an immense destructive power, but it took too much buildup. He could not waste the opportunity given by the woman taking a second to heal. With one or two blows, he had her off-balance. The situation she’d feared if she took even a step back was exactly what happened. The third blow was aimed at the woman’s torso. “Guhhh!!!” The woman looked desperate, bringing her sword up to block. An incredible metallic clang echoed through the forest. The demon sword, known as indestructible, collided with the woman’s sword, creating an unusual impact. Even Bash was stunned by the impact, and he was sent stumbling several feet back. He looked up at the sky through a plume of dust rising, and he saw the woman spinning around in the air after being blown away. The woman seemed to use magic to right herself in the air and landed on a tree branch. “Hah! Hah! Hah!” The woman was breathing heavily, her exposed breasts rising and falling. But this was perhaps due to the fear of imminent death more than to exertion. She was now on the brink of death. Bash was faster than she expected, and she didn’t even have a chance to recover. His slashing attack was heavy, too. The woman’s torso would have been cut in two if she hadn’t imbued her sword with a huge amount of magical repelling power. “Gah!” There was no time for her to catch her breath. The woman immediately jumped from the tree branch. The next moment, the tree she was using as a foothold spun in the ground at an incredible speed, engulfing the surrounding trees and blowing them away. The woman landed softly and crouched. Bash’s sword passed over her head. She spun, carried away by the shock wave, and changed direction by sticking an elbow into the ground. Spinning her sword, she slammed it into Bash’s ankle, right in front of her. At the same time, Bash’s vertical slash landed behind the woman. As the earth and sand rained down, the woman felt a certain sensation as she crawled on her hands and knees to keep her distance. She’d swung her sword to defend herself, based on instinct. The woman herself didn’t even know which direction the slash was coming from or which direction she was defending herself against. However, as she heard the metallic clang, she knew her instincts had been correct. But she failed to understand that Bash’s vertical slash had cut through the ground and now attacked her from below. “Aaaargh!” She could not rely on luck. She raised her sword and unleashed another slashing attack on Bash. How long did the battle last? The sky was blocked by thick clouds and rain, and there was no sense of time. However, considering Bash’s war history, we can’t exactly call it a long battle, comparatively speaking. Bash had fought the great elf mage Thunder Sonia for three days and three nights, but no more than a day had gone by this time. Perhaps one day and one night, at most. “Hah… hah…” “…” Over the course of that one night, the surroundings had changed drastically. The shell of what was once called the Sacred Place was half destroyed, trees were torn down, and it looked as if a huge tornado had come through there. Meanwhile, the two of them were still standing. “Lord Bash, do you still intend to fight?” “…Of course.” Bash was badly injured. There were lacerations all over his body, some of which seemed to have gone to the arteries, and blood was spurting out. No matter how strong the orc was, it was clear he’d die if left like this. But the woman wasn’t much better off. Her left arm was bent in an odd direction, and blood was dripping from her head. The only reason it wasn’t a fatal injury was because she was a user of recovery magic. Even so, it seemed like she didn’t have enough magical power to be able to home in on healing specific parts. “If this continues, we’re both gonna die.” “I’m… Fine with that.” Mutual destruction. They both felt that premonition. Their powers were equal. It was impossible for either of them to inflict a fatal wound on the other with a single blow. The woman’s arm strength could not pierce Bash’s vitals, and Bash’s blows could not directly land on the woman. Little by little, they would get more and more injured, their strength would be diminished, but the battle would remain balanced. For now, they could still be healed with fairy dust or healing magic, but if they carried on like this, both of them would be injured to the point where recovery was no longer possible. And they were right at the point of no return. “An Orc Hero should not have to die such a pointless death, fighting with a nameless woman in this godforsaken place.” “…And you, no doubt you were a famous warrior during the war.” “Ah, but it’s different now. Even if you defeat me now, it won’t bring you honor. It will only bring you dishonor.” The woman regarded Bash. She had to admit that he was a truly great warrior. She’d never felt respect for someone like this before, just from crossing swords with them. Then the woman cried out. “Lady Rularula was a fine warrior! But why do you have to die to avenge her? Was she worth that much?!” “Why do you care about that?” “Because a fine warrior like you shouldn’t die in a place like this! You’re a warrior who can fight on equal terms with me! How many people are there on this continent who can say that? You should fight even greater enemies than me, and die in battle against them…not like this!” The woman suddenly raised her head and craned her neck to look off to the side. Two faces peeked out from the shadows of the forest that was untouched by destruction. Ludo and Luca. The two, protected by spirits, watching all this with pale faces. “Are you listening? Are you watching, children? A Hero is going to die because you can’t accept Rularula’s death! Is your revenge that important?! Is Rularula’s honor worth defending to the point of an Orc Hero’s death?” The woman continued to yell. “You whelps seem to be misunderstanding something, but I fought fair and square with Lady Rularula! I can swear it, on my past glory! It didn’t go down how you think it did. I didn’t engage in any cowardly sneak attacks! And I only left her corpse there out of urgency! Just like the Orc Hero did to the corpse of Leto, the beastkin Hero! Are you really going to blame me for that?” The woman continued to yell even more. “If you still want to avenge your enemy, that’s fine. But fight me yourselves! What’s the point of having someone else fight while you watch from the shadows, just because you know you can’t take me? Is that what you call defending Rularula’s honor? For shame!” In a sense, she was begging for mercy. She didn’t want to die in a place like this. Nor did she want Bash to die in a place like this. She was incensed that the brother and sister, the so-called arbiters of revenge, were just watching the battle. And Luca trembled at those words. “I—I…” Luca wanted to take vengeance herself. But witnessing the actual battle… She knew it was hopeless. She hadn’t asked Bash to help on a whim or anything. However, the battle between Bash and the enemy was unimaginably harsh and frightening. Bash ought to have been able to defeat any opponent easily. That was sort of what Luca had been expecting. Having seen the battle, Luca believed now that it had been a fair fight with Rularula. Her mother was strong, so if she’d died, it must have been because of underhanded means. That was what Luca had always thought, but now she could see it wasn’t true. Still… Even so… She could not let a blood relative fight against this monstrous opponent. That feeling was stronger than before the battle had begun. So she could not call for the fight to stop. She did not know what to do. It was why she’d asked for Bash’s help in the first place. “I… I think I’m good now.” It was Ludo who said that. “From the start, I was planning to take revenge by myself. But I’m not strong enough, and I’ll never be able to win. So I thought there was no choice but to ask my master to fight for me… Only… That won’t do anything for my master’s honor, my mother’s honor, or our honor as siblings.” Luca suddenly seemed to lose strength. She fell to her knees on the wet ground, tears dripping from her eyes. “I was… Too hasty.” Ludo murmured, remembering those long days of hopelessness. “Master, I’m sorry for making you fight this long. I don’t know how many years it’s going to take, but I’ll train properly, from the basics, and one day fight this woman again. So for now…” “…If Ludo insists… Then…” Luca spoke in a strangled sort of voice. The reason she asked Bash for help was to protect her brother. If her brother gave up on the idea of defeating the woman as soon as possible, then she could stop worrying. There was no way he could win in his current state, but you never know what’ll happen in the future. One day, Ludo and Luca would gain confidence. There would come a day when they had trained enough to believe it was the right time to risk it all, and fight, and maybe die. When that day came, they would not hesitate. Luca was sure of it. “…Right.” If the kids had come to that decision, then Bash had no choice but to sheathe his sword as well. Seeing this, the woman let out a sigh of relief. “…Children of Rularula. I’m sure you’ll become fine warriors. I was prepared to die at any time, but… For you, I think I’ll avoid death where I can, so as to be waiting for you someday.” The woman sheathed her sword, turned on her heel, and started walking slowly away while casting a recovery spell on herself. Bash watched her retreating form, hesitating. Bash had no opposition to the twins’ decision. Not being able to avenge Rularula… Well, that was fine. Bash didn’t really want to take revenge. As the woman said, if Rularula’s death was the result of a fair fight, then it would be foolish to try to avenge her anyway. But the question was whether or not the spirits would be satisfied with this. Would they be all right with such a lackluster resolution? “Hmm…” Suddenly, Bash felt something strange. The pounding of the rain had ceased. Bash looked up to the sky, palms held aloft. There were gaps in the thick clouds, and light was beginning to shine through. Blue skies were returning to the succubi nation. “Hmm… It’s all right, then?” The fact that the rain had ceased must mean that the anger of the water spirits had subsided. Bash wasn’t too sure, but at any rate, it seemed the spirits were satisfied. In that case, there was no reason for Bash to pay attention to that woman any longer. And with his proposal being turned down just the other day… “Hey, woman.” Still, Bash called out to the woman. “Lord Bash, when addressing a woman whose name you don’t know, I recommend that you say ‘miss,’ or ‘ma’am’ instead of ‘woman.’” “Hmm, is that so? I’ll remember it. Thank you.” “You’re welcome. So what do you need? I think you should get some treatment, too…?” The woman shrugged and spoke in an aloof manner, but her hand was resting on the sword at her waist. No doubt she was still on her guard. But of course Bash had no desire to fight her anymore. There was just one thing he wanted to say. “You’re the first enemy to draw with me since Thunder Sonia.” “It’s an honor to be ranked alongside the great elf mage. So?” “I’m proud to have fought against you and survived.” At those words, the woman stopped in her tracks. She gripped the hilt of the sword at her waist and looked up at the sky. Her mouth tightened, loosened, tightened again, then she spoke. “Then I’m honored to have survived, too.” After saying that, the woman waved a hand in the air and disappeared into the half-destroyed forest. Her steps seemed lighter than before… Thus, Rularula’s children, Ludo and Luca, failed in their attempt to avenge her untimely death.