“Pierce through!”
I fired it off. The whirlwind, compressed and powered up to its absolute limit, slammed into the Arch Elf’s barrier.
But the barrier didn’t show any sign of breaking.
Nevertheless, the look on the Arch Elf’s face changed for the first time. His expression suggested he couldn’t believe what he was seeing.
I continued my attack, wringing out my mana.
I recalled the faces of the people I wanted to protect.
“Haaa…”
Father, Mother, Lilou, Big Sis, Claris, the people of the empire.
“…Hrnnnggg…”
Yuika, Yukine, Nanami…and Kousuke.
“…Uuuaaaaaaaaagh!”
There was a loud crack, like glass shattering. However, that was as far as my magic went.
Just breaking the barrier took everything I had. I just needed a bit more. The end was in sight. If I had only been able to extend my spell a bit more, I could have reached the Arch Elf.
Still. It was okay. After all, even if I couldn’t get all the way there…
“That was awesome, Ludie. Leave the rest to me.”
Kousuke would. He would make it the rest of the way.
He jumped off the ground with his stole and flew straight for the Arch Elf. It almost looked as if a spring had sent him flying up into the air.
“Finish this, Kousuke! Please!”
Since the Arch Elf wasn’t maintaining his barrier any longer, he should have now gained the resources to attack.
He launched several spells at Kousuke, but Kousuke landed on the ground for a moment, evaded them, deflected whatever he couldn’t dodge with his stole, and rapidly closed the distance between him and the necromancer.
Kousuke was so deftly and cleanly countering the Arch Elf’s attacks, it was almost as though he could see the future.
No matter where the Arch Elf fired his magic, he would never hit him. Kousuke’s movements were incredible enough to convince me as much. This was how Kousuke was when he got really serious. No one would be able to stop him when he was in the zone.
The Arch Elf let loose another spell at his opponent now that Kousuke was right in front of him. A jet-black blade shaped like a guillotine appeared before Kousuke.
Still, he didn’t stop. A spell like this wouldn’t stop him at all.
“He’ll finish it in the blink of an eye.”
His bladework was too fast for me to keep up with.
The moment his sheath flashed with light, his sword had already been swung. The Arch Elf had been cleaved in two, spell and all.
I went up to the Arch Elf as he began to transform into magic particles.
He had certainly been wrong for rampaging through the empire and for controlling the bodies of friend and foe alike. And yet, at one time, he may have been more concerned for the elven people than anyone else.
The same way I now felt the urge to protect everyone.
Without him, Leggenze likely would have continued abducting elves.
“Thanks to you, the empire and the elves you wished to protect are safe.”
My words may not have gotten through to him. Even then, there was something else I wanted to be sure to tell him.
“Thank you. Leave the future in the hands of the elves of today, and rest in peace.”