Chapter 2:
Zoras, the Cataclysm
-1-
LUNAÈRE, POMERA, PHILIA, NOBLE, and I were heading toward the castle where Zero and the final assassin sent by Naiarotop were waiting.
As we were moving, we could hear screams in the distance. I turned to look and saw a chaos dragon swooping down toward a crowd of evacuating people running down the main road. It drew in a deep breath, and a red light of magic gathered at its mouth. It was going to burn them away with its fiery breath.
“Gah!” I knew that we needed to hit the main source of this as fast as possible in order to limit damages, but that didn’t mean I could just stand there and watch people die.
I stopped before I could think, but if I cast a spell from this range to wipe out that dragon, I’d hit the people nearby as well.
“Hiya!”
Philia acted while I hesitated. She crossed her hands and two huge arms appeared, their fingers interlaced to protect the people from the dragon like an umbrella. The fire breath from the dragon bounced off the backs of the hands without reaching the people underneath.
“Hraaagh!”
The chaos dragon rose higher, putting space between it and this unknown enemy. That’s the moment I chose to cast my spell.
“Apocalypse!”
The dragon of raging fire rushed forward, slamming into the monster’s flank. The flames from its fangs licked at the chaos dragon’s entire body, and the chaos dragon writhed as it fled into the sky.
“That takes care of the immediate problem…but it looks like the defense squad doesn’t have enough people. I was worried about that…” I said.
While Kotone and the others might be stronger than normal for their level, there was no way those four were going to be able to protect the entire capital alone.
“Yeah…” said Philia sadly.
Her hands might have protected the people from the direct flames of the chaos dragon’s breath, but it couldn’t stop the spreading sparks from starting fires in the city. I could see several people collapsed, probably with burns from the heatwave. While they were crouched, curled up in pain from their injuries, other people pushed them out of the way in their desperation to flee.
“Sorry… Philia wants to go help those people,” said Philia.
It was a simple fact that we needed people to fight Naiarotop’s last assassin. And that wasn’t something we could put off, or there’d just be more extensive damage. This was the last assassin—someone powerful enough to successfully kidnap Zero, who was also high level. I was expecting him to be more powerful than Lucifer… But maybe it would be better for Philia and Pomera to work on saving the people instead.
“…Pomera-san, can you go with Philia-chan?” I said. “Heal the wounded with your white magic. And…Noble, would you protect them for me?”
I looked at Lunaère, and she nodded without hesitation. She agreed.
“…Okay. I’ll go help save people. I’m praying that the two of you stay safe,” said Pomera after a moment of uncertainty. She bobbed her head in a bow and then ran off with Philia.
“And you look after Lunaère, Kanata!” said Noble, before stretching his tongue out and wrapping it into the shape of a thumbs-up.
My level did jump up to the mid-five thousands after I defeated Lucifer with Lunaère, but she was still a much higher level than me. That didn’t mean I could just let myself be the one being protected all the time, though.
“Of course I will!” I replied.
“Both you and Noble…” said Lunaère, her cheeks tinged pink in embarrassment, but her expression quickly turned serious again.
Noble chased after Philia and Pomera toward the injured. Lunaère and I exchanged a look, then set off toward the castle again.
“Let’s finish this with a swift strike…to save the capital, and all of Locklore,” I said.
It would also bring a close to this drawn-out battle with Naiarotop.
We easily leapt over the castle gate, over walls, and onto roofs until we made our way to the highest roof of the castle.
There stood a man who looked like a magic user, wearing a large hat and ostentatious robes. Chains of pale blue light wrapped around his arms and legs, the same as with Reniement and Lucifer. This man probably also had his actions restricted, like them, after being kept prisoner in the higher beings’ realm before he was brought here.
I didn’t see Zero, who this man had kidnapped and supposedly turned into an energy source for creating these chaos dragons. This man was the more important one, though. We’d have time to search for Zero after defeating him.
“Ah, I’ve been waiting,” he said. “Kanata Kanbara, traveler from another world, and Lunaère, the poor lich girl. I know all about you. The hubris of that farcical god told me everything.”
He waved casually to us, like he was waving to a friend.
ZORAS RODAL REGREHI
Race: Lich
Lv: 6486
HP: 27241/27241
MP: 42807/42807
I gulped. The last assassin. Zoras Rodal Regrehi.
The thing was, while his level was high, it wasn’t as absurdly high as Lucifer’s, which had been over 8000. I was around 5000, while Lunaère was around 7000. We should actually have the advantage if we both joined the fight.
“I’m guessing that was the Status Check of a traveler,” said Zoras. “Are you feeling hopeful now? I hate to be the bearer of bad news…but even if you fight me two to one, you still won’t defeat me.”
It was like he’d read my mind, and he said it like he was talking to an ignorant little child he felt sympathy for. I was left speechless for a moment.
“Besides, even if you manage to take my head, it won’t remove the bomb I put in place,” he continued. “And if you could, do you think getting rid of it would make the higher beings leave Locklore alone when it’s lost its future? If they really wanted to, they could wipe the entire world out at their leisure. It’s a dead end for both you and Locklore.”
He continued his eloquent speech as if he never intended to wait for my response in the first place.
Even if we fought back, everything might be erased anyway. Veranta already pointed that possibility out. If we eliminated all ways for the higher beings to interfere with the world, our enemy probably had the power to just destroy the entirety of Locklore from the outside.
I hadn’t come here with the intention of accepting my enemy’s argument, but Zoras wasn’t threatening us or making fun of us. He spoke calmly as he laid out the facts, and I found myself shaken.
“Kanata, don’t you think this childish, mindless rebellion has gone on long enough? Locklore will never have a happy ending, no matter how much you struggle.”
“…Say whatever you want, I can’t stop now,” I said. “I’m just doing everything I can do. That’s how I atone to Locklore for getting it dragged into this.”
“There is a smarter way, Kanata. I swear to you, you can strike back against these pitiful buffoons. They’ve grown fat from indulgence as they live for nothing more than consuming limitless entertainment to ward off the monotony gnawing at their souls because they think they know it all.”
I waited for what Zoras would say next, my grip still tight on the hilt of my sword.
My enemy was dictating this encounter, I was getting swallowed up. But my unease with that was being beaten by my desire to learn just a little more from this mysterious Zoras before we fought.
And if he did indeed have some sort of magical solution for Locklore, which was doomed to disappear, then I wanted to hear it.
“Stop resisting. Die for me. Both of you. Once I kill the two of you, I will return to the higher beings, where they have promised to make me a Lower God. I will use my position to raise hell in their world next. In that way, I will get revenge for you. Ha ha ha, how does that sound? That’s much better than risking a fight where I might die as well, wouldn’t you say?” He stroked his chin, speaking without hesitation.
His argument was selfish and absurd. I felt like I vaguely understood Zoras’s position from the higher beings’ perspective, but there was nothing else to be gained in that. Just like Reniement and Lucifer, Zoras just wanted to destroy everything he could get his hands on. There was no point in continuing a conversation with that kind of person.
Without another word, I rushed toward Zoras, closing in. Lunaère used space-time magic to teleport behind him at the same time.
He struck the flat of my blade from the side, shifting it off target, then he ducked to avoid the swift kick Lunaère launched at him from behind.
I immediately swung the other direction with my sword, right at his neck.
“Gate.”
Light enveloped him, and he disappeared, then reappeared above us.
“Ha ha, I thought it might go like this. I just had to try anyway. Hm…I don’t have much time, however, and this looks like it might take a while.” A magic circle appeared around Zoras. “Space-time Magic Level 22: Garden of the Muse.”
Something about Zoras seemed to change drastically.
“Now, let’s begin. Try your best, won’t you? So that you have no regrets.”
-2-
I GLARED UP AT Zoras as he floated.
The magic circle around him was still held there, and there was something menacing about him now. What was that Garden of the Muse space-time spell he just activated?
“Lunaère-san, do you know that spell?” I asked.
“It’s a space-time spell that makes everything pass through the target. How troublesome…” she said, her eyes narrowed in annoyance.
“Makes everything pass through…?”
None of our attacks would work. That seemed a bit more than troublesome.
“It’s supposedly a rare spell, but I just happened to see someone use it recently,” Lunaère added. “The caster’s mental resources are split as long as they are using the spell, creating significant openings in their actions. He likely won’t be able to use any other spells effectively. Also, there are certain spells that interfere directly with magic that will work on him, as well as gravity spells, as they can interact with additional dimensions. It is not an unbeatable spell, by any means.”
Zoras clapped. “Well done. The perfect textbook answer from the little lich girl, Lunaère! Now let us see it in action!” He swept his arms wide, and a golden khakkhara staff appeared in his hand.
“Gravity Bomb,” said Lunaère, pointing toward Zoras. He moved far to the side, and a moment later, Lunaère’s spell erupted in the space he’d just occupied, black light imploding and exploding.