Cliff
CLIFF watched the events in a stupor. Ouka, the man who had overpowered Cliff and the others so effortlessly, was defeated in mere seconds, as if he never posed a threat from the start. Cliff trembled with fear as the reality sunk in.
B-But I have to fight…! We’ll all die if this continues…! Mustering his courage, Cliff set his sights on Eben.
Before Ouka lost, he had ordered Dram to target the chest. Perhaps the chest was the regenerating Golem’s weakness.
“Gandolf, go for the ches—”
In the middle of giving the order, Eben abruptly flung Dram at Gandolf.
Gandolf took a direct hit and staggered unsteadily. Jair took the chance to dash in close with the sledgehammer.
“P-Protect your forehead, Gandolf!” Cliff shouted reflexively, just as a metal clang reverberated through the room. Gandolf guarded against the incoming sledgehammer with his forearms.
But that didn’t stop Jair from swinging the sledgehammer a second time, then a third time.
“It appears Eben is a poor match for this Alloy Golem. The best plan of action is for me to destroy it,” Jair muttered to himself as he kept up his relentless assault.
With each blow from the subsequent strikes, silver sparks spurted from Gandolf’s arms. His arms were crushed into a deformed mess before he even had the chance to launch a counterattack.
His arms snapped off with a loud crack and clattered onto the ground.
“…No way…” Cliff uttered in shock, staring blankly at the armless Gandolf. His eyes shifted to the face of the man who had destroyed his Golem’s arms.
Is this really Master Roche…?!
His speech, conduct, and physical strength were unbelievable. Everything about him was different from the boy Cliff knew as his master.
Jair swung his sledgehammer back into the air to deliver the final blow. But before he could bring it down, he was knocked away from the side. He had taken a direct hit from Lovel’s spinning heel kick.
“L-Lovel!” Cliff exclaimed louder than he meant to.
Without looking at him, she barked, “Cliff, hurry up and run away!”
“What?!”
“I’m saying you’re in the way without Gandolf! You’ve done more than enough, so scram already!”
Her unexpected orders shocked Cliff. Her tone was so cold it was hard to believe that she was the Lovel he’d come to know.
Flustered to find Cliff simply standing there, saying and doing nothing, Lovel blurted, “Idiot! Can’t you tell it’s dangerous here?! Please just leave—” Her voice abruptly cut off. Dram had sprung to his feet without them noticing and nabbed Lovel.
“…?!”
Ouka was riding Dram’s back. Meanwhile, Lovel was hanging stupefied from Dram’s mouth.
“Wh-What the heck?! What the hell are you doing?!” she protested.
“I’m furious I have to back down, but Dram’s at a disadvantage… So I’m prioritizin’ my orders from the Church.” Dram dashed for the refinery’s exit as Ouka spoke. Ouka shouted over his shoulder, “You kids should run for it too! You can’t beat him. Takin’ that thing down is the Rabbis’ job.”
He disappeared with the wind, leaving that word of advice in his wake. There hadn’t been a moment to stop him. Jair clicked his tongue and turned his sights on Cliff.
“It appears my plans have failed yet again. I suppose I should eliminate any extraneous elements while I still have the chance.”
“…!”
A gaze filled with murderous intent bore into Cliff, making him tremble and his heart hammer. With both his arms missing, Gandolf stood motionless. Cliff lost the will to fight even more than his partner displayed.
“UWAAAAAHHH!”
Before he knew it, Cliff was sprinting away as fast as he could without caring what anyone thought. He dove outside the refinery and ran like his life depended on it. He kept glancing over his shoulder, thinking someone was hot on his tail.
But there were no signs of Jair following him. Cliff let out the longest sigh when he was confident he was in the clear.